The Altered.

Chapter II.

It was raining when the notification came through.

Miles had not been sleeping; he'd been unable to get a wink since he'd gone to bed. And perhaps that was a good thing, for he wouldn't have seen the message otherwise.

Of course, Miles had considered that perhaps this was all an absurd prank.

But he hadn't let himself dwell on that possibility for too long. For if this was legitimate, he didn't want to risk brushing it off as a tease.

The notification had come with a set of ten very specific instructions. Not to mention, it had been issued from the curious application Miles had discovered on his phone earlier.

He had packed a bag swiftly and silently, but he had no weapons. Despite the fact that the instructions clearly outlined what he was meant to do, he left all items that could be used as weapons where they belonged in the house - he found that to be too extreme a measure. He left the kitchen knives in their drawers, no matter how tempting those especially were.

And on that note, Miles had to confess to himself that he didn't know what was happening. There had been mention of a virus in the message, and that unsettled the boy. And yet, such thing as a virus surely wouldn't provide warning; it was impossible to predict when an outbreak might occur.

As Miles sprinted away from his house and towards Ty's, he reminded himself to later inspect the app he had found on his phone earlier that day with his friends. It could not be deleted, or opened, but it seemed that it was the source of the notification that held the instructions.

Miles' heart was hammering in time with each large stride he took.

He knew that Ty was over sixteen. Though Miles had told himself that it was imperative he follow all instructions - and one of those instructions noted explicitly not to interact with anybody Altered - there were some exceptions.

He would not go anywhere without telling Ty, wherever these instructions were leading him.

Miles darted from alleyway to alleyway, taking the fastest route he knew. Passing through the dark, clean alleys reminded Miles of times before he and Ty were so open; times when there would be fleeting kisses, daring nights of climbing out windows and hiding in the darkness until they were discovered or accepted that they couldn't go for much longer without being found. A small smile found its way onto Miles' lips - he missed the daring life he and Ty used to live.

His bag bounced on his back as he dashed from an alley and onto the streets. He felt more exposed, here, and it unnerved him to consider the kind of things that could happen at night. None of The Altered would be lurking at this hour, but if the notification was truthful and everybody fifteen or younger also received it, there should be other people on the loose. With weapons, more likely than not.

Miles forced on an extra burst of speed.

There were hardly ten minutes until one a.m. when Miles reached Ty's front door. He was gasping for breath, trying to catch it as he beat demandingly on the perfectly-painted white wooden door. In the darkness, Miles' eyes glittered fearfully and in his pocket, his phone still buzzed with the relentless notification.

Then, after almost one minute of painstakingly waiting in silence, Miles watched the door swing open.

Miles looked up, terror written all over his face. "We're all going to die," he breathed, and watched as fear contorted Ty's face, too.

"Miles," Ty said, reaching out to touch Miles' cheek lightly then moving to rest his hand on Miles' shoulder. "Calm down. Tell me why."

Miles took in a long, slow breath, and slowly confessed, "Sorry, I just needed to get your attention. I don't know if we're going to die." Before Ty could get upset, he added quickly, "I didn't mean to be so dramatic, but I sort of meant it. I think there's something wrong, Ty. Really wrong. Do you have your phone?"

Ty looked around outside, then took Miles' hand and led him in, closing the door behind them. "Miles, do you know what the time is? Why would I have my phone on me now? And why do you have a backpack?"

Miles pressed his side against the wall. "Something serious is going on. You remember that app we found on my phone earlier?" Ty nodded. "Yeah, well, now it's sending me notifications saying that soon, some kind of virus is going to spread. And that I'm safe from it or something. Look, Ty, I don't get it, but I'm doing what it says because I think it's safer to."

What Miles didn't tell Ty was that he shouldn't be talking to anybody the age of sixteen or over - anybody Altered. And that included Ty.

"Can I see the notification?" Ty asked, frowning.

Miles hesitated, then started to root through his pocket for his phone. He took it out and passed it to Ty, but not before checking the time. 12:56am. "I have to be out of here before one o'clock."

"...Why?" Ty started to concentrate on reading the long notification that was still on Miles' lock screen. His frown deepened. When Miles didn't answer, Ty looked up again, only after finishing reading. "Miles," he said with a somewhat forced laugh. "You don't believe this, do you? What kind of app sends you an ominous message and says you have to follow its rules by the next hour?"

Miles looked uncertain. "This one, okay? Something creepy is happening and until I know what it is, I'm going to follow these rules."

"You were probably right, earlier today. When you said the boys were just playing around on your phone."

"No," Miles objected, firmly shaking his head. "I don't think so. Just, if you're not going to listen, don't worry about it, okay? You can go back to sleep now, I just wanted to tell you. In case - in case this really is something bad."

"It's probably just a stupid joke," Ty said, but his eyes had softened.

Time was running out before the end of the hour. "Maybe," Miles responded. "But it's better to be safe than sorry. It says I have to run... I don't know where to. I'll find somewhere."

"I'm assuming," Ty said, with something like an amused grin, "you don't want me to accompany you?"

Miles looked apologetic. "I love you, Ty, but until I know if this thing is legit, I'm keeping you out of it. It could be dangerous. No point getting you involved when it clearly states people like you shouldn't be."

"'People like me'," Ty echoed with a scoff, handing back Miles' phone. One minute until he needed to be out of this house. "It all sounds ridiculous, but I think I kind of understand. Make sure you stay safe - I want to see you at school tomorrow. Don't go and get yourself killed."

And that, Miles realised, was one of the benefits of The Alteration. The Altered were completely faithful in others; they need not ask more clarifying questions. If Miles had been Ty, he would have asked if his parents knew he was out, where to find him if he wasn't back by morning, the like. But Miles wasn't Ty, and he was just grateful that he hadn't been pushed to give more answers.

Giving Ty a quick kiss - which was more like a soft brush of his lips against the other boy's - Miles turned and grabbed the door handle.

When the clock ticked over to 1:00 a.m., Miles was out the door.

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+1298 Words.