North Way High

Chapter 8

I wake up to the sound of a slamming door. My ears ring harshly. I'm on Chase's couch, yet again. But I can't actually see it. I can only feel it. I rub my eyes, blink a few times, and even shake my head, but just a small movement of my head gives me a beaming headache and I give a loud wince. I open my eyes a few minutes later when my headache settles down, but it's all just a blur. Chase -- at least what I think is Chase -- is mixed in with the the colors of his TV, popcorn maker, and bed. But I remember that both the bed and the popcorn maker are nearly on the other side of the room. I rub my eyes again, but it only makes things much worse. Now I'm starting to see strange things. I know they aren't real, yet I can't quite convince myself of it. I'm not sure how my brother and his old girlfriend could be kissing while they are riding an elephant in Chase's hidden apartment. Chase starts talking to me but I can't comprehend what he's saying so I ignore him and fall back asleep.

I wake up again later, and I can see things much more clearly. Not perfect, but better. I can hear a voice, but I can't see who it's coming from. I try to move my head, but I immediately get a pounding feeling in my head, so I decide to just wait patiently. As I wait, I try to figure out what happened. For some odd reason, all I can remember is seeing my brother and I walking down the sidewalk and getting to school. I could've sworn something happened in between, but I can't remember anything. I start thinking that something actually did happen, but I quickly push that aside in my brain. I want to get up and get to class, but I can't even wiggle my toes without nearly blacking out from a migraine. I wait for what feels like forever. When I finally see Chase come into view, I automatically know he's not happy. I expect him to know I'm not passed out anymore because my mind functions in a way that he can read, but he doesn't, and he's talking to himself, so I decide to stay quiet until I'm ready to speak again.
He mumbles words I can't quit hear and progressively gets louder and louder until he gives out a scream of frustration and throws a glass decoration at the wall and it shatters. Instead of picking it up, he kicks it with bare feet and falls in pain. People do stupid things when they're upset. He rolls around in pain for a bit and I watch silently. Finally I get tired of it and I speak.

"Hey, Chase? Is everything alright? You seem a little frustrated." I say in a sweet tone so he doesn't freak out.

"Are you?!" He asks, very on edge. I swallow hard.

"Physically, no. And emotionally, I'm not sure. I don't even know what happened. I remember my brother and I walking to school, I remember seeing Jackson, and I remember me opening a plastic thing that Jackson gave me, and I blacked out, I guess." I say, a little confused. He turns his head away from my vision and begins to cry.

"Jamie, that wasn't a plastic thing. They're called confusers. They only let you remember certain things. Like you probably don't remember what Jackson did or said to you." He says in a miserable tone. I'm so confused, and he realizes this.

"Jamie, Jackson took your brother away to use him for an evil plan. I talked to Jackson over the phone to try and convince him to let go of Alex, but . . . " he sighs, and his eyes tear up again.

"I don't understand." I say vaguely. He let's a tear fall.

"Jamie, they're going to kill your brother. They are are going to twist his mind. They're going to take that innocent mind and make it into something horrible. When they do what they are planning to do with him, they will, for certain, no doubt, kill him." He says. I'm upset, but not in the sense that my brother is going to die. I'm upset because I think Chase is lying to me.

"Are you sure? That doesn't seem right, Chase. Jackson calls me sweetheart, and beautiful, and kinds of wonderful things. I don't think he would do something horrible like this. Why are you lying to me?" I say, a little flustered.

"It already sunk in." He says to himself under his breath. I give him a puzzled look.

"The gas in the confuser bottle takes a little while to fully sink into your mind. Since you've been out for so long, it already had time to sink in. You're probably thinking I'm a liar, and soon, you'll want to be part of Jackson's plan." He says, angry but sympathetically. This doesn't make any sense, but he's right. I do want to work with Jackson. And I do think he's a liar.

"Does it wear off?" I ask. He laughs. I'm guessing the answer is no.

"The confuser gas is different then any drug. The more it's in your system, the more consumable you're mind is to it. And Jackson used the more extreme kind, which means in less then a week or so, you will be able to read minds like a Morrison, you will have the same strong emotions as a Morrison . . . " he doesn't finish his sentance. His face is suddenly filled with fear.

"What?" I ask. He takes a deep breath.

"You will have the power to be able to kill like a Morrison without feeling any guilt or pain. Everywhere you go, you'll want to do something evil, and there's no way you can stop the gas from controlling you." He says, alerted. I decide to not let this control me. The rest of my life will be hard, but I think I can control this.

I am not weak.

I'm going to make this right. I'm disturbed by all of this information, but it won't stop me. Fear will never stop me.