𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐓 𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌𝐒

013. unlucky thirteen

ILLIAS LOPED ACROSS THE HOLE-RIDDEN SIDEWALKS, his boots crunching against concrete and crumbs of buildings as he made his way down Eleventh Ave. The neon lights in a Subway sign flickered peacefully as he passed, and it made Illias smile. On one of their first dates, Illias had brought her to Tenth Avenue, offering to pay for a fancy dinner at one of the luxurious restaurants, but she had shut him down immediately. 

"I want Subway," she said, taking him by the hand and dragging him away from the fancy Xi'an noodles they were about to enter. 

"You don't even like Subway!" he protested, laughing, as she tugged him down 45th. 

"I don't, but you do," she grinned back at him, pink lip gloss winking under street lights. "Stop digging in your heels. You might as well eat something you like, if you're going to pay." 

She ended up paying anyway, but it had been a good night. The clouds broke just as they got into the tiny shop, sheets of rain gushing down in a torrent of water. Naoki had finished her Italian sub, bounced on her heels while she waited for him to finish his turkey sandwich, then dragged him out into the rain. 

Everything reminded him of her. It hurt, but it made his heart burn, fuelling him. He needed to find her, and fast. It had been good to work with Paris and Dexter, a distraction that had him laughing and joking around like normal. But with the two of them safe with Hanna, and his loneliness creeping up on him like a gathering storm, the smokey phantom of Naoki returned to his brain. 

Something glinted in the street, catching his eye. 

He stopped, heart quickening. 

Something lay in a puddle, half-black and drenched with muddy water. Illias picked it up anyway, holding it to the weak, cloudy sun. 

It was a pink strawberry hair tie. 

The one Naoki had worn the day she went missing, cinched around her wrist like a bracelet. 

Illias looked down the street. A couple blocks away was the school. Further down was a wider stretch of wider, shorter buildings. The Vessel gleamed in its pink, rusted glory in the distance. 

Mouth setting, the hair tie in his pocket, Illias strode past the school. His footsteps landed to the tempo of his heart, he was practically running. 

He found her. A part of her, but it meant she was close. 

HANNA SOOTHED MRS. WINE, CRADLING HER GENTLY. "Shh, shh," she murmured, stroking her hair. "It's okay." 

"I-- nightmare-- I'm so scared--" Mrs. Wine gasped, clinging to Hanna's shoulders. 

Hanna nodded. "I know, I know. You must've had a terrible fright. The power outage was bad enough, but getting knocked out is terrible. I'm so sorry, Mrs. Wine." 

The teacher sobbed louder, mascara running black over her cheeks. 

Paris leaned over, whispering. "I kinda feel bad for her now." 

"Still hate her as a teacher," Xandra mumbled, kicking the floor with the toe of her sneaker. It was awkward, seeing adults cry. 

"I thought the memory wipe worked," Dexter frowned. 

"I mean, she's still gonna be traumatised, a little bit, right?" Theo pointed out. "The feelings stick around, even if they get mind-wiped. She's scared, but she doesn't remember why. And then you just pin it on a nightmare, and sometimes your brain makes up a substitute for the missing gaps." 

The other three blinked at him. 

"When did you get smart?" Xandra blurted. 

Theo winked. "I've always been a genius."