Wednesday.
Day 18.
Issa.
I was alone with Cam, and I didn't know what to say, or do about it, besides feel very, very awkward.
"Sorry about that." After kissing my ex right in front of me inside my own room, that's the first thing he can think of saying? 'Sorry about that'? Hmph.
"Doesn't matter. You're here to train me, so let's train." Cam goes big and superior in a split second as I spew my attitude at him. His eyes narrow and I see him ready his mouth to let me have it right back, but it only lasts a second then he was suddenly blowing out a breath and relaxing, only to say;
"Well, we won't be doing any of that here in your room. Let's head to my office." Just like that, I was being tugged out the door and into the hallway. If Lectra were here right now, she would be shitting bricks.
Cam has my arm wrapped under his firm hands and was leading me down the hall, only we weren't heading the direction of his office at all like he had said. Instantly I was planting my feet hard on the ground to stop us, totally unsure where he was taking me. My attempts are fruitless and Cam calmly continued dragging me along roughly.
"What the hell-your office is not this way Cam-where are we going?" Cam doesn't say a word and only drags me past concerned faces down the hall further until we arrive at the stairs to the basement. That was when I really began to panic.
"Cam-!"
"Stop talking for a minute-" His hand tightens ever so slightly on my arm just enough to make me yelp at the pinch as we start to walk down the stairs. We walk a little further until we reach a familiar room.
"Why are we here? I don't think it's a good time for a swim." It was the indoor pool, dimly lit blues and whites, just as beautiful as always. Cam finally let's me go as we enter, closing the large double doors behind him. With a small chortle, Cam was walking over and sitting at a pool chair.
"We aren't here to swim. I couldn't take you to my office, it's bugged." I blink clulessly at Cam then geniusly ask;
"Bugged?"
"Yeah. The Boss has cameras inside almost every room, including yours. Didn't take me long to figure out that this is one of the only rooms that are safe from his ears. Why do you think I always come here?" I think back to the night I was here with Blake, when Cam had overheard our entire conversation after being hidden from our view. If I didn't know he liked being down here before, I did now.
"You're telling me the Boss has been listening to everything I've been saying about him in my room?" Cam simply shakes his head no at me.
"Not until recently. He had the one inside your room installed just yesterday. Same for my office. Which is why I couldn't take you there either. Understand?" I nod back at him, hating the idea of the Boss hiding cameras around the place, especially our rooms. A chill runs through my body.
"They only pick up audio, not picture, so there are ways around it." All I do is nod more comfortably at Cam this time, but was still unsure why he was being so nice to me. Well, nicer than usual. I rub my arm he had been tugging then notice there was a bright pink handprint.
"I-I'm sorry if I hurt your arm. I have to look tough around them, or they'll think they can't trust me." I knew them meant the guards and just about everyone else in general. That isn't what shocked me, it was that he was actually caring about me that did it. Instantly I was getting defensive, not totally trusting the act.
"I'll be fine. Are we still training then?"
"Yes. It won't be much, just telling you what to do and what not to do. Then tomorrow-"
"I have to kidnap people for him. Got it." Cam smiles like what I said was stupid and explains;
"Not quite. I'll just be showing you how we usually get in and out of this place, then the places where we go. We won't do the actual thing until you're fully trained and have talked to the Boss."
"I have to talk to him? In person? Again?" Cam loses his smile as he shakes his head yes, and I know what he is thinking immediately.
"I don't need you to feel bad about what he did to me. I'll-get over it. I have to do this now, and I'll just have to deal with him." Cam doesn't get angry or upset with me for exploding at him again, he just keeps eye contact with me, not saying a word. Finally he clears his throat;
"Okay. So, the training then. Rule one is obvious. If you try and tell anyone of the Boss, you and whoever was told will be severely punished. I have yet to find out exactly what that would be, but I have no desire to figure it out." It didn't take a genius to imagine what could happen to a person if the Boss' existence came out, but I knew first hand not to mess with him after my vision of him basically almost killing me.
Another reason I couldn't possibly tell Lectra.
"I have a pretty good idea. What's next?"
"Don't try and get help outside the school once out. Same punishment goes for that one." I pull a face that says 'no duh.' then Cam continued;
"There's more. Even if you manage to tell anyone, like the police, about anything at all, it's pretty much useless."
"Why?" My mind goes blank and I can't seem to connect the dots on what Cam is attempting to tell me. When he explains it at last, I feel faint instantly;
"The Boss has a friend in the police department who just happens to be the Chief. He's basically paying everyone on the force off. So even if you got to someone, it wouldn't really matter." I have to set myself down on the damp tiles beside the pool before I'd ultimately pass out from the new information flooding me like a damn tsunami.
"It's a lot to take in, I know." That was the understatement of the century. There was absolutely no way out of this place. Even when I'd be outside of it, I wouldn't even truly be out. I would still be trapped by him.
"Are you okay? You look pale." I look up at Cam from staring wordlessly at the blue tiles on the floor, now placing himself onto the floor next to me looking worried, but I still can't find a single word to say to him. Of course I wasn't 'okay'.
"Issa. Listen to me. I know it's hard, and it sucks, believe me. But you have to be strong like I know you can be to get through this. I can't watch you get hurt because you can't handle this. Please." His words were surprising enough to snap me out of my episode.
"What did you just say?" Cam tosses his head to the side like what he said was hard enough to say as is, and that he didn't want to repeat himself. I didn't need him to, Cam was looking out for me, and I was sure it was for some alternative reason, but it made me heart patter either way.
I quickly sense his awkwardness of wanting to change the subject so I do him the mercy of doing it myself;
"Um, anyway, I've got it. Don't snitch, cops are a no go, get my shit together and don't mess up. Cool." I see a shy smile from Cam just briefly then it was gone. It was in that brief moment that I forgot this was a different Cam, not mine, or kind of mine anyway, and had to resist the sudden urge to lean and give in to him. All I have time to do is just barely lean when I swiftly stopped myself.
Thankfully Cam didn't seem to notice.
"Exactly. And you already know you can't just escape. Tracker chips and everything." I nod already knowing that information long ago, then was randomly hit with the image of Lizzy, and next a question was eating at me to be asked. I wasn't sure if this was one of those same vision types Blake had while wide awake, but it was clear that it needed to be said to Cam.
My mouth was letting out the words before I could really even think and frankly, completely without my permission;
"Did you know that the Boss and Lizzy used to date?" Cam throws a perplexed expression at me instantly.
"How did you know that?"
"I-just guessed." I start to tell Cam about everything that's been happening, that this place was simply a dream to me, George and now Blake, but stop before I can blabber any further. I wasn't sure I could trust Cam with that information. And I wasn't even sure George had told him either.
"You can't tell anyone else that you know that Issa. Especially the Boss. You and Lizzy will both be in trouble if he finds out you know that." I already knew this, Lizzy had told me the exact same thing when I figured it out. My only question now was why did it need to be kept a secret so badly?
"How did you know they dated anyway?" Cam leans himself onto his palms and rests comfortably backwards as he answered me;
"I helped take her here with the Boss one night. The same night you were also taken with a few others actually. We weren't even on any kind of hunt for more people, that wasn't scheduled until the next week. It was just supposed to be a harmless check in for new people, that's all, but we took her anyway. And of course I was curious why." Cam goes on to explaining, leaving me studying his every word like he was teaching me the very meaning of life.
"All the Boss told me was that they had dated, but she caught him with another girl that night and threatened him with something. At the time, I didn't realize exactly who that other girl-well-" That girl from that night was obviously me, that didn't need anymore explaining. What did was what the hell Lizzy could manage to threaten the Boss with, who was ten times bigger than her by a mile and shouldn't feel intimated by anyone.
"Threaten him with what exactly?"
"Like I said, all he told me was that they fought, broke up and boom-she was here to stay." Lizzy knew something and wasn't spilling, probably out of fear of the Boss, but I sure as hell needed to know. Luckily I wouldn't give a second thought on getting it out of her, even if that meant one of us getting hurt in the process.
"What's going on in your head right now?" I move back into reality to find Cam staring me down intensely.
"Alot." Part of me still wanted to tell Cam about everything, despite just minutes ago telling myself to do exactly the opposite. I kept thinking that maybe if I did tell Cam, then he could possibly help us all escape. But I still couldn't trust him just like that. Not yet.
"What's going on between you and George, Issa?" I shoot my eyes onto Cam and freeze.
"What? Nothing is-"
"I don't mean your guys' relationship behind my back, I already know and I don't entirely care. What I mean is why you two act so different. Like, how you just knew about Lizzy. It makes no sense." Cam is watching my every move, and I sit there doing the exact same. He had somehow managed to catch on about everything crazy happening to us but was still in the dark about it.
But that also meant George hadn't told Cam either.
"I don't know how you and George know so much, but if it gets him hurt because of you-" Cam doesn't continue what I knew he was wanting to say, he simply resumes his intimidating eye contact with me. I shadow it right back.
"I won't let him get hurt." I wasn't sure when everything changed between me and Cam, but now sitting here with him, inches away, I could barely see the mean, angry guy who was keeping us here. The guy who had slapped me the very first day here. All I saw was my Cam in front of me. The one I wanted so badly to really be mine.
But he just wouldn't be that.
"You know, I'm trying to be better. Trying not to-hate you. For George." I try my best not to give him a sarcastic look, but manage to instead just stare back at him and say;
"Well, same here." Our moment is short lived when Cam gets up then as if he saw something that was much too frightening to even comprehend, then he begins walking away from me and over to the giant double doors. I follow his bulged out eyes from fear and finally see what was the cause of it. Instantly I stand up with Cam, just as afraid now.
"Stay put. Please." That was the first time I had ever heard Cam sound genuinely scared for not even himself, but me. Well, maybe the second if you counted the night I was almost killed by the Boss in my dream, which didn't even really happen. But even then he was terrified for my well-being.
I did as Cam asked for once and stayed put, as the man peaking in from the doors small windows at us finally pushed them open and in he strode, wearing a big black sweatshirt, his hoodie covering his hair and everything important as usual. Matching that was a mask covering his face. Faceless, except his demon like ruby eyes I was much too used to.
When he finally spoke to Cam was when I couldn't stand anymore and humiliatingly fainted, hard, along the baby blue colored tiles. I didn't even catch what he said besides hearing his gut retching faux voice. The last part of my consciousness before I ultimately passed out was the smell of the sickening chlorine filling the room.
--Blake--
Well, I was an absolute idiot.
"You-told her what?"
"Don't make me repeat myself Leah, please. I feel horrible." I was all alone after Issa took of faster than a damn jet engine after my confession, and maybe finding Lectra wasn't the best option, but that was exactly what I did. Like I said; idiot.
"God-I knew you liked her better, which is exactly why I didn't-"
"No, no, no. I do not like her better. And c'mon, miss hypocrite. Wes?" Lectra rolls her eyes at me, knowing that I had made a point but didn't want to admit it. She had also informed me of her and Wes making up when we met up, which was ironic considering what I was also telling her. It was almost funny.
"Okay, sure. But-ugh, fine, you got me. I can't even be mad at you. What are you gonna do about it then?" Lectra and I had made camp inside my room in desperate need of piece and quiet from everyone else around the school. That, and we were both in need of some alcohol, and thankfully I was fully stocked.
Well, maybe not for very long after Lectra.
"Hey, don't drink all of my booze. You tank." She was tipping back the bottle like it was nothing, and honestly, I was impressed. But mainly intimidated as per usual with her.
"Man up and beat me then." I knew this was to initiate a chug battle, but being totally blacked out wasn't something I needed today. Reluctantly, I snap the bottle from Lectra, gaining a pained groan in return.
"We can save this for some other day. I need sober Leah right now." Instantly that was catching her attention and bringing her from staring down the bottle longingly to watching me.
"Okay, okay. I'm sorry. I just feel so bad lying to Issa. I don't know why I can't just tell her about Wes. It should be easy." It was obvious that Lectra was on the brink of tears, so in an instant I was next to her side and holding her in my arms like I'd wanted to do since I got back.
She looked so right in my arms.
"She will understand. I mean, Issa and George are definitely still going at it and keeping it from us. So she has no reason not to." Lectra nuzzles her chin into my neck and I can hear an exhale, letting me know she was feeling much more relaxed now. Although I wasn't sure if I was the reasoning or if the alcohol was simply kicking in.
"You always know how to make me feel better Blake." I wasn't sure what was keeping the two of us from taking what we both so clearly craved for from one another. I mean, yeah, Issa and Wes were definitely the issue, but we were here together now, and so indefinitely engulfed with eachother. There shouldn't be anything keeping us apart.
Then it hit me like a ton of bricks why I was holding back so hard.
"I have to tell you something else Leah."
"Can't be anything worse than you confessing your love for Issa, so hit me." I resist the urge to tell her that, yeah, it definitely is worse than that, but kept it inside.
"Well, actually, it's not all too great. You know how I've also been having visions kinda like Issa?" Lectra just nods, waiting for me to get on with it.
"And how George and her go in and out of this world? Like it's a dream?" I felt Lectra flinch hard underneath me, then there was nothing but silence. Lectra previously had it in mind that I was clueless about the dreams, that I only knew about the visions, but that just wasn't true.
I knew she had already figured out what I was saying by now, but I let myself say it anyway;
"Turns out I also know-weird right?" Lectra still doesn't move from holding me, besides sliding down pretty much into my armpit.
"Everything alright down there?" I was glad we could lighten the situation, even if what I was saying meant she ultimately didn't remember me at all in the real world. It still even hurt me to admit.
"You smell good." Instantly I was dragged out of my pity party by Lectra still smooshed inside my arms, now wiggling around trying to get to a more comfortable position.
"Are-are you drunk?"
"No, you are-" Yep, she was totally wasted. I laugh as I pull her out of my, apparently incredibly good, smelling armpits and face her to me.
"You are adorable. Is-Is everything I just told you okay? You're not upset?" Lectra flutters her eyelids up at me then smashes her lips into mine. It was definitely meant to be a kiss, but ended up just being a dorky way of her blowing a raspberry out on me. She pulls off with a silly smile and adds;
"I love you no matter what, Blake."