Convergence - The Last Science #2.1 - In Plain Sight

Interlude V - The Sister - VI

  Sunday morning. Meg woke up staring at Alden's ceiling yet again. He'd still woken her up again last night, around two in the morning. She'd hoped they'd gotten past it, but apparently not. So when he came downstairs, looking miserable, she poured him a bowl of cereal without a word. They ate in silence, Meg browsing through an increasingly-irritating social feed and Alden staring at his bowl without lifting a finger.

  Hailey had never checked in, not even once. Meg wondered if she should text her, remind her that Alden could do with some company. Hailey should have known that though, right? She knew about taking care of people.

  Meg was starting to have nightmares now too, though hers thankfully didn't wake her up in cold sweats screaming her lungs out. She dreamt she was running through a mansion of totally empty rooms, searching desperately for something she didn't even know, and every time she left a room it faded into black, until the entire mansion seemed to be disappearing around her.

  She had it twice, both before and after Alden had woken her up, and though she wasn't one to read much into dreams, the meaning was painfully obvious.

  Their parents were out at church, but both Alden and Meg had stopped going a few years back. Meg because she hated singing in public, and Alden (though he'd never tell his parents) because he didn't actually believe it anymore. She didn't really get how that had happened, but she knew that telling anyone wouldn't really do him any good. Their parents never made a big deal out of it, so it didn't affect them much at the end of the day.

  So only a couple hours later, they found themselves right back in Alden's room, with Meg trying to finish the rest of her homework, and Alden reading an old favorite book. Meg probably could have gotten a lot more done, but her phone kept chirping at her with new posts to read, and she couldn't resist seeing what Kelly was up to.

  She is just not letting this go, is she? Now that rumors were flying around of Hailey being sighted all over both Seattle and Tacoma (which Meg was pretty sure were fake), and acting as some kind of vigilante hero, people were chiming in on both sides of the argument. As usual, Kelly was critical.

  Meg started typing a furious retort, careful to make sure it wasn't actually aimed at Kelly directly, but she hesitated. After what she'd heard from Alden, and rewatching both the building video and the clip of Hailey in Rallsburg, Meg wasn't so sure anymore. Hailey was still trying to do good, for sure, but Kelly wasn't totally wrong. She didn't need to be so harsh about it, but... she made some good points.

  Not that Meg could tell her that.

  Meg deleted the comment instead of posting it, and went back to her homework.

  "That was angry, whatever it was. I feel sorry for the other girl," said Alden.

  "Who says it was a girl?" Meg answered, almost automatically. She didn't bother to look up at him.

  "If it were a guy you'd be trying to stay on his good side so you could ask him out."

  "As if. I'd call out anyone on their bullshit, boy or girl."

  "Don't swear."

  "Like your bullshit," she snapped, spinning in the chair. To her surprise, Alden was on his feet, and had a backpack on. She kept going anyway, but she was already confused by his appearance. "When are you gonna see I'm not a little kid anymore? Who cares if I cuss a bit?"

  "I do. I'm your big brother."

  "Well thanks, bro, but I think I can handle my own vocabulary."