"Oh, yeah, sure. Have fun and good luck."
He hurried off, flying instead of walking, and I continued down the hall to the cafeteria. Darren sat alone in the corner, which wasn't unusual. He spent most of his time alone, especially since Kyle died. Well, since Mr. Black had shot him for dueling with another student.
I hadn't seen his death myself, but I couldn't imagine the horror of watching my best friend get shot in the head. I'd been so self-absorbed lately, that I'd never even asked him about it, but that would have to wait for another time. I avoided Darren, and instead headed toward Robyn, who was still eating.
Robyn looked up from her plate as I sat beside her. Her mind buzzed with the same nervous energy as her boyfriend Norm. "Hey, Sam, have you eaten?"
"Yes, Susie brought me something before I could even escape my room. She rightly assumed I would skip breakfast if given a chance. Hey, do you know where Mary's room is? I need to talk to her about Ana."
Robyn sighed and looked relieved. "Yeah, I helped her settle in when she first got back, though I wouldn't go out of my way to help her again."
"Why not?"
"She borrowed a blanket for that first night and still hasn't returned it."
"Sounds like her. Why not just go get it back."
Robyn shrugged. "I don't know. I just don't want to make a big deal out of it, you know?"
I nodded, totally understanding. I used to feel the same way, willing to do anything to avoid confrontation with Mary, scared of what she would do in retaliation. But her bullying had to stop. "Clearly it's bothering you. You should tell her you need it back."
"Yeah, maybe later." Which meant never.
Well, I couldn't push her if she wasn't ready.
Robyn finished eating, still looking nervous and tapping her foot excessively.
I was about to ask her what she was so scared about when a rush of hateful thoughts hijacked my mind. I ran into the hallway, with other students on my heels, and found the former school jock, Curtis, pounding Greg in the face. Curtis and his friends laughed and made jokes, calling Greg "fag" and "homo" and other vile names.
Intent on stopping it, I stepped forward, but Gary pushed past me, yelling like a wild banshee.
Before he even got close enough to hit the guy, Gary used his control over metal to swing open the lockers and bash Curtis in the face. Then he pounced and started punching and hitting Curtis relentlessly. "Don't you ever touch him again. Ever!" he screamed, bloodying Curtis's nose.
The scene brought back another image: Drake had beaten a man to a bloody pulp with his bare hands. The fact that he'd been capable of so much violence had scared the crap out of me for a long time, and I couldn't let Gary become that.
"Gary, that's enough." Other hands, Greg's hands, broke through and helped me pull the guys apart. Curtis lay on the ground, groaning. I had half a mind to kick him in the groin myself, but enough was enough. "Someone get Susie."
Gary brushed me aside and focused on Greg. "Are you okay?"
He gently examined the cut over Greg's eye, but Greg pulled his hands away. "I'm fine. It's just a scratch."
Susie charged down the hall and sent a wave of calm across the students. "What happened here?"
Gary glared at Curtis and pointed his finger. "That asshole and his friends beat Greg and called him a bunch of homophobic names."
Susie looked at Greg. "Is this true?"
He just nodded, his eyes sad.
Susie pointed to two kids. "You two, help Curtis to the clinic. Greg, you should come too, so I can take a look at your eye."
Curtis and his friends left, and Gary and Greg moved to follow, but Susie stopped them. "Not now, Gary. Cool down first. You can come by later for some bandages for your hands."
The crowd dispersed reluctantly, and Gary hugged Greg. "I told you... we shouldn't stay here. It's the same old thing." His thoughts careened as he walked away. 'Thought this place would be better. Just want to live somewhere without judgment of any kind. Want to leave but Greg doesn't want to. Can't leave him.'
I hoped he wouldn't let that anger eat too deeply into him. That wouldn't end well for anyone.
Soon, only Robyn and I remained in the hallway. "Thanks for waiting," I said. "Now, where's Mary's room?"
***
An hour later, and I had to admit Mary didn't do it. It was a painful admission, since I'd pinned all my hate—and hopes—on her, but aside from a few cloudy spots from when the Seeker controlled her mind, and the part where Drake had almost killed her, she had nothing to hide. Given what she'd been through, I almost felt bad for her, especially since some of it had kind of been my fault. Her terror at waking up in the IPI treatment facility, scared and alone, had particularly chilled me.