Deciding that hadnt stopped the ache of missing him, though.
I spent the rest of the night wide awake, wrapped in three blankets and freezing. When the clock read 4 A.M. I gave up. I got dressed in my warmest clothes and walked to Containment. Lend was curled up asleep on the floor. I sat against the wall and watched, fascinated, as his body flicked through identities the way I click through channels. After maybe an hour he went into his strange water-and-light state. I was so tired I could barely focus my eyes at alland suddenly I could see him. It was like once I stopped trying so hard to look, he was just there. He actually had hair and normal featurescute even, if he had pigment. Even more surprising, he didnt look much older than me.
After a moment his eyes opened and met mine. Color flooded through himhe was wearing me again. The eyes were still flickering, trying to find the right shade.
What are you? I whispered.
What are you?
Offended, I frowned. Human.
Funny, me, too.
No, youre not.
Funny, neither are you.
I set my jaw and glared. What a jerk. Why did you come here?
My voice came from his mouth, disconcerting as always. I could ask you the same thing. Are you going to kill me?
HAVE A BLEEP BLEEP DAY
"I no, thats not what IPCA does, I said. They dont kill paranormals, they
Lend raised a hand to stop me and sat up, large eyes narrowing. Are you going to kill me?
Why would I kill you?
After a moment he let out a deep breath. I dont think its you.
Whats not me?
Standing, he stretched. Did I mention how weird it was watching my body do this stuff? He even had the hair righta little messy this morning, since I hadnt bothered to brush it yet.
Can you please go back to normal? I wanted to look at him more now that I could see him better.
He smiled, flashing my perfect teeth at me. I had to go through three years of braces for that smile; no fair that he could copy it in a second. Normal? Whats that?
How you really look.
Can you take off all your clothes?
Okay, weirdest thing everI just asked myself to take off all my clothes. It doesnt get much creepier. Why on earth would I do that?
You asked me to be naked; I thought it was only fair.
I just meant stop wearing me. Be yourself. But yourself with clothes.
These are my clothes. But, if it bothers you. I melted off him and he grew a few inches. In my place was a teenage guy. Black hair, dark brown eyes, olive skin, and, oh yeah, absolutely gorgeous.
Like, belonged on one of the shows I loved so much gorgeous. Better? His voice had changed, deepened, and I wished I was talking with an actual teenage guy.
Definitely. I looked closer. Still Lend under there. Even the dark eyes didnt hide his water-colored ones; I could see him shimmering through.
This seems to be a popular one.
Yeah, I can imagine. Then I frowned, curious. What does your real voice sound like?
What makes you think this isnt it?
I think it would sound different. Softer. Like water. I realized how stupid that sounded, but his smile dropped off and he gave me a considering look.
If you didnt come here to kill me, why are you here, Evie?
Awkward. Here I was, no makeup, ratty hair, in front of the hottest teenage guy Id ever seen, fake or not. Why was I here? Its my job.
His smile returned, this time with the usual ironic twist to his lips. Oh. Your job. Quite the career for someone your age.
Youre not much older than me. Now that Id seen him better, I was sure of it. Corrupted mortals like vampires show their real bodies agesold and nastyunderneath. True immortals, like faeries, have eternal youth, but theres something different in their faces. All those years dont add lines; they smooth, like a piece of glass turned around forever on the ocean floor. No mortal has that polish. His face was neither old nor ageless.
The shift in his expression confirmed it. Ha! I smiled smugly. Im guessingfifteen. I went low on purpose.
He looked indignant. Seventeen.
See? You told the truth. That wasnt so bad, now, was it?
Lend shook his head, then sighed. Trouble.
You bet Im trouble, I countered with a smile. Sure, maybe I was flirting, a little. Could you blame me? The only guys I ever met were too old, half monsters, living corpses, or immortal creeps. At least Lend was close to my age, whatever else he was.
No, youre in trouble. He looked and I followed his eyes right to Raquel, who was not happy. At all. She finished crossing the hall and fixed a steely glare on me.
I was about to apologize, but then I rolled my eyes. What are you going to do, ground me? Maybe
I shouldnt have been so flip about it, but really. After the night I had, the last thing I wanted was a lecture.
Out. Now.
I walked past her, turning my head to glance back at Lend. He winked at me and I couldnt help but smile.
Instead of going to my room, I made my way to Central Processing. It was still early but thats another great thing about Lish: she doesnt sleep. I loved Central Processing. Unlike the rest of the
Center, it didnt look sterile. The entire room was a circle, with desks placed against the wall and everything based around Lishs gorgeous aquarium. About fifty feet in diameter, it was fifteen feet high and a perfect circle. They even managed to transplant a living coral reef, complete with tropical fish in the crystal blue water. Way better than my unit.