Experiment Zero

14. I Hate Dresses

      It's been a full forty eight hours since the beach incident.

      When I found Zero and Sylvia in the jungle, it took almost a full half-minute before I could even think straight.

 Zero, with his perfect hearing, hadn't even noticed me until I was right there, watching the scene unfold. 

When he finally saw me his eyes widened. He opened his mouth, to call out to me maybe, but I wasn't looking at him. I was looking at Sylvia, who relaxed against the tree, sparing glances between Zero and I like it was a tennis match. When our eyes connected, she smirked.

     I had been teetering on the edge for a while, but that little grin of hers very well sent me over it. 

    I turned on me heel and immediately took off back towards the beach. 

I don't know what hurt me more, the fact that Zero could have easily gone after me, or the fact that that he didn't. 

When I made it back to the beach and met up with Shy, Jack, and Peter who gathered around me in a very worried manner, I vaguely remember pointing int he direction of where I found Zero. Peter went with the guards to go fetch him, while Shy and Jack walked me home, not questioning my frantic state and letting me breathe.

When we arrived at my house the sun was just starting to set and my dad met me at the door. I thanked Shy and Jack for walking me home, and soon after they both left after saying goodbye.

My dad stood there awkwardly for a few minutes, looking like he wanted to question me, but anxious that I might still be mad. At the moment I wasn't angry at all, just really really tired.

That night I caught a cold. Who would've thought that swimming in the ocean than running through the jungle would leave your body vulnerable to colds?

My dad called in sick for me, saying I would take the next two days off of work and stay home and recover. I'm very grateful for that, because I don't know how I would react if I saw Sylvia again.

     Shy and Jack came to visit me, and even Peter stopped in a few times. Jack brought some soup, which he says is his great Scottish grandmother's recipe. We all played some boardgames throughout the two days when they'd visit. 

They told me how Zero was doing. Apparently he's been throwing a few temper tantrums, refusing to comply or leave his cell for his morning physical training. 

"Mrs. Clark's starting to get angry," Shy said during one of the visits while we were sitting in the living room playing Uno, "Zero eats but won't cooperate with anyone. He keeps calling out for 'Ashie'."

That certainly left a tight knot in my chest, but whenever the word Zero comes into my mind, the image of him with Sylvia pops up too and I feel even more sick. 

The second night of my cold, and the last one, I was laying in bed when all of a sudden I heard Zero's voice in my head. 

Ashie, He said as I let out a yep and nearly rolled off the bed.

Don't talk to me, I think frantically, wondering how this telepathic speaking words and wonder if I can get a message across. Please don't talk to me right now.

I can't face you, is what I really mean to say, but the I don't hear his voice in my head again after that.

I wouldn't say I'm angry at Zero, now that may change once I know all the details, but mostly at the moment I'm angry with myself. I'm ashamed that I wasn't with him, and couldn't protect him from being dragged off my Sylvia, that snake.