Ordinary (Exceptional Book 3) (20 page)

“I was so worried something had happened to you. I always thought that if you died, I would know it. I would feel it deep down in my soul, but I was growing so unsure.”

He breathed the words into her hair.

Ally dropped the crutches and wrapped her arms around his midsection, letting him hold her up.

“I felt the same way,” she said.

Stosh cleared his throat and Ally realized how uncomfortable this probably made everyone else. Luke backed away and Ally almost fell, only righting herself after Stosh grabbed her under the arms.

“Your leg?” he questioned, looking down.

“I took on a Rogue,” she said. “And won.”

“Technically,” Joey spoke up. “I won.”

“Who is this?” Luke looked at Joey and then back at Ally.

“There is so much to tell you,” Ally said.

“Same.” Luke brought his gaze back to hers, and then to Stosh. “Well that is unexpected.”

“He is the reason my leg is doing as well as it is,” Ally said. “Like I said, there is a lot to fill you in on.”

“We should at least get it checked out,” he said. “We can go to the Med Center.”

“Okay, but I want everyone there to fill me in.”

“Deal,” he said just before he handed Stosh the crutches and scooped her into his arms.

[ marnie ]

They all went to the medical center together. Luke wanted to continue working on his plans all while staying by Ally’s side in the medical center. He wanted Marnie to fill Ally in on their new guests, and Stosh and the new guy had no intention of leaving her. The only person who stayed behind was Max, who said he needed to get some rest after his trip to Champaign.

He and Marnie were the only ones who knew that that wasn’t truly the reason, but Marnie never shared or let on that she knew someone’s real thoughts. She hoped that he had forgotten about her abilities.

Marnie had already visited the Med Center once before. When they had first entered the City, really being there for the second time if you counted their short visit to the courtyard within the wall, they had gone straight there. Mainly for the group they had encountered, but they themselves also needed a full physical after traveling outside the City for so long.

Marnie had been amazed by the City so far. She had been impressed by Champaign, but she felt more at home in the City. It probably had something to do with all of the Exceptionals, but she also admired how they moved and lived freely in the City, and how the Ordinarys did the same.

Luke explained that the Ordinarys having free reign was a new thing but she didn’t care, at least it was happening.

It was happening just like Ally wanted it to and Marnie felt little desire to return back to Zone D. She knew that wasn’t possible though, since she was sure the General wanted both her and Evan back.

The doctors settled Ally into the largest room they had. The first thing they did was do a scan of her leg to see how it was healing inside. Then they set her up with an IV for fluids and made her comfortable in her bed.

“Much better,” Ally said out loud, resting her head back on the wall of pillows behind her.

“Marnie.” Luke motioned to her.

“You better hurry. These pillows might make me fall asleep,” Ally said with eyes closed and a giant smile on her face. “I forgot how soft the pillows are here.”

Marnie laughed and Stosh, who was seated in a chair by the bed, put his head in his hands. “I think we’ve already lost her.”

“No, it’s fine.” Ally’s eyes popped open and she patted the side of her bed. “Sit and share.”

Marnie sat on the edge of the bed slowly, straightening the edge of the sheets even though they were perfect. She wasn’t sure why she was nervous.

“I’m assuming you found the group?” Ally prompted.

She nodded and filled Ally in on the time leading up to finding them, how they had staked out a spot in the woods, waiting. How some Guards had gone north and south just in case, but how Marnie had been able to stretch out her abilities and locate the group.

The moment was still fresh in her mind, when she first heard the cries of relief as the group reached a settlement and then despair as they realized it was empty. It was then that she realized just who she was hearing from.

“Children,” she said to Ally. “All children.”

Ally sat up a little straighter, seeming a little more sober. “Children?”

Marnie nodded. “Their thoughts were full of so much pain.” She thought about how she had just taken off running, crossing the river and not stopping until she reached them. “I could hear their misery in their thoughts and could almost feel their pain. I had never experienced anything like it with my abilities.”

She paused, her voice catching. The feeling was still so fresh.

Evan stepped up to the bed and continued for her. “Marnie hadn’t prepared us for what we would see when we found them, she had just taken off running. It was wild. Over a hundred children all huddled in the settlement, raiding the homes and trying to find places to stay. They were dirty and sick and almost half of them were injured.”

Ally brought her hand to her mouth.

Marnie composed herself and took over. “The oldest child was fifteen and he seemed to be the self-appointed leader of their group. He fell at my feet and wept, so thankful that we found them. He didn’t speak but I could see the thoughts in his mind. I could see what they had recently been through.”

“Were they from the western City then?” Ally asked. “Where were their parents?”

Marnie shared a look with the others. “I’m still working to figure that out. Most of them either refuse to speak or can’t, for some reason. I’m the only one who can communicate with them since I can speak in their minds. Sometimes if I prompt certain ones with questions I get blips of thoughts but it is a long process. An emotionally tiring one.”

Evan had commented yesterday on how tired she was looking. Generally she would have had a sarcastic comment for him but instead she had burst into tears. He had held her while she cried, even though she could hear in his mind that it made him uncomfortable. She tried to never read Evan’s thoughts but in that moment she had just been too tired to care or to have control.

“Children,” Ally said to no one in particular. “Where are they now? Is that what you are working on with the building, Luke?”

Luke was looking over a blueprint laid across a desk in the room, but he looked up and nodded.

“We already had plans to build more housing for the Ordinarys moving out of the Exceptionals homes. Some have decided to go back to their settlements, and some want to stay. We also have some Ordinarys that want to move from the settlements into here.”

“Are you tearing the wall down?” Stosh asked.

Luke shook his head. “We had talked about it but we met with the leaders of the settlements and we all decided that we should keep it as a security measure. If we ever needed to, we could gather everyone inside. We are going to allow free travel between the City and the settlements though.”

“This is so much to take in,” Ally said. “So much has changed.” She looked down at her leg and then back up at Marnie.

“Don’t push yourself, but if you find out anything new from these children, can you come tell me?” she asked.

Marnie nodded and then looked at Evan. “I think I should go get some rest. Tomorrow I am meeting with another group.”

Evan nodded and she joined him to leave the room. When they reached the hall she had to work to fight back tears. She wanted so bad to help the group of children but she was afraid of all of the emotions it would bring up. She had seen them in pain and hurt, she had seen them watch their friends and siblings die, she had seen a few watch their parents die. It was almost too much.

Evan put his arm around her. “You don’t have to do this, you know.”

Marnie shook her head. “I have to. I’m the only one that can help.”

“But if it’s too much…”

“It’s not!”

“Marnie…”

She looked at him. “I
have
to help.”

Evan frowned. “I hear you cry at night, when you think no one is listening. And last night I heard you screaming from the nightmares.”

Marnie looked at the floor, unable to meet his gaze. “It’s hard to do this alone.”

“You don’t have to do this alone,” he responded. “You have me.”

Marnie let out a small laugh. “Yes, just what you wanted to do… accompany an Exceptional on a wild journey across the country, hundreds of miles from home, and babysit her.”

“You don’t need anyone to babysit you,” he pointed out. “You asked for me to come along.”

She bit her lip. “Oh, that’s true. I forgot about that.”

“I wanted to come though.” he said. “I’m glad you asked because I’m not sure that the General would have let me come otherwise.”

“You did?” she asked.

“You couldn’t read that in my thoughts?”

She shook her head. “I don’t read your thoughts. I never read the thoughts of those close to me. It doesn’t feel fair.”

Evan looked thoughtful then, gazing at the hall in front of them. They took the elevator to the bottom floor and started the short walk back to the apartment they were staying in.

“I never knew that,” Evan finally spoke again.

Marnie shrugged. “Why did you want to come with us?”

His cheeks turned red. “I guess I never thought that is wasn’t obvious, until now.”

Marnie raised one eyebrow. “Should I?”

He nodded and just for a moment, she tore down the wall that blocked her from his thoughts. The one she had quickly put up and seemed to stick well, as it did with most of the people she was close with.

She froze in the street, their apartment building looming above them. The sky had turned dark, dotting with stars on a clear night. The street lamps had come on, bathing them in a dim, yellow light.

“Really?” she asked.

He smiled. “I’m not very…. forthcoming, I guess would be the term.”

Marnie laughed. “I think I make up for that.”

They both look at each other for a few moments.

Then, at the same moment, they both leaned in and their lips met. It was the first time Marnie had ever kissed a boy, and according to Evan’s thoughts, the first time he had kissed a girl. She threw a wall back up in front of his thoughts, not wanting to get too comfortable with reading them.

She broke the kiss first, needing to breathe.

“Are you sure you can handle a girl like me?” she asked.

He smiled. “I wouldn’t want to handle anyone else.”

[ ally ]

That night, Ally lay in her large, comfy bed, trying to run through all the thoughts in her mind. There were too many these days.

Zone D.

Their mission.

Rogues.

Luke.

Max.

And now, the children.

She couldn’t process it. For now, she was choosing not to focus on the children. She couldn’t take another person or scenario to worry about. She was feeling better already, with an IV of pain meds. Her mind was clear now, which told her they were probably wearing off. The doctors had made such a fuss over her when she arrived, and had already made plans to “fix” her leg, whatever that meant.

Stosh was still seated by her bed, his forehead against his arms and his eyes closed. Everyone else had long gone from her room, even Luke, who had been hesitant to leave. They had turned her light out, leaving only a small table lamp on in the corner.

Ally sat up and leaned forward, shaking Stosh’s arm. He mumbled and sat up.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” she responded. “You should go and get some rest.”

“I don’t want you to be alone,” he said.

“Send Max.”

He raised an eyebrow and sat up. “Are you sure?”

She nodded.

He stood and straightened his shirt, looking at her once more before leaving the room. “I need to talk to Luke anyway.”

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

You can do this, Ally.

Max arrived twenty minutes later. He had showered and changed into fresh clothes since she last saw him. His dark hair was long enough to tuck behind his ears now. She was getting used to his violet eyes now, and in the past few weeks he had started to grow taller and look less bulky.

“Don’t smile at me like that,” he said as he walked to her bed.

She frowned. “Why?”

He sat down on the chair and gave her a sad smile. “I know what this is about.”

“You do?” she asked.

He nodded.

She looked down at her hands and then back up.

“You’re choosing him over me, right?” he said.

“Don’t make it sound so bad, and don’t say it for me!” she responded. “I had all these nice things to say.”

Max rolled his eye. “Oh. Great. About how nice I am and how sorry you are and how we should be friends.”

“We are friends,” Ally pointed out. “None of that is a lie. The last several weeks I’ve been so confused about how I felt about you and about Luke. I’ve been angry with each of you for different things, and happy, too. Then we were separated…” she paused and kept her gaze on Max, feeling like she owed him that. “When I saw each of you again, the truth was finally clear. I was so happy to see you, and it was great to have one of my best friends back. But seeing Luke?”

“It all made sense?” Max interrupted.

She nodded.

“I’ve spent a lot more time with Luke recently than I ever thought I would,” he continued. “At first I was stubborn about it, but now I consider him one of my best friends. I’ve seen how much he cares about you and I knew that if you two ended up together, I couldn’t feel sorry about that. As time has passed, I’ve had trouble picturing a future for us. I think our paths are headed in different directions.”

Ally sat up straighter. “What does that mean?”

“I want to go back to Zone D,” he said. “I want to help the Exceptionals and Ordinarys there ease into life as equals. Since I’ve spent time as both, I think it would be a good task for me. I don’t think I can stay here in the City, and I’m not so sure that Champaign is home anymore.”

“Your Uncle will come around, Max,” she said.

He shrugged. “Possibly, but I’ll never be looked at the same again. I’ve been through more than the people there can understand.”

Ally could definitely relate.

“When are you leaving?” she asked, even though it hurt to do so. She wanted Max to stay. She wanted him in the City, available to talk and hang out when she needed him. That wasn’t fair to ask though, especially given the news she had just handed him. Although it apparently wasn’t news to him.

Max shrugged. “I want to finish things out here first. I need to make sure that things are okay between Luke and my Uncle, and I want things stable before I leave. I need to see if Marnie and Evan will be traveling back with me, but somehow, I doubt it. Marnie seems determined to stay and take care of those kids.”

Ally nodded. “I wouldn’t blame her for quitting though. She seems drained.”

Max looked out the window. “You should have seen them… these kids. They were a mess when we found them, and still are. Luke moved them into the ORC.”

Ally’s eyes widened. “He did?”

“It was the best solution. It has been empty since Luke shut it down and is the perfect set up, so he says.”

Ally thought back to her time there. “It really is. Gosh, that feels like so long ago. It has dozens of rooms circled around a common area, probably perfect for these kids. They can have their own space yet still be together.”

“Marnie told us that most of them have been sleeping together in the common area, all bundled on top of each other.”

“I can’t even imagine what they’ve been through.”

She didn’t want to talk about this anymore.

“So have you been practicing your abilities?” She changed the subject.

Max nodded. “I’ve been trying to work each night. That is another reason I need to stay in the City for awhile. Luke is going to have me work in the Training Center.”

“Perfect,” Ally said. “That is where I trained when I had my abilities.”

“Do you miss them?” he asked.

She thought for a minute. “Usually not. In comparison to the years in my life, I didn’t have them very long. They were useful when I did, though.”

He nodded. “I’ve been thinking about taking the cure.”

Ally was shocked. “Really?

“I mean, it was a stupid move to take the serum in the first place.”

Ally laughed in response. “You think?”

Max cocked his head at her. “Okay, I can admit that. I just don’t think I am ready to change back, at least not now, while things are so volatile and I can still help. Especially if I’m going back to Zone D.”

Ally nodded. “I think that is wise. I’m not sure I would have taken the cure serum either, if I had been given the choice.”

She yawned.

“You should get some rest,” Max said. “I slept some this afternoon so I’m good to sit here and keep watch.”

“You really don’t have to do that,” she responded. “The doctors are monitoring me with these machines.”

“Stosh and Luke would both kill me if I left you alone,” he said. “Trust me.”

She smiled and settled back into her pillows. “Ok. But don’t watch me sleep too closely because that’s creepy.”

She was feeling light headed already. The doctors were able to control her medication from their control center, so they had probably administered another dose. She thought maybe Max responded but she couldn’t hear it, she couldn’t hear anything. She drifted into a dreamless sleep.

Ally was on her third day in the Med Center. Even though her leg was healing well, with the help of Stosh, they still wanted her to stay. This morning the doctor had fitted her for something he called a
prosthetic.
Apparently it would attach to what was left of her knee and would act as a fake leg. Once she got used to it she would be able to walk and even run.

Stosh, Max, and even Marnie visited her every day. Stosh and Max filled her in on Luke’s plans for the City while Marnie sat and chatted about anything other than the children. Ally didn’t mind, she figured that it was something they both needed.

The only person she wanted to see but didn’t was Luke. She mentioned it to Stosh but he just kept saying that Luke was busy making plans.

“He was gone for a long time,” Stosh had said. “There are some messes to clean up.”

Ally didn’t argue but she wasn’t exactly happy. She had resolved things with Max and needed to resolve them with Luke, too. There was a chance he didn’t even want her anymore, which Marnie told her was a ridiculous thought. Even so, they had both been through so much and the future was unstable right now with the City and Ally’s plans to travel.

Travel was another thing she had been talking through with her friends. Now that the doctors told her that she should walk again, continuing her mission felt possible again. And with the changes going on in the City and Zone D, it felt even more necessary. Also, they still had no idea what they might be dealing with from the western City. Marnie didn’t seem to think an attack was imminent or anything, but she still had very few answers as to what had caused the children to come in the first place.

Just after lunch the door to her room opened and Luke walked in.

They both grinned and instead of taking the chair beside the bed like the others did, he sat right on the edge of her bed and faced her.

“It’s about time,” she said jokingly, even though the feeling was true.

Luke’s expression filled with regret. “I’m so sorry, there has just been
so
much going on recently. The children, moving the Ordinarys…”

Ally touched his hand, silencing him. “I was kidding, partially,” she said. “I was kind of hurt you weren’t here each day but I understand. Just like you understood when I didn’t come back north with you right away.”

“Good,” he responded. “Because I would have been here all day, every day if I could.”

She smiled. “The doctor is making me a leg, or so he says.”

Luke nodded. “They told me on my way in. They’ve also been giving me updates multiple times a day.”

“I should have known.” Ally rolled her eyes playfully.

“Max said you had something to tell me,” he said.

That jerk
. Ally thought.

“He did?” She suddenly felt nervous. Her pulse quickened and her palms felt clammy. She rubbed them on her sheets.

“Ally?” Luke said, serious all of the sudden. “Is everything okay?”

She felt like stalling, but then he would just leave.

“How did Pax die?” she blurted out. She hadn’t even realized how curious she had been until the question left her lips. Pax had been Luke’s best friend, like Sabine had been one of hers. She hoped that she never stopped talking about Sabine, never stopped sharing memories of her. Luke had seemed to forget Pax altogether.

“He wasn’t who I thought he was,” Luke answered quickly. “I had to take care of it.”

Ally was speechless. Luke had killed his own best friend.

She had a bad feeling that it had something to do with her.

She needed to move back to the real reason she needed to talk. This shouldn’t be so hard, since she meant every word she wanted to say. She wanted to tell him how much she cared for him and how he was the only person she wanted to be with. She wanted to tell him how much she had missed him and how seeing him again had made her realize her feelings for him.

“Well, what I wanted to say…”

“Is this about Sabine?” he asked with a frown.

Ally’s heart almost stopped. “What?”

“Sabine,” he said. “Stosh tried to give me a black eye on his first night here.”

“He what?” Ally said, astonished.

“It didn’t really work out for him, but I think it made him feel better,” Luke responded.

Ally put her head in her hands. “I’m sorry.”

“No, I’m sorry,” he said. “I shouldn’t have brought that stupid serum with me in the first place. It has mainly only caused trouble. I’m asking my scientists to destroy the remaining supply, along with the formula.”

“
What?”

“I think I have to,” he said. “It is too dangerous in the wrong hands.”

Ally looked out the window. She didn’t have much of a view but she could see the blue sky and wispy clouds, and that felt like enough.

“I don’t blame you,” she said, looking back at Luke. “I was angry at first. For Max, Lilla, and Sabine. But anything could have changed that. If I hadn’t gone south in the first place Max and Lilla would still be here. If I hadn’t separated from the group after Zone D, Sabine would still be here. Anything that any of us did could have been fatal. We knew all along that at any moment one of us could die.”

Luke seemed shocked at first and his expression softened. “I probably don’t deserve your forgiveness. Not for that and not for anything that happened since I brought you into the City.”

Ally shook her head. “That’s not true.”

Luke sighed. “I should get back to work. I’m glad we got to talk about that, even if it was a short conversation.”

“Wait,” Ally said. “That isn’t what I wanted to talk about.”

Luke had started to stand but sat back down, this time closer to her. She sat up and pushed her hair behind her ears, trying to decide where to start. What word do you start with when there are so many to say, and each one feels just as important as the others.

“I…” She looked up at him.

She leaned forward, before she could change her mind, and grabbed either side of his head. She pulled him close and pressed her lips to his, relaxing into him. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer, deepening the kiss.

She pulled away first, wishing they could stay that way for hours.

“There,” she said. “That is what I had to say.”

Luke smiled and pressed his forehead against her, his violet eyes glowing.

“I’m glad you said it, because I was thinking the same thing.”

He stood. “I’ll be back tonight, and then tomorrow. Tomorrow you are coming home.”

She knew he meant that she would be coming back to stay at his house, and right now, it was where she wanted to be.

“Oh, Luke, one more thing…”

He paused in the doorway and turned to look at her.

“I love you.” And she meant it.

“I love you, too,” he said with a smile.