[text message to Elliott]

[hardtoignore]

Elliott. I need help with something.

Comments

[hardtoignore]

Yeah...

Um, speaking of that... I ran into Mister Martin the other day.

[bearshermark]

[While his brain spends a brief moment struggling with 'speaking of', he's definitely more concerned by the rest, stomach sinking fast]

..Yeah? What did he want?

[hardtoignore]

[Clarence's face twisted into something sour.]

He accused me of causing trouble and said I should trust everything he said was true. You know, that kinda bullspit.

It's like he was accusing me of doing things to upset the Bureau on purpose or something.

[bearshermark]

[Elliott frowns]

But.. you haven't, right?

[hardtoignore]

Of course not! Despite all appearances, I'm generally well-behaved.

[But it's definitely a bummer that people can't take the hint that "Leave me alone" face and posture often translate into "I'm a terrible person who does terrible things and you just haven't caught me yet" in most adults' eyes.]

[bearshermark]

[Elliott's arms fold]

He came to me, too.. asking about what I knew about an anti-Bureau sentiment. I guess they're worried we are going to cause trouble for them.

[hardtoignore]

Oh, like the stuff Anakin goes on about? Thinking they're up to something...

[Clarence shrugs.]

I mean, even if we discover the truth behind the Bureau, what can we do about it? There's only like... what? Maybe fifty Different at most? A hundred? That's hardly an army.

[bearshermark]

[Elliott moves to sit on his bed]

I don't know.. We're getting superpowers now, so I can see why they'd be worried. A rebellion would be kind of disastrous. But.. they shouldn't automatically assume we're causing trouble, either.

[He sighs] I told Mr. Martin they should communicate with us better. I really think that's important. Otherwise, they just look like a shady organization that no one has any reason to trust.

[hardtoignore]

I guess... [He knew his abilities could get strong enough to kill someone, if his memory was any indication. But luckily they were harmless for now.]

He just seemed to get angrier with me no matter what.

I don't like him.

[bearshermark]

Me neither.

[His hands drop between his knees and twist together, biting his lip with an unusually heavy expression]

The more I think about it... If they think we're plotting against them, I wonder what they might do.

[hardtoignore]

[Clarence rolls his eyes as he drops down next to Elliott.]

Jeez, tell me about it. I thought for sure this was some sort of human trafficking scam at first, but so far no one has disappeared that I've met yet so...

[He falls back, closing his eyes.]

Is it really something we should worry about? Isn't that what the adults should be doing?

[bearshermark]

[Elliott joins him in laying back, and stares up at the ceiling. It does feel so much bigger than them]

I guess. But this affects us too, and we're almost adults. We can't just sit back and let someone else handle everything for us. Maybe if I knew they were doing something about it..

[hardtoignore]

I get that. It kinda makes me anxious, too.

[He peeks an eye open to look at Elliott.]

... Have you ever wished to just stay a kid forever?

[bearshermark]

[Elliott turns his head toward him]

Not really. I do wish I wasn't Different, though. I wish all I needed to worry about was matching my date for prom and going to the beach this summer..

[hardtoignore]

[Clarence chuckles.]

I didn't realize prom was all that important to you.

[bearshermark]

[He smiles, a bit self-conscious]

It's a big event, and I think it's going to be fun. We only have one more year of high school left before everyone leaves for college. And I mean, I have a few senior friends I won't see anymore once this year is over. So I just think we should make the most of it.

[hardtoignore]

Huh... I didn't really think of it like that.

[He turns to look back at the ceiling.]

Well... I'm never quite sure where I'll be in another year. If my current set-up is gonna get torn down sooner rather than later. So I just haven't thought much about making plans. Ever.

[bearshermark]

[Elliott turns on his side and props his head up]

Well you'll be 18 in a few months, so it's less likely stuff is going to change for you, isn't it? And you know, even if it did, I'm pretty sure Mom would let you live with us for awhile. Then once we had jobs, if you needed a roommate or something..

[hardtoignore]

[Clarence groans and covers his face.] Less than half a year...

[But the encouraging tone of Elliott's voice is promising. He watches his friend out of the corner of his eye.]

... Being roommates wouldn't be so bad. Ugh, but how are we going to afford a place in this economy?

[bearshermark]

[He shrugs]

My mom works in real estate. I'm sure she could help us find something in our budget.

[hardtoignore]

You always have a solution, don't you?

[It's meant to sound annoyed but he's smiling.]

[bearshermark]

[He grins]

It's called optimism.

[hardtoignore]

Never heard of it.

[bearshermark]

[Elliott laughs and falls back again]

Well, good thing I'm here then. I can enlighten you.

[hardtoignore]

[Clarence reaches over to grab a pillow and plops it against Elliott's face.]

Don't get a big head about it. Or maybe I'll let myself forget again.