Who: Matty & Jen What: He’s gone When: March 7, 2018 Where: Jen’s
After the messages with Jen, Matty headed over to her place. Since she was worried about them being watched, he wore black. He was a ninja. He didn’t look like a ninja at all but there was effort. He was worried about Jen. Some things she said didn’t make sense and Quentin, as grumpy as he was, being gone? Was worrisome. There had been a lot of disappearances. He worried about Thursday. He didn’t want to imagine what it would be like if Thursday disappeared too.
Matty came to Jen’s house and knocked on the door before whispering, rather loudly, “Pssst. It’s me!”
Jen was in Quentin’s room, sitting on his bed. Her eyes were closed as she tried to reach him, cheeks damp with drying tears. Her eyes opened when she heard a voice and she bolted to the hallway, half hoping to see the grumpy boy- but saw Matty instead. She felt the floor drop from under her as her head fell into her hands. “Matty.” She whimpered.
When Jen answered the door and crumbled, Matty felt so bad for her. He immediately went to her side and wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. He wished he could do something more. He wished he had some sort of answer for her, some sort of solution but he had no idea what. People were disappearing and it reminded him of being in jail. There was no return and knowing what was on the other side, it was terrifying. So he held her close, not saying anything but to hold her because words were meaningless right about now.
She rested her head against his shoulder. “He’s scared.” She said softly. “That’s all I can feel.” Quen had wanted their connection to be secret. Would he be mad if she told Matty? She needed to tell someone. Have them understand. Help find him? “We have… a connection. He didn’t want to tell anyone- we were trying to figure it out. But I was there when he took down the building and he was there when my wings came in… at the same time. He was in my head, I could see what he saw, feel what he felt… we were- are connected.” Jen sniffed and shook her head. “But I can’t see him. I only feel fear.” Unbeknownst to her, they’d sedated the boy which was interfering with their link.
Oh wow. They had a power connection? Matty hadn’t heard of that before but why would they? Immediately he worried for Jen. What if it was Riken? What if they took Quen and now they were going to go after her? He wanted to tell her to hide but where? They were on a stupid island. A stupid terrible island.
Matty kept hugging her. He wanted to tell her that it would be okay but he knew it wasn’t going to be. Still he whispered, “Maybe they will let him go. They may be just testing his powers. They may get bored and let him go.” Maybe? Hopefully?
“I kept telling him he needed to keep quiet.” He was paranoid but he was always talking about the conspiracies at work. She was certain someone overheard. Thought he’d be trouble. She closed his eyes and tried to reach out again. “He’s cold and scared and… sleepy.” Jen shook her head. “It hasn’t changed.”
Matty kept hugging Jen. He didn’t think Quen needed to be quiet. He didn’t know. He shouldn’t say that. Jen needed comfort. She didn’t need action right now. Not that he could act. What could anyone do? Quen was gone until he wasn’t anymore.
“It’s okay,” Matty said softly, “I disappeared once. Not off the island but before? I’m still alive. Quen will be too.” He didn’t want to say sleepy was probably drugged. He would keep hugging her.
She reached up and wiped her face, her wings slumped along her back twitched slightly. “They took all his stuff, like they’re trying to make it look like he was never here.” She said, folding into Matty more.
That didn’t sound good but he was sure that is what they did at the prison too. He hugged her tighter and said, “For now. For now. He still might come back. I mean, they couldn’t just-” Yeah. No. Matty? Don’t say that. He kept holding on, “I know you’re scared for him, Jen. He’s strong. He’s brave. He’ll make it through. He will.”
“He thinks I hate him.” She said softly. “Maybe that’s why I can’t reach him. Maybe it’s because he thinks I don’t like him.” Jen had found Quen abrasive, but he’d quickly grown on her. She looked up and quickly scrambled to her feet. “Maybe.” She hurried to the closet with the washer and dryer and frantically opened it and started to pull clothes out of the dryer. They were all hers, but… Jen found a dark brown hoodie and clutched it. “I made him take it off because he spilled something on it.” She said softly, standing there holding the last connection she had to part of her soul.
“He does not think you hate him,” Matty said. He blinked as she was there one more and gone the next. He stood up, watching her go. He followed her and frowned as she found the hoodie and hugged it. Quen better come back. He had to come back.
“He’ll come back,” Matty said softly, “See? It’s a sign.” It was a crappy one but he could be hopeful.
“How do you know? Has anyone who’s disappeared from here come back?” Jen asked, she’d heard stories like everyone but they were only stories until it was someone you knew.
“Um, no?” Matty said but then shook his head, “Not here. But at the prison? When people showed abilities, they disappeared then one day my wings appeared and I was one of those people who disappeared. I’m still alive. I’m still here. So he will be too.”
“I hope so.” She said softly as she wandered, almost lost, to the living room. She didn’t feel good about everything. Her normal positive and perky persona was far away. Jen lowered herself down, and curled into the corner of the couch. She couldn’t shake the feeling that something bad was coming. If she could see her own colors she’d be drowning in black.
Matty hated seeing Jen like this. He also hated not being able to do anything or tell her anything. What could he tell her? He didn’t know anything. He went over to the couch with her and put his arms around her.
“When things sucked, before we got to the island, Thursday and I would sit like this. Just curled up with each other. It helped to know that I wasn’t alone, that I had someone else,” Matty said softly, “I can stay here with you for as long as you need. You aren’t alone either.”
She leaned against Matty, Jen could almost expected to hear Quen in her head making some comment about guys showing comfort for only one reason. But he didn’t. She didn’t say anything, just closed her eyes as she tried to reach out to the angry boy again while in the arms of the angel, her tears leaving his shirt wet.