After (Parallel Series, Book 4)

by Christine Kersey

  She looked at me with raised eyebrows.

  “Did you hear about my friend Billy?”

  “Who?”

  “Um . . . well . . . on Saturday something happened that you might find interesting.”

  Sitting up straight, she stared at me. “What is it?”

  “When you have a minute you might want to check out a certain website.” Then I gave her the web address.

  She pulled out her phone and immediately started typing in the web address, but before she could begin watching it the teacher started class. “I’ll watch it after class,” she whispered, then put her phone away.

  Nodding, I smiled tightly, worried about what she would say after she found out her new friend was insane.

  When class finished, I gathered my things and stood to leave.

  “I’ll see you at lunch,” she said.

  “Okay.” As much as I worried about being associated with We Can Choose—which the FBI might not even realize was tied to her—I hated even more the thought of wandering around the cafeteria like a nomad with everyone at my school knowing about my crazy claims of visiting a parallel world, so I hoped she would still want to see me at lunch after she watched the video.

  Lunchtime came around faster than I’d anticipated, and fearful that I would be scorned and ridiculed when I walked in, I hung back, hesitant to go in at all. After several moments I decided that I had to face the consequences, good or bad, and I walked in. To my relief no one paid attention to me as I made my way to Hannah and the other girls.

  As I got closer, I watched their faces, trying to discover whether they were on Team Morgan-is-crazy or Team Morgan-had-a-cool-experience. Hannah and Katie’s backs were to me, so I couldn’t get a read on their faces, but Sara and Olivia looked up as I approached and they smiled, which made me think they wouldn’t turn against me—at least not yet.

  I sat in the empty seat next to Hannah. “Hey.”

  She turned to me with wide eyes, then she stared at me a moment before finally asking, “Is it true? What you said on that video?”

  I met her gaze, then I looked at the other three girls before coming back to Hannah. “Yes,” I said with a nod. “It’s completely true.”

  She shook her head and laughed. “You know you sound like you’re nuts though, right? You and your friend both.”

  “Yes,” I said with a tone of impatience. “I know.” I was getting tired of people automatically doubting me.

  She scrunched up her nose. “Was I there?”

  That was a question no one had asked before. Wavering between whether or not to tell her that she was the girl I impersonated, I hesitated.

  Her mouth fell open. “I was, wasn’t I?”

  “Technically, everyone who’s here was there.”

  “But you knew me, didn’t you?”

  “No, I never met you.”

  Disappointment crashed over her features. “Oh.”

  “But you know how I said I pretended to be someone else when I went back into Camp Willowmoss?”

  “Yeah.”

  “It was you. You were part of the resistance there, and I guess you agreed to let me pretend to be Hannah Jacobs when I went back to help my sister.”

  Doubt replaced the disappointment. “Really? Are you just trying to make me feel better?”

  “I’m serious.”

  “What about me?” Sara asked, then Katie and Olivia nodded, like they wanted to know if I’d met them.

  I shook my head. “No, sorry. I never met any of you, or heard of any of you.”

  “That’s so cool,” Hannah said almost to herself, then she grinned. “That must be why I’m so, like, into the We Can Choose thing. It must totally be in my DNA to be a rebel, right?”

  Maybe I shouldn’t have encouraged her. “I guess.”

  Hannah grabbed my arm. “You have to be our spokesperson again, Morgan. You have to.”

  “I don’t know. I mean, I’ve had my fifteen minutes of fame. I think it’s someone else’s turn.”

  She released me. “But what you’ve been through puts such a . . . I don’t know . . . an exclamation point . . . on what we’re trying to do. You’re the only one who can do it.”

  I knew what she was trying to say, and it wasn’t that I disagreed, it’s just that I didn’t want to have the FBI—or any other authority—coming after me. I thought about the hacker and how she’d told me it wasn’t going to happen, but that had been a lie. “What about making decisions without letting me have a say?”

  “You want to have a say in decisions. I totally get that,” Hannah said. “I want your opinion. Especially now that I know what happened to you.”

  Well, that was something at least, although I still wasn’t sold on the idea of becoming their spokesperson again.

  “Your friend Billy should do it too,” she said as her face brightened with the genius of her idea. “I mean, he’s from there. He could totally tell people where we’re headed.”

  I couldn’t picture Billy agreeing to this, but I had to let him decide for himself. “I’ll ask him, but don’t hold your breath.”

  “Thanks,” she said.

  Chapter 75

  Billy

  “It will be like pulling off a band-aid,” I said to my mother, who stood next to the breakfast table with a worried look on her face. “You know, just rip it off all at once.”

  “Billy,” she said with a frown. “You don’t have to go yet. You can wait. Settle in first, let people know what to expect.”

  My father had already gone to work, and now my mother and I were debating whether or not I should start at my new school. Even though I’d barely moved in, I didn’t see the point in waiting. I was certain most—if not all—of Billy’s friends had seen the news conference, so they wouldn’t be too shocked to see me in person. I just wanted to get it over with. Whether it happened that day or the next month, it would be awkward for everyone.

  Smiling to soften my words, I said, “Look, I’m the one who will have to deal with it, so it should really be my decision.”

  She sighed, then placed a hand on my shoulder. “You’re very brave.” The smell of pancakes filled the kitchen, and she went to the griddle to scoop out the next batch.

  “Does that mean you agree?” I asked, trying to get used to this parent/child give and take.

  “If that’s what you want, then yes, it’s fine.”

  “Thanks.”

  Forty minutes later I stood in the office of my new school while my mother filled out the paperwork.

  “This is highly unusual,” the secretary said as her gaze kept drifting in my direction.

  I wasn’t sure which part was unusual—the clone from another world registering at her school, or changing schools mid-year. Somehow I suspected it was the former.

  When my mother completed filling out the forms, the secretary perked up, like she was glad to be back to normal procedures. “You’re all set.” She handed me my schedule, which my mother and I had discussed with a counselor earlier. “I can have someone show you around if you’d like.”

  “No, that’s okay. I’m sure I can figure it out.” I just wanted to go to my class and be as inconspicuous as possible.

  “All right. Come see me if you need any help.”

  “Thanks.”

  “I’ll see you after school, honey,” my mother said.

  I smiled at her, appreciative of her concern, then I walked out of the office and down the hall to find my class. A couple of minutes later I stood in front of a closed door that I knew I would have to enter.

  As confident as I’d been at home that morning, now my decision to start school right away seemed hasty, even ill-advised, and I hesitated. More than anything I wished Morgan went to this school. Knowing I would have her to sit with at lunch, maybe even have a class with, would make everything so much more bearable.

  I took a deep breath, released it, then twisted the doorknob and pushed the door open. All eyes zoomed right to me, and I heard gasp
s and whispered exclamations.

  “It really does look just like him,” one girl clearly stated.

  “Settle down, class,” the teacher said, then turned to me with a tight smile. I wondered if he knew Billy Foster well. “Welcome. You may sit in any of the empty seats.”

  My gaze swept the room, and when I saw an empty seat in the back, I calmly walked toward it. Every single eye followed me, but I forced myself to ignore the other students as I sat at my desk and pulled out my notebook.

  I raised my eyes to the teacher, who seemed just as fascinated by me as the students did, but after a second he seemed to gather himself and continue what he’d been saying before I arrived.

  When class ended no one spoke to me, though I could hear urgent whispers all around me. I loaded my things into my backpack, then stood and left the room, bracing myself for a repeat in all of my classes.

  Unfortunately, my assumption that I would cause a stir in every class was correct, but the hardest part of the day was lunch. In my world I’d always enjoyed lunch, and I’d liked it even more at Fox Run High. But here, at the school the dead Billy Foster attended, where everyone had either seen or heard about the news conference, I felt like a spectacle, a circus show freak, and I hated it.

  My parents had promised to get me my own smart phone—something I’d never owned in my life—but as I sat by myself at a table in the cafeteria, I wished I had one already. Not only to call Morgan, but to have something to do besides stare at the food on my lunch tray—food that I’d lost any desire to eat.

  Resorting to reading one of my textbooks—or at least pretending to read it—I didn’t notice a pair of girls approaching my table.

  “Is it okay if we sit with you?” one of them asked.

  I looked up to see two girls standing beside my table. I hoped they were sincere in wanting to sit by me, and not just playing a joke for the entertainment of everyone who was watching—which was the entire school. “Yeah, sure.”

  They set their trays on the table across from me, then sat down. “I’m Megan,” the girl who’d asked to join me said. “And this is Amber.”

  “Hey,” Amber said, barely glancing at me.

  “Hi.” I smiled at them, wary about why they wanted to talk to me when it was obvious that no one else did.

  Ignoring her food, Megan stared at me.

  “Did you know Billy?” I asked, wanting to move past the most likely reason for her unabashed gawking.

  Her eyes widened at my bold question, but then she said, “Yeah. He was my boyfriend last year.”

  Now I was the one who was surprised. Not only was her composure at seeing an exact replica of her dead ex-boyfriend remarkable, but her courage in talking to me was equally amazing.

  “Oh. I didn’t know he used to have a girlfriend.” I laughed self-consciously. “Actually, I don’t know anything about him. Except that he looked like me, and that he liked to work on cars with his dad.”

  “This is so weird,” she said, then turned to Amber. “Don’t you think this is just so weird?”

  Amber nodded, but her gaze skittered right over me, making me think she was only sitting at my table because Megan had made her.

  “Yeah,” I said. “I do.”

  Megan’s gaze came back to me. “Sorry. I’m not usually so rude. I just . . . well, I heard about you, and I had to meet you.”

  “I won’t bite,” I said. “I promise.”

  Amber looked at me sharply, like she expected me to lunge across the table and drag her back to my world.

  “I know,” Megan said with a soft chuckle, then her eyes filled with tears. “I just really miss him, and I guess I hoped that . . .” A blush rose on her face, and she shook her head. “I don’t know what I was hoping for. I mean, I think you and that girl? Morgan?”

  I nodded.

  “Yeah. She’s your girlfriend, right?”

  “Yeah,” I said, then smiled as I thought about Morgan. Even though Megan was pretty, no one drew my interest like Morgan did. She was the only girl for me.

  “Mmm, hmm,” Megan said, then she picked up her fork and began eating. After a few minutes she asked, “Is it okay if we’re friends?”

  “Of course. I don’t know anyone here.” I laughed. “I can always use friends.”

  She smiled. “Good. I’d like that.”

  “What about you, Amber?” I asked.

  “Me?” Panic filled her eyes.

  “Don’t be a jerk,” Megan whispered loudly to her.

  “Uh, yeah,” Amber said. “Sure.”

  No one had ever been coerced into being my friend before, but I smiled at her anyway. “Great.”

  Their bravery in speaking to me must have helped everyone else realize that I was harmless, because in my afternoon classes several people spoke to me, some even welcomed me to their school. To my surprise no one said anything derogatory to me, or implied I was a fake. My guess was that Billy had been well-known and well-liked, and since I looked just like him, the other kids must have transferred some of that feeling onto me.

  There were worse things than to be liked just because you looked like someone else.

  “How was it?” Morgan asked.

  I pressed the phone closer to my ear, picturing her face as I prepared to tell her about my first day at my new school. “Weird. Very, very weird.” Then I described everything I’d experienced.

  She laughed. “Sounds like it ended better than it started.”

  “Yeah, I guess it did.”

  “Well, I have a question for you.”

  “Shoot.”

  “Hannah wants to know if you’ll be part of We Can Choose.”

  I was quiet for a moment. “Why does she want me to be part of her group all of a sudden?”

  “I showed her the news conference and she said since you’re from that world you’d be able to tell people why we should avoid going down the same path.”

  I thought about Nick and his resistance group and how working with them had made me feel alive. Even though I had only been part of his group for a few weeks, I’d really liked it. My desire to stay with his group had been one of the reasons it had been a difficult decision for me to follow Morgan.

  Before joining his group I’d always preferred to stay in the background, but with his group I’d finally felt like I was making a difference. I still had no desire to be front and center, but I realized that since arriving in this world I’d been struggling to find my place. Maybe being part of We Can Choose was just what I needed to feel at home here, in this world. A way to discover my purpose for being here.

  “Tell her I’m interested,” I said. “But I want to wait until the whole FBI thing cools down before I officially agree to get involved.”

  “Really? You’re interested?” Morgan sounded genuinely surprised, and I wondered if she’d forgotten how passionate I’d been about the work Nick and his group had been doing to change people’s minds about the way things were in my world.

  “Yes,” I said. “Really.”

  “Okay.”

  I laughed. “Why do you seem so surprised?”

  “I guess I just didn’t think it would be your thing.”

  “Oh yeah? What do you think my thing is?”

  “I don’t know. Escaping from F.A.T. centers, maybe?”

  I could hear the smile in her voice. “There is that. But don’t forget that I worked with Nick’s group.”

  Chapter 76

  Morgan

  How could I have forgotten about Billy’s involvement with Nick’s resistance group? Had I blocked it out? The way he’d tried to convince me to stay and be part of their group? “Yeah,” I said after a moment. “I guess I did kind of forget about that. Maybe because I wasn’t with you when you joined them.”

  He laughed softly. “Yeah, your introduction to our group was probably a little more traumatic than mine.”

  Remembering the way I’d woken after being taken down by Mills to see Billy hovering over me, and then seeing Mil
ls leaning against the wall, I vividly recalled the panic I’d felt when I’d thought Billy was part of Holly’s group, and that he’d betrayed me. That had been one of the worst moments of my life.

  “Traumatic?” I said. “Yeah, you could say that.” I paused. “I’ll tell Hannah what you said.”

  The next day I arrived in second period before Hannah, but when she saw me she sat beside me with a smile. “Did you talk to your friend? Billy?” she asked.

  I nodded “Yeah, but he wants to wait until the FBI loses interest before he jumps in.”

  “Awesome!” She looked thoughtful. “You know, if you don’t want to be the spokesperson, I can ask him to do it.”

  This was a new twist, and I heard myself saying, “No, I decided that when Billy starts, I’ll be the spokesperson.” When did I make that decision?

  “That’s fantastic,” she said. “Having both of you involved will be . . .” Her smile grew. “Amazing.”

  I was glad she thought so, because I was already doubting my impulsiveness.

  “We should all get together soon. When can you guys meet with me?” she asked.

  Since Billy lived an hour away it would take a little extra planning to get together with him. “Maybe on Saturday,” I said.

  “Great.”

  But that meeting never happened. Instead, later that morning Hannah was called into Hansen’s office to talk to the FBI agents, who evidently hadn’t made much progress in catching her hacker friend.

  “She’s still in there,” Sara said at lunch after she told me that Hannah had been taken out of their third period class.

  We sat at our usual table with Katie and Olivia. “Are you sure she’s being questioned by the FBI?” I asked, wondering how Sara could know for sure.

  “I saw them,” Olivia said. “I was walking past the office right when Mr. Hansen and two men in suits went with her into his office.”

  I nodded. It sounded like she was indeed being questioned by the FBI. Or at least Hansen. When I’d been questioned I hadn’t been in there nearly as long, and I wondered if she was telling them about her hacker friend. I worried for her, but there was nothing I could do.