Book of the Dead: AESLI-00: (A reverse harem, post-pandemic, slow-burn romance) (The JAK2 Cycle, Book 1)

by V. E. S. Pullen

  His eyes lit up. “Is that why you avoid the cafeteria? Because of the food?”

  “Of course. Why else would I?”

  “Fear,” the guy next to me mumbled, still trying to act like he wasn’t talking to me but apparently it was okay to eavesdrop. “Contempt, maybe. Definitely disgust.”

  “Well, you’re about half right. Trust me, Aaron Boswell,” I said loudly, making sure everyone around heard me talking directly to him, “there is nothing and no one here that scares me.”

  “You’re such a motherfucking badass,” Luka sighed, leaning in to kiss my cheek and light my face on fucking fire. “I wanna be like you when I grow up.”

  Aaron let out a pained, high-pitched laugh. “You broke Danny Phillips’s jaw, and you want to be like Azzie?”

  “Wow,” I said in sarcastic disbelief. “Dick.”

  He winced, and Luka gave him such a glare. “Yeah, I do. She’s my hero. Tell fucking everyone.”

  I gave him a small push. “Thank you Luka, but go sit down. The power play only works if I don’t have a security escort.”

  “For someone who doesn’t lower herself to these petty games, you sure know how to play them,” Luka narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

  “I have a lot of layers.”

  “Like a rose,” he said reverently, “who will bloom under the right conditions, those lovely petals unfurling to reveal—”

  “You’re a dork,” I interrupted and he grinned at me. “No, not a rose. An onion. And the deeper you go, the more you’ll cry. Now go sit down.” He laughed as he walked away, repeating my joke to himself. “God he’s an adorable little fucker,” I said to no one in particular.

  “No, he’s scary as shit,” Aaron interjected, “but you’re even scarier.”

  Miss Elyse passed my smoothie over to me and I turned to go, winking at Aaron. “Be afraid.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Azzie

  I gave myself a moment to study the battlefield.

  There were about six tables between me and my destination, and I’d be walking right past a table full of enemy combatants. I contemplated the room, noticing something strange: the genders were not intermingled.

  The Viper Twins lorded over a table of just girls — sure, it was all the usual suspects with Clarissa, Marina, Emma, et. al., but still unusually estrogen-heavy. Then there was a different table with my guys— I mean the triplets and the Callis twins, none of whom are my anything and I don’t know why I even thought that— but whatever— this is awkward. Finally, there was a separate table with the jock-like guys, who would totally dominate the football field…if we had organized sports here, or rival schools, or any of those things. We had gym class, and it was pretty much training for the military, and not something even remotely in my wheelhouse.

  I sucked down a mouthful of smoothie and narrowed my eyes, studying the girls’ table.

  There was a Viper Twin on each side, so I couldn’t get by without passing directly by one of them. Marina was sitting sideways in her chair, which gave her opportunity to trip me. There was a table of wannabes nearby just waiting for a chance to prove themselves.

  And every single one of them had a large drink of some kind.

  Well, shit.

  Luka thinks you’re a badass, I reminded myself. And Tai thinks you’re a goddess, at least sometimes. You licked Spider’s neck like three times just because you wanted to and gave him a boner. Sasha cares about you, and Sev D&D flirted with you. You can fucking do this.

  Yeah, I got this.

  I walked up to the table closest to them that had an empty seat and pulled it out, stepped up on it, and then stepped up on the table, facing the room with the girls in my side view. I couldn’t see the guys at all, which is the only reason I thought I could make it through what I intended to say. “Can I have your attention please?” I said, and the room went silent. “As some of you may be aware, I had a bit of an altercation with some new students yesterday, and I’d just like to say a few things. First of all, Adriana, I apologize for calling your mouth a cock-holster. I don’t believe that slut shaming is ever okay, and it’s no one’s business what you do with your mouth. Your body, your choice, and I’ll support you no matter what. Along with that, I’d like to apologize for calling you and Gemma garbage people. I literally just met you right before I said that, and I have no idea if you’re garbage people or not. I shouldn’t have said that. New students need to feel welcome, and frankly that whole situation was a little too much like bullying for my tastes, and I don’t ever support that. There was something else… let me think… oh! Right. That rumor you asked me about? Me sleeping in Sasha Kolek’s bed? Yeah, that was totally true. But it was fine, his brothers were there too. True story. So my advice to you is that if you want to start a rumor, at least go for the really juicy one. And I use that word deliberately. So okay, then, that’s all I wanted to say.”

  I turned around to find the empty chair to step down, hoping this wasn’t going to be the moment I fell on my face in front of almost 300 people, but the chair was gone and Jason Callis was standing there instead. He had the biggest grin on his face, on what seemed like the tail-end of a good laugh. “C’mon you fucking badass,” he said, holding out his arms, and I shrugged and stepped off the table right into them.

  He held me with one arm around my back and one under my ass, and whispered “wrap your legs around my waist” when I dangled awkwardly. Once I had my ankles locked around him, virtually sitting on his arms and looking down at him, I took another sip of my smoothie and brushed his hair out of his eyes. “As statements go,” I said, “this is a bold one.”

  “No bolder than yours,” he said, and then carried me over to his brother and the triplets, setting me down so I was sitting on the end of their table directly between Sasha and Ryan.

  “Hey guys,” I said, making a move to slide down but Sasha’s hand on my thigh stopped me.

  “Hi Azzie,” he said, face a little flushed but with the widest smile I’d ever seen on him. “Just stay there for a second and let us enjoy this moment.”

  I shrugged, taking another slurp of my smoothie. “I had to do something. They were going to drench me with their drinks. I wasn’t expecting the ride over here but I can’t say I didn’t enjoy it.”

  “I know I’ve joked about this before—” Luka said, and I twisted my upper body to look at him. He was wiping his eyes, his face almost as red as mine. “—but you’re my fucking hero. For realz.”

  I folded my lips inside my mouth and looked between the three of them with no small amount of worry about how they’d deal with me basically announcing I’d fucked all of them. At the same time. “Umm, sorry about implying that—”

  “Don’t,” Sev said, holding up his hand from the other end of the table. “Don’t ever apologize for that. It was perfect. And I’m honored just to be nominated.”

  My face was aflame once again, and I ducked my head, too embarrassed to look at any of them. Sasha squeezed his hand, and I realized it had been resting on my thigh this whole time. “That was masterful,” he murmured, ducking his own head and looking up at me from under his hair, voice so low that I had to lean in, the gravel in it making me shiver. “I’m so fucking in awe of you right now.”

  “I gotta find a way to get a message to dad,” Ryan said to Jason, “he’s going to fuckin’ die hearing this little girl completely bitch-slapped Adriana and Gemma Slope in front of the whole school.”

  “Need a sat phone,” Jason agreed, and I was totally confused.

  “You can’t just text him from your phone?” I asked.

  The table went silent. “There’s no outside access within town borders,” Sasha said slowly. “You didn’t know that?”

  “With anyone?” I asked, completely dumbfounded, looking around the table. They all shook their heads. “Wait, aren’t your parents here in town with you?”

  Again, dead silence. “No, baby, we’re all living with host families,” Jason said quietly. “Yo
u didn’t know?”

  “Why— why aren’t your families here? They just let you come here by yourselves?”

  The looks that went back and forth between all of them made me think there was much more going on than I’d ever suspected.

  “You know the whole town is vaccinated, right?” Ryan said, raising the sleeve of his t-shirt up and flashing the familiar injection scar and tattoos identifying him as having been vaccinated against JANUS-23 with the most potent vaccine around. I don’t know why, but seeing it— I sucked in a painful breath, unable to look away from the ugly barcode burned into his skin, the vaccination number inked below it, and the starburst-shaped scar from the injection gun.

  It always caught me off-guard to see those marks, but it had never made me feel like this, and I reached out, tentatively, and ran my finger over the raised skin when he didn’t stop me. His number was different. Significantly different.

  “Yeah,” I said roughly. “I know.” I couldn’t seem to stop running my finger over the letters and numbers permanently inked on his skin.

  “And you know we’re here for some kind of study, Tai said he told you,” Sasha said, peeling up his own shirtsleeve and I saw the same mark, almost the same number. My hand trembled, but I had to, I had to touch it, read his skin like braille.

  “Yeah,” I whispered.

  “The deal is, we got the vaccine,” Luka said, showing me his marks, and tears prickled behind my eyes. What was going on? It was so fucking wrong! “But our families only get it if the study is successful.”

  “WHAT?!” I cried out, shocked and horrified beyond belief. “What— what?!”

  Luka looked between his brothers, confused by my reaction, and I tried to tamp down the sick rage forming in my gut. This… this was not possible. I looked over at Ryan and Jason, who nodded.

  “They’re withholding it?” I asked, my voice crackling. “Using it? Like some fucking bargaining chip?”

  Sasha looked at me funny, like I was some strange insect that he’d never seen the likes of before. “Of course.”

  “Of course,” I whispered, feeling something crack open inside of me. I felt… I was such a fool. Such a naïve fool.

  I found myself gasping for breath, lightheaded, and I reached blindly for something to hold onto. Sasha grabbed my arm, my fingers reflexively curling, seeking out purchase even as he steadied me. “I need to go,” I said. “I need to go right now. Please?” I begged him. “Can you please take me home?”

  “Let’s go,” he said, and didn’t hesitate. He swept me off the table and carried me out of the room bridal-style, to the delighted whoops and cheers of my classmates.

  “Are you sure you don’t want at least one of us to stay with you?” Sev asked, concerned.

  I shook my head. I’d barely spoken since we’d exited the cafeteria, but I couldn’t. A wall formed itself in my mouth, and if I broke it down, everything would come flowing out. The words were fighting to be free but I couldn’t let them. I had to keep them in.

  “You’re worrying me,” Sasha said, a finger sliding under my chin to tilt my head up so he could study my face. “Can we at least call someone? Your mom?”

  I sucked in a breath, pain blossoming inside me, and shook my head again. “Please,” I whispered, feeling like a broken doll, “just go.”

  They wouldn’t come if the guys were here, and I needed to know who the men were, the ones in the dark sedan. I needed answers.

  “Text me later. Promise me,” Sev said sternly, and I nodded. Everything is a lie.

  After they left, I texted Rachel, telling her I left school. She texted me back telling me to stay inside and not answer the door because those men stopped by again this morning. It was the longest text I’d gotten from her in at least two years. I replied with a single word: “Fine.”

  Twenty minutes later, when the doorbell rang and two besuited men were standing on the front porch, I opened the door and let them in. I listened to what they had to say, and it wasn’t what I thought. The only answer I got was for a question I didn’t even know to ask.

  I thanked them for coming to me directly, and told them if they had everything I needed then I’d start tomorrow night. The relief on their faces was palpable. All three of us knew there were no guarantees, and it might even kill me, but it was what I needed to do.

  After that, everything else just seemed petty. Unworthy of me. I let it go. I let it all go.

  I let them go.

  I was more alone than I’d ever been, even when practically everyone I’d ever known or loved died around me. This, somehow, was worse.

  A few hours later, I got a text from Mouse.

  Mouse: I heard from Tai who heard from Spider that you skipped your afternoon classes, and HE heard from one of the triplets that you got upset at something and went home. And that some awful girls are picking on you. Why didn’t you tell me? I’ve been itching to kick some underage ass!

  Me: Can I still sleep over tonight?

  Mouse: Of course.

  Me: When can you come get me?

  Mouse: Fifteen minutes?

  Me: Okay. I’ll be ready.

  Mouse: Are you going to tell me?

  Me: No.

  Mouse: Fuck.

  I spent the night at Mouse’s place, staring silently into the aquarium in my room. She tried fussing over me, but finally gave up and left me to my thoughts.

  After a sleepless night, I got dressed and left Mouse a note, telling her I had to leave and I’d see her at game later, but I wouldn’t be coming to the lab. I’d had a lot of time to think about things, about everything, and looking around Mouse’s place… she knew. She had to know. It’s why she was doing what she was doing here. She chose not to tell me, and the reasons I could come up with to explain that were inadequate to the fury and betrayal I felt.

  The sun wasn’t up, and Mouse lived out in the middle of nowhere, so I walked down to the road and dialed a number I hardly ever used, summoning a patrol to come pick me up.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Sasha

  If I’d thought she was zombie-like on Wednesday, it had nothing on her today.

  All day, in every class, she sat silently, staring at nothing, speaking to no one. If I tried to get her to look at me, all she’d do is shake her head and pull away.

  It changed the dynamic. For whatever reason, the rest of the school took it as a break-up, like Azzie’s painful retreat was the response to us ending the imaginary relationship they’d all created in their brains. As if it was inevitable that we’d crush her, and not the other way around.

  At lunch, our table was swarmed by girls, and hoping for a reaction from her — any reaction — we let them stay. Azzie never even looked in our direction.

  Every class had her keeping her distance from us while everyone else clustered closer, eager for drama, waiting for an emotional breakdown. Azzie wouldn’t break though. There was nothing there to spill out, she was dead inside. Or we were just dead to her.

  I don’t know what happened. I don’t know what specific thing triggered this absolute retreat from the rela— friendships we were working towards.

  The only thing that made sense to me was that she found out we left our families behind, and we got the vaccine but they didn’t. The kind of person Azzie is, she wouldn’t leave anyone behind, at risk, always afraid. But without knowing us, not really, she wouldn’t understand that our situation is very different than that.

  Sometimes adults needed to make hard decisions, and only a child would waste energy railing against the unfairness of it all. I was reminded, for the first time in days, that she was still only seventeen years old, living in a sheltered bubble of unreality.

  Let her pout and blame us for things she doesn’t even understand. Let her judge us. Let her throw away the friendship we could have had.

  It’ll just make it easier to leave.

  Spider

  Comp Sci wasn’t any different than what I’ve come to think of as “normal” exce
pt Sev sat with Gemma and the carrot-top and actually talked to them instead of chatting with Azzie all class. He was more like the Sev I met — cold and calculating — than the one I’d seen over the last two days. He was angry, and deliberately ignoring her in a way that required his full attention.

  She was oblivious.

  Like the stalker perv she accused me of being — was it really just two days ago? — I watched her the entire hour, I watched her watching everyone else. She didn’t even pretend to do the work, she never even logged into her terminal. She sat the whole class at the back of the room, in her corner, and watched everyone else. And I wondered… if Sev wasn’t so determined to ignore her, would he have realized that her eyes lingered longest on him?

  And her gaze…it wasn’t lifeless like Sasha claimed. It wasn’t dead and emotionless. I could only see her in profile because she never once looked my way — not that I cared, really I didn’t — but even in profile I could see their take on things was wrong. She looked tortured.

  Class ended, and she didn’t linger, she was the first one out the door avoiding any chance at private conversation. I had a free hour, then the infamous Study Hall that caused so much conflict between us at the beginning. Again, she sat in the back corner, as far away from Luka and Ryan as she could. My desk was at the front of the room this time, and I could see her avoid any possibility of looking at either of them. Ryan wasn’t nearly as bothered as Luka, but he was still irritated by the freeze-out.

  Me: Luka?

  Luka: What?

  Me: You can’t force her to like you. There’s obviously something going on that we don’t understand and you’re making it worse. You need to back off.

  Luka: Mind your own fucking business.

  Me: Regardless of what a sham this is, you’re in my fucking classroom. Getting up in the middle of class and threatening people to get them to move so you can sit by her, then trying to force her to acknowledge you, is not acceptable. Give her some fucking space.