Psync by Zile Elliven
Chapter Fifteen
Eli
But I know you woke it. And it has never slept since.
Stupid phrase, keeping him awake. He regretted ever picking it.
Eli hit his pillow for the 5,789th time that night. Yesterday, Jace had called him to let him know he wasn’t going to be back that night—or the next. His dad had broken both of his legs, and Jace was filling in for him at his family’s farm stand until further notice.
Which, of course, sucked for Jace’s family, and Eli had assured him he would be fine—all while chewing a hole on the inside of his cheek.
He could do this. Hell, children could do this.
Juniper had been unbelievably supportive of him and his sleeping issues when they lived together. She never complained about missing out on sleepovers because her brother didn’t have his shit together enough to sleep on his own. Which was a miracle since she never hesitated to give him shit when she had the chance.
He owed her and everyone in his life to overcome this issue.
It was now night three of him sleeping in a room by himself. Not that he had actually done much sleeping. Mostly he drifted in and out of a light doze until jerking awake at the first hint of the shadow man appearing in his dreams.
He’d gotten to the point where he was afraid to close his eyes. He didn’t want to get trapped in another nightmare. It wasn’t like he would get lucky again and have Haruka call and wake him from it before it got bad.
He’d never asked Haruka what he’d called for either. It must have been important if he’d had to call before the sun rose.
The urge to call him now was sudden, like a punch to the gut. Eli had his phone in his hand before he even considered what he was doing. Until he saw in blinding glory, the big, fat 3:19 a.m. on his lock screen. It was way too late to call anyone right now.
Especially someone he’d been actively dodging for the past two days. What was he going to say? I’m sorry I keep running away every time I see you, but when I do I feel like I’m going to throw up and explode all at the same time?
Eli rolled off the bed with a groan and did all the push-ups he could manage before his arms rebelled and dropped him to the floor—a sum total of fifteen. He should probably work on his upper body strength. It wasn’t like he had anything better to do at night.
He pressed his cheek to the floor. It was half on the rag carpet his mother had made him and half on cold concrete. The contrasting textures gave him something to contemplate until the poem he’d copied shoved its way into his brain yet again.
. . . And it has never slept since.
The Voice had been intermittently active all day that day, but it was never anything concrete. Just random swears and unconnected phrases. The last one had been shortly before Eli tried to go to bed and was as enigmatic as all the rest. :At least tomorrow . . . :
Tomorrow? Tomorrow, what, Voice?
As far as Eli knew, there were no school events planned for tomorrow. So, unless it was personal, tomorrow was nothing. Though just to be on the safe side, Eli decided he’d stay away from any and all clock towers just in case the voice in his head decided to go on a killing spree.
He’d reached a new low point in his life if he was lying on the floor at ass-thirty in the morning wondering about the potential mental instability of the voice in his head.
But what else was he supposed to do? He only had two tomorrow—well, at this point he might as well call it today—and thanks to his newfound free time, he was caught up on all of his class work. He’d even studied the first two chapters of the advanced geometry class he had later today. Most of it had even made sense.
He climbed back onto his bed and fumbled around until he found his phone. 4:00 a.m.—two hours before the library opened. All he had to do was kill two more hours, and then he could go and take a nap at the library.
He’d discovered this useful loophole a couple of years ago. Something about the peace and quiet of the library made him feel like nothing bad could ever happen to him there. So, at the very least, he could guarantee himself enough sleep to be able to keep up with his studies.
✽✽✽
There was something wrong with his feet. Or possibly the door. Maybe both.
Whatever the case may be, actually entering his geometry classroom was proving more difficult than Eli would have guessed. It was only the idea of getting caught hesitating on the threshold that got him motivated enough to go through the door. Into a completely packed classroom.
Was it this full last time?
He cast around the room looking for a vacant spot, but there was only one.
Cool, mahogany eyes warmed as soon as Eli met them. The shivery thing in his stomach flared and then doubled in size when Haruka tapped the desk next to him.
Eli didn’t realize he was still standing in the doorway until Haruka raised an eyebrow. With the sun behind him and his head tilted just so, he looked like a pop star at a photoshoot.
Eli’s bag fell off his shoulder and hit the ground with a thump.
He briefly considered leaving it there and making a run for it, but the playful challenge in Haruka’s eyes had him scooping it off the floor and heading for the empty desk.
When he sat down, his shoulders instantly began to creep up to his ears as he waited for—well, he wasn’t sure, but he was certain something was about to happen.
Except it didn’t. Haruka didn’t tease him or ask why Eli had been hiding from him the past few days. Instead, he gazed at Eli with a thoughtful expression—much like he had at the fair.
Maybe Eli had been better at hiding from him than he’d thought? Though on at least two separate occasions, Eli could have sworn they’d locked eyes before he’d fled.
He sat frozen with Haruka’s quiet eyes on him. At first, he thought he was going to vibrate right out of his skin, but when he realized Haruka wasn’t going to say anything, his shoulders relaxed.
“Thanks.” Eli ventured. “For saving me a seat.”
Haruka nodded but said nothing.
And then continued to stay quiet for the entire class.
Outwardly, he seemed to have completely forgotten about Eli’s existence from the moment class started. But there was a subtle energy about him that made Eli feel like Haruka was very aware of his existence. It was as if Haruka was leaning toward him without moving an inch.
Which made it very difficult for Eli to focus on what the teacher was saying. He challenged himself to write down every word she said so that, even if he wasn’t able to process it now, he could look at it all later and try and take it in then.
When the class ended, Eli hurriedly stuffed everything back into his bag, but before he left, he couldn’t stop himself from glancing over at Haruka. It was just a quick peek through his bangs, but it was long enough for him to be stunned once again.
Haruka had his head propped up on one hand and tilted to the side. Once again, a lock of hair had escaped his short ponytail and fell charmingly over one eye.
And every single ounce of his attention was locked onto Eli.
Before Eli had a chance to say or do anything, Haruka stood, plucked Eli’s bag out of his hands, and headed for the door.
Eli blinked, then scrambled to his feet, and ran after him. “Hey!”
Haruka didn’t acknowledge his shout, but instead continued walking, leaving Eli no choice but to follow him out of the building.
He fell in step beside Haruka and tugged at his hoodie strings. “Um . . . I’m going to need that back at some point.”
“You’ll get it back.”
“Planning on telling me when?”
“Eventually.”
Well, if Haruka could play at being mysterious and nonverbal, so could Eli. He bit his lip and promised himself he wouldn’t say another word, even if it killed him. If he had to, he’d wait until Haruka became distracted then grab his bag and run.
He did a rather excellent job of being quiet until the kitten happened.
The sound he made was very manly. In fact, he didn’t make a sound at all. He was certain of it. But if he had, it would have been an incredibly manly one.
The little paws that perched on his foot were so painfully cute, he immediately didn’t let out a few more very manly sounds.
He crouched down. “What are you doing here?” Eli ran his fingers through soft, gray fur and found a tag. “Dakin? Isn’t that an animal shelter near here? Did you run away?”
The tiniest little pink nose nuzzled against his hand and green eyes stared into his. He reached out his other hand and gently scooped it up.
Tucking it against his chest, Eli stood and said, “I think I’ve found a quest.”
He looked up from the stripy, gray ball of fur in his arms to see Haruka giving him an inscrutable look. Eli took a step back from the intensity of his gaze.
“You don’t have to come with me, I can find”—he lifted the kitten’s tail—“his home by myself.”
Haruka blinked slowly, looked down at the kitten, then back up at Eli’s face. “I’ll help you.”
“Oh.”
What was Eli supposed to do right now? If it were Alice he was talking to, he had a feeling he wouldn’t be having such a hard time trying to figure out what he was supposed to say or do next. What was it that made Haruka so different?
It couldn’t be that he sometimes liked to tease Eli—Alice did it all the time. But when she did it, it didn’t make his face hot or make his hands and feet feel like they were suddenly five times larger than usual.
“Okay then . . . I think the first thing we should do is call the shelter to see if they have any information on this little guy.”
Haruka pulled out his phone. “I’ll look up their number.”
Eli nodded and turned his attention back to the kitten who had busied himself in trying to nurse from his armpit.
“You found him!”
A girl about Eli’s age ran toward him at full speed, her long hair trailing behind her like a streamer—there was no way she was going to stop herself before she smashed into him. Eli closed his eyes, wrapped his arms around the kitten, and braced himself for impact.
He heard an oof, but nothing happened. Eli opened his eyes to see Haruka standing in front of him with an armful of flailing girl.
“Sorry! I just got so excited when I saw Rocky. I thought I’d never see him again.”
Eli narrowed his eyes when he noticed the girl’s hands pressing against Haruka’s chest. “What was he doing running around a college? He’s only a baby.” Was that his voice? Jeeze, he sounded bitchy even to his own ears. Maybe he needed to eat something.
Haruka steadied the girl and stepped back, nearly bumping into Eli, but dodging to the side at the last second.
Ugh. Surprise, random people. So stressful.
Eli fished around in a pocket until he found his earbuds, put them in his ears, and hit play on his phone. He kept the volume low enough that he could hear what was going on, but still loud enough to give him a small barrier between himself and the situation unfolding in front of him.
“He darted out of the door when I stopped to pump gas. I think maybe his carrier wasn’t closed properly, and he busted it open and ran. Poor little guy must be terrified. I just got him today.” None of this was said to Eli because the girl couldn’t seem to keep her eyes off of Haruka.
Bad manners notwithstanding, Eli had no reason not to give the kitten back to the girl—especially since he had no home to give him. “Just keep an eye on him better, okay?” He pressed his nose into the kitty’s fur in a silent goodbye, breathing in its one-of-a-kind kitten smell. He really needed to have his own cat someday.
He made to pass the kitten to the girl, but Haruka intercepted. He held his hands under the small bundle, waiting until Eli released him into the larger man’s care. Then he passed the kitten to the girl who proceeded to touch Haruka far more than the situation warranted in Eli’s opinion.
Then for some unknown reason, she didn’t leave. “So, what are you two up to today? I hope I didn’t keep you from anything important?”
“We have class soon,” Haruka said shortly
Eli fidgeted with his hoodie strings. He didn’t have any more classes that day, but he had no trouble keeping quiet about it if it meant the overly friendly girl would go away.
“Oh, okay then.” She continued to linger as she stared at Haruka. For a moment, Eli thought he was going to have to abandon his backpack to escape the increasingly awkward situation, but Rocky squirmed and tried to jump out of his person’s arms. “Ack! Stop it, Rocky! I’d better go before he gets away again. Can I call you so I can thank you properly? I’m Amanda, by the way.”
Eli was certain the girl hadn’t looked at him once the entire encounter. Hopefully, Rocky wouldn’t starve to death under her care. Maybe Eli could hide the kitten under his bed? It wasn’t too late to grab him and run.
“No thanks necessary. Come on, Eli, let’s go.” Haruka turned and walked away without so much as a glance at the girl or her kitten.
Eli waved goodbye to the surprised girl and jogged to catch up with Haruka. They walked in silence for a few minutes until Haruka tugged on Eli’s earbud cord and placed the bud in his own ear.
“Thai pop music? Meung poot passa Thai, reu bplau?”
Haruka had just asked—somewhat rudely—if he spoke Thai. Eli’s grin could have split his face. He politely answered in Thai. “Yes, but I think your accent is better.”
Haruka switched to Japanese. “How’s your Japanese?”
Eli responded in kind. “I understand it better than I speak it. It’s a work in progress, but I’m getting there.” Eli switched to Hindi, “I’ve been told my accent is better in Hindi, but my vocabulary is limited. What about you?”
Haruka snorted. “It’s garbage.” He switched to Mandarin. “This is my best language, after Japanese.”
“Seriously? Even better than English? That’s completely unfair.”
“I’ve had longer to practice. I am older than you, after all.”
“I had, in fact, noticed that.”
What Eli hadn’t noticed was how close they were to each other as they walked. It wasn’t until his sleeve brushed Haruka’s jeans that he realized. Eli could have moved over to gain some space, but since his body wasn’t making him do it, maybe he could just relax a little.
Would it really be the worst thing in the world if they accidentally touched? He’d touched Nate the other day by accident, and it hadn’t been the end of the world.
They continued playing Eli’s favorite game in the world until Haruka stopped in front of the main cafeteria.
“What’s with you and food?” Eli asked.
“You’re not hungry?”
Eli’s stomach growled loudly. “Maybe a little?” He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “Will you give me my bag back if I eat lunch with you?”
Haruka’s mouth curved into a devilish smile. “Eventually.”
As they got their food, Eli learned there was only one language where they didn’t overlap—Eli was studying Vietnamese while Haruka had chosen Russian. Haruka planned on adding in Norsk as well, but only recreationally.
Eli totally got that. He’d occasionally flirted with Tsalagi—the Cherokee language—as a nod to his father’s side of the family and to pay homage to the days he spent as a child going to pow-wows and moon circles before his family had moved north. But there was very little opportunity for him to interact with the language—there were only a handful of speakers in the world and very little media in Tsalagi—which meant he had never made much headway with it.
Halfway through lunch, Alice plopped herself down next to Eli, announcing, “You’re both massive nerds, by the way. If you keep this up no one will ever be able to understand either of you.”
That was when Eli realized they’d never really stopped playing their game.
Haruka smirked. “As long as Eli can understand me, I’m good.”
“Oh really?” Alice shot Eli a look loaded with meaning. “You two are moving fast.”
Eli’s cheeks heated, and he threw a breadstick at Haruka. “Knock it off. You’re going to give her the wrong idea.”
Haruka deftly snatched it out of the air and put it back on Eli’s plate. “Am I?”
“That was stupid hot, Haruka. Eli, how do you feel about sharing?” Alice asked, because she was a terrible, horrible person.
“You’d better be talking about food right now, Alice.”
Alice clapped her hands and broke into giggles. “Don’t make this too fun for me, Eli, or I’ll never be able to contain myself.”
“Make the attempt, Alice, or my hand might slip when I bleach your hair later.”
Her hands flew to her head protectively. “Okay, fine, but only if you let me dye your hair magenta.”
“No deal.”
“But . . .”
“No buts!” Eli shoved back from the table. “Are you finished eating?” Eli asked Haruka.
Haruka nodded and then looked pointedly at the contents of Eli’s tray.
“I’m full! You and your weird food fixation. Did you not have enough to eat when you were younger?” He froze. Eli knew nothing about Haruka. What if he grew up poor?
Instead of getting offended, Haruka chuckled. “Whatever you’re thinking, you can stop. I had plenty of everything growing up.” He stood up, snatching Eli’s backpack before he could even think about it. “Come with me, I need to go shopping.”
“I am not your errand boy!” Eli shouted, but Haruka had already walked off.
“I’m really starting to like him, Eli!” Alice called to his back as he chased after Haruka for the third time that day.