I took a slow breath and rubbed my forehead. Allison scratched her cheek lightly and asked me, “Could you run through that again?”

After Allison mentioned her mother’s given name before she was married, I found my words. But they sounded like someone at the verge of panic, everything slurred together and my hands trembling. Allison listened. She nodded a little but she folded her hands, smooshed up her brow, and asked me that question.

Having blurted it all out at once helped me get over the shock of what Tessa had dropped on me. 

I started from the beginning.

“Back in January, on the first day of class, I met a Kinrae walking around the nearby shopping center. I mentioned her, right?”

Allison nodded readily, commenting, “The heavy one who you smacked into because you were being all cutely curious about her and not aware of where you were going.”

I held my hands out. “Tessa…who looks nothing like that Kinrae…brought up the blue flowers I remember that girl carrying and she mentioned running into me. She basically said that she was that other Kinrae.”

Dipping her head back, Allison reflected on that before saying, “Okay…so she was wearing an imitation device then?” She held up the device controller for emphasis.

I chewed at my lip. “Unless she’s lying to me and trying to mess with my head by claiming what happened to some other Kinrae was what happened to her.”

Allison pointed out, “Quite possible.” 

Then I added, “But…the kicker is this. She complimented us as a couple and she said it the same way that older lady in front of us at the home improvement store did the day I asked you out on a bookstore date.”

Arching her cotton candy eyebrows, Allison mulled that a bit before answering, “You remember exactly what that nice lady in front of us said that day? I just remember her saying like…we made a cute couple or something.”

I was sure of what she’d said. Pretty sure, at least. It sounded so similar. Why else would Tessa mention saying it ‘again’?

Allison posed the all-important question for that, “Do you trust this ‘Tessa’? Can you be sure she’s not just a stalker Kinrae who is trolling you?”

I paused a moment. But there was more. 

“She made a watermark on her hands disappear. She knew about Theresa being my mother’s name. And she knew your name and she had your mother’s maiden name as her last name.”

Allison put her hand on my shoulder and reiterated, “Stalker. That’s all info anyone can get from likely anywhere…even…Oh! You said she’s in charge of the devices? What if they can listen to people who are using them? I mean it’s technology from the Kinrae. People have examined them but what if there are secrets no one has found yet…like a really good listening system? And also, if she knows the devices well then she must know how to make a watermark appear on herself.”

That was something to consider, especially together with the stalker possibility. But then again regular Kinrae couldn’t exactly go undercover. Too conspicuous. 

Then there was the last thing, which I told Allison, “She implied that she was me…maybe from an alternate universe where I was a Kinrae.”

To this, Allison’s skeptical look showed as she noted, “Pleeeeaaase…you’d have way better boobs and hair than that as an anime girl.” 

I couldn’t resist a smirk. The trembling stilled. I took a breath without quivering. Allison reached up to gently stroke my hair. It felt nice. It felt comforting. Aubrey had done it once a long time ago but idly, like she was bored and just fussing with it. Allison stroked my hair with calm, loving care. 

She pulled me close and glanced to the western horizon. “The sun is setting….Maybe everything you thought you and the entire world knew about the Kinrae is wrong. Maybe they can give the NSA a run for their money. Maybe something you can’t even imagine about them is what’s up. But…for now…I would love very much to share a dance with you before we’re booted out by the park’s police geese or something.” She chuckled and rested her hand on my neck.

Looking into Allison’s evening-tinted eyes, I nodded. For now.

We didn’t have music but Allison provided a bit of humming for accompaniment. She showed me how to do bits of the foxtrot, posing my arms in the correct position. I only felt like I wasn’t messing it up till the end. I thought the waltz would be easier but it was just as intimidating. Eventually, after immense failure on my part, Allison settled into my arms with a hug and told me, “Slow dance.”

And so we did that. Just a hug and slow circles. She rested her head against me and I cradled her. She shut her eyes and I felt mine relax. Our time was short but I loved every slow swirl. I could hear Allison lightly say, “A happy day.”

It didn’t change anything. It didn’t make me forget the storm of words and questions which Tessa had torn through me. I still felt as adrift and anticipating the next wave as I did after my parents vanished from my life. But Allison was my rock. I clung to her warmth. I wanted to feel what she said. I looked out at the dim, red sun caught amidst the far buttes. I could believe a happy day.

We were one of the last cars to leave before they sealed up the main gate. I drove back slowly. Allison told me to take the scenic route. There was a Basque market to the west which was open late and sold all sorts of spices and meats. I paid for everything, reminding her, “This is our first date, remember?” 

She smiled but then drew it back with a pout, saying, “I consider that lovely night after Linnea our first date. I mean…I proposed marriage.” An older man, whose beard was turning white, chuckled at that and wrapped up our purchases. Then he included a bag of rice we hadn’t bought. He explained, “For young love.”

Allison walked the purchases back to the car in one hand and noted, “He could’ve been a disguised Tessa, you know. So coooooulllld I!”

I smirked at her and stuck out my tongue. It struck me then how odd it was that anime girls might be watching me while I was unaware. I wondered, when I was looking at Tessa or whoever she was by the florist, was she or someone else covertly paying attention to me? It gave me a slight tingle to consider despite all my worries.

Allison pushed her seat back a little and shut her eyes. She clutched her stomach with her arms and rested. I smiled at her and let her sleep soundly as evening settled into darkening twilight.

It was night, with the first stars emerging from the haze of the city lights by the time we pulled into the drive. Allison slept with a curling smile on her face. I leaned over and gave her a wake-up kiss on the lips. She didn’t rouse.

Then, she lifted a single, vast eye open and said, “First one didn’t work. Still asleep. Try another.” Her curving smile deepened as she closed her eyes again. With a laugh, I gave her another, lingering longer with my hand on her cheek. 

Still, she kept her eyes closed. She offered after that, “Maybe a third is the charm to rouse a sleeping princess?” 

And so I gave her one more kiss, trying to think of little scenes in fairy tales for how princesses were kissed before I decided just to have fun with it. At the end, Allison’s eyes fluttered open and she smiled a deeply-drawn smile before noting, “I figured three was enough for that silliness.”

She swung around the bags and basket as we made our way inside. Clayton and Malcolm got the non-perishable leftovers to divide between themselves. They both marveled at Allison as she went past and asked how “the date went”. Allison talked it up with all the positives, mentioning the dance and “just time to talk”.

After a quick and quirky match involving a Japanese racing game, Allison headed into her room to “get changed”. I lingered and stretched as I told Malcolm that we just had the one device now because Lissa got hers back. His eyes nervously flicked to an unaware Clayton as he remarked, “Ah. Cool.”

I didn’t toy with him further because I heard Allison’s feminine voice through the wall saying, “Sean? Could you come here?”

I wasn’t sure why he would ask for me, unless it was to try another kiss or two in male form. Not that I minded anymore. But he probably had a surprise for me.

I was right.

I opened the door and remained in the threshold. Standing before me was a girl. A human girl. Her clothes, what Allison had been wearing earlier in the day before he used the device, fit her awkwardly. She had Allison’s smooth skin but it looked even softer. She had his faint eyebrows. She had his face but it looked like any gender ambiguity had been smoothed out. And there was no questioning the swell of her chest under Allison’s shirt. Her figure wasn’t as outrageous as pink anime girl Allison. Her jeans were snug in some places but loose in others and looked rather uncomfortable on her. Her wide hips and feminine thighs were traced by the material. She looked at me with those golden-flecked green eyes and bit her lip. I shut the door behind me and stared.

The girl fussed with her clothes and swallowed. The device and the controller were together on Allison’s bed. I took a breath. I had no reason to believe the girl standing before me in Allison’s clothes actually was Allison after all the uncertainty Tessa had cast on everything. I had every reason to distrust the sincerity of those worried, familiar eyes. But first, I guided her to Allison’s bed and helped her sit down.

Trying slow breaths, the girl recounted, “It’s me, Sean. I came in here. I turned off the controller like before and slipped it off while I waited through the delay. But when the delay was gone, I was still a girl but like this.”

She clutched her hands together. She really looked like she needed a hug. I gave her one eagerly, despite my doubts. She held my shoulders. She shivered and swallowed. I’d never seen Allison so rattled. If she was Allison. 

I sat down beside her and looked her over. She would need some other clothes. Fortunately, Allison had plenty of clothes in all sorts of styles to choose from. She clung to me and sifted through everything. Eventually, she found a shirt and pants which would fit her better. Without thinking, she slipped her clothes off and the other ones on. I tried not to watch. She seemed more comfortable as she sat back down on the bed. 

She sat up for a moment before leaning back on the bed with a sigh to ask, “What do I do now?”

I wanted to comfort her and yet I felt held back by my doubts. I’d been struck by so much uncertainty. Now my rock had shifted and I had no idea what I could rely on. Hesitantly, with a pang of shame, I asked her, “Can you prove to me that you really are Allison?”

She sat up, eyes on the verge of sorrowful tears. I grimaced and looked away. 

Softly, she said, “I don’t know. I don’t know if I can prove anything. But ask me whatever you need to and I’ll do my best.”

I tried to think of anything that would be private, which couldn’t have been watched. I considered the details of random marriage plans, which she answered swiftly and with the hint of a smile. But I had to discount that because of the influence of the devices. I had to look back. I dug up something which stuck in my mind. 

“Tell me what I whispered in your ear about the first soufflé of yours I ate. What you called the cutest compliment I ever gave your food.”

It had been before Christmas, before I knew there would be a Kinrae-related class this quarter. Sure, I could've been watched even then but that would be paranoia out of all reason. It was the safest thing to try.

She answered instantly, “Superfflé.”

I felt a tingle on the back of my neck. No one else was present and, so far as I knew, Allison told no one. I could’ve doubted. I could’ve dug myself further into questions. But I thought about if I was in her position, changed and alone. And I realized it didn’t matter. To me, to everything I knew, this was Allison and she was afraid. 

I wrapped my arms around her and gave her a kiss on the forehead. I told her I believed her. She looked into my eyes and clutched my hand so tightly I felt as though I was losing feeling in it. I let her grip. Even though…holy crap she still had her strength. I winced and whispered, “Little softer…please.”

She gasped and eased up to the point of her hold merely resembling a boa constrictor’s. She asked, “What do I do?” I put my arm around her and rubbed her back. She leaned into me, her warm, human flesh so similar to but yet so different than what I felt touching that pink-haired Kinrae. 

As I held her, I heard her halting sobs come in soft pieces. I wished I could do more. I wished I could do anything. Even if there were lingering doubts, my heart hated the idea of anyone in tears. I held her as long as she needed until she finally settled back and wiped her eyes with a tissue.

Her head down, I told her, “I’m here.” She nodded and breathed deeply in through her nose. Finally, she said, “Okay. When something changed last time, it seemed like I was a little softer all around. I couldn’t alter that. But the first change was my voice and I could change that. Maybe…this is like with my voice. Please let it be like my voice…”

She stood slowly. I trailed after her. She shut her eyes and it looked like she was focusing. I watched and waited. For several moments, it seemed like nothing was happening. Then, finally, I noticed the shape of her face was shifting from the girlish form to one more androgynous. Bit by bit, she changed. 

Her hands subtly shifted. Her hair receded slightly into her head. Her hips dipped back down. Her thighs took on a slender, boyish softness. And her breasts melted away into a flat chest. As she opened her eyes, Allison’s face looked back at me and his body awkwardly wore the clothes meant for the girl before. After a quick look of relief, his next expression was a grimace of pain at his suddenly-uncomfortable clothes.

Before he could fling them off, he scrunched his brow and his lower half returned to girlish contours. With a delighted gasp, he declared, “It’s like my voice!”

After a quick change of clothes into something which stretched more comfortably both ways, Allison stood as a boy before me and focused again.

His androgynous face flowed to those feminine contours. His hair swelled past his shoulders. His lower half rippled back like the reshaping of clay. And his breasts bent the front of his top before she was a girl again. 

And she cycled back to boyhood. The process from one to another and back took little more than a minute. She did find that when she arrived on her second trip to girlhood, she did so with a wobble in her legs. I supported her as she murmured, “A little too fast and I feel really hungry and sweaty.” She retrieved a bar of dark chocolate stashed away in her dresser, swallowed it whole, and downed an entire bottle of water from a package she always kept in her room. With a sigh, she settled down on the bed. I joined her. 

After a minute of resting, she said, “That was both…amazing and exhausting. And here…I thought I’d be talking about something else altogether with those words and the two of us alone in my bedroom.” She gave a familiar Allison smirk and propped her head up with a pillow. I couldn’t resist a smirk of my own.

I asked her, “You okay though?”

Her breathing had slowed to normal. She answered, “I think so. Going back and forth is like…if I sprinted around that park. But it’s getting easier. Not as easy as tapping my foot or something but at least I know what to do and I’m not stuck. In fact, I love it.”

That was a relief but this was easily beyond any and all expectations of usage of the Kinrae devices. Then the same could be said of what Tessa had done and suggested. I looked at the device warily. Allison noticed and remarked, “I think you can keep it now. This is fine. Although I’ll miss my swollen, anime angel cakes.” She cupped her chest a moment. I had no complaints about her human shape.

She sat up and smiled. “Not woozy anymore. Although I think I could still narf....snarf?...like half a cake and not feel bad about it.” We scooted right next to each other on the bed. I looked around the room. Aside from the clothes she’d sifted through scattered on the floor, Allison’s room looked about the same as I’d seen it in snippets at a time. 

The playbills across the wall. The posters of actors and actresses. The flower patterns were a sour spot with Tessa lurking in my thoughts but a full-pony-sized Pinkie Pie plush (apparently the most expensive thing Allison owned) brought back a smile. I traced my eyes across her enormous closet with costumes, clothes, and other things all neatly arranged. I took in the aroma of lavender and sniffed Allison lightly. Despite all her differences, she still had that same fragrance she’d carried with her to the park. 

I felt so happy. I felt like the aberration with Tessa never happened. I felt like I could forget my mother’s phantom. I felt like all I needed was Allison, right there and then. I put my hands on her back and rubbed her with a light touch. She immediately arched with an inhale of air. 

“What’s wrong?” 

She shook her head. “Not wrong. Just…wow…my skin feels so different. Sensitive. Even as a Kinrae, it wasn’t this sharp.”

“Stop?”

She didn’t answer at first. But then she nodded, explaining, “As much as I liked it…that was intense. I can’t even imagine what….pulsate settings would feel like right now. I think I need to go back…for a little bit.” She returned to male form with a wobble which soon passed.

That done, he stood carefully and stepped towards the door. I followed him as we made our way to the living room. Allison paused to watch Malcolm and Clayton engaged in a furious racing match. He continued on to the kitchen and settled down into the nearest seat. 

We sat quietly as the noises of battle carried to us. Allison smiled in the direction of the living room in his usual way and said, “So…we have to think about what happens now.”

I asked him what he meant. He laid out his hands and noted, “We finished our second date and things got a little complicated. Even aside from my new little talent. You wanted to take it slow and carefully and I’m fine with that. But I just wanted to ask you…. my man-girl-boy-woman…if you wanted me to be your boy-girl-all-of-the-above-friend.”

I frowned, which made Allison freeze ever-so-slightly. My frown was soon replaced with a smile as I asked him, “I thought you already were?”

He giggled and shrugged. “Well, they're just names. And they all mean ‘I love you’. But now we have an extra perk or two.”

Setting my hands on Allison’s, I asked about the perks. 

Listing them off, he said, “There’s giving stalker Kinrae a vigorous catfight whenever they bug you, first sample of experimental new recipes, all access to my collection of VHS and DVDs…especially the pony stuff, and reduced clothing privileges. And exclusive status for everything.”

I widened my eyes and asked, “Exclusive?”

He clutched my hand and nodded. “Exclusive. I mean I’ll always be a polyamory and I will always find new ways to love…but you have a special place in my heart now and forever. You did before I got the power of boobs-on-demand but I just wanted to make it official.”

From the other room, despite the fact we weren’t talking loud enough to be well-heard, Malcolm immediately asked, “Did someone say ‘boobs’?” We both broke out laughing. Allison yelled to the other room, “I did! You want to have the power to grow boobs whenever you want a pair?”

Silence returned before Malcolm eventually said, “Nah, I’m good.”

I raised an eyebrow and wondered if he would’ve said something else if Clayton wasn’t sitting next to him. Allison yelled the same question to Clayton, who answered, “Where can I grow them?”

I pursed my lips and could only imagine the sort of mad scientist efforts which might come about from him, like that mouse with an ear on its back (only with C-cups). 

Allison pondered his reply before offering, “Wherever you like.” I braced myself. All he said in return was, “I’ll need to brainstorm.” I snickered but my feeling was tempered by concern about what was really going on with the devices. Sure, they’d given Allison a controllable, sex-changing ability but we had no idea what they might do to anyone else and what they might do to me if I used them again. 

I reflected on this with Allison and she nodded before saying, “You should probably send another email to your professor.” As well, I could probably send emails and letters to several other sources regarding what Tessa had said to me and what I’d seen with Allison. I could and should do all that but the only proof I had was Allison’s ability and the last thing I wanted was to turn her into some spectacle. Nor did I want to do the same to any and all Kinrae, no matter what actions by Tessa.  

So I was left in a quandary. Nothing untoward had happened to me aside from the persistent delay which happened to everyone who used my particular device. And, I reminded myself, I had to send word to Lissa to use caution with her device. A mountain of responsibilities and concerns lay before me and I had no idea where best to start climbing. What if I stood at the base of uncovering an actual invasion of our world? Not the sort which targeted convenient monuments like one of the movies Lissa and I sat through some weeks ago. But the sort that paranoid magazines spoke about as fact with secret lizard creatures and moon Nazis.   

Allison brushed my arm and gave me a warm smile, amending, “But later. Let’s have some fun with the boys first.”

I followed Allison into the other room as the game was winding down. He stood in the center of the room and said, “Need another player…uh…oh my…” He paused and panted as he clutched at his face and his hair spilled over. Clayton's lip jutted in surprise and Malcolm clung to the edge of the couch.

The gasps were highly theatrical, rising in tone with his changes. His hands trembled and shifted before his softening face. He clutched his abdomen as it adjusted along with his legs. Jerking back, he gave a clear view of his swelling breasts before his head drooped limply. I wasn’t an actor but I tried to keep a certain, wide-eyed shock…drawing from my shock of some minutes and hours previous.

After a deep breath and a wobbly step (I wasn’t sure if those were feigned or just a side-effect), Allison, fully female again, rose to her feet and looked around with wide, blinking eyes as she asked softly, “Hello? Do I know any of you? Where am I? What’s going on?”

Malcolm gave a faint curse and didn’t give up the end of the couch. I kept shaking my head and figured I could pass it off as numb shock for at least a little longer. Clayton was the first to say anything. He gave Allison’s name and said we were roommates before asking, “What do you remember?” 

The look of bewilderment on Allison’s face was quite good and subtler than her usual melodramatic efforts. She put on a strain and slowly offered, “I remember using this thing. I think it made me an…anime girl or something.” Malcolm cursed loudly and immediately asked for more details.

Allison doled them out in a particular direction. I was going to offer bits but I didn’t want to step over her narrative so I just kept hanging my head and looking like I was about to get sick. She suggested that particular forms, like the form Malcolm had chosen in the morning, were somehow corrupted in the display information she saw and, “It said that everyone who had used those forms would be altered. It even gave the time. And it had some names in there…Allison, Sean, and Malcolm…”

Malcolm drew his legs up like a mouse had run at him and said, “I’m Malcolm! What did it say?!” He looked the most freaked out I’d ever seen him and Clayton also looked suitably stunned. 

After dipping her head and glancing towards the clock, she noted, “It said…” and she gave the time with one minute added. Malcolm gasped and cursed over and over. He stared at the clock, frozen in place. Then it passed over to the next minute. He cringed and shut his eyes.

Clayton gulped and watched him. Time passed and the strain held. After a suitable amount of time passed, Malcolm slowly opened one eye and then the other. Allison was smirking as she returned to her male shape with only a slight stagger. He glanced back at me to say, “We can cross off ‘believing a change will happen’ as a side-effect. Good to know.” 

With his arms folded, Allison announced, “This was only a test. You used the device. As you can see, I can now move even more fluidly between all possible genders than usual. I pondered having an ability like this when I was using the device. I wanted to rule out whether it happens if you think it’ll happen.”

Malcolm’s mouth undulated like a shore-tossed fish as he listened. Allison added, “And I wanted to mess with you. I mean it’s not like I can get another chance.”

After that, it clicked for Malcolm. He puffed through his mouth and groaned. He resisted curses and just grunted like he’d stubbed his toe and murmured, “Well played…”

Allison raised his hands in apology. Malcolm flashed his gaze at me and asked, “Did you know about this?” I had to nod and he kicked at the couch. I figured he’d be stewing for a while but he gave a surprising chuckle and a long breath of relief as he asked, “So…that’s what happened to you? You wanted to be able to shapeshift and it happened? You should’ve told me it would make me ripped like a bodybuilder, girl!”

Cute to see that Malcolm still kept feminine terms for Allison. He explained what we knew and apologized to Malcolm, who chuckled and said, “I probably would’ve done the same. It’s cool so long as I’m still me. But still…curse you!...how will you repay me?”

Simple food gifts wouldn’t be enough, no matter how tasty. Malcolm pondered it a bit and decided the proper recompense for freaking him out began with, “Let me see your girl self again?” 

Holding a table, Allison shifted back to female. Both of them watched with interest, no less amazed. After some reflection, Malcolm noted, “Jessica has a cosplayer friend who is about your size. I might be able to get her to loan you some outfits. You wear them around randomly and we can consider each other square.”

Allison looked towards me and reached out to grab my hand. “That’s possible but Sean, my now exclusive significant other, might not like it.” Clayton and Malcolm seemed more stunned from that statement than anything before. 

When Allison made it clear she wasn’t kidding, Malcolm shook his head and mused, “What’s the world coming to?” Clayton gave me a little salute and a sigh. After some haggling, Malcolm got our approval for a certain number of cosplay dressups and video pieces which included one of his favorite fighting game characters (if Jessica’s friend could get the outfit).

Allison looked pleased with this, announcing, “I would’ve done it anyway… even without this new ability. But it does open up a lot of costume ideas.” With that, Malcolm went back to his game with Clayton. 

Better than I expected. Allison settled back around the kitchen table with me. She admitted, “That was shameful but fun. Sorry to drag you into it. So, how can I repay you?”

Before I could offer suggestions, Allison wrapped her hands around mine and kissed them softly. I wasn’t sure what to say. She offered eye-wiggling ideas to make me blush and I already had first rights for new recipes. Ultimately, all I could ask for was, “Just some quiet cuddle time?”

Smirking, Allison said simply, “Always.” Our moment was naturally interrupted by a phone call. It wasn’t Uncle Nolan. It was Lissa. I had no idea what to say, so I passed the phone to Allison, who spilled out our story.

“It was the best. It was so much. It was way way out there you know where they have the casino? It’s just past that and down one of the major streets and around the business park….yeah yeah…that’s it. Oh, and what do you think of my voice?...Why thank you!”

“The park would’ve been just about any park if not for the company….hehe…I know, right? He’s mentioned family to you…right? Yeah….ahhh…I dunno how much. I’ll leave what he said alone. But you probably know what I’m getting at….yeah.  He’s a hottie with a dark and heroic history. Like some badass lost from a movie.” She gave me a playful gaze at that before adding, “Yeah, he’s listening and totally eating it up.”

She mentioned being “bothered” by an “over-glorified tech support Kinrae or something”. And she gave Lissa warning about her use of the device, adding, “I’ll show you Thursday if you don’t mind me stopping by to drop Sean off.” She seemed ready to say more but she clenched her mouth.

I felt a pang. Lissa’s sudden admissions returned to my thoughts. Despite how cute and perfect the Allison harem idea sounded, I knew that Allison wouldn’t have proposed exclusivity if she didn’t mean it. In my hands, I could hold the hearts of my two best friends and, in an instant, break them.

I pondered the idle wish that I might gain the ability to split myself in two, one all for Allison and one all for Lissa. Maybe more than that, enough to go around with all my feelings and wonders. A me who still believed dreamingly in the Kinrae as angels in watercolor skin. 

If I believed Tessa and if I believed my dreams then there were other versions of me out there. But they weren’t this version of me. Only I had lived the terrors of my parents (although at least one understood) and come to this moment. A moment where I looked at Allison and I didn’t have to fight my past. She knew my past, as much as I could cough up like a blood-soaked ball. 

I hadn’t felt it on the swings but I felt it more in the moments afterward. She’d shared my weight. I hadn’t wanted her to but she did it so effortlessly, like everything she carried. As Allison wrapped up the call with details of the Basque market and promises for Thursday, I leaned closer to her. She hung up the phone and returned to her seat.

I looked at her with serenity inside. Tessa didn’t matter. The whole mess of Kinrae and whether they sought to watch me while I peed didn’t matter. And even Lissa faded a little. I looked and saw only Allison. I breathed butterflies from deep inside.

Allison glanced back at me and smiled. I tried to think of the words. They were the easiest to find but the most nervous to speak. I told her, “I love you.”

She relaxed in her seat and leaned closer, returning the words, “I love you too.”

I didn’t keep the words. I sent them out again, adorned and with new emphasis, “I mean…I love you, Allison.” 

It took a moment but her eyes flashed open with recognition and then calm as she said, “Oh…I see. Are you sure you’re ready?’

I could’ve doubted. I could’ve slipped away. I could’ve thought about Aubrey and Hannah again. But this moment was not the past. This was me and Allison together. It may have been a mistake. It may have been a rush of feelings and emotions overriding all else. But I felt so calm and it felt so right.

I asked her, “Are you ready?”

She smirked. “It seems a shame the devices have doubt cast on themselves because even the one could present additional possibilities. But I love you and I am ready to share with you anything…and everything.”

We slipped around the hallway without alerting Malcolm and Clayton. There were a few walls between us and them. We went through the doorway together and locked the door to Allison's room behind us.