Parallel Visions (7 page)

“
Hey.
”
I say back. I can feel other students watching us, especially the girls. But even some of the boys playing basketball or sitting on the stairs smoking glance at us. I turn my back to the parking lot and watch the cars and bicyclists rush past.

“
How ’
s your sister?
”
I say.

“
Still depressed. But she seemed relieved to talk about it. I told her about you and your visions—there ’
s no way I ’
d have known, otherwise. And she wants to meet you.
”

“
Uh—”
I don ’
t know what to say. I didn ’
t expect him to tell anyone. But I didn ’
t tell him it was a secret, either. And at least his family believes me.

Gil holds up his hands.
“
Before you say anything, I want you to know...
”
His face reddens.
“
My sister, Inez. She was—um, she was raped a few months ago. She got really depressed. Not showering, not eating, not doing anything, hardly. She hasn ’
t left the house at all since it happened.
”

“
I ’
m so sorry to hear it, ”
I say softly.

Another student walks past, looking at us curiously. Gil takes my arm and leads me away from the fence.
“
She won ’
t talk to anyone except Nana and me, and won ’
t even see a counselor. Her asking to see you—it ’
s the first time she ’
s shown an interest in anything or anybody since…the night it happened.
”

“
Of course I ’
ll come see her.
”
I push my hair out of my eyes.
“
I don ’
t know how I can help, but I ’
ll come. I should be free around four for an hour or two. My sister and her husband are coming to dinner later.
”
If she ’
s still alive, that is.

“
Thank you, Kate, ”
Gil says, pressing my hand between both of his like a prayer.
“
I can ’
t tell you how grateful I am. My sister—I ’
d do anything for her.
”

Behind us, boys hoot.

Gil
’
s ears grow red and he lets go of my hand.

“
I ’
d do anything for my sister, too, ”
I say.

A bus roars by, pumping out exhaust. I turn my head away, trying not to inhale any of it .

“
Have you talked to her about her husband beating her?
”
Gil asks after it ’
s quiet again.

“
Yes, but she says nothing ’
s happening. I don ’
t know how to help her!
”

“
You can ’
t force someone to get help, ”
Gil says, his voice heavy.
“
But you also can ’
t give up on someone you love.
”

“
I know!
”

Gil moves closer. He smells like mint and soap.
“
Have you had any more visions of her?
”

“
Two.
”
I hesitate. I ’
m not sure how much to tell him.
“
I saw her husband talking to a doctor about me. He said my visions are just hallucinations from a lack of oxygen.
”

“
What?
”
Gil frowns.
“
You don ’
t believe him, do you?
”

“
It did make me wonder if it ’
s my brain ’
s way of telling me none of my visions are real.
”

Gil grabs my arm.
“
But you saw Inez planning suicide when even Nana and I didn ’
t. Don ’
t let some jerkwad make you doubt yourself.
”

I half nod and Gil lets my arm go.

“
Wait—did you say you had two more visions? Since yesterday? Does that mean you had two more asthma attacks?
”

“
Yeah. So?
”

“
So are you okay?
”
Gil asks, his brown eyes showing concern.

When Mom asks me that, I just want her to leave me alone. But somehow I don ’
t mind it coming from Gil. I almost like it.
“
Yeah, I ’
m fine. No big deal.
”

“
Your attack yesterday didn ’
t look like ‘
no big deal.
’”

“
That was nothing! I had a worse one last night.
”

“
You ’
ve gotta take care of yourself, Kate. Your visions, they ’
re important—but they don ’
t mean anything if you don ’
t survive.
”

“
You think I don ’
t know that?
”
I clench my teeth.
“
It ’
s not like I had the attack on purpose!
”
Though, in the back of my mind, I wonder. I did forget my nightly medication…and I was worried about Jenna. I wanted to know more.... And then, when I didn ’
t get the information I needed, I tried to extend the attack, not shorten it.

“
Okay, okay! I ’
m sorry, ”
Gil says.
“
Let ’
s try to figure out how to help your sister.
”

“
Yeah, ”
I say, crossing my arms.
“
Let ’
s.
”

“
Hey, ”
Gil says.
“
I just want to help.
”

I uncross my arms and sigh.
“
In one of the visions, Mason killed her.
”
My voice shakes.
“
He didn ’
t mean to, but that ’
s what he did.
”

Gil stares at me.
“
We have to stop him!
”

I love that
we . It makes me feel stronger.
“
It happens today—at two-forty-five.
”
I take a deep breath.
“
I ’
m going to get out of school early and go bang on her door, and make them let me in. I hope that ’
ll change what happens.
”
It has to.

“
You really should call the police, ”
Gil says.

I look at him miserably.
“
I can ’
t .
Besides, they ’
d never believe me.
”

Gil sighs.
“
Fine. But I ’
m coming with you.
”

“
How will you get out of class?
”

“
Let me worry about that. I ’
ll be there. What time are you leaving?
”

“
I don ’
t want to go too early, because if I get there before Mason starts hurting her, he could just wait until I ’
m gone and then end up killing her anyway.
”
I ’
m talking too fast, but I can ’
t slow down. It ’
s like if I say it fast enough, it won ’
t come true.
“
But if I can get there just before he...he does it, maybe it ’
ll change things enough so it won ’
t happen.
”

“
Makes a weird kind of sense, I guess, ”
Gil says.

“
I ’
m going to get there by two-thirty, just to be safe. Which means I need to leave at two—
fifteen.
”

“
Good, ”
Gil says, nodding. He looks at me a long moment, his gaze flitting to my lips, then back to my eyes. He leans so close I can smell the mint on his breath.

His lips look soft and kissable. I lean a little closer, narrowing the space between us. It makes it all seem more normal, somehow. Less crazy and less awful.
“
Kiss me , ”
I tell him silently.

The school bell rings.

“
Come on, ”
Gil says.
“
We don ’
t want to be late.
”

I don
’
t know if he really wanted to kiss me or if I was just projecting my desire onto him.

I sigh and follow him inside, trying to ignore the dread building up inside me.
This has to work. I can ’
t let Jenna die.

All through my classes, I can ’
t stop worrying about Jenna—whether I ’
ll be able to stop Mason from killing her, or whether he ’
ll just try it again some other day. I don ’
t know how to do this right—if there even is a right way. I ’
m just grateful Gil will be with me. Maybe together, we ’
ll be able to save both our sisters.

I shift on the hard chair, trying to tune into Mr. Santos ’
s mumbly voice as he drones on about algebra. He paces in front of the whiteboard as he talks, stabbing at the figures with his marker, but I can hear the boy behind me snoring quietly. I take a page out of my notebook, rip it into a square, and start folding a butterfly. If Jenna knew what was going to happen today, she ’
d leave Mason. But there ’
s no way I can convince her, not without letting it happen.

How do I keep it from happening again and again? If I stop Mason today, will that be the end of it, because he didn ’
t mean it to happen? And how will I know if she ’
s in danger again without having another vision? I fold my paper even faster. If I trigger another attack, I might see something that ’
ll help her. But Gil ’
s right—I can ’
t help her if I ’
m dead.

And Jenna
’
s not the only one who needs help. Gil ’
s sister Inez needs people to care about her. To intervene.

A shadow falls over my desk. I look up to see Mr. Santos watching me.

“
Did you understand the lesson?
”

“
Yes, sir.
”

“
Is something bothering you?
”

“
No, sir.
”

Mr. Santos plucks the folded butterfly from my hands.
“
Then get to work, please.
”

I bend over my notebook and start writing down numbers. Mr. Santos watches for a moment before he moves on. But it ’
s not enough to keep me from worrying.

I keep checking my watch. Two o ’
clock, five after two. The seconds tick by agonizingly slowly. I can ’
t stop worrying that I ’
m timing it wrong. At two-ten I start coughing and force a wheeze.

Mrs.
Pacelli , always alert, comes to my desk. She touches my shoulder reassuringly.
“
Do you need to go to the nurse?
”
she asks.

I nod, feeling guilty about lying to her. I hope she doesn ’
t remember that today ’
s the nurse ’
s day off.