Secret Affinity

5

For the past week, the neighbourhood seemed eerily quiet. Not just the neighbourhood, but the entire city, the schools—everyone talked in hushed tones. Dad and I were completely oblivious to what was happening, so he asked the McCoys.

It was some sort of emergency drill for the entire city. Everyone wanted it to end as quickly as possible because the longer the drill, the more dangerous it was. But nothing felt dangerous to me.

Being the only person I could actually talk to at school, I asked Crimson about the drill. She said to go along with it and never defy the rules. When I told her that I didn’t know the rules, she chuckled and told me I’d better find out. She left me with a hint, and it was like my apprehension when we moved here: Brilliant Cove was not as sunny as it seems.

After Dad left for work, I sat on my couch with a bowl of popcorn to watch a movie. I finished all my work yesterday, leaving a free Sunday for myself.

While browsing through the channels, I stopped at the news.

The city is still under the NR evacuation, showing signs of ending soon towards next week. There are remaining undercover Nightingale Agents on the lookout for undisciplined behaviour towards the NRs. The Police Force recommends you to go by your day without worry, but without provoking any Nightingale members.

Huh? The last time I checked, a nightingale was a bird. After I heard the word ‘city’, I vaguely remembered the city tour Evin gave me the other day.

The NR infestation is still under investigation. Stay put, as reports say more than half of the NRs have been returned to Nightingale. We are sure, once again, this evacuation will be over by the end of next week.

Right before the weather break, the doorbell rang. I opened the door and lifted my head to see a tall, slender man in a black suit with shaded glasses and a sleek black earpiece.

“Ma’am, the quicker we do this, the better for you,” he said, bringing his wrist up. When I thought he was checking time, he clicked a mechanism that turned his watch into a high-level scanning device.

“Wh…what is going on?” I asked amid daze and confusion. I couldn’t tell his expression with the glasses on, but he pinched his lips.

“I’m going to have to search your house,” he said.

“What?” He began to walk in, but I blocked him. “You know this is illegal, right? You can’t come in without permission.”

“Yes?” he said into his earpiece. “She shows signs of suspicion.” Pause. “Yes. I will use Coercion 2 if she resists.”

“What’s that?” I asked nervously.

“Ma’am, you shouldn’t be arguing with me.” His arm swept me out of the way. “If you have nothing to hide, you shouldn’t be afraid.”

I blocked him again. “Wait, what?”

“Ma’am,” he said in a cold tone. There was a knock on the door, and we both looked over to see Evin. I couldn’t be more relieved.

“Mister Agent, sorry for the interruption,” he apologized. “Ari, come outside.” I began to protest. “It’s okay. It’s just a small checkup. I will tell you everything, so just come outside.” A checkup?

When I met Evin out on my driveway, the man disappeared deeper into the house. I hugged myself, worried out of my mind.

“We should’ve told you earlier,” Evin said, and looked around him. Across the street was a black limo. He took me into his house, and we sat alone at the dining table.

“Evin, the news, the weird things happening this week,” I said, my head pounding. “What’s going on?”

“Relax first, alright? Remember I once told you Brilliant Cove was a big city before? The other side, or the other split area, is Nightingale. It’s like yin-yang, the dark and good sides,” Evin explained in a quiet tone. “Some of the people from Nightingale escaped into Brilliant Cove, and the person you saw outside is a Nightingale Runaway Agent, or NR Agent. The agents are raiding houses for NRs.”

“NRs?” I said, equally as quiet as him.

“Nightingale Runaways—people who left Nightingale and crossed the border into Brilliant Cove.” He sat back and looked up. “Thank God I came out in time. The agents are almost done raiding the city, but our street is one of the last.”

“Wait, so how come Dad and I didn’t know about this when we came here?” I asked. “That something weird is happening between two cities and affecting everyone?”

“Well, they hide it,” he said. “But don’t worry, it’s not that big of a deal so long you don’t mess up with the NR bullshit. Don’t ever talk to an agent like that again, though. In fact, don’t talk to them at all unless they talk to you first.”

“Is this the real face of the city?” I asked in disappointment. “Brilliant Cove? Is it actually enemies with that Nightingale city?”

“They were one,” he said. “The rivalry started when they split, but it’s pretty long and old. NR evacuations happen less than twice a year. Brilliant Cove is an amazing city, so you don’t have to worry.”

“That agent guy said he’d use, that,” I lowered my voice, “that Coercion 2 thing. What does that mean?”

“As long as you don’t interact with any NRs and you obey all the agents, you don’t have to worry about it,” Evin told me. He stood up, and after taking a deep breath, he smiled at me. “You’ll get used to this. It’s nothing much to stress over.”

I put a hand over my beating heart, waiting for it to become steady. “Okay. I trust you. Should I tell dad?”

“I think he’ll worry about you, so try not to bring it up.” He surveyed my terrified face. “We can go get ice-cream at DQ.”

“Wait, what?” I said, my heartbeat increasing again. “But outside—”

“Ari, it’s not a big deal. Remember what I told you,” Evin said. “How you spent your days last week is how you will spend your days next week. It’s a regular day, but only quieter.”

“Is it safe?” I said. He nodded. For some reason, I felt like there was more to the story than what Evin was letting me in on. My only choice now was believing him.

Evin went upstairs to grab Andy and Liara, and I wondered if they also knew about this Nightingale enigma. Everything happened so quick that I needed a moment to actually think about it.

I heard squealing and loud footsteps, and the kids met me downstairs in no time. Evin followed them with his car keys with a mild look of frustrated satisfaction.

“What happened?” I asked.

“Nothing,” he said and smirked. “Just had a chat with Arian.” Blankly, I followed him and the kids outside.

The agents and the limo were gone, and I locked my house. Through the car window, I saw how everyone was going about their day as usual, and it seemed as if nothing was really happening.

The car stopped in front of the city’s most popular Dairy Queen, the same place Evin worked at on weekdays.

“Pick a table and wait with Andy,” Evin told Liara. We waited in line for the order and I looked around curiously. “You’ll look suspicious. Don’t do that.”

“Sorry,” I said and focused ahead. I had to pretend this was a normal day. No Nightingale, no abnormalities.

After getting our orders and sitting at the table, I asked Evin if he could tell me more about the NR evacuation.

“Not now, and especially not here,” he replied. “Mom wanted to make sure you and Steve were informed of the situation, but you know why I didn’t tell your dad.” I nodded, swirling my straw in my drink.

“Mom would’ve left right away,” I whispered. Evin paused mid-sip to listen. “She was so overprotective over me.”

“Mom?” he asked, like he had never heard the word escape my mouth before. Which might be true.

“Yeah,” I said.

I thought of what Mom would do if she was here now, if she was told about the NR evacuation, if she was told about the two rival-cities. If she had no choice but to stay, she’d do what was expected of her. She would go along with it.

And I too would try to get used to Brilliant Cove’s one, wide flaw.

--

“Is the cuticle made up of epidermal cells?” Crimson asked me in school the next day. I looked at the diagram of a plant on our worksheet.

“The cuticle is the waterproof layer on top of the epidermal cells,” I said, drawing an arrow towards the top of the leaf.

“Urgh, why did I take biology?” she groaned. The bell rang, and she stuffed all her papers into her backpack. “Come with me to band. You eat lunch alone, don’t you?”

“Uh, yeah,” I murmured. I followed her towards the classroom door while listening to her talk about the music department in school.

She tore open the wrapper of a Coffee Crisp once we stepped out. “There’s like only five people in band. Please tell me you know how to play an instrument.”

“I played the recorder in elementary school,” I said.

Crimson rolled her eyes and took a bite off her chocolate bar. “Haven’t we all?”

When we switched a corner, a hallway I’d never been in before, I saw a familiar person walking towards the exit of the building. Just as he pulled out his car keys, he spotted us.

No matter how I looked at Arian, he seemed alluringly dangerous with an odd repelling force surrounding him. When he walked through the exit doors, I couldn’t help but wonder if that was his character. Why was he so different from the rest of his family?

“That’s Arian,” Crimson said. “He goes out this door every day at lunch. Stays for only half of his classes, misses classes, and still manages to pass extraordinarily.” She shrugged. “Really weird guy.”

The band room appeared like a music shop. There were people in there eating their lunch and playing instruments simultaneously. I ate and listened, amazed at how well they could play.

“Guys, this is Arial, a newbie,” Crimson said and gave me a dead look in the eye. “Ari, this is the school’s band. It’s a shitload of jerks at one place, but we’re homies.”

I smiled as the four guys in the room started complaining. As a spectator, I found the team to be nothing I’d ever seen. It wasn’t organized, but neither was it completely reckless and uncoordinated.

Knowing and seeing new things was an experience I didn’t have before I moved. Other than the puzzling NR situation, this place seemed perfect.

* * *

I skipped to the McCoys’ house right after school. Julianna asked me if I could come early since she was taking Elise to the doctor.

“Just in time!” she whelmed when she opened the door. I went inside with her and saw Elise dressed and ready to go.

“Hi, dear,” Elise greeted me. “Thank you for agreeing to pick up Liara from school. Take Andy with you. He's upstairs in his bedroom”

“Sure,” I said, taking that as a hint and heading upstairs. “It’s Amelia Priscilla Elementary, right?”

“APE, as easy as that,” Elise said with a smile. I told her I got the bus routes down and she frowned. “A bus?”

“Yeah,” I said. “I’ll go tell Andy to change.”

“Oh no, that won't do. I don't want that trouble on you,” she said, and she surprised me by suddenly calling out Arian's name. “Arian, please come down for a sec!”

“Where’s Andy’s bedroom?” I asked Elise. She told me the first room on the left corridor.

As soon as I turned the left, I collided into someone and lost balance, accidentally stubbing their toe. I covered my mouth when I saw Arian staggering against the wall and clutching his foot.

“F—!” he almost cursed.

“What’s that sound?” I heard Julianna’s voice downstairs. When Arian realized it was me, I thought he was surely going to say something out of frustration. Instead, he hobbled past me and towards the stairs.

I opened Andy’s bedroom, and he wore a large smile when he saw me. I told him to get ready to go outside while I faintly heard voices on the other side.

“Arian, use your car to pick up your sister,” I heard Elise tell him. “You should take Ari with you.”

“How many times will you ask him?” Julianna said. “It's pointless.”

“Juli,” Elise said, and that was all I heard.

I grabbed Andy’s hand after he was done and led him into the corridor. Arian and I quickly looked at each other as we passed by, but I didn’t understand it. It was like he went, didn’t say a word, and came back. He gained nothing but a can of pop and a bruise on his foot.

We ended up taking the bus after all, and Liara was waiting by herself on a fountain curb at the school. Her face lightened when she saw us approaching her.

“Hey, Little Mermaid! Are you taking me home today?” she asked. I nodded and let her grab my hand. “Did you take the bus? I’ll show you where the stop is. Andy, stay close. Okay?”

Liara always seemed like a chatterbox, but somewhere in there, she was pretty mature for her age. She reminded me of a bumblebee. Colourful, fast-paced, and always buzzing about. She and Andy went to change once we returned, and I decided to cook them a little snack.

I put a metal pot on the stove to prepare mac and cheese and split it into two bowls once it was done. I set them on the table where Andy and Liara waited eagerly. I heard creaking as footsteps descended the stairs.

“Blow on it first, okay?” I told them. “I’ll be right back.”

When I walked into the kitchen to clean up, I saw Arian near the stove. When he reached for the pot, I almost yelled. “It’s hot!” I rushed towards him, but it was too late. Arian snatched his hand back and shook it.

“s**t,” he muttered, running it with cold water in the sink. He looked over his shoulder, and I tried my best to give him an apologetic look.

“Sorry,” I whispered.

“Who the hell…?” he started. He grabbed an ice-pack from the fridge and pressed it to his burn.

“Sorry,” I repeated weakly.

“I heard you,” he said, and if I didn’t catch myself, I would’ve apologized again. “Why do I keep seeing you in my house?”

“I live next door,” I told him, expecting the question. “I babysit your siblings, so I come…pretty often.”

“And you stay until midnight?” he asked almost rhetorically. I nodded. He used a dishcloth to grab the pot. “And they like you enough to let you stay? Surprising for a black cat.”

“What?” Liara entered the kitchen, asking me for a glass of water.

“I get hurt someway every time we meet,” he said. “You’re the leading example of bad luck.”

“Hey, don’t be such a meanie,” Liara said to him. Arian barely acknowledged her. “Water, Little Mermaid.” I gave her a glass of water and she scuttled out.

“It’s not like I did those things on purpose,” I explained myself. I didn't want him to hate me, but I think it was a couple weeks too late. “I-I’m Arial, by the way.”

“Figures,” he said, putting the pot in the sink. Huh? “Little Mermaid, Liara,” he clarified.

“Oh.” Jeez, it seemed like he didn’t care one bit. “But ‘Ari’ is fine.”

“So that’s it, that’s what they call you.” He reached up to open a cabinet. “Kept wondering what lightheaded person was called ‘airy’. Like the wind.”

“Thanks a lot,” I murmured under my breath. It wasn’t meant for him to hear, but he glanced at me as if he did.

Andy entered the kitchen next with both his and Liara’s bowls. He showed me the empty bowls proudly and told me Liara went to watch T.V.

“Big A, look,” Andy said, showing the bowls to Arian. “Ari made us mac and cheese.”

“Unfortunately,” Arian said. He grabbed a coke and Doritos, his eyes meeting mine as he walked out. “Don’t let me see you again. I can’t afford a cast.”

My jaw dropped as I watched him climb upstairs. I swore I’d never met someone so blunt and forbidding before.