Vi continued to avoid me throughout the day. I tried talking to her when she was alone during our morning and lunch breaks, but she avoided me, opting to avoid our usual spot at the benches at the schoolyard and eat at the cafeteria. I tried talking to her during phys ed the following day, but she avoided me there too. I tried messaging her on every social media account I could find but she just left them on seen. A whole week passed and Vi was still giving me the cold shoulder.

It was two days into the second week of school when I decided to consult the little voice in my bracelet.

I left the cafeteria, found a quite little corner in the hallway, and tapped it.

“Hello,” I said, tapping the bracelet. “Mr. God or Mr. Angel or whatever. I need your help.”

I tapped the bracelet, yelling at it sometimes. A handful of people who were passing by looked at me like I was crazy, I just flashed them a smile before trying to talk to the disembodied voice in my bracelet.

“Helloooo,” I said. “I really hope you’re real and this isn’t some crazy, stupid dream.”

There was a flash of light and the sound of laughter. A tiny silver ball of what looked like pure energy appeared at the centre of my bracelet.

“God, did you see how they looked at you?” the voice said, wheezing. I was surprised it could even do that. Laugh and wheeze. “That was so fucking hilarious.”

“I’m glad you find my emotional turmoil amusing,” I said, rolling my eyes. “Look, it’s almost been two and a half weeks and my best friend, my best friend is ignoring me. Now I don’t know about you but that doesn’t seem to bode well for my collecting essences thing.”

“That sounds like a you problem,” the voice said. “This school has over like 900 students, I’m sure you can get along with at least one of them.”

“Well, if I can’t get my best friend to talk to me and ask why she’s ignoring me, what makes you think I can get along with 900 people?”

I could almost feel the voice shrugging. “Your life is on the line, not mine.”

I slammed my bracelet against the wall. “You’re not helpful!”

“What did you hope to achieve by that? I am a disembodied voice. I do not feel pain.”

I paced around the hallway, trying to come up with a solution to my problem.

“Why don’t you try talking to her?”

“She clearly wants space,” I said. “I can’t just talk to her.”

“From what I’ve heard, the problem has something to do with you,” said the voice. “Wouldn’t it be better to clear the air?”

“But…”

“You told me she’s leaving in a month,” the voice said. “Either you solve the problem or your best friend leaves, taking her essence with her.”

“I can’t just force a conversation,” I said. “That’s just…”

“That’s the thing, April,” the voice said. “Some of your problems aren’t going to solve themselves if you give them time. How many problems of yours were left when you died?”

With that the silver glow on my bracelet disappeared. I wanted to snap back at him but that question he asked still lingered.

How many problems of yours were left when you died?

And I realised I didn’t have a good answer to the question.

…

The following day I intercepted Vi after classes.

“Hey, Vi,” I said, stepping in front of her. “Can we talk?”

Vi stepped to the side, not meeting my eyes. “Sorry, I’m busy.”

I stepped in front of her again. “Busy? At lunch?”

Vi nodded. “Yeah… I…”

She met my eyes for a moment and something in them must’ve made it clear that I wouldn’t be taking no for an answer because she decided to make a run for it.

Now, let me tell you a fun fact about Violetta, that girl can run. She was one of the fastest runners in our school and got one silver and one gold medal for the inter-school athletics competition. Now let me tell you a fun fact about me, I’m a pretty decent runner myself. How do I know that? Well, I’m the only one in this school who can barely keep up with Vi.

We dashed through the hallways, past curious onlookers and startled students. Student council tried to stop us, but we were too fast for them. I was surprised I had this much endurance in me, in college I would start wheezing if I even started to jog. That was when I realised, I was back in my young, teenage body and that body could take the punishment I was giving it.

It was during this run through the school I discovered another fact about Vi: She was good at hurdles too.

A couple of students were moving desks and chairs in between classrooms. Vi leapt over those desks and chairs with the so much grace, so much elegance, it brought a tear to my eye and the students who were watching who dropped a desk right in front of me. I sidestepped the desk, cursed at them and continued my lukewarm pursuit.

When it was clear I had somehow cornered Vi into a hallway with no way out she burst into the bathrooms to the side. I followed her, noting we were in the boys bathroom with the half dozen thingies boys use to pee (I would later learn they were called urinals). I saw Vi lock herself in the stall at the end of the room. I followed her, knocking the door.

”Occu…”

“We’re in the boys, bathroom, Vi,” I said. “Get the hell out of there.”

I had an embarrassed yelp when I mentioned that we were in the boys bathroom but she still let out a resounding

“No!”

“So let me get this straight,” I said. “You’d rather lock yourself in the boys bathroom than talk to me?”

“You’re not April!”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I snapped.

“Go away!”

I sighed. Why was Vi being this stubborn? I was surprised she even had it in her. She usually never did anything that would get her into an argument or a fight with someone. What was so important about me supposedly not being myself that she was acting out like this?

“I’m coming in.”

“What?” Vi said as I put my hands atop the stall door. “No!” I started to pull myself up. “Stop before you hurt…”

I fell inside the stall, groaning in pain. Vi tried to leave the stall but I pulled myself up, leaning against the door to prevent her from leaving.

“Nuh uh,” I said. “You’re not leaving until you tell me everything.”

Vi whimpered.

…

I leaned against the stall door, arms crossed. Vi was sitting down on the toilet seat looked at her crossed feet, ashamed. She was circling her thumbs around each other.

“First things first,” I said. “What did you mean when you said I’m not me?”

Vi didn’t look like she wanted to answer.

“Look, we’re not leaving until you answer.”

“I know you’re actually 24,” Vi said. “I know you died and somehow you’re back here to fill out that friendship bracelet of yours.”

My hands felt to my side. “How the heck do you…”

“I can read minds!” Vi exclaimed.

“I…” I was struggling to find the words. “Huh.”

“What do you mean you can read minds?” it was my thought but in Violet’s voice.

“How the hell are you doing that?”

“Stop.”

All of these were sentences I wanted to say but Vi beat me to them. I didn’t even have to voice my other question: how long?

“I’ve been able to read minds since I was a kid,” Vi said. “I… I was able to hear a third voice. I didn’t know what that third voice was and when we went to a doctor well, he picked up on my abilities quick. My family tried to keep it a secret but…”

Vi sighed. “Soon everybody started using me for my powers. It got so bad that we had to move out of our country, for a while we didn’t even go to the doctors just in case word got out.”

So many questions went through my head. How did her abilities work? What thoughts could she read?

“At first I could hear everybody’s thoughts, all at once,” she said. “After a while I learned to filter them out and then I learned to limit to when I make eye contact. I can hear all your thoughts, all of them. Even the ones you bury deep inside. Yes, I knew…”

“No, I want you to hear me say this,” I said, the story making me nauseous. “Hear my voice. So, in middle school, you knew… you knew what I was thinking. You knew everything about me?”

Vi was red with shame. “Yes.”

“All my secrets,” I said, my legs feeling weak. I wonder if she could hear my heartbreak like she did my thoughts. “Every time I lied to you?”

Vi looked away, there was a tear falling down her eye. “I… I’m…”

“Could you…” wondering if she could do this all the time or…

“Yes,” Vi said, her voice shaking. “Yes, I can switch it off. I can stop reading thoughts whenever I…”

“Then why…” I asked. “Thoughts are… they’re private and…”

“I don’t… I…”

I turned around, opening the bathroom stall.

“April, wait!” Vi exclaimed, calling after me. “I’m sorry.”

Some guy walking in looked at me and looked at Vi stumbling out of the stall with a grin on his face, I flipped him off as I left the bathroom.

I didn’t feel like doing anything that day, I just went straight home. I lied down on my bed. My bracelet started to glow. I voted to ignore him.

“April…”

“Shut up!”

“April, you’re so close,” the Voice said. “Don’t cut her off.”

I took out my bracelet and threw it against the wall.

Only for it to reappear on my arm.

I screamed, burying my face in my pillow and shouting out all my heartbreak to the only person in the room who would hear it.