He didn’t know why he bothered going to the Paracosmic when Aubrie wouldn’t be there. Maybe some part of him wanted to keep going until she was declared missing, until it became official that she was gone. If that was his reasoning though, he couldn’t say if it stemmed from masochism or foolish hopefulness. Either could be the case.

He opened the Paracosmic’s door and froze at the doorway.

“Is there something on my face?” Aubrie asked after several moments of silence. Jet snapped out of his shock, mouth clicking shut.

“Aubrie?” he asked.

“Yes?” she replied, tilting her head to the side.

Aubrie was alive and standing behind the counter of the Paracosmic Café. She was alive. The Red Gent must have rescued her. Jet hadn’t even considered that possibility, that the self-proclaimed hero of Soporifick would actually find her.

He offered her a smile. “One of your colleagues, a, uh, a Ms Benya, said you were ill,” he explained. “I didn’t think you’d be back so soon.”

She smiled brightly.

“I woke up feeling a lot better this morning,” she told him. “I’m sorry I didn’t reply to your text, by the way. By the time I had the energy to reply, I thought I’d probably see you soon anyway. Same as always?” she asked, as if she had not been abducted into a horror dimension two nights ago.

He nodded, walking up to the counter and paying for his usual order. He looked at the Paracosmic’s mirror and the hair-thin crack he’d seen before was gone. She had been returned and the damage was undone.

He’d never had this happen to him before.

“Did you really call her Ms Benya?” Aubrie asked with a teasing smile.

“Um… Yes? Her nametag didn’t reveal a surname…”

“She’s the owner of the Paracosmic. When she started, she was on first name basis with almost all her regular customers, so she hasn’t bothered with a surname in years,” Aubrie explained. “So, she’s just Benya. But I call her Ms Silvey,” Aubrie added, conspiratorially.

“I will remember that,” Jet replied, offering her his own sneaky smile. As she handed him his order, he asked, “Shall we try to meet up later? Now that you’re better.”

She smiled apologetically. “I’m sorry. Something’s come up. I don’t know when I’ll have time in the next few days.”

Oh? Was she going to start entering Soporifick? Like the Red Gent did? A new possibility presented itself – that she had saved herself. An unsettling development, to say the least. Not only would that mean four people could enter and exit Soporifick at will, but another third party could potentially interfere with their work.

Perhaps this was why Mr Lark had been so nervous about the Red Gent.

“Do you mind if I ask why?” Jet asked, under the pretension of curiosity.

“I’ve started going to night classes,” she answered and from the way she smiled, he could tell that wasn’t the whole truth. She was too mirthful, too excited.

“Right... you did mention those. How is it going?” he asked.

“It’s great! We started reading the Alice in Wonderland books and I'm learning how to solve quadratic equations and... Ah, I could go on all day.” She looked a little flustered by her own enthusiasm. It was almost enough to make Jet forget she was actually excited about Soporifick.

“Well, in that case, I wish you continued enjoyment of your night activities and hope we can actually meet each other soon,” he said.

“I hope so too. See you around, Alarie,” she bid farewell.

“Goodbye, Aubrie,” he said as he left. He was pretty glad he’d asked her to call him Alarie. It felt more personal than Jet or Jethro. Probably because she was now the only person to call him by surname, rather than first name. And, well, there was the alliterative appeal of Alarie and Aubrie.

He took a sip of his latte and felt his head clear, the drink spreading its coolness throughout his body, soothing his soul. It really was Aubrie’s handiwork that washed Soporifick’s tiredness off him. Perhaps her talent for mixing effective drinks against Soporifick was a sign that she could survive in Soporifick – would be like himself and Red Gent.

He'd need to keep a close eye on her and see how she developed. Thankfully, she seemed to be as curious about him as he was of her, so learning more about her would not pose a problem. Keeping her secret from Mr Lark on the other hand… Potentially a problem. He’d just have to be sly. And that shouldn’t be a problem.

— 📀 —

As Mr Lark was officially Jet’s sponsor, it was not strange for the two to be in frequent contact with each other. If certain news outlets were to be believed, Jet was even a surrogate son to Mr Lark. It was why most people thought it normal that the two had lunch together with fair regularity and didn’t pay either of them any attention when they did.

Which was why Jet couldn’t understand Mr Lark’s need for small talk. Why bother with societal niceties, when their only purpose for meeting was for giving orders and checking in on missions?

Well, years of working for Mr Lark had conditioned him to obey and not question. So Jet smiled politely, like this wasn’t an irritating waste of time.

“How are you doing at school?” Mr Lark asked.

“It’s only been a few days, sir,” Jet answered. When Mr Lark gave him a withering stare, he continued, “I’m still popular with my peers, although I’m keeping myself distant from them, as per your request.” And that was his natural preference anyway. “Because I spent the summer preparing for the next school year, I believe I am adequately prepared for retaining my position as a top-performing student, irrelevant of my presence throughout the year.”

Mr Lark nodded approvingly. “Homework?”

“From the workload I’ve received so far, I have been able to complete all during school hours. I predict this will be the case for the rest of the school year,” Jet replied. His teachers often didn’t notice him completing tasks early and working on homework. Those that did notice didn’t care enough to correct his behaviour.

Mr Lark nodded. “Any talk of Soporifick?”

“Plenty. There is some talk about urban myths, but the andahts are currently more popular conversation starters.”

“I see,” Mr Lark muttered. “If they’re already talking like that in Orthank’s most elite school, then I can imagine the buzz in more common high schools.”

“Indeed, sir.”

“I’m so glad I’ve invested in you,” Mr Lark finally surmised. Jet didn’t respond outwardly, nudging at his plate of salad as if indifferent. Inwardly, he was delighted to hear the words, no matter how much it made him resent himself. “What of the Red Gent?”

“Still nothing, sir. I’m sure Ms Ridgeway will have more results than me soon.”

“You assume your theory is correct, that the Red Gent is a teenager like yourself.”

Unlike me, Jet wanted to correct but didn’t. He didn’t need to go around trying to point out how special he was. Sure, this other kid masquerading around like some kind of discount superhero was special for being like Finn, but no one was like Jet.

For starters, unlike the Red Gent, Jet’s grades weren’t suffering from his nighttime activities.

“I finished the list you gave me,” Jet stated, trying to get off the topic.

Mr Lark looked surprised. “You what?”

“The list. I finished it last night.”

Mr Lark looked him over, suspiciously. “You don’t look like you’ve spent all night in Soporifick.”

“I think I just slept well, sir,” Jet answered. He had so far neglected to talk about Aubrie’s drink-making skills.

Mr Lark didn’t look convinced.

“How did you complete the list so quickly?” he asked, tone heavy enough to make it clear that it was a demand.

“I was determined, sir.”

“You had a bad day yesterday. What happened?” Mr Lark demanded. Mr Lark had unfortunately remembered that Jet only completed lists quickly if he was highly motivated by Mr Lark or having a very, very bad day. Jet weighed his options and decided to tell a half-truth.

“… A crush happened, sir. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,” Jet lied. “I’ve had a crush on a girl for a while, but… She got lost in Soporifick. Yesterday was a bad day.”

Today was supposed to be a bad day too, but he had walked into the Paracosmic to see Aubrie there, waiting to take his order. He was back to having access to those exhaustion-relieving beverages, to the tiredness-ending snacks. Today was a great day.

“You had a crush?” Mr Lark repeated. “Why is this the first I’m hearing of it?”

“I knew you’d disapprove, sir,” Jet answered, ducking his head like a schoolboy being scolded. “She’s dead now, so in the end it didn’t matter.”

Mr Lark looked at him severely. “You’re right. I would have disapproved,” he said. “But I disapprove even more of you keeping things from me. I thought we had a good relationship, but if you’re hiding things from me, keeping emotional attachments from me…”

“I’m better today, aren’t I? Clearly I wasn’t that emotionally attached,” Jet argued.

“That is not the point, Jethro,” Mr Lark snapped. “I like you, but I have noticed in recent months, you seem to be growing ever more secretive. And while I don’t mind you keeping secrets from Elender, it bothers me if you’re doing so with me. I thought I could trust you.”

“Sir,” Jet protested.

“We’re at a critical stage now, Jethro,” Mr Lark insisted. “Don’t make me regret taking you in. I could have left you at Fulfremed’s mercy, but I instead chose to keep you. Do not make me regret that decision.”

Jet lowered his head in a show of remorse. It was true that Fulfremed had almost killed him four years ago. It was only Mr Lark’s intervention that had prevented his death.

“Who was she?” Mr Lark asked.

“Jane Grimm,” Jet lied. He’d looked up a list of missing girls prior to meeting with Mr Lark, girls he’d had a chance of realistically running into. He picked one to claim as his supposed crush. Thankfully, Aubrie was never reported missing, so even if Mr Lark had Finn look into his crush – which Mr Lark undoubtedly would – and even if Finn caught on that Jet had never even met Jane Grimm – which he probably wouldn’t – Aubrie would remain unknown and therefore safe.

Mr Lark nodded. “I see. And how did you meet?”

“Public transport. We used to take the same bus every morning.”

Mr Lark let out a sigh, sounding tired and disappointed. “Just a crush… Jethro, I don’t mean to be harsh, but as said, we’re at a critical stage. Our goal is in sight. We can’t stumble now, when we’re so close to completing the world. I can’t have you getting distracted. You understand that, don’t you?”

Jet reluctantly nodded and Mr Lark seemed satisfied.

“Considering the loss of Miss Grimm, perhaps you should take a few days off,” Mr Lark suggested. “Just because I’m disappointed in you, doesn’t mean I don’t understand. You must still be heartbroken over her loss.”

A few days off? That sounded great. Even if it apparently did not align with Aubrie’s schedule… Maybe he’d be able to meet-up with her if he needled her enough. Who knew when he’d next have time off? “Thank you, sir. I’m… I’m truly sorry for hiding her from you.”

“Perhaps if you had told me about her, we could have organized a rescue operation,” Mr Lark muttered, as if to further feed Jet’s guilt.

Ha! Like you’d ever do that. You wouldn’t even save your own daughter, Jet grimly thought.

“I’ll bear that in mind, next time, sir,” Jet lied.