Walking with Chloe

I managed to recover and brush myself off by the time Chloe returned. She knew something was off since she saw Adam come down, but didn’t press when I told her it was nothing. That hung over our lunch together and ruined the mood. I spent the rest of the school day thinking. It wasn’t just about Adam’s warning, but about my relationship with Chloe in general. Since we started going out, my life was in flux. Routines were uprooted and everything was changing. This was generally a good thing and expected considering the importance relationships have in someone’s life, but I never expected so many things to happen all at once and to change so quickly.

The Parker sisters were an issue I had no answer for. I cared about both of them, and they were growing more distant. Their noise was degrading as well, turning more melancholy and negative in nature. It was something I needed to prioritize as the longer this went on, the harder it would be to correct.

Then there was Chloe. I always knew dating her would be a challenge. Beyond the unique challenges Gifts brought to relationships, her business was always going to be a cloud hanging over us. It was only a matter of time before trouble started bleeding into our relationship. I had to tell her about Adam and what happened on the roof today and I planned to, but it wasn’t something she needed to have hanging over her during classes. I would tell her when we met after school.

Sitting in the library, I paged through a book while I waited for Chloe to finish so we could go home. My book of choice was a romance novel. Maybe it was a poor and ultimate pointless decision on my part, but I wanted to read about the emotions involved. How certain things made the characters feel. I absorbed it all, connecting with none of the events happening in the book. While it was all exaggerated for effect, I hoped it would provide at least an idea of what Chloe should be experiencing when we were together. Just because emotions were not important to me did not mean she was the same way. Romance was important, and I wanted to provide that for her.

Her noise alerted me to her presence as I closed the book and slid it into my bag. Looking over, I stood as she did her happy walk over. The euphoria was rather tame today.

“You’re earlier than usual,” I said before giving her a quick kiss.

She gave me a funny look. “Why do you make it sound like a bad thing?”

“Not my intention.” She hooked her arm through mine, leaning against me as we walked. I took it a step farther, seeking out her hand and holding it. She smiled, noise washing pleasantly around me.

We walked in silence out of the library. Halfway to the parking lot where my car waited, she broke the silence. “What are you thinking about?” I glanced down at her. She turned her head to look up at me. “You are always so quiet. What do you think about when we are walking like this?” I didn’t answer right away, thinking about the best answer. She giggled, pulling my attention back to her. “Don’t overthink it. Just… right now. What were you thinking about?”

“You.”

She smiled. “Something good I hope.”

“Indeed.”

Her eyes narrowed slightly, but her smile never left her face. “Care to elaborate?”

“I was thinking about how you finished early.”

The smile faded as she looked forward. “O-oh.” Sadness was creeping into her noise, fighting with her euphoria.

Realizing the negative implications of my words, I continued. “And since we have a little more time than we usually do, I was thinking we could go on a date.”

Her eyes lit up at the same time as her noise. “Yeah?”

I nodded. “I realized that we haven’t gone on a proper date since we started our relationship.”

I saw the joy and other positive emotions swirl in her noise before fading as darker emotions crept in. “I’m…uh…not really dressed for the occasion.”

My eyes ran over her. “You’re perfect as you are.”

“Thanks, but uh… I’d rather take a shower first.” By the end, I could barely hear her. She didn’t make eye contact with me as we walked. I noticed she had taken a step away from me and was no longer pressed against me.

My hand tightened around hers. “You don’t need to feel guilty.”

“But I do. I know I’m asking a lot from you and it’s unfair.”

“I don’t see it that way.”

“Just because you can’t feel it, doesn’t make it okay.” She let out a sigh as her attention went forward. “I know I’m being selfish here. You are offering me something I’ve only dreamed about—a real relationship with someone who cares about me. At the same time, by continuing selling my… Gift… it cheapens that.”

Seeing an opportunity to bring up the subject, I took it. “Is that why you stopped offering the no-condom perk?”

Her eyes widened as surprise filled her noise. She stopped and faced me. “How do you—” Another shift in her noise as her eyes narrowed. “Adam,” she said, making the connection. “That was why he was on the roof, wasn’t he? What did he say? What did he do?” Anger was building, bleeding from her noise into her expression.

I needed to calm her down as she pulled her hand from mine. “Chloe, it was nothing—”

“Don’t lie to me. I know Adam. He doesn’t just pop in for a friendly chat with strangers unless he wants or needs something from them. Jake. Tell me what he said.” I read the fury in her noise. Not even the euphoria could stop it.

Stepping forward, I **** myself closer to her as I gently ran my hands over her arms. “I will tell you,” I said, holding her gaze. “But I need you to calm down first.”

“Just—”

“Chloe.” The single word seemed to break through. It took some time and a lot of huffing and puffing on her part, but her anger was broken and faded into her noise. I waited until there was only impatience and annoyance floating around. “Anger doesn’t help us in this situation, so I need you to maintain your calm.”

“Something tells me that is going to be hard to do,” she muttered. Meeting my eye, she nodded. “Fine.”

So I told her. The more I spoke, the greater the impact. I could see the anger flare-up in her noise, though her expression remained somewhat passive. By the time I finished, she was a seething volcano underneath a serene landscape.

“If he thinks he’ll get his way—”

“Chloe—”

“Don’t,” she warned, pointing a finger at me. “Don’t you even think about telling me to go along with this. You might be okay with this, but I am not.”

I hesitated. I’d been about to do that exact thing. I took a moment to shift my thinking. My focus had been on my reaction—or lack of reaction—to this whole situation. I failed to look at it from her perspective.

“I apologize. In trying to think of a solution I failed to take into account your desires.” I glanced at the ground. “I am beginning to realize the simplest of solutions does not necessarily make it the correct one.”

Taking a deep breath, she released it slowly. “It’s… fine. I know you look at things differently than everyone else.”

“That isn’t a good excuse. I am no longer in a position to think about only myself. Being in a relationship, my thinking must change for this new situation. My reference frame should be in what is best for us together, not just individual components of a larger function.”

She stared at me a second before a snort sounded. She looked at me like I was weird. “God, maybe you are a robot,” she said with a laugh. Mimicking robotic movement, she deepened her voice slightly as she spoke in monotone. “Must think beyond individual components of a larger function. Error. Error.”

I said nothing as she continued her robot voice. I knew she was mocking me, but there was no ill intent there. If anything, it was boosting her mood considerably. The rage she had been feeling was fading quickly and more positive emotions were replacing it.

“Now that you know my secret, I’m going to have to eliminate you.” Before she could react, my hand shot out to attack her sides. Her laughter cut through the air as she playfully fought me off. Dancing out of my reach, she booked it for the car lot with me hot on her trail. Chasing her laughing form, I once more found myself smiling. As it happened before, the smile ended immediately after I noticed it. It was enough distraction for her to get some distance.

I pushed all my thoughts aside. There was enough time to worry about problems later. Right now, I only wanted to enjoy my time with Chloe.