Julian pulled away, looking embarrassed. "W-What?! We’ve only had our first kiss! How...how do you even know that?! What the hell!"
Vivian just shrugged, patted his back once, and said, "Good luck. You’re not a grower, stop using it as an excuse all the time."
She released him, completely destroying his manhood in front of a stranger. Julian looked like his entire universe had just collapsed.
Vivian turned toward the car. Logan was standing beside the door, holding his hand over his mouth. His shoulders were shaking as he tried to swallow the laughter.
He ushered her toward the backseat. "After you. Milady."
"Thank you."
Vivian climbed inside the seat, she glanced through the tinted window.
Julian was standing in the middle of the driveway, looking like he was about to burst into tears. His hand had drifted down toward his own crotch, awkwardly adjusting his pants to check if her cruel little comment was actually true.
He knew she wasn’t lying anyways. He had always been insecure about it.
Julian looked up again, as his eyes watered.
Vivian almost felt bad. She really did love him, regardless.
Then she remembered the zombies tearing her apart while she screamed for her baby. The sympathy vanished instantly.
Logan closed the door. Before getting in, he glanced at Julian, then at Vivian, then back at Julian. He looked like he had several questions but decided to keep his mouth shut.
He climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine. "Ready?"
Vivian nodded, pulling her hoodie tighter. "Yeah."
The car pulled away from the house. Logan glanced at her through the mirror. "You’re really not taking any belongings? You’re sure?"
Vivian looked out the window at the house. Her childhood room. Her mother’s garden. The place where she’d spent years being treated like an unwanted servant. She shook her head.
"No. I’m not taking anything from the past."
The words came out quietly.
Wyatt, who had been completely silent in the front seat, slowly turned his head around. He kept staring at Vivian who was awkwardly trying to fix her seatbelt.
He had enhanced Sentinel hearing, meaning he had heard every single word she said to Julian. Even the comment about his... manhood.
He stared at her for a moment, looking curious....
What kind of Guide is this? Wyatt thought. Guides were supposed to be gentle, nurturing, and polite. This tiny girl had just insulted her family, slapped her sister, dumped ash on them, and dumped her boyfriend the moment she awakened as a guide. To him, she was just an attention seeker.
Vivian caught him staring. She narrowed her eyes at him. "What?"
Wyatt kept his gaze on her for a few seconds. "Nothing."
"Then stop staring," Vivian snapped coldly.
Wyatt actually blinked in surprise, then slowly turned his head back to face the road immediately, before she slapped him too.
He didn’t say another word.
What neither Wyatt nor Logan knew was that Vivian didn’t just hate Julian and her family. She despised the two of them, too. She hated all Sentinels and Guides too. To her, they were all part of the system that would abandon humanity in five months.
As the car sped down the street, Vivian closed her eyes.
I didn’t do enough, she thought. Dumping ash on Chloe and bruising Julian’s ego is nothing compared to what they did to me. They took my baby away.
She took a deep breath and called out in her mind. ’Compass.’
’Did I do a good job?’
[Host performed exceptionally well,] COMPASS’s voice echoed back, filled with approval. [The emotional damage inflicted upon Julian appears to be significant.]
Vivian covered her mouth with her sleeve to hide her laugh. ’I wasn’t trying to hurt him.’
[Host is lying.]
’Shut up.’
Logan glanced at her through the mirror. "Did you say something back there?"
Vivian opened her eyes. "No."
Wyatt remained silent in the front seat. But as Vivian watched him, she could swear she saw the edge of his mouth twitch. Was he actually smiling?
[Second Chance Protocol: Phase One completed. Now beginning Phase Two.]
’What is Phase Two?’ she asked compass.
The system’s voice echoed in her mind.
[Host must enter the Guide and Sentinel Academy.]
Vivian stared out the window. The Academy. The place where the people she hated most gathered. The place where the cowards trained.
But it was also the place where she might finally find answers. Why had the Guides disappeared? Why had the Sentinels vanished when the world needed them the most? Why had they left humans behind to die? And most importantly, did they know the apocalypse was coming?
Vivian’s fingers slowly curled into fists inside her pockets.
"Fine," she whispered to herself. "If that’s where the answers are... I’ll go there."