Chapter Theme Music: Kazari Uiharu ~ Scientific Railgun OST127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkEABINXsnK
<11/05/2010 - 09:15 | Saffrin Middle School (Math), Austell, GA, USA>
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGbeZOxPIoI
My name is Reed. I'm still in the seventh grade, have an average life, and above average intelligence. But ever since the start of this week, I've had a secret, one I've been keeping only to myself. Despite how normal everything may appear on the surface, I'm actually a psychic.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjGRgU12j8q
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ioZNXV5Es
I don't have too many special powers mind you, only one in particular, the ability to telepathically communicate. The other downside is that I can only use this telepathy on one specific person, an individual who by all self-proclamations is an Altiri alien from a distant star system in the Genosis cluster. Lumina is the name of the other person I can speak to, someone who is also a more impressive psychic than myself, on top of having other special abilities.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe7AD8qFZMp
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS0khNQwOQA
However, I don't have the means of producing any concrete evidence that any of this is real, that Lumina and the Altiri actually exist. In fact, I'm still not entirely convinced myself, but since our first encounter, things have changed dramatically. I ended our first day with the probability calculation that there was only a 1% chance that Lumina was real, leaving the 99% chance that I had gone insane and lost part of my rational mind to this new world. However, as the days passed into this Friday, I've since changed that probability of her existence to 5%. It's not a very high number, but there are some good reasons for my newer calculations today.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ24lUB7DueN
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ459dgdMlZ
Factor one: Lumina's presence has not gone away. I actually have the power to decide whether I want to see her ever again, and proven the effectiveness of this on some level. I read somewhere that hallucinations typically only last up to 24 hours tops, unless you are really crazy. But here we are on day five, and she's still here with me now. You might be wondering why I keep calling her back, but the answer to that is actually simple. On one hand, I'm having her help me out a little with learning how to be more social, talk to people, and understand the language a little better. On the other hand, I'm also bored sometimes, and I just want to ask her about the specifics of her world.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4H9ms58pu4
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRZvRri9DJo
Which brings me to point two: No matter what I ask Lumina, she has an answer for just about everything on the spot. She's been teaching me all kinds of things about her world, things that are hard to understand given the complicated science aspect to it. However, I've also had her teaching me the basics of outer space and general physics, only to go and look into it afterwards. Her accuracy in outer space physics is too precise and high for all of this to be a coincidence. In all, Lumina is capable of teaching me things even about my own world that I would have had no way of learning prior to hearing her about it. If she were fake, that shouldn't be possible in the first place.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgzqeouINEK
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfReUUU5TUy
Then there is point three, the realism of her responses and personality. Despite how I imagined a complex hallucination, Lumina isn't like me at all. She isn't an introvert, nor is she afraid to speak what's on her mind. Through this whole week, I've seen reactions and behaviors from her that all feel too real for it to be a product of anyone's imagination. It's actually impressive; I've seen more personality out of her than I've seen in most of my own classmates. As scary as that should be, her helpful nature towards me has at least earned her a spot of trust.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ85EjG8UEyW
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUhk5n6BQ0Q
I've gotten used to calling her and talking to her at random intervals of my day, usually having one conversation unbeknownst to anybody around us, while listening or pretending to listen to another conversation, usually a teacher's lesson. I also took Lumina's advice in keeping this a secret from everybody else, realizing only now that it was the smarter move to make. After all, I don't really feel like I'm insane, not with how much control and freedom I still have over myself. Lumina can't control me, my body, my emotions, or my decisions. She actually told me herself that such type of possessive control is not within the realm of possibilities for psychic powers.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHUn48kj3Gc
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtKHY6ad4un
Overall, I have not exactly made a decision about whether to believe her as of yet. I mean, I thought that I did decide when she first showed up, but I was just scared and freaked out by it. Now, I don't know what to think. There is a 5% chance that she is real after all, and that I was specially chosen and purged by an Altiri alien, for the purpose of friendship no less. I know how absurd that sounds; you don't have to tell me. But still, I don't really have to decide either way, right? I know it's wrong to believe in an illusion, but there is nothing wrong with being uncertain. So, that's what I decided to do, to stop caring about the prospect of whether she is real or not. The point is, even if she is an illusion, Lumina is more beneficial for me to have around than it is harmful.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8YOVEGvaY6
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWZ1OwPGC20
She has already helped me become closer to Zero and a few others, has helped me understand more about the world, and has done everything she can to help me with any kind of life advice I had, even if her answer was merely a collection of suggestions.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaRzAjwX5lR
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaRnK1MKFwW
Because of the nature of our communication, nobody around me knew anything about what was going on under the hood of my mind. It began to feel more special, more exclusive than anything I have ever felt before. None of them realize it. None of these students know that I'm having a private conversation with an alien as we all go about our days. Naturally, I constructed numerous mental simulations and daydreams of what it might look like if someone did suddenly find out, but even I wasn't sure how close to realism the endings were. Still, without the daydreams, it gave me something to think about, considering the weight of the situation. It actually felt like I was now part of something bigger, provided I wasn't making it up, and as a result, my general mood about everything improved gradually. I wasn't just happier to have better success talking to the people in the school. I was also happier because if I ever got bored, I could trust Lumina with a fun conversation, just as much as I can trust her with better advice about other people.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAHyE8kZWrS
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfCTyAR4ccE
So, this is my new life, a setting where I harbor a secret alien just for the heck of it, and nobody is the wiser. I found it impossible to track how something so crazy became so regular for myself, but at the same time, I was too happy with the way things were going now to switch it all off. Surely you understand where I'm coming from, right? You understand why I didn't just let Lumina go? I could do it at any time! It doesn't have to be right now!127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAikCVo6JiN
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡojppxUh5Eg
"Reed? Who are you talking to?"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKw5zuhsTGe
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv1mbX63UfZ
I cursed myself for getting caught monologing to the audience again. "It's nothing Lumina. Don't worry about it."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5JXgI0ZXSQ
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmrMQ4szFwQ
"Okay then." Lumina hung back from interfering whenever I was wrapped up in conversations during the groups of people I would sit next to, giving me the chance to really practice speaking with everything else.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡML7l3zGS6d
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfREJbzH84z
But it wasn't just the practice that helped me accomplished this. I've come to realize something. I am intelligent, but Lumina is actually five times more intelligent than I am. Just by speaking to her for as long as I have, I've learned to better convey more of my words onto others properly. I'm even beginning to sound a little more knowledgeable of everything like she is. This also made me a little more confident too, enough to handle myself better while talking to Banarus's group, as I was doing right now.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR2dHLB4gg3
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZct8pJgGdG
As ironic as it was, Banarus and Malica were just talking about the concept of weirdoes and weirdness itself. Naturally, I felt obligated to chime into it, even if it was unexpected for them to hear me speak after some time of silence. "Weird means the same as being different, right? I can't see what would be so wrong with that. If you think about it, everyone is different in their own way. But what makes things more interesting is that everybody has their own story, their own reality, their own collection of perceptions that defines who we all are. Even then, perspective also matters to every story." I knew just as well. If I had some possible way to present all of my perceptions as they happened through me to some other person, then surely that person would believe everything that was happening to me, and not assume I was lying. But I don't have a way to do that, do I?127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnFvJ9q4CcT
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQaOAKwdJ2P
Banarus seemed a little awestruck by my response, mainly because it sounded more complete and refined than anything else I've ever said to her. I wasn't even trying to make myself sound that way, but ever since Lumina happened, I've just been better at speaking philosophically, I guess. This is what I meant earlier about sounding a little more like her. "I don't have a whole lot of stories to share though. My sister might..."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSIpCv7lJ72
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJJrjxbksnE
"That's nonsense," I corrected. Even if Banarus is the most boring person to me in the world, (which she is not), somebody else will think otherwise. That's how perspectives work when they clash and people meet each other. But let's assume for a moment that she is telling the truth. Her life will remain boring only for as long as she chooses it to be that way. "If you can't recall having any fun or doing any good in your life, then you need to get out a little more, make something happen." I realized the irony of my own words, since I myself did not obey them even today as much as I would want to. I'm the least social person I know. I don't go out to anywhere, never go to parties, never visit any friends' houses, or take part in a lot of competitive events. That's probably why Banarus was now making that surprised face at me right now.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Ya00bVGBw
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMAnVHHmP26
Helpless like a deer in headlights, Banarus turned to her best friend instead, testing her own reality. "Am I hearing right? Is Reed giving me advice on my social life? Me?!"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5PKfRbExDg
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMnqtBa4qGc
With a light chuckle, Malica appreciated the advice floating around, but also took careful note of my own demeanor. "He is... You know, you seem different now than you were before." She was addressing me of course, pointing out how social I have become towards their group at least, or perhaps how confident I was when I spoke.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoAxtt0sBnT
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtE8WiwEcH5
"If that's true, then I worked my magic well."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbbP9kF0z5M
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNfLQsVNEkz
What magic? Lumina struggled to get things right the third time around, and I had to save myself to some extent. "No Lumina. We both worked on this together." After correcting her, I now needed to speak to Malica and Banarus too, as I have learned to better cycle my conversations in and out of telepathy. "I've been learning things is all. I think it's important to treat people really well and give them at least two chances."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPOjNgTLynQ
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Dt5CzmcwJ
Banarus nearly flipped from hearing that, and she asked me what was on my mine while pointing directly to Malica's face. "Are you talking about what I think you are talking about?"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJuEOzHpfGd
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTOiInGCY3g
She can't be serious! Here I thought Banarus would have no trouble getting this right the first time. "No. That wasn't dating advice. I was referring to friendships."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhydp6vN4Mt
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaUr4TTzQIl
"Right," she nodded with closed eyes and a smile. "I figured that."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlQKb50Py56
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt1M0o26H1H
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNMC8Mz3ZiW
Banarus wasn't fooling either one of us, and it was a little refreshing to hear Lumina and I simultaneously agree on that. Still, I was a little floored to think Banarus would consider a meager possibility that I would ever in my life hook up with a cheater again. Malica was lucky I was even still willing to talk to her, even if I was still cold about it.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwNpup3FVsL
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3UHL9RPahX
"What about stuff like forgiveness?"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1I4cnSihmn
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLu2o2bBsyN
For once, I was thrown off by the question, since it was coming from Malica directing her attention right onto me. I already suspected that she wanted to get back together with me, but I never thought she would say something about it to my face, challenging my own development. Even so, the best thing for me to do was to give her my entire honesty to the situation. "Well, that depends on the person I guess. I can forgive people too, but it also depends on what that other person has done in the first place. Even then, forgiveness in one area doesn't equate to a free retry in another area. The only reason I can talk to you right now is because I already know that there is a zero percent chance of you and me hooking back up again, Malica."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcm6XCRvA6H
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6DP18j4WA4
My words seemed to stun both of them, not because they were harsh, but because they were true. I'm glad I managed to say that too, not that it was easy. My heart began racing from talking about it at all, anxious to what could have happened. I don't even know how I was managing to convey my words so well today, given what little practice I did have, but I regret nothing.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡysZ7w54H03
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1FaOYnxBRF
"Oh, right!" Banarus perked up, removing some of the shock of the situation by trying to change the subject, for Malica's sake. "I heard you've been making new friends, from Laura anyway."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3GjVwtAvbe
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfvBjvKNIny
"I did manage to talk to a few more people lately." I still don't see why it's any of her business though. I don't blame Laura for expressing it, since she's almost friends with half the people I know. But of course, under some supervision from Lumina, I've done a far better job talking to them than I ever have in my entire life with anybody else.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB0RCmg36ya
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeGAzbluXZa
Even yesterday, as interesting and awkward as everything should have been in Homech, it wasn't as bad as I feared. Kaitlyn came back from her absence of course, and proved to us that she was getting along well with Jaiden, while also getting along okay with Zero. I don't know if Kaitlyn actually forgot about me or the incident involving my previous crush on her, but she didn't bring it up even once. Of course, I didn't rock the boat either. I didn't feel any strange or wild glances she gave me. It was as if the whole thing never happened. So, she either didn't care and maintained total maturity about it, or forgot about the whole incident, which seemed more likely. Hell, I even got to talk to her a little, more than I ever did before, which was interesting.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQp6jcJSQ30
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdHyYs0SMbS
The concept was weird to me, talking to someone I never spoke to before who I used to have crush on - but no longer do. Everything was so different this time. My words were not as jumbled, my heart didn't feel like it would explode, even though it was elevated still, and I saw Kaitlyn in this new light that I never gave her before. Even with all that, I didn't fall for her the second time. If anything, Zero and I were on the path to becoming best friends, giving it enough time. As I got lost in my own thoughts again, Banarus broke such silence with the slight squint of her eyes and further interrogation.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx5fy9Mbms1
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡan0irBSfYx
"Still only hanging out with girls though, huh?" Banarus really seemed put off by that fact, like I was somehow a creeper for maintaining that specific behavior. Even if she was correct, I didn't see what was so wrong about it.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrpt6nKLF01
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHWtF9ehG7a
"Man! She will just not let you get away with that!" I knew why Lumina was saying as much, since there was plenty of context. Lately, despite Banarus doing that usual thing of wanting me to sit with her group, she also wanted me to make more guy friends, in other classes of course.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiAkkNIBTmh
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ724VA0f1cU
As strange as I found her behavior, I was a little offended that she thought I was in the wrong given where everything was. Sure, the situation isn't perfect, but it has improved, and that is cause for celebration. "As a matter of fact, I am. Got a problem with that?" I really was curious to why she cared in the first place.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQLYGZFVliR
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWBRE0Pq9WG
However, Banarus replied to me easily, with no guilt at all. "Some people might think you are gay because of it."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmwCI92F83W
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA5yR884GpC
Gay huh? In this day in age, people look down on whether a person is actually gay or not, but the context is also used in jokes or memes. A guy being called gay is quite the insult around here, even when everybody knows the literal truth is that their orientation is normal. Banarus and I both know I'm as straight as an arrow, so she's probably more worried about the insult aspect than anything else. "Man! Who gives a rat's ass about that?!" I on the other hand could care less. After what I've just been through, having the school think I'm gay would be the least of my worries. Something worse could happen instead, like the school finding out about Lumina for example.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc12KFGEw5G
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5tJqGIoH29
Apparently, my response got the both of them cracking up. I could tell they were only laughing about my language above anything else. It was an interesting expression I've been hearing more often in video games. I laughed too when I first tried to imagine it, but right now, my face was a serious as ever. "I'll make friends regardless of gender, and regardless of what other people think of me." Despite my last line being somewhat of a stretch, with Lumina on my side, I really was beginning to value integrity in a friendship more than anything else, which was partly why I felt less nervous talking to people. If they didn't like me enough to pay me any mind, then I would learn that being friends with them would be a bad idea, and by extension, caring about their responses would not matter anymore. It's easier to just say I only care about what other people think of me when it comes to those I want to care about in return. "If they think I'm gay, then whatever. I can't control people's minds, and I wouldn't really want to try."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlDu9ORjMHX
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5CA7eioolJ
"Sup?"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ255mBiXrdr
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡthyg3HEhOe
I nearly jumped from my seat, having not expected somebody to be hovering over us like that. When my eyes adjusted, I realized it was only Maddison. She was supposed to be sitting here all the time, but since the freestyle pace of this class was wilder this week, Maddison willingly ditched everyone here to hang out with Ashly in another math class. Yet now she is here again.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhMD7RKK8SA
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSjO57jh61A
"Is Haylen's class doing that quiz thing again?" Banarus spoke to Maddison as if her sudden presence was normal for them, and I was missing some of the context.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc0bMhbMpGi
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yWjl609Vn
"No, I just left early is all. Ashly is absent today." Maddison revealed the reason for her earlier return, giving me time to consider what they were talking about. By quiz thing, I could only assume that Maddison's presence in Haylen's class would be most unwelcome if the students there were in the middle of testing. You can't hang out with friends when they are cramming like that. However, it turns out that the truth is something even more mundane.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR1ZrqWvJZL
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUPuTKgYKr5
"It's strange to see that all of the people you know are somehow connected to each other. Still, you are doing well to mix into this group."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN95m1BPRQR
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3DbMcvskjM
Yes, it is strange to look at it this way, especially from Lumina's perspective. Nobody here is ever directly best friends with more than one person at a time; that much makes perfect sense. But it creates this strange consequential web of acquaintances who all know each other, by the friends of their friends. Banarus and Malica are friends with Maddison, who is a direct friend of Ashly, though Ashly is not a direct friend of Banarus and Malica. The same can be said to most of the people in this entire school. "And I have you to thank for that."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡujgCKIu4ut
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmnPmuZ61fy
"I only gave you advice that was helpful some of the time."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxrxg8NbgG4
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCR32YibfJa
"No Lumina. You gave me the courage to try harder to talk to people." Even though it was never Lumina's direct strategy, it was something I had to learn eventually, the courage to try. Because of that, I learned that my previous style of passive observation of people was flawed, rather incomplete. All of this has made me a smarter person in that aspect too. I certainly can't take all the credit.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB0m7O9708J
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡukehH3ogXZ
"You're right. I did it all! Now build a statue in my honor."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡblBkUeZadD
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjMjXMutVoc
Lumina was normally this sarcastic, so I was getting used that that too, but something about the way she said that, or perhaps the timing of it made me laugh out loud for a few seconds, confusing those around me since it was so abrupt. Despite realizing my mistake, I didn't deny my own right to laugh at anything Lumina said.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRURuakcqJP
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4LzFA1iBUZ
"What's so funny?" Maddison and Banarus were asking at the same time, glancing at me with curiosity.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcuWyt8NJjf
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzgeGdjww9x
I knew I had to patch this up real quick. Luckily, this didn't happen as often as it did on the first day I was speaking to Lumina, so I figured they would forget about it later. "Eh, it's nothing. Anyway, what were you saying?"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVeF6keyIAv
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7WAxgxiQP6
"Smooth." What was also usual, was for Lumina to make fun of my misfortunes if they were small or insignificant. Her behavior coaxed me into returning the same embarrassment back onto her, if ever it were possible, which in this situation, it was not.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcUcRWqwj4g
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcTugPeCP2q
I knew she was right to say it though. I let my guard down yet again. It made me realize that it was going to take a lot more than a tiny slipup for anybody in this school to latch onto the mere idea that anything strange was going on with me, and that boosted my confidence a little too, mainly by removing the fear that somebody would find out.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSQf36dp8Cf
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjwVDZMMxMj
I still wanted to tell somebody about Lumina, about the Altiri, and about everything I've been going through. But in the newest simulations running in my head, the outcomes of that possibility usually ended in me being ridiculed and not believed in the end. Even so, I was in a better mood today above all else. I don't know how I managed to turn this disaster around to a good situation, but I did it anyway. If ever I became too freaked out by Lumina's presence, I knew in the background of my thoughts that there would always be a kill switch; the idea of never calling her again after a connection drop. I wasn't stuck with this person inside my head, but for now, I choose to have her here with me, enriching my life tenfold.
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSk6bsgF8o1
<11/05/2010 - 12:38 | Saffrin Middle School (Gym), Austell, GA, USA>127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTbkfec8s9L
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWTt9N3ntdW
Once I got into gym today, the Friday dodge-ball game started as usual. I ended up getting out early by chance, which caused me to stand behind the team I was on, in a thin corner by the wall where the other out players were. There wasn't anybody here I knew, except for Ashly, who I didn't really try to talk to yet. Turns out she was absent but came in late anyway, missing three periods of school, but my thoughts were still busy handling Lumina.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW3nfxG3887
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHbqG7ZxnX4
"I couldn't care less about the game today. I'm too happy with the way things are now. I'm finally fitting in with every group I sit with in most of my classes."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdvVd2LCUqC
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvIlV64SbKN
"Okay, so which ones are you going to keep?"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0MyUPEY2xe
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi07pYR7fuF
Keep? I realized now what I said earlier, about trashing some of the old friends I had for now ones... But do I even need to go that far in the first place? "Who cares about that? I want to be friends with as many people as possible! I won't favor one over the other..." I had to think about what I just said, mainly in context relation to what Lumina and I have become by now. I couldn't hide it any longer. Of all the friends I have, Lumina is one of them now too. We are nothing close to best friends, but I want her around now. Still, I have no choice but to prioritize talking to her first, since she is the one helping me get this far. "But I guess when it comes to the two of us, we have little choice but to place top priority."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTai4vjKsrw
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXaMDxI2ON4
"You say that out of logic or pity?"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD4yjj1HukY
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcxhRCUU3U2
Why would she think that? I don't think badly of our conversations... Even so, she could at least try to exercise some restraint. "What I mean is, we're always able to hear each other's thoughts... It's kind of intrusive, and embarrassing." I'm glad I can talk to Lumina about more things than the average school girl, but at the same time, too much exposure is too much.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ny9J75aDo
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8a1c6tQWcj
"I don't see what's to be so embarrassed about. Just because you like big butts and pussy doesn't mean I think less of you for it."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgu9vvYzfNx
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZCrlqFsafx
I can't believe she can just say that with a neutral expression! What I do during alone time should be none of her business. "See, that right there is what I'm talking about. Just because that website was on my mind earlier, doesn't mean you can just leverage that against me." Lumina wasn't even there for it. I was at the age now where I was finding and logging my favorite websites on my own, something every teenage boy does.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrEnGHUVaoJ
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgrwahQLOx8
Naturally, given the situation, I decided to ensure Lumina and I were not connected for that moment, but things never go my way. Today on my way here, my vivid memory of what I saw on that website wound up popping into my mind at random. I didn't know it before today, but apparently, vivid imagery, either through memory or imagination can also transfer to the other person in telepathy, however, it is rare because both a strong connection and a powerful, vivid mental image is needed. Lumina was confused at first, but when I tried to pretend not to know what she was talking about, she sensed my nervousness and found out through indirect interrogation anyway that I had a certain kind of fun last night. It's crazy to think something like a memory can be made public to Lumina if I think about it enough, on purpose or accident. Ever since then, she's been trying to tease me about it.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEOHKdn4iN5
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgW3cgGxhIW
"Where's the fun if I don't leverage it against you?"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbjxEibuojw
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7VBcdIuzO3
I felt more uneasy now, standing here in sweat trying to turn this around on her. What's done is already done. I never meant to share with Lumina that I had an anti-fetish for boobs. "Let's see... Something embarrassing about you..."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp4IlUXg8ZP
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPsEafOXEwS
"Good luck finding a single thing. I don't do embarrassing things."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiUEThDzq5x
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmkbBmJ9rOe
Somehow, I found Lumina's claim impossible to believe, given how long she has been alive for. "Well, you should try that more often. What do you Altiri do up there for fun anyway?"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3tGGVVGaYh
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5gWp2fWu4u
"Well, I like to think that we Altiri came up with the concept of Truth or Dare, that we never gave that idea to humans in anyway. I'm not too sure though. I guess it was a game both our races developed side-by-side."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡROTMcUe6Lg
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTwuXRF6QhT
"Ah, I heard about this one." At last, maybe I can challenge her to a game and royally defeat her. A smile crossed my cheeks just thinking about it as I tuned out the world around me, my focus entirely shifted onto this moment. "You ask people to give up their deepest darkest secrets, or dare them to run around butt naked."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkZ8KpOR0oj
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkthnN6YZib
"Well, the naked part of that is a stupid condition that only humans added. However, you're free to give it a try, if you want."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWEIiMst276
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRVfKqrWocn
So now she's mocking me? Does she really think she can get out of it that easily...? Wait a second. Why haven't I ever seen an Altiri wearing any other uniform before? "I can't believe I never asked this before, but, is there something different about Altiri nudity?" I don't care how weird it was to ask this; she owes me an explanation now.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyWQsTBOkMD
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9kDbVrRswh
"Not really. Our outer layer of skin is a highly protective suit resistant to scrapes, cuts, and conductivity. It's not something we can really control. Our second layer of skin underneath seems to resemble human skin the most, pale as it might be. But we can only chose to expose certain areas of our body like that with practice, and never for long periods of time, not unless someone were used to it."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu0cVXaS1xc
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXZWixDizMn
I never knew that! The Altiri have two distinct layers of skin? Wait, does that mean... "This outer protective layer of skin you have, that blue and white suit that looks rough and metallic, that's not just a space suit? It's a natural part of your body?" The idea of that being true was already blowing my mind.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ75eItUHH0I
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiMNCDSRRx4
"Yes. Essentially, we would consider our second layer of skin to be a part of nudity, should we expose our body parts like that. Normally, there is never a need to do so, especially when our first protective layer prevents us from taking certain kinds of mild damage, usually from bumping into something."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt51qzLbp7A
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwV97JFHBYq
I was nearly holding my head trying to understand it all, but it was so different and complex. "So then, you can retract the first part of your skin to reveal the second, which is your true skin underneath? That means the Altiri really don't wear any clothes... But at the same time, you're not technically nude? Not until you chose to be?" It was obvious that I really needed some help figuring this out. I've seen some of Lumina's body before, her outer layer of skin anyway, which hid every asset I would expect a space suit to hide. I never had a clue that it was part of her biology! "Why are we talking about this?" I only picked up on it now, that Lumina and I were discussing the concept of Altiri nudity. For my own sake, I tried to flush my mind of the thought, before I create a bigger problem for myself in front of everybody.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAGVdJogsCh
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhEKNjc90o2
"You are the one who brought it up, trying to dig into my life hoping to find something embarrassing. Too bad though. I told you before, I don't do embarrassing things."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEDKvSVJdBB
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9U56dmBa6I
I still wasn't buying that. "There has to be something awesome beyond all of that doom and gloom from your past. An embarrassing secret... I know! I'll ask your sisters about it." I couldn't ask directly, but I was scheduled to talk with Luminas sisters sometime soon, when the connection gets stronger.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVxPnCBuDf4
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7neX9tc6Td
"No!" she yelled, surprising us both. "Eh, I mean, you shouldn't do that. It would only be a waste of time..."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ3DBKgAD4n
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMHROk4qKqB
"Hah!" At last, I have broken her! I was right all along. If I know which buttons to push, even Lumina cannot hide a secret from me. Her reaction told me everything I need to know, including the high chance that her sisters won't care about hiding anything embarrassing Lumina has done in the past, not for the chance to have their own fun. "I knew it! There is something there! Spill the beans Lumina."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr4id1NJI0g
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL1fULKfadR
Even though I could not see or feel it, I could tell Lumina was blushing and fuming in her own humiliation, how she tried desperately to prevent this from getting any worse. "Oh yeah? Don't forget that I've watched you do some very interesting things, before you were purged I mean."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMnkxbCS6iH
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWd34aPOaMc
She's blackmailing me? Bad form Lumina, bad form... The weight of her words fell on top of me some more, realizing what she meant by that. I can't believe she actually watched me do that kind of stuff when I was younger! She really doesn't understand the concept of privacy at all. But what's crazier is that she would finally admit it to me now, just to scare me out of my previous plot. "That's just disturbing and creepy in a number of ways."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBKcMDQhBHH
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡStMzGjXSdW
"Eh, no! That's not how that was supposed to come out!" She sure was nervous about her realized mistake now. With everything she said, it was too late for her to take anything back. It only pointed out how much she knew she wasn't supposed to watch me exploring myself in the first place, while also pointing out to me what a scary power clairvoyance can be in the hands of a curious and bored Altiri. "I wasn't actually paying that close attention. You know I don't go around doing things like that."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3URW8yQsgP
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBtbCtjbBVO
"Uh huh... Sure..." I didn't even try to hide my lack of believability to her desperate cover to fix what she had broken. In replying that way, I seemed to have really set Lumina off more than I expected to.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBO2TNgO37V
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0bS9t5mPTg
"I'm serious Reed! Don't take me for some kind of pervert! That's not who I am!" Lumina was screaming into my mind, begging me to believe her with her tone of voice alone. Her desperation to seem normal was beyond obvious, and quite a surprise to myself.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM77GrO3eCu
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1ocrev1bTr
But all I could do now was laugh, losing what control and restraint I did have to her cute reaction. "If you could see your face now!" Even I couldn't, but based on her tone, I imagined it perfectly, which is what made this so funny.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLWhlkAtStK
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrCCmBA8ShF
"What? You were only messing around?! Reeeeeeeed!"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw2AWdmtb4r
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTww2knGJqq
Unable to help myself, I found the fun I was looking for in her current humiliation. Honestly, I wasn't excusing her for learning that she had been watching me back then, but I was too swept up into the moment to care. She always has this perfect elegant self-image that she portrays, but deep down, even Lumina is a little immature, and is capable of the same embarrassment as I.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIcpGCPY3hS
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeOkbBlwUbl
Unfortunately for me, my powerful laughter knocked the air form my lungs, dropping me to the floor as I held my stomach. My personal spectacle therefore attracted some attention onto me, mainly from the person I was closest to, Ashly, as I wasn't appearing to be talking to anyone prior to my reaction. Even knowing that, I couldn't help myself. Catching Lumina off guard was difficult to do, but it was too funny for me to resist teasing her in return.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOVri6NOq1a
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFh7wJIcZGe
"A— Are you okay Reed?" Ashly nearly had a smile on her face, hoping to be let in one what was so hilarious, but she was still too confused to make sense of why I was stuck in a laughing fit with nobody around talking to me.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1hc4U6GPyc
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6BtBN7GXLQ
"Ha!" Lumina pointed rubbing it this in. "That's what you get! How fun is it now to be awkward around everyone?"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhkWmZHkgvI
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeoe57ff0I1
But my laughing fit only continued, dying down slowly and gradually. "It was still worth it." I didn't care anymore how stupid or cringy my experienced was anymore. I found pure bliss in proving I could get to her if I ever needed to. Who's the perverted one Lumina? The kid spending time on adult sites, or the woman watching him get frisky?127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn9zeKNOMSj
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8L7livaZG1
"I, um..." Standing there nervously and awkwardly, Ashly didn't know what to say or do anymore.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3U3rSTJHW2
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWW4CsXlLwm
I finally wrung myself out of the lock, inhaling as best as I could while trying to stand back up. I hastened my own recovery, still interested in reassuring to Ashly that everything was okay. Others were staring at me too, but it was only from people I knew nothing about, and thus cared not for their opinions. "I'm sorry Ashly. I was thinking about someone's day... Talk about a really embarrassing story." I twisted the truth a little, knowing I would not get away with this any other direction. I also realized how valuable that reply could be. If that ever happens again, I could just tell everyone I remembered something funny about somebody else.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWgZZf13viq
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjuKz0g3ujZ
"Oh! I want to hear!" Finally excited and on level to talk to me, I seemed to have interested Ashly with the tantalizing thought of hearing somebody else's embarrassing story. Of course, who wouldn't want to hear something so mystical and juicy?127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc06itOzRCe
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6nZL7X9J1d
"Don't you even dare!" Before I could even agree or disagree to telling Ashly all about this, Lumina revealed her true fangs of fury first. I've never heard her so vile and angry sounding just to avoid me saying anything humiliating about her.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1nQqnu0Qkg
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeNTsAJ7izl
So of course, I wasn't going to let another good opportunity go to waste. I was barely holding in more laughter just thinking about this. "Sure, okay."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe2BGGLF81x
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfPVKwIPBSC
"Reed?!" Her desperate and aggressive yelling sounded evermore desperate. She should know that such a strong reaction was only egging me on more!127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRyzdYxh4gi
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf1zUqL8fah
"Nah, I shouldn't." Of course, I wasn't really going to tell her what this was really about. I could get away with pretending some of the context was from a forgotten joke, but something told me that Ashly nor anyone else in the school would find Lumina's mentioned behavior to be funny, rather stalkerish instead. I didn't even find that part of it funny, but my ability to tease her like this was too priceless to let go of. By backing out now, she'll realize that she was once again led astray into my devious trap.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2nmikWxuNm
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXyjtP4MFXw
"Come on!" Ashly grabbed by arm, bounding up and down in excitement to hear the truth leave my lips. "I want to hear the big secret!"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ZTaV3f172
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyRFEUH5jel
Still, I wasn't expecting her to cling to my arm like that. Never underestimate the desire for one to hear such hot gossip! I waited for her to quit grabbing my arm like a little kid before giving her my ultimatum. "Sorry!" I chanted deeply. "But I swore an oath to this person's secrecy. That, and the right to some delicious cereal every morning."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCuvkmpr23e
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCMpVaWG4hD
Ashly giggled a bit from my own silliness, her eyes lighting up from the discovered opportunity of no longer sitting quietly by herself. "You sure are in a fun mood today. Just what have you been up to anyway?"127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5z6KxtcRg3
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpl6oI9zosX
"Straight onto that huh? At least you are attracting wanted attention to yourself like never before."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWEMEPUveCu
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp8rsy0Pmg3
I knew Lumina was correct, but the only way I could keep everything going was to not lose focus of how I was accomplishing this; slow and steady. "Oh, you know. Making some new friends, making fun of their misfortunes, then having them making fun of my misfortunes... The usual."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3k2QGaMyM8
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1wCXlxrN5L
"At least he's honest."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXDgr9TXljE
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNalHJfaYTc
"If you want to hear a dark secret about someone I know, I'll share it with you, but only if you tell me yours after."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgduMOa2hWi
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp4YwKRWHVn
Her offer left me with a strange off put feeling that enticed me to agree at the same time. Ashly looks cute on the surface, but she can be scary with information, so it seems. Was she interested merely in sharing people's embarrassing stories? If so, why did they entrust them to her loose lips? "What are we, gossip buddies?" I was partly joking of course, but Ashly found it a little funny, considering gossip is only something done between only girls. I cared not for the semantics. All I learned so far is that she can't keep any secret. So, telling her the truth is out of the question.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHwEZBJTuxd
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFJcBZ8KSIN
Still, I agreed anyway, since it was more fun than what everyone else was doing. I invented something to tell her during her retelling of someone's unfortunate day, not thinking about how strange it was or what I was really doing. It was almost like I was on autopilot, but I was still choosing which route to fly, always sticking to whatever gave me the most fun or thrill.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXInMAcctaF
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw8UkTPtweo
After Lumina got a hold of herself again, she also did the same, randomly asking me about stuff throughout the day, in the middle of class, or what I thought about this and that subject in life. Overall, it was a pretty decent day, and on top of everything else, I would be going to my dad's house later after school as per the usual weekend trips. Lumina had never been before, so it was an experience that she was excited to learn about before we even got started. Little by little, we were both beginning to relax, unleashing our true selves onto each other with no regrets or restraint. I couldn't imagine how next week would go, but I was finally looking forward to it.
127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGdUzPdOpgl
