Universe Leap

Chapter 02: The Syringe

Chapter 2: The Syringe

My whole body shivered when I felt someone’s hand snaked on my waist and pull me on the other side of the road. His familiar scent started to register in my system.

I was panting when the staggering car hit a light post on the other side of the road, the opposite from us. I looked at Craige who is also pale and cold sweats started dripping from his forehead as he looks at the wailing car and eventually looked at me.

“What… how… what the hell?” where the only words that I said as I looked at him back at the window of our room.

He’s there just a minute ago! What on earth happened?! Can he even teleport?

“I dunno, Cara. I don’t freaking know!” He looked at me hysterically and started shaking my shoulders as his eyes were full of fear.

“I just saw you through the window crossing the road and was hit by that f*cking car! But then, after that, I just saw myself standing on the window again and you’re just about to cross the road. I didn’t hesitate to jump off the window, breaking it and pulling you away from that sh*tty car!” he explained as his chest moves up and down and sweats are stilling dripping on his forehead.

I squint to look at our window again. Yep, it’s broken.

“Is this the thing that you wanted to tell me earlier?!” he is still shouting because of shock.

Fazed, I am nodding my head as my lips tremble because of fear. I ran my fingers through his hair and hugged him very tightly as tears started running on my cheeks. I heard how he sniffed and gently patting my back.

“W-Why are you crying, silly?” He sniffed again. “It’s not that we died.”

“Stupid. We could’ve died! I don’t know what is happening to the two of us but the only thing I knew is I am scared!” I blurted as I tried my best to stop these tears but it is futile.

Tears kept flowing one by one as if there is no end.

I’m still crying and while we are in that position, I heard a familiar voice calling our name.

“Cara! Craige! What happened?! Are you two okay?” Mom rushed towards us.

I unraveled from our hug as mom checked every inch of us to make sure that we have no injuries. From here, I saw dad holding on his head while looking at the light post where the car hit as if any minute from now, he is going to be crazy and there I have realized that our fence was also broken because of the car’s impact.

Dad values our garden more than anyone else. Dad loves flowers as much as he loves mom. His very own chrysanthemum.

“It’s the driver’s fault, mom! His car was swaying from left to right like a drunk dude!” Craige cried as he pointed the car’s location on the other side of the road.

“Cara?” Mom called me the moment she noticed that I am still in shock about the things that happened.

Craige experienced the same thing as I did… and I almost died.

“I’m a-alright,” I tried to sound do strong but I guess I failed when I felt my knees started to wobble.

Mom sighed and looked at Craige. “Take care of you sister first. I and your dad will take over things from here,” she instructed which made Craige nod.

Without saying a word, Craige took my arm and placed it on his shoulders and guided me to cross the pedestrian again back to our house as if I am injured. I don’t have the energy to complain anymore that’s why I gave him the opportunity to do the things he wants to do with me.

Thankfully, Craige and I have the same height. I’m praying each day that he won’t grow taller as days past by so that he can’t surpass me. From the corner of my eye, I saw mom and dad talking to a short man with a huge gut and a bald spot on the center of his head. He is scratching his tummy and yawning. From here, I could smell the reek of alcohol.

“Where are your eyes looking at?” I immediately shifted my gaze as I heard Craige spoke.

He opened the door of the house and didn’t hesitate to took my arm off his shoulders making me look at him as if any minute from now, I am going to shot him straight at the heart.

“You’re not injured, right? Why not complain?” he annoyingly said and plopped himself on the sofa and turned the television on.

“You’re not concerned, right? Why did you do it?” I scoffed making his eyebrows met once more.

“You’re getting into my nerves, Cara.” He tried his best to sound like he is calm but sorry to burst his bubble, he failed to do so.

I am not injured. I am just shocked of the events and I think I am fully recovered now, mom and dad surely know how to handle stuff that’s why I just need to leave it to them. For some reason, the car that was hit on the light post flashed in my mind. On the front door of the black car, there is a red lab coat image printed on it.

I shook my head. I should not think about the things that had happened earlier. I need to thank God a thousand times that I am still alive and kicking.

I looked at Craige who is busy biting his nails off. I kept asking my brain to come up with a topic to divert my attention and to avoid myself thinking about what happened earlier.

“Why are you skipping school? School is important, dumb sh*t,” I started to lecture him as I plopped at the seat beside him.

Wow, that topic was pretty random.

He groaned and looked at me as if I am the most gross creature he had ever seen. “Why do you care? Is it even appropriate for a 20-year-old man to go to school? School is for dumbs only,” he defended himself.

“Well, I am a 20-year-old grown up lady that is still attending school,” I proudly said but he just sighed as if he is saying “I’m done with this woman’s sh*ts.”

A few moments of silence and the only thing that I could hear is the noise coming from the television. I hate this. I hate silence.

“Craigan,” I called him by his true name which made his eyebrows furrowed.

“What, Catarina?” he answered while not paying attention to me and focusing his gaze on the TV.

“Are you not worried about our situation right now?” I asked out of nowhere.

He went silent for a second before answering, “I am. As long as ‘that’ thing won’t bother us, I am cool with it.”

“But do you think this is some kind of ability that we’ve obtained from…” I swallowed a lump in my throat before continuing my sentence, almost whispering, “the laboratory?”

It was almost a whisper but my back straightened automatically when Craige slammed the glass table using is bare hands but he managed to produce some cracks. My hands started to tremble when he looked at me with his deadliest eyes. I can see anger raging underneath his butterscotch iris.

“One more word about the laboratory, Catarina, and we’re done,” he firmly said and got up from his seat.

I followed him with my gaze as he opened the door. I flinched when he suddenly slammed the door closed. I heaved when he vanished from my sight. I gripped on my hair and started banging my head.

Why on earth did I ask him a question related with the laboratory? Me of all people knows how he hated studies and studying.

I looked on the window when I heard something dropped or broke. I didn’t hesitate to rose from my seat and head outside to see what’s going on. Come to think of it, mom and dad’s talk with the driver is taking so long. Did they not settle things easily? Or maybe the driver put up a fight?

The moment I opened the door, I saw Craige stepping on one of the terra cotta flower pots that dad bought from an auction. I was about to ask him what happened, I noticed that he was staring at something. His face was pale as if all of the blood that he had on his face ran to his feet. His lips and fingers were also trembling as if he had seen a ghost.

My eyebrows furrowed as I followed his line of sight. In my horror, I ended up with the same situation as him. My feet immediately went cold the moment I saw what’s in front of us. The body of our parents laying on the pavement with their mouth full of bubbles and their skin starts to emit bulgy violet veins. The car was also gone as if it was not here in the first place.

The most suspicious thing is; there is a syringe struck on both of my parents’ necks.