Future Lost

30

“Maybe we can trace him back to the White Outs. But how do we find him without the photo? It’d be a lot easier if we had a name.”

I’m silent, staring at the empty pizza box, because the only thing I can think of is something I don’t want to consider. But Adam already knows. He can read it on my face.

“You want to go to the future again,” he says quietly.

“I don’t want to go, but it’s the only way.”

“No. After last time, I swore I’d never mess with time travel again.”

“It’s the only way. We go ten years into the future, to the Beverly Center on that Black Friday. We track this guy down and find out who he is. Then we come back and stop the White Outs now, before they have a chance to get the virus in the first place.”

Adam’s mouth hangs open. “You can’t be serious. Even if we could convince Vincent to let us go to the future again, and even if Dr. Walters could fix the accelerator so we arrive at the correct time, going to that mall on that exact day might be a death sentence for us. What if we contract the virus ourselves and bring it back to the present?”

“It’s the only way,” I say. When Adam doesn’t look convinced, I go on. “We’ll be careful. We won’t confront the guy or anything. Even if we could stop him, the virus will be released all over the country, so there’s no point. We’ll just watch from afar and get the information we need, then come back right away.”

He tears his hand through his damp hair, and I can see the wheels turning in his head. He must come to the same conclusion I did because his shoulders slump and he sucks in a long breath. “God, Elena. Are we really doing this? Again?”

He’s been through so much, I can understand why he doesn’t want to get back in that accelerator ever again. I rest my hand on his knee. “You don’t have to go.”

His glance is sharp. “And let you go alone? No way.” His hand finds mine, and he threads our fingers together. “We’re in this together.”

“Together,” I repeat. “Until the very end.”

FRIDAY

I barely sleep that night. Adam, on the other hand, sleeps like the dead. I suspect he didn’t get much rest while he was stuck in the future.

Once the sun wakes us up, I get sick of tossing and turning and head to the kitchen to grab some coffee. Adam walks out of the bedroom an hour later wearing nothing but a pair of sweatpants, and my eyes travel over his bare chest and broad shoulders. Even though he’s lost some weight, he still makes my pulse race. Heat rushes through me, and I force myself to look away. My heart is bruised and my brain knows better, but my body doesn’t seem to get the message.

“Morning,” he says.

I grumble something in response, but he’s used to that. I tend to be grumpy in the mornings. What can I say?

“Have you thought of anything else we could do?” he asks while he pours some cereal for both of us.

“No. Have you?”

He sighs. “No. I guess we need to talk to Vincent.”

“I have class today. And an English paper due tomorrow. But how am I supposed to focus on any of that?” I stare at my cereal. “How can I pretend everything is normal, knowing what’s going to happen? I want to spend every minute of the day trying to stop it.”

“I know. I keep thinking we need to do something to warn people. Give them time to prepare. But who would believe us?”

“No one. I barely believe it myself.”

I take a bite of cereal, but it tastes like cardboard, and I end up swirling my spoon around while we sit in silence. Adam devours his breakfast, just like he did the pizza last night.

“You should go to your class,” he says between bites.

“And what will you do?”

“Head to the lab, probably.”

To work on genicote, no doubt. Even though it might one day become a virus that kills everyone. My fingers tighten around the spoon. “Ken told me you dropped out of school. Were you ever going to tell me that?”

Adam rubs the back of his neck. “Of course I was going to tell you.”

“Yeah? When?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t think it was that big a deal. It’s not like I need those classes. I can make genicote without them now.” He lets out a sad laugh. “Not that I want to anymore. Now that I know what it becomes.”

I shove my cereal away. “Genicote isn’t all you’re supposed to do with your life. Or have you forgotten? Developing a cure for Alzheimer’s. Helping Ken cure Huntington’s. Creating Future Visions with me.” All the original anger and frustration with Adam is boiling up in me again now that we’re safe. “We had a plan, and you threw it all away without even telling me.”

He stares into his empty bowl. “I’m sorry. It was a mistake—one of many, it seems. I should have discussed it with you first.”

“Yeah, you should have. I thought we were a team.”

“We are a team.”

I stab my finger at his chest. “If we were a team, you wouldn’t keep secrets from me.”

He opens his mouth to answer, but I don’t want to hear it. He’ll say he’s sorry, that he made a mistake, but so what? That doesn’t change what he did. Or the fact that I can’t trust him now.

I spin on my heel and head into the bedroom, slamming the door behind me. I throw on some clothes quickly and grab my bag, shoving my textbooks inside. Then I walk out of the apartment without another word, worried that if I even glance at Adam, I’ll start another fight.