Lauren spent the next few hours until dinner settling in, not that that entailed much. She spent a while in her room laying on her new bed and thinking about things. She had her own bed. Her own room. Her own apartment. She finally wasn’t squatting somewhere, or being kept prisoner underground. She had a life in Pacific City, just what her and Rachel had always wanted. But that was the problem. It was nothing without Rachel. Rachel was still trapped somewhere with that scientist, now alone. Until they were reunited, this new life was hollow. Lauren couldn’t let herself be comfortable here. She couldn’t be at ease with new friends. Rachel came first. She’d do whatever she had to do to get her back.

  And then what would they do, after? Would Lauren bring her back here, and they’d both learn to be superheroes? What else was there to do at this point, assuming they were both powered. Rachel never got the same thing put in her, at least not before Lauren escaped. Lauren still didn’t even know what her powers were, aside from monumental stamina. Maybe that was the limit of her abilities.

  Even when she tried to entertain the idea, she knew it was a lie. She had changed when she escaped from the lab. Her body had become deadly. Something else took over. Something lurking inside of her. What would this school do when they found out about that aspect of her powers? Would BASTION kick her out, or exile her to another lab?

  She wouldn’t stand for that happening. All of this was temporary. She’d find Rachel, and then they’d find somewhere else to live. Out of the country, if they had to to get away from BASTION. They’d find somewhere to finally be safe. Until then, she just had to play things close to the chest.

  She eventually wandered back out into the living room, where Lucy was putting out plants that she must have brought with her. Grace was sitting on the couch looking at her phone and talking, apparently to anyone who also happened to be in the room.

  “Hi Lauren!” Lucy said. The pleasant tone in her voice sounded strained. Lauren got the feeling this was the only interruption in Grace talking that there had been for a while. “Want to help me put up some plants?”

  Lauren accepted a potted cactus from her. “Sure…”

  Grace continued from where she had left off. “D’you think there will be some worthwhile boys here? There were some kinda cute ones in my group, like kinda dorky cute, y’know, and some that just kinda looked like freaks. Like I knew none of them were gonna be my Justin. Justin’s my ex from my last school, he’s a star quarterback and he’s big and tall and handsome and faithful and he was in love with me and I hated that I had to break his heart but I explained to him that serving my country comes first, y’know? I got powers and I couldn’t just be held back in a small Texas town the rest of my life, I had to go where all the glamor is. So here I am in California and I need a California boyfriend, and I figured none of them are gonna be handsome jocks like Justin because it’s California but y’know it’s a big state and I thought the selection might be big enough to be worthwhile, y’know? I hope one of these boys impresses me cause I only have my virginity to give away once, I mean I had my first-time’s free virginity of course and that’s been gone since eighth grade and then I had my real virginity to give away to Justin and after that I was done being a virgin in Texas, I really was done with it, but now I’m in California and new place new me so I have it again but I really want to give it away to someone really special, like someone who’s going to be an amazing super power couple with me and I—”

  Lauren shared a look with Lucy as they hung up a fern together. Lucy had to hold in a laugh, which nearly caused her to fall off the stool she was balancing on. Lauren grabbed Lucy’s waist to steady her as they both tried not to burst.

  Lauren absorbed a lot more information about Grace in the time before dinner, including her years doing beauty pageants and a full saga of her friendships from kindergarten onwards. She also got an idea of Grace’s power, which was apparently to be able to manifest energy to fly and be invulnerable, among other things.

  “I’m gonna be called American Angel,” she informed them. “This country really needs a hero to be its heart and soul, to remind Americans there’s nothing wrong with being patriotic and loving your country. I’ll be hard on crime, a strong and independent fighter, while also proudly attending church and raising a family with my husband. I’ll be a political figure too, a sexy one. Politicians who also want this country to be strong and united can pay to sponsor me, and I’ll support whatever they want me to.”

  Lucy’s calm, happy demeanor seemed to finally be cracking a bit.

  “So, you basically want to be a puppet for whoever’s maintaining the status quo in this country,” she asked rhetorically.

  Grace looked up from her phone, smiling. “Yeah! That’s a great way to put it.”

  At least this finally seemed to open a three-way conversation between them. Lucy shared that she could control plants, and wanted to be called Evergreen.

  “It’s like I can hear the voices of plants, and feel their souls,” Lucy explained. She raised her hand to a pot of leafy vines that she had brought out from her room. The vines suddenly came to life, curling like snakes and growing to cover the table.

  “I can encourage them to grow. I can also borrow parts of their biology.” She held up her arm. Her skin grew thick and craggly, like the texture of bark.

  “That’s pretty impressive,” Lauren said.

  The two girls were clearly waiting for Lauren to share what she could do.

  “Oh, uh…” Lauren still didn’t know exactly how to explain. “I have a really good immune system. And a lot of stamina. I can run for hours without getting tired.”

  “Nice!” Lucy said.

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  Grace just shrugged and went back to her phone. “Yeah. Fun.”

  There was a knock on the front door. Lauren went to answer it. Standing outside was a woman in her 20s with dark hair and hazel eyes. She smiled as Lauren answered the door. She was wearing the green shirt of the school staff.

  “Hi! I’m Vic, and I’m your RA for this year! I just wanted to visit and make sure everyone was moving in alright.”

  “Oh, okay,” Lauren moved for her to come in.

  Vic stepped inside. She checked her clipboard. “So it says here we have Lauren, Lucy, Grace, and Harper. Is that right?”

  “That’s us!” Lucy said. “I’m Lucy, this is Lauren and Grace.”

  “Wonderful! And is Harper here?”

  “She’s in her room,” Grace said dismissively from the couch. “Hasn’t barely said a word to us all day.”

  “Well that’s alright, I’m sure I’ll get to meet her soon,” Vic said. “I just wanted to say hi and let you know if there’s anything you need help with regarding dorm life, You can come find me in room 10. My contact info is also on the SafeCape? app. I’m sure you’ve heard but we’re doing a mixer in the lounge tonight at 7. I hope you can all make it.”

  They all thanked Vic and she left. Lucy checked the time.

  “Oh gosh, it’s getting close to 6. Should we get ready for dinner?”

  “Yeah, I could eat,” Lauren agreed. She hadn’t eaten since early.

  “Are you coming to dinner, Grace?” Lucy asked.

  “Eh, eventually. I’ll catch up. I can’t be caught looking too eager.”

  “Sure.”

  Lauren and Lucy got ready and headed out a few minutes later.

  A sweet scent of summer carried faintly on the breeze that rippled across the grass lawn, probably one of the last before fall set in. There was still a few hours of sunlight left in the evening.

  “It must be nice, not being far from home,” Lauren said to make conversation on their walk.

  “It is,” Lucy agreed. “I don’t have to be here for curfew any night I go stay with my parents. I just have to let the school know.”

  “Really?”

  “Mhm!”

  Lauren thought about that. “I wonder if I could get that permission.”

  Lucy cocked her head. “You want to have a sleepover at my parent’s house? Trust me, we have a lot more space and privacy here.”

  They continued down the path leading to the cafeteria, passing the outside of the school. There was also a route through the building, for when the weather wasn’t as nice.

  “I haven’t asked you yet, where are you from?” Lucy asked.

  Lauren shrugged. “A small town down in the desert. It’s called Callis. It’s kind of by Dos Mesas.”

  “That’s neat. I like the desert. So your family is there?”

  Lauren shook her head.

  “Oh.”

  They walked the rest of the way in silence.

  They entered the cafeteria through the outside doors. As far as cafeterias went, it was pretty much what Lauren expected from TV: a large room filled with tables, with a line to pick up food and a wall of windows facing the field. Michelle had mentioned all the food here was free, so there was no need to worry about that. This cafeteria had options, too. There was a main line for whatever the meal of the day was, and a few other stations dedicated to different cuisines; right now they were ramen, barbecue, and pizza/Italian. There was also an open salad bar and a chilled pantry full of fruit and dairy products. For drinks there were multiple beverage fountains and a staffed smoothie and coffee bar in the corner.

  “This place is amaziiiing~” Lucy sung. “I’ve been waiting to come back here since the tour.”

  Lauren’s growling stomach agreed.

  The place was already decently filled by the time they arrived, both with plain clothed teens and the visiting young agents. They must have been on their own tours today.

  Adam and Thalia were easy enough to spot, sitting at a table near the windows. It looked like they had someone else sitting with them, too. Lauren waved as she made eye contact with Thalia, and went to get food.

  Lauren decided to keep things simple for her first meal. She waited in the main food line, and picked chicken tacos between that and beef. She was handed a tray with three tacos and a side of beans and rice. It smelled delicious. There was plenty of Mexican food in Callis, so Lauren was right at home. This meal was even fresh. She stopped by the pantry and picked out a chilled green pear, then poured herself a cup of blue PowerBurst out of the dozens of options at the drink station. Whenever her and Rachel had money to get food at the corner store, Lauren would always pick out a PowerBurst. She appreciated the taste and the hydration.

  She met up with Lucy, Thalia, Adam, and the other girl at their table. As she sat down, the other girl looked at her and then quickly glanced away. She seemed shy.

  “Good to see you again,” Thalia greeted. “Lauren, this is one of my roommates, Mary.”

  Mary made brief eye contact across the table at Lauren.

  “Hi,” she squeaked.

  “Hi Mary,” Lauren said. She regarded the girl; something seemed a bit off about her, but she couldn’t quite place it. She looked like a sixteen year old girl, with smooth, flawless skin as pale as ivory. Her eyes were an almost electric blue. Her hair was raven black and completely straight. Maybe it was the unblemished sheen of her skin, or the way she moved in even, deliberate motions. Something was uncanny about her, though.

  Mary seemed painfully aware of Lauren’s attention, and shrunk to be even smaller. There was no food in front of her.

  “How are you and Lucy getting settled in?” Thalia asked as she cut into the meat in front of her. She must’ve gotten barbecue.

  “Oh, great.” She took a bite into her pear. It was cold and juicy. “One of our roommates is the future prom queen, and I think the other is a ghost.”

  “Ha!” Thalia said. “Mary and I are living with a punk rocker and a military brat. It’s certainly gonna be interesting.” She looked over to Adam. “What about you, Adam? How fares the other sex at Rosewell?”

  Adam shrugged, mid-bite of a taco. He swallowed. “Honestly, my roommates seem pretty chill. Ike is into fitness and games. Troy does art. And Edward…”

  He didn’t seem to know how to summarize his last roommate.

  “What about Edward?” Thalia asked.

  “Well, I guess you’ll meet him. I think he’ll be popular.”

  Thalia wiggled her brow. “Ooh, I sense Adam might have some competition for the ladies!”

  Lucy gave a low ooooh as Adam blushed. Lauren and Mary both giggled. Lauren couldn’t help it. Thalia and Adam’s friendship was infectious. It made her already feel like she was joining a group of good friends. She tried to suppress a lingering feeling of guilt about it, and of enjoying the food.

  The group ate together and talked for a while. Mary opened up a bit, but didn’t really talk about herself. Lauren didn’t blame her; she didn’t feel like talking about herself either. Lauren gleaned that Adam and Thalia were both from pretty big and influential families who were known for adventures across the globe. It certainly sounded like they were both familiar with travel. Lucy talked about her much more humble childhood in Pacific City, attending public school and playing in the woods and surfing with her dad.

  People came in and out of the cafeteria throughout. Thalia eventually checked her watch.

  “Mm, it’s already 6:45. Should we clean up and go find the lounge? I think it’s that big circular part hanging over the cliff.”

  “Sounds good,” Adam said, stretching. “Maybe I’ll meet someone who can appreciate my dance moves.”

  Thalia stood up. “Oh, you mean the one-legged chicken? I love that one.”

  “You’re a one-legged chicken!”

  Thalia giggled as Adam threw a crumpled napkin at her.

  Lauren watched them play. They acted like siblings, but she couldn’t tell if there was something more between them.