#also jay sucks at comforting people so he mostly goes for distractions and subject changes when he can

[bloodcounts]

Spring sneaks up on Amy before she knows it- time moves so much more differently to her, she barely noticed the slow progression from fall to winter. Flowers are budding on the leaves, and new life grows from the dirt beneath her windowsill. The sunlight is warm and inviting, under any other circumstance, Amy would throw on one of her sundresses, grab a parasol and sit outside with a book. Or she’d go for a walk and talk with Jessica as she did.

Except, this isn’t ‘any other circumstance.’ She’s been stuck inside for days now, while her cohort, Jay, carries around a camera with him and films everything he does. Amy wonders if he takes it into the bathroom with him. Not that she’s been paying attention, as much as she should be in this situation. Her mind wanders back to the woods where she awoke. Jay had been the one to find her on the side of the road, looking confused and out of it. She didn’t understand what was happening to her then. She still doesn’t. With each new piece of information that she receives it only leaves her more lost than before. Jay says he empathizes with her completely.

She had been a scatterbrain since then, even though her memory was usually much stronger than that. She could recall her childhood memories with ease where others could not, now she can barely remember what she ate yesterday or what day of the month it is.

Hearing the hotel door open, Amy whips around from the window. Jay is holding his camera in one hand and carrying his keys and a small takeout bag with the other. He shuts the door behind him and looks up at her.

“It’s just me.”

“Did you see him out there?”

“Who, Alex?” Jay moves further into the room and places the bag on the small table. “If I did, we would be leaving immediately.”

Amy shoulders drop. Based on everything Jay had shown her on his YouTube channel, she shouldn’t feel disappointed. The camera never lies, only people, Alex had told her once. If all the videos were true, then Alex is not the person he used to be, or who she thought he was. She tried to tell this to Jay, who, in response, had only said that people can still lie through video through manipulation of footage. Still, she couldn’t bring herself to believe it. Alex had never been violent, sure, he had his flaws; but no one is perfect, and he isn’t that guy.

It's that… thing. That faceless monster that had been haunting him. It had to be that. Whatever it is, it caused Alex to lose his mind and hurt others. Amy is sure he didn’t mean it, because Alex wouldn’t do that. She’s sure of it, it has to be that monster. It’s controlling him, somehow. It can’t be anything else.

“-my. Amy? Hey!”

Amy blinks a few times, then narrows her eyes as she focuses. “What?” She mumbles.

“You zoned out again.” Another side effect of… whatever happened to her. It’s the reason why her days often go by so quickly most of the time.

Amy shakes her head. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine. I picked up some food.” His arm gestures over to the bag. Amy’s nose picks up the familiar scent of Chinese. Jay moves over to his laptop to plug his camera in and sift through the footage. Jay takes extra care not to show Amy when he films, to keep her safe. If Alex knew she is with him, then who knows how far he’d go just to find her again… and what he’d do to Jay when he did. At the very least, Jay can prolong the reveal. Keeping Amy out of sight for as long as he can is what matters the most.

Amy moves over to the bag and pulls out the food cartons, as well as a black plastic container. There’s a pair of chopsticks and plastic utensils, as well. She searches the bag a little more and finds a fortune cookie, but there is no second container.

“You didn’t get any for yourself?” Amy looks over to him. Jay shrugs.

“Not really big on Chinese food myself. Besides, you really haven’t been eating a whole lot these past days.”

“You sound like Alex. That just means you haven’t it had it done right. When someone makes Chinese food right, that’s when you can never go back.” Amy tells him as she moves over to grab her mini table, she places her eating utensils and tin on it, then moves back for the cartons.

“Hey, what’s todays date?” Amy has lost track of all the days. She didn’t have her phone on her person, either. Jay didn’t want to risk returning to her place in case Alex was staking it out.

“Uh,” Jay checks his laptop’s date, “April fourth, why?”

Amy freezes. That’s why today felt a little different. She felt as though she were forgetting something important, and it was this. His birthday. She takes a seat on her bed, hands flopping onto her lap. Back when things were okay, she and Alex would meet up for the day regardless of anything else. The two of them would go out to a little bakery in Rosswood and buy a dozen cupcakes for themselves, chocolate and red velvet (Alex would always tease her and say that red velvet is just dyed chocolate. She knows this, but she likes feeling fancy!); they were delicate and airy, fluffy cream spread thick between layers and dolloped artfully on top. and they would walk some distance up a trail, past Rosswood park, for a little picnic. That must be why the outdoors is calling her name, and why she’s craving the soft breezes and gentle grass blades under her fingertips.

Just before leaving, Alex would insist on taking photos with his polaroid, and she would become camera shy. She’s not used to being the center of attention. But whenever she’s with Alex, it becomes inevitable.

It's not that she hates the attention per say, she always managed to attract people to her just by being herself. Alex would say it’s because she’s a star and other people could see that. Amy would call him nuts for it, because she was pretty sure it was just him trying to compliment her. Regardless, she’s content with a quiet life, earning her degree in education and going on to become a teacher. She thought it was funny, how she wanted a more reserved life whereas Alex wanted one in the limelight. He dreamed of the day he could walk on the red carpet for one of his films, be nominated for awards, give speeches.

Her vision blurs, and her eyes sting, yet she refuses to cry. Now’s not the time for that, it does nothing in this situation. And yet-

“Maybe I will try some Chinese food.” Jay’s voice abruptly cuts her thoughts, she almost the awkward tinge in his voice. “There’s a lot of footage I need to rewatch, may as well try to eat something now before I forget.” As he’s had the habit of doing ever since he began this investigation. Amy has to nag him to take care of himself (and she's impressed he hasn't keeled over from lack of sleep or proper eating.)

Amy looks up at him, unsure if she heard correctly. She grabs one of the cartons and opens it, revealing golden yellow rice with fried vegetables within. She glances at him. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah. This is a different branch than what I had years ago. Who knows,” Jay shrugs, “Maybe it’ll be cooked right.”

Grabbing a spoon, Amy places it in the carton and hands it to Jay. Jay looks at the rice and shuffles the spoon around it. Grabbing a fair amount on his spoon, he takes a bite and chews for a minute. Then he swallows. He looks back down at the rice, his eyebrows raise.

“It’s not bad.”

Amy smiles a bit. “Told you.”

---

Later, while Jay was in the bathroom, Amy remembers the fortune cookie in the bag. Lifting from her bed, she makes toward the bag and grabs the cookie. She unwraps it, breaks the cookie in half (while making sure to get a bite in, just to taste it), pulls out the paper and reads it to herself:

‘Trust your friends, but keep your eyes open.’

Amy’s stomach doesn’t sit well the rest of the day.