Future Shock (4 page)

When the danger has passed, I realize how close we are. Our bodies are pressed together and my hands touch his lips, his bare arm. He isn’t wearing a shirt and his chest is toned, with a trace of dark hair trailing into his jeans. The heat of his skin burns through my thin shirt, and his eyes never leave mine. He’s only a few inches taller than me, the perfect height for a kiss.

And then I realize I’m alone in a room with a guy I don’t know. Who probably thinks I came here for a booty call. Terror briefly flashes in my chest, but I shove it aside. I release him and take a quick step back. “Sorry.”

“Elena, what’s going on?” Adam sounds more confused than aroused. Good. If he tries to kiss me, I’ll punch him.

I turn toward the door, but I’m not sure I want to go out there yet. The scientists might still be lurking, and I don’t want to have to explain why I’m in Adam’s room. But if I stay here I’ll have to tell Adam something.

I fumble for an explanation. “I wanted to grab a snack before our trip.”

His dark eyebrows pull together. He’s not wearing his glasses. “But why did you run in here like someone was chasing you?”

I glance at the door again. I can return to my room and pretend this never happened, but something makes me want to tell him what I heard. He’s a genius, so maybe he can make some sense out of the scientists’ words. But still I hesitate.

Adam pulls on a shirt and sits on the edge of the hospital bed. His room is identical to mine, with the crinkly paper and the untouched pink, backless robe. He puts on his glasses and studies me with those piercing blue eyes, as though trying to solve me like a math problem. “Is everything all right, Elena?”

I think of the origami unicorn he made me, currently sitting in my exam room with my other things, and make my decision. “I overheard two of the scientists talking near the elevator.”

“Right now?”

“Yeah. I heard Dr. Walters say, ‘How do you know it won’t happen again?’”

Adam listens in silence while I recite the conversation for him, word for word. When I finish, he asks, “Are you sure that’s what they said?”

“Yes.” I’m not sure if I should reveal my secret to him. But I figure we’ll all learn each other’s “talents” eventually. “I remember every word they said. I have an…eidetic memory.” It’s weird to say it out loud after keeping it a secret for so long. Feels like I’m stripping off my clothes in front of him.

Adam sits up straighter. “Really? That’s amazing.”

I don’t want to talk about it. I switch back to the topic at hand, which is far more important anyway. “When they finished talking, they started walking toward me. I didn’t want them to know I’d overheard them, but I didn’t think I’d make it to my room in time.”

“So I was just a convenient escape?” he asks with a hint of a grin.

“Something like that.” I rub my arms, which have grown cold. “Do you have any idea what they were talking about?”

“No, but it’s probably nothing. I’m sure it doesn’t have anything to do with us.”

“Are you kidding me? They mentioned the five of us. And it sounded like they’d done this before.” I pace back and forth in the small space. “And next they want to use little kids!”

“I highly doubt a company like Aether Corporation would send children to the future.”

“But it all makes sense now. Why else would they use foster kids? They know we won’t be missed if something happens to us!”

“They chose us because of our abilities. And we’re not all foster kids.”

“No, you’re the only one who isn’t.” I stop pacing and stare at him. “So why
are
you here?”

“I…” He shakes his head and looks down. For a minute there is only silence, and I realize that’s his answer.

I turn away. We may have to work together, but we’re strangers. It was stupid to think I could trust Adam. And he’s right—he’s
not
one of us.

“Forget it,” I say, opening the door. “Just forget I said anything.”

I return to my exam room. As I wait, I replay the scientists’ conversation in my head a dozen times, trying to understand it. My only guess is there was another group of people who went to the future before us and something bad happened to them. Now the scientists are worried the same thing might happen to us. But that doesn’t explain why they need teenagers or kids even younger than us.

I’m tempted to run away from this place as fast as I can. But if I do, I’ll be exactly where I was before Lynne recruited me, looking for jobs and trying to figure out how I’ll survive once I turn eighteen. And I’ll miss a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—the chance to see the
future
.

No, I can’t back out now.

Lynne collects the five of us and takes us down to the basement level of the building. In the elevator, the tension in the air is almost tangible. Zoe chews on her black nails. Trent leans against the wall with his eyes closed. Chris glares at everyone. Adam keeps staring at me, opening and closing his mouth like he wants to say something. I avoid looking at him and hope he gets the hint.

The elevator doors open to a vast concrete room filled with computer panels and scientists in lab coats. In the center stands a domed enclosure covered in thick metal tubes that hug the machine, wrapping around it and leaving only one gap for a small door. This must be the accelerator.

“What, no TARDIS?” Adam asks. “I was hoping for a DeLorean, personally.”

I stare at him, wondering how he can make a joke at a time like this, especially after everything I told him. But he just grins at me and follows after Lynne.

She herds us through the room, a mother hen smiling at everyone we pass. Dr. Kapur and Dr. Walters bend over a computer, talking about something on the screen. Four other scientists type on keyboards or work on different parts of the accelerator, but they stop to take a good look at us as we walk by.

Soon we’ll be stepping inside that thing, facing whatever fate awaits us. After the conversation I overheard, I suspect it might be something dangerous. I know it’s a long shot, but I have to do something. I have to talk to Lynne about my concerns. The trick will be making sure I don’t reveal what I know.

“I have some questions,” I say to Lynne, keeping my voice low.

“Yes?”

“Are we really the first ones to go to the future?”

She hesitates for the briefest moment. I almost miss it. “You are. Isn’t it exciting? You’ll be the first people to see the world ten years from now.”

“But how do you know it’s safe? Shouldn’t you have someone else go first before sending in five teenagers? Why not send scientists or people who work for your company?”

“Don’t worry, Elena. We’ve tested it thoroughly. You don’t have anything to worry about.” She gives me another of those big smiles she likes to throw around. “Now please excuse me. We’re about to get started.”

Well, that was no help at all. If anything, I’m even more suspicious now.

She leaves me at a table with five large backpacks, each labeled with one of our names. Chris grabs his, purposefully slamming into Adam’s side as he walks past. Trent follows at his heels, snickering. Zoe snatches her backpack and clings to it, glancing at the elevator like she might bolt at any second.

I grab mine and sit in a chair against the wall, while the scientists work on the accelerator. Lynne steps aside with Dr. Walters, but they speak too low for me to hear them. What are they discussing? Is Lynne telling him about our conversation? Or am I just being paranoid?

Adam sits beside me. The last person I want to talk to. “I spoke with Dr. Walters, and he said everything is fine.”

“You talked to him?” I whisper, looking around to make sure no one else is listening. “What I told you was private!”

“I didn’t tell him what you heard. I just asked him some questions. They’ve used the accelerator before with different objects and animals. They’ve done lots of tests. It’s totally safe.”

“Yeah, well, I asked Lynne some questions too, and I’m pretty sure she wasn’t telling me everything.”

He studies me for a long moment. “Are you going to back out?”

“No.” I sigh. “I need this.”

“Me too. But it’s going to be okay, really.” He lightly places his hand on my forearm, but I flinch before I can stop myself. He looks surprised by my reaction. “Sorry, I didn’t mean—”

“It’s fine. I’m just nervous.” It’s not a complete lie.

He gives me a lopsided grin. “Hey, whatever happens in the future, I’ll be there to protect you.”

“My hero.” I roll my eyes. More like I’ll be the one protecting
him
.

But the strange thing is, a small part of me does feel better knowing he’s on my side. There’s something about Adam I can’t help but like. Or maybe he’s just a better option than the other people on our team.

Lynne finishes conferring with Dr. Walters, and she claps her hands to get our attention. “We’re just about ready to begin.”

The five of us—in identical clothes, with heavy backpacks and coats that are much too warm for this time of year—shuffle toward the dome. The metal tubes that encase it begin to hum, and the floor under us starts to vibrate. My breath hitches. Is it too late to back out?

“We have one final thing to go over before you enter the accelerator,” Lynne says. “When you’re in the future, it’s very important that you do not look up any information about yourself.”

“What?” The word slips from my lips before I can stop it. The others gasp and mutter too, so I guess I’m not the only one who wants to know what happens to me. We all signed up for this research project to make sure we had a future—and now we can’t even check if we do?

Dr. Kapur holds up a hand as though to silence us. “We realize it will be tempting to find out what will happen to you in the next ten years. However, we believe this knowledge could send you into a state of shock, permanently damaging your brain.”

Hmm. His warning could be a line they’re feeding us to keep us on track, but I doubt any of us would risk brain damage to find out. The temptation is strong though. It’s impossible to not be curious about your own fate.

“And whatever happens, do not—I repeat,
do not
—interact with your future self,” Dr. Walters says. “Doing so would not only send you into a state of shock, but could also create a temporal paradox.”

A temporal paradox? What the hell is that? Adam must have the same question, because he asks, “What do you mean?”

“Our research shows that meeting a future version of yourself would disrupt the space-time continuum, preventing you from returning to the present.”

Damn. I definitely don’t want to get stuck in the future, no matter how curious I am about my future self. Ugh, this sucks. I run my fingers through my hair, trying to get a grip. Okay, we can’t look into our own futures, but we’ll still be
in
the future for twenty-four hours. That will be enough.

Dr. Walters opens the door on the side of the dome. “Please set your watches now. You need to be sure to return to this location in exactly twenty-four hours.” I adjust my watch, twisting the knobs so the hands start at the number 24, while Dr. Walters continues. “The temporal aperture will only remain open for sixty seconds in the future, so you must be there early. Whatever happens, do not miss that window. Now please, step inside.”

This is it. Go time. But I’m frozen in place. I don’t know what will happen when I go into that thing. Maybe the accelerator will take me to the future. Maybe it will kill me. There’s no way to know.

What I
do
know is that I don’t have much of a future here.

I walk through the door before I can change my mind. The others follow, and the room is just big enough for the five of us. Once we’re all inside, Lynne closes the door with a heavy thud. I swallow hard, my throat suddenly dry. No turning back now.

“Sequence initiated,” a voice says from above us. And then it starts counting down. “Five.”

The metallic walls of the dome vibrate. We cluster at the center, only inches apart. I hear Trent’s ragged breathing beside me, echoing my own.

“Four.”

The noise grows louder and buzzes through my bones. I grip the straps on my backpack, hard. Cold sweat drips down my back under the heavy jacket. All I can think is,
My God, this is really happening
.

“Three.”

The vibrations turn into a minor earthquake. The five of us stumble around as the ground shakes, trying to regain our balance. Zoe nearly falls, but Chris catches her arm and steadies her. The metal walls rattle around us like we’re in a giant tin can someone is shaking.

“Two.”

The noise stops and the vibrations end. The dome begins to fill with a strange golden light. I can’t tell where it’s coming from. It simply appears around us, as though the air is full of tiny specks of pure gold. Is this the aperture?

“One.”

I meet Adam’s eyes, and he looks just as scared as I feel. He grabs my hand and I don’t recoil this time. As our fingers intertwine, the walls of the dome fade. The entire world turns black, except for the five of us, still bathed in a soft golden glow.

And then the light goes out.

Part II

The Future

00:00

Darkness swallows me, the claustrophobic, crushing kind of pitch-black oblivion that makes your skin crawl. I can see absolutely nothing, not even the faintest trace of light. The air has a dank, musty odor, and a chill creeps over my bare skin. Everything is silent, except for the sound of my heart pounding in my ears. My first instinct is to run, to find a corner or somewhere safe to hide, but I don’t know where I am or which direction to turn. But I’m holding Adam’s hand, so I know I’m not alone.

The others start talking all at once.

“What’s going on?”

“Is this the future?”

“Why is it so dark?”

“I can’t see anything!”

My head spins and I want to tell them all to shut up so I can think. Someone’s whimpering softly to my left. I think it’s Zoe.

“It’s okay,” Adam says and squeezes my hand. I don’t know if he’s talking to me or to the group. “Just stay calm and we’ll figure this out.”

“Calm?” Chris asks. “How are we supposed to stay
calm
?”

“Maybe there’s a flashlight in the backpack they gave us,” says Trent.

“No electronics, dumbass.”

“Oh. Right. Hang on.”

I hear the sound of movement, of rustling clothes. With a scraping
click
, a flame flickers on. Trent holds up a lighter. “Good thing I didn’t pick this week to quit smoking, eh?”

The flame faintly illuminates each of us. I quickly drop Adam’s hand and step away from him before anyone notices. We’re all standing together except for Zoe, who’s kneeling, her hood pulled over her head, her arms wrapped around herself. Adam crouches beside her and puts a hand on her back, whispering softly.

From what I can see in the dim light, we’re in a wide-open space with cement floors, like the room with the accelerator. Only there’s nothing here but us.

Trent’s flame flickers out and we’re plunged into darkness again. My breath catches, but a second later he clicks it on again.

“Where are we?” he asks. “
When
are we?”

I look around again, but I can’t see anything beyond our small circle of light. “Pick a direction,” I say.

Adam helps Zoe up and we start walking. The room is so cold my breath makes little clouds in the air. Maybe it was good they had us wear these heavy jackets.

With each step I grow more confident we’re still in the basement of the Aether facility. The place matches up with my memory of the room, but the accelerator isn’t here. The scientists, the computer equipment…all gone.

“I think we’re in the same room,” I say. “It’s just…empty.”

“Wait, where’s the time machine thing?” Trent waves the lighter around to get a better look, but all I see is darkness and empty space. “How will we get back?”

“Oh my God, are we trapped here?” Zoe asks, grabbing Adam’s arm.

“No, the temporal aperture opens from the present,” Adam says. “We’ll be able to get back as long as we return to this spot in twenty-four hours.”

“The elevator’s over here,” Chris says from the edge of the light. When he pushes the button, nothing happens. Same thing when we find a light switch and flick it up and down. The building has no electricity.

“Dude, what happened to the power?” Trent asks. “And to the scientists who were supposed to meet us?”

No one answers. But I know what we’re all thinking—something isn’t right here.

There’s nothing to do but continue on. “The stairs must be nearby,” I say.

We cluster around the flickering flame and follow the walls until we find the door to the stairs. We climb them in the dark in a strange procession, the only sounds our heavy breathing and shoes pounding against metal steps. Trent leads the way with his lighter, and I try not to think about what might be lying in wait in the darkness around us.

We emerge in the lobby, which isn’t completely pitch-black for a nice change. Traces of sunlight filter into the room through boarded-up windows. The walls look dirty, and the floor is covered in a thick layer of dust. The receptionist desk I saw yesterday is gone, as is the Aether logo.

“What happened here?” I wrap my arms around myself to fight off a chill creeping into my bones that has nothing to do with the cold air.

Adam traces a finger in the dust, while Chris peers out of a crack in the window boards. Zoe stands near him in the brightest spot in the room. Her face is pale, but she isn’t whimpering any longer. I should say something—I’ve known many foster kids who were scared of the dark—but I can’t think of any comforting words right now.

“No one’s been here for a long time,” Adam says, wiping his hands on his jeans.

“No shit,” Chris says, pacing back and forth. “Five minutes into the mission and it’s already gone to hell.”

My watch says it’s actually been twenty-three minutes since we got here, but I don’t correct him.

“Okay, let’s think this through,” Adam says. “Aether told us they own this building and believed there would be scientists in the future to meet us. But we’re alone and this place is abandoned, so something must have gone wrong between our present and whenever this time is.” He pauses to study the room. “We should look around, try to figure out what happened in those years.”

“Screw that,” Chris says. “What happened is they lied to us. There’s no one here and we’re on our own.” He stabs a finger toward the front door. “We don’t even know if we’re in the future or not. We need to see what’s outside this building.”

Adam moves in front of the door. “No, we need more information first. It might not be safe. You can’t go out there—”

Chris takes a step toward Adam with fire in his eyes. “Get out of my way.”

Here we go again.
I raise my hands to stop him. “Aether will want to know why this place is abandoned. We should look around quickly.”

I can practically see smoke coming out of Chris’s nose. But after a long, tense moment, he steps back. “Ten minutes, that’s it. Then I’m going outside.”

Adam nods. “We can split up to cover each floor faster.”

“We’ll take the top two floors.” Chris gestures for Trent to follow him. “Let’s get this over with.”

They head to the stairs while Zoe bites her fingernails. “It’s okay,” Adam says to her with a warm smile. “We can search the other rooms together.”

I’m not sure if I’m included in that “we,” but I prefer to work by myself anyway. “I’ll take the third floor. Alone.”

Before Adam can answer, I spin on my heels and pound up the stairs. The third floor is where they did the medical exams, but it’s dark and empty now. I wish I had a lighter like Trent, but there’s just enough sunshine coming through the windows for me to get by. I take a moment to look outside, but the glass is so caked with dirt and dust that it’s hard to see much. The sun hangs low at the horizon, and based on the position, I’d guess it’s just after dawn. We got in the accelerator after lunch, yet now it’s morning again. Another clue that we’re not in our time anymore.

I move quickly, darting from one room to another. Exam rooms with no tables or beds. Medical labs with no equipment. Empty offices with no desks or chairs. Nothing has been left behind, not even a scrap of paper or a stray paper clip. It’s creepy as hell, wandering these empty rooms alone. I keep imagining that at any second someone will pop out at me, like in a horror movie. But there’s no one here and no clue as to what happened. Or what year this is.

As I’m about to head back to the stairs, something flashes in the corner of my eye. Sunlight glints off an object sitting on a windowsill. I approach it cautiously, and when the sun is no longer in my eyes I see it.

An origami unicorn.