I stepped into the room. One step. Two.
I looked at Alfie. I saw the way his nostrils flared, drinking in the scent of me, the scent I knew was flooding the room now that the door was open.
"My meds failed," I said. "The air scrubbers aren't working. I'm burning."
Alfie made a wounded noise in his throat. He started to scramble backward, away from me. "We'll go. We'll clear the bus. Cal?—"
"No."
I dropped my go-bag on the floor.
"I don't want you to go," I said. "I want you to help."
Silence. Absolute, stunned silence.
"Help?" Alfie whispered. He looked like I’d just handed him a live grenade.
"I need..." I took a breath, trying to steady the tremor in my voice. "I need friction. I need weight. I need noise."
I looked at Kit. "I need you to be more than furniture."
I looked at Euan. "I need you to make the math and music combine."
I looked at Alfie. "I need your touch and voice."
Alfie pushed himself up to his knees. He moved like he was underwater. He held his hands out, trembling, showing me the Sharpie on his thumbs.
ASK.
"Are you asking, fox?" he choked out. "Are you asking us to breach?"
"I'm asking you to manage the session," I said. "I'm the input. You're the processing."
I walked over to the sofa. My legs gave out, and I sank down onto the cushions next to Kit.
He flinched, then froze as my heat radiated against his side.
"More than furniture," I reminded him.
Kit let out a shuddering breath. Slowly, terrifyingly slowly, he turned his body toward me. Being this close to him was like sitting next to a furnace. A furnace that smelled like espresso and safety.
"I'm going to put my arm behind you, Z. Support only. No grip," he rumbled, his voice dropping into that narcotic medical register.
"Grip," I corrected closing my eyes as the heat washed clearer. "Grip is approved. 40% pressure."
"Copy. Grip. 40%."
His arm came around me. Heavy. Solid. He pulled me into his side, and the feeling of being held,actually held, broke the last of the dam.
I looked at Alfie and Euan. They were still frozen, staring at me nestled against Kit.
"Well?" I said, a ghost of a smile touching my lips. "Are you going to help, or just watch?"
Alfie scrambled forward on his knees until he was at my feet. Euan stood up and moved to my other side.
"Status check," Alfie whispered, laying his cheek against my knee. "Real? This is real?"
"Real," I promised. "Snowball's rolling, Alfie. Catch it."
