Dawn started.He has a point there.“No, no, no,” she replied after a moment. “Good try. But maybe you’remyprojection.”
“Then why would I show up now? And why did I stick with you when the rest of the world changed? Have any other projections done that?”
Another good point. “No,” she said slowly, “but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.”
He pulled her around, making her face him. “I’m telling you now. I’m really here.” Grabbing her hand, he put it on his chest. “Touch me and see.”
She realized then that he was wearing the same attire as that night in the Double V. No shirt, tight-fitting pants, and those silver bands around his arms that served to emphasize his bulging muscles. The stripe of black paint over his eyes did strange things to her insides.
“I don’t have time for this,” she murmured, attempting to pull herself out of the daze she always experienced when she was close to him. It was a losing battle, especially now that she was touching his warm, smooth skin.
His head lowered, a knowing glint in his eyes. Dawn almost succumbed, wanting to feel his lips against hers again. But over his shoulder, she saw the female ghost past the doorway, her long hair trailing behind her.
“No,” Dawn said, shoving away from Z and pushing around him. She tumbled out into the hallway, but there was no sign of the woman in the dusty and dim corridor.
“Dammit!” she yelled, turning back to her companion. “You’re a distraction I can’t afford. Why don’t you just go away?”
She thought she saw a flash of hurt in his eyes as he went stiff. He raised his chin, a defiant look on his handsome face. “I’m here to protect you. This place could be dangerous.”
“How do you figure? We’re in imagination land, remember? Nothing can hurt us here because it isn’t real.” Marching back into the room, she grabbed a vase off one of the grimy tables.
Marshalling all the anger and resentment she felt toward him, Dawn stood on tiptoe and swung the vase with all of her strength. She was aiming for his face but was too short to reach him, so the glass shattered against his shoulder instead.
“Ouch!” he yelped. “Why did you do that?”
Dawn’s mouth opened in surprise. The glass had affected him, cutting his skin in several places. “It wasn’t supposed to…”
“Well, it did,” he growled, attempting to pick pieces of glass out of his shoulder.
“Let me help,” she said, reaching out to assist. She worked out a large piece then hissed in pain as it cut into her thumb. Staring at the bead of blood that bubbled up, Dawn was forced to reevaluate her theory.
“Maybe you really are here,” she said as they worked.
“You think?” His face was dark as a storm cloud, causing her to feel a twinge of regret. When the glass had been cleaned out, she pulled off her lab coat and patted at the wound, pressing against it until the bleeding stopped.
“I don’t understand it,” she said, reaching to push her glasses back up on her nose until she realized again that she wasn’t wearing any. “Perhaps the damage is only a projection. The rest of the world seems real enough, so we experience pain as if it were real, but with no damage to our actual bodies.”
“Or getting hurt here could mean getting hurt in the real world.”
Dawn shook her head. “It shouldn’t work that way.”
“Do you really want to risk being wrong? Maybe we should play it safe while we’re in here.”
His advice was appropriate, but still, she bristled. This was her show, and here he was, trying to hijack everything.
“Look, mister,” she said, “no one invited you to the party, so I’ll thank you to keep your opinions to yourself. Even your presence here is infuriating. Infiltrating my research, watching everything I do so you can report back to the Hills. If I could get rid of you, I swear I would.”
His eyes narrowed. “Go ahead and try, but I promise you it won’t be as easy as you hope. You think you’re in control here, but you’re not. You’re just an overconfident little girl trapped on the other side of the funhouse mirror, and it’s a fucking miracle that you haven’t been hurt yet.”
Dawn saw red. “I’m not a little girl, you overbearing asshole! I’m a scientist and a grownup! Just because I don’t have a bunch of silly muscles or a dick, you think I’m not as good as you? That’s bullshit.”
She poked him in the chest, her heart beating hard. “You think you can just waltz your way into my experiment like you waltzed your way into my lab, huh? You have no idea what your being here might do, how it might change things. I didn’t need your help to get here, and I don’t need your help to accomplish my goal. So stop thinking you’re the king of the universe and shut up long enough for a real woman to get things done.”
Z grabbed her hand, pulling the finger away from his chest but not letting go. Instead, he pulled her closer, lowering his head until he was mere inches from her face. “You might be a scientist, but you’re also a fool, running off half-cocked into something you don’t understand. I’m telling you now, you’re in danger. And while you might have a bigger brain than I do, I know a little something about fighting off trouble.”
His lip curled, his words an angry whisper. “You might not want me to be here, but I’m not going anywhere. And if you think I’m going to let you rush off and get yourself hurt, maybe killed, you can think again. So why don’tyoushut up while I figure out how to get us out of this mess safely?”
“How dare you talk to me like that?” Dawn yanked against his grip but he held fast. “Let me go!”
“I said quiet,” he said, holding his other hand over her mouth. “I’m thinking.”
She bit his hand with relish. When he yelped and pulled his hand away, she laughed. “I know thinking’s generally difficult for you, so try not to hurt yourself.”
His face was like stone, but then a sinister glint entered his eyes. A glint that made her knees feel weak. “If you won’t shut up, I’ll have to shut you up.”
He pulled her against his chest and captured her lips, kissing her with all the anger and frustration he felt.
Dawn was just as angry, just as frustrated. She kissed him back with fervor, even as she realized it wasn’t a good idea.
The only thing dangerous about this place is him.
