The Last Dainv-Chapter 122

The Last Dainv-Chapter 122

The physics classroom emptied. Students walked out, talking about their plans on the weekend, the new bubble tea store, and the new sci-fi fantasy movie that came out yesterday based on a book that flopped. Just a couple of months ago, Gale would probably know what book that was. Now, he didn't even know. They didn't even mention the title.
Mr. Walker's bowtie bounced as he erased the board, erasing the things he wrote during class. "Don't forget, folks! Kinematics isn't just about numbers. It's about understanding how our universe moves!"
All the other students had left, except Gale.
He sat alone, looking at his half-written notes. The classroom was quiet, except for the whistling of the teacher.
Mr. Walker glanced behind and saw him. "Something on your mind, Mr. Hathie? Physics giving you trouble?"
"No, sir. Just thinking."
"Well, thinking is good! That's what Einstein did. Just sat and thought about riding light beams." Mr. Walker chuckled. "But maybe do your thinking somewhere else? I need to lock up. You know what they say, think under an apple tree."
"Right. Sorry."
Gale packed his notebook and stood up. Mr. Walker hummed as he gathered his papers. The hallway outside was empty too. Mia, Jacob, and Andrew were already gone, probably together and still mad at him. Maybe even worse than mad.
Walking through the hallways, he closed his eyes, letting Breath of the Void tendrils spread out everywhere.
They weren't nearby. He pushed further, allowing the tendrils to spread through the streets of the learning centre.
There. Three distinct mundane signatures moving away. His friends, heading towards Yorkdale Mall.
Opening his eyes, he began to walk faster. They'd probably be going to the food court. He headed to the exit, tightening the straps of his backpack on his shoulders.
As he walked to the mall, his phone buzzed.
[Rachel: Hope your classes went well. Grandmother wants to know if you'll be visiting the library again soon.]
He ignored it. She can wait for now, and he wasn't exactly sure he wanted to reply to her right away. That's what he told himself anyway, and to drown the thoughts out, he began to run.
In less than ten minutes, he arrived at Yorkdale Mall's parking lot and walked through the glass entrance. The place was full of afternoon shoppers. Teens hung out, laughing at whatever joke and talking about some sci-fi fantasy movie he totally didn’t care about. A mom pushed a stroller as the dad gave their daughter an ice cream cone. Normal people in normal settings.
Instead of taking the escalator this time, he took the stairs, taking two steps at a time. When he got to the top, he scanned the tables, and there they were, at a table near Shanghai 360. Mia drank some milk from a cup with black ball thingies in it while Jacob talked with too much animation about the same sci-fi fantasy movie he'd been hearing about. Andrew picked at his fries while scrolling his phone.
Gale walked toward them, weaving between tables. They didn't notice him until he stood right at their table.
"Hey," he said.
The conversation stopped. All three looked up at him.
"What do you want?" Mia asked.
"Can I sit with you guys?" Gale asked, not breaking eye contact with Mia.
Andrew and Jacob looked at Mia. She was the deciding vote. She stirred her cup with the straw before responding.
"Fine," she finally said.
Gale pulled out the empty chair and sat down. Nobody spoke for a full minute. Andrew continued to scroll through his phone, where a cute video of a dog woofed softly at a baby.
Jacob cleared his throat. "So, uh..."
"I'm sorry," Gale said. "For what I said earlier."
Mia looked up from her cup.
"I shouldn't have disappeared on you guys," Gale continued. "After everything we went through."
"You think?" Mia said.
"Did I ever tell you guys my parents would always fight over which Star Wars figures to buy because they weren't cheap?" Jacob said.
Everyone turned to look at him.
"My mom bought me so many of them. Like, boxes full. I became the biggest nerd in elementary school." Jacob smiled. "My parents never minded. They were Star Wars nerds too. Dad had the original trilogy on VHS and wouldn't let me touch them. Apparently, they're worth thousands now."
"Your folks sound cool and nerdy, but cool," Andrew said.
"They were. Still are. They let me be myself." Jacob looked at each of them around the table. "What about you guys? Did your parents let you be you?"
Andrew grabbed another fry from his tray. "Me? I'm doing university classes. Economics. Getting kinda boring though."
"Why?" Gale asked.
Andrew smiled and said, "dad always told me to never stop learning. But university wasn't what I thought it was. It felt like... I was just there to get a degree, to get a job. Not fun at all, man."
"So you came to the learning centre?" Jacob asked.
"Yeah. Different subjects, different people. It's free too." Andrew's smile faded. "Dad would've. Even though he was old, I could've went with him and learned together random subjects that interested us. But he passed a couple years back. Cancer."
"I'm sorry," Gale said.
"Never knew my mom though. Dad said she split when I was a baby," Andrew said. "Sometimes I wonder what she was like."
Mia took a sip of her bubble tea.
"Guess it's my turn," she said. "You guys know my mom works multiple jobs. Has my whole life. Cleaning houses, convenience stores, whatever she could find."
Mia looked at her fingers, fiddling with them. "I'm at the learning centre. Need my credits so I can go to college, get a decent job, take care of her for once."
"Your mom sounds tough," Jacob said.
"She is. Had to be," Mia said. "My asshole dad wasn't. He got hooked on fentanyl when I was eight. Died in less than a year after."
"Fuck," Andrew whispered.
"Yeah. Drug dealers, they've been around my neighbourhood my whole life. I've seen what that shit does to people." Mia looked directly at Gale. "That's why I dunno… I just have to do something. I can't just ignore it."
Gale gulped. "I get it."
"Do you?" Mia said.
"I do," Gale said. "And… sorry. I was an idiot yesterday. Keeping you in the dark was wrong."
This text was taken from NovelFire. Help the author by reading the original version there.
"So what's changed?" Andrew asked.
"I realized…" Gale played with his hands on the table. "I was an asshole."
Mia snorted. "Good job figuring that one out."
"Sorry. I'm just saying that I wanna help. That's what friends do, right?"
Mia crossed her arms. "So now you want to help?"
"Yes," Gale said. "But promise me."
"What's that?" Jacob asked.
"Promise you'll stay safe. No more taking photos of drug dealers. No more investigating on your own."
The three friends exchanged glances.
"And in return?" Mia asked.
"I'll tell you everything I can. Help you understand what we're dealing with."
"Everything?" Andrew pressed.
"There's stuff I can't say. Not because I don't want to, but because I don't know as much as you guys think I do."
Mia stared at him before responding, "Fine. I promise."
"Me too," Jacob said.
"Same here," Andrew said.
Gale took a deep breath. "Thank you."
"So start talking," Mia said.
"Remember when I disappeared for almost a week? I was doing a job with some people intercepting a shipment at the airport."
"What kind of shipment?" Andrew asked.
"It was supposed to be just a dust shipment. Turns out, there was a special container there that we needed. Something important enough that even the Path wanted."
Jacob leaned forward.
"The operation went bad. We were set up. This guy, Victor Wang, was one of Spotlight's messengers. He was waiting for us."
"Spotlight? The dust dealer?" Mia asked.
"Wang had a gun to my head. He would've killed me if Rachel hadn't shown up."
"The scary hot rich girl? I mean literally, she made the room heat up," Andrew said.
"Yeah. She saved my life. Took me back to her family's place to recover."
"Is that why you were gone so long?" Jacob asked.
"Part of it. There's stuff that happened at the Ann estate that I can't talk about. Rachel would literally kill me if I shared certain things."
Andrew leaned forward. "So what's the deal with you two? Are you dating?"
"It's complicated," Gale occupied himself by looking at a child eating a burrito twice the size of its head, reminding him of the lobster that came with the storage box.
"Sounds like a movie," Jacob said. "Drug busts, gunfights, mysterious rich families and factions. You living a double life or something?"
"Something like that." Gale glanced at Mia, who had been unusually quiet. "What?"
"I'm trying to figure out how the airport bust connects to the dust ring around here," she said. "Are the dealers near Yorkdale connected to this Spotlight person?"
"Maybe. The dust trade is bigger than I thought. Canada's becoming a major distribution hub."
"But why? What does dust actually do?" Andrew asked.
"It depends on who takes it. For certain people, it enhances abilities temporarily. For others..."
"For normal people like us, it kills," Mia finished.
Gale nodded.
"So what now?" Andrew asked. "We just forget everything we've seen?"
"No," Gale said. "That ship has sailed. But you stay away from direct danger. Let me handle that part."
"And what? We just sit around while you play superhero?" Mia said.
"There are other ways you can help. Ways that don't get you attacked by magical humans," Gale said. "Information. Research. Things I don't have time for."
"Like what?" Jacob leaned forward even more, letting his belly spill on the table.
"Missing persons s. News about strange incidents. Patterns in where dust is showing up. Things that might connect."
"That makes sense. We could do that." Andrew put a hand on his chin.
"
Safely
," Gale said.
"What about school?" Mia asked. "Those dealers know we go there."
"I'll handle that," Gale said. "But I need to know you won't go looking for trouble."
Mia didn't answer that. Instead, she continued, "what about my neighbourhood? Jane and Finch isn't exactly getting safer while you play secret agent with rich people."
"What do you mean?" Gale asked.
"I mean I've got no solution except to keep watching them. Someone has to."
Gale leaned forward, elbows on the table. "Tell me exactly what you've seen. No more vague descriptions."
Mia looked around the food court before pulling out her phone. She swiped through a few photos and slid it across the table. "Look for yourself."
Her phone showed photos of street corners where cars were parked. Men in hoodies exchanging something while glancing back. It wouldn't have been odd if these were normal drug dealers, but the red coloured hoodies gave it all away.
"They don't even hide it," Mia said. "Most people think it's just regular drugs. Fentanyl, crack, whatever. But I've been watching. Some of the bags have that purple shine to them. Like what those guys tried to dose me with."
Gale swiped through more photos. "You took all these?"
"From my bedroom window. Mom works nights at the cleaning service, so I stay up. Our apartment faces the street."
"Jesus, Mia," Andrew said.
"What? You think I should just close my blinds and pretend it's not happening?" She took her phone back. "The worst part is they're mixing it with regular stuff. Adding dust to normal drugs."
"And selling it to normal people?" Jacob asked.
"Yep." Mia sighed. "So don't talk to me about staying safe while pretending it doesn't exist. That shit killed my dad. Not dust, but drugs. Same dealers, same corners."
"Different result though," Gale said. "Dust doesn't just get you high. It..." He looked around the crowded food court. "It does things to normal bodies that fentanyl can't even touch."
"There you go again with that 'normal' crap," Mia snapped. "Sorry we can't all be special like you."
"I didn't mean it like that."
"Then how did you mean it?"
Gale stared at her for a second. "Fine. I'll clean it up."
"What?" Andrew paused on chewing the fry in his mouth.
"I'll clean up Mia's neighbourhood. It won't last, but at least they won't be there for a while."
"You're going to take on all the dealers by yourself?" Jacob asked.
"Why not? I am their hunter. Victor Wang called me that too."
Jacob's eyes literally beamed at Gale when he said that word. "Dude, you got a nickname from a bad guy? That's so cool! Like you're Batman or something!"
Shit. That slipped out. How does he even explain where the 'dark hunter' comes from without sounding edgy and cringe?
Andrew laughed. "Yeah bro. What the hell is this hunter thing!?"
Mia slammed her hand on the table. "How exactly are you planning to 'clean up' my neighbourhood?" she asked, making air quotes. "Because if your plan involves cutting off more hands, my mom's got enough to deal with without police showing up at our door."
"I'll figure something out," Gale said. "Can I visit your place? See what we're dealing with firsthand?"
"Not sure my mom will let you in the apartment, though. She's weird about guy visitors," Mia said.
"That's fine," Gale said. "I can observe from outside."
"I've got some stuff on my computer too. Photos, notes, license plates of cars that keep showing up. You can look at those while you're there." Mia paused. "You okay with spicy food?"
"No," Gale said. "Why?"
"Because my mom will feed you if you come over."
"What do you mean?"
"It's a cultural thing. Can't let guests leave with an empty stomach. It's a Mexican household thing. It's like against the law or something. Mom will make you eat regardless if you say you're not hungry."
"Oh," Gale said. "No, I can't take spicy."
"I'll tell her. She makes amazing chilaquiles, but she can tone down the salsa." Mia almost smiled.
Chilaquiles, salsa all sounded exotic. He'd only heard the second one from a fantasy book that somehow referenced Earth cuisine. Weird take on that book, but ok.
"When you coming by?" Mia asked.
"Tonight?"
"I'll text you the address."
"Thanks."
Jacob cleared his throat. "So... we're all friends again?"
Andrew snorted. "Were we ever not friends? Even when the world's weirdest shit happens, we still end up at the food court together."
"True," Jacob laughed. "Though I could do without the drug dealers."
"Couldn't we all," Mia said, laughing softly. "Hey, if you come over tonight, just know my mom barely speaks English and she might ask you weird questions."
"Like what?"
"Like if you're my boyfriend or something stupid." Mia rolled her eyes. "Just say no and she'll be fine."
"Got it."
"And don't stare at the shrine thing in the living room. It's for my abuela. Mom gets weird if people look at it too long."
"Shrine?" Jacob asked.
"Day of the Dead stuff. Photos, candles, her favourite stuff."
"Alright, I won't," Gale said.
Mia's phone notification chirped. She checked it, then looked back up.
"We should probably go," Andrew said, gathering his trash. "Still gotta do the homework we got today."
"Yeah," Jacob stood. "My movies aren't going to watch themselves."
They all rose, throwing their trash in the bin near the table. As they walked through the mall toward the exit, Gale walked beside Mia and leaned over.
"Thank you," he whispered.
"For what?"
"For giving me another chance."
Mia didn't reply, but it was easy to tell that she forced herself not to smile.

.
!
Chapter 122