‘No, wait!’ I say, putting my hands up to halt her stream of excitement. ‘So much has happened since then.’
‘Yes, but now things are getting back to normal, right? So you can go back to . . .’ She makes a smoochy face, and I grimace.
‘I repeat: I don’t know. Maybe. I hope so.’ A blush rises in my cheeks.
‘Then you have to go to Top’s. You can’t let Hot Guy slip away!’
‘But the baku . . .’
‘Slick can wait one more night. And you gotta keep me updated every step of the way, promise?’
‘I promise,’ I say. ‘I’ll send you a message after I’ve spoken to Mom okay?’ I say to Zora as the elevator arrives at her floor.
She nods. ‘I’ll be waiting.’ She sticks her hand out to stop the elevator doors from shutting. ‘I know you belong at Profectus, but I was happy to see you today. I’ve missed you so much.’
I smile. ‘I wouldn’t have survived the day without you.’
‘Don’t forget about Top’s.’
‘I won’t!’ I say with a groan. Then the elevator doors slide shut and I’m left alone in the hallway. Well, alone – apart from Slick.
>>Your Mom and Petal are inside, Slick informs me.
The information soothes the part of me that worried Mom might be still at work. I open the door and the smell of garlic bread baking in the oven hits my nostrils.
She smiles at me as I walk in, turning her head away from the pot on the stove, where she’s stirring some pasta sauce. ‘Hello, honey, how was your day?’
I jump up on to one of the stools, leaning my elbows on the counter. Slick scurries down my arm on to the countertop, beaming the time in front of me. ‘Did you get my messages?’ I pause, waiting for her outrage at my expulsion. ‘You know . . . about how I wasn’t allowed in to school?’
Mom has turned back to the sauce now, and she doesn’t react.
I continue babbling. ‘It’s okay though, because Zora gave me an idea for how I can get back to Profectus. But first, did you talk to Eric?’
I wait for Mom to answer, but she’s still stirring.
‘Mom?’ I ask again, confused as to whether she’s listening to me. Petal doesn’t appear to be playing any music or anything to distract her. She taps the side of the wooden spoon against the edge of the saucepan, then turns around. She folds her arms across her stomach. ‘What are you talking about, honey?’
‘Last night . . . you said you were going to call up Eric Smith.’
She gives me a totally blank look and shrugs. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about, Lacey.’
A chill creeps down my spine. Something is not right. ‘But Mom – last night . . .’
She cuts me off. ‘Lacey, I’m tired. I’ve worked a long shift and I want to have an early dinner and then go to bed. I’ve just got you back from the hospital. I’m sorry about your disappointment with Profectus but you’re going to St Agnes, where your best friend is with you. It’s all worked out in the end.’
‘But it hasn’t worked out!’ I cry, flabbergasted that Mom would think it’s okay for me to have lost my place at Profectus. My face heats up, rage coursing through me at her uncaring response. I take a deep breath and decide to switch tack. ‘Don’t you want answers too? Like about why I was hurt?’
Mom sighs. ‘I’m just happy you’re healthy again.’
‘What about how Carter stole Jinx from me?’
‘You’ve got a perfectly good, functional baku now, in Slick.’
‘And what about what’s going on at Moncha Corp? No one’s seen Monica Chan in months . . . something’s wrong, I know it is.’ There’s a memory lodged there, stuck in the back of my mind, and it won’t budge. Something important.
Tears of disappointment prick in my eyes, but maybe I shouldn’t be so surprised. Moncha Corp have given us everything – our home, Mom’s job, my education. We don’t know why I was injured, but I can see why Mom might not want to cause a fuss. We don’t need a target on our backs.
The only reason I was fighting Moncha Corp was because of Jinx. They were after him, and I didn’t want them to harm him. Now that he’s safe, maybe I should give up too.
Mom presses her fingers on either side of the bridge of her nose. ‘Monica Chan is a multi-billionaire. She has plenty of people looking out for her. She doesn’t need rescuing by one fifteen-year-old. Leave the big problems to the big people, Lacey. You need to focus on you.’
Now tears spill out on to my cheeks, rolling down in thick tracks and gathering on my jawline. ‘I can’t believe it. You promised that you were going to help me.’
Our conversation happened only twenty-four hours ago. How could she have forgotten so quickly? It’s as if everything has been wiped clean. Reset.
We’re both distracted as Petal flashes, a series of lights dancing up and down her wings. Mom’s listens to a message that she must be transmitting to her through her bone-conducting footpads and when she looks back at me, her eyes are blank. ‘I have to finish cooking. This sauce is about to burn. How about instead, you tell me about your day? I want to hear about what homework you had, how your teachers were, how your friends are doing . . . I do not want to hear another thing about Profectus, Moncha Corp or that old baku of yours.’
‘I thought you loved Jinx too,’ I say in a quiet voice.
‘Jinx who?’ Mom deadpans back to me.
That’s when I can’t take it any more. ‘I’m not hungry,’ I say. ‘I’m going out.’ I storm out of the kitchen, slamming my bedroom door behind me. I change out of my uniform in an angry huff, throwing on a pair of jeans, T-shirt and a soft fleece to go under my jacket. When I step out of our front door, I half-expect Mom to chase me, demand to know where I’m going, make me stay home.
But it seems like she doesn’t even care enough about me to do that.
I press the button for the elevator, waiting there with my chest heaving. The longer I wait, the clearer it becomes that Mom isn’t coming after me. The anger that has been building in my chest deflates. I just feel sad.
And then, the elevator refuses to come. I furiously mash the button, but nothing changes. It must be broken again.
I walk a bit further along the corridor and push through the door into the stairwell. It’s a long way down – fourteen floors – and as I spiral down each set of stairs, I feel more and more alone.
I can’t understand her change in attitude. Maybe something happened at work . . . maybe she had another visit from Eric Smith’s security team and got spooked? I almost turn around and go back to ask her. But surely if it was something like that, she would have just said.
Rather than pretend like none of it matters at all.
It still matters to me.
And if Mom isn’t going to help me . . . I’m going to need my friends more than ever.
TOP’S BUBBLE TEA IS A long way downtown, and I follow the directions laid out for me by Slick. I bury my hands deep in my coat pockets, huffing my breath out in front of me. I can’t believe Mom’s change in attitude, and I want Jinx more than ever.
A tiny mewl attracts my attention as I pass a deserted alleyway. I pause for a moment, squinting into the shadows. My heart leaps as I spot a pair of shining eyes staring back at me out of the dark. Could it be?
But as I step closer, the tiny fur ball darts away from me – a little ginger tom cat, not my rogue baku. A sweet cat all the same. I smile.
I hope you’re living wild and free. It’s my wish to Jinx. He wanted a life that was as close to real as possible – not chained to my side as a companion, not destroyed by Eric Smith at Moncha Corp. That’s all I ever wanted for him.
My heart rate slows to a normal level for the first time since leaving the apartment. Now I just need the remaining gaps in my memory to be filled in, and I’ll feel properly like myself again.
>>We’re a bit early at Top’s Bubble Tea & Baku Café.
I look up, surprised to see that we’re outside already. I peer in through the wind
ow, but can’t see my friends.
>>I’ve connected to the table reservation inside – we can go in and wait.
‘Oh great!’ I reply to Slick. When I get inside, I squeal with delight. I’d forgotten how cute it was in here. There are bakus everywhere – all specifically baby varieties such as kittens, puppies, lambs and baby rabbits. Originally it was modelled after cat cafés in Japan, where people could come and play with cute furry felines – perfect for those who weren’t allowed pets in their high-rise apartments. There’s a wide-open space in the middle of the café, for bakus to play in, and booths around the perimeter.
Top’s Café allows people who don’t have a baku yet to interact with different species and pick a favourite, or to experience a different level baku for a while. It’s also a place where Moncha previews new baku models, so it’s often crammed with Profectus students looking to get a sneak peek at what’s coming next. The delicious bubble tea and selection of yummy decorated treats they display in a glass counter at the back of the room all help its popularity too.
I scan the room and feel a prickle of anxiety when I spot the striped tail of a tiger baku peeking out from one of the booths. I don’t really want to talk to anyone else from Profectus – especially not Gemma, who is captain of Carter’s Baku Battle team, so I quickly shuffle past. There’s a booth reserved under Tobias’s name in the corner, so I slide in, shifting a snoozing bunny rabbit baku off my seat first. Instantly it springs to life, and hops across the table towards me. I giggle and stroke its soft milk-white fur, then order a mango-flavoured bubble tea with extra tapioca pearls while I wait for the others to arrive.
Slick skitters around the table, projecting several options for me while I wait – an addictive jewel-swapping game, my social media feed, and the latest novel that I’m reading. But I wave it all away. Instead, I try to focus back on the missing memories. Now that I can remember saying goodbye to Jinx, I wonder if I can think back even further.
Something happened between Jinx bolting from my arms and us saying goodbye at the cat park.
We must have been in Moncha HQ, but there’s a definite street in my memory, with houses – and a porch swing . . .
‘Lacey!’
I’m snapped out of my thoughts as Ashley slides into the booth next to me. Kai squishes in beside her, and Tobias and River are opposite. Their bakus take up positions around the booth – and my eye is automatically drawn up to Aero, who perches on the ledge above us.
‘You made it!’ Ashley says, squeezing my shoulder. ‘What a wild day.’
‘I can’t believe they’ve kicked you out of the Academy,’ says Tobias. ‘You okay?’ His dark brown eyes bore into mine.
‘Been better,’ I say, with a shrug. ‘These cute little bunny bakus are helping. And Zora and I came up with a plan to get me a level 3 baku.’
‘Oh, that’s great!’ says Ashley. ‘It’s so unfair that they won’t let you in. Anything we can do to help?’
‘Just seeing you all is enough.’
‘Well, we’ve missed you tons,’ she says.
‘It’s not been the same without you!’ says River.
Aero squawks behind Tobias’s head, and he spreads his wing so that he can read a message. Then Tobias catches my eye. ‘Hey, Lace, want to come with me to help me choose some snacks for the team?’
‘Oh, uh, sure,’ I say. Ashley and Kai make room for me to exit the booth, and Slick jumps up on to my sleeve before I follow Tobias towards the back of the café. The sweet, sharp smell of spun sugar and lemon icing makes my mouth water as we approach the glass-covered counter, staring at the little desserts all made up to look like different bakus. There’s a fondant black cat that reminds me of Jinx, and I smile.
But the smile is nothing compared to the blush that rises in my cheeks as Tobias touches the back of my arm, his fingers lingering on my skin. ‘Are you really okay? How are you feeling being out of the hospital?’
‘I feel . . . pretty normal to be honest with you. But today has been strange. And even though my memory has been coming back in bits and pieces, I still don’t really understand what happened to me after we were separated.’
‘Okay, well, you take it easy. It was scary to see you like that. And I feel like . . .’ He pauses, his breath hitching. ‘Well, before all the stuff with the Baku Battles happened, there was something I’d been meaning to ask you. I wondered if maybe you wanted to go out with me sometime?’ He smiles. ‘Without the rest of the team, obviously.’
Now it’s my turn for my breath to catch, but the answer is obvious – to me and him. I just need to say it . . .
‘I thought I saw you come in here,’ says another voice.
I close my eyes for a beat, hoping that I’ve imagined it. But I haven’t, because Tobias addresses him first.
‘Carter, we’re kind of in the middle of something,’ he says, his tone laced with annoyance. I finally look over at the guy who tried to steal Jinx from me. My long-term academic rival.
Son of Moncha’s co-founder.
Carter Smith.
The expression on his pale face is especially smug today, even for him. His boar baku, Hunter, is at his feet, tusks glinting under the café spotlights. Such a menacing baku, especially compared to all the fluffy kittens and bunnies jumping around the café. ‘Oh, I’m not staying long. My order was ready.’ The lady behind the counter hands him the black cat fondant cake that reminded me of Jinx. He takes a deliberate bite of his head, his teeth getting covered in dark chocolate sponge.
I wish I was strong enough not to react, but I wince. He grins at me, cake all over his teeth.
‘It’s not over, Carter,’ I say.
‘What do you mean?’ His eyes open wide in mock concern.
‘You tried to steal Jinx from me. I won’t forget that.’
‘Oh yeah, I’m really scared. What are you going to do, tell on me? No one likes a snitch.’
‘Come on,’ Tobias says to me, in a low voice. ‘Let’s go back to the team.’
‘Not really your team though any more, is it, Lacey? Now that you’re back at St Agnes?’
‘Leave it, Carter,’ growls Tobias.
Carter holds his hands up in surrender, then laughs and walks back to his team.
‘Don’t let him bug you,’ Tobias says.
‘I’ll try,’ I say, although my fingers have tightened into fists at my side. I take a breath to relax. ‘At least it’s even more motivation to get back to Profectus as quickly as possible. Just to show him.’
‘That’s the spirit,’ grins Tobias.
‘Hey, team!’ Ashley calls over to us from the booth. ‘You should come back here – they’re about to show off one of the upcoming baku models.’
Tobias and I exchange a grin, make a random selection of the cakes in front of us (they all look delicious) and head back to the booth. There, in the open play space, the café employees are bringing out the new baku models.
I reach out and grab Tobias’s hand tightly.
He looks down at me in alarm. ‘What is it?’
‘That baku . . .’ I can’t speak any more. I can only point at one of the new models a Top’s server is showing off.
Tobias traces the line of my finger. ‘The baby sloth? What about it?’
I watch as the server leads the sloth around the room, its ambling gait drawing many sighs of admiration from the crowd. The baku halts in the middle of the room and shows off some of its unique functions – such as the ability to project a noise-reducing bubble and emit a soft lavender mist to help its owner relax and sleep on long journeys, in any environment.
My eyes widen, and my words come out in a jumbled stream. ‘Oh my god. I think I know where Monica Chan is.’
TOBIAS DRAGS ME BACK INTO the booth, and the others stare at me with a mixture of concern and fear. ‘Aero, shield us.’ His baku responds by spreading his wings in front of our booth, so that we’re hidden from view and our conversation is muffled. ‘What do you remember?’ he asks, as
I struggle to order my thoughts into understandable sentences. When I close my eyes, the dominant image in my mind is of a sloth – not a baby one like I’ve just seen, but a full-size one – hanging around a woman’s neck.
I open my eyes again and swallow, hard. ‘It’s all coming back to me,’ I say. ‘We were fighting with Carter and the security panthers in the Team Happiness wing of Moncha HQ, weren’t we?’
Tobias nods.
‘I remember that clearly now. We’d just got Jinx back from Carter, but then he bolted. I chased him all the way down into the basement of Moncha HQ. He tried to stop me from following him, but I used Slick to get me through the doors – my friend, Zora, had programmed him with some extra special lock-picking technology. On the other side of that door was this strange place that was like . . . a street, but a movie set of a street because we were indoors, and in one of the houses was Monica Chan. She had a sloth baku that seemed to be controlling her in some way, but she was lucid. She told me that Eric had his own plans to take full control of the company and that all he needed to do was to destroy Jinx and he would win. That’s why he wanted Jinx so bad. That’s why Carter took him.’ It’s all come back to me – the house, having tea with Monica Chan herself, the sloth, learning about how Monica was the one who created Jinx and as a punishment, Eric locked her away – a prisoner in her own company.
‘An underground street, a sloth baku and a conspiracy theory?’ repeats Kai. ‘Sounds like a wild dream.’
I frown. ‘It was real.’
‘But how do you know? Your memory’s been toast for over a month.’
Ashley puts her hand on mine and silences Kai with a look. ‘Of course, we believe you.’
‘So you actually met Monica Chan?’ asks River.
‘I did. I spoke to her. I even had tea with her! But she told Jinx and I to run away before security caught us. I was going to tell Mr Baird and go back to rescue her but then . . .’ Then I collapsed. And got hypothermia. And was in a coma for a month-long hospital stay.
And oh god, I’ve already wasted so many hours with this stupid memory loss when we could have been rescuing Monica . . .
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