I was escorted to the office, my mom trailing behind us. I had that all too familiar mixed feeling of fear, nervousness, anxiety, and hope I had every time I had been there. Except this time, the hope was much smaller than a spark, and the fear, anxiety, and nervousness? They increased a thousandfold. I had never tried to pray, but I was pretty desperate right now, and there’s a first for everything. I didn’t know what to do and ended up with: Hey, Almighty… guy. How's it going? I’m not so great. I could use a little help right now. Ummmm… anytime now, please. Nevermind. I felt really stupid. That obviously didn’t work, so instead I tried to memorize the path back through the endless hallways so that if I needed to make a quick escape, I knew where to go. I would also look like less of an idiot and more like a mature-ish (emphasis on the ish.) fourteen year old girl. I counted my steps as we walked. One, two, three...take a right, twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five...past a door, fifty-nine, sixty… I made it to 124 steps. Not including the turns and doors. Who knew this place was so big? Why did it have to be? It was making my memorizing EXTREMELY difficult. In order to keep my memorizing straight, I had to use a stupid memorizing tip I found online that made me feel dumb. I made up a little song about it: One ate two, and two ate three, four went up and crawled a tree. Right before we passed a door...

Once we finally reached the office, I was greeted formally by the doctor, who told me to “sit tight” while they spoke in the hallway. Of course, the world was smart enough to soundproof the room so I couldn’t eavesdrop on their conversation. Which made me wonder why they had soundproofed the room, it’s not like there are a million people like me who are going to try to listen in on other people’s conversations. It’s really just a me thing. Most things I do are just a me thing. I wished I wasn’t alone in the room. It was giving me the heebie jeebies. The room felt cold and dark. It was so dark it felt like it was suffocating me. I could’ve sworn the walls were closing in, leaving me trapped in this terrible place so that I could never escape, where they would run DNA tests on me forever and they would experiment on me and torture me until I broke. I couldn't stop fidgeting while I waited for about 2 minutes. After what felt like forever, the door opened and both my mom and the doctor came in with indescribable looks on their faces. There was some fear and confusion, and I hoped desperately it wasn't because of what they could possibly know about me. Just to be safe, I went over the way out in my head again. With that stupid, stupid song.

“Lexi, I've been wanting to ask you a question. Have you been keeping any secrets from me?” my mom asked. At that moment I knew. I knew I was done for. I would get kicked out, my mom would celebrate and my brother… would steal the remaining ice cream in my mini fridge. He probably wouldn’t celebrate, but he wouldn’t be sad either. He’d just take advantage of it. My dad probably wouldn’t notice. He’s too busy with work, and he overall doesn't care.

I was barely able to choke the very unconvincing words out. “No, of course not. Why?” My voice hitched on the last word, making the sentence more of a squeak than a voice. Wow Lexi, way to keep it cool. I thought you were trying to be convincing. If you were, you’re failing pretty miserably at it. In fact, I think that you might be the worst-

My mom’s voice pulled me out of my depressing thoughts by saying, “Well, you've been acting a little weird lately. More secretive, quiet, closed off, you know. I wanted to know if you were ok.” I could tell that that was just what the doctor told her to say. Her voice was stiff and didn’t have any real care in it. She wasn’t concerned about me at all. But… she seemed sort of scared. Like when you’re rising on a roller coaster, right before you rocket down the track.

“Why did we come all the way to the doctor's office to have a private conversation?” I spat, trying to stall for time. I knew there was no reason to stall, but I did anyway. I felt like a wimp.

“That brings me to my second question. Are you sure you don’t remember anything from before we found you?” She urged, making it clear that she knew I remembered more, and that not telling would not be an option.

Of course I wouldn't tell them, that would be stupid. “I'm pretty sure, but still, why do we need to be here?” I was starting to hyperventilate as I realized that there was no way out of this. Zero, nada, none, nothing, zip, diddly-squat. I couldn’t run away, I would get caught and they would run a DNA test on me. I couldn't hide, there was nowhere to hide. Attacking was out of the question, I knew I would lose. Their next words made me sick to the stomach.

“I wanted to run a DNA test we were supposed to run when I first found you. They’re to see if we can find out who your real family is.” I swear, if I don’t want something to happen, the universe makes it happen. I literally jinx everything.

Dark, cold dread filled me as I realized that this was the day I was to be found out. To be discovered, as the horrible, slithering, rattling, hissing monster I was. The truth was, I was scared, and I only had one more card to play so I could get out of this so I could stay with my “family”, have a home, and get what I needed without having to fight for it. I played it. “So now you want to get rid of me? What if my family doesn't want me, and that’s why you found me all alone! What if they think that since I’m different, I don't belong to them?” I was almost yelling, but I was barely able to control myself; even though I thought I was just doing this to make sure they didn’t do the DNA test, I realized that I actually meant it, I was afraid of meeting my previous family.

“Stop!” Silence filled the room, squeezing into every corner and making its way into every cupboard, the doctor’s next question made me wish I hadn’t lost control and revealed a very important hint that I’d been hoping he hadn’t noticed. But the doctor looked at me and glanced at his clipboard. “How are you ‘different’? What do you mean?” I had played right into it. He had tricked me into telling him more than I wanted to tell. I needed to be stronger. Ugh, here we go.

I didn't answer. I couldn't. I could either run, and probably be discovered, or just let them find the DNA inside me that made me a monster. No matter what, the cat would be out of the bag forever.

My mom broke the silence. “Lexi, tell me what's going on.” Her voice quivered. Now she sounded really scared, like right before the dinosaur eats you in Jurassic Park. I’ve never heard her so scared. I’ve never heard anyone that scared before. And it scared me, too. Jurassic Park is a really old movie. I have no idea why I referenced that and not one of the cool new ones...

“Do the DNA test, and you'll find out. You'll probably throw me out, into the streets, but I won't stop you. I wouldn't be the slightest bit surprised,” I sobbed. I didn't care anymore. If she cared about it that much, I didn’t want to live with her anyway. I almost made myself believe it. Besides, she had never actually been nice to me. I knew she just did it out of necessity.

“What are you talking about?” She asked warily.

“Just do it.” I commanded, my voice hard as stone.

I almost couldn't bear the 30 minute wait as I sat in the room alone, waiting, waiting, waiting for the door to open, for my mom to drive me home with a scared look on her face, a look that would make me feel as if she was fearing for her life, only because she had to be in the same room as a monster. During that awful time of torture, I thought about what I would do once I was again alone in the universe. I would walk into the woods after being chased by a couple very vicious dogs, and walk until I found a “loving” family that “cares” about me. They probably wouldn't care about me at all, just like my previous family. But I also thought about a new life. One with a family who loved me, with lots of friends and a new beginning, where it didn’t matter what my DNA results were. I wished desperately for that to be the case, but I didn’t really believe it. If I did, I knew I would only get disappointed.

When the door finally creaked open, the doctor came in with his clipboard, a surprised look on his face. I was surprised he didn’t look more frightened. He really just looked like he wanted to dissect me or something. He handed me a paper with a scribbled note on it, along with an essay-looking thing with a lot of medical terms I could never understand. But there was one VERY important piece that I could understand. The only one that mattered.

DNA Test Results:

The patient is half Belcher’s Sea Snake.

Probably a test subject of an unknown origin.

Unable to find origin family.

I looked up to see my mother and the doctor staring at me. My mom wasn't always the nicest person to me, so I wasn't surprised when after we got home she told me in a shaky voice that I needed to leave. Forever. I knew it was going to happen at some point, but fear still jolted my body, leaving me with more questions with unknown answers. But there was one thought that got me through it all, heartbreaking as it was, it was the fact that my “family” never loved me. I was better off on my own. My “mom” was proof of this. She wanted nothing to do with me now that she knew. So I packed a backpack full of supplies, and I was off.

“Where’s Lexi going?” I heard my little brother ask with a smug voice. He was clearly thinking of all the treats in my mini fridge. Told yah.

“Away, Jackson. I hope you never have to see her ever again.” She had no emotion in her voice with the exception of one. Pure hate. My brother grinned.

“Really mom?” There was obvious glee in his obnoxious little kid voice. Man, I hated that kid. I almost hated him more than my “mom”. Almost. She definitely won first place in my list of people I hate. Actually, I made a list once and I pretty much wrote down everyone I knew. I didn’t know anyone I didn’t hate. I hated everyone who hated me. And everyone hated me. My only friend was Percy. My brother spoke again, ”Mom, can I have Lexi’s room, and mini fridge, and queen bed, and iPod? Man, things are go be so great when she’s finally gone! And she’ll really be gone forever? I’ve been waiting for today for SO long!”

“Me too, honey. Now I don’t need  to worry about that... thing.” My mom spoke loudly, so I could hear.

Wow, I thought. My family is super nice.

With about a week’s worth of food, one large filled water bottle, and a change of clothes, I set off on a remarkable adventure with my cute-n-fierce animal sidekick with magical powers into the wilderness to discover my destiny!

Just kidding. I already knew that my destiny was to die in the woods alone with no one and be eaten by vicious wolves, then my bones would be thrown into the sea to rot and be eaten by sea worms. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if that happened. Honestly, it sounded kinda’ appealing. Oh, come on. If you were in my situation, you’d think so too. Luckily for you, I stayed alive. So now you get to hear all about my life where I’m hunted, and wanted dead. Don’t ya’ wish you were me?

I walked around my neighborhood, seeking the grand entrance into the woods. Every once in a while a dog or two would chase me to the next block, and I would pass by an entrance. The dogs never let me go to those ones-pretty sure those were the places they-ahem-  marked their territory. I walked-and ran- about 14 blocks or so until I found a place with no vicious dogs. I know, you must be thinking, sheesh, some journey. Don’t worry, it’s going to get very interesting very soon. Though, that’s not a good thing for me. But it’ll be a heck of a lot more entertaining for you. Lucky.

I ventured into the forest and continued walking until sundown about 3 miles later. I didn’t really think about anything while I was walking. I didn’t have anything good to think about, I would think about all the bad things, and then I might not even want to survive. I would think about how I had no home, no family, no friends, hardly any food, and no back up plan. As bad as everything was, I was somewhat safe, there was always a safety net, but not anymore. I didn’t know what would happen to me. Would I die, would the scientists come and find me, would I actually find a family that loves me? Ha, I wish.

I finally reached a point where I could see a few houses in the distance, so I decided that I was close enough, as well as far enough from civilization to stay there for the night. I made a lean-to made up of leaves, sticks, and a big log, then crawled inside. After eating a meal of 2 granola bars, a juice box, and trail mix, I closed off the entrance with the extra sticks and leaves and curled up into a comfortable position for sleep. Well, as comfortable as you can get curled up on the ground in the fall with only some leaves and a log to protect you.

I forgot how hard sleeping is without pillows and blankets; I probably slept for about a total of 45 minutes that night. It also didn’t help that I was super jumpy, and when anything made the slightest noise, I woke up with my fists raised and my feet kicking.

However, when I did sleep, I was stuck in a world of horror and despair. I dreamed that the entire world was burning, leaving me alone, with no one at all. Then, when I tried to kill myself in the flames, they all went out. All attempts I had of suicide were bombarded by some unseen force. I had absolutely nothing in the world, no people, no food, no water, no anything. But somehow, I continued to live. It sounds amazing, but really, it was a curse. Then, one day a person came up to me. I loved him. I mean, I really loved him. He died the next day, leaving me in depression and hate and anger. I had never felt so sorrowful, I cried harder than I had ever cried in my entire life. I was lost in the-

I woke up in a cold sweat and decided sleep was overrated and shoved some food in my face.  After breakfast, I packed my stuff and took down my shelter so no one could know I’d been there before. I walked another mile or so, but stopped when I heard a young girl singing. Judging by the volume, she was very close. Much too close for comfort.

I know, I know, you’re thinking, a little girl? Why would you be afraid of a little girl? Sheesh, some protagonist. Ohh, next you’re going to have to fight a raging pack of bacteria! What are you going to do? However, I was actually smart-for once in my life- and I knew I shouldn't be found, in case she told anyone, so I found a tree with some low branches and began to climb. The voice came closer. I kept climbing, being as stealthy as possible. Which still isn’t very stealthy. I’m pretty sure that when the scientists messed with my genes, they took out any gracefulness I’d ever had to begin with. I figured out when I was eleven that I was probably the most clumsy person on the planet. Probably worse than newborns. Huh, I guess I do ramble. Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, I tried my best to be stealthy. But still, the voice came closer. And closer. And closer still.

I warily poked my head out from behind the tree trunk to see a little girl about five or six years old, staring at something intently on the ground near the tree in curiosity. I couldn't make out the exact details, but the item was small, rectangular, and...

Oh no, I thought with horror. I had dropped a granola bar on the ground in my haste to climb the tree. I started to climb higher, faster, without looking back. I broke a few branches that fell as a sure sign that I was up there. I didn't care. I kept going, and going, and going until I was about 10 meters from the top and the tree started to sway precariously with my added weight. It was starting to make me a little nervous.

“Is anybody up there?” I heard the little girl yell. Crap. “I won't hurt you.” She added. Her soft voice was almost creepy mixed with those words. Like on Halloween when they have those dolls singing ring around the rosy. I decided to wait it out until she gave up, but she didn’t. She sat there for about 5 minutes, staring, looking for the source of the falling branches. Finally, we made eye contact, and I watched warily as she ran to the tree and started to quickly climb. She was strangely skilled at climbing for her age. I had 2 choices: sit and wait for the girl to get to me, completely blowing my cover, or get as far away as possible from her. I decided to wait, and see what would happen, but if she came to close, I would do everything possible to get away.

She stopped about halfway up the tree. “I won't hurt you!”

“Go away!” I yelled, knowing it probably wouldn't make any difference.

“Okay.” Her response didn't sound sad, but it didn't sound exactly happy either. It sounded more…disappointed. She began to climb down, humming the song again. I waited until she was out of sight before I even thought of climbing down. She would probably come back with her family to come and see “the crazy girl who lived in a tree.”

After climbing down, I did a careful 360 to make sure nobody was close by. I guessed it was probably around noon, so I decided to sit by the tree and have a couple of granola bars and a juice box for lunch.

Snap! Someone-or something- was close by. I shoved the food into my bag and briskly stood up. Was it the little girl again?

“Who’s there?” I shouted.

No answer. I spun around, trying to pinpoint the source of the snapping.

“Hello?” I stammered, hoping it had just been an animal. “Don’t make me hurt you.” If it was just an animal, I was going to feel really stupid.

Another snap. Somebody was definitely there. I began to climb the tree to get a better view and get away from whatever was out there. This time, I was careful not to break any branches while climbing.

I stopped climbing when I was about halfway up the tree. I would have kept going but I saw something near the top of the tree that I hadn't seen before. It was human size, but it was different. I thought it was a human, but I hadn't noticed anybody climb up. I decided it was a just an eagle, or whatever big birds lived here.

I put that aside and looked down. Nothing. I couldn't see any movement in sight. The only other possible source of the snapping sound that I could think of was that person-thing at the top of the tree. I looked up. How could anyone possibly get all the way up there without me noticing?  I wondered. They would have to have wi-

“How's it going down there?”

I climbed down as fast as possible. I needed to leave. To run. To get away from this unnerving place. Something was up there, and it was freaking me out.

As soon as I got to the bottom I ran as fast as I could. I didn't care which way I was going, I just ran. I didn't care who was up there, or what was happening, I just knew I needed to get away from it all. I kept running, and I wouldn't stop running until I felt safe. I guessed they would follow me if they really cared.

I looked back as I ran. Nothing. I wanted to be sure I was safe, so I kept running. A movement overhead caught my eye. It looked like the biggest bird I have ever seen, but it had the body of a human boy and the wings of a giant fly. I had no idea how that was possible, but I kept running. I couldn't risk getting caught and taken to any sort of lab.

Suddenly, the flying dude (that's his name now) swooped down in front of me and landed in my path. I turned to pass him, but he grabbed me by the shoulders and pulled me in so I couldn't move. I went into panic mode, kicking, punching, biting, anything to get away from the freaky mutant kid. Wait… I’m a freaky mutant kid. Hmmm...

“Let me go!” I screamed, still struggling.

“She’s over here!” the boy yelled, calling out to someone.

From over to the left I saw a figure running towards us, and as they got closer, I realized it was a woman. When she reached us, she looked over at me and said in a calming voice, “Hi there! My name is Claire. I'm here to help. You'll be fine.” I wasn't sure whether I should trust her or not. I mean, she had just taken me by force, but she sounded nice, nicer than my ‘mom’ ever had. But I still didn’t trust her.

She turned to the boy. “Let her go. She might listen now.” I was released from captivity and for a minute  I just stood there so that they would be caught off guard, then I bolted. After running for about five minutes or so, I thought I’d made it, but right as I was about to celebrate, flying dude swooped in and held me close again so I couldn’t fight back.

Claire caught up to us again and I finally let myself go limp, I knew  I couldn’t escape. Man, flying dude was fast. Even faster than me, and I can tell you, I’m pretty darn fast.

Claire gave me a stern look and asked me again, “Are you ready to talk now?”

“Who are you?” I seethed.

“I'm Noah,” the boy replied, holding out his hand.

Ignoring him, Claire said, “What's your name?”

“It’s Lexi. Lexi Forrest,” I replied reluctantly. Not really sure what I was doing.

“Okay, Lexi, I need you to tell me where you are from and why you are here in the woods all alone.”

I didn't answer. If they were anything like my family, I would be left here alone again if I said anything suspicious. Not that I wasn't okay with that, it was just that I had the feeling that I didn't really want to be alone anymore, even though I spent most of my 3 years with the Forrests hiding in my room and completely blocking everyone else out.

Claire looked at me intently. It seemed as if she was staring into my soul. “You know what?” she said. ”Do you want to talk at my house? We have food.”

I looked up at her. Maybe she really had been looking into my soul, that was the perfect thing to lure me in with. She smiled at me, and I hoped it was a good thing. Besides, food always meant someone was nice. Right?

We walked through the woods in silence. I still didn't fully trust these people, but my only other option was to stay in the woods, alone. I was still debating whether it would be better to just stay in the woods and not risk getting shot down again, or if I should try this out and see how it goes. Claire and Noah seemed nice, but I just met them, so they could be horrible people. But something about them made me feel like I could trust them. We kept walking, and I decided to stay and see how it went. But I wouldn’t let my guard down.

Once we reached her bright blue house, Claire invited me inside and let me choose a seat near the coffee table. She walked to the kitchen and declared, “I'm gonna go make hot cocoa. You two talk for a minute.”

We sat in an awkward silence for a few seconds. I studied the pictures on the walls, guessing they were of her family. I noticed a couple of the kids looked familiar. I realized that one of them was the little girl that I saw in the forest. The couch was a bit over-stuffed and the walls were a pretty navy blue. Everything about the room was bright, vibrant, and warm. It almost made me feel… safe.

Noah broke the silence, sending my thoughts scattering. “So, why were you out there all alone?”

“I was kicked out,” I replied, expecting a surprised answer. But he obviously knew it was a touchy subject because he didn’t ask why.

“Why do you need to know all this stuff about me?” I asked.

Just then, Claire walked in and asked Noah if he had what she titled “the thing”. He handed her a handkerchief. I wondered what it was and why it was needed.

“I'll be back with the hot cocoa,” Claire assured me.

“Okay,” I replied. I still wasn't sure if I could trust them, so I hesitated to drink the hot cocoa once it was brought to me a few minutes later. It had a candy cane, whipped cream, and mini marshmallows in it. I decided it was probably fine. Even if it wasn’t, I probably would’ve drank it anyway, it looked-and smelled-delicious.

“Who are you people?” I demanded. “And why are you asking all these questions?”

Claire was the first to answer. “My husband is a scientist for a company called FHDR. It stands for Future Human Development Research. I help out at a camp for kids that were test subjects for FHDR. On Saturdays, my kids like to come along with me.” I remembered the name FHDR from some time before. Were these people that experimented on me and made me the monster I am? And if so, I should probably leave because I could never go back there again. I would die before I went back to that place. And why was she married to someone who had the opposite beliefs as her? It all seemed extremely suspicious to me and I didn’t like it.

“I did a DNA test on you using a hair of yours that Noah got for me. You are one of the test subjects, Lexi. Noah is too. He’s half green lacewings. I recommend we bring you two to the camp tomorrow morning, or you will have to be on your own again. What do you say? It’s completely up to you.”

I didn't know what to say. If all this was true, then I really did need to go to this camp. If it was a lie, this camp was probably a lab. I mean, I had escaped from a lab before, so I was more than prepared if anything bad happened.

Noah surprised me when he spoke. “I think you should go. You’d like it. I've been there before, and it's pretty nice. You even get your own customizable bedroom. It’s pretty great. Mine has a huge snack shack and it's got green everything. My bedding is all bug-themed, and it’s the best! You even get to-”

“You don't have to go. I won't force you.” Claire had decided to end Noah’s talking spree and talk for herself. “But I really do think you would benefit from going there instead of back into the woods. You wouldn't be able to stay with me because that would require you to hide constantly from my husband. He is always gone during the day, but about every other night he comes home. I have no idea where he stays when he’s gone, but I’m assuming it’s at one of the many hotels in the area.”

“Why would I have to hide from him?” I asked, guessing it was because he worked for the company that we wanted to run away from.

Noah broke in again, earning an angry scowl from Claire. “He doesn't really know where we are, and Claire has been going behind his back for years helping us, and he doesn't really want that. If he finds out where we are, or even that Claire is helping us, he will freak, and then he’ll come and attack our friends with his little army. He’s not home much, though, so if she finds anyone like us, Claire either brings them to the camp while at work, or she lets them stay the night like we did. It all depends on if he’s home or not.”

“Anyways, are you coming?” Erika urged.

“I'll think about it.” I replied.

After an hour or so of thinking, the door to the guest room opened. It was Noah.

“Hey, Claire’s kids just got home from school. Do you wanna go meet them?” he asked.

Not really, I thought, but I couldn’t really say that so instead I answered,“Sure,”  as I walked into the hallway.

When I reached the living room, Claire introduced us to each other. “So there’s Erika and Thomas, they just got home from school, and then there’s Annie, who was home sick today, but I think she’s fine, and this is William. He’s one. Kids, this is Lexi Forrest.”

William was just simply adorable. He had chubby cheeks, blonde hair, and the sort of greyish-blue eyes that all babies had at first. And his laugh was the cutest laugh I’ve ever heard. Erika was definitely hiding something, but it seemed silly to even try to figure it out-I had the feeling she was good at hiding things. I put that aside and focused on the boy I assumed was Thomas.

“Hi, I'm Lexi. Are you Thomas?” I said to the older boy. He had a sadness in his eyes that made me feel as if we knew each other at one point. Maybe we were friends or something before FHDR experimented on me. I wished I could remember it all.

“Yeah. So are you going to the camp?” Thomas asked.

“I think I am. I'm pretty sure,” I answered.

“Cool.” We stood for a couple seconds in silence. “Well, I'm gonna go up to my room now, so bye.”

“Bye.” Halfway up the stairs, he stopped and looked at me with the same look. Then he ran up to his room.

Thomas confused me. I just couldn’t figure him out. I couldn’t understand why he was acting the way he was.It was almost as if he was trying to tell me something, but I couldn’t understand what it was that he was trying to tell me. I wondered of something had happened to him too? He had the same look in his eyes that I did in the picture of me before I was tested on. He looked scared and sad and alone.

I was pulled out of my thoughts when Claire told me it was time to eat.

Dinner was an amazing meal of grilled salmon and rosemary roasted potatoes. I love fish-I think it was just an attribute that came with being half sea snake-and potatoes are just the greatest food ever known to any life on the Earth. We had a good conversation, and I finally felt comfortable enough to tell them my story. I couldn't help but notice that Thomas kept looking at me weirdly, but whenever I looked at him, he looked away. Noah told everyone his story, though everyone else already knew his background, and he told me all about the camp. He also explained that he was half green lacewings, which is an insect, and he told me how all the kids at camp are super cool. The camp is owned by a man named Tony Thompson, and nobody had any idea how old he is, probably since he is half cat. I don't quite remember what type, though. But overall, the camp sounded great and I was 99% sure that I wanted to go there by the end of the conversation.

“This is so good, Claire,” I said as I scarfed down the last of my food.

“Why thank you!” She said, sounding a little too happy.

After dinner, I plopped myself on the couch and turned on the TV. Claire had taken William and Annie to the store to buy a bunch of stuff for me and the camp, and Noah went to the basement with Thomas to play video games. Erika joined me on the couch after making popcorn. I turned on the news and Erika complained that watching the news was for old people. I agreed with her, but we still kept watching for no real reason.

The first news report we saw was about me. I wasn't surprised. I probably made my entire family freak out. Well, ‘family’.

“There is a girl named Lexi Forrest in this city who is a danger to our citizens. She is 14 years old, about 5 feet 4 inches, has long wavy dark blue hair, and has blue-gray eyes. She was last seen walking into the woods on 57th St.” They showed a picture of me on the screen walking into the forest. I looked like bigfoot. “If seen, immediately call-”

Erika turned off the television. She clearly didn't want to hear any more of it. “If they’ are looking for you, they will probably check all the houses near the woods. They've done it before. We may need to hide you somewhere,” she said in a serious tone. “Unless you’re really good at sneaking around.”

We got together with Noah and devised a plan for what to do if anyone I don't already know comes in the house: never answer the door. If a stranger came up to the house, Noah and I would get out of sight of the door. We gave Erika an earpiece and the two of us got walkie-talkies so we could communicate if someone really did come in.

I decided to go up to Erika’s room and claim the bottom bunk of the bunk bed inside (Erika was letting me sleep in her room). I like the bottom because it’s more accessible, especially when you may need to run to go hide from crazy scientists. I hoped I never had to use it that way, but I had to be prepared for the worst.

Luckily, I didn't have the need to go hide, and Claire had bought me supplies for daily life. I put on the blue fuzzy pajamas she got me-don’t know what she was thinking with that one-and went down the stairs to the kitchen to get myself a snack to munch on before I went to bed.

“Knock knock.” I jumped. Noah seemed to like surprising me.

“Who’s there,” I askedsaid, deciding that just playing along would make it go faster. I didn't really like Noah’s jokes. They were all really cheesy. Like, when we were walking to Claire’s house, he tried to make a joke about a bike being “two-tired” (Ha. Ha. Ha.), and he was almost dying from laughter, while I was just standing there awkwardly, fake laughing just for Noah’s pleasure.

“Banana.”

“Banana who?” I braced myself for the punchline.

“Orange you glad I didn't say banana again? Wait.” I laughed as he puzzled over his mistake. That one was actually funny because he messed it up.

I thought Noah would just go to bed then, because he’d said his joke and was done, but he just stood there and looked at me. I stood in uncomfortable silence as he looked around.

“I'm tired. I think I'm gonna go to bed,” I said. I added an extra yawn, hoping he would get the hint.

“I feel the same way,” He agreed.

“Goodnight,” I said.

“Goodnight.”

I walked up to Erika’s bedroom and, as silently as I could, doing my best not to wake her, I slipped into the bottom bunk of her bunk bed. I sat there thinking about everything that had happened that day. Being chased up the tree by a 6-year-old girl, being chased again through the forest by a half bug boy, getting weird looks from Claire’s children, and very soon, I was going to a place filled with kids that are half human, half animal. I just hoped it would be safe. Then again, when had anything in my life been safe?

After waking up at 8:30 the next morning, packing up all my stuff, and preparing myself to go to a camp filled with weird people like me, I found myself crammed in a car with Claire, her four kids, and Noah. The drive was only about 20 minutes long, and I had plenty to think about. Like what will it be like. Will everyone hate me? Just how crazy will it be?

“We’re here,” Claire said to us once we reached the destination. I slung my backpack over my shoulder and walked past the house toward the creaky gate. Noah threw the gate open and I followed him inside.

The place was like a summer camp that was full of crazy people. Oh wait, that's literally what it was.

It was a huge place, especially for being completely hidden behind the director’s house. There was a big area that had loads of tables surrounded by chairs, and a large field filled with kids who were fighting, running, and just talking. Everyone seemed to be having a good time, even though they were pretty much trapped in the safest place they could think of to go. If they left, it was likely something bad would happen to them.

“Hey Noah!” somebody yelled as they were running toward us.

Noah looked like the happiest person on Earth. “Dude! How’s it been, Goldie?” I wondered what that name meant and why it existed.

“Great! Megan still isn't really into me, but I think maybe soon she’ll crack. Whose this?” Goldie gestured toward me.

“This is Lexi Forrest. Lexi, this is Liam Golden. I call him Goldie.”

“Yeah, I noticed,” I said. I turned to Liam. “So, this is the camp?”

“Yup. It’s my favorite place on Earth. Ever since I got here, I haven't left. Noah, on the other hand, was a bad boy and left to go find himself a girl. He was eventually caught and had to escape a lab. He was gone for only a month, though.” Liam seemed to not care about anything.

“Only a month?” I asked in disbelief. What kind of people thought being gone for a month was no big deal?

“Yeah, most people are gone for 3 or 4 months before we see them again. We don't really get the luxurious life of normal people.”

The sound of a horn blasted through the air loud enough to bust my eardrums. Suddenly, everyone in the camp dropped what they were doing and started running towards the tables.

“Come on!” Noah yelled, looking back at us as he began to run. I decided to go with the flow and run with everybody else, but I did wonder what was happening.

Once we reached the tables, Claire led me to a spot in the grass near to where she stood in front of the kids. I stood there anxiously, waiting to see what would happen next. The group was all talking at once, but a man I didn't recognize got out a microphone a shushed the audience. They all got silent at once and stared up at me. I was a little uncomfortable with that, since I wasn't used to all the attention, and I hoped all these kids were nice. A couple looked curious, some looked excited, and a few even looked confused.

Whispers hung among the crowd. What did they think of me? Was this kind of reaction normal when a new kid came, or was it just me? If it wasn’t normal, what made me special? I hadn't even really noticed anything special about me, other than being half sea snake, but what did that do? I hadn't seen any signs of significance. With no idea of what any of this meant, I braced myself for the next couple minutes. At least, I hoped it would only be a couple minutes. I hate when I’m the center of attention.

“As you may know, we have someone new here at our little camp, and we would like you all to meet her. This is Lexi Forrest,” he walked over to me and put his arm around my shoulder, “and she is half Belcher’s Sea Snake.” I heard an “ooh” and a couple “aahs” from kids. Having people like that I was a freak was a first to me, but it was kind of nice too. It made me feel like less of a freak. But hey! You know what they say, in a place where everyone’s a freak, no one’s a freak. Well… it goes something like that. I think.

“Okay! Get back to whatever you guys were doing!” As everyone got up to leave, the man yelled something to one of the kids. “Megan! Come on up here!” The man turned to me and said quietly. “You and I will have a little meeting, and then Megan here will take you on a tour of the place. Come on, let's sit at a table and talk.”

Tony Thompson has no idea how old he is, but at least he knows he looks a little old to be one of the kids. He’s crazy, insanely rich-why he is able to afford this place-and he’s the director, as I learned earlier. Also, he is half American Shorthair, which is a type of house cat, and everyone has been trying to figure out why he looks older. It’s a little confusing, but I think I got it. Maybe.

After I met with Tony, the girl I think was named Megan came up to me and introduced herself.

“Hi! I'm Megan. You're Lexi, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, I'm gonna give you a little tour, so you can know where things are in this place. It’s kinda messy, but you'll figure it out soon. Things may seem a little crazy to you, but that’s what makes this place special. If it’s ever not crazy, you have a right to freak out. You learn to love it, you’ll see.”

We walked around the perimeter as she told me a few basic rules that I already usually follow. Usually. Sometimes. Actually not really. Then she walked me around to different places in the camp, showing me “The Hotdog Stand,” which is the place they eat (it’s the big table area), which is confusing because I guessed they didn't have hotdogs for every single meal, the field, where they basically do whatever, the apartment buildings, but they are all on ground level (everyone gets their own small room to sleep in), and a couple other places I don't remember as well.

“Has Liam said anything about me yet?” Megan asked.

“Yeah. He told Noah that he was trying to get you to notice him. Have you noticed? He said you weren’t into him.” She looked at me as we walked around the garden, which was next to the field.

“Of course I’ve noticed how weird he acts around me, like when I was getting my room done, and he helped paint it. Liam wrote my name on the wall with paint, and refused to let me paint over it. I had to wait until midnight when he finally went to bed to paint over it. Midnight! That may not seem that late, but I am not a morning person, and I like sleep.” This girl would be a great friend.
“Are you into him?  He seems really into you,” I said. It was hard to wait for an answer.

“Not really. I don't currently like anyone else right now, and he’s the best candidate at the moment. I don't think it would work though.” At that last sentence, Megan sounded like she did notice him, like she did care about him.

“I know that face. You do like him. You should go tell him! He would be so happy.” I personally wouldn't want that, but she isn't me, and I’m not her.

“I want to use that strategy where the girl plays hard to get just to make him jealous, then the girl get what she wants,” Megan said confidently.

“You do you,” I said.

Once the tour was over, we went to the director’s house to get me a survey so my room could be designed in the way that I like it, and to get me a room to sleep in while it’s being done. All the multiple choice questions had nothing to do with bedrooms, so I was a little confused about how they actually determined what my room would look like after it was built. The survey looked something like this:

Favorite color:_________

Circle your best quality: Friendly Intelligent Understanding     Mature Other:_________

What annoys you:_________

Your top five worst fears:_________

Circle your worst quality: Impatient Not Trusting Dishonest       Wary   Other:_________

Favorite thing to do:_________

Favorite food:_________

Favorite hobby:_________

We made a plan that I would meet everyone tomorrow because sometimes, you just need to relax when you come to a new place. I pretty much just sat in my room for a while, thinking about this place, who we were, and how I could adapt to it all.

I wondered if this experience would be like those books kids my age love to read: the main character thinks they are normal, but really they are this cool “Chosen One” and they discover that they have crazy powers unlike anyone else they know, and they have to use those powers to save their friends from the evil genius who wants to use them to make the world a “better place.” Later, they learn that they have a secret evil twin that works for the villain and poses as them after they are kidnapped. They escape and kill the evil twin and everyone lives happily ever after. The end.

Anyways, that’s what I was thinking during that period of time that I got to be alone in one of the many guest rooms in Tony’s house. Wondering if something is wrong with me, you know, other than the fact that I’m half Belcher’s Sea Snake.

That night, after dinner, I joined the other kids in their nightly stargazing. It was the most beautiful sight I ever remembered. I sat with Claire and her family, and we had a great conversation about the kids at camp while we were pointing out constellations and shooting stars, and telling funny stories about our families. She pointed out a few kids that she thought would be good friends for me, like 2 girls named Mia and Scarlett, and a boy named Ethan. They were all younger than me and my current friends, but she assured me that they were extremely mature for their age.

That was what I was really excited for. Meeting new people, gaining friends that I can trust, and being able to finally relax for once. Nothing could make me happier.

That night I went to bed around midnight. I got my own room, and was glad I didn't have to share with anyone because even though I had been alone a lot lately, I really liked the privacy. It was peaceful, and quiet, unlike when you spend a whole day at a zoo with a little brother that won't stop yelling and running off.

I had dreams about what I imagined the camp to be like on a normal day. Some were really bizarre, but at least a few were kind of normal.

I woke up to a harsh shaking at about 9 the next morning. It was Megan.

“Wake up! Someone new is here!” she said.

“Whaaaaaa?”

“Come on!”

I was pulled out of my comfy bed and left alone for a quick second to change. She basically dragged me all the way to the Hotdog Stand, where I found myself sitting on a bench before I was even remotely aware of what was happening.

“Good morning, kids!” Tony said into the mic. Most of the kids cheered, but I was the only one to have just gotten up, so I had the right to feel tired and not do anything.

“As you probably already know, we have yet another kid that has arrived in the past week. We had Lexi Forrest yesterday, and today, we have Jessie Moore!”

The crowd went silent. Everybody seemed to be even more confused than yesterday. Some kids felt bad for the girl, so they began to cheer. Everybody else joined in, including me. Although, I was still very, very, very tired from my late night, even though I’d slept in.

Jessie scanned the audience as if she was putting every single face in her memory. She then smiled and waved at everyone, obviously excited to be here, in a camp full of crazy people.

After I got breakfast, I was given the chance to meet Jessie, as well as Ethan, Mia, and Scarlett. They all seemed nice, and the younger ones were surprisingly mature for their age.

Jessie is 14 years old, with bright red hair up in a braided bun, bright blue eyes, and an average height. She was actually surprisingly beautiful, and I wondered what made her different. After all, you don’t just come to a place like this and not be different from the rest of the world.

She seemed unable to stop smiling-it must have hurt. I pondered different backgrounds she could have come from. It couldn’t have been that terrible, she looked super happy and showed no signs that anything bad happened in her previous life. Her eyes told me that she truly wanted to be here, even though she knew she would be hiding in the shadows with the rest of the camp. They didn’t even have that haunted look that I had. Her eyes didn’t hold the fear and rage that held in mine. For this, I envied her.

Ethan is a 9 year old pygmy marmoset kid. He’s small for his age, but he probably knew more than I could ever know about anything, even though he’s younger than me by three years. He told me that most of the kids had been there since they were little kids, but some my age came when they were about eight or nine, because that was the age they were discovered and were able to escape with Claire’s help.

He also explained to me that a pygmy marmoset is pretty much the tiniest monkey ever. And when I say ever, I mean EVER. They can be about the same size as a squirrel-or SMALLER. Some can be even SMALLER THAN A THUMB! He explained to me that he probably ages a little faster than most humans because of the pygmy marmosets average lifespan of about 12 YEARS. I’m sorry. I just can't help putting everything in all-caps.

Mia is 13 years old, and half African Pygmy Albino Hedgehog. That basically gave her white hair, super pale skin, and glassy red eyes. Except her hair is more like softish spikes rather than hair.

“I know this may sound really crazy, but one of my favorite foods is freeze dried mealworms,” she said randomly.

“That is probably the weirdest sentence I have ever heard in my entire life. That I can remember,” I responded.

“I'm not surprised.” She laughed. “What do you remember from before you were experimented on?”

I didn't know how to respond. “Ummmm….”

“I'm sorry if that's a touchy subject. I mean, I was just wondering, but if-”

“Mia, it’s ok. You didn't know. I don't really remember anything at all. I remember that I had a family. That I went to school. I remember how the world worked. What I don't remember is all the important stuff. Faces, places, names, plans, yah know?”

She looked at me with a face that said, “Never stop telling me about your life. I want to know everything about you so keep going. I am also kind of creepy.”

I decided to end it there. “I think the others want to meet me. I can tell you more later, though.”

She snapped out a daze I was completely unaware of and with a frazzled expression, she said goodbye and I went on to have a meaningful conversation with Scarlett.

The two of us talked about everything. The 11-year-old was surprisingly easy to talk to. I told her all about the only 3 years of my life that I could remember, including how I escaped the labs, how I found my family, everything. She was a very good listener, and she was very empathetic. I think if I ever had a problem with anything, I would go straight to her.

She told me a little about her past, like how she escaped herself, and how she found the camp. She also told me that she is half red panda, but none of her features relate to red pandas as far as she knows. She has jet black hair, dark, chocolate colored skin, and dark brown eyes. She loves the color pink, but only because she said she looked good in it.

We had a long conversation, but I needed to get to Noah. He had asked me for help with painting my room, and he wanted me to be there by noon. It was 12:02.

“I gotta go. Noah is expecting me at my room in negative 2 minutes. Bye.”

“Bye. Don't die.” That was random.

“What?”

“Oh, I just say that when I say goodbye sometimes.” Okay, she’s a little weirder than I thought.

“Okay, well, goodbye.”

“Bye.”

My room ended up having bright purple paint on the outside, dark gray paint on the inside, and an ocean blue door to match both colors. On one wall was a mural of a beach, and I was really impressed, wondering who had painted it. The windows had sand colored blinds that were the kind that all you need to do is push them up or pull them down and they stay where you left them after you let go. They’re super easy to use.

My bed was completely ocean themed. I didn't realize until now how much I love the ocean. I love to go and just wade in the water, getting pounded by the waves, falling over at the big ones, jumping over the little ones. I think what I really want is to live in a house on the coast, so I can go to the beach every single day, and swim in the deep waters. Anyways, that’s what I want. It may never happen, but it’s okay to be a dreamer at times. Which made me wonder how these people knew what I liked even before I did.

There was a corner in my room just filled entirely with my favorite snacks, foods, and desserts. I couldn't resist but take a mini apple pie and eat it right away. Along with that, I had a closet with a lot of clothes that I definitely would wear often, a desk with a computer, a wifi router, and art supplies, and a high tech bookshelf not only holding a ton of books I would be reading, but also holding at least a hundred shrinkable laptops, tablets, phones, and every other techy thing ever known to the world. They had only been released a month before. It also held another hundred movies and video games. On one wall, it held a 30-inch flat screen tv with one easy to use remote, and every game console ever created. My room had everything I could ever imagine. I just hoped it would last.

It had taken an entire month to build, paint, buy everything, and organize the inside. Within that period of time I made many more friends, and even learned the route back from pretty much every lab, doctor’s office, university, and everything else in a hundred mile radius. I hoped to never have a need to put that training to use. I increased my relationships with Noah, Liam, Megan, Jessie, Ethan, Mia, Scarlett, Claire, and her kids. I forgot to mention pretty much everybody else in the camp, even though that may seem highly improbable.

“You like it?” I spun around to see Noah standing in the doorway, making that face he made when he was trying to be cool.

“Are you kidding? How did you guys know this was what I would like?”

“We never reveal our secrets.” That face. It was just… great. I couldn't help but snicker.

“What?” he said.

“Nothing.” He will NEVER know.

“You wanna meet more people? I know a few other kids.”

“Sure.”

He brought me over to his room and gave me a quick tour. Next he showed me a couple other rooms that his friends were in. He wasn't very lucky because I wasn't paying attention to anything that he showed me. At all.

“You wanna meet my girlfriend?” The question suddenly caught my attention.

“Uhhhh…” I wasn't completely sure how to respond. “Sure?” If I said anything else he would’ve thought I liked him or something. What? I don't! I'm not lying! I'm sure.

He led me to another room, and I knew immediately that it was his girlfriend’s room. It was pink all over, nice and neat, and was full of makeup, clothes, mirrors, and other beauty products. All I could do was laugh under my breath, but I had to make sure neither of them heard me.

I looked up to see a girl, probably about 16, all primped up and pretty. Her curly blonde hair was medium length, with a white streak down one side. I remember that I had learned about body language and other stuff like that in one of my online classes. I just needed to figure out what she was hiding beneath her many layers of makeup. See? Sometimes you do actually learn at school! Her bright rose blossom colored lipstick, along with her large, obviously fake eyelashes, made her face look as if it was created by photoshop and professional makeup artists. She was average height, but was wearing the tallest jet black high heels I have ever seen. She was practically stuck in tip-toe position. I wondered how her feet felt about that. She was wearing a short red skirt that would never work if she wanted to bend down even the slightest bit, along with a purple, long-sleeved velvet shirt. She had no jewelry, except for one pair of large gold hoop earrings. It probably took her hours to get ready in the morning.

She seemed to be very self-centered, with a perfectly beautiful face, and a black, beastly heart. I wondered what her backstory was. Maybe after she was born and raised in the labs, she was rescued by one of the scientists show didn't think that what they were doing to her was the right thing to do. Maybe they escaped and she came to the camp and helped create it, then she had to go on a mission to help save the others, but when she did, she was caught and the scientists made her do whatever they wanted her to do, so they could come destroy the camp. Maybe she actually had a heart at one point in her life, but now she wasn't her old self. Nah, she never actually had a heart.

“Lexi, meet Julia! She is half white rat, but she’s still the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen. She is the first successful one to ever be created, which is why she is half white rat. The scientists weren't very creative with her, which just wasn't.” Noah was obviously trying to impress her, even though his actual personality was the one that I think most people would prefer. I recently noticed that lots of people change who they are when they are with certain people. Noah was very relaxed around me, but when he was with Julia, he seemed uncomfortable, but unaware of it. He looked as if he was being forced to do something he didn't want to do.

“Hi, I’m Julia.” Even her voice sounded egocentric. She held her hand out, clearly expecting me to shake it. I introduced myself as we stood there, staring into each other’s eyes.

She clearly knew what I thought about her, because the very next thing she said was, “I'm not the self-centered person you think I am. This world needs an amazing girl that can actually look good, and can actually get a boyfriend.”

“Do you think I care?” I snapped.

“You don't seem to, but your recent remarks have changed my thinking a bit.” That nasty little-

“Hey! Girls! Don't argue over me! I’m sorry Lexi but I’m with Julia.” That was the most awful thing I had heard him say. He was under a spell, a curse that controlled all that he did and said. I couldn't bear to watch him this way any longer.

“Noah, can I talk to you for a minute? Now.” He clearly needed a break from this. I pulled him away behind the rooms and made him focus on me.

“What do you want?” He asked.

“Look at me in the eyes, and tell me why you are acting all weird around Julia. Tell me. Or I’ll slap you really hard on the face.”

“I guess she’s just really pretty, and she is the coolest person in the camp.” Why would that change anything?

After our talk, I convinced Noah to end our conversation with Julia. Too bad I wasn't able to make him break up with her…

“How do you like it so far?” I hadn't noticed Jessie come up next to me as I walked to the Hotdog Stand for a snack.

“It’s good. I had to deal with Noah and his sweet girlfriend,” I said. I packed as much sarcasm as I could into that sentence. “How do you like it so far?” I asked in return.

“Well, nobody’s stabbed me with a needle, or experimented on me yet. That’s a great start.” She laughed. “It’s much better than the labs.” Her voice was very sincere, giving me another person to trust.

I pondered the idea of this all being just a dream. It was almost too good to be true, since I hadn't had to keep really any secrets, because there were plenty of good listeners in the camp (me not being one of them) and there was always somebody there for you in the rare occasion that you just need a shoulder to lean on, or a hug from somebody you trust. I knew it could never last forever, that something bad would happen and I would probably lose someone that meant a lot to me. That just seems to be how things happen when I’m around.

After dinner that night, we roasted marshmallows and Starburst. I burned the outside of a marshmallow and took off the burnt outside, then burnt the next layer. I guess I’m good at it because I got 8 layers off, which beat the camp record. Apparently, I’m talented or something. That's a joke.

Once all the marshmallows were gone and in people’s tummies, I went straight to my brand new room and fell onto my bed. I crawled under the covers after I grabbed a few Oreos-I seem to like food-and stared up at the ceiling an studied the bumps and crevasses you could see. I clapped my hands twice, and at once my clapper did the job of turning off the lights. I would usually at this time start reading one of those really long books that kids my age can't even read because they give up halfway through because of the size, but I was so tired, I closed my eyes the second the door closed after Claire left, silently hoping that nothing bad would happen soon-or anytime, really-but my luck seems to hate me. I could only hope for the best.

My eyes shot open the second the door opened. It definitely wasn’t morning, and I had only slept for probably about 5 hours. I couldn't quite make out who my visitor was, even though they had turned on my lights.

“Hey, you awake?” I narrowed it own to about 5 people based on her voice.

I made some weird sound that probably made no sense to anyone, and the person at the door walked closer. “It’s Jessie. I wanted to show you something.”

“But why in the middle of the night? I supposed to be sleeping right now and I would like it if I could sleep just a bit more.” I wasn't gonna get up unless she had a real reason to show me in the middle of the night.

“It only works at night, and this is the best time to see it. Come on. Tonight’s the only night it’ll work for a whole year. Please.” She clearly wanted me to see it right now.

“Fine. Just give me a minute to get up.” She stood there, watching me with her arms crossed, looking as impatient as Liam when he was trying to get Megan to notice him for once. As I got up out of my bed, I thought about the possibilities of what she would be showing me, why it was only able to be seen in the middle of the night, and why it was so important to her. Was it something that glowed in the dark, or was it a certain constellation that meant something to Jessie? I had no idea, but I just went with it, walking blind into a possible trap. I knew Jessie would never do that, even though I had only known her for a month. She was one of the nicest people in the entire world that I knew and remembered. I hoped it was something like those glowing worms that you can only find in that one cave somewhere in the world that I didn't remember at the moment. Or maybe something like a giant glow in the dark treehouse that was my very own, that I could have ultimate privacy in.

Once I was up on my feet with shoes on, and a blanket around my shoulders, Jessie took out a purple bandana and wrapped it around my head and over my eyes, tying it tightly in the back.

“Why are you blindfolding me?” I asked.

“When I surprise someone, they wear a blindfold, even if it isn't needed. It’s just how I do it.” She laughed. “Even when I do a surprise party-they wear a blindfold, and it completely ruins the surprise. I don't really care, though.”

Jessie guided me around while we both stayed as quiet as possible, doing our best not to wake up any of the others. As we walked over the crumpled autumn leaves and muddy grass, I heard Jessie whisper indecipherable things to herself, as if she was talking to a voice in her head. A voice that told her what to do, I assumed, based on the tone of her voice.

Once we reached the destination, Jessie stopped me and told me to stay put. I heard some ruffling, wondering what it was. It was probably Jessiemaking finishing touches on whatever she was showing me. Whatever it was, I was tempted to take off my blindfold just to see what it was. I knew that would ruin the surprise, and Jessie seemed pretty excited about it being the perfect surprise.

“Can I take this off?” I quietly yelled in the direction I thought Jessie was.

“You won't need to,” she said. She was right by my side.

“What does-”

Something wooden hit me over the head.

Noah had never been this scared before. He may have been inside about fifty labs, tortured by hundreds of scientists, but nobody in the camp within one month of their arrival had just disappeared in the middle of the night with another person who had also just gotten there.

“Did you guys find anything?” Noah yelled at Claire and her family. He was really worried, making everyone check the security footage from Tony’s house, investigate both of their rooms, and follow all clues to find out where they went. He even had Tony cancel all of the day’s activities and replace them with finding the two girls.

“Not really, but there are footprints going towards the woods.” Claire didn't seem all that worried, even though the two newest campers had just disappeared.

“Let’s follow them,” Erika said, trying to be as calm as possible. Although her shaky voice wasn't the most calming sound in the world.

Noah stared straight down at the ground as they walked, following the seemingly endless trail of muddy footprints, hoping they led to somewhere, to some clue that could find the two girls. He didn't have any idea where they were, what they were doing, or who they had encountered. He didn't even know why they had left! All he could do was hope they were safe, and that nothing bad had happened to either of them.

“Where are you Lexi,” Noah muttered under his breath. He had barely even known her, and within the first month of being at the camp she had already been kidnapped. Noah had always had a bad feeling about Jessie, and, even though everybody else seemed to think that Jessie hadn't done anything to Lexi, he had a dark feeling in his gut that Jessie had taken her. He didn't know where, though, and that was the real problem. He didn't know where either of them were. All he could do was hope that Lexi hadn't come in contact with Peter.

“We’ll find them. Lexi and Jessie,” Claire assured. “I promise.” She wasn't sure of anything at the moment. Usually, when somebody would leave the camp, they would tell at least one person where they were going and when. Jessie and Lexi had just disappeared with no warning into an unknown nowhere, a place full of confusion and darkness. Hope was one of the only things anybody in the camp could hold on to.

The clues led to a spot in the forest where there were sudden footprints that showed signs of only one person walking rather than the two they had seen on the way to this place. They also found a purple bandana on the ground, tied in a circle like a blindfold, and a piece of rope. The mud showed signs of a person falling, struggling, then being picked up. At least, that was what they had guessed. The person could have fallen weirdly like they fainted, or the other person could have fallen as well, but Noah couldn't quite figure out what it was exactly. They had no other clues. Even after they followed the other footprints, all they found was that a car had taken them away. With the car being on a concrete road, they had no way of finding them.

“Should we suspect anything of Peter?” Liam asked.

Noah looked in his direction, then said, “Without any clues that Peter didn't do anything, and no other possible solutions we can think of, I believe we can resort to that, and try to find his place again. Liam, you go get the computers ready, and Claire, Tony and I will stay for about ten more minutes to investigate. Everyone else can go do whatever they want, but don't be stupid. I don't want to lose another one of you.”

As the others obeyed, Noah thought about all the evidence going together. He knew the possibility that one of the girls had betrayed the camp. He hoped the traitor at least hadn't been Lexi, and that she was as innocent as he thought she was. But he didn't want it to be Jessie either. They had both been really nice to him, and if one of them had betrayed the camp, he didn't know what he would've done. Hope seemed to be the only thing important right now, other than finding the two girls.

Noah looked up when he heard Tony’s voice. “If we don't find anything, I have a new device that could track someone based on their DNA. The trick is, it can't do anything farther than a fifty-mile radius. The chances are slim, since Peter and his science friends are probably smarter than that, but it’s worth a try.”

“Why didn't you tell us earlier?” Noah questioned. He was getting very frustrated at this point.

“The one I have is in very bad condition, and if my calculations are correct, it would only work once. I didn't want to use it for no reason.” Tony’s stuff always seemed to be in “very bad condition”. It’s like he threw them around the room as soon as he got them.

“Let’s do it,” Noah said. “It better work.” Noah’s mood wasn't the greatest for the situation they were in. If his negativity got much worse, they might not have any chance of finding the girls.

The device looked like Albert Einstein and Thomas Edison both came in and decided to help throw it around the room along with all the other junk Tony had in his office. After stepping over many large piles of who knows what, Noah could guess that pretty much everyone in the room was getting more than a little annoyed at Tony and his uncleanliness.

Tony picked it up and began to explain the different parts and how they worked. Noah wasn't listening because he didn't feel there was a reason to know how it worked. That was why Tony was there, to do all the work. Tony plopped the device down on a desk and asked Noah for some of Lexi’s DNA. Once he had finished turning it on, Tony connected it to a computer. It made some odd sounds, and in the next moment, everything happened. The computer opened up to a satellite map of the U.S.

BEEP! BEEP! The sound almost pierced Noah’s ears. As he covered them, Tony rushed over to the computer a minute before it dinged and stopped beeping.

“Okay…..” He stared at the screen intently, clicking random things and scrolling up and down pages. “Aha! It seems that Lexi is just a few miles north. Up in the rural mountains. Easy enough. You wanna go?”

“As long as that thing is accurate.” Noah decided to hope for the best.

After a long time full of goodbyes, preparations, and gathering people to go with him, Noah marched into the woods with Megan, Liam, Scarlett, Ethan, and Mia. Noah personally thought it was a few too many people, especially if they didn't want to be found by some evil scientists, but all Tony said was, “The more the merrier!”

Almost nothing was visible. Without the power of night vision, even a person with eyesight as good as mine could barely see. I peered into the darkness, only to hear the sound of footsteps join me. The visitor said nothing, only stood there, in the shadows beyond my reach.

“Who are you?” I yelled into the dark. Silence. I never understood why people just didn't say anything sometimes.

A deep voice from behind me made me jump. “I knew we’d find you.” The voice was unrecognizable.

The sudden bright light forced me to squint. After what felt like years trying to open my eyes, I looked up to see what resembled a secret lair of a mad scientist, filled with unknown chemicals of every element. Many men and women dressed in lab coats were assembling, melting, freezing, breaking, and testing. I had a sudden urge to assess my surroundings to find possible exits, things to use for combat, everything else that you could use to help yourself escape from a mad scientist’s lab. I then realized I was in a giant glass box, with one glass door behind me. It looked sealed, so I searched for a way to solve that problem.

“As you may know, I had a friend of mine come to get you for me,” the man continued. He glanced back at the door, clearly noticing that I had seen it. “You won’t get out through that door. And I’m not one of those stupid scientists who tells you my plan then lets you go tell all your friends.” His ice-cold stare made me shudder. I tried to stay calm, but, surprisingly, I had never actually been strapped to a chair in a transparent room before.

“I know you aren’t stupid,” I retorted. “Why am I here?” I looked to my right to see men and women dressed in lab coats, watching me, scribbling notes on their clipboards. To them, I was an experiment, a test subject, nothing but a bag of money.

“I brought you here to get back something that was lost to me a very long time ago. I won't tell you what it is, because you would most likely go insane and I’d have to kill you. But who wants that?” The man talked exactly like every villain in the movies. I knew he was trying to be cool, but he was obviously failing.

I heard some hissing, then the opening of a door. I didn't have any chance of getting out of this place, so I didn't bother looking. Somebody had come in.

“Hi.” It was Jessie. “I bet you are really mad at me right now. I never even told you what my other half is yet.” Her voice had no sincerity.

Well yeah, I thought. You kidnapped me right after I actually found a new home. Very nice.

“Sure,” I replied. I wasn't gonna let Jessie tap into my feelings. I liked to keep those things away, especially from crazy psychopath girls who kidnapped me. It was important that these people knew as little as possible about anything About me, about the camp, about all those like me, and about just everything in general. If they knew too much, I could ruin the lives of so many people. I did not want to be THAT person. Almost the whole world would hate me. Probably. In most books like this one, that kind of thing tends to happen.

Jessie sat in the corner of the room. She looked at me with fear and fright in her eyes. I almost felt bad for her. She had to betray everybody in the camp. I would not be surprised if she wanted to stay. She was accepted, and here she was just a science fair project. I couldn't imagine who would want a life like hers. I wanted to offer her another chance to come to the camp. I could probably get the others to agree after a little bit of time, and although they may take a while to actually trust her, I really wanted to give her a chance to live a happy life.

Don't be scared. It's me. Jessie. They don't know I can do this. What was happening? How was this possible? Were they messing with me? Was Jessie messing with me? Just give me a minute to tell you how to escape. I'll be talking so they don't get suspicious. Listen to what is going on within. Not what is going on out there. Just listen to me.