Page 76 of Incompatible

"Great, call me tomorrow and I’ll give you the contact and the time for Gurco. What phone are you calling from?"

"A regular burner."

"Very good, try to use burners whenever you call me. I hope you’re not standing outside your house right now."

"No, I’m downtown."

"Perfect, at least you remembered something, there’s still hope for you."

"Thanks, Ennio, really, for knocking some sense into me, you’re the only person I could talk to about this because no one else would understand, not even Alex."

There is a moment of silence on the line, then he says, "Come on, Bay, I’m not your friend or your confidant. I’m not doing this out of charity."

I don’t answer. And yet, on some level, I feel like Ennio does share a sense of kinship with me and that his help and advice are not just an investment.

He keeps going. "Above all, keep it together, live your surface life like a normal teenager, handle the rest in a way that no one would ever suspect you, spread everything out over time, patience, patience, Bay."

"Alright, I’ll do what you say."

Ennio hangs up.

I stand there for a moment, taking deep breaths, letting the wind brush against my face. I am aware that I am a teenager, of course I am, it’s impossible not to be aware when waves of violent anger and hormones hit you like that, but I was just one step away from doing something stupid, and I can’t let myself run down these blind mental paths again.

I need to work on who I am, I need to rebuild the way I think, be less reckless, more calculated, this could be a matter of life or death. Provocations like this give power to the enemy, pull me out of my safe place, make me an easy target.

I take out my normal phone and deactivate the burner.

Of course there is a whole list of missed calls: Alex and my dad.

For some reason, I decide to call my dad first.

"Oh my Fate, Bay, I’m so glad to finally hear your voice, I was super scared, where are you, son…"

"I just had to get some fresh air, let my emotions settle."

A short silence.

"Bay, I am so sorry, we’re already dealing with it, we talked to the principal and he said he will make sure the students responsible for this situation are removed from the school, andAlex’s dad, Prosecutor Strada, ordered the police to get involved, they are on the case and they will find out who was behind this. We can’t let something like this slide…"

I stay quiet for a moment. Right, help could also come from that side. Removing Vin and Rob from school will certainly help, but that doesn’t mean everyone else will forget.

"Where are you, Bay? Come home…"

"I’ll be back in a minute, I’ll grab an Uber," I mutter.

I hang up because there is nothing left to talk about. Sharing my emotions with them could be a mistake, I have to show them I can keep myself under control too.

Then I call Alex back.

His voice is tight, he probably had an asthma attack.

"Bay, Bay! I’m so glad you finally called back, I was crazy worried, those idiots, I swear we will deal with them, my dad will help, he has connections in the police and the courthouse, we’ll make sure they never step foot in that school again…" Alex is rambling, his words spilling out at a hundred per second.

"Thanks, Alex, I just went out for some air, everything is fine, it was just a stupid joke, kids do that, right?" I murmur in a calming tone, like I am trying to convince myself first, but well, to the outside world I have to look like a regular teenager who has to deal with bullies and somehow survive the next day.

"There’s just one thing, Alex, something really important, something about our safety. I think we should carry something, like a taser, and we should always stay close to each other. Hanging around the school parking lot, especially now, if those guys get expelled because of us, could be dangerous."

"I know that, my dad said the same thing, he even suggested we could transfer to another high school."