xp_logs | Missing boy...

Jamie dashed down the hall, his face ashen. Not even looking where he was going, he ran on, lost in a fugue of memory. Rounding a corner, he ran smack into Doug, who grabbed him by the arms to avoid falling. "Jamie? What's wrong?" Jamie looked everywhere but at Doug, his whole body almost shaking with tension. "It's Paige. She's hurt," was all that Jamie managed to get out. Then turning abruptly, he ran away again before Doug could catch him.

~Oh no,~ Doug thought to himself, twin impulses pulling him in opposite directions. He was worried about Paige, but also about his roommate's mental state. Making up his mind, he dashed the other way. "Kitty!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

Kitty had been working in her room for a change, her fingers flashing on the keyboard as she peered at something incomprehensible on her screen. When she heard Doug's shout she jumped in her chair. Spinning around she dove out into the hallway, not bothering to stop and open the door. "What's wrong?" she called.

Doug skidded to a halt, breathing heavily. "Jamie's freaked about something. All I know is something happened to Paige, and it scared him. Badly. He's pulled a runner, and I figured if anyone would know where he's headed, it would be you."

Kitty's eyes widened. "What hap... which way did he go?" she asked, changing tracks in mid sentance. Doug was right. There would be other people watching out for Paige, but if Jamie had run off...

Doug shook his head. "I'm not sure. He was just trying to get away, in whatever direction he could. He was headed toward me, but then he turned around and ran straight away from me when I stopped him."

Kitty bit her lip, nodding. She thought she knew where he'd go, and ached to run after him, but held herself in check for a second. "Do you know what happened to Paige? Are you going to go check on her?"

"No. All I know is something happened. And yes, I'm headed straight to the medlab." Doug stared off into space, his eyes haunted. Whispering to himself, he said, "I don't know if I can do this again..."

Kitty inhaled a shaky breath. "Ok. I'm... I'm going to go find Jamie." Spontaneously she threw her arms around Doug, hugging him tightly. She wanted to say things would be ok, but knew better. She'd too long felt that too many things were wrong for anything to be better soon. Instead she just hugged him for a moment, then pulled back.

Doug hugged back, on the verge of crying. Shaking his head, he tried to pull himself back together. "Go. Find Jamie. I'm almost as worried about him as I am Paige." Taking a deep breath, he set off at a dead run for the medlab.

Kitty nodded, and quickly dashed down the hall, heading for the stairs and the door, plunging unhesitatingly into the dark night.