As he was thinking, two things happened. One, a cat crossed his path, and the doorbell rang. Jon's family didn't own a cat. Or maybe they did now.
He headed toward the door, scared, but trying to be brave. His little brother...umm...sister...whatever needed him to be.
He opened it. There was a teenage girl standing there. She was wearing black jeans, a black t-shirt with the phrase, "I void warranties" on it, and a black jacket. She looked vaguely familiar. He'd seen her at school, but he didn't know her name. "I thought you were sick."
"Sick?"
"That's what your sister said," she said, noncommittally. "Where is she?"
"Who?" He asked, distracted.
"Mickey, your sister," she said, rolling her eyes. "You still have a fever or something? You'd better stand back. I hate being sick." She leaned down and picked up the cat. "Hey, Zoe," she said, patting its belly.
"What did you say?"
"I said hi to your cat. Jeeze," she said.
"What did you call it?"
"Zoe. That's her name, isn't it? You're acting really freaky today. I think you should go back to bed until you're back to normal," she said, heading up the stairs. "Mickey?" She called. "I think your brother's delirious or something."
A few moments later, his new sister bounded down the stairs. "Quickly. She doesn't know about the stone, she thinks I've been her best friend for a few years, and her name is Barbara, but everyone calls her Barb. She's already suspicious."
He paused. "What's this about me being sick?"
"You disappeared...I didn't want everyone to panic, so I wished they thought there was a reason you weren't around. I guess she thought you were home sick."
"But I don't even know her."
"Well, if she's my friend now, you do," Mickey said.
He looked at her. "Are you all right?"
"Not really. I...The more I live this life...the harder it is to remember what it felt like before. I mean...I remember everything, but.." She sighed. "What if I'm stuck?"
"Then we'll deal with it..." he said.
