William woke to the sound of someone pounding on the front door. The vid had been over four hours long. He couldn't remember watching the whole thing. He wiped the drool from his arm where he had fallen asleep. "I'm coming!" He slurred.

He stood up to find that his world spun viciously, shifting with the intention to knock him over. He fell back onto the couch and wiped the sleep from his eyes. He was just thankful Astral or Kendra didn't see any of that. He glanced over to where they had been sitting, finding their seats empty. The pitcher of lemonade was empty, his glass was empty, Kendra's and Astral's glasses were full. He was feeling a little thirsty and plucked Astral's glass, downing it like he was never going to see water again.

He stood up, testing his balance. The knocking had stopped. Figures.

With the aid of furniture and the wall, he made his way upstairs to his room. His vision blurred and his legs felt gelatinous. The night breeze felt nice against his skin, let in through his open window that he had neglected to shut as part of the curfew routine. He didn't see what all of the fuss was about with all these security protocols. Everything was fine. He was still in one piece, though his guests were missing. 'Sucks to be them' he thought hazily.

He shuffled over to the window and glanced outside. Kendra ran passed shouting something he didn't quite understand at someone behind her. She slid to a stop and pointed to William. "Shut the damn window!"

Astral came into view. She had something heavy in her hand. Her stigma caught him; he was frozen in place. There was something about her that frightened him. The way she stared up at him like he was the most repulsive thing on the planet, and the best thing for everyone would be to kill him. Her stance changed, and the grip on her weapon shifted.

She charged toward the wall of the house, leaped and ran up the stone siding a few steps before doing a spinning back flip. A whirlwind of blades rushed passed him just as he pulled his head indoors. He fell onto his backside panicked. She was going to kill him! He didn't know why, but he took a moment to lock the window as though it would stop her from gaining entry too quickly.

He rushed to his closet, pulling the chair that held it shut free and put it in front of his door. He shut the lights and hid in the corner of his room between the dresser and his nightstand. It wasn't long before he the realness of the scene slip from his grasp and sleep took him over.

*****

He woke with a start. Confused and disoriented he launched to his feet, breaking free of the blanket that had covered him. The lemonade pitcher and glasses were cleared from the coffee table, and a pillow had been added to William's temporary sleeping arrangements. The screen he had been watching had returned to its dormant state, now a clear glass pane waiting for its active command.

The sun was peaking over the horizon, accompanied by the sound of his father was working in the kitchen, reheating his dinner. William stepped into the kitchen to fetch a glass of water. His head was killing him. If it would just explode already, it would be doing him a huge favour.

"Kendra's over," William told his father. "Showed up here after you left."

"Is that so?" Mathias didn't sound surprised. He looked like it had been a long night and was ready to collapse into bed. William thought he could smell blood, but didn't see any wounds on his father. "You'll escort her home when she's ready to head home," Mathias told his son.

"Sure, dad."

He wouldn't. By the time he rose from the dead in the afternoon, luckily before his father woke much later, both Astral and Kendra had gone. Astral returned before curfew with her favourite teddy bear.