The fleeting thought was there, that maybe she should eat in the bathroom again, but the situation didn't feel that desperate. Albert and Billy whispered right before Marie got to their table and stopped when she sat down. She opened her lunch box, taking out her sandwich box. She pulled it out of its container, took a bite, and pointedly refused to look at the boys at all.

"Where were you this morning?" Albert asked as Abe sat down with his lunch.

"Wandering the halls," Marie said, not looking at any of them.

"Without us?" Abe asked.

"Well, you know. I... I don't have to do everything with you guys, right?" Marie asked, wincing as she said it. She hated how she had to push her friends away to keep them safe.

She took a huge bite of her sandwich, chewing it slowly. Marie knew they had questions, but she wasn't sure how much she could tell them. A part of her turned numb. In a week she'd leave, and she might not see her friends again. She had been so desperate to make friends, and she truly found amazing guys. She would miss them.

"Come on, Marie. We're your friends. You can tell us anything," Albert said.

She continued to slowly chew before swallowing. "I can also...not tell you anything, and you'd still be friends. Right?" Marie hoped she didn't sound as desperate as she thought she did.

"Yesterday was super strange, and I think we deserve answers," Billy said.

"We don't like to see you suffer," Abe said.

The thought of them waiting for her at school one day and her not showing up broke her heart. She wanted to let them know, clue them in a bit, so they would be prepared. They'd never stop asking questions until she was gone, and it risked putting her in a situation where she might sing.

But could she tell them? This was a huge responsibility.

Part of her said yes. She had no idea how strong of a hold the S.E.A. had on the general public until she caught a glimpse of it with Mr. Edison, and she wanted to spread the news to everyone. The S.E.A. was dangerous, and she wanted to fight back. Somehow. She wasn't sure yet how, but she'd be with the underground soon.

There had to be a way to communicate with them without the S.E.A. knowing. She considered dragging her friends into Mr. Edison's office so they could talk, but what with Mr. Edison constantly telling her she was too young, she doubted he would allow her to bring her friends into the mix. And it was too dangerous to be around Mr. Edison right now. She considered breaking into his office to steal the device, but felt it was too extreme.

Marie froze when she saw it. Billy had an open notebook next to him with something scribbled on it. Why hadn't she thought of this before? Marie reached out and took his notebook. Billy gave her a questioning look as she flipped to a clean page. She scrawled as fast and as legibly as possible.

"I can't tell you, okay?" Marie set the notebook on the table between the three of them.

I am bugged.

The boys leaned in to see it. There was a beat of silence as they read it, then a beat more as they took it in. Marie tapped the second piece around her ear. Billy was the first to recover from the shock. He took his notebook back and began scribbling.

"I've seen this before. You're too embarrassed to tell us you're on your period, aren't you? Because we're guys," he said.

Marie paused, then grinned as she realized how much of a genius Billy was. Abe and Albert did not meet Marie's eyes.

"Yes, yes that's it. Can we please not talk about this."

Billy lifted up the notebook for her to read.

Tell us EVERYTHING!

Albert and Abe nodded.

"Then don't worry. You don't have to talk to us. Sit there quietly and eat your lunch," Billy said.

Marie smiled, feeling relieved, letting it trickle into her words. "Thank you, Billy."

The guys tried to have a normal conversation. Marie took the notebook back and wrote down almost everything from the time she stumbled upon Mr. Edison not singing, to the S.E.A., to her chat with President Arnold. She almost wrote down the blackmail but hesitated. The too recent memory of Mr. Edison's frightened face came back. The knowledge was too powerful, and the reason why she and her dad would eventually leave in a week. She'd better keep it to herself for now. She wrote about how there was more information, but because she stumbled upon it, she's going into hiding in a week, and wasn't sure if she'd ever see them again. For a good seven minutes she wrote before finishing up and passing it over to her friends. They read it one by one. Albert looked somber. Abe looked disturbed, and she figured it was because he planned on being a part of the S.E.A. when he grew up. She could have sworn Billy looked excited, and a hint of a gleam appeared in his eyes, the gleam he always got when discussing conspiracy theories. He must be holding back his excitement from stumbling into a true conspiracy.

Marie felt a huge weight lift off her chest. She realized she could give her dad this same message, and the thought made her almost giddy. She could warn him what was coming so they wouldn't get into situations where it would make her sing. They might even start to build their relationship now before getting into the underground.

She ached to have all her relationships on a more solid foundation. She could even do this with Sophie! Marie frowned in thought. Sophie was trickier.

Billy pushed his notebook towards her. What's the next step?

Marie scribbled her reply. I can't sing. From now until midterms, I've got to keep my emotions in control.

It was Albert's turn to write a note. Where will you go?

Marie picked up the pen again. I'd rather not say. Just in case.

Abe wrote this time. Are we ever going to see you again?

Marie frowned when she read his question and couldn't bring herself to look at her friends. Slowly she looked up at Abe and shrugged. She saw his melancholy face deepen and it hurt to see.

I'll find a way to get a hold of you guys. I promise, she wrote.

The bell rang and Marie thought lunch was crazy short. She glanced around, seeing the cafeteria wasn't as full as before, but there were still some students chatting. Marie wrote one last note.

Billy, burn this paper. It's dangerous.

Billy nodded as he tore out the sheet of paper and stuffed it and his notebook in his backpack.

***

Marie packed up from drawing class. She put her notes away and waited for the bell to ring when Albert came over to her.

"Hey," he said.

"Hi."

Albert looked like he was struggling to say something. "I just... are you going to be okay? Later today?"

Marie bit her bottom lip as she thought of going to the S.E.A. It would be her first time going since she knew of the blackmail.

"Yeah," Marie said, not sounding convinced. "Yeah, I'll be fine."

Albert frowned as he studied her face. Marie tried to smile. The bell rang and Marie looked away. Albert looked like he wanted to hold her hand, but hesitated.

"I wish I was going with you," Albert said.

Marie instinctively covered her hand over her second piece. "No you don't."

"Be careful, okay?"

Marie nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Albert paused, then gave her a hug. Marie hugged him back, realizing how scared she was. She memorized everything about this moment, just in case she needed a calming memory in the days to come.