It's our last day at the kindergarten.

The fucking government announced the close-down just a day ago so that no one has the time to prepare.

No one who's not me.

I, obviously, spent the last week preparing the children to survive without me by their sides. I also implemented the first phase of the lamb-disbanding protocol, discarding the decorations I made for them. They enjoyed tearing them apart so much, like little corgis with a rubber chicken, shaking their big heads, destroying in a happy haze. It was one of our funniest days ever. We laughed so much.

Today, on the other hand, we cried a lot.

Especially Nicole. The news hit her the hardest. I haven't told her about my prognosis of the shutdown's date, to save the children from the sight of her puffy face for an entire week.

I said goodbye to her, and I promised to call her frequently to talk about the children, to alleviate our withdrawal symptoms. I'll need it as much as she will. The only difference is that in her case, withdrawal symptoms may materialize as extensive crying, and stalking my lambs' parents in mine.

She begged me to do outdoor activities with her, too, to save her from going crazy because she has nothing to do. I hate all kinds of outdoor activities, but they aren't banned, at least, so I said yes. Except for roller skating. That would kill me. Okay, that's what I told Nicole, but the whole truth is that there's a 33% chance that I would die and a 68% that I'd suffer permanent injuries, so I didn't exactly lie. My brain uses resources to think instead of movement coordination, sorry.

So we'll hike, wearing a mask. Out there, in a grimly unpredictable environment with too little concrete for my taste. Sounds survivable. Not great, not terrible.

Not nearly as painful as saying goodbye to my class was. We sang Hakuna Matata for the last time, and we repeated the most important safety rules. I also kissed their foreheads. I even allowed them to hug me and rub their snotty noses against my face, using the last bits of my self-control in the process.

I'm at the end of my rope. It's been a harrowing day.

So when I notice Mint standing outside, leaning casually against a tree, as if he was my boyfriend, waiting for me at the end of a busy day to see me home, I don't react well. I try to walk past him.

I know he's not that kind of person, but disregarding his overwhelming presence seems to be the only feasible option. There's too much of him, just the way he stands there, presenting another unbearable stimulation to my nervous system.

When he grabs my arm, I close my eyes and pretend that he's not there.

He doesn't react well, either.

He tightens his grip until it hurts too much to keep my eyes shut.

"Will you look at me, at least?" he groans. "Do I disgust you, or what?"

"I'm just exhausted," I answer, trying to avoid his livid gaze.

This day is too much. I've been counting on a possibility like this, but not for today. I thought I had another week or so before I meet Mint again. It seems that he's faster than I believed.

"You seem to be able to walk just fine. Stop lying."

"Mentally," I explain.

"Mentally, huh? What did exhaust your poor brain so much? Trying to come up with a scheme to facilitate my demise?"

I pretend not to understand the insinuation.

"Saying goodbye to the children in my class."

"How touching. Well, you're about to say goodbye to all your other precious relationships, anyway, so it's good you practiced."

I'm still waiting for him to come up with the nature of the relationship he talks about, but he seems to be determined not to mention Duke's name.

"You're coming with me," he states.

"No."

"I didn't ask for your opinion. Not this time."

I try to pull away from him. It's a bad idea, and he makes it evident in the blink of an eye. His iron grip makes my arm go numb. I breathe out three times.

"What's the matter?" he sneers. "See, now I'm touching you. Without warning. What will you do about that?"

"Let go of my arm," I command him.

He doesn't even flinch. Damn, again, he's so much faster than I thought. I can't help but nod appreciatively.

"It seems that you overwrote your imprinting since the last time we met," I congratulate. "Well done. You're free from me now."

"Yeah. Your betrayal kinda helped to accelerate the process, I guess."

"It's a huge achievement, Mint, and, believe it or not, I'm happy you managed to get rid of our old ways."

"I don't give a shit about your opinion, Elise. You're not Gabriel, you said so, so I don't need to listen to you, in the first place."

"Exactly. Now we can—"

"Oh, and you're a liar. I almost forgot that. A fucking lying turncoat."

"Will you please stop beating around the bush?" I snort. "I can't feel my arm anymore! Just say what you will, and let's get on with—"

His clasp on my arm makes me choke on my words. It makes me wonder if he's strong enough to break my arm with his bare hands. It certainly feels like he is.

"You promised me not to help Duke," he hisses.

"No," I moan. "I promised that I wouldn't help him against you."

"When you help him, it's automatically against me!"

"I helped him to reach the best outcome."

"Your best outcome," he points out, "is my worst outcome."

"I don't think so. There is a 79% chance that—"

"Shut up!" he shouts at me. "I don't care about your stupid numbers! You were with him! With! Him! At his place! You like tea and peanuts, don't you? Are you really that cheap? Huh?"

He finally releases my arm, abruptly, as if he's repulsed by me. It was about damn time. I cry out and almost fall to my knees.

This day is too much. I don't have much time left until I can't control myself anymore. I wish I could use Mint's body as a boxing bag. By punching him, I could let the steam out, and he wouldn't feel anything. But I'm not sure I'd survive if I tried. Not now. Even if he didn't hit back, my knuckles would suffer ice burns from his skin, he's so cold.

"How did you know?" I ask before his death stare pierces a hole into my retina. "Were you following me?"

"Don't flatter yourself. I was looking for some documents, and that idiot still lives in the same place."

"Were you looking for the formula?"

"Yeah. It's not in the lab. It's not in the old headquarters. It's not in Duke's flat. He hid it somewhere else, or Mr. Toe has it. One thing's sure, something's off. But enough of the chitchat. Let's go."

"Are you trying to kidnap me to keep me away from Duke?" I ask him frankly.

"I'm not trying. I do or do not. And I don't give a shit about you and Duke, or whatever the fuck you two were doing together, in a cozy flat with a huge bed in the middle of the room. I need you to find the documentation for me."

"Okay," I sigh. "I'll go with you on one condition."

"You're in no position to dictate, in case you failed to notice."

"What if I scream?"

"I kill you."

"Come on," I snort. "Cut the bullshit, Mint. If we're to work together, I need the truth from you, and the truth only."

"Okay. If you scream, I have to knock you out. And it's something I'd rather avoid because you're so small and weak, and it might cause you a brain injury."

"Right." I smile derisively. "I already have my share of problems in that department, no need to multiply them."

He stares at me again, but this time with an epic amount of confusion in his eyes, replacing the murderous intent.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" he lashes out. "Stop talking nonsense! Are you trying to distract me, or what?"

"I just—"

"You just can't stop playing these fucking mind games, can you? What will you come up next time with, huh? You forgot how to add two and two? You have a brain tumor that makes you freeze when I touch you without warning? Or what? Come on, keep lying."

This day is too much. I need to close my eyes and do a little rocking. And scream. How bad can getting knocked out be? It doesn't sound that bad, does it? It has a peaceful ring to it. Out. Out, in the oblivion. Away from Mint's painfully loud words.

"I bet you weren't such a delicate little flower when—never mind. I don't care."

"Don't you?" I huff. "Okay, then stop asking me in a thousand indirect ways if I slept with Duke or not."

For a second, it seems that his head's going to explode. Then, he breathes out and shrugs.

"As you wish. It's none of my business, anyway."

Wow, he's stubborn. I can't help but grin. I have no idea why I find his obstinacy so cute. The angrier he is, the cooler he seems. He's always been like that. And now, he's outraged.

I really should be more careful when dealing with him. With his conditioning gone, I'm facing the most dangerous criminal in the world without a safety net. No secret codeword to stop him. No voice in the darkness and other angel bullshit to influence him to do what I want.

"My arm still hurts," I tell him.

"Okay, very good," he answers. "Will it make you stop protecting me now?"

I refuse to answer. I roll my eyes instead. I don't dare to mention his newly acquired knack for repetition and my heartfelt approval of it.

"You're hopeless," he says, stepping closer to help me rub my arm.

I'm doing it wrong because his method makes the numbness go away in a minute. Still, this day is too much. I can't keep the facade up anymore.

"I need to scream," I warn him. "Like, seriously. Knock me out or not, I'll—"

"Okay. You can scream in the car. I'll turn the music up."

I stare at him.

"This way," he points at the end of the street.

It's my last chance to resist. I don't have any calculations to prop my theory up, I'm too tired to run them even in the background, but hey, normal people make decisions like this all the time. He might rethink everything if I refuse to move. He—"

He furrows his brow and picks me up, carrying me over his shoulder like a rolled-up rug.

Okay. I guess I'm officially kidnapped.