Mall food courts always made me nervous. There are so many people, and none of them give a damn about what happens as long as it doesn't affect them. 

My family and friends were in the far corner, where I always sit, and they had cake and presents. Since none of us know my real birthday, this is the closest I get. 

If anyone looked at the setup, they wouldn't think it was a celebration. All that was there was a pizza and a card. My family was always tight on money, which I help with as much as a sixteen-year-old could while still in school, so I hardly ever received presents, especially since I wasn't their biological child. Despite the lack of finesse, I always appreciated the thought they put into everything.

I smiled at my mom and sister and sat next to Michaella. She slipped me a small box under the table, and I hooked our fingers together in our secret thank you. 

She always made me these little intricate presents that took almost the whole year, and I did the same for her. We had been best friends since I was adopted by this family. We were both outcasts who found comfort in each other's weirdness. 

I saw a man who looked a bit too well dressed to be at a mall on a Friday afternoon, and I made sure that I would remember his face. 

"You okay? You seem a little out of it." Michaella's words snapped me out of my daze, and she laughed at the utterly confused look that was on my face.

I shook myself out of the daydream. "Y-yeah, yeah I'm-" I saw more people who looked eerily similar to the man from before. I counted them up, and there were exactly as many people as creepy cars outside, and they were all looking at me. 

I shook Michaella gently, motioning to keep quiet. I signed to her what was going on. 'There are a lot of weird people walking around. They're really well dressed, and I noticed the same amount of cars outside. All of them are looking at us. We need to go.'

'What's going on' she signed back to me. 

'I'll explain later. For now, we have to get everyone out of here. Follow me.' I stood up and started walking away. 

"Where are you going Caelus? I thought we were just gonna stay here." I smiled at my mom. 

"I think that we could have a better time at home, where there are fewer people. I have to take care of a few things, I'll see you at home!"

I continued walking away with Michaella hot on my heels. I kept my eyes on the weird people, and, as I expected, they were following me. I ducked into Spencer's, where I worked part-time and ran to the back. 

"Where are you going?" Michaella was having a hard time keeping up. 

"I'm getting us out of here." I went into the back of the store and into the small bathroom. 

I took out my contacts and stared at my reflection. My purple eyes started to glow and I saw everything that was going on that concerned me. I turned to where the front of the shop was and saw the heat signatures of the people following me. I ran back to where Michaella was, but she was nowhere to be found. 

I walked out of the shop looking for her signature, but I couldn't find it. I couldn't see my families either. I ran outside, and there they were. 

Each individual member was being restrained by someone. One particular woman, who I recognized as the CEO of NextGen, walked up to me and I took a defensive stance. I heard her mutter something under her breath.

"If you have something to say to me, say it to my face," I spat at her, making her jump in shock. 

"I apologize, I was merely stating how fascinating you are. You came to the aid of these people, and you collected data like no  other I've ever seen before."

I searched for the quickest way out of this situation, and how to get everyone free. "What are you talking about?"

"It seems as if memories weren't on the top of his to-do list." She scribbled something on a clipboard and looked at me again. 

My eyes went red, and I started advancing slowly. "What do you want with my family?"

She shook her head and chuckled. Before she could say anything. Michaella stomped on her captor's foot and threw something to me. "Get out of here!" she managed to yell before she was recaptured. 

The thing she threw me was a little dog tag with the name Denali engraved into it. I looked at the woman again. "It's not them that you want. It's me." She looked pleased with herself. "I'll make you a deal. I will go with you, with no struggle, or pushback-"

"No! You can't just let them take you!" The man covered Michaella's mouth and pulled on her hair to keep her quiet. 

I stepped forward defensively and glared at the woman. "On two conditions." She gestured for me to continue. "One, no harm comes to my family or my friends, regardless of what happens to me. And two, you answer any question I have honestly."

She looked to her goons, who released everyone. "I think we have a deal. Now, come with us

Caeli."