Shun looks at the flashdisk, then back at me. "The beginning? When Jin—"

I gesture at him to go on quickly because the word "Jin" makes my eyes water and my chest constrict and my heart empty automatically. It probably has the same effect on Shun because he immediately continues.

"So, I unhooked myself. I got half-transparent, but it turns out it really doesn't matter, because it's just a simulator machine and not really someone's mind, so I'll actually be back to normal within a day—"

I  raise my hand. "How do you know that?"

"I'm getting there, okay?" Shun says with a laugh.

"Okay, no interruptions," I promise, and stuff another cookie into my mouth. Boy am I hungry.

"So yeah, it wasn't a big deal, but I didn't know that, so I let Mrs. Sato hook me to that machine. You know why they did that? Because it was a perfectly good chance to gain another brain to use as storage space and they seized it."

"Storage space? What?" I say, completely disregarding my promise to shut up just a couple of seconds before.

"Like, uh, computer memory. But computer memory and human memory work differently of course, so it's not like they can store human memory in a computer, in a hard drive or something. To store human memory, they need to store it in a human brain. And let's just say with that machine they hooked me to, they can store—uh—files of people's memories into my head. For back up. All the time they've been using that coma teacher's brain and they're kind of running out of space, and so when they saw what happened to me they thought cool, no one knows what happens when someone unhooks themselves so if we take this one in and use him as more storage space no one will ever suspect, they'll just think he'll be forever unconscious, poor foolish kid, because he was stupid and unhooked himself. Perfect. So they got me there, and as soon as all those people's memories come flooding in I realized what was going on, but couldn't do anything about it because I was tied and gagged. Good thing you came by."

He looks so honestly glad that I have to look away and wish feverently that I am not visibly blushing. I attempt to cover my sudden shyness by asking a thousand questions at once.

"So, um, what memories? You know where Mrs. Sato hides her cookies, because you have access to her memory? What else do you know? Does this mean that Mrs. Sato is, like, a 'bad guy'?"

"Mrs. Sato, yeah, and Mr. Yamada, also Mr. Kojima. And the nurse too, I think. These are the ones who dumped their memories into my head, at least. From what I've seen in those memories I doubt there are any others involved, but who knows... and as for what else I know, well, I know a lot of things. About everyone. The other teachers. The other students."

"But—what kind of things? Surely the other teachers and students couldn't dump their memories into your head too if they weren't involved?"

"Yeah, they weren't involved, but from all those classes, the 'bad guys'here have collected a lot of data. Data on those teachers and students. Their weaknesses. What they're most afraid of. How to successfully brainwash them. And with that machine—they dumped all this stuff, right into my head."

It sounds like the craziest thing I've ever heard but it certainly does explain how Shun found the cookies so easily.

"Sounds messy, huh?" Shun says, happily munching on another cookie. I can't believe him. After all of that, he's just sitting here freaking eating cookies like nothing was wrong. I feel tears sting my eyes again. I hate this. Good people produce such lovely harmonic chords in my heart and it's unfair and it makes me want to cry because it feels like a warm autumn afternoon and nothing makes me want to cry more than a warm autumn afternoon.

Shun notices, puts down the cookie and hurries over. "Hey, hey, don't cry. Are you all right?"

I wipe a tear away. "Are you? Are you all right? I don't know about you but I think being a human flashdisk sounds freaking unhealthy and yet you're like, acting like nothing is wrong and—" I'm aware that I have started rambling but I just can't make myself stop. "Does it hurt? Are you okay? You don't know how worried I—"

Before I erupt into another round of tears, Shun quickly cuts in. "No, nono no don't worry, I'm fine! I feel really normal, and I have you to thank for that because I don't know if I'd go into a coma too if they kept dumping stuff in my head for another week. I'm fine now, nothing hurts, okay? Shh, don't cry..."

I cry harder. "B-but back when you were plugged in... I saw... you were screaming, it was terrible, you can't say that you're completely fine just because—"

Shun frowns. "But it really didn't hurt, the memory dump part." And he snaps his fingers. "Oh, you probably saw what happened when my brain was processing the info regarding people's deepest, darkest fears. They dumped all of those in my head so I know pretty much what the whole school is afraid of since my brain had to go through all of them. Fire, plane crashes, stuck in a room full of snakes. Those aren't even the worst ones. Some of those people are really scared of crazy methods of torture, and you probably heard me when my brain was going through that. Makes sense?"

I stare at him. "And this is healthy because?"

"It's not," Shun says with a shrug. "Glad I'm rid of the machine now. You know what, it was pretty shitty, couldn't speak with that gag there so I couldn't even get help. I had no idea how long I could last with all this infodump, and you don't know how excited I was when I heard you were there, like thank goodness at least this is someone I can communicate with—"

His eyes are practically oozing sincerity. "So don't worry, I'm fine now, and thank you very much for coming to get me, yeah?"

I don't see how I can not worry when Shun has practically just admitted he has mentally undergone some hundred methods of torture,but I decide not to pursue the matter and instead try to switch to casual conversation in a more chatty, lighter manner.

"So, out of all of the fears you've seen, which is the weirdest?" I ask.

"Oh, definitely that one about being dunked into the toilet," Shun says without hesitation. I cover my mouth.

"I'm...sorry to hear that," I say. I am indeed sorry. Shun doesn't deserve to be mentally dunked into a toilet, and nor does anyone else. "You know whose fear that was? Not one of our classmates?"

"Not one of ours, they haven't stored those in me yet because they couldn't be absolutely sure of them until tonight," Shun says softly. "And that's what I need to talk to you about next. I figure we can chat here safely because I know for a fact from the info Mrs. Sato stored in my head that she's not going to be anywhere near this building tonight."

"And where would she be?" I ask.

"In our dorm building basement. Manning the machine that will put all our classmates through their greatest fears and torture them until they lose their minds. And become one of those." Shun points to the milling horde outside the window.

"Wha—"I begin.

"It happens toward the end of every school year. The machine affects the whole building, and the students in it will basically be rendered immobile by its effect and will be caught inside their nightmares until they have been completely brainwashed. It's actually quite a brilliant plan, you know? All those really good mindhackers with such talent, think about what Yamada and the others can do just by exploiting their brains. After a few more years they would be literally controlling an army of brainwashed alumni who are all mindhacking experts. They could pretty much take over the world with that, you see right? It happened to the upperclassmen. The teachers who weren't involved. All of them. And tonight is our turn."

My mind is a complete blank. "So... what now?"

"We have to get Sato out of the way, and turn off the machine before our classmates go insane and become like the rest of them. Good thing it's all in my head so I know how to do it. Bad thing is I can't go near the building, because I'd be affected too," Shun is speaking fast now, and has ripped the small whiteboard hanging from Mrs. Sato's office wall, rapidly drawing on it with a blue marker. "Here, I'll show you how to control the machine. You'll have to be the one who goes in and turns it off, since you won't be affected by it."

"—Me?Does it have to be me?" I protest.

I sound like a wimp, but I swear I'm not protesting because I'm afraid. I'm protesting because I don't have any faith that I can do it. I am not fast. I am not smart. My mind blanks out when I'm nervous. I can't think on my toes. I'm useless when it comes to anything fighting-related.

"It has to be you," Shun says sadly. "Trust me, if it were any other way I would do it, but I'm the same as the others. If I go inside or even close to the building, I'll become unconscious right away as well and I'd be useless. You're different. You heard what Mr. Yamada said, right? You're not like us. You're not going to be affected by whatever waves the machine sends. It has to be you."

I sniffle and nod and I stand up slowly. "Okay. I'll do it. I just—I just don't understand why I'm an anomaly? I'm such a normal mediocre girl. Does this have to do with my terrible mindhacking abilities? But I managed to conjure up an elega so shouldn't I be just like everyone else?"

Shun sighs. "I know part of the reason from piecing together the memories of Mrs. Sato and Mr. Yamada. You know what? Actually you're not the anomaly. We are."

If this were a TV show this would be the appropriate timing for the commercial break but it isn't a TV show so instead I say "go on."

Shun pulls out a file from one of the huge shelves behind Mrs. Sato's desk. "This is yours. Just look at all those records. See, what the teachers never told us was that when we have those simulated missions hacking into people's minds, it also basically opens our minds to be hacked by their machines. They know what we're afraid of, they know what makes us happy and sad and mad, they know everything. All that data, collected specifically for today, when they would use what they know against us to brainwash us so that we will completely follow their orders. Like the sleepwalkers you see outside. Normal, ordinary people most of the time—but when the orders are set, they follow. Tonight their order is to find you and kill you."

I shiver.

"The teachers are scared of you, you see. The entrance exam we all took, it was supposed to help find—I'm not sure how, they didn't store that part of info—out of all those thousands of students who signed up, the ones whose brains could be easily tapped into. All of us who got in, we're the anomalies, who unlike all the normal people out there did great on the test. We have vulnerable, 'open' minds that the teachers can hack, which is also why it takes us less effort to conjure up weapons during missions—'open' minds do that. But you, even though you did well on the test for some reason, you're a wildcard. Your mind is not as 'open' as ours. You couldn't successfully use weapons when mindhacking, and they couldn't tap into your mind at all. You would be the one problem that would interfere with their plan since they couldn't brainwash you, but just kicking you out  would also be suspicious. They tried to kill you last night, youknow. The intruder in the training rooms, that was Mr. Kojima in disguise. But he didn't manage to get you because Jin's bed was blocking the way and Katsuki was fighting him and before he could move further in I already unhooked everyone."

I whisper a silent thank you to Katsuki. A skinny, gentle guy who managed to fight valiantly nonetheless and most likely saved my life.And a silent sorry to Jin, for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"So, unfortunately for them, I'm still alive. And I'll stop their brainwashing and save my classmates if it's the last thing I do," I conclude. It sounds pretty cool but inside I have like zero confidence.

"Yeah, that's it," Shun pats me on the back. "That's the spirit. Have some confidence in yourself, you can do it if you believe. Let's go?"

I look at him. "Let's? I thought I'm the one who's going?"

Shun points at the horde outside the window, like it is the most obvious thing ever. "They want your blood. You're not getting anywhere close to our dorm building with these guys out there, so I'm gonna distract them. Sounds good?"

If I weren't already chilled to the bone, now I am.

"Sounds like you'll die," I whisper.

"Nah, I'm fast, remember?" Shun declares, eyes dancing. "I bet I can outrun every single one of them."

"But—"

"And don't forget, I know what they're afraid of. You go and don't look back. I'll make sure none of them ever touches you. Trust me."

I hate fiercely how there are still a hundred unanswered questions running in my head. I hate fiercely how I still feel like I don't know enough, like the info Shun has provided me aren't even half of what I really should know. I hate this school fiercely. I hate Mr.Yamada and Mrs. Sato and Mr. Kojima fiercely. I hate Shun fiercely for telling me to trust him to do the impossible, and I hate myself even more fiercely for immediately trusting him as I was told to.

I hate everything, but my classmates are out there for me to save, so I lace my sneakers and walk to the door.