Chapter 46: The Sketch

Ethan's POV

Hearing a loud bang, the library door slammed shut behind us. The sound could be heard all the way down the empty hallway. I could hear my heart beating so fast. Reed's robot army was almost upon us, but Alex seemed to be in trouble.

"Alex!" As he fell forward, I grabbed his arm. The blue lines on his face were getting brighter and wider, like ice cracks. "Stay with me!"

"Can't... Reed is..." It sounded like someone else was trying to speak through Alex's voice. When he rolled his eyes back, they were only white.

Professor Chen grabbed Alex's other arm. "We need to get him to the signal blocker in my cabin. It's our only chance to slow down the victory."

Emily was already running ahead, her flashlight cutting through the darkness. Campus guards would be here soon. The robot versions of our missing friends were probably looking for us right now.

We pulled Alex between us as he fought against something inside his head. Every few steps, he would jerk like he was being shocked.

"No," he whispered, then louder, "NO! Get out of my head!"

"Almost there," I panted as Chen's cabin came into view. My legs felt like jelly, but I couldn't let Alex down. Not now.

We burst through the cell door and Professor Chen immediately turned on her signal jammer. The humming sound filled the room, and Alex fell onto the couch, gasping for air.

"Better?" I asked, kneeling beside him.

Alex nodded weakly. "A little. But Reed is getting stronger. I can feel him pushing harder every minute."

Chen was already at her computer, typing fast. "According to my calculations, you have maybe six hours before the change is complete. After that..."

She didn't need to finish. We all knew what would happen. Alex would become another one of Reed's robots.

"There has to be something we can do," Emily said desperately. "Some way to fight back."

"Actually," Chen said slowly, "there might be. But it's dangerous."

We all turned to look at her.

"The nanobots need to fully map Alex's brain patterns to replace his consciousness with Reed's. But if we could confuse them somehow, overload them with conflicting knowledge..."

"How?" I asked.

"Strong emotional memories. The kind that make unique brain patterns the nanobots can't easily copy. If Alex could focus on his most strong memories, it might slow down the process."

Alex sat up straighter. "What kind of memories?"

"The ones that mean most to you. The ones that make you who you are."

I looked at Alex, remembering all the times we'd shared together. All the late-night talks, the stupid jokes, the times when I caught him looking at me with those green eyes...

Wait.

"I'll be right back," I said suddenly, making for the door.

"Ethan, where are you going?" Emily called after me.

"To get something. Watch Alex. Don't let Reed take control."

I ran across campus as fast as I could, dodging between buildings and staying in the shadows. The robot students were still out there somewhere, looking. But I had to risk it.

Our college room was dark and quiet. I flipped on the lights and went right to Alex's desk. I knew he kept his art supplies there, but I was looking for something special.

His sketchbook.

I'd seen him drawing in it countless times, always closing it quickly when I walked by. He said it was just random doodles, but I'd always been interested.

I found it under a pile of textbooks and opened the cover.

My breath caught in my throat.

The first page was a picture of me. Not a quick sketch, but a thorough, careful drawing that must have taken hours. I was sitting at my desk, reading, totally unaware that Alex was watching me.

I flipped to the next page. Another picture of me, this time laughing at something Alex had said. The way he'd captured my face, the joy in my eyes... it was perfect.

Page after page, the sketchbook was full of pictures of me. Me studying in the library. Me working out at the gym. Me sleeping (which was kind of creepy but also sweet). Me eating pizza while we watched movies.

Some of the pictures were from months ago, based on the dates written in the corners. Alex had been drawing me since almost the day we became roommates.

At the bottom of each page, he'd written little notes: "Ethan helping me with math homework. He's so patient."

"Ethan's smile when he's really happy. I wish I could make him smile like this more often." "Ethan fell asleep reading again. He looks peaceful."

My hands were shaking as I turned the pages. How had I never noticed? All those times I caught him looking at me, all those moments when he seemed like he wanted to say something but didn't...

The last drawing took my breath away. It was both of us, sitting on our beds facing each other, talking. But in the picture, we were holding hands, and we both looked... happy. Really, truly happy.

Under it, Alex had written: "What I wish could happen but probably never will."

I closed the sketchbook and held it against my chest. Alex had been in love with me for months, maybe longer. All this time, while he was pretending to be Emily online, while he was lying and deceiving me... he was also making these beautiful drawings that showed exactly how he felt.

I had to get back to him. I had to show him that his feelings weren't one-sided.

I ran back to Chen's cabin as fast as I could, the sketchbook tucked under my arm. But as I got closer, I could see something was wrong. The windows were shining with that same blue light we'd seen at the library.

I burst through the door and froze.

Emily and Professor Chen were standing exactly still, their eyes glowing bright blue. Robot models, just like the others.

And Alex was standing in the middle of the room, but his whole body was covered in blue lines now. When he turned to look at me, his eyes were glowing too.

"Hello, Ethan," he said in Reed's voice. "Thank you for bringing that sketchbook. Alex's thoughts of you will be very useful for my collection."

I backed toward the door, but it slammed shut behind me.

"You see," Reed continued, using Alex's words, "I needed to see what Alex cared about most. And thanks to you, now I know. His love for you is his strongest feeling, which means it's also his greatest weakness."

"Alex!" I shouted. "I know you can hear me! Fight back!"

For just a second, Alex's face twisted, like he was fighting against something. "Ethan... run..."

Then Reed took control again. "Too late. Alex is mine now. But don't worry, you'll join him soon. I have such great plans for all of you."

The blue lines on Alex's face pulsed brighter, and I realized with horror that the change was almost complete. In minutes, maybe seconds, the real Alex would be gone forever.

I gripped the sketchbook tighter and made a desperate choice.

"Alex!" I yelled as loud as I could. "I love you too!"