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"They--IIf you went back in tirandfather before you were born, then you wouldn’t be able to go back in tirandfather"

"Why would you want to kill your grandfather?" I twisted the straw in my strawberry Frappuccino to produce that unique straw-in-a-lid squeak

"The point is that just showing up changes history," he said Like I was the one who brought up time travel

"Do we have to talk about this?"

"What else is there to talk about?" His eyebrows climbed toward his hairline Mitchell had very bushy eyebrows It was one of the first things I noticed about hi I noticed Cuticle care can tell you a lot about a person

I pulled out my phone and texted Lizbeth:

help etat me very intently

I shook my head "Just bored" A lie Of course I was scared I kneas being mean, but I couldn’t help it For some reason I can’t explain, I wasyes to a date with a guy I wasn’t actually interested in OrBen Parish, which wasn’t his fault But still

help u do wat?

"I don’t care e talk about," he said He was looking toward the rose bed, swirling the dregs of his coffee, his knee popping up and down so violently under the table that led

mitchell I didn’t think I needed to say any ?"

told u not to go out w him

"Nobody you know," I said dont knohy i did

"We can go soo to a movie?"

"There’s a curfew," I reminded him No one was allowed on the streets after nine except ency vehicles

lol to ?"

"No," I said "I told you what I was"

He pursed his lips in frustration He didn’t knohat to say

"I was just trying to figure out who they ht be," he said

"You and everybody else on the planet," I said "Nobody actually knows, and they won’t tell us, so everybody sits around guessing and theorizing, and it’s all kind of pointless Maybe they’re spacefaring micemen from Planet Cheese and they’ve come for our provolone"

bp doesnt know i exist

"You know," he said, "it’s kind of rude, texting while I’ to have a conversation with you"

He was right I slipped the phone intoto me? I wondered The old Cassie never would have done that Already the Others were changinghad changed, especially ht back to the topic that I said boredsite"

I had heard In Death Valley That’s right: Death Valley

"Personally, I don’t think it’s a very s out the welcome mat"

"Why not?"

"It’s been three days Three days and they’ve refused all contact If they’re friendly, ouldn’t they say hello already?"

"Maybe they’re just shy" Twisting ently to produce that se the new kid," he said, the new kid

That can’t be easy, being the new kid I felt like I should apologize for being rude "I was kind of aveabout the aliens, not hi about me, which was about neither

"It’s okay," he said "I heard you don’t date much"

Ouch