The S-Gene (Book 1: Amelia) - COMPLETE
The Return

“NOAH!”

Tremors rattled Amelia’s entire body as she sat up in a snap, her hands crisped into fists. Her eyes were bulging but she couldn’t blink. She couldn’t even breathe. Amelia clutched at her chest, wincing in pain as she took in her surroundings.

So much light, everything was so bright…

Was this the end?

As everything around her became focused instead of blurry, the sound of her heartbeat trashed in her ears. But then, her heart stopped.

This…

This was… her place.

This was her apartment.

Her throat clamped up as her eyes shifted from left to right, recognizing everything that surrounded her. Every object, every piece of furniture. It was hers. Was this hell? Was this her personal hell?

She had died, and she went to hell. Her hell was her shitty life. That was it, that was the only explanation.

Amelia remembered the pain, the blood… it had been so warm, and then her body had felt so heavy. Noah and her had been running and… oh he had cried… She had wished…

Amelia stared down at her body, noticing her clean white t-shirt, and the grey sweatpants she was wearing. As she realized she felt no pain, her insides twisted. Had she imagined it?

She threw her legs over the bed and got up, touching everything around her to make sure it was real. It was. Nothing was vanishing, she wasn’t going through solid objects as though she was a ghost.

It couldn’t have all been in her head. What was the logical explanation? A coma? A hit to the head? She wouldn’t put it past herself to be that clumsy but no. She hadn’t hallucinated the last…. Who the fuck knew how long…

She was sure of it.

Her heart raced, her blood pulsing through and she ran to the bathroom. Her reflection was what hit first. She looked sick. Though she had woken up from a slumber, there were dark circles under her eyes, and her cheeks weren’t as plump as they used to be.

Even at the peak of her poverty, she looked better nourished than she did now.

Amelia slapped a hand on her cheek, her skin feeling dry beneath her touch. There was one way to confirm she hadn’t lost her mind. Her arms dropped by her side and she gripped the edge of her t-shirt.

A lump formed in her throat as she lifted it slowly, revealing more and more skin… She didn’t stop until it was high enough to show her wound. There. A bright pink scar. She used her free hand to touch it, wincing when she pressed.

It wasn’t old.

It wasn’t a few hours old, but it wasn’t weeks old.

So she did get stabbed.

Genecorp, Noah… all of it.

But what happened? How did she get here? How did she get back home? It didn’t make sense.

Her apartment was small, too small to hide anyone, yet it didn’t stop Amelia. She ran all over the place, opening every door, and looking under every hiding spot. As if Noah would be there, hiding and waiting.

Had she misspoken? Had she made a mistake when she wished?

Amelia turned the place upside down, tears building in her eyes. He wasn’t here. He was not here. Somewhere along the way, she found her phone. The one that was actually hers, the one she thought she would never see again.

She expected a lot of missed calls and many text messages. But there was barely any.

It wasn’t until she opened her messaging app that she realized why.

They used her phone. They pretended to be her. The entire time she was gone, someone texted her family and friends and pretended that she was fine. Bile burned her throat and she pinched her lips together to hold the vomit back.

So if she had never come back… what would they have done?

She scoffed at her own foolishness. Of course, they had a plan in place in case that happened. They had thought of everything. She had been a stupid moron who walked into the wolf’s den completely vulnerable.

And now…

Now she didn’t even know.

What was she supposed to do? Pretend it was all a bad dream? Forget about Noah? And what about her? She knew Genecorp did not like to tell the truth, but it was clear that she was a universal carrier.

What would happen to her now?

Were there bad guys out there, waiting to kidnap her? Would she be safe anywhere?

Maybe they couldn’t track her, but perhaps they did not have to do that…

Amelia did not know if her return home was done willingly by Genecorp or the result of something Noah did. Perhaps Genecorp would return and take her back or maybe they would get payback.

An easy way to do that?

They could tell anyone where she lived and then let them punish her for this escape.

Nothing and nowhere was safe.

Amelia crumbled to the floor, tears pouring out of her eyes. She backed up until she hit the edge of the bed, and then she wrapped her arms around her legs, burying her face in her knees.

And she cried and cried.

She was alone. She was in danger.

Most of all?

What the fuck happened to Noah?

***

This had to be by far the stupidest idea she ever had in her entire life. Yup. The stupidest.

She had a death wish or something.

Yet, there she stood, holding a pamphlet, staring at the way too familiar logo with a rush of adrenaline pumping through her. Genecorp. Amelia was about to walk right back in, like a fucking idiot.

She hadn’t known what else to do. Noah would hate her for it.

If he was alive.

She would hate herself for it.

What if this had been her only shot at getting out? What if she could never escape them again?

But what if Noah was hurt, or worse?

What if she was a sitting duck, waiting to be snatched away?

Amelia did not know how he did it. She was convinced she had made a wish and the wish had been all about him, not about herself. Yet there she was, free while he was nowhere to be found.

She knew how insane it sounded, but she was convinced that he would have come to her if he was out as well. She had waited days for it. He hadn’t. Nothing. She had browsed forums, she had answered every call…

But no trace of him.

Amelia didn’t Noah all that well. Yet, he had put everything on the line for her. Yes, she might be too late. Yes, she might be risking everything he sacrificed… but how could she leave him like that… knowing how far they could go?

They had to have kept him alive. They didn’t know about the lamp. Maybe they could come in with bargaining chips this time. She would do more. She knew more than when she started this process.

It had taken her days to track down a trial.

It had been so easy, so effortless the first time.

This time, it had been much different.

Was it because they were hiding themselves from her or because they were more careful than she knew?

It didn’t matter.

She had found one, and she was here.

All she had to do was walk in.

This wasn’t a life of freedom.

Amelia had lost weight, the nervousness of the situation taking her down. She did not leave her home, she did not venture out. Until now. How could she? It was ridiculous because there was no guarantee that her apartment was safe.

None of her neighbors would care if someone busted down the door. She didn’t think that anyone would call the cops. They could take her as she slept - which was also why she didn’t get much sleep.

She tried to stomach down food, but she couldn’t. Every sound rattled her, every sound scared her.

Whatever she had here, it wasn’t freedom. It was hell.

Was this outside so much better than the inside? They had created a world where… she could never be free. At least not this way. No, they had made it so that their way was her only way to freedom.

Well fine.

She was a universal carrier.

She had a few bargaining chips.

Unlike her, Noah could be free. For real.

Maybe a trade.

Because she couldn’t live this life.

She couldn’t see her friends and her family because she was terrified that it would put them in danger and she couldn’t do that. Amelia had nothing. Nothing but nightmares. Nightmares, night sweats, and panic attacks.

Now she would need that fake-ass anxiety medicine.

Amelia blew the air out of her cheeks, closing her eyes. She could do it, she could walk in. Her mouth was completely dry as she tried to swallow her inexistent saliva. Her heart was beating so fast she thought it would break through her rib cage.

She had barely pushed the door open when someone came to greet her. “Hello, may I help you?” She was a tall brunette, a smile plastered on her face. A fake smile.

“I-I’m,” Amelia began, her voice cracking. “I’m here for the sleep trial?”

“Yes, of course! Miss?”

Oh, if she put her name anywhere in their system it would probably ring alarm bells. They would know it was her eventually, but perhaps she could lie and buy herself a little bit of time.

“Jessica… Williams.”

“Perfect Miss Williams, come with me.”

She led her to a plastic green chair, gesturing for her to sit. Which Amelia did. Then she gave her a clipboard. “Please fill this out, and we will call you shortly.”

Amelia sat down and began filling it in. She bullshited the answers; her date of birth, her name. A fake address. She had to try to buy some time. None of the information could be real.

“Miss Williams?”

Would her blood give her away the second they would test it?

“Miss Williams?”

Oh. She was Miss Williams.

She scrambled to her feet and ahead in direction of the nurse at the end of the hallway. “Sorry, I was- lost in my thoughts,” she lied.

“No problem. Let me take that from you.”

Amelia handed her the clipboard and followed her down. Deja-vu much? The nurse led her to a small room. The same chair. The same table. And most of all? The same fucking machine that ruined her life forever.

“Are you alright?”

The question didn’t make sense until Amelia glanced down at herself. She was shaking like a leaf. Of course, she was. “Yes, sorry. I see needles and - they make me uncomfortable.”

“It’ll be a quick prick,” she said as she closed the door behind her. “We have a few components in our medicine that can cause some reactions. We test all potential test subjects first.”

Oh, so that was the new lie. Props to them, they didn’t re-hash the same bullshit every time. “That makes sense.”

She sat down in the chair, a spell of dizziness forcing her to grip the table as she plopped down.

“You can look away as I do it if you want.”

“It’s okay.”

She gave the nurse of finger and waited as she pricked her, the first drop of blood dripping. They would put that in the machine and then the unraveling of lies would begin. What would she do?

Would she have a chance to process this? No one had offered her water this time. She assumed that was what knocked her out. Were they going to use another method this time?

No, the doctor would come first.

Well second.

The first step was that lie.

Broken machine.

Like last time.

She knew the drill.

Ding.

Wait.

The light was yellow.

“Oh, unfortunately, your blood is high in a component that has been shown to react negatively with our medicine. I’m afraid we will not be able to accept you into our trial.”

Huh?

No, no. This was Genecorp. She knew this was Genecorp. This was their weird machine and she was… she was a universal carrier. She was.

“I-“

“I’m so sorry. Please, do try for other trials. Perhaps you will qualify.”

Amelia could hear the words but she could not process them. She wasn’t a universal carrier anymore. How could this be? How could Noah have done this? Why you dumb idiot?

So no one was after her.

No one was coming for her.

She was actually free?

She could live her life?

At the cost of Noah’s?

“Miss?”

Amelia cleared her throat, holding back the emotions that threatened to spill out of her. “Y-yes. Sorry. I - I was really counting on this.”

The woman offered her a small smile. “I understand. I do apologize.”

Fucking liar.

She wasn’t sorry, she wanted to move on to the next target.

Amelia let her escort her out of the room, facing the reality of her situation. She no longer had a bargaining chip. She didn’t have a way to get back in. She didn’t have anything anymore.

This had been her last lead to replace Noah.

Did she have to give up?

Even if she threw a tantrum and told him she knew the truth… They had no reason to keep her alive. She was of no value to them. So not only would she not replace Noah, she would probably die.

And then whatever sacrifice he did would mean nothing.

But how could she live knowing the price of her life?

She exited the building, a bittersweet taste in her mouth. The icy wind burned her cheeks as she stepped out and she shoved her hands in her pockets. Every sound around her was like a buzzing as she replayed the moment in her head.

A yellow light.

It shouldn’t have been.

Noah, stupid fucking Noah.

He had said he would protect her, even on the outside. He said to trust him. But she didn’t think he would do something so stupid. If she wanted, she could go back to being like everybody else.

But could she do that? Knowing what happened to him? Knowing what Genecorp was doing?

No one was stopping them. They could do and take as they pleased.

It wasn’t fair.

But what could she do? A coward, all by herself, with no money and no power? Could she take them down or would she simply die trying?

Was it worth it?

Thunk. Thunk.

Someone’s loud footsteps pulled her out of her thoughts. She turned her head but didn’t see anyone particularly close to her. What the heck?

She rolled her shoulders back, shaking her head. She was human, a normal human, right?

Thunk. Thunk.

Alright, that had sounded closer.

It wasn’t in her head.

Someone was following her.

She tried to hurry her pace, hoping it wouldn’t force her stalker to act quicker. Her stomach had dropped, and her legs became stiff. They had lied. They pretended that she was normal. She knew it didn’t make sense.

They wanted to make this quick, they wanted to torture her. Fuckers.

It didn’t matter what her pace was, the footsteps were getting closer and closer and her heart was racing. Her vision was tunneled, her shirt clinging to her armpits as she was covered in a layer of sweat.

She wouldn’t make it, would she?

Ahead of her, Amelia spotted a small back alley.

If she ran, she might be able to slip in without being noticed. She wasn’t stupid enough to think it would save her, but perhaps she would be able to see her assailant. Maybe it wasn’t Genecorp. Maybe it was a creature after her.

Tears slipped down her cheeks. This couldn’t be her life forever. She couldn’t do it.

Amelia used all of her energy to dash forward, her limbs weak and feeble as she ran. Her heart was beating fast enough to explode, but she did not stop. Her muscles were burning, and her throat was dry from her breathing… but she pushed forward.

Until she smacked into the brick wall. Pain spread through her face as it scratched against the wall, her palms on fire. She tried to control her breathing, but she couldn’t. She heaved, the air stinging her lungs, as she turned around.

She waited and waited… but no one. Had she lost them? Had they given up? Were they waiting for her to come out? Fuck.

Amelia took one step forward, hoping to get a better look when suddenly, she was pressed against the wall. She parted her lips, ready to scream. Except she couldn’t. Someone slapped a hand on her mouth, stifling her screams.

“Amelia. AMES!”

She knew that voice. “N-noah?”

Amelia blinked the tears away, her heart dropping to her stomach. She wanted to think she was crazy, she wanted to think she had hit her head and was hallucinating but no…

She knew those eyes.

Slowly, he removed his hand from her mouth, and then, he reached for his brown hood. He pulled it down, completely revealing his face to her. Her body was trembling as she threw herself at him.

Amelia wrapped her body around him, tears pouring out of her eyes. “Oh god.”

How could it be… Wait.

As quickly as she had hugged him, she pulled away. She gripped his shoulders, pushing his body from hers. “Are-…”

Amelia, smarten up.

It couldn’t be Noah. How could it be?

“It’s me.”

She’d been fooled before. Genecorp had figured her out from her blood? They had sent one of them after her? Another shady deal with a skinwalker? But she wanted this to be real. She needed him to be here.

“It’s me.”

He looked a little different. Tired. Flushed skin. He was sweating. Had she ever seen Noah sweat?

“How-“

“My necklace…”

He had used that line before. Maybe they had heard it.

“Our plan. I was gonna replace somewhere I can use my powers. You wished me human… You… you damn idiot.” He was crying. “We were at the club when we decided to fake it.”

“I really want it to be you,” she interrupted.

He reached for her face, cupping her cheek with his hand. Gently, his thumb brushed the skin beneath her eye. “It is me, Ames.”

“But h-how?” She had turned into a blubbering mess.

“Your stupid, stupid wish.”

“But if it worked…” She shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

He leaned forward, pressing her forehead to hers. “It worked. Amelia, it worked. But you were dying.” He glanced to the right, and then back at her.

"Let's... Let's get out of here. And I'll explain everything."

She could wait until they got back to the apartment. She could wait until they were alone.

With Noah.

Noah was here, he was alive.

***

Tea. Coffee. Juice. Basic necessities to offer a guest.

She didn't have any of that. Everything that was in her apartment when she left for Genecorp had gotten moldy - to put it mildly.

"Sorry, this is all I have," she said as she put down in front of him a glass of water.

Instead of reaching out for the glass, he reached for her hand. "Ames, in case you didn't notice, I'm not the epitome of wealth." He gestured to his body. "This is like my only outfit."

Right. He had known riches. He had basked in it after creating it - or whatever it was that Djinns did. Now, he had... nothing.

Amelia plopped down next to him. "Right." Human Noah. She didn't even know where to start. “So how did I end up home?”

“I made a deal - with them, a Djinn’s lamp never returns to normal. They always retain a bind, a bit of power. I told them, if they let me walk away, I would give it to them. But they had to leave you alone.”

It was obvious they wanted the power, but his lamp wasn't him. Plus, she assumed not a lot of people got away unharmed. It felt too easy. Also, was it easy for him to let it go? She knew it was a prison of sorts but... it had also been his home from what she understood.

“They agreed?”

“Initially, they didn’t want to but… when I explained to them… That you weren't a carrier..."

Amelia threw her hands up. "Yeah, how did that happen?"

"I didn't know if it was going to work... after your wish... but... The contract you signed, I had it changed.”

“What?”

“Blood binding. I poured a little of my soul into it. If I were to die…”

“I’d become normal," she finished. Amelia leaned into him, resting her body against his. "But you didn't die? Also blood and soul?" She stuck out her tongue, grimacing.

Noah chuckled as he used his free hand to lean back. "Djinns, we come from old magic. Blood magic and sacrifices. It's complicated."

"But if you could make wishes like that, why didn't you do that from the start?"

He shook his head. "I didn't make a wish. I had a binding contract with my master."

Ugh. That word made her feel dirty - and not the good kind of dirty. "So I signed that you could turn me human?"

"In a way. It was tied to me. I put a part of my soul, and if I were to die, it would happen."

"Wait, so you don't have a sou nowl?"

"I do. I probably won't live as long now that I'm... mortal. But, that's okay. I lived a lot of lifetimes."

Wait, so human Noah wouldn't live as long as her? Yes. He did live. Lived being the keyword. "But you didn't die?"

"I wasn't... I wasn't sure it would work. I assumed it did because I knew they were letting you go... they wouldn't have done that if you were still a carrier... I - I guess the death of my power and everything... activated the bond since the master-slave bond was broken."

Amelia buried her face in his chest, inhaling his scent, allowing it to soothe her. "It did work," she reassured him. "They tested me, and I wasn't a carrier."

Noah let out a breath, his chest caving. Relief. She had the same feeling, underneath the initial frustration. “Yeah… I wanted you to be safe but… there was only one wish left. I used it to make you normal. So they had to help you…”

“They fixed me up?”

“I wouldn’t give up the lamp. They didn’t know enough… so they got greedy. They wanted to get what they could now that I was no longer a Djinn and they lost their carrier.”

“Did they return me home?”

“I think so… They took you… and then I woke up in an alley. Alone. I wasn’t sure… I didn’t even know if you were okay.”

Noah pulled away from her, taking a deep breath. “It was… I thought I was gonna lose my fingers… I’d never been cold before. And hungry. Did you know how much humans need to eat?”

Through the tears, she laughed. “Yeah.”

“And then I had nowhere to go and no one trusted me. They treated me like… garbage. And money! I know about money but I had never been without it… or my powers… I didn’t know where to go. I didn’t know where you were…”

“How did you replace me?”

“I prayed they dumped us not too far from each other? And then I thought, Amelia, is an idiot. If I can replace Genecorp, I’ll replace her.”

“An idiot, huh?”

“I stalked that building for weeks.”

“Wait, weeks?”

“Yeah, why?”

“I-I woke up home a few days ago.”

“Oh.”

Amelia straightened up, hiding her face from him. “Sorry, it’s - a lot.”

So Genecorp had made a trade. Noah was human. She could have everything and she didn't believe it. They were so powerful, so almighty. They were everywhere with no one to stop them.

She was free but… “Do you think they meant it?”

“Meant what?”

“That we could go? That there was no repercussion for what we did?”

“Honestly?”

“Yeah. Always.”

“No.”

Brutally honest, but she preferred it that way.

“Oh-okay. So what now?”

“I lived a long time Amelia.”

“I know.”

“I have… resources in some places. Not here though.”

“In some places?”

“Come with me.”

She lifted an eyebrow. “What?”

“Let’s leave. Leave it all behind. You wanted a different life, a better life. I don’t know if it’ll be better, but it’ll be different. We’ll travel, we’ll never stay in the same place long enough. We’ll see everything. I wanna see it all, for real. I wanna do it all, as a human. I never had to worry about time… I never had to…”

She didn’t ask him if he wanted this. She wished for it.

“I’m sorry… about my wish.”

He shook his head. “No, this is… I know hunger, I know cold - I know warm. I can get hurt. You should see my arms. I had to learn that the hard way,” he added with a chuckle. “It’s fine. I’m alive. I spent centuries roaming the Earth…. And now, I’m finally alive, Ames. I wanna experience it all with you. I don’t know if it’ll be safe. Turns out I’m horrible at being human…”

So was she to be fair.

“But I don’t wanna wait here for the next shoe to drop. I don’t wanna spend my time looking over my shoulder. Let’s be free. Together.”

“Are you trying to romanticize being on the run?” She inhaled. “Forever?”

“I guess I am.”

It was insane.

She hadn’t recovered from what happened. Her entire world had been spun on its head. She had nothing. She barely knew Noah. Now there he was, offering her his hand and a whole life. One that might not pan out.

Being a human wasn’t something he knew. There were would be so many hurdles, and so much pain.

But maybe he was right, maybe there would be freedom.

No creatures to hunt her down. She was no longer a prey. All they had to do was avoid Genecorp’s wrath. Explore the world. Live it. For real. A life that was better than the one she had before. Better than whatever this mess was.

Amelia placed her shaky hand in his and squeezed.

“Alright.”

***

A/N: Yelp, there we are! I will see you all Monday for the Epilogue and final <chapter>.