Chapter Text
Adam never wanted to think about that day.
However, there was no way he couldn’t. It changed the entire course of his life. Well, his…”life.” Hearing those six, simple words changed his view of the world forever.
“You are not the real you.”
And now, here he sat, alone in his room. He didn’t want to talk to anybody. He didn’t want to be alive. This whole time, for over a decade of his life, he’d been fake. An alternate. From his earliest memory, he was already a fraud. He should’ve realized, how didn’t he know!? How didn’t he realize his infatuation with the paranormal wasn’t a usual thing that humans had? Questions flooded his every moment, with zero answers to be found. Everything he thought he knew was fake. Even if it explained so much about his life, it left thousands of other questions unanswered.
Jonah just wanted to hear from him again.
Despite the fact he was supposed to be dead, the reality was much simpler. He wasn’t. Sure, Adam had seen his body…but that was it. He didn’t check for a pulse, and he didn’t confirm Jonah’s status. However, just minutes later, somebody did. That somebody confirmed that Jonah, although suffering from hypothermia and undetermined injuries, was alive- barely. They had rushed him to the hospital, who- although unable to find the source of his numerous scars and bruises- were able to save him. He expected Adam to visit him in the hospital, before quickly remembering what had happened. Had Adam made it out of that house? Was he just being paranoid? Most of his fears were alleviated, however, when he saw a familiar face enter his room as a visitor. “Sarah?”
Sarah Heathcliff. She was part of the Bythorne Paranormal Society- founder of the Bythorne Paranormal Club- and it was nice to see her face again. Maybe she’d know something about-
“Adam told me you were dead.”
So, at least that answered one of his questions.
“Nope, I’m still here…surprisingly.” His voice sounded slightly strained, considering his current condition.
“Well, that’s a relief.” She sighed. “So, I have some bad news, and worse news.”
That was definitely not a great start to a conversation.
Before he could speak, Sarah continued.
“The bad news, Adam didn’t seem like he cared about you being dead.”
“…what?”
He felt…strange. Sure, he’d left Adam behind in that weird house. Sure, he could be annoying sometimes, but…not caring about him being dead?
“I’m- really sorry, Jonah. I know it’s hard to hear. I know you cared for him. A lot.” Sarah sounded genuinely sorry for him, her tone filled with almost pity.
“Well, what’s the worse news then?” He managed to ask, still reeling from the realization that Adam didn’t care.
“The worse news is that…well…nobody’s heard from him in about a week. We talked a bit over messages, but nobody’s gotten in contact with him since.”
Jonah couldn’t tell if that was worse or not.
Everything about this situation felt terrible. Not only did his best friend not care about his presumed death, but was also missing. And here Jonah was, in a hospital bed, waiting to be okay enough to be discharged.
That time couldn’t come faster.
From the moment Sarah left that room to the moment Jonah stepped outside of the hospital, all he could think about was Adam. He made it out of the creepy, old house, but where was he now? The only place he knew to check was Adam’s residence. After all, where else would he be? Jonah didn’t quite want to be behind the wheel of a vehicle again, so he decided to dial Sarah to ask her to pick him up. Well, that’s what he’d planned, anyway. He pulled out his phone, and immediately noticed a missed call from an unknown number. Jonah smirked to himself. He could take an opportunity to humor a prank caller before going to figure out if his best friend was dead or not. He called them back.
“Hello, this is Jonah Marshall speaking.”
“Perfect, I did have the right number.”
That wasn’t creepy at all.
The voice on the other end was unfamiliar, though not entirely threatening. There was still an uneasy feeling surrounding this call, however.
“Um. Who is this?”
“Right, I should’ve started with that. This is Cesar. Cesar Torres.”
Jonah nearly dropped the phone.
He’d only heard about Cesar before. Sarah had talked about him. Whenever she talked about her brother, Mark, Cesar was sure to be mentioned as well. “They were best friends.” She’d say. She never liked talking about it, but Jonah had managed to piece together the story. Mark got a call from Cesar’s number, asking for him to come over and turn on some cameras. He does so, and returns home, but is followed by an alternate, taking the form of Cesar. The alternate stood outside his room, and…Well, Sarah didn’t talk much about what happened afterward.
“How did you get my number? What do you want?”
“Sarah told me about Adam. I’m-...First of all, I’m sorry about…what happened.”
So Sarah did still talk to Cesar. Good to know. But…why was Cesar calling him? It seemed like it was about Adam, but…why?
“No, it’s fine. It wasn’t your fault.”
“Right, yeah. Still. Anyways, I was wondering if I could…help you look for him, I guess.”
“...What?”
“I know, it sounds weird! I just- I have a hunch. Of something.”
Again, that wasn’t creepy at all. A hunch? What could that even imply?
“A hunch? Do you mind…elaborating?”
“I don’t think I can. Just, please let me help you in this.”
Jonah sighed. He did need a ride, and- although he didn’t want to admit it- he was curious as to how Cesar acted in person. He’d only heard about the guy, so now might be his chance to put a face to the name, as it were.
“Fine, I’m standing right outside the hospital right now. You know the one.”
“Right, yeah, Sarah told me. I’ll be there in like five minutes.”
“Alright, see you then.”
And so it was. Jonah hung up, sticking his phone in his pocket and leaning against a pillar. The air was cold and crisp, making Jonah feel lucky that he had a jacket on. He sighed, looking up at the winter sky. All he could do was wait.
***
Cesar had never exactly been…”normal.”
He’d been tested for autism in the past, and- despite having a diagnosis- he still didn’t quite know the reason. He always felt…different, to say the least. Not in an observable way, and others didn’t quite comprehend what he was talking about whenever he’d bring it up, but it was an issue for him. Others always seemed put off by him, leaving him alone most of the time. He couldn’t even quite call himself “bullied,” moreso just…ignored. Avoided, almost.
So, that’s what made Cesar cherish his friendship with Mark Heathcliff that much more.
Cesar trusted Mark with all of his secrets, down to every last detail. And, in turn, Mark could trust Cesar with all of his…paranormal encounters, for lack of a better term. Cesar had always been fascinated by the concept, even though he never let it show around Mark. It was a deeply sensitive subject for him, considering Mark had his first run-in with the paranormal at only 4 years of age. Cesar had to be gentle with any subject regarding the supernatural, no matter how much he wanted to ask questions about it.
His interest quickly faded after the funeral.
A run-in with an alternate.
An alternate of him, of Cesar Torres.
It was a horrifying prospect. His best friend, killed by a fake wannabe. It filled him with anger, with guilt, with sadness. He felt almost fearful, especially since he didn’t even know there was an alternate of him, and he didn’t know where it was. It was still out there…somewhere.
Years passed. He stayed in contact with the Heathcliffs. Or, well, Heathcliff, singular. Sarah was a nice girl, and she understood that Mark’s death wasn’t Cesar’s fault. So, when Sarah told him her idea for the Bythorne Paranormal Club, he was happy to help out behind the scenes. It was hard, at first. Coming to terms with the very thing that killed his best friend. However, soon enough, Sarah had her first club member. Adam Murray, a student from Weksha High who had immense knowledge and interest in all things paranormal. Even though Cesar, having graduated by now, couldn’t see him in person, Sarah talked about him constantly. It was something to keep his mind off Mark’s death, listening to Sarah talk about the future of the club.
By the time the BPC became the BPS, and by the time Jonah Marshall joined, Cesar had nearly forgot about the incident entirely. He even started to doubt the existence of alternates, it was almost certain that the government just wanted to hide something!
Almost.
One winter day in 2009, Cesar was driving down I-94 when something- or someone?- caught his eye. He pulled over, quickly opening the door and racing over. There was somebody there, laying on their side in the snow. They were badly injured, and were probably suffering from some early hypothermia. Even in the harsh conditions, Cesar knew who it was. There was no time to worry about that now, though. He quickly placed two fingers to their neck, feeling a very soft pulse. He felt a rush of relief, there was still time. He quickly picked the person up, rushing them to his car. Cesar set them in the passenger seat, and immediately pressed his foot to the gas pedal.
He got a call from Sarah.
“Hey, have you heard anything from Jonah? Or Adam, for that matter? I can’t get a hold of–”
“Jonah’s hurt, we’re on our way to the hospital right now.”
“WHAT!?”
“I’ll call you back.”
“Cesar, you can’t just–”
And he hung up.
Cesar paced around the waiting room, anxiously awaiting somebody to come back to tell him that Jonah was alright. He could only listen to the sound of rubber on linoleum as the clock ticked in the background. A woman in light blue scrubs soon entered the room, looking at Cesar expectantly. He soon paused, turning to her. She took this as a sign to begin.
“Mr. Torres, can you come here for a moment?” She began, fiddling with her clipboard.
Cesar nodded, following the woman through the cream-colored halls of the emergency department. It didn’t take long before the woman stopped in front of a door, opening it and allowing Cesar to enter. In the center of the room, there laid Jonah, strapped to an oxygen mask. A heart monitor beeped next to him, seemingly slower than a usual heart rate should be. The nurse gestured for Cesar to sit down, and so he did. She seemed much too relaxed for the news to be bad, which eased his nerves slightly.
“So, we’ve determined that Jonah here is in a comatose state. However, as bad as that might sound, we only have good news from there. Most of the injuries he sustained weren’t in any vital areas, which he’s very fortunate for. You got him here fast enough that he didn’t experience severe hypothermia. Based on our test results, he should wake up in about a week- give or take.”
Cesar nodded, smiling softly. It sounded like Jonah would be okay. Even if he wasn’t exactly close with the guy, he wouldn’t want Sarah to have to go through a loss like that. Now that he thought about it, had Sarah heard about this? He’d have to call her later. For now, he thanked the nurse, telling her to give him a call if she had any more updates. He was just about to leave, when a thought struck him. Turning around, he spoke one last time to the nurse, “Once he wakes up, don’t tell him I brought him here. I’d like to remain anonymous.”
And with that, Cesar left the Mandela County Hospital.