Taylor did her best to ignore the nagging from her theater friends at lunch. " Where have you been," They'd asked. " Why were you so distant?"

     Truth be told, she didn't want to talk to them. Yet, she did. She didn't want them to keep worrying. Joseph adapted a routine of watching her from across the room whenever he could. Since the night she'd crawled into his backyard, he had been weirdly protective. 

     It had been two days since the email about a job came through. If it weren't for the situation at hand, Error would've been happy to accept. Maybe she would've done it even with the situation. Yet, Joseph had seen it, and she couldn't blow her cover around him. 

     Not only had her host seen the message, but he had bugged her about not answering anything electronically for a while. He was worried someone would 'track the conversation'. Taylor wished she could've told him that it was impossible to track anything from her phone due to the impenetrable walls of code. 

     Taylor had not been back to her house since the incident. She wasn't sure what had happened to her parents, Micheal, or even those strangers. After school that day, Joseph had promised to walk her to her house. 

     " Tay? Are you feeling alright? I know you're reserved, but not usually this much." A friend of hers, Andy, poked her cheek. His mop of platinum blonde hair nearly covered his dark brown eyes. 

     The gender-fluid girl pushed his hand away and shrugged. " I'm feeling fine. Just a bit of drama back home. It's messing with my mind a little bit." The lie was smooth and surprisingly better executed than she'd imagined it being. 

     Andy accepted that reply and moved on, " So play practice is supposed to run a little overtime today because Mrs. Muce wants us to practice with props today." Taylor's blue eyes widened in surprise.

     " Oh shoot, is that today?!" She ran a hand through her hair and groaned. Andy laughed a bit.

     " Relax, if you have other things to do, Mrs. Muce will be totally chill about it." Her friend was making her a little jealous with his carefree attitude. " Plus, you work the lights. I wouldn't fret over missing one practice."

     Taylor obviously manned the lighting. She felt in control behind a desk with switches and buttons. It was like a different version of a keyboard. She was offered a part in the actual production, but she'd always done lights, and this performance would be no different.

     She snuck a glance over at Joseph. His head snapped back to the upside-down book he was staring at. She supposed he could go home by himself. His house wasn't that far of a walk anyway, she could do it safely after practice. 

     " No."

     " Joseph, I swear I'll be fine." Taylor pushed. " I don't need baby-ing." The end of the day had come far too quickly. Her host was not taking the news of her practice very lightly. " I don't want you waiting for two hours just for me to finish with the lights."

     His chocolate eyes were angry at her for even suggesting that she walk back alone. " I can wait," was his only retort.

     " Your mother will freak if you come home late and without notice." She pointed out.

     He rolled his eyes. " She'll freak out even more if you're not with me. I'm staying."

     " Fine." Taylor through up her hands, finished with the argument. By now the halls were emptied of all other students. It was just them and the few teachers that were also leaving. " But, Mrs. Muce doesn't allow outsiders in the theater while we're practicing. She says it ruins all sense of surprise you'll have when seeing the show later."

     Her final attempt to sway him had not worked. Instead, Taylor found herself in the lighting booth while the other theater kids sang and danced on stage. Joseph was by her feet on the ground. Mrs. Muce couldn't see him there, and it was a better solution than going home alone in her host's mind. 

     Joseph watched in fascination as Taylor gently changed the lights in perfect harmony with the stage. She never missed a queue and managed to make the production that much more amazing with her talent.

     Taylor found it hard to mess up with such a simple task. She got to listen to music and control effects at the same time. It was a win-win situation for everyone. Joseph was entertained just by watching her, and she was amused at his child-like wonder. That was also a win-win.

     Mrs. Muce always guaranteed Taylor anything she wanted when it came to their production. Taylor had been with the teacher since her freshman year and never ceased to amaze her. If the teen had wanted one of the lead roles in any performance, it would've been given to her faster than you could believe.

     The principal was especially fond of not having to waste money on staff for the lighting booth. Taylor was happy to relieve them of that expense. After graduation, she might've even returned to fill the role some more. 

     The practice ended on schedule and Mrs. Muce began climbing the steps up the the booth. Taylor had already managed to sneak Joseph back into the hallway before she could arrive. " Wonderful job again, my dear. There are a few things I would like to change, but it's not at all your fault."

     The play director didn't wait for Taylor to respond as she flipped through the script until she landed on a page. She pointed explained the new queues for about 10 extra minutes and the girl noted every change. 

     " The last one is at the end of act 2. I noticed Stacy gets a bit off balance for that one ending pose. I was hoping you could focus the lights more towards the center of the stage at that time. It should draw less attention, if you catch my drift."

     Taylor nodded happily before excusing herself. She stepped out the auditorium doors to find Joseph leaning against the wall outside. " Wow, extra practice for you, huh? You must've been a bad girl." She snorted at his comment and hit him playfully.

     " I still wish you would've left without me." Her mood felt lighter after that experience, and she let herself smile. 

     " Nah, I had fun." His steps were bit more bouncy than usual; a sign of him being content. " I should sneak into your practices more often." She laughed slightly.

     " Maybe you should." Joseph's happiness meter shot through the roof at the sound of laughter from Taylor's mouth. " Anyway, we need to stop by my house. Even if my parents aren't there, it can't be harmful to check."

     " And if they are there?" The male's mood suddenly deflated for reasons Taylor couldn't understand. 

     She thought over her answer, as if it would affect both of them more than it should. " I don't think it's safe to go back just yet," She started. " I'll tell them I'm staying with you for a few nights."

     They drove to her house in silence. Taylor was attempting to bury all emotions she had under the ground. She didn't want to think about visiting her home, where 2 men had broken in and potentially harmed her brother because of her secret online personality.

     She was also praying her computer still had its memory card. If these people could push past her defenses just enough to track her location, then what would stop them from revealing all her secrets. Honestly, she was embarrassed she'd taken a bath bomb and not the memory card of her computer.

     Oh, that was a conversation to have with Joseph. When he had found the bath bomb in the pocket of her hoodie, there had been many questions.

     " Why a bath bomb? Why is that what you grab when you're on the run?"

     " I don't know! There was pressure. . . I need to bathe in style."

     " I'm not sticking anywhere near you during the apocalypse."

     Of course, she couldn't tell him the reason behind the bath bomb without revealing that she was, in fact, the internet hacker the strangers were looking for. What would he do with that information? He'd be the only person on the face of the planet who knew. 

     They had pulled up at her house before she knew it. Taylor unbuckled and slid out of the car. A wave of nausea hit her at the sight of the crime scene. Joseph looked uneasy, despite the fact that nothing was out of the ordinary. 

     Taylor took a deep breath and mustered the courage to knock on the door. It was answered immediately by Mrs. Davis, Taylor's mother. She was trapped in an embrace by her parents as they released tears. 

     When they finally let go, her mom cupped her face and bombarded her with questions. " Where were you? Are you hurt? Do you know what happened?" 

     " She/her today, Mom." Taylor started off her conversation as she usually did. " I'm fine. I jumped out the window and ran to Joseph's house." She was the first to acknowledge his existence since they arrived.

     Mr. Davis seemed to size him up a little before nodding. " I'm glad you're okay, hun. Micheal-"

     Taylor's eyes filled with tears at the mention of his name, " Where's Micheal?! Did they hurt him?"

     " Relax, little sister. I'm fine." 

     The teenager's eyes widened and the floodgates opened. She nearly tackled Micheal at the sight of him. Her brother chuckled. She hugged him tightly, " I thought they hurt you!" 

     He shrugged. " I just have a mild concussion. The weird guy just hit me and I passed out when I hit a table on my way down. Could be worse. I'm happier that you're okay. Mom and Dad were about to call the police 'cause they thought those guys kidnapped you."

     " Shoot, you could've just called me. I had my phone." Taylor's mother frowned. 

     " We tried. Something's wrong with our phones. They aren't working." She explained. " Leave it to karma to kill our phones in the middle of an emergency, am I right?" She waved off the failure in communication to a mere 'coincidence'. 

     Taylor hesitated for a moment, lost in thought. Those strangers had hacked and tampered with her parents and brother's phone. The teenager reached into her pocket and felt the square shape of her device in there. If they had gotten into her family's phones so quickly and easily. . .

     " The email. . ." Joseph completed her thoughts as they locked eyes. They had purposefully left Taylor's phone unharmed to send her emails like the one she'd received previously. 

     " Joseph, would you be a dear and get the memory card from my computer?" Taylor's eyes urged him to go quickly and without questions. She then turned to her parents again. " I love you guys so much, but I'm gonna be staying over with my friend for a few more days."

     " W-What? Why?" Her mother looked distressed. " Do you not feel safe with us?"

     " No, Mom. That's not it. He's helping me with some school stuff, and I've been cooking dinner for their family for the past few days-"

     " Oh, so he's totally your boyfriend." Taylor's cheeks turned bright red at Micheal's comment. In the distance, she could hear Joseph's retreating footsteps and she prayed he was out of earshot.

     " No, Micheal. He's totally not. He's too straight-laced for something like that." Taylor shot back instantly to hide her embarrassment. " I have to go get some clothes from my room. Then I have to make sure Joseph gets home on time."

     Looking like she wanted to argue, Taylor's mom kept her concerns to herself and nodded. " Alright, sweetie. We understand." She shot a look at her husband to keep him quiet. 

     The teenager wordlessly trudged towards the hallway that led to her room. She came to the cracked door of a room that she'd lived in for countless years. Now, every muscle in her body was fighting to leave, to not go in there. Her secrets weighed against her shoulders as she pushed the door open the rest of the way.

     Her breath left her at the shape it was in; Just the way she'd left it. The only clue that someone had been in there was all the posters that had been ripped from her walls. Did they assume she had something hidden back there?!

     Her sneaker complained as it stepped on yet another precious band poster that had been hanging. " Ah man! I got that one limited edition!" She hardly registered another being in the room. Joseph stood awkwardly by her computer.

     He cleared his throat to get her attention, once he'd claimed it he pointed at the computer. " I don't remember what you said you wanted me to get. Or what that thing is." He grumbled, clearly unhappy with himself.

     Taylor turned to the computer she'd lovingly nurtured throughout her life. Carefully, she slipped the memory card out. Repressing the happy shriek she wanted to let out at the sight of it, the gender-fluid teenager grabbed necessary clothes from her closet and packed them in an overnight bag. 

     " Right, we can get going now." She faced Joseph with a weary smile. His expressions revealed worry.

     " Are you okay? We can stay for a little longer if you-" She cut him off by shaking her head and beginning out the door of her room. 

     " No. Something feels off. I don't feel safe here. We need to leave as soon as possible." If one gazed closely at her hands, they were shaking ever-so-slightly. Her childhood home was under attack and her family was clueless. Not to mention that she could tell absolutely no one about her identity and now she was running from the problem. 

     She'd put a lot of thought into the most recent email she'd received. It had mentioned a job. She'd done a lot of jobs for sketchy people. Nothing government-crumbling, but still. Perhaps this whole thing would be over if she responded as Error and got the job over with.

     Then again, they'd sent actual people to get her. The more likely possibilities weren't so easy going. It could be that she'd done a job for some other people that didn't benefit whatever organization they were. Maybe they'd come to get a little payback.

     Another possibility was that they needed her for something so secretive that they had to do it in person. Maybe they wanted to force her into their organization because they needed her skills. All scenarios ended in Taylor dying or going to jail somehow. She didn't like those odds.

     With brief goodbyes to her family, Joseph drove the two back to his house. His mother through a very big fit about being late. He explained that the teens got stuck helping a teacher after school, and she went on a rant about how stupid the school system was for keeping her son from her.

     To make up for their shortcomings, Taylor found herself making dinner with Joseph while his mother relaxed in the other room. " So, um," She struggled to find the right wording. " I've noticed your mother is a bit-"

     " She's from Spain. That's her accent and ethnicity." He finished her thought with a smile. " Yeah, I get that question too often. I look more like my dad. He died when I was small, though. That's why you won't see him during your stay."

     Taylor felt like she'd been hit by a train at the sudden downpour of family facts. " O-Oh," How do you react to something like that, she wasn't sure. " I'm sorry."

     Joseph laughed. " That my mother's latino or that I don't have a dad?" The twinkle in his deep  brown eyes confused her endlessly. She wasn't sure if she was supposed to apologize again, or answer his clearly-a-joke question. 

     " Hey," The taller male put a hand on his guest's head. " It was a joke, don't let your brain explode on me just yet." Truth be told, that wasn't the only issue playing on the front of her mind.

     Currently, she was trying to imagine how telling Joseph about her identity would go. He'd kick her out, probably, for putting his family in danger by just being around him. Maybe he'd turn her in to the police! She shook her head. No, too many maybes, not enough definitelys. 

     As dinner came and went, the predicament didn't falter. It burned into her consciousness. At least now she could go back to her parents if Joseph- Gah! It kept going back to that. If Joseph kicked her out; That was how the thought would've ended.

     She sat on the makeshift bed the Renelds had given her, composed of a stray mattress and random blankets. Joseph was changing in the bathroom. Taylor bit her tongue to hold in the scream of frustration that really wanted to leave her right then. She had decided to tell that night.

     The sooner the better. He would be the only one on the entire planet that completely knew, and he could act on it how he pleased. Taylor heard him drawing closer to the room, she could hear his mouth whispering inaudible words like it had for the past few nights when he thought no one was around. 

     The walls seemed smaller than they had been previously. She had no time left to think over it as he walked in. Immediately, he noticed something was off as her gaze stayed on the floor. " Please close the door, Joseph." 

     " Um, okay?" She could feel the confusion on his face at her request. She gestured for him to sit on the mattress in front of her. Once again, he obeyed with only curiosity.

     " I have something I need to tell you, but you can't tell a soul." His chocolate eyes widened in surprise at the suddenness of this announcement. His only reply was a small nod. " You know the email you saw?" Another nod and a deep breath from her. " Well, there were more. Before they came for me, they sent messages. That's why I ran." 

     She had barely started and he was surprised already. " But there's. . . more. They sent me a gift. This." She pulled the bath bomb from her still-dirty hoodie. That's when she lost Joseph. 

     " Now I get it. You're totally messing with me. Why a bath bomb?" Her glare is what made him quiet down again. " You're serious. . . Oh my Lord."

     " Joseph?" He hummed a small response. " Do you know why they chased me that night? Why you saving me was so appreciated?" 

     He shook his head gingerly, surely thoughts were tickling his mind. My voice cracked when I spoke again. " I heard they were looking for Error so-"

     " Joseph. . ." My voice was hoarse when I spoke again. I finally met his eyes with my own.

     " I am Error."