I shrugged. "I don't feel that much older, Shortcake." I remember when you were first learning the piano," Mom said.I sighed. My mother sometimes waxe... nostalgic. I tried to deflect this. "Speaking of the piano, Mom... I know you love Chopin, right?"My mother smiled a bit. "Yes. He's one of my favorite composers." Do you remember Amy Grant, the girl who played the piano in the jazz band last year?"My mother nodded. "Cute girl," she said. "She seemed very shy when we went to see you after the. I didn't thinkabout the consequences at all. It was so ..." Easy? I've helped a lot of patients, drug addicts really, go throughdetox. What you are describing to me, what the serum does to you, itsounds like a really powerful drug. But I know you Ryan. I don't thinkyou meant what you said- you know about me just leaving you there. Aboutgiving up."I breathed in, my little chest feeling like it would cave in, until Ireleased a heavy sigh. "You actually don't really know me, Eve. Yeah,you know how. “This doesn’t make sense. If I don’t set the example how am I supposed to lead?”“Over the years, you’ll make plenty enough sacrifices. From the moment the war started, you became a leader of our people. That means you are on duty until the day you die.”Kevin sighed.“You’ve seen the changes it’s already made. There will be more. How it affects you is in large part up to you. If you don’t make sure your needs are met when they can be you’ll hurt yourself.”“Don’t shortchange yourself to show what. "My names Mort?.isha." he quickly added. She said. "Dani and I are in economics together." Jake." He replied. Mortisha shook his hand. "A pleasure to meet you." She turned back to Dani. "I have a problem Dani and I hope you can help me. See, I just got these two tickets for the prom and I realized that I can't go. Tony," she turned to Jake smiling, "that's my boyfriend," Jake nodded. She turned back to Dani. "Anyway, Tony's going to be out of town so I can't go. I wondered it you'd like to go.