Chapter 6

Chapter 6

I hardly get any sleep that night.   Espi is disappointed in me to say the least, and I have to beg Speed to believe me when I tell him that Espi had no idea that Aurora and I left church without her.  The last thing I want is for Espi to get in any trouble because of me.

Before Speed left our home, he tells me that I’m to report to the Chief’s office first thing in the morning.  I think this is the biggest fear that’s keeping me awake at night.   I’m worried about what the Chief will say or do, and I can’t help but think back to the scene in Strummer’s book.  The Chief wouldn’t take an incident like this that far though, would he?

I’m still not sure how Aurora and I were caught, but I feel awful that we were.  I mean, Aurora has never been one to break rules.  She’s always been the staff’s favorite student, so I’m sure that makes this whole ordeal all the more horrific to her.  I just wanted her to have a good time off base and experience something new for once in her life.  I never imagined it to backfire this much.

Aurora is already waiting in the Chief’s office when I arrive early the next morning.  She is sitting in one of two chairs set up across from the Chief’s desk.  She keeps her hands folded neatly on her lap, and her head lowered with her eyes focused on the floor by her feet.

The Chief is standing behind his desk.  He says nothing and only motions for me to enter his office, and then points to the empty seat beside Aurora.  My heart is pounding in my chest as I take a seat in the empty chair.  After I’m seated, the Chief sits down behind his desk.  “When I learned of what you two did, I did not want to believe so,” the Chief says.  He looks from me, and then to Aurora, and pauses for a long time.  “I hope that you understand, Aurora, that it was with concern that your caretaker followed you in secrecy yesterday.  Obviously, a just concern, would you not agree?”

Aurora lifts her head to look at the Chief.  She nods slightly, and responds in a very quiet voice:  “Yes, Sir.”

“I do not want to see behavior like this from you again.  Do you understand, Aurora?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“It was my hopes to name you leader of your team, but now with this incident, I must reevaluate my decision.  I should hope that this will be your first and only offense.”

Aurora’s eyes are wide, and I can tell that she is fighting back tears.  “Yes, Sir.”

He stares at her for a moment before raising his hand and motioning towards to door for her to leave.  “You are excused.”

Aurora stands, and leaves with a quiet “Thank you” to the Chief, and without giving me a single glance.  My heart sinks a little.  So it was Sara who caught us.  I’m enraged at the idea of her following us, and confused as to how we failed to see her.  But mostly I feel heartbroken that Aurora agreed with the Chief that Sara’s concerns were justified.   Even if she may have just been giving the answer that the Chief wanted to hear, part of me just wishes that she would have stuck up for me a little.  After all, what concerns could Sara have had to follow us to church picnic?  It obviously had to be me.  Spending time with Angel is a concern, is it?  I despise that old woman.

As soon as Aurora is gone, the Chief turns his attention to me.  As soon as those grey eyes lock on me, I feel myself go frozen.  I’m instantly struck by the same fear I felt when reading Strummer’s book.  I hold my breath as I wait for him to say something.

 “I’m sorry to do this, Angel, but you are banned from your off-base privileges.”

The words don’t fully register, and I blink at him dumbly for a while, “What do you mean?”

“I mean no more trips off base.”

I blink at him.  “At all?”

“At all,” he answers firmly.

I try to wrap my mind around this idea, but it’s a possibility I’ve never considered, and so it’s taking me sometime to understand.  No more trips off base.  No more church or church picnics.  No more movies.  No more Gabriel.

The Chief is still talking, and I have to force myself to try to focus on what he is saying.  “What disturbs me most is not the act of you leaving without your guardian, Angel, but the behavior that was witnessed by Sara,” he continues.  “She reports that you spent quite a bit of time convincing Aurora to go with you to the movies, and to break the rules.  She reports that you bragged about how many times in the past that you’ve done so.  To break the rules, is one thing, but to make it an ongoing game is appalling.”  His eyes narrow, as he leans forward over his desk towards me.  “If I ever catch you doing something like this again, it will be your last strike.  Do you understand, Angel?”

His words are sharp and direct.  They cut into me more forcibly than any blade.  I feel sick to my stomach, and I can’t find my voice to answer his question, so I just nod in answer.  He motions towards the door, giving me permission to leave his office, and I do so without hesitation.

 The Chief just took away what little bit of freedom I have.  He has robbed me of my only happiness in life, and I now feel the world crashing down around me.  So now I’m to be confined to this trapped, boring world forever.  These plain, grey buildings, the dirt gravel roads, the dust and wind that is the only thing that breaks the everlasting, irritating silence, all the uncaring, characterless people that live here, and that empty desert landscape that stretches so far… this is what is going to be my life from now on.

I walk slowly down the empty halls of the building, and towards the exit.  I’m so consumed by my own emotions that I don’t even see Aurora waiting for me outside.

“What did he say?” he voice is distant and it takes a while to reach me.

I stop walking to face her.  As I say the words out loud, they finally feel real:  “I’m not allowed off base anymore.”

She frowns.  “I’m sorry, Angel.”

“Sorry?”  Her apology seems meaningless.  Does she not understand what this means to me?

“Yes,” she says with sad blue eyes.  “I can’t help but feel that this is somehow my fault.”

I’m angry when she says this.  Somehow it feels as if she’s looking for comfort from me.  As if she wants me to say that it isn’t her fault.  I have nothing to say to her.  I am overwhelmed—overwhelmed by so many emotions, thoughts, and feelings.  I just want to get away from everyone and everything.   I’m frustrated by the fact that there is no escape.  Here I stand, a superhero with the power of flight, and I cannot even use it.  I could fly away easily, high into the sky, and try to find a place where maybe they will never find me.  But I know this isn’t a possibility, because they will find me, and the consequences to that are something I would like to never imagine.  I am trapped here forever, like a caged bird, and it is infuriating. 

“I wish there was something I could do,” Aurora continues.

“There’s nothing you can do!” I snap at her.  I feel myself growing hot, and I grit my teeth trying to force myself from getting any worse, but it’s no use.  “I wish I had never taken you to church picnic!  If you never came, none of this would have ever happened!  Sara would have never followed us, and I would have never been caught!  Now I’m never going to see my best friend again!  You feel like it’s your fault?  It is your fault!”

Aurora’s eyes immediately flood with tears.  At first, she looks as if she is about to say something, but doesn’t.  She disappears with a bright flash of light, and is gone.  I’m left alone on the empty dirt road with my fists glowing green and bright, and my head throbbing terribly.  For a moment, I wonder how long my hands were burning, because for once, I hadn’t even noticed it or felt it when it began.  I hide my hands under my armpits and continue down the road towards class, realizing that I’m coping with the pain from my freakish green powers the best I’ve ever managed so far.

***

I go throughout my day pretty much ignoring everything that is happening around me.  When I return home and share what my punishment is with Espi, she tries to comfort me as best she can.  “You only have a couple more years of training, my sweet, and then you’ll be a hero!  Heroes can go wherever they like!”  She’s right, but I still don’t feel much better. 

The week goes by terribly slow.  Our classes are short, and our free time is plenty, since finals are next week.  I should be training, but I don’t feel up to it.  I’ve pretty much lost all hope to becoming a hero.  Now that I’ve hurt the feelings of the only person who could help me, what else is left?  As the week goes by, I feel more of a pain over how I snapped at Aurora, than the initial pain of how I felt about the Chief’s sentencing.

The whole fight I had with Aurora plays over and over in my mind, and I can’t get rid of this sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.  I feel embarrassed by how I behaved, and I’m pretty sure that Aurora views me as some sort of monster by now.  I haven’t spoken to her since it happened, and she hasn’t even glanced in my direction since that day.

I’m certain she hates me, and I feel terrible about it.  Even though the whole thing makes me sick, I can’t help but start to think that maybe this is for the best.  I was starting to kid myself thinking that there could ever be something between us two.  Even if she did feel the same way about me, we could never have a romance.  If I fail my final exams, and don’t pass as a superhero, I will be forced into retirement, and Aurora and I’s paths will part, probably forever.  If I pass my exams, pass as a superhero, I will be a hero alongside Aurora, and be forced to follow the rules including the one that says “no dating.”  It’s just impossible.

So I guess the one positive to come out of this whole ordeal is that I’ve essentially done just what Gabe said I needed to do:  I cut her off.  Now, if only I could just get over the pain.

 I spend my time rereading Strummer’s book at least twenty-something more times.  I practically have the thing memorized.

I reread the hidden letter over and over again, as well. 

“My Friend,

I hope this book finds its way to you.  Thank you for your ever loyal support and continuous efforts on my behalf.  You are as courageous as any hero I’ve ever known.

Good luck to you always,

Strummer”

I wonder who this could be addressed to.  I know the book is Professor Walden’s but it can’t possibly be for him.  He must have gotten the book from somebody else.  If I wasn’t so shy, I’d ask the professor directly, but for some reason, I don’t want him to know that I’ve found this hidden little note.  I guess part me is afraid that if he knew I saw this thing, maybe he would think I’ve looked at this book a little too closely.  Call me paranoid, but since I’m already on the bad side of pretty much every other staff member, I just don’t want to stir any trouble with the last teacher I have on my side.

As I lay in my bedroom, rereading the story yet again, I hear the doorbell ring.  I peer out my window and see Autumn waiting on the porch.  She’s been trying to visit after class with me all week long, but I’ve told Espi that I don’t feel like visitors and to send her away.  I lay back down on my bed, and listen to Espi’s voice give the same excuse on my behalf:  “I’m sorry, Autumn, but Angel is studying in her room.  She must study hard for the final exams next week.”

“But Charlene and I made her favorite peanut butter squares!” Autumn tries again.

“I’m sorry, Sweetie, but she just doesn’t have time for visitors.  You understand, right?”

“But it will only take a second to give them to her!  I promise!”

I lower my book and sit up on my bed.  I use my X-Ray vision to look through the walls and see Espi standing at the door.  She has that sympathetic look on her face and I can see that Autum’s puppy-eyed expression has broken her.  “Well… OK,” Espi caves in, “I’m sure it won’t hurt for you to visit just for a moment….”

Autumn grins big and zooms past her.  I groan to myself, and shove the book under my pillow.  I should have known Espi couldn’t last this long.  It’s Saturday evening now, and Autumn’s been at this since Tuesday.  Autumn knocks on my bedroom door.  “Yeah?” I say.

“It’s me Autumn,” her voice squeaks from the other side.

I roll my eyes, and then sigh heavily to myself.  At least she brought snacks.  “Come in,” I mutter.

Autumn enters my room cautiously.  In her hands, she grasps a small container of peanut butter treats.  “I made these for you,” she smiles sheepishly behind the plastic container. 

I know I should say thanks, but I also know that those treats are just an excuse to bug me for some gossip as to what has happened between Aurora and I.  “What do you want Autumn?” I cut to the chase.

“Well,” she sets down the container on my desk, and walks closer to me.  She sits beside me on my bed.  “I just wanna make sure you’re OK.  That’s all.”

“I’m fine.”

She frowns.  “Well, I don’t want you to think that I pity you,” she says.

I raise an eyebrow.  “What do you mean?”

“Well, I know a lot of stuff happened to you and everything, and I know you’re sad about it, and that you probably are working that out by yourself and stuff, and I also know you probably don’t wanna talk about it—“

“I don’t.”

“I know,” she says.  “But I’m just asking everyone if they are OK, alright?  So don’t think that I’m just here ‘cause of what happened to you.  That’s what I mean.”

I stare at her for a moment, and realize that this makes more sense.  Autumn usually is the one person to not bug me to share feelings or to “cheer up.”  “Why are you asking everyone if they are OK?” I question.

She bites her lip and I see in her body language that she seems nervous.  “I’ve just been having some nightmares, that’s all.”  She pauses for a moment.  “And I just have this feeling, and I know it’s bad.  I’ve never felt it before.”

“What are your nightmares about?” I ask.  I’ve never really seen Autumn act this way before.  She seems so uncomfortable, and awkward.

“I’m not sure,” Autumn says.  “It’s like… I’m having visions like I normally do, but in the middle of stuff… it … gets interrupted.”

“Interrupted by what?”

Her nose crinkles as she thinks for a moment.  “I can’t really tell, because it happens so fast,” she says.  “But it’s very bright, and green.  Almost like flames…. Some sort of green fire.”  She shudders a little.  “It’s eerie and glows super bright, and it always comes out of nowhere.  I have no idea what it is, or why I’m seeing it.”  She looks at me, and I’m trying my best to not look back at her.

“What do you think it could mean?” I ask, keeping my eyes away from her.

I glance at her briefly, and see that she is staring at me.  I begin to sweat a little.  Has she related the green fire to me in any way?  She sighs a little, and continues:  “I don’t know,” she says.  “I just know that it has to be bad.”

“Have you told anyone else?” I ask.

“No, just you,” she says.

“Are you going to?”

“I’m not sure.  Dr. Dianne usually always likes to keep track of my visions, but I don’t know if I should tell her about it, or not.”  Autumn frowns.  “I don’t want her to think I’m crazy or something.”

“Right,” I say.  “Maybe just… wait and see if it goes away?”

“I guess so,” Autumn frowns.  “But you are OK, then?  I mean… besides everything else.”

I nod.  “Yeah.”

“OK,” she says with another sigh and stands.  I get up with her and walk her to our front door.  “Just let me know if you get any ideas of what it could mean, OK?” Autumn asks as she steps onto the front porch.

I nod.  “Sure thing,” I lie.

She walks down our front steps and stops to wave briefly.  I return a wave, and she crosses the road, climbing the steps to her home across the street.  As I stand on the steps, I don’t even notice her until I hear her voice:  “Hi, Angel.”

Aurora is standing at the bottom of our steps.  She’s wearing a light blue summer dress that I’ve never seen her in before.  Her long black hair is braided in one long, single braid, that rests over her left shoulder.   A purple book bag drapes over her right shoulder, and I can tell by the tight indentation on her shoulder that the bag must be heavy with books.  Her legs look longer in the short cropped dress she is wearing.  She has a silver chained necklace with a single blue gem that matches her eyes.  Her lips are painted a soft pink, and her eyelids are delicately painted a light shade of pink and lavender, making the blue in her eyes stand out all the more so.  I’m taken aback by how dolled up she looks, and confused as to why she’s standing there.

“I didn’t expect to see you,” her cheeks flush slightly.  “I thought I would just give the message to Espi,” she says.  “I just came to say that for tomorrow’s training, you can just meet me at the stadium instead of here, OK?  ”

I blink at her.  “You’re still going to help me?”

She smiles a little, but it’s weak.  “Of course I am.  I made a promise.”  She pauses as she fixes a loose strand of hair that falls from her bangs.  She tucks the long piece behind her ear again, and I notice the pearl earrings in her ears.  “The Deltas are coming next week,” she continues.  “It’s important that you are prepared.”

I don’t say anything for a while, because I’m not sure what I should say.  I’m shocked to see her here, especially after all that happened.  I can’t believe that she’s still willing to put up with me after how I treated her.  I force myself to find my voice again:  “Thanks,” I say quietly.

 “Well,” she continues, “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then.”  She waves and turns to leave.

My feet move without thinking, and I’m down the steps and standing before her, before I even can figure out what I’m doing down there at all.  I know I have to apologize to her for what I’ve done, but I can’t find the right words.  “I’m sorry,” I say.  I wish I could think of a more meaningful way of saying it, but that’s all I can think of at the moment.

“For what?” she says.

“For being a jerk,” I say.

She smiles a little.  “You’re not a jerk, Angel.”

“No, I am,” I say.  “At least I was when I yelled at you and blamed you for everything.”

“It’s OK,” she says.

I shake my head.  “I’m really sorry,” I apologize again. 

“It’s fine, Angel.  I understand.”

I’m not satisfied, because her smile still looks weak.  I can tell that she still feels uncomfortable talking to me, and I just want this awkwardness between us to go away already.  I don’t know what to do, but I just can’t have her leaving here like this.  I will never be able to sleep tonight if my last image of her is of this sad, fake-smile girl.

“Charlene and Autumn made me some peanut butter squares,” I say with a smile.  “Do you wanna come inside and help me finish them?”

I can’t believe it, but I’ve done it.  A big grin sweeps Aurora’s face, and there’s that genuine smile that makes my heart melt.  “Really?” she asks.

I nod, and her smile widens.  I hold out my hand and she takes it.  As soon as I grasp her hand within mine, the sick feeling that’s been lingering in my gut since Monday finally disappears.

***

Aurora seems to be back to her happy, cheerful self, and I’m grateful for this.  I don’t even mind when she starts poking around my belongings in my room.  She finds a photo album that Espi has made, and we spend most of the evening looking through the pictures and eating peanut butter squares.  Most of the photos are baby pictures and childhood memories of all four of us Alphas.  When we finish going through the album, I’m surprised when she pulls out three more binders from her backpack filled with even more photos of our childhood, and other things.

“Why do you have all these?” I say as she opens up the first binder.

Her cheeks turn red and she admits blushingly:  “I like pictures.”

I peek into her book bag and see there are seven binders all together.  “Those are all photo albums?” I ask.

She nods, still blushing.  “I know it’s stupid.”

I shake my head.  “It’s not stupid.  A lot of people like photography.”  I pick up an orange colored binder and open it up to the first page.  There’s a collage of photos of some landscape I don’t recognize at first.  The earth looks red, and the exposure of the sunlight really illuminates the clouds that hang in the bright blue sky.  “Did you take these?” I blink at her.

She nods.

I look down at the photos again.  “Where the heck did you take these?”

She glances at the photos, “That’s of the field that’s behind the stadium,” she says.

“This is on base?” I stare at her.

“Yeah, why?”

I look at the photos again and then at her.  “Because the base looks like crap, not like this,” I say.  “How did you manage to make anything on base look beautiful?” I say.

She smiles and shrugs her shoulders.  “I don’t know.”  She laughs a little. “I always thought the base was beautiful to begin with.”

I laugh.  “You’re crazy.”

I go through every page in every photo album.  Everything is a picture of the base, buildings and houses on base, and the people on base.  On one hand, this doesn’t surprise me because Aurora never leaves the base, so what else would she take pictures of?  But on the other hand, I’m surprised  and confused as to why anyone—no matter how deep their love of photography may be—would ever want to take so many pictures of what I’ve always considered to be the worst place on Earth.

But if she never told me these were of the base, I never would have guessed so.  I’ve never seen so much color and life on base.  In my eyes, Aurora has done the impossible—she’s brought out the hidden beauty of the base.

“These are awesome, Aurora,” I tell her as I close the last book.

“You really think so?” she asks.

 “Yeah.” 

She smiles.  “It’s getting late.  I should get back home.”

“Right,” I say, as I begin to help her gather her photo albums.  As I reach for the last binder on my bed, so does she, and our hands touch.  Her hand is warm, and that warmth immediately travels throughout my body.  I can feel an energy growing between us as our eyes meet.  I feel frozen in her blue eyes, and the only thing I can hear is my heart beating loudly in my chest.  Within this moment I realize again just how pretty she looks tonight. My face grows hot, and I immediately retract my hand away from hers.  I look away from her as she takes the last album and tucks it away in her book bag.

I walk Aurora to our front door.  “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then, right?” she asks as she slings her book bag over her shoulder again.

“Yeah,” I say.  I avoid looking at her because I know I’m still red in the face.  “But you can meet me here if you want,” I add.

“Really?”

“Only if you want,” I say.

I look at her, and she smiles again.  “See you here at five then.”

I smile and open the door for her.  I wait till she’s down our front porch steps and on the street, before closing the door.  As soon as the door is closed, I sigh heavily with relief.  I can’t believe I could allow myself to get caught up in a moment like that.  I thought that I had just decided that it would be best not to pursue anything with Aurora, and now… now I don’t know what I’m doing anymore.

***

During the night, I have a lot of strange dreams.  Most of them involve Gabriel and Rosie, and random activities during church picnic.  The thing that makes the dreams so strange is that for once I dream of Rosie in a way that doesn’t leave me with an empty, longing feeling when I awaken.  In fact, I forgot for a moment that she ever left.  The only thing that makes me sad is remembering that I won’t see Gabriel again—at least not for a long time.  I wonder if he will be mad at me, or what he’ll think when I stop showing up to picnic.   

Aurora  is at my home and ready for training right on time at 5 AM.  When we get to the stadium, as usual she wastes no time getting straight to business.  “Today’s our last day for training, so we gotta make it count!” she tells me.  “Today’s agenda will be telekinetic discipline and power sensing.”

I watch as she lets her duffle bag fall to the ground by her feet.  She points at the bag with her finger, and it unzips by itself.  With another wave of her finger the bag lifts from the ground and turns upside down so that its contents fall out.  About fifty tennis balls pour from the bag.  Aurora waves her finger again and the tennis balls begin to rearrange by themselves and spell her name.

I smile.  “You’re good.”

She smiles, too.  “You try.”

I focus hard and feel a magnetic pull building at my fingertips.  I point to the tennis balls, and force them to move on their own so that they spell my name.

“Good job!” Aurora claps.  “See?  You’re getting really good at focusing and really concentrating your powers.”

I grin.  “I guess so.”

Aurora spends the next hour instructing me to make different shapes with the tennis balls.  I surprise myself by being able to do everything that she asks of me.  She tells me that we should move on to power sensing, so we do.

Power sensing has always been a challenge for me.  It’s a matter of sensing the whereabouts of an object or person just by their energy.  You have to learn to familiarize yourself with the different energies of different people and things, because everything emits something a little different.  I know Autumn has shared with me that she’s gotten so good at it, she can practically see things as they really are without actually seeing them with her eyes.  She’s definitely the best at this particular power, and I’m nowhere near her level.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath as we begin.

“Keep your eyes closed,” Aurora instructs me with her voice.  She’s standing right before me, and I try my best to concentrate on her energy patterns, but it’s very faint.  “When I say start, just begin to count to fifteen.  I’ll move either closer or farther from you, and try your best to guess whether or not I’m closer or farther, OK?  Stay focused.”

“Got it,” I say with my eyes still closed.

She’s quiet for a moment, before I finally hear her say:  “Start.”

I count to fifteen and try to follow her energy as she travels.  The faint energy that I could feel has seemed to almost disappear, so I guess that she’s moved farther away.  “Farther?” I ask out loud.  I open my eyes and see that she stands about five feet away from me, and hasn’t even moved at all.

She smiles.  “It’s OK, just stay focused.  Close your eyes and try again.”

I close my eyes and take a deep breath.  I hold my hands out, trying my best to sense her.  I can feel a tickle at my fingertips as I trace her energy.  I find her warmth, and as soon I sense this I can suddenly feel her in the distance.  With my eyes closed, I begin to see a thin outline of her body.

“Start,” she says.

I count to fifteen and keep my eyes shut tight.  I follow her energy outline as she moves.  She takes several steps backwards, and stops.  “Farther,” I say.

“Good!” she congratulates.  “OK, keep your eyes closed and try again.  Start.”

I sense her moving closer.  “Closer.”

“Great!  OK, Start!”

We do this many more times, and as we continue her energy takes on more and more of a solid form.  She moves farther and closer, and I’m able to follow her the entire time.  “Start,” she instructs for the twentieth time, and I begin to count to fifteen.

I follow her as she moves closer and closer.  I begin the break concentration as she moves so close that she’s directly in front of me.  The warmth of her energy seems to wrap around my own, and I can’t help but totally lose focus.  It doesn’t matter though, because I’m certain she’s right in front of me.  “Clo—"

Before I can finish my answer, I’m silenced by a sudden warmth on my lips.  I open my eyes and see Aurora has pressed her lips against my own.  I close my eyes again and return her kiss, letting her warmth fill me completely.  The kiss lasts only a moment, before I feel her pull away.

I open my eyes again and see that she’s standing there with her attention on her feet.  She looks up at me, and her face flushes a bright red.  She begins to gather her things quickly.  “I—I have to go now, OK?”

“You do?” I blink at her.

She nods, and I can tell she is avoiding eye contact with me.  She slings her duffle bag over her shoulder and hurries towards the exit, without saying goodbye.

I stand there alone, and left completely confused.

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

It took the rest of the week for me to shake off my sluggish, drained feeling.  Thankfully, I didn’t have any more incidents with that strange green fire.  I think if I had, I wouldn’t have ever been able to regain all my lost energy from the past weekend.  All I can do now is keep my fingers crossed that the power won’t return for at least another week.  Next week is finals, and I need all the energy and power that I can muster in order to pass my exams and evaluations.  Autumn may have already predicted the future and she’s assured me that I would be named a hero with the rest of the group, but I know that I shouldn’t rely on that.  After all, her visions are just brief flashes.  What if she’s mistaken?  With the way I was performing this week in Speed’s courses, it seemed unlikely that what she saw could be true.

In fact the more and more I thought about it, the more I felt like what she had seen had to be a mistake.  Two of her visions involved me.  In the first, she said I would be a hero.  In the second, supposedly something was happening between Aurora and I.  Well… I guess she never specially said that, but she definitely implied it.  And even though I find myself liking Aurora a little more every day, I doubt that Aurora feels the same way.  She’s friendly, but friendly is something Aurora has always been.

“So, Angel, are you going to talk to me today, or should we just find you a book to read?”

I almost forget where I am, and Dr. Diane’s voice interrupts my meditative state.  She always spends forever writing things down on her clip board that it’s easy to space out.  Easy for me at least.  “Sorry,”I say, sitting up a little straighter on the small, yellow sofa in her office.

It’s Saturday evening, which means my weekly therapy session with Dr. Diane Felkel.  Each Alpha is required to meet with her once a week, but to be honest, I’m not entirely sure why.  I guess to make sure they’re molding our brains correctly and be certain that we’re not turning into a bunch of crazies.  But half the time I don’t feel like talking, and if I wasn’t afraid of what others might think, or getting in trouble, I’d probably never share anything with her.  I guess Dr. Diane’s pretty OK with that though.   She never tries to pressure me into talking, and half my sessions with her just turn into an hour of reading.  The trade-off for me reading instead of talking, is I have to share what I’ve read when the hour is over, which really isn’t that bad.  I think I’ll choose reading today.

“Well, I really don’t know what we can talk about today,” I shrug.

She reclines a little bit in her seat, and brushes back a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear.  “Nothing new?” she asks.

I shake my head.  “Not really.”

Usually, that’s enough to get her to stop and she’ll ask me what book on her shelf sounds interesting, and leave me be with that.  But today, she sits there and continues to stare at me.  When I don’t say anything else, she writes something down real quick and continues:  “I thought you’d have lots to say today.”

“Why do you say that?” I ask.

She shrugs.  “I’ve just heard that it’s been quite a big week for you.  Extra training, Church picnic, and then Autumn’s birthday was on Tuesday, right?  I guess I just imagined you’d have some stories to share.”

 “Well, yeah,” I start, but don’t finish.  I don’t really know what to say.  She wants me to talk about my week, but I really don’t feel like sharing.

“How was this past Sunday at Church?  Do you want to start there?”

I blink at Dr. Diane.  She’s never really gotten so specific before, or pressed on this much.  “Sure,” I say hesitantly.  “Well, I guess I invited Aurora to come with me to the picnic at church.”

“Why did you do that?”

I shrug.  “I dunno.  I guess to thank her for training with me earlier that morning.”

She stares at me, and I don’t like the look.  It’s like she’s reading me, or at least trying to.  She’s never usually like this and it makes me feel uneasy.    She spends a few seconds with that judgmental expression on her face before she starts to write something down again.

“Did you have fun at the picnic?” she asks as she’s writing.

“Yeah, I guess.”

“What did you do there?”

“Nothing really.  We just talked and hung out.”

She looks up from what she’s writing and stares at me, quiet for a long time. I guess she’s waiting for me to say more, but I don’t.  I really don’t know what else to say.  It’s not like I can share everything else that happened at picnic, like my strange new power freaking out on me.

 “You and Aurora been hanging out more, haven’t you?”  She smiles, but it seems forced.

As soon as I see that fake, plastered smile, suddenly the room feels cold and uncomfortable.  Her forced grin reminds me of the same uncomfortable smile I’ve seen before at church, when the church ladies talk to someone everyone else knows that they hate.  I guess I was always under the impression that Dr. Diane was somebody that I can trust for the most part.  At least trust enough to know that she won’t ever bother me to talk more than I cared to.

What’s usually a no pressure therapy session has become entirely the opposite.  It’s like she’s digging for something… like she’s trying to get me to admit to something.  Usually, therapy feels like just a boring visit with a boring person, but right now I feel like I’m stuck in an interrogation room.  “I guess we’ve hung out a couple of times this week, yeah.”

“You hung out together at Autumn’s birthday party on Tuesday, right?”

“Well, yeah, I guess.”  I want to remind her that she was there, too.  She doesn’t say anything and is writing down way too much for my short answers.  I think back to the birthday party, and try to figure out what she’s trying to get at. 

Autumn’s birthday party was just a small get together with cake and presents.   Speed, Dr. Diane, and Professor Walden were the only faculty there.  Aurora was there with Sara, and Astro was there with his caretaker, Viviane, and I was there with Espi.  Charlene baked pretty much all of Autumn’s favorite treats and desserts, and we had soda to drink.  The whole event only lasted about an hour, since the four of us had to be up early for class the next day. 

When I think about it, I didn’t really talk much to Aurora at the party.  If anything, I was still feeling embarrassed about the black eye I got in class the day before, and I was trying my best to avoid her.  The only interaction I had with her was so tiny; I doubt anybody else noticed it but me.  Hell, I doubt that Aurora herself even remembered it.

While we sang “Happy Birthday” to Autumn, Aurora and I are standing side by side.  While everybody else is singing, I’m too busy staring at Aurora, which apparently  I’ve suddenly  made a habit of doing. 

Her voice stands out above the others singing.  It isn’t that she’s an amazing singer or anything.  In fact, she’s quite the opposite.   I don’t think I’ve ever heard somebody so tone-deaf in my entire life.  I guess I’m just so amazed that someone who looks and acts so perfect, has such a huge imperfection, and I just had to stare at her to be certain that it was her voice that I was hearing. 

Her god-awful singing is actually charming in a way, and I find myself smiling at her.  I like that she doesn’t sound like some perfect pop princess I expected her to sound like.  While she finishes the last line of the song, she sees me grinning at her, and she stops singing almost immediately.  Her cheeks flush a bright pink, as everyone else finishes:  “Happy birthday, dear Autumn!  Happy birthday to you!”

We all clap for Autumn as she blows out the candles, and I notice that Aurora still looks bright red in the face.  Her eyes are fixed on her feet, and I can tell she’s avoiding looking at anyone.  I feel a little guilty for embarrassing her and so I tell her:  “Don’t worry, I can’t sing either.”

I smile when I say this, and I don’t realize it until her blue eyes finally lift from the ground and focus on my grin.  Now it’s me who’s red and embarrassed and I drop the smile instantly, and quickly and awkwardly walk away from her as I line up behind Astro for a slice of Autumn’s birthday cake.

So, did Dr. Diane see this at the party?  I know Espi did, because she didn’t shut up about it for about two hours later that night.  But Espi’s a different story.  She would never turn me in for breaking the “No Dating” rule we Alphas have.  But if a faculty member suspected something like this… it would just add one more strike against me becoming a hero.

“She’s just been helping me train,” I say.  “That’s all.”

Dr. Diane smiles.  It’s still fake.  “That nice of her, isn’t it?”

I shrug, trying my best to seem casual about it.  “I guess so.  But if you ask me, she’s probably just doing it because she wants to look good.”

“Why would she want to look good?  Look good to whom?”

“I dunno.  The Chief.  Speed.  You even.  She wants to be the leader of the Alphas more than anything, and if she looks good by helping me out, then she’ll probably be named the leader of our team.”

“I don’t think that’s the reason,” Dr. Diane says as she’s writing more things down on her clipboard.  “It certainly didn’t sound that way when she spoke about it earlier.”

“What’d she say?”  Crap.  I probably shouldn’t have sounded so desperate for information right then, but I know I did.  I can tell by that satisfied little crack of a smile that Dr. Diane now has on her face.

“She said that she feels like you two are becoming fast friends.”

“Oh.”

“Oh?”

“What?”
                “You sound a little disappointed.”

“I’m not.”

“You’re not?”

“Nope.”

She smiles and just writes yet another paragraph of notes.  I slump back on the sofa, and sigh heavily.  I really hate this right now.  I really do not need to get in any more trouble. 

***

Saturday evenings are usually spent on homework and writing assignments for our classes, but our professors haven’t given us any this week.  We’re supposed to spend this time studying for our exams, but I never have been one to study.  I do well enough in my studies that I’ve never needed to.  If only I could succeed as easily with Speed’s courses.  I only have two more Sunday trainings with Aurora to get my act together before finals.

I recline on my bed for a while, trying to think of something to do to entertain myself before dinner.  That’s when I remember the book that Professor Walden had lent me earlier in the week.  I’ve already read it—twice actually.  It’s a very short narrative and it only took me an hour and a half to finish.  But there’s just something about it that keeps drawing me back.

I guess I never expected Strummer to have a voice like the one that he has in the book.  I’ve always been told that he is an insane, crazy man, and so I expected a bunch of angry ranting in this book.  However he sounds calm, rational and intelligent.  What I most keep rereading the book for is that I’m trying to decide whether or not I trust Strummer’s story to be true, because it’s completely different from any other version I’ve heard.

He speaks briefly of his life before entering the war as a soldier.  He grew up in poverty and lost his parents young in life.  His mother had been ill for most of his life, and finally passed when he was sixteen.  With no place else to go, he joined the military.

“The people who I would meet during my service would fast become as much of a family that I had ever had in my life.  We watched out for one another, and would truly risk anything for each other.  I had never experienced such a brotherhood in my life before this.  I was raised to believe that it should be every man for himself.  Where I grew up, it was a neighborhood motto, in fact, that no one else, other than yourself, is to ever be trusted.  So now I find myself in world of war, bombs, and guns, and my life is carried in the hands of our commander.  I must trust that he will point me in the right direction.

Strangely enough, I never question my commander.  I forget completely everything that I was taught early in life, and I trust completely those that say I can or should trust. I am only further reassured that my faith in my superiors has not gone unrewarded when they decide to give me the greatest gift of all—my super powers.

This gift will bury me in a debt to the nation, which I can only ever begin to repay with that same unfaltering trust and blind obedience.  I question nothing, and I remain ignorant to all that is happening around me.”

I stare at the last sentence of this particular chapter in frustration.  I wish he would go into a little more detail of what he means.  “I question nothing, and I remain ignorant to all that is happening around me.”  What is happening around him?  He never says.  The next few chapters skip ahead to the time when Siren joins the team, as the fourth and last member of Generation X.  He speaks of a growing romance between him and Siren, which I guess explains a little as to why she becomes a villain, too, which is something our professors have never really been able to explain. 

And then again, it skips ahead some time.  The book suddenly sounds different in its tone when the final chapter begins with:  “I never knew that this was happening.  I ask for forgiveness every day for what I failed to do all those years as a super hero.  I thought I was doing my job, but I never imagined that it was nowhere near well enough.  I would use the excuse that politics have never been my strong suit, but I know that this is not a matter of politics.  It is a matter of humanity.  So at first discovery of this truth, I thought that surely, no one else knew of it.  Surely, everyone was just as much in the dark of it as I was.  I never anticipated that when I would try to share my discovery to my superior that I would be signing my own death certificate.”

Again, there is no further detail as to what this “truth” or “discovery” may be.  It’s as if he keeps avoiding going into detail, but why would he do that?  I mean… if this “truth” is so damn important, then you would think that he would talk about it a little more.

I study the book a little more closely, half-expecting to find evidence of missing or torn pages, but everything seems intact.  I skip ahead a few pages to the final part of the narrative.

“They’ve reassured me that everything will be taken care of, and that they are just as shocked as I am.  Generation Delta has finally matured, and—possessing more powers and capabilities than I, and the rest of Generation X ever had—I am confident that they will do a fine job in correcting everything.  I have almost fallen back into my military mindset of trusting every word that is told to me.  I am almost completely brainwashed into believing again, but thankfully for me, just a tiny portion of distrust hangs in the back of my mind.

We cannot find Siren, but the Chief says that it is fine to start without her, and so we head over to the hospital on base.  The doctor already has everything prepared for us, and we line up to receive our medicine.  This injection will be an antidote to our super powers.  While the idea of giving up my powers is a bit unsettling,at this point I feel anxious to get it over with.  To me, these powers are the last thing that ties me to the responsibility of what is happening out there.  With these powers, comes guilt, and I am counting down the moments remaining until I can finally free myself of it.  So, it is with selfishness that I line up first to receive the antidote.

The doctor stands before me with a confused expression, before turning to the Chief for some sort of answer.  The Chief then suggests to me that I should go last.  The distrust hidden in the back of my mind begins to surface at that moment, but still, I question nothing, and fall to the back of the line.

I watch as the icy blue liquid is injected into Speed, and then Sonic.  With the injection comes dizziness and weakness, and a nurse is there to assist each man into another room where a bed is prepared for rest. We wait a little longer for Siren to arrive, but after a few minutes pass, the Chief gives the OK for the doctor to continue with me.   I step forward to receive my injection.

The doctor goes to grab the fourth syringe on his table, skipping over the third.  I can’t help but notice the difference in colors.  While the first three syringes held a blue colored liquid, I see that the fourth contains liquid that is a bright green.  He turns towards me, and instructs me to hold out my arm.

I stare at the green in the syringe before finally allowing myself to question:  “Why not use the third needle you have there?”

He stumbles over his words a bit before he finally tells me that that needle is for Siren, and this needle holds the correct dosage for me.  I can read on his face that he is lying to me.  “Why must I go last?”  I question.  “Why is this syringe green and the others blue? Why must the other men not be here while I receive my antidote?” 

I can tell with every question, comes an increased amount of fear in the doctor’s eyes.  He would have nothing to fear, if these questions were not in some way relevant.  The Chief disappears and reappears with about a dozen armed military men.  Without hesitation, they proceed to tackle me at once to the floor, trying their best to hold me still for my injection.  I over power them easily, and within the commotion, the doctor falls forward, landing on top of the syringe of green liquid.

The injection kills him instantly, and I know now that it was not an antidote.  I see in everyone’s face that they’ve seen that I have figured this much out, and it’s within this instant that every armed man in the room turns his weapon on me.  This is the instant in which I have become the enemy—a villain.”

This last scene in the book leaves me feeling disturbed. I don’t want to believe that this scene could ever be true.  The Chief is someone I have known my entire life.  He is a quiet spoken man of very few words.  I can’t imagine him as a killer—even of a villain.  And what’s more disturbing is the fact that this takes place prior to Strummer becoming a villain.  According to Strummer, he is a villain because of the Chief—because he tried to have Strummer murdered.  And for what?—For questioning something?

As I stare at the last page of the book, I notice a faint trace of ink shining through the opposite side of the page.  I turn the page and find a very small note, written messily on the bottom left corner of the page.  I sit up from where I lay on my bed and sit closer to the light on my nightstand, straining my eyes to read the chicken scratch writing:

“My Friend,

I hope this book finds its way to you.  Thank you for your ever loyal support and continuous efforts on my behalf.  You are as courageous as any hero I’ve ever known.

Good luck to you always,

Strummer”

***

I sit across from Espi at our dining room table.  I eat the plate of chicken breast and mashed potatoes slowly, as Strummer’s narrative plays over and over in my head.  I’ve been meaning to ask Espi about it, but I have to do so in a way that doesn’t mention the book itself.  After all, Professor Walden specifically said not to show or mention it to anyone.

“Hey, Espi,” I start.

“Yes?”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Of course, my sweet.”

I set down my fork, and hesitate a little, before beginning: “Did you know Strummer?  I mean, before he was a villain and everything.”

Espi takes a moment to chew and swallow her food.  She sets down her fork, and then takes a sip from her glass of water.  She nods a little as she sets back down the glass.  “Oh, yes, I did.  He was a superhero, after all.  Everyone knew him, and loved him.”  She smiles a little and looks up towards the ceiling, as if recalling some old memory.  “I met him once as a young girl, but it was just briefly,” she says it with an almost school-girl sigh.

“What was he like?” I ask with a grin.  It’s funny to see such a day-dreamy expression on her face.

“I was with my little sister, Benita, at the time.  We were waiting for the bus to arrive.  I had an interview for my first job, since I had just graduated from college, and she agreed to come with me for support.  It was early morning, and not many people were around.  A man came, and he stood beside us at the bus stop.  I just assumed that he was, too, waiting for the bus.  He walks behind my sister, and then me, and then suddenly I can feel something press into the small of my back.  I turn around right away and see that he has in his hands a gun.  He tells me and Benita that we need to follow him behind this building, or else!”  She shutters a little, before continuing.  “And then, there was a big flash of light, right in front of my face, and suddenly there he is!  Strummer is standing there, between the bad man and I.  All he has to do is just show the man his fist, and the man screams and runs away scared.  He runs right into the path of a police officer, who quickly takes the man into custody.

Strummer turned to my sister and I, and asks us if we are OK.  I’m so star struck, I can barely answer him, so I just nod.  My sister is crying though, and still shaking with fear.  He wraps an arm around her and in a soft voice he tries to tell her everything is OK.  ‘There, there,’ he says, ‘It’s alright…’

‘Benita,’ I finish for him.

‘Benita,’ he says. ‘You’re safe now, Benita.’  He turns and smiles at me, and that smile just melts my heart.  He was so handsome then!  ‘What’s your name?’ he asks me.

‘Esperanza,’ I answer him.  He tells me that he will wait with us until our bus arrives, so that he makes sure that Benita and I are safe.  He sits with us at that bus stop for almost twenty minutes, and listens to all our silly little stories about school and friends. 

When our bus arrives, he tells my sister not to be afraid anymore.  ‘You don’t have to worry about bad men,’ he says in his soft, sweet voice, ‘because you will always have us heroes watching over you.’”  Espi finishes her story with another heavy sigh.  “To be honest,” she admits, “I was a little disappointed that he seemed more interested in Benita, than I.”

I laugh a little.  “I’m sure he was just doing his job, and trying to make her feel better since she was the one crying and stuff.”

“No, no,” she says.  “Benita was always the prettiest.  I’ve accepted that,” she says with another sigh.

I laugh again.  Espi is funny sometimes.  “So, if he was such a good man then, do you think he still is today?”

“Oh, no!” She answers right away.  “He is a villain now!”

“But you liked him before….”

She shakes her head.  “He is not the same man as before.”

I frown.  “Do you really think so?”

“Oh, yes,” she says.  She stands from her seat at the table, and begins to collect our plates.  “The day I heard that he killed Sonic, was one of the saddest moments in my life,” she says with a frown.  “The news was just… heartbreaking.  And I never wanted to believe it at first.  …I don’t think anyone wanted to believe it.”  She frowns as she looks at me, and I can see the hurt in her eyes.  “He is not the same man as before, and it makes me so sad to think about it.”

“I’m sorry,” I say right away.  “I didn’t mean to make you sad,” I frown.

                She shakes her head and smiles at me.  “You do not make me sad, my sweet.  You make me happy,” she says.  She walks around the table with the dishes in her hand, carefully planting a kiss on my forehead before heading into the kitchen.

***

My alarm goes off at 4:45 AM, and I get up, and quickly get dressed.  Aurora is waiting outside on our front porch for me, and I’m glad that she’s respected my request for personal space this time.  “Gooood morning!” her voice sings out loud and bright.

I rub at my eyes sleepily.  “Yeah,” I say with a small laugh.  “Good morning, I guess.”

She giggles a little.  “Ready to get started?”

“Sure,” I say.

She smiles, and it looks mischievous. 

I blink at her.  “What?” I ask.

He grin widens.  “I’ll race you to the stadium,” she says.

Before I can answer, she disappears with a bright flash of light.  I laugh a little before chasing after her.  Who does she think she is, after all?  I’ve always been the fastest.

We’re at the stadium within moments, but I’m there just a moment faster.  I hold the door open for her and smile:  “Beat you.”

She just smiles and walks past me, into the building.  I follow behind her, and enter the stadium.  “Alright,” she begins, “So today’s agenda includes: Defense tactics, and force fields!”  She turns to me and plants her hands firmly on her hips.  “You ready?” she asks.

I shrug.  “Guess so,” I say, but before I can fully finish, she knocks me down, tripping me at my feet with one swift kick.  I stand up again and rub my sore hip, and look at her.

She laughs a little.  “Remember the first thing about defense:  Always be prepared for anything!”

I shake my head, and smile a little.  I almost forgot that Aurora doesn’t go easy on me.

***

Auora and I train together until about 11:00 AM.  We spend the first half of the morning on defense, and the second half on force fields.  She shows me a couple of tips I’ve never known before about defense, and I begin to feel a little better about it.  The two of us agree that my best defensive tactic is evasiveness since speed is my strong suit. 

When we get around to force field training, I’m thankful to learn that instead of cannons pelting me with beanbags, Aurora has several buckets filled with water balloons.  With her help, I manage to get a force field big enough to protect me, and I am even able to hold it for a full minute, which is something I’ve never been able to do.  But at the end of training, the two of us get a little distracted, and end up having a water balloon fight.  Our fun is interrupted by Astro, who immediately begins to lecture us:  “You know, this is supposed to be a place for training!” his voice echoes throughout the stadium as he enters.  “Not fun and games.”

Before I can begin to get angry at him, Aurora answers him by pelting him with a water balloon straight to the head.  She laughs as he wipes the water from his face with his sleeve.  “Oh, lighten up, Astro!” she says with a giggle.  “We were training anyways!  Who says you can’t have fun training?”

I’m surprised to see him laugh, too.  “You’re lucky you’re the one with all those balloons,” he says with a grin.

Aurora lifts the bucket at her feet that held the balloons.  She turns it forward and shows him that it’s empty.  “Too bad!” she sings.  “All gone!”  She sticks her tongue out at him.

He laughs again.  I almost never see him this cheerful, but I guess I don’t spend much time with him outside of class and training.

Aurora turns to me and smiles.  “Ready to call it a day, Angel?”

“Yeah, I suppose,” I say. 

As we leave the stadium, I expect to hear Astro make some sort of smart-ass remark, but he doesn’t.  I wait until we’re outside the coliseum, before asking Aurora if she still wants to go to church picnic with Espi and I.

“Only if you want me to,” she says.

“Of course I do,” I say.  “Well, only if you want to, that is,” I add quietly.

“Of course I do!”

***

Aurora, Gabriel, and I only spend about an hour at church picnic before formulating a plan to sneak off to the movie theaters down the street.  Aurora has never been to a movie theater before, and it’s something that I think she would enjoy.  I can tell that Gabriel is a little annoyed that she’s picked a romance to watch, but I want to make sure that she gets her choice. 

When we get into the theater lobby, I instruct Aurora to go into the theater and save us some seats while I get us some snacks.  She’s so excited for the movie, I can see that she nearly forgets the “no super power rules” I’ve given her and almost begins to use her super speed to get to the theater.  She stops herself though, and skips happily into the theater.

As soon as she’s out of sight, Gabriel nearly explodes:  “What’s happened to you?!” he shouts.

Several people in front of us in the line for snacks, turn around to stare for a moment.  He glares at them, and they look away.  I can’t help but laugh a little at his behavior.  “What are you talking about?” I ask.

He sighs heavily, and rubs at his temple, as if he’s got a headache.  I can feel one of his rants coming on.  Sure enough, he begins:  “Three Sundays ago, I had a friend named Angel.  On that Sunday, my best friend, Angel, talked my ear off about a certain annoying girl named Aurora who lived in her neighborhood.  That’s cool.  We all have an annoying freak like that in our lives.  No big deal.

“Then a week goes by and here comes the second Sunday.  On this Sunday, that same best friend Angel of mine shows up,” he holds up a finger:  “She shows up, one, late, and then two,” he adds a second finger, “With the same annoying neighbor she always complains about!  Why?  My best friend Angel just assures me that she felt sorry for the girl.  That’s cool.  We all get caught in awkward situations like that.  We just gotta grit our teeth and put up with the annoying girl this one time.  That’s all. 

“But what’s this?  It’s Sunday number three!  Today!  And today, my best friend Angel not only brings the same annoying girl with her again.  She’s laughing with her, and having fun, and acting like that annoying girl is the best thing in her life!  So.  Did I miss something?” 

“It’s not what it seems,” I say.

“No, I think it’s exactly what it seems.  Trust me.  I’m looking out for you.  She’s no good for you.” 

“How’s that?”  I raise an eyebrow.

“Look at you!  You just paid for a movie ticket!  Three weeks ago, you would have just snuck in here through the back exit like we always do.  But no.  You pay for a ticket, and now you’re standing in a line to pay for popcorn, candy and soda!” 

“So?” 

“So?!” he shouts, and gets more attention from the group ahead of us in line.  I give them an apologetic look, and they turn away.  Gabe sighs again.  “…How do I explain this better?”  He rubs his chin for a moment in thought, before continuing:  “She… is an infection.  A flesh eating virus.  OK?  You got that gross, puss-spewing infection on your hand and you need to just cut it off now before it gets worse.  Yes, it will hurt.  But you gotta do it, because if you don’t, you will die.  It will kill you.  She is going to kill you.  As your friend, I beg you, cut her off before it’s too late.” 

“You’re overreacting.”  I’m laughing, and it’s irritating him further, but I can’t help it. 

“You’re underreacting!” he stomps his foot in frustration.

I just shake my head and laugh, as I walk up to the snack counter.  I reach into my pocket to retrieve some cash, but he stops me with his hand.  He has a serious expression on his face, as if paying for this bucket of popcorn will somehow determine my fate.  “Don’t do it, Angel,” he begs one last time.

I smile at him, and laugh.  I take the money and pay for the popcorn.  He looks almost heartbroken.  “Gabe, I promise you, this isn’t the end of the world, OK?”

He groans loudly, but doesn’t say anything more.  I’m worried that he’ll be rude to Aurora for the remainder of the day, but he manages to stay polite.  I feel a little bad that I’ve disappointed him so much, but I also know that Gabriel can sometimes be a little overdramatic. 

***

The movie ends with just enough time to sneak back to the church unnoticed.  Aurora and I aren’t technically allowed to leave without Espi, since she is acting as our chaperone, and we’re not allowed anywhere off base without one.  I was surprised to hear Aurora agree to do something that’s breaking the rules, but I’m glad that she did.

We arrive on the base a little after seven in the evening.  Aurora has fallen asleep again during the car ride home, and much to my embarrassment, she’s cuddled up against me again.  I wait for Espi to leave the car and enter our home before I shake Aurora awake.  “We’re home, Aurora,” I say quietly.

She sits up and rubs her eyes sleepily.  “Already?” she says with a yawn. 

The two of us get out of the car.  While I stand on the driveway, I notice somebody approaching in the distance.  Aurora joins me by my side, and she recognizes the person far away down the street, before I do.  “Sara?” she says quietly.  I can’t help but notice that she takes a slight step behind me.

Sara.  She’s marching down the road and looks pissed.  Normally, I wouldn’t worry seeing Sara, but then I notice who’s walking behind her.  It’s Speed, and he looks equally upset.  Now I’m nervous.

Sara marches right past me without a word, and grabs Aurora by her wrist, dragging her away.  “You are coming home with me, now,” the nasty old woman spits as she speaks.

Before I can question anything, Speed is standing before me.  He glares down at me with his arms crossed firmly across his chest.  “Have fun at the movies today, Kid?”

I stare back at him in disbelief.  How could he have found out about that?  

He smiles, satisfied that he’s caught me.  “I think we better go inside and have a talk with your caretaker.”