WHAT LIES BEYOND
Chapter 21- Contact
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I know what it takes to move on
I know how it feels to lie
All I wanna do is trade this life for something new
Holding on to what I haven't got
"Waiting for the End" by Linkin Park
I know how it feels to lie
All I wanna do is trade this life for something new
Holding on to what I haven't got
"Waiting for the End" by Linkin Park
Day 57
Kai in 'the zone' was certainly something to see. Adam leaned back against one of the pods and watched Kai twist in one screw, test its tightness, then reach down to pick up another--- rinse, repeat. He was so precise despite those blocky, fumbly hands of his, especially when placing each screw into its corresponding tiny hole. In those moments, his hands were anything but fumbly.
Kai finished screwing down the circuit board and sat back to admire his handiwork. "Yes! Almost done!" He picked up the machine guts and lay it inside the case, then shimmied it in until it fell into place. He looked up at Adam, beaming. "Now all I have to do is screw it down!" Kai dove right into that task, the tip of his tongue poking from his mouth.
"Dude. You're amazing at this stuff," Adam breathed, pushing haggard curls from his eyes.
Kai shrugged. "I'm... just a novice, really," he said with a shy chortle.
"Nah. You've got a real gift when it comes to machines. I could never do the things you're capable of," Adam admitted. A torrent of thoughts--- flashbacks to the times he'd unfairly berated Kai--- rushed into his mind. Then came the guilt. He sighed, head bowed, his shoulders falling. "Kai, I..."
Kai looked up with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm sorry if I ever discouraged you. I'm sorry for all those times I was... when I was ungrateful for all your hard work. I mean, look at you. You're about to fix that thing." He barked a soft laugh. "Who could've guessed you'd be the one to save us all?"
Kai smiled a little; his eyes fluttered all over the room before they settled back down on his work. "Not me," he confessed. "Up until a week ago I thought I was failing you guys." A frown slipped onto his face. "This... still might not work, you know."
"It will," said Adam. When Kai looked back up, Adam smiled at him. "It'll work. I believe in you."
Kai's entire countenance brightened.
There was silence while the boy twisted down the first of the case screws. Then Adam chimed in again.
"Hey. Can I ask you a question?"
"Uh..." Kai shrugged, unsure. "OK."
"Before the Hollow championship, you never told us you liked to tinker," Adam began. "I mean, you bragged about everything else. So, why not that?"
Kai hesitated, his eyes skimming the floor. "I... thought you guys would think it was weird," he admitted. "Ma's the only person I know--- well, before you guys--- who was OK with it and even she thinks it's weird. And I'd just met you guys, and I thought you guys were really cool, so... I didn't want you to think I was a weirdo."
He picked up a screw and peered down at it, frowning. "My first grade teacher thought I had a few screws loose that time I dismantled his projector. And he didn't let me near it again so I never put it back together. Ma was so embarrassed." He chuckled.
Adam smiled lightly. "If only she could see you now."
Kai's lip turned up in response. "Yeah."
There was a commotion outside the door. "Vanessa, wait!" Reeve hissed. Both Adam and Kai looked up.
Vanessa threw open the door, bulldozing through Reeve and Skeet, who both looked mortified. The girl halted in her tracks, eyebrows shooting up the moment she saw Adam standing there, then Kai, seated on the floor with the transmitter in his lap and a screwdriver in his hand. She threw out one hand and shot a furious glare back toward Reeve. "So this is what you've been hiding from me?"
Skeet flinched back. "Vanessa, this isn't what you think."
"Oh, I think it is." She faced Adam and thumbed out the room, sapphire eyes ablaze. "Get out. Both of you." Kai tensed, eyes wide.
"They aren't goin' anywhere," said Reeve, stepping in beside her. When she took a step forward, he had the audacity to block her with his arm. "Kai, keep working."
Vanessa shoved Reeve's arm away, but stayed in place. "Why are you working with them?" she burst, incredulous.
"Why shouldn't we work with them?" asked Reeve, raising an eyebrow. "Only a month ago you were lecturing us about letting bygones be bygones. Leaving the past behind. Remember?" He folded his arms, black eyes sparkling. "Maybe me and Skeet finally took it to heart."
The last time Vanessa had looked so mortified, she'd had crow feathers in her hair. There was nobody left to stand by her or take her case. She was well and truly alone. An unexpected pang of sympathy squeezed Adam's heart. He could see the all-too-familiar shadow hanging over her head, darkening her eyes. It reminded Adam way too much of what he saw in the mirror every day.
"I can't believe you two!" Vanessa scoffed. "After all we've been through, you're siding with them?"
"You mean after all you put us through," Reeve snapped back. "We never should've listened to you. The moment we woke up here, we should've gone our separate ways and made our own choices. We aren't a team, and guess what?" He jabbed one finger close enough to her face that she backed off a step. "You aren't our leader."
"Reeve!" Now Vanessa looked twice as mortified, and her voice proved the same. "I wanted us to stay together because we're friends. Not because I wanted to boss you guys around!" She folded her arms, fixing Reeve with a glare. "And for the record, you could've left at any time."
"Hey. I stayed for a reason," said Reeve. "My best friend was depressed and too scared to leave that room, and all you did was berate him for it. Somebody had to get the guy back on his feet."
Vanessa ducked her head away. There was a moment of silence.
Now's my chance.
Adam raised his chin. "Vanessa."
She looked up, meeting his gaze with a sour expression.
Adam slowly paced forward. "I know where you're coming from. I get it. You were just doing what you thought was best for your friends. That was me too, from the moment you guys showed up here." He paused a few feet from her. "But I wasn't thinking straight, and neither are you. We were both too stuck in our own heads to listen to each other. If it weren't for our stubbornness, we could've been out of here weeks ago."
"We're minutes away from calling home, Vanessa," Kai chipped in. Adam, Reeve and Vanessa all looked down. Kai confidently lifted up the final screw and stared straight at Vanessa. "It's too late to stop me. And since I'm about to get us all home, I don't think you really want to."
Vanessa hesitated. Then, without a word, she sulked out of the room, arms folded to her chest. Skeet seemed to watch her go, following her footsteps with a turn of his head.
The remaining two watched in silence as Kai screwed in the final hole. Then, in a moment that should have felt more triumphant than it did, he'd tightened the screw firmly in place. Kai burst into a smile and picked up the transmitter, holding it out to see. "Well... fingers crossed."
As soon as they'd collected Mira, Adam and Kai rushed down the unbroken set of stairs to join the other trio. Now the six eagerly gathered at the end of that B-hallway on Floor 45.
Adam held Kai's collection of tools while the guy hooked the transmitter unit back to the wall. Once the unit was securely in place, Kai stepped down from the debris pile, brushing his hands together. "Well, here goes!" He held down the power button.
Something inside the unit kicked to life. A green light on the power button blinked a few times, then turned blue. Mira burst out a laugh. "Yes! It works!" She nudged Kai's shoulder in excitement.
"We'll have to see about that," said Kai. He half-smiled and strolled away from the wall, waving for the others to follow. "Come on! Let's call home."
The five followed Kai all the way down to the nearest functional kiosk. He grabbed the attached mini-microphone and accessed the helpline page. Adam saw Kai's throat bob as he swallowed his nerve and pressed "Call"--- then the restrained hope in his eyes as the helpline began to ring.
Once... twice... three times.
An unsure female voice answered. "Hello?"
"Hello!" Kai barked back. "Hello, Earth?"
An uneasy pause. "Who are you and how did you access this number?"
Although the woman probably thought this was some kid giving her a prank call, Kai could barely restrain his excitement. "My name is Kai Stevens. Me and five others are trapped here on the AARC, in space!" he explained, trying hard to keep calm. "We've been here for months and we're the only ones here!"
"The AARC. You all..." The woman gasped. "You're all alive! We thought you'd all died in the explosion!"
Adam snatched the microphone. "Well, we're all still here. We survived. Only the bottom of the AARC was destroyed. But we need to get out of here soon because it's still falling apart. We'll lose the Oxygen system in a matter of days, maybe hours. Please, it's urgent!"
"Hold on a minute, I have to go tell the---" The woman's voice disappeared in a flurry of footsteps as she ran from her office.
The teens all exchanged glances. Then a collective cheer erupted. Kai, Mira and Skeet yelped and howled the loudest, and while Adam wasn't as loud, his heart was in it. Reeve cheered with only a triumphant smile and a clenched fist. Vanessa folded her arms and turned her face away, her smile fading into a morose frown all too quickly.
"You did it, Kai!" exclaimed Mira with a grin, nudging Kai's elbow. Then she pulled him into a hug, startling him. "We're all so proud of you!"
Kai laughed, blushing.
Adam folded his arms, his smile amused. Then he noticed Skeet trailing after Vanessa, who had shuffled away from the rest of the crowd.
"Hey Ness, cheer up! We're goin' home," Skeet said softly.
Vanessa sighed. "Yeah." She didn't sound thrilled at all. When the boy cautiously stretched out his hand, searching for her shoulder, she stepped away. Skeet gave up, letting his arm fall to his side.
Adam wanted to point the exchange out to Mira, but before he could, a man's voice spoke over the helpline. "AARC? Kids? This is earth. You're really still alive out there?"
Kai scrambled to pick up the microphone. "Chris?" he exclaimed. "Chris Gage?"
"No; this is Ernie Gage. Chris is my brother."
Adam and Mira exchanged relieved glances. He's real!
The man sighed with sheer relief. "You all have no idea how glad I am to hear a voice on this frequency. All six of you really survived?"
Reeve leaned in. "Yes!"
"Incredible. We all thought you were goners."
Kai sighed sharply. "Ernie! Can you get us home?"
Ernie barked a laugh. "Well, we got you up there, didn't we?"
Silence hung in the air. Adam's breath stuck to his throat.
Perhaps sensing the awkwardness, the man continued. "Of course we can bring you back. A transport craft will be there to pick you up day after tomorrow. Have you seen the lookout decks?"
"Yes," said Kai.
"Stand in the center of the lowest area of whichever lookout deck you choose. They are designated transport areas; we'll be able to teleport you from there."
"We'll be there," said Adam.
"And we'll all be waiting for you on the ground." Ernie paused. "Welcome back, kids."
The transmission ended.
Five kids cheered, hugged, and celebrated. Vanessa remained silent.
"One piece of shortcake, light on the strawberries," Kai announced, setting the celebratory dessert in front of his friend.
Adam smiled his thanks and drew the plate to himself, picking up the fork. "Great work, Kai."
"Thanks. I mean, I know it's not as awesome as the one in the vision, but... hopefully it tastes better than it looks." Kai chuckled and set down the other plate he'd been carrying in front of Mira.
Skeet raised his glass of water in agreement. "It tastes great, dude. Don't worry 'bout how it looks."
Mira smiled at Kai. "It looks pretty good too though." She dug in, cutting off a piece with her fork. "You're gonna miss cooking with this stuff, aren't you?"
Kai shrugged. "Eh... I can learn how to cook real food once we're back home." He strolled back into the kitchen, talking to himself. "Now, for Vanessa and myself..."
Adam half-smiled, watching the kid go. He cut out a tiny piece of the shortcake and ate it. The texture wasn't quite right, but the whipped cream melted in his mouth. Real shortcake it was not. But it was decent for what it was, enough to make Adam further regret all the times he'd forgone meals. Not quite enough, however, to make him reject the thought of eating real food again. Perhaps, once he got a taste of the real thing, he'd finally get his appetite back.
"Speaking of home," said Mira. Adam looked up. She gestured toward him with her fork. "What are you most excited for when we finally get back?"
Adam shrugged, turning the shortcake-laden fork once between his fingers. "That's a big question, Mira."
"Just tell me the first thing that comes to mind."
An image of a brown house with a steep, slanted roof flashed through Adam's mind. Home. His mouth twitched. "Peace and quiet in my own house, I guess," he said, then put the fork in his mouth.
"I'd like that too," said Mira, softly. "I can't wait to see my parents. Even if it wasn't for real, I... I just left them so abruptly. I feel like I left them hanging."
"I get that," Adam agreed. His face sunk into a frown. "This is gonna sound stupid, but... part of me is still afraid none of our homes or families are even real. For all we know, we're a bunch of orphans."
"I don't think so," Reeve pitched in. When Adam and Mira both looked at him, he stiffened his lip and ducked his gaze, shaking his head. "That was all too real."
Mira tilted her head, raising one eyebrow. "What are you looking forward to, Reeve?"
The boy hesitated. Adam saw him squeeze one fist shut. "Besides getting out of here? Not much," Reeve admitted.
"He doesn't like talking about it," Skeet interjected.
Reeve cracked a little smile and elbowed his buddy. "Hey. I'm lookin' forward to skating with you again."
Skeet shrugged, beaming awkwardly. "Sure. If I could learn to skate with my ears." He batted the both of them for emphasis. Then he folded both arms on the table, head tilted down. "Hey, if I can't skate... I guess I could try guitar again. Even though my dad hates it."
"I don't see why not," said Reeve.
Kai strolled in with the last two plates of shortcake. Vanessa stood at the corner of the kitchen, beside the front door, arms folded tightly across her chest. Kai strolled up and offered a plate to her, maintaining his distance and a curt frown. She took the plate, mumbling a passive "thanks". Skeet's brow twitched.
Kai plopped down on Adam's other side, the coldness of his interaction with Vanessa warming the moment he settled beside his friends. "Wow. To think tomorrow's the last day we'll have to spend here," he remarked, digging into the cake.
"I still can't believe it," Mira agreed. She puffed a silent laugh. "One more day and we're home!"
"Back on earth, anyway," Reeve added. "Who knows how long they'll wanna keep us around before they finally send us home?"
"Not too long, I hope," Adam muttered. A friendly hand slapped his shoulder, startling him.
Kai's face glowed with positivity. "Hey, no sweat, dude. Anything's better than another week stranded up here." Adam smiled slightly in return, grateful for the heartfelt sentiment, even though it wasn't the most encouraging thing Kai could've said.
Confident his buddy felt better, Kai tucked back into his shortcake. "I can't wait to go home and see Ma. She's never gone without me for so long!" He chortled. "And I miss her too. I'll even take one of her embarrassing bone-crushing hugs right now." He leaned back, eying the lonely girl standing in the corner. "What about you, Vanessa? Ready to go home?"
Vanessa didn't look up, preoccupied with poking the dessert she didn't seem all that interested in. "I guess," she croaked.
Reeve nudged Skeet's side. The latter's brow scrunched. "What?"
"Go talk to her," Reeve whispered.
"Why me?"
"She trusts you more than me right now."
Sighing, Skeet snatched his metal staff, got up, then made his way over to where Vanessa stood. "Hey," he said quietly. "Why don't you come sit at the table with us?"
"No thanks," Vanessa mumbled, shrinking further into herself.
Skeet put on a smile. "You're just gonna eat standin' up, I guess?" When she didn't respond to his attempt at humor, his smile disappeared. "Since when were you this quiet? It's been freakin' me out all day."
She huffed. "None of your business."
"Ness..." He reached for her arm again.
She shoved him away and refused to look at him, angrily stabbing the shortcake with her fork. "Leave me alone."
Skeet scoffed. "Fine. Just tryin' to help," he muttered, turning his back to her. Vanessa murmured something under her breath that Adam couldn't interpret. Skeet's brow furrowed deeper as he shuffled his way back to his seat, mind stuck on whatever thought Vanessa had left him with.
Mira let out a sharp sigh, drawing Adam's attention back to his own friends. "More than anything, I'm looking forward to everything being normal again," she confessed, thoughtfully nudging a strawberry through the whipped cream. "Sleeping in my bed. Listening to my music. Solving sudokus with my dad. And after all this... chaos, and worrying about the AARC falling apart, and Adam, I..." She glanced up at Adam, then at Kai. "I really need that stability again."
"Me too," agreed Kai. "Things have been... pretty weird lately. Understatement of the year, I know." His eyes briefly flitted over Adam's face. A hand of guilt clutched Adam's heart. "But we got through it! Adam's getting better, and now we're all going home. I think we're actually gonna be OK."
"I should've been there for you guys," said Adam, setting his fork aside.
"You weren't you. Don't kick yourself while you're down, dude," said Kai, waving his hand.
"I know," said Adam. "And I'm not. But... still. From now on, if you guys are worried about me, I'll listen. I don't wanna stress you guys out if I can help it." He managed to smile, hopeful. "And, uh... thanks for not giving up on me."
"You'd never give up on us," said Mira, laying a hand on his shoulder. "Why would we ever give up on you?"
Adam's smile warmed considerably.
Kai stood and raised his cup high, smiling. "To new beginnings!"
Mira joined him. "Here!"
Reeve and Skeet joined in the toast too. All eyes landed on Adam, who still sat quietly, almost hesitant. But after a moment, he rose to his feet and held out his glass to the rest of them with a smile on his face. "To new beginnings."