Chapter Four
"Well, gang, it looks like we're going to be stuck in this town for a few days," Ned announced the next morning at breakfast.
"What?" Carey asked in disbelief. "Why?"
"Apparently," his father answered, "there's only one gas station in a ten-mile radius of this town, and they have to close down until Wednesday." It was Sunday.
"That's crazy!" Jack exclaimed.
"Well, there's nothing we can do until then," Ned said matter-of-factly.
Carey sighed. "I'm going to see if there's anything to do in this little town. Who's with me?" Jack, Fi, and Annie quickly agreed to go.
"Just be back at the bus by eleven," Irene said.
"Don't worry, Mom," Carey replied. "We will be."
After walking along the road for about ten minutes, they came along a park and decided to check it out. Annie and Fi walked alongside a lake where some people were swimming. "It's so beautiful," Annie commented.
"Yeah," Fi answered absent-mindedly.
"Fi, are you okay?" Annie asked.
"Oh, sure," Fi replied quickly. "I was just thinking, that's all."
"Look, if you want to go hang out with Carey, I don't mind," Annie said with a slight smile.
"You can tell?" Fi asked, blushing.
"Yeah, I can." Annie laughed. "But I don't think he can. You know how boys are."
Fi grinned. "You really won't mind?"
"Go!" Annie almost shouted.
"Okay, okay!" Fi laughed. Annie shook her head and sat down on a bench facing the lake. Leaning back, she closed her eyes, wondering what Andrew would look like if he were still alive.
"Is anyone else sitting here?" a male voice asked. Annie sat up with a start and opened her eyes. Standing before her was the most handsome boy she had ever seen. He had wavy light brown hair and piercing blue eyes. He was probably around seventeen years old, and he was wearing only swim trunks and a towel pulled loosely over his shoulders. He had just been swimming in the lake.
"Umm... uh..." she stuttered. "N-No, no one's sitting here," Annie squeaked, feeling her face redden.
"Thanks," the boy grinned, sitting down next to her. "I've never seen you before. Do you live around here?"
"No, I was just passing through town with some friends. We'll be here a few days," she explained, his kind attitude making her feel more relaxed. "My name's Annie."
"I'm Jason," the boy replied. "This town is so small that you get to know practically everyone. But I'm glad to get to know you, too."
Annie blushed. "So, um... were you swimming all by yourself?"
"Well, I was. Unless you'd like to join me?" Jason suggested.
"I don't have a bathing suit with me," Annie said.
"Do want to go to the arcade, then? There's one on the other side of the park."
"Sure!" Annie agreed. After Jason put on a t-shirt and sandals, they went on their way. Annie was surprised to see that Jack, Carey, and Fi were already there.
At six o'clock, Jason had to go home to have dinner. "I'll be at the lake again tomorrow," he told Annie before leaving. In a few hours, it was time for the Jack, Carey, Fi and Annie to head back to the bus themselves.
"So who's the guy you were with?" Fi asked Annie as they walked along the side of the road.
"His name's Jason," Annie said dreamily. "We just started talking and... everything happened at once. Isn't he gorgeous?"
"I guess I can't deny that," Fi replied. "You really like him, huh?"
Annie nodded, smiling to herself. "I really do."
Chapter Five
It was Monday afternoon and Fi was alone in her bedroom, clicking away at her computer. Annie, Jack, and Carey were at the park but she told them she had to stay behind for research. The things Annie had told her about her brother made Fi curious. She wanted to find out more about his death, but she had to do it while Annie wasn't around. Fi knew that if Annie found out about her investigations, it would upset her.
Fi finally found the website she was looking for. It archived newspaper articles from all over the world, some as old as a hundred years. Andrew Thelen, Fi typed. Searching... Please wait, a message box blinked on the screen. After a moment, another page loaded. NO RESULTS FOUND.
"No results found?" Fi read skeptically. "But how is that possible? If he was really killed by a car that lost control, it had to have made the papers." Then Fi had another idea. She went to a website that was an Internet database of every person in the world, and said when that person was born and when he or she died. Again, Fi typed Andrew Thelen and hit the search button. 3 matches found, the page read.
Fi scrolled down impatiently. "Let's see... Andrew Thelen, born July 8, 1952. That's definitely not him. Andrew Thelen, born December 23, 1967. That isn't him either. Andrew Thelen, born May 14, 1998.... None of these are him!" Fi sighed and rested her chin in her hand, staring at the names on the screen in front of her. "Now the question is, what am I going to tell Annie?"
"What are you going to tell me about what?" a voice interrupted, nearly causing Fi to leap fifty feet in the air.
"I... um..." Fi stammered, quickly closing the webpage window and signing off the Internet.
Annie didn't seem to notice her nervousness. "Look what Jason won for me at the arcade!" She held up a huge teddy bear, grinning. Then she noticed the look on Fi's face. "Fi, what's wrong?"
"There's no easy way to say this..." Fi began. "Annie, I checked online and your brother never existed."
"What?" Annie shouted angrily. "You checked online? My brother is not an object of your paranormal fascination! This is real, Fi!"
"Annie, please! I'm only trying to help, I swear," Fi insisted. "Maybe Andrew isn't really his name," she added.
This comment only seemed to make things worse. "Are you suggesting that my parents lied to me?" Annie asked, eyes blazing. "I can't believe you would do this. I told you my deepest secret, Fiona! And now you're trying to tell me that my brother never existed?" She stormed out of the room, furious.
"No, Annie, that's not what I'm trying to tell you!" Fi called out, but the only response was the slamming of the bus door.
Chapter Six
It was one a.m. and Annie was already asleep. She still was not speaking to Fi, and Fi knew she had been wrong to want to know more about Annie's brother... whatever his name was. She decided to go online and find something to do to get her mind off her argument with Annie. Fi clicked the InstaGab icon to see if anyone else was online that she could talk to. "Tad Raxall!" she exclaimed happily.
Rockerbaby: Hi Tad!
Tad_Raxall: Hello Fi... how's Molly doing?
Rockerbaby: She's fine. =)
Tad_Raxall: That's good. I want to take some time off and catch a concert of hers, next time she's in town.
Rockerbaby: I bet Mom would love that.
Rockerbaby: And of course you'd have to give me some free programs!
Tad_Raxall: Of course!
Tad_Raxall: =)
Tad_Raxall: Did I tell you that my company partnered up with the Missing Children network?
Rockerbaby: No, you didn't.
Rockerbaby: What do you do exactly?
Tad_Raxall: Well, for the kids that have been missing for a long time, we take their last picture and electronically change it using advanced programs, to show what they'd look like now.
Rockerbaby: Really?
Tad_Raxall: Yes, and it works for anyone! It's pretty accurate too. I scanned in a picture of myself when I was about your age, and had the program see what I'd look like now, and it was pretty close!
Tad_Raxall: Well, except for the long hair thing... I don't know why that happened...
Rockerbaby: So if you wanted to, could you show what a two year old would look like when he's twenty?
Tad_Raxall: Yep. I have, actually.
Rockerbaby: Could you do me a really huge favor?
Tad_Raxall: Well... tell me what it is, first.
Rockerbaby: If I scan a picture of this boy and email it to you, could you email back to me what he'll look like when he's twenty?
Tad_Raxall: I guess so, but why?
Rockerbaby: I'm not exactly in the position to tell you. But it's really important.
Tad_Raxall: Well, sure, but I won't be able to get it back to you until tomorrow. I'm on my PC at home right now, and the program is on my laptop in my office.
Rockerbaby: That isn't a problem.
Rockerbaby: Thanks so much!
Tad_Raxall: You're welcome. =)
Rockerbaby: Goodnight.
Tad_Raxall: Goodnight. Tell Molly that I say hi!
Chapter Seven
"Fi, I want to apologize for getting mad at you," Annie said the following morning.
"It's okay," Fi replied. "I'm sorry that I went too far in my curiosity about your brother."
"No, I overreacted!" Annie insisted. "You had every right."
"Well, regardless, I'm glad you're not mad at me anymore," Fi said happily, giving her best friend a hug. "Annie, do you ever wonder what your brother would look like, if he were alive now?" Fi asked.
"Only every day of my life," Annie said sadly. "I wonder if he would look like me at all."
"Last night I was online talking to Tad Raxall - I told you about him, remember? - and he has this program that simulates what a person will look like when they're older."
"Can we send him the photo of Andrew?" Annie asked, her eyes lighting up.
Mentally, Fi let out a sigh of relief. "Actually," she said, "I already did. Last night, while you were asleep, I scanned the photo and emailed him."
Annie felt a pang of anger for a second, but held her tongue. "Did he email you back yet?"
"I don't know," Fi admitted. "Should we go check?"
"Yes!" Annie exclaimed, pulling a chair next to Fi's as they sat in front of her laptop. Fi logged in, impatiently clicking around until she was able to open her inbox.
"He sent it!" she announced excitedly, opening the email. The girls watched with wide eyes as the image of Andrew Thelen slowly appeared.
"He does look like you," Fi breathed. The man on the screen had blond hair, blue eyes, and baby-faced good looks.
"Fi, look at his face," Annie whispered. Her face was pale.
Fi squinted at the photo. "What about his face? He would have been very handsome, I must say..."
Annie flashed Fi a questioning look. "You don't see it?"
"See what?"
Annie looked back at the screen. "It's him, Fi. It's Jason."
"Well, gang, it looks like we're going to be stuck in this town for a few days," Ned announced the next morning at breakfast.
"What?" Carey asked in disbelief. "Why?"
"Apparently," his father answered, "there's only one gas station in a ten-mile radius of this town, and they have to close down until Wednesday." It was Sunday.
"That's crazy!" Jack exclaimed.
"Well, there's nothing we can do until then," Ned said matter-of-factly.
Carey sighed. "I'm going to see if there's anything to do in this little town. Who's with me?" Jack, Fi, and Annie quickly agreed to go.
"Just be back at the bus by eleven," Irene said.
"Don't worry, Mom," Carey replied. "We will be."
After walking along the road for about ten minutes, they came along a park and decided to check it out. Annie and Fi walked alongside a lake where some people were swimming. "It's so beautiful," Annie commented.
"Yeah," Fi answered absent-mindedly.
"Fi, are you okay?" Annie asked.
"Oh, sure," Fi replied quickly. "I was just thinking, that's all."
"Look, if you want to go hang out with Carey, I don't mind," Annie said with a slight smile.
"You can tell?" Fi asked, blushing.
"Yeah, I can." Annie laughed. "But I don't think he can. You know how boys are."
Fi grinned. "You really won't mind?"
"Go!" Annie almost shouted.
"Okay, okay!" Fi laughed. Annie shook her head and sat down on a bench facing the lake. Leaning back, she closed her eyes, wondering what Andrew would look like if he were still alive.
"Is anyone else sitting here?" a male voice asked. Annie sat up with a start and opened her eyes. Standing before her was the most handsome boy she had ever seen. He had wavy light brown hair and piercing blue eyes. He was probably around seventeen years old, and he was wearing only swim trunks and a towel pulled loosely over his shoulders. He had just been swimming in the lake.
"Umm... uh..." she stuttered. "N-No, no one's sitting here," Annie squeaked, feeling her face redden.
"Thanks," the boy grinned, sitting down next to her. "I've never seen you before. Do you live around here?"
"No, I was just passing through town with some friends. We'll be here a few days," she explained, his kind attitude making her feel more relaxed. "My name's Annie."
"I'm Jason," the boy replied. "This town is so small that you get to know practically everyone. But I'm glad to get to know you, too."
Annie blushed. "So, um... were you swimming all by yourself?"
"Well, I was. Unless you'd like to join me?" Jason suggested.
"I don't have a bathing suit with me," Annie said.
"Do want to go to the arcade, then? There's one on the other side of the park."
"Sure!" Annie agreed. After Jason put on a t-shirt and sandals, they went on their way. Annie was surprised to see that Jack, Carey, and Fi were already there.
At six o'clock, Jason had to go home to have dinner. "I'll be at the lake again tomorrow," he told Annie before leaving. In a few hours, it was time for the Jack, Carey, Fi and Annie to head back to the bus themselves.
"So who's the guy you were with?" Fi asked Annie as they walked along the side of the road.
"His name's Jason," Annie said dreamily. "We just started talking and... everything happened at once. Isn't he gorgeous?"
"I guess I can't deny that," Fi replied. "You really like him, huh?"
Annie nodded, smiling to herself. "I really do."
Chapter Five
It was Monday afternoon and Fi was alone in her bedroom, clicking away at her computer. Annie, Jack, and Carey were at the park but she told them she had to stay behind for research. The things Annie had told her about her brother made Fi curious. She wanted to find out more about his death, but she had to do it while Annie wasn't around. Fi knew that if Annie found out about her investigations, it would upset her.
Fi finally found the website she was looking for. It archived newspaper articles from all over the world, some as old as a hundred years. Andrew Thelen, Fi typed. Searching... Please wait, a message box blinked on the screen. After a moment, another page loaded. NO RESULTS FOUND.
"No results found?" Fi read skeptically. "But how is that possible? If he was really killed by a car that lost control, it had to have made the papers." Then Fi had another idea. She went to a website that was an Internet database of every person in the world, and said when that person was born and when he or she died. Again, Fi typed Andrew Thelen and hit the search button. 3 matches found, the page read.
Fi scrolled down impatiently. "Let's see... Andrew Thelen, born July 8, 1952. That's definitely not him. Andrew Thelen, born December 23, 1967. That isn't him either. Andrew Thelen, born May 14, 1998.... None of these are him!" Fi sighed and rested her chin in her hand, staring at the names on the screen in front of her. "Now the question is, what am I going to tell Annie?"
"What are you going to tell me about what?" a voice interrupted, nearly causing Fi to leap fifty feet in the air.
"I... um..." Fi stammered, quickly closing the webpage window and signing off the Internet.
Annie didn't seem to notice her nervousness. "Look what Jason won for me at the arcade!" She held up a huge teddy bear, grinning. Then she noticed the look on Fi's face. "Fi, what's wrong?"
"There's no easy way to say this..." Fi began. "Annie, I checked online and your brother never existed."
"What?" Annie shouted angrily. "You checked online? My brother is not an object of your paranormal fascination! This is real, Fi!"
"Annie, please! I'm only trying to help, I swear," Fi insisted. "Maybe Andrew isn't really his name," she added.
This comment only seemed to make things worse. "Are you suggesting that my parents lied to me?" Annie asked, eyes blazing. "I can't believe you would do this. I told you my deepest secret, Fiona! And now you're trying to tell me that my brother never existed?" She stormed out of the room, furious.
"No, Annie, that's not what I'm trying to tell you!" Fi called out, but the only response was the slamming of the bus door.
Chapter Six
It was one a.m. and Annie was already asleep. She still was not speaking to Fi, and Fi knew she had been wrong to want to know more about Annie's brother... whatever his name was. She decided to go online and find something to do to get her mind off her argument with Annie. Fi clicked the InstaGab icon to see if anyone else was online that she could talk to. "Tad Raxall!" she exclaimed happily.
Rockerbaby: Hi Tad!
Tad_Raxall: Hello Fi... how's Molly doing?
Rockerbaby: She's fine. =)
Tad_Raxall: That's good. I want to take some time off and catch a concert of hers, next time she's in town.
Rockerbaby: I bet Mom would love that.
Rockerbaby: And of course you'd have to give me some free programs!
Tad_Raxall: Of course!
Tad_Raxall: =)
Tad_Raxall: Did I tell you that my company partnered up with the Missing Children network?
Rockerbaby: No, you didn't.
Rockerbaby: What do you do exactly?
Tad_Raxall: Well, for the kids that have been missing for a long time, we take their last picture and electronically change it using advanced programs, to show what they'd look like now.
Rockerbaby: Really?
Tad_Raxall: Yes, and it works for anyone! It's pretty accurate too. I scanned in a picture of myself when I was about your age, and had the program see what I'd look like now, and it was pretty close!
Tad_Raxall: Well, except for the long hair thing... I don't know why that happened...
Rockerbaby: So if you wanted to, could you show what a two year old would look like when he's twenty?
Tad_Raxall: Yep. I have, actually.
Rockerbaby: Could you do me a really huge favor?
Tad_Raxall: Well... tell me what it is, first.
Rockerbaby: If I scan a picture of this boy and email it to you, could you email back to me what he'll look like when he's twenty?
Tad_Raxall: I guess so, but why?
Rockerbaby: I'm not exactly in the position to tell you. But it's really important.
Tad_Raxall: Well, sure, but I won't be able to get it back to you until tomorrow. I'm on my PC at home right now, and the program is on my laptop in my office.
Rockerbaby: That isn't a problem.
Rockerbaby: Thanks so much!
Tad_Raxall: You're welcome. =)
Rockerbaby: Goodnight.
Tad_Raxall: Goodnight. Tell Molly that I say hi!
Chapter Seven
"Fi, I want to apologize for getting mad at you," Annie said the following morning.
"It's okay," Fi replied. "I'm sorry that I went too far in my curiosity about your brother."
"No, I overreacted!" Annie insisted. "You had every right."
"Well, regardless, I'm glad you're not mad at me anymore," Fi said happily, giving her best friend a hug. "Annie, do you ever wonder what your brother would look like, if he were alive now?" Fi asked.
"Only every day of my life," Annie said sadly. "I wonder if he would look like me at all."
"Last night I was online talking to Tad Raxall - I told you about him, remember? - and he has this program that simulates what a person will look like when they're older."
"Can we send him the photo of Andrew?" Annie asked, her eyes lighting up.
Mentally, Fi let out a sigh of relief. "Actually," she said, "I already did. Last night, while you were asleep, I scanned the photo and emailed him."
Annie felt a pang of anger for a second, but held her tongue. "Did he email you back yet?"
"I don't know," Fi admitted. "Should we go check?"
"Yes!" Annie exclaimed, pulling a chair next to Fi's as they sat in front of her laptop. Fi logged in, impatiently clicking around until she was able to open her inbox.
"He sent it!" she announced excitedly, opening the email. The girls watched with wide eyes as the image of Andrew Thelen slowly appeared.
"He does look like you," Fi breathed. The man on the screen had blond hair, blue eyes, and baby-faced good looks.
"Fi, look at his face," Annie whispered. Her face was pale.
Fi squinted at the photo. "What about his face? He would have been very handsome, I must say..."
Annie flashed Fi a questioning look. "You don't see it?"
"See what?"
Annie looked back at the screen. "It's him, Fi. It's Jason."
