Messiah – Chapter 5

"You two are never getting out of my sight again, you hear me? I'm going to be keeping tabs on you all the time from now on."

Zack and Cody groaned collectively at the babying their mother was forcing once again onto her sons. Though Cody had received a clean bill of health from his doctor, his mother's overly potent maternal compulsions haven't yet faded. As the trio slowly made their way towards the front doors of the hospital, Carey rested one hand on each of her two sons' heads, determined never to let go of them again.

"Mom, please." Cody nearly begged. "I already said I'm sorry for risking my life. Please don't punish me anymore!"

"That's right, mom." Zack pouted. "Just because Cody can't judge what is dangerous or not for himself doesn't mean I can't too. He's the baby, not me!"

He then dodged Cody's arm, which swung into his view.

"I know, I know." Carey then pulled her sons into hugs, causing them to blush in embarrassment at the bemused eyes of the people waiting in the hospital lobby. "It's just that after what happened with you," she stared severely into Cody's eyes. "I was reminded of how important you two are to me."

Zack blanched at the corniness of the moment, while Cody, the perpetually more sensitive and polite twin, responded to his mother in kind.

"That's really sweet, mom. We love you too."

He then planted a tiny kiss on his mother's cheek, making Zack screw up his face in disgust.

"Ew…we are far too old for that."

Carey, looking much more happy now, stood up properly again as she led the two boys out of the hospital. Zack and Cody began a quiet squabble between themselves, out of their mother's earshot.

"Momma's boy."

"Insensitive pig."

"Annoying twat."

Carey pushed open the doors to the hospital, where the squabble where broken prematurely by a wave of flashing lights that momentarily blinded the trio. Shielding his eyes of his hands, Zack cringed at the discomfort his eyeballs were experiencing.

"What the…"

The flashes stopped. Bright spots still in his vision, Cody squinted from beneath his eyelids and was surprised at the sight that stood before him. Upon the clearing of the fuzziness from their eyes, Carey and Zack gave similar astonished expressions.

"Mr Martin?"

Befuddled, both Cody and Zack nodded blankly. The man, one amidst the hoard of many, grinned somewhat sheepishly before pointing at the twin with the white hair.

"I'm actually referring to Mr Cody Martin."

Almost simultaneously, hands were stuck into jacket breast pockets and tags, similar to the one around Estelle Willick's neck, were exposed to the mother and sons, who stood rooted to the ground, flabbergasted at the sudden attack from the press. Free hands were then offered to the targeted, a few of the attacks landing on the mother and her blond son, while the majority found their way to the white haired boy that was to make the news again the next day.

"Washington Times."

"Beacon Hill News."

"Boston Irish Reporter."

Cody, still stunned by the ambush, merely shook the uncountable outstretched hands in front of him and nodded blankly. Upon the withdrawal of the hands, microphones were then placed in front of Cody's mouth before he could protest. The blinding flashes of light began yet again.

As Cody struggled to find words, Carey and Zack stood at the side and stared stupefied, unsure of what to do next.

It had been 2 days since Cody's discharge from the hospital, and though he was enjoying his rest time at home, as well as being able to have his mother cater to every little whim, the inner nerd (or more appropriately named "intellectually gifted individual") within himself refused to let his idle brain slacken any further. His medical leave from school was to last a week, however after much begging Carey had finally allowed Cody to return to school the next day, much to Zack's exasperation.

"You're crazy!" Zack shook his head in disbelief as he chewed on a peanut butter sandwich, his words slightly muffled at the butter agglutinating his tongue to the roof of his mouth. "I would pay, no…kill to get more free time off school!"

"Well, I can't possible sit around for an entire week." Cody responded as he packed his bag for the next day's lessons. "Imagine how far behind I would be. I've already lost a few days, I've probably already got a backlog of work already…"

"You're crazy, Cody. I know you're already one month ahead for homework. Don't try to deny it!"

Zack shoved a threatening finger to his twin's chest.

"I'm not! That's ridiculous!"

Cody then saw the look of utter nihilism on Zack's face and sighed, defeated.

"Alright, alright, fine. But so what if I am?"

"I'm just saying you need to give yourself some leeway, Codes!" Zack finished his sandwich and dusted off the crumbs from his fingers to the bedroom floor, much to Cody's horror. "You need to learn how to take a break once in a while. I mean, it's been a while since we went out together to pick up girls. All you ever do these days is bury your nose in your books!"

"Zack, at some point you'll realize we're twelve, and that there's no way us trying to go out to pick up girls will amount to anything."

Cody shook his head mockingly, but froze when he saw the look of sheer dismay on his brother's face. Zack's eyes were bulging wide, and his jaw was completely slack, nearly falling to the ground. Realizing that he was going against all that his brother had ever believed in, Cody waved his hands desperately in front of Zack's face.

"No, no, I was joking! Joking, Zack! Doing that definitely amounts to something!"

Zack's face morphed into one of anger, and he crossly hit Cody's shoulder with his left fist, prompting a small "ow" from the younger boy.

"Don't joke about that, ever!"

Still slightly amused at his brother's reaction towards girls, Cody apologized, partly in jest.

"You're right, you're right. Sorry, Zack."

Zack took a few comical seconds to close his eyes and calm his breathing, before speaking again.

"Anyway…you really need to learn to take a break once in a while."

"I thought we had a good arrangement going, Zack. You do all the slacking while I do all the studying and the being successful."

"Ha ha." Zack hopped onto the bed, watching his brother continue with his packing. Then, he appeared to have remembered something, and sat cross-legged on the bed, now significantly more serious than before. Even by watching his brother packing his bag, he could see the unresolved tension in his brother's back and arms.

Something was up.

"I need to talk to you about something, Codes."

Cody, sensing the rapid change in Zack's tone, sat his bag down on the floor and looked up at him.

"After we left the hospital, you've been…deep in thought. It seems like every day after I come back from school you're sitting on the bed thinking. Plus, you're really quiet nowadays! Is something wrong?"

Cody didn't know what to say. He didn't expect his brother to be this perceptive. A part of him longed to tell Zack about the dream of which most of the details he had already forgotten, but he didn't want to be mocked.

"Codes?"

"Er…well, it's just that..." Cody spluttered, trying to find words. Not wanting his brother to think he was crazy, he racked his brain for a reason. Eventually his brain settled on a random word, which he blurted out.

"Bullies!"

Zack now raised his eyebrow in confusion.

"Bullies?"

"Yes, bullies!" Cody quickly strung together a explanation, which after he said it he realized was somewhat true. "I'm a little afraid of going back to school again because of…well, you know…Drew."

Zack growled a little at the sound of the all-too-familiar name.

"He's still picking on you? That rat bastard!"

It was Cody's turn to raise his eyebrows at Zack's swearing.

"Right, firstly, don't let mom hear you say that. Secondly, yes he has. He usually gets me in between classes."

Zack leapt off the bed, concerned. His brother had recently begun an annoying tendency to hide things from him, and he didn't like it.

"What does he do?"

Slightly taken aback by the worry obvious in Zack's voice, Cody blushed.

"Just…typical bully stuff, you know? Chinese burns, noogies, wedgies-"

Zack cut him off.

"He gives you wedgies?"

Cody was now growing more and more uncomfortable.

"Sometimes. In fact he once…"

Zack narrowed his eyes dangerously.

"He what?"

Cody chocked out his next sentence.

"He left me hanging by my underwear in the washroom."

Zack froze, and then exploded in anger, roaring.

"HE'S DEAD MEAT!"

"Zack!" Cody grabbed Zack's shoulders urgently to shut him up. "Mom's asleep! You'll wake her!"

"I'm going to kill him! Why the hell didn't you tell me?"

Zack was now shaking with fury.

"I didn't think it was a big deal! I mean, you give me wedgies all the time!"

"I was just messing around, and those were practically nothing!" Zack spoke in screamed whispers. "I would never do anything to hurt you like he did!"

"Okay, okay…" Cody rubbed his thumbs in a clockwise motion around Zack's shoulders in an attempt to calm him. "I get it. You're pissed. Just…calm down for a second."

Cody waited for Zack's breathing to slow before speaking again.

"I can take care of myself, Zack."

"I swear to God, if he hurts you again-"

"He won't. I'll take care of it."

"How?"

Cody shrugged.

"I haven't thought about it yet. But please…don't frustrate yourself over this, okay? It's no big deal. Really."

Zack looked hesitant, but thankfully decided to let the matter slide for the meantime.

"Alright, but if he hurts you again," Zack pointed his index finger straight at Cody. "You had better tell me."

"I promise."

"Good."

The two twins stood staring at each other. Upon realizing that they had shared their second particularly brotherly moment over the past few days, both twins felt slightly embarrassed. Cody settled with squatting down to continue packing his bag, while Zack ran his hand over his hair in an expression of seeming nonchalance. Remembering what their conversation before his outburst had been about, Zack decided to try again to let his brother give himself a break.

"You know, if you want to you can join Bob and I for some skateboarding after school tomorrow. We were thinking about hitting the skate park for about an hour."

Cody looked up at his brother's earnest eyes and pondered the sensibility of the decision. Zack was right, he was a month ahead of homework, and it wouldn't hurt to have a little fun after being stuck in the suite for two days…

"You know what, Zack?" Cody smiled. "I think I'll take you up on your offer."

Zack fist pumped the air in victory.

Barry Farber, one of the many photographers hired by the Boston Herald, sat silently and watched as his assigned reporter blew off steam behind the desk in her cubicle. As she scanned an article that had appeared in the latest edition of the Boston Irish Reporter, she swore loudly before crushing the paper into pulp with her bony fingers, tossing the offending newspaper into the tiny pile of other newspapers that had formed behind the desk.

He was used to the familiar sight of his boss on one of her usual constrained tempers, and to some extent he felt sorry for the woman.

Breathing heavily, Estelle flicked her lighter and lit a cigarette hanging limply from her lips. As the nicotine flooded into her lungs, her breathing slowed and she managed to find some of her graces again. It took a few more puffs before she was able to speak again.

"Why do they treat me like trash, Barry?"

Barry looked up at Estelle, his camera dangling from his neck.

"Time and again they don't give my work the credit its due, and now the same content is on the front pages of what, five newspapers I've read now?"

Estelle groaned as she massaged her temple.

"I hate this fucking newspaper."

"It gave you a job."

"Yes, in fucking human interest. After all the effort I put into hunting for content and writing perfect articles they shove me into this obscure department which nearly nobody ever reads."

Barry couldn't argue with that. After working with the woman for nearly two years now, he couldn't deny that she was a writer of a far greater caliber than what the Herald assumes her to be. Removing the unfinished cigarette from her lips, Estelle dropped it on the floor and extinguished the flame with her heel before snatching another up and lighting it.

"I swear to God, Barry, if I didn't need money to survive I would leave this damn place and just write a book or something."

Barry raised his eyebrow.

"Aren't you already working on that?"

"Yes, yes, but I can't spend too much time on it with this job. And even I slave and slave to put the best shit on their plates those head office bigwigs refuse to pay attention. How many times have I written an article that turned out to be worth much more on other newspapers?"

Estelle snatched up one of the crumpled papers and showed its front page to her photographer.

"Boy Hero saves girl in solo rescue mission. I swear to God."

She threw the paper back into its pile.

"I had to collect details from the public at the scene, interview the kids at the hospital, and personally ask for a short interview with mayor, and they keep me in human interest?"

Barry could nearly see the cartoon steam lines emitted from Estelle as her blood boiled internally.

"Front page. Nearly five years I've been writing for them, and still they don't think I'm anywhere close to that level?"

"I'm sure your chance will come soon enough."

She removed the cigarette from her mouth and scoffed.

"Yeah, if God really exists."

"I still can't believe you refused to spend the next few days resting at home, Cody. You really should."

"Thank you!" Zack threw up his arms, pleased at finally having someone agree with him. "That's exactly what I've been telling him!"

"Guys, please." Cody shook his head at Max and his brother, not wanting to explain his reasons to them again. "We've already been through this."

The three continued talking as they walked down the busy streets of Boston. It was the morning rush hour, and there was innumerous cars ferrying innumerous passengers desperately trying to reach their occupational venues on time. The sound of car-horns and shouting filled the air as the three pre-teens walked, already desensitized to the noise thanks to years of living in the busy city.

After ten minutes of walking the trio finally arrived at the final ninety-degree turn that was to take them to their destination. Buckner Middle School was a respectable public school, one of the many institutions described by the Mayor as a host to the "Boston Education System", where "good values are pushed forward to students alongside academic curriculum,", to quote a certain article.

"Here we are."

"Finally, I'm back."

Though he was glad to return to school, there was still a twinge of uneasiness in Cody's gut. He was a complete novice at hiding his emotions, as Zack immediately picked up on his twin's apprehension and halted his footsteps, causing the other two to similarly stop and look back at him.

"Zack, what's wrong?"

"No, you tell me what's wrong." Zack folded his arms and looked at his brother. "And don't try to pretend nothing is bothering you."

"Huh?"

"You're scared of something! It's plastered all over your face."

Damn, Cody swore internally. Despite being a nearly completely unperceptive person, Zack did have his moments of perceptive lucidity. They unfortunately struck at the most inappropriate moments.

He nearly leapt as he felt Max's hand suddenly appear on his shoulder.

"Cody, is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong."

Zack frowned.

"You're lying again."

Cody scowled.

"Alright, fine." Cody shifted his feet uncomfortably. "I was just thinking about…Drew again."

Zack clenched his fists, while Max scowled.

"He really needs to stop picking on you."

Zack's eyes widened before he glared at his brother.

"She knows? You told her but you didn't care enough to tell your own brother?"

"She was there when he did it once!" Cody nearly shrank at the poisonous gaze Zack was throwing him. "Max has more classes with me than you do, anyway, so it's not surprising that she knows."

"Right. Anyway, if he picks on you again, just tell me and I'll set things straight."

"I'll help too." Max flashed Cody an encouraging smile. "That guys needs to learn how to grow up and stop being such a jerk."

Cody felt warmth spreading through his torso.

"Thanks, guys. I appreciate it."

Finally, the school came into view. What they didn't expect, however, was the congregation of students waiting at the entrance, talking loudly amongst themselves. What surprised them most was the fact that there were teachers present amongst the crowd.

"What's going on?"

Cody and Max both shrugged at Zack's question. Realizing that there was only one way to find out, they advanced closer to the school.

"There he is!"

All three perked up at the shout and looked around at their surroundings, expecting to see a celebrity or VIP approaching. It took them more time to realize that the congregation, which had already expanded to nearly a hundred students, was looking directly at them.

"Huh?"

Almost instantaneously, the air rang out with thunderous applause and caterwauling. Students of all grades and ages that they had never seen or met before were standing at the entrance, clapping and shouting. Completely blindsided by the attention, they three stood rooted to the ground till Max finally understood the circumstance and broke into a large grin.

"Cody! They're here for you!"

Cody merely stared.

"Huh?"

"You're on all the newspapers because of the fire. It's obvious that everyone will treat you like a hero now!"

Gasping like a fish out of water, Cody couldn't resist as Max placed a hand on his back and pushed him forward.

"Soak it up, man, soak it up!"

Zack finally caught on, and copied Max's actions.

"That's right, little bro. You deserve it."

Finally finding his legs again, Cody took a few cautious steps forward as the crowd cheered at his approach. Before he could react he was pulled into the suffocating gaggle of people, garnering numerous pats on his back and shaking countless outstretched hands, all the students eager to meet the boy who had put his life on the line for another.

And so it began.

Author's Note – I'm typing this chapter as a bit of a rush job as I realize I haven't posted anything in nearly two weeks. I don't want to lose the attention of my devoted readers, so I apologize if this chapter seemed a bit rushed.

To the readers who are getting a little jumpy at the lack of proper action, I apologize, but must insist that I lay out the groundwork/foundation for the text before I can properly incorporate more action-based scenes. Expect one within the next few chapters.

After writing out a plan for the story (I encourage all writers to try this), I realized that Messiah would stretch to a considerable number of chapters. I'm considering dividing it into three major parts, with this portion being writing now part of the first segment where Cody first discovers himself. I'll see how it works as I go along.

Reviews appreciated, and I apologize for the incredibly late update.

~SUITELIFEFAN