Chapter 6: Getting to Know Everyone
Everyone was outside enjoying the warm sun and cool breeze. Alternate Fred and Other Fred were surfing while Fina, Kairi, both Annas, and Skyler were playing in the water. Fina was a golden retriever again and she was excitedly chasing after the frisbee that Kairi was tossing back and forth. The rest of the couples were paired off with their counterparts trying to get over their initial awkwardness. Other Joe and Joleena were laying in lounge chairs next to Alternate Joe and Sydney.
"So, Sydney," Joleena started. "What other beach properties do you own?"
"Um, I don't have any other beach properties."
"Oh, well how do you usually spend your free time?"
Sydney shrugged and smiled at Alternate Joe. "I find things to do."
"Yes, I try to keep busy as well." Joleena smiled. "I have my meetings in the morning with my father, mentoring Anna takes up most of my day, and then I usually fly to Paris on the weekends for some shopping. Where do you usually fly to go shopping? Paris? Italy? Maybe London perhaps?"
"Um, no." Sydney's smile began to turn down a little. "I don't do a lot of shopping."
"Oh," Joleena said awkwardly and became silent.
"Actually," Alternate Joe piped up, "Sydney is a choreographer."
"That's something you guys have in common," Other Joe nudged Joleena's shoulder. "Didn't you used to dance ballet in France?"
"Yes, and I hated every minute of it," Joleena mumbled.
"And I'm not exactly limited to stuck-up French ballet," Sydney said under her breath.
"Ow!" Both Joes nudged their girlfriends' shoulders at the same time.
"So… Other Joe," Alternate Joe said. "That time freezing thing you did yesterday was pretty cool. Did Uncle Joe teach you how to do that?"
"Um, no." Other Joe looked away, "I kind of learned to do that on my own. I don't really speak to my uncle much anymore."
"Really?" Alternate Joe looked concerned. "Why not? What happened?"
Other Joe sighed and Joleena patted his knee. "He doesn't like to talk about it much."
"Oh." There was a long awkward silence.
"Well," Sydney said after a while. "This is just as awkward as I thought it'd be."
"Tell me about it," Joleena mumbled. "But… I adore your bathing suit. What boutique did you get it at?"
"Thanks." Sydney smiled looking down at her electric blue bikini. "I bought it at Barney's."
"Ah! Barney's New York!" Joleena grinned. "That is exactly where I bought mine!"
She gestured to her purple one piece that was cut low to her naval and also had the sides cut out.
"Cool." Sydney smiled. "I guess we do have something in common after all."
"I really must apologize again for our little… skirmish yesterday," Joleena said. "But you did cover up your lip remarkable well. Perhaps you would like to borrow some of my make-up? A more expensive brand might work better."
Sydney's smile hardened a little and she self-consciously touched her lip. "No thanks, Joleena. I'm good."
Joleena blushed and looked at Other Joe in confusion who face palmed. Alternate Joe shot her a glare and tilted Sydney's face towards his.
"You look beautiful," He said kissing her on the lips.
"I know I do." Sydney pouted and kissed him again.
"I didn't mean anything by it," Joleena mumbled.
"I know you didn't." Other Joe sighed and kissed her forehead.
San-Li passed them carrying two bottles of soda in her hands.
"Cover up does wonders doesn't it girls?" She smirked at them as she walked past.
"It certainly does." Joleena smiled and looked her up and down. "But a little tip chérie? Perhaps you should work on your figure a bit more before parading around in something so revealing, non?"
San-Li's smirk turned into a snarl. "Why you-"
"Shouldn't you be getting back to Other Sam, San-Li?" Other Joe said pointedly.
San-Li scoffed and walked away. Sydney chuckled even before she was out of earshot.
"You handled that pretty nicely," she said to Joleena.
"Thanks," Joleena said with a satisfied smile. "I've had plenty of practice."
"So I was reading about alternate and multiple universes and a colomologist named Max Tegmark talks about four levels of classification." Alternate Sam adjusted his glasses. "And one of the things he mentioned was that an infinite universe will contain an infinite number of Hubble volumes, all having the same physical laws and physical constants."
"I was reading some stuff about Tegmark's theory as well," Other Sam said eagerly. "And he also says that all the different "worlds" created by "splits" in a level III multiverse with the same physical constants can be found in some Hubble volume in a level I multiverse."
"Fascinating." Cade smiled enthusiastically listening to their conversation.
They were sitting on a large beach blanket under twin umbrellas. San-Li walked over carrying two bottles of soda and plopped down next to Other Sam. Cade and Alternate Sam visibly stiffened at her arrival, but Alternate Sam gave her a nervous, polite smile.
"She's harmless I promise." Other Sam assured them wrapping an arm around San-Li's waist.
"I even bought you guys a soda as a peace offering," San-Li said, handing them the sodas.
"Thanks." Alternate Sam smiled in relief.
"Yeah, thanks." Cade hesitantly took the bottle from her. She eyed San-li with suspicion.
"Australia, right?" San-li asked.
Cade jumped. "What?"
"Your accent. You're from Australia aren't you?"
"Oh. Yeah, I lived there for almost eleven years." Cade tentatively took a sip of the soda.
"Why'd you move?" Other Sam asked.
"Um," Cade bit her lip, "just needed a change." She let her hair fall in front of her face and absentmindedly fiddled with her charm bracelet.
Alternate Sam squeezed her hand. "She lives in Brooklyn now with her sisters and Kairi."
"You're stuck living with Barbie? That sounds unpleasant."
Cade shrugged. "She's a yabber and can be a bit wobbly at times, but overall she's a corker of a roommate."
Other Sam and San-li blinked. "What?"
Alternate Sam suppressed his laughter. "Kairi isn't that bad to live with."
Cade frowned. "I just said that."
"So back to what I was saying about Tegmark's theory," Alternate Sam said.
Other Sam grinned. "Yeah, I was thinking about purchasing his book to learn more. It's all so fascinating."
"Isn't it? I didn't think things like this were possible, but it really opens up a whole new door for science."
Cade joined into the conversation, "I wonder how accurate his theory is. We can only see two universes now, but what if there's more? He stated that the multiverse has an unlimited number of universes, right? But his theory also says that the difference between level one and three universes is where the "doppelgangers" reside. Clearly, that's not the case given how similar our universes appear to be and the fact that we're all here right now."
"True, but Tegmark's theory isn't the only theory out there. Stephen Hawking has voiced his opinion on things like this before as well, and while he supports the multiverse theory, many people like David Gross say that it's not plausible. There's lots of things to consider here," Other Sam responded. "What do you think, San-Li?"
"That you all sound like a bunch of nerds," San-Li snickered.
Alternate Sam and Cade looked mildly offended, but Other Sam merely chuckled and nudged her shoulder.
"Well you're dating a nerd." He smiled softly. "What do you think that makes you?"
San-Li leaned in close to him and placed a finger on his chest. "A nerd lover."
They began to kiss and Alternate Sam and Cade began to look uncomfortable. Cade cleared her throat and Other Sam moved away from San-Li with a slight blush.
"Sorry," Other Sam laughed in embarrassment and San-Li shot Cade a glare.
"To answer your question, danna-sama," she said. "The idea of infinite universes almost makes the entire discussion about alternate universes a moot point. I mean, if we're talking about different universes created by different choices, then who's to say that those universes will have any noticeable differences? And if there are any differences, who says that the outcome will differ? It's kind of like the ending of Bioshock Infinite."
Alternate Sam nodded. "That's right I remember that ending. No matter what Booker Dewitt choses it always ends up with some sort of apocalypse or him losing Elizabeth."
Cade looked between them and blinked. "Um, I think you guys lost me there."
"You've never played Bioshock Infinite?" San-Li smirked and said in a perfect Australian accent. "Did you grow up under a rock in the back of the bush, mate?"
Cade flushed and Alternate Sam's jaw dropped in astonishment.
"That was incredible! Can you mimic any accent just from hearing it once?"
"Yeah, she's real talented like that." Other Sam nudged San-Li and then turned to Cade with an apologetic smile. "Sorry Cade. San-Li has a tendency to tease people."
"It's fine," Cade said softly and started to fiddle with her bracelet again.
"Ugh, I'm bored now." San-Li whined draping herself in Other Sam's lap. "Let's go in the water, danna-sama."
Other Sam stroked her waist affectionately. "I don't know, that water looks kind of cold."
"Yeah and who knows what kind of bacteria tropical water carries?" Alternate Sam said adjusting his glasses.
"You'd only get sick by drinking bacteria infected water, not swimming in it." Cade said with a small smile.
"Why don't you guys come to our room and play some Bioshock with us?" Other Sam said. "I think you'll really like it Cade. It's a little violent for my taste but the storyline and the alternate universe implications are pretty interesting."
Cade smiled and started to answer but San-Li stood up and quickly pulled Other Sam to his feet.
"Come on, let's go, danna-sama!" San-Li laughed and pulled him towards the water.
Alternate Sam and Cade watched as the two went into the water and San-Li literally threw herself into Other Sam's arms. He fell over with a scream, but got up stuttering and laughing.
Alternate Sam leaned over and kissed Cade on the cheek. "See? That wasn't so bad was it?"
Cade rolled her eyes."Sam, I think it's pretty obvious that she doesn't like me."
"No, that isn't it." Alternate Sam shook his head gently. "Other Sam said she just likes to tease people that's all."
Cade sighed and leaned her head on Alternate Sam's shoulder. "For someone so smart, you can sure be obtuse sometimes."
Skyler received a huge splash to the face from Alternate Anna. He shook his head and spat out the salt water. "So that's how it is, huh?" He returned the favor and splashed her back.
Alternate Anna laughed as she tried to block the water. "I was just trying to wash the dirt off your face."
"Dirt?"
"Yeah. There's still some right here." Alternate Anna splashed him again.
Skyler laughed. "Thanks."
"Anytime."
"I'm kind of thirsty. I'm going to grab something from the house. You two want anything?" Skyler looked at the two Annas.
They shook their heads. "No thanks." They watched him as he left.
"So when do you want to do this?" Other Anna looked at Alternate Anna.
Alternate Anna thought for a moment. "I guess we could start at any time. I just hope Skyler doesn't get mad at me for it."
"Joleena probably won't be too pleased with me if she finds out either, but think how fun it could be! It's just a harmless prank. You want to find out if you have magic too, right?"
"Well, yeah but," Alternate Anna crossed her arms, "whenever you're around Skyler, keep the romance to a minimum."
"Of course!" Other Anna laughed. "I'm not trying to steal him from you. We're just going to mess with him. It'll be fine."
Alternate Anna grinned. "Let Operation Switcheroo begin."
A frisbee splashed down next to them. "Sorry!" Kairi called. She bounced over to them and grabbed the frisbee. "What are you two so smiley for?" Kairi tilted her head.
"Oh, nothing." The Annas exchanged coy looks.
"Okay, well you want to play frisbee with me and Fina?" Kairi gestured to Fina who sat wagging her tail and waiting for the frisbee to be thrown again.
"Sure."
They splashed their way over to Fina who started barking and running around in circles. Alternate Anna threw the frisbee for her and she ran after it. The frisbee sailed through the air and Fina dove after it, accidentally knocking Other Fred off of his surf board. They both went under water and Other Fred came back up carrying a giggling human Fina bridal style. Alternate Fred paddled over to them grinning. "Looking a little lovey dovey there you two."
"Naw," Other Fred chuckled and tossed Fina into the water. "She's a bit scrawny for my tastes."
Fina squealed when she hit the water, but then jumped back up and leapt onto his back.
"Are you ready for lunch yet?" She asked. "I can fix you something if you want me too."
"I know I'm pretty much starving,"Alternate Fred said.
He pulled Kairi onto his board and kissed her cheek.
Kairi giggled. "Me too."
Alternate Anna quickly nudged Other Anna. "We'll help you Fina."
The three of them waded out of the water and onto the shore towards the house. Other Fred watched Fina leave with a small smile on his face. The smile faded a little when she stopped over by Other Joe and offered him a small bow. Alternate Fred and Kairi looked at each other and started laughing.
Other Fred frowned and raised an eyebrow. "What are you two laughing at?"
"Oh, it's nothing," Kairi giggled. "It's just that you better hurry up and ask Fina out before someone else does."
Other Fred didn't answer and instead paddled back out into the waves.
"Am I as stubborn as he is?" Alternate Fred laughed.
"More like dense." Kairi kissed his cheek and hopped off of his board. "Imma go talk to Cade for a bit. You know how she gets with new people."
"Cool." Alternate Fred kissed her firmly on the lips. "Later, princess."
Fina walked into the front door of the house, transformed into a dog again, and shook the water off her fur, soaking the two Annas.
"Hey, you guys get enough of the water already?" Skyler asked coming out of the kitchen with a soda in his hand.
"We're going to help Fina cook lunch for everyone," Alternate Anna explained. "But first we're going to go upstairs and change."
"Is there anything in particular that you would like to eat, Skyler?" Fina asked heading up the stairs.
"Whatever you fix is good." Skyler smiled and called up to Alternate Anna. "I'll wait for you down here, okay?"
"No, you go ahead and go back to the beach," she called back. "I'll meet you there!"
"Alright, just don't take too long. I'll die of loneliness and heartbreak without you!" Skyler yelled back dramatically. "Or maybe I'll just have to move on to some other girl."
"You'll be fine." Alternate Anna laughed.
She and Other Anna giggled as they shut the door to their room and quickly put on each other's clothes.
"So, you have an assistant? That's pretty cool." Alternate Joe watched Fina go back into the house followed by the Annas and looked back at Other Joe. "How'd that happen?"
Other Joe ran his hand through his hair. "She just sort of showed up one day and refused to leave. She's great though. It's nice having her around."
"Speaking of assistants…" Sydney smirked as she saw Skyler walking out of the house. "Hey, Sky!" She waved him over to them.
Skyler bounded over to her. "What do you want now, woman?" He smirked back at her.
"It's so nice of you to bring me a drink." She took the soda out of Skyler's hand and took a sip.
Skyler rolled his eyes, but let her take it. He grabbed it back as soon as she was done. "You know there's a whole fridge stocked with drinks in there, right? You could easily get up and get one for yourself. What's wrong with your legs?"
Sydney looked at him over the edge of her sunglasses. "They're on vacation."
Skyler put on a joking grin. "You know, if I wanted to be bossed around by you, I would've just stayed back home in the penthouse. Did you forget I'm on vacation too?"
Sydney smiled at him. "Vacation or not, I'm still your legal guardian and that gives me the right to boss you around."
"Penthouse?" Joleena chimed in. "That sounds nice."
Sydney turned to her and put on a smug grin. "Oh, it is. It's right on Broadway. I've decorated it with the most deluxe things I could find. We get the entire top two floors to ourselves with exclusive rooftop access. Great view too, high enough to look down on all the people of Manhattan, but also high enough that they can't see the disdain on our faces."
Sydney and Skyler looked at each other and laughed like it was some inside joke.
Alternate Joe chuckled and rolled his eyes. "Anything to hold onto that luxurious lifestyle, huh?"
"You're penthouse sounds lovely," Joleena said. "I myself live in my own private townhouse. It's very lavish. I've made the interior as elegant as possible."
Sydney raised an eyebrow. "It must get lonely living in a big house all alone."
"Not at all. I have two maids who are around often."
"Maids? Why don't we have maids?" Skyler looked at Sydney.
She turned to him. "Because I actually want you to be able to take care of yourself."
"It'd be nice to have a maid," Skyler grumbled.
"I don't think I could live in an apartment building. I much prefer having my own house, but I'm sure it's fun to live with so many other people. Sounds quaint."
Sydney frowned at her. "It's a fantastic place actually. Expensive, but worth every penny. I'm sure your townhouse is-"
"Hey, guys!" The Annas ran up to them, now back in their normal clothes. "What are you talking about?"
"Nothing. Is lunch ready?" Skyler rubbed his stomach. "Because I am starving."
"Almost." Other Anna smiled up at him. "Fina said it wouldn't be too long."
"Hey, Joleena? I was wondering if we could have a quick magic lesson while we wait?" Alternate Anna folded her hands behind her back.
"But Anna, we're on vacation. Don't you want a break?" Joleena looked at her quizzically.
"Maybe later. I just really have the urge to practice right now. Please?" She gave her the best doe-eyes she could muster up.
"I guess we could." Joleena sat up.
Alternate Anna grinned. "Great!"
"So, Skyler," Other Anna looked up at him. "While they do that, do you want to go walk around the beach?"
"I don't know. I kind of want to stay and watch the magic show." He watched Alternate Anna and Joleena with fascinated eyes. "I haven't seen any good magic since I was back at Draylon. And now it's not like Syd can- ow!"
Sydney hit Skyler in the leg and gave him a look that said to shut up before he said too much.
"Nevermind." Skyler rubbed his sore leg. "Sure, let's go walk around for a bit."
Skyler wrapped his arm around Other Anna's shoulders and led her away. Alternate Anna watched them go with an odd look on her face.
"Anna, ma chèree, is something wrong?" Joleena stared at her with concern.
Alternate Anna jumped. "I'm fine. Come on, let's do some magic."
Joleena tied a silk cover up around her waist and gestured for Alternate Anna to follow her a little ways away from the others. She waved her hand and a beach blanket materialized on the sand. She gestured for Alternate Anna to sit down.
"Now," She smiled. "Let us practice your aura control. We shall start with simple shapes and then move on to complex ones."
"Okay!" Alternate Anna bounced with excitement. "What do I do first?"
"Focus your energy of course, you know this." Joleena laughed. "Has the sun gotten to you?"
"No, no. I'm fine."
Alternate Anna took a deep breath and closed her eyes but nothing happened. She thought she could feel something stirring inside of her, but other than that nothing. Joleena sighed and grabbed her hands.
"How many times do I have to tell you, you are not ready to focus your magic without your hands?" She said.
Joleena rearranged Alternate Anna's hands so that her palms faced upwards a little apart from each other.
"Now take a deep breath and concentrate your energy," Joleena said. "Envision it taking form in reality."
"Um, it isn't working." Alternate Anna sighed and opened her eyes again. "Maybe you should read my aura again? Maybe jump start it?" She added hopefully.
"Hmm," Joleena bit her thumbnail. "Perhaps the universes crossing and using so much of your magic so soon did hinder it. Very well, I shall-"
"Hey guys, lunch is ready." Other Joe interrupted coming over.
"Can't it wait?" Alternate Anna groaned. "We were just getting started."
"Geez give Joleena a break," Other Joe frowned and pulled Joleena to her feet. "She has to eat."
Alternate Anna sighed in frustration. "But-"
Joleena smiled and softly placed her hands on Alternate Anna's cheeks. "Do not worry ma chère, we shall pick this up in the morning."
She gently kissed Alternate Anna's forehead and let Other Joe walk her back to the house with his arm around her waist. Alternate Anna sighed and followed after them.
"You know, you're really nice Joleena," Alternate Anna said. "I have no idea why you're dating my brother."
Joleena and Other Joe glanced at each other and then gave her a weird look.
"Um, you're the one who helped us get together," Other Joe said. "Do you have sunstroke or something because you're acting kind of weird."
Alternate Anna shook her head and smiled. "Yeah, of course I'm okay. Come on, let's hurry up and eat some lunch. I'm starving!"
"Hiya, Cade." Kairi sat down next to Cade and Alternate Sam. "How's it going?"
"I've been better." Cade stared at San-Li with annoyed expression on her face.
Kairi followed her gaze. "Ah. Once you get to know her, I'm sure you'll feel better."
"I doubt it." Cade crossed her arms. "I don't trust these people. Something is off about them."
"You say that about everyone you meet. Just give them a chance. Like Fina and me for example, we're getting along great! She's making lunch for us right now. You can't not trust someone who's willing to make us all lunch."
"Yes, I can."
Alternate Sam sighed. "Come on, you acted this way when you first met us, and we're okay, right?"
"If they prove me wrong, then they prove me wrong, but until then, I'm staying cautious around them. Especially that San-Li girl. She's trying to get under my skin."
"Because of the accent thing? She was just messing around, Cade."
"It was rude! She's being a ratbag."
"Well…" Kairi nervously looked away. "You're kind of being rude too."
"I'm just being cautious."
"Hey." Sydney and Alternate Joe came up to them with their arms around each other's waists. "Lunch is ready."
"Sydney!" Kairi hopped up. "Tell Cade that's she's being silly. There's nothing wrong with these guys. They're fun people!"
"I think Cade's right."
"What?" Kairi frowned.
Sydney shrugged. "I don't like them either. We'd be better off without them. They need to learn some manners." She glared over her shoulder at Other Joe and Joleena.
"See? I told you I was being cautious for a reason." Cade and Alternate Sam got up.
Alternate Joe rolled his eyes. "Just because things are awkward between you and Joleena now doesn't mean you have to dislike all of them. Everyone has apologized for anything that happened that first day." He paused to kiss Sydney on the cheek. "I'm sure by the end of this trip, we'll all be best friends."
"I don't see that happening," Cade and Sydney spoke at the same time.
"Besides, you heard that stuck-up pris. Quaint? I've invested over hundred million dollars in that place. It's a hell of lot more than just quaint. And a more expensive makeup brand? This is Estee Lauder. It doesn't get much more expensive than that." Sydney crossed her arms. "I covered up my bruise very well, thank you very much. I think I know how to hide scars at this point." She slowly traced the hidden scar under her collarbone, covered up with make-up and her tattoo.
"Technically it's your parents' money." Joe rubbed her back comfortingly. "And what did I tell you about competing?"
"She made this a competition, not me. I'm just making sure I come out on top like always." She stubbornly crossed her arms.
"Have you ever thought that maybe you two are evenly matched? Whatever happened to relaxing while we were on vacation?" Joe softly kissed her on the lips.
"Maybe you need to remind me how to relax?" Sydney winked at him and kissed him again.
Joe chuckled and grabbed her wrists. He slowly rubbed the hidden scars. "Only if you promise to stop stressing over every little thing. Do you really think she meant any harm in what she said?"
"Stressing is what I do best. It's the struggle of being a perfectionist in a world where nothing can be perfect."
"Well," Joe lovingly caressed her arm, "some things are perfect."
Sydney dropped her arms and leaned into him. "That was so cheesey, I think I threw up a little bit."
"I love you too."
She stuck her tongue out at him, but her eyes were sparkling with affection. "Back to the snob, I'm sure she isn't all that perfect."
Kairi pouted. "They're really not that bad. You guys will see tonight when Fina and I make everyone dinner." She sighed. "I'll go tell the Freds that the food is ready."
