AN: I'm not exactly thrilled with how abrupt the ending is, but I couldn't think of a way to wrap it up any better.
Also, I STRONGLY recommend anyone who hasn't read my previous story, The Story of My Parents, to go back and read it BEFORE reading this chapter. The reason I say this is because you probably won't fully appreciate this chapter as much if you haven't read that other story. (Not to mention you might not understand what's going on, either.)
Finally, I feel I should tell everyone that there is only one more chapter left to this story, and that last chapter will be designed to set the stage for the final installment of the Boho Kids arc. (And believe me, I'm pulling out all the stops for that last story; my goal is to make it even bigger than Sunsets and Sunrises.)
With Kris, Alvin, and Old Man Cleveland close behind him, Zack raced up the stairs leading up to the Los Angeles streets.
"You mean Rodolfo actually led that man down the subway tunnel?" Old Man Cleveland spoke in disbelief.
"Yeah," Alvin confirmed. "And a subway train went down the same tunnel immediately afterwards! Rodolfo's fast, but there's no way he can outrun a subway train! No one can!"
"Shut up!" Zack rounded on his friend. "Rodolfo's alive, alright? There's no way he'd die like this! It's impossible! He…he'd have managed to get out of the way in time. Subway tunnels have maintenance workers checking things out down there all the time. There has to be spots where Rodolfo could avoid getting…" Zack never finished his sentence. Instead, he started looking up and down the street in desperation, close to a mental breakdown. Deciding the best thing to do was to stay silent, Alvin glanced over at Kris, who looked close to tears over what had just happened.
At that moment, an LAPD squad car came around the corner. Immediately, Zack started waving his arms violently, trying to catch the cop's attention. Seconds later, the others began to mirror his action. To everyone's relief, the squad car pulled over into an available spot by the curb a few feet away, but the police officer was not the first person to step out of the squad car. Just as Zack was starting to approach the cop car, the back door opened and the last person the teen boy was expecting to see stepped out. For the longest moment, he was rooted to the spot, barely believing that he was really seeing her.
"M…Mom?" Zack finally whispered.
"ZACK!" In a heartbeat, Emily had closed the distance between them, pulling her son into a bone-crushing hug. "Zack, thank heaven you're alive!" It took a few seconds, but Zack quickly felt his surprise being replaced by happiness, and he returned his mother's hug whole-heartedly. Seconds later, his joy increased when Mark appeared at Emily's side, joining the hug.
"I don't understand!" Zack smiled once the hug had ended, gazing at his parents' faces happily. "What are you…how did you…?"
"We should be asking you that," Mark replied, completely forgetting to fake sternness in his euphoria at seeing Zack alive and safe. "Were you or were you not abducted by someone last night?"
"I think we all want to know how you all managed to escape." Zack nearly started upon hearing Benny's voice. He had been so happy about seeing his parents, he hadn't even noticed that Alvin was having a reunion of his own with his father.
"That can wait, can't it, Benny?" Emily asked, wiping away some emotional tears. It was at that moment she finally noticed Old Man Cleveland.
"Everyone, this is Old Man Cleveland," Alvin explained. "He helped us out a lot out here. In fact, we probably wouldn't have made it through the night if it wasn't for him."
"Thank you so much for looking after them," Benny announced, shaking Old Man Cleveland's hand in gratitude.
"It was no trouble," Old Man Cleveland replied. However, as Mark stepped forward to shake Old Man Cleveland's hand as well, an odd look appeared on his face.
"Hang on," Mark frowned, studying Old Man Cleveland's face closely. "You…you kind of look like someone…."
"Zack," Emily suddenly spoke up, looking around, realizing someone was missing. "Where's Rodolfo?" As fast as a pin dropping, Zack felt his high spirits disappear. With a pained look, he glanced over at Alvin and Kris, neither of them meeting his eyes.
"Rodolfo," a gentle voice spoke calmly as a warm hand touched his shoulder. "Come on, Rodolfo, chico. Wake up." The sound of the voice slowly pulled Rodolfo back into consciousness with a low groan. He could tell that he was lying face up on a cold concrete floor, but it was a while before he could realize he was also inside the stairwell of the subway tunnel's emergency exit.
Gingerly sitting up, he rubbed the back of his head where he could feel a bump starting to form, the owner of the gentle voice holding him steady. After a short while, Rodolfo turned to look at the person helping him. Once his eyes focused on the stranger's face, they grew wide in recognition.
"You," Rodolfo whispered in amazement. "I…I remember you. You were that man who took me back home, when I tried to run away when I was thirteen. The street drummer. But…what are you doing here?"
"Don't worry about that now," the street drummer smiled kindly. "Come on. Let's get you out of here."
"Hang on!" Rodolfo cried out, the memories of what had happened earlier flooding back to him. "What just happened? I was…about to fall on the tracks. That subway was going to…"
"It's all right, Rodolfo," the young man soothed. "You're safe now."
"But…what about…?" Rodolfo suddenly glanced over at the open door leading to the subway tunnel, where he had last seen Aleix, but as he started to head to the door to look, he found himself being held back.
"No," the street drummer instructed with a grim sternness. "You're not meant to see anything like that. Just believe me when I say you don't have to worry about him anymore." Rodolfo swallowed involuntarily, instantly realizing what his mysterious friend was implying. He was right; he didn't want to see anything like that.
"Then…" Rodolfo forced himself to speak again, "what about my friends? Zack, Alvin, and Kris? Are they okay? And what about Mr. Cleveland?"
"They're okay," the street drummer smiled warmly. "But they're all very worried about you. Come with me; I'll help you get back to them."
Normally, Rodolfo knew he would have had serious doubts about following someone he barely knew, but for some reason, this street drummer always made him feel completely safe. For that reason, Rodolfo did not hesitate to accept the street drummer's hand when it was offered. Together, they began to climb up the stairs that would lead them back up to the streets above.
"I…I don't suppose you're going to tell me how you do it," Rodolfo began, glancing over at the street drummer out of the corner of his eye. "What I mean to say is…first, you're talking me into returning home after I run away, and now you're here, in Los Angeles. And I think you actually saved my life this time. You just…always seem to be there when I really need help. I just don't understand how you….it's like…you're some sort of…guardian angel or something."
"Rodolfo," the street drummer turned to him with a caring smile. "It sounds as if you don't really believe in guardian angels."
"I…I don't know," Rodolfo confessed. "I never…really thought about it, actually. Is…is that what you are?" The response to Rodolfo's question took a while to come.
"I suppose…you might call me that. If you want." Rodolfo nodded slightly, satisfied enough with that answer.
"So, does that mean…I'll see you again if I get into another bad situation?" Once again, the street drummer paused before answering.
"I'm afraid that isn't something I can give a straight answer to," he finally replied. "But I can tell you I'll always be watching over you."
Rodolfo and the street drummer climbed the rest of the stairs in complete silence. Before too long, they arrived at a door that led out into the bright Los Angeles sunlight.
"Here you are, Rodolfo," the street drummer spoke, placing a hand on the teen boy's shoulder. "Your family is waiting for you just around the corner." His face breaking out into a smile, Rodolfo began to head off, but stopped before he took three steps.
"I…I just realized," Rodolfo turned back. "You've helped me twice already, and…I don't even know your name." Very slowly, the street drummer's face broke out into the warmest, most caring smile Rodolfo had ever seen, but there was also a hint of sadness in the smile as well. Without a word, the young man had stepped forward, hugging Rodolfo tightly, almost like a parent.
"Rodolfo," the street drummer whispered into his ear. "I need you to listen to me now, for this is more important than you might realize. There is something I need you to do for me. You need to pass this on to Mark, Emily, Maureen, and Joanne. A storm is coming, Rodolfo, and they need to be told this. They must be warned."
"Warned?" Rodolfo blinked. "Warned of what? What do you mean, 'a storm?' I don't under…." Before Rodolfo could finish, the street drummer had vanished in the blink of an eye. "WAIT!" Rodolfo cried out, spinning around, trying to call the man back again. "You need to explain! What…what 'storm?'" For almost a minute, Rodolfo remained where he was, effectively shaken by the cryptic message, but he finally managed to move his feet to lead him into the direction he'd been told his family was located. Upon turning the corner, he immediately saw a squad car parked by the curb, where a small group of people was gathered.
"YOU'RE ALIVE!" Without warning, Rodolfo found himself being tackled to the ground by someone who had practically launched himself at him. A split second after he'd hit the ground, Rodolfo recognized the straight black hair of the person who was hugging him in relief.
"Hi, Kris," Rodolfo chuckled, patting her back in response while smiling up at Alvin and Zack before giving a wave of acknowledgement to Old Man Cleveland, who was also standing nearby. At this particular moment, he was much too happy to even bother wondering why Uncle Mark and Aunt Emily were there as well, or how they even got there. All that mattered to him at this moment was that everyone was safe.