Code: Cameron
Chapter Twenty One
Frontier
Cameron opened his eyes, looked at the date on the clock, and sighed, letting his eyes fall shut again. When no sense of time rewinding to the night before occurred, he groaned and swung out of bed, rubbing his face before wishing again that it wasn't that particular day.
He reached over and slapped the clock a few times, eventually finding the button to make it shut up. As the room brightened, he realized that Jeremie was sound asleep on his own pillow. Though, as his clock started to beep, he turned out to be a little too soundly asleep. As Cameron's pillow hit him, his eyes opened and he yawned, apparently even when he slept his batteries didn't really recharge. Cameron retrieved his pillow and debated whether it was worth it to fall back onto his bed to sleep for another little while, then decided better of it, choosing instead to face the day, even if he really didn't want to.
()()()()
Taelia was waiting for him near the gate, looking out at the city. He'd already spoken with the principal and - after a great deal of frustrating negotiation, resulting in the principal simply giving up - he'd gotten himself excused from the first ten minutes of the day's classes. Taelia turned to face him as he approached, red eyes explaining how her night had been.
How her last night at Kadic Academy had been.
He pulled her into a tight embrace, feeling her head fall onto his shoulder as her own wracked with sobs. Her things were packed neatly away, stacked into two small bags next to the gate, the rest had been taken at earlier points in time, sent overseas so that the new house would already be ready for them when they arrived. He suppressed his own feelings, not wanting to break down as he had so many times in the past. Instead, he let his head drop to rest on hers, rubbing her back soothingly. No words were really needed, but he knew that he had to speak anyway.
"Shh, shh, please Taelia, I'm not worth crying over."
Taelia pulled away and whacked his arm jokingly, "Oh shut up. You're not the only thing here worth crying about leaving."
Cameron feigned insult, placing a hand over his heart, "Are you saying I'm not worth crying over? I'm insulted that you think that, I meant it as a joke."
Taelia laughed lightly, "Joke or not, it's still true." Her smile faded as the sound of a motor approached, and a car swung around the corner, pulling up in front of them. A man and woman got out, dressed smartly as if they were working rather than picking their adoptive daughter up. The man stepped up to him, extending a hand, "Kyle, Kyle McClaren."
Cameron shook the offered hand firmly, "Cameron Hopper."
Mr. McClaren nodded and released his hand, bending to pick up one of Taelia's bags, "Are you ready Taelia?"
Taelia swallowed hard and bent to pick up her other bag, straightening and rolling her eyes when Cameron swiped it, carrying it over to the car and placing it in the trunk. He flashed her a grin, "What? I couldn't just leave you to haul a heavy bag over by yourself."
Taelia shook her head, "You take chivalry too far sometimes Cameron. But thanks anyway." She hugged him again, "I'll miss you."
Cameron held her tightly, "I'll miss you more."
"Want to bet?"
"You're on."
Taelia laughed, an honest, full laugh rather than a false chuckle, then placed a quick kiss on his cheek before darting into the backseat of the car, wanting to avoid long goodbyes.
Mr. McClaren grunted as he placed her other bag in the car, then returned to shake Cameron's hand again, "For what it's worth, I'm sorry about this, I'd much rather stay here."
Cameron shrugged and shook his hand, "Well, we all have regrets. Take care of her, huh?"
The man smiled, "Count on it."
As he returned to the car, his wife placed a hand on Cameron's shoulder, "If it makes you feel better, this move is purely business. We should be done in the states in a few years, and then we'll probably be coming right back here. We've lived here too long to leave for good."
Cameron smiled, "Thanks. That does make me feel better actually."
The woman smiled, "Well, from what I've gathered, we'll be coming back here every once in a while when Taelia gets a break from school. She seems to like you a great deal."
Cameron smiled and shook his head, "She just can't set a specific date, can she? Always has to be vague."
Mrs. McClaren laughed and slid into the car as Taelia leaned out the window to answer him, "I learned it from you!"
Cameron laughed, "Yeah right."
As the car drove away down the road, Cameron raised a hand solemnly in farewell, staying exactly where he was until the car rounded a corner and disappeared. Only when it was gone did he swallow hard and unlock the tidal waves of emotion roiling within him, letting them crash over him harder than they had in a very long time.
()()()()
As Cameron stopped in front of the door to the classroom, he paused, taking a careful moment to compose his features before entering. The classroom was alive with soft conversation as the students hunched over worksheets. A few looked up as he walked to his desk, silently placing a note on Ms. Hertz's desk as he passed it. He gave them simple nods before sliding into his chair, pulling a pencil out and getting to work with the focus of a person who doesn't want to think of something. Odd glanced over shortly, and Cameron's phone buzzed with a message.
Something wrong? You look like you just got stood up for a date.
Cameron sighed and shook his head, pocketing his phone without responding. At the moment, he simply didn't feel like dealing with Odd. He pulled his textbook out and flipped to the page Ms. Hertz had written on the board, copying down the problems and solving them with barely needing to think of them.
()()()()
As the bell rang, Cameron was one of the first out the door. Instead of heading to the lunchroom, he headed to the park, traveling to one of the few places where he could feel at peace. The door to the Hermitage creaked slightly as it opened for him, dust rising in small clouds with every step he took, making him realize just how long it had been since he'd been there.
Cameron inhaled deeply, thinking of all the time spent, all the days lived without his family. Not a day had gone by that he hadn't thought of them, missed them, wished that they were back with him. And now it was worse, he'd had something, someone else to care about. And now Taelia had left as well, he simply didn't know what to do, what was supposed to come next.
He let his feet guide him, take him to his old window. A forlorn view awaited him, a desolate yard with a few patches of grass among the weeds. Thoughts flashed back to him, images of Aelita, and Franz and Taelia flitting within his memories.
He bent over and clutched the windowsill as a sob wracked his body.
A slip of paper fluttered at the edge of his attention, jammed into a crack next to the window. He tugged it free of its resting place, Aelita's elegant handwriting instantly registering to his eyes.
Hello Cameron. And, I suppose this is goodbye as well.
()()()()
Cameron sighed and dropped onto his bed. Jeremie wasn't there, and at the moment Cameron couldn't care less where he was. He pulled the note out of his pocket and re-opened it, his eyes darting from word to word as he read over the note again.
Hello Cameron. And, I suppose this is goodbye as well.
Daddy told me to write a note and hide it in my room, but I don't think that I'll have time to write everything that I want to say on that. So this is where I'll say everything else.
Daddy and I have already gone, and we've probably been gone for some time by now. I'm not sure when we'll see you again, in fact I'm not sure if I'll get to see you again. But I have faith that we'll talk again, face to face rather than across a couple of slips of paper hidden away in the house. I don't want you to be sad and miss us Cameron, in three years you've had enough sadness for a lifetime. Instead, live your life to the best you can, don't regret a moment of it, because every second you spend on the past is just another one that you can't think of the future with. And you deserve to think of the future. But if you can't do that for yourself, do it for us.
Do it for me.
You can't imagine how much I'm going to miss you, but by the time you find this, you'll probably have experienced that for yourself. You're like the little brother I've always wanted, but I never got. I don't want to leave, not home, not you, I want to stay here in the Hermitage for the rest of my life. But daddy says that we'll have to leave soon, and I know that we need to, to stay away from the Men in Black. I hate them Cameron, with everything I have. I don't know why they want daddy, but I know that they're forcing us to leave, and I just don't want to leave.
I'll say this one more time, and then I'll have to go, daddy will be getting home soon and I didn't ask him about writing this. I'll miss you, but I don't want you thinking about us any more than you have to. You deserve a life away from all of the hardship you've had to deal with already, I can't live my life thinking that you're living yours in the past.
So remember the past, live in the present, and look to the future.
I heard a good phrase from one of the movies around the house, for saying goodbye, so I'll use it here.
Live long and prosper.
~Aelita
Cameron blinked as he finished the note. Aelita was right, as usual. He had been focusing too much on the past, it was time to stop living in it and think about the future. He always said that if you couldn't change something, not to worry about it. Well, Aelita and Franz were gone, and Taelia was headed to New York. Nothing he could do could change any of that, so why was he always wishing that things were different? So he was going to do what Aelita wanted. Remembering the past and wishing things were different wouldn't change anything, so he would only remember it. Ignoring the present and longing for things past would only bring more sadness, so he would live in the present and live to the fullest. Pretending the future was set in stone and invisible to him wasn't worth thinking, so he would look to the future and shape it with his own actions, not with actions dictated by what he thought an absent father would approve of.
As he thought of that, his heart lifted. The pain and sadness was still there, but it wasn't dominating every moment of his existence. There would be time to feel anguish from the past later, but for now, there was enough in his life now without piling more onto his conscience.
And the first thing he could think of doing . . . was find out what the rest of his friends were so set on keeping from him. Okay, so maybe it wasn't the kindest thing to do, but his friends lying to him through their teeth wasn't the kindest thing that they could have done either.
His reverie was interrupted as the door swung open, Yumi charging in and looking wildly around. She noticed him and froze, "Um, Cameron, what are you doing here? Why aren't you in class?"
Cameron's eyebrows rose, "I wasn't feeling well after lunch, so I went by the infirmary and told Yolanda how I was feeling, and I asked her if she thought that it was a good idea for me to go and lie down a while. She thought it was a good idea, and sent a note to the teacher to excuse me from class. Your turn, what are you doing in here?"
Yumi paused, "Jeremie asked me to get his laptop for him."
Cameron nodded towards Jeremie's desk, "It's right over there. Anything else I can help you with?"
Yumi shook her head as she collected the computer and tucked its bag under her arm, "Thanks for the help." As she passed by, she apparently noticed the underlying look on his face, because she paused again, "is something wrong Cameron?"
Cameron sighed, "Taelia left for New York this morning."
Yumi looked stricken, "Oh, wow. How are you feeling?"
Cameron shook his head, "As well as can be expected I guess." He waved Aelita's note in the air, "Actually probably a bit better than that, a little advice from my sister can go a long way it seems. I'm actually feeling fine, better than I have in a long time."
Yumi smiled as she opened the door, "That's good to hear. Well, see you later."
Cameron nodded, "Later."
As the door closed, Cameron rose from his spot on the bed and crossed to Jeremie's desk, switching on the computer sitting there. He would probably feel bad for hacking into it later, but at the moment, he just wanted some answers. Screens popped up, one after another until he ran across something that looked promising for said answers.
Diary of Jeremie Belpois, student at Kadic Academy, October Ninth.
()()()()
A while later, Cameron slumped back into the chair, stunned by the amount of information he'd just gone through. Part of him wanted to head to the factory Jeremie had specified to demand answers, but reason held him in check. If he tipped his hand, they could simply undo it with a return to the past. Better to wait until he was sure that they couldn't erase his memories - again - to let them know that he knew all about their game.
And then maybe, just maybe, he could find his sister.
()()()()
As Jeremie stepped back into the room, Cameron was laying down in his bed, back to the door, fast asleep. The clock beeped as it turned over to the new hour, and Jeremie grimaced. He set his laptop down carefully on the desk and slipped into bed, after the day's events, he was simply too tired to do anything else.
Even too tired to register than his computer was on, while when he'd left earlier that day, he'd switched it off.
End of Chapter Twenty-One
Hey guys!
Man, this chapter feels shorter than the others I've done. Maybe it is, but I just couldn't think of anything to follow that up with. So, after twenty long chapters, Cameron learns about everything happening at Kadic, only for once he remembers it all. What's going to happen next? Well, your guess is as good as mine, because I'm just making it up as I go along right now.
Oh, my school year is going to start soon, so updates are really going to slow down. I'll try to get the next chapter up before I lose almost all of my time, but after September Fourth, I'm not sure how often I'll be able to update.
Breadloaf:
Thanks for the compliment on the last chapter, your continued support is very welcome. Well, Cameron didn't quite meet Aelita, but a note is as close as I can get without sending him to Lyoko. I did mention in Franz's note in . . . wow, was it really Chapter Seven? Man, time really flies. Anyway, in the last thing that Franz left for Cameron, he mentioned in a note that Aelita may or may not have left a little something extra behind. I was a bit lost on where to go with this chapter after Taelia left, so I brought that in. Anyway, I have a feeling that Cameron will be meeting Aelita soon, so please, keep reading!
Now then, thank you all so much again for staying with me for so long!
Keep Writing, Keep Rocking.
Undeadmonkey8, over and out . . . for now.