This is a one shot for Abizeau's "Give Me Some Space!" It is a pretty awesome story, so you should go check it out if you haven't already! Zeph was created by the lovely Slytherwitch.
Somewhere in space, Military Headquarters, Boys Room 2
Saturday, 15h10
"It's the terror of knowing what this world is about! Watching some good friends screaming-"
Puck was cut off as Maya unplugged the speaker that had been blasting Queen.
"Puck! Oh my god, you are so loud! Just stop for one second."
"She's not wrong," Zeph said, not looking up from the game of chess he and Puck were in the middle of.
The three of them were all sitting on the floor of Puck and Zeph's room. Puck and Zeph were playing a game of chess, and Maya was studying for a history test. They had been studying all afternoon and gotten less than an ideal amount of work done.
"Besides," Maya said, sitting back down in the middle of a pile of flashcards, "You are supposed to be helping me study."
Puck reached out to pick up one of the flashcards that had ended up on his side of the room. "When was the first manned mission to space?"
"Uhh...1961? Yes, 1961, and it was Yuri Gagarin. Right?"
"Yes, Yuri Gagarin, 1961," Puck reached down to pick up a few more flashcards, "When was the first mission to INIDES?"
"It left in 1981 and landed in 1985. It was the first mission to another planet. Have you gone yet, Zeph?"
"Just give me one minute…Okay." Zeph moved one of his rooks to the left three spaces.
"Finally!" Puck turned his attention to the board, taking in the move Zeph had made and considering his options.
"Zeph! Your turn!" Maya threw a handful of flashcards at Zeph, who rolled his eyes before picking them up.
"Who is the Greek God of family feuds? Maya, when are you ever going to need to know this?"
"Alastor, and you know Professor Atlas loves Greek myths. I need an A+ in History, so if knowing a bunch of random Greek Gods makes Professor Atlas like me, you best believe I'm going to memorize every last one of them!"
"Okay, here's one for you, who is the god of the west wind?"
"Um, I don't think that one's on there…"
Zeph raised his eyebrows at her.
"Oh! Zeph! It's Zephyrus!"
"Took you long enough," Zeph smirked.
The three continued on, Puck and Maya constantly distracted and off task and Zeph rolling his eyes while trying to hide his smile. After a few more hours and very little progress, Maya started yawning and finally looked down at her watch.
"Oh my god! It's 18h00, dinner is in 30 minutes!"
"Wait, really?" Puck looked up from the flashcard he had been about to read.
"Ya, I should probably go. I've got to go ask Emrys a question before I eat, and we all know how fun that is."
"Ya, go. See you tomorrow?"
"Um, ya," Maya said, taking a stack of flashcards from Zeph, "Library at 13h15?"
"Works for me. Zeph?"
"Uh, I have…other plans."
"Oh, um, okay. Monday night than?"
"Sure."
"Okay, see you guys then." Maya stepped out of their dorm and closed the door behind her. Very loudly.
Puck stood up and stretched before sitting back down to pick up the chess game. Zeph had won this game, putting him only one behind, at five games won. They been having a bit of a competition over the last few days; whoever had won the most chess games at the end of the week got to give the other one of their chores for a week. Zeph wanted to work on his logic skills, and Puck's attention span could really use some work; it was a win win situation.
Zeph stood up and walked into the bathroom, but before he closed the door, he stopped and turned around. "Puck?"
"Ya?" Puck put the lid on the chess box and looked up and Zeph.
"Uh, never mind." Zeph turned back and quickly shut the door behind him.
Puck shrugged his shoulders and walked over to his shelf to put the game away. He sat down on his bed and pulled out his own flashcards and notes to squeeze in a bit more studying before dinner. He had a test in Ellis's on Wednesday and he was not prepared. Computer Engineering had always been his worst class, but this year he was struggling more than normal.
"Zeph?" Puck called towards the bathroom.
"Ya?"
"How would you define 'parity bit'?"
"Uh…Essentially they're the simplest form of error detecting code."
"Cool, thanks!" Puck quickly wrote down what Zeph had said on his flashcard. He was about to start on the next flashcard when his computer dinged. A message. And not just any message, Puck knew that ding. That higher than normal ding meant his dad had sent him a message. He sighed. He was probably asking Puck to have dinner in their private quarters so he could lecture him on one thing or another, and Puck did not need a lecture at the moment. However, what he needed even less than a lecture was his dad being angry because he ignored his message, so he reached over and grabbed his computer.
A. van Dommelen: I talked to Freya, you are excused from dinner tonight. I will see you in out quarters at 18h40.
Puck signed. He knew it. There was something he had done that apparently warranted a lecture from his dad. He sent a quick message to Jack and Scarlet to let them both know he wouldn't be at dinner before responding to his dad.
R. van Dommelen: Okay. See you then.
A. van Dommelen: Good. Love you.
R. van Dommelen: Love you too, Dad.
"What was all the sighing about?"
Puck looked up from his computer to see Zeph walking out of the bathroom and over to his desk.
"Oh, nothing much. My dad just wants me to eat dinner with him tonight."
"Ah, have fun with that," Zeph said. He didn't know much about Puck's relationship with his dad, but he noticed that the boy was never very excited to spend time with him.
"Ya, we'll see if I survive the night."
Zeph laughed and pulled out his own computer. The room fell silent and they both returned to their own studying. Puck was distracted though, Zeph had been acting weird lately. He couldn't put his finger on exactly what it was, but his roommate seemed off. He had been trying to figure it out, but he was drawing a blank. He had even asked Maya for her opinion, but she had just shrugged her shoulders and changed the subject.
"Puck?"
"What?" Puck was pulled from his thoughts to see his roommate standing in front of him, looking annoyed.
"I asked you if you know where my jacket is."
"Oh, uh, I think I saw it hanging by the door this morning." Puck pointed to the gray jacket hanging on a hook by the door.
"Thanks, I should have seen that," Zeph said, grabbing the jacket.
"No worries."
"Okay, well I'm going to head down to dinner."
"Okay."
"I'll see you tonight I guess?"
"Ya, probably around 20h00 ish."
"Okay." Zeph opened the door to leave, but paused a moment before turning around to face Puck.
"Did you need something?" Puck asked, not looking up from his computer.
"No," Zeph said quickly before turning away again. He stood there for a moment before turing around again. "Actually, I was wondering if you would want to study with me tomorrow."
Puck looked up from his computer, taken aback. "I thought you had other plans…"
"I don't."
"Okay. What time?" Puck asked, a smile spreading across his face.
"Um, 13h30?"
"Works for me. Library?"
"Ya," Zeph smiled, blushing ever so slightly.
"Okay, see you then."
"See you then." Zeph smiled and turned to walk down the hall.
Puck turned his attention back to his computer. He was kind of shocked with himself. He had said yes so easily. How had he said yes so easily? What was he thinking?
Suddenly, his computer dinged and a message popped up on his screen.
A. van Dommelen: Where are you?
Puck looked down at his watch. 18h41. Shoot.
R. van Dommelen: On my way.
Shoot, shoot, shoot. His dad was going to kill him. He grabbed his jacket and ran out the door, almost forgetting to close the door. He ran down the hall, not caring about the rules or who saw him. He arrived at the elevator and pressed the button. He pressed it again. Why were the elevators so slow? He was on the MHQ, for goodness sakes! Couldn't they afford faster elevators? Finally, the doors opened and he darted in. He pushed the button for the 5th floor and waited, not so patiently, for the doors to open again. As soon as they did, he ran back out and down the hall. He came to a halt in front of the metal doors that lead to his dad's private quarters and smoothed his hair before putting his fingerprint on the screen next to the door. After confirming his identity, the doors opened and he walked in.
"Puck." Atlas van Dommelen was sitting at the table. He did not look happy. He did not look happy at all.
"Dad," Puck answered, walking over to the table and sitting in his seat, the one opposite his dad's. There was a plate of food sitting in front of him. It smelled so good, especially compared to the food he was used to at the Academy, but he restrained from taking a bite. He knew that would only make things worse.
"You are late."
"Yes, I know, and I'm sorry. I was studying for Ellis's test, and I lost track of time. It won't happen again."
Atlas did not respond. He began eating his dinner, not even glancing at his son. Puck thought about starting on his own food, but quickly thought better of it. If his dad had asked him to dinner there had to be a reason, and more than likely it was a bad reason. It wasn't worth the risk of making things worse.
The two sat in silence for nearly twenty minutes before Atlas spoke.
"You haven't touched your dinner. Would you like something else?"
"No, this is fine. I'm just not very hungry." Puck lied. Not the smartest of choices, but he couldn't go back now. "Dad?"
"Yes?" Atlas did not look up.
"Why did you ask me to dinner?"
Atlas set down his fork and looked at Puck. "Do I need a reason to spend time with my son?"
"Well, no. It's just that we haven't talked in awhile. I thought something was wrong."
"Nothing is wrong," Atlas turned his attention back to his dinner.
Puck picked up his fork and began eating his own dinner. He still couldn't help feeling as if there had to be something wrong. His dad didn't just invite him to dinner for no reason. It simply didn't happen.
They went on eating in silence for a while longer before Atlas spoke again.
"Our wedding anniversary is a week from tomorrow"
Puck put down his fork and looked at his father. He should have known. Of course he knew when his parents' anniversary was, but usually his dad preferred to spend the day alone. This year, however, was their 30th anniversary. Puck had assumed he would take some time off and take a trip to ANGELES, visit the place they fell in love. He had assumed his father would want to be alone, like always. Maybe he was wrong. "Yes, I know…"
"I was thinking you and I could do something. Something your mother would have enjoyed. Maybe we could go down to ANGELES and go to the symphony. You know how she loved the symphony."
"Yes. Yes, I would love that."
"Would you?"
"Yes! Yes, Dad. I would love to go to the symphony with you."
"Alright then. I will see you bright and early Sunday morning." Atlas stood up, placing his napkin on the table.
"Great," Puck said, standing up himself. He walked over to his dad and hugged him. Atlas stiffened for a moment before putting his own arms around his son.
They pulled apart, and Puck turned to walk out the door.
"I love you," Atlas called after his son.
"Love you too, Dad."
Somewhere in space, Military Headquarters, The Academy Library
Sunday, 13h45
"So, tell me about KOBOS. What is that like?" Puck asked, putting down his pencil to look at guy sitting across from him.
"Well, it's cold," Zeph laughed, "and there is a lot of snow. The mountains are really pretty and everything is always covered in frost or snow. It is a beautiful planet, but so different from home."
"VUCCANOE, right?"
"Ya. I want to go back some day. Maybe I will. Who knows."
Both boys fell silent, their attention returning to their studies. Puck was working on an essay for intel, and his eyes never left his work. Zeph's eyes, on the other hand, wondered, every so often, off of his paper and to the person across the table. Then, Puck would sniff or glance down at his paper, and Zeph's eyes would move back to his own work.
They continued on like this, talking for a few minutes every so often, for almost an hour before Puck stood up and closed his computer.
"Pack up your stuff. I want to show you something."
"But I'm almost-"
"Just do it. It will be worth it. I promise," Puck smiled, holding his hand out to Zeph.
"Okay…" Zeph let Puck take his right hand and lead him out of the library.\.
They walked down the hall further than Zeph had ever been. They climbed several flights of stars and walked down a few hallways. Then, they got on an elevator.
"Close your eyes," Puck said as he pushed the button.
"Okay…"
Zeph could hear the doors of the elevator open, but he kept his eyes shut. Puck took Zeph's hands and lead him out of the elevator. He took him a few more steps before stopping. Puck let go of his hands and stepped behind him.
"Okay, open."
Zeph opened his eyes to see one of the most beautiful things he had ever seen. In front of him was a wall made entirely of glass, and on the other side of the glass you could see five of the planets in the Illéa system. Bright red EVRIA; VUCCANOE, Zeph's home planet; brilliant blue and green INIDES; sparkling blue and silver ANGELES; and dull brown XAGION. In the distance you could also see the fiery sun.
"It's beautiful…" Zeph whispered.
"I know. I used to come up here all the time. I would read for hours and hours. Sometimes I would just sit and watch the view. It is different every day of course, so it never got old."
"Thank you. Thank you for showing me."
"Of course," Puck smiled.
"I don't want to leave."
"I know the feeling."
Puck took Zeph's left hand, the metal one, in his own and led him over to sit on the wall. He took the metal hand in his lap and traced the fine lines where the pieces of metal came together.
Neither one could tell you how long they sat there, but eventually they made their way back down. Puck offered to to pick up their books from the library, and by the time he got back to their dorm, Zeph was already in bed. His eyes were closed, so Puck silently put away their things and climbed into bed himself. Just as he was about to turn off the light, however, he noticed a small, white envelope sitting on his bedside table. He opened the envelope to find a folded piece of paper. When he unfolded the paper, he found a beautifully drawn sketch of himself. When he looked closer, he saw Zeph's tiny initials in the corner. While Puck had been so focused on his essay, Zeph had been working on this incredible piece of art.
Puck pulled out his journal and carefully placed the drawing at the back. When he put the journal back in its place and turned off the light, he felt something he had not felt in a long time. He couldn't name it or even describe it, but it was there.
Across the room, lying in his own bed and very much awake, Zeph could feel the same feeling as he watched Puck put his drawing in his journal and lie down to sleep.