Jondy the Abandoner 3: Barcoded
Chapter 4: That's the X5 Life
Jondy lay on her bed, staring upward. As the sun sunk lower in the sky, her room grew progressively darker, and she watched the shadow move across the ceiling.
Zack was such an ass, she decided. First, he let her seduce him to the point where they had sex. He probably did it because he knew she had a boyfriend, and he didn't like it. Zack didn't want her to have connections with anyone. That ass.
Second, he'd treated her like a baby when he thought she over reacted to the Aldrea's barcode. Well, she did over react, Jondy admitted to herself, but who was Zack to act like a big brother now, after their less than sibling-like morning together?
Jondy ground her teeth. She heard Aldrea laugh out in the living room area.
"Zack! What movie did you bring?! Is it a Disney one?"
"No."
"Is it a kids' movie?"
"Yes."
"Is it Pokemon?"
"No."
"Is it post-Pulse?"
"No."
"Good. 'Cause all the post-Pulse movies suck."
"That's because they have practically no budget for movies Allie."
At this point Jondy could no longer stand listening to their conversation. She burst out of her bedroom to find Zack sitting casually on a stool in the kitchen, while Aldrea hopped energetically on the couch, the cushions beginning to slide off.
"Stop calling her 'Allie,' Zack!" Jondy shouted.
"Mommy stop being so mad!" demanded Aldrea.
"I'm sorry Kiddo, but your uncle is getting on my last nerve."
"Do you want some popcorn?" asked Zack, offering her the bowl, which contents had been half depleted while Zack had continued to tease Aldrea about the movie.
Jondy shook her head, and went to sit next to Aldrea, who was still jumping about.
Jondy appreciated the constant movement. It served as a reminder that Aldrea was still in the room. Jondy avoided looking at Zack. Why did he have to be so hot? What jerk of a geneticist decided to give him such glorious biceps?
Jondy ground her teeth again. Aldrea and Zack continued their conversation. Aldrea was still her cheerful self. Still a little girl. Zack had to have told her everything by now. Aldrea wouldn't have let herself be ignorant of the situation. So she knew. About Manticore, what the barcode meant, the danger that was inherent of being alive. Zack would've exaggerated the danger too.
And yet Aldrea seemed to unfazed. She was a resilient girl, that much was certain, but Jondy knew. Her daughter now had that shadow of worry in the back of her mind. The sick feeling of never being completely safe that would never go away was now a part of Aldrea.
How could she be so unchanged?
Jondy looked up when Zack threw something across the room. Aldrea caught it.
"Cowboy Bebop The Movie," Aldrea read. "Looks cool!"
"That's not a kids' movie," Jondy stated.
"It's a cartoon," said Zack. "And besides, I didn't say it was."
"Yes you did. I heard you when I was in my room."
Zack stared at Jondy, trying not to let her know that he didn't have a comeback. Aldrea laughed at them.
Jondy rolled her eyes. "I don't care if she watches it Zack. I just think you're an idiot."
"Can Brian come over for dinner, and then we watch the movie?" asked Aldrea.
"No," said Zack, at the same time that Jondy said, "yes."
Aldrea laughed. "I'll go get him then."
"What are you making?" asked Zack, as Jondy moved about the kitchen.
"Scrambled eggs."
"For dinner?"
"Jondy put down the pot she was holding, turned around and looked at Zack with a smirk. "Well it's either this or Pop Tarts and microwave corn dogs."
"I thought you could make spaghetti," said Zack.
"I'm out of noodles."
"You can't make frozen pizza? I know you have frozen pizzas."
A spoon was conveniently located on the counter, right next to Jondy's hand. She threw it at Zack's head. Zack dodged it, and it went sailing passed to hit the door as it was opening.
"Projectile launching now Mom?" asked Aldrea, as she and Brian walked in. She shook her head in mock disgust.
"You really need to stop teaching her to be so sarcastic Zack," said Eloise.
Brain laughed. "Honey, if anyone is teaching Aldrea sarcasm, it's you. Feeling better?"
"I guess."
"And Zack, you don't want her to make frozen pizza. Not unless you want to call the fire department." Brian hid behind Zack, before Eloise could hurl another spoon.
Aldrea shoved the DVD in Brian's face. "See, this is the movie we're gonna watch after dinner."
"Never heard of it," said Brian. "Looks weird."
"It's an anime," explained Eloise. "A girl that I was staying with for awhile when I was twelve loved that stuff. That one I remember has some cool gun scenes in it and stuff." Eloise then began cracking open eggs into a bowl.
"Eggs for supper again, huh?" Brian questioned.
"Jeez, you people! What's wrong with having eggs for supper?"
"I like eggs," said Aldrea, climbing up onto a kitchen stool, opening and closing the DVD box.
"That's my girl," said Eloise. "Do you wanna make some Pop Tarts Kiddo?"
"Sure," Aldrea nodded.
Zack coughed, "slave labor."
Jondy threw another spoon at his head, hitting him squarely in the forehead this time.
Finally dinner was over, and a large stack of dishes lay in the sink. Aldrea sat down on the couch, and Zack sat on the floor in front of her. On the other end of the couch, Eloise curled herself into Brian. Zack hated this situation. He could smell her pheromones growing stronger by the second, because she was being stupid and getting close to a male. Jondy was careless, and it would get her into big trouble one day.
"Those were good eggs Mom," said Aldrea, as Zack put the DVD in.
"Thanks Aldrea. See Zack, at least somebody appreciates my cooking."
"They were good eggs," said Zack, then narrowing his eyes he went on, "unfertilized, just the way I like them."
Immediately catching his drift Eloise scoffed at him. "I'm not the irresponsible idiot that you take me for Zack."
"Japanese or English?" inquired Zack, changing the subject, and referring to the DVD.
"English," said Aldrea. "I'm too sleepy to read."
So the four sat back and watched the movie, finishing off the rest of the popcorn.
About forty minutes into the show, Eloise spoke up, "We're going across the hall. Zack, you're babysitting."
Zack scowled, and gulped to hold back his rage. Jondy was an idiot if she expected him to not know what was going on.
"Bye Mom," Aldrea waved obliviously. "I'll tell you what happens when you get back."
"Take good notes then," said Eloise, staring into Brian's eyes.
Zack looked downward. Jondy's scent was thick in the apartment now. It was affecting him, and he didn't want it too. Maybe it was better if she left.
He still hated it.
This was Jondy! This was his sister! And seeing her with that man, it sickened him. It was not just that he loved Jondy, but he cared for her safety, and Brian was a threat to that safety. And a threat to Aldrea's safety, now more than ever.
Zack heard the door close behind Brian and Eloise. Glaring, he hurled the empty popcorn bowl at the closed door, spilling old maids everywhere.
"Zack, you and Mom've got attitude problems," said Aldrea. Zack laughed. She was pretty insightful for a four year old.
Across the hall, Brian pulled Eloise's shirt over her head, causing her hair to fall into her face. Eloise flipped it out of the way, and hit Brian in the face with it in the process. He pulled her close, and reached around her to unhook her bra.
Eloise, now pressed completely against Brian, fumbled with the zipper on Brian's jeans, and then pulled them down along with his boxers. She looked up and grinned at him seductively. Like he was her prey. He was.
Brian was confused by this side of Eloise's nature, but after a year, he'd experienced two heat cycles before this one. It was difficult to keep Eloise off of him long enough to engage the proper protection, but so far he always managed.
Eloise took off her own pants, too eager to wait for Brian, and then she pounced on him, ripping off his shirt. Brian gasped, and they tumbled into his bedroom.
Aldrea fell asleep before the movie ended, and Zack carried her to her bedroom. He sighed as he watched her sleep. The genetically engineered life was full of barcodes, seizures and heat cycles. It was confusing. Zack couldn't help wondering if Aldrea would ever have a heat cycle. He hoped not. Looking at her, the little sarcastic ball of girly girl, he couldn't imagine her growing up to be like his sister, even though everything about her was so much like Jondy. Zack chuckled to himself, but she was a girly girl, despite everything. Jondy couldn't weed out everything in Allie.
The End.