A/N: Hello to my readers! I've managed to get around my hectic lifestyle and writer's block to finish the chapters I'd been working on for almost a year now. I have been busy...so busy and felt incredibly guilty for not feeling up to writing or posting any updates. Once I got chapters finished I figured it was time to post so you all know I'm still around and writing I've just been working almost every single day with the exception of one or two days in which I was in an almost hypnotic stupor because of how dead tired I've been. Thank you all for waiting patiently for this what I'd be considering a long awaited chapter.
Over the next week found Alan and Fermat both finally settling into a routine. Every morning they both met Virgil in the infirmary where he had them both doing some form of physical therapy. That had been one of the requirements from the boy's doctor if they'd been released, they had to keep up on their physical therapy and they had to check in every other week via video phone with their physician to determine how they were doing.
Once they finished their therapy, they all congregated in the kitchen for breakfast before long Alan and Fermat both were excused to do as they pleased. Usually both boys both hung out with Tin-Tin in the lounge until they grew bored of either the movies or video games they were playing then they'd go outside for a little bit to breathe fresh air. Alan and Fermat hated the fact that they had to slather sunscreen all over themselves, but it was another requirement since their skin was so sensitive to sunlight. Alan hated it, but he wasn't looking forward to a lecture from either his dad or Virgil about the importance of using sunscreen. He knew all too well what would happen if he didn't follow through and he wasn't dumb. He knew he'd be in for a world of hurt.
"So, what would you like to do today?" Tin-Tin asked as she exited the kitchen with a tray and three tall glasses of iced tea. She set them on the table under the canopy before she sat with Alan and Fermat who for the most part were both doing home studies via their tablets. Because of the fire and the extent of their injuries, Alan and Fermat both were required to partake in at least two months of summer school, so they'd be caught up the following term. Requirements sucked in Alan's humble opinion.
"Well, I don't really know what we can do. It's too hot to go for a walk and even if we were allowed into the jungle, it'd be incredibly muggy in there." Alan replied as he took to propping his head up on the heel of his hand. "I don't really want to watch a movie or play anymore video games…what do you have in mind?"
"Well, maybe we can go down to the caverns to walk around and explore. I know we haven't checked them all, maybe we'll find something cool." Tin-Tin suggested, whilst she picked up a paper fan and started fanning herself after she pulled her hair back into a messy bun.
"I d-don't really f-feel like g-going for a w-walk, I t-think I'm g-going to g-go up to t-the library a-and read." Fermat said as he finished his lesson plan and powered down his tablet before he stood up with it. "I'll s-see you two l-later."
With that Fermat took his exit leaving Alan and Tin-Tin alone together. The two older teens both shrugged at Fermat's dismissal before Alan powered down his tablet and stood from the table. Grabbing their crossbody satchels from the coat hooks by the door Alan and Tin-Tin soon both hurried down the planks of the wooden walk path and out into the sand. Both teens moved quickly as the sand was hot enough to scorch their feet before making it into one of the coves where there were trees a plenty to provide adequate shade. When they made it there, Alan and Tin-Tin paused to breath. That was the most Alan had run in a while. They waited a beat before jogging through the sand once more and reaching the mouth of one of the main caverns.
"Come on." Tin-Tin said before leading Alan through the cavern which the deeper in they got, the darker it became. Soon the teens found themselves stopping so their eyes could acclimate to the dark interior. Once they could see each other in the darkness, Alan and Tin-Tin walked down deeper until they reached the back of the cavern. There was a small crack in the wall and both teens were slender enough to squeeze through which led to another cavern.
Jeff had no knowledge of the caverns, knowing the main cavern held a certain interest for the teens. If he did know of the internal caverns, he'd probably prohibit entry to everyone. But mostly Alan, Fermat and Tin-Tin since they were the curious ones that like to explore the island. It was assumed by the three teens that the main cavern and all the offshoots were probably at one time connected to the inactive volcano on the island. Couldn't blame the teenage daredevils for being curious.
Alan and Tin-Tin both stopped to rest halfway through the secondary cavern. After they rested a bit, Alan stood up with a hand against the cavern wall. "How far do you think this cavern goes?"
"I don't know…I suppose we'll just keep going and turn back around when we reach a dead end or an exit. Whichever comes first, how're you feeling? Think you can keep going?" Tin-Tin said as she stood also and readjusted her shorts which had ridden up slightly when she went to sit down.
"We can keep going, this is the most fun I've had in a while." Alan replied as he started to lead Tin-Tin, setting the pace for them to go. "I just can't believe we've gone all these years living on this island and never knew about this cavern."
"Well, we're usually in the house playing video games, playing pranks on your brothers or exploring other places. This cave has been on my list of places to explore, I just hadn't gotten around to it until now." Tin-Tin said as she followed Alan closely enough to follow where he stepped. They didn't bring any flashlights like a couple dummies, but then that's what made this exploration all the more fun. "We'll have to remember to take Fermat here if he's ever interested in new stomping grounds."
"I think he'd like this place." Alan said before he squinted his eyes. They'd just come through another cavern which opened into a giant open cavern that had a pool of the clearest water. You could see straight down to the bottom. Alan longed to strip down to his skivvies and take a dip, but he knew that until he was given the all clear from either Virgil or his doctor, he wouldn't be permitted to go swimming. The temptation was there though and the more he thought of how hot it was and how he felt like he was burning up, the more jumping in felt like a good idea. He'd been rehabilitating using a pool, so why couldn't he go for a dip?
Having made up his mind, Alan let his crossbody satchel slide off his shoulder before he began to strip from his shirt. When he started to unbutton his shorts was when Tin-Tin spoke up.
"Alan, what are you doing?" Tin-Tin asked as she watched Alan strip in shock.
"What's it look like I'm doing? I'm going for a swim." Alan said before he backed up to the wall of the cavern and took a running leap before he splashed into the water. When he resurfaced, Alan smiled more to himself than to Tin-Tin and he took a breath before taking to floating on his back.
"Are you insane? You don't know if that water is okay to swim in." Tin-Tin scolded.
"Come on, it's clear and I don't see any predators around here." Alan said before he took in a deep breath before swimming down close to the bottom and looking around. When he resurfaced, Alan had an impish grin. "There's no way for predators to enter, I found a vent near the bottom that looks like it's where the water is coming from, but it's not big enough for anything that is capable of eating or hurting humans."
"I wasn't talking about predators; Virgil is going to kill you! He's said no swimming!" Tin-Tin said sharply from her perch above the natural pool of water.
"What Virgil doesn't know won't hurt him. Besides, my PT required me to swim when I was learning how to walk again. I don't have any open wounds, you know Virge, he's a mother-hen. Now, come on, are you jumping in or what?"
"You are such a bad influence." Tin-Tin muttered under her breath before she stood to remove her shorts and tank top, revealing her swimsuit which she wore practically anywhere on the island. Following Alan's example, Tin-Tin backed up against the wall before she took a running leap into the water also.
Once she resurfaced from the water, Alan and Tin-Tin took to splashing each other and laughing as they did so. The sun shone down, not as intense as it was outside the cavern, but it seemed less so. Like the high walls of the cavern provided more protection than most trees would. Once Alan and Tin-Tin had had their fill, they both pulled themselves from the water and laid on the sun warmed rocks in the cavern. Allowing the natural light and heat to dry their skin and hair.
Before long, both teens were dry as were their under-clothing. Alan and Tin-Tin figured they'd best be returning to the villa lest they get in trouble for staying gone all day. They donned their clothing that they'd previously stripped off and picked up the bags they'd brought with them before they climbed out the top vent to see if they could pinpoint where they were on the island. From where they were, it was fairly simple to see the villa off in the distance. They were in the heart of the jungle, which if Jeff knew they were in the jungle he'd ground both teens. The Tracy patriarch made it known that absolutely nobody was to enter the jungle for any reason and that included Tin-Tin and Fermat. Jeff also reserved the right as owner of the island to punish as he sees fit to anyone that disregarded the rule.
Jeff however wasn't angry with the kids when he learned they'd ventured into the forest when they were trying to hide from the Hood during his attack of their island home. He knew it was simply self-preservation that required they broke rules laid out for their safety.
"Come on, let's head back the way we came. If your father sees us in the jungle, he'll kill us." Tin-Tin said as she and Alan climbed back the way they came and going back into the darkened cavern.
TBTBTBTBTBTBTBTBTBTB
Fermat was sitting on the patio, listening to the murmur of the ocean waves lapping at the shoreline from a distance. He had declined the invite to go with Tin-Tin and Alan on a walk around the island. He'd felt like he was in limbo, ever since they'd returned home, Fermat just had an odd feeling, like things were different somehow but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Sure when they'd gotten home from the hospital Fermat was another year older, but that wasn't it…not exactly. And that's what puzzled Fermat. He felt like he was stuck in suspended animation. Life not proceeding onward nor backward. It just felt weird.
Fermat had stayed at the villa to try to resume his normal activities, but he couldn't keep his focus on any one thing, not like he used to. He wondered if he should do like Alan does when he feels that way and go down to the home gym and work off his frustration, but then Fermat just felt foolish because that wasn't him. He wasn't normally a frustrated person and it didn't make sense that now Fermat was chomping at the bit for things to be different.
He wondered what he could do to shake the unfamiliar feeling, but nothing immediately came to mind. They'd only been home for a week and still life just progressed slowly. Fermat couldn't see how that'd change. So naturally it came as a surprise when Alan and Tin-Tin returned several hours after they'd left to go explore.
"H-Hey you guys." Fermat said in greeting as he waved at them both.
"Fermat! How's it going? How'd you like your reading?" Alan asked in question after Fermat turned them down when they offered to go for a walk just the three of them. Like old times.
"It was o-okay, couldn't really k-keep my focus if you w-want to know t-the truth." Fermat admitted. He wasn't originally going to say anything to Alan, but he knew his friend would understand or he hoped he would. They'd both been through a lot together and Fermat worried that it was just him, even if he knew Alan was also feeling the same way. He knew Alan was feeling some of what he was currently feeling. He had to.
"Tin-Tin, come and help me fix dinner." Onaha said as she leaned out the kitchen sliding glass door, making Tin-Tin sigh before she chuckled and left her friends with a wave.
"See you guys later." Tin-Tin said before she left to go help her mom in the kitchen.
"Come on Fermat, let's go for a little walk." Alan suggested before leading Fermat back down to the cove that Alan usually liked to go when he wanted to be by himself. The sun was beginning to go down behind the volcanic mountain and Alan sat down in the cooling sand, close enough to the surf that the waves were able to gently lap against his legs which he'd crisscrossed. Fermat copied Alan, sitting in the surf and gave a shiver when the ocean water washed up behind him. Once both boys had settled and had gotten used to the cold-water Alan met Fermat's eyes. "So, what's going on in that freaky smart brain Ferm?"
"I d-don't know…I j-just feel like I'm n-not all here. Y-You know?" Fermat said as he began to burrow a finger down in the sand before he pulled sand back to pile it up in a mound. Alan took to mimicking Fermat and soon they both were playing in the sand much like they had when they were mere children.
"I know, all too well. You don't know whether you're going or coming, and you question if it's not all a dream that you hope to soon wake from." Alan replied as he began trying to build what looked like a second turret on a castle. It was an incredibly wonky turret, but it was a turret nonetheless.
"So h-how are we s-supposed to resume l-life like the f-fire never h-happened?" Fermat asked as he tried to find reason.
"I don't know. Scott suggested I just keep busy, using Thunderbirds training, movies, books, video games basically whatever I can to distract myself from my thoughts. I know it's easier said than done and it's so hard to keep your thoughts focused on the task at hand. Multiple times I've found my thoughts to be wandering back to the night of the fire." Alan said before giving Fermat another meaningful look. "I think we'll just have to figure life out one step at a time. I know myself that I'd much prefer to get right back to the way things used to be, but this is unfortunately our new normal."
Fermat didn't look pleased with Alan's answer before he allowed himself to get lost in his thoughts. It wasn't exactly what Fermat wanted to hear, but he knew Alan was being honest with him and not just telling him a lie to placate him. That was what Fermat appreciated about his best friend, he wasn't afraid to tell it to you straight. He was bold and honest for the most part with everyone he encountered and even if Fermat could one day be just like Alan, Fermat would be happy.
"Come on, it's been a while. We should probably head on back up to the house before our dad's begin to think we were eaten up by sea otters," Alan said before offering a hand to his best friend to help him up from the sand and surf.
"Thanks A-Alan, for talking w-with me and reminding m-me that I'm n-not as alone i-in this as I t-think I am s-sometimes." Fermat said before he turned to head back up to the villa with Alan. When they made it back up, Virgil leaned out the kitchen doorway to call to the wayward teenagers.
"Hey, come and eat! We're not saving any, so if you don't get up here, I can't guarantee you'll get anything!" Virgil said with a playful grin adorning his face.
"Calm down, we'll be right there!" Alan called from the landing above the beach. The boys could have started jogging up the hillside staircase, but with Virgil watching neither boy wanted to be made an example if the boys tripped or fell. When they did make it up to the house, they were ushered in by Virgil who went to the kitchen where either Onaha or Kyrano put their plates of food, so they'd be left untouched by the older boys.
"Here, sit and eat." Virgil said before putting the boy's plates in front of the younger boys while Gordon stood to pour Alan and Fermat something to drink.
"What'd you do to it?" Alan asked, unsure of why his brothers were pandering so much and treating himself and Fermat like they were babies instead of teenagers.
"What do you mean?" Gordon asked before he placed a glass of milk in front of Alan and juice in front of Fermat.
"Why are you and Virgil serving us? Are Fermat and I due for one of your annual pranks?" Alan inquired as he picked up his milk cup to give it a sniff. It didn't smell off, but Alan was still unsure. He didn't know if he wanted to know what Gordon had up his sleeve. His brother wasn't capable of playing a prank on him when he and Fermat were in the hospital, it wouldn't have looked right nor appropriate if they'd done something that hurt or startled Alan especially with the media attention that they'd garnered previously with the trial.
"Can't we just take care of you two boys? You are growing up and still recovering." Gordon said which made Alan snort.
"Yeah, uh-huh." Alan said before he picked up his milk glass and looked underneath it. His prank sense was going off and he felt like he was incredibly close to falling for one of Gordon's traps. Picking up his fork, Alan put the prongs down into his milk glass before pulling a miniature propeller from within. Alan almost fell for the blender trick, the propeller was water-proof, one of Gordon's home designed toys. Alan knew Gordon had the remote for the propeller in his pocket and he wasn't ready to initiate the explosion of milk at least not until Alan had the glass to his lips then he'd make it twirl in the glass and cause the milk to blast from within and splash him in the face. "Nice Gordon."
"I didn't do that." Gordon said, feeling hurt that Alan would call him out on a prank when everyone knew Gordon never exacted the same prank on the same recipient twice in one year.
"Sure, you didn't. I'll believe that when pigs fly." Alan said before he went ahead and sat down at the table, next to his father on one side of the table while Gordon was on the other side of the table, also beside their father. Growing up, Alan and Gordon were always the troublesome children and so to keep them from getting themselves into too much trouble, Jeff made sure they both would sit beside him at breakfast and dinner because that was usually when they'd be most apt to create havoc.
"Alright boys, that's enough." Jeff said, knowing full well Alan and Gordon weren't fighting. Gordon, Jeff knew he meant well, but Gordon always had to be careful pulling a prank on his youngest brother because depending on his mood the prank could be perceived as wrong.
"It's okay dad. I'm just glad I caught the prank before Gordon followed through…otherwise I might have gone against doctor's orders to take it easy." Alan said before he went ahead and started eating, completely taking his father and brothers by surprise.
TBTBTBTBTBTBTBTBTBTB
Later that evening, Fermat went to Alan's room to continue their earlier talk. Normally when he'd said his goodnight to his father, Fermat would have followed through, but he was curious about something Alan had said. Being the more analytical and if he dares toot his own horn, smarter than a lot of his other friends. Alan however was smart also, in his own right. Alan was smarter about things that Fermat was unfamiliar with, like street smarts, or talking to girls or physical education and sports.
When he made it to Alan's room, he gave a light knock and Alan immediately opened the door to let his younger friend in. They both soon delved deep into a video game that Alan had snuck from the living room entertainment center into his bedroom. Jeff normally forbade the use of gaming stations in his boy's bedrooms, but since the fire he's loosened up his rules a little and no longer chides Alan for having a gaming station in his room. He doesn't condone Alan staying cooped up in his bedroom entirely, but he did tell Alan he could have the system in his room occasionally.
Alan and Fermat talked a little bit about how weird life was no longer being in the hospital, and how Fermat was having difficulty adjusting to the new lifestyle which although was no different from life previous, it did now feel different and was frustrating. Fermat couldn't put his finger on why but when he explained how he felt to Alan, the older boy understood wholeheartedly how his younger friend felt.
"S-So what d-do you r-recommend I d-do to g-get rid o-of the f-feeling that t-this isn't r-real?" Fermat asked, he felt unsettled and he wished so much so that he could lose that feeling. He growled low under his breathe when his character fell and disappeared, bringing up a prompt for Alan to continue on in the game until he reached a checkpoint.
"I know I told you what Scott, my dad and other brothers recommended to continue life as I know it, but in truth there's not much you can do to really pick up where we left off. It's up to us to determine how to continue life. I know I like video games, I'm an International Rescue junkie and as much as I dislike admitting it, I'm very much a child so I'm trying to be less mature if that makes sense. I mean I'm not going to revert back to sucking my thumb, but I no longer see the attraction of growing up so fast. I'm still a kid, so why should I force myself to grow up before I'm ready? There's only a few more years before I'm an adult, I'll be an adult for probably eighty years if not longer, why do I want to grow up so badly?"
"S-So you're a-advice if I'm u-understanding correctly, i-s don't t-try so h-hard? Allow m-myself to b-be a kid and d-don't be i-in a hurry t-to grow up a-as we've b-both been g-guilty of i-in the p-past?" Fermat inquired of Alan who paused the game and turned to face Fermat.
"Exactly. Take today for example. I know I went against dad's wishes and ventured around the island, went swimming with Tin-Tin and got to explore a really neat cave. I think it'd have been more interesting if you'd been there being smarter, you'd have loved to check out the rocks in the cave. I just spent my day being a kid and it was…great. Maybe to feel more like ourselves, we just need to learn how to be kids again. I mean, we've spent almost a year in the hospital, I think we stopped being kids because of that. Not that it was our fault."
"A-Are you hearing y-yourself Alan? You're t-talking and making w-way too much s-sense. You're a-actually suggesting I a-act my age? A-And be a k-kid?" Fermat questioned, his voice taking on an astonished tone.
"Yeah, why is that so strange? I mean, I personally forgot how much fun it was to be a kid. You should try it. Maybe tomorrow we should go on an adventure. For old times sake." Alan said setting down his controller to lay back on the floor. He had his eyes closed and didn't see the incredulous Fermat was shooting back at him. However he did sense that something was amiss, because he sat up quickly as if he'd just been struck with lightening. "Wait! Let's go now!"
"N-Now?!" Fermat asked in a hushed whisper. He was more than a little shocked at Alan's unusual behavior. He was beginning to wonder if Alan had gotten ahold of his pain medication and overdosed. Either that or he was on a sugar high, but Fermat saw what Alan ate and he ate the same thing, he knew Alan couldn't have been hyper and Virgil kept both his and Alan's pain management medication in the infirmary under lock and key just like every thing else that could be considered medicine.
"Yeah, I mean why not?" Alan inquired before an idea came to him. "Let's go down to the beach, there should be a meteor shower tonight. I think it's not going too far over my dad's head. And besides, it's nighttime. There's no sunlight to be concerned with, so it's not like we're going to get sunburned."
"A-Alan…" Fermat started, before he let Alan goad him into what he perceived to be a bad idea. He paused for maybe a millisecond before deciding that maybe Alan was right. Maybe he was wound tighter than a spring. Maybe he owed it to himself after all the craziness to let himself be a kid. Before he let himself develop cold feet, Fermat decided to be that kid that disregards his parent's wishes. They lived on an island, totally isolated from the world. Nobody would try to hurt them in their own little slice of paradise. "Let's d-do it."
"Yes!" Alan quietly cheered before he led Fermat from his room to go to the beach.
When the boys made it outside, they crept down to the beach and sank down to sit, burying their feet in the slowly cooling sand, turning their gaze to the sky and the majestic moon surrounded by glittering stars. Laying back, Alan breathed deeply out before starting to talk to Fermat.
"You know, just a little bit before we were released, I'd given it a lot of thought that maybe I didn't want to be part of the Thunderbirds anymore." Fermat's face whirled around to look at Alan in surprise. He certainly hadn't been expecting that. He started to argue the point, but Alan continued on talking. "Not necessarily because I just wanted to give up my dream, but because I couldn't imagine myself being part of the Thunderbirds and being afraid of fire, scared to run in and save lives if I'm so petrified that I'm going to find myself right back where I don't want to be ever again."
"S-So what made you c-change your mind?" Fermat asked as he followed Alan's lead and laid back into the sand.
"Honestly, I talked to Brook and she said she's been practicing her fire dancing again. When I asked her if she was scared, she'd get burned again…her response got me thinking. If she was still scared that she'd get burned but was determined to resume something she loves more than breathing…then why would I; should I forgo something that I've wanted to do since before I knew I ever wanted to be part of the organization? I also talked to dad, Virgil, Gordon…everyone as a matter of fact and every single one of them told me pretty much the same thing. They're all scared that any one of us could be hurt or worse…but they all carry on because they know that without our organization there'd be so much more death and destruction. What's one life when compared to the tens of thousands we manage to rescue almost every day? That is what made me kind of, re-evaluate everything and to ask myself if I truly wanted to forget about my dream. I do, still want to become a member of the Thunderbirds. More than anything. And of course, I'm scared, but my fears are no less important than the lives of many that could be irreparably damaged." Alan said before he closed his eyes to focus on the tide washing up on the sand.
"I-I-I guess when it's p-presented like t-that it makes me t-think about t-the night t-the fire h-happened, as m-much as I d-despise thinking o-of that time. If o-our family h-hadn't come, w-what would h-have happened t-to us?" Fermat muttered softly more so to Alan than himself.
"Well, I think we might have still lived, but who's to say we'd have gotten the proper care we required? I mean, you and I both had had our fair share of injuries where the dean has had to have us taken to the local hospital and despite the prestige of our school, the hospital has been less than adequate. If our dads hadn't brought the dream of International Rescue to fruition, what would have likely happened would have been that we'd have either not regained the ability to walk again or we wouldn't have recovered at the rate of speed that we did. Anything's possible I suppose." Alan answered hoping that his answer was some of what Fermat would have wanted to hear. "Does it kind of make your earlier quandary any clearer?"
"A l-little bit, b-but it also m-makes me a l-little bit m-more confused." Fermat said, having more questions than answers at this point.
"Well maybe you just need to find your own answers. You know, I mean, just because I am following from example doesn't mean that's necessarily what's going to be right for you. You've always been different from the rest of the crowd, so maybe you need to figure out what works best for you."