An evening stroll

This probably is nothing like what you had in mind. But everyone keeps bashing poor Gem I felt I had to explain why he'd reacted the way he did. So anyway, here's some background.

I really hope it doesn't come across like an amnesia story. Honestly, it's not. Most people I know can't remember much about themselves when they were age 8.

This is a growing up story for our two favorite prodigies.

Gemma remembered absolutely nothing of their lives before Alphabet soup. They'd only been eight years old at the time- by all logicality she should have at least had some memories of her life before. Instead, she had to rely on Gem for her past. Yet his recall wasn't perfect either.

"We were really small, I think…" he mused one night. Gemma looked up. She was sitting on the floor with her back leaned up against the couch. It was a rare and quiet night. Dr. K had told them that all of the projects she was currently working on needed no assistance and due to their hard work they should take the evening off. The twins hadn't quite known what to do with themselves. Everyone else was busy with various activities; most of them were out trying to visit family members before Venjix's next attack. They'd floated around for a little while before settling down in front of the TV watching some movie called The 10th Kingdom. Five hours later they were still there, glued to the screen, only pausing to put in or take out another disc. It was nudging eight o'clock and Gemma had thought her brother had fallen asleep, he'd been so quiet.

"Yeah?" she asked softly. On the screen Virginia and Wolf were in Kissingtown, having a fancy dinner.

"Yeah," he repeated quietly. "We were dressed alike… I think we were in gymnastics class or something. We had leotards… we were doing back flips." He paused again, going quiet. Gemma was entranced by this. She turned around, kneeling in front of him.

"Anything else?"

Gem frowned. The memories never really made him as happy as they made her. In fact, they usually made him seem sad and angry. Maybe for him they seemed like a possibility lost. Gemma only saw them as a fascination; as though those were two other children from a previous life.

"It was a show and there were lots and lots of other kids and were people in the stands clapping," Gem drew out. He squinted, as though trying to see it in his mind. "I think I was looking at the people, trying to find Mom and Dad. But right behind them were people in black suits. When I looked at them they stared right back."

Gemma's eyes widened. Before now there had never been parents in the equation, never been any mention of them at all.

"What did they look like," she asked, breathlessly.

"Big," he said quickly. "They were wearing sunglasses and they had mics in their ears."

Gemma frowned. "No… no I meant our parents."

Gem looked surprised for a moment. His eyebrows furrowed. After a moment he shook his head.

"I-I don't know," he admitted quietly. "I can't see their faces. It's blurry."

Flynn usually left the garage at dusk for a walk. He said that sometimes right before the sun set, there was a sudden flash of green that spread across the sky and reminded him of a bedtime story his father used to tell him. He said it was relaxing to walk down the street and see children being called inside for the night and people closing up their shops and turning in for the evening.

He had taken her along once, and they'd walked down the street, side by side in a companionable silence reserved only for those so comfortable with one another that they have no need to clutter their time together with talk. They were waiting to cross the street on Lorenth avenue when they saw a young man knock on the door of a broken down apartment. A young girl opened the door without undoing the chain latch and upon seeing who it was, closed the door and then threw it open with a flourish.

"David!" she exclaimed happily.

"Happy birthday Alisha," he told her, handing her a bright colored bunch of roses from behind his back and pecking her on the cheek, "I love you."

The light changed and they walked across the street, leaving the happy couple behind. Gemma looked down at Flynn's hands, swinging slightly as he looked across the way for oncoming traffic. Gently she reached out, her hand gasping around two of his fingers.

Flynn jerked and looked at her, surprised. She blushed, clear to the roots of her hair. The corners of his eyes crinkled then and gently shook her hand loose only to grasp it again tightly, their fingers knitting together; a perfect fit. She could barely look at him but she heard his quiet chuckle as they rounded the bend where the garage was. Before they went inside he pulled her hand, still holding tight to his up to his mouth and kissed it. Then he smiled that charming Scottish smile and wished her pleasant dreams.

That was when she knew that he was no longer just a friend.

Gem had gone upstairs nearly an hour ago and she was still here, sitting on the couch and drawing pictures. All of a sudden Flynn jogged down the steps. When he saw her he smiled and slowed down.

"Hey," he said once he'd reached the edge of the couch.

"Hey," she said back, hugging her picture to her chest, afraid for him to see. "How is your father?"

Flynn laughed, "The same hard-headed Scott he was the last time I saw him. We had a nice visit," he tipped his head and his eyes twinkled. "Seems like it's been a relaxing day for everyone, even Dr. K's turned in early."

She nodded, picking at the loose thread on her jumper. Would he ask?

"I was thinking of going for an evening stroll… to top it all off," he seemed hesitant. "Any chance you'd like to come along?"

Gemma brightened visibly. "Yes, I'd like that," she stood up. "Can I put this in my room first though?"

"'Course," said Flynn, looking relieved for some reason. "I'll meet you just outside the door. You'll want a jacket… it's just a wee bit nippy."

"Okay!" she practically bounced up the stairs. "I'll be back!"

She was careful to not wake Summer as she opened the door. She slipped the picture of Flynn she'd been drawing under the mattress and grabbed her coat from the peg. She had just shut the door when a voice made her jump out of her skin.

"So you're going out with Flynn again?"

Gemma shook slightly as she turned to face her brother. He was standing in front of the room he shared with Scott and Flynn. It was hard to tell his expression in the dark but she could see his eyes looked resentful.

"I-" she paused. What could she say? She couldn't hurt her brother, the one thing that had kept her sane through all their hardships. Her constant companion, her anchor.

But…

"Yes," she said softly. She looked up at his eyes. "Gem, I don't want to hurt you-"

He snorted, as though it meant nothing, but his hands rose and covered his face. Gemma stepped forward, grasping his arm.

"Gem… Gem please don't be sad," she said mournfully. "I want to be with Flynn but I never want to loose you,"

Gem let his hands drop a little. She could see his face, afraid and sad.

"But if you're with him, won't you have to leave eventually?" he asked. "What if you leave me and forget all about me?"

"I could never do that!"

"But why?!" Gem asked loudly, forgetting about their sleeping companions. "Do you think he's better than I am?"

"No-" Gemma said, horrified. They were fighting! They couldn't fight, they shouldn't-

"Then why?" he demanded again.

Gemma paused. Why indeed?

"Gem," she said softly. "You're my brother. My twin. We have a bond that no one can understand. Yeah?"

Gem frowned but nodded suspiciously. True enough, they'd never really been understood. No one could explain how they finished each other's sentences or their love for explosions or their identical physical strength and IQ scores.

"It's ours, and Flynn can't have it. It belongs only to us," she smiled at him. "How could I forget you Gem? You're a part of me."

His hands dropped to his side. He looked away, dejected. "'Still want to be with him, though… don't you?"

She didn't answer. Gem sighed very softly.

"I don't want you to be like them Gemma," he said finally. "We did almost loose each other in the wasteland. Many many times. What if we survived all those and I loose you anyway?"

She slipped her arms around his chest. "Nope, you'll never loose me," she said hugging him. After a moment she frowned, perplexed. "Gem… Who don't you want me to be like?"

He didn't answer for a moment. Then, so quiet she could barely hear it, "Mom and Dad."

It shocked her and she gazed up at him. "How-"

"I can't remember their faces," he explained, looking frustrated. "No matter how much I try I can't. I can remember the people who took us… the people who were sitting behind them in the stands. I can remember the faces of the other parents sitting around them, but I can't remember them."

Gemma looked at him in shock. True, he had told her. It wasn't like he'd kept it a secret from her. But still… she'd never really thought of how much it must hurt him, to not remember.

So was that why he was so defensive about her? He was afraid that someday he would be unable to remember her face, just as he was unable to remember their parents?

"Gemma?" A voice floated up the stairs. It was Flynn, sounding worried. "Are you alright?"

Gem gently took his sister's arms off his waist. "You go ahead," he said, sounding less sad. Gemma started to protest but he shook his head. "It's okay," he took her hands in his and tried to smile. "You're a part of me too… and if you're not happy, I can't be."

Gemma raised his hands to her lips and kissed them, just like Flynn had done to her, only a few nights ago. The action was the same, the love was the same, but the butterflies and the fire existed only for Flynn. Gem looked surprised and a little touched. He coughed.

"Tomorrow I'll ask Flynn about his intentions," he joked, quoting the movie they'd watched. His eyebrows furrowed. "I wonder what that means, anyway."

"I dunno," Gemma said, frowning too. "Maybe it's what he intends to do to help me sleep?"

"Yeah… they did say something about Wolf having Virginia on her back…" Gem said, looking thoughtful.

She smiled at him. "Goodnight Gem,"

He nodded. For a split second he looked sad but he covered it up quickly by going into his dorm and closing the door behind him. Gemma turned and went down the stairs.

"I thought you'd changed your mind," Flynn said, looking concerned. "Are you alright?"

She nodded at him, bravely holding back the tears she couldn't cry. "Yes, I'm fine. Gem was up so I talked with him for a minute,"

Flynn looked wary. "Oh. Well. Does he not want you to come?"

She shook her head. "Nope," she said. "He said I should go."

Flynn tried to cover up his shock and failed.

"Really?!" he exclaimed.

She nodded. Flynn looked at her with an expression that could only be described as suspicious. She had a feeling that he knew it hadn't been that simple. Maybe one day he'd ask her about it… maybe one day she'd tell him. But for now she simply shook his head.

"Well in any case, we should be going." He offered her his hand. "It'll be dark pretty soon,"

She took it and they went outside, out into the streets and the dome and the world. She looked up at him and when he smiled at her the butterflies and the heat rushed back to her stomach, where they belonged.

"Flynn," she said as they crossed the street.

"Aye lass?"

"Tell me that bedtime story your Father used to tell you? About the green light?"

As he launched into the tale Gemma leaned closer. He let go of her hand and put his arm around her. She thought of her brother, up in his dorm, who she knew would not sleep tonight.

'Goodbyes are hard,' she thought as they walked past the broken down apartment of Alisha and David. 'but…' she looked up at Flynn who was concentrating hard on his description of the Loch ness monster. 'there's always someone on the other side waiting to say, 'Nice to meet you' and 'hello,"

End. :)