Note: An apology for taking so long. I've been having so much on my mind lately. I am back now. Hope this chapter is to your liking.
Chapter 5
Roxanne opened her eyes and yawned. When was the last time she was allowed to sleep in? Stretching out, she sat up. What to do today? There was so much to do now that was the holiday!
"Mmmm, I can phone Kelly and we can go shopping!" Jumping out of bed, Roxanne took a warm and relaxing bath. She then dressed herself and made a quick breakfast.
"Mom, is it okay if Kelly and I can go shopping?"
"Sure, Roxanne, but don't spend too much money and only two hours, okay?"
"Sure, mom!" With that Roxanne skipped out of the door and on her bike.
She and Kelly did not live very far from each other. Kelly's house was only 2 blocks away. Roxanne thought about her friend. Kelly had a crush on Bernard for years. Roxanne remembered what Bernard was like before Syx came into their lives. Bernard was just a cold an indifferent individual. He barely talked to anyone. No one could get through to him; no one could get him to open up. He wanted to know nothing about friendship before. Now Bernard was a true friend. He talked; he hung out with Roxanne and Syx. Bernard was no longer the loner that he was before. He was now a completely different person and it was all thanks to Syx. Syx…. A dreamy smile worked its way to her face and she felt that she was blushing. He was everything that a girl could hope for! Polite, funny, kind, in fact, Roxanne took quite a liking to the blue kid with the giant head. Now that they have some free time, maybe they could hang out more often.
"Wow, Minion, Metro City is even bigger then I thought, you should see all these people!"
Pedestrians gave the kid an odd look when they heard the name he called the man beside him. Syx, disguised as Bernard, was walking down the sidewalk of a busy street. Beside him were two other men, one that looked like a teenager a few years older than Syx, the other one was dressed like a business man. They were Minion and one of the prison guards also in disguise. When the two weeks holiday arrived, Syx became quite bored. There was nothing to do at the prison. Minion asked, or rather convinced, the warden to let him and Syx go out for a while. The warden at first refused. He claimed that it was not safe for two aliens to wander on their own around Metro City. The government can easily capture him! Even after seeing the disguise that Syx made, James was reluctant to let him go. Syx wanted to make the most out of the 2 weeks before having to go back to school, and he begged the warden to let him and Minion out for just a while. Warden James finally agreed, but only under some strict conditions. Syx was not to take off his disguise. One of the guards had to go with them under a disguise of his own. And they also have to be back in an hour and a half. Now the two aliens and the one police officer were walking through the massive buildings. Syx had never been in the city before. The sight of so many people amazed him.
"Remember, Syx, you are to stay with me, so do not run off!"
Syx was not listening because at that very moment his eyes caught sight of a familiar figure.
"Hey, look, Minion! There is Roxanne. Hey, Roxanne!"
Roxanne was walking with her friend on the sidewalk, chatting. They suddenly looked up when Syx called them. "Oh, hi, Bernard, what are you doing here? I thought you said that you were going to stay at home today."
"I'm… " Wait a second…why did Roxanne think he was Bernard? Oh yes, the disguise!
"Uhm… I got bored and decided to go for walk. What are you doing?"
"Shopping, with my friend."
"Hey, Bernard!" Kelly said. "How are you today?"
"Uhm, I'm okay. Excuse me, but who's this?"
Roxanne turned to Minion and the one guard. "Do you three know each other?" asked the business man.
"Yeah, Bernard is a friend at school."
"Actually…" said Minion before the guard could stop him "this is Syx and me, in disguise!"
Hearing this, Roxanne stared deep into Syx's eyes. Then she recognised him!
"Wait a second, you guys are wearing disguises to get out of prison?"
"They were bored, so Warden James gave these two rascals permission to get out for a while and now I have to put up with them!"
"Come on, uncle Steve, we're not so bad."
"Don't lie, Syx! You and Minion can be a real handful sometimes."
The man turned back to Kelly and Roxanne. "Well it was nice meeting you. As for you two, your time is nearly up. We have got to get back to the prison, so if you don't want James to ground you for another four months, I suggest that you come with me."
"Wait! Why don't the five of us get a coffee or something at Starbucks?" said Kelly quickly.
"Kelly! You're here two?" asked the surprised guard.
"Yep, I'm here. So why don't we get something to eat together before Syx has to go back to prison."
The man looked at his watch. "Well, we do have another 25 minutes, so I guess we can stick for a while."
"So, how do you and Kelly know each other, sir?" asked Roxanne, as the five of them made their way to Starbucks.
"Her father is a good friend of mine."
The five arrived at Starbucks and Syx, Kelly and Roxanne each got a coffee and a piece of cake. Steve bought himself only coffee. Minion didn't have anything.
"I'm glad that Syx have friends. I've heard that the Scott boy gave him some trouble and none of the teachers were really helping."
"You got that right!" said Roxanne. "But don't worry; he won't be causing anymore trouble for Syx. Not if I have something to say about it."
The man smiled. "Do you know that when he was only a year old Syx built a tricycle out of license plate?"
Syx shook his head. "We'll never hear the end of that one!"
Roxanne and Kelly giggled.
"That's something I've would have liked to see."
"Yeah, maybe you will someday." The guard gave Syx a stern look.
After a while they said goodbye and Roxanne promised to visit Syx at the prison. As Syx, Minion and the guard left, Kelly whispered to her friend: "I still can't believe they would raise children in prison."
Roxanne shook her head. "Me neither. But there is nothing we could do about it. Steve sounds like a nice guy."
"Oh he is. He told dad about Syx, and my dad then told me. Kelly sighed. "Dad, too, felt that it wasn't right to raise a child in prison…" The two girls continued to chat on their way home.
While heading back to the prison the three talked about the day.
"You truly have some wonderful friends, Syx."
"They are nice, uncle. Apart from Minion, they are the best friend I've ever had."
However, silence fell when Steve turned the block that would take them to the prison. The man quickly stopped the car and the human and aliens stared at the sight before them. A lot of cars were parked in front of the prison. Men in white clothes stood in groups in front of the building. There was a man who looks like he was having an argument with the warden.
"Who is that, uncle?"
Steve's face turned grim.
"That, Syx, is the government. They are here for you! The warden is trying to get them to leave. Now you see why he did not want to let you out of prison in the first place." The man turned to face Syx.
"The warden told you what they want?"
"What are we going to do, Steve?" asked Minion.
"We'll just wait till they have left."
After a while the government officials left. As soon as the last car was gone, Steve drove up to the prison. "Warden, what was that all about, or I have a feeling I already know."
"You do Steve Herason. Those bastard don't just want Syx, they're after Minion too. After 13 years they still won't let the issue rest. As you can see, I got them to leave. But if they find out that Syx was not in prison today…" his eyes turned to Syx.
"Steve, take Syx back to his room and then come straight to my office, will you?"
"Yes, sir!"
James watched as the guard led Syx away. Steve got a feeling that he knew what the warden wanted to talk about.
Syx sat on his chair with a deep sigh. "They still want us, Minion. I don't understand it, why can't they just leave us alone? We did not do anything to them?"
"I don't know, sir." Syx made a face. "The warden is not going to let me out for the rest of the week, Minion. These guys will let us be in a lot of trouble!"
Syx made a fist. "It will be their fault if I am not able to follow my dream to become a hero!"
"Don't worry, sir, I'm sure there's a way…"
"I wish you were right, Minion."
In his office warden James was discussing the situation with the guard.
"We cannot let those goons get their hands on Syx or Minion. If they do, there is no telling what they'll do to them. The problem is, Syx is only safe as long as he is in my prison. If he is here, the government can't do anything to him, but if they catch him outside of the prison… well, then he'll belong to them."
"But sir, Syx is a free soul. You know he does not like it to be locked up!"
"I'm afraid now that he saw what the outside world looks like, he would want more. You should have seen how excited he was today! Syx would want to visit the city again."
"You think I don't know that, Steve. But we can't let him out again. Heck, even school isn't safe for him anymore."
"What are we going to do, sir? We can't take Syx out of school. He is happy there."
"I don't know what to do! We are going to have to be extra careful from now on. Steve, make sure security is tripled. As for Syx, I'm afraid that we cannot let him go into the city again, no matter how much he wants to go. If he goes to school, stand guard by the school gate. I'll try and convince the principal to arrange for more security at his school. I'll tell him it is for the protection of the other students as well. Steve, John, plant a tracking device in his clothes or in his bookcase so we will always know where he is. Syx may not like this, but it is for his own good."
"Yes, sir! What about the Scott boy? You think he'll needs protection too?
The warden touched his chin, then he shook his head.
"The Scot boy is proteckted by his parents, he do not need protection."
Next up. After a visit from the government, the prison warden had to make sure to keep a closer eye on Syx. Meanwhile school started again and Syx and Roxanne were even closer.