Chapter 7: Just Like Old Times
(Hoche department store) (01:04 PM) (Gwen's POV)
If you ever felt like you had an itch at the back of your body, that you could never ever reach, then that's how I was feeling right now when I arrived at the Hoche mall. I was sitting on a waiting bench about a few feet away from the mall entrance. The mall was open without any delays, the temperature was nominal and the weather was bright and cloudless.
With Cooper gone and my weekly report to Paullina isn't due for another two days I decided to spend the time I had with Ben. I know by my eyeball that he was a man of his word and would never break a promise, even if his life counted on it. If he was still the Ben I remembered all those years ago then he would come.
But maybe leaving him in the slums like that was probably not one of my best choices. Who knows, maybe he's changed and already packed up and left the city? Hell he could be on his way to Mexico right this minute without me even knowing.
Thinking about this now, I began to feel a bit of uneasiness go through my spine. I want to believe Ben was still Ben, but the instinct in my guts is telling me something else. He was already five minutes late and that alone made me wonder if he was even coming at all.
Ohhh! I feel so stupid! Why the hell did I just leave like that?! I should've taken precaution. Maybe putting a tracking device on his pocket or a sample of his DNA or something! Ughh… but it was too late. I really need to keep my head in the world nowadays, I'm really getting sloppy in my own work. I sighed depressingly out loud and put my head in the palm of my hand.
Note to self: Knock your head six times on the wall when you get back to your room
But instead of pondering about Ben's absences, I decided to distract myself onto other endeavors to keep myself occupied. I looked at some of the pedestrian crossing the street and looked inside the mall. There were many stores and restaurant on the first floor which made me anxious to go shopping. Back when I was a kid, I was crazy about going to the mall and hanging out with my parents. I had a knack of keeping up with the latest fashion of today, which earned me some rep during my high school years.
As I scanned around the inner plaza, I noticed a clothes store La Shi Shi just right over in the other side. They had the latest gowns and all the most fashionable accessories in the entire world. Hell Madam La Shi Shi was said to be the greatest designers of all time. She even has a closet the size of a house.
But just as I scanned through the store's window display, a small family suddenly blocked my view, making it impossible for me to see the other side. "Aww… crap" I muttered silently while I waited for the kids to go away. But then suddenly… I heard the cutest little voice I've ever heard.
"Hey grandpa" said the boy, "Can you buy this for me? Please?" the kid was probably about nine or ten years old. He had a red T-shirt and his hair was brown. He was pointing to a small toy that was on display in the toy store window display case. I couldn't tell what it was due to its small size.
"No way" came his sister… or what I think was his sister. She was about nine or ten as well wearing a purple outfit and a feather cap hat. "Grandpa's buying me a new hat, he doesn't have time for your silly toys"
"Hey, they're not silly! Aqualimpvader is the new hit on TV right now!"
"Like I said… silly toys" they were bickering just like how Ben and I used to fight back when we were ten. We would always have some smart remarks hiding under our backs. But as I looked at them now, I wonder if we ever meant any of those words. As I watch them tear each other hair out, a large old man came by to split the two of them.
"Alright you two, there's no need to fight" he said gently to them, "We still have plenty of time. So which one do you want me to get ya?" just looking at this scene right before me, I began to think back at the time when Ben and I were still kids. A few weeks before our Birthday, grandpa Max took us to the mall to get each of us a gift. I don't remember what he got for me then but I remember me and Ben were bickering about the same thing.
Ben got himself a new Sumo Slammer action figure I believe which was probably the only thing he was interested other than the Omnitrix.
After that small family headed into the shop to buy that toy, I couldn't but let a silent tear go down my face. I sure miss those good old days, hell I even wish that we didn't grow up. Just because of one incident our family, our bonds broke apart like a thread that had been cut. I always thought that our bonds were tighter than the grease of the swamp world in Gorea IIX. But I guess all good things must have an end.
"You do know that sighing is very rude, right?" I was instantly brought out of my dream world when that voice echoed behind me. When I jerked my head around, Ben stood in front of me, wearing that same old jacket that he wore a few days ago. "Hey"
"Ben!" I don't know what came over me, but I was just so glad that he was here. I got up from my seat and gave him one of kind hugs. "You made it"
"Did you think that I would just leave and disappear like before again?" he questioned with a know-it-all face. "Well… maybe a little" I answered still holding onto his jacket. "Come on, let's get you something to eat"
"I'll take a burger"
"Oh no you don't. For once you're eating real food. Not that junk food you eat everyday"
"Hey! A full on burger is a complete breakfast meal! It's got the bread, cheese, veggies, tomatoes, eggs and let's not forget the ham"
"Please Ben… for once in your life, that thing is gonna kill you one day"
"Yeah… well not soon enough" he muttered silently.
And so we spent about an hour walking around the mall looking through stores and window displays. We didn't really say much since none of us knew what to talk about either. Usually by now we'd probably be arguing about something that isn't even related to the first topic. I offered him to watch a movie of his choice but he declined it. And then I offered him for a little lunch in a fancy 5 star restaurant but even that he didn't want to do. I wanted to get him somewhere quiet so we can talk and sort things out.
I know it was a long shot since Ben was never a really good listener, but it was a risk I had to take. Besides, if that didn't work, there's always Plan B. A strike team was ready with just a phone call away.
WHAT!?
Ugrhhhh! What am I thinking!? Stupid Gwen stupid Gwen. We're here to try and talk to Ben not bust his ass out of the slums. Oh… man… I am the worst.
"So… where do you plan to take me next?" I shifted my gaze back to Ben as he stopped at the center fountain of the mall. There were several fast food stands sitting on the sidelines so it made to be the perfect meeting point.
"Hey, wanna grab an ice cream?" I pointed to the small ice cream salesman nearest to us and luckily, Ben seemed to have agreed. When we got there, the salesman looked at us with a happy go lucky smile.
"Hey there you two" he said cheerfully, "What can I get ya? Chocolate? Vanilla? Sunday? Or single cone with all?"
"I'll take the first choice" Ben replied looking all cool and all.
"I'll take the strawberry" I answered.
After salesman took up the cones and handed it to us, he added with a small remark, "Right. Here you go. Two cones for you two. Have a happy date" What? A date?
"Oh no" I answered jokingly, "We're not on a date. He's my cousin/classmate" Ben and I answered almost immediately together but with different conclusion. We looked at each other for a moment giving out awkward stares before replying to the salesman again, "Old relative/acquaintance" again we looked at each other. But this time I was giving him the 'what the hell are you saying?' look.
"So… which one is it?" the salesman asked us.
After a short pause, Ben and I agreed on one final answer, "Friend…" and with that we both took our treats and walked away to one of the benches by the manmade bridge which served as a meeting point for students and teenagers. Neither of us spoke for a whole five minute or so. We just spent the whole day watching the water fountain do its thing.
I really wanted to ask Ben so many things, but I don't really know if he would answer me honestly. I mean come on… its been five years and I was so sure that I had a script somewhere in my head planned out for this kind of situation.
Back when I was still in the Plumbers, I usually like to spend my time talking to myself in my head. I know, I know… it sounds strange, but don't pretend that you've never done that before. I would picture myself in a situation similar to this with Ben around and would have some kind of a speech ready to lecture him to death. But now… all that I was able to do was look around and observe at other people passing by. Heck it almost felt like he wasn't even here, like he was transparent to the outside world.
"Nice day huh?" I said trying to get a feel for the mood.
Ben looked around for a moment licking his ice cream before nodding, "Yeah… nice day…"
And then again we remained silent, our eyes darting apart not trying to look at each other. We were probably on the same level right now. Neither of us knew what to do next or what to even say. We were just there… minding our own space not doing anything.
But just looking at this situation from a bird's eye view, I couldn't help but be amazed on how much the both of us had changed. Back around five or seven years ago, during our first summer vacation with grandpa, we could barely stand five minutes of each other and now look at us. We were barely talking to one another…
…
…
…
Hmmm… you know what… now that I thought about it… we haven't really changed much at all. We barely talked back during the summer trip anyway.
"So… what do you want to do for the rest of the day?" my heart almost literally went out from my lunges and into my throat when Ben spoke up to me. He was still licking the remains of his ice cream, and some of the cream seemed to have scrubbed itself onto his outer mouth. I chuckled at him for a moment and let out a small laugh. "What's so funny?"
"You just got some ice cream on you" I replied unable to hold my chuckling. Ben then quickly licked his lips with his tongue savoring every last drop of ice cream he had left.
"Hehehe… looks like this ice cream is on me" for some reason, I couldn't help but agree to laugh at his joke. Even though it was old school jokes, it was the way he says it that makes me laugh.
"That joke is so old, you know that?"
"Yeah I know" he smirked playfully, "I guess I'm just an old fashion guy with old fashion tricks. Anyway… you sure are taking a huge risk bringing me into an open area like this. What if one of the Plumbers should spot us?" I guess he did have his own reasons to be cautious to his surroundings. He was an outlaw on both sides of the secret war and by being in the slums for so many years he practically grew himself a third eye somewhere in his back.
But I just waved his worries off, "Don't worry. I can tell who are Plumbers and those who aren't. My badge tells me if there is an active Plumber nearby it will signal me. And besides… this is the only area where the troops are scarce"
"Really?" he replied slyly like he was trying to get some info out of me, "Please, do tell. How many more of you are out there?"
"Nice try" I folded my arms in victory, "But you're not getting anything out from me. You might try to escape and I wouldn't want that to happen"
"Yeah I guess so" he said in a tone that I could not analyze. His words were so nimble that they could either be lies or truth or maybe even both if that was humanly possible. He was always an excellent liar, which made him one of the least persons you could trust with your lunch money. I should know… back when we were in grade school, he spent all of my lunch money on Sumo Slammer cards. "But you can never be too careful"
We both spun our heads around not wanting to look at each other. I didn't want to start another argument so it was best if the two of us just cooled down for a moment. After looking at the passing crowd for a few seconds, I finally got the courage to ask him for lunch. "So… wanna have lunch?"
"Are you gonna take me to some fancy restaurant again?"
"I was thinking maybe we'd have a burger somewhere in Burger Palace" for once in a long while I was actually able to get Ben to make a reaction out of his face. He didn't expect me to take him to a typical place full of HIS kind. Heck he was so surprised that he was only able to nod in return, "Come on, my treat" I then slung purse to my waist and led the way. Hopefully I'll be able to earn his trust and somehow try to convince him to come back. It was a long if not impossible shot, but I had to take it. If I can't convince him to come back with me in three months time, I'll be forced to use my last resort.
The walk to Burger Palace wasn't long. Probably just about two or three minutes and we were already there. The place however was much larger than the one in Central Mall. It had a second floor to accommodate more customers and a longer cashier lane to hasten the speed of efficiency. Luckily for both of us, we didn't have to wait long until we were next in line.
We ordered our thing. Ben was kind enough to get himself a small cheese burger and a bottle of soda. Me on the other hand being the weight conscious person that I am, went for the less sugar based products.
We sat on a double seated table and enjoyed our meal. But as we gradually ate, I began to notice something about Ben's eating habit. Usually back in the days he would garble at the sight of a large plate pizza like a man who hasn't eaten in years. But now… as I look at him, he was eating his meal slowly, biting off a small piece of the burger with great care. Normally a starving man from the slums would die all over a burger like this, but not Ben. It could make me wonder how his stamina was doing.
"Something wrong with your food?" I asked a little worried.
He looked at me straight in the eye before turning back to his burger, lost in thought. "No… its… great… its alright…" that's when I noticed his eyes began to grow all misty and hazed. It was like his entire mind was filled with sad thoughts at the moment.
"If you don't like it, you can order something else you know" I offered standing up from my seat.
But he quickly put me back down, "No, it's alright" he held my hand, refusing to let me go back to the counter. "Really. I… I'm just enjoying my food" I didn't really believe him, but I decided to let it slide this once.
"Is this about money?" I asked with a slight smirk, "If you're worried about my budget, don't be. I got a Plumber instant cred-card. It allows me to draw more than twenty-grand from the local account, so don't worry. Come on, let me get you something" I was just about to move out when he suddenly pulled my hand even tighter.
"I said no!" the slight raise of his voice was enough to grab the attention from some of the surrounding tables. Even I was a little frightened by him. He never actually raised his voice to me before… not even during when we kids, so I have to say that this came as a bit of a surprise.
Instead of denying his wishes, I decided to return to my seat completely confused. Ben was acting really weird right now. He has a living piggy bank with him and still he refuses to listen. Sometimes I just don't get this guy.
"Sorry…" he apologized, "I didn't to say it out loud"
"Hey don't worry about it" I replied feeling a little insecure myself. To actually see Ben so furious even for a second stunned me for a moment. "But if you need anything, just ask" and after that we went back to enjoy what was left of our meal.
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After our meal at Burger Palace we began roaming around the mall, looking at shops and window shopping at the same time. I offered to buy Ben some new clothes and accessories but for some reason he didn't seem to be interested in any of them. Not only that but the more I stayed with him the more he began to become more…… distant. He was walking so slow that he even made grandpa Max look like an Olympic sprint runner.
I didn't mean to say that he was slow or anything, but it kind of felt like he didn't want to be around me or something.
This went on for a few hours until it was time to pop in the question. I took him to the balcony on the third floor of the mall which was used for people who wanted to come out and smoke. Fortunately for the both of us there were only three other guys there that were getting some fine air.
The parking lot was just below us and the main road was just in view as well. There were cars, pedestrians and even police cruisers patrolling the borderlines as well.
As I looked out to the parking lot below I saw a tiny glimpse of my school just over by the radio broad cast station. The sun was already setting by the west side of the boy's dormitory so that only mean that curfew was going to start sooner or later. "Great view huh?" I stated while breathing in a good sum of air to my lungs.
"Yeah… if you don't mind the pollution and all" Ben replied being as emo as ever.
"Must you always be so negative?"
"Start living in the slums for a couple of years and you'll feel like the whole world is like this" he sighed out loud as he looked into the crowded streets. Again the two of us paused in silence trying to get the feel of the conversation. Arghhh! This is so unlike us! I was expecting us to have a normal decent conversation but everything I do or say seems to be having negative or no effects at all. Ughhh! I felt so useless!
After I cooled my head off, I decided that this was the time to ask him. "So Ben…" he turned his attention to me as I spoke his name, "Have you thought about coming back? You know… back with us?" his face immediately soured like that of a prune. He knew that this question was coming sooner or later, but I guess I launched that attack a little too early.
"No…" his answer was a bit hesitant and unsure. Usually that would be a bad answer, but for some reason, I managed to take that as a good start. Yesterday he denied the offer without even second guessing.
"Why not?" I asked in which he just looked at me with a 'are you serious?' face. "Come on Gwen" he stated with another sigh, "You know why I can't go back"
"Ben………" he was talking about the incident that happened five years ago. Back then the two of us were living in a different kind of Bellwood. A roughly small town in the inland of the U.S.A. it was fairly a city on its own, but it was home. One day, when Ben and his family were out with grandpa Max, something terrible happened. A fire that started out in the downtown area caused a meltdown in the gas-line that centered right beneath the city. Ben should know more about this since his father uncle Carl used to work there too. (See Ben 10 the original series episode 49: Good bye and Good Riddance)
At first the authorities thought that the fire could be contained by closing the gas valves, but they thought wrong. A few minutes after the gas pipe got ignited, the gas storage tank that was located within the city blew up, destroying two blocks of neighborhood in a sea of flames. I was out for a school trip that week so I couldn't know what was going on.
The city barely had any warnings when the flames finally kicked in and turned the entire city into a living inferno. The people tried to get out of the city in every way possible but the debris on the road and the wildly spreading fire trapped about 70 percent of the populace inside. Ben and grandpa were lucky to have made it out of there alive but Ben's parents… Carl and Sandra…… they never made it to the checkpoint…
My parents however were fortunate that day. Since my mom works in the hospital and dad in the senate building… they were among the first to get out.
It wasn't about a week later until I discovered what had happened. 'The Bellwood Inferno' was the name of the story in the newspaper. I called my parents a day later and was glad that they were fine. Ben on the other hand became strangely amiss. When he and grandpa got out of the city via an escape pod from the Plumber base beneath the city, he suddenly vanished without a trace. And the rest as they say… is history.
"You know that there was no way you could've stopped the fire. What happened back at Bellwood is already done… ancient history. Neither you nor grandpa Max could've done anything to prevent it"
"Yeah…" he sighed.
"So come on, whatdaya say? It'll just be like old times. Isn't fighting aliens what you've always wanted to do for a living?"
"It used to be. Right now I just want to live a normal life. You know… get a decent job somewhere in the city and probably live the rest of my life"
"A normal life?" I cocked a brow of confusion as I starred back at him, "How do you expect to live a normal life when your life is nothing but normal?"
"Are you talking about the slums…… or this?" he flashed me the Omnitrix on his left wrist vaguely like he was pissed off. "I know what I said during 'that' summer vacation Gwen, but we were kids back then. You can't rewind time and do things all over again" that wasn't entirely true for me. I had a spell somewhere in one of my spell books that allows me to go back through time and alter history. But the only problem was that the spell had very dangerous effects to the future. One action in the past could probably alter the time stream and space itself and that was a risk I wasn't going to take.
After a brief pause I decided to resume our conversation, "Maybe not" I replied to him, "But we can still make it even better, can't we?"
He looked away from me not wanting to get any eye contact. Great… now he was growing more and more distant… nice work Gwen, you really know how to NOT make him like you.
Seeing that he wasn't going to talk for awhile, I decided to relieve some of my stress with a little cigar. I quickly pop one into my mouth and light it away. This was the only method I knew how to get myself to relax.
"I didn't know you smoke" I jerked my head around only to see Ben's confused stare. "Actually, I started around 2 years ago" I replied puffing out a smoke, "Don't tell me you haven't tried them"
"They're a waste of money and they're bad for you" and without even warning, he took my cigar pack and the stick I was puffing and threw them off the balcony. "Hey!" I shrieked, "What did you do that for? That brand cost me about 5.50"
"Trust me" he dusted his hand together, "You're better off without them. Of all the habits you could've picked it had to be this"
"You always did say that I needed a new hobby. Other than this I could've taken ballet dancing"
"Then maybe you should've" now I know he was pissed. That irritating voice, that cold shoulder and that final huff, it could only mean that he was angry. "Let's go, the slum's curfew will be up soon and I don't wanna get locked out again" he turned his back to me and started walking away.
"Ben… Ben, wait" but just when I was about to grab his shoulder to stop, he suddenly stopped me. "Ben, look at me"
"Shhh…" he said in a whispered tone as he grabbed my hand. The only time he ever does that is when danger was afoot. "What is it?" I asked.
"Don't look now, but there are two guys behind us" he said not looking back. "One wearing a black coat and another wearing a baseball cap. They've been following us since Burger Palace" I quickly took out my makeup mirror pack to see what was behind me and to Ben's truth there they were right in that spot just a few hundred meters away. They were darting their eyes at us but at the same time not trying to get our attention. "Are they friends of yours?"
"They're not one of the Plumbers, that much is for sure" I answered putting away my makeup mirror kit. "I think they could be alien bounty hunters"
"No…" he replied with a stern face. "They're from someone else. Follow me and don't make any sudden moves" knowing Ben's intellectual and tactical thinking I decided to trust him… for now. Immediately we walked right back into the mall to hide along with the crowd. And right as if on cue, the two guys that Ben pointed out began following us. We crisscrossed through the thicket of the mall, joining in with the large crowds, avoiding all other obstacles along the way. As we hastened our paste I could feel that our pursuers were doing the same.
When we finally came by the entrance of the mall, Ben quickly put on his hood to cover his face. "Sit down" he pushed me gently towards an empty bench near the bus stop. When he sat beside me, he quickly put his arm over my neck and placed his face slightly closer to me. "Now pretend that you're talking to me" luckily for him, I used to be in the drama club back in high school so I know how to play my role as a pretender. Although I hate to admit it myself, this trick might've even worked on me if I was the one pursuing him.
We waited and pretended like we were talking like regular people and with some luck, our pursuers appeared only to be stunned at our sudden disappearance. Fortunately they were in my range of sight so I was able to get a good view of them. One of them wearing the black coat had tanned skin and had a small pocket size ingram (uzi) on his waist. Now I was certain they weren't with the Plumbers. Ballistic firearms are so last century ago. His partner on the other hand had a .45 strapped onto his thigh, which explained how it was able to avoid the metal detector at the entrance.
Those who wanted to smuggle in guns or powder through state would strap their products right between their legs for safety. That would be the last place anyone would look at, and if your thighs are thick enough, the metal detector wouldn't even sense a thing.
The two of them were quite persistent and so Ben and I had to remain in that position for a whole 3 minutes. Not talking and barely even breathing.
"Are they gone?" Ben asked as he puffed out his breath. I checked his back one more time and noticed that the two of them were no longer there. "Yeah… they're gone" we quickly got back up on our feet and took the next bus heading towards the Industrial district. Hopefully we can get away from whoever was hunting us.
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After we took our seat on the rear end of the bus, I scanned my surroundings just in case if one of the Plumbers should be in. Fortunately for us, there weren't any. "Who were those guys?" I asked finally trying to get a little detail on Ben's life. If I was going to convince Ben on coming back, I had to at least know what he's been going through.
"Gang bounty hunters" he answered calmly like this had happened before. I guess I shouldn't be surprised since his head is wanted by several of the most dangerous alien warlords out in the galaxy. "They probably followed me from the slums. I guess whoever sent them must've had a bounty on my head"
"You really do know how to make enemies, don't you?"
"Hey, it's not like I wanted to"
"If that place is too dangerous for you then why don't you move out? I can rent you a place in a hotel or an apartment? I can even get you one in…"
"No…" he interrupted with a stern look. "There are some things that I have to do first. I can't leave the slums just yet"
"Is it about Wallace?"
"No…" it didn't look like he wanted to answer any further questions so I decided to stop my interrogation for now. Getting him irritated would not be the most logical course of action. So for the rest of the trip on the bus were remained in silence.
By the time we reached the gateway to the slums, it was already passed sunset. The curfew was about to begin in a matter of minutes and sadly… that only meant that it was the end of my meeting with Ben.
So I guess I have to say that this attempt was a failure, but hey… it wasn't gonna get me down that's for sure. I'll just have to try again tomorrow and do things differently. Like my grandpa always said, 'Things never work out in the beginning but it works out nonetheless' He should know this because when he started to reform the Plumbers again it was difficult bringing the old crew back. He had to track down every member from space to the last spec here on earth.
But even after gathering the majority of the organization still wasn't enough to pull us all together. Thanks to the lost of the Plumber Base in old Bellwood, my old hometown that was caught during the fire incident, things had been running even slower. But after years of hard work my grandpa managed to bring the group up to speed and power once again.
As Ben and I exited the bus, I noticed that there was a bakery shop not far from the quarantine wall that was just about to close for the night. I thought buying Ben some go home gift would be the least I could do for him. "Hey Ben, can you wait there for a moment?" he merely nodded back in reply before heading off towards the guarded gate. He kept his distance from the SWAT force and had his eyes darting left and right as if he was expecting an attack.
"Excuse me" I said to the baker as I approach the stands, "Can I have two loaves of your finest meat bread" the baker looked like a Spanish with a long mustache El Zoro himself. He nodded to me and quickly pulled out two loaves of bread fresh from the pantry. The aroma of these tasty treats could ease my mind and send me off to wheat fields any day. After I paid up to the man and allowed him to keep the change I head my way back towards Ben who was anxiously awaiting my return. "Hey, sorry to keep you waiting"
"Oh don't worry" he shrugged, "I've had my practice waiting for you in the shoe store when we were kids" I gave him a mean look to his humored joke. But it was true though. Back when we were kids Ben would sometimes be waiting for me in clothes and shoe store as I browse through its contents, but usually he would sneak off away and leave me there with my parents or grandpa Max sometimes. "Hey, I don't take that long" I reasoned.
"You took two hours in the shoe store when we ten, three hours and forty minutes in the dressing room, of and don't get me started with the restaurant menus" he added with him lame catch accent.
"Ok ok ok, I submit" I accepted my fault, "But you got respect that a lady likes to take her time when it comes to fashion"
"Yeah I figured that one out the hard way" he rubbed his neck humorously, "Anyway, I got to go. The curfew will be starting soon" he was about to turn away and leave, but I stopped him briefly by grabbing on to the sleeves of his jacket. My heart really ached to watch him leave like this my limbs seemed to react on their own feeling as if they didn't want him to go. And to that truth I guess both my mind and heart were telling me the same thing. I didn't want him to go. He was right within my grasp and for once in five years I could actually touch him, hold him and never again let go. "Gwen?"
"Before you go…" I began to feel a little embarrassed having people see us like this. It was like saying goodbye to a person who was going to war back in the 1940s. "Here's something for you" I handed him the two loaves of bread that I bought from that bakeshop nearby, "I know its not much but take it with you. It'll be a nice dinner for you" I literally shoved the pack onto his chest gesturing that I wasn't going to take 'no' for an answer.
In the end after a short pause, he gave in and accepted it. "Alright……… thanks" I suddenly noticed him forcing out a smile from his mouth. What's so bad about getting a gift? "I have to go now…" he added abruptly cutting me from saying anything. I thought we were going to have a happy ending to this little reunion but it looks like I must've made a mistake somewhere. The way he left me like that was like he was trying to avoid me. He looked rather pissed off and angry but at the same time he was able to flash out a smile. I wonder what got him all wined up. Oh well… I guess I'll just have to figure that one out tomorrow because right now I feel like I could sleep my way through the whole weekend.
(Slums) (Ben's POV)
As I walked through the gates of the slums the metal doors behind me closed shut with a defining click sound. Immediately after the last lock was initiated six SWAT officers appeared from their outpost and readied their guns just in case another riot should happen again. There hasn't been any riots as of late due to the gang wars dealing their own problems. Just a few wannabes stragglers would come by now and then to throw rocks or paint graffiti on the wall. So far no major activities, but that could change in an instant if someone was just pushed at the right direction.
But that no longer interest me. Large death tolls and collateral damage meant nothing in this city as long as its rules left unbent. However, what got me really annoyed at the moment was the package I was carrying with me. Gwen didn't really need to buy me these things just to show how much she cared. I could already tell that she's worried sick with her own problems without me being in it. I even had to resist an urge to throw these things into that nearby garbage dumpster which already full with more than enough dirt the district could offer.
And just when I was about to reach the corner leading directly towards my house, I felt two presence nearby hiding in the shadows. They seemed to be professional assassins hired to kill me but it seems like they were still new to the dark side of the world. They were able to hide themselves well and blending in with their surroundings but the sound of their breathe was too uncontrolled and so I was able to tell where they were going to strike and what they were going to do.
3… 2…… 1…
Whoose!
I threw the bread package high up into the sky and dodged a pipeline stick attack from behind just by a hair strain. After I jumped back up on my feet, I kick the guy on the rear when he was off balance due to the extremeness of his swing. After that his partner who was wearing a baseball cap appeared from behind, carrying a combat knife with him.
He didn't even wait for me to recover before he launched his attack. I dodged the knife slash a few times and when he thrust, I grab his hand with my own and twist it, making him drop his weapon. With his arm in pain, I socked in several punches onto his face and with MY incredible strength I tossed him over towards the lamp post.
By the time the battle ended, the bread loaf that I tossed up earlier, landed right back onto my hands. You guys can either call that lucky or professionalism. "Hmm… 5.55 seconds" I said to myself, "Not a bad record" knowing that these so called assassins were sent by someone, I had to get the information out of them before they dash off to safer ground. The guy who hit the lamp post earlier was knocked out cold so I settled for the other guy who still had his pipeline stick. He tried to pick up his weapon again but I denied him that privilege by kicking it away.
I've watched my fair shows of action movies before so interrogation would be rather easy for me. Sadly there was no one around to play the good cop so we'll just have to make do with what we have. "Alright sucker!" I grabbed the guy by his shirt collar and dangled him high into the air. He was a little taller than me so it became a little difficult to intimidate him. "I'm gonna ask some questions and you'd better answer them truthfully or you're gonna relive your elementary years again the hard way!" I cornered him to a wall making sure that there was only two ways he was gonna escape. Either he squeals or he can try to break free some how.
"Umph!! I an't saying nothing!" he groaned at me while trying to break free from my grip. Seeing that he still had the will to resist I raised him up a little high above the ground to make him get a feel that I was serious. "Grrr!"
"Oh yeah!? Well listen up buster, I have plenty of ways of making you talk!" I thought that threatening him might do the trick since my hands weren't loosening his throat. "See your pal over there?" I gestured to his knocked out partner. "You wanna end up like him down on the dump? I'm guessing not. Now if you don't want to end up like him you're gonna answer my questions!" I then banged his head on the wall a few times to get him to know that I was serious.
After a brief pause and a little thinking, I suddenly noticed a pin hidden in the guy's chest pocket. I quickly took it out and drop him off the ground. By the time he got loose he made a dash for it towards the Dead Garden, right into Verdon's territory. Luckily for me, I still had that pin.
It was a purple V…
Well at least that was a relief. If the pin had been a red V then this would've been a different story. These purple V pins are only given to members of Viper's gang for new recruits. Vanessa must be trying to provoke me into coming to her place again. She must've also known that these guys would never stand a chance against me either. They were a bit old and really green in their combat skills. (Green as in a newbie green not the color green. It's a military term I believe)
Man, if she wanted to talk to me she could've just send a messenger rather than those two guys. With nothing left to do, I quickly made my way back home before the sun completely sinks into the ocean. Hopefully tonight there won't be much of a ruckus.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
My house of course was obviously at the same state as it was a year ago. With broken rooftops, creaky windows and poster probably 5-6 years old, it still made me feel like at home. "Hey Wallace, I'm home" I called out hoping to see that squirt again, but then suddenly to my surprise, it was his sister Alex that greeted me. "Hello Ben…" she replied in her unchanging emotional face. "It's nice to see you safe and sound again…"
"Oh hey there Alex" I slowly then close the door to keep the cold out. "Shouldn't you be in bed? Where's Wallace?"
"He went out earlier to do his daily work" she tightened her hug on her teddy bear a little bit with a slight breathing sound. "He said that he will be back later before dinner"
Great… nice work Wallace, you left a little girl out in my house which was the hot spot of every crook in the slums and you're off doing who knows what. "Haaa…" I sighed out loud rubbing the back of my neck in the process. I just hope that the boy doesn't get himself into anymore trouble. "Hey, did you have dinner yet?" I asked her and she shook her head in reply. "Well I got some bread from outside"
"Gwen, bought you those… didn't she?" she interrupted me. Usually any man who hears her say that would be surprised and utterly stunned, but after living with her for a year already, nothing surprises me anymore.
You'd probably noticed by now, but Alex isn't exactly a normal little girl. Sure she may have that cute look and chubby face, but deep inside her true essence is actually the power of an oracle. A far-seer if you would call it that. She can see the future or at least the distant future of any person she wants. The only problem is that she barely has any control over that power and it sometimes forces her to see untellable predictions.
"Yeah…" I answered finally before seeing her take a slice and stuffing it into her mouth. She even tried feeding Little Oliver, her teddy bear some too.
Seeing that there was nothing left for me to do, I decided to sit on my favorite rocking chair and gaze out once more at the moon that was just outside. It was a peaceful night and hopefully tomorrow can only go for the better. Gwen will probably try and persuade me again but I greatly hope that she would abandon this silly mission and go on with her life.
But…
I guess that won't be happening anytime soon…
(Girl's dorm)
I walked through the bridge connecting to the girl's dormitory a few hours before the dorm curfew time had begun. There, I saw Alfonse and Edgar again playing some silly board game to keep their boredom off the charts. It was like some kind of medieval card game seemed to be the 'in' thing with kids of today. I never really played it myself but I heard from a lot of students that they were particularity interested in it. What was it called again…?
Oh that's right… Gords and Goblins…
"Hey there Gwennie" Alfonse was the first to notice me as he waved back. I returned the gesture and smiled at him. "You're a bit early today. Not feeling well?"
He wasn't far off from the point, "No, I'm just tired that's all" I answered back smiling. "Is Mrs. Randolph here?"
"You mean the caretaker?" Alfonse said quizzled, "She went to the main office building earlier for a meeting with the teachers. I don't think she'll be back for another hour or so" I accepted the answer and slowly made my way towards my room.
The trip to my own sanctuary wasn't really long. It was only on the third floor of the center building and most of the students were still probably out hanging around in bars and clubs for all I care. The first thing I did when I got into my room floor was to get a nice clean shower. Traveling around the city and going through public transportation did a relatively small number on my exo-suit but it did make me feel a little dirty.
As I brushed off the dirt on my shoulder I began to reflect on my day with Ben. Ok our moments may have been short and our time together rudely interrupted by some thugs looking for a fight, but I have to say that this first time out must've been a big failure. We barely spoke up to each other and the meal we had was nothing special either. It almost felt like I was going through the mall with the ghost, I even began to think that he didn't even exist.
But the reason why I was confused on was why he didn't want to buy anything from the stores. I mean hell I was a walking ATM for crying out loud! Any man worth his salt would be glad to be traveling with a life sized piggybank and the way he looked at me when I bought him dinner (the bread) was just strange.
He seemed kind of angry… did I piss him off in some way?
…
…
…
…
I think I did…
Crud…
Duh Gwen, of course you did! It's not like he's got money to spend on a restaurant on anything. And having me paying would've put him on the spot! Damn I'm so stupid! I totally insulted his pride.
People say that when you go into a bath, you go there to relax. But for me, I just got myself a headache thinking all of this. So without anyone noticing, I turned off the faucet and made my way back to my room.
But to think that my troubles weren't enough when I entered my room, the sight of my laptop quickly reminded me that I should file a report to Paullina today. "Damn…" I said to myself. Paullina's gonna have a fit if she doesn't get my weekly report and that would mean a whole two hour lecture from her through a mini screen. "Well I better get on that report" so instead of pondering on my thoughts I quickly got back to work.
I'm going to have to report everything I did these past few days………… but I think I'll just leave Ben out of the picture… for now.