Nine

I put our bags inside the trunk of the car we stole. It was pretty easy turning the engine on even without the keys. All those Hollywood movies Sandor made me watch all the time actually taught me something. Huh.

We're heading to the nearest airport, the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. It's named after some political guy from back when the world was in black and white.

So anyway, we decided to head back to America. To a quieter place now, Oregon. We decided to stay away from cities; they've caused us too much trouble in the past. I have never been out of the city before. Even when Sandor took me from place to place, he would always put us in a crowded area; he says it makes fitting in all the more exciting.

I'm in the driver seat, zooming past cars as a blur. It's a miracle we haven't been pulled over by the police yet.

The radio is playing some popular song in Filipino. Even though I can't understand any of it, I can tell that this is one of those songs that no one understands but still likes to listen to anyway. I start to hum along, getting in the mood of it until John stops me.

"Can you stop? Someone's trying to sleep here." He says, gesturing to Sarah, who's snoozing next to him.

I grunt. "Calm down, Johnny Boy. No one's going to be woken up by some humming."

He winces at my nickname for him. "Whatever. Just stop. Your voice is horrible, dude."

I smirk in return. Ella giggles from behind me and out of the corner of my eye, I see Five smile a little. I don't know what it is we are but I'm sure it's something. I mean, you wouldn't confess your innermost thoughts to just anyone, right? I smile at the thought of me and Five being together.

I block the thought as quickly as it started. She probably doesn't even like me in that way, despite the fact that she tells me stories about her Cêpan often. She probably just thinks of me as a good friend, like Six is with Marina.

I continue driving for a couple more minutes until we reach the airport. It was big and spacious, every door lined with security guards.

We step into the entrance and were immediately bombarded by security checks. I don't mind it really. It makes me feel safe. Nah, I'd feel safe even without this crap.

In a couple of minutes, we're on the plane and it's about to take-off. I'm in the passenger seat with Five sitting next to me, staring outside the plane's windows.

She's been distant lately but, really, you can never know with Five. One minute, she's being all touchy and bubbly, the next she's quiet and distant.

The Chimæra are with us all of them have transformed into ants. Even BK, much to John's chagrin.

It's a long flight, practically 20 hours more or less.

And before I know it, I'm drifting off to sleep.

I am in the ship that brought us here. I'm at least three years old; playing with a bunch of the other Garde. I slapped a blue toy truck from another boy that seems to be John and laugh victoriously. Sandor pulls me away as Henri comforts Four.

Sandor was so young. He appears to be no older than 17 years old and already looking after a prissy brat. I've never appreciated him more.

It feels weird to be feeling sentiment and even love for Sandor and actually telling myself all of this. Keeping your emotions bottled up inside of you is just as vicious as letting them get in your way.

I look back into the memory and see Marina and Eight painting each other and giggling uncontrollably. Even when they were toddlers, they were already lovebirds. They were one of the oldest there, probably six years old.

The youngest is a little girl, probably just two years old. My three year-old self walks up to her and say, "Hey! What number are you?"

She looks up. "What?" Her voice was timid, as if scared by me.

"Are you deaf?! I said! What! Number! Are! You!"

"I'm Number Five!" she cries out. Tears form in her eyes as her Cêpan carries her away.

Sandor had to apologize for me. Apparently, I made her cry because I yelled.

"Nine, buddy, you don't yell like that. It's not nice." He says.

"But Sandooooor!" I whine.

"It was her fault! She was all deaf!"

"No she wasn't. She was probably just intimidated by you."

"What's inti-, inti-, intmitadet?"

"Intimidated means being scared, buddy." He says with a smile.

I pout and return to our bedroom.

Another little kid was sitting on my bed, playing around with toy racing cars.

"Vroom, vroom…" he whispered to himself, smiling.

It was Four. Apparently, he thought we were best friends back then. Hilarious.

My three-year old self decided to have some fun.

"Hey! What're you doin' on my bed!?"

"Vroom?"

"No! Not vroom!"

He starts to tear up and Henri scoops him out of the room but not without glaring at me first.

My past self was tired of Henri so he decided to tell him to back off.

He tackles him. "Hey you! Why're you always making meanie faces at me?!"

Henri starts to explain himself but Sandor cuts him off.

"Sorry." He says, not really that apologetically.

"Nine, come with me! We're going to start pre-combat training soon." Sandor says again.

"Pru-cawbat! Rawr!" I say then run off with him, leaving Henri glaring at us on our way out.

I wake up with a jolt, my expression wistful.

"You okay?" Five –the real Five- asks.

"Uh, yeah. Just had a dream."

"About what?"

"About the ship. I think it was a memory of when we were going to Earth."

"Oh," she says, turning to me.

"Wait, were you the one who yelled a lot and made the other ones cry?"

I nod, chuckling, trying to mask my embarrassment.

She gasps. "You were the one that made me cry a lot!"

I chuckle again. "Well, you cried too easily."

"I did not!" she says, playfully slapping me on the arm.

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

We continue on like this for a while until we're shrouded in laughter. We tried to keep it quiet, not wanting to wake up the other passengers.

We quiet down for a while until I say, "Did too."

"Fine, I did! But I was, like, two years old. What did you expect me to do?" she asks rhetorically, laughter taking over her voice.

"And you were mean to everyone! I remember you throwing all the toys at the Cêpans! You even threw one at Joseph and almost got all of us killed and abandoned in the middle of the galaxy!" she exclaims, serious.

I look away in embarrassment. Sandor always told me I was hard to take care of, now I knew for sure.

I thought she was mad at me but then she starts laughing.

I smile at her genuinely and she smiles back.