Chapter 4: The Real World

Getting home wasn't an issue for Matt thanks to his pickup truck. He drove it into town and to school every day, which was over twenty miles round-trip. He didn't mind though. It was certainly better than riding the bus. He drove up the short gravel drive that branched off from the main road, which was wet and muddy on this day, before finally arriving at the house and running from the truck to the door. Once inside, he soon ran into his parents. Since there was lousy weather outside, they told him he didn't need to worry about his chores today, as they did whenever the weather was bad.

This was good news for Matt. Now he could spend more time planning his "date" with Inez. He relaxed on his bed in his room, Obi Wan Kadoggie at his feet as he pondered his options for where to go. After a while of deliberating, he eventually decided on a new stir fry place that had recently opened up. He planned to come pick her up at her house around six o'clock Sunday night, and he would make sure that restaurant was okay with her before they went there.

That was the easy part though. He knew the harder part would be attempting to admit his feelings to her. He admittedly wasn't entirely confident in himself, fearing he would bail on the idea. He felt it was certainly a possibility. He had struggled a bit simply asking her out earlier at all.

But he figured he wouldn't know how hard it was until he tried, so he wasn't about to skip out on the date altogether. All he needed to do for now was relax and wait for Sunday evening to arrive. He would have plenty of time to worry then.

…

Meanwhile, it was much more of a struggle for Becky and Fern to get home. Fern's house was indeed over a mile away. That would have been a long walk any day, but combined with heavy rain and wind swirling around them, it felt even longer. They were half expecting to be blown away with the strong gusts.

Their struggles came to an end over forty-five minutes later, when Fern pointed out her house to Becky, and they picked up speed a bit until they reached the front door at last.

"Whew! Thank goodness!" Becky huffed in relief as they stepped inside. She shook the umbrella off before closing the door and taking off her shoes, leaving them on the mat.

"No kidding," Fern said in agreement, pulling off her own shoes and wiping her face dry. "Thank you so much, Becky. It was really nice of you to do this for me."

"You're welcome," Becky replied with a smile, appreciative of Fern's gratitude.

"Hey, are you cold?" Fern asked concernedly, noticing Becky's red nose and slight shivering. It was so much easier for humans to get cold, given that they lacked fur to keep them warm.

"A little bit, but I'll be fine," Becky assured. However, soon after saying this, she found herself sneezing, which she blocked with her arm.

"You don't sound fine," Fern contested. "I think you…" she trailed off, before finding herself sneezing as well. Maybe she wasn't as warm as she had thought.

"You sound cold too," Becky pointed out with a giggle. "But yeah, you think I?..."

"I think you should stay here a while to warm up."

"Well thank you, if you're sure. Your parents won't mind?"

"I doubt it. My dad is at work, and my mom is probably around here somewhere. Come on, let's look for her."

Both girls stepped further into the house, being careful not to slip on the floor, as they now only had socks on their feet. It didn't take them long to find Fern's mother, who was sitting at the kitchen table, assumedly working on paying some bills. She looked over her shoulder when she heard them step in and smiled upon seeing her daughter. "Hello, Fernie! I'm so glad you made it home."

"Hi, Mom. Me too…" Fern greeted in reply, a bit self-conscious that her mother had referred to her with her family nickname in front of her new friend. Becky, out of not wanting to embarrass Fern further, kept her reaction to the smallest little giggle.

Her mother glanced over at the other girl, surprised to see someone else with her that wasn't George, or possibly Sue Ellen. "Who's this?" she asked, looking back at her daughter.

"Oh, this is Becky," Fern introduced. "I met her on Monday, we share algebra class. We missed the bus, but she had an umbrella, so she helped me get home."

"That was certainly nice of you, Becky," Fern's mother said gratefully, turning the chair around to face them and reaching her hand out. "I'm Fern's mother, but you can call me Doria of you want."

"Nice to meet you! And it was no big deal, really," Becky insisted, taking Doria's hand and shaking. "I was glad to do it."

"Well it's nice to hear that someone's looking after our little Fernie," Doria repeated, causing Fern to silently fume, her cheeks tinged red. It hadn't even been five minutes and her mother had already said the name twice.

Becky smiled brightly. As WordGirl she looked after the entire city, and of course most people acknowledged that. But it was rare to hear anyone express thankfulness to her for doing anything similar in real life, even if it was smaller. She had to admit, given Fern's relatively shy and passive nature, especially compared to herself, she did feel a stronger need to look out for her than with most people. On top of everything else, she thought it was rather cute how Fern was reacting to the use of her parents' pet name for her right in front of both of them.

"You girls look a bit chilly," Doria observed after looking back and forth between them.

"Yeah, it's pretty cold out there, and the wind isn't helping at all," Fern replied. "I was gonna let Becky hang around for awhile and get warm, and maybe call and see if her parents can come get her, if that's okay."

"Not a problem at all! In fact, why don't you two head on up to Fern's room, and I'll bring up some hot cocoa in a bit," Doria suggested.

"Sure!"

"Yeah, that would be awfully nice of you."

"It'll only take a few minutes. Go ahead upstairs, and I'll be there soon with your drinks."

Both girls thanked her again before doing as she suggested and going up to Fern's room. Fern sat down at her desk while Becky took a seat on the bed. Becky quickly called her parents to let them know of the situation, and Fern's mom soon returned with the mugs of cocoa, as promised. They both thanked her again as she left, leaving the two of them together, the only sound being the rain beating on the bedroom window.

"So… Fernie, huh?" Becky asked with an amused grin.

"Yeah, they've always called me that," Fern admitted with a defeated sigh.

Becky chuckled. "Well you don't need to be embarrassed. I think it's cute."

"I guess…" Fern said with a shrug, sipping her drink.

"Your mom looked surprised to see me," Becky remarked, holding her cup and enjoying the warmth it radiated into her hands. "I guess I don't blame her."

"I think it might kind of be because I don't have people over much at all. There's my friend George once in a while, but that's about it."

"Would I know George by any chance? I'm not sure I do."

"Hmm… Well, he's a moose, wears a lot of orange… and he's a bit on the awkward side, so that's probably why I get along with him well."

"That does sound familiar… Is there anything there between you guys?" Becky asked hesitantly. "If it's not too much to ask."

"Hmm?... Oh that, no, I'm not interested in him that way. I never have been."

"That's okay. Is there anyone you DO like?"

"Not really…" Fern admitted, taking another sip. "I don't know why. I'd like to have a relationship, but no one has ever really interested me."

"Aw, come on, there must have been someone sometime, even just a little."

Fern shook her head. "No, I can't think of anybody. No guy has ever really interested me that way…"

Becky considered this for a minute, continuing to down her drink as an idea occurred to her. "You know, this is just a suggestion, but… maybe you just don't like guys?"

Fern frowned, puzzled. "Well if I don't like guys, then I…" she paused as she began understanding the meaning of Becky's proposal "Wait, you I think I might… you know?"

Becky shrugged. "It's a possibility, right? You never thought about that before?"

"I guess I… I just never really considered the idea… What about you, if it's alright to ask? Do you like guys?"

"Well I had a crush on a guy friend of mine for a long time, so I'm pretty sure I do. But he started dating another friend of mine, and I haven't had a really big crush since then… I mean, I suppose it's possible I could like both… maybe… I guess I never really thought about it either."

A slightly awkward silence settled between them, mostly because they became preoccupied with their own respective thoughts. Neither of them had ever considered the possibility that they might be playing for the opposite team, or both teams in Becky's case.

"I guess it's possible…" Fern finally spoke up, licking a bit of cocoa from her lip. "But I've never liked a girl before either."

"Well… maybe you just haven't found the right one yet," Becky suggested. "I'm sure you'll know them if they come along. He, she, whoever."

"Yeah… maybe… but it's not like anyone would be interested in me," Fern said dejectedly.

"Oh come on, don't be that way. I'm sure plenty of people would like you," Becky assured.

"I don't think so," Fern argued, shaking her head. "I know I wouldn't want to date me. I hardly talk to anyone, and I get frustrated easily, so when I'm not being shy or reclusive then I'm being stubborn and off-putting…"

"Don't talk like that, Fern, you're being too hard on yourself!" Becky said, not enjoying hearing Fern talk about herself this way. "You're a great person! You're smart, you're funny, you're creative, you're cute - If someone doesn't come along that likes you eventually, I'll eat my hat!"

Fern was flattered by Becky's compliments, which did make her feel a bit better, and she found herself giggling a bit. "'Eat your hat?' You don't wear a hat, silly," she pointed out.

"It's just an expression I've heard a lot," Becky explained. "Seriously though, Fern. You're absolutely great girlfriend material. You just need to find someone who can appreciate you, and who you feel the same way about."

"...Thanks, Becky," Fern said with a small, grateful smile. "That means alot to me." However at that point, more than anything else, she appreciated how kind Becky was being. Despite her friend's encouraging words though, Fern would have said that Becky was much better girlfriend material than herself. Still, she was grateful for it, and the only thing she could think to do to really express it was give Becky a hug, which she then gave in and did, standing up from her chair and wrapping her arms around her.

Becky's eyes grew in surprise, but she soon returned the hug and smiled. "It's okay, Fern. I'm just being honest." When they let go, she looked Fern in the eyes and said confidently, "Trust me, you're gonna find somebody really great. I'm sure they're much closer than you probably realize. You just have to look a bit harder."

"Alright, I will," Fern agreed, feeling better than she had in quite a long time. "And you do the same. I want you to find someone great to be with too."

"Hopefully," Becky said with a nod. Just then though, their conversation was interrupted by the sound of a car pulling into the driveway. Both girls went to look out the window and spotted what Becky recognized to be her family's car. "That must be my mom to pick me up," she pointed out. "I'd better head downstairs."

"Well, alright… Thanks for talking about this with me, Becky. I think it helped."

Becky smiled. "I'm glad," she replied, heading for the bedroom door. "But now, off to do my math homework. That won't be fun."

"I know what you mean, I have stuff to work on too."

Becky then got an idea. "Hey, why don't we meet at the library on Sunday, and we can study together? Then maybe we can get dinner afterward. I heard a new restaurant opened up not too far from here."

Fern perked up at the suggestion. She always liked being at the library, and studying with Becky would certainly make the activity more bearable. "Alright, sure! That'd be fun."

"It's settled then!" Becky agreed. She gave Fern one more quick hug before stepping out of the room and heading downstairs. "See you Sunday!"

"Yeah, okay!" Fern replied, shutting the bedroom door behind Becky and smiling as she leaned back against it. It had been a long time since someone aside from her parents had hugged her.

…

Back on The Northern Frontier in Cyberspace, Buzz and Delete were beginning to make progress on the new, larger statue of Hacker. It had been decided that it needed to be at least as tall as the Grim Wreaker so that the whole ship could pass through the portal, and Hacker felt he had already done quite enough for now, so he had put his henchmen up to the daunting task of building the larger one.

The two robots were standing on a tall ladder leaning against what had been completed of the statue thus far. They clearly still had a long way to go. Buzz was farther up, screwing in several bolts. He looked down at Delete, who was holding a heavy box of various tools. "Hey, Deedee, hand me the 9/16 wrench," Buzz said, reaching his arm down.

"Sure, Buzzy," Delete replied, lifting the box up to root through it, but losing his balance as a result, shrieking loudly as he fell and collided with the ground below. He climbed back up several minutes later with the right wrench, a little bent up but no worse for wear. "Here ya go…" he said through a terrible hacking cough as he handed it to Buzz.

"Thanks," Buzz replied curtly, returning his attention to the statue, seemingly unfazed by the tumble Delete had taken.

"So, um, Buzzy… What do you think the boss is gonna do once he gets to the real world, exactly?"

"Don't you remember? He wants to get rid of those kids and take over the place."

"Yeah, I know, but… What's he gonna do with them, exactly?"

"I dunno," Buzz said with a shrug. "Hammer," he said, reaching down again.

Delete got the hammer for him, thankfully not falling this time. "It's just that, well… I don't want him to hurt them too badly, you know?"

Buzz gave him a puzzled look. "Why do you care?"

"Oh I don't know… No reason, it's nothing," Delete relented, letting the subject drop. He didn't entirely get his own concerns either. He and Buzz had been working for Hacker for several years now, and they had tried to chase down the Cybersquad countless times. But although Delete may have been one of the bad guys, he didn't enjoy picturing them getting seriously hurt. They were just kids, after all, even if they were older now than they had once been.

And what about Digit? He had once been their friend and ally before leaving them for team Motherboard. He may have been a traitor, but he still didn't want to entertain the idea of Digit being hurt or destroyed.

So with all that in mind, what would become of all of them, assuming Hacker succeeded in his plans? Delete found it hard to picture his boss keeping them around on the off-chance that they might escape. He would probably want to get rid of them as soon as possible. While Delete didn't know what exactly that would entail, he had a feeling he wouldn't want to witness it.

He let these considerations go for now, though. He was just a robot henchman, after all. He wasn't supposed to question these things.

…

On Sunday morning, after Buzz and Delete had been hard at work on the statue, they ran into the shelter and up into the Grim Wreaker to find Hacker seated at his recharging chair as usual.

"Boss! Boss! It's finished!" Buzz exclaimed, pulling doughnuts out for himself and Delete to celebrate.

"Yeah! It's all done!" Delete added, taking the doughnut and taking a big chomp out of it.

Hacker grinned and looked back at his cohorts, hopping up from the chair. "Splendid! Absolutely splendid! Let's go take a look."

Buzz and Delete led their boss back outside and across the short distance to where the statue now stood. It was definitely the same height as the Grim Wreaker, and would hopefully create a corresponding portal. Hacker gazed up at it, enjoying seeing his own likeness in a statue as usual.

"Here you go, boss," Delete spoke up, handing him the new remote.

"Excellent," Hacker said, taking the remote and pressing the button to test it. Sure enough, a large portal opened up in front of them. No doubt it would fit his ship with ease.

"Well done, you two," Hacker said as he looked back and forth between his henchmen, surprised at their apparent competence with this project. "I'm impressed. It appears you've done the job well for once."

Buzz and Delete smiled with mouthfuls of doughnut. It wasn't often that Hacker gave them compliments like this. "Gee… thanks boss!" Buzz replied.

"But now for the REAL moment of truth," Hacker went on, gesturing for his minions to follow. "I say it's time for a little field trip, boys. Come on." He led them back to the Wreaker and they seated themselves in the cockpit. He got the ship turned on and the clankety old thing began hovering out of the shelter. Hacker then pulled out the remote once more and the portal reappeared in front of them. Then, without saying a word, Hacker flew the ship forward and through the portal.

When they came out the other side, they returned to the same spot that Buzz and Delete had arrived at earlier when using the smaller portal. "YES! YES! HAHA!" Hacker cried victoriously. "It worked! It worked! Let's find a place to park this thing." He flew the ship deeper into the forest away from the city until he eventually found a small, shallow cave. "This will be a perfect place to position ourselves for now," Hacker observed, pulling the ship into the cave and parking it so it was just barely poking out. He wasn't worried about being spotted. The cover of trees was rather thick, and they were several miles away from town.

"What do we do now, boss?" Buzz asked, curious to hear what he had planned next.

Hacker messed with a few of the controls for a minute until the screen in front of them displayed the nearby city, bustling with activity. He then leaned back in his chair and sighed contentedly before finally answering Buzz's question. "Now… we wait and observe."

This answer confused his minions. "Wait? But boss, don't you want to go attack and take over?"

"Of course I do, you dunderhead," Hacker snapped impatiently. "But I'm not about to go barging in there without having any idea what to expect. We're gonna use the camera setup we have here to look in on the city and see if there's anything that could pose a potential threat to my plans. If there IS anything, we'll find a way to make it so it's no longer anything to worry about. THEN we'll go in there and attack."

There was a minute of silence as Hacker gazed out at the city before them. "Take a good, long look, you two. Soon this city, as well as every other on the planet, will be mine to conquer and wreak havoc across. Then with Motherboard's little nuisances out of the way, it'll be no problem taking over Cyberspace as well. I'll be the emperor of both worlds. And everyone will bow down before me… but I'm getting ahead of myself. For now, all we have to do is simply have patience. Patience is a virtue you know, and it'll reward you well in time. I've come to learn that over the years, and it's especially true in this case." He fixed his eyes on the skyline of the unsuspecting city and chuckled to himself. Enjoy your last days of freedom, people of Earth. Enjoy them while you can…