A FEW VISITORS

CHAPTER 5

JESS

"Jess, what are you doing?" Becker hissed at her as he pulled her out of the interrogation room so they could talk in private.

"Letting them live with me?" she responded quietly.

"Are you crazy? You can't take care of six kids!" he snapped.

"Of course I can. Two can sleep in my room, one on the couch... I'll sleep..." she trailed off when she realised that she didn't, in fact, have enough room. Becker stared at her expectantly.

"Exactly." he said. She sighed.

"Well, where else are they going to stay?" she asked. "There's too many of them to stay in the company apartment. And Matt and Emily barely have enough room for the two of them as it is."

Becker mulled over this in his head for a moment.

"Well... You have your bed, and one couch. Abby and Connor's room is taken, obviously. Maybe the girls... And Sid... can stay with you." he suggested. "Molly and Haley in your bed, and Sid and Nancy on the couch and in a sleeping bag."

Jess nodded, but then realised a small flaw.

"What about me?"

Becker wasn't done with his plan.

"Well... I have a spare room in my flat. Maybe Derek and Jake can stay there. I can sleep on the couch... And you could stay in my room." he said.

Jess blinked.

"I couldn't take your room." she laughed nervously.

"Why not? You're selfless enough to let a bunch of strange kids take yours. Sleeping on my couch is the least I can do to help you out." he said.

Jess hugged him, and squealed in excitement.

"Yay! Oh, thank you, Becker! I was going to stay in a hotel! Thank you!" she said happily. He smiled to himself and patted her head.

"Okay. Let's go and explain this to the kids."

They went back into the interrogation room, and plans were made.

It was decided that Molly and Nancy would take Jess' bed, and Sid would sleep on the couch at Jess' flat.

Jake (who seemed freaked out and to not be dealing well at all with the situation) didn't want to be kept away from Haley, so he and her would take Becker's spare bed. Derek would sleep in a sleeping bag on Becker's floor somewhere. If things went on too long, he would stay in the company flat on his own.

Becker would sleep on his own couch, and Jess would take his bed. Sorted.

Sorted, until they actually got to their respectable flats.

"This is where you used to live?" Jake said with distaste, as he looked around Becker's flat.

Becker frowned.

"What do you mean, 'used to'? I still do." he said. "And what's wrong with it?"

"Nothing... It's just... Small, and quiet. Kind of... Grey." he mumbled.

"Well, I love it." Jess said happily, doing a twirl in the centre of the room. "And we're all going to be staying here for a while, so you best get used to it."

Jake nodded, and began to go look around in the kitchen.

"Thanks for letting us stay here, mate." Derek said to Becker. "And thanks for giving your apartment up, Jess. It means a lot."

Jess smiled at him, and Becker nodded.

"No problem. It's the least we can do to make you feel at home." Becker told him.

"Well, thanks." Haley said from by the door.

Haley was stood behind Derek, holding her hands behind her back. She looked very soldier-like, constantly standing to attention, Jess thought. Then she realised that Haley- or any of the kids, for that matter- didn't have any other clothes.

"Haley, would you like to come back to my flat with me, and we'll get you some clothes?" Jess asked her. Haley looked at Derek, and then Becker, and then back to Jess.

"Ermm... Okay, I guess. If it's not too much trouble." she said.

"No, not at all. Lets face it, we don't know how long you'll be here for." Jess chirped, and dragged Haley towards the door. "Besides, I need to pick up my things."

"Great. I'll sort Derek and Jake out with some clothes, and... Show them around..." Becker's train of thought was derailed when he noticed Jake actually looking through his cupboards, moving various items around.

Jess drove Haley back to her flat, where she found Abby and Connor showing Sid and Nancy and Molly around.

"Hey, guys! We're here to get Haley some clothes to wear." Jess called to them as she swiftly moved through her flat over to the bedroom. Haley gave them a small wave, and quietly followed the field coordinator.

"Actually, you two need some clothes, as well..." Abby pointed out to Sid and Nancy. The four of them looked at each other, and the similarities of their sizes and styles were soon recognised.

"I don't think that's gonna be a problem." Connor said.

Upon showing her new guest her wardrobe, Jess discovered that Haley wasn't too fond of miniskirts, short dresses, high heels and girly colours.

They eventually found her a couple of old pairs of jeans from when Jess was a teenager that she had (luckily) not thrown away, and a few plain blouses and t-shirts.

Haley decided that her boots were to be worn at all times- she was not getting into a pair of the girly, flowery high heels that Jess had grown so accustomed to wearing.

"Would you like a cup of tea while you're here?" Jess asked the teenager once they had finished wardrobe-raiding.

"Sure." Haley said.

"Jess, can I talk to you for a second?" Connor called over to her. He was stood in the doorway to his and Abby's bedroom, and clearly wanted to have a private conversation. Jess excused herself from Haley, and went to speak to him.

She stepped into Connor's room, and he closed the door behind them.

"What?" she asked.

"It's my fault. I lost the Anomaly Locking Mechanism."

"What?"

"Me and Abby didn't come home last night, remember?" he said.

Was that last night? It seemed like an eternity ago.

"Yeah..." she mumbled, remembering her early morning confusion.

"Well, Jack got us tickets to an 'Agnostic Front' concert, see... And we got totally pissed. I can't remember what happened, but we stole a digger and—"

"—You stole a digger?!"

"Yes, we stole a fucking JCB digger, Jess, and I also stole the Anomaly Locking Mechanism. And now I don't know where it is." Connor finished.

Jess stared at him in disbelief.

"What am I gonna do?" he hissed, clearly distraught with himself.

"Okay, calm down... Tomorrow, I'll help you retrace your steps. We'll find out exactly what happened, and get the mechanism back." she assured him.

He ran a hand through his hair, and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Okay... God, thanks Jess. Becker's right, you are brilliant."

She smiled, and turned to leave the room.

"Oh, wait, Jess—" Connor stopped her.

She looked back at him, as he pulled a piece of ripped beer mat out of his jeans pocket.

"Do you happen to know who a 'Natasha' is?" he asked her, showing her a phone number scribbled onto the coaster.

"No..." she said, shaking her head. He shoved the beer mat back in his pocket.

"Gotcha."

Jess and Connor left the bedroom, and found Haley sipping a cup of tea in the kitchen.

"Oh, did Abby make your tea?" Jess asked her.

"No, I did. And I made you a cup. Two sugars, right?" Haley replied.

Jess stopped in her tracks.

"Yes. That's exactly right. How did you know where everything was?" she asked, exchanging a glance with Connor. Haley looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

"Err.. Lucky guess?" she laughed nervously.

Jess walked over to her, heels clicking on the floor, eyeing the girl suspiciously.

"Okay, then... Let's finish our tea, and go find the boys. I'm sure Becker is being kept busy..."

BECKER

Becker was now regretting letting other people stay in his home.

He had found Derek some clothes, which hadn't been a problem, and a sleeping bag.

Jake, on the other hand, wasn't as easy to dress.

Not only was he picky about his clothes, but Becker was now sure he had ADHD.

He'd ended up with a pair of boxer shorts on his head, and had gone through Becker's bedside cabinet and created three new playlists on his iPod. He then found a dead mobile phone and fixed it, somehow making a long-distance call to Italy in the process, and had sprayed shaving foam all over the bathroom. Then, he ate every chocolate item in the kitchen cupboard, collapsed on the couch, and began surfing TV channels.

All in the space of about 5 minutes.

Derek just chuckled knowingly at the entire scene, while Becker was totally gobsmacked.

He stood over Jake, who was now splayed out on the sofa watching "Hell's Kitchen" and eating ready-salted crisps, completely baffled by the boy's behaviour.

"Jake, I'm not being funny, but we barely know each other. I met you a few hours ago. How can you be so... Comfortable? You don't even know my full name." he said.

Jake didn't even look at the soldier.

"Sure I do... Hilary."

Becker froze.

Derek snorted in amusement as Becker's face slowly turned red.

"How... Do you know... My name?" he asked slowly.

Jake could barely suppress his grin, but still didn't look up at Becker.

So Becker turned the TV off.

"Hey—" Jake began to complain, but Becker silenced him.

"—I am demanding you tell me. That's not asking, that's demanding. It's an order. Molly knew my surname. Now, tell me how you know that I'm called Hilary."

He was deadly serious, and Jake's smirk soon faded.

"I can't tell you, I'll get in—"

"—Trouble? Guess what? You're already in trouble. So tell me."

Jake gulped and looked at Derek nervously. Derek shrugged, signalling to his younger friend that he couldn't help him out. It was his own fault.

Becker waited, arms crossed, looking down at Jake with a cold expression.

"Err... I know you. In the future. Future you." he said.

"I already knew that, it's pretty fucking obvious." Becker said calmly. "But I don't just go around broadcasting my first name to people who I don't intend to shoot after they learn it."

"Well... Molly doesn't know your first name." Jake said quietly.

"And you do. And Derek does, because of you. So, who else?" Becker questioned further.

Jake panicked. This was not good. He was gonna be in so much trouble.

"Just me and Haley." he squeaked.

"How?" he demanded.

"Listen, I think you're overreacting. I swear to god, I've not told anyone else, in my time or yours. But I really, really, can not tell you why or how I know your first name." Jake said, standing up to face Becker.

When they were stood so close in this miniature face-off, Becker noted how Jake was only about three inches shorter than him; he would be taller than him in a few years.

In fact, he would probably look a lot like him in a few years.

No— he already did look a lot like him. Hazel eyes, same nose, same mouth, brown hair, practically the same build. Same frown, same smile.

And then Captain Becker realised how this teenaged boy from the future knew his first name.

He couldn't believe he hadn't seen it before.

And it explained why Jake was so comfortable around him, in his home, and was used to being such a nuisance near him.

The cogs in Becker's head clicked into place, and things were clear now.

He opened his mouth to ask Jake a question.

"Are you—"

"We're back!" Jess called as she and Haley opened the front door to the flat. Jake looked away from Becker, but Becker continued to stare at Jake.

"Thank god!" Derek practically shouted. "Things were getting pretty... Strange, here."

Haley looked at Derek in confusion, who nodded his head towards Jake and Becker. Becker was still staring at the boy, and Haley knew what he had figured out.

And figuring out what he had figured out was entirely forbidden.

"Jake! Come and give your sister a hug!" Haley called from by the door. Jake pulled a face at her.

"What?" he asked, seeming repulsed by the idea.

"Come and give your sister a hug." she said through gritted teeth.

"Yeah, Jake, let's go and hug Haley..." Derek said, grabbing Jake by the shoulders and pulling him away from Captain Becker.

The three kids spoke to eachother in hushed voices, having some sort of urgent conversation, while Becker stared on at them and Jess looked around in confusion.

"What's going on?" she asked Becker, who snapped out of his trance.

"Err... I... Think... We..." he stammered, rubbing his forehead in stress.

"Are you alright?" Jess asked him, concerned about his edgy behaviour.

He sighed and looked at her. She was peering at him with those wide, blue eyes, and seemed slightly worried.

"I think that you and I should go take a walk." he told her.

"What? But—"

"—Leave this lot to get settled, make themselves at home. Besides, I need to talk with you about a few things."

The kids all nodded, murmuring their agreements with the plan, and so Jess obliged by grabbing Becker's coat and following him out of the flat.