Nate POV
Friday March 3rd 2189
It's been over a month since I went to Miri's house and I think I've made some progress with Jack. She actually calls me by my name now, at least most of the time. However that's it. She still won't talk to me at all, not that I've been desperately trying. But it would be good to be able to talk to her, for the past few days I've been wondering if it's all worth it, to make an extra friend, to have just one more person to talk to. And the more time that passes the more and more sense it makes for me to just forget her and move on.
The reason I'm even thinking like this is because it is 2:00 AM and I still can't go to sleep, every time I try to fall asleep she just pops up. I should try and go to sleep gain, as darkness is about to claim me. Her words grace my ears, her long flowing hair cascading down her neck. She turns to me and flashes me a smile her back to me, one so brilliant a light as bright as the sun appears behind her melting my heart and breaking it at the same time, the things she's said to me begin to echo in the background, haunting me, endowing me, sending me into melancholy. A crack appears on her forehead which slowly increases in size and branches. Eventually they litter her, still smiling, laughter perfuming the air. She ascends to the sky above and I watch until she shatters totally, still laughing, at first the small shards lacerate my arms, and scrape some skin. The rest follows suit only this time they are large, they land near me and the shrapnel piercing my lungs, I slowly start to suffocate, my throat starts to burn, another goes straight through my heart. Numbness overtakes that region and my mouth starts spilling blood, I keel over and cough out more and more of my life source. The source of my pain's laughter still gracing the air, I look up to see that she is still mostly intact, enough to recognise that she's smiling, with a beauty unrivalled, her face bringing a smile to my face, yet at the same time furthering the damage to my soul. The final shards descend upon me putting me out of my misery. I'm no longer drowning in my own blood, suffocating, or bleeding, but that pain is replaced with one far greater. Despair.
I wake up again. I look at the clock and it is 4:30. Unlike most nightmares where you wake up with a jolt, this one I had to drag myself up. I quietly wish to be back in that hell, just to be close to her again. I haven't gotten much sleep. I haven't slept properly ever since I lost her. It's either I have nightmares or I don't sleep at all. I've only had a handful of dreams since that day. But the nightmares are becoming worse, more and more often nowadays I just go without sleep. Tonight is the first time I've slept in 4 days. Rylee may think that I always oversleep, but I find it a struggle to get out of bed ever since that day, a paralysis claims me when I realise that my life is still going and that alarm is a signal that the day has begun. My alarm constantly annoys me, however it has been my saving grace, and it's woken me up from some of the worst nightmares.
I got up and went to the bathroom. I stared into the mirror at the man I had become. A ruthless, unrelenting, angry mass of failure. I've failed to live up to my father's reputation, I failed her that day, I've failed to be the brother Rylee needs, I've failed to be the son my mother deserves. I blinked and she makes another appearance this time in the mirror. My heart wrenches and I begin to suffocate, I struggle to regain my breath so I dowse myself with cold water and fall to my knees. I began to cry, for the first time in a while. The pain had become too great and I have succumbed to melancholy. Dark thoughts entered my mind, negative ones telling me of my failures, highlighting my regrets, pushing me closer to the precipice of despair.
What the hell am I doing? Stop being such a fucking pussy and get over yourself. Stop feeling sorry for yourself. Drag yourself from this sorry state and get ready for school. Stay strong, focus on the good in your life. STOP BEING SUCH A BITCH! I mentally rebuked myself. I pushed all of these emotions to the depths of my mind and showered to remove the sweat.
The water was dripping off of my body, highlighting the scars that adorn my torso, each telling their own story. Some are happy remembering the times I had saved a kid from a burning building and some explosive debris pierced my abs. some are from stupid fights I'd gotten into. My hand traced my chest looking for my heartbeat. I traced the tattoo with my nail, carving her name onto my body, the further along I go, the harder it becomes to breathe, and the pain in my chest continues to feed on my melancholy. I got myself dressed and got out of the bathroom.
Rylee's awake and walking towards the bathroom, hair still messy and bags under her eyes. It's 5:30 and my alarm is screeches in her hands. She looks pissed off.
"For once in your life, have the common decency to turn your alarm off" she growled viciously, whilst shaking my alarm, the ringing echoing around the hallway.
"I'm sorry you highness I'll get right to it" I quipped with a cocky smirk. Her nose scrunched, something she does when she's agitated, and she stormed into the shower muttering something like asshole. "Shave off the moustache I don't think Garrus is into that thing" I teased, she then gave me the finger as the door closed.
I turned around and my mother was leaning against the wall. Her hair was also messy but her expression conveyed concern. I've never told her of my insomnia but she has always known.
"It's not healthy you know" she began, "Never talking about it, keeping it bottled up inside" she informed.
"Keeping what inside, keeping secrets from you is like holding in a sneeze" I said light-heartedly
"That bullshit may work with Rylee and the rest of the world but it doesn't work on me Nate"
"What Bullshit, I'm just being me" I sighed once again in a light hearted manner
"We've been telling you for years now Nate, you need help. Me, Kahlee, David all of us want to help you but only if you allow us to"
"I'm fine!" I yelled however when I yelled there was a pain in my chest
"Oh really! Did you get any sleep" she asked
"Yes, I did" I replied, but she wasn't convinced
"Be honest with me Nathan" she said solemnly
"I got enough" I answered quietly, implying that I no longer wanted to talk about it. She looked at me with the eyes that I hated. Eyes of sympathy. I don't want sympathy. I don't deserve it. There are trillions that deserve it more than I do. You don't sympathise with a man that shoots himself in the foot, or one that starts the fire that burnt down his home, one that chose to throw his loves life away.
Form Time
I'd just escorted Rylee to her form room and thankfully Saren wasn't there. I'm not in the mood to even be in the same space as that bastard. If there is one thing I can take solace in it's that Kaidan is there with her, I know Saren won't try anything with her there. Hell even told Thane that I don't like the Turian and her volunteered to help keep him away from her. Saren must have pissed the drell off.
Garrus and I walked to Wrex's room in a comfortable silence. When we reached our room we took out usual seats. Ever since that incident with Vasir, Nassana, Dahlia and Enyala Liara has been more social. She became good friends with Rylee really quickly and was added to the list of people that know where I live and by extension Javik. I found out that even though she's a nerd she's pretty cool and funny. Garrus went over to talk to her. So I went over to Miranda. She was staring out the window frustrated by something so she didn't notice me take the seat beside her.
"Go away Nate" she dismissed without looking at me
"How did you know it was me?"
"Not many people would sit beside me" she said sombrely
"Then you aren't exactly in the position to turn away company" I said cheekily
"Fine then" she offered me a playful smile
"What's wrong, you've been staring out that window a while now"
"Just thinking"
"About?" I questioned childishly
"My sister"
"Which one?"
"My real one, she's growing up"
"That's natural Miri and besides the older she gets the less work you have to do"
"That's not what I mean"
"What do you mean?"
"Just… come over after school and we'll explain it to you"
"We?"
"Me and the psycho"
"You look tired"
"I'm am, haven't had much sleep the past few days" she answered rubbing her eyes
"Why not?"
"I've been testing out the Cerberus combat simulator for the past few days" she started. "Jack's been in it as well, but she completed almost all of the challenges while I'm still trying to catch up" she explained
That's the reason I admired Miranda. She works her ass off to get where she is. She always strives to be the best. But I don't think that's the only motivation behind this. She was engineered to be perfect by her father, and from what I've seen she expects perfection from herself. Perfection is the best and if she isn't then it's not good enough. I've known her for a few years now and I know that she gets perfect scores. When she doesn't she works to get 100%. So Jack being a naturally skilled Biotic whose abilities have eclipsed hers is a blow to her pride, one I don't think she can take. She's trying to prove to herself that she is the best.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
Weapons
Zaeed just gave us this assignment which is to modify M-27 Scimitar to increase its ammo capacity as well the power output, whilst at them same time preventing the shotgun from blowing your arm off, whoevers can do the most damage with a full clip to the mechs biotic barrier as well as shields gets the points. We are meant to pair off to improve communication and teamwork.
"Garrus wanna work with me" I asked
"Sorry Nate, I'm with Tali"
"Come on what happened to bro's before ho's" I complained
"Ho's before bro's" he responded, he turned to James "I used that correctly right" he asked and I laughed a little. James gave a reassuring nod.
"James?"
"Sorry Loco, I actually plan on passing, I'm working with Jacob"
I would have asked Grunt but he was already working with Aria. That eliminated just about everyone I can stand apart from one. I see that Jack is also without a partner. She was asleep, head on the table. Her face was contorting and she was struggling a little. She was having a nightmare. I get my bag and drop it right next to her head shocking her awake. She jolts into a sitting position and glares at me.
"We're partners" I stated not wanting an argument. She quickly scanned the room.
"I can't stand most of the people her anyway" she dismissed. I explained what Zaeed wanted from us. I picked up the shotgun and placed it on our work bench.
"Nate I have an idea"
"I'm listening"
"The old prick never said anything about ammo modification"
"Why would he, incendiary and cryo ammo aren't exactly effective against Biotic barriers"
"Who said anything about fire or ice?" she said. Started tapping away at her Omi-tool and sent a data file to mine.
"What's this?" I asked
"What our shotgun is gonna be" she stated confidently. I read through the whole description and assembling. It would increase the power output by a shitload, but it would also restrict the ammo capabilities. From these schematics I can tell this thing could probably kill a Krogan with two shots, point blank.
"This is awesome. Where did you get this?"
"Some top of the line Cerberus project, I swiped it when no-one was looking" she told me. "They call it the M-22 Eviscerator". We spent the next hour modifying the shotgun. Whereas others decided to make minor changes, some just increased the total ammo capacity. Jack and I totally destroyed the Scimitar. We disassembled it and almost started from scratch. We got rid of any unnecessary pieces and added some of the necessary attachments and interior mechanisms.
"I think we did it Jack" I congratulated patting her on the back
"Don't touch me dumbass"
"Oh you love it"
"Shut up" she threatened
"But in all seriousness, I think we have the most powerful Shotgun"
"I know we do but…" Jack started but didn't finish
"What?"
"It's still in the developmental stages" she finished, then started laughing seeing the shock on my face. "When I tested it one of them, the kickback broke my arm" she confessed grimly.
What the fuck is the matter with Cerberus to have a teenager test their weapons. Is she some sort of crash test dummy to them, that they have test things that maybe a risk to others. "I'm gonna be over there for a second" she said heading over to the supplies. I decided to add some dampeners, which reduce the kickback as well as the power, but only slightly. Jack seems to be gathering information about the others assignments since she's going to everyone's work bench. A lot of them are cautious since they've never spoken to her before, some are even scared. She made her way back to our bench with a devious smirk on her face.
"Learn anything interesting" I questioned
"Nah but this is gonna be pretty funny"
"What did you do Jack". She looks around to see if anyone's listening
"I sabotaged most of their shotguns" she confessed
"You... Are…. A fucking genius" I praised. If they all suck, then we win. This is one of the smartest things I've seen people do in a while. I gave her a high five.
"Hah. I always pegged you as a boy scout, never thought you had a mean streak" she returned my praise.
"You are probably the only one in this place that would say that"
"That's because everyone has high standards, to me anyone that has to listen to the crap the school dishes out is a pussy"
"If you don't follow at least some of the rules then how are you still here" I questioned, she simply smirked looking up at me with total confidence
"I have connections you wouldn't believe" she stated. "I'm untouchable. Any attempts to expel me would be blocked"
Before I could further question her I heard a stream of profanity, coming from various sources, the most vocal was James.
"What the fuck, my shotgun just overheated. AND I HAVEN'T EVEN FIRED ONE SHOT" he yelled throwing it onto the floor.
"Maybe you modified it wrong" Tali teased
"No way, with what the two of us did, this shotgun could have blown Wrex to bits" Jacob defended, Garrus strolled up to the mech, aimed and fired his shotgun but it backfired, blowing powder into his face.
"HAHAHAHAHA. Guess that all that calibrating did shit Garrus" James hollered "I would have thought for someone so confident you would have been more careful Tali" he teased, to which the quarian crossed her arms took a defensive stance and was probably giving his a death glare.
Jack grabbed the Eviscerator then walked to the shooting range. She loaded it up with a few slugs and cocked it. Taking steady aim she began concentrating and a biotic field appeared encapsulating her with raw biotic power. She blasted the Mech with the entire round, tearing its barrier and shields to shreds, even doing some damage to the body. Each bullet had a mass effect field surrounding it, something of Jack's doing I assume. It's unique, innovative and brilliant. It is a wonder why the Asari or even the Turians never thought of using Biotics in this way. The possibilities of what I could do are endless if I can learn how to lace my sniper rounds with my Biotics. I gave her another high five as she sat.
One by one people went to prove their abilities and one by one they failed, Jack was smart she didn't sabotage all of them, but just the ones she felt were better than ours or could at least challenge it. James made his way over to us with a sadistic smile on his face.
"It's pretty funny now isn't it Loco" he said leaning on the wall beside me "Just about everyone is failing, and only the crap ones are even making it" he observed "Especially those that Lola over there visited" he accused nodding at Jack. He was getting close to finding out what we did and I didn't like it not one bit. If I get caught sabotaging a class wide project and hindering their progress intentionally I'm sure I'd get suspended at best. I'm not sure about Jacks immunity but I don't want to test it either. I'm not worried that James will snitch, because he won't, we're friends and he knows what will likely happen to me if Zaeed found out. He would just get even and something like this means he is totally pissed.
"Watch what you're saying bitch" Jack threatened
"Relax Lola I won't tell scarface" he assured gesturing to Zaeed "But…" he grabbed Jacks arm and jerked it towards mine and when our wrists were aligned he placed omni-cuffs on us.
"Hey… What the…" "Shit…. what the fuck" we both complained as the cuffs locked in.
"You love schemin' so much Loco, you can do it all day" he laughed staggering to his seat, unable to find balance because he was laughing so hard.
"Nate, when will you learn you're not sly" Jacob reprimanded
"Then again discretion isn't your thing now is it" Tali added
"I will murder that bastard" she threatened.
"Not if I do it first" I snarled, I concentrated to try and lift him onto the ceiling so I could drop him onto the floor. But I couldn't, I was doing what I always do but nothing was happening except this sharp pain where my amp is located and the harder I tried the more unbearable the pain was.
"What the shit, I can't use my biotics" Jack complained
"That reminds me Nate, those are C-Sec biotic issue, they prevent you from using your Biotics" Garrus sniggered turning around
"Cheaters never prosper Nate" the Turian sniper scolded
"Garrus. GET THESE OFF OF ME RIGHT NOW OR MAY GOD HAVE MERCY ON YOUR SOUL" I gritted out of my teeth attempting to remain calm
"Sorry Nate but if I use the code now then you'll never learn your lesson" he told me
"I will kick your ugly ass, you leather faced cunt" Jack threatened "Then I'll get the bitches I gave tattoos" she continued "That's right Jacob, James, Tali by the end of tomorrow you will be in body bags" the biotic threatened and I was sure she had every intention of carrying her threats out.
"Relax Nate, I'll release you after school, in 3hrs" he reassured "By the way I locked the shock factor of the handcuffs so feel free to try and guess the code" he chuckled slowly turning to a cackle.
We tried going to Zaeed but he just fell on his ass laughing, hell he even called Wrex to join in. they said there was nothing they could do about it. I didn't tell them who did it considering they are my friends, and if I did they would probably tell them about the sabotage. So me an Jack would be tied to each other for the rest of the day and it was lunch right now. We went over to sit on the window sill
We spent the first few minutes just trying to guess what the code was.
"Try 0000" she offered
"Come on Garrus could not possibly be that stupid"
"Maybe he thinks you're too stupid to try it"
"Come on" I said smugly "That Turian is a fucking evil genius. He wouldn't use that as the pass code"
"If this guy is your best friend then he should know you well enough that he knows you wouldn't guess that"
"No way" dismissed. Then I spent another few minutes trying random. There are 10,000 different possible combinations and I was hoping to get lucky.
"Screw that I'm out" she cursed getting up. I had to agree this was hopeless, our best bet was waiting for Garrus to give us the code.
"Let's go" I instructed heading for the canteen whilst Jack was headed towards the tree, since I'm physically stronger than her there was more pull to my side.
"We're going to the Canteen" "We're headed for the Tree" we both argued in sync
"No we're not" "Yes we are" we yelled at the same time giving each other glares
"Give me one good reason why I should follow you" I growled
"Simple because I said so" she dismissed walking away but I pulled her back into me
"Not happening"
"How about this, if we go to the canteen the entire school is gonna see you handcuffed to the psycho bitch that doesn't give a shit what people think of her" she took a deep breath and smiled "and that bitch will be kicking and screaming drawing all attention towards you, I will hit you and make sure all of your friends take pictures" she finished, even though almost all of that would embarrass a normal person she wasn't normal and I will be associated with it.
"You are fucking bitch you know that"
"Thank you"
Rylee POV
Sometimes I can't keep up with Dr Solus' rambling. His train of though is like that of as Kelly put it a hamster of coffee. I usually end up asking him about something he talked about after class and today wasn't an exception. Class ended early because he has a lot of work to do but I still stayed behind to talk to him. I'd been talking to him for about 15 minutes about why all children conceived with Asari are always asari. He took things a little slower and didn't leave any details out. As I walked out of the room I saw Thane waiting for me by the window as well as Liara.
"Waitin for someone"
"Yes you will you be eating with us again?"
"Yeah, I think Liara will come too" I said looking towards the Asari who just nodded.
As we were walking I got a new message on my Omni-Tool.
"Who is XOX3 GV 3XOX" the drell asked looking at the message
"No one" I yelled covering it up hoping that he would drop the subject
"GV, GV hmm… oh could that be Ga-hmm" Liara was about to say his name until I forced my palm over her mouth
"Ga, I don't know anyone called Ga"
"Why are you so embarrassed by Garrus Vakarian" Thane asked, and I slammed my other palm on my forehead and blushed furiously
"I'm not embarrassed by him"
"Then why the reluctance to tell me who sent you the message". Oh thank god, he doesn't know what the Xs and Os mean
"I know" Liara yelled teasingly prying my hand off of her mouth
"It is because for human females going through adolescence that is a sign of infatuation, it has even crept into Asari and Turian culture" she said quickly "The Xs and Os mean hugs and kisses and the 3 is love"
"Hmm… Interesting" the Drell said "Maybe I should inform Garrus of this" he teased
"You wouldn't dare"
"He may not but I would" Liara interjected
"You guys are horrible" I said, puffing and folding arms like a child having a tantrum
"What does it say" Liara asked, I simply turned away from her
"Come on we're sorry right Thane" she said nudging Thane
"I apologise, our intention wasn't to cause distress"
"Relax you guys I'm not that mad" I assured
"You have to find Nate. Me and James handcuffed him to Jack and from the look of things their headed for you guys, it should be hilarious"
XOX3 GV 3XOX 12:43pm CTD
I read the text again a few more times to make sure that I read it correctly. When I was totally sure that I had read it right I erupted with laughter, for about 2 minutes straight I continued laughing until I couldn't breathe. I showed the text to Liara whose reaction was similar to mine, as well as Thane whose reaction was more subdued but it was also the most I'd seen him laugh since I met him.
Him and the psycho tied to each other. I bet that Nate will either be dead or beaten to a pulp before the day is out. He never had much tact when it came to dealing with people. He was more likely to bludgeon a safe than try to crack it.
Nate POV
We made our way to the spot where she normally has lunch, the walk was unbearable, and when we got too close we tried backing away from each other only to be yanked back into each other. We also got weird looks from people in the hallway, its either they were laughing and pointing or whispering something to their friends.
Harkin strolled up to me with a spring to his step, he'd obviously heard about the handcuffing since he has a sickening expression on his face.
"This is the funniest shit I've seen in a while" he cackled
"Typical Harkin, you always get others to do your dirty work, and the one time you do it face to face it's when I'm cuffed" I cussed giving him a look of disgust
"This guy's a pussy"
"What did you say bitch" he said getting in her face, and his breath curdled her skin
"I said you're a pussy, now what are you gonna do about it" she threatened, he backed away a bit out of fear
"She's a feisty bitch Nate maybe you can fuck some sense into her". We both looked to each other and gave a nod of understanding. We turned and punched Harkin in the face with our cuffed arms, Jack then proceeded to kick him in the nuts. I gave her a look of disapproval
"What?"
"Come on, the nuts. And with steel toed boots" I cringed
"Take that as a warning dumbass" .The rest of the trip was uneventful.
When we arrived I saw that Rylee, Thane and Liara were all laughing at something. When they saw us they started laughing even harder. So that meant they knew as well. Garrus you prick
"I don't know what you did to deserve this but please do it more often" Rylee sniggered
"I never knew that you were into that sort of thing" the asari teased
"Shut the fuck up" Jack yelled
"What can't take a few shots" Rylee teased
"Talk shit to me while my amp is fried and I only got an arm, so damn brave of ya"
"Jack relax" I intervened
"Just because she's your sister doesn't' mean she can talk shit without consequences"
"Yeah but it's just light teasing" at this she remained silent and that's when it hit me. The reason she didn't want to go to the canteen and why she was so confrontational now. Without her amp, weapons or fists she feels she has nothing to defend herself with. She's totally vulnerable right now and she doesn't like that at all.
"You didn't like Dr Wilson did you Jack" Rylee asked. My heart started racing that moment, if Rylee knew that Jack killed him her code of honour would compel her to tell Anderson about it.
"No I didn't, what's it to ya"
"I just remember the smile that crept on your face when Benezia said he was dead"
"I was glad he was dead" the chained biotic said
"Why, What could he have possibly done to earn your hatred"
"He tried to kill me". When Jack said this Rylee's eyes became wide like a drug addict, her chocolate eyes conveying the shock she was currently experiencing
"What?"
"You are so naïve you know that. You eat the bullshit that the media serves you and accept it as fact, all the press do is pray on the gullible dickheads like you and feed you shit. From the outside looking in Cerberus looks like a standard organisation, probably into some shady stuff to keep it running." She began pointing at Rylee "But in reality Cerberus is evil, they are power hungry assholes that fuck with people's heads, I hate everything it stands for and everyone in it. You want to know my problem with your oh so precious Dr Wilson. He was one of the sick fucks that got their kicks from screwing with my head. When I did training they flooded my system with narcotics, Red sand, Hallex anything that was positive reinforcement so I would associate pleasure with fighting. And I was shocked if I hesitated, not mild electric shocks. The kind given to you if you grab an electric eel. Dr Chakwas told me that there were enough of those drugs in my system to kill a Krogan. A fucking Krogan something twice my size but I survived. He did that to me so I'm DAMN HAPPY HE'S DEAD."
Rylee was shell-shocked at this rant. She was more idealistic than me. She honestly believed that there was some good in everyone. This was a quality that I wanted to protect, but at the same time I wanted to mitigate. I used to be like that as well but the past few summers beat it out of me. Even though it was training, I showed exceptional abilities along with Garrus, Kaidan, Saren and Ashley. So we were allowed to accompany experienced leaders on missions since we were the best candidates to be future spectres.
Seeing first-hand what happens when mercy is applied to evil men, then seeing the suffering they cause when they walk free. Having to burn down villages of innocent people to prevent a disease from spreading and hearing the bloodcurdling shrieks of children as they are incinerated, cries of women, roars of men, yelps of dogs, the crackling of the fire, the vile warmth of the fire on my face as I witness the death of innocence, one that I was responsible for. I strolled into that village believing I was its saviour, I was the messiah, and I was going to help them. That idealism, that arrogance was kicked out of me when I became the executioner.
Rylee's mouth was quivering, possibly trying to empathise with Jacks situation. She got up and walked over to us and gave Jack a hug, I observed the biotic to see her reaction. Her eyes shot open, and her hands were twitching, almost as if no one's ever hugged her before. No this reaction or lack of one showed something deeper. As if this is the first positive contact she ever got from someone.
"I'm so sorry" Rylee apologised and released her embrace. And just then the bell rang, inciting the chaos of people trying to get to where they were going and Jack still hadn't moved, frozen in shock. Thane was still waiting for us because we have Biotics now.
"Thane I think that we're gonna skip this one" I instructed, he merely nodded and made his way to the Biotics wing.
"Come on, I know a good hiding spot" I said but once again not getting a reaction
I would have taken her to the nurse's office, since if we were seen there we couldn't get into any trouble. However I knew that was a bad idea. Jack may not know this but I saw how she acted when I was talking to Miranda on the first day. She looked uncomfortable in that environment, touching the scars on her neck and grabbing at her wrists. She tried to look at just about anything but the medical equipment and personnel. When we walk past it she makes and active effort to not look at it, always looking the other way like when we were walking to the tree. So I guided her to this area just outside the combat wing, there's another tree there that obstructs the security cameras vision and no one ever goes to. The bushes provide cover from any teachers and students. The only other people who know about this spot are Garrus, Miranda and of course Aria.
"Jack are you alright?"
"Shut up"
"I was just checking how you were doing"
"Well don't! How I'm doing has nothing to do with you or anyone". Well this was going great, I try to be friendly and she throws it in my face.
"Talk to me Jack"
"Why?"
"I wanna be your friend"
"I don't want to be yours"
"Come on everyone needs some friends. I mean you've only got Thane. Getting more friends won't do you any harm"
"I'll make you a deal. You can ask me any question and I will answer it honestly in exchange you do the same" she didn't respond for a bit
"Nothing said will be repeated to anyone, AGREED" I gave a stern nod
"Ask away"
She hesitated at first, likely thinking of the question "Physical attributes" she commanded
"Why?"
"Just answer. That was the deal wasn't it" she asserted. I wasn't sure why it was important that she know what my physical stats were. But to be honest I didn't mind telling her
"OK. I'm 17 years old. I'm 6'2. 93kgs, and I'm a powerful biotic" "You?"
"I'm 15. 56kgs. 5'6 and a way more powerful biotic"
"Competitive are we". I can't ask her a question that's too personal or she'll just shut me out
"What's with the look, I mean I won't lie it's sexy as hell to me, but others are scared of it"
"By the look you mean the tattoos or my head?"
"You already told me about your tattoos so the head"
"I was part of this gang in Omega. I thought they were actually striving for a goal, they had ambitions. Yeah right, all they did was rob a few banks and shake people down for creds and guess who their ace in the hole was. On the last mission they got this armoured truck. The driver was gonna drop his 8 year old daughter at school after he dropped the cargo, but I stopped the truck. This human called Ulrich wanted to show his daughter a 'good time'"
"What. That bastard" how the fuck can you ever think of doing anything like that.
"No way I was gonna let him, so I killed him. Rest of the group felt either brave or stupid and they attacked me. They never stood a chance. I helped the driver finish the job by flipping the truck back over"
"That was really nice"
"Not really I just wanted to be as far as possible when C-Sec arrived to see the blood bath. The rest of the gang that weren't there all ended up dead within a weak" I gave her a look. "Relax, I can't take credit for that. Turns out the truck was filled with supplies for Afterlife. I couldn't believe they were dumb enough to fuck with Aria." At this I started chuckling.
"Now it's my turn. What's your family like" she asked turning away and her cheeks are stained red. That's a question I wasn't expecting.
"I live with my Mom and sister. My dad was always on missions, doing something for the safety of humanity. I used to believe that but when I followed in his footsteps I saw the evil he committed with N7. He walked out on his own children and wife to follow an ideal that requires the death of innocence" I began preparing myself for what I was about to say. "My dad died on Elysium. When Batarian slavers were about to collect their 'cargo' him and his entire squad leapt to their rescue. Eventually the squints got smart and launched every man aboard their ship to their location. The rest of the squad lost hope but for my dad. He gave them the courage and will to outlast about 200 Batarians to 10 humans" I chuckled wistfully "The bastard held his position valiantly, but he was only human. Eventually he succumbed to fatigue, he made one mistake and that was it, he was dead" I was fighting back the pain. "Anderson's unit showed up just after he died, wiping out the Batarians. If he'd just been careful, maybe the idiot wouldn't have abandoned us, leaving us to mourn his death" I punched the ground repetitively until my fist was bleeding, allowing the pain to manifest.
"Stop being such a pussy" Jack sighed "You're punching the ground because you want to make your emotional pain physical, and you find physical pain easier to deal with than emotional pain" she analysed "Your dads death hurts you a lot more than you want to believe. And feeling the sadness and grief of your dad's death is too much so you try to hate him because again your too much of a pussy to deal with sadness" she huffed so arrogantly I just wanted to knock her out, who the fuck does she think she is to tell me how I feel about my dad. That bastard can rot for all I care. he hasn't been here for the past 5 years and the 12 years before that. And this bitch is trying to tell me that I'm actually sad about the death of a stranger. "I'm good at psychology moron and I can read you like a book"
"We're done here" I growled
"Aww hit a nerve there did I?" she teased but I wasn't gonna be goaded into an argument. "Finally some peace and quiet". We sat there for 20 minutes in silence. Why was I letting her get to me
"You're a hard person to like you know that Jack"
"Then why try"
"I don't know" I admitted. "There's something about you I'm drawn to". She gave me a look of disgust.
"Here's a question Jack…. What do you think of me?"
She looked thoughtful. Carefully considering how she was gonna answer the question. "You are a prissy boy-scout. But that's a major improvement compared to the shit that walks around this school, or anyone in my life." She answered. I think she just said that she likes me. That was the most back-handed compliment I have ever received in my life. The bell rang and it was time to kill Vakarian. I would give him the weekend to recover from what I'm gonna do to him, Tali and Taylor too, especially Vega. We stormed over to the school gate to wait for Garrus. We waited for about 20 minutes and my patience was running low. Just then I received a message on my omni-tool.
"Nate none of us are dumb enough to be around Jack when we release you two. We are long gone by now. Here's the code and remember be a good boy next time. Mwahahaha. (Tali wanted me to put that in)" -0000- HAHA
Garrus Vakarian 3:31pm CTD
I slapped myself on the forehead for not thinking of something so fucking simple.
"You're shitting me" Jack cursed and she started pounding my chest out of frustration but she had a smile of disbelief. "If you'd just listened to the smart one" she said pointing at herself "Then we wouldn't have waited all of this time"
"Any chance you can let this slide"
"No freaking way" she chuckled "You are never living this down" she smiled. Unlike the other times I'd seen her smile this one didn't have another meaning to it. There was no payback or sadism behind it, just one of happiness. It was beautiful, not hot but truly beautiful. I punched in the code and the cuffs were released. From out of nowhere a fist connected with my stomach. It came from Jack, who was surrounded by a biotic aura. "That's for being an arrogant dick" she said now frowning, except this frown was forced, trying to hide her magnificent smile. Was this her idea of flirting, because it hurts, a lot. She began to walk away.
"W-Wait… wait up" I said attempting to catch my breath.
"Why?" and right on cue Miranda shows up. As if on auto-pilot Jack flips her off, but Miranda just rolls her eyes. "Let's go" she commanded walking away from us. The trip there was in an uncomfortable silence, the tension between these two was apparent. People actively avoided us out of fear. I don't know what happened between these two for them to hate each other to such a degree but it must have been bad.
When we arrived they both excused themselves to get out of their school clothes. They were arguing about some stuff in hushed voices but I couldn't make it out.
Oriana was hopping like a frog and saying ribbit into the living room. When she noticed me she jumped on the seat beside me
"You're back" Oriana said in surprise
"Yeah I am, so how's the big girl"
"Not so good" she frowned. I observed the child and noticed a few things. She had paint on her face so she has been painting and her are puffy and red. She's just been crying about something
"What's the matter?" I asked in concern
"I showed daddy my painting of Me, Jack and Miranda" she sniffed rubbing her eyes "But daddy didn't like it, he ripped it up and yelled I could do better". What kind of monster would do that to a little girl? I was stumped as to what to do. If it was Rylee, back then I would buy her some sweets or take her to the park
Miranda descended down the steps. Miranda was wearing grey sweats with the Cerberus logo on it
"Ori, you can go and play in my room" Miranda offered
"Yay!" she cheered, once again excited
"Don't make a mess" Miranda hollered
"I'll try" she called skipping up the stairs. Miranda smiled and shook her head.
She crossed her arms and took a seat in the sofa across from me. "There's something I want you to know Nathan" Miranda began "I told you that my father engineered me from his own genes. Well he did the same to Oriana, she and I are twins" she explained
"How is it possible that either of you were born without a mother?"
"We weren't born, we were grown. They took a sample of his Y chromosome and altered it to be viable for fertilisation. Kind of like what lizards do. He took the best of his genes and designed me to look exactly as I do now, Oriana too" she took a deep breath "As we were engineered for perfection we are expected the same. He expects us to be perfect, never making mistakes even from such a young age. Anything that is flawless he despises and anything that is, is ignored because it's expected and he pushes us to perfect perfection. He gave me impossible demands that were to be met and not exceeding his expectations incited severe punishment".
"How severe?" I asked dreading what she might say next
"At its best hitting….. At its worst solitary confinement for days sometimes weeks" she informed hugging herself nervously. She must be remembering it
"I'm sorry" why did I have to ask
"Don't be. It's not like you could do anything about it" she brushed off still hugging herself. She looks way more nervous than I've ever seen before. She must feel really vulnerable right now. It took a lot of courage to tell me what she just did
Jack strolled downstairs from her room wearing a pair of shorts and a sleeveless blue jumper and black wife beater. Scowling at Miranda
"So not to be rude or anything but why does Jack live here?"
"My father brought her here about 11 years ago"
"Her dad 'adopted' me" she put air quotes around adopted. I cocked an eyebrow "I don't remember much from before I was here. All I know is that I wasn't in this shithole all my life"
"So you are sisters" after I said that I witnessed something I never thought I'd see. Jack and Miranda working together. They plastered me onto the wall and slammed me into the ground
"We aren't SISTERS" they growled together, before taking a quick look at each other and looking away arms folded they puffed. I got up.
"I remember that we were talking about Oriana in form"
"Yes she's growing up. She is a smart girl Nate. She is starting to understand what's going on around her. My father treats her a lot better than he did me, so I assumed it was because he actually cared about her as a daughter". "We were experiments. To see what's the best way to raise a perfect daughter. He gave me the 'tough love' treatment to see how I'd develop and Oriana what he considers a loving father figure. But she hasn't developed as quickly as I did and that frustrates him to no end. He's abandoned his 'caring approach' and starting to treat her as he did me" she was tearing up a little. "No little girl deserves that Shepard, to be constantly told that you aren't good enough, struck for making the slightest error"
"What exactly is the difference between how he treated you and Ori" I asked
"For example when we were both 6 years old. If I painted something for my father, he would tear it up in front of me or force me to, then make me do it again until he was satisfied. If she painted something then he would tell her that he expects way more from her or say it is rubbish"
"That's still pretty bad. No offense but you became pretty cold how is Oriana so cheery"
"That's where we came in" she said pointing to Jack "Whenever my father did something like this she would come to one of us to cry, we would then do whatever to make her smile" I looked at Jack who was staring at the ground.
"We also do things for her like let her watch TV, play with her, take her to the cinema" she then turned to Jack "She'd never admit it but she cares about Ori" me and Miranda smirked at Jack's fluttered expression. "She tells me what the two of you do Jack. I know you've snuck her to her friend's house, the arcade, I even know you let her design one of your tattoos" she finished. Jack's head jolted up at the last one
"Damn, that brat can't keep her mouth shut"
"So what's wrong, can't you keep doing what you have been for her"
"That's the problem, we can't anymore. Before a couple of months ago Jack was at home when I was at school, however now we both go to school… She's alone with my father"
"The cheerleader over there is worried because now if her dad does anything to fuck with her she won't have a shoulder to cry on"
I took a moment to process all of the information I'd just received. I found out why Miranda was so cold, her father is an evil, sadistic bastard and that the two of them care deeply for her little sister. It made me angry that a father would ever treat his own kids like they're experiments, and that he was so fucking narcissistic that he would make two kids from only his own DNA.
"Why are you telling me this?" I wondered, why me of all people
"Nate, aside from Jacob you are my best friend, and Jacob would take this straight to C-Sec or some other authority, I know you'll respect my wishes and that you won't tell anyone else about this. It's therapeutic to talk about stuff like this, stops me from going insane" Miranda confessed
"Thank you for placing you trust in me" I said sincerely and she blushed. Jack stared at Miranda with mischief
"No freaking way" she laughed
"I should go" I said not wanting to get involved in whatever argument was about to ensue
"Good, can't take much more of you face anyway" Jack quipped
"You'll miss me" I joked and she flipped me off a gesture I returne
"I'll walk you out" Miranda offered
When we reached the door she turned to me. "Thanks for listening" she then got on her tiptoes and kissed me on the cheek. I walked out of the house touching that spot for a second.
No way…. She couldn't possibly….. I mean that's impossible…. It would explain a lot. But I can't, I don't want to hurt her.