A/N: Thanks to Yuku, Dream, Red, Pure-White-Angel22, Lea, DanMat6288 and UnoZ for reviewing my story on ! x3 And of course thank you, the rest of you who have been reading and enjoying this story so far.
Sorry for the wait on this chapter, my life has been a bit hectic for me at the moment, so I wasn't able to write this until now. But I'm really happy that I got to this chapter when I did.
Yet again, this is another one of those THE chapters I guess, because I've been planning this for a long long time, possibly longer than the event that happened in the last chapter. There are some ideas I explored in this chapter and I'll just have to see if I explore them more in the future.
Nonetheless, all of you, thanks. And I hope you all enjoy chapter 17!
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Let's just say that I was never normal to begin with. It should have been obvious to me from the start. Isn't that why he abandoned me anyways?
So… what did this all mean? Ever since I started living alone in school, I had always questioned my life and where it was going and most of all why. Why this, why that...
Why was my name Jeff Andonuts?
Why did my father totally abandon me?
… Why did my mom have to die? Who or what was that strange being that dreaded fateful night? Does dad hate me for what's happened to us?
…Why am I on this seemingly aimless journey? Where were we going? Why? The world wasn't in peril yet… was it? Then while remembering all of those freakish incidents, such as the alien spook in the department store to that hell hole that was Moonside, while it was more confusing, it started to make some sort of sense to me.
It's not that I didn't enjoy Ness or Paula's company, really. I've grown especially fond of both of them and their… out of the norm nature. But I couldn't say that I wasn't any stranger, mentally at least. After all, what normal kid would rather be in school than go out to save the world we barely knew about? Was it even worth saving?
And why especially Ness? What was so special about him that both Paula and I saw in him? It was obvious that he played a big particular role in all of this, but why? And why was I becoming more and more involved in this big problem?
… and why oh why…
The more my mind would wander; the more I questioned everything around me, nonetheless my own state of being. Pokey's words would always replay in my mind like a poem. Like a twisted broken record that was seemingly bound to break but never will…
"The universe would die without him..."
... Will the universe die without me too?
…
What would dad have to say about all this?
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The Universe Will Die Without You
Chapter 17 The Perfect Reunion
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So was that it? I thought as we looked out into the setting sun lit sky. Surely that wasn't the last time we'd see him… was it?
I was starting to regret it. What if at that very instance, he was headed to Winters? If he ever came across Tony, what would happen to him? The horrific images of seeing my best childhood friend in peril; lost or even dead made me shake my head violently.
"You gonna hold up okay?" Picky asked me. I looked down to him blankly for a moment, but nodded.
"I think I'll be ok… I'm not sure how Ness will be doing though…" I said, glancing in the distance to him. Ness's head was now lowered as he tilted the rim of his hat in attempt to cover part of his face. Paula, in all her innocence had tried to comfort him as best as she could. It only made me more curious; all because of the psychic boy in the red cap. Did he really care about him all this time? What kind of friendship did Ness and Pokey used to share? What really sparked his journey and was Giygas the primary cause of Pokey making Ness's life a living hell? I was new to most of these things still, but I think, on the back of his mind, that Ness knew all along. He was just too afraid to admit this horrible truth.
"So he finally left…" Picky and I turned to Monotolli, who had walked out recently. "… I guess that's a sigh of relief for me…"
"What about the Runaway Five and the guards?" I asked him. Monotolli sighed.
"Took care of them. After all, I'm the real one in charge around here, might as well take advantage of what little power I have left…" He said. He turned his gaze towards the sky and city again.
"It's hard to believe… this city is gorgeous from above all the smog. I wish I was able to recognize such a magnificent view before…" He said. However, my eyes weren't glued to the city.
"Yeah…" I said, almost mutely, looking at the broken hearted boy.
---
When we finally made our way back downstairs, Monotoli shut the door behind us once he knew that we were all off of the roof. Monotoli still had a nervous nature about him as he fidgeted his fingers together for a moment.
"Well… now that that's over with… I want to apologize again. I'm so sorry… sorry for causing you all of this pain and trouble." We were all silent, especially Ness who was seemingly blanking out as he gazed his eyes to the floor. When I finally was able to speak up, Paula spoke up before me.
"No… thank you for resisting and keeping me safe," Paula replied smiling slightly. Monotoli gave Paula a perplexed expression, but I was sure that he appreciated her kindness. Monotoli exhaled through his nose and smiled.
"You three are allowed to come and go through this city as you'd like. You can stay in our finest hotels for free if you ever need to return here…" He nodded as he glanced nervously to us. I think he was intimidated. We all on the most part came on terms with him and nodded and we were soon on our way. However, before we reached the door, Paula stopped in her tracks.
"Nnngh…" Holding her forehead as if she had a migraine, Paula groaned as she covered her eyes. Mr. Ziggy rubbed his nose on her ankles, which didn't help her one bit in her weird moment.
"Paula…?" Ness spoke with a hint of panic rising in his voice. Picky and I frowned. Was that all I could really do at the time? Paula groaned again.
"What's happening to her?" Monotoli asked nervously. After a few moments, Paula stopped shivering. The tension in the air seemed to thin out.
"Are you alright?" Picky asked suddenly. Paula shook one last time before taking a moment to take her hands away and stare blankly at her palms.
"Well… that was a frightening dilemma…" Monotoli spoke.
"We have to go to Threed in order to reach Summers… I believe that is what we have to do next… I'm sure of it," Paula spoke. All of us were silent again.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Picky asked again. Paula smiled contently.
"Yep. That sort of thing happens to me once and a while, it's normal to me," Paula replied. Picky's tried cracking a smile but for some reason, couldn't get it to come out. He looked like he had something on his mind.
"Wait a second… if you guys are headed to Threed, can I tag along til we get there?" Picky suddenly asked. I was a bit skeptical of him joining the team, even for just a small segment of it. I wasn't sure whether to trust him or not. It seemed however that he was moreso asking Ness for the permission, seeing that Ness knew him more than anyone else in the room. However, Ness looked as if that previous moment had boggled him down more than ever, so I was really surprised that he actually said something.
"You need to get back home in Onett, don't you?" Ness spoke in a low, quiet and unusual tone. Picky nodded.
"If you don't cause too much trouble… I can take you home there myself…" Ness said, grabbing Paula's hand and walking away through the door. I frowned even more. So how long was he gonna be like this? I thought. Monotoli bided us farewell as we walked out of his room.
---
"Hey you guys!" The band member named Lucky spoke happily waving at us. All four of us weren't exactly picked up by his words, but we tried faking our enthusiasm. By this time, we had made it to the bottom floor, where they were all gathered, lazily lounging around.
"What are you guys still doing here…?" Ness spoke. Lucky's singing partner grinned.
"You kidding? We were all waiting around to see if you guys needed a ride somewhere. We're headed back to Twoson temporarily, so we were all wondering if you guys needed a lift somewhere along the way." All the members nodded in agreement. We all looked at each other. Paula looked up to Ness, who in reply nodded back.
"Can you give us all a ride to Threed for us please? If that isn't any trouble for you guys…"
"Of course it isn't! Anything for you kids. You've done so much for us, what's the least we can do for yah, right? Guys, let's pack up and rock n' roll out of here!" They all seemed to cheer and talk amongst themselves as we all followed them. It took me about a split second to register as we all were walking out the doors that Ness wasn't present. I stopped at the realization and looked behind me. Ness was halfway back, talking on his receiver phone. I didn't even hear the damn thing ring…
Though I wasn't paying attention to what he was saying at the time, I was a bit surprised when Ness finally did lay his eyes on me, in a way I wouldn't expected him to. He looked almost horrified…
"Oh… really? Well… whenever you do get the chance… could you-" Whoever was on the phone seemed to hang up on him. Ness shook his head and walked up passed me.
"Who was that?" I asked.
"Nothing important, let's just get out of here…" Ness spoke in a monotone voice, almost immediately. I shook my head.
"I didn't ask what, I asked who-"
"Please Jeff… just leave me alone right now…" He said without looking at me. I paused for a moment.
And with that, I said nothing more to him as we all piled into the band's black van.
….
---
Nighttime soon approached us after an evening of pointless chit chat with the gang. We all sat in the open part, in the back of the van were there wasn't any seats. Picky and I sat across from Ness and Paula and the rest of the gang hung around more towards the front of the van. It was more of the case where the gang spoke and the four of us listened in. We all got fast food along the way to fill our stomachs, though Ness barely ate half of his burger and fries. Hell, even Paula was hungrier than him and she was stuck up in that building for what seemed like days with those freaks. Picky eventually ate the rest of what Ness didn't eat. I managed to eat most of my food, after offering some to Ness whom was still speechless and dead as usual. It was getting to the point where I was honestly annoyed. I wasn't sure if I wanted to admit why though…
Eventually through the ride we all fell asleep. We were exhausted and this was the kind of break we all wished for. Ness and Paula were the first ones to fall asleep, as the leaned heads on each other. Did I have to repeat how seemingly unrealistically peaceful they looked? Picky was third to go as I looked through the high van window, where the moon gleamed back down onto my frail face. When I imagined cows jumping over it, I knew I was starting to drift off myself.
One cow, two cows, three cows jumping over the moon… The sound of one of my mother's lullaby made me finally put all my troubles to rest.
---
"Gaaaah!" I yelped as someone splashed me in the face with cold, icy cola. When I opened my eyes, it was still dark and the van's back doors were swung open.
"Wake up, we're here," Picky snickered casually. I wiped my glasses while attempting to glare up at him.
"What was that about? Couldn't you just given my shoulder a shake or something?" I growled at him. Picky smirked.
"Naw, this was more amusing. Now stop whining and let's go," He said stepping out of the van. My jaw was dropped slightly out of pure frustration. I rolled my eyes, got my bag and slid out of the van. Ness and Paula looked like walking zombies, standing next to each other holding hands.
"Got him up," Picky told Ness; who was soon interrupted by Lucky.
"Now you four kids take care now… get some shut eye. You need some cash to get you through the night?" He asked. Ness shook his head.
"We'll be alright," Ness replied. Lucky's smile faded as he looked at Ness and Paula.
"Are you sure that's it then…? I'm not sure when we'll be meeting again kid," Ness was unresponsive, but Paula soon spoke up.
"We'll be alright, we promise," She smiled rubbing her eyes. Lucky looked at both me and Picky. He seemed sure, but soon he complied.
"Well… if you kids say so… take care now. Stay out of trouble," He said as he walked into the van. We watched them drive off before descending into the hotel, where Ness would be paying loads in cash for the night.
---
The hotel manager was very skeptical of us four kids coming in to spend the night at around 1:30 at night, but the fact that Ness paid the money made the manager shake his head and give us a room key. We were at the same hotel that we stayed at the first night I joined Ness and Paula, but we received a different room this time. And once we entered the room, Ness immediately plopped down onto one of the mattresses and groaned. Paula rummaged through her bag, which Ness had been carrying for her this entire time to find her night gown and immediately departed into the bathroom to change. I sat down on the other bed.
"Wait a second, there's two beds, so who's gonna sleep with who?" Picky asked. It was then that the horrid truth came to mind. I cringed slightly at the expected outcome of all this. Ness mumbled in his pillow and it was almost impossible to decipher what he said.
"What?" Picky asked. Ness turned his head.
"Paula and I are sleeping in this bed. You'll have to share the bed with Jeff tonight," Ness said. Picky frowned.
"I have to sleep in the same bed with four eyes here?" He asked. Something in my brain snapped and I almost bickered back at his response.
"By Newton's name if you call me four eyes again, I'll…" Picky snickered.
"You'll do what, quiz me? On what your fa-"
"Picky, please stop…" Ness said sitting up. I growled.
"Can't Paula and I share a bed for one night?" I asked Ness, seeing that he definitely wouldn't let Picky and Paula sleep in the same bed together. However the look that Ness gave me made me want to change my mind. He was exhausted, pained and sad and the last thing he needed was for us to bicker.
"Just for one night Jeff… please?" Ness almost begged under a shrill voice. It took a moment, but I finally sighed in defeat. Flaring up my nostrils while looking over to Picky, who had already claimed his side of the bed I got my bag to fish out my pajamas.
"I'm taking a shower…" I spoke under my breath as Paula walked out of the bathroom, as I immediately claimed it as my own.
"Gah that Jeff kid is always grumpy…" I heard Picky say through the door.
"Just leave him be Picky…" I heard Paula say. I sighed as I stripped for my shower.
---
After washing down my head with both boiling lava hot and arctic cold, frosty water, I dried myself off and got dressed. Wiping off the fog from the mirror and my glasses, I sighed when I looked at myself again in the mirror and shook my head. After I prepared myself for sleep, I stepped out of the fogy room.
It was as if the whole scenario was repeating itself again. Paula was sleeping like a log under the covers with Mr. Ziggy, and Picky lied on his back with his arms crossed behind his head with closed eyes. He didn't even seem to change into any pajamas either. However, to both my surprise and my assumption, Ness was nowhere to be found in the room. Even the door was open to our room, which I also found weird in particular, remembering how protective he was with Paula. Maybe he figured that I was gonna be out soon? I frowned as I sat on the bed, trying hard not to disturb Picky, though I wasn't sure if he was awake or not. I rubbed my eyes and ran my fingers through my hair. I sat for a moment, waiting for Ness to return back into the room. It was about five minutes I waited there, yet he did not return. I sighed in annoyance and stood up to see what was going on this time.
Finding my way down to the lobby again, the manager looked like he was falling asleep on the desk. The phone that was previously there didn't seem to be present. I took the time to look around when I soon found the answer sitting over in the nearby lounge holding the phone in his lap and twirling the phone cord with his finger.
"I'm sorry for calling you late at night again mom…" Ness spoke weakly into the receiver. For some reason, like last time, I didn't want him to know I was eavesdropping again, so I looked franticly around me until I decided to just duck behind the counter. What was he doing calling his mom in the middle of the night? I thought to myself.
"Me? I'm… I'm alright… I just miss you is all," Ness spoke. I sat on the floor for what felt like minutes, drawing my knees to my chest while I listened to him on the phone.
"Paula's fine… Jeff? He's doing ok too I think… Mom? I… I wanna come back to visit… even if it's just for a moment…" I took a moment to ponder this. Would we come along too?
"If it's alright… may I bring my Paula and Jeff along too? Oh, I also ran into Picky, so I have to help him get home anyways… okay that sounds wonderful… yes mom, I'm sure that I'm fine… I just want to see Tracy, King and you again in person, is all…" He said.
"Ok… I love you mom… bye… bye," He spoke finally hanging up the phone. I sighed.
"Jeff I know you're in here," Ness spoke out. Right then I was sure that my heart skipped a beat.
"Uhhhh…" I heard Ness's footsteps approach the counter as he must have place the telephone back on the counter where it belonged.
"Eavesdropping on me again, are we?" Ness said as he found me around the counter, slightly smirking when he found my crouched form against the counter. I curved my mouth down at him.
"Well what was up with leaving our hotel room in the middle of the night like that? I couldn't just assume that you'd come back after all we went through in Fourside, sheesh," I replied. Ness and I waited there for a moment until a small smile formed on his lips.
"Let's just go to bed…" He said handing out his hand to me. I looked at his hand.
"You still didn't tell me who called you before,"- Ness seemed to ignore that question by simply grabbing my hand and attempting to drag me up on my feet. However, for once I resisted.
"Let's go to bed, you're sleepy," Ness said. However, I grounded myself to where I would stay put. By this time, Ness was literally trying to drag me by force, but I still stayed crunched on the floor.
"Tell meeee," I said.
"In the morning, I'm tiiired," Ness whined.
"Why not noooow?" I asked.
"Jeeeff it's like 2 in the morning!" Ness groaned.
"Well you're the one that decided it was a good idea to call your mom down here in the middle of the night," I replied.
"But I thought you were sleeeepy enough to not come down here," Ness replied. By how he was trying to desperately drag me back up on my feet let me know that he wasn't going to let up so easy. And by judging the look in his eyes, he really needed the sleep. Hell, I was exhausted myself from today's troubles. I finally sighed in another defeat.
"Fine, let's go to bed…" I said. "But you better tell me tomorrow, alright?" I said. Ness again, seemed to ignore me as he helped me to my feet.
"Good, I'm exhausted…" He yawned. "Let's go back to the room…"
---
"So you really are that Paula that I've heard about from Twoson?" We heard Picky say as we walked into the room.
"Yeah…" Paula replied.
"Why didn't you say anything before? You could have gotten someone like the SWAT team involved in that you know," Picky chuckled. Paula 'hmmed'
"That would have been something fun to see," Picky snickered.
"Well I'm happy that it didn't turn out any bigger than it did, that would have made my Dad panic," She replied.
"You guys are awake still?" Ness said as we walked into the room.
"Well you two were goofing off and we weren't really asleep yet," Picky replied. I gave Picky a suspicious look. Ness sighed.
"I just needed to make a phone call…"
"You called your mom?" Picky assumed smirking. Ness looked a bit embarrassed.
"… At least I can talk to her without being creped out, unlike your mom," Ness said back. Paula giggled from the comeback and I couldn't help but chuckle myself, though I wasn't sure why; maybe it was the way that Picky reacted.
"Well… true…" Picky replied. "But at least I,"- Ness snorted and cut him off.
"Your mom's a murderer," Ness said. Paula gasped.
"What? No she isn't," Picky snorted back. Ness leered at him.
"Your mom goes smash when she sees an innocent talking fly; she's like the hulk but more frightening… poor buzz buzz," Ness faked tears.
"Oh no, poor buzz buzz…" Paula spoke. I tried concealing my laugh at the ridiculous name of 'buzz buzz.' Picky looked very bothered, but for some reason, he might have been used to that treatment.
"Well I'm not insane enough to talk to a fly," Picky stated. Ness smiled at him as he slipped into his bed.
"You're right, you're not," He said. "Now enough of this, I'm tired…" Ness said. Paula kept giggling while Picky looked annoyed. I couldn't help but snicker as I slipped into bed.
"Quit it," Picky told me. I sighed in contentment.
"Just go to sleep, Picky," I told him.
---
We woke up around ten in the morning, Picky and Paula of course being the first ones to wake up; dang kids and their energy… I thought. We all had breakfast in our rooms and while Ness and Picky were casually going about eating and getting ready, Paula was patiently and quietly sitting in one of the chairs, as if she was awaiting something patiently.
"You alright, Paula?" I asked. Paula however didn't even seem to pay attention. I frowned and waved my hand in front of her face. Paula drifted her eyes to me.
"Oh… sorry, I was just thinking that's all," She told me. I sat down on the bed across from her.
"Is there something you care to talk about then?" I asked her. Paula shook her head.
"No… it's not that, I'm just trying to figure out where we're supposed to go next is all," She smiled.
"Do you know?" I asked.
"… Sort of. For some reason, I believe we have to go back to where we first met though… that's the place that keeps popping up into my mind at least," She told me.
"The… you mean that underground room where I crashed… why would we have to go there?" I said. Paula shrugged her shoulders.
"Just trust me on this one… I feel like that's the right way to go," She said. I still wasn't sure why we'd have to go to a place like that, considering it was a dead end and that sky runner was already wrecked…
… Wasn't it?
"Are you guys ready?" Ness asked us.
"Yeah, we're ready," Paula replied. Ness sighed.
"Alright, where to?" Ness asked.
"Back to where we met Jeff… I just know that's where we have to go," She replied. Ness nodded without even thinking about it. He must have truly trusted her then, I thought.
"Alright, as soon as Picky is ready, we'll take off," Ness told us. I butted in.
"Wait, I thought Picky was gonna go his separate way at this point?" I asked. Ness shrugged.
"He will, don't worry," He replied as he took Paula's hand. "Let's go."
---
It took about fifteen minutes for us all to reach Threed's cemetery. The sky was gray but there was no rain or snow coming down. When we found the stair case that lead below the cemetery, Picky stopped. The hole I crashed down on seemed to be covered with 'caution' ribbons, which made me suspicious of what was going on.
"Are you sure about this?" Picky asked. "I just need to go back to Onett, not travel with you guys," He said. Ness and Paula already started climbing down the stairs.
"Like I said Picky, I'll take you there myself," Ness said.
"And how are you gonna do that?" Picky asked. I climbed down after them.
"Just come along, Picky," I told him. Picky eventually shrugged and climbed down along with us.
When we passed by another man, that was when I was getting suspicious even more. And when we opened the door, I was sure that my heart flipped with what we saw. I was sure the rest of them had the same reaction.
The Sky runner looked as if it was refurbished and worked on since we left Threed. There looked to be a couple of local scientists studying and rebuilding the structure.
"What the heck is that?" Picky asked. My jaw was dropped.
"Hmm… there's no doubt about it… this is one of Dr. Andonut's creations," One of the men said looking at a book and observing the structure. He seemed to be wearing a long white lab coat and an orange turtle neck sweater underneath. Come to think of it… the man looked strangely familiar. While some were observing, others were actually manually working on the sky runner.
"They're re building it?" Ness questioned me. I narrowed my eyes. Was I supposed to fly us to Summers myself with this? I walked up.
"Hey, what's going on here?" I asked. The young gentleman looked at me in confusion and straightened his glasses.
"Sorry, this area is off limits to locals. I'm going to have to ask you to leave. A kid like you wouldn't know what to do with such high quality work anyways," He told me as if he knew everything. Feeling infuriated, I dug through my bag for my ID.
"Well… if you look right here, I hope you can recognize that I'm not just some ordinary kid getting into trouble," I spoke to him in the calmest tone possible. He adjusted his glasses as he looked at my ID. When I was sure that something registered in his mind when he saw my name, he gave me a skeptical, almost glaring look.
"Snow wood Boarding school, eh? I used to go there myself when I discovered I wanted to get a scientific degree," The man said as he observed my passive, almost annoyed face. He darted his eyes towards Ness and the others. He sighed, dangling my ID in front of his eyes.
"Jeffery Andonuts has been one of the most wanted missing persons in the entire world. It's hard to believe, even with an ID of proof that you are really Andonut's son. Though if the rumors are true that you've been up in Winters… and it does seem suspicious that a person like you with this particular ID happens to roll around here when one of Andonut's private inventions happen to be lying here in its destructed condition…" He rambled on. I gave him a cold look.
"And what of it… I was the one that flew this here, no one gave you guys any permission to mess with the sky runner," I told him. There was a tense silence between the two of us. He smirked evilly at me. Just who the hell was this guy?
"You know, I could report you to secret witness… and if you really are him, you wouldn't want that would you?" He said. I kept glaring at him.
"Let me see the sky runner… I might be able to fix it," I told him. It took him a moment to decide what to do. He shrugged chuckling to himself.
"Alright, fine, have fun trying to even get to the machine. If you really are his son, you should do just fine… or at least can figure out what the problem with it is," He said as he dropped my ID and walked off, giving Ness and co. a strange sinister look. I snarled and snatched up my ID.
"Huh, if he even dares to report me, I'll blast his head off," I swore under my teeth. Ness walked up to me.
"That's odd… what's that Orange Kid doing here?" Paula spoke out loud watching the man leave.
"He doesn't look like a kid to me, he looks to be a grown man," Picky said as they walked up to me.
"So what are we to do?" Ness asked me. "I'm assuming that…" I sighed and ruffled my hair.
"I'm gonna have to give the machine a look. I'm hoping that they've figured out how to work the damn thing so maybe I won't be needing to do too much to it. Let's just hope that it can get us to Summers," I said as I approached the machine with what little knowledge and tools I really had.
Surprisingly, the other two men that were working on the machine didn't seem to have any problem with me working with them. And while there was a lot of interior work repaired in the machine, there were still many things, especially key important details that would make the sky runner lack in performance, especially with endurance. The way the sky runner looked, it seemed like it was enough to last at least an hour or two, before something else would break and cause the entire thing to go haywire. And what was horrible was that after two hours, still none of us could figure out how to solve the problem. My head started to ache as I caressed it with my hand. I growled.
"Do you think Dr. Andonuts could figure out what was wrong with it?" One of the men asked me.
"Well yeah, I'm sure since he was the one who built the dang thing. Maybe… take it back to him to see what he could do with it?" The other said. My eyes widened in horror but also in undeniable cringing truth. I slammed my fist on the ground then rested my head in my palms.
"Damn it, I don't want to go back to him… especially if it means if I have to crawl back and kiss his ass for help…" I grumbled into my hands. I wasn't sure if the other two men could tell what I had just said, but in all honestly, I could have cared less. No other time had I felt so inhumanly pathetic than then.
"Is it gonna take us to Summers?" Ness asked me. I growled and was silent.
"Jeff?"
"… There's no other way is there? Ness, do you think you could teleport us to Summers?" I asked him. The other two men were probably puzzled at my choice of words. Ness 'hmmed' with a disappointed voice.
"I don't even know where Summers is…" He said. I growled in frustration.
"What's wrong?" Ness asked. I rubbed my temples.
"Then there's no other way… we have to go back to Winters…" I told him.
"Wait, isn't that where you came from?" Ness asked. I sighed.
"He's the only one that can fix the damn thing. If we need this to take us there then we need him to repair it so we can make it there," I said.
"But… how are we gonna get the machine back to Winters so he can fix it?" Ness asked.
"How else?"
"…"
"Hmph, we'll have to fly it there… It only takes about forty five minutes or so to get there with this thing… that should be enough time for it to last the entire trip…"
"So why are you so-" Ness stopped in mid sentence when he remembered who he was.
"I'll… lemme get Paula and Picky," He said as he walked away. I stood up.
"So wait, you're just gonna run off with this thing without asking anyone any permission?" One of the men said. I looked them in the eye.
"You guys should be asking me before you go fixing this thing. I was the one that flew it here. Plus I don't think you two have any idea where my father resides anyways," I said. They seemed to eye each other suspiciously.
"Orangey ain't gonna like this… he isn't gonna like this one bit," One of them said.
"I could care less what that guy thinks-" One of the men's cell phones rung.
"Yeah? Alright, we'll be up there in just a moment," They spoke.
"Well… I guess if you can get the thing flying, then I guess it's yours kid," He said. "We have to go right now, so don't cause too much trouble," The other said as they walked out.
"Alright, well thanks for doing what you two could do," I told them as they headed out. By the time they left, the mat that covered the hole in the roof of the underground room was unveiled and Picky poked his head over along with Paula and Ness.
"We uncovered the hole for you Jeff," Paula said.
"But are you sure that this is even a good idea? The people here are getting suspicious you know!" Picky said.
"Well find out I guess…" I told him with a sloppy smile. I looked to Paula, who smiled at me.
"If this is in my visions, I know that we'll be just fine Jeff. I'm sure this is the right thing to do," She told me. When I looked to Ness, I wasn't sure what to expect from him because the look he gave me was blank. It took him a moment to finally smile and say, "Let's get going then"
---
"Ness, why am I still coming along?" Picky asked him.
"Yeah Picky, why are you still coming along?" I questioned as they approached the room.
"Quiet, four eyes," He said. I cracked my jaw.
"Like I said Picky, I'll get you there myself," Ness told him with a crooked smile.
"Why not now?" Picky asked.
"Why not later?" Ness replied chuckling to himself.
"Why not back then?" I said.
"Quiet, four-"
"Shut up, Cyclops," I snapped back. "If you act like you're not even here, things will go smoothly," I said. I was surprised that Picky didn't say anything back, except flip his blond hair out of his eyes.
"Jeff, he's not as bad as you think, so be nice," Paula said.
"No."
"Jeeeff," Ness groaned in frustration.
"Fine."
"I don't mind traveling around for another day with you guys," Picky said smirking. I inwardly cringed.
When all three of them stood in front of the sky runner, they waited as I climbed into the machine, where I had found the key I had oh so mistakenly left there.
"Let me just see if this'll work," I told them in a nervous tone. I brace myself for something to blow up, really when I turned the key. But by judging the components, nothing like that would have happened… right? I turned the key and sure enough the machine turned on like usual. However, it shook more than it was supposed to, which was expected of it. Most of the dials seemed to be in working condition, but I turned off all of the unnecessary ones just to save power for the entire thing. I sighed. Do I even remember my way back there? I thought to myself.
"Alright you guys… get in," I said. And when all three of them piled into the sky runner, I could feel my heart pounding. What if we weren't gonna make it there? I gulped.
"Well… here goes nothing I guess…" I spoke as I turned on the ignition. When the structure lifted from the ground, it shook violently, moreso than the first time I used it. I made sure that it got safely out of the hole until I made it go anywhere.
"Are you sure this is the right thing Paula? Jeff?" Ness asked with a nervous tone.
"Jeff can do it, can't you?" Paula spoke with confidence.
"Huh, you better be right," Picky said. I bit my lip.
"Just hang on… I got it," I spoke without confidence. The thing was I didn't realize my breath caught up and by the time we were higher and higher in the sky, I felt a hand rest on my shoulders.
"Well be alright, don't worry… if anyone can get us there, it's you," Ness said with a smile. I nodded slowly.
"Okay… well here goes nothing... again…" I spoke before I made the miniature machine take flight out of Threed…
… to a place I dreaded to go to.
---
For the most part, the trip there went better than I thought. While the craft did make strange noises and shook a couple of times, we were able to travel over the lands we previously went through. I was still puzzled and annoyed why Picky was still here, gawking at the scenery with Ness and Paula. But I suppose if he wasn't as bad as his older brother… Passing over Fourside brought back unwanted memories of both Moonside and everything else. I was sure that it brought up bad memories with everyone else too.
Yet we still needed to go back… according to Ness.
"Wooow look at those mountains…" Paula said as we approached the snowy mountains of Winters. It was around this time when the hover craft started to rumble again and soon enough a red light started flashing on and off.
"Shit, don't die on me now!" I swore with my teeth clenched as I tried maneuvering the steering wheel upwards.
"What's happening?" Ness asked.
"It's running low on something, or something is letting up. We should make it though… I hope…" I said feeling my face turn blue as I felt the sky runner make a sudden jolt forward. Paula gasped. Yet again, the sky runner jolted.
"Hold on…" I spoke calmly as I scanned my eyes around the snowy hills. There were many small urban villages. Eventually, Paula pointed.
"Look there's a body of water of some sort," Paula said. I sighed.
"That's Lake Tess… it means we're almost there…"
And then sooner than I thought… sooner than maybe I wanted, I spotted the lab. While I was relieved that we could land the thing, my heart started pounding again at the dread to come.
"We're here, just hang on…" I said as I tried steadying the hover craft to a slow halt. Circling around the lab, I noticed soon enough that the roof that he had opened for me last time was closed. I tried steering the UFO around the side of the building in the snow. Soon enough, the craft rumbled as we touched the ground. Once we were secure on the ground, I immediately turned the engine off and threw my head down on the command center in exhaustion.
"See, I knew you could get us here Jeff!" Paula spoke.
"Yeah, see? Everything turned just fine," Ness added. I let off a strangled sigh.
"I'm just surprised that you two were more hopeful and enthusiastic about this than I was…" I added. On the corner of my eye, I saw Picky look out the window.
"Your dad lives here? Besides, how far out are we?" He added. I lifted my head, almost bumping my head in the process.
"Pretty far actually. You insisted to come along, didn't you?" I asked Picky.
"Yeah, sort of…" Picky said. "… Your dad makes the weirdest inventions…" He said. I tried not spilling out any more hatred.
"Enough about him. Let's just get out of this metal shell and get this over with.
I just knew that I was going to hate this…
---
All four of us stood in front of the door way. The sky was especially cloudy and it started snowing soft steady flakes again. I sighed, ringing the door bell for the third time.
"Is he home?" Paula asked.
"I don't see why he wouldn't be here… the lights are on inside, aren't they?" I said.
"Maybe knocking?" Ness asked thinking that the door bell was broken.
"No, I hear it…" I said, putting my ear up to the door right when I felt the thing open up slowly. I stood up straight in a frantic panic as the door opened up. All three of them gasped as the one that opened the door happened to be one of those 7 foot giant cave men instead.
"Woah holy, what is that?" Picky questioned. "It's… freaking huge!" My breath shook.
"He said he was friendly the last time I was here… he shouldn't hurt us…" Yet I could still feel goose bumps crawling up my back as it extended its reach out to us with its long, hairy rock hard arm, holding what looked to be beef jerky. The strange ape man tilted his head.
"No… no thanks, I'm good…" I said waving my hands in front of me. The man grunted as it handed its jerky out towards Paula, who also declined, then Ness and Picky. Eventually the man gave up and gestured us into the lab. All four of us cluttered together closely as we passed the giant and it was around this timing that we saw two monkeys fly down the stairs and out the door, one of them having a bow tie around their necks. And for a moment, we just stood in the lab, looking around for any sign for a man in a white lab coat.
"Are you sure he's here?" Picky asked again. I walked to the stairs to look up.
"He has to be here…" I replied.
"Maybe splitting up?" Ness mentioned. I frowned.
"Fine, just don't go too far from the lab," I said as I made my way up stairs.
Out of all the rooms, the old hoot was nowhere to be found and while I enjoyed every last minute of not seeing his face, I was starting to feel troubled. I sighed in anger as I even checked the bathroom, which even there was littered in papers and donut boxes. I shook my head.
"Dr. Andonuts, are you here?" I shouted. However, there was no reply. When I got back downstairs I sighed. There was something weird swelling up in my chest then, but I wasn't sure what it was…
"Hey Jeff, come out here for a second," Picky said calling through the door. I bit my lip slightly as I replied, "Kay."
Making my way outside again, I found Picky waiting for me.
"They're over here," He said gesturing me to come along with him. I complied wordlessly. When we walked back over to where we landed the sky runner, I could have sworn my heart stopped for a moment.
Dr. Andonuts was examining the machine while speaking to Ness and Paula. Still, it was so strange to hear that same voice from all those years ago, aged to the way it was now.
"Jeff, can you help me lift the sky runner up right for me a second?" It was a bit perplexing that he didn't bother to say hello, nonetheless even look at any of us. I grunted grumpily.
"You three could help if you'd like, it would be very much appreciated," He spoke. All of us attempted lifting the machine enough to where it would be supported with both legs. However, gripping the snow covered metal was like touching pure ice in the process and once it was up right, I could barely feel the tips of my fingers.
"There we go… I'm surprised that you even came back… of course along with your friends too…" He spoke calmly smiling at us.
"Please, let me introduce-"
"Ness, Paula… I'm not sure what your name is though…" He smiled pointing to Picky.
"Picky," Picky said while Ness and Paula looked at each other in shock.
"Ahh…" He finally rested his eyes on me and while he took a moment to soak the reunion in a bit, I glanced to the side stubbornly.
"Jeff… my son…" He spoke in a low tone. My eyes finally drifted towards him, just barely. I wasn't sure what my facial expression was like, but I could only guess it was a mixture of embarrassment, shyness and rage.
"Mhmmm… and it seems you've managed to lose some weight since the last time I saw you," He chuckled bringing his hand to caress his chin. My jaw dropped.
"Hey…" I spoke stubbornly as Ness, Paula and Picky started chuckling.
"Ahh excuse me, I must introduce myself; I am the Frizzy Doctor Andonuts, as you may have guessed if any of you ever read my books. Perhaps we should go inside and have a cup of coffee or tea. You must be freezing young lady," He spoke, referring to Paula's skirt.
"Oh, well that would be very kind of you, thank you very much," She smiled as he gestured all of us inside with a calm smile.
---
"So you four must have come a long way to get where you are now," He said. "How has it been so far?" Dr. Andonuts asked as we all sat around a round table with coffee, tea and a box of donuts. The others had a bit of their share, but I had none.
"It's been okay… at least we've accomplished some things," Ness said. Dr. Andonuts smiled.
"Did my son Jeff make it to you safely?" He said.
"Yes, he was okay once he arrived, but the sky runner wasn't…" Ness tried not to chuckle. My face flushed slightly as I gave Ness a small glare.
"Is that so?" He said glancing towards me. I looked away stubbornly.
"I remember a time when he used to wet the bed… I'd have to stay up with him until he got over it and sleep again," He spoke casually. I dropped my jaw as the other three started to snicker slightly. Before I could say anything, Ness spoke sooner. Maybe he was keeping me from saying anything rash.
"May I ask… how did you know our names?" Ness asked him. I didn't miss how Dr. Andonuts paused, just for a brief moment. It was very suspicious, how he sighed and took another sip of his coffee.
"I received a letter the other day… from a young man that goes by the name Apple Kid. Preferably, he's interested in becoming my apprentice." Ness seemed to glance at me nervously. Did it have to do with the phone call he received?
"I'm still not sure whether to accept him though; I haven't made very much public contact in a while…"
"Why so?" I asked. Andonuts looked at me for a moment and drifted his eyes to the table. It was a clear sign… but of what?
"I like it out here… it's quiet and peaceful… and it's also helped me think more clearly as well as the cold temperature. I'm not a very social fellow though I guess the character I've portrayed in my works have differed from that. I'd like to know… what brought you four here in the first place? Does the sky runner need fixing?" He asked. Ness nodded.
"Yes… we need it to reach a city named Summers. However, Jeff and a couple other men alone couldn't find out what the problem was…" Ness gestured me to continue. I shook my head slightly.
"There's a lot of missing and damaged interior work. We could only make the sky runner last for a few hours, so we decided that coming here was the best and quickest bet in order to reach Summers. Or moreso, it was Paula who predicted that this was the right way to come," I explained crossing my arms and closing my eyes. Dr. Andonuts grunted in reply.
"Very well…" He replied.
"It would be very appreciated if you did that for us," Paula added. And it was at this precise moment that Mr. Ziggy had popped out from her bag. When Dr. Andonuts caught sight of the being, all of us were prepared for his reaction. His eyebrows popped up.
"And why does there happen to be a Mr. Saturn in your lap?" Dr. Andonuts asked. Paula pondered a bit; she seemed a bit nervous for the explanation. I gave Andonuts a small glare. He just might have caught my cue.
"Mr. Saturn is a very intelligent, peculiar creature. They live and cope without violence. However, they do lack in a sense of communication however and sometimes their short term memory is a bit off. But in other ways, their intelligence exceeds our own."
"How did you know about them?" Ness asked.
"Mr. Saturn has been a rumored creature for years, but alas it's only been a myth to the common man, much like the case with big foot. But after researching a bit on my next invention, I theorized that a creature such as that could be possible and then finding a few of them around the Stone Hedge, I was able to study their habits and life style. It's one of the many joys of living away from public. Now… while I fix the sky runner for you four, try to make yourselves at home, without touching everything of course. I apologize if my lab has been lacking… a bit of a woman's touch," He spoke rubbing the back of his head. My heart constricted as I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Is there anything we could offer you sir?" Paula asked politely. I raised my eyebrow at her.
"No no no, that won't be optional. If getting to Summers is an urgent matter for your four, than it must be fixed as soon as possible. However, it might take longer than a day or two for it to be fixed and properly flying again," He smiled. Ness's eyes lit up.
"Only two days?" Ness asked. Dr. Andonuts smiled.
"While you wait, you might want to explore this area a little bit. There's something especially about Stone Hedge that might interest you, Ness. Yes… I think something here will be of good importance to you, I can just tell," He said, glancing from Ness to each and every one of us… especially me though I hated to admit it.
"Can you tell us what direction?" Ness asked. Dr. Andonuts nodded as he took a sip of his coffee again.
"Ah yes… if you go out the front door to your right, there should be a stone path. Just follow that for a little bit and then you'll cut through some woods. Have you seen a couple of chimps around here? If you can get them to lead you there that would be wonderful. And in the time being, you can come and go as you please. I'll be down in my basement for the time being," He spoke, grabbing a couple of donuts and his mug of coffee and took off at his old pace down to his work area. I stared coldly at his back.
"Come on Jeff, let's go check Stone Hedge out," Ness said. However, my mind was somewhere far away at the time.
---
"So… are you coming along?" Ness asked me as we stood by the door. Paula and Picky had already waited outside. I glanced behind me and sighed. Ness could probably guess what was on my mind.
"… You three can go investigate without me if you'd like," I replied. Ness nodded, but I could tell that he was disappointed by my answer.
"Are you sure you'll be fine here by yourself?" Ness asked.
"Yeah…" I flashed him a smile. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine, just take care of yourselves and get done what needs to be done," I told him. Ness smiled, but there was a hint of sadness behind it.
"You'll be fine, I've seen it myself," I said. Ness nodded.
"Well… if you say so," He said. "I guess we'll see you later then," He said as he walked out the door.
"Bye Ness," I said back. A small chill crawled down my spine. Now it was my turn to exhale nervously. I realized, almost instantly, that I would have much rather joined along with them. I turned around to scan my eyes around the lab. The morbidly large cave man must have been outside… doing what was beyond me. Though technically outside must have been colder, the cold temperature that loomed inside the lab was different. And when I looked around the room more, I started to discover why. There was a sense of gloom and depression looming in the air and the messy boxes, tools, books, papers and appliances made it look like there was no order. Yet it seemed so silent… It was almost ironic.
While I remembered the books sprawled everywhere, there seemed to be more this time and this time it really looked like a tornado came about and caused havoc to the place. The more I looked around at the many books, the more I felt drawn in. And I hated every minute of it.
It was hard to believe that someone I felt so much rage towards shared the very same interest as my own. It's just in the sense that I never wanted to see his face again. And the… no, I told myself. Don't get yourself angry over something as silly as that…
The first book I had found had been written by someone that must have lived beyond even my own father's time. I became curious, sure that my father wrote his own books, but…
I searched the room for any signs of books that were written, specifically by him alone. It took maybe around twenty minutes or so to find only three books. And as I suspected, all three books had said, "Written by the Frizzy Doc Andonuts." When I looked in the about the author section, they were all the same saying as little as "Dr. Andonuts resides in California and works on new findings and discoveries." That was it. And when I searched through the entire books, there was no other additional information of his background anywhere. It was the same as all the text books in school that were written by him as well as the books I had in my hands. It was always on the back of my mind, but this was the first time I had actually had to run the question through my head…
Why was he known as the 'Frizzy Doc Andonuts?'
… and why was I known… simply as Jeff Andonuts?
"Smile for your father…"
"Heard more from the Doc recently?"
"You'll be the next Frizzy Doc Andonuts, Jeff."
"Still haven't heard a word from the Doc after all these years? What a shame…" I threw one of his books at the ground in disgust. However, something stopped my heart from beating, almost instantly when I saw the contents spill out of the pages of his book. Though most of them were just meaningless notes, one of them looked to be a laminated, white sheet; the size of a photograph. I carefully picked up the small parchment, wincing as I flipped it over.
It was the same photo I had seen all those years ago… all three of us together, smiling.
A perfectly, happy family…
I was a bit chubbier in my youth, but I guess all kids were when they still had their baby fat at the age of three. The Doc was not only younger and healthier, but he just seemed much happier and sane. And of course, I could marvel once again at my beautiful fair mother. I studied the look on my face; pure bliss and joy… a feeling I haven't felt since…
A familiar melody caught my attention just then from the distance. The more I listened to the melody, the more I thought to myself… didn't my mother sing this song by heart?
I placed the photo down on the counter and followed the melody downstairs…
---
The door was cracked open, but I was still scared to barge in. I could definitely hear someone's movements however and coughs coming from the same room. It was just like the way I remembered he would always shut himself away from the world.
… Maybe in that sense, we weren't all that different. I took a deep breath. What would happen? I opened the door.
The first thing I noticed were papers, piles and piles or papers, documents, files, projects everywhere, piled on top of each other. It didn't really matter what the mess was made of, it was just a catastrophe. I was startled when I heard one's familiar voice speak.
"I heard that you kids traveled to Fourside," He said suddenly. My heart skipped a beat as I twirled around quickly. My eyes looked around until they landed on my father's form. He was slouched down, rummaging through a few of his stacks of papers. "Now where did I put that…" He muttered to himself. I wasn't sure of what to say.
"How would you know that we went to Fourside?" Though I thought, that was probably a really stupid question, I was sure that bastard Pokey spread the word throughout the world that we were there crashing his party.
"Oh… I just know these things…" He spoke back. I frowned.
"Sure you do… like you've always had," I spoke with a sarcastic undertone in my voice. My father slightly turned his head towards me.
"Enough of what I know… I'd like to hear how my son's been doing all these years… how was school before you left?" Dr. Andonuts asked me. How could he… just change the subject on me like that, I thought.
"… Well enough to go into Rocketry when I grow up…" I replied honestly. My father took a moment to look at me again as he nodded. The way he looked at me was starting to weird me out… I thought. Suddenly, he removed his eyes from mine.
"Rocketry? So… have you built your own bottle rocket yet?" He asked, a small settle smile forming on his lips.
"Yes… I have. Me and my science teacher built one together when I was seven years old," I replied. "Honestly, my science teacher, Maxwell helped me a lot in school and we worked on a lot of things together that most of the other kids in school never got affiliated with," I told him. Dr. Andonuts scanned his tables until he had found his mug.
"Dr. Maxwell you say? I've heard he's done some good work up at the academy," He said.
"Yes, he has…" I told him.
"So… is science your subject of choice then?" He asked. I didn't like to admit it… but it was. And I frowned because of it.
"Yeah… it is," I said. He gave off a soft laugh.
"And so I've heard of rumors of a boy like you up in school around the village bringing the statistics up in the school's value altogether…" I frowned especially at this. And I was sure he knew exactly why.
"Well… it's good to know that you've been keeping up well in your classes in school, son," He spoke. I snarled.
"Been ahead in most of them…" I replied. Andonuts chuckled.
"Well… is there anything you're having difficulty understanding in your classes then?" He asked. Maybe he didn't intend this question in the way that I perceived it.
"It's a little too late for you to be asking that isn't it?" I said. Dr. Andonuts paused. And after that… nothing. Eventually, I did speak up.
"Well… since you've asked… I do have one question," I said. Dr. Andonuts picked up a pile of papers and plopped them down on a nearby counter.
"And what would that be?" He replied in a slightly different tone.
"Well… how come… in all of your books… or any literature that mentions you…how come none of them list your real name?" I asked. Dr. Andonuts paused.
"Don't say that some of the textbooks you students have been using were written by me… were they?" He spoke in a softer tone, taking another sip of his coffee, then taking a bit out of his donut. "Those silly books are almost a decade old, they're no good…" He chuckled.
"Well apparently the school seems to find them still useful…"
"And did you read any of them?" He finally asked. I froze in place. For once, I felt like punching myself in the face for the actual truth.
"… Maxwell and I… used your diagram of a bottle rocket. And some of the other students there even pretend it's their bible…" I said turning my head the other way in embarrassment and disgust. Andonuts looked at me again. And when I was sure he wasn't going to turn away, finally I lay my eyes on him. He took another moment to try to find the right words to say, all while his eyes were focused on mine. I started to flush slightly. Why was he staring at my eyes so much?
"Did you read my textbook in school?" He asked again.
"… Every last word of it," I replied honestly and true. Finally… I was surprised to see my father frown. After what felt like hours but must have been only about a minute or so, he turned away and muttered, "It's foolish… to follow my footsteps…" I snarled.
"It's not like I want to, alright? How can I avoid every god damn person in those halls, asking me the same god damn questions every day; 'Have you heard from your father yet, Jeff? Oh, your father is a wonderful scientist, you'll be just as smart as he is, or hi Andonut's son… it's been like that for me for the past decade like your old book that we still study from to this day. And yet, after all those years… you've been here… for what? So you could finally have your peace of mind that you've always dreamed about?" My feelings started to pour out. Yet, Andonuts was still as quiet and calm as he's been so far. I could feel the hot air blowing out of my nostrils.
"… There's no need to be upset, is-"
"Upset? Me? No, it's been a field of daisies and dandy lions for me dad."
"… Son, please… just hear me out…"
"Stop making excuses for yourself. You've always been like that; you're being like that with me and you were always like that with mom."
"Wise decisions don't come out of rage, son"-
"I could care less if I was the dumbest being in existence, I can still tell when his own father abandons him!" I barked. My dad cast his eyes back to mine. Yet again… all he focused on were my eyes…
"… You've got her eyes…" He spoke. It was hard to admit that I softened up, just for a moment. I almost choked on my words.
"My eyes… have nothing to do with anything…" I told him.
"You're wrong… your eyes mean everything… her eyes… meant the world too," He said. I couldn't believe what I was hearing… I just didn't understand, yet I understood everything. I fought back my tears at least, though I still choked on my own breath.
"How could you talk about her like that… after all that has happened?" I said.
"… I loved your mother…" Father murmured. I squinted, shutting it all out of my head.
"That's a lie… you're lying to me…"
"Can you honestly tell me one time that I have lied?" He asked. I inhaled roughly through both my nose and my mouth.
"All I remember in my childhood is you two nagging and fighting with each other… I was never sure why… did it have to do with me?!" I asked. Father sighed.
"What we fought about is none of your concern at the moment…"
"The only time I remember you two being happy together is when we were at the beach… I mean, that's the only real family moment I still can recall…" I said.
"There were more things we did together than go to the beach… you just don't remember those memories, you were too-"
"No dad. The rest of the time you were cooped up down in your little pile of science and theorems in the basement… mom was the only one that took care of me since…" I growled. I could tell by that time that dad had seemed irritated as he scratched his temple and wiped his forehead.
"Hell… I even remember a time when I really wanted your affection… and I tried everything to get it. Even mother tried helping me achieve it, because she knew that I had always wondered where you went. Remember that rocket ship I built in the sand box that you tore down with your own feet? Remember? I built it for you! And you tore it down and sent me to a place where I… was cold, lonely and parentless for what I knew the rest of my life… and without a word from you…" My fists started to shake; no other time had I felt so angry and emotional. My head started to spin and my sight began to twist in front of my eyes. Yet again… it fell silent between us. My father turned around to face his back towards me.
"And yet here I am… still trying… but for what…"
"It's true that your mother loved you… if you had seen her smile when you entered her world, you would have discovered that to be the reason in itself to live… her smile was like a golden sun-"
"Stop talking about her poetically," I snarled.
"She loved you more than anything… yet you still tried achieving my affection…" My eyes widened.
"She told me one night that she was willing to sacrifice anything and everything she had for you… and she did. All because you wanted to hear those same words pass my lips…" I froze for a moment in time. And as the words kept swirling in my head, it was hard to absorb what little else he had to say.
"Jeff, I saw you that night… when your mother and I argued about how dangerous it was to go outside that evening… yet you disobeyed both of us and went outside to wait," He began.
"But… mom said,"-
"But how would you have known or understood; you were only four at the time…"
"What are you trying to get at…?"
"Let's just say… that the danger that was waiting outside was pre-determined… so dangerous that it cost your mother's life… me to move to a quiet, isolated place… and becoming one of the top causes for every single thing that has happened in your life… no… the world so far." He began to ramble. My jaw dropped and my shaking fists loosened up, but only because of the trembling sensation I had felt.
"You… you aren't suggesting that… I…" My voice was barely legible for even my own ears to catch.
"You went by your own actions that night… you were the one that went to the park… not your mother… not me, you."
"…"
"Your mother did all she could… to save your life. The only thing I hated about myself that night was that I was too late to respond… but how was I to know? I assumed you would be a good boy and stay indoors. In fact, I had promised myself that after my bit of work, I would have played games with you…" I couldn't believe what I was hearing…
"But here we are… stuck in the hard to believe positions we're actually in… without a wife, without a mother…"
"Dad…"
"I finally see my son… after so many years… blaming me… for everything, just because he couldn't hear those three simple words…"
"Dad"-
"… I hate you…" My breath caught at the heart stopping phrase.
"Wh- Dad… but…"
"… Get out…"
"Dad, just listen! I… I'm sorry, alright? See, hear? I'm SORRY, alright? Now please… Dad…"
"…Get… out…" My dad muttered again. I growled.
"Dad, will you just listen to me,"-
"… Get… OUT!" I flinched, as an angry arm had knocked countless items off the counter tops, several contents, now shattered and broken on the floor. I felt paralyzed… petrified. My dad ran angry aggressive fingers through his hair as he turned around.
"You and your mother's eyes get out of my sight…" He spoke pointing towards the door. My heart hammered against my chest.
"But… dad…"
"GET OUT!" He yelled angrily, smashing his coffee mug to the floor. I flinched, racing out of that room. No other time since back on that wrenched day had I felt so afraid… alone.
I ran outside, through the woods. I wasn't sure for how long, but at least until my heart felt like tearing into two.
Finally, I had clumsily stumbled into a tree. I wasn't sure how long I stood there, my head glued to the bark of the tree, looking down at my trembling weak hands. My glasses… my sight fogged up.
I broke down into tears almost instantly that day…