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Recoil

Part 2-1: Settling In

September 1991

I lugged my suitcases up the last few steps, turned right, and plodded down the dorm room corridor while searching for the correct room number. "Three oh five … three oh seven … ah, three oh nine."

Dropping the cases – they hit the carpeted floor with a solid thump – I fished out the key I had been issued and tried it in the door. Wonder of wonders, it worked.

In the next instant, the door was wrenched open from within, leaving me with the key still in my hand. As it did so, I came face to face with another girl. This one sported a mass of freckles, flaming red hair, a sports bra, and a tartan mini-skirt.

"Yay!" she squealed. Then she grabbed me, pulled me down to her level – she was nearly a foot shorter than me – and planted a resounding kiss on my lips.

And that was how I met Andrea Campbell.

I do not make a practice of kissing girls. Even before I had been catapulted back in time, even before the disastrous battle against Behemoth, you could count the number of times I had locked lips with a member of the same gender on one hand, and have a few fingers left over.

I'm not counting the 'goodbye' kisses that I share with Lisa in my sleep, and my self-hypnotic trances. That's different.

The redhead released me and stood back, an impish grin playing on her lips. Behind me, Danny had caught up with some more of my bags – George was still puffing up the steps behind him, if I was any judge – and was crowding forward, peering into the dorm room with intense curiosity.

For myself, I was still recovering from being kissed from out of the blue. As someone who does not make a habit of kissing girls romantically, I had to admit that she was pretty damn good at it.

"I – whu – buh – guh – excuse me?" I blurted.

She blinked, and looked uncertain for a moment. "Wait a minute," she muttered. "Since when do you wear glasses?"

The non-sequitur caught me on the back foot. "Uh – I've always worn glasses?"

She tilted her head and looked at me again. "Oh. Wait. Sorry. I thought you were someone else." A fetching blush spread over her cheeks. "Sorry. Uh, come on in, roomie. I'm Andrea. And I just want you to know that I don't usually kiss every tall girl I meet."

"Just some of them, huh?" I asked dryly, picking up my bags and walking in through the door.

Danny entered behind me, drawing an admiring wolf whistle from Andrea. "Wow, and I thought she was tall." Cupping her hands around her mouth, she pretended to shout. "Hey! How's the weather up there?"

I had to muffle a snort as I dropped my suitcases once more. If I wasn't quite sure what to make of Andrea, Danny was certainly out of his depth. "Andrea … can we get a few things straight?"

She turned to me, eyes bright, all attention. I was reminded intensely of a collie pup waiting for a stick to be thrown. "Shoot, roomie."

I hid a smile. "Okay, the name's Taylor, not 'roomie'. This is Danny. He is not to be teased. And please keep the kissing to a minimum. I don't swing that way."

Her face drooped momentarily. "Aw." She glanced back to Danny. "Can't I tease him just a little bit? Is he your boyfriend? 'Cause I gotta tell you, if you want to bring him over for a quickie, hang your bra on the door handle. An all-nighter, hang your panties there. Got it?"

I held up both hands, spread wide defensively, as I shook my head and chuckled. I did not dare look at Danny; his blush must have hit his hairline by now. "No, seriously. Enough. He's basically my brother." I held up my finger. "And he's off-limits to you too."

"Hey!" she protested. "No fair! If you don't want him, he's fair game."

"No," I reiterated, "he's not."

I couldn't tell her, of course, that I was trying to make sure that he was free and clear to be with my mom when he met her; I could already tell that Andrea was fun and bubbly and as spontaneous as hell. Danny would probably be smitten in about ten minutes.

And that I was not going to let happen.

She opened her mouth to make another argument, fortunately, we were saved by the appearance of George in the doorway.

"Danny," he growled. "Get downstairs and bring the rest of it up."

Reprieved, Danny slipped out past him, while George lugged the suitcases into the dorm room. He put them down and eyed Andrea up and down coldly.

"George Hebert," he grunted, surprising me. He's actually making an effort to be civil.

"Uh, Andrea Campbell?" she ventured. She was only an inch or two shorter than him, but his bulk made three of her, and by no means all of it fat. His forearms were the thickness of her thighs.

He nodded once, briefly. "I will thank you to not distract Taylor from her studies. She's a good Christian girl, and she has a bright future ahead of her."

Bereft for once of the witty retorts which she so obviously made her stock-in-trade, Andrea nodded without speaking. This did not surprise me; I had seen burly men, Dock Workers as tough as any there, fall silent when he entered the room.

He turned to me. "Come, Taylor. Dorothy and I must go. We'll say goodbye now."

"Uh, okay," I replied. "I'll, uh, see you in a minute, Andrea."

"Uh, yeah," she responded.

She was still staring when I closed the door.

George thumped down the steps at a measured pace; I could have gone faster, but I chose to stay with him. We had gone down a flight before he spoke.

"She was scandalously dressed."

What could I do but agree? "Yeah, I wouldn't dress that way."

He grunted. "Do not tell Dorothy."

I blinked and stared at him. He stared unreadably back at me.

"Uh, I wasn't going to, but why are you making a point of it?"

"Because she may make a fuss," he informed me heavily. "She may decide that college is, after all, an unfit place for a young Christian lady."

I grimaced; we had already been through these arguments before. Sure, Brockton Bay College wasn't exactly the most wild and raucous of educational institutions, but it had its detractors. And if Dot had come up with us, seen Andrea's clothing, seen the kiss with which I had been welcomed, even by mistake … I had to agree with George.

"Not a word," I agreed.

He nodded. "Not a word."

A thought struck me. "Danny's not going with you?"

He shook his head massively. "He wishes to enquire about taking a course himself. We do not wish to remain here a minute longer than necessary, so he can take the bus back."

"Ah."

We exited the building, to find Danny heading toward us with the last two suitcases. "Uh, hold up a minute, Danny?" I suggested.

"Sure, okay," he agreed, setting the cases down immediately. Those two were heavy; I was glad Danny was carrying them.

Behind his back, George nodded fractionally at me. Don't leave him alone with that hussy upstairs.

He did not know – could not know – why my requirements coincided with his, but I was glad that they did.

Dorothy was looking around in mild disapproval, as if expecting a wild party to erupt at any moment. All that was visible were some students walking here and there, interspersed with other cars decanting new students and their luggage.

"Taylor!" she greeted me, drawing me into a hug. I reciprocated, feeling her slender frame under my arms. "Are you absolutely certain that you want to be staying here?"

"I am," I reaffirmed.

"You do know that your room is always free if you want to move back in," she assured me.

"I know," I told her, "and I'm grateful. But I have to prove that I can be independent."

Plus, I told myself, it will get me away from the not-so-subtle pressure that you two keep putting on me.

She kissed me on the cheek. "Oh, bless your heart," she beamed. "You're far gone from the skinny waif that my George pulled from the ocean all those years ago."

"Was Danny that pulled her out of the water, Dot," George reminded her gruffly, "and it was only two years ago."

"And I'm still pretty skinny," I added cheerfully. It was true; I would never put on serious weight. But Dot was correct in that I wasn't as skinny as I had been. Over the last two years, I had grown a few inches, and the JROTC training I had taken on in high school had given me more muscle than I had ever had before.

I intended to keep it up; Brockton Bay College had a thriving ROTC program, and I had already been assured of my welcome there.

Dot would not be put off. "You came into our lives, tired and frightened and bewildered, and look at you now. A fine young lady, taking your first steps away from home."

I was hard put to keep a straight face; if she but knew how far I had gone, how much I had done, back in Brockton Bay of 2011, she would be singing quite another tune. But I could not say this to her, and I dared not break out in laughter. So I nodded, and bit my tongue, until I was rescued by George. Again. If this keeps up, I'm going to have to presume he actually likes me.

"Come along now, Dorothy," he rumbled. "We've wasted Taylor's time enough today."

Dot turned away to the car, after hugging me one more time. George lingered; driven by a sudden impulse, I gave him a quick hug. "Thanks, George," I whispered. "For everything."

"Hrmph," he grunted. "Take care. Be good."

Which, from him, was as good as a five-minute speech from any other man. I was touched.

He stumped back to the pickup and climbed in; without ceremony, he started it, and they drove away. To my surprise, I found tears standing in my eyes. I would miss them. In two years, the irascible George and the gently Christian Dorothy had grown on me more than I had realised.

Clearing my throat, I turned back to Danny, who was still waiting patiently.

"Come on," I invited him. "Let's get these up to my room, then we'll go talk to Admissions."

He hesitated. "Will she … be up there?"

I shrugged. "Probably. But I'll protect you from her."

He blushed again; I grinned, and led the way.

Andrea was a good deal more subdued when we re-entered the dorm room. There were no ambush kisses, either for myself or for Danny, and she watched as I arranged my cases on my side of the dorm room.

"Was that your dad?" she asked me in a careful tone.

I grinned at her. "Danny's dad. Sort of my foster dad, in a way. I'm an orphan -" my parents in this era sure as hell don't know about it - "and they took me in." I held out my hand. "Taylor Snow."

She shook it. "Uh, yeah, Andrea Campbell. Sorry about before."

I shrugged. "Eh. It's all right." I glanced at my cases, then at Danny, who was standing awkwardly, as if not really sure what to do with himself. "Screw it, I'll unpack later."

"Come for a drink?" invited Andrea brightly. "I've met a few people already. I'll introduce the two of you around." She grinned at me. "And there's someone you've just got to meet."

I was tempted, but shook my head. I'd had enough of matchmaking for the time being. Besides, I wasn't legal for drinking yet, and where there was drinking, there was smoking, and cigarette smoke clogged my sinuses.

People smoked a lot more, back in the past.

"Sorry," I told her, smiling to take the sting out of it. "Maybe another time. Right now, I want to get Danny over to Admissions, so he can make some enquiries. See you around?"

"Sure," she agreed with a flashing grin. "See you later."

"Wow," commented Danny, as we made our way across the manicured lawns toward Admissions. 'Are all college girls like that?"

I gave him a friendly elbow to the ribs. "Watch it, you," I warned him. "I'm a college girl now too, you know."

"Oof," he responded. "Here I thought you were getting all mature and responsible, and you're still just as violent."

I raised an eyebrow his way. "Did you really want me getting 'violent' with you?"

His response was immediate and reflexive. "No. I've seen you and Gladys sparring. That scares the hell out of me."

I grinned. "Good boy. Looks like you can learn, after all."

He cast about for another topic to raise. "Uh, so, I was kind of expecting to see Gladys?"

I shook my head. "I tried to have us assigned as room-mates for each other, but it wasn't going to happen. She's in another part of the dorm. When I find her, I'll see if her roomie minds if Gladys swaps out with Andrea."

He nodded. "That will be good. I like Frank. He's a stand-up guy."

I grinned and nudged his shoulder with mine. "You're pretty cool yourself, you know, Daniel Hebert. I haven't forgotten the fight at the prom dance. You and Gladys kicking ass and taking names."

He rolled his eyes. "That was more Gladys than me. When she fires off one of those straight rights of hers, everyone feels it." He paused. "So, what's she doing this year?"

"Oh, uh, teaching and Computer Studies, I think," I told him. I knew that was it, of course; I had carefully persuaded her that she would be happier teaching than going into the military. And of course, she did like computers. Which meant that we would be sharing a class.

"And you're doing Computer Studies and … what?"

I ticked off on my fingers. "Criminology. Parahuman Studies. Beginning Psychology."

"Plus ROTC."

I nodded in agreement. "Plus, as you say, ROTC." I pronounced it 'rot-see', as he had. Although he'd learned to do it off of me.

He looked as though he were trying to complete a complex sum in his head. "So you're aiming at becoming … some sort of cop for super-powered people?"

I was somewhat impressed. That was almost exactly what I was aiming at. Although the PRT didn't exist yet, he'd hit the nail almost exactly on the head.

"Something like that," I agreed off-handedly. "Oh, hey, Admissions. You go on in. I'll wait out here."

"You can come with, if you want," he offered.

I shook my head. "No thanks. Spent way too long standing in line in there, already. Go have fun. I'm gonna soak up some sunlight."

He nodded and bounded up the steps two at a time; I looked around and found a bench in the sun, that let me lean back against the stone wall of the building. It was warm, and quite comfortable; I unzipped my coat and relaxed into the warmth. My eyes drifted shut.

I was riding a jet-ski. My reflexes took over while my mind boggled, leaning into a long sweeping curve, holding the throttle wide open. Alongside me, Lisa rode an identical watercraft, engine screaming just as loudly, as we skipped over the wavetops.

Once I got my breath back, I had to admit, it was a lot of fun. I wore a wetsuit with a bug emblem on the front, while Lisa's sported the eye from her Tattletale costume.

We curved again, leaving creamy wakes far behind, as we powered on. The shriek of the engine, the drumming of the watercraft on the wavelets, the whistle of wind past my ears – it was exhilarating. I grinned across at Lisa, and she grinned back; she was obviously enjoying it just as much as I was.

Dolphins rose from the depths, leaping high into the air. I ducked slightly to pass under one as it leaped over me, reaching up my hand to trail fingertips momentarily against its sleek, slippery-wet underside. It splashed down again, spearing into the water with barely a ripple, then came up alongside, matching me in speed. I laughed out loud with happiness.

We turned our 'skis again, heading for an island, atop which sat the memory palace. Day by day, month by month, year by year, Lisa had been tirelessly building on to it. My memories, both the ones I had lived through, and the ones she had told me about, took up room after endless room in there. I had walked the echoing passageways at her side, and viewed recollections that I did not remember having.

The dolphins paralleled us for a while, chittering and leaping and performing ludicrous stunts such as midair barrel rolls, then they broke off as we approached the shoreline. Gravel crunched as we ran the jet-skis up on to the strand and killed the engines.

The silence was suddenly loud in my ears. Wow, I told her as I unzipped the wetsuit to reveal T-shirt and shorts underneath. That was a lot of fun.

"I thought it would be," she informed me smugly. Her own wetsuit came off to show the same swimsuit she had worn on the yacht. We slipped on sandals and trudged up the road toward the palace.

So it's an island now, I observed, looking around at the brilliant blue-green ocean surrounding us.

She grinned. "Only when we want it to be. All in your mind, remember?"

I nodded. Ah. Of course.

We settled down on the patio in front of the fountains, and sipped the chilled drinks that just happened to be waiting there for us.

So yeah, I went on, changing the subject. I'm in college now. Whee. Any suggestions?

"Nope. Just keep doing what you're doing. Though maybe you should have gone with Andrea to meet her friend."

I frowned. I've already got George and Dot trying to matchmake me with Dad. I don't need more potential romance in my life. I just need to stick to the plan and make it work. I held up my glass so she could clink it. With your help, of course.

She grinned her fox-like grin. "Of course. But sometimes you do need to socialise. And I think you may be surprised."

I rolled my eyes. Okay, fine. I'll socialise. But don't expect me to like it.

She nodded. "Sure. Kiss before you go?"

I kissed her. It wasn't at all like when Andrea had kissed me. Her lips tasted of dust and blood. She grabbed me by the shoulder and shook me.

I blinked and looked up at Danny. "Huh, what?"

He was staring down at me with a little concern. "You were twitching a little, and mumbling."

"Oh, uh, I was?"

He nodded. "Couldn't make it out, though. Were you asleep?"

I stood up and brushed myself off. "I don't think so. Maybe a nap." I stretched. "I do feel refreshed. So how did it go in there?"

He waved a bunch of papers at me. "The courses I was thinking of doing are full up now, but I put my name down in case there were any drop-outs."

"Did they say if that happened very often?" I asked, zipping up my coat; a cool wind had started up.

"Enough to make it worth my while, they said," he informed me.

"Cool. Will you be living on campus or off?"

He tilted his hand. "The bus commute will be a real bear, but it will be cheaper living at home."

And George and Dot will be able to keep a better eye on you, there.

I nodded. "Sounds reasonable."

He folded the papers and stuck them in his pocket. "So, where do we go now?"

I pretended to think. "How about we go by the Club, and see who's there?"

He eyed me sternly. "You know you're still too young to drink."

I rolled my eyes. "I have no desire to drink. Soda will do me just fine. Socialising does not necessarily equal alcohol."

He raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, fine. We'll go look at the Club."

The Brockton Bay College Recreational Club, known to all and sundry as 'the Club', was actually a fairly low-key affair. We located it on my map of the college, found our way there, opened an unassuming door, and there it was.

"Wow," I commented, observing the dozen or so couples quietly drinking and chatting. Soft music was playing, and a few more people were slowly moving around the dance floor off to the side. "Looks like party central here. Be still my beating heart."

Danny nodded. "Huh. I could actually bring Mom and Dad here, and they wouldn't immediately have a fit."

I grinned at him. "Just don't do it on a Friday or Saturday night. It probably looks a little different then."

An arm waved from a nearby table. "Taylor! Danny! Come on over!"

I looked in that direction, and recognised Gladys and Franklin. "Oh, hey, guys!" I called back.

Together with Danny, I headed in that direction, and we pulled out chairs to sit at the same table. Gladys, the same age as me (more or less) was nursing a pink lemonade, while Franklin, her senior by a year and a bit, had something that looked vaguely alcoholic.

"So, you found your dorm room yet?" I asked her.

"Oh yeah," she grinned. "My roomie's a Bible student. She keeps quoting Scripture. So I quote it right back." Her association with me and Danny's family had given her a more than passing acquaintance with the Bible, something that had pleased Dot quite a bit.

"Oh god," I groaned. "I wish mine was more like that."

"Why?" she asked. "What happened?"

Danny chuckled out loud and I shot him a dirty look, then recounted the events around meeting my roomie for the first time. By the time I finished, both Gladys and Franklin were laughing.

"Well," Gladys managed to comment, "I'm glad you made a good first impression."

"Oh, shut up." I tried to sound grumpy, but I couldn't stay mad at Gladys.

A teenaged waiter came over, and Danny and I both ordered a soda. The drinks arrived in relatively short order, and we settled down to drink and catch up on news.

"Have you seen the ROTC facilities?" asked Gladys.

"Oh, you're keeping that up?" asked Franklin. "What branch are you going into, anyway?"

"Well, the one here's for the Marine Corps," I said, recalling the literature I'd read. Which wasn't really an answer, even though it sounded like one. The PRT didn't have an ROTC program yet, after all. "I haven't seen it yet, though," I added, turning back to Gladys. "When do we start that?"

Her eyes widened. "What, you didn't get the flyer?"

"No," I told her. "I've been a bit busy."

"Here," she offered. "I got a spare." She handed me a crumpled flyer; I flattened it out and read it.

"Wait, what?" I blurted. "Tonight?"

She nodded. "Tonight. Just orientation. You don't have to show up in uniform, but they'd probably like it if you did."

"Well, it's a good thing I brought mine along today," I observed.

"Yeah." A sudden grin. "Oh, and get this. They've got Springfields! And pistol training, too!"

A matching grin spread across my face. "Excellent. Something I might be able to beat you in."

She showed her teeth. "Hah. As if."

Danny glanced at Franklin. "Should we be worried that the girls are talking about how good they are with guns?"

Franklin snorted. "We're just going to have to out-masculine them, then." He deliberately lowered his voice to a growl. "Now, then, my dad's got a four-by-four that … "

Gladys and I burst out laughing at the same time.

I'd had two more glasses of pink lemonade before Danny glanced at his watch and paled. "Ah crap," he muttered. "I should have been home an hour ago. Dad's gonna kill me."

I stood up. "I'll walk you to the bus stop."

"Don't worry about it," Franklin told him. "I can give you a lift."

"You sure?" asked Danny.

Franklin slapped him on the back. "No problems."

"Are you safe to drive?" asked Gladys practically.

He nodded. "I've been on water for the last hour."

I hugged Danny. "I'll see you later, then."

He hugged me back. "See you later – college girl." Pulling free of the hug, he stepped back before I could perform mayhem on him.

I grinned. "Watch it, you."

Gladys and I walked them to the parking lot, where they got into Franklin's car. We waved goodbye as they headed out of the college.

"Okay, now I think it might be time to go get changed if we don't want to be late for ROTC," Gladys suggested.

"I think that might be a good idea," I agreed.

We strolled back toward the dorm side by side, at ease with each other.

"So Danny's talking about getting an engineering degree," I commented.

"Might not be a bad idea," Gladys agreed. "Not sure what Franklin's going to do. Family business, I guess." Franklin's family owned a chain of convenience stores.

"He could get a degree in business administration," I suggested.

"That's not a bad idea either," she admitted.

We entered the dorm building and headed up the stairwell. She got off at the floor below mine.

"What room number are you?" I asked her.

"Two-thirty-three," she told me. "You?"

"Three-oh-nine," I replied. "Come up and visit sometime."

"I will," she promised, and disappeared into her corridor. I kept going up the stairs.

By now, finding my dorm room was second nature, but I paused when I got there; a tiny, lacy pair of panties was hanging over the doorknob.

Oh great. She's got someone in there.

But my need was great, and so I slid the key into the lock and carefully turned it. It snicked, and I eased the door open.

There was an amorphous lump on Andrea's bed, and soft noises coming from that direction that I didn't want to try to interpret. I went straight to my suitcases and tried to recall which one I had packed my uniform in. Heaving one on to my bed, I pulled the contents out on to the covers, trying to see what they were by the dim light filtering in through the window.

That wasn't it, so I lifted the next case up. I was in the middle of searching through it when Andrea's bedside lamp clicked on.

"Taylor, what the fuck?" she demanded. "Didn't you see my panties?"

"Look, I'm sorry," I told her, using the light to grab what was definitely my uniform. "I have to get changed. I'll be out of your way shortly, I promise."

It was then that I looked around at her, and the girl sitting up in bed with her. They were both still wearing underwear, for which I was grateful. But it was her bedmate that I was staring at.

"Ah, it's all right," Andrea assured me, in one of her mercurial changes of mood. "We were just fooling around a bit anyway. This is that girl I wanted you to meet. Doesn't she look just like you?"

"I … guess," I managed. "So you two … you're a couple?"

Andrea shrugged. "Sort of. On and off. We've known each other for years. Ever since Lustrum."

I was still staring. "Lustrum …?"

"Oh, yes," agreed the other girl in her bed. "We were both in her following, until people started getting violent, then we left. But we kept in touch with each other. Pleased to meet you; I'm Annette. People call me Anne-Rose." She offered a slim hand.

Numbly, I shook it. "Taylor Snow," I replied automatically.

Oh shit. My mom's in a lesbian relationship with my room-mate. What the fuck do I do now?

End of Part 2-1