JD spent most of the night watching movies on one of the thousands of channels the Holmes family subscribed to. He was tempted to explore the house, but knowing his luck, he’d end up getting lost. Besides, the house was too quiet and creepy when the lights were off. The shadows played tricks on his eyes, but it was the silence that bothered him the most. JD liked noise. In his house, there was always something going on, and there was no dead, empty space like in the mansion. The rooms were all packed full of things. It felt lived in and warm, inviting even. How could Orlando stand it?
The last to go to bed, he was also the first to wake up, and hungry. He waited for twenty minutes to see if anyone else would join him, texted Cadence to let her know he was awake, and ran into Orlando’s sister on his way out of using the bathroom.
“It might be a while. Go ahead and help yourself to whatever you want to eat,” she said.
At JD’s house, breakfast was always a production. His father was a stay-at-home dad, and it was a rare occasion that anyone would eat only cereal. Being the oldest of five, it was often his job to help.
She said to help himself to whatever he wanted, so he decided to cook. It took a few minutes, but he was soon navigating his way around the kitchen as if he’d lived there his entire life. He could tell that Orlando’s sister was startled. Her jaw dropped as she spread cream cheese over her bagel and watched him crack open some eggs, plopping them into the pancake batter. Again, it was too quiet, so he took it upon himself to start humming.
“I thought I heard you. When I awoke you weren’t there, and I was curious as to whether or not you had left for home already. What are you doing? It smells good,” Alan said as he wandered into the kitchen. He noticed Orlando’s sister and nodded. “Greetings.”
“I’m making food. Go ahead and sit down; it’ll be done soon. Did you sleep good?” JD said and glanced over at, what was her name? He couldn’t remember Orlando’s sister’s name for the life of him. He didn’t want her to notice how weird Alan was though. If she was paying any attention, she wasn’t reacting.
“Well enough. I was more comfortable here than I was back on—” he paused. “Back home. I’m surprised, but pleasantly so. I feel much better than last night.”
“Good.” JD flipped a couple of the pancakes, and soon there was a stack ready for eating. “Who wants some?”
“I’m good, thank you,” Orlando’s sister replied as she took a bite from her bagel.
“I will eat,” Alan said.
“Me, too,” Orlando said as he walked into the room. He went to the refrigerator and pulled out a carton of orange juice and another of milk. “Honey Bunny, I didn’t know you could cook.”
“I’m full of surprises,” JD said with a grin. He was in a fantastic mood, and not even Orlando’s attitude could bring him down. His phone vibrated, and he saw Cadence had finally replied.
'Glad you survived. Sorry was out w mom. Are you all awake now?'
'Yes. Come by ASAP,' JD sent.
“Lyssa, can you hand me the puzzles?” Orlando asked as he took his glasses of juice and milk to the table. He sat down next to his sister. “Please?”
Lyssa, that's her name. He dished up three plates of pancakes and then searched for the butter and the syrup. Again, his phone went off.
'Is everything ok?' Cadence asked, and he smiled. That was just like her to care so much.
'Yes. I wanna fill u in,' he sent and then settled in at the table. The quiet returned.
“I thought you were going to give yourself blue hair,” Lyssa said as she finished her breakfast.
“I have all weekend, so don’t sound so disappointed,” Orlando mumbled.
“Right, should I expect you all for lunch, too?” she asked with a raised eyebrow.
Orlando rolled his eyes. “Whatever I do today, you can be sure you won’t see me doing it. You don’t need my permission to go out and see your new boy toy if that’s what you’re wondering.”
“You sure made it seem that way last night.”
“Like I said—”
“Orlando, what exactly is this food?” Alan said.
“Alan’s a foreign exchange student,” JD explained cheerfully in an effort to cover his bases. After all, almost everyone knew what a pancake was. He watched as Lyssa took this as a good opportunity to excuse herself from the table. It was good to have a break in the tension.
“It’s a pancake,” Orlando said.
Alan nodded, taking another bite. “We have a food like this back home. It’s thicker, more of a sponge-like texture, and a bit sweeter in flavor, but this is good.” His smile faded however, and he stared at his plate.
“Homesick?” Orlando asked. It was quite possibly the first time he’d ever shown concern for another person, at least that JD had seen.
Alan nodded again. “Terribly so.”
“When do you get to go home again?” JD asked.
“What you would call five years is how long I am to serve. Or until the war has ended or moved to a new location,” Alan said in between bites of food.
“How long has all of this been going on?”
“Six years.”
That was surprising to JD because the way Alan described it before made it seem as though this battle was being waged for decades. Six years felt recent, and yet like a long time all at once. Orlando sat back in his chair and scratched at his chin, his unnaturally black hair falling over his face and hiding any emotional response he might have been having. JD decided to start doing the dishes, anything to keep busy, and not look as though he were awkwardly trying to think of a new topic for conversation.
“Did you volunteer?” Orlando asked.
“I did. We do not draft, as you call it, unless it is absolutely necessary for our defense. My nation’s involvement in this fight is strictly because we disagree so strongly with what is going on, but we are not directly affected beyond trade repercussions. Even then, those are so minor they would not be a motivating factor to get involved.” Alan took another bite, chewing slowly.
Orlando nodded, and JD was impressed that he could not say something sarcastic if he tried.
“Is your sister your caretaker? I see your parents are not in the house today, nor were they last night. Is this normal?” Alan asked.
“Normal for our country, you mean?” Orlando raised an eyebrow and watched as Alan nodded. “No, it’s not. It’s actually frowned upon to not have a parent in the house. Lyssa is over the age of adulthood though, so she’s considered a suitable legal guardian for me until I turn eighteen, which will be in a year. That’s when people here are called adults.”
“Why are you disobedient to her?”
He rolled his eyes. “I’m not disobedient.”
“Dude, you are, but Alan, what you need to understand is that this is normal behavior between siblings. Do you have any brothers or sisters?” JD laughed from the sink.
“I have a brother who's significantly older than me. I haven’t seen him in a long time, and I have a younger sister who's a young child. I was just under the assumption that those who are in charge are treated differently.” Alan shrugged.
“Usually, but with my situation things are a little complicated. I have to take care of her as much as she takes care of me,” Orlando said.
“You’re still pretty mean to her,” JD said as he scrubbed out the last pan. Orlando was glaring at him. “What?”
“Why are you cleaning?”
“I figured I’d give your maid one less thing to do.”
“Actually, we don’t have a maid. I would have done it after you left.”
He raised an eyebrow. “It’s not a big thing.”
“And neither is how I treat my sister. It’s none of your business anyway,” Orlando snapped.
“I was just curious. I’ve studied your culture for a long time, but witnessing it first-hand, I find it is full of a lot of contradictions and exceptions to rules,” Alan said as he finished his food.
“I bet we’d
find the same thing if we visited your home, too.” He stood up and brought his plate over to the dishwasher.
“Perhaps. How long am I permitted to stay?”
“How long are you going to need a place? I’m pretty sure I could hide you here somewhere, so long as you stay put. I can set something up in the ‘bat cave’.”
“You have a cave of bats?”
“It’s a cultural reference,” Orlando said, then sighed heavily. “The room we were in when we first started showing off our powers, and you gave us the four-one-one and blah, blah, blah? That’s what I’m talking about. My sister doesn’t know where it is, and I’m pretty sure we can make it at least a somewhat functional living space for you by the end of the day.”
“That would be greatly appreciated.”
There was the sound of knocking, and then loud bells played the beginning notes of the Westminster Chimes from London. Alan jumped, and Orlando stood up. He ran a hand through his hair before disappearing from the kitchen. JD moved away from the sink to follow, wondering if this was Cadence joining them. He could only hope. Orlando was fast, and JD was soon lost. The only guide he had were their voices.
“Cute pj’s,” Cadence said, and when JD heard that, his pace quickened.
“Ha, what are you doing here?” Orlando asked.
“Well, it’s just about eleven o’clock.” Cadence stepped inside, and JD joined the party right as she reached out to pat Orlando’s shoulder. “I thought I’d check to make sure you’re all doing okay.”
“Alan is no longer quoting vegetables, and we’re all still breathing,” JD said with an uneasy laugh.
“Wonderful, I have something I want to show him.” She made a gesture for Orlando to lead way.
He rolled his eyes and turned on his heel to walk them back to the kitchen. “Invite yourself in, make yourself at home, and do whatever you want; I’m going to go change.” He made a sharp gesture for her to sit down at the dining room table before leaving them again.
“I thought you said you guys were ready.” Cadence sat down and took a pancake off of the remaining stack.
“Usually when I say to come by ASAP, you don’t arrive until three hours later. At the very least, you call first.” JD went back to cleaning up.
“Good morning Cadence. JD has shared with me pan cake. It was quite delicious,” Alan said.
She smiled. “I’m glad you’re feeling better. You had us all worried. You want to fill me in?”
Alan nodded before giving her the quickest version of the entire story he could.
“And now Alan can’t go home, so we have to make him a place to hang out while he waits to gain back all of his abilities. So I don’t know exactly how that’s going to work, but Orlando seemed to have one of his elusive ideas,” JD said.
“I wouldn’t call it elusive. It’s called shopping,” Orlando said as he re-entered the room. His dark hair was combed now and no longer a mess of tangles. He wore blue jeans, holey ones, but they were blue at least, and a black t-shirt for some band JD had never heard of. It was about as normal as either of them had ever seen him. He brushed his hair out of his eyes briefly.
“Hurry up and get dressed. Alan, try this on.” He threw a pile of clothing at him.
JD nodded and went to his bag to get his new outfit. “Wait, if you’re not being elusive, what’s the plan?”
“JD, doll, get dressed,” Cadence said with a giggle.
****
Within an hour, the four were all at Ikea.
“Alan, stop playing with the buttons. You gotta leave them closed,” JD said and pulled the man's hands away from the red shirt Orlando had provided for him. It was a little small across his chest, but it worked well enough. Alan was obviously uncomfortable though.
“Your home is so warm. How can you wear clothing like this constantly, and then more on top?” Alan mumbled.
“It’s cooler outside than it is in here,” JD said. He watched the alien stare with wide eyes as the group rode up the escalator towards the viewing room. “You okay?”
“Yes, your technology is intriguing. What is this store for?” he said as he peered over the handrailing at the floor below them.
“Things for your house,” Orlando said from behind. He returned his attention to Cadence as they took notes on what they would need to buy. “For now we can put one of the air mattresses there for him, but I was thinking we could turn our HQ into not only an informational base, but also a place where we can crash and not have people asking questions. I don’t know about you, but if I came home with so much as a scratch on me, I would get grilled.”
“Grilled? Why would you be grilled? I did not think that cannibalism was a highly favored practice here.” Alan asked.
Orlando shot JD a glare and then went back to talking to Cadence, now lowering his voice so neither of the other two could eavesdrop.
JD sighed. “’Being grilled’ is another slang term we use sometimes. You guys have slang where you’re from, right? Words you use that have more than one meaning, or can be used in different contexts that don’t apply to the actual definition?” Alan nodded. “Okay, good. If something sounds weird like that again, it’s probably just slang.”
“Yes, of course.” Alan blushed, and for the first time JD could actually tell it was possible. Alan’s skin tone was not quite as red as it normally was. It was actually a soft tan with only a slight red tint to it. “You are staring?”
“You look so normal. The red thing you do, is that like, your war paint?” JD asked.
“For simplicity’s sake, yes.”
“Cool, so from what I’m getting, we’re going to be making some kind of an apartment for you.”
“All of us,” Orlando said before returning to his conversation with Cadence.
“Whatever. So do you have a specific kind of decor you’re going for?” JD rolled his eyes.
“That’s what we’re discussing,” Cadence chimed in. “We’re trying to figure out what we need now, and what we will need eventually.”
“We’ve decided on a microwave, a refrigerator, and some basic furniture,” Orlando added.
JD sighed. “Thanks for including us.” He glanced over at Alan, but the alien didn’t seem to care. He was far too busy inspecting the different styles of shelves and tables on display. Cadence smiled at him, and that lifted his spirits some, but he wasn’t liking the precedence being set in the group.
“We mostly need you to help lift with your big manly arms. We can all sit down and discuss colors and patterns when we get back if you really want to be that involved.” She was buttering him up. He wasn’t sure how much he liked it.
“And I don’t know why you would. Hey, Alan, you wanna see something nifty?” Orlando said and moved on ahead so he could look at the appliances. Alan followed, and Cadence motioned for JD to sit with her on one of the couches.
“I didn’t mean to leave you out. Test these out with me?”
He took a seat next to her, and even dared to be close. “My butt is an expert couch finder.”
“I’ve noticed this before in the past, not that I’m thinking about your butt. I’ve been trying to think of how to deal with this.”
“Deal with what?” He glanced her way. What was 'this'? Was 'this' them, and the ever-present attraction they had for one another that he was sure was so obvious, or was 'this' business? He watched her, trying to get a read on what exactly she was hinting at, but came up dry. Ever since Cadence gained her newfound ability of knowledge, she was becoming increasingly harder to figure out. She didn’t wear her emotions on her sleeve as much as she used to, and it disappointed him. He had always liked that best about her.
She met his eyes and shrugged. “You. I’ve been trying to think of how to deal with you, and how you sort of lack a—.” She shifted in her seat. She didn’t finish the sentence and instead only looked at him. “I know it’s not something that’s easy on you. I want you to know you’re important in this whole thing, important to me.�
�
“Aw, shucks, Cadence. Call it Orlando rubbing off on me, but is there a reason you’re giving me this ego boosting speech?” JD smirked.
“I know you’ve always wanted it.”
“Like you said, I’m a late bloomer. I’m sure we’ll find plenty to keep me busy with until I flourish, so to speak.”
“How do you feel about educating Alan since he’s kind of clueless?”
“I think I can do that. You were right by the way; Orlando doesn’t get anything.”
“Right. You know he would have too much fun messing with Alan’s head.”
“It’s pretty tempting. I’m not gonna lie.”
She grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. “I don’t want things to change. Maybe that’s your job?”
Cadence did her best to hide it, but he could tell she was scared. Her body was so tense, and he was positive that if they hadn’t been in public, she would have broken down under his gaze. She was trusting him with a task, to be her rock, and he was more than okay with doing everything he could.
That was when Orlando coughed loudly from in front of them. JD stared up at him with a large dopey grin.
Orlando rolled his eyes. “I’ve picked out a microwave and mini-fridge for now. Something tells me you two still have a bit of testing to do for the couch.”
Chapter Eleven
Most of Orlando’s free time was spent in what was now being called ‘The Apartment’. Sometimes, it was HQ, and on occasion JD was still known to call it the bat cave. The Apartment was a much more safe term to use though. If he was talking about it on the phone with one of the others, he could mention it without Lyssa giving him a strange look if she happened to be nearby. She was getting nosey because he had friends. A term he used loosely, but it was slowly becoming a much more solid reality. He could at least say he was friends with Cadence. Alan was still irritating, but tolerable. The more the man learned of their culture, the more he seemed to adapt to it and not stick out like a sore thumb. JD was JD.
They were now at week three since Alan fell from the sky. They’d been working on The Apartment for one of those. The top floor, or what was commonly called the attic, was cleaned of all spiders and dust bunnies. Things were constantly being moved around and stored up there. The bathrooms were the next rooms to be cleaned out, and all the amenities were functioning properly again. JD insisted on making sure the Jacuzzi bath worked and proceeded to test it every time he came over—with his swim trunks on, thankfully. Now everything was dusted and vacuumed. All that was left to do was assemble the furniture, install the rest of the appliances and equipment, and paint.
Battlefield Page 10
