Fluorescence: The Complete Tetralogy

by P. Anastasia

  “Yes, Your Honor?” I tangled my hands together to stop myself from fidgeting.

  “From what I have been told about this case, you and the petitioner’s daughter are… how do I put this plainly? Involved?”

  I swallowed hard and glanced at Kareena’s father, who had an unemotional look on his face. He shrugged, gesturing for me to hurry up and answer.

  “Um… yes.”

  “And if you and the daughter have a fallout, how do you think that may affect your home situation, should I choose to honor this petition today?”

  I straightened up in my seat. “Well, if you’ll forgive my presumptuousness, Your Honor, I don’t believe that will happen.”

  “Nothing is set in stone, son.”

  “True, but I’m doing the best I can. I don’t have to be a scientist to know most high school relationships don’t last all that long, but we’ve already been together for over a year. Since the beginning of our relationship, I’ve set out to put more effort toward graduating, studying for my classes, showing up on time. Giving a damn about my education even though I never had before. I work a real job as hard and as long as I’m allowed, just to save money to pay off my motorcycle. Things were getting bad back home and I never had much of a reason to try before I met Alice.”

  The judge’s eyebrows rose and his jaw eased open. “I see,” he replied with a nod. “Quite a thoughtful response. Thank you for answering with honesty. It has put your case in perspective for me.”

  I held my breath while the judge leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin.

  “Very well. I have decided to honor the petition and award full guardianship and its responsibilities to the petitioner.”

  Yes! I heaved a sigh of relief.

  “That girl’s mother,” he said, pointing at Jane, “truly believes in you. I hope for both her and her daughter’s sakes that things work out.”

  “Me, too. Thank you, Your Honor.”

  “Thank you, Brian, for upholding a respectable image for young people today. I’ve heard good things about you from the Jamesons. It seems you’ve been an influential role model for their son.”

  Hearing that made me feel so much better about myself. I’d never thought I was being a role model by any means. I was just living—being me—and trying to keep Alice in my life the only way I knew how.

  . . .

  “I’ll miss you, Brian,” Peter murmured, staring at his feet and scuffing his shoes against the driveway pavement.

  “I’ll miss you, too.” I offered up a hand and we fist bumped.

  “Before I forget… let me get something from the house.” I ran back inside and grabbed a box off the couch.

  “I got this for you,” I said, handing Peter the large cardboard box.

  “Wow! A present! What is it!?” He set it down onto the driveway and dropped onto his knees.

  “Merry early Christmas, Peter.”

  He ripped the long strip of tape off the top of the box and pulled open the flaps. His eyes widened.

  “YES!”

  Half the street probably heard his excitement.

  He plunged his hands into the box and lifted out a shiny metallic blue skateboard with a red bow attached.

  “My very own skateboard!? And it’s the same awesome color as your bike, too!” He hugged it tightly and beamed. “Thanks, Brian! You’re the best brother ever!” He got up and reached his arms out to hug me, still holding tightly to the skateboard and bopping me in the kneecap with it.

  “Hey. There’s more.” I motioned for him to check the box again.

  He dug down inside and pulled out a helmet, and then elbow and knee pads. All part of the deal I’d made with Sue and Thomas. He could have a skateboard if I got the protective gear to go with it. Peter was more than mature enough to handle something I’d had even before I was his age. I’d never even had any of that protective stuff when I’d hit the concrete. Talk about growing pains.

  “Can you help me put these on before you go?” Peter held up the elbow pads.

  “Sure. I’ll even show you a little bit of what I used to do. I’ll make sure you get off to a good start.”

  “Yessss!” Peter jumped up into the air and ran around in a half circle, flailing his arms excitedly. “I can’t wait to show Matt!” His huge toothy grin was contagious.

  I helped strap the elbow and knee pads onto him and then hopped onto the skateboard deck to show him a few tricks. He squealed and shouted as I did a grind on the street curb and then a few ollies—little hops that brought the board off the ground. Neither was a big deal really, but it impressed him. I didn’t want to screw up and faceplant in front of his parents. It had been a while since I’d been on a skateboard.

  I surrendered the board back to him and let him try. He stepped up onto the deck and I explained how to balance and center his weight properly so he wouldn’t fall. I walked beside him as he kicked forward to gain speed, and then I had to jog after him. The kid was a natural.

  He hit a small pothole and toppled forward. I lunged and snagged him by the shirt, catching him before he hit the ground.

  “You gotta watch for those,” I said.

  “Yeah. Thanks for saving me.”

  He chased after the board as it rolled down the street.

  “Stay on the curb while you’re learning, okay? Don’t play in the street when there’s cars. Keep an eye out.”

  “You sound like my mom,” Peter said, walking back toward me. He set his board down on the grass at my feet and polished the deck with the side of his hand.

  “Sorry, but I care about you.” I chuckled. “We care about you. I want you to be in one piece when I come back to say hi someday.”

  “Yes!” His arms shot up and he bounced in place. “I can’t wait until you come back to see me! Can you bring Alice if she’s not sick? She seemed really nice.”

  “Sure. I’ll try.”

  Peter shrugged and kicked a rock down the driveway. “So, are you gonna marry her?” he asked.

  “Alice?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I hope so.”

  “Cool. Maybe I can come over and play with your kids.”

  His words made me laugh out loud. “I think it’s going to be a while before any of that happens. Hopefully.” I meandered over to my motorcycle and picked up my helmet off the seat. “Well, I gotta go, Peter. I’m sorry. I hope you like your board. Be careful.”

  “I will!” He came over to me and stood by my bike. “I’m going to miss you, Brian,” he said softly, frowning. “You’re the coolest guy I’ve ever known.”

  My heart sank, but I forced a smile so I wouldn’t bring him down. “I’ll miss you, too. You’re a good kid. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Got that?”

  “Yeah.” Then he shuffled closer and fidgeted.

  “Go ahead. Give your bro a hug.” I bent over and wrapped my arms around him. He hugged me tight and I ruffled his hair with my fingers. “Take care of yourself. If you ever need anything, your mom knows how to reach me.”

  In only two months, the kid had grown on me. So much so, in fact, that if someone bullied him in school, they’d have a much bigger kid to deal with now.

  Peter wanted to meet Alice again. It made me feel terrible, but it wasn’t possible. I couldn’t even tell him the real reason why. We couldn’t risk starting him until we knew the truth behind the fluorescence and what the Saviors wanted out of those who had been implanted with it. Peter was too important to me.

  Chapter 12

  “Hi,” said Alice, standing up from the grass as I pulled into the driveway.

  “Hi.” I slid my helmet off and tucked it beneath my arm. A twinge of emotion made my throat tighten.

  She opened the garage door and I walked my motorcycle inside.

  “So… this is different, huh?” I said, dragging a hand through my hair. “I guess I don’t have to go home now.”

  “This is home,” she r
eplied softly, almost smiling.

  I flipped down the kickstand and parked my bike near the wall. My stomach twisted into a knot of anxiety and excitement. I wanted to take Alice into my arms. Embrace her tightly. Kiss her deeply. But the thrill became stifled by awkwardness. Maybe it wasn’t right or I was overstepping my boundaries now.

  Maybe she didn’t even want it. She’d been through a lot. Who knew what new fears and concerns were brewing in her mind now that so much had changed?

  “So, how was class today? Did I miss anything?” I asked.

  “Good. And no, you didn’t miss anything important.” She opened the door that led from the garage to the house and we stepped inside.

  “Are you doing okay?”

  “I’m feeling better, yes.”

  Finally.

  “Good.”

  “Mom’s going to pick up Chinese food after work tonight to celebrate.”

  “Cool. I know this has been hard on everyone. I wish I hadn’t been such a burden to you guys.”

  “You weren’t,” said Alice, clasping my hand. “I felt confident it would work out. I trust my mom and she trusts you.”

  “I’m glad it did work out.” I squeezed her hand. “We need each other… now more than ever.”

  She sighed.

  “Alice?”

  She looked up at me with tired eyes.

  “Besides… losing her… what else is bothering you? You seem… drained.” I closed the door behind us.

  “Anything can happen,” she said, exhaling loudly as she flopped onto a kitchen chair. “It’s hard to plan life around something you can’t plan for at all. I’m scared.”

  “I know what you mean.” I pulled out the chair beside her and sat. “And I’m sorry about this whole mess. Especially what they’ve put you through. At least you have me now. That’s definitely something you can rely on.”

  A little half-crescent tugged at her lips. She cocked an eyebrow.

  “This doesn’t make you some kind of adopted brother, does it? Because that would be really weird.”

  I laughed hard and she cracked an honest, toothy smile. It was a smile I hadn’t seen in a while. “No. It doesn’t,” I assured her. “And yes, that would be weird. I wouldn’t want to make out with my sister.”

  Alice burst out laughing and brought a hand up to shyly cover her mouth.

  Anything to make her laugh.

  Anything to get the old Alice back.

  “It’s nice outside. Do you want to go for a ride before dinner?”

  She shrugged.

  I took it as a yes.

  . . .

  Traffic was sparse at sundown. We’d narrowly avoided Monday evening rush hour. I took a back road to get to downtown. We flipped open the visors on our helmets and enjoyed the cool air. Winter wasn’t much of a winter on the coast. Not like in Montana. High 60s doesn’t exactly scream “Christmas” to me.

  Strands of shimmering white lights and coils of spruce and holly garland decorated streetlamps along the narrow downtown streets. Bright red banners swayed in the wind and speakers blared tired instrumental Christmas carols all around town. The same worn-out classics I’d been subjected to every day at work since Thanksgiving.

  We stopped at a red light and Alice leaned against my shoulder.

  “It’s pretty downtown,” she said.

  “Yeah. It is.”

  “My mom and I used to come every year and walk around after Black Friday. Do some shopping. Get a waffle at Stan’s over there.” She pointed past my arm to a little cubby-hole of a bakery across the way.

  The light changed to green and I squeezed the gas.

  “Maybe we can come back after dinner,” I replied, raising my voice to combat the growl of the engine.

  “Maybe.”

  We rode down several other streets and then circled back toward the main square where a huge Christmas tree stood, glowing with thousands of colorful lights and decorated with hundreds of oversized ornaments. I parked nearby and we strolled down the block and past a string of brightly decorated shop windows toward the tree. It must have been a few stories high. We had to crane our necks back to see the bright gold star perched—slightly crooked—on top of the tree.

  “Now there’s no way I could straighten that star,” I said, pointing a finger and tipping my head to the side. “I’m not that tall.”

  Alice chuckled, recalling how I could touch the star on her tall Christmas tree back home without straining.

  I hooked an arm around her waist and pulled her in to an embrace. She exhaled a sigh and nuzzled her face against my shirt. After a few moments, I took her hand and walked with her to a nearby bench. We sat beside each other near the foot of the tree and I wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She settled her weight against me and we sat there for a while, watching the colored lights twinkle.

  The smell of pine saturated the air. Evening shoppers strolled by with bag handles draped over both arms. Many had steaming drinks balanced precariously in their free hands. I could almost taste the hot chocolate just thinking about it.

  I looked down at Alice as she rested her eyes, her head pressed against me. A gentle breeze whipped through the locks of her dark brown hair. The thought of her surrendering, trusting me, made my heart ache. This was so right, it hurt. But it was a good hurt. A pure, wholehearted, all-sacrificing kind of hurt.

  We’d been together for a year. I remembered asking her to be my girlfriend just after the holiday dance last year around this time. Then came our first real kiss the night of the Christmas party at her mom’s house. The kiss that brought my fluorescence to life. The kiss that changed everything.

  “Would you mind getting me a drink?” she murmured, nudging me gently and looking up at me with a smile on her face. The violet light of dusk reflected in her gaze, tinting the blue purple.

  “It won’t spoil dinner, will it?” I asked jokingly.

  “Nothing spoils Chinese,” she said with a smirk.

  “True. It’s so greasy and sweet. Alright then.” I reluctantly slid my arm from around her shoulders. “What would you like?” While we’d been sitting there, people had been popping in and out of the café just down the street.

  “No, wait,” I interrupted her just as she separated her lips to reply. “Let me pick out something, okay?” I stood from the bench and took a few steps before turning around to look at her. “Are you going to be alright by yourself?”

  “For ten minutes? I think so, yeah. Besides, I’ve got pepper spray,” she whispered, gesturing toward her bag and raising her eyebrows in exaggeration.

  She did have pepper spray. A little girly-pink can of it, too. But there’s absolutely nothing girly about pepper spray in the eyes. Besides, our neighborhood had a low crime rate and I wasn’t that worried about leaving her in the middle of a bustling town square.

  I shrugged and walked off toward the café.

  I propped open the door for an exiting woman and little girl. They thanked me and then I entered behind them, the glass door closing behind me. A brass bell jingled above the doorframe.

  A sweet menagerie of smells assailed my nostrils. Waffles. Freshly brewed coffee. Caramel. Cinnamon.

  My mouth started to water.

  “Hello,” the young woman behind the counter smiled and straightened her apron. “Welcome to Stan’s. What can I get you?”

  Alice and I both loved tea, but I had a taste for something else.

  “Uh… can I get a large hot chocolate and medium black tea latte, please?”

  “Sure thing.” She poked a few buttons on the cash register. “That’s eight dollars even.”

  I handed her a ten. She gave me back the change and then slid the receipt over to me. I tossed a buck into the tip jar.

  “I’ll get those right out to you,” she said in a cheerful voice as she reached under the counter to grab two Christmas-themed paper cups. I took a seat at a little table a few feet away and waited
.

  A young couple came in—a girl latched onto the guy’s arm. The two snickered quietly. I smirked. Cute. Is that how Alice and I looked to others? They seemed barely past the first kiss phase, if I was reading them correctly. All bright-eyed and smitten with each other. A little too oozy for my taste—in public, at least.

  “Here you are, Brian.” The barista set two drinks on the counter.

  “How did you know my name?” I asked, getting up to retrieve them.

  “It’s me, Christy. I used to work at Jacques’, too, but I quit a few months ago. You don’t remember me, I take it?”

  Her round face and curly black hair did look vaguely familiar.

  “I think I do. Yeah. Sorry, I’ve been going through a lot lately and life’s been hitting hard. Sorry I didn’t recognize you.”

  “Don’t worry about it, Brian.” She smiled with her eyes. “We all have tough times. Merry early Christmas. Oh, and I hope she likes her drink,” she added.

  She’d read between the lines. And she was right; I had a girl to get back to.

  “Thanks, Christy.” I took up both steaming hot to-go cups and headed back out into the streets toward the main square.

  Alice was waiting patiently on the bench, her hands folded neatly in her lap and her gaze lovingly fixed on the Christmas tree.

  “Hey.”

  “Yay! You’re back.” She straightened up and reached to take the drink from my hand. She sniffed the steam wafting from the slot in the lid. “Smells good. What did you get?” She leaned over as I sat beside her and I held my cup under her nose. “Hot chocolate? Mmm…” She closed her eyes and took a second sniff. “Delicious!”

  I felt stupid. I’d only gotten one hot chocolate, and by the look on her face, I could tell she wanted it.

  “Oh. Oops. I mixed them up. The hot chocolate was for you.” I took the cup from her and offered her mine. “They must have mixed up the sizes,” I added, thinking fast.

  “Yay!” She cupped her hands around it and nudged me with her arm. “Thanks, Brian. I love you so much.”

  I smiled and tried to act cool about the screw up. “You’re welcome.”