Accidents Made Right 1: Pistanthrophobia

Chapter 41: Hope For The Best, Prepare For The Worst

Throughout most of the chopper ride, I was looking back on the moments of me and Rowan that we had together. It was the only thing I could think of that would keep me focused on the job at hand while getting rid of the stress I had about what's soon to come.

Nobody had talked for almost the entire trip, so everybody started doing their own thing. Rose was tuning her gear, Isabelle was reading a book, and Rob was staring off into space, most likely looking back on his memories with Elizabeth, similar to what I was doing.

About ten minutes before the chopper had landed, Rose looked over to me and asked "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm just... nervous. I wonder if Rowan won't recognize me, or if he'll try to kill me on the spot. I just... I don't think I'll be ready if I have to kill him."

"Hope for the best, prepare for the worst," Rose responded.

Continuing, Rose put her left hand on my right leg and said "But no matter what happens, we'll still be here for you. All of us."

...

"I know you took a degree in psychology, but wow, you're amazing at giving emotional support."

"Well, it's not easy to be good at emotional support. Not only do you have to be able to know what to say, but you also have to have the courage to say it, no matter what it is."

...

"Yeah, I guess you're right," I responded as I looked at Rose.

...

"You know, about yesterday, if it's any consolation, if I wasn't gay, I'd totally date you."

"Please, you don't have to be humble about it. You can be honest," Rose said kindly.

"I'm serious. You're actually... wait, you don't mind if I compare you to Rowan?"

"Not at all. It'll get you to release some more tension about this whole situation anyways."

"Well, you do remind me of him a lot. Your green eyes, how you're always nice to me... how you both are way better than I'll ever be," I said, looking away from Rose.

"Hey, don't say that. You are better than you think."

...

"Sorry, I didn't mean to say that. Sure, I have my doubts about my own self-worth, but usually I know I'm a good person. I guess I just accidentally let that slip out."

"It's alright to have doubts, just... remember to remind yourself why you're good."

I didn't say thanks that time, because Rose already knew I was thankful, without me even saying it.

You know, you've got some good friends here Steve, Hope complimented.

Yeah, even Isabelle. Sure, she's slow to trusting people, but I think she's starting to like me.

Yeah, I see it too. Just a shame Luke isn't here to help.

That's part of the reason why I invited Rob. Think of it like an rpg video game. Luke was the tank, who protected the team. Without him, we need somebody to fill that role, and who better than the only person on the planet who could survive a nuke hitting them?

The helicopter stopped moving, and slowly landed on top of a helipad for an Italian government facility. Once it landed, we all got off of it before it took off again and headed back to our base. I looked towards the door that went from the helipad to the insides of the facility, and saw a white, blond, green-eyed man who was waiting for our arrival.