P L A N B E T A

Chapter Twelve

August 6th, 2042

Wagner

Arabella, Orren and I all sit in an old Tesla model S going from New York city to Sleepy Hollow. The sun now making the car gold, and I see the sign for Bronxville. It seems only minutes later the hologram signs for Tuckahoe and Hartsdale pass, we are then suddenly in Sleepy Hollow. The driver keeps driving through the small village. The trees cover the sunlight from making the car gold, but it's still warm.

Soon, we arrive at the old lakehouse. My grandparents are waiting outside sitting on their chairs. As we get out, they smile at us all and open their arms for hugs. "Welcome children!" Grandma Elle exclaims.

"We are so glad to have you here. Where's little Peter rabbit? Did he not come?" Grandpa Dale asks

"Grandad, did you not hear what happened?" Orren asks. "Jack Peter was captured. He was sent into a pod and blasted into earth's orbit. We haven't gotten hi yet. Our parents were scared about us getting captured too so they sent us here."

My Grandmother and Grandad were astonished. Grandma had tears in her eyes as she hugged us and then rushed us inside. "Alright, children, no time to waste. Get inside, get inside. Maia, Orren, your cousins will be here soon to say hello. Don't tell them about Peter. Just... say that he went on a family vacation." Grandma then rushed to the stairs and yelled, "Gabriel Damon Villano get down here and unpack your niece and nephew's bags! I know that Stephanie is over, have her get one, too!" Gabe is uncle that is eighteen years younger than my mom. His girlfriend of four years, Stephanie, is my favorite person.

Gabriel and Stephanie race down the stairs. Steph engulfs me in a hug and laughs. "I missed you! Never leave me for that long again!" I hug her back and pull away from the hug. "Where—where's Peter?" she asked.

"In space," I say under my breath and head up to my room that I knew I'd share with Ara.

As expected, there were two beds made. I went to the one I always slept in and was about to sit down when I turned around and looked at the bay window, which was by far, my favorite part of the room. The cushion for the sitting structure was soft and I leaned against the wall.

When we all started training, we had a photo shoot. Orren had his own a year before, but our Plan Beta photoshoot when we were five is one of my most precious memories. We wore our first black jackets, Jack Peter's hair was gelled for the first time, Arabella had her hair braided for the first time, and it was my first time wearing tights, not leggings, tights.

We did classic childish poses, we did professional posing, we did it all. There was one on my wall of me kissing Jack Peter's cheek. I look up at it and then down at my hands. I don't even realize the tears running down my face until they hit my hand. I looked at the setting sky and hoped that maybe once it became dark I'd be able to see the pod or something.

I bent down to the compartments under the seat and pulled out one of my notebooks and a pen.

Dear Jack Peter Cullen,

I miss you. A lot. I don't think you know how much I miss you. It's been three days, P. I've never gone more than two days without seeing you. I look at pictures and stuff of us but it's not the same. I miss you so much. I feel like a small fish looking through the ocean into the atmosphere. I just want to see you in person again. Spud, if you ever wanna come back home, please do. In fact, do come home. Come on, P, it won't hurt. Just make your way back. It's time to come back... come back.

I tore the paper out of the notebook and folded it neatly. With another piece of paper, I folded it to make a small envelope. I put the letter into the envelope and placed it in front f me. I never thought that sitting two stories up could make me feel like I was six feet under. But I was closer to him now than having my feet on the ground, so I would deal with being a fish out of water.

I'm only two stories up, and I shouldn't be at a loss for air yet I feel as though I am, and there is nothing that I can do. I decide not to suffer any longer, I walk out of my room and realize that it is later than I thought. Dinner was long ago, and everyone was down in the living room except for Orren.

"Where's O?" I ask my grandad.

"Oh probably up in his room, you know him. The most introverted extrovert you'll ever meet," he responds. I nod and walk up to Orren's room.

His lights are off so I presume that he's asleep, but that would be a fool's guess. I open the door slightly and watch as Orren is laying down, still in the blue jeans and a black shirt that he wore all day. He's examining the condom that Jameson gave him. I chuckle to myself and lean against the door frame until I realize that he's unwrapping it. He pulls out the actual rubber but then the moonlight shining through his windows show something fall from it. He drops the rubber and picks up the glimmering object. It is small and I can't quite see what it is in the darkness.

I made a sudden movement and he looks over at me, then scrambling to make the condom and shiny object disappear.

"How long have you been there for, Maia?!" He exclaims.

"Long enough to know that you weren't doing anything inappropriate. What's the shiny thing?" I walk over to his bed and sit down. He opens his palm and examines the thing that I now see is some sort of computer ship. "A computer chip?" I ask. "What does it have on it?"

"You saw me open the thing, you think I'd know?" He asks. I shrug and then look at the chip in a deeper way.

"Well, we have to see what's on it," I say.

"In the morning, Mai...in the morning. I'm too tired right now, and you need some rest too, you've quiet the emotionally draining past few days. I love you, now get to bed," Orren commands.

"But O—"

"No. Now go rest." I frown and almost walk out the door, but then I turn around and tackle Orren in a hug. I already lost the most important male to me, so I might as well not lose the second most important.

The raven doesn't return to the bay. He sits upon the highest trees. The small golden guppy wonders why he doesn't come to visit more often for she was very fond of him, she cared for him a lot. She wished that she could one day sore above the clouds with the raven. She is so close to the Beatles that are crawling upon the land but she still aspired to be with the one furthest away. She hasn't ever turned toward the bigger fish that has been right by her all along, because she only cares about getting the raven to come to visit her once again. A short time can feel like a long one, but once they're gone, they're gone, until you can get them back down again.