Subjects

6- Join The (Night) Club

I know that you all must be dying to know what happens next, but you can't rush into the story quite yet. Let's all just take a moment to relax and take in all of what Leo told the four back there. Do you remember what he told them? Science experiment? Aliens wanting to take over earth and make all mankind their slaves? Any of that rings a bell? Good (I hope you said yes, by the way).

Now let's all just take a few deep breaths and acknowledge the fact that this whole story has just been turned upside down. To be fair, I did put a few warnings throughout the story so if you're not happy with what's happening right now, it's on you. Now, are you ready to continue? I know I am. Let's do this.

Just like you had to take your time to accept all that happened before (or you were forced to?), the four subjects have to do just the same. Only for them, this is a whole lot harder. I mean, just imagine having that kind of announcement land on you right out of the blue. Like a wise man once said - "inconceivable!" ("The Princess Bride", anybody?)

And that's how Roger, Eva, Ben, and Emily all ended up lying awake at night trying to grasp the implication of what they were told by Leo. Now it is one am in the morning and none of them are any closer to falling asleep than a bear after a long winter slumber and a few cups of coffee. It is at that point that Eva decides it is time to do something.

"Are you awake?" she calls out to Emily.

"Yes, you can't fall asleep either?" Emily asks.

"No way I can sleep after that, it's terrifying." Eva shudders when she thinks back to Leo's talk.

Emily agrees, "You're absolutely right. It sounds crazy but somehow I believe him and this is the scariest part."

"Do you think we all could really become-" Eva choaks in the middle of the sentence.

"Slaves?"

"It's... It's... I want to think that it was all just lies," says Eva.

"But you can't, neither can I. I..." Emily sounds completely terrorized. "I felt it when I looked him in the eyes. I don't know how to explain it."

"I know what you mean," says Eva. "What are we going to do?"

"I think we should go talk to the boys," Emily answers. "We're in this together, after all."

The two girls slowly and hesitantly leave their room. They walk across the hall and to the door of the room where they know the guys stay.

"Do you think they're asleep?" asks Emily.

Eva simply shrugs her shoulders and knocks on the door.

"Who do you think this is?" the girls can hear Ben whispering to Roger inside the room.

"Open up! It's us," Eva says with the loudest tone that can be considered a whisper.

Merely ten seconds later, Ben opens the door, "come in."

The light in the room is on and the expressions on Ben and Roger's faces seem identical to the girls' own feelings - absolute horror. The four sit down on Ben's bed and he is the one to break the silence, "can't sleep either?"

"How can we?" Eva answers for both of them. "This is like every kid's worst nightmare."

"It just sounds so absurd," says Roger.

"I still can't wrap my head around this," continues Ben.

"And yet we all know it's true," sums up Emily.

They all sit quietly for a good minute or two. Four teenagers on a tiny island, who have all just learned that they could be the key to the world's salvation or its destruction.

"Do you trust him?" Eva does not mention Leo's name, but they all know who she is talking about.

Ben is still unsure himself and yet he says, "well, he did do everything he could for us."

"But he could have told us the truth in the first place," Eva argues. "He didn't have to manipulate us into coming here."

"Would you have ever agreed to come here if he hadn't done that? He had no choice," replies Ben.

"So what?" Eva glares at Ben. "It is our choice to make. I think that it is much safer at home than out here in the middle of nowhere."

"Of course that's what you think." Ben gets upset. "You can't spend a single day without your dad taking care of you. Do you ever think about anyone but yourself? Do you realize you are risking the future of the entire planet?"

Eva turns away before Ben can see the effect of his words on her. "I'm going back to our room, Emily," she says with a shaky voice. Only when the door is shut behind her she lets go and starts crying.

"I get it, Ben, we're all scared but right now we only have each other," Emily stands up and follows Eva out of the room.

"What did I say?" asks Ben.

"You were a little harsh on her," answers Roger.

"Do you think I need to go and apologize?" Ben wonders.

"Maybe you should wait a few minutes," Roger says.

Now that Eva is not here with all of her annoyingness Ben starts to feel like he could have been more considerate. This has been a tough day and Emily was right - they really do only have each other.

Emily walks into her room to find Eva in her bed, shaking under her blanket. She sits at the edge of the bed and takes the blanket off of Eva's head.

"I'm sure he didn't mean it, Eva," Emily tries to cheer her up.

"He did, and I deserve it," Eva miserably replies. "I do only think of myself."

"That's not true."

"Give one example for something I did for someone else," Eva looks up to meet Emily's eyes.

Emily thinks back to the day until she finds something, "You fed that albatross on the way here."

Eva chuckles lightly, "I only tossed that bread at it because I couldn't find a trash can."

"And I admired your care for nature!"

The best friends are the ones that make you laugh even when you feel like the world is about to end. Or when the world really is about to end. On second thought, if the world is about to end, laughing probably isn't the best idea. In conclusion - if the world is about to end, avoid your best friends (I am great at logical thinking).

And then the girls hear a knock on their door.

"It's probably Ben or Roger, do you want me to get it?" Emily asks.

"No, I'll open the door." Eva wipes away the remains of tears and walks up to the door, Emily follows. As expected, it is Ben that knocked on the door. Behind him stands Roger.

"I'm sorry, Eva, about what I said," Ben says.

"That's alright," Eva says. "I wasn't too nice to you either. You were right, though. This is not about just us anymore. Leo could be our best shot at fixing this. I think we have no choice but to trust him."

They all agree to try and work with Leo, for now. The boys go back to their room and Eve closes the door behind them. Through the door, she can vaguely hear Ben saying, "Aliens? What's next?" She smiles softly and goes back to bed.