Subjects

53 - Operation Memory

"Morning!"

Angie is skipping down the stairs to the dining area. Ben, Emily, and Alice are already there.

"Good morning, honey," Alice hugs her. She holds on as long as she can before Angie slips out of the hug and goes to hug her two friends.

"Do you want some?" Alice slides her plate over to Angie. At the center of the plate is a quivering pile of VEPP that Alice barely touched.

Angie happily takes a spoon and digs in.

"It's just like Leo's cooking," Alice smiles at the memory of the horrible meals he made.

Angie nods and takes another spoonful, she doesn't seem to mind the strange texture (and taste, and smell).

"How long do you think we are going to be here?" Emily asks no one in particular.

"Until Roa decides she had enough of us," Ben says. "It's been four days since she left, who knows what she does when she comes back."

"I don't think she'll hurt any of us," Angie says while trying to pile what remained of the VEPP onto her spoon.

"I actually agree with Angie on that," Emily says. "If Roa wanted to get rid of us, she would have done it already. As long as we don't bother her, why should she care if we're here?"

"I don't know," Ben can't shake off this sense of danger. That being said, even at his birthday he couldn't shake off the sense of danger. 'I fear, therefore I am' should be his catchphrase. "I don't think she is a big fan of humans."

Lunch is the meal that finally broke Alice.

"This is terrible," she puts down her spoon and pushes the plate still full of VEPP.

"I know!" Eva is happy that someone gets her.

"Isn't there any place we can get normal food around here?" Alice says.

"I don't think we should leave the cabin," Mr. danger says.

"Maybe you and Eva shouldn't," Alice says. "But I am not a national celebrity last time I checked."

"Yes!" Eva is completely on board. "I saw a supermarket on the way here, please go get some normal food there!"

"Right, I remember it wasn't too far," Alice fantasizes about what she can get there.

"Still think it's a bad idea."

"Ben," Eva says. "Shut up."

Ben can't hide his smile. Lately he can't not smile. Especially around Eva, and since most of the time he is around her, his cheeks usually start to hurt around the afternoon. Not that it stops him.

"Do you think there is a post office there?" Angie asks and stops his chain of thoughts.

"Post office?" Alice looks at her. "What do you need it for?"

"I need to send a letter," Angie makes her most serious adult face.

"You mean the letter to your friend?" Alice remembers the paper she saw Angie writing on. "What was his name?"

"Jeff," Angie says.

"You wrote a letter for Jeff?" Ben asks.

"I have," Angie raises her chin, proud that she is the first to come up with this idea.

"Where does he live?" Alice asks.

Even Ben doesn't know the answer to that question.

"You can mail it to the hospital," Emily suggests.