After the Drift

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Madness

I sat back in the chair I had now been sitting in for oh, five hours without a break.

I have consumed about six cups of coffee and I think my heart just broke a land speed record.

I continued tapping my pen on the desk and read the same line two more times.

'The source of the Kaiju comes from the portal, or the breach, located in the Mariana Trench. What is on the other end of the breach is highly speculated but truly unknown.'

Much like a leak in the plastic rubber pool we had growing up, we needed to seal this breach up.

Nuclear missiles were the only thing that undeniably kill a kaiju without the risk of humans being directly involved...

I tapped my own a few more times.

What if we used an assault of multiple nuclear weapons to seal the breach shut?

I dropped the pen to the paper and took off out my door.

Why had no one thought of this?

I booked it down two flights of stairs and ran smack dab into a wall. Well, might as well have been.

The man turned to me and gave a small smile.

He was quite handsome. Messy blonde hair, scruff and muscles if the tautness of his shirt was any indicator. 

He also looked somewhat familiar.

"Ah, sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going."

He smiled again. "You don't remember me, do you?"

I blinked. "You look really familiar...did we got to school together?" The hamster was running full tilt in my head trying to place who this man was.

"No, no. I was well out of the academy before you go there. It's Raleigh. Raleigh Becket."

I stood there with my mouth opened into an unsightly 'o'. Eyes wide with shock.

"Seriously? Raleigh Becket?" He gave a nod and looked down to his feet, shuffling slightly.

"Oh my god! Mom and dad will be so happy to see you!" I grabbed him and hugged him to me.

He was a bit older than I was, but he and his brother were good friends with my parents. Even Lucie had loved him.

The smile faltered on my face. His eyebrows dipped, showing his concern. "Everything okay in there?" He rapped his knuckles on my forehead.

We were still close when I noticed someone moving quickly off to Raleigh's right.

"Uh..." I hadn't even gotten a word out before the moving mass revealed itself to be Chuck Hansen.

I could immediately see the fire behind his eyes. "Raleigh Becket. Didn't think I'd see you here again. Lose a bet?" His eyes flicked over to me, but he didn't say anything to me.

Uh oh.

I stepped away from Raleigh and put up a placating hand. "Chuck, be nice-"

He quickly cut me off. "We have not spoken directly in months, Ruby. I come around a corner and you're hangin' all over Becket like some long lost love." He scoffed.

"I tried givin' you space but this- whatever this is- is done. I'm not goin' to be led around by my dick." His face was flushed and he kept sounding angrier. "And you, good luck being a single pilot. Your brother was always the better one anyway"

Chuck then stomped away, pushing past anyone who dared get in his way.

My mouth hung open, useless. What even just happened?

Raleigh turned to me and let out a shaky sigh. "Well that sucked. Are you alright, Blackwell?" He placed a hand on my arm.

I looked at him blankly. Everything started feeling so surreal. Soon, everything started looking real sideways.

"Ruby? Ruby! Hey!"

Everything had finally shut off. It was finally quiet.

                                   —————

I felt my head throbbing first. I could hear my pulse like booming thunder. Damn, my head hurt.

I cracked an eye open and dang if those lights weren't bright. Slowly everything around me came into focus.

The first thing I saw was my mother sleeping in an uncomfortable looking hospital chair not far from the bed I realized I was laying in.

I was in the infirmary. I closed my eyes and thought back to the last thing I remembered.

Chuck.

My eyes flew open. I had to talk to him. Make him understand.

I went to get up but immediately felt off. My struggling alerted another that I was awake.

Raleigh Becket.

"Ruby." He smiled softly. Worry clearly written on his face.

"What happened?" I sat up again, much slower. Raleigh moved forward and helped me settle in.

"Well after you plowed into me, we got reamed out by Chuck Hansen and then you went a little pale."He grabbed the back of his neck and looked to the ground. "Then you weren't quite as vertical as you once were... I got to you just in time to save that hard head of yours"

I gently touched the back of my head. It was tender, but nothing light it could have been on that hard concrete floor.

I sighed heavily. "Today has been fucking madness."