Kadic Academy Kids

THE BEST DAD PT. 2

Tovah Pressman Kadic Academy Tenth-grade student

"I had a nice time with you, father," I said as he dropped me at the airport. "Still wish I didn't have to go home early." It was frustrating that he had to send me home early, I felt like we had been making progress, father-daughter-wise.
I made it back to school, after sleeping through the entire flight. Imagine my surprise when Sissi and Mr.Delmas were waiting at the airport.
"Are you guys picking someone up?" I asked.
"Yeah! You!" She said taking my suitcase from me.
"How did you know I would be here?" I questioned.
"Your dad and my dad are like friends or something?" She laughed.
"Are you girls going to have a sleepover tonight? We can get a pizza or something," Mr.Delmas put his hand on my shoulder and Sissi's. "Tonight I'm not your principal, I'm your fun uncle!" He roughed up both Sissi and I's hair.
"Dad, you're so embarrassing." As we got into the car, she said it was weird seeing the principal out of school. Since I had made it back into the state, my cell was back in the network. I started getting a bunch of missed calls and texts from Aelita and Jeremy.
Mr.Delmas dropped us off at their house that was next to campus. I went into the bathroom and dialed Jeremy.
"Hey, I'm back in the state, what's wrong? I just got one of your million texts." I scoffed, he had no concept of relaxing, it was a miracle he hadn't taken a vacation to the grippy sock hotel.
"There's been a surge of activated towers, my family went on holiday, I had no idea that I was going to be so far away from the Supercomputer!"
"Okay, so why are you calling me?"
"Aelita said you messaged her last night saying you'd be home, you, Aelita, and Yumi have to go to the school and deactivate the tower." He said, stress covering his voice.
"Okay, I'll make it there in a few, thanks for the debrief, chief." I stepped out of the bathroom and looked at Sissi, "I have to go back to my room, Aelita is going through something, she wasn't super specific, I'm just like, bleh, so bogus! Y'know?" I grabbed my backpack, before Sissi could say anything I was hovering in the doorframe. "Why don't you pick out a movie? I'll be back before you know it!" I rushed down the stairs, trying to do that thing tall people do and skip a stair to go any quicker, but my short legs were no match, I just took the stairs like a normal person, making it to the front door at a normal pace. I mumbled to myself as I ran to the factory, I wondered if I had anyone besides myself to blame for my current situation. I mean, what other sixteen year old's are ditching their sleepovers to go save the town, possibly the whole world? I never quite understood the whole scope of all the things going on around us, how could I? I made it to the factory, gasping, I just had to make it back to Sissi's house before Mr.Delmas made it back. 

"So what are we doing?" I asked ambling out of the elevator.  
"Activated tower," Yumi announced. "Can you man the computer?"
"Yeah, I'm on it." I sat in Jeremy's chair, unlocking the program. "Alright, everyone ready?" I asked. "Virtualization," I said mimicking Jeremy. "Let's hurry this thing up, the longer I sit at this computer the more I feel like Jeremy, also I have to be back to Sissi's house before her father notices I'm gone," I said typing the codes into the computer.
"Sissi?" Yumi asked.
"It's a long story," I said as I pulled up their vehicles, "you're going to need to go east, watch out there's a bunch of," I bent forward looking at the computer as if that would make it easier for me to understand. "There are monsters ahead of you." I wondered how Jeremy read this stuff, I heard the whirring of the elevator and veered around to see what was happening. "One-second guys," I said putting the headset on the keyboard, I turned about once again, and the elevator opened, and a fella in a suit hurled at me with a metal pole. "Hey, I think you have the wrong factory-" I spoke out as I swerved. "Guess not!" I sounded off dashing away, I snatched the headset, "I don't mean to rush you but there's a salesman here who wants to kill me." I dropped the headset as he launched at me again. "Come on, let's talk this out," I declared sliding into the elevator, I hit the button to go down, believing I'd evaded him, but when the elevator opened he was waiting for me. "Come on," I tumbled out of the way of his grasp.
"you aren't a real talkative dude." He reached forward, snatching me by the throat. "I'll give you my Bat Mitzvah money if you..." I jested, why not? But he grasped my throat tighter and tighter, things around me going dark.
"T," I felt somebody shake me awake. "Wake up," Aelita said as she snapped her fingers in my face.
"I'm up," I let out as I sat up. "Did you do it?" I asked.
"Yes," she helped me up, dusting my shoulders off. "Thanks for the assistance." Aelita chuckled.
"I'll see you guys tomorrow." I waved rubbing my hand over my sore throat.

I sprinted back to Sissi's house, as I made it upstairs Sissi was unwinding in a beanbag.
"Is Aelita alright?"
"She is, there was a leak in our dorm, but she's going to stay at Yumi's house," I said, I wonder how storytelling like that came so intrinsically.
"Are they fixing it?"
"Yes," I said sitting next to her on the floor. "Just a small leak."
"I chose the movie 'Petals of Desire', I thought we could make fun of it while we watched."
"Sounds fun to me."

As we started the movie my cell buzzed, it was Odd.
"Who's that?" Sissi requested.
"Odd, I don't know why he's just now messaging me."

[Odd: Have you gotten any of my messages?]

[Tovah: no I presumed you hadn't sent any.]

[Odd: of course I did, and pictures, I'm at the beach, I miss you a ton...]

[Tovah: I thought maybe you'd met someone else?]

[Odd: no, well besides the several mermaids]

[Tovah: haha]

[Odd: I'm coming back tomorrow, maybe we can talk then?]

"Talk then?" Sissi invited.
"Why does he want to talk?" I questioned, Sissi was the only person who knew that Odd and I was, well, sort of dating.
"Don't overthink it, maybe he just wants to talk?"
But I did overthink it, a lot. What if he didn't like me like that anymore? Odd had whirlwind romances weekly, what if he was just done with me?