Dynamic Duo: Gauge & Polly

Chapter 8: Home

Gauge and Polly's venture ended back at home. This time, they entered through the front door, where Gauge immediately spread himself across the makings of a loveseat in the corner. Their living room was small; the townhouse was small, too. But inside their living room was the massive bay window, which Polly used to stare at the joggers and newspaper delivery drones; the joggers didn't like it so much; he knew he was being weird too; there was this one guy in particular who'd retaliated against him, by continuing to take the same route every day, Polly had to defend the house, so he kept a watchful eye, Gauge did too, but when the mailman went the way of the dinosaurs his gazes weren't so malicious, they were more for the scenic purposes and to be with his friend.

Polly was back at his window. Gauge's father exited the master bedroom in panic; he was mainly dressed except for his tie, which he could never get right, and his fur. It was always messy like he was stressed out. His dad nearly tripped over an ottoman as he moved toward the kitchen, and Polly outstretched an arm to catch him just in time. The man was still too focused even to notice he almost broke his neck. Polly released him, and like a little windup toy, he continued his mission. Their father already knew about the Dynamic Patrol 'side job.' Gauge didn't wear a mask, and Polly had a signature look that couldn't really be hidden behind a costume. The people at their school even cherished them; they were naturally the most popular of popular. Despite this, the DP could still scramble their address from all public records, and any post involving their private lives was shrouded in secrecy by way of artificial intelligence and a team of dedicated personnel, who made it their mission to make people vanish. The benefit of not having a secret identity with his father was that he could experience all the benefits(although they were little) that came with his son being a superhero. Eventually... they would come. He didn't have to lie about where he was going at night, he didn't have to sneak out, he didn't have to hide his powers. "Father, what are you doing?" Gauge asked; his father was fiddling with the toaster when he looked up at his son. "I have a meeting." His father said as he struggled, but Gauge was surprised by that.

"Oh, that's great! I'm really proud of you!" Gauge's tail indeed approved, as it was wagging like there was no tomorrow; with just the tip of a single ignited finger, he toasted the entire bag of bread for his dad, the thin plastic bubbling up as it filled with steam. "Ah! Buddy, no! Not the whole bag!" Kieth shouted; he quickly undid the twist-tie and unsealed the bag, the steam ejecting rapidly; the bread was toasted, though. "It's fine. You're getting better at that." His father commented; as he did, Gauge exchanged a glance with Polly, a silent acknowledgment that they both suspected he hadn't seen the news report from this morning.

"Thanks, Dad," Gauge replied with a grin, his tail drooping now. "Did you hear back from mom..?" Gauge asked, and his father paused, "No... she's busy with her project. I don't want to bother her." Gauge's mother was a temporal mechanics engineer; she often worked day and night on her project; she believed it would bring greater good and allow the exploration of time again. Safely. Her failure to observe a work-life balance resulted in her and Keith's separation. But they still needed to get through the divorce paperwork. That was on purpose; they weren't sure if they were divorced. Kieth talked about her often, like he still loved her. "Well... I think you should... talk... to her." Gauge stumbled, "I will... she just wants to be alone for a while, and that's okay."

Gauge nodded. He didn't talk to his mother either, but he did love her. Polly was the only one brave enough to venture into the city and see her because he enjoyed attention and would not settle for a phone call. "She's fine. But she does miss you." Polly informed their father. The conversation about Gauge's mother lingered in the air as Polly stared out the bay window, occasionally glancing and waiting for his persistent jogger to come so he could stare daggers into him again like he always did. Gauge's father, Keith, managed a half-smile, appreciating the concern but choosing to focus on the interview ahead.

Feeling a bit subdued after the morning toast incident and the mention of his mother, Gauge decided to change the subject. "Well, break a leg at the interview, Dad. I'm sure you'll nail it. Anything we can help you with before you go?" Keith straightened his tie once more, his fur still ruffled. "No, no, I've got everything. Thanks, though. You boys take care, okay?"

As Keith headed for the front door, Polly stopped his father in the middle of his exit by the edge of his tie, and without hesitation, he tied it perfectly. Keith's tail moved in gratitude. "Heh... I guess it would help to have a tie that's actually tied." He offered Polly a kiss on the forehead and then departed. Once their father left, Gauge reclaimed his love seat and kicked on the television with the command of his voice. The device kicked on immediately, the invisible display materializing out of something that would've appeared to be a soundbar back in the day. The picture was crystal clear, aside from the fact that it had a blue glow around the frame of the image. The thing was set to the news automatically due to settings. Keith liked to view the news in the morning, and because he was late to almost everything, he just decided it was best to keep the display on one dedicated channel. Gauge cringed and flipped to the next channel. He was still licking his wounds. Simultaneously, both wristbands received the same alert. The first watch was calling to them.