Paradise Threatened - Chasing Normal, Arc 2

Scene 10: A Night on Undertown

"You're becoming predictable." Travis looked up from her tablet as Will sat down next to her. "What happened now?"

"Nothing." She went back to her animation.

Will leaned against her shoulder. "That's the scene they were blocking today, right?"

"Uh huh," Travis adjusted her frame rate, still trying to figure out how to keep her figures' movement more realistic.

"Is that your mom?" He pointed at a character who looked like an older Travis. "She's really pretty."

"Yeah." Travis bit out. "She is."

"Of course, it makes sense." Will didn't even flinch at Travis' pointed glare. "Well, you're her daughter, and you're pretty. It had to come from somewhere, right?"

Travis stood and started for the balcony door.

Will caught her arm, "Sorry. I was just trying to get a laugh."

"Well, you failed." Her voice had no fight in it.

"Yeah. I can see that." He let go of her. "Let me make it up to you." He softly smiled as she hugged her tablet against her torso. "It's actually why I was looking for you, but...you want to hang out tonight?" The smile faded as she didn't react. "Come on. You've been in town a couple of weeks, and the only place you've talked about is a grocery store. You should see more of the city."

Travis slowly let the tablet slide to her waist. "I... Yeah. Maybe."

Will grinned. "Great! Meet me here around eight?"

"Eight? On a work night?" Travis protested.

"You're too young to think like that." Will held the balcony door open, and Travis walked past him on her way back to the animator workspace.

##

Her grandparents were excited when she told them over dinner that she was hanging out with a friend from work. Travis wasn't sure what to think. Will was right; she really hadn't explored much of New Glory yet. And it would be nice to go out into town, at night, with someone her own age.

But he also hadn't told her where they were going. Years of reading filled her head as she tried to put together an outfit that could fit in anywhere. A boy casually asked her to hang out. This could be her first date. That put a lot more pressure on her to find the perfect outfit. A million questions raced through her mind as she settled on a nice pair of jeans and a ruffled top. She ran a brush through her hair, and headed out to meet Will.

"Wow! You clean up nice!"

Travis laughed at the cheesy pick-up line. "Thanks. You look..." Will was dressed in ragged jeans and a shirt with an odd looking cartoon character on it. He looked like he'd been napping just before he came to meet Travis. "like an extra in my mom's last movie."

He laughed. "Sorry, I should have told you we were going to the Undertown."

"What's that?"

"Come on. I'll show you."

##

The Undertown wasn't actually underneath New Glory. It was an abandoned building several blocks away from Sai Anto Productions.

"Are you sure we should be here?" Travis regarded the building from several feet back.

"I know it looks shady, but you'll see it's not that bad." He led her toward a window cracked open at a far corner of the building.

"No, I mean...," Travis tugged on hem of her shirt, "is this legal?

If Will heard her, he didn't react, instead shimmying through the window. Travis looked down the alley and back at the window. I hope I don't regret this, she thought as she pulled herself through the window. She landed solidly on her feet and dusted herself off, provoking a chuckle from Will.

The window dropped them onto a ramp, and the ramp opened up to a warehouse filled with wooden structures and barrels. Travis counted close to a dozen people riding boards over and around the constructs.

"Whoa!" She whispered.

"The city frowns on...less traditional athletes...practicing in public spaces. So we found this place and converted it." Will walked toward a group chatting next to the nearest wooden structure.

"This is so cool." Travis followed him, but she stopped short when one of the guys broke off from the group and pounced Will, kissing him.Okay. So....definitely not a date. She didn't have a moment to process that because the guy bounded over to her.

"Oh my goddess! Of course you're Travis. Will hasn't stopped talking about you."

Travis had almost never been the center of attention, ever. She had no idea how to process the pure ball of energy in front of her.

"Come on. You have to meet everyone. They'll love you." And then he laughed. "What am I saying? They already love you."

Travis shot Will a panicked look, and he stepped in. "Maybe we should take this slowly."