Lost Boy (True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys) #Wattys2016

Chapter XIII

The rest of the day was very boring and normal. I honestly hated working at the laundromat, but at least I got paid five carbons an hour.

And at least Arthur was there. He'd tell me the news and history, but he refused to tell me about himself. All he would say was that he lost some people that were dear to him.

We'd been given apartments in a busy part of the city. The group of Killjoys called themselves the Soda Shoppe. We shared in one group of two and one group of three: Silicone and Flam, then Kid, Soda, and I.

When I got home, Kid was sitting almost spread-eagle on the recliner and Soda was doing something in the kitchen that involved a lot of angry yelling and smashing sounds. Not that I could see through the smoke, though.

I walked over to Kid and shook his arm. "Hey, what's up with your ever-so-intelligent leader over there?"

He rubbed the sleepiness off his face. "He's been trying to cook pancakes all day. He found this recipe while we were at a diner, and he's pretty much obsessed with it."

"I think I'm getting it now!" I heard Soda yell.

Kid shook his head and held up his fingers. "Three, two, one."

"Dammit!"

"Bingo," Kid sighed.

"Has he literally been doing this all day?" I asked, a laugh in my tone.

Kid nodded, clearly annoyed. "All fuckin' day. So how was work with Flam?"

Soda stormed out of the kitchen with a smoked-out, sideways chef hat and a burned "Kiss The Cook" apron. His purple hair was even a little singed.

"What are you two laughing about?" he wheezed, blowing out a smoke circle. "Huh?"

"You," Kid sighed. "Fucking moron."

"I'm the fucking moron?" Soda asked.

This is gonna be good.

I took a seat on the couch and leaned watched the show. They kept snapping at each other, almost like...like...

Civil and Wayward.

I froze in place as I those thoughts hit my head. Civil and Wayward.

I missed those two like crazy, almost as much as I did Atom. I missed the Den, the desert.

Everything about this damn city made me want to go back. The nurses and doctors were always going "Ma'am, ma'am, ma'am!" "Get her meds!" "Get her to her room!", and when I would correct them, they would just look scared or continue to misgender me.

I didn't notice I was thinking out loud when I'd muttered, "When do we get to go back?"

"I don't know if we'll ever get to."

I looked up from my feet. "What?"

"I don't know if we'll ever get to go back." It was Kid who'd said it. "They're holding us hostage. We won't be able to leave unless we..." He pointed two fingers downward like legs and wiggled them like they were running.

"Get ou-"

Soda put a hand over my mouth and stared at the door like it was going to come alive and attack us.

"Don't you know that they're right outside the goddamn door?" he hissed. "They could be listening in right now! Use your head!"

I ripped off his hand and scowled. "Sorry, sorry. You stink like smoke, by the way."

"Hey, you stink in general!" Soda snapped back.

"No he doesn't," Kid retorted. "Moron! At least think of a realistic comeback!"

"So when will we...get the groceries then?" I asked, immediately thinking of a code word for it.

"Groceries?" Soda asked, an eyebrow cocked. "But the fridge is f-"

"No, imbecile! The groceries!" Kid winked.

Soda then cocked his head to the side. "Huh?"

"You know, for the co-leader of the Soda Shoppe, you're such a nincompoop!" Kid growled. "When we-" He did the finger-wiggle thing again.

"Oh!" Soda nodded. "I get it! We can do it...this weekend? I think we're free then."

I smiled widely. Hear that, Atom? Freedom is in our grasp!

If only you were here to enjoy it with me. Even if there is someone who ca...

"Can I ask a question?" I piped up, raising my hand meekly.

"Yeah, go ahead, go ahead."

"Can I bring a friend from the city with me?" I asked.

"Who is it?"

"His name is Arthur."