SomeWhere On... (BXB)

Day 2

When Murph says he gonna do research, it's not as simple as it sounds. "I'm going to do research", in Murph language, means, "I need a notebook and pen and my computer and I'm not going to be leaving the desk for any reason besides bodily until I have all the facts to make a definitive decision."

Which also means I have a couple of options to pass the time –

1. hang out in Murph's room watching him research (which, not gonna lie, is really fuckin' attractive but also fucking boring as shit), or

2. go downstairs and socialise.

And I must hate myself a lot because I'm going down the stairs towards the living room with my computer.

Murph's aunt isn't there. Neither is Lizzie.

Little Sister is.

"Where is everyone?"

She shushes me. "I'm battling Colonel Winters."

"Again?"

Little Sister presses a button hard and glares at me. "He played dirty with the snipers."

I open my computer. "What game is that?"

"Radioactive Wastelands 3."

I type it into my computer. And pull up the wiki. "So...why're you trying to kill him?"

"I'm already in control of the Capitol's Provincial Army. I just want to take over now." She doesn't even look up.

And we don't say anything. Also because Radioactive Wastelands 3's story is something Murph'd probably like. Since it's not just "we had a nuclear war", but rather "we had a nuclear war, and here's everything that happened before and after it that's affected it".

"Have you taken the Radio Tower in Onyx Rivers yet?"

She presses a button hard again and looks angrily at me. "I don't need to take the Tower. I have Provincial Army."

I glare back. "The wiki says 'The Radio Tower helps the Raiders organize.'" I look up.

Little Sister sits up. "The wiki's bullshit and – "

I gasp. "Oh my God! You kiss your aunt with that mouth?"

She shushes me. "The Radio Tower's – "

"I'm telling." No, I'm leveraging.

"No, you're not!" she shouts and grabs me, slamming down her game on a pillow. "You tell, I'm gonna tell Auntie that you tried to rape me."

I blink.

Also because WHAT???

"I'm dating your brother. I bought a £500 flight to come check on your brother. I flew halfway across the world to see your brother. I'm pretty sure I'm in love with your brother. Ya see a pattern here?"

She still glares.

I lean forward. "Your logic's airtight." And I begin heading off.

But she's still holding onto me. "Don't tell Auntie."

"Take the Radio Tower."

"First you gotta tell me you're not gonna tell Auntie."

"First you take the Radio Tower." Honestly, I don't give two shits about the Radio Tower anymore. But she's just made too big a deal about the damn thing that I just wanna make her nervous a little more.

If I did this with Murph it'd probably go over his head. Or I'd be dead. It's hit-or-miss with him.

Little Sister looks down and grits her teeth. "I can't. The Army's not willing to follow me that far into the Wastelands. It's not their territory anymore."

"Oh. Why didn't you say that?" I shake her off my arm. "C'mon. I'll help you cheat."

She looks at me skeptically. "Really?"

"Video games suck when you lose. Better to have someone help you cheat than you just dying all the time, right?" I go back to my computer.

It's her turn to blink. "Did Murph put you up to this?"

"No, he's researching."

"Got it."

"And I like cheating. In stuff that doesn't matter, I mean." Tell that to Year 4's maths test. Still didn't get a good grade in it.

Cut to me screaming about the Wasteland Raiders ten minutes later. Little Sister's screaming at me in this annoyed, scared, shrill thing because she's not stealthy enough.

Murph comes down an hour later. "Goodness, you guys can make a racket," he sighs.

"Sorry," she whispers, glaring at the screen.

I grin at him. "I helped her capture the Radio Tower." And it only took three tries and five backtracking attempts to do it.

He smirks. But his dimples ain't there. He's tired. "I don't know what that means, but I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," Murph says, leaning down to scratch my chin.

It tickles. I pull away. "You okay, luv?"

Murph frowns and glances away for a moment. "Not right now, Tommy."

My turn to look away. "H-how was researching?"

He sighs and sits down next to me. "Exhausting, honestly." His hand brushes against mine for a second before Murph puts it in his lap. "Learned a lot, though."

"That's...good." I tap my fingers against my legs and wait for him to say something else, but he doesn't. I go back to helping Little Sister stop an uprising and blow up a city.

Murph pats my shoulder and goes back upstairs.

I just wanna scream.