Generation 4, Chapter 12: Reunion

After all the events of the past week, it was surprising to see things return to a more normal pace. Nobody dared to utter a word on how we had acted while being held captive. It was embarrassing that we, who were all friends, had turned on each other like that. To rectify this, we decided to get to the bottom of this mystery organization, and if we found it, put an end to it.

Some would find it idiotic that we did not run to the police and report it, but in truth, that would have made a bigger mess of things. Doing things their way could hurt a lot more people than if we did it secretly.

It would be dangerous, yes, but we had two trained Air Force officers with us, and a knowledgeable thief who had once been a part of the criminal organization. We stood a chance...maybe. It required us to be like spies, secretive and sneaky.

But that wasn't something that would interrupt our daily lifestyle.

In fact, our lives were so normal, I had the courage to meet up with my family again. A small sort of reunion, as my mother had said. Unfortunately, she had the audacity to recommend that I bring my "special lady friend" with. Darcy had definitely  spread some rumors to her.

I had no special lady to accompany me, but with Vala's constant nagging in my ear about how she had no life, I had no choice but to bring her along with me.

"Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?" she asked, her voice that of a hyperactive five year old. She was literally jumping up and down in her seat.

The jerky movements had a great impact on how smooth the car was strolling over the road, and I had to put my foot down on the break. "Jeepers, Vala, calm down. You're gonna get us into a accident if you keep jiggling about like that!"

"Oh, please. This is a fantastic automobile. You just can't drive properly. If you would just let me take control of the steering wheel..."

Her hands were reaching over, and I reacted on instinct, slapping them away. "I'm driving, and that's final. If I let you take over, we'll probably end up in Vegas."

She pouted innocently. "There's no harm in having a little bit of fun in Vegas. And as they say, what happens in Vegas..."

"Nothing happens at all," I interjected.

"Well, does this town at least have some sort of leisure activity to keep me busy? No offense, Danny boy, but you're not the most fun person on the block."

I sighed. "I know that. But to answer your question, I have no idea. I've never been in Starlight Shores before. To be honest, I don't even know why my mother requested us to meet here. Apparently its the home of my grandmother, and they like to have meetings here... Whatever the case, we're staying in a hotel."

"Ooh, one bedroom?"

"Two," I replied tersely. "And if there were only one, I'd sleep outside."

She rolled her eyes at me, smirking. "Am I that repulsive?"

I pretended to think about it. "Yes."

My grandmother had no room for my mother and us, which forced us to pay a hefty fee to bunk in a hotel room. Fortunately, Starlight Shores was filled with  people that had huge pockets, and they made their hotels look incredibly fancy, as well as comfortable.

"This is almost worth all the money I had to cough up...," I gazed around the room in wonderment, observing the finer details added to the wallpaper and furniture. The living room even had a grand piano! All that was missing was a hot tub, and this could be seen as the master suite.

"So sad that we won't be able to use the piano...," my hand reached out to caress the sleek, black surface. It must have cost thousands of dollars, and yet, no one really appreciates the music that it could make. Only the value and the stature that it implies.

"Speak for yourself," Vala elbowed me out of the way, gallantly taking a seat behind the piano. After cracking her knuckles, she set out to let her fingers play over the ivory keys.

What I heard coming out of that instrument shocked me to the core.

Vala was like a professional concert pianist. She had the poise, and most importantly, the skill. The music sounded just like that I would hear in operas. For all her weird antics and seductive character, she was actually more than just a pretty face.

"This...What...How?" flabbergasted, I could hardly form a coherent sentence. She literally took my breath away.

"When you're an actress, it helps to learn things like this to sweep men of their feet," she winked at me, bringing the tune to an end. "I was in Paris when I was twenty, and had to seduce this really cute artist... 'Course, he liked people with character, apparently. The people I worked for gave me lots of money, but no instruction on just how to get some of this 'character'. I saw an advertisement in a magazine once, and that led to me attending piano classes. I'm a fast learner, so naturally, I can play as well as anyone in an orchestra."

"That's...," I cleared my throat. "Interesting. Unsure of what to say, I turned away from her and scurried down the corridor to check out the rest of the place. "I'm just gonna go unpack my things in the bedroom," I called over my shoulder.

"The bedroom? Oh goodie!" from the quick footsteps that strolled over the tiled floor, I knew she was following me. When I turned around, she stood before me, grinning from ear to ear.

"My room," I pointed a thumb over my shoulder to the room that hid behind me. "No one else allowed, okay?"

"You're such a spoilsport... I get lonely at night, you know!"

I smirked, turning to go to the kitchen. "Not my problem."

Though my mother was bringing all the food, being apprised of my awful cooking, I wanted to make something, at least. The only thing I was good at was making Autumn Salad, and that was what they were going to get.

Vala, apparently bored out of her mind, took a seat in the corner of the kitchen, observing every move I made with the knife in my hand. "Daniel, please, stop twirling that thing around, trying to look like a chef...it's making me antsy."

"Then stop looking at me," I simply rebuked.

"There's nothing else to do that's interesting!"

"I thought I was uninteresting, or as you put it, lame?"

"For the moment, you're the most interesting thing in this whole hotel room."

Just as I was finishing up with the salad, the sound of a buzzer emanated through the hotel room. "I'll get it," drying my sticky hands quickly on the pipe of my pants, I set out to let them in. The couple I called my parents entered the room with huge smiles on their faces. My mom felt so comfortable, she even kicked out her shoes.

"Hi!" my mom waved before my dad's arms encircled her waist. "It's been so long since we've seen you! How are you?"

"Good," I mumbled, extending a hand to my father. No matter what occasion, we were always taught to me formal and respectful towards our parents. He graciously accepted my hand, greeting me with a curt "hello". My mom, though smarter than all of us, always tried to be nice to everyone.

As my parents were having a hard time keeping their hands off of each other, Vala took the opportunity to grab my attention. "Dude!" she looked at me with her blue eyes, obviously spooked.

"What?"

"You didn't tell me your parents found the bloody Fountain of Youth!"

"Oh...that. I'll explain later."

~*~

Daniel's parents weren't the only one that came to the small reunion. Kaylin, his grandmother, accompanied them. Her husband, Aaron, excused himself from being there, citing that he had to make sure the neighbors weren't too suspicious of them not getting any older.

Being an excellent cook, having had years of practice to perfect the art, she took over the kitchen and prepared the food that they had brought along. Always taking over the role as gentleman, Daniel jumped at the occasion to help her in the kitchen.

That left Vala in quite a tight spot, namely...alone in a room with Daniel's parents.

"So, Vala...," Amelia smiled. "Did Daniel perhaps mention to you why Darcy isn't here today?"

"Oh, apparently her boyfriend, Mitchell, returned from France the other day, and now they're spending the whole day with each other. Goodness knows what they're doing. You can only spend so much time talking."

Richard's hand on the table tightened, but loosened once his wife placed a comforting hand on his. "That man...," was all he managed to mutter.

"It's nice to know Darcy found someone that shares her interests," he chuckled to herself. "And Daniel? Are you together?"

Her eyes grew wide once again. "You mean, as a couple?"

"Yes."

The look of shock vanished, replaced by speculation. "Well... I think we share quite a strong, spiritual bond."

"Really?" Richard couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

"Oh, definitely. I mean, at first it was all tumbling around in bed together, day in, day out, but now... We really enjoy each other's company, I believe."

The silent atmosphere that took over the room was uncomfortable, but no one dared to break it. Shocked glances were exchanged between Daniel's parents, both perturbed by the news.

Thankfully, it was at that time that Kaylin and Daniel finally returned with food, giving them an excuse to start speaking again.

~*~

It was cleared that my mom and dad were disturbed by something, but when I questioned them, they remained quiet. Only later, when I was halfway done with my food, did I dare ask them anything again. "What were you three gossiping about when I was in the kitchen?"

My mom scratched her neck, looking uncertain. "Well, she told us all about what you two have been up to."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, all about your adventures...," she swallowed. "In bed."

The immediate response I wanted to give was yell, but that was prohibited by the small piece of meat that lodged itself in my trachea. It resulted in a few seconds of embarrassing choking.

"Oh, dear...what I would to have captured a picture of that expression on your face...," Vala laughed. "It was priceless, truly. Mister and misses Jackson, I apologize for the lie that I had told you, but it was all in an effort to make this guy here a bit more lighthearted."

My grandmother laughed alongside her. "It was a good joke, sweetie. You should lighten up a little, or your life will pass by in the blink of an eye."

"What does it matter? I'm gonna live forever, anyway."

Disheartened by my lack of enthusiasm to be the life of the party, my grandmother, father and Vala formed a group of their own and took over the dance floor.

"Those were the years...," my mom giggled as she looked at the group together.

"You can still dance like that, mom. You're not old at all."

"I know, I know, but it's...," she sighed. "I do feel old. I feel as if I'm supposed to  be more responsible now and that I should let the new generation have their fun. It's hard to act normal when you have this secret to carry around with you for the rest of your life."

As she took a seat on the couch, I quickly took my place beside her, hopeful that the conversation would continue. "Our roles should be reversed, Danny. I'm the older, more serious one, and you should be exploring the world, cracking jokes with your friends."

My gaze fell on Vala, and the reality of my life hit me hard. "It'll never be like that, mom."

"Why not? What changed, dear?"

When I didn't answer, she followed my gaze, finally understanding what I meant. "Is it the girl?"

"Sort of."

"Care to explain?" she prodded me with a finger, not giving up too easily with my lack of response.

I shook my head, frustrated with the words in my head that I wanted to shout to the world, but could not. "The way that she entered into our lives was...a bit unsettling, to say the least. It's caused some ripples that we have to iron out."

"Right...," she nodded. "Daniel, you do know that I'm an Astrophysicist, and that  means I'm not an idiot. Why won't you tell us?"

"It's complicated."

"Simplify it then."

"I wish I could."

She left it at that, finally catching on that it was too big a secret to tell.

When it hit eight o' clock, they started getting their things together and heading out the door and down the elevator. My mom and grandma hugged me goodbye, whereas I was left with the same old handshake from my father.

As my mother had her hands on my shoulders, she whispered something in my ear. "I like that girl. She could be good for you, so don't push her away too quickly, all right?"

A curt nod was my old response, and as she climbed away, and the car sped off into the darkness, I waved slowly.

"She could also be bad for me," I sighed to myself.

Exhausted both physically and mentally from all the talking and cooking that was done today, I stumbled to my room, noticing that Vala's room was darkened. Huh. I didn't figure her to be someone that would turn in early.

I took my time closing the big, double doors, resting my head against the cool material. 

"Rough day, huh?"

"Yeah...," I breathed. Only a second later did I realize someone else was with me in the room. And of course, it was Vala.

"Please, Vala... I'm really not in the mood for your jokes."

"Come on! Some 'fun' could only be good."

"Definitely not. You're just trying to have a laugh at my expense, and I won't be standing for that. This whole sexual thing is just some kind of defense mechanism of yours when you're bored, I swear. Now please, just...leave."

Begrudgingly, Vala hopped off of the bed, but did not leave without a parting word. She grabbed me by the arm, her eyes burning into mine. "I told you all about my life and my own hardships. I let you in behind my protective barrier. It wouldn't hurt for you to do the same. I'm not just a toy, Daniel, although I majorly act that way. I'm a person with thoughts and feelings, and I can try to sympathize for your issues."

She let go, and hopped out of the room, but spared a second to blow me a kiss. "Good night, and sleep well."

I was so confused about this girl.