Chapter 16

Well, it certainly didn’t look like a gym. Blake had heard rumors only about the supposed place Player exercised at, and apparently that was all they were, rumors. Protector had brought him to an ordinary home, not a huge building filled with citizens working out. Kind of disappointing actually, but he had been assured this was where he was supposed to meet Player. Blake hesitated, but a promise was a promise so he knocked on the door and waited patiently for anyone to answer. Just as he was about to walk away, someone finally opened the door a crack.

Kia Gray hadn’t been expecting visitors, not even Pik. He normally called before coming over. After trying to quiet down Ralf and get him to nap or at least stay in his room, she gave up and answered the door. Kia only opened it a crack to see who was there, and could hardly believe her eyes when a member of the city’s police department in full uniform was standing on her doorstep. Why would the police be here? Dozens of negative thoughts ran through her head, including the possibility of her mom escaping prison, or one of her friends being hurt.

Blake met Kia’s dumbstruck expression with his own. The door was open a crack, and she was just… staring at him. He finally glanced down and realized his appearance. “Oh… uh… hi. Sorry to bother you, but I was just looking for James. I kinda forgot to change out of my uniform before coming by, but I promised him yesterday that I’d visit and this is the location I got. Um… may I… come in? Or am I at the wrong place?”

The door closed in Blake’s face for a moment as Kia almost fainted. It was such a relief to know nothing had gone wrong. But… wait… James hadn’t mentioned anything about this visitor, or about having a police officer friend. Maybe she should go and check with him to make sure this was real? Better than letting some stranger who could be an imposter into her home. The door opened a crack again as Kia told Blake she’d be right back, slamming it in his face again. As she ran up toward the attic to question James, Blake was rubbing his nose wondering what was going on. Maybe he should just go if the mountain dragon was just going to repeatedly shut the door in his face. “James never said he lived with anyone. Not that I asked, but he could have mentioned it at least.”

There was an odd pounding, thumping noise coming from inside the home. Someone very heavy coming very fast down a set of stairs… across tile floor… and… oh no. Blake tried to turn and run but soon found himself in a bone crunching hug by Player. He never even made it off the front steps. “YOU MADE IT! I thought you wouldn’t come, last night you ran outta the lab so fast I couldn’t tell you knew where this place was.”

“James, I think he needs air now. You’re crushing a police officer.”

Kia tapped on Player’s shoulder trying to get his attention. James finally released Blake as the poor police officer was gasping for air and holding his right arm. Player hugged him right over the brace, which had surprisingly withstood the crushing hug. “Oops, hehe. Sorry. Come on in, I gotta show you around and let you see the attic. All my exercise stuff is up there.”

Blake was still trying to catch his breath, unable to voice any objections at the moment. He was saved by Kia, who was probably more concerned with keeping law enforcement happy instead of his actual health and wellbeing. “James, I’m sure he had a long trip over here. Why don’t we get him a drink of water or a snack first?” And fortunate for Blake, James’ stomach growled at the mention of a snack. “Yeah, working out does make me hungry. Any sandwiches left in the kitchen?”

Kia promised to bring them both something to eat and drink. Blake barely managed to rasp out a thank you before sitting down on the nearest chair and trying to relax. James was a great guy, very nice, innocent, and in his own way very kind and considerate. It just seemed more often than not he forgot exactly how strong he was, and how big he was. Now Blake knew how Drake felt though. When they were kids Blake was always the big one. “So, you live here with her?”

“Yea, Kia’s the best isn’t she?” Player said with a huge grin on his face. It was the kind of look Blake saw when someone had huge respect and admiration for another person. Well, he also saw it in movies when someone was really happy to have someone as a girlfriend. Before he could ask Player about that, Kia came back with some sandwiches, chips, and two sodas. “Uh, sorry about slamming the door in your face earlier. Can’t be too careful with some of the crazy people out there. Nice to meet you officer…”

Kia was looking on Blake’s uniform for his badge. He KNEW he had that on a minute ago, maybe it fell off when Player gave him that hug. “Blake. And you don’t really have to call me officer. Technically I’m not on duty at the moment, but a lot less people try to mug you when you’re wearing a uniform like this. It’s a pleasure to meet you miss. Say, you wouldn’t happen to know where my badge got to, would you? I could have sworn I had it on a minute ago.”

“Oh I’m sure it will turn up sooner or later. I’ll look for it while you two are having fun up in the attic. How long will you be staying Blake?”

“Well, my brother Drake has some kind of speech he’s supposed to give this evening and the force wants increased security. Though I’m sure Protector would be more than capable of handling something like that. Still, he’s my brother, I should be there for him. Guess if I’m heading to that by six or seven I’ll make it in time.”

Player’s eyes widened a little. “That means you get to hang out with me all day! And dinner too… you don’t eat much do you? You look kinda scrawny, but that’s what we’re gonna fix for the next few hours right? Kia, can we call for a couple pizzas later? Please?”

James was apparently already planning out the rest of Blake’s day. But he was so… so innocent, so happy to have a friend over. Why spoil the fun? Besides, it couldn’t be all that bad could it? Hopefully his arm would last. “Sounds good to me, I’ll buy. Don’t worry Kia, you’ll hardly know I’m here. I’ll try not to be a bother.”

Well that was just great. Player started to lead Blake upstairs to the attic before Kia called him back over. “I can find the attic just fine on my own. Take your time.”

James slowly walked back over to where Kia had her arms folded across her chest, giving him a slightly sour look. “You really should tell me when you’re going to be having company over James. What am I going to tell Pik when he shows up later? You knew he was coming to visit today. Just give me a little warning next time, okay? Now go on, don’t keep him waiting too long.”

Loveable as he was, James also proved to be one of the biggest headaches in Kia’s life. Not on purpose of course, but it was the little things he did that sometimes frustrated her to no end. She couldn’t really complain if he found new friends, unless Blake makes a huge mess in the attic. Maybe she wouldn’t even have to worry about him being in the way when Pik arrived. And maybe she should stop standing in the middle of the room thinking idle thoughts. She should probably clean everything up, and in the process hopefully find Blake’s missing badge.

Up in the attic, Blake smirked. As he glanced around and saw all the exercise equipment, he couldn’t help but think simply moving all these things up here would have already been a pretty thorough workout. Treadmills, a bike, a weight bench with what had to be over a thousand kilos of weights either on or surrounding it. Over in the corner there was some kind of rowing machine and something with pulleys and weights… he wasn’t quite sure how that would work. Then pretty much right in the center of the attic there were four suspended punching bags hanging on very sturdy metal chains. The chains appeared to be in fine shape, but at least two of the bags had visible damage. Probably hit too hard and ripped open knowing James. What caught his eye was something in another corner, something that looked pretty dusty. A small portable TV and exercise mat, a couple old tapes, and smaller barbells. Maybe Kia had planned on using those and never got around to them, or was that James’ starter set he never needed anymore?

“Do ya like it? I know some of it’s a bit beat up but hey, it’s all survived this long. So where should we start? I brought up some towels and water bottles too.”

“If I could get my brother to use any one of these on a daily basis I’d be lucky. You’ve got just about everything possible here. Um, I still don’t know if my arm’s good enough for heavy lifting, but I bet I could keep pace with you on those treadmills. But hey, it’s whatever you want to start with.”

It didn’t take James long to decide, walking straight over to the suspended punching bags and gripping its sides firmly. “Warm up with a few minutes of taking out frustrations. There’s gotta be something you’re upset about, right? Well, beat it out of your system.”

Blake hadn’t seen this aspect of Player before. Usually he was just a sort of childish, very disturbingly strange person. Always friendly. When Player was working out or mad he completely changed, becoming all direct and… well Blake personally was starting to prefer the strange happy Player instead of this focused and intense one that just revealed itself to him. “Yeah, something has been bugging me for a while. Haven’t had a good chance to just pound out the anger.”

As he stood in front of the punching bag, James giving him an encouraging smile, he started going over everything that bothered him. Protector becoming everyone’s hero, leaving the police force ignored to the point crooks tried to run past him rather than face the metal guardian. The fact that he knew Protector was better at the job than Blake himself was after years of training and dedication. How he didn’t want to admit he idolized Protector. The frustration at Rook for shooting him and leaving him for dead. The fact that Rook could have been arrested and yet he walked free from the city, and at his own brother’s command. The thought of Drake running the city when he was so laid back and didn’t really have that strong authoritative personality just about every other leader of the island had. Why was his life becoming so hard now? Why was it his brother and sister could find a date and yet he was single?

All of these frustrations, everything that stressed Blake, he punched out of his system for a good fifteen minutes until Player finally sped around the bag and grabbed him from behind by the shoulders. James came very close to getting attacked by a very irate officer. Now that he wasn’t able to throw any more punches, Blake finally managed to regain control of his feelings and glanced down at his knuckles. They were raw and bloody from all the fury he vented, all the anger and sorrow. His arms felt like lead, exhausted. “Good idea, I feel much better now. Guess it’s your turn.”

“Yea, but on another bag. Whatever’s got you bugged, it was enough you sorta totaled this one. You feeling alright? I’m not on your bad side am I?”

Was that a hint of concern in Player’s voice? No, not a concern for Blake, that was pretty obvious. Maybe a concern for his own safety? And here Blake thought James was big enough nothing would scare him. And no matter how frustrated he might be a fist fight with James still sounded like a death wish to Blake. “Okay, how about this one? I’ll hold it, you give that bag everything you’ve got.”

“Um… you sure you don’t wanna take a break, maybe do something about…”

“I’m fine. I’ve been shot repeatedly before remember? A couple little scratches aren’t going to slow me down.”

With a little more encouragement from Blake Player started hitting the bag. Nothing too hard initially, he needed a couple minutes to warm up. Then he started throwing the real punches, blows Blake could feel as every strike made the bag shudder. The harder he started hitting, the more the bag started to move. Blake really should have cleaned his hands off first, especially since the bag was getting pretty slippery. James gave the bag one last hit, all his strength behind it, and Blake found himself on his back a moment later. Player hit so hard it slipped from his friend’s grip and wound up swinging right into Blake’s face, sending him flying. If that was with a punching bag between them Blake didn’t want to ever find out what a direct hit to his body would feel like.

“Oops, sorry. Heh, didn’t mean to do that. Um… need a bag of ice or anything?”

James helped his friend up, hoping he wasn’t mad or anything. To his surprise Blake was actually laughing about it. “Heh, next time I come over and plan on working out with you, I’m gonna remember to bring a helmet.”

Pik had just come in the door and gave Kia a kiss as Player and Blake walked down from the attic and headed for the kitchen. Player waved to them as he tried to find Blake an ice pack. Pik was just staring at the officer, finally turning to look at his girl. “That’s the prime minister’s brother Pik. He came to work out with James and hang out. You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“He looks a lot like his brother. And his brother the prime minister is… is dating my mom. I don’t know if I like them or not. It’s kinda creepy since I just left home and his brother was at the door. I’m always running into them.”

“He’s not staying much longer, just until we get Pizza delivered for dinner. Then he has to go out and do security at a speech for his brother. You’ll hardly even know he’s here if you don’t want to. Come on, let’s go check on Ralf. That always cheers you up.”

Player and Blake were just on their way back up to the attic when Kia led Ralf out of his room and up to the officer. “Go on, I think you have something to say to him.”

Ralf looked up at Blake as he kneeled down, smiling. Ralf handed him back his missing badge and looked very apologetic. “Sowwy mister.”

Ralf had found it on the floor apparently and decided it was nice and shiny and interesting enough he wanted to keep it. When he had been that age Blake would have done the same thing. “It’s alright, you can keep it. I think I have another one at home. Just don’t lose that badge, okay? Take good care of it.”

Whether he actually had another at home wasn’t important. If he did it was probably buried in his room somewhere that would take hours to find. If not, well, he could always get another from the station. If they asked where his old one disappeared to he could just say it was in good hands. Ralf smiled and ran off to play in his room again, happy to keep his newest toy.

. . .

After dinner, and Blake paying the pizza boy, Pik seemed almost relieved the cop was leaving. James on the other hand was a little disheartened. “Are you sure you can’t stay longer? Hey, do you play any musical instruments? Maybe next time you come over we could play some music?”

“I’m not much with music, but my friend Rynn likes to play the electric guitar. She’s not bad either. I’ll be heading out of town in a few days but I promise I’ll stop by and we’ll be able to hang out. Guess I should be going though, don’t want Drake to think I’ve forgotten about him. Never know what might happen in these press conference things. And not just crowd control. You’re welcome to come see it if you want, but knowing my brother it won’t be terribly interesting.”

Nobody took Blake up on the offer to go to the speech. Everything was still being set up and the camera crews preparing for the broadcast.

Halfway across the island Regulus Rook and his nephew were waiting to hear what the new prim minister would have to say. “Shoulda been me up there. Drake should be out of the picture.”

“Easy uncle, don’t get all worked up over nothing. He can’t hold office forever, and when he’s elected out, you’ll be getting into office. Just be patient and you don’t have to worry about any violence. That life’s behind you right? Riiiiight?”

Rook turned his attention back to the TV, wondering how much longer until the speech. Drake was going to discuss all his policies, and take questions from the live audience. Just from a glance at the audience on camera right now, Rook sighed. Half a dozen white scarves at least. He had been a lot of things, done a lot of horrible stuff, but Regulus wasn’t one of them. He wasn’t a racist. And halfway across the island, Blake was also taking stock of all those scarves. One of them a plain clothes officer, then three more in the thick of things. A couple guards around the perimeter, nothing special. Everyone thought Protector would be here somewhere, but if he was the big metal man sure knew how to hide.

“All clear right now Drake. Don’t worry, if things get bad, the car’s right over there and I’ll get you out of here in a hurry. Remember, you don’t have to answer every single question they have. Just give your speech, take a few, and everyone will let you know when time’s almost up. Or you can walk off in an emergency, they’ll announce something extremely important came up and we had to cut short. Straighten your tie and get out there.”

“I do know how to give a speech Heru. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t. Relax, nothing’s going to go wrong.”

Indeed everything started off just fine. Drake knew what he wanted to say, knew what was important to everyone in the city. Taxes, health care, a few programs like athletics and other public events. It was all going well, until someone in the crowd started a fight with the person beside him. Two of Blake’s fellow officers moved in and arrested them, only to find two more people fighting on the other side of the audience. Two more fights, each coming up right after the last one had ended. Each fight had been started by someone with a white scarf, imagine the coincidence. There was one more person with a white scarf Blake knew of, and the undercover sticking close by him. Drake’s position on equality was pretty obvious and well known, but why bother trying to create a disturbance if it wasn’t going to do anything?

The fights weren’t enough to interrupt Drake’s speech, but they did distract a couple cameras. Frustrating, but not a disaster. The last white scarf in the audience even applauded some of Drake’s points he made. The whole speech went well and finally for the last few minutes the prime minister could take questions. Probably fifty hands went up and voices chimed in trying to get his attention. The first one Drake called on happened to be that white scarf. “Mr. Prime minister, do you have a girlfriend or do you plan on remaining single during your whole term in office?”

“I am currently seeing someone, yes. I don’t know if she’d call me her boyfriend or not, but I am pretty sure she likes me for me and not my office if that’s what you’re wondering.”

“Prime minister, do you believe that today’s music is corrupting the youth of our island?”

Blake already knew the answer to that one. If it was corrupting the youth of the island, then it was also corrupting the prime minister. “I believe if someone likes a band, that’s their right. If someone doesn’t like a band or a specific type of music, then they’re entitled to their own opinion. Parents may be able to tell their children what they shouldn’t listen to, but eventually, we’re all free to choose what we like and what we don’t like. I do not believe listening to any kind of music can corrupt our youth.”

One last question was all Drake had time for. “Do you believe your term in office will have a positive influence on the city? Will it last even after you’re no longer prime minister?”

“I’m going to do everything in my power to accomplish that goal. If I can make even one person’s life better than I know I did something right. The more people I can help, the better. I don’t want to focus solely on Yann city, I hope to make things better across the entire island.”

The crowd started to dissolve as Drake left the stage, got in his car, and drove off. Blake’s fellow officers continued to ensure everything was kept nice and orderly, avoiding any further problems. In the car, Heru glanced back at the prime minister and smirked. “Bravo. Where to now? Some dark alley where a proper celebration can take place?”

“You can try lines like that a million times Heru, it’s not going to work. We’re going to stop by the florist and pick up some of Tiffany’s favorites. Then we swing by her place, drop them off and I say hello. Third, we go to my office and I spend probably the rest of the night there working on at least looking like I’m trying to fulfill all those promises.”

“Okay, so, when are you going to eat? Didn’t exactly leave time for a meal in that little schedule boss. Don’t worry, after I drop you off at your office I’ll go and get something from a take out place and bring it back. That’ll let you work a bit more and take a break somewhere in between.”

Rook and his nephew glanced at one another after the broadcast was over. After a moment, they both broke out laughing. The thought of Drake having a girlfriend was something neither one could actually believe. “Hahahaha, now I see why he won the election uncle. Hehehe, Drake’s hilarious, saying he actually found someone willing to stand him and be his girlfriend.”

The rest of the speech Rook wouldn’t talk about, but he did have a good laugh over Drake. “Heh, you know what? Maybe I should get out a little more, maybe take a trip up to Pash for a couple days. I been staying here so long I actually thought I heard something sensible come out of that loser’s mouth.”

“Good, gives me a couple days where I don’t have to worry about you eating all my food and just sleeping on the couch or watching TV all day. Just don’t start a riot or anything okay? Drake’s probably still keeping an eye out for you and anything you’re involved in.”

“He said stay out of Yann city, he can’t tell me I have to live the rest of my life in some corner of the island. Besides, I don’t feel like fighting with him right now. One day I’ll see him lying in a ditch bleeding to death and I’ll get to laugh, but that day won’t come for a long while.”

As Rook started packing his bags and prepared for a trip to Pash, Blake was heading home. He was going to be getting ready for the exact same thing, a trip to Pash after stopping by Player’s place with Rynn and her guitar. Tiffany was smiling at a bouquet of flowers left at her doorstep by Drake with a note attached saying he hoped to see her soon, and Heru was just driving away from the prime minister’s office trying to find some good fast food. Tomorrow would certainly prove to be an interesting day.