Chapter 9: 08: DISTRACTION

Adam wiped a glob of ice treat off the table, licking the cream off his finger. The white mound on his cone chilled his lips as he read the rainbow letters hovering in front of him: 144 OUT OF THIS WORLD FLAVORS, ONLY AT ASTRO’S! An animated alien in a Union Galactic Alliance uniform zipped around a glowing Ipir, pausing every ten seconds to marvel at a pair of rising moons.

Native flower wreaths and cartoon ghosts adorned the dessert shop for Harvest. Electro-music, including Blood Fang’s hit song Taste For Blood, thumped at low volume. Jonah bopped his head to the pulse, digging his spoon into a mountain of treat.

“Best mix yet.” He wiped blue syrup from his chin. “Time to patent it. I’m a genius.”

“Fuck off.” Ivan tore a mouthful off his sour bar. “You say the same thing every time we’re in this pile of puke.”

“Because it’s true.”

“Shut it.”

Adam glanced at the green-lit service counter in the front, meeting Gracie Finnegan’s eye. Her headband, set with bouncing alien ears to match her work uniform, bobbled atop her curls. She broke eye contact with Adam as soon as they made it, the fifth time since he'd taken his seat.

“Finnegan’s checking you out.” Jonah peered at the counter as well. “I know you’re focused on Li, but the daughter of a CDPD Commissioner might be a good match—crossing aisles and all that. Check her out in that stupid uniform. She’s all right.”

“Yeah.” said Adam. “She’s all right. We’ve hooked a few times. More than a few.”

“Oh?” Jonah choked in surprise. “And you survived. When did that happen?”

“Last Mid-Year. She was one-of.”

“Why didn’t you mention it?”

“There were a few blondes back then. I think I said yes to every girl that was halfway cute.” Thoughts of the many girls from Adam’s past returned, including Gracie. “You know, Gemara was blonde.” He turned distant as old frustration sparked. “Her hair was straight, though, and darker like wheat. She liked going to the beach. Looked molten in a two-piece.”

“Fucking hell.” Jonah dumped his spoon in his dish. “Let it go.”

“I did.” Adam’s mouth tightened. “What a fucking monster.”

Ivan laughed. “She hooked with half the male senior class and a couple of third-years. I warned you about those doe-eyes—”

“So did I,” Jonah chimed in.

Ivan pointed at himself. “She went after your friends specifically. Walked right up to me and said she’d—”

“—me, too.” Jonah threw his head back to laugh. “Same day. If we’d been side by side, she would’ve wanted it more.”

“Don’t remind me.” Adam darkened. His time dating the gorgeous girl, sought after by many, remained a bitter memory. She wanted to be his, she said, but didn’t tell him she’d be with others at the same time. His foolishness made him the joke of their school. That breakup led to Mid-Year.

“You have to deal with it.” Ivan re-centered Adam in a sober tone. “That’s why we remind you not to get too close. Waste of sanity.”

“Right. Anyway, about Grace—” He summoned memories of sneaking into Gracie’s quarter at her family’s estate with her codes. “I ran into her at Green Stone, we drank, got close, and hooked in a guest room. Deal went on for months. I told her it wasn’t going anywhere. She’s sexy, but has that temper.”

“You think the daughter of a cultist and a concubine will be easier to handle.” Ivan grinned at him. “Her daddy sacrificed humans to the twin moon god and her mommy tried to bite the face off the medic delivering their baby. She’s a ticking time bomb.”

“Li’s not her family, and there’s nothing’s wrong with her.” A sullen note struck Adam. “If anyone would want to hate her, it’d be me, with her ties to the cult that butchered my father. It’s not her fault, though. It’s bad luck.”

“She did eight years in solitary, man. That shit affects you.”

“But she cleared every clinical, and scored high enough marks at Asylum Prep to get into Cloverland. She promotes Pender-Pal on her own so other war orphans can have the same opportunities.” Adam chewed off another chunk of his cone. “You’re always going after her. Seems personal.”

“It’s not.” Ivan looked away. “She’s nobody. You’re the one stressed over her. If she rejects you, you’ll move on. Promise.”

“Fine. You don’t care. I do.”

“Oh.” Jonah tapped his spoon against his bowl. “Look at the show the general’s putting on. Maybe our boy’s actually in love. Unreal.”

“I said that.” Adam glanced at the service counter where Gracie stood not long ago. “Not changing my mind.”

“Yeah. You don’t learn your lesson. We get it.”

Bells that sounded like zipping lasers chimed when the door to Astro's slid open for RedSect dogshit Spencer Torrens. His tall frame hunched as he headed for Adam’s table, his hair unkempt and dark circles ringing his eyes. Adam scoffed at Spencer’s appearance. Typical junkie. No need for a Harvest costume.

“Rodinsky.” Spencer addressed Ivan alone. “Outside.”

Ivan faced Spencer. “Hello, sweetheart. What a surprise. How are you?”

Jonah’s gaze darted between the pair staring each other down. He coughed to break the tension. “Hey, Spence—everything all right?”

“Sure.” Spencer nudged his jaw at Ivan. “Get up.”

“Get up?” Ivan repeated.

“You heard me, fuckface.”

Ivan eased his way out of the booth, standing to face Spencer. He chewed the rest of his sour bar, swallowing the treat.

“Don’t speak to me that way in front of me mates.” Ivan jabbed Spencer’s chest. “Fuckface.”

“I’ll ruin everything for you.”

“Oh?” Ivan's glare narrowed. “Think you can manage that?”

“Try me.”

“Ha.” Ivan laughed, holding up his hands. He turned to Adam and Jonah. “I’ll be back, I guess.”

“What’s going on?” Adam frowned.

“Business. Don’t worry.”

“Business. Right.”

The boys returned to the front door, and laser chimes made them pause as Kalum and Talitha entered. Their greetings to each other were short before Spencer and Ivan left the girls at the counter. Gracie froze at their approach and disappeared into the rear, though Talitha didn’t seem to notice. Both she and Kalum laughed as they arrived at Adam’s table.

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“Hey guys.” Talitha’s cheeks glowed as she cradled a shopping tote in her arms. “Sorry we’re late. We stopped by Enzo’s, and it was as pathetic as you imagine.” Her speckled gaze fell on Adam. “Not much time left before the fundraiser. This is a hi and bye, I guess.”

Adam nodded at the pair as Talitha and Kalum slid into the booth. He scanned Talitha’s bright red mane and freckled face before studying the UGA alien projection like it was the first time he’d seen it.

“Hi,” he said. “Bye.”

Talitha chuckled. “What? Bye, already?”

“I’m being efficient.”

“Nice.”

“Aye. So, now that greetings are done—” Adam dumped the end of his cone into his mouth, swallowing it in a single gulp. A lump caught in his throat, and he choked it down with a cough. “How are you ladies doing? Stellar, cosmic, big-bang—all good stuff, I hope.”

“Not big bang. Not yet.” Kalum wrinkled her nose at Jonah’s bowl. “Ugh. You’re doing that. What mess did you make?”

“Hm.” Jonah tossed his curls. “I’ve got Mir Melon, Muttnik Mix, Glob Nut Cluster—I remember an almond. Blue Moon Blast, for sure.”

“Gross.”

“What do you two have?” Jonah gestured with his spoon. “Boring shit, like usual.”

“Black Body Berry for me.” Kalum nibbled on the purple mound on her spoon, glancing at Talitha. “She’s got Van Allen Nilla, like always.”

“That’s what I thought.” Jonah dug into his mountain. “Boring.”

Adam wiped his hands clean with a tissue, tossing it down the table’s trash chute. “I’ve got vanilla too, but in a fruit cone. That…changes things.”

Talitha nodded with a satisfied smile. “See, Kalum? Vanilla’s good enough for a future Union General. It’s good enough for me.” She nudged her chin toward Adam. “I like the spice cones, but I chose a smoothie today.”

“Spice cones. Okay.” Adam met her gaze. “The merchants by the seaport sell spice cones. You can watch projector shows from the grass. What do you think of those?”

“The colorful ones are nova.” She glanced at Kalum. “You liked them too, right?”

“Aye.” Kalum nodded. “Relaxing.”

“Relaxing.” Adam agreed. “Yeah. Something to do sometime.”

Talitha settled back in her seat, sipping from a green cup decorated with glowing eyes. Lights mimicking stars sparkled along the straw. Her attention fell back onto Adam and he turned away, wiping his hands on another cloth.

Focus, he chided himself.

Dipshit.

“You’ve got something on you.” Jonah scowled, easing away from Kalum. “What’s that crap? It’s moving. Looks like bugs.”

Kalum inspected herself, and chuckled. “It’s holographic shimmer dust. Don’t tell me you’re scared of it.”

“Not scared.” Jonah moved further away. “Just don’t want that awful shit on me. Skin’s crawling.”

“Oh. Okay. No problem.”

Kalum patted Jonah with her hand full of dust, and he cursed as he heaved his body from her with dramatic force.

“For fuck’s sake!”

Talitha laughed, leaning over the table to pat the flinching Jonah, too. “Sorry, mate. Won’t happen again.”

Jonah glared a them as he wiped his clothes. Talitha’s attention turned aside, her smile fading as she dropped back into her seat. She groaned.

“Oh, no. Gracie’s looking at me.”

“That’s fine.” Kalum wiped her hands. “She won’t do anything here.”

Adam lifted his head to spot Gracie’s wild curls in the distance. “What do you mean?”

“Gracie—” started Kalum.

Talitha cut her off. “Shut up!”

Adam scanned the girls seated across. “What’s happening?”

“Nothing.” Talitha curled into herself and sipped from the cup. “Don’t mind her.”

“That’s not an answer.”

“She talks too much about business that isn’t hers.”

“Don't play dumb like that.” Adam leaned closer. “I hate mysteries.”

The girls looked at each other, and Talitha mouthed silent words. Kalum folded her arms. “No. Fuck that, and fuck him. Don’t let him back into your life for any reason.” She turned to Adam. “You know the problem over my quarter?”

“Yeah. Grace was suspended for it.”

“She didn’t like that Li confronted her in front of the dean, and she’s causing more trouble.”

Adam glanced at Talitha. “She vandalized your items, too?”

Talitha’s gaze turned downcast. “No.”

“Tell me. Please.”

“Gracie threatened to beat her up.” Kalum answered in Talitha’s silence. “Li’s running so far, but I doubt Gracie will stop.”

Jonah slurped the last of his treat. “She’s trying to scare you. It’s working.”

“Maybe. Doesn’t mean it’s not real.” Kalum glanced at Talitha. “If Li gets in a fight, she’ll get shipped back to Asylum. The board won’t care who started it, and nothing would happen to Gracie.”

“Spencer said—” Talitha started.

“Fuck Spencer. I’m sick of him.”

“Guess I’ll stay home. The costume’s stupid, anyway.”

Adam drummed his fingers against the table, his mind racing with conclusions and possibilities. “Oh. Spencer’s involved? That’s not good. Bloke’s a criminal, and…you’re not together.” He nodded at Talitha. “A different intervention might be better.”

“Nothing will help.” Talitha glanced at the service counter. “I’m stalling the inevitable.”

“She’ll quit if I’m involved. I’ll squash this before we go to the show.”

“We?” Talitha's eyes widened. “You’re going? This isn’t your type of thing. I’m shocked. Impressed, even.”

“Impressed?”

“Aye. You can’t get rid of all your bad side.”

“My bad side. Right. I can be bad—in a good way.” Adam shrugged, clearing his throat. “This might be the last time Blood Fang can play in Union. They’re pushing the line, but it’s a notable night, good and bad. Plus—my father has ties to Westmont. I should be part of what’s happening.”

“That’s the spirit, mate.” Jonah rapped his knuckles against the table. “Go for it.”

Adam flashed the table a grin. “I’ve got an idea. Hold on.”

He waited until Gracie couldn’t help but look and raised a hand, waving her over to their table.

“Don’t.” Talitha sank low in her seat.

“This is stupid.” Kalum's attention settled on Gracie.

“It’s not. I know exactly what I’m doing.”

Gracie froze at Adam’s acknowledgment, and he continued waving until she realized he was serious. She walked over at a swift pace, but slowed when she was a meter away. Her blue painted mouth turned down as she twisted a curl between her fingers and approached. Her tone was flat.

“What do you want?”

“Hi, Grace.” Adam flicked his hair and maintained his smile. “How are things?”

Her gray-green stare lingered on his. “Fine.”

Adam gestured at the others at his table. “You know my friends. Ivan’s outside, and Jonah’s here with Kalum and Talitha.”

“So?”

“Just making sure you know who my friends are.”

“Huh?”

“How’s work?” He gestured at the decorated store. “You give up a lot of free time to do this.”

She shrugged. “Sure. It’s for all the trouble I get into. Pa clears my record if I hold a job. He said it’ll build character or whatever.” She twirled the curl tighter. “If I make it to graduation, he’ll buy me a BlueBird.”

“BlueBird?” Adam recognized the name, visualizing the sleek sky speeder. “Great pick. Powerful, lightning acceleration. My brother had a Y94 model last time he stopped by, but they’ve gotten loads better.”

“Aye. Sleeker with better mods.” She shifted from one leg to the other. “You can pilot with the top down.”

Adam’s smile stayed steady. “I can see you in one with your top down.”

Gracie snorted. “I’m sure.”

“Wouldn’t mind a BlueBird myself—or a BlackBolt.”

“I like BlackBolts, too.”

“Ace.” Adam cleared his throat. “_Peace Party Strong_. Bet you wanna shoot a gun.”

“I’ve shot before.”

“The commissioner’s gun.”

“My own.”

“Shocking.” Gracie's face fogged with suspicion, and Adam made a point to look at no one but her. “So. Harvest Eve. That party you mentioned. You’re going, that’s why you asked.”

Gracie perked, though regained her composure fast. “Yeah. Night out with my friends, a little Dot, dancing. Nothing major.”

“Want to go with me?”

The table’s attention swerved to Adam, and Gracie brightened before turning apprehensive.

“You’ve never ask me anywhere before. We’ve spent…time together, but never talk. You only like to argue with me in class.”

“I want to understand you.” Adam studied her with the full force of his clear-blue eyes. “Let me take you to the show.”

“Well…”

“You won’t regret it.”

Adam let her knock down inner obstacles that warned her to stay away him, since she knew he should stay away from her too. They shared only one thing in common. Her gaze traveled over his face and body like she was retracing their past.

“All right. You can take me.”

“Perfect.” Adam’s smile widened. “I’ll grab my bike, take you to the station. What’s better, your dorm or the estate?”

“School. Shorter trip.”

“All right. I remember your details, if they’re the same.”

“They are.”

He winked, and she tossed her hair.

“Okay.” Gracie batted her lashes. “I’ve got to get back to work. I’ll see you around.”

“See you.”

Gracie skipped back to the counter, and Kalum shook her head.

“You asked her out?”

“It's a distraction.” Adam removed a disposable cup from the dispenser on the table, pouring himself a serving of water. “One date, and we’ll have no issues at the party. I’ll end it with her after Harvest.”

Talitha’s attention stayed on Gracie. “You don’t have to do this. It’s too much.”

“Not really.” He shrugged. “We’ve got history since Primary. She won’t touch you if she’s with me. Spencer can stay out so you can move on.”

“I’ll stay positive, then.” Talitha met Adam’s eye, and her amber stare seemed more translucent to him in Astro's lighting. “Thank you. It's more than I can repay.”

“It’s not much, Li. I’m happy to help, as long as it’s not that other stupid shit you mentioned.”

“Cosmic, Adam. I mean it.” She reached across the table, grasping his hand. “Maybe this will work.”

“Oh no, you’re forcing me to take a beautiful blonde to a party. Fuck me.” Adam scoffed. “Putting me out here, mate.”

Talitha snickered. “Sorry. Hope you recover.”

“Me too.” He squeezed her hand. “And yes, this’ll work.”

A zipping laser sound signaled Ivan returned without Spencer, and he slid into the seat beside Talitha, pouring himself a serving of water. He remained silent as the table resumed idle chatter, sliding out of his seat first when it was time to leave.