Unchanged

Chapter 7

Chapter 7 ~ Sander

“You know,” Ashalia spoke as we cuddled on our bed, “I don’t like it when you get too friendly with other girls.” She spoke suddenly, but her words came out as if she had been planning to say them for a while.
“You know I love you,” I said to reassure her.
She broke my embrace and sat up with all seriousness. “I know, but sometimes it feels like you’re slipping away from me.” She looked hurt, so I held her hand. We didn’t say anything for a while, we just sat with each other swallowed in silence. What she said was true to me too, I felt like we were slipping away from each other.

I knew which ‘other girls’ Ashalia was talking about. I didn’t have many friends – the few friends I did have were guys. There could have only been one girl she meant.
Rina.
Rina, the girl that was fragile but tough at the same time. The girl that despite all odds, was an Irilies, just like me.
She didn’t even know it.

I planned to tell her quite soon, but I was waiting for the right moment. One day, I would take her to the Irilies compound and show her all the protectors of the city. I would take her to Dr Rick to uncover the strength and power within her. I would train her to be a leader for the people of Irilies.

I knew Rina had the potential to be a leader from the moment I saw her eyes reveal to be purple. Her eyes were the deepest most beautiful shade of electric violet I had ever seen. Her purple irises suited her more than her once glimmering grey eyes. When I was on my electrike and she was staring up at me, confused as ever, her eyes were magnificent. Now they were extraordinarily incredible. Not even Ashalia’s eyes were as beautiful as Rina’s.

The other thing was that Rina was still getting used to living in normal Obertron, where blue and red were never mixed together. Where androids, instead of humans, served meals. She needed to get used to life here in Obertron.

I would tell her as soon as she remembered her old life.

*  *  *

I sat in our usual spot at the bar with my mates Chad, Douglas and Kai. The familiar smell of steam and spices hung around the air in our favourite pub. We were talking about how we hadn’t had a welcoming ceremony in a while.

Welcoming ceremonies were held roughly once every couple of months. They were to welcome all the new citizens of Obertron to their new home. Only the Blutron compound held these events. The other compounds did things differently. Rarlett’s were harsher with their new citizens. Since it was rare for the Irilies to get a new member, they didn’t hold welcoming events at all.

“Remember when Chad almost tripped and face planted at our ceremony?”

“Yeah, almost planting my face into the concrete would have been fun,” said Chad going red on his cheeks and neck. “Then that night we came here for the first time and got shit wasted.”
Chad ran a hand through his thick black hair as we all laughed.

“You guys have come a long way. You’ve been here since you were all 14!” said Douglas.

Douglas was older than all of us, by eight years. He was eighteen when he first moved to Obertron. Then Chad, Kai and myself arrived four years later. That meant Douglas was 26 and the rest of us were 18.

Kai held up his drink, “Well, some things always stay the same.”

The four of us cheered and held up our drinks.

I had my first drink when I was fourteen, but I only drink at group outings, like the one we were at. The other guys didn’t know that I wasn’t actually drunk the night of our welcoming ceremony. I was just pretending to be because I wanted to fit in and make friends. But these guys became my real friends, so I didn’t have to pretend anymore.

The night of our welcoming ceremony was warm and humid. Chad, Kai and I sat inside the bar, sweating our asses off from walking a couple miles in the heat of the night from the venue of the ceremony. I didn’t know Chad and Kai well, but I agreed to go to the bar with them. I thought at the time, the more friends, the better.

I found it really weird that the bar owners let a bunch of 14 year olds in. The rules back then weren’t as strict as they were now. One of the employees, Douglas, invited us inside and found us a spot to sit. He got us all our first drinks which were Bailey’s Irish creams. It tasted nice, but I didn’t go for a second, while the others did.

As the night got later, Douglas’s shift ended. Instead of going home, he just came and sat down with us. We all got along well, even though I was the shyest of the four of us. As the three of them got drunker, we eventually got onto the topic of how they got here. Obviously, like any normal person, they didn’t remember much about what made them come to Obertron. Chad and Kai were friends before they got to Obertron. They joked that their friendship was so strong that the universe knew to put them in the same dimension again. Douglas only remembered that his heart was broken, but he didn’t remember the girl or what exactly made them break up.

Even though I remembered everything that made me come to Obertron, I just told them that I wasn’t happy with my old life, so I came seeking a new one.
It wasn’t far from the truth, really.
I hated dad and step mum who were constantly breathing down the back of my neck. Demanding me to do better in school and Karate class etc. My older step sister got all the credit, while I was always called a failure. It made me shy and nervous around people, which was why I was introverted when I got to Obertron. It was overwhelming to comprehend that people from all over the world ended up in the same place. I guessed I still was kind of introverted, because that’s who I am

It was actually my step sister that told me where the location was that would take me to another dimension. But she also warned be that I would be on my own. Now I realise, she couldn’t have been more accurate.
I used to think that the past couldn’t repeat itself, but it does.

“Hey, back on the welcoming ceremony topic,” said Douglas. “I would go watch whenever it’s on again. Would you guys be up to coming with me?”

I was the only one who said, “Yes,” straight away. Chas and Kai were reluctant but they eventually said yes, only for the food.

Douglas raised his thick eyebrows at me. “Have you met a new citizen, Sander?” Douglas asked.

I guessed it would be safe to tell my best mates, whom I trusted, about Rina. I replied, “Yes.”

“So tell us about him! He can join our clique,” said Kai in a funny voice.

“She is a girl,” I said as I looked Kai straight into his blue eyes.

“So what’s her name? Is she cute?” asked Chad, taking a sip of his extra-dry beer.

“Her name is Rina…” I hesitated to admit she was cute, thinking I would be betraying Ashalia. Eventually I said, “And yes, she is pretty cute.”

Douglas frowned, “Wait, do you know Rina’s full name? He asked a bit too demandingly.

“Uhhh…” I frowned as I tried to remember the night she woke up in the hospital. “No,” I said. “She just said, Rina.”

Douglas’s deep blue eyes darted around the room in zig-zags, which is what he did when he was anxious.
“Guys, I’m going to have to leave early. I have some things to take care of,” he said as he quickly got up from his chair, grabbed his coat and left.

A/N ~

Hmmmm, what is up with Douglas?

I am very sorry for the awfully late update. I was really nervous to post this chapter!

I hope you liked it. 

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