Story of Aaliyah - TMR

Chapter 4 - Nobody said that it'd be easy.

If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it: Nobody said that it'd be easy, they just promised that it'd be worth it. I reached out taking his hand shaking it. I wasn't sure what it was about this man but I felt like I could trust everything he had to say. Newt shook his hand next while Nate let out a huff of air sticking his hands in his pockets. "What kind of guidance could you give anyways." Nate said acting tough. "Well, kid. You three look like you just crawled out of a hole, and judging by the way you were listening so hard to that stupid broadcast that's been repeating for weeks. I'd say you don't know much about what is really happening here." 

"And you do?" Newt said his eyebrows pushing together. Derrick let out a sigh as he slapped his hat back onto his head. "Well when your one of the lead surgeons and on the flare trail. Yeah I'd say I know a thing or two." My brain caught up to his words faster than I did. "Wait you were apart of this? You... You did this?" Newt moved his arm out trying to block Nate and me from him. Derrick rolled his eyes. "Easy. Our clinical project was to help find a cure to ending alzheimer's. We were so close when all these government offical came in. Fired us within the hour. I took as much as my research as I could. I still had a buddy on the inside but he wasn't very high up." Derrick let out a sigh. "He was a highschool kid who worked at the janiter. I asked the kid if he could look into what they were doing with our studies." 

Derrick looked away as his eyes watered up. I took in a deep breath already knowing what must have happened. "You don't have to say it." Newt said trying to help the man out. Derrick shook his head. "No. His story desrves to be told. The kid called me... H-he snuck into the lab and was very frantic about what he found out." Derrick pushed his lips together trying not to cry. "What? What did he find out?" Nate asked leaning forward. "The government had found a way to reverse it. Instead of resturning brain steams it would physically eat them away. Making a person go crazy... into a bloody crank." My ears twitched at the word. "They were planning to use it as a weapon to start an all out world war again. I told him to get out of there right now. To make sure no one saw him in there when I heard all the yelling start. Then gunfire. I don't need to know they killed the kid. I don't need to know that it was because of this eragent choice of warfare that this outbreak became out of control. I will say that if it wasn't for the kid, my wife and me would have never made it out alive. We lived so close to the hospital and that's right were the outbreak first happened." 

"That's awful... What is a crank?" Newt asked thinking back to his words. "It means the person has become infected with the disease. Most everyone is a crank. For as far as you know all three of you could be." Nate got angry by his words now and yelled. "We are nothing like them! THOSE MOSTERS KILLED MY MOTHER! I AM NOT THEM!" Newt reached over pulling his brother into a hug but Nate pushed away and shook his head. I reached out placing a hand on Newts back as Derrick hurried to finish. "Not all cranks start out as those mosters. Most the time you don't even notice you are infected. For some its a slow process while others change at a dramstic rate. The only thing that is the same is you will know when you are about to be full gone." 

I caught my breath. The idea of being one of them was horrifing. "How do you know you are infected?" Newt asked between gritted teeth. "I can test you. See if you are immune." It felt like the floor fell out from under me and I was falling. Did I really want to have this answer? "I don't have time to though. I am close to a cure I know. I have to get across town before night, and the more I stand around chig wagging the less time I have. Your welcome to join me?" He asked as he straighted his ball cap. 

A cure? This man was close to a cure I felt a sting of hope. "No." Newt said before anyone could move another inch. I looked to him almost mad he didn't ask me. "We don't need to be running across town. We have survived this long. I plan to keep it that way." He said looking Derrick over as he nodded his head. "Thank you for your time." I shook my head and pulled Newt's arm. "We should go with him." Newt shook his head and his eye brows pushed together. "If you want to go then go." His words were so harsh that it hurt. Even Nate looked confused. 

Derrick hurried and collected his things and his hand tighted over a black box that seemed to be very imporant to him. "Make up your minds. I'm leaving now." Derrick said as he took off walking down the street. Newt sucked in air and took a step back in the oppiste direction his eyes locked on me as he grabbed his brothers shirt pulling him back to. "Make up your mind Aaliyah." If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it: Nobody said that it'd be easy, they just promised that it'd be worth it.