WELCOME TO THE ADVENTURE
OF A LIFETIME !
☀︎
ROBIN DIDN'T WAIT FOR AN EXPLANATION ON WHERE SHE WENT TO, INSTEAD, SHE WANTED TO SHOW THE GROUP EXACTLY WHY SHE NEEDED TO LEAVE. In the backroom of Scoops Ahoy, Robin gathered the group around her, holding on to a very important piece of information that could get them another step ahead. It was cruicial to understand exactly how Starcourt was laid out in order for them to find a way into the hidden room.
Unrolling a large blueprint of Starcourt across the table, a smile had never fallen from her lips. "Starcourt Mall," she stated simply. "The complete blueprints."
"Not bad," Dustin grinned, giving a small nudge over to her. She was the exact kind of brains he was hoping to add into the group. Steve was a lost cause and Alex may have understood most things, but Robin understood everything.
Steve had taken a seat before the blueprint, searching around for a good idea of the map as a whole. Sliding in, Alex had sat on the edge of his lap as she only searched for one place. Leaning over, she pointed to where it was best to start. "So this is us, Scoops."
"And this is where we want to get," Robin explained, moving her hand directly across the blueprint to a room with no way in or out beside the door they were unable to access without a keycard. It was cut off from the rest of the mall but they were determined to find an alternative way in.
"I mean, I don't really see a way in," Steve mumbled.
Nodding along, Robin was quick to agree as she had already taken notice of such a thing. "There's not if you're talking exclusively about doors." Pulling back the first page of the blueprints, she revealed the second one that gave them a clear path into the room, this time without the need of doors.
"Air ducts," Dustin whispered in amazement.
"Exactly," she beamed. Heading over to the whiteboard, Robin snatched up a marker before heading back to them to show exactly the pathing they needed to take. "Turns out, this secret room needs air just like any old room." Circling the hidden room they needed into, she drew a line that had lead directly to them. "And these air ducts lead straight to here."
The four had turned to look over their shoulders at the vent that was there one way into the secret room. It wasn't the biggest air vent, but it was small for the size of the four. And only one of them had felt confident enough to step forward and take the chance at attempting to slide in. "Get me in there. I can fit," Dustin said, holding his head up high.
"Are you sure about that?" Alex asked questionably. He was small, but Dustin was growing quickly. "Dude, your hair is giant by itself."
"I can fit," he confirmed. Either way, there was no way he was not going to attempt this. It was his time to shine and for once, he wanted to be the one that was doing the most for the group. He may have been the one to even give them all this opportunity when he had intercepted the Russian code, but he needed this glory. He needed his moment to stand out and be the hero when everyone always seemed to doubt him.
Moving Alex off of him, Steve got up to go fetch a ladder and tools to get the vent open. Fighting with Dustin had proven to never work in his favor and if he failed, then they could move on to another solution a lot sooner than fighting would allow them.
"We're really going to let him try this?" Robin asked curiously. Furrowing her brows, she had sized up Dustin before her eyes fell back towards the vent. "Yeah, this isn't going to work like you think."
"No, no, I can do it."
Robin gave a shrug, taking a seat, watching as Steve arrived back with a ladder, a screwdriver, and a not-so-condifent look to himself. Scooting Robin in, Alex had taken the other half of the seat, frowning as she had instead watched Dustin prepare himself through some stretches that she knew would not help him out whatsoever. "This is a terrible idea. He'll get stuck."
"Well, then we leave him there," Alex replied, earning a light hearted laugh from Robin.
Up on the ladder, Steve had unscrewed the vent, passing it off to Dustin. With the screwdriver held in his mouth, he called for a flashlight for a better look at the vent. Handing it off to Steve, Dustin took back the screwdriver and tossed it off to the side before giving himself a final stretch.
Clicking the flashlight on, Steve had lost any shred of confidence he had in Dustin Henderson. "Yeah, I don't know, man. I don't know if you can fit in here. It's, like, super tight." Popping his head out of the vent, he passed off the flashlight and climbed himself back down the ladder.
"I'll fit," Dustin reassured once more. "No collar bones, remember?"
"Um, excuse me?" Robin questioned with a confused smile.
"Oh, he's, uh... Yeah, he's got some disease. Chry, uh... it's chrydo, um... Something. Yeah, I don't know. He's missing bones and stuff. He can bend like Gumbo." Though Steve's explanation didn't seem to explain all that much, Alex didn't feel the need to jump in and help Robin understand exactly Dustin meant by no collar bones. It was probably best to discuss it when Dustin wasn't currently climbing himself into a vent.
"You mean Gumby?" Robin asked.
"Pretty sure it's Gumbo," Steve said, looking over to Alex for confirmation. With an frown, she still gave him the thumbs up he was looking for though she was pretty sure Robin was in the right.
With half his body in and no sign of him getting in any further on his own, Dustin grew annoyed to hear conversation going on behind him while he wriggled around. "Steve, shut up and push me!"
Steve pointed up at Dustin's legs dangling, looking over to Alex, "I guess I'm pushing him?"
"He's all yours," she said with a tight-lipped smile. Sitting back into Robin, she prepared herself for a show that she knew would be worth it. It was going to be a fun story to tell the rest of the party and tease the two about for as long as she thought necessary-- which would most likely be for eternity.
Just as she had expected, Steve had done what he thought was best which only looked awkward and was no help towards Dustin in anyways. He had held the bottoms of Dustin's feet, pushing them forward with half the amount of effort that Dustin actually wanted.
"Not my feet, dumbass! Push my ass!"
"What?"
"Touch my butt! I don't care! Come on! Harder! Push harder! You're playing with my legs!"
To his horror and discomfort, Steve had climbed up the ladder a little further to get himself some better footing and to push exactly where Dustin had instructed him to. Holding on tight to the ladder to keep his balance, Steve had struggled with the other hand on Dustin's butt to push it in a little further. "I'm not playing, I have terrible footing." Looking back over his shoulder, he motioned with his head for Alex to come over. "Hey, come and hold me."
Slapping her hands on to her legs, Alex let out an annoyed sigh that she was now roped into the mess that the boys had found themselves in. Standing at the bottom of the ladder, she gave a look up at the struggle the two were having and finding out how exactly she was supposed to help. Alex's eyes traveled down Steve's legs, silently questioning herself as she reached out for his ankles. Holding them with a light grip, she hoped it was enough to be seen as support.
"Not my ankles! What is wrong with you! Grab my waist!" He yelled down to her.
Watching in horror, Robin watched as Alex wrapped her arms around Steve's waist while he pushed on Dustin's butt, his feet occasionally kicking him in the head. Not once did she ever, however, did she question why she had chosen to spend her summer with the three. They were pure entertainment and always found the worst situations to get themselves into no matter how big or small the matter could be.
With no clue how this had looked to Robin or anyone else that could possibly walk in, Steve had given it everything in him to be sure this ended quicker by doing what was asked of him. "I'm gonna just shove you, ready?" Steve warned.
"Just shove me?" Dustin questioned and for a split second he realized that maybe this was not all that great of a plan as he had saw in his head. However, it was too late to call it quits because with a hard shove, Steve had caused Dustin to hit his head on the top of the vent and to not even move forward an inch. Yells of worry were muffled inside the vent.
The hard shove had the ladder move and Alex had no choice but to tighten her arms around Steve's waist to ensure he didn't fall off. Only, she was met face to face with a situation she didn't expect to be happening in public. "Oh my God! Watch your package, Harrington!"
"I swear if your penis touched my sister—"
"It didn't! Shut up! I'm pushing one more time!" Steve screamed. Trying once again, he had given Dustin another shove that since the beginning was never going to work. And all Alex could do was hold onto Steve's waist with a worried expression.
From the front of Scoops Ahoy, a small customer had stood by herself, ringing the bell to call for her sailors to deliver her ice cream as she had expected, completely unaware what was happening behind closed doors. "Ahoy, sailors! All hands on deck!"
Peeling her eyes off the horror show in front of her, Robin had saw out of the cracked open window of the breakroom that Erica Sinclair was back once again to terrorize her for free samples. Yet through all of Erica's yelling and demands, the gears in Robin's brain had turned and the noise from Erica outside the breakroom and the three confusingly yelling at one another had tuned out.
Erica Sinclair may have a feisty attitude, she was the perfect size for crawling through the air ducts. Even if she was a child, all Robin could see was a solution. All she needed was a boatload of ice cream, some persuasive convincing and she would have Erica Sinclair join the four in an adventure of a lifetime.
『☀︎』
IT HAD TAKEN A LOT OF CONVINCING, BUT ERICA SINCLAIR HAD UNFORTUNATELY FOUND HERSELF STANDING IN THE BREAKROOM WITH A FLASHLIGHT IN HER HANDS. Turning it on, she shined it up at Robin before she had gone down the line, purposefully shining it in everyone's eyes. Sending them a glare, she had no words to say, knowing her facial expression was enough to show how annoyed she had truly been with these four.
Turning to the ladder, she climbed up, peering into the vent with the flashlight, completely unamused with what they had been asking of her. It was obvious to her that she could fit, the thing that had her hesitate was how exactly she was going to get what she had wanted from them. The thing was, she was unsure if they had anything to offer that would be good enough to get her to do them a favor they were desperate enough to ask her for.
Clicking off the flashlight, she hopped down from the ladder, turning to the group that was full of anticipation. "Yeah, I don't know.
Placing his hands into his pockets, Dustin waited a beat for her to further explain herself. "You don't know if you can do it?"
"Oh, I can fit," she boasted. "I just don't know if I want to."
Steve instantly rolled his eyes, looking over to Dustin as this was exactly what he had expected from the little girl that had harassed him all summer long for some free samples. Robin, on the other hand, had more patience with Erica. "Are you claustrophobic?"
Erica snickered at such a ridiculous question. This was Erica Sinclair and she was fearful of nothing. If anything, the world should be scared of her and what she was capable of. "I don't have phobias," she quipped back.
Tossing her pink backpack back at her, Alex had very little patience for Erica. Even though sometimes they could get along, it was often only because Alex would be more willing to do what Erica demanded. However, this time the roles were reversed and Erica was not as willing. "Okay, then what's the problem?"
Growing annoyed with the lack of respect she felt she deserved, Erica crossed her arms when she dropped her bag to her feet. "The problem is, Henderson, I still haven't heard what's in this for Erica."
Uncrossing her own arms, Alex had looked to Steve in frustration before she stood on her toes, cupping her hand around her mouth as she leaned in to whisper in his ear. He had raised his eyebrows up at her in slight concern and question. For Alex to give up what she was willing for this to be done, he was unsure if she would survive. "I can let it go. It'll be difficult though," she whispered. Swallowing hard, she had turned back to Erica with a deep frown. Hesitantly, she had offered up something that had always made her happy all summer. "All my free ice cream Steve gives me. I'll just never eat it to make up for it. Is that what you want?"
A devious, yet satisfied smile had came across Erica's face. Not only was she getting endless ice cream but to make it even more worth while, she had hurt Alex Henderson by taking what was hers. "Now we're talking, nerd." Looking to Steve, she gave him a nod, "Serve some up sailor boy and then I'll listen to what you're so desperate for."
『••☀︎••』
WANTING TO HELP OUT AROUND SCOOPS AHOY, ALEX HAD STOOD BEHIND THE COUNTER TO KEEP CUSTOMERS HAPPY AND TAKE ORDERS. The other three had the difficult job of trying to crack Erica Sinclair on helping them with their cause. It would be an exhausting journey and may cost them their lives, but given she was the only one they knew could fit into the vent, they needed her. Erica could feel their desperation and held onto this moment for as long as she could and would work them until she had everything she wanted and more.
Perfectly fine with taking a break from Erica, Alex had been content with taking orders. A few familiar faces had stopped by, and it helped that one of those had been Carol, taking some time out of her day to be some company for Alex Henderson. As long as Tommy H. had stayed clear of Scoops with Alex around, Carol was always more than welcome. However, most of the time she had been alone and binged on enough ice cream to make her never want to eat it again.
Coming up for a breather, Steve had headed behind the counter to fulfill another fix to Erica's 'not-perfect-enough' bowl of ice cream. "More fudge," he sighed, tossing the bowl down onto the counter before them. Looking over to her, he had went to give her a reassuring smile that this was all for the best, but his lips had faltered as he pointed up to her. "Nose bleed." Leaning over, he had reached out for a napkin and extended it her way.
Rolling her eyes, Alex had accepted his napkin and wiped under her nose. "I don't know what's going on with me. I usually only get them when I get headaches but I feel like they're happening more often." Tossing the napkin over into the garbage, she sighed. "Got one last night too when we went out."
"You went out last night?" Steve questioned. When her eyes had darted to his then quickly away, he had leaned up against the counter, his arms crossed as he watched her, awaiting a response. It tore him apart whenever he felt she closed him off but he felt he shouldn't pressure her to talk after everything he knew she went through. He had wanted to give her that time to find herself again, but a part of him felt that she would push him away in the process.
This time was different.
When she had failed to answer him, he ran his fingers through his hair before motioning to her. "You know I don't care if you need your time to be alone and work on getting past what you went through but sometimes you gotta let me know you're not keeping things from me."
Alex reached up, playing with her lips as she worked to look over to him. As soon as her eyes had settled on his, her hand had dropped and a frown had began to form. "There's some stuff I want to talk to you about. But alone... and not when we're doing whatever it is we're doing with this secret room."
"Come over early tonight before we go out," he offered. "We can talk about whatever it is that's on your mind." He had managed a smile for her sake, but inside he had felt the worry clench at his heart. After such a heart wrenching breakup that Nancy had put him through on Halloween, he wasn't sure he could handle Alex possibly planning a breakup just before the Fourth of July.
"Tonight," Alex confirmed. Her lips began to twitch upwards as she began to feel a weight lift off her shoulders. Tonight she planned on telling him everything that was on her mind. From the return of the Mind Flayer to the possibility of Billy Hargrove becoming a changed person. "Please just don't worry," she reassured until she realized that he should in fact worry about the information she held onto. "I-I mean, it's not good stuff I'm thinking of. But this isn't... I'm not breaking up with you. It honestly has nothing to do with us being together."
Letting out a long sigh of relief, Steve instantly felt the worry (for the time being) wash away. "Yeah, that actually makes me feel better."
"Yeah, I'm just using you until the movie and the fair," she teased. Reaching out, she grabbed onto his hands, forcing him to let her hold them despite his resistance as payback for her teasing. "I'm joking," she drawled on, moving in closer to him. "I love you, Harrington. You're my little sailor man."
Pulling his hands away from hers, he tried to hide his smile with a look of frustration. "Don't call me that."
"My strong sailor man," she teased in a whiny tone, holding back a laugh. Moving closer to him, she felt his hands hold onto her waist to prevent her from getting any closer. "Come on, sweet sailor boy, I love you. You're my everything." Sticking out her bottom lip, she looked to him as she softly reminded him once more that she loved him.
Steve forced himself to pull his eyes off of her when a smile came to his lips. "Don't look at me like that."
"How exactly am I looking at you?" she questioned back playfully.
"Like you're totally in love with me. I hate it. I'm supposed to be working."
"I'm the one working here. You're actually doing my job now which is dealing with Erica. So thank you, I needed time away from her. But I will warn you, given your track record on fights, she will try and fight you and we all know who's winning that fight."
"You can't tell me you love me then say a six year old is going to kick my ass."
"She's ten," Alex corrected quietly. Claiming Erica Sinclair was any younger than she actually is was never ending well for anyone to make that mistake.
"That doesn't help," he whispered to her. The corner of her lip had turned up and Steve knew that she had a lot more teasing on her mind that she was desperate to get out. But before she could, he had leaned down and place his lips against hers before she could get another word out.
"Oh, yum. You taste like ice cream," Steve grinned, licking his lips. Unable to stop herself from smiling like crazy, Alex shoved his shoulder back until Steve grabbed her hand and held it gently in his, "Just admit it. You're madly in love with me. Or do we have to be risking our lives to do that?"
"We are risking our lives following evil Russians," Alex clarified.
"Great so I'm in love with you," he said plainly.
"Awesome, I'm in love with you too."
Brushing her hair behind her ears, holding her face in his hands once again finding the touch of her comforting and it had filled him with warmth. His eyes had stayed on her as her smile caused him to feel his chest grow tight, knowing he could never find a love like her. For Alex, she had felt safe in his hands, knowing whatever nightmare had stood outside of Scoops Ahoy, he would be by her side. No matter what tragedy stood between them, they would gravitate towards one another and find that feeling that would keep them fighting for one another.