As much as I don't want Emily to assist me, I'm not going to refuse Emily's help. It's a lot of work to do for one person. There's a reason my mom was counting on my dad's help to get it done. However, I definitely don't want to be alone with Emily after we just got into a spat. Mom has too many knives in the kitchen for me to feel comfortable right now...
"I'm going to see if Karsyn and Grayson can help us." I exit the kitchen, leaving Emily by herself for the moment. When I look out the kitchen window, Grayson's car and Karsyn's car are still in the driveway and it's pouring rain. I know they're here in the house somewhere. They're probably hanging out in the basement.
The door to the staircase is wide open and the lights are on, so I take the first few steps towards the basement. When I hear Grayson's voice, I stop in my tracks.
"Karsyn, there's something I wanted to talk to you about."
I quirk an eyebrow. Could this be it? The moment we've all been waiting for?
"Alright, go ahead." Karsyn replies nonchalantly. I wish I could see their faces. I'm only on the second step, so the wall is blocking my view. If I could sneak down to the fifth step...
"Well, we've been friends since high school and now we're business partners, so I felt like this was going to come up at some point."
I'm on the third step.
Karsyn asks, "Are you okay? Your hands are shaking."
Fourth step, here I come.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I just don't want to mess up our friendship asking this."
"Nothing could ruin our friendship, Grayson."
I really should've brought popcorn.
"Well, I know we've talked about future plans for the business, and I'm not really sure I can go on anymore as business partners."
Are you flipping my pancakes?? That's the bomb he just dropped? He's supposed to ask her out! Not end their business deal!
Here we come, step number five.
"Oh. Is it something I said? I know I can be a little too much to handle when I get stressed out-"
"No, no, no! I don't want to be business partners because... I want to be more than that."
I am internally squealing, in case anyone wants to know.
"Oh... oh! Wait, what're you saying?"
The fifth step gives me a limited view of their faces, but anything is better than nothing. They're both sitting on the brown leather couch, face to face. There's a few scattered papers between them, which leads me to believe Karsyn was going over some designs with him. Karsyn's face is bright red, and I can tell she's embarrassed for asking what he means. I don't blame her for asking for clarification though. Grayson was about as clear as mud.
Grayson laughs nervously, "Well I was hoping you would be my girlfriend but if-"
Karsyn interrupts his stuttering, with an enthusiastic, "Yes! Of course!" She wraps her arms around him in a tight embrace.
I feel like this is an appropriate time for me to enter the room with a loud, "It's about time!" My bold entrance startles both of them, and I probably interrupted a perfect opportunity for them to kiss, but I did come down here for a reason. The sooner I find out if they can help me with the food, the sooner I can leave them alone.
Grayson gives me the same glare he gave me when I first pulled into the driveway. That's when I realize that he was trying to have this same conversation with Karsyn earlier. I've interrupted him twice now.
Karsyn is friendlier in her response to me. "Oh hey, Becky. What's up?"
I shrug as I prop myself up on the wall beside me. "My mom got sick and needs me to finish making the meal for tomorrow. I was going to see if you guys could help, but it's okay if you can't."
Grayson stands up and begins to slide on his rain jacket. "Well, we have a dinner party we have to attend tonight, but we could help you when we get back."
"What time would you be back?" I'm surprised Grayson volunteered at all considering the cold shoulder he's been giving me.
Karsyn answers, "Between 10 and 11."
I look down at my wrist watch to see it's already 6:00. By the time they get back, we'll probably be nearly finished. With a shake of my head, I reply, "Don't worry about it. Y'all go have fun."
Karsyn gives me a curious glance before she starts to slip on her own jacket. She stands up and places her hands on her hips. "Are you sure?"
I don't miss a beat, "Absolutely." Grayson and Karsyn are finally an official couple. They need to have some quality time together, just the two of them. I'm sure I can patch things up with Emily.
All three of us head upstairs. Once I tell them goodbye, I check on my mom and help her get up the stairs to her room, at her request. I can hear Emily on the phone with her mom in the kitchen, which sounds like it's turning into an argument. "Yes, mom, I'm fine. I promise. It was all a misunderstanding." There's a brief pause before she replies, "I'm at Beck's house now." Perhaps she didn't fill her mom in about her Thanksgiving plans. Another part of me thinks that maybe her mom is scolding her for Jenga's disappearing act. I have no idea if her mom knows she's Jenga, though.
After getting my mom some nausea relief medicine from her bathroom cabinet, I head back downstairs into the kitchen to see Emily is still on the phone. Her back is towards me, so she doesn't see me come in.
Emily begins to pace back and forth, and then an outburst comes along, making her stop in her tracks and throw her hands up. "Eli, you know how my mom feels about the whole superhero ordeal. Why did you call her to tell her I went missing?"
Oh great, the ex boyfriend is on the phone. Apparently, I shouldn't have told him about Emily going missing. He just blabbed everything to Emily's mom over the phone. Obviously, a concerned mother who lives halfway across the country is going to worry and call her daughter. Still, Emily's mom is probably trying to convince Emily that she shouldn't be a superhero anymore because of the alarming news. It's my fault, though. I should've let Eli know that I found her when I did. Maybe he wouldn't have called her mom. Then again, maybe he called her immediately after I told him. Nonetheless, Emily is being reprimanded because of me.
"Can you just stay out of it? It's not your business anymore. You don't have to be concerned." Emily's fists are clenched tight. I don't think I've ever seen Emily so upset. I can't see her face, but I can only imagine her face is red from how much she's yelling. "Look, Eli, you didn't support me then, and you don't support me now. Stop trying to pin my mom against me too. Frankly, your opinion doesn't have any place in my life anymore." With that, Emily hangs up and angrily slams her phone down on the kitchen counter.
Emily turns around to meet my wide-eyed gaze. She closes her eyes and purses her lips before she asks, "How much of that did you hear?"
I make my way into the kitchen and walk past her towards the utensil drawers. "Enough to know to hide all the knives from you."
She rolls her eyes, "I'm not that upset."
"I'm not taking any chances."
Emily actually lets out a laugh as she slips off her jean jacket. "Whatever, let's just get started on the baking. Is Karsyn or Grayson going to be able to help us?"
With a slight smile, I respond, "They just became a couple and they're going out to some party. They may or may not come back in time to help us."
Emily puts her hands on her hips, "So it's just me and you?"
"Yeah..." I awkwardly bite my lip as I open one of the kitchen drawers. "Should I hide the forks too?"
***
In all honesty, I thought Emily was exaggerating when she said she was a great cook. This girl is whipping up stuff faster than I can get bowls out. All I can manage to do is read the instructions and find the ingredients.
"I thought you said you could help me make a pumpkin pie?"
I laugh, "I thought I could, but you're too fast for me to keep up! Are you sure you don't have super speed?"
She chuckles in reply, "I don't have super speed, but I did increase the chances of us moving along at a faster pace."
I point an accusing finger at her, "Lies! You only increased the chances for yourself!"
Emily throws her head back, full on guffawing, "It's not my fault you're slow! If you stopped dancing to the music maybe you'd go faster!"
I let out a loud gasp. "Take it back!"
She looks me in the eyes and grins, "Mmm... nah." She goes back to stirring up the pie mix, and that's when I decide it's time to help her slow down a little bit.
"Come on, Em, you can take a dance break every once in a while." I grab her hands and pull her away from the mixing bowl. I'm not the best dancer, but I can successfully twirl her around and dip her. She's trying to fight me on it, but once I've dipped her, she's grinning like a fool and so am I.
Now that I've got her distracted, I decide it's time to get her back for calling me slow. With a wide smirk on my face, I scoop my finger into her bowl and smear the pumpkin pie mix across Emily's cheek, right under her eye. She squeals and jumps away from me and the bowl, bracing herself with a wooden spoon. There's an identical wooden spoon to my left on the marbled counter, and I grab it to equip myself for a fight.
"I don't think you know what you just got yourself into." I straighten up, puffing my chest out. She raises one eyebrow, challenging me. I bring my spoon up and proclaim, "Then let the spoon war begin, peasant!"
Emily takes off running into the living room, both of us hysterically laughing all the while. She leaps over the couch and lands on her feet on the other side. I circle around the couch to continue chasing her, and she makes her way towards the front door.
"Em, wait, it's pouring rain out there!"
Emily gives a teasing grin as she turns the knob, "What? Will Switch get electrocuted in the rain?" Then she's racing out the door, and I'm running after her once again. I'm drenched from the rain as soon as I step outside. The rain is so intense it's coming down like buckets of water. I can barely see Emily as it's coming down.
All of a sudden, I see her dart back into the house. She probably didn't even come out in the rain! I bet she just dashed to the side of the door and let me run by like an idiot. Nonetheless, I'm determined to catch her at this point. I'm the one who declared this war, so it would be kind of embarrassing if I lost.
Once I enter the house, I search the kitchen up and down. I check under the table, in the pantry closet, in the cupboards, but I can't find her. Then I make my way back to the living room and circle the couch.
"Ah-ha!" I spot her hiding behind the couch, on the end where I wouldn't have seen her from my perspective at the doorway. She squeals with laughter, and I'm able to catch her wrist and turn her back around to face me. With this swift movement, (which I thought was going to be pretty smooth) her foot catches on the leg of the coffee table, tripping herself and taking me down with her. Thankfully, the couch is there to soften our fall.
There I am, inches away from Emily's face, holding her hand, hanging off the couch. You're probably yelling, "Oh just kiss her already!" Need I remind you that shouting is rude? Anyways, I can't. I just can't kiss her. It takes everything in my being to resist it in this moment.
Emily's hair is sprawled out behind her on the couch pillow, and she's looking into my eyes like it's the last time she'll ever see me. A crack of thunder startles the both of us, but neither of us move. When Emily starts to smirk, I think I might be a goner.
"So if the power goes off, will you be able to turn it back on?"
I roll my eyes with a slight smirk, "Of course. It's all I'm good for."
Her piercing blue eyes make me melt, "I don't believe that."
I squint at her, "Why do you have so much faith in me?"
Emily smiles a knowing smile, "Someone has to have confidence in you. And if you don't, I'll have confidence in you until you can find it for yourself."
That's it, I can't resist her anymore.
A single piece of hair hangs over her eyes, and I gently tuck it behind her ear. She remains silent as I lightly brush my thumb over her cheek, wiping the pumpkin pie from under her eye. I lean in to kiss her lips, hoping to end the turmoil in my head once and for all. When our lips meet, my head begins to swirl. I'm actually kissing my dream girl. She places her hands on the back of my neck, and I cup her head in my hands. I've never known a kiss to be this magical. It sounds cheesy, I know, but right now, I feel like we're the only two people in the world, and this is our moment. No one and no circumstance is fighting against us when we kiss.
The lights begin to flicker, and then they go out all at once. Emily breaks off the kiss to look up at me and ask, "Do you need to go fix that?"
I shrug and give a wide smile, "I guess I'll go..." I give her a wink because she's pouting. "But I might need someone to help me."
Even in the dark, I can see her eyebrows furrow in confusion. "How am I supposed to help?"
I start chuckling, "I need someone to hold my hand in the dark."
Emily rolls her eyes, but we both begin to stand to our feet. She begins to laugh at me when I grab her hand and lead her down to the basement to the breaker box. "You'll take any chance to flirt with me, huh?"
I pause to give her a quick kiss on the lips, and suddenly I crave more. "Of course. It might be the only thing I'm good for."
***
It shouldn't be a surprise when I tell Emily that we're going to listen to my playlist with One Direction, The Jonas Brothers, and Big Time Rush. But I shouldn't be surprised that Emily is the type of person who likes to listen to Christmas music at Thanksgiving.
"Look, Em, I'm not trying to be a Scrooge, but what's with the Christmas music? What happened to my boy bands playlist?" I ask as I put the turkey in the oven. There's a few food items that we won't have to cook until the morning, like the green beans and corn. Emily's putting the pies on the kitchen table. Other than that, we're finished.
Emily puts her hands on her hips, "Well One Direction doesn't have a Christmas album Becky."
I laugh, "I meant why are we listening to Christmas music already?"
She's quiet for a moment as she looks down at her feet. "My parents start playing Christmas music on Thanksgiving. I just miss the tradition, that's all."
Beckett, you're an insensitive little brat.
I felt my heart break, Reggie, you didn't need to remind me.
"Oh... Well at least you'll get to go home for Christmas, right?" I'm completely out of my element when it comes to being sympathetic.
Emily shrugs, "Yeah, but it's just not the same anymore. When I go home for winter break or for summer break, it always turns into a yelling match about how I need to step down from my role as Jenga. I'm trying to do my best to save lives, and they want me to back away from it all. I know it's risky business, but why shouldn't I use these powers for good?"
I blink a few times, trying to let all that she's said settle in. If my parents find out I'm Switch, they'll probably be proud, but then tell me I need to focus on my schoolwork instead. However, if they find out I'm the A- Villain that kidnapped Jenga, I don't know what they'll do to me. "Well, you are an adult, and you make pretty wise decisions. I think they should be proud of who you are and what you stand for."
Emily's cheeks turn red as she beams from my comment. "Thanks, Beck. It's just... well I wish my family supported me like your family supports you. You're a superhero family, out fighting crime together and putting it all out on the line, not knowing if you'll get home for dinner. If only I had that kind of family support-"
"Emily, stop," I didn't realize how much of an impact my lie about my family made on her until now. She needs to know some sort of truth about me, and this is an easier start than telling her I was the one who captured her. "That's not how my family is at all. I lied to try and impress you."
Emily's eyebrows knit together, "What're you talking about? You don't go out and fight crime together?"
I run my fingers through my hair and take a seat at the kitchen table. She still seems perplexed, so I pat the chair beside me and she willingly takes a seat. I'm honestly surprised that she's willing to hear me out, considering I just admitted to lying to her.
"You asked me if Karsyn knew I was a super, and I didn't want you to think that she was more special or took precedence over you this weekend, so I made it seem like everyone in my family knew I had powers. Then the lie spiraled into a fantasy I had in my head, but none of it's true. In reality," I sigh as I hang my head, "I just found out my parents had powers last weekend."
Emily's head jerks back, "Last weekend? Why did it take so long for them to tell you?"
I scratch the back of my head, "Well I didn't get powers at puberty like everyone else who got powers, so there was no reason for me to ask them if they had powers, and they never volunteered the information. Then, I got my power over the summer, and I thought I just got it by accident and I didn't want to tell my parents."
Emily leans her head onto her propped up arm. "What made you tell them, then?"
I don't miss a beat, because frankly, I'm trying to be more open with Emily. Eventually, I'll work up the courage to tell her my biggest secret. Right now, I've got to come clean about the smaller things. "I discovered I have a second power - a force field. Two or more powers indicates both parents had to have powers. That's when I decided to come home and demand answers."
Emily nods along, not realizing that my force field saved her when she fell from the sky. "How'd you figure out you had a force field?"
With a sweep of my hand through my hair, I reply, "I saved your life when you fell on my truck." I twiddle my thumbs, trying not to meet her eyes.
Emily cups my chin in her hand to turn my head to face her. "Look at me," I stare into her ocean blue eyes, "That was you?"
I shake my head, "I don't know how it happened... I just saw you falling when I was going to your tutoring session and ... and traffic had stopped - I just didn't know what to do so I threw my hands up as you got closer to my truck and, boom, force field."
Emily quirks an eyebrow, "So it was just by chance that you saved me?"
I don't know where she's going with this, but I answer honestly, "Well, yeah... Wait. Did you increase the probability of someone catching you? Did you give me the power?" I'm on the edge of my seat when she starts chuckling at my eagerness.
"I can't give someone powers, and I didn't have the time to think of a way to help myself. I guess you're just my lucky charm." She ruffles my hair, still chuckling at me. In a way, I'm glad that the conversation has taken a detour from the original topic, because now I don't feel so much regret.
"So, you're not mad that I lied to you about my family?"
Emily leans back in her chair and crosses her arms. I can see in her purses lips and scrunched nose that she's mulling it over in her head. Finally, she answers with, "No, I get it. But you didn't need to make up a story just because you thought I'd be jealous of Karsyn. I'm not jealous of her."
I give a small smirk, "Oh is that so?" I tease her by poking at her side, which leads to tickling, and then she starts slapping my hand away with laughter.
"Fine! Stop tickling me! I was jealous!" She admits.
I stop with a gasp, "Whoa. For real?"
She rolls her eyes at me and shoves me away, "Just go play some Christmas music!" I oblige and stand up to go turn on the speaker connected to my phone.
It's amazing how much joy I feel when Emily's around. Even when I've told her I've lied to her, she still finds a way to make me laugh and feel better about the situation. What did I do to deserve her in my life? Now it's going to make it even more difficult to tell her the truth about the A- Villain plot. But maybe, since she was so receptive this time, it will go smoother than I anticipate.
As I'm scrolling on my phone, looking through my playlists, I feel my phone buzz in my hand and then a notification drops down from the top of the screen. I put a hold on searching for Christmas music when I see the topic line of the email I just received.
Dr. Steven Hayes
Assignment Incomplete
It takes everything in my being to restrain myself from showing any kind of reaction to this email. Is it even safe for me to open it with Emily in the same room? She could easily peek over my shoulder.
"I've got to go to the bathroom, but, uh..." I search for the aux chord in one of the kitchen drawers and find it successfully. "Here. You can plug in your phone for some Christmas music." I'm trying not to be spastic and weird, but it's really hard to contain my anxiety right now. I walk out of the kitchen and, once I've turned the corner, I bolt to the upstairs bathroom to read the email.
As fast as I can, I shut the door and lock it behind me. To avoid pacing back and forth and risk Emily hearing me walk around, I sit on the edge of the bathtub and open the email.
Beckett,
My colleagues informed me that you dropped off your assignment on time, and I did see it for myself.
However, someone has stolen your assignment. I regret to inform you that you will have to turn it in again in order to receive credit.
I realize you went to great lengths to complete this project, and you may not want to do it again. I will give you until the end of the semester to complete the assignment again. Need I remind you, this assignment will save you. It is worth quite a lot.
Best wishes,
Dr. Hayes
For a minute, all I can do is stare at the email, stunned. I turned Emily in to The Undergrounds, rescued her, and now I have to kidnap her again? At first, I completed the assignment to save myself, because I figured he would threaten to end my life if I tried to back out, just because I knew too much. But what if I don't complete it this time? Surely he'll make my life miserable, and then find someone else to bring her in again. What am I supposed to do now?
Perhaps, Becky, you can try telling the truth.
A/N
Whew! Finally got this chapter written out. I wanted to make it a bit longer to make up for lost time. I also think it's perfect timing for this chapter because Thanksgiving is right around the corner and the radio just started playing Christmas music too 😂
What's your opinion on playing Christmas music before Thanksgiving like Emily? Personally, I didn't think I was up for it this year, and then I heard Mariah Carey come on with "All I want For Christmas Is You" and now I'm ready lol
What do you think Beck will do now? He's already gone back on his promise to himself that he wouldn't like Emily - now look at them! Do you think he'll turn her back in or do you think he'll figure out another way?
Lastly, if any of my wonderful readers are into making fan art or character aesthetics, please send them to me (email, Instagram)! I love to see readers become active in making the story come to life!
Thanks for reading!
Always, Sunny ☀️