Cameron's POV
"Hey mum, I'm gonna go to Robin's house for a little, is that alright?" I ask over the phone as Robin takes a bite from their chocolate bar.
"Of course it is. If you text me when you want to leave, I can probably pick you up."
"Really? Thanks!"
"I'll see you later Cameron."
"Right, bye."
"So you gonna tell me anything yet? Or am I going to have to wait until we get to my house?" Robin asks.
"Give me a square of chocolate and I'll tell you the basics," I reply, holding out my hand. With a chuckle, they place two squares in my hand and I scoff them down immediately. "Well how do I begin? I doubt you'd even believe me if I told you."
"Just go ahead."
"Okay, there is proof for all this, let me add, I just can't show you until we get to your house. So... my brother is alive... I know it sounds crazy, please don't think I'm insane I can explain!"
They're certainly looking at me like I've finally lost it.
"So, I was cleaning my room last night and when I opened a drawer I found what I assumed was a forgotten Christmas present. But it had the name... the name "Red" written on it. In it there was a note and a USB stick, and on it was a video of my brother. He's alive, and has apparently left things for me to find, one of them being near your house. So if you don't mind, can I search for it before we get to yours?"
"Sure... it's just a little... I can't believe it. Shay is alive..."
"I know, I still don't fully believe it. But that phone call earlier, it was him."
A bit more walking and we reach an area which I'm certain is the crossing where I've almost been run over. But what am I supposed to look for exactly?
"It should be around here, whatever it is, I'm almost certain it's around here," I mutter, beginning to scan my surroundings. Robin decides to remain on this side of the road as I cross to the other, continuing my search near some bushes. That's when I notice a small toy car, silver and intricate. After fiddling with it for a while, I discover that you can open the top, and what I find there isn't particularly shocking. Another USB. This one red.
"Hey Robin, I found it!" I call, beckoning them over. They wait for a little to make sure there are no cars before running across the road towards me.
"I guess we should get back to my house so you can watch it. I suppose my room would be the better option, that way my parents are less likely to walk in on us watching it. That is if it's a video like the first one."
"What do you mean?"
"Maybe it's another hint in some other format."
"Like a riddle? Hopefully he knows I'm too dumb for that. Come on, let's get going."
Soon, we're at Robin's house, their parents already home.
"Oh Michael, you didn't say Cameron was coming around today," their mum says as we walk inside. I have to stop myself from cringing at the name, and Robin notices this. They nudge me slightly, turning those unpleasant feelings into anger.
"What was that for?" I groan, turning to them.
"You were spacing out, had to get your attention somehow."
"Whatever. It's nice to see you Mrs Prince," I grin. "Sorry for the sudden intrusion."
"It's alright, I should really thank you for looking after Michael so much, he can be a bit of trouble at times."
"Heh yeah... hey how about we go upstairs?" I ask, noticing Robin's discomfort.
"Sure," they reply.
When we get to their room, I sit on their bed and pull out my laptop. Whilst Robin dumps our blazers on the side, I bring up the video from Shay.
"You weren't kidding... that's really him."
"Yeah, did you think I was lying to you?"
"No, but it's hard to believe, y'know."
After I show them it, I plug the second USB in, wondering to myself how much money my brother has wasted on all this, and like Robin predicted, it's not a video.
Rather an image. A drawing.
"Why'd he leave me pokémon fan art?" I spit, not even believing it. "This is supposed to give me an idea of where to find the next clue. What the hell...?"
"Hmm... it's generation one fan art, that's Professor Oak, it's the Kanto region. It's based off of Japan."
"I'm not going to freaking Japan."
"I'm not telling you to."
"Sounds like it."
What could this mean? I know it's supposed to be hidden enough that no one else could find where he is, but he doesn't have to make the clues this difficult to find.
"Robin... what would you do if I disappeared? Because Shay wants to protect me, but if no one even knows where he is, that means the same would be the case with me, right? No one would know where I am..."
"I'd find you."
"Eh?"
"I would search for you, alone, and if Shay wouldn't mind, I would stay with you. Not just because I want to escape this life, but I don't think I could survive this life without you."
"Don't say that, you're strong..."
"You know it's true. This life is blow after blow, and then there's you. This invincible shield."
"I'm... I'm not invincible," I smile sadly.
"Right... sorry..."
"It's okay, I guess I may not be invincible, but I'm pretty darn close. I've made it this far after all."
In an attempt to change the subject, I look back down at the fan art on my screen, putting an exaggerated frown on my face, which quickly evolves into more of a pout. I just don't get it.
"You would probably be better off figuring it out without any distractions, plus it's getting kinda late. Your mum said she'd pick you up, right?" Robin says, breaking our silence.
As much as it may seem like they're trying to kick me out, we both know that for now, it would be better for me to go home. The idea, the fear of leaving my closest friend behind, I hate it. It's so distracting and it's eating me up from the inside.
"Yeah, I'll text her now," I reply, turning on my phone. I text mum before turning off my laptop and returning it to the safety of my bag. As I linger at the front door, waiting for the text that signals her arrival, I begin to feel even worse. Not only are my emotions being an inconvenience, my head hurts, I just want to go home.
"She's here..." I sigh when I see the text.
"Well, I'll see you Monday, kay?"
"Right..." before I go to leave, I pull them into a tight hug. "I know, no matter what, you'll be okay. Bye."
As I walk to the car, I notice how dark it is already, it's not even five o'clock yet.
"Hey Cam, it's the weekend now. You can rest now, although you really should've taken today off too," Mum sighs as I hop into the front seat.
"You know I couldn't miss out on netball," I laugh slightly, letting out a yawn straight after.
"It's good to know you follow in my footsteps. You remind me of when I was your age."
"I do?"
I have never really heard much about my parents' youth. I always suspected mum would've been more similar to my brother, perfect grades, perfect behaviour and whatnot.
"In what ways?"
"Let's see... I enjoyed sports a lot and cared less for academic subjects, though that does seem to be changing with you. It's nice to know that one of my children ended up with some of my mischief," she grins.
"Wow... I never knew..."
"You sound incredibly tired. Are you okay?"
"I guess I didn't sleep much last night and-"
As we pull to a stop at a red light, mum places a hand on my forehead and sighs.
"You're lucky it's a weekend. I'd suggest an early night's sleep and a lie in tomorrow morning."
"Nah, I can never fall asleep early, especially not on movie night. What's today's movie again?"
"Mulan..."
"Well no way in hell am I missing out on that. It's one of my favourites."
"Just go to bed straight after."
"Okay, I will," I smirk, already knowing the extent of that lie. I struggle sleeping, I can never go to sleep any earlier than midnight unless it's when I'm actually trying to do something. The only way to break the system is reading before trying to sleep, but (whilst I do enjoy reading) I don't have many interesting books at the moment, though there is one series Robin suggested to me as well as the manga Shay wanted me to read.
When we arrive at home, dad has prepared three delicious looking pizzas that are now placed in front of him on the coffee table as he fumbles around with the TV remote in order to get the movie on.
"Heya Cam," he smiles as I walk inside, "You wanna change into your pyjamas first?"
"Yeah, this uniform sucks. Just be sure not to start without me."
Mulan has always been one of my favourite Disney movies, not only are the songs catchy and the message inspiring, but Shay introduced it to me when I was just five years old. The nine year old he was at the time was shockingly mature, and he told me exactly this:
"Never forget this Cameron, you could stay a girl, be a man, or anything like that, as long as you are you, no one else, I'll still be your big brother, I'll still love you."
But me, being his snarky little sister, said, "That's sappy," before throwing a pillow at his face. He would constantly remind me of those words, and there was one time in particular when I was around twelve, where he brought it up in a conversation.
"Hey Cam, remember what I said that one time, that no matter what I'll love you, that I'll always be your big brother. You called me a sap afterwards, but I just thought I'd remind you."
"That same day you also said you had a crush on Nala from the Lion King, so either you're a furry or I should question everything you said on that day."
"I was nine! Can you blame me?"
"She's a lion Shay. A lion. A cartoon one at that."
"Well if that's the case then can I just mention the time you called Mulan pretty."
"At least she isn't a lion. And I still stand by that, Mulan has a very pretty character design."
And even now, five years later, I still stand by that. I know Disney princesses don't have very realistic proportions (especially some of the older ones) but despite my more tomboyish personality as a child, I loved all the dresses and pretty character designs. It took me ages to get over my obsession with the movie Tangled. Especially considering the fact that Rapunzel and Eugine were both such entertaining protagonists.
"Cam, hurry up, pizza's getting cold," dad calls from downstairs.
"Coming!" I yell back, pulling an oversized Harry Potter shirt over my head before leaping downstairs.