Alien hunters
There had been a feminine scream from upstairs.
In the basement, Tommy had worried and stressed that, for some reason, Alissa had changed her mind about coming to Dick’s party and now she was going to be dragged down and tied up and possibly by killed by the crazy woman and her son. It was a terrifying thought that didn’t last long. The girl that was dragged down the stairs was not Alissa.
“Oh, you worried for nothing, Tommy!” Harry said with some excitement. “It’s only August. Alissa really didn’t want to come because we’re a bunch of nuts!”
“Yeah, that’s great Harry.” Tommy was pretty sure Harry had missed the underlining sarcasm in his statement. He craned his neck to get a better look at August.
She was being supported by Ned, who held her elbow as he half-pulled August down the steps. She looked vulnerable and frightened - two things August almost never was in the time that Tommy had known her. She stumbled on the last step and was pulled up, harshly. For a moment he saw the August he had always known.
Her head snapped up and she pulled at her captor. Her body thrashed. “Let me go you oaf!”
“Momma, she won’t be quiet,” Ned had told Charlotte. Charlotte lifted an eyebrow and gave a maternal smile before leaning down to be level with August.
“Don’t you touch her!” Tommy warned. He pulled at his restraints and his chair rocked some, violently, with his movements.
The woman smiled an absent smile and turned her eyes to Tommy. “Or what?”
“Or what?” echoed Ned, and he laughed some.
The teenager pauses and considered this. “Tell ‘em, Sally!”
Sally snarled. Her lip curled and she lunged her neck forward, menacingly, despite the ropes that held her down. “You hurt a hair on that girl’s head and I’ll hollow your head out like a radish and use you as a dip dish.”
“Oh my,” said Charlotte, though she didn’t sound too worried. And why not? Sally was neatly tied down and Ned was all the muscle she needed. She turned her attention back to the teenage girl. “We took down the Amazon. You have no chance. Why don’t you be a good little girl and stay still while Ned ties you up?”
August paused and for the first time examined her surroundings. Tommy, Harry, Sally, Mrs. Dubcek and Officer Don all tied up. She relaxed her body and drew in a shaking breath. She let Ned tie her down without further struggle.
Charlotte beamed. So did Ned.
“Let’s get back to work, Ned.”
“Yes, Momma.”
+++
“What’re you doing here?” Tommy asked as August struggled in vain at her ropes.
She let her head fall back against Tommy’s since they were back to back and she sighed. “I’m not even dating you and I still get caught up in your bullshit.”
“It wasn’t a good time to come over,” her ex-boyfriend said, almost apologetically.
“But he’s glad you’re not Alissa!” Harry promised.
August glared and huffed out a breath.
She and Tommy were quiet a while before August finally spoke again. “I wanted to talk about the Zephyr.”
He was glad she spoke. It seemed trivial in light of what was happening but it was something else to think about. It was something to bring their minds away from the buzzing power tools upstairs and the idea that any one of their skulls could be the next to be cracked open.
“What’s to talk about? I fired you.”
“That wasn’t fair.”
“Sure it was.” Tommy insisted. “You’re jealous of Alissa so you wrote a mean review to hurt her feelings and make her look bad.”
“You’re a real ass, do you know that?” August snarled at him. “What are we all doing down here, anyways?”
Harry answered: “Nothing! We’re tied up so we can’t get away.”
Tommy leaned back against August, “Crazy woman and her moronic son want to cut open our heads.”
“...Why?”
Tommy exchanged looks with Harry and Sally.
“We have no idea! Why do crazy people do any of the things they do?”
He never could appreciate irony like August could.
She closed her eyes. “…I don’t want to die, Tommy.”
“Well! Me neither. Don’t be scared, you’ll just scare me more!” Tommy scolded.
+++
They didn’t die.
The FBI came and Ned and Charlotte were taken away. There were questionings and the Dubcek house was roped off as a crime scene as agents collected evidence.
Tommy wrapped his hand around August’s wrist and pulled her onto the roof. She sat and pulled her knees up to her chest. For a while they were quiet and simply watched the commotion caused by Charlotte and her son.
“So, aliens huh?” August asked. “Crazy.”
Tommy laughed, uneasily. “Yeah. Crazy.”
“You were pretty brave,” she announced after a while.
He straightened up and smoothed his hair. “Oh? You think so?”
He shifted closer to her and August let him.
“Mhm.” She leaned in to kiss his cheek.
He grinned.
For a moment the pair stared at one another before August closed the distance and kissed him properly. He kissed back. When they pulled away he didn’t look particularly bothered that he had kissed another girl.
“Y’know,” he said. “Maybe I was hasty with this Alissa thing. I mean…we were always really good together and she isn’t serious like you are and…”
She kissed him again.
He breathed. “And I meant it, you know. All that stuff I said about wanting to be with you and you cheated on me and …”
“I think it’s over,” August said.
Tommy frowned. “Then why are you kissing me? That isn’t fair, August.”
“I won’t tell Alissa.” She moved off the roof. “I didn’t give her a bad review because I was jealous. She really is a terrible actress. But I don’t like her, Tommy. I think you could do so much better and I think you know it.”
“You are so gonna tell Alissa!” Tommy complained, following her off the roof and into the house. “That’s cheap, August! I was vulnerable and you’re…you’re you and…well are you better?”
“Yes.”
“So, give us another chance. I’ll dump Alissa at school tomorrow and…”
August shook her head. “Not me. You hurt me and I hurt you and I don’t think we could ever be together again but I don’t want you to…She isn’t good for you and…”
“August.”
“…I think you should make your own choices. But I think you could choose better and I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“You hurt me.”
“You hurt me first!” August insisted. She was quiet a long moment before she spoke again. “I won’t tell Alissa.”
“Good.”
They were quiet a long while before August combed back her hair. “Walk me home.”
“Yeah. Okay.”
So he walked her home.
They paused outside of her front door.
“So, about the Zephyr.”
“I got word that one’ve the Senior English teachers is having an affair with one of the coaches. Write it.” Tommy winked, “See ya on Monday, doll. Deadline’s next Friday.”
“Great. See ya Monday, Chief.”
“Oh, and August, honey.”
August looked back at Tommy and moved her hand from the door knob.
Tommy set his hands on his hips. “That kiss…”
“Never happened.”
“There’s a good girl.”
She didn’t tell Alissa.
He didn’t either.
They work together on the Zephyr and hardly speak to each other. ...It's better that way.
In the basement, Tommy had worried and stressed that, for some reason, Alissa had changed her mind about coming to Dick’s party and now she was going to be dragged down and tied up and possibly by killed by the crazy woman and her son. It was a terrifying thought that didn’t last long. The girl that was dragged down the stairs was not Alissa.
“Oh, you worried for nothing, Tommy!” Harry said with some excitement. “It’s only August. Alissa really didn’t want to come because we’re a bunch of nuts!”
“Yeah, that’s great Harry.” Tommy was pretty sure Harry had missed the underlining sarcasm in his statement. He craned his neck to get a better look at August.
She was being supported by Ned, who held her elbow as he half-pulled August down the steps. She looked vulnerable and frightened - two things August almost never was in the time that Tommy had known her. She stumbled on the last step and was pulled up, harshly. For a moment he saw the August he had always known.
Her head snapped up and she pulled at her captor. Her body thrashed. “Let me go you oaf!”
“Momma, she won’t be quiet,” Ned had told Charlotte. Charlotte lifted an eyebrow and gave a maternal smile before leaning down to be level with August.
“Don’t you touch her!” Tommy warned. He pulled at his restraints and his chair rocked some, violently, with his movements.
The woman smiled an absent smile and turned her eyes to Tommy. “Or what?”
“Or what?” echoed Ned, and he laughed some.
The teenager pauses and considered this. “Tell ‘em, Sally!”
Sally snarled. Her lip curled and she lunged her neck forward, menacingly, despite the ropes that held her down. “You hurt a hair on that girl’s head and I’ll hollow your head out like a radish and use you as a dip dish.”
“Oh my,” said Charlotte, though she didn’t sound too worried. And why not? Sally was neatly tied down and Ned was all the muscle she needed. She turned her attention back to the teenage girl. “We took down the Amazon. You have no chance. Why don’t you be a good little girl and stay still while Ned ties you up?”
August paused and for the first time examined her surroundings. Tommy, Harry, Sally, Mrs. Dubcek and Officer Don all tied up. She relaxed her body and drew in a shaking breath. She let Ned tie her down without further struggle.
Charlotte beamed. So did Ned.
“Let’s get back to work, Ned.”
“Yes, Momma.”
+++
“What’re you doing here?” Tommy asked as August struggled in vain at her ropes.
She let her head fall back against Tommy’s since they were back to back and she sighed. “I’m not even dating you and I still get caught up in your bullshit.”
“It wasn’t a good time to come over,” her ex-boyfriend said, almost apologetically.
“But he’s glad you’re not Alissa!” Harry promised.
August glared and huffed out a breath.
She and Tommy were quiet a while before August finally spoke again. “I wanted to talk about the Zephyr.”
He was glad she spoke. It seemed trivial in light of what was happening but it was something else to think about. It was something to bring their minds away from the buzzing power tools upstairs and the idea that any one of their skulls could be the next to be cracked open.
“What’s to talk about? I fired you.”
“That wasn’t fair.”
“Sure it was.” Tommy insisted. “You’re jealous of Alissa so you wrote a mean review to hurt her feelings and make her look bad.”
“You’re a real ass, do you know that?” August snarled at him. “What are we all doing down here, anyways?”
Harry answered: “Nothing! We’re tied up so we can’t get away.”
Tommy leaned back against August, “Crazy woman and her moronic son want to cut open our heads.”
“...Why?”
Tommy exchanged looks with Harry and Sally.
“We have no idea! Why do crazy people do any of the things they do?”
He never could appreciate irony like August could.
She closed her eyes. “…I don’t want to die, Tommy.”
“Well! Me neither. Don’t be scared, you’ll just scare me more!” Tommy scolded.
+++
They didn’t die.
The FBI came and Ned and Charlotte were taken away. There were questionings and the Dubcek house was roped off as a crime scene as agents collected evidence.
Tommy wrapped his hand around August’s wrist and pulled her onto the roof. She sat and pulled her knees up to her chest. For a while they were quiet and simply watched the commotion caused by Charlotte and her son.
“So, aliens huh?” August asked. “Crazy.”
Tommy laughed, uneasily. “Yeah. Crazy.”
“You were pretty brave,” she announced after a while.
He straightened up and smoothed his hair. “Oh? You think so?”
He shifted closer to her and August let him.
“Mhm.” She leaned in to kiss his cheek.
He grinned.
For a moment the pair stared at one another before August closed the distance and kissed him properly. He kissed back. When they pulled away he didn’t look particularly bothered that he had kissed another girl.
“Y’know,” he said. “Maybe I was hasty with this Alissa thing. I mean…we were always really good together and she isn’t serious like you are and…”
She kissed him again.
He breathed. “And I meant it, you know. All that stuff I said about wanting to be with you and you cheated on me and …”
“I think it’s over,” August said.
Tommy frowned. “Then why are you kissing me? That isn’t fair, August.”
“I won’t tell Alissa.” She moved off the roof. “I didn’t give her a bad review because I was jealous. She really is a terrible actress. But I don’t like her, Tommy. I think you could do so much better and I think you know it.”
“You are so gonna tell Alissa!” Tommy complained, following her off the roof and into the house. “That’s cheap, August! I was vulnerable and you’re…you’re you and…well are you better?”
“Yes.”
“So, give us another chance. I’ll dump Alissa at school tomorrow and…”
August shook her head. “Not me. You hurt me and I hurt you and I don’t think we could ever be together again but I don’t want you to…She isn’t good for you and…”
“August.”
“…I think you should make your own choices. But I think you could choose better and I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“You hurt me.”
“You hurt me first!” August insisted. She was quiet a long moment before she spoke again. “I won’t tell Alissa.”
“Good.”
They were quiet a long while before August combed back her hair. “Walk me home.”
“Yeah. Okay.”
So he walked her home.
They paused outside of her front door.
“So, about the Zephyr.”
“I got word that one’ve the Senior English teachers is having an affair with one of the coaches. Write it.” Tommy winked, “See ya on Monday, doll. Deadline’s next Friday.”
“Great. See ya Monday, Chief.”
“Oh, and August, honey.”
August looked back at Tommy and moved her hand from the door knob.
Tommy set his hands on his hips. “That kiss…”
“Never happened.”
“There’s a good girl.”
She didn’t tell Alissa.
He didn’t either.
They work together on the Zephyr and hardly speak to each other. ...It's better that way.