Journal Entry #2

October 8th

Okay, okay, so I think we’ve come up with a solution to how I can go to one of the energy orb retrievals without my family stopping me. I’m going to disguise as a villain for one of my family’s retrievals! It was all Taylor’s idea, really, but I think it’s brilliant. And it’ll keep me from being stuck at home and allow me to experience an EO retrieval without my family interfering. 

It started during lunch, the three of us decided to head down to Burger Bros and get some burgers and shakes, (senior privilege is the best, honestly,) and since the day was nice and rain-free for once, we decided to eat outside. Taylor and Jordan are the best, really. They are always willing to listen and suggest different ideas whenever it comes to my family problem. And this lunchtimes was no different. 

“You could always try telling them how you feel,” Jordan said before shoving a fistful of fries into his mouth. He says that every time we have this conversation.

“You know that I’ve already tried that,” I said, huffing like I always do, “Everyone always dismisses me.” 

Jordan merely shrugged and it took a lot of will-power to not throw my strawberry-banana shake at his face. Which I’m glad that I didn’t. It would have been treason if I had. BB makes some of the best shakes around. Taylor, knowing that I was about to disgrace my milkshake, tapped my knee to gain my attention.

“What if you tried a different approach this time?” 

When it comes to asking my family about letting me get involved in the family business, I am pretty sure I have exhausted every avenue I know in how I bring up the topic. And the result is always the same. No matter day, night, weekday, weekend, school year, or summer vacation. The response is always; “No, Aydan, now just drop it.”

“A different approach?” I said back and Taylor nodded at me as she finished chewing a bite of her double cheeseburger.

“Yeah,” she said, nodding as if she was some sort of sage, “you’ve tried asking, so why not just… not ask? And just do it.”

When those words had left her mouth, I nearly choked on my drink. I, not once, have never not asked my folks before doing something. Especially when it meant leaving the house. It’s just… They lead such dangerous lives and have so much to worry about that I never wanted them to worry about me in the same way. So I would always ask before I did anything, this way they always know what I’m doing and where I am. It’s just a habit. I voiced this to Jordan and Taylor.

Taylor merely nodded and sipped her pop, “I get that, but you’re technically an adult now, right? Legally, you can join the army and vote now and next year, when we’re all in college, we aren’t going to be asking our parents to do stuff. So why not start practicing now? And I vaguely remember someone complaining about how he hasn’t been able to test out his tracker thing for his final project last year.”

Dang. I really hate it when she’s right. But helping my family out without their permission? They’d throw a fit! But… I have been wanting a chance to test my EO tracker… And going to a retrieval without my family hovering over me would allow me to get better results… And I am the only one who knows how to use it right now. It’s really not a bad idea but…

“How would I even make it to a retrieval without my family noticing? Ray makes all of their vehicles and those only start with a chip that’s in one of their gloves,” I said, crumbling my cheeseburger’s wrapper into a small ball, “And they’re always informed when new orbs are located, so they’re always going to be at the retrieval. They’d flip if they saw me.” 

Taylor scowled in thought before snapping her fingers. “My brother is selling his old dirt bike since he got a new one for his birthday. He only wants about 70 bucks for it and it’s still in pretty decent condition. He was gonna give it to me, but Dad already promised to get me a new one as a graduation gift. I can text him and see if he’d be willing to sell it to you.”

I’ll never admit it, but now I’m thanking Evelyn for always wanting me to help her with her vehicles. I could customize it so that no one would know who it used to belong to. Eve always leaves extra parts laying around the garage, so I highly doubt she’d miss a few scrap pieces here and there.

“But there’s still the problem of his folks recognizing him at the retrieval,” Jordan reminded, flicking a fry at Taylor. It hit her in the shoulder but she managed to catch before it hit the grass and ate it just to spite Jordan.

If I hate it when Taylor is right, I absolutely hate it when Jordan is right. He’s like the mom of our group, always having this down-to-earth approach to everything we do. He is the more level-headed of the three of us while Taylor and I tend to have our heads in the clouds. And at this moment, Jordan’s face was twisted in his “You-Can’t-Be-Serious-About-This” expression and usually, that was enough to make us rethink our current train of thought. It almost worked on me but Taylor threw her burger wrapper at him.

“So? Then he can wear a disguise, just like they do,” Taylor said, shrugging, “I mean, it’s nearly Halloween, so I’m sure we could find you a hero costume and with someone’s help, fix it up to look decent enough to pass.”

“Don’t drag me into this!”

And, again, Taylor’s idea was sound, except…

“Heroes have to be registered by the government.”

Jordan looked at Taylor with a smug expression as I spoke but she merely waved her hand at me.

“Then be a villain for a night,” she said, a little too calmly in my opinion, “I highly doubt they have to be registered with the government and if they did, well, those villains are too dumb to be considered villains if you ask me.”

And here is where everything fell into place. Become a villain for one night. I mean, that would be all I need. A single night to see if I can really hold my own during a retrieval and to get the data I need for my tracker. I don’t need to be registered with the government to be a villain for a night and a lot of villains come and go. So I could go to a retrieval, see if my tracker actually works, let my family obtain the EO and then just vanish into the night, and nobody would be none-the-wiser. Then I could finally complete my tracker and prove that I can help my family without giving them a faulty gadget.

“Don’t tell me you’re actually contemplating this!” Jordan cried, grabbing at his hair. Hmm. Something is telling me that he really didn’t like our plan, but it’s a little late for that.

“But this might just be the only way I can help them out,” I said, “And besides, it’s not like I’d truly be a villain. I’d just be there for research purposes only. And if, for some reason, I do somehow get an orb or two, then I’ll just slip it into my parents’ vault. I was given access just in case Ray needs to get in, so that shouldn’t be a problem. And it’d only be for a night. Stop worrying, Jordan.”

The glare I received I will have nightmares of it for months to come. Seriously, Jordan is gonna make a great dad someday. His glare nearly rivals Mom’s and she has super strength to back up her glare. 

“Well, don’t expect me to help you…”

“I’ll let you design my villain outfit.”

Bribery of the clothe-making kind always works on Jordan. The moment those words left my mouth, Jordan’s mouth had snapped shut and this thoughtful expression crossed his face. And he’s the only one out of us who knows how to sew, so I kind of need him for this part. I’m really glad Mrs. F is keeping these journals private otherwise Jordan would kill me, knowing I use his love of making clothes to my advantage. And it helps that whatever Jordan makes is always wicked-looking, so he’s the best option for helping me make a decent villain costume. And if Mom and Dad become suspicious, then I can just use the excuse that he’s helping me with my Halloween costume or a cosplay of some kind.

And I’m just exploring all my possible career avenues as a good high school senior should. By testing my prototype and becoming a villain for a night. Mom and Dad do always tell me to keep my career options open. XD.

I’m so gonna get grounded for this….

October 5th

So, I’m not entirely sure how to start something like this. I’ve never really been one to just sit down and write things out, but Mrs. Frizz wants all of us to take up journaling for the rest of the quarter. At least two entries a week due on Tuesday and Thursday. It’s the weekend now and I have until Tuesday before my first entry is due, but I have nothing else to do with my family gone until who-knows-when. So why not get a head start?

But, where to start?

Mrs. Frizz promised to not read any of the entries, merely glance to see if at least a page is filled to get the full credit for this assignment. She said this way we can write anything we want to get off our chest without fear of having our secrets revealed.

“Everybody has their own secrets and reasons for keeping them,” she said, “And I’m not goin’ to take that from all of you.”

Weird, but okay, Mrs. F, I’m gonna trust your words on this type of privacy because I do have a few things I want off my chest and Taylor said this is a good way to start. So, I’m just gonna write stuff down until I can’t write anymore.

So, the main thing I want to get off my chest is how my family is almost never here. They’re always called out by Ray, who has located another energy orb that they need to retrieve before somebody bad does. I mean, I get it, I really do. Energy orbs hold so much power inside of them. A single orb can charge a twelve-story complex for at least three months with all the lights left on. So, just imagine if a bad guy managed to get a hold of one? It could be bad. But, it always seems that orbs appear when I finally get to hang out with my family. Just like today!

Mom, Dad, Evelyn, Wyatt, and Matt were all sitting with me, a promised movie night after they had taken off on my birthday this past Tuesday. And not even twelve minutes into the movie, my favorite by the way “The Hobbit,” when Ray’s face appeared on our screen.

“Another two orbs just appeared on the radar,” Ray said, popping up his radar screen next to his face and two dots in close proximity blink at us, “And I know for a fact that both Typhoon and Python have noticed the signal, too.”

And that really got my family going. The next thing I know, my family is all decked in their uniforms, retrieving their gear that Ray created just for them, and with apologetic smiles, left with quick ‘good-byes’. Ray even had this sympathetic look on his face before bidding me a good night and signing off with a, “Maybe next time, kiddo.”

But that’s what he said on Tuesday when he popped in with another report of three EOs being located and I had to eat my pie all by myself as everyone rushed off again. It wasn’t so bad when we were younger, I mean, only Mom or Dad would go, needing to stay with us, but when my siblings got older, then Evelyn would be in charge. Then when she got a better hold of her powers and could accompany Mom and Dad, and by the time Matt and Wyatt were old enough to accompany Mom and Dad, I was old enough to be left home alone. And being the only one of the family with no powers, I’m left home A LOT.

I mean, I know that I would just get in the way if I tried to help retrieve an EO and keep it out of harm’s way, but I know I can help in other ways! I have so many ideas on how to improve my family’s gear for obtaining EOs and even a theory on how to make a hand-held EO tracker. Heck, I have the prototype hidden away in my closet right now. But every time I mention it, I get shot down.

“No, Aydan, you should be thinking about applying to colleges right now.”

“No, Aydan, this work is too dangerous for you.”

“C’mon, Ay, I’m sure there’s more things you want to do than dealing with this type of work.”

“No, Aydan. Have you finished your homework yet?”

“Really, Aydan, there’s so much more you could be doing. Honest. Just let it go, ‘kay?”

Nobody ever gives me a straight answer when I bring it up on why I can’t help them. It’s a family business, right? That’s why Eve, Matt, and Wyatt get to help out, right? So why can’t I? I could help Ray! He could teach me things that my robotics class couldn’t, I’m sure of it! It’s just all so unfair! I want to help! But I can’t because I don’t have any powers. I’m the most normal out of all of my family, so why do I feel like I’M the weird one?

I really hope that Mrs. Frizz won’t actually read any of this. I can’t risk my family like that for some dumb assignment, but I really need to vent. I can only vent to Taylor and Jordan for so long, especially over text. It’s just not safe. And it’s nearly midnight, so I highly doubt their folks would be okay with them just leaving the house to hang out with me until my family comes back, even if it is Saturday. I mean, Taylor is also 18 now, so she wouldn’t get in trouble with the curfew law, but Jordan is still 17 and if caught, he would get in trouble. Majorly.

But it gets so lonely by myself…

I just never know when anyone will be back or how injured they’re going to be when they come back, though I have my guesses. It’s just, Dad can only heal everyone so much before putting too much strain on himself. Sometimes, they all come home unscathed and jolly and other nights, they come home bandaged, upset and wanting nothing more than to shower and forget the day. No one will tell me the details of what happens either, saying that I shouldn’t get caught up in this kind of business, but I’ve noticed the patterns.

Whenever Python is involved with retrieving an EO, I can expect at least some injuries on at least one or two of my family members. When it’s just Typhoon, it can go either way and when he is paired with Python? It’s usually ending in injuries and failure to obtain the orbs. When it’s just Shrapnel, well, she’s the newest bad guy out of all of them, so more times than not, my family can walk away with almost no injuries and an EO in hand. She hasn’t teamed up with Typhoon or Python yet, but it’s only a matter of time. And seeing as both Typhoon AND Python are hunting the same orbs as my family, I can expect some injuries I’m sure.

Wow… Okay, maybe this journaling thing isn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be, I’m already way past the single page requirement that Mrs. Frizz wants from us. But Taylor was right. Just writing all of this down has really helped. I’m not as mad as I was earlier when everyone just up and left. Irritated, yeah, but not mad. I just want to spend some time with my family, is that so bad? But how can I when EOs just randomly appear? I swear those dumb things appear when they do just to spite me. Oh, I hear noises coming from the garage, everyone must be back. I’ll just leave this here before Mrs. Frizz thinks somethings wrong with me with how much I’ve written. And to see if there’s anything I won’t be allowed to help with. Like usual. XP

I can’t believe I really just did this…