Chapter 59
FIFTY-NINE
Tai
“Iknow you’re awake. You might as well open your eyes.” A deep, familiar voice wakes me up from the best sleep I’ve had in years.
“It’s too early for your shit,” I slur. My mouth is not cooperating with me. My tongue feels swollen and sticks to the roof of my mouth. I don’t need to open my eyes to know Aro is here. Wherever here is.
“There he is. And you were worried he wouldn’t be the same old grumpy bastard,” Aro says to someone across the room. I blink my blurry eyes, desperate to see who he’s talking to.
Bri comes into focus. She’s out of the pretty orange dress I got her and back in the khaki coveralls that I met her in.
Huge windows open to every shade of green dotted with bright flowers. Vines snake up the walls around me. MedBots zoom around the room, silently checking my vitals. I’m under a soft blanket, tucked into a clean bed. The best part is there is no sand. Not a single grain.
Bri hands me a steel canteen, and I gratefully accept the cold, fresh water. Our fingers graze, and it kicks off an immediate response for me to grab her, pull her into me, and never let go.
With Aro and Bri here, the two most important people in my life, standing over me, I know what I have to do. For the last six years, I thought I could forget my past and move on. Instead of dealing with it, I covered it up with the military and avoidance.
“We got you all patched up, brother. You should be ready to get back to work in no time,” Aro says.
I fiddle with the canteen, not able to look up, preparing myself to finally explain to Aro who I used to be.
“Aro—”
“How are you feeling?” Bri asks at the same time, saving me from the confession.
Her voice is unusually quiet. She looks genuinely concerned about me.
I sit up on the hospital bed and puff up my chest. The movement knocks the air out of my lungs.
Pain lances through my body. I cover it up with an awkward laugh.
I hate that she is worried about me. Bri should be carefree and happy, not concerned about a single thing in the universe.
“I’m okay, really.” I roll my shoulder, and for the first time since I landed on Sabaak, it’s painful yet it moves without a hitch.
A shining new bionic arm gleams up at me.
Surprised at the new limb, I rub my hand over it.
The sleek metal feels brand new, not a single dent.
The joints are smooth, and I can tell the neuro-connector interface is an upgraded model.
It’s quicker and more precise. There’s no delay when I think about moving the arm.
It just happens as seamlessly as my own arm.
“I can’t wait to hear what happened there,” Aro says with a glint in his eye. He’s a sucker for a dramatic story, but before he hears about the misadventures on Sabaak, I need to come clean about my past. I need to get this off my chest.
“I need to tell you something,” I start to say and look up to Aro finally. I’ll just rip the bandage off.
Aro registers the seriousness of my tone and drops down into a seat next to me.
“I grew up on a fueling station. It was rough until I figured out the easiest way to survive. I got with a group of other kids who were in the same situation as me, and we lived off stealing from the travelers who would pass through.”
I look over at Bri and try to figure out what she’s thinking. She nods, encouraging me to keep going. Aro gets the full story. The crooked mechanic, how I got caught, and hiding out on Sabaak.
I shift uncomfortably, knowing that I’m getting to the part I’m most ashamed of.
Finally, I tell him about how it all went down at the end, how I lost my arm along with any thread of integrity when I chose to save myself.
Aro sits there, his face a blank canvas by the time I’m done. I look over at Bri, and her face is red, the blush spreading to her chest. She looks so angry. But she doesn’t direct her anger at me.
Bri turns toward Aro and points her finger at his chest.
“Aro, wait one fucking second. Before you say a word, I’ve got something to say.”
Aro contorts his face in confusion at her. He takes a breath to say something, but Bri beats him to it.
“I don’t want to hear a word of judgment out of your mouth.
No matter what Tai says, this doesn’t change who he is.
He’s the most loyal, determined, and good person on this planet.
He’s been nothing but a wonderful best friend to you, and he’s saved my ass, on multiple occasions.
Fine, he made a mistake, maybe a few. But I don’t fault him.
He did what he needed to do to survive, and he could have continued down that path, but he didn’t.
He’s proven over and over again who he is, and if you can’t deal with that, then you take it up with me.
Because I won’t let you make him feel bad about his past.”
Bri’s chest is heaving and she’s so red-faced, I fear she might pass out. One hand is clenched into a fist at her side, and the other points angrily up at Aro’s face.
I should stop her. I know I should pull her back before she does something we can't take back, but I can't move. I can hardly form a thought. The only thing my mind registers is that she defended me. She defended me.
Aro’s blank face shifts into anger.
“What I was about to say…” He glares at Bri and then turns toward me. “I already knew all of this. I’ve known about your past since before we met on our first day in the military. I’ve always known, and it’s never bothered me. And even if I hadn’t, you don’t owe me any explanation or apology.”
He looks back and forth between me and Bri and chuckles. “I think you two have some things to work out. I’ll see you tomorrow. Glad you’re home, brother.” He slaps a hand on my chest and turns to leave. “The signing ceremony is at noon. You should be up and around by then.”
He reminds me that I’m expected to re-enlist tomorrow, a plan I’ve been adamant about. A plan that has been falling apart in my head slowly over time.
The first inkling of a different life took shape when Bri told me about her life. How she grew up and all the sacrifices her family has made for her. Everything they are still doing for her. I realized I might be in a position to help in some small way.
Now that we’re alone, I push the blankets back and stand up. The room tilts on its side. I’m still a little woozy from being in bed for who knows how long.
Bri steadies me with her hands on both arms. Holding me up. Anchoring me.
“Did you mean all of that?” I ask, hoping it’s the truth about how she feels about me.
“Of course. Every word, and more.”
“You’ve seen the worst parts of me, and you still think all of that?”
“I do. Because it’s all true.”
She looks up at me, and the redness has faded from her face. Now her eyes shine like the sky and I can’t look away. There is still so much more to be said, but I reach down and touch her soft face. It’s been washed, no trace of sand or dirt or sweat.
“Should we discuss the whole battleform mate thing?” she asks, her eyes waiting to see my reaction.
“Yes, but let me have this first.”
My lips are on hers, and everything feels right. All my concerns about our future melt away. Bri erases all doubt when she pulls me to her and deepens the kiss. She is all hope and brightness. I’ve finally come home.