Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"Benjamin! Dude. Y- You died? And you didn't tell us?"

I could feel my heart skipping a beat when Gia told me about Ben's giving up completly.

I glare at Ben. He is staring at me like I wrote GUILTY all over his forehead.

"It was only for, like, a second. It wasn't a big deal."

IT WASN'T A BIG DEAL?!

This guy must be messing with me, dude!

"What? BEN!" The whole table gasps, while Ben is trying to calm us down.

"You have to start telling us things!" I lecture Ben.

"I say dying is a bit of A DEAL!" Says Yaz, after she almost chokes on her food.

"The surgeon brought me right back."

Oh god, I feel nauseous at the thought of Ben's lifeless body.

"We gotta get you some cat ears, 'cause I swear you've got nine lives." Sammy laughs, which makes the atmosphere around the table less tense.

"Well, then you better be careful, Benny boy, 'cause you only got five left," smirks Yaz.

-

"This food is delicious! Which one of you made it?" Gia asks.

"Me anddddd Darius." I grin at D and grab him by the shoulder.

"To be honest, I did most of the cooking." Darius tries to defend himself.

"Yeah, but I helped you with keeping you DELIGHTFUL company."

I hear Ben giggle at my stupid joke. Wow it's so nice to see him happy again.

"Kenji, I hope that you will take good care of my Benisimo while I'm at school." Gia says, putting her hand on Ben's chest.

"Don't worry Gia, I'm pretty sure that he won't let me out of his sight for weeks." Benny smiles, giving Gia a little peck on her lips.

"That's right, BeNiSiMo, you're stuck with me now." I lock eyes with Ben.

-

"I and Yaz have to return to our ranch tomorrow. We need to clean up the mess that those locusts made." Sammy informs us.

"Oh, yuck! I remember their evil faces and their discusting long legs, one time I even saw one thrownig up a piece of-"

"Woah, Kenji, could you just stop talking about these creatures while we're eating,please?"

Interupts me Brooklyn.

"Oh, yeah, sure..." I shut my mouth faster than ever before. I glance at Ben, trying to see if I embarrassed myself, but he wasn't even listening to me. He’s staring at Gia, with a dum look on his face.

I feel my heart sink to the bottom of my stomach.

-

I remember the flight with him to the hospital; it's the one thing that keeps me up at night.

His pale skin and his almost lifeless body. His breath was getting slower and slower till I could barely see his chest moving. His eyes closed, twitching with pain. I didn't know if I would ever see his blue irises ever again. I know I did everything I could to save him, but there was still one thing I regretted at that moment.

When we were in the hyperloop, we were sitting on the floor, his head on my shoulder. I was afraid to move. I didn't want him to move his head away. My arm around his shoulder. I could feel the cold sweat running down his back.

Right there, at that moment, I should've moved my palm to the back of his neck and kiss-

"Kenji?"

"Kenji!"

I'm brought right back to reality by the sound of Sammy's voice.

"Dude, you zoned out for like ten minutes!" Laughs Darius.

"Oh!" I can feel my face getting red.

"What could you possibly be thinking about for that long? You usually don't think at all." Jokes, Yaz.

"You know...stuff...I mean... very IMPORTANT stuff that you wouldn't even understand."

" Well, everything that's important to you is also important to us, so what kind of stuff?" Asks Ben.

"Too many questions, Benny; you should save your strength for something more important. I smirk at Ben, trying to brush him off.

Chapter Text

The sun is setting down over the forest, and everything is dripping in orange sunlight. I stick my head out of the living room window and take a deep breath. The smell of pine trees is so strong, it's almost overwhelming. I spot Ben and Gia saying their goodbyes in front of the house. If only I could hate her. If only I could say that she doesn't deserve him, but when I see the amount of love that she has in her eyes every time she looks at him, I know that she's the stable ground that he needs in his life. After all the fighting for his life and constant battle with his fate, he can return home to her arms, and for a moment, just exist.

I step back from the window and head upstairs. There are three bedrooms on the first floor of this cabin. One for Yaz and Sammy, one for Darius and Brooklyn, and a smaller one for Ben. I sleep in my trailer parked outside.

I open the door to Ben's room to check that everything is prepared. There is a big bed in the middle of the room, with red sheets and bedside tables by each side. All the walls have a string of fairy lights hanging up at the top. The lights give the room a cozy vibe. There is a big wooden closet on the left side of the room, and the floor is covered with a big white rug. I walk up to the bedside table and grab a picture frame that was sitting on it. Inside of it is a photo of Ben and Bumpy that Sammy took when they were moving Bumpy from Isla Nublar.

A few days ago, I went to the city to have this photo printed out.

-

I was just peacefully driving in the car, listening to my tunes, when all of a sudden, I heard this nasty sound coming from the back of the vehicle. "It's probably nothing." I thought, and I continued singing along to the radio. "I'M JUST GONNA SHAKE SHAKE SH—" The car rapidly stopped, and my head slammed into the steering wheel. "Damn it," I mumbled while rubbing my forehead. I staggered out of the car, and my gaze fell upon the smoke coming from the bottom. "Ok...What would Darius do in this situation?" I was trying not to panic.

I took out my phone and dialed Brooklyn's number.

"What's up, Kenji?"

"Hey... I was just thinking, if HYPOTHETICALLY somebody ignored the red indicator light for a few weeks, and then HYPOTHETICALLY the car stopped working in the middle of the road, what should I...I mean...somebody do?

"*sigh*, Kenji, where are you?"

"In the middle of a road... with a smoking car in front of me, maybe..."

"Just send me your location, and I will come to fix it."

After I waited for, like, 20 minutes, I finally heard the sound of a bike coming my way.

"Well, that doesn't look so bad; I think I can fix it." Brooklyn said after she examined the car.

"Yeah, you know, I could too, but I know how much you like technology and stuff..."

While babbling, I made myself comfortable on the grass near the road.

"...So if you don't mind, I will leave this up to you, and I will take a little nap right here.

I put my hands under my head and slowly closed my eyes.

"Nuh-uh, that will not happen."

She protested and threw a portable car equipment bag that she found in the car trunk on my torso.

"Huff," I let out as the bag hit my stomach.

Brooklyn maliciously smiled.

"Come here and hold this."

-

"One...Two...Three...start the engine!"

The car finally started. It took us about an hour to get it going, and it was getting pretty late.

"Finally, we can go home," Brooklyn said with relief, and she put her bike in the back of the car.

"No, not yet; I need to take care of something important."

"Fine, but I'm coming with you; I'm not going back on that crappy old bike."

We drove to the only shopping center that was still open, and I headed to the printing shop.

"DAMN IT! They're closing in three minutes."

I ran through the mall and saw the worker locking the door.

"No no no no, please wait!"

The worker looked at me with an irritated look.

"I have one photo that I need to have printed."

"Sorry, too late."

I looked at my watch. "But you are supposed to be open for another two minutes."

"*sigh* I hate my job," I heard the worker whisper as he started unlocking the door.

While I was waiting for the photo to be printed, the worker was giving me hateful looks, and I could swear that one time I caught him mouthing, "I should have stayed in Brazil."

...that was weird...

I finally had my photo, and I went to find Brooklyn. She was sitting in a kebab shop, sauce dripping down her fingers, and eating like there was no tomorrow.

"Woah, slow down, B, or you're going to choke on that."

"Shut up, I haven't eaten anything the whole afternoon," she said, putting the last bite in her mouth.

"Here..." I pass her a napkin so she can clean her hands.

"Thanks."

We were on our way to the exits when we walked past the only open shop left. It was a shop with furniture and other decoration. A warm glow was coming from the showcase. I slowed down.

"Maybe we should go buy more stuff for Ben's future room," I said, captivated by the light.

We walked in and started wandering through the empty aisles.

"Sheets, We need to get new sheets; the only ones that Darius has left have a weird stain in the middle." I remembered.

"OH, I REMEMBER HOW IT GOT THERE!" Started laughing Brooklyn.

"One evening, when I was staying with Darius, we were just hanging out in my room. I was unpacking some of my things, and I stumbled on a baseball and glove. I told him about my family playing every summer, and he said he never played it because his whole family was full of nerds. I thought it would be an excellent idea to go teach him how to catch a ball. So he put on the glove, and I threw the ball at him, but he didn't catch it. It hit him right on the nose. It started bleeding, and he fell headfirst on my bed."

"Dude can outsmart raptors, but he can't catch a ball?!" I was laughing so hard that I couldn't breathe.

"It was really scary at that moment, but it's so funny now."

After we stopped laughing like two idiots, we made our way to the bedsheet section.

"Which ones should we get him?" B asked

With my eyes I scanned the shelves filled with different sheets. That one caught my eye.

"These!" I pointed at a red bedsheet. Ben's favorite color is red. He told me so one time on Nublar.

"And you know what? We should also get him some of those fairy lights that were in the showcase."

"Aren't they too Christmasy?"

"Yeah, but who doesn't like Christmas? It's the time of joy, and it would be nice to see Ben happy again."

-

I hear Darius helping Ben up the stairs. Poor Benny, he is still wheezing in pain. The door opens, accompanied by a squeak. Ben's eyes widen as he steps into the room. He is standing in the door, dazed by the lights. His lips turn into a touched smile.

"Kenji, this is so nice." He whispers, his gaze still fixated on the illumination.

"The last time I saw this room, it looked like a cave." He adds. In my peripheral vision I see Darius taking offense.

"Kenji can help you down the stairs," says annoyed Darius and walks out of the room.

"Well, I couldn't let our Benny boy live like a caveman." That was a stupid thing to say; I should've thought of something cooler.

"Ha ha, after months of fleeing from dinosaurs, having a room to sleep in will be a nice change." Ben smiles.

"Omg, you really thought of everything!" Ben exclaims when he sees the photo on the bedside table. "

"How do you think that Bumpy's doing, now that she has a whole family?" He asks.

"I think that Smooster is giving her a hard time since he's approaching puberty right now."

"Well, she has a whole dino-hubby to help her with him." He giggles.

We're sitting next to each other on the right side of the bed, our shoulders and knees touching. Ben's eyes are still fixated on the photo as he's still thinking about the Bumpy-Fam. The lights reflecting in his eyes.

He turns his head to me.

For a second the time slows down. My body becomes tense. We're staring at each other, and as he's looking at me, I catch a glimpse of another type of light in Ben's eyes. This time it's coming from within. Even though it's not real, I feel its warmth on my skin. My whole body is ablaze in fire.

And if it's going to burn me to ashes, let me at least enjoy the heat.

It's true when people say" Where there's fire, there's Ben."

Chapter Text

"Damn it, my head hurts." I whine while covering my face with my hands.

"I told you not to drink so much wine." Chuckles Sammy.

"We were celebrating Ben's return from the hospital, so it was a good occasion..." I try to defend myself.

"...and I didn't even drink that much." I think... I don't remember a lot from that evening.

"Didn't even drink that much!? Yaz, after you finished singing with Kenji, you fell from the porch right into the bushes." Oh!...ok...maybe it's good that I don't remember much.

We're on our way to Texas. I woke up with a terrible hangover, so Sammy offered to drive. Tomorrow we are hosting a meeting of an agriculture support group that was founded by Dr. Henry Wu. Farmers in America are dealing with a lack of wheat due to the locust incident, and the Gutierrez cattle ranch is no exception. They need the wheat to feed the animals. Thankfully this group helped them overcome the worst times.

"Why is the sun so bright today? It's burning my eyes out," I cry out while trying to make shade over my face.

"There should be my sunglasses somewhere on the back seats."

I lean over my seat, and I try to spot anything that could help me protect my eyesight.

"Woah... We should really tidy up in here; it's starting to look like Ben's van"

"Don't disrespect our car like that, Yaz."

I search through a pile of papers and books that I brought home from college. I'm taking a semester off because I'm moving from Wyoming to Texas.

"Found them!" I exclaim while holding purple sunglasses covered in glitter. I feel another wave of pain shooting to my forehead. I shut my eyes, and a hiss escapes from my mouth.

"Just take a little nap; I'm going to wake you up when we get there." smiles Sammy with a pitying look.

-

"Yaz, we're here," Sammy whispers after a while.

I'm pleased to find out that my headache no longer exists. I open my eyes to the sight of a wooden gate and a sign that says "Gutierrez Cattle Ranch." We get out of the car and take our bags from the trunk.

Sammy's dad is standing on the porch, talking to a tall blonde woman.

"Good morning, Dad." Sammy says with a hesitating tone in her voice. She and her parents are still working out some stuff in their family.

"Hey," I say awkwardly, trying not to mess with the family dynamic.

"Hola, mi hija!" her dad exclaims, pausing his conversation with the woman.

"And hello to you too, Yazmina! It's been a while since I saw you." Sammy's family has always accepted me like I'm one of them. The first time that I met her younger sisters, they begged me to let them braid my hair. I let them only because Sammy was so happy that we were getting along.

"Oh, girls, this is Doctor Ellie Settler." He introduces the blond woman on his left.

"Nice to meet you. Your father invited me here for the weekend; he wanted me to take a professional look at the attacked wheat."

"Hello."

"Nice to meet you too."

We walk into the kitchen and put our bags on the floor. I notice that Sammy has a worried look on her face"

"Hey, what's going on?" I ask, stroking her hair.

"I'm fine; I'm a little bit nervous. This is going to be the longest time I've spent with my parents since the fight."

"Sammy, I know that it's hard for you to get along with them, but I'm here with you, and I have your back. And if anything happens, we can just leave; I'll drive."

"Oh Yaz, you're the best." She chuckles and brings me into a hug. We stand there in the kitchen for a while, locked in a tight hug.

After that we walk out of the house. We head to a small barn on the farm. It's mostly empty, and that's why we decided to host the meeting there.

"So I was thinking that the chairs would go here so that they're facing the wall with the projector..." Sammy says, but it's hard for me to concentrate. I'm captivated by the way that her eyes light up when she talks about something important to her; in that moment she is looking into the world with such passion and determination that it makes me fall in love with her once again.

"... and here will be the refreshments—Yaz, why are you looking at me like that? She pauses, and I see the red coming into her cheeks.

"I just really love you, Sammy." I come closer and give her a delicate kiss. Even after six years, it feels like lightning strikes my body every time I touch her.

"Alright, I will go grab the chairs," I say. Sammy is still standing in shock, her lips red, with a dumb smile on her face.

"Ok," she whispers. In that moment, Sammy's dad walks through the door.

"Sammy! Let me help you, mi hija," he says with a wooden chair in his hands.

"Yazmina, could you go show Ellie Settler around?" He turns to me. I see the pleading look in his eyes that says that he just wants to spend some time with his daughter.

"Oh, yeah, sure..." I give Sammy an encouraging look and head outside.

-

Dr. Settler is taking some samples from the soil and wheat on the edge of a field near the ranch; I'm watching her from a few meters away.

"So, what exactly are you taking those samples for?"

"There has been a genetic mutation of the locust; we need to sample their excrement to see in what stage of the mutation they are. I heard that you and your wife also focus on the aftermath of the locust overpopulation."

I perk up at the word "wife."

"Girlfriend, Sammy's my girlfriend actually, but yeah, we're just trying to help the farmer community. We're having a meeting tomorrow; maybe you could come and give a little presentation on your work?"

"Oh, that would be great, I will. And I'm sorry for saying "wife." I've just recently gotten married, and my mind is filled with wedding stuff." She smiles.

"Really? Who's the lucky guy?" I ask.

"Dr. Grand. We used to work together 20 years ago, and finally two months ago we started dating. We figured that we've wasted enough time, so we decided to get married right away. And what about you and your girlfriend? Are you thinking about getting married? I know you're still young, but I've learned that if you know you're with the right person, there's no point in waiting.

"Not really. I mean, I think that one day we could get married; we just don't talk about that."

Wait...

But I want to get married.

I want to get married to Sammy.

I know that she's the right person for me.

I knew that even on Mantah Corp Island.

...maybe I should start thinking about proposing.

"Like I said, there's no point in waiting." Dr. Settler grins at me. I think she knows what I just thought about.

-

"Hey Sammy, how did it go?" I ask her.

The sky is turning into a wonderful shade of purple as the sun is slowly setting.

"It wasn't perfect, but it is progress. My dad is really trying, but I'm just not sure that I can forgive completely just yet."

"That's alright, just take your time." I give her a kiss on the cheek.

"I will. I was thinking that we should get out of here for a bit. We could go to this country bar that's not too far away."

"Sure, let's go."

-

We walk into this small local bar called "Uphill Climb."

"There are a lot more people here than I thought there would be." Sammy's surprised.

"It's a good thing that I love people." She exclaims.

"Yeah, come on, let's go find a table for us." I smile.

We make our way through the crowd of talking people and find a small round table in the corner.

"What would you like to drink?" I ask her.

"Cosmopolitan and you?"

"Tonight I'll stick to water," I laugh, remembering today's headache.

I make my way to the bar and order our drinks. As I'm waiting there, I see a creepy-looking dude walking up to Sammy. I immediately start walking to our table. I'm finally close enough to hear their conversation over the loud music.

"You should go back to where you came from," I hear the man say. I'm immediately pissed off, and I start walking faster.

"Sir, I was born in Texas." Sammy says with a scared voice.

"I can see that you're Mexican. So you just think that you can just come here and steal our jobs and—"

"Hey! "Dumass," I shout at him. When he turns his head around, I'll take my fist and punch him right between the eyes, so hard that he and his red hat fall onto the floor.

"You do not talk to my girl like that." I scream. A rivulet of blood runs from his nose, his mouth still opened in shock.

"Sammy, let's go. I say, grabbing her vest from the back. Shocked people clear our way.

When we walk out of the bar, it's dark outside.

I turn to her.

"Sammy, are you alright?" I ask. Her eyes wide open.

"I just really love you, Yaz." She puts her hand on my face and brings me in for a kiss.

That's my future wife, I think to myself, and I smile into the kiss.

Chapter Text

The air is filled with the smell of fresh coffee. It is an early morning, and the sun is just coming up. Brooklyn and I are sitting on the sofa. She is wearing this big fluffy yellow robe. We have a small tradition that every morning, we wake up before everybody else so we can enjoy an hour of peace with each other. We mostly sit in silence, just enjoying the presence of the other person.

When I came out to her as AroAce, we didn't really know how our relationship would work. I mean, I do love her, but it's not really a "let's get married" type of love. Instead of fireworks, I feel a sense of comfort and safety. We have decided to stay just friends. There was this one big talk when I got back from Biosyn, and we realized that neither of us would get what they want if we started dating.

"D, my dads invited us for lunch today; they want to discuss our plans with the Biosyn valley."

"They're really trying to keep an eye on you, huh?"

"Well, in the last 6 years they thought I died, then they found out I didn't, then they thought I died again, and then they found out I didn't."

"Wow, you're not making their life easy, B." I chuckled.

The front door burst open.

"Hello, hello, my dear friends, I know you missed me while I was sleeping, but don't worry, your favorite man is back." Kenji says loudly.

"Hey idiot, Ben is still asleep!" Brooklyn hisses.

"Why didn't you tell me that earlier?" Kneji whispers with a regretful look on his face"

"Kenji, why couldn't you stay silent till at least seven o'clock?" Ben desperately shouts from upstairs.

"Damn it." Kenji whispers.

"I'm so sorry, Benny boy; let me help you down the stairs!" Kenji runs up the stairs; it's a wonder he doesn't trip.

I look at Brooklyn; we are both trying to hold our laughs in.

"Darius, where did you put Ben's wheelchair yesterday?" Kenji shouts in panic from upstairs.

I glance at the wheelchair standing right next to the sofa.

"I don't know; maybe I left it outside." I say with an innocent voice.

"YOU DID WHAT?!" Kenji runs down the stairs with his eyes wide open with terror. He spots the wheelchair next to me.

"You think this is funny?" He frowns at me. Brooklyn is laugh-crying from the sight of angry Kenji.

"Kenji!" Ben shouts from upstairs. Kenji is once again running up. In the middle of the staircase, he looks at us.

"You know, you two should really mature—" He trips over a stair and falls on his face. He glares at us and gets up. Even Ben is laughing at him from the other room.

Kenji is supporting Ben with his body, trying to get him downstairs.

"Hello, hello, my dear friends, I know you missed me while I was sleeping, but don't worry, your favorite man is back." Ben imitates Kenji with a smirk on his face.

"Hi Ben, how did you sleep?" asks Brooklyn.

"I wake up a lot in the middle of the night." Ben admits.

"It's been a while since I slept well."

I catch Kenji's eyes running over Ben's face. I have never seen him this captivated by anything. Wow, Ben really has to be his best friend.

-

"Hi, Pa." Brooklyn greets her dad when we get out of the car.

"Hi beautiful, Marcus is preparing the lunch in the kitchen; go say hi."

"But you..." He points at me.

"I want to have a talk with you," he said with a strict voice. Over his shoulder I glance at Brooklyn. She makes a silly face and runs into the house.

"What are your intentions with my daughter?" He crosses his buff, tattooed arms.

"Um...Sir...We aren't really dating." He squints his eyes.

"The same thing said the scared Asian guy when she brought him home." Poor Kenji.

"Later I caught him French kissing my daughter." Ok...too much information.

"Sir, I'm really not interested in your daughter like that, trust me."

"Well, are you gay?" He says like the only correct answer is yes.

"Umm...something like that." His beardy face lights up.

"Marcus! He's gay!" He shouts happily.

"I'm Denny, by the way." He shakes my hand with a firm grip.

"I know, we met at Brooklyn's funeral, remember?"

"No, it's the one thing I'm trying to forget."

We walk into the kitchen. There's Brooklyn's other dad, Marcus. He's a complete opposite of Danny. He's skinny, pretty short, and oh, did I mention Black, which is weird, because Brooklyn always says that she doesn't know which one of them is her biological father. He starts talking to Danny. and Brooklyn gives me a confused look.

"Since when are you gay?" She whispers.

"I got nervous; I didn't know what to say." I try to defend myself.

"So you said that you are gay?!" Brooklyn laughs at me.

"Hi Darius, long time no see." Marcus smiles at me.

"Wait, how do you guys know each other?" Brooklyn asks with a confused look.

"From your funeral." Marcus replies.

"Oh!" There's an awkward silence for a few minutes.

"So dads, we have the Biosyn plans right here." Brooklyn hands Danny a thick paper file filled with information.

"But long story short, I will take care of Dino's well-being, and Brooklyn is going to help remodel the IT system. I know that your family is really smart when it comes to technology, so you could help us with that."

"Yeah, do you think that we're going to let Brooklyn disappear to the island once again? We're definitely coming with you to help." Danny says.

-

After we finished eating spaghetti, we decided to head home.

"Brooklyn, my sweet, awesome daughter, take care of yourself in the meantime." Danny says, hugging Brooklyn as tight as he can. Brooklyn smiles into the hug.

"Bye, Dad," she says as Marcus joins the family hug.

-

We're in the car on our way home. Since the farewell, I have been thinking about my dad. I miss him so much. He taught me so many things when I was young, and I hate the thought that he isn't here now to teach me about adulthood.

"Brooklyn, would it be ok if we didn't drive straight home?" I ask.

"Sure. Where do you want to go?"

-

I'm walking into the cemetery. I haven't been here in a while. I just couldn't do it. But today I know that it's the right time to visit my dad.

Chapter Text

My eyes fly open. My blanket and clothes are wet with sweat. I sit up straight in bed and try to calm my rapid breathing. This is the third time this has happened this week. At first I didn't pay it much attention, but I'm starting to get worried. It feels like my body is ablaze in fire. I try to reach my glass of water on my bedside table, but my hands are trembling, and I accidentally push it to the edge. The water splashes over a part of my bed and makes a big wet stain on the carpet. "Damn it," I think to myself, but it feels like I have a much bigger problem to take care of. I grab my phone with panic and dial the first number that comes to my mind.

"Kenji, something's wrong; please come over." I say with a shaking voice into the phone.

"Hang on." Kenji says quickly. I hear him dropping the phone and swiftly slamming the doors of his trailer. He even forgot to hang up, so the call still continues.

In a few seconds I hear stomping on the stairs, and the door flies open.

"Ben, your face is beet-red." Kenji says with a worried tone. He runs to my bed and takes a seat on the edge next to me. He takes his cold hand and puts it on my forehead. I see a frown forming on his face.

"It's not a fever; that's good." He almost whispers, moving his hand to my cheek. I feel a sense of relief. It's not a fever, so it's probably not even an infection.

"Let me call your doctor." Kenji says while he's searching for his phone.

"Here." I hand him mine. A wave of heat rushes through my body.

"Thanks." He quickly scans my list of phone numbers.

The phone rings for about two minutes, then the sleepy voice of the doctor is heard from the other side.

"Hi Doctor Martínez, this is Kenji Kon. I'm calling because of Benjamin Pincus..." Uh, um...yeah...patient number 47...he's sweating a lot, and his face is getting red...no... It's not a fever; I have checked...yes, that's the medication he's on... "OH...ok...thank you so much...have a good day." Kenji hangs up, and from his face I can tell it's nothing that serious.

"So, Benny, what you're experiencing is a hot flash. It's from the medications you have been taking. Nothing to be worried about, but I'm still very glad that you called me." He says with a smile on his face. Then his eyes travel to my wet sheets and carpet.

"I spilled my water here," I clarify.

"I'm going to get a towel, but firstly let's take care of you." He opens my closet and finds me some clean pajamas. He lays them on the dry side of the bed and helps me stand up.

"Thanks, Kenj." I say while he's helping me change. It has been hard accepting the fact that I'm going to need help from other people. I mean, I can't really even stand up myself, and believe me, I have tried, but I fell onto the floor, where Kenji then found me and scolded me. Since then I've been really trying to accept help from others. Kenji is the best caregiver that I could ever ask for. Every now and then I get this feeling that I'm a burden, but he always proves me otherwise.

Kenji changes my sheets and cleans the spilled water.

"Ben, go back to sleep, ok? "I will see you in the morning," he says when I'm finally all clean and tucked in my bed.

"Kenji, you're the best." I say. My eyes are already closing from the tiredness. Between the state of sleep and awakening, I know that he's still standing in the door, silently watching me.

And I don't mind.

-

I'm sitting at the kitchen table, trying to do some schoolwork, when my phone rings.

"Hey Yazmina, what's up?" I say after picking up.

"Hey Ben, I have a really important thing that I want to tell you." She says, and I can hear her excitement through the phone.

"Is there anybody next to you who could hear me?" I look at Darius making lunch a few meters from me, but right now he's busy scolding Kenji for over-salting the meat.

"Nope."

"Okay, so...I'm planning to propose to Sammy."

"WHAT? OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD!" I scream while jumping from my seat. Kenji and Darius give me a concerned look. I cover the phone microphone with my hand.

"Umm...just a call from the bank." I try to keep it cool while lying to the boys. I limp to the bathroom so that they can't hear me.

"Ben? Are you still there?" Yaz asks.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry. Wow Yaz, that's awesome. But why did you choose to call me and not the others?"

"I'm going to need help planning the proposal, and I figured that the best person for helping me is my only friend with a girlfriend." Oh shit, I forgot I have a girlfriend.

"I'm flattered, Yaz, really, thank you, but now I have to go; Kenji will get suspicious if I talk too long."

"Sure, I will send you a link to some websites about rings; could you take a look at it?"

"Sure! Bye."

This is so awesome. Yazmina and Sammy are going to get married; I can't believe it.

I open the bathroom door.

"What are you doing there, Benny boy?" Kenji is standing right in front of me with a suspicious look on his face.

"Umm...The bank wanted me to look if there are any coins stuck in our sink." WHAT THE HELL DID I JUST SAY!?

"The bank wanted you to look if there are any coins stuck in our sink." Kenji repeats after me.

"Yep, I thought it was weird, but what am I going to do, right?" I try to save the situation.

"Right...anyway, the lunch is ready." Kenji says.

"Awesome." I stare at Kenj. He already knows what I'm thinking.

"Benny, do you need help with getting to the table?"

"Maybe..." He smiles at me and takes me into his arms, lifting my body weight from the ground.

"You know that next time you can just ask for help, right?"

"Yeah, I know Kenji." I smile back at him.

Chapter Text

"That's not how you play the game!" Darius shouts.

"You don't think I know the rules to Monopoly? I have them memorized since childhood!" Ben frowns and points to his forehead.

"Ben, give Darius his $200 for standing on his property." Brooklyn tries to calm the situation.

"HE'S IN JAIL; I'M NOT GOING TO GIVE MY MONEY TO A CRIMINAL!" Furious, Benny reaches for the book and starts flipping the pages.

"Ben, you psychopath, just give me the money." Darius snatches the book from his hands. Ben tries to get the book back, but Darius is clenching so hard that his fingers are turning white.

"Stop laughing, Kenji, and help me!" Ben screams while wrestling with Darius.

"Don't you drag me into this mess." I smirk at Ben. He just rolls his eyes and continues playing tug-of-war with Darius.

"Well, I don't need your help anyway; I defeated Toro by myself. I can for sure defeat this nerd."

"You two are grown-ass men fighting over Monopoly." Brooklyn sighs, trying to protect the board game from getting destroyed by the two.

"I WANT JUSTICE!" Ben yells when Darius rips the book from his hands. He crosses his arms and waits while Darius looks for the right sentence in the book. Sweat is running down his forehead, his cheeks are red from spite, and his hair resembles the nest of a really messy pigeon.

"Ha! A player in jail can still collect rent from other players landing on their properties." Darius reads with a smug grin.

"What!? No. We never played by this rule in my family." Ben is flabbergasted.

"Ben...is it possible that your mom was just letting you win? I see Ben realize the truth.

"Oh..." A pensive expression washes over his face.

"Damn it." He grabs a $200 bill and slaps it in Darius's hand.

"Alright, now let's continue." Brooklyn suggests and rolls the dice. The number six appears on the dice. She grabs the little figurine of the car and starts walking with it.

"Wait, I think that you made 7 steps instead of 6." Darius objects.

"No, it was clearly 6, see..." Brooklyn tries to defend herself.

"Ha ha, six-seven, am I right?" I make a gesture with my hands.

Everybody falls silent.

"Kenji...shut up." Ben moans with a tortured look.

"This is the worst game of Monopoly ever." Brooklyn whines.

Darius grabs my figurine of a dog and puts it right next to his boat... in jail.

-

After the strange game of Monopoly, Darius and Brooklyn went into their room to work on their plans with Biosyn. It's already dark outside, and I and Ben are sitting next to each other on the couch. He's showing me some theories on Dark Jurassic.

"Oh, look at this one. The Nublar Six was previously the Nublar Seven, but one of the members got eaten by the mosasaurus while they were trying to escape the island." Ben reads.

"Why do these people even think that?"

"They are probably just bored, but some of these theories low-key sound legit, like this one: Ingen has an abandoned project in which they tried to create the first T-rex. The failed mutant now lives on an island called Saint-Hubert. I really hope that we never get to meet that one; I think I've seen enough of failed mutants in my life."

"Yeah, I think I'm going to retire from my role as a Dino-dinner. No more of that." I chuckle.

I realize how close to each other we are sitting. His breath brushing my cheek. My eyes trace the surface of his face and end up at his lips. This guy is going to kill me.

An alarm on my phone goes off.

"It's time for your heart medicine." I stand up from the couch and go take the medicine from the kitchen cabinet.

"I hate this thing. It always makes me nauseous and dizzy; it's like I'm drunk." Ben whines.

"I remember the one time that you started babbling about how whales are actually the smallest animal on the planet if you stand really far away from them." I chuckle remembering drugged Ben.

"I can't even remember saying that."

I take an injection with the heart medicine. Ben raises his sleeve and exposes his ripped arm. A whimper escapes from his mouth when I give him the shot, which sends a shiver down my spine, but I have to keep my cool. Ben sits on the couch trying to deal with the pressure in his arm.

"Is everything good?"

"Yeah, I just need to prepare for the side effects," he smirks at me.

After a while the drugs start to get to him.

"...so as I was saying, I think that we should feed all the accountants to the mosasaurus, you get it right?" Ben is babbling some nonsense.

"Yeah, sure, Benny, whatever you say."

"Then the sanitizers will be for free, so I will be able to save up for my skydiving trip." He's lying on the couch with his head buried in the pillows.

"I like it when you take care of me, Kenji. It reminds me of when we were younger. You were the tallest one of us; you were tall almost like the T-rex. I felt really safe with you because you would protect me from the dinos."

I chuckle at that.

"I also used to have this huge crush on you, you know, on Nublar." Ben says it's like no big deal.

What?

He doesn't mean that...

Does he?

"Ben, you should go to sleep, alright?" I try to hide my shaky voice.

"But if I go to sleep, then I will miss the agriculture support group." Yeah, he definitely doesn't know what he's saying. I'm stupid that I got my hopes up like that.

"I will tell them that you will come next time. Good night." I say after I cover his body with a blanket.

"Kenji?"

"Yeah?"

But he falls asleep before he replies.

I can't think about what he said...not now...it would just mess with my head.

I make my way to the kitchen and turn off the lights; now the only source of light in the room is Ben's open computer sitting on the kitchen table.

Before I can close it, I catch a glimpse of the website that's open on the screen. It's a shop with engagement rings. I feel my heart sinking to the bottom of my stomach.

He's going to propose to Gia.

I feel nauseous.

No, please, this can't be real.

I close the computer with shaky hands.

I need to get out of here.

Through my blurry vision I try to find the front door.

The cold outside air brushes against my skin.

My feet felt so heavy that I could stagger only a few meters away from the cabin before falling onto my knees. My head is only a few centimeters away from the ground, and I feel my tears watering the grass.

I knew this was going to happen someday, so why am I so crushed?

An image flashes through my brain. Ben is standing at the altar, his hair combed back and a smile playing on his face. The door opens, and Gia walks through, looking like an angel. She makes her way towards Ben. Every step she takes is elegant and thought through. And me? I'm standing next to Darius, as a groomsman, having to pretend that this isn't the worst day of my life.

My stomach turns, and I feel acid burning in my throat and later even my mouth and nose.

I lie there on the wet grass for what feels like months; I have no reason to get up.

When the sun starts to rise, I finally stand up; I can't let others see me like this.

It takes everything in me to walk to my trailer. I open the door and fall headfirst into my bed.

I'm so exhausted that my eyes close in a matter of seconds, and I finally fall asleep.

Chapter Text

Floors of a cabin creak under my step. It's the first cold day in September. I open the curtains of the window in my room and stare at the tall pine trees covered by gray haze. It's more quiet than usual. I turn around and see that Brooklyn is still sleeping in her bed. I walk out of the room, and my bare feet meet with the surface of the cold wooden stairs. Ben is already sitting at the dining table with a cup of tea.

"Morning," I say. He lifts up his head, and I see the dark circles under his eyes.

"Hi." He replies with a soft voice.

"Is everything alright, Ben?"

"Yeah, it's just that the medication that I'm taking is messing with my body. I have been up for hours, but I didn't want to wake you up."

"Why didn't you call Kenji? I'm sure that he would come to keep you company."

"I've tried, but he wasn't picking up." That's strange. Kenji is usually always on standby when it comes to Ben.

"I'm going to go check on him." Ben just nods and continues staring into the half-empty mug.

I pace through the door, and the cold wind slaps into my face. I notice a strange smell coming from the bushes, but I ignore it and knock on Kenji's door.

Silence.

"Kenji? Are you there?" I shout, but no one is answering. I'm starting to get worried, so I open the door myself. I stick my head in the trailer and see Kenji lying face down on his bed. He usually doesn't sleep in.

"Kenji?" I walk towards him and shake his shoulder.

"What?" He mumbles into the pillow.

"Oh, thank God, I thought you were dead for a second." I put my hand on my chest and let out a breath of relief.

"Ben tried to call you, but you wouldn't pick up. Is everything ok?"

"Yeah, I'm just a little bit tired." I notice his bloodshot eyes.

"Well, I'm going to go make some breakfast; you should join us at the table." I give him an encouraging smile.

"Fine...just give me a minute." He says and falls back into bed.

I walk back into the cabin.

"Is Kenji alright?" Ben jumps out of his seat; it's a wonder that he doesn't hurt himself. A worried look washes over his face.

"Yeah, yeah, don't worry," I try to calm him down.

"But...then why didn't he answer me?" His forehead creases deepen.

"He said he would always be here for me. I do need his help a lot, but I thought that he didn't mind helping me. Ugh, I'm sorry, I'm just a little bit confused." Ben starts rambling and nervously tapping his fingers on the table.

Why is he so crushed about Kenji sleeping in?

I take some eggs from the fridge and start making us an omelette.

Kenji walks into the room.

"Hey..." He says with an awkward tone, his hand rubbing the back of his neck.

"Hi." Ben responds immediately, looking away.

What is going on today with these two?

Kenji sits on the chair right across from Ben. I turn my attention back to the eggs.

The two aren't saying a thing, so I try to break the awkward silence.

"Hey, did you know that Hypselosaurus priscus has the biggest eggs out of all the dinosaurs?"

They don't seem to be too excited about this new knowledge.

"And you know what we should do? We should go on a trip." I hope that maybe that could solve this awful atmosphere.

"Darius, I don't think that that is the best idea." Kenji tries to object. I see Ben giving him a confused look.

"Why not? Is it because I would be a burden—"

A tall flame shoots out of the frying pan with eggs. Shit, I forgot to pay attention to it.

Ben flinches. Kenji jumps out of his seat and grabs the nearest glass with water. He's about to throw it on the flame.

"No, you can't put it out with water; that's dangerous. You have to put a lid on it so the fire suffocates." Ben shouts out.

"Darius, where is the lid?" Kenji panics while searching through the cabinets.

"I don't think I even have a lid." I say in terror.

The flame is getting bigger.

I'm standing pretty far from it, but Kenji is still searching through the cabinets.

All of a sudden the fire shoots out to the side. Ben runs towards Kenji and shoves him to the ground. The flame misses Kenji by centimeters. Ben grabs a baking sheet from the oven and holds it over the pan. Kenji is still lying on the ground in shock.

The fire finally goes out, and Ben takes the baking sheet off.

"Thanks." Kenji whispers. Ben grabs his hand and helps him from the floor.

"It's the least I could do." Ben gives Kenji a little smile.

"Wow, I should really buy a fire extinguisher." I look at the black streak on the wall.

"Ugh, I'm a little dizzy from the rapid movement." Ben blurts out, and Kenji immediately grabs him under his shoulder to support him.

"Ben, what were you saying before, about being a burden? I don't regret a single minute I spend taking care of you. I hope you know that." Kenji gives Ben a worried look.

Ben stays silent for a minute, then he takes his arms and wraps them around Kenji's neck, pulling him in to a hug.

They stand there like that for a while.

"Um, so guys, I think I'm going to go buy us some breakfast at the bakery." I say, but neither of them looks up.

-

I stare at the pastry counter in a store. All I can think about is the look on Kenji's face when Ben saved him from the fire. He was looking at Ben with the same gaze as he used to look at Brooklyn, and there's just something about it that doesn't sit right with me.

Chapter Text

"Sammy, I need to go to Wyoming to sign some papers about quitting the therapy college program." I say after pretending to get a phone call.

"Sure, shall I come with you?" Sammy says, looking up from her laptop.

"Nah, it's going to take me the whole day to take care of this thing; you should just stay here and spend some time with your sisters."

We are still on the Gutierrez ranch. We weren't planning on staying here so long, but Sammy's sisters came to visit, so we have decided to prolong our stay. Even though I don't mind spending some time with Sammy's family, there are some things that I need to take care of.

-

I get out of the car. My legs are super stiff after driving for so long, so I do a little run on the spot.

I'm so excited about today; I have been looking forward to this for so long. It's a lost battle trying to fight the smile on my face.

I walk up to the door and invite myself in. Darius, Brooklyn, and Kenji are sitting on the couch watching some crappy reality show.

"Hey guys."

"Yaz, what are you doing here? I thought you were staying in Texas." Brooklyn is taken by surprise.

"Yeah, I was supposed to, but I need to take care of some things here in the city..." I turn around and spot Ben doing some work on his computer.

"...and I'm going to need to borrow Ben." He lifts his head up.

"Oh, hey Yazmina."

My gaze lies upon the black streak on the kitchen wall.

"Let me guess, Kenji was cooking again."

"You'll be surprised that this is actually Darius's work." Kenji chuckles from the living room.

Ben tries to cover his laugh with his hand.

"It's not like I did it on purpose." Darius rolls his eyes.

"Well, in that case, sorry Kenji for the prejudice."

"All good." Kenji replies with a smug look on his face.

I turn my attention back to Ben.

"How is your walking going, Ben?

"I—"

"He needs to use his crutches." Interrupts Kenji.

"Yup, but that doesn't mean I can't come with you." Ben clarifies.

"Great, then let's go."

-

"So where are we going?" Ben asks, putting on his seatbelt.

"We are going to find the most beautiful ring for Sammy." I smile, trying to drive the car out of the driveway.

"Let's go!" Ben exclaims from the passenger seat.

"And what's new in your life?" We hadn't had a proper chance to talk in weeks.

"I'm not going to lie, college is giving me a hard time." Ben sighs.

"I still don't understand why you chose to study medicine."

"Are you kidding? Fighting germs for a living was my dream since childhood."

"Well, when you put it like that, it actually makes sense." I chuckle.

"And what about you and Gia? The distance between you two must be killing you."

"Not really. I mean, I do miss her, but even before the accident we weren't in touch that much, so we kind of got used to the whole long-distance thing."

"I hated being so far away from Sammy. I can't imagine her being on another continent like Gia."

"Yeah, well, to be honest, not everything is perfect in our relationship; we have been out of sync for a while, but I'm sure that when she comes to visit, everything will go back to normal."

"Of course it will, Ben." I give him a hopeful look.

-

We walk into the shop. I'm astonished by the sight of hundreds of rings in different shapes, sizes, and colors.

"Wow, Yaz, I hope that you already have some ring in mind, because there's no way that we can look at all of them today." Ben says with a frightened tone.

"Umm...not really, but I know that when I see the one, I'll know."

"Right..."

A saleswoman makes her way to us.

"Good evening, are you here to pick some rings for your lady here?" She approaches Ben and points at me.

"Oh, no, no, I'm the one picking a ring for a lady." I immediately step in.

"My apologies. So what do you have in mind?" She says, and her cheeks get a light rosy color.

Although I don't have one specific ring picked, I read a lot about different styles, etc., so I have some preferences.

"I was thinking maybe a marquise-cut diamond." I see Ben's relief that I'm not going completely blind into this.

"Sure, follow me." The saleswoman brings us to a section full of rings with marquise-cut diamonds.

"Take a look around; I'll be over there if you need anything." The woman leaves us alone.

"Is Sammy a gold or a silver girl?" Ben asks.

"I think that white gold for the band would be perfect."

"What about this one?" Ben points at a ring in the back row.

"It looks a lot like the ones in the pictures that you sent me," he adds.

"Hm...no, that's not the one; it's too basic for Sammy."

We continue searching.

"Why did you even choose this specific shop?"

"I did a background check to see who owns it; I didn't want my money to go to some old white dude that would use it to support politicians who want our rights taken away."

"Fair enough, so who owns it?"

"A queer woman that was named one of the best jewelers in this decade."

"Woah, these rings must be pricy."

"A little bit, but I don't think you can put a price on Sammy's happiness."

"OH...MY...GOD...look at this one, Ben." My gaze lies upon the most beautiful ring I've ever seen.

"It's beautiful, total Sammy." Ben says as we are both staring at it in awe.

It's a ring made out of white gold with a marquise-cut diamond in the center. The diamond has another three smaller ones by each side; they almost look like little leaves.

"Look, the diamond is a little bit pink if you look at it in the right light." Points out Ben.

"It's perfect, it's perfect, it's perfect." I exclaim, jumping up and down in joy.

"Like I said, I know when I see the one." I laugh.

-

We are now back in front of the cabin, but there's one difference. There's a small silk sack in my purse, containing the key to my future.

Ben gets out of the car, and we see that Kenji has already been expecting us.

"You were away for a long time. Ben, you should know that you have to take things easy." Kenji says with a worried tone.

"I know, but don't worry, we didn't do anything exhaustive; we just ran a few errands."

"Yeah, Kenji, don't be so protective all the time." I smile.

"Well, I have to head back to Texas; take care of yourself in the meantime." I secure my purse in the passenger seat.

"Bye!"

-

A stripe of light falls over the bed as I slowly open the door to our room. Sammy is already asleep.

"Hi, babe." I whisper and give her a small kiss on her forehead. She's sleeping so peacefully, and I think about the fact that I probably won't sleep like that till the day that I propose.

Chapter Text

It's a somber morning. I lie in my bed and try to calm my thoughts by counting the raindrops that fall onto my window. After yesterday's "trip" with Yaz, I can feel that my body is not happy about me having more movement. My torso is in so much pain that I can't even sit up. Kenji has already been to visit me in my room to give me my blood-pressure medication. I could tell that he was worried about me from the way the creases on his forehead deepened. He sat next to me on the bed and suggested that maybe I should go back to using my wheelchair.

The day that doctors allowed me to start using crutches, I was on cloud nine. My recovery was going great, and I was one step closer to walking again. I was finally feeling like I was getting my old life back. The life where I didn't need anyone to help me.

But you know what they say, "One swallow does not make a summer."

I got too comfortable ignoring the signals that my body sent me, and now I have to pay for it.

The door opened partially with a squeak.

"Hey, Kenji told me that you have been feeling a little down today. Can I come in?" Brooklyn says, sticking her head into the room.

"Sure." Maybe her company will quiet all the thoughts running through my brain. She sits on the carpet next to my bed.

"Ben, I know you're disappointed that you have to return to your wheelchair, but remember, that doesn't mean that you'll never recover; it just means that your body needs a while to get strong again." Her eyes are filled with solace. My head drops down; I can't look at her at the moment, not when she has so much pity for me.

"I know...I know that I have to be ok with it, but I'm just not, alright?!" I burst out. Brooklyn is shocked at my sudden mood change. A guilt starts to fill my body; I shouldn't have let my emotions get the best of me, but all the frustration has built up over time, and I'm just not strong enough to fight it today.

"I'm sorry, Brook, I didn't mean to take it out on you like that—"

"No, no, it's fine..." Brooklyn pauses for a second.

"...I have been there..." Her eyes travel to her prosthetic arm.

"...I know that an injury like this shakes your whole world. You feel like the only thing that's left of you after the accident is this injured and mentally scarred crumble of what you used to be..." We sit in a silence for a while, but a feeling of understanding hangs in the air.

"...but you have to remember that you're so much more than that. You're literally the strongest person that I know. I mean...you literally survived death; how cool is that?" A smile appears on Brooklyn's face.

"And I also defeated Toro," I point out, trying to help her with lightening the mood.

"EXACTLY," Brooklyn giggles.

"I just want to be healthy again. No more pain. No more dizziness of migraines," I sigh.

"I'm sure that your recovery won't take much longer." Brooklyn says and brings me in for a hug.

Suddenly Darius appears in the door.

"Ben, we have a surprise for you to brighten your mood." He says with a gentle smirk on his face.

The sound of wheels resounds through the room as Kenji comes in pushing my wheelchair. At first I don't notice anything different about it, but it takes me only a moment to spot that the back of the chair has been enriched. There is a painting of flames spreading over the black surface.

"Here's something that could help you feel like your amazing self a bit." Kenji smirks.

"Wow, guys, this is so cool." I exclaim.

I can see that Kenji's really proud of their creation. I never told him this, but I do actually adore when he acts a little full of himself. It reminds me of the young spoiled Kenji, whose ego was through the roof. There was something so amusing about him being so out of touch. He was the first one whose name I learned just because he stuck out so much. My subconscious also told me that he would be a great protector if something happened because he was so tall and muscular...

I think I should call Gia; we haven't talked in, like, forever.

-

Everybody left my room to give me some time to rest. The pain is not so unbearable anymore, so I grab my phone and dial Gia's number. It rings only for a few seconds before Gia appears on my screen. Her hair is wet, and she's bundled up in a white robe. She looks so cozy; it makes me sad that I'm not there with her.

"Hi, Love. How are you doing?" I smile. It's so nice to see her face again.

"Ben, ugh, I missed you so much." She grins.

"I just got out of the shower; I need to wash off the smell of all the old books. I was searching for one encyclopedia in the school library, and I noticed that all the books were mixed up. There was no order to them. I spent the whole afternoon helping the librarian to sort them out."

"You're crazy." I let out a laugh.

"I came across this one book written by Allan Grand; I remember Darius mentioned him while you were visiting."

"Oh, yeah, he's crazy about that guy. He wanted to go to one of his presentations, but there were no seats left available."

"Poor Darius. Anyways, how was your day? You look exhausted...no offense."

"I had some problems with my wound, but Kenji gave me my painkillers moments ago, so I'm feeling pretty good now."

"Oh, that reminds me that I wanted to tell you that Nonna has a photo of Kenji and Smoothie framed in the kitchen. Every time she looks at it, she's like, "I miei bambini, mi mancano."

"I don't know why she adores Kenji more than me," I sigh.

"Ha ha, maybe because he doesn't eat out of a shoe." Gia laughs.

"THAT WAS ONLY ONE TIME, AND I WAS JUST TRYING TO BUILD MY IMMUNITY!"

"I don't think that really justifies that. I'm sorry, Ben, I have to go; Nonna just called me for dinner."

"Alright, I promise to call more often. I love you."

"E ti amo, bye!"

-

After the call ended, Kenji came to my room to give me my heart medication. I hate that stuff; it always makes me hallucinate the craziest things. Like one time I read this article about an accountant who covered up tax evasion by my favorite hand sanitizer company. Later that day, after taking the medication, I had this weird dream that I was skydiving with him.

I guess that the things I dream come from the subconscious perception of my life.

Chapter Text

"Has anybody seen my passport?" I shout from my room while digging through my drawers.

"What do you mean, you don't know where your passport is?!" Darius rushes through the door, his eyes wide open and his eyebrows so high, they are almost touching his hairline.

"It has just been so long since I wanted to prove my real identity." Darius starts panicking and searching through my bedside table.

"Chill, I can always use my fake one." I can see that he's getting pissed at me for not taking it so seriously.

"We are leaving for Italy in two days, and you don't have your passport!" Darius snarls.

"Wait...how long would it take for me to get a new one?" I pause.

"Like, four weeks!"

"Oh...I thought it would be like a few hours. I never had to take care of these things; when you're famous, they let you anywhere."

"Well, I don't think that will work at the border control."

"Actually, it worked once; I got to Nepal only with the promise that I will keep my eye on the passport in the future. Thanks to that I was able to film my video "Brooklyn unboxes Buddhism training with the Bhikkhus"."

"Well, you didn't exactly keep that promise, now did you?" He gives me a side eye and continues searching.

"Wait! I think I know where it is. It must be at my dad's place, since they took care of renewing my documents after I came back from "death." "I exclaim.

Darius, full of relief, sits on the ground next to me.

"I got really scared that we would have to stay here instead of taking care of dinosaurs in the valley." He lets out a deep breath.

"Don't you worry, Dino-nerd, you will see your dinos soon." I give him a smile.

-

I'm driving to my dad's house. The trees around the road have already changed the color of their leaves, and I'm starting to get into the autumn mood.

Suddenly my phone rings. I look at the contact name on the screen, and I'm happy to see that it's my dad calling. What a coincidence!

"Hi, Pa, what's up?" I say after picking up the phone.

"Hi Brook, I'm just calling to let you know that we have already started packing for Italy."

"Cool, actually I'm just on my way to your house. Is there any chance that you could have my passport on hand when I arrive?"

"Your passport? Brooklyn, you took it home with you the last time you were here with Darius."

I think that my heart just stopped for a minute.

"Emmm, right, sorry I forgot."

"You do know where your passport is, right?" Dad says with a worried tone.

"Yeah...yeah...sure...I've just remembered...Alright, Pa, bye."

"Brooklyn—" I hang up the phone.

I do, in fact, not remember where I put it. I pull up to the side of the road and start searching in my car. My hope is fading as the chances of me finding it get lower. I look under the seats and in all the compartments; I even lift the little rug on the ground, but I find nothing. I sit back in the driver's seat and slam my head into the steering wheel. The car lets out a loud honk.

"Oh, this is bad. Darius is going to be so mad at me. Ugh, how can I be so irresponsible"? This is going to complicate our plans with Biosyn; they expect us there in three days.

"Maybe Darius can go alone, and I can join him after I get a new passport." I try to calm myself down, but then I remember that we are working on this project together, and he would have no idea what to do with all the IT stuff by himself.

"Ugh! No, I can't let him down. I can surely think of some plan that will solve all of this; I just have to find a good place to think." I buckle up and start the engine.

-

I spot a cozy coffee shop near the town center. I park my car and walk in. As I open the door, a strong smell of crushed coffee beans slams me in the face; I can't think of a better feeling than this. I order one espresso, and I make my way to a table in the back of the half-empty coffeeshop. I pull out my phone and start searching up ways to get a new passport fast. I click on every website. I read every article and every guide. But everything contains the same sentence: "You have to wait at least 14 days for your new passport."

So I guess this is it...

There's no way I'm going to get to Italy on time.

What am I going to say to Darius?

What am I going to say to my dads?

I'm taking the last few sips of my coffee, but due to my shaking hands, a drop falls onto my light pink hoodie. Great! I stand up to grab myself a napkin from the counter.

"Nooo, this is my favorite hoodie," I think to myself, trying to get the stain out.

"Brooklyn?" I hear someone behind me. I instantly turn around. My gaze falls on a brunette girl with a pink streak in her hair; she can't be much younger than me. I try to think of where she could know me from. I spot a bracelet from my old merch website wrapped around her wrist.

"Y-You're alive," she lets out with a shocked expression. The other people in the coffee shop start staring at us.

"Umm, yeah?" I have no idea what to say; I completely forgot that the whole internet still thinks that I'm dead.

"Why didn't you tell us?"

"Us?"

"Us Brooklanders."

"I kinda thought that everybody already forgot about my YouTube channel," I admit.

"Are you kidding?! Have you not seen what is happening on the internet?"

"Umm, let's say that for the last few months I've been offline..."

"I HAVE TO SHOW YOU." She grabs my hand and drags me into the back of the coffeeshop where people won't stare at us. She pulls out her phone and starts showing me all the videos that people have posted about me. There are thousands of videos under #SoLongBrooklyn; my fans are crying, apologizing for their hate comments, making sad edits of me, and dyeing their hair pink to show their respect. I had no idea that they cared so much about me... You know, I've always thought that I was just this stupid girl on their phones that was trying to seem interesting.

"But some of these videos were posted before I faked my death."

"Oh, yeah, that was the first time we thought you died. You know...on the dinosaur island."

"Wow, I haven't logged in to my account in forever." Since I came back from Nublar, my dad didn't want to expose me to the internet anymore, since I ended up on the island due to my fame.

"We miss you, Brooklyn." She says with a sigh.

I sign her t-shirt and say goodbye. I sit back in my car, but I have to think for a while. Do I miss them?

-

I open the front door, and my gaze falls on Darius sitting at the dining table.

I totally forgot about the passport. What am I going to tell him?

"Heyy...Darius..." I say with an awkward tone.

"You won't believe what I found." He slams my passport on the wooden table.

"What?! Where did you find it?" I exclaim.

"It was in the drawer with your filming equipment." He smiles.

Wow, I guess that the universe works in mysterious ways.

-

I turn on the ring light and sit in front of the camera. I hope that I still know how to do this.

"Hey Brooklanders, today I'll be unboxing the story of how I faked my death."

Chapter Text

"Woah, that hurts." I groan as Sammy's niece tightens my braid a bit too much.

"Don't worry, Yaz, the more it hurts, the better the hairstyle looks." She giggles and grabs another sparkly hairclip. The whole carpet is covered in different hair ties and claw clips, and I'm getting really stiff from sitting on the ground for so long. A pair of small hands is braiding, brushing, and also tangling my hair.

"I think it needs more glitter." She says and starts spraying my hair with a glittery hair spray.

"Amy, I think you should give Yaz a break for a second." Smiles Sammy, standing in the doorway. Since Sammy's sisters came for a visit, the house has been filled to the brim. Not only that there are four sisters in the Gutierrez family, but they also brought their little children.

"So you're going to save Yaz, but not me?" Complains Sammy's older sister Lisa, whose makeup is getting done by another little family member.

"You work at a preschool; I thought that you're used to this." Sammy chuckles.

"Yeah, but at the preschool, the kids don't have access to green eyeshadow." Lisa sighs. Amy hands me a small mirror, so I can take a look at her artwork on my head.

"Wow, you actually did that." I make an amused face, but in my mind I'm counting the hours that I'm going to be untangling her work. A big smile appears on Amy's face.

"Yeah, but it still needs a little something..." She pauses for a second and starts looking for something on the ground behind me.

"Here they are..." Amy mumbles. I see a terrified look appear on Sammy's face.

"No! Amy, what did we say about using scissors?" Sammy rushes to take the sharp object from her niece's hands. Oh no, this is going to be like the bangs incident from last year. Thankfully Sammy gets to the scissors before they get to my hair.

"I believe that the hairstyle is perfect even without a trim." I try to calm Amy down.

I finally take a look at Isabel and her makeup done by Amy's younger sister.

"Wow, that green eyeshadow really goes with your red hair. "I try to hold my laugh in.

"Don't tell me it's that bad." She chuckles and puts on her glasses.

"Oh, WOW!" She lets out.

"Girls, the pie is ready—what the hell happened to y'all?" Mrs. Gutierrez walks into the room.

"We have our own beauty salon!" Amy exclaims.

"Yeah...I can see that. Take a break and have a piece of pie." Amy rushes to the kitchen.

I finally get off the ground. Whoa, my legs haven't been so stiff since the day after my first marathon.

"If it helps, I think you look wonderful as always." Sammy smirks and puts her hand on my cheek.

"Thanks, babe." I smirk back at her.

"You guys are so cute." Lisa smiles, wiping her face with makeup removal wipes.

"I think I'm going to get a piece of that pie." Sammy says, pulling away from me with a grin and walking into the kitchen. She always leaves me stunned like this. I turn my attention back to Lisa.

"I'm going to need your help today," I whisper.

"Sure, what is it?" She whispers back.

"I'm going to need to organize a family meeting; the catch is, Sammy can't attend it. "I tell her my struggle.

"That's not gonna be a problem." I can see on her face that she started scheming.

"But may I ask why?"

"That's a surprise," I grin.

"Alright then."

-

"Why is it always me who has to go to the store?" Sammy whines.

"Because, my dear sister, you need to go outside more." Lisa practically pushes Sammy out of the door.

"Fine." She hisses and walks towards the gate outside. Lisa slams the door and turns to me.

"Alright, now what?"

-

All the adults are sitting around the dining table, trying to figure out why I called them here.

"So, I know you are all wondering about what I'm going to talk about." I stand up so that they can all see me well. I hope they don't notice how shaky my legs are.

"The thing is, that me and Sammy have been together for six years now..." I see the family members exchanging suspicious looks, and I can't help but smile.

"...I love her with all my heart, and I would do anything I could to make her happy. And so I'm here to ask you for your blessing." "I do," I say, pulling the engagement ring from my pocket with my shaky hands. The whole table gasps. The daughters stare at their parents, trying to catch their reaction. They both sit in silence for a second; this feels like the longest second of my life.

"Of course you have my blessing, Yazmina." Sammy's dad smiles, and I can see tears running down his face. I'm starting to get emotional too, but I have to keep it cool till I see the reaction of Mrs. Gutierrez. She stands up. The whole table quiets down again. She takes a few steps towards me, her face still blank. I'm starting to get nauseous.

She lifts her hand.

"You still have some glitter on your face." She whispers, wiping it off. I can't help it; a singular tear escapes my eye. She takes a few steps back, her gaze still fixated on me.

"Por supuesto que tienes mi bendición. Take good care of our girl." A smile appears on her face. She pulls me in for a hug, and I start sobbing. The table breaks into a cheer. Everybody stands up and joins the family hug. I still can't believe that is actually happening.

"Remember, nobody says a word to Sammy." I laugh, tears still running down my face.

I guess we're one step closer to forever, and you don't even know it yet.