Portal

I didn’t have time to contemplate just what this meant, as I heard an insistent knocking at my door.

“Jackson? It’s me, Anna. I came to check up on you.” I heard the doorknob begin to turn.

I leapt into the bed and scrambled to cover myself. “Anna? Come on in.” The dirt was scratchy against my feet, and I had to resist the urge to scratch.

Anna opened my door and came in, a slight frown on her face. “Are you okay? It’s after one, and you hadn’t dropped by the gym. I was getting kind of worried, because you seemed just fine last night.”

I sighed and pulled myself up to a sitting position, tucking the sheets around my butt. “I, uh… I had a lot on my mind, Anna. I went for a walk.”

“A walk?” She came over and sat on the bed, near my feet. Hooking a stray bit of hair around her ear, she asked, “Just a walk? How would that make you sleep this late? Just how far did you go?”

I gave her a soft snort of a laugh. “About seventy-five feet. I went to the old steel mill on the lake. Sat there for a while, just thinking. Had a conversation with someone I barely know, and they gave me some good advice. I was there til just after dawn.”

Her eyes grew wide. “Til just after dawn? That’s crazy, Jackson. Why would you stay out so late? Especially after what had to have happened in Santa Francesca. Kai was exhausted. He said he’d not had to do that much editing in quite some time.” She shook her head in disbelief. “Your doors must not take much out of you.”

I shrugged. “I’ve never really thought about it before. I guess they really don’t take too much out of me. Not a single pair, anyway. Four pairs? Yeah. They drain me quickly; but just a single pair? Nah.”

“I can’t say much. My ability is always there, and there’s nothing I can do about it. It just…is.” She sighed and shrugged.

I smiled at her then, as I took her in. She was pretty, even as I saw her sadness. Part of me wanted to reach out and hug her, say some soothing words. The rest of me, however, knew better.

I’d never really comforted anyone before. Not even my own parents. My grandparents had died while I was under government care, and I was unable to talk to my mom or dad until well after my grandparents’ funerals. At that point, they were consoling me.

Lab had never had anything happen that would require consolation in the time I’d known him, and I didn’t really have any other friends. My experience being that kind of person was almost in the negative.

So, I said nothing. I did nothing. And I watched Anna pick her heart back up and turn to me with a smile.

“So! Are you really okay, Jackson? Who did you talk to out there?”

I nodded. “I’m fine. Just went to bed late and woke up late. That’s all.” I saw her relieved smile. “As to who I was talking to? I’d like to talk to William before I discuss that. Nothing bad; I just want to make sure I’ve got the right of things, first.”

“That sounds reasonable. He’s been around for quite some time, so I get why you’d want to talk to him.”

I cocked my head. “Really? He doesn’t seem to be much older than Lab. How old is William?”

She smirked at me. “I can’t go around divulging all his secrets, now. That’ll be something you’ll need to ask him.”

I nodded and a somewhat tense silence descended. After a few minutes of watching her fidget, I cleared my throat, and she immediately looked up at me expectantly. “I… I was wondering something.”

“Yes?” Her cheeks flushed with color, and I saw a tiny tremble in her hand.

“Um… You said you’re staying with Bethany, right?”

She nodded. “Yes. Why?”

“She really doesn’t leave the gym?”

Anna gave a small shake of her head. “No. Almost never. She has her meals delivered there and everything. She claims it keeps her personal costs low, but I’m pretty sure she just doesn’t like much of the world. Silly woman.” She smiled, obviously remembering something nice.

“What’s got you smiling like that? Whatever it is, it has to be a good memory.” I grinned at her.

She ducked her head as she smiled, crimson flowing up her neck. “Um… It… it’s nothing.”

“Bullshit. Spill it. I know a good story when I see one.” I leaned forward, a broad grin on my face, heedless of the sheet falling away from my upper torso.

Anna looked over at me and went still. “I…uh…” She closed her eyes and cleared her throat, taking a moment and a few breaths to compose herself. “I’m just thinking about Beth, and how lucky I am to have her. That’s all. And this time, I’m pretty sure it isn’t my power that makes her want to stay.”

“Oooo…. Juicy. So you and Bethany are a thing, then?”

She nodded, a soft smile on her lips. “Yeah. I never really considered the possibility of being with a woman before her, but I’m glad I did. She’s been wonderful to me.”

I pursed my lips in thought, my eyebrows drawing together. “So… what’s with all the awkwardness around me? It’s rather adorable, by the way.”

She ducked her head as her cheeks reddened. “Well… Like I said, I’d never really considered being with a woman before her. I never thought that I'd be, well... bisexual. You, though? I… I think you’re awful cute, Jackson.” Her cheeks seemed to glow with embarrassment. “That’s why I made that bet with you.”

“You figured your ability would cause you to win, didn’t you? And I’d have to make the first move?”

“Something like that, yeah.” She gave a nervous laugh. “Seems silly doesn’t it?”

“Nah. I’d do the same thing in your shoes. Definitely make things easier, mostly. And then you have situations like this. You’re already dating someone, and your power has set things up to where you now have to date someone other than your partner. Must make things hard. Can’t imagine Bethany being okay with that.”

“Oh, she’s fine with it, really.” At my inquisitive look, she continued. “Beth is a lesbian. She’s also pretty open-minded and doesn’t mind me going out with other people, or even starting a relationship with them. She was all for me trying to date you, actually.”

I sat there dumbfounded. Both of us? At the same time? “Well… that’s odd. I’ve never heard of that before, but I guess it takes all types for this old world to keep turning.”

She looked hopeful. “What are you saying, Jackson?”

I grinned. “I’m saying that I’m ready to go on that date whenever you are, Anna.”

“Um… I never said it was a date…”

“At the time? Sure. You probably didn’t think of it that way. But, from what I’ve been seeing out of you? It’s kind of a date.” I paused a moment, thinking. “Almost definitely a date.”

She chuffed a laugh. “I…I guess so.”

We sat there for a few minutes in silence. “So… what kind of food do you like, Jackson?”

I leaned back against the wall, pulling the sheet up a bit. “I really don’t have a preference. I love Chinese food. Bacon cheeseburgers and pizza. I’m really kind of simple.”

“So, you have no preference and I can pick wherever I’d like?” I nodded and she continued, her excitement obviously growing. “Like, we can go to my favorite restaurant and you won’t throw a fit?”

“Why the hell would I throw a fit?”

She deflated somewhat. “Well… Some people have issues with sushi.”

“Sushi? You know that’s adjacent to Chinese food, right?”

She smiled. “Okay then. Sushi, it is. And a real sushi place. Not one of those buffet sushi places.”

I leaned forward again, intrigued. “A real sushi place, you say? What does that mean?”

“Well… Can you open a door to any other countries?”

“Ah… no. Well, not unless you count Canadia. I’ve been just across the border.”

“Well, in that case, how about we have William take us somewhere? That way, you have a new place you can go, and we have a quick way to my favorite sushi place.”

“That sounds like a fantastic idea. When do you wanna go?”

“Tonight.”

I sat up straight, the sheet drifting down my torso again. Tonight? Well, it wasn’t like I actually had anything else to do. But, damn that was fast. No sense in waiting, I guess. “Sure. I can get a shower and get dressed better than usual.”

She giggled. “There’s no sense in doing all that, Jackson. It’s just me.”

I fixed her with a glare. “Anna, don’t ever say anything like that again.” She shrank back, her eyes wide. “Don’t ever say that it’s ‘just you’, as if you don’t matter. As if you’re not important. You do, and you are. Also, anything worth doing is at least worth doing half-assed. I am able to do it well, so I will. Now, shoo. I’m sure you don’t wanna see me naked” -she looked to the left as her face reddened- “or at least not yet, and I feel like I need a shower anyway. Besides, if William is taking us there, I have just found myself in need of talking to him about something. In private, hopefully.”

She rose, casting a glance at my midsection as she headed for the door. “Okay, then, Jackson. I’ll let William know. It’ll be around midnight, okay?”

I blinked twice. “Midnight? Well… Okay.” I did some quick math. “I guess we’re going to Japan, then. Do you even speak Japanese, cuz I sure don’t.”

“私は日本語が流暢なので、通訳してあげることができますよ、恋人.”

“Okay, then. That settles it. I’ll rely on you for… Whatever you just said.”

She just smiled in response and walked out. I made a set of small peepholes to make sure she was truly gone, then stood up. The flower was still sitting there under my sheets, whole and uncrushed. The dirt was there, too.

I leaned down to get a closer look at it. It wasn’t the same brown as I was used to. This was more reddish, similar to clay from the southern part of the country. I picked up a small pinch and rolled it between my fingers. It felt like… well, dirt. I sat there and racked my brain, trying to figure out just what happened.

While I was lost in thought, a knock sounded at my door. “Jackson? Bud, you okay?”

“Yeah. I’m fine,” I answered absent-mindedly as the door opened.

“Hey, I just wanted to apolo- Shit! I’m sorry, I thought you were dressed.”

“Hmm?” I turned my head, seeing Lab averting his eyes. I grabbed a pair of shorts and slid them on. “You’re fine, man. Sorry. I was lost in thought.”

“Lost in thought? What the hell were you two doing, and why is your bed so dirty?”

“I… I don’t really know. We were just sitting here talking.”

“Then what hell’s up with the dirt? And that massive flower? Looks like a hibiscus. Those’re edible, y’know.” He started reaching for the flower.

I grabbed his hand. “Not this one, bud. Trust me.” He halted and slowly pulled his hand back.

“What’s got you spooked, Jackson? You don’t normally act like this.”

I picked up the flower and twirled it gently between my fingers. It still had that jelly-like core. “I can’t explain it just yet, but as soon as I can, I’ll tell you. No matter what rules I may have to break.”

He grunted. “That’s serious. Okay. I’ll let it be. What will you do with it in the meantime?”

I opened a door to the kitchen and got a glass of water, setting the flower in it. “This should hopefully help it to stay as fresh as possible. I’m gonna have a chat tonight with my boss. See if there is something to what may have happened here. I promise you Lab, I’ll keep you intimately in the loop here. If I have to persuade my boss to let me keep you in the know, I will.”

Lab nodded. “I think I understand, Jackson. I’ll leave you to it. By the way, what’s going on between you and that slender little lady, eh?” He waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

I snorted a laugh. “We’re going out on a date, if you must know. Tonight. She and another associate of ours will be picking me up at midnight. I dunno where exactly we’re going, but we’re going at midnight.”

“A date?!” He pressed his hands to his heart. “My little boy is all grown up!” He sniffled and sighed.

Fucking bastard.