I couldn’t see his expression through the mask, but I knew he was still furious about my tattoo.
Good, I thought.
Later he’d try to fight me and I could give him the ass-kicking I’d been dying to do for years.
“It’s ready.” I stood and looked at the power box. I wasn’t an electrician, but I’d studied things enough to know how to get the generators running.
“Good, because the party should be winding down soon. We gotta get back and grab the bus.”
We took the four-wheelers back to the bunker entrance and climbed onto the school bus to wait for the partygoers. While we waited, my mind wandered, imagining what it would have been like to hand Eleanor her birthday present myself.
For years, I’d been too chicken to tell her who the gifts were from, so I would put them at her door, knock, and then run. I didn’t need the recognition, I just needed to know she liked the gifts. Even if for some reason, she hated me.
“Norman is running them through protocol now,” Milton called back to me.
I listed the rules in my head.
Do stay within 15 feet of a Daddy at any given time. Do keep in communication constantly with your Daddy. Our PARA suits are specially made so that you can hear us clearly. Don't touch a creepie. Always be on the lookout for crawlies, and do exactly as your Daddy tells you when you are out of the bunker. Our job is to keep you safe and to bring you back to the bunker. We will do whatever it takes to make that happen.
I could recite them in my sleep.
Milton honked the horn and I straightened in my seat. I looked out the window and saw all the Young Ladies dressed in various party dresses, and DITS in their PARA suits.
That was the big difference between us and the Young Ladies. The Young Ladies could go up with no protection and be fine. No radiation poisoning, no disgusting rashes, no side effects at all. That's what made them so important. Something about their DNA reacted differently to the air; they were special.
"All aboard? Who wants to go to Risky Rush Amusement Park?" Milton opened the door and shouted out to them.
Eleanor’s face lit up in a mix of excitement and confusion. This would be her first trip to the park.
The girls hurried onto the bus, Eleanor being one of the last ones on. She stopped short and her smile fell when she saw me.
“Why are you here?” she demanded.
I rolled my eyes and kicked the back of Milton’s seat. “I thought the same thing.”
It was a very odd feeling, to hate and also long for someone. Eleanor was annoying, whiny, spoiled, and just like Milton, threw her rank around. But on the other hand, she was pretty, smart, artistic, and had actually earned her rank. Her skills were genuinely impressive.
"I needed a hand to make sure everything was safe, doll," Milton told her. "Couldn't have the birthday girl's special day be ruined by a couple of creepies or crawlies."
I sighed, growing agitated by each second she swooned over that bastard. Eleanor took the seat across from me. I turned to face the window, not wanting to watch her drool over my best friend. The rest of the party filed in and Milton turned the key and started us toward the park.
Feeling slightly bitter about how she looked at him, I did what I always did, and said something I knew would piss her off.
"You can stop staring, birthday girl. I don't give two shits about you.” I glanced over and she flipped me off. I laughed. I loved seeing her angry as much as I enjoyed seeing her smile.
Eventually, we reached the park; Milton parked and opened the door.
"Is it safe?" Eleanor asked, looking up at the rusty sign just outside her window.
Everybody laughed.
"Nothing in the above world is safe," Pearl said. "But it sure as hell is fun."
I was the last one to get off the bus. Just as I’d stepped down, Milton called for me.
"Cal, will you do the honors?" He had his hands on Eleanor’s shoulders and was nuzzling her ear.
"You're going to get us killed," I muttered and stormed off.
