1:34 pm. Kenneth's eyes drifted away from the clock at the top as he leaned back onto his elbows and let the breeze blow his hair back from his face. Surely Byrd would be arriving soon. He liked resting here, but he needed something to do. David had been restless for a while too. With a thin smile, he watched the kid run around in circles on the grass chasing after the computer-generated birds and crickets. There were some things that no matter how often he reminded himself this was a game, would always feel real. 

His smile fell a little and he resisted the urge to look back at the prison compound. Maybe that wasn't such a good thing. His shoulders slumped and he looked down at the grass to his side, brushing his fingers over the thin blades again. Is losing grip on reality so bad, though? I'd rather have this reality. 

"What's so interesting about that grass?" 

Kenneth's head shot up and he hesitated as he stared up at Byrd. Briefly, his heart leaped to his throat but he exhaled slowly and it sank back to beat restlessly in his chest. He drew his fingers away fro the grass. "Hi. Sorry, I was just thinking."

Byrd settled down on the grass and folded her legs under her, rubbing her small hands through the grass. She grinned and then settled back herself and turned her face to the sky. The sunlight hit her light brown skin land left something of a glow across her expression. Kenneth leaned onto his right arm and smiled a bit more at the sight. She didn't need the sun to glow, but it sure did help.

Her eyes cracked back open after a second and she sighed happily before looking back at him. "Whatcha thinking about?"

Turning his eyes away from her quickly, Kenneth looked down the hill at David. "Just...wondering what this new quest entails. Seems pretty easy."

Byrd laughed. "Oh, dear. I hope it's not, cause last time we picked an easy mission..."

Biting his lip, Kenneth grimaced and nodded. "Yeah..."

"How long have you been here anyway? Hopefully not too long," she said and began to stretch her legs out in front of her. David came running back up with a grin, flying into Byrd's outstretched arms. He giggled and wrapped his arms around her neck.

"You're back!" he exclaimed.

Byrd nodded and hugged him, squeezing him. "You bet I am." Her grin widened and then she let David go and he curled right up in her lap. His head lolled back onto one of her legs as he continued squirming and giggling. Byrd tickled his ribs and giggled with him. 

Kenneth let his head fall onto one shoulder. He turned over a blade of grass between his fingers. Their energy matched each others, like two lights. Where did they get it from? I want energy like that...he thought. He dropepd the blade of grass and let it fall limp to the ground. 

"Not too long," he lied after a moment when Byrd glanced up at him. "I just thought I'd check on David."

She nodded and tousled David's hair. "Good idea." Her head cocked to one side as she looked down at the young boy. "Hey, David, you ready to go home?"

David popped up and sat up straight, nodded firmly. "Yeah! I want you to meet everyone!" He crawled out of Byrd's lap, though, and grabbed at Kenneth's hand quickly. "You too!"

 Kenneth's fingers recoiled. His heart leaped to his throat and he hesitated. Then he blew out a slow breath and nodded slowly. "Yeah. We gotta get there first, though."

David nodded and bounced up onto his feet. He let go of Kenneth's hand and turned around. Kenneth rose from the ground and dusted the dirt and grass off his pants. He looked over at Byrd and after staring at her for a moment, offered his hand. 

Her eyebrows lifted as she stared up at him, then she smiled and took his hand. "Thank you," she said.

Shrugging, Kenneth nodded a little. "No problem. Wanna get going?"

She nodded and stuck her hands in her pockets, rocking on her feet. "I imagine we can get this done in an afternoon. Plus, it's a good break." Another sigh passed her lips and Kenneth peered at her happy expression out of the side of his eyes. He bit back a wide grin and nodded. 

"Yeah, I imagine so." 

David was already running down the hill towards the truck, and after watching him a few seconds, Kenneth eventually started after the boy. He jogged down the side and caught up to the kid, slowing to match his pace. 

Wide brown eyes turned up to him. "Can I ride on your shoulders?" David asked, cocking his head to one side. 

Kenneth thought about his own body and bit his lip. This many years in the hospital. Could he support the kid's weight? I mean...I'm in-game. It shouldn't be an issue. He nodded and stopped, kneeling down. David's hands gripped his shoulder and then pressed down as the kid's full weight came bearing down on Kenneth's back and shoulders. 

Sucking in a sharp breath, Kenneth braced himself, only to find that David weighed next to nothing. He exhaled slowly and looked up as tiny hands wrapped around his head and the boy's knees pressed into his neck. Okay, not too. Hm. He smiled and carefully stood up. Gripping David's legs to keep the kid from falling, he felt the boy sway against him. Heart pounding, he tried not to think od David falling. The kid would be fine as long as he held on.

"Hang on tight," he said and leaned his head back just a bit to peer up at the boy.

"Okay!" David's arms tightened around Kenneth's head and he grinned. 

Warm. His whole body felt warm. Kenneth let the smile well up as the warmth filled his chest and body. Is this what it's like to be them? To be happy and glowing all the time? He carefully looked back at Byrd as she skipped down the hillside towards them and his steps paused a moment before he kept walking, each step a little heavier than the last. His lips felt almost strained, but no amount of stretching would allow his smile to grow wide enough. He closed his eyes for a moment and felt the sun and breeze across his skin. What's it like to have this every day? How do I get this? 

Maybe it was because they didn't have a mother like his. Maybe because they weren't in the hospital. Kenneth's eyes trailed up to David and he had to fight the urge to shake his head. That couldn't be it. David had just lost his mom. Then again. He's just a game character. A sigh slid past his lips and the smile faltered a little. The glow was fading again. His fingers loosened, but he kept his grip firm enough that David wouldn't fall.

Maybe that was it. Why can't I be a game character? His eyes fell to the ground and he tried to push the thought away. This wasn't the time. 

The truck loomed ahead and Kenneth slowed down. He stopped a few feet away and knelt back down. "Time to get down, bud," he told David and let the boy clamber down. 

"Thank you! That was fun!" David said and ran around to the driver's side, tugging at the door. Kenneth rose and nodded. He pulled the door open and let the boy inside before looking back as Byrd's boots began to crunch across the gravel towards them. 

"To the valley?" she asked.

He nodded and slid into the driver's seat. "To the valley." He gripped the steering wheel and turned the engine back on, watching the trucks stats appear in the upper left-hand corner of his display. It looked like they had plenty of battery to get where they needed to, but probably not much further. He double-checked the distance gauge on the quest anyway and let out a soft sigh. They could make it.

I have money for batteries if we need--his eyes skimmed the landscape--but I don't know where we'd find any.

He pressed his foot to the gas pedal and the truck lurched forward. His fingers tightened a little as they began to roll slowly down the gentle curve behind the hill still hiding them. The route indicator took over on the quest and Kenneth followed close behind the assisting arrow, keeping an eye out. Out of the corner of his vision, though, he could see David bouncing in Byrd's lap while she tried to keep him contained. He smiled sadly and adjusted his grip on the steering wheel again. The material was cold and clammy. He frowned. 

Like her hands. Kenneth shivered and gulped down a deep breath, trying to fight any pain or soreness that might slip in from the outside world. Was she watching him right now? Standing over his motionless in-game form, just waiting? He'd feel any pain if she tried to injure him, but just the thought of her looming there. He could feel her eyes penetrating the mask of the VR headset and boring into his soul.

The warm sunlight wasn't warm on his skin anymore and he felt the hairs rise along his arms, glad they were hidden by his jacket so Byrd didn't see. Shaking his head violently, Kenneth set his jaw and focused on the road. Don't think about her. She cannot hurt us here. Here we are safe with Byrd and David and a whole free world to explore.

Air escaped his lips and took the burden off his chest as it disappeared into the air. Still, the goosebumps remained and Kenneth let his eyelids droop as fear sapped energy from his veins. Two weeks till the operation and then he could run away again. He'd never have to see her face. Two weeks. I can do that. He glanced over at Byrd and found her watching him. His stomach flipped as he tried to muster back a smile and hide any indicator of fear on his face.

She just cocked her head to one side, her wiry hair falling across her face. "You okay? You seem tired."

Kenneth dragged his gaze to the road and shrugged. "I'm fine." He faked a yawn. "Just a little tired, but that's okay. I didn't sleep too well. Happens." He forced a small chuckle and a wider smile. That should throw her off.

"Alright," she said. "Yeah, sleep is an elusive fickle being, huh?"

He nodded and dipped his head, trying hard to focus on the little blue arrow. The truck felt slow, but he knew they simply had a long route ahead of them. 

"Say, you don't go to church by any chance, do you? I noticed you were already on when I got here," Byrd asked. She was rubbing David's back as he settled down some and just contentedly watched out the window. His NPC must have run out of action. They did that sometimes. 

Kenneth shook his head and blew a strand of hair away from his nose. It came back and he pouted. "No, I don't. Why?" He cut his eyes to Byrd. Is there something wrong with that? She gonna drop me and leave me cause I don't go to church?

Her eyes were fixed on the road but she sat up a little at his question. "Oh, I was just curious. Thought maybe we'd crossed paths or something if you did." A smile touched her lips and she looked back. "Tho, I feel like I'd have known your face if we had. I can't do names, but I can remember a face pretty well."

"Oh. Nah, I doubt we've crossed paths," Kenneth said. His eyes dropped to his fingers. In real life, they were far frailer. The game generated your appearance as close as possible, but he'd adjusted it so he didn't look like the gaunt sickly creature he was. It was best his enemies didn't know he was stuck in a hospital bed. His eyes rose to hers. Best she didn't know either. 

Byrd just shrugged and wrapped both arms around David. She hunched forward and the truck bounced over a couple of gravelly spots. "I kinda figured, oh well." She smiled into the thin air and Kenneth struggled to draw his attention back to the road.

He tapped one finger on the cold steering wheel and hummed the first song that came into his head. He didn't remember the words, but the tune was clear. Where had he first heard it? Must be something from my childhood I suppose. His lips pursed and scowled as the humming was drowned out by the engine. Nothing good came out of his childhood.

"That was nice. I didn't know you sang," Byrd commented. 

Kenneth stiffened a little, falling silence. "Um, it was just humming," he said quietly. "Something stuck in my head."

"Sounded nice," Byrd repeated. She leaned back and reclined the chair some. "Music is soothing. You sing a lot?" 

He shook his head and looked further away, trying not to catch her eyes. "No..."

"Aw, I'd love to hear it," she said. "I sing a lot at home. My siblings hate it," she laughed and leaned his head back. "Oh well, I'll keep it up. I love music."

Dipping his head a little, Kenneth turned the wheel to the curve of the road. When was the last time I listened to music that wasn't the background to this game? He flexed one hand. He couldn't remember. Didn't even own a pair of headphones or earbuds. His username was the last remnant of an age in which he might have had a favorite artist. Who was to say FraserX was still singing, though?

He settled into a hunch and tried to recall the words to the last song he listened to. Nothing came to mind, just the faint humming of the background noises and music of the game. Nothing at all. All he remembered were lullabies sang from the lips of a woman he couldn't call his mother anymore. 

"What's your favorite song?" he asked after a moment and peeked over at Byrd who had relaxed back with David napping against her. 

Her head shifted a little bit but didn't turn. "Hm, I don't know...I think--it's old--but I really like the song Butterfly. It's by one of my mom's old groups. I don't remember the name anymore, but if you look it up it's always the first one." 

Kenneth nodded and tapped his thumb on the steering wheel. Butterfly. That's pretty. I'll have to listen to it when we're done here. Nodding to himself, he turned the wheel again and let the truck lapse into silence.