The bomb went on and on with its "tiktak* tiktak*" sound. Schwoz had managed to open it and was now trying to deactivate it, but I think the system was so old, that there were a lot of wires everywhere, just like some kind of regulators and things that bombs have!

Henry was pacing from side to side. "You said, you said this thing wasn't active, you said it was like a Big rock."

"It was," Schwoz replied, "but then Ray spilled soda into the timer, and the carbon in it reacted with the degraded copper and the timing wires, and science! Science! Science! Now it's active!

I was biting my thumbnail "And now everyone in Swellview is going to be vaporized?"

"Ah! No, no, no."

I breathed a sigh of relief, "Great." 

"...first we will all catch fire, and then slowly, painfully...–.

"No no no".

"Really Schwoz?" sarcasm.

That's it, we were dead, well we were going to die.

"Just tell us how long we have until this thing blows" Henry said worriedly.

Schwoz looked at the pump and analyzed the timers along with the regulators.

"About six hours."

"Oh! Great, we can finish the movie." Ray smiled as he sat down on the couch.

As always, Ray saying incoherent things, downplaying what was really important.

"Wait, Schwoz, can't you just cut the wires and turn off the timer?" Charlotte asked.

Schwoz tilt his head. "I could, but these wires are old and quite unstable," he scratched the back of his neck. "Cutting the wires could work or it could cause an explosion."

I repeat, we were going to die, we were definitely going to die.

We were silent for a few seconds, trying to think of some good plan to prevent this thing from consuming us whole to death, but at least for my part, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't think of anything good.

"Kai, you okay?" Henry approached me.

I kept biting my nail "There is an atomic bomb in front of us that is going to explode, I ask you the same question."

He gave a small laugh and grabbed my shoulder. "I know, and I'm more worried than anything, I just want to know if you're okay."

"I am," I answered nervously, "thank you," and smiled at him.

"You're welcome," he returned the gesture.

Ray got up from the couch "Enough with the corny stuff!" I didn't realize that everyone there was watching us. "Give me the wire cutters, Schwoz, this may or may not work."

He walked towards the bomb, crouched a little to be at its height, and if it weren't for Charlotte or Schwoz, Ray would have cut the cables and killed everyone.

"What?" Ray asked, confused.

"Orrrrr," Char said, "you could just load it up into the Man Truck, take it out to the desert and cut the wires there."

I pointed to my friend "Yeah, she's right, so if Whistlin Susie explodes no one in Swellview will burn to a crisp."

Ray grimaced "Hmm, that's kind of a long drive" really? "I already got the wire cutters right here and I'm feeling lucky."

Again, he approached the pump and moved the scissors while raising and lowering his eyebrows.

"Ray" Henry stopped him.

"Fine, I will do it," he agreed. "Schwoz, will you please show me what I have to do once I get out to the desert?"

Ray and Schwoz got closer to the bomb, while we did get closer, but we preferred to stay a little away for anything. I was next to Henry with him wrapping one of his arms around my waist... okay.

"First," Schwoz began to speak, ", you hold the Orange wire with one hand."

"Okay".

"Then with your other hand you cut the yellow wire."

He snorted "Easy ".

"And then with your third hand..."

I looked at Henry confused "What?"

"...you press the reset button."

"Huh?"

"...then with your fourth hand...".

I let go of Henry's grip and we all began to complain to Schwoz, four hands, it took four hands to do this.

"That's not a plan!" Charlotte exclaimed.

I rubbed my face in my hands. "It doesn't work."

"Do you need four hands to defuse this thing?" Jasper asked.

Schwoz stared at Ray and started counting his hand.

"One, two... okay, new plan" he crossed his arms "I think I have a way I can make Ray grow two more arms...".

"Do you have time for that?"

"That's worse."

"That's not a plan."

I crossed my arms and started walking together slightly from side to side, more plans, we needed a new plan that didn't involve new arms, or strange things.

"I've gotta with him," Henry blurted out of nowhere.

I opened my eyes in surprise "What? No, no, you're crazy."

"Kai, you heard Schwoz, it takes four hands to deactivate that thing."

"I need you alive too, Ray is indestructible, you're not."

Henry smiled at me and looked at me with his eyes full of tenderness that killed anyone who saw it, I felt a tickling in my stomach, and a strange desire to kiss him again... NO!

I know that what I said could have been misinterpreted with the other form or meaning of the phrase, but I didn't want him to do it, I mean, if I needed it, but because he was my best friend, and well, you know... yes.

"Do you need me?" he asked me smiling, "do you really need me?"

I swallowed dryly "Yeah, I need you," I simply answered, "Henry, you're my best friend, of course I need you, and I don't want anything to happen to you."

"Ah," he said, frowning and looking down, "I need you too," he paused, "best friend."

For the second time, the uncomfortable silence was present between the two, so much so that the Capi Cueva remained completely silent, with everyone else present attentively observing our situation.

"Do you guys need anything?" I asked.

"We're just watching you admit that you love each other," Jasper said.

I wrinkled my nose. "Yeah, that's not happening" they kept looking at us, it can't be possible. "The bomb?"

"YES!" Ray shouted. "Henry no, you can't come with me, Kai's right."

My friend clicked his tongue "Yes I can, and I know I can because I took an oath to help you protect the people of Swellview, so I'm going."

"It's too dangerous," Ray continued, "you can't leave your girlfriend here alone."

'He's not my boyfriend!', 'She's not my girlfriend' Henry and I said in unison.

"Says the guy who was about to cut the wires to an atomic bomb because he was 'feeling lucky,'" Henry said, making quotes with his hands.

"Yeah," Ray laughed "that was a lie, I didn't feel lucky at all."

More ideas, we needed more ideas.

"Wait," Charlotte said, yes, that means she had a plan." Schwoz, remember when you used to be convinced there would be a war between bears and humans?

"Used to be? USED TO BE?! Just wait until the Bear War I is here, it will happen!"

We all looked at him with a "serious" face, I rolled my eyes, Ray closed his eyes, and Henry scratched the back of his head. Sometimes Schwoz, well, he was almost always right, but I was a 100% sure he wasn't right this time. 

"Anyway," she continued, "you still have that bear-proof suit you made, right?"

"Oh yeah," Henry said as he punched me on the arm, "that bear-proof suit, did that thing ever work?"

Out of nowhere, Schwoz stared at a fixed point above the elevator and started laughing in a rather strange way, not responding, just looking at something, and laughing.

"Does that answer his question?"

"No," Jasper replied, "you've just been laughing for the last 25 seconds."

"Well, the suit works."

Henry shrugged. "Great, it works for me, Ray, I'll go with you."

"No!" Ray and I shouted in unison.

Listen, I know I said I didn't want him to be misunderstood, but I'm serious when I say that I'm worried and I don't want anything to happen to him, and even more so that I needed him because he was my best friend, and I loved him so much.

"Well, okay," Ray ended up agreeing.

"No, it's not right," I pulled Henry by the arm. "I can't let you go there with an atomic bomb, in the middle of the desert."

"Kai, I'm going to have the bear-proof suit on," he replied, "I promise I'll take care of myself, and I'll use Ray as a human shield in case something gets out of control, everything will be fine, do you trust me?"

I nodded, not very convinced, "okay."

"Thank you".

"But if you die, I swear I'll kill you."

"Deal," he smiled at me.

Henry walked to where the bomb was and stared at him for a few seconds, then he showed a malicious smile.

"Let's do this" he hit the bomb too hard, causing it to fall.

I quickly climbed onto Jasper's back while he hid behind Ray, and together we murdered him with our eyes.

Henry closed his eyes "Let's do this."

(...)

Two and a half hours had passed since Ray and Henry left, and thanks to that an enormous tranquility was present in my body, well, except for the part that the boys had left with an atomic bomb in the middle of the desert, and also because of Ray's irresponsibility, but more than anything because of Henry.

"Kai," I took my eyes off my phone, "we need to talk," Charlotte said with a mischievous tone.

I rolled my eyes. "If it's about Henry, save it, we're just friends."

Char pursed his lips "Well, I didn't know how to tell you this, but since what happened on Monday, Henry has been happier, and..." she nudged me slightly, "nicer with you."

"Henry has been exactly the same with me since I met him."

"And you've changed with him too, since the kiss."

I raised my eyebrows, "in what way do you think?"

"That thing that happened a while ago, you worried too much, too much, about him, and you don't do that with me or Jasper before you say it."

"Ah... yeah... well" I couldn't formulate an answer, and she was right, "he's my friend and I'm worried," I finally said, "he's with an atomic bomb."

Charlotte opened her mouth to say something, but she was interrupted by Jasper, who gasped.

"Hey," he said, "weren't Henry and Ray supposed to take Whistlin' Susie with them?"

I looked at him confused "Yes, why?".

Jasper swallowed and pointed to where the tubes were.

"She's still here."

Schwoz, Chalotte and I turned to look where Jasper was pointing, and just as he had said, Whistlin Susie was under the tubes, still with her tik tak, looking us directly in the eyes, announcing our upcoming death.

"AHHHHHHHHH!" we all shouted at the same time.

(...)

Hellooo, I you really are enjoying this story, I loved when I first wrote it a couple years back during COVID. Thanks for reading!