Capítulo XXXXI- Tomar una oportunidad

     Patience should've stayed home. She bounced around from Adam's, Bree's, and Chase's group. It was a little past lunch time and she was sitting in the cafeteria. Sitting in silence made her wonder what she would be doing as a student right now and if Leo and Xue would be in her class. Some students had only one mentor while others had all three. It was based on their abilities. She pushed the chair back where it belonged to go visit Adam and his class. She was intrigued by the way he taught his students. Earlier, she saw him arm wrestling against his students. They seemed to be stronger than him, bending the metal table down with his arm. When he lost, he claimed that he was the one who won.

     She made her way down the halls to the training room, maybe they were there tossing each other around like Adam tosses Chase. Her balance was thrown off from a quake trembling the man-made island. She caught herself, feeling the frigid wall make contact with her hand. The vibrations of whatever struck the island told her the direction it came from. Douglas unlocking soundwave manipulation raised her sense of touch.

     The quaking stopped, but vibrations still rippled in the walls. Her fingertips glid on the wall, leading her to the destination, the training room. Adam wasn't in there with his students. Instead, Leo and Spin were there. Water sprayed from within the wall onto Leo and the island's floor. Leo shouted, placing his hand in front of him to prevent water from hitting his face, "Stop stating the obvious and help me cover the leak!"

     "Patience!" Spin yelled over the water.

      She glanced between the water and the two boys. "Are you guys okay!" There was no sign of injury visible on their bodies.

      "Yeah, but I think the pipe burst!" Leo replied, his eyes were barely open and his head was turned to the side. "Help me cover the leak!"

     Spin sprung into action, picking up an empty trashcan near the training room's exit. Patience helped him press it against the open leak and the water sprayed into the trash. "This could only hold it off for a little. We need to find Mr. Davenport. Spin, go-"

     "No!" Leo quickly interrupted Patience. She gave him a questioning look as all three held onto the trashcan. He sighed and licked his lips. "You can't. I need to fix this before Big D sees it. I was the one who punched the wall and burst a pipe."

     "Why'd you punch the wall?"

     "Because Mr. Davenport bumped me up to another color. He was mad because a 'prepubescent boy' got to orange before him after we both showed him a new skill," Spin spoke for Leo.

     Patience glanced at the yellow shoulder on Leo's shoulder and the green on Spin's. Leo stayed below and Spin had recently risen to another color after he made green hours earlier. "Leo, you could've punched a dummy in the corner."

     "It was the closest thing near me, okay?"

     "Hold on. I need to check something," Patience demanded. She let go of the trashcan and placed a hand on the wall. A rumble on the other side made her eyes widen. She swiftly returned next to Leo and Spin.

     She grabbed his head and sniffed Spin's wet hair. His eyebrows furrowed, "Hey, what are you doing!"

     "Leo, that's not a pipe burst. That's ocean water. I can smell the salt water off you two."

     Mr. Davenport's feet splashed water as he ran into the training room. "What happened? I felt the whole building shake."

     "Uh, well-" Leo stuttered. Panic struck his system as Patience was about to answer. "Spin did it!" he burst, impulsively.

     "I did it?" Spin whipped his head around.

     "He did it?" Patience's eyebrows furrowed.

     "See, he confessed," Leo jabbed his finger at Spin. He motioned the same finger in a circle, "He was just spinning all around the room, and he went right into the wall. He must've hit a water pipe. Thank goodness Patience and I were here to clean up his mess."

     "Leo, that's not a water pipe. There's a structural beam behind that wall. Spin's force must've cracked the foundation of the entire building. That's ocean water coming in," Mr. Davenport confirmed Patience's suspicions.

     "Like underneath us ocean water? Like we're all gonna drown?" Mr. Davenport quickly nodded yes. "Oh, no, Patience you were right."

     "Mr. Davenport, I'm trying-"

     "Not now, Spin."

     Patience spoke up, "Mr. Davenport, what Spin is trying-"

     "Like I said, not now, Patience. I don't need to hear you defending his actions." Patience frowned. "We have to deal with this fast, otherwise, the water pressure's gonna build up, and knock the whole island off its foundation. You guys find a way to patch that up. I'm gonna go look for other damage." Mr. Davenport cautiously ran across the room, leaving the training area.

      Spin badgered, "I can't believe you blamed this on me."

      Patience held onto the trashcan, using her strength to support the heavy bin. "Why would you blame it on spin?"

    "I panicked! If he ever found out I was the one who did this, he'd know I'm not ready to be a mentor."

     "Guess what. You're not." Spin shoved the trashcan out of their grip.

     The water made it harder to catch and it slipped out of Patience's fingers. Sea water shot at Leo and Patience. She was fast enough to turn her head before it got in her eyes and mouth. As much as Spin storming off was fair, Patience wished he didn't shove the trashcan. She stopped the rolling can with her foot like it were a soccer ball and rolled it back to her. She and Leo picked it up and placed it where it was.

     Patience huffed, "I can't believe you lied to Mr. Davenport."

     "I'm sorry-"

      "I'm not the one you should be saying sorry to. Leo, maybe Mr. Davenport was right about you not being ready to be a mentor. You can't blame your faults on other people when it's your responsibility. More training couldn't hurt anyone."

     "That's easy for you to say. You've been taking taekwondo lessons since you were eight and you learned to use your bionics better than I can. You're practically perfect when it comes to things like this. You probably would've been a mentor too."

     Patience frowned as she listened to Leo's side. She could've banged her head against the trashcan for not considering what he felt. Ever since the beginning, Leo was taunted for being uncoordinated and weak, including when he first got his bionics. Patience was able to understand where Leo was coming from but she still didn't find it right he pointed his finger at Spin when he didn't cause the leak.

     "What if I helped you?" she offered. "I know I haven't helped you learn how to fight a lot lately like we used to. I could come here after school and I can teach you what I've learned."

     "Really?" Leo paused, "Wait, you're not gonna hip throw me again are you?"

     "You said yes when I first asked you. I did teach you how to hip throw in return," she recalled.

     Leo shrugged, "Yeah. You're right."

     "You still need to tell Mr. Davenport it wasn't Spin's fault."

     He sighed, "I know, but first we need to fix this leak."

     "Adam could use his heat vision to seal the crack."

     "No, he could be anywhere on the island. It'll take longer to find him." Leo's eyes scanned the training room. His eyebrows shot up eyeing the item, "Aha! Hold this."

     Patience stood on the end of the trashcan, applying more pressure against the wall. "What are doing?" Leo ran to the duct tape on the table on the other side of the room. "Duct tape?"

     "Hey, duct tape could fix anything." The look of confusion didn't leave her face. "It's only a temporary fix."

     Patience held her hand out, "Give me a piece."

     Leo used his bionic arm to tear off a piece of tape and handed it to Patience. He cut his own as she stuck it on the wall. The two alternated in sticking pieces of tape on the wall. It took a while because the water decreased the glue's strength on the tap. They had to overlap pieces, making the area of the tape three times larger than the hole. They used up all of it and Patience tossed the cardboard away.

     "How's the leak?"

     Leo and Patience turned around to see Mr. Davenport. "Leak? What leak? There is no leak. That wall is as good as new," his thumb pointed at the wall behind them.

     Mr. Davenport narrowed his eyes at the two teens, "You used ducktape to patch up a leak?"

     "It basically blends in with the wall," Patience motioned her arms at the wall next to her. The gray tape was at least 10 shades lighter than the metal wall. Mr. Davenport crossed his arms unamazed.

    "Mr. Davenport, can I talk to you?" Spin entered the training room. He had the orange-shouldered shirt

     "Not now, Spin." He towered over him, "We're still cleaning up your mess. And by the way, you are demoted back down to yellow. Or whatever's below yellow. What is that, buttercup? You're buttercup."

     "But that's not fair. It wasn't even my fault."

      "I don't wanna hear it. And to think I was proud of you. Maybe you're too young for this."

     Patience blocked Mr. Davenport from leaving. Leo was beside her as his elbow barely nudged him. "Big D, wait." He looked at a crestfallen Spin. The guilt of blaming it on Spin consumed him and he admitted, "It wasn't his fault. I did it."

     "You?"

     "I got so frustrated, I punched the wall."

     "I can't believe you, Leo. Not only did you damage my brand-new academy, but you lied to me and betrayed my trust-"

     Another quake shook the academy, rumbling all around them. They brought their hands out to the side to balance themselves. When it stopped, Spin questioned, "What was that?"

      Mr. Davenport drawled out, "I don't know."

     "Mr. Davenport!" Bree yelled. The group of four sped into the hydroloop area and were met by Xue, Chase, and his group of students. "Look!" The window showed them the island submerging into the sea.

     "The entire island is sinking."

     "What?" Chase looked between Mr. Davenport and the group behind him. Leo's and Patience's clothes were soaked top to bottom with ocean water. Their faces and exposed skin were dry. Spin's hair was nearly dry. "How?"

     "Well, you see, Chase, when water rises above-" Sebastian began sarcastically.

     Chase whipped his head to him, snapping, "I know why things sink!"

     Mr. Davenport cut in before Chase and Sebastian could argue further, "Leo punched a wall and cracked the foundation."

     "Why would you do that?" Bree exclaimed, stepping forward.

     "Well, I didn't think this was gonna happen!"

     Xue folded her arms behind her head and threw them down, "We're floating in the ocean! Why would you even consider punching a wall?"

     Patience stepped forward, "Can we please not argue. We have bigger things to worry about."

     Spin agreed, "Exactly, I'm with her. So, he made a mistake. We all make mistakes. I mean, not as big as that one. It was this huge-"

     Leo's nostrils flared, saying, "Okay, we get it!"

     "Instead of yelling at him, let's help him fix it."

     "He's right. Maybe I can lift the island back onto its foundation." Sebastian smugly grinned, "I mean, after all, I do have molecular kinesis."

     "So do I, buddy." Chase reminded, harshly, "Get in line."

     "That'll help but it's still not enough." Davenport said, "The island is too heavy.

     Sebastian assured, "Don't worry. My whole group has molecular kinesis."

     In a mocking tone, Chase responded, "So does mine." He faced his group, whispering, "And if you don't, just fake it. Look, we can pool our abilities together to form one giant force and raise the island. Come on. Follow me."

     "Oh, no, you don't. My group will raise the island. Follow me." Sebastian's group trailed behind Chase's. They gathered on the opposite side from Chase's.

     Xue crossed her arms and nodded, "And we're all gonna die."

     Patience sighed at Chase and Sebastian's behavior. She knew about them not getting along but she didn't think it was this bad. She jogged back into the training room, careful not to slip on the water. Bree, Leo, Spin, Xue, and Mr. Davenport weren't far behind.

     "No, stop, both of you!" Chase hearing Patience raise her voice made him halt immediately. She rarely raised her voice and when she did, it meant something serious. Sebastian also stopped in his tracks. "If you're going to do this, you're going to do this the right way or we will sink. You need to form a circle in the middle of the room and equally lift the academy."

    "Good idea. Everyone form a circle," Chase ordered, taking his place. His group hopped on the platform, forming half of a circle.

     "Well, don't just stand there," Sebastian chided his group. "Do what they say." His group jumped straight to action and completed the other half of the circle on the training room floor.

     "All right, on my count." Chase stretched his arms and squatted, knitting his eyebrows. "Three, two, one. Now!"

     Patience supported herself against the wall. The island trembled from the water weighing it down. Chase and his students focused on the floor, their muscles flexed as they used their strength the lift the academy. Some nearly lost their balance.

     Leo peered over the wall to check the window. "It's moving!" The island continued to rise and the force knocked some people to their feet when it hit the surface once again.

     "Yes. You did it!" Mr. Davenport shot up from the ground. "The island's back on its foundation."

     The students smiled as they gathered together in the middle of the room. They celebrated amongst themselves and congratulated each other, forgetting which group belonged to who. Including Chase and Sebastian.

     Sebastian complimented him, "Good job."

     Chase tried to keep his breathing steady as he said, "Yeah. You, too."

     "See how easy that was to work together?" Patience beamed, linking her arms with Chase and Sebastian.

     "They've been going at this all day. I couldn't be happier being in Bree's class. We caught them nearly trying to rip each other's heads off," Xue made a choking gesture with her hands, violently shaking them.

     "Yeah," Bree placed a hand on Chase's shoulder, "Luckily we caught them in time. Chase threw a fit."

     Chase's ears heated up and he articulated, "I did not throw a fit."

     Patience softly laughed unsurprised. "You also can't hide your expression from me. I know you too well, Chase," she lightly pulled on his red ears, smiling. "You hate it when someone takes your authority from you."

     "Are they going to start getting flirty?" Sebastian asked Bree. He removed himself from Patience's hold

     Bree rested her hands on her hips, sighing, "Yeah, unfortunately."

     "And I'm out," he spun on his heel.

     Xue raised her hand, "Me too."

     "Take me with you," Bree pled.

     Chase glanced down at Patience next to him, her arm was hooked to his, "Do we really flirt in front of them?"

     "I didn't think so," She shrugged. The awkward aroma of their actions being exposed remained between them. The blush on their faces was visible to everyone in the room, well, Leo and Spin. Everyone else had left. Patience smiled seeing Leo and Spin shake hands behind Chase.

     "I'm hungry. Are you hungry?"

     Chase crossed his arms, "Yeah. Because of Sebastian, my schedule was all messed up and I didn't get to have my lunch."

     "My dad made adobo and rice yesterday and he made extra for you guys. Want some? It's in a container in the kitchen's fridge."

     "Sure. I'll always eat anything you or your dad make," he said. He had adobo made by Dante once and it was one of the best things he had eaten. Chase didn't know what Dante or Patience did to their food, but it was addicting to eat no matter what it was. "Don't you want to change first?" he asked, noticing her wet clothes transferring the water to his mentor's jacket.

     "I don't have any spare clothes."

     "You can borrow mine. We moved our stuff here last night after you left."

     "Yes, please, thank you. I'm getting cold in June." A wide grin popped up on her face. "Race you to the mentor's quaters." Patience took off in a sprint before he can process what she was saying.

     "That's not fair!" he chased after her. His bionic hearing picked up her giggles down the tunnel. The musing sound encouraged him to run faster.

     You know what, maybe Patience was going to say screw it and say what she truly and planned to say. And that's a maybe because she was currently pacing back and forth in her room. It's very simple, right? Just walk into the living room and simply say what she wanted to say. So why was she scared, She's faced a madman with metal implanted in his face and bionics? Because Patience feared disapproval from Dante.

     Patience groaned and threw herself on her bed. Her stuffed animals fell out of their place and tumbled down the stack of pillows. She turned her head to the capsule next to her bed. It was in the corner that her bed once occupied. It was still a pain to sleep in there standing, she still stuffed her pillows around her and slept sitting down.

     Her dad knocked on her door and Patience sat up, "Come in."

     He twisted the golden doorknob, entering her room. He was used to getting flashed by the pink rose-colored walls she chose when she was five. She went through an intense pink phase for four years. "I'm going to bed-"

     "Wait, before you do..." Patience couldn't stop the flow of words spitting out of her mouth. Dante leaned on the door frame and held the knob, opening the door further. She fidgeted with the bottom of Chase's shirt as her nerves kicked in. She hadn't taken off the black pajamas he let her borrow. "I want you to listen to me. I want to attend the bionic academy."

     Dante entered the room and stood in front of her. "You are capable of a lot of things. You're very talented for someone your age and I am very proud of you, but just because you can do all of those amazing things doesn't mean you're invincible. I know you can heal, but what if something happens that you can't heal from. You go out on these dangerous missions and new threats show up every day."

     "I'll be careful," she attempted to convince him. It wasn't enough.

     "Careful isn't enough. I need you to be where I know you're safe, in the lab."

     "That's the problem, dad. I can't stay in the lab. I can't sit and do nothing knowing there's something I could do to help people. Maybe getting these bionics was a sign to go out there and help people. Thanks to Douglas I have a gift and I could use it for good. Sitting in the lab not being able to do anything was miserable. When Chase was lost in that avalanche, I felt useless because I couldn't do anything. I wanted to do more and now I have the chance."

     That made Dante recall back when Adam, Bree, and Chase went off the grid. Patience laid on the couch feeling like nothing. It wasn't until he had to remind her that she could do something to help find her best friends. It made him feel terrible for not hearing his daughter's reason why she wanted to enroll in the academy. 

     "I'm sorry, Patience. I only wanted to protect you and I keep forgetting that you're growing up. Ever since what happened with your mom I felt like I needed to protect you to make up when I couldn't."

     "What happened with mom wasn't your fault. It was hers, I never blamed you," she assured.

     He sat next to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, holding her closer. "Listen, I'll let you enroll in the academy, but you still have to finish school. You're still 16. Once you finish high school, you can do whatever you want."

     "Really!" she shot up in front of him, grinning ear to ear.

     "Yes. Now, promise you won't be careless out there."

     "I promise and I'll be careful, too. Adam, Bree, Chase, and Leo have my back and I have theirs." She nearly cut his air circulation when she embraced Dante. He wheezed and she quickly let go. "Sorry."

     "It's okay." He shut the lights off in her room. The lamp on her desk was enough to light up her room. "We'll talk about this more in the morning, okay? I love you, Patience. Goodnight."

    "Goodnight, I love you, too, dad." Dante closed the door and his footsteps echoed down the hall. Patience smiled and quietly cheered in her room. She seized her phone off her desk to facetime Leo, excited to tell him the news.