I can't take my eyes off her. It's like watching a kid discover new candy in a candy store. Every time I show her a building, or a park her eyes light up. Part of it saddens me, and I can't really explain why.

"Have you really not seen half of this stuff?" I ask as we walk down the street, ice cream in our hands.

She takes a lick of her mint chocolate chip before responding. "It's not that." She looks around. "I've seen half the shops, and when you see half the clothing shops you've seen them all." She turns her head skywards. "It's how tall the buildings are, how sleek and modern they are. It's the vehicles that fly smoothly and don't look old." She shrugs. "Everything here is just so shiny and new compared to home." She turns her gaze back to her ice cream.

I turn back to the city, trying to see it through her eyes. The sun glints off the buildings and hits the biodome. The cars run almost soundlessly above us. People walk in and out of stores, each leaving with more bags than they entered with. "Maybe we take things for granted," I say.

"What do you mean?" She looks at me, confused.

"Look at everyone. Is this how your town looks?"

She takes a moment to look around before shaking her head.

"Exactly." I scoff. "We're spoiled over here without even realizing it. If they knew what it was like-"

"That wouldn't change anything. We'd only be looked down upon."

I frown. I want to protest but seeing the sadness and pity in her eyes stops me. Maybe she is right.

"I'll change that."

She scoffs. "How do you plan to do that?"

I look down at the ground as I try to think of a solution. "I'm not sure," I say after awhile. "But I'm going to have my inheritance money and then maybe I can do something with that to help everyone over there."

She shakes her head. "It doesn't work like that."

"But I can-"

"No, Sam." Her eyes narrow into a glare. "You asked me to stay out of your parents business and I'm asking you to stop with this nonsense."

"But-"

She shakes her head, her curls bouncing around her. "No, Sam."

I sigh but drop the conversation. We continue down the sidewalk for awhile, passing by more shops. Some are tech shops that feature my parents technology.

"Is it weird?" Emma asks.

"Hm?"

"Is it weird seeing your parents everywhere, seeing their creations? Having this huge legacy?"

I look up at the holoposter in the front display of a chip design under my last name. "I've never really thought about it. It's just something I grew up with."

"I don't think I'd ever be able to get used to that." I turn to her, but she isn't looking at me. She's turned towards the holoposter, something unreadable in her gaze. "I like being this unknown persons who's just able to live their life and not have to deal with fame of any sort."

I nod. "I wouldn't say it's fame." I shrug. "People just know my name, and my family. It's not like I'm getting pictures taking of me anywhere I go or that I'm being stopped in the streets being asked for autographs."

"It's still fame though. It's just different."

"I guess."

We continue to stare at the window for a moment. I look around, shifting from one foot to the other. "I think we should head back."

She turns, her brown colored eyes glistening. "Sure." She takes the last bite of her ice cream cone before swiping her hands together to get the crumbs off. "Lead the way."

***

The car ride back home is spent listening to my parents drone on and on about Emma's new chip, and then about some company problem. I spend the time ignore them and watching Emma. She nods when they need her to, she asks questions, but none that don't require the digging I'd expected and asked her to stop doing. She's simply making conversation with them. A smile grows on my lips. I was worried she wouldn't honor her promise.

Jax is passed out in his car seat, probably exhausted from the running around he did in the daycare center. It's cute, and definitely my favorite time of the day. The only time when he's quiet and still.

The car falls into silence as we approach the house. It's dark outside, but the moment the car pulls into the driveway, the outside lights flick on. The movement in the car is slow, and quiet. Father unbuckles Jax, and cradles him in his arms. It's about the only time his caring father side comes out. Mother turns to us as Father carries Jax to the house. "Sleep well girls. We'll see you in the morning for family breakfast."

I roll my eyes and she shots me a glare. She covers it quickly with a smile to Emma before spinning around and heading towards the house. Neither of us speak until the door is closed behind them.

"Why did she say night to us out here? And why aren't we going in?" Emma asks, turning to me.

I grin a slightly wicked grin. "Because we're not going in yet." I grab her hand. As I do something electric runs through me. Must just be sparks from her new chip.

"Where are we going?" she asks with a little laugh as I drag her to the side of the house. Trees litter the path before us.

"You'll see." I drag her into the trees. A slight giggle follows me as her hand grows warm in mine. As the trees hide us from the outside world I can almost pretend we're friends who do this every weekend. That she isn't only staying for half of the school year, and like there might be something growing between us that is bigger than friendship. When the trees end, the sky opens wide before us. I stop us in the middle between the forest and the cliff that drops off into a river.

I take a deep breath, filling my lungs with the cold night air. Then I turn and look at Emma, her eyes are wide as her head tilts back to look up at the sky. I stare at her as she admires the night sky with it's midnight blue, the white sparkly stars and the purple light waves from the galaxy. I've been here so many times I have memorized how it looks. "What do you think?" I ask, my voice only slightly louder than the rushing water.

She tears her gaze from the sky and looks at me, the night stars sparkle in her earth-bound eyes. "It's beautiful."

My face heats up as I hope she isn't just referring to the sky. I'm glad it's dark. "It is." I turn my own head up to look at it. "This place is really special to me. "She squeezes my hand. I hadn't even realized we were still holding hands. "I used to come here a lot when the house got overwhelming. Jax was always screaming and when he wasn't my parents were hidden away working." I take a deep breath, steeling myself. "I know it isn't a sob story, or even something really bad, but it wasn't my favorite part of my childhood and it was nice to escape that by coming here. I used to pretend my family lived in the stars and I was lost to them, that someone was going to come and look for me." I chuckle. "It was stupid."

"I don't think it was stupid."

My eyes widen. "You don't?"

She shakes her head. "It seems like a normal childhood thing. The daydreaming, not the parent part," she explains.

"Yeah?" A smirk founds its way onto my face. "What was your thing?"

"My thing?" She seems taken aback from the question. She chews her lip as she turns away from me and faces the cliff. For a moment I think she'll tell me she didn't have anything, but then she starts talking very quietly. "I used to pretend I was a spy on these super dangerous missions trying to save the world."

"That's cute," I say before I can stop myself.

She spins back around, a small smile on her face. "It was, wasn't it?" She sounds tired, and like she's about to break down.

"Do you want to head back?"

She nods, and without another word we head back to the house with something new between us.