Chương 30: Book 2 - Chapter 6 A

The short flight from DFW to Tulsa landed just before 11am. Mom was waiting at the terminal, standing so she could see me come down the boarding ramp. I ran to her and she lowered to one knee as I threw my arms around her. I was on the offensive. I didn't need to start College grounded.

"I've been so worried about you," she said, squeezing me very tight.

"Don't you ever pull a stunt like that again."

"I won't, Mom. I promise." She stood, holding my hand, and saw the shyly standing Matt holding my big trophy.

"My, how very big!" she said.

"Ma'am, I'm Matt Preston," he said, reaching out to shake her hand.

"I've been keeping your little boy safe on his adventure."

"I see why everyone was sure he'd be fine," she said.

"My Mom said you were former military?"

"Yes, Ma'am," he said, leading us to the baggage claim.

"Marine sergeant. I also just graduated from a prestigious driving and bodyguard school back east." She looked him over from the corner of her eye and sighed. After getting the luggage we went out to where the van was parked.

"Ma'am, if you'll allow me to drive?" Matt requested, holding his big hand out for the keys.

"Thank you," he told her, as she handed them over and got in the back. I climbed in and sat next to her. Matt loaded our luggage, shut the sliding door and took his spot as driver.

"Is everyone buckled up?" he asked before starting the van.

"Thank you, Mathew. We are," she answered.

"I've never had a chauffeur before." Matt headed back to the hotel. I could see his smile in the rear view mirror.

"Grandpa usually sits up front when Matt drives," I told her.

"It's better this way," she said, putting an arm around me. She relaxed, holding me close as she watched the scenery from van windows.

"So, how is it living in Tulsa?" I asked her, enjoying the moment.

"It's unexpected. I had everything packed and your Dad brought a truck to move. Unfortunately all our stuff is still in boxes in several empty rooms on level four."

"Are you settled in? I suggested Dad take the room that had the connection door for Mattie."

"I'm settled," she sighed.

"I've been watching how hard your Dad is working everyday to get the family floor finished."

"I think it'll be really nice."

"Your Grandfather refuses to let us move in before it's done," she growled.

"I understand, but it's so frustrating!"

"It'll be great, we'll have a group family area and a group dining area. We won't all be tucked away in our own apartments all the time. We'll be able to be with each other every day!"

"We kind of started that already. Your Grandma and I have taken to swapping breakfast duties. We've got one room set up for just that now," she explained.

"I do like that. Having everybody together at breakfast and dinner. We'll keep doing that once we are upstairs." She turned to me.

"So tell me about your trip?"

"It was really hot. The hotel had a big room for the tournament. Over 400 people showed up.

"I won every game I played. They kept moving me up the rankings, so it was almost a new group each game until I reached the Masters level.

"I did have time before the competition to do some stuff, too."

"Oh? Like what?" she asked.

"The lawyers across the street who are helping with getting my software copyrighted found a company to produce and distribute my programs. I went and visited their office in Dallas. Then I had to find a local lawyer to handle the agreement."

"Your Grandpa gave me a little show, demonstrating everything you've been working on while you were there. I'm glad you weren't just sitting around reading all summer like you did last year."

"It's been a busy summer, but when College starts I'm just not going to have the time to do all the stuff I got done."

"Well, it's great that you're finding a way to make those expensive computers pay for themselves," she said, then her arm around me tightened.

"I'm warning you again. If you ever go somewhere without telling me first again, you won't touch another computer until you're thirty." I quickly changed the subject.

"This magazine was in the seat pocket on the airplane," I said handing it to Mom. She looked at the opened 'Sybervision' magazine with a puzzled face.

"Check out the language courses. I want to learn something new." The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

"That's interesting, but it's very expensive," Mom said, looking at the page I had the magazine opened to.

"It's the same thing they did at the High School. Audio tapes, workbooks and dictionaries. I've proven that's all I need to master a language."

"Which language do you want to learn?"

"All of them," was my reply.

"That's way too much money, Johnny. You're learning German in College. That's enough."

"That's so slow! How about one of them at a time?" I asked, opening negotiations.

"No more than four a year," she said, reconsidering.

"I don't want you losing track of how to speak English again because you are stuffing too many in your head at once. I only know French, so I won't be able to translate for you next time."

"I don't think that'll happen again," I said.

"I think I could safely handle one a month," I countered.

"Let's see how addled your brains are after the first one," she said, failing to commit to my offer.

"Great, I'll leave the magazine with you so you can order them for me," I told her.

"Pick something fun for my first one. Like Japanese, or maybe Russian." Grandma was waiting downstairs when we pulled into the small hotel parking lot.

"Grandma!" I shouted, running to give her hug.

"Oof!" she said, and squeezed me tight.

"So did you bring me a big trophy?" I turned and Matt handed me the trophy from the back of the van.

"Oh my! It is very big, isn't it?" she said, and tousled my hair.

"I don't think I have room for it right now. You're going to have to keep it in your room until I move upstairs."

"Can you carry it up?" I asked.

"I want to help with the luggage."

"I can do that," she said, holding onto it with a predatory gleam. I ran and got the luggage cart, pushing it across the cracked pavement up to the van, and Matt loaded it up. Mattie charged into my hotel room after coming home from school wrapping me in a big hug as I sat in front of the Mac working.

"I played your typing game, but I'm not very good," she told me. I glanced at Matt who had followed her in.

"I put the Apple back in your room before we left, and showed your Grandpa how to turn it on for her," he said.

"It's been fun to play though, computers are so neat!" Mattie said. She then saw my trophy on the table. Fascinated she ran her hand over it.

"Are you a chess grandmaster now?" Mattie wanted to know.

"Why do you ask?"

"Grandpa said the best chess players are grandmasters. You beat everybody, so I wanted to know if that made you a grandmaster?"

"Not yet, but maybe someday. Grandmasters are not only very good, they have played a lot of games."

"Oh, well I'm still glad you beat everybody."

"Me too, but it's so good to be home. How was your summer?" I asked her.

"Well I missed having you around but Mom took me to the city pool and I got to swim with Patty and Thelma. Then we went to the library. We did that all the time. I'm going to miss my friends, but I've got new ones at my new school."

"That's good," I commended warmly.

"Is there any new friend who you think will be your bestie?"

"What's a bestie?" she asked.

"It's your best friend, the one you want to be friends with for the whole rest of your life." Her cute face scrunched up as she thought about it.

"Not yet," she said, seriously.

"Mindy might be. I haven't decided yet. Can I have more than one bestie?"

"Sure, Mattie. You can have all the besties you want." Being back home really was great. Matt snores, and it was nice to have a room to myself again. Almost to myself, anyway. I looked across the table. Mattie now sat on the opposite side playing the Alphabet Invasion game after school. I sighed.

"Just remember to stay quiet as you play. I need to concentrate while I'm programming," I told her.

"I will," she said, sounding aggrieved. If I had let her have the Apple in her room, like she wanted, I'd have never seen it again.

"I rearranged my whole room so you could have a space to play too. Just remember not to play with the Mac. That's going to have my important school work."

"Yes, Johnny," she said tiredly. Everyone had been very busy while I was gone. That hadn't stopped at my return.

"Johnny," Mom said, between bites of her dinner salad.

"I saw the 3D pictures you invented."

"I didn't invent them, I just used a computer to make them."

"Anyway, I've designed a theme for each floor of the hotel. Mr Benz is collecting artwork. I need you to create the lobby murals."

"I can do that," I agreed.

"Good. I want a different mural on each side of the elevator, on every floor."

"I just need to know specifically what to put on each one. If it's not too complicated an image," I warned.

"It'll probably take about two hours for each one."

"So long?" she asked, as she did the math in her head.

"That's 34 murals just for the elevator lobbies."

"Two a day is probably my limit once school starts. But we have to wait for the tile printer to be finished before they can go up anyway."

"Right," she agreed, nodding.

"It's not a rush."

"That tile printer idea is very clever," Dad added.

"I've been working with Mr Benz," Grandma added.

"Collecting complementary artwork for each theme."

"We need the pool first," Grandpa reminded.

"The elevator lobbies can come next."

"How is it working with the decorator, Grandma?" I asked her.

"Very good!" she said excitedly.

"She agreed with you about the difference between granite and quartz. I've placed the order with the company in Minnesota that makes it. I've got a sample I can show you after dinner."

"That's great." The dinner conversation paused for a moment.

"We finished the electrical today," Dad said, breaking the silence.

"It's not finished, finished, but the new panel and distribution is in.

"Every apartment and every hotel room will be fully wired for modern power needs. Your lab area will have all the power plugs you need and run without flipping any breakers."

"That is excellent news," I told him.

"What about the rest of the utility overhaul?"

"Plumbing is in," he said, with a smile.

"You'll notice shower water pressure is up."

"No rust anymore either," Grandma added.

"The new HVAC system is a few months away, but the old one is holding on. I'm pretty sure it'll survive the summer."

"Best of all," added Grandpa,"it will meet code now. You wouldn't believe the inspectors that have been through this place, sometimes three or four a day."