Chapter Four

“Are you sure about this?” JoAnna got down on her hands and knees, looking for a missing sweatshirt under her bed. “I’d go with you guys, but I made my spring break plans months ago, and my plane ticket isn’t refundable.”

Her roommate smiled despite her nervous stomach. “I’m sure. We’ll be okay. Let me know how everything goes at the beach.”

Melissa’s phone chirped as she grabbed several t-shirts from a drawer and threw them in her suitcase. Jake’s number flashed on the screen, and she took a deep breath before answering with a shaky voice. “Hello?”

“Hey, it’s Jake.” Despite the early hour, he sounded cheerful and energetic. “I just wanted to make sure you’re still coming on the trip.”

“Yeah. Absolutely.” Melissa let out her breath. She had been worried that he was going to tell her she should stay at home. After their awkward encounter in his room the other night, there was a good chance he didn’t want to have anything to do with her. However, she was still part of the group receiving the reminder text about their departure time, and she didn’t want to miss a chance to make things right. “Are we still leaving at eight?”

“That’s the plan. I picked up the rental van last night, and I’ll be out in front of the Student Center by 7:45.” There was a slight pause, and Melissa drew her breath in again as she waited for Jake to continue. “Listen, I’m sorry about the other night. I didn’t mean to upset you or anything. I guess I just got overexcited.”

“No, I’m sorry.” Melissa sat next to her suitcase and ran her hand over her face. “I was just nervous. It’s been a while for me. Everything is my fault.” She hadn’t been able to stop thinking about that night and what she could have done differently. Even while she was taking her chemistry exam, she kept imagining what might have happened if she had let things continue. She wouldn’t panic if there was a next time. She would let things progress and see where they went. A guy like Jake — or any guy for that matter — wasn’t going to wait forever, and she was lucky he was still willing to talk to her.

“It’s not a problem. Can we start over? I don’t want anything to be awkward between us while we’re on the trip together.”

“That sounds good to me. I’ll see you soon.” Melissa ended the call with a smile on her face. She had worried for nothing. There would be plenty of chances in the upcoming week when she could make up for the teasing.

Jake had announced at the end of the Liberator meeting that he wanted to lead a trip to rescue a group of cyborgs in New York City. Purity Force was holding them for questioning. While it was true that none of the people in their group were experts in breaking and entering, they were confident that they could free the cyborgs. It would be far more effective than a protest, Jake said, and it would show the supporters of the eradication project that they had strong opposition.

As she threw a few pairs of clean panties into her suitcase, Melissa realized she still had some reservations about leaving. She’d never had a speeding ticket, much less broken someone out of prison. Jake had started referring to the trip as the Liberation Expedition, but she wasn’t sure of her stance on cyborgs in the first place. Her parents had taught her that they were dangerous creatures. Up until a few nights ago, she had accepted their opinion without thinking about it.

But Jake was passionate about the cyborgs. If she wanted to have any shot with him, she would have to go. Anyway, the drive was going to be an overnight journey. If Jake were willing to start over with her, it would be the perfect opportunity to let him know she had made a mistake.

A mistake was putting it mildly. Melissa had always erred on the side of caution. Once she had crawled out of his dorm, made her way back home, and dried her tears, she had vowed to herself that she was going to live a little more dangerously. She wasn’t going let a second opportunity pass by her.

With a sigh, Melissa picked her phone up again and dialed her parents’ number. She hadn’t said anything to them specifically about going home for spring break, but she knew they would be expecting her. It was an unspoken rule in their family. Good little Melissa always followed the rules, got good grades, and came home when she had the chance. When she thought about it, she was tired of being that person. It was time to be someone new, more exciting, and more adventurous. Melissa thought she deserved to do what she wanted for a change, and not what everyone else assumed she would do.

“Hi, Mom. It’s me.”

“Melissa! Are you on your way home yet? I hope you aren’t calling while you’re driving. That’s dangerous, you know.” She heard the sound of frying in the background.

“No, Mom, I’m not driving yet. Listen, I wanted to tell you something.”

“Oh, good,” Mrs. Quinn interrupted. “I haven’t finished everything I wanted to do before you got here. I changed the sheets on your bed, and I’ve got your Dad mowing the lawn right now. He tried to tell me it didn’t need cutting yet, but I want everything to be perfect when you come home. I still need to vacuum, though, and I was going to put an apple pie in the oven.”

“I think we should talk about that.” The longer she talked on the phone, the less guilty Melissa felt about staying away. Her parents always made a big fuss about her arrival and she felt it was a little overblown. Melissa could change sheets if she thought they were dirty. She didn’t care what the yard looked like, but she would never tell that to her father.

“What is it dear? Is your car broken again? I can send some money for a bus if you need it. Or even if you just want it, for that matter. I’m sure you’re tired, and I understand if you don’t want to drive.”

“No. The car is fine, and I’m not too tired to drive. But I’m not coming home this time.”

Melissa heard silence on the other end of the line.

“Some of the other students invited me to take a trip with them. I know I usually come home, but this is something that’s important to me. I’ll get to see New York with some of my friends.” The more Melissa talked, the more she felt like she was justifying the Expedition to her mom. Asking for permission was the opposite of what she should be doing if her life was going to change. “I just wanted to let you know.”

The silence continued for a moment. “I see. I wish you had told me earlier.” Mrs. Quinn’s voice was now like ice. Melissa could envision what her mom looked like as she stood in the kitchen with a phone to her ear, chin sticking out in anger like it always did when she was upset.

“I should have said something before, but I wasn’t sure about it until just now.” Melissa flung a few pairs of socks into the suitcase on top of her t-shirts and panties and zipped it up. Pulling the big piece of luggage down onto the floor, she realized that she was acting like an idiot. They were going to be crammed together in a van for a few days, but Melissa was packing like she was going to take a commercial airline flight. Changing her mind, she grabbed a backpack, dumped out her books, and started stuffing her clothes inside.

“Can we talk about this? It sounds risky for you to go off with a bunch of strangers. New York City is dangerous. That’s where they have all the cyborgs, you know. Did you see that on the news?” Her mom was starting to panic.

Melissa nodded even though Mrs. Quinn couldn’t see her. “I know. But they have them all locked up, so it’s safer than it was just a week ago.” They would be free if the Liberators were lucky, but she wasn’t about to volunteer that information. It was shocking enough that Melissa wasn’t going to come home. She didn’t think her parents could handle it if they found out she was part of a cyborg rescue mission.

With a tightening of her chest, Melissa realized that her folks might find out about it anyway. A cyborg breakout was bound to be national news. Should she say something just in case a camera took her picture, or she got arrested?

No. She would deal with it later, and so would her parents.

“Give me the number of your hotel.” There was a scuffle on the other end of the line as Mrs. Quinn searched through the junk drawer for a piece of paper.

“I have my phone, Mom. I am always available.” When Melissa had lived at home, she was never allowed to do anything unless her parents knew every detail. She had to let them know where she was going, who she was going with, and if any parents would be there. Her Mom was notorious for calling to make sure Melissa was all right if she went to stay the night at a friend’s house. Her Dad tried to act like the cool parent, but he never stopped his wife from checking up on their daughter.

“What if it dies or you have no service?” her mom countered. “I need to know where you’re going to be. I deserve that much.”

“I don’t know yet. We’re winging it.” That was partially correct. Jake may have mentioned the sleeping arrangements during the meeting, but Melissa hadn’t been paying attention. She had been too busy admiring him and listen to his silky voice.

She could practically hear her mother shaking her head. “Oh, no. That’s no good at all. What if you can’t get a good room? You’re not going to be in the same room as a boy, are you? Let me get your father in here, and we’ll book a hotel for you. We can do it online.”

“No, Mom. Don’t do that. I’m not going to let you embarrass me from far away. There’s a whole group going. We’ll be fine. I’ll call you when I get there. Bye!” Melissa pressed her lips together as she hung up. Would her mom ever stop worrying about her? She was an adult, and she could do what she wanted, including staying in a hotel room with a guy.

“Be careful, okay?” JoAnna said as Melissa stuffed her phone into the back pocket of her jeans.

“Will do. You too.” Swinging the backpack up onto her shoulder, Melissa headed out the door and toward the Student Center.