Two weeks later, Old Orion, middle class sector, Blue Avenue.
Jamie hummed to himself as he opened a cabinet, pulling out a plastic bag with bread inside and a jar of peanut butter. He laid the ingredients down on a counter before making himself a sandwich.
He bit off a quarter, savoring the taste as he listened to the noise that came from the garage, being composed of the whirrs and screeches of power tools and machinery.
He picked up his plate and walked over to the wall, leaning on it. He chose this particular wall as it was under an air conditioner, a long rectangular device that spewed out cold air. It was Amanda who had gone and installed it the week before, to everyone's agreement. Since then, relaxing in the mechanic shop was much more pleasant.
"Air conditioners and peanut butter sandwiches." Jamie swallowed the portion in his mouth. "We really aren't in the slums anymore."
Suddenly, the noise from the garage stopped, with a female voice calling out.
"Hey, Jamie?"
"Yeah?" He scarfed down the rest of his sandwich before placing the empty plate on the counter, wiping his mouth as he entered the garage. "What's up?"
"I need you to pick Aiden up from school."
Amanda said as he emerged from the underside of a car that was hoisted by hooks and an object with a crank stuck in between it and the floor. She was laying on a board with wheels, and had a pair of goggles on. Her orange hair and her face was caked with dust and dirt, and her nose had a streak of grease across it.
She put down the tool she was using, raising her goggles to look directly at him, seeing a bit of peanut butter on the edge of his lips that he missed. She wiped the edge of her lip while nodding at him, making him notice.
"What happened this time? Disrespecting another teacher? Did he get into a fight?"
Jamie asked, coughing as he subtly wiped the peanut butter off his mouth before dusting off his hands on his trousers.
Just like Amanda had said, Aiden was now going to school. Jamie had managed to get Amy and Aiden enrolled in a nearby school called the Dynamos Public School a few days after they settled in the mechanic shop, much to Amy's excitement and Aiden's displeasure.
There didn't seem to be a specific school year or time period for enrollment like how it was on Old Earth, meaning it was easy to get them in. The problem was, Aiden found it very hard to adjust.
Jamie and Amanda had been called to the principal's office 3 times in over one week over issues with Aiden, such as teachers finding his attitude and stubbornness disrespectful, or one time where he threatened a classmate who tried to eat some of his lunch as a joke.
"Thankfully, it's nothing bad this time." Amanda wiped some sweat from her brow. "He's just been loitering around and coming home late these days, so you should pick him up and come straight home in time for dinner."
"Sure. I can do that." Jamie nodded. "What time does he get dismissed?"
"4pm."
Jamie glanced at the nearby clock. It was only 1:30, so he had time to relax and do other things first.
"What about Amy?"
"She likes to stay out for a bit after school. Don't worry about her, she's old enough to come home on time."
"Alright then. Do you need anything else?"
"Nah, I need to finish up on this car. Customer's coming to pick it up tomorrow."
She flashed him a thumbs up before sliding back under the car, the sounds of tools and machinery clashing against each other resuming.
Jamie left the garage, deciding to go relax in his room while waiting for Aiden to get dismissed, maybe he would even take a nap. On the way, he passed by Armin's room.
"Argh! Stop it! Gr-"
Jamie flinched at a loud bang coming from inside the room followed by Armin's yell, seeing the door shake from whatever was behind it.
"Armin, are you okay!?" Jamie knocked on his door.
"Uh, yeah, I'm fine!" Armin hastily shouted from behind the door. "Yeti just messed with my closet, but it's all good now!"
"If you say so."
Giving the door a weird look, Jamie continued onwards to his room, pushing open the door, ready to jump on his bed, only to be stopped in his tracks by what was sitting on it.
"Yeti?"
He saw the small, snow-white puppy dog-beast thing laying on his bed, tongue out and tail wagging.
"I thought you were in Armin's room?" Jamie raised an eyebrow as he pet Yeti's head, though he ultimately shrugged it off. "Eh."
He made Yeti move to the side so he could lay down, ignoring the sudden knocking he heard at the front door, knowing Amanda would check it out. But right as he closed his eyes…
"Jamie!"
…they were immediately opened again.
"Jamie, there's two guys here to see you!"
"Coming!"
Letting out a small groan, Jamie got up and went back into the garage, seeing Amanda point at the front door before going back to work.
He opened the door, freezing upon seeing who his visitors were.
'All white coats. Dynamos Agents.'
Fixing his expression, Jamie quickly stepped out of the shop, closing the door behind him to make sure Amanda wouldn't see or hear them. After that, he cleared his throat and faced the two men in front of him wearing all white long coats.
"Hello…"
"Hello, Jamie." The man on the right side said, making Jamie frown.
"How do you know my name?"
The man put his arm up to calm Jamie.
"We know all about you, Jamie. We mean no harm, we're simply interested in you after hearing about your… ability from Mr. Beck."
'Beck?' Jamie's frown deepened. Did the old mafia boss sell him out to Dynamos, and these Agents were now here to arrest him!?
"You're not in any trouble. Like I said, we mean no harm. We just wish to have a chat. A peaceful one." As if sensing his thoughts, the man immediately explained.
"Okay then." Jamie breathed out. "So, what do two Dynamos Agents want with me?"
"Well first, allow us to introduce ourselves." The man placed a hand on his chest. "My name is Terry Lewis."
Terry then gestured to the man next to him. "And this is-"
"Agent Matthews." The other man interrupted, glancing at Jamie only to look away after catching his gaze.
"Or you could just call him that." Terry nodded and turned back to Jamie.
"Now that we're introduced, we'd just like to have a discussion with you, and ask you some questions.
Of course, it is completely fine if you do not wish to do so, though we're sure you have some questions of your own that we can provide better answers to than the average citizen."
Terry stepped back, letting Jamie think about it. The offer didn't seem to have anything wrong with it, but Jamie was worried about some things.
"One condition." He looked at Terry, who looked interested in hearing it.
"What is it?"
"We meet in a public place. Plenty of passerby, and easily accessible."
Hearing his demand, Terry laughed inwardly. Clearly Jamie thought it might be an attempt on his life or something.
"Sure, Jamie. Do you like coffee, perchance?"