Up and down

“I want the three of you to have a good amount of rest. Okay?” Mr. Zhou said as Oliver, Nina, and Mike slowly walked away from the laboratory doors.

“Count on it!” Mike vociferated from the other side of the hallway before they disappeared from their teacher’s sight.

Oliver opened his GoMindfull’s inbox and wrote “Hey sis! Very successful day. To celebrate we’re getting dinner at Nina’s to celebrate. You’re invited as well. Don’t be late.”

As they walked up the passageways became wider and less crowded, and the air felt fresher. Nina opened an elegant brass door and they entered a spacious cabin. Every time Oliver visited Hsu’s, he couldn´t stop looking at the elegant furniture, the paintings of people and places he would never know, the detailed carpets. All this immersed in a delicate scent of flowers, though there wasn’t a single flower in the room.

In the living room, Oliver was surprised to see Alin chatting with Mrs. Hsu. How had she gotten there before them? But on second thought he wasn't all that surprised. Oliver knew how much Alin liked the Hsu's. Whenever she could she would sneak out to chat a little with Mrs. Hsu as they with the tea set that was always empty.

"Good afternoon Mrs. Hsu," Oliver said, as Alin ran to hug him.

"Oh!" Mrs. Hsu rejoiced. "Good thing you guys are here! Dinner's almost ready."

Oliver's mouth watered as he smelled a delicious toasty aroma coming from the kitchen. The hungry boys avoided the urge to rush to the table, knowing they had to wait.

A serving robot carried one by one, metal trays covered by a metal lid.

"Now it's just a matter of waiting for your father," said Mrs. Hsu.

Oliver just wanted to take the lid off the plate and start eating. The anticipation of eating Hsu's specialty was killing him since there was nothing better to eat on the entire ship, a real treat to the palate of anyone in the Amelia. He never missed a dinner invitation to that table.

"Good afternoon kids," said Mr. Hsu as he entered the room.

"Good afternoon Mr Hsu!" Said Mike, Oliver, and Alin as they stood to address the chief officer of the Amelia.

“Oh! Come on. How many times do i have to tell you this? You’re at my house right now, you don’t have to be formal.” said the officer as he greeted his wife and daughter respectively before sitting at the head of the table. “Well, kids. I have nothing else to say that I wish you the best of luck at the Annual Grid Robotics Contest. Nina has been talking to me about it and I’m sure that the three of you will make the Amelia very proud.”

“Thank you, Sir,” They responded, honored by the officer’s words.

Mrs. Hsu clapped her hands, ordering the robot to retire the lids from the plates. Oliver was last. Before him unveiled a ceramic plate with intricate golden patterns on its edge but that didn’t matter, what mattered was the plate’s content. Over a shiny portion of Hsu’s signature porridge, lay a pile of toasted crickets.

“Well, let’s eat!” Mrs. Hsu said.

Oliver tried to eat as slowly as he could to not appear like a hungry savage in front of the Hsus but the smoked flavor of the crickets of the crunchy crickets accompanied by subtle notes of spice and tanginess blended perfectly with the silky rich porridge. Oliver’d had Alberto’s famous roasted worms and Shervakova’s bittersweet beetles but there was absolutely no doubt, this was the best thing to eat in the entire Amelia.

When Oliver’s plate appeared empty, he looked around to make sure he didn’t eat too fast. To his surprise, everyone else was finishing their portion as well. He felt relieved and with a satisfied stomach.

They remained talking for about half an hour before Mike, Oliver, and Alin excused themselves from the table.

“Thank you for the meal, Mrs. Hsu. It was a real treat,” Oliver said as Alin and Mike followed.

Nina led them to the door and before leaving, she told them. “See you Sunday night.”

“See ya!” They responded.

They started to go down the tubes and four flours later, they separated from Mike.

Oliver and Alin kept going down, watching hundreds of ads as they descended the tubes.

They encountered a crowd packed in front of Mister D’s statue, where a temporary stage was set up.

“They’re announcing who was handling Ajax the other day!” Alin exclaimed, looking awaiting at Oliver, who she knew was even more excited by this.

“lets go lets go” Oliver said and they ran to the stage.

Fog started coming from under the stage, lights and holograms started dancing around it.

“Who's ready to give this Thursday’s handler a big ovation?” The Host exclaimed and the public roared. “Oh. I see you're all anxious to know who they might be. Hahaha… Give a big welcome to number one handler Lynx Cook!”

“I knew it!” Oliver congratulated himself.

The crowd went crazy when a tall athletic man entered the stage. His flawless haircut made his glistening dark hair look like the men Oliver used to see when he was a kid on those enormous posters of the city.

“You're the GOAT!” A man screamed next to Oliver.

Lynx received the ovation with open arms and a flawless eye-to-eye smile, saluting one or two attendees every now and then. He was wearing his superb handler suit, which hyped Oliver even more. He couldn't stop thinking about all the special features that the suit might have.

“Thank you! Thank you!” Lynx said as he sat next to the host.

“Well, I have to say it Lynx. But you almost made me think you were going to stain your perfect record the other day,” the host said.

“So do I Peter,” Lynx said, laughing. “That zkwich proved to be tougher than any I've faced.”

“But it turned out to be the greatest recollection of Picorium for the Athena, wasn't it?” The host grinned.

“Well, what can I say?” Said Lynx while shrugging. “No pain no gain.”

The crowd roared in approval.

The questions followed until the host stopped to say. “Tonight, you're lucky, fellow attendees. Right now you'll receive a notification on you're GoMindfull and one of you will get the opportunity to ask Lynx a question.”

A notification appeared on Oliver's GoMindfull display. “Thank you for participating.” Oliver wasn't expecting to win so he quickly shoved off the disappointment until another notification popped up. “Alin has transferred a prize.”

Oliver looked back at Alin in utter disbelief. He shaked his head to which Alin responded nodding enthusiastically.

“Congratulations to Oliver Greenwood!” The host said as a spotlight set on Oliver. “What's your question kid? We don't have much time! Lynx needs to go take his beauty sleep!”

Everyone laughed at the joke.

Oliver panicked, he could’ve asked so many questions but in that moment of hesitation, he said the first thing that came into his mind.

“Dang! How can he be so humble after what he did!?” Oliver asked.

The question amused Lynx, he laughed and stayed thinking for a few seconds.

“Listen to me very closely Oliver. When we face a challenge, despite our profession, staying humble is key for a good result,” Lynx said as he stood up and started walking along the stage. “Just remember me the other day! I overestimated that zkwich at that almost caused serious damage to the Amelia. That’s why when I’m handling I always tell myself: Stay humble and keep fighting! And that’s how I was able to overpower the zkwich. Good luck in Columbus, Oliver!”

The public started applauding before Lynx finished but Oliver had understood that last phrase in the middle of the hustle.

“Ladies and gentlemen, Lynx Cook!” The host said as Lynx quickly waved his hand and disappeared behind the stage.

The crowd began to disperse and Alin had to guide a still-stupefied Oliver to their cabin.

“Wow!” Oliver finally uttered after the cleaning robot had finished its work. “How will I ever be able to pay you back sis?”

“Oh! Come on Oliver! You’re his number one fan!” Alin said giggling. “And consider it paid since you invited me to dinner with the Hsus. Now! Let's watch a movie! There’s no school tomorrow!”

It surprised Oliver how mature Alin could be sometimes and a minute later she called him Oli.

The brothers lay on the bottom bunk bed and watched a Wild West movie.

…

When Alin fell asleep, Oliver delicately stood from the bed and went to the toilet room. He couldn’t stop thinking that Lynx Cook knew his name. Cook was such a cool guy. Oliver couldn´t stop thinking if he would ever be like Cook when he grew up as he kept looking in the mirror. Analyzing his nibbled haircut, his irregular teeth, and his problematic nose.

Oliver stood there a little longer, sighed, and went back to bed.