[Closed]

[evowhisperer]

Who: Cesar Sanchez-Ortiz and Chuck Reyes
Where: Outside a cafe close to TC.
When: 4/10
What: Angry toothpicks and brothers meeting.
Warnings: Nothing yet.

"What on earth..."

When he first saw it, he stopped checking his phone and stared. It wasn't the sort of thing anyone expects: Cesar, on the sidewalk by a favorite diner near work. The giant toothpick, almost as tall as him, some dozen feet away. It was armed with another toothpick.

Cesar's cellphone had already been in his hand. Now he lifted it, calling up the camera function.

The toothpick warrior started forward as soon as he moved, and okay, maybe this wasn't the time. Cesar stumbled backwards and to the side, trying to get out of its way. No, the creature was intent on him--it followed.

Click! His phone-camera screen froze. The creature paused at the sound. Then the warrior rushed forward in a silent charge, and Cesar made a noise of alarm, jammed the phone into his pocket, and darted between a mailbox and a parked car. Sharpened wood battered into the mailbox, and the toothpick creature took off in close pursuit.

"Help. Help! Oye--I think it's attacking me!"

Comments

[evowhisperer]

"De veras? Y cuando mudaste a Locke?"

They've arrived. Cesar's grin turns appreciative at the gesture, and he walks on through. There's a decent line, and a menu proudly displayed over the counter.

"What looks good to you? It's my treat, so get anything you want."

[swissarmyjesus]

Just before they reach the menu and the counter, Chuck manages another response. "Sólo en septiembre."

He turns back to take a look at the menu, running through the options in his head. "Are you sure? I can pay for myself, you know."

[evowhisperer]

"Of course I'm sure. You kept me from being a shiskabob by pummeling that toothpick entity with your giant mechanical fists. How else am I supposed to repay you?"

He says this all at normal tone, with apparently no regard for how sensitive the subject might be to prying ears. To be fair, there are no prying ears, but if there had been, they'd have heard.

[swissarmyjesus]

Surely he wouldn't just say it out loud to everyone without even trying to use a code phrase, right? Surely not. Chuck is so confident in this that when he actually says the full-on freaky truth, at perfectly normal speaking volume, he doesn't react for several seconds, only managing to loudly shush over the last few words.

"What do you think you're doing?! No sabemos si hay people who are listening!" He pointedly keeps his voice no louder than a loud whisper, casually switching between Spanish and English in the company of someone he knows will understand the same strange mix that he speaks at home.

[evowhisperer]

He winces, and lowers his tone accordingly. "Lo siento--I thought being casual would draw less attention than speaking obviously quietly." Part of him wants to point out that the kid hadn't had any problem drawing the arms out in public minutes earlier, but that wouldn't be fair, smart, or grateful of him. Chuck had drawn them in an emergency. This wasn't one.

The restaurant is loud around them. They're at the counter, and the last couple ahead of thing moves aside to wait for their order. Cesar steps forward.

"Yes, may I have the..." He gives them his usual order. When he's done he turns and indicates for Chuck to give his, and his expression still has a hint of apology to it.

[swissarmyjesus]

He sighs, but another glance around shows nobody was really paying attention. Everyone is still talking away or checking their phones or listening to music. Thank god--that could've gone a lot worse than it actually did.

When it's his turn to order he looks at the cashier. "Cheeseburger and fries for me."

[evowhisperer]

The cashier rings the order up and asks for extra details. Did he want mayonnaise or mustard? What kind of drink?

When they were done they took a little sign with a number on it, and walked to the larger part of the restaurant. Cesar led them towards a table near a corner, where the table behind it was empty and the table ahead had a distracted couple that was getting ready to leave. Cesar slid into one chair.

"Sorry again for earlier. It would have been poor thanks to bring you all this way, only to make life difficult for you once you got here. It brings me to another question I did have, though, if it would be alright for me to ask."

[swissarmyjesus]

Once the order's processed and all, Chuck follows behind and takes a seat opposite Cesar. Once the man poses a question, though, one of his eyebrows arches higly, unsure of what's to follow now.

"Sure. What's the question?"

[evowhisperer]

"Have you ever heard of something called 'The Network', or the 'numbered', by any chance?"

Once again, he's diving for the throat of the subject instead of beating around it. His expression is smooth, and his hands deliberately do not fidget with his straw, but he's moving stiffly: He's fighting to not be tense.

[swissarmyjesus]

He tenses, but doesn't panic. If anything, this was good--it meant Cesar was all the more likely to keep his little fistfight a secret. Still, it doesn't keep a quiet look of shock from crossing his face.

"Are...are you, too?"

[evowhisperer]

"Yes. Since last month." Then the corners of his mouth twitch, and he grins. It's a lot of smiles wrapped into one expression: He's relieved that he won't have to lie or backtrack. He's triumphant that he guessed correctly, even if he had plenty of reason to be sure. He's glad that he might have reason to see this kid with his new (old?) brother's face again.

"This makes everything much more simple. Do you remember much from before?"

[swissarmyjesus]

He doesn't realize it, but he starts grinning too--Cesar's expression is disarming and makes him feel a lot more at ease. He doesn't think very highly of the network, still, but at least Cesar seems genuine and nice (although a little strange, maybe).

He shakes his head. "Not much. I know bits and pieces, but I don't have anything connecting them together."

[evowhisperer]

"Me neither. Or perhaps better put, I have very little in the way of memories so far, and what I do have is unclear. However, I do know that--"

"Cheeseburger and the Build-it-yourself Avocado-mayonnaise-tuna?" A cheeseburger is put down in front of Chuck. Cesar falls silent as his own is put in front of him, giving a slightly jerky nod. ('Can I getcha both anything else?' 'No, we're fine.' Then she's gone.)

His momentum is still there, but it's shambling. "Try the french fries," he says, regrouping inwardly. "They sprinkle cheese in them."

[swissarmyjesus]

Chuck gives Cesar an extremely judgmental glare over the burger, but doesn't say anything. He just takes some of the french fries and eats a couple at his suggestion. Admittedly, they are pretty good. (That burger can't possibly taste decent, though. How does this place even allow that sort of combination.)

It's after he takes a good, long sip of his drink that he stops eating for a moment and stares at Cesar. "...what were you saying? You know what?"

[evowhisperer]

Cesar seems to like it. He takes a small bite, chews, and swallows.

He talks instead of taking another bite. "Ah, yes. It's why I invited you here: the only clear memories that I've echoed so far are of a brother I apparently had in my past life. I remember his face, and his name. Rex Salazar." Cesar looks at him for any signs of recognition.

[swissarmyjesus]

He tenses up for a moment, burger in hands and all, as he feels an echo come on. He's almost never gotten an echo because of something someone else has said before--and never anything this direct.

"I...I remember that name--Rex." He lowers his hands and sets the burger down.

[evowhisperer]

"You do?" Cesar sits up and leans forward with naked interest. "What do you remember?"

He was right. Sure, there hadn't been much doubt in that before, but now it's confirmed as much as it can be: Cesar and this kid are connected.

Even without his surrounding circumstances, this is something Cesar would grab onto with fascination and not let go.

[swissarmyjesus]

Chuck leans back a bit--Cesar's enthusiasm was a little more than he expected.

"I...I remember it being my name. It was Rex." Cesar mentioned a last name too, though, right? 'Salazar'? "I don't remember my last name, though."

[evowhisperer]

"I see. Then might I suggest it was Salazar?"

"I remember my brother's face, and it looked nearly identical to yours." He points with a french fry, before lowering it, as though it were some pointing instrument and not a digestible food product.

[swissarmyjesus]

Chuck leans back in his seat, as if he'd just personally been shoved back by the french fry.

"So, what, you're--are you trying to say I'm your brother?" He'd been an only child for his entire life, his only family being his parents and, maybe, his Tía Bianca's family. To try shoehorning a sibling into such a small family suddenly is something he isn't sure he's comfortable with or ready for.

[evowhisperer]

Chuck leans back, and Cesar knows he's pushed too hard.

"I'm trying to say that your past self may have been my past self's younger sibling. That doesn't mean anything about us now automatically, but I did want to know if you knew anything about our past lives that I didn't."

That's not all of it, but it's truth enough for now.

[swissarmyjesus]

Chuck shakes his head. "No. I remember some things, but nothing about any family." Which seems a little strange, now that he thinks about it, but maybe not, given how little he remembers so far in general.

[evowhisperer]

"I see."

It's disappointing. The little bean-shoots of hope that had sprouted in him start to wilt.

"Do you remember anything else about the day and surroundings that we may have lived in?"

"let's wrap this log up!" we said, while introducing whole new topics to it

[swissarmyjesus]

He nods. "Yeah--not much, though. I just remember these giant monster-things rampaging around a city. They were called 'EVOs'."

He looks to Cesar to see if there's any recognition there in what he just said. Part of him wants to share the memories with someone, but another part doesn't want something else bringing the two of them closer together, not when this kook seems convinced they're brothers.