Several minutes later, we stood in a line one step back from the edge of the roof.
"Putting a stone in the nose of your plane is cheating, Shorty," David said.
"Hey, what? Why, that would be dishonest, David. I give you my word there is no stone in my plane."
I leaned forward and clicked my tongue a couple of times. "Will you look at that, David, Shorty's telling the truth – he didn't put a stone in his plane."
"You see."
"He put in a piece of metal," I said.
Shorty looked up at me. "I don't like that clicking thing you do, Jones."
"We throw on the count of three!" David announced. "One. Two. Three. Throw!"
Five paper planes flew off the roof. Shorty's lead-nose plane flew straight and true, flying maybe twenty metres before it hit the road down below. Leigh's landscape-orientated plane was blown straight up by the slight updraft from the front of the building and disappeared behind us. Mine corkscrewed in a northerly direction, while Michal's long, narrow plane almost gave Shorty's a run for its money. However, the plane that got our attention was David's – tiny red and green lights at its wing tips blinked on and off as it sailed into the night.
"David, how did you...?" Michal stammered, voicing what we were all thinking.
"Trade secret."
"David, it's a piece of flat paper! How did you get lights in it?" Shorty demanded, upset his winning throw had been upstaged.
"Round two!" was David's come back.
We made paper planes of all shapes and sizes and tossed them off the roof for another fifteen minutes, littering the ground below with them, but then called it quits. If a Custodian night patrol was to spot us on the roof, we'd find ourselves in a spot of bother.
"There’s something I’ve been meaning to discuss with you, Ethan," Michal said after we’d plonked ourselves down beside the stairwell exit.
"Okay, shoot."
"If you’re ever gonna do what I think you’re planning to do, you gotta tell us before you do it," he said.
"Can I have that in English please?"
"What Michal’s trying to say, Jones," David explained, "is that if you’re planning on doing a runner one day, you gotta give us advance warning so we can come with you if we want to."
"We talking about going jogging or something?" Shorty whispered to Leigh.
"No, dufus, they’re asking Jones to let us know if he’s gonna make a run for it when we’re out foraging one day," Leigh explained.
"As much as I’d like to do a runner, it’s not on my current list of things to do," I replied.
"Why ever not? What’s here that makes you wanna stay?" David demanded.
"My kid sister."
"She still sick?" Michal asked.
"Yeah."
"What’s that got to do with you?" Leigh asked.
"He buys her food – good food – and other stuff she needs," Michal answered for me.
"Why can’t your mother do that?" Shorty asked.
"She can’t afford it."
"That sucks."
"I know."
"All the same, you gotta tell us if you’re gonna change your mind, okay?" David said. "You’ve got a knack for spotting Skel ambushes, so if we were to make a run for it together, I reckon we’d make it."
"What about the Custodians, you forgettin’ they’re with us every day now? Trying to make a run for it won’t be so easy now," Leigh reminded us.
"We could lose them with our eyes closed," David said.
“And with our hands tied behind our backs,” Shorty added, giving David a high-five.
I held up my hands. "I hear what you’re saying, so yeah, if I’m ever gonna do a runner, I’ll let you know first. Just don’t hold your breath, okay? It’s not gonna happen anytime soon."
“Aw man, that sucks. I was getting all excited for a moment there,” Shorty pouted.
We kept chatting for a while and then I bade the others good night and sent them back downstairs, mostly because I had to disassemble the binoculars and hide the pieces, but also because I wanted to check on the Japanese girl.
She was still there, sitting with her back against the stairwell exit. She had put on a
"Putting a stone in the nose of your plane is cheating, Shorty," David said.
"Hey, what? Why, that would be dishonest, David. I give you my word there is no stone in my plane."
I leaned forward and clicked my tongue a couple of times. "Will you look at that, David, Shorty's telling the truth – he didn't put a stone in his plane."
"You see."
"He put in a piece of metal," I said.
Shorty looked up at me. "I don't like that clicking thing you do, Jones."
"We throw on the count of three!" David announced. "One. Two. Three. Throw!"
Five paper planes flew off the roof. Shorty's lead-nose plane flew straight and true, flying maybe twenty metres before it hit the road down below. Leigh's landscape-orientated plane was blown straight up by the slight updraft from the front of the building and disappeared behind us. Mine corkscrewed in a northerly direction, while Michal's long, narrow plane almost gave Shorty's a run for its money. However, the plane that got our attention was David's – tiny red and green lights at its wing tips blinked on and off as it sailed into the night.
"David, how did you...?" Michal stammered, voicing what we were all thinking.
"Trade secret."
"David, it's a piece of flat paper! How did you get lights in it?" Shorty demanded, upset his winning throw had been upstaged.
"Round two!" was David's come back.
We made paper planes of all shapes and sizes and tossed them off the roof for another fifteen minutes, littering the ground below with them, but then called it quits. If a Custodian night patrol was to spot us on the roof, we'd find ourselves in a spot of bother.
"There’s something I’ve been meaning to discuss with you, Ethan," Michal said after we’d plonked ourselves down beside the stairwell exit.
"Okay, shoot."
"If you’re ever gonna do what I think you’re planning to do, you gotta tell us before you do it," he said.
"Can I have that in English please?"
"What Michal’s trying to say, Jones," David explained, "is that if you’re planning on doing a runner one day, you gotta give us advance warning so we can come with you if we want to."
"We talking about going jogging or something?" Shorty whispered to Leigh.
"No, dufus, they’re asking Jones to let us know if he’s gonna make a run for it when we’re out foraging one day," Leigh explained.
"As much as I’d like to do a runner, it’s not on my current list of things to do," I replied.
"Why ever not? What’s here that makes you wanna stay?" David demanded.
"My kid sister."
"She still sick?" Michal asked.
"Yeah."
"What’s that got to do with you?" Leigh asked.
"He buys her food – good food – and other stuff she needs," Michal answered for me.
"Why can’t your mother do that?" Shorty asked.
"She can’t afford it."
"That sucks."
"I know."
"All the same, you gotta tell us if you’re gonna change your mind, okay?" David said. "You’ve got a knack for spotting Skel ambushes, so if we were to make a run for it together, I reckon we’d make it."
"What about the Custodians, you forgettin’ they’re with us every day now? Trying to make a run for it won’t be so easy now," Leigh reminded us.
"We could lose them with our eyes closed," David said.
“And with our hands tied behind our backs,” Shorty added, giving David a high-five.
I held up my hands. "I hear what you’re saying, so yeah, if I’m ever gonna do a runner, I’ll let you know first. Just don’t hold your breath, okay? It’s not gonna happen anytime soon."
“Aw man, that sucks. I was getting all excited for a moment there,” Shorty pouted.
We kept chatting for a while and then I bade the others good night and sent them back downstairs, mostly because I had to disassemble the binoculars and hide the pieces, but also because I wanted to check on the Japanese girl.
She was still there, sitting with her back against the stairwell exit. She had put on a
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