2.10 I Knew You Were Trouble

"Wake up sleepy head!" Lorie sang.

"Ten more minutes Farina...please," Noah mumbled.

"Who's Farina? Come to the real world Noah. It's Lorie."

"Lorie? Oh crap...did I just call you Farina?" Noah rubbed his eyes.

"Yes you did, but it's alright. Is she the girl you told me about yesterday?"

"Yeah..it's a long story. Don't you have to go to work?" Noah quickly changed the subject. It was too early to be bringing up the past. Well, the future.

"Thats why I'm here. Be ready by five, I'll be home by six. Then we'll leave straight to the party. Dress nice ok? I'll see you later!"

"Great..." Noah mumbled and turned back over.

Noah brushed his teeth and made his way back to Lorie's "room". Apparently, Leia spent most of her time in the living room playing games. Lorie had decided to make the spare room a hang out where she could spend her time. It was just Leia and Noah in the house and Leia was still sleeping, so Noah decided to just check out what was in Lorie's room. He was too tired to do it the night before. He didn't consider it snooping, he was just interested in getting to know the girls better. He made his way over to the drafting table she had. There was a painting, it wasn't the best but it was obviously a dress. Did Lorie want to be a stylist?

Noah was broken from his thoughts by a loud scream. "Boooo!"

"Holy--!" Noah gasped.

"Hahaha! You should have seen your face! It was priceless!" Leia laughed.

"That was so not cool."

"It was hilarious actually. What are you doing anyway?"

"I'm just looking at this thing Lorie drew. Does she want to be a fashion designer?"

Leia frowned. "Yeah, but don't mention it to her."

"Why not?" Noah asked.

"Just don't. Anyway, why are you wearing that? You have to blend in remember?" Leia had her hands on her hips.

"I fell asleep in my clothes yesterday. I didn't bring any pajamas."

"I'll wash them, just go make yourself some breakfast. Boys," Leia said shaking her head.

The two found themselves bored out of their minds. Leia was typing furiously away on her smartphone. She had a blog she was working on. She refused to tell Noah what it was about though. Noah was watching TV. The programs of the future were more intense and these bored him. 

"Hey, do you want to play that Alien Invasion game?" Noah asked the blue haired girl. 

She looked up from her phone. "What timing. I just finished todays post. Alien Invasion is too hard for you. Why don't we play this simulation game instead? You create a family and control their everyday lives. It's pretty fun."

"Alright, I'll try it."

"Here, lets make ourselves. You have to have pink hair of course. And don't forget the blue highlights!"

The two spent much longer on their virtual appearances than they should have. Then it was time to build their house, which Noah was terrible at. Once settled in the house, they let their virtual characters run wild. 

"What the heck is he doing?" Noah asked, flustered. His character had begun to flirt with Leia's, who seemed to reciprocate the affection.

"Heheh...well this is awkward. Let's play Alien Invasion now..." Leia blushed furiously.

"I have to go get dressed now. Lorie should be home soon. This was fun though."

"Yeah."

"How do I look?" Noah asked, coming out of the bathroom. "I tried to be as formal as I could with the clothes Lorie gave me..."

"You look good. Don't worry about it."

"Thanks." He let out a sigh of relief. "I can't remember the last party I went to...."

"That was so corny..."

"I couldn't resist. Has Lorie called yet?"

"Nope. Her phone probably died. She'll be home soon though."

The two hung out and talked some more. Hours had passed and Lorie still wasn't around. Noah decided to stay up and wait for her. He knew at this point, they weren't going to the party, but he still felt like he should wait up for her. Leia felt bad leaving him by himself. She didn't want to get attached, but she also couldn't be rude to their guest. After about the fifth yawn, he insisted that she head to bed. Noah decided to take a nap himself.

It was around midnight when Noah heard someone fumbling with the lock. He heard shuffling and a few choice curse words. Lorie was home. "You're late."

"Oh!" She held her heart. "Don't do that. I didn't know you were there. Something came up that I had to deal with. I wasn't able to call."

"Like what? I mean, I honestly don't care about missing the party all that much and you're entitled to do whatever you want, but your sister was worried. It's none of my business, but you should let your sister know that you're alright. I'm going to change, goodnight Lorie."

"Wait! Did she say anything to you about me?"

"Only that she hates when you're out that late. I'm not here to make friends Lorie. I need to find out my past. Do you understand that my life depends on you and Leia? By tomorrow I need some answers." Noah's feelings surprised him. He was getting angry at Lorie for standing him up for a party he didn't care about attending in the first place. He didn't want her to become comfortable with him living on their couch. He had to find out his answers as quickly as possible. Now, it felt like she was just playing games.

"I do understand that....it was wrong of me to ask you to come to the party in the first place." She came and sat next to him on the couch. "You probably guessed that it was for my own selfish reasons."

"Yeah, you should have came up with a better reason. I was fine just going with you. What was this party all about?"

"Its a group of the elitist artists in town. They don't respect me or my artwork. My style isn't up to their standards. I was sure that they'd cringe at your pink hair but you seemed nice enough to prove them wrong, and then I thought that they'd rethink their ideals. I showed up early to the venue, but everything didn't go as planned."

"What do you mean?" Noah asked.

"Well, I showed up a few hours early. Everyone was busy inside setting up. They were going to be bringing in artwork from all over the town. I figured no one would notice if I snuck in the back and tagged the place."

"You don't mean..."

"Yes, graffiti."

"Why would you do that!?"

"To show them that graffiti is art too! They can't define what is art and what isn't. Any act that expresses your creativity is art."

"That wasn't the way to go about it."

"I know that now...I mean, thats what the officer told me too."

"Officer!?"

"Shhh! I don't want Leia to know.I couldn't call you guys to come and bail me out. I didn't know if you would tell Leia or not. I had to convince the officer to let me go. I couldn't have another arrest on my record."

She began to sob. "I'm so stupid. I keep getting myself into these situations and having to do stupid stuff to get me out!"

"Don't cry...the police officer let you go, right? Everything will be fine."

"No! You don't get it! Why do you think I was out all night? I was with him. That stupid officer. He told me that the only way to get my name off of the record was if I slept with him...and I just feel so naive and stupid. I know it was wrong but....I had no other choice to protect my sister. If I went to jail, she'd be here all by herself...." She began to cry harder.

Noah was shocked. Had he really heard that? He began in a soft whisper, "I won't tell Leia. But...you should never have to shoulder that kind of a burden by yourself. That officer, he's going to pay for doing that to a beautiful young girl. I'll make sure of it. What's his name?"

"Noah...don't. You'll get yourself into trouble."

"I don't care. Tell me his name."

"I don't know his first name, but his badge said Officer Lutz..." 

"Don't worry anymore about this Lorie. Go and get some rest. I promise everything is going to be alright."

She sniffled. "Thank you, Noah." She couldn't believe they had only known each other for two days. She already felt like they were lifelong friends. She bit her lip and headed upstairs. 

"You're home late," Leia snarled. She meant no malice, she only wanted to guilt Lorie into never doing it again.

"I know. I'm sorry, I was held up at work." Lorie answered calmly.

"You could have called."

"I know, my phone died."

"Why didn't you use the office phone?"

"I was so enraptured with my work that I lost track of time ok?" 

"You can't be irresponsible like that. Noah was waiting for you. He got dressed up and everything."

"I just talked to him. He was fine with it!" Lorie yelled.

"He's too nice to tell you otherwise!" Leia yelled back.

"Who cares? You said not to get attached right? So, let him be upset at me." 

"It isn't nice."

"You like him."

"He's a good person," Leia defended.

"You're right. I'm not going to disappoint either of you again, ok? Go to bed, you're helping him find out some information tomorrow. I've got to go to work."

"I have work too!" 

"Not until later on. You're taking him and that's final."

"Who died and put you in charge?" Leia mumbled.

"Mom did."

"That was cold."

"I know, I had a rough night. I'm sorry. Just go to bed ok? I'll see you in the morning."

"Night."

"Goodnight."

2.9 The Twins

My story has over 2,000 views! I'm ecstatic! Thank you all for reading and commenting, it means a lot to me! In this chapter, we meet Emit's daughters. Lets begin! :)

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Inspired, Noah took to his room to pack the little things he had in the base camp. He looked out the window, it was getting late and he had no idea how to get to Lucky Palms. Emit had not given him that information. He thought back to their original conversation, remembering nothing but the names of Emit's daughters. He checked the clock. It was nearly midnight, and he had no leads. Maybe if he took a nap, Emit would visit him with more information. He awoke three hours later. He hadn't even dreamed at all.

Frustrated, Noah got dressed and made his way downstairs. With so much on his mind, he couldn't go back to sleep. He rummaged through the many bookshelves in the building, asked the serving plumbots and even searched the internet, but nothing came up. How was he supposed to get to Lucky Palms??

"Noah...what are you doing? I'm trying so hard to ignore you, but you're making a lot of noise," Farina complained. She was seated on the couch behind him.

"Oh...um, sorry," Noah mumbled. The wound was still very much open and both of the former lovers couldn't look each other in the eyes. "I um...you know what, nevermind."

"You want to go to Lucky Palms, right?" She sighed.

"How did you know?" Noah asked, shocked.

"Isn't it obvious? You know the truth now, why wouldn't you go and chase your past?"

"Right...I need to find out for sure if what you, and everyone else is telling is true. I need to find myself."

"I understand completely, thats why I'm going to tell you where the time portal is and what you have to do to get to Lucky Palms. I've written it all down here for you. It was nice getting to spend time with you. I wish you the best of luck in your pursuit." With that she got up.

"Wait...you're not going to show me the way?" Though he planned on leaving without saying goodbye, the whole confrontation turned his world upside down. He couldn't stop thinking about her. How would he leave?

"You don't need me to. You know exactly what you have to do, and I'm not part of it. Finding yourself...I can't help with that. I've only made it worse for you." She left, with an emotionless look on her face. What was she going to do? She needed to give him his space, as much as she was told she needed her own.

He followed her instructions. Up to the top of the building. He was only there for a few days, but he had never noticed the large time portal that was pretty much out in the open. Either it had just been put there, or Noah was oblivious to his surroundings. Noah wouldn't doubt either option. He had been in his own little bubble the entire time he was in the future. He was stuck in the world that others put him in. Now, he was finally going to pop that bubble.

 Conveniently, the time portal had left him in front of what he assumed was Emit's daughter's house. The house was located on a port. It was surrounded by water, with a huge boardwalk holding it up. The view was amazing. It must have been great living in such a serene area. It was still dark out, and Noah decided to wait a few hours before he woke up the girls. He decided to sit by the lake until 8:00 am when he finally gathered up the courage to knock on the door. His heart was beating in anticipation.

"Hey, I'm Noah..." He started.

"Gray. Right. My dad told us about you. I'm Lorie Relevart. It's nice to meet you." She extended her hand.

"Is your dad here? I have so many questions..."

"Nope. It's just me and my twin sister. I haven't actually met my dad before, but I have all your answers."

"How is that even possible??" Noah asked, bewildered.

"He visits us the same way he visited you. Through our dreams. We thought nothing of it, until both Leia and I were having the same dreams. I know we're twins but thats not possible. Do you want to come inside?"

"Uhmm yeah. Thanks." Noah nodded.

"Leia...he's finally here. This is Noah Gray. Just take a seat over there, I'll make us some food. I heard time travel makes you hungry." Noah looked down at his stomach. He was kind of hungry...

"Fifteen more points, and I'll make it on the leaderboard! Take that you alien scum!" The girl on the couch, Leia, yelled at the screen. Noah looked around him. The girl was playing video games on what looked like a pretty new system. The television was a flat screen, no holo TV, but still impressive. Everything else though seemed to be...ordinary. Leia had been sitting on a makeshift couch, a cushion she had placed on top of some stacked crates.

She began pounding a button on the controller. "Missiles launched. NO NO NO. Damn it! I was so close!"

"What game are you playing?" He asked. Video games were readily available in the future, but Noah never had the chance to sit down and actually try them. He was constantly working and hanging out with Farina...Puzzle, hanging out with Puzzle. He shook his head. That wasn't his life anymore, or it never was to begin with. He didn't know.

"Alien Invasion 5. It's the newest installment. They come out with a new one every year." Leia smiled. "Do you want to play?"

"Me? I've never played a game in my life...I don't even know how."

"Excuses, excuses. Lorie is going to be a while anyway. She's not the best cook, and there's only so much you can do with a microwave. It's probably better if we let her get it out of her system and just go out to eat."

"Hey! I've already put it in the microwave! You guys are eating this hot oatmeal whether you like it or not!"

"You can't force our guest to undergo that kind of torture!" Leia called back.

"Ungrateful little..." Lorie mumbled.

In the other room, Leia had convinced Noah to play Alien Invasion 5.

"I don't get it...I have to shoot the aliens?" Noah frowned.

"Yes! They're trying to take over our world, so we have to kill them. The more you kill, the higher power your weapon gets. If you kill a bunch in a row, you get extra points."

Noah stared at the girl. She was peculiar. She was so different from the other girls he had encountered just a few days ago. Daisy, his "sister" was girly. She wore pink and loved to cook. He noticed that she was always careful with her appearance. Farina was dainty, almost like a doll. She loved the color purple and cared so much about her look, no matter how out there it looked to others. His "mother" Athena had perfectly styled hair. The Corrine girl he had seen in his dream wore a small dress and conducted herself in a refined way. Even Lorie also was very girly upon first impression. But Leia, she wore a Tshirt and jeans. Her shoes were sneakers, not heels. She wore only light makeup around her eyes and her hair was pulled up into a messy ponytail. She seemed comfortable and laidback. Noah was intrigued by how different she was from the other girls he had met. She was confident in her casual attire and love of video games, which made her radiate.

"Keep your eyes on the game Noah! Theres an alien coming from the left, shoot it!" 

"I'm trying, what button is shoot again?" Noah asked.

"Come in here and eat, food is ready!" Lorie called. Noah was relieved. Leia's love for video games was intense, and he didn't think he'd be able to keep up.

"How was the meal?" Lorie asked.

"It was...uhm....kind of....different," Noah answered.

"You don't have to lie to spare her feelings." Leia teased.

"I wasn't lying, I've honestly never tasted anything like that before..." Noah wrinkled his nose.

"Ok...so I'm not the best cook. Sue me. At least I tried!" Lorie defended.

"I appreciate the thought. But...I came here to talk about the future and my past. I need to get my memory back and your dad said you were the girls to go to."

"Well, we can help you with saving the future and all of that jazz, but finding a cure for amnesia is difficult. You might never get your memory back..."

"Lorie! Stop it! We're going to help you to the best of our ability. Your past affects the future immensely. Dad made it a point to say that it is absolutely vital to the future for the Gray legacy to be preserved."

"The future...it's dark. There's trash everywhere, people don't care about one another, they lie and say they're doing it to protect you...the world is in shambles and there's nothing but disaster. How could people let it get that far...?"

"We honestly don't know." Lorie answered. "We don't know all the details and we don't have ALL of the answers, but we can communicate with our father more freely than you can. We were normal girls a few months ago. Leia and I just graduated college not too long ago. We were living in Bridgeport. Until one day, the dreams got too intense. It turns out, I wasn't drinking too much. My very sober sister was having the same dreams and we decided on a whim to listen to the guy who kept appearing night after night. We ended up in Lucky Palms."

"Nobody would take our degrees seriously, Bridgeport Uni was the party school that everyone got accepted to. We couldn't get a good paying job, and thats why we're living like this. Emit....he promised us a better life." Leia cut in.

"Jesus Leia. You have his hair color. You never found it weird that you were born with blue hair? He is our father, I know it!" 

"Just don't get your hopes up." She shrugged and went back into the other room to play her video games.

"You know...she spends all of her money on those stupid video games. She had to buy the most expensive TV and that stupid game system. That could have bought us more important things. Things that we needed. She's in her own little world. Emit is our dad, but she just can't believe it." Lorie turned to Noah.

"You have to understand one thing." Noah said. "I've lost my memory. I trusted this girl who told me she was my wife. I didn't believe it at first, but the idea began to grow on me. I was in love with the idea so I didn't see the truth around me. I'm still naive, because I can't stop thinking about her. Your sister, she doesn't want that to happen. I don't know about your lives, but I do know that your expectation versus the reality of the situation is easy to get lost in. She doesn't want to get her hopes up."

"I guess you're right....but, it isn't like that Catfish show you see on TV. He knows about us. He told us the story of him and our mom. It makes sense!"

"I don't know about any of that. I'm sorry."

"Its alright. I don't know what I was expecting you to do," She sighed. After a moment of silence, she spoke up again. "You can't roam around Lucky Palms with that getup. You need to change your style, otherwise all of the attention is going to be on you."

"Right...where can I buy some clothes?"

"Just follow me!"

Lorie led Noah upstairs. "You came so early, I never had the chance to get dressed myself. Our dad did warn us about you, so I went out to the store and got you some clothes. Pick out what you like and the rest I'm going to return to the store so be careful with the tags. I'll be back out in a minute."

"Alright! Much better!" Lorie cheered, "You could have went for something a little less plain, but it's still better than what you had on."

"Well...now what?" Noah was eager to learn about his past and move on with his life.

"We can't move to phase two of our plan until I know I can trust you. I want to know that you're reliable, so you're coming with me to this huge party tomorrow. You have to be dressed up, you can choose from the pile I left you. Tonight, you can sleep on the couch until we find you better sleeping conditions."

"The couch is fine but...how is a party going to prove me to be reliable?" 

"I need to see how you react to the public and if you have any other intentions than saving the future. You know stuff like that."

"I don't get it..."

"Don't worry about it, just be ready tomorrow by like seven. I have work but I'll come home to pick you up afterwards."

"Fine..." Noah gave in.

"You did what!?" Leia practically shouted.

"Shh...he's sleeping now. All I need is a date to that gala tomorrow. He's handsome. The pink hair will drive those sophisticated arrogant jerks up the wall. He's perfect."

"No Lorie. He isn't a toy. We were given specific instructions by Emit. We can't get attached. We save the future, ship him off to his girlfriend with the purple hair and then they get married and continue the legacy. Thats it."

"You're afraid that he's going to leave if you get attached..."

"I know that he has to leave, so why bother getting to know him? I'm fine playing video games with him once and a while, but thats it. I know you're not going to cancel this stupid thing, so after this...NO MORE LEISURE TIME. He has a girl that he's destined to be with back in the future. It's not you."

"Oh shut up. I'm going to bed." Lorie stormed off. Leia followed.

"It's your turn in the sleeping bag." Leia challenged.

"I slept in it last night!"

"Yeah, but you're the one causing trouble." It was best not to bother her sister when she was like this.

"Whatever."

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Well, what did you think of the twins so far? Do you have a favorite girl for Noah? A few more chapters and I'll launch a spouse vote!

2.8 The Truth will Set You Free

Emit had to come and save the day in the last chapter. Question is, will Noah choose to believe him? 

Noah spent hours contemplating his situation. He compiled the list of supposed "facts" in his head. Or, things others had told him.
                             
                                1) His full name was Noah Gray
                                2) He had a family [Two brothers, a sister and two parents]
                                3) Farina was his wife
                                4) Mason was a bad guy trying to destroy the future
                                5) He lived in Lucky Palms
                                6) Corrine...whoever she was...had a child and it hurt him.
                                7) He was a former bot builder
                                8) Emit Relevart was the one with the power to change the future

He didn't know what on the list was actually true and what wasn't. The only thing he had experienced himself was number four and number six. The others were all information coming from other's mouths.

"Hey, dude." Kayden nudged Noah. "Turn on the TV, everyone is talking about the news right now. It's gotta be something big."

"Oh...uh right." Noah absentmindedly fiddled with the remote.

"Any day now," Kayden grumbled before snatching the remote from his hands. Yeah, they were brothers, but it had been ticking Kayden off that Noah couldn't remember his own family. Today he had been even more absentminded than usual. "Whats gotten into you? You've never been like this."

Noah raised his eyebrow at Kayden. Could that have been a hint? "What do you mean never been like this? We've only known each other for a few days and even so...we've never really talked, so how do you know how I usually act?"

"Oh finally, a holo TV. The big announcement is about to start, channel 7 please boys." Athena waltzed into the room, successfully dispelling the altercation.

"Attention all citizens of Oasis Landing. My name is Freida Mars, news anchor extraordinaire with an important announcement. We have possible coordinates for Emit Relevart's location. Two girls sharing his DNA have been found in Lucky Palms. Forensic scientists are trying to determine what their connection with the time keeper is. This information is being faced with much opposition.. The residents of Oasis Landing are not happy about Emit's re-submergence and hope that he stays out for good." The news anchor pointed behind her where a group of people were protesting. Signs read things like, "Down with Emit!" and "Disappear for good!"

Noah bit his lip. The Emit in his dream said he had two daughters, Lorie and Leia in Lucky Palms and so far, the news was confirming it. What else did he say that would come true? Was it just a coincidence? He hoped, in the back of his mind, that somehow....Emit had the power to make everything right.

"Emit is in Lucky Palms? But I thought he closed off the portal to jumping worlds. I have to go talk to Levi. Emit's prescence in Lucky Palms is either false information, or the future is in worse shape than we imagined," Athena said aloud.

Kayden looked mortified. "This future stuff is getting really bizarre. Mom...what does this mean for our future?"

"Don't worry about it sweety. I will never let anything happen to you or the future generations of the Gray family. That's why I chose who I chose to head the family. I'm sure he's going to take good care of the family."

"How...if he can't even remember that he's part of our family!?" Kayden cried out, obviously frustrated.

Strike Two, Noah thought. Could they have been talking about him? He was the only one with amnesia around, and since the dream with Emit...he had been questioning the familiar pink hair on both Athena's and Caleb's head. 

"Kayden..." Daisy said breathlessly. She had run into the room. "Good news or bad news?"

"They found Emit...the guy mom and dad say can stop that crazy guy. But, mom said he's not supposed to be where they found him."

"Where did they find him?" She asked.

"They think he's in Lucky Palms." Noah sat back and watched the two talk. He wanted that kind of relationship. He felt empty inside. Though he cared about Farina...what they had wasn't what Daisy and Kayden had. The twins were inseparable and Noah was honestly jealous. He wanted more than anything to be part of a family, but he had to be sure that they were his first. 

"Noah...you don't look so happy. This could be good news." Daisy gushed to her  older brother.

 He looked down at her and shook his head. "It's nothing to do with that. I've just been thinking. Uhmm...is your dad's hair black or brown? I mean I know its Grey now but I mean before. Your brother has pink hair like his mom but you guys don't."

"Hmm...that's a weird thing to think about. Our dad's natural hair is red. I have brown hair like our...I mean my grandfather Bruce."

Noah waited for her to continue but she just frowned. Kayden looked visibly upset as well. "Is something wrong?"

"Our grandfather is dead now," Daisy said softly. What really bothered her was that Noah couldn't even remember his best friend, Grandpa Bruce. "Anyway, Kayden is the odd one out. His black hair traces way back in the family somewhere. Dad was always a little upset that none of us had red hair like him but he loves us all anyway."

"Do you think my mother or father had pink hair?" Noah said as he fiddled with his own.

"I'm positive they did." Daisy smiled reassuringly. 

Downstairs, Caleb had tried to convince Puzzle to tell Noah the truth, but this time with a different approach. 

"Hello Puzzle...my name is Puzzle too. Lets be friends!" Caleb said in the highest voice he could muster. 

"Is that...me? That can't be my old body can it?" Puzzle asked.

"This is you. Look right here on the tag. It's marked. The puzzle piece was your idea. Remember?"

Puzzle gasped and put her hand on her lower back. "I have that marking on this body too!" She attempted to lift her dress but Caleb protested."Jeez that's how your brother first reacted too." Puzzle shook her head.

"Did you think I would come to the future without you? After Noah left for boarding school, the twins were always together and I was lonely once again. I had become attached to you again, but I guess this time...it was just the doll and not the spirit."

"I uh...I wish I could remember that." She frowned.

"Listen to me, or to yourself. This doll has been passed down to every Gray child. There isn't anyway we'd abandon you. I know that you love the attention Noah gives you. But...it isn't right. Remember that time when we played castle? You were the Knight that was supposed to protect Noah. You promised me you would. Don't go back on your word now. Puzzle please. You're only hurting Noah now."

"Hurting Noah?" Puzzle whispered, hand on her heart. "Am I really hurting him?"

"Yes...he thinks your his wife and it's preventing him from remembering anything else. I'm not saying that Noah shouldn't love you. You're incredible...but let Noah...the real Noah have a say."

"Is it really that bad? I'm sorry...I have to go and tell him right now that I'm not his wife, and that you guys are his real family. Should I tell him that I'm your imaginary friend too?"

"Tell me everything." Noah said coming into the room.

"Noah!?" Both Caleb and Farina gasped.

"How long were you standing there?" Caleb asked.

"For the whole conversation. I didn't really understand most of it though," Noah admitted.

"She'll tell you everything. I have to go upstairs and check on something. So I'll be seeing you guys," Caleb said before leaving.

The two had moved their conversation to the hallway. 

"You're not my wife?"

"No...my name is Puzzle Gray. I am Caleb's imaginary friend. Mason brought me to life with some sort of chemical. The chemical reacted to something in those meteors, that's why I was taken to the hospital that one time, remember?" 

Noah nodded. "Imaginary friend? That's ridiculous."

"No, it isn't. Please hear me out. You're Noah Gray. Your parents are Levi and Athena Gray. Your siblings are Caleb, who is older than you and the twins, Daisy and Kayden who are both younger than you. I used to be a doll. That doll was passed down from Caleb to you and from you to Daisy and then to Kayden. I've watched over all of you. I know things about you that you told me that not even your family knows. I'd prove it, but you don't remember anyway. Mason isn't my brother either. When he found you...you were in Lucky Palms even though your family is from Lucky Palms. You were chasing after this girl, Corrine. She was everything to you but she broke your heart. You were vulnerable and that's when Mason came in and brought you back to the future. It was easy for him to erase your memory.  I've been lying to you to protect you..."

Noah upon hearing  her last words, pulled her close. "I don't care if you think you're really a doll brought to life by some crazy guy. I don't care if all of that comes true. I don't even care that you lied to me. I love you, Farina...erm...Puzzle right? You're the most incredible person I have ever come in contact with, even if I can't remember them all."

Puzzle pulled away sharply. Caleb's words kept echoing through her mind. You're only hurting him. "I lied to you about your family, where you've come from and led you into danger. What is the matter with you? You shouldn't love me! It was never love for me...I've only protected you and did what I had to do because thats what I prmoised your brother I would do!" She snapped. It hurt her to say the last part, but she had to lie to Noah. She didn't want to hurt him anymore with her feelings. She knew he'd be upset now, but the end justified the means. 

"What are you saying? I need you in my life," Noah pleaded.

                                     "I'm the only constant in your life right now. You don't have feelings for me. Forget about all of this and try to get your memories back! You have more important things to worry about than me alright? Now I have to go, goodbye." She stormed off before Noah could get another word in.

She let her legs carry her. This time, she ended up in a place more dangerous than the abandoned ship. She was at a bar. She downed drink after drink, loving the numbing feeling it gave her. She didn't stop until she was hungry. Why did being a human hurt so much?

She was so enthralled with her cake that she hadn't noticed the male that had sit down next to her.

"Slow down there Puzzle. The cake isn't going anywhere." That voice, even drunk she could tell who it was.

"Leave m.. alone...." She grumbled through mouthfuls of cake. "This...you...fault." 

"So drinking reverts you back to having the motor skills of a baby?" He teased.

"Shut up!" She said angrily. "What do you want from me?"

He grabbed her arm and led her out of her chair. "I want you to know that you're loved. no matter what anyone tells you." He sugarcoated his words with a kiss. One in which Puzzle was too drunk to comprehend, let alone stop. She stood there motionless in his arms. "I'll take care of you. Noah won't hurt you anymore."

Dazed but no longer confused, Puzzle snapped. "He didn't hurt me. He loves me! I'm the one hurting him, you insensitive bastard. How dare you!" She slapped him and stormed off yet again. With a little help from the bar keeper, Puzzle boarded the cab that took her straight home.

The next morning she was ashamed of herself. She fell to her knees and cried. She clutched the doll tightly to her chest as she sobbed. "Why...can't it be this simple anymore? I thought that this was what I wanted. I'm so confused. I have feelings and desires like I had before but now...Love is different. It isn't enough to just care about a person...I want to be close to him...I want everything he was willing to give me. But I don't want to hurt him." She stared at the doll, hoping it'd say something back. "Of course you're silent. You're nothing but stuffing now."

"Damn it!" Noah shouted as he pounded the table in front of him.

"Woah...calm down there buddy. You don't want to break anything. It wouldn't be right." A pink haired man stood next to him.

"Leave me the hell alone." 

"Broken heart?" He asked.

"How did you know?" Noah raised an eyebrow.

"I get like that too when I've just gotten my heartbroken. Apparently, its common in the Gray family."

"What did you say?" Noah asked, and then the pink hair registered. "Are you a part of the Gray family?"

"Yeah. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were too. You've got our signature pink hair." He laughed. "My name is Brant Gray. Nice to meet you."

"I'm Noah."

"No last name?"

"Not yet."

That was it. Strike Three. Noah didn't know how he fit into the Gray family, but there was a connection. Right then and there he had made up his mind. He was going to Lucky Palms to find Emit's daughters. He had nothing to lose at this point but faith. He would leave first thing in the morning. He didn't want to attach himself to the possibility of having a family in Athena, Levi, Caleb, Kayden and Daisy. He also wanted to give Farina...Puzzle...whatever her name was time to get her story straight. He cared immensely about her, and her story...as crazy as  it sounded, seemed to match up with what was happening. Some space would cure everything, at least that's what he'd hoped.

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Phew! That was a lot. So, just as an announcement for the next few chapters, Noah is going to meet Emit's daughters. He'll have a moment with both of them, and then I'm going to do something  I haven't done (or seen yet in the legacies I'm currently reading). Four way spouse poll. You can thank DandyLion240 for this idea. Thank you! Your comment on the previous chapter about not liking either spouse got me thinking, and I absolutely love making sims, so I thought, why not four spouses to choose from? Let me know if this idea is totally crazy. I'm letting you guys know this now so you can start scoping out the possible wives xD As always, thank you for reading and commenting!

2.7 In Denial

I'm starting to shift back into Noah's point of view, though not fully in this chapter. It is his generation after all. Also, please let me know if the storyline is moving too fast, if I drew it out, the generation would be much longer than thirty chapters!

"Mason is back...what are we supposed to do? Our son, the one who is supposed to keep the Gray family going can't even remember who we are. He doesn't know anything about his family. Its so important for the future generations. Noah is a part of our family and we can't give up because of Mason." 

"I understand that fully, Sweetheart. Our son's will is much stronger than Mason's. The whole family is here to back him up and we can't stop showing him how much we care just because he doesn't remember us. We just have to trigger his memory somehow," Levi answered.

"I bet you that Corrine would be able to jog his memory. Shes so important to him, but the only thing standing in the way is Puzzle...Farina, whatever you want to call her. I don't even understand how Caleb's imaginary friend is real, but I hope she does the right thing and helps Noah," Athena said.

"Right now, we can't leave the future as it is. Theres no way we could leave Oasis Landing and hunt Corrine down in Lucky Palms. She'd never believe us. It took getting to the future to convince the kids and even then, they weren't so pleased to be going through a time portal. We have to hold out on the Corrine thing for now. Our top priority should be finding Emit, he's supposed to be watching the future. With him gone, Mason was able to sneak his way in through all the chaos."

"Finding Emit....its going to be a lot harder than it looks. This is where you and I first met, remember? In this very building. Emit allowed me to come to his home base where you were waiting to save the future. I can't believe we let it get this far. Its all my fault. I shouldn't have even become involved with Mason..."

"You know thats not true. None of this is your fault. Mason...he was never like this. Losing our parents threw him overboard...time traveling under Emit was supposed to help him, but he abused his power. Mason has always been good at conniving people and even Emit fell for his nice guy tricks. Without Mason trying to screw up the timeline....I would never have met you. Caleb wouldn't be with us..."

"Its always about Caleb with you, isn't it?" She smiled and kissed Levi's cheek. "You're a wonderful father and if Mason reveals himself to Caleb...I don't think it'll matter to him at all. You're the one who's been here his entire life. Not that loser."

It had been a few days and Puzzle still hadn't told Noah the truth. Athena suggested that the Gray family back off for awhile as not to shock Noah too much. This all with the idea in mind that telling Noah the truth was Puzzle's intention. She had become too comfortable with the idea of being with Noah. It wasn't like the thought hadn't occurred to her, because it had. She felt immensely guilty for lying, especially after the Gray family had been so nice to her in the past. But...she felt complete near Noah and she never wanted to give the feeling up.

Levi had tried to jog Noah's memory, but it was hard talking to him as if he wasn't his son.

"You know, I see you as a doctor. Saving people could be your vocation. I didn't know my real father, but I had a father figure who was a doctor. He was constantly playing chess with my son and dabbling in the chemistry skill..."

"Chess is fun, but not if you don't have anyone to play with. I always beat Farina, she isn't too good at it. I honestly don't see myself as a doctor, I want to go back to my old job of bot building."

Levi frowned, what had Farina been drilling into his son's head?

"Why haven't you told Noah the truth yet? I've given you the benefit of the doubt. I thought you might have needed time to formulate your thoughts and words...but its been days and you have avoided the topic altogether. I wouldn't have minded it so much if you haven't been sneaking around kissing and sleeping in the same bed with my son. Don't you have some class? I don't really care who you are. I understand that you've helped my children grow up, and I'm really grateful for that. But right now...you have the whole Gray family depending on you to get our child and brother back. You better tell him the truth and soon because you know that you're the only one who can do it," Athena spat before walking off.

"Noah doesn't even want to talk to me." Daisy frowned.

"He thinks I'm the janitor because I keep picking up the trash I see lying around," Kayden grumbled. "Even though Daisy told him I was her twin."

Caleb began to laugh. "You're an idiot Kayden. Maybe you can get him to pity you and then become his best friend and he'll remember your brotherly bond."

"Lets be serious for a minute." Athena cut in. "Puzzle isn't budging. Shes way too comfortable with Noah right now. The only person who can do anything about it is you Caleb. You know her better than anyone else." 

Caleb sighed. "You're right...leave it up to me."

When Caleb had found her, she was seated near Noah. They were laughing over some kind of inside joke. Caleb casually strode over and placed the doll version of Puzzle on the floor. Whether it made Puzzle feel bad or jog Noah's memory, it'd prove useful.

"You still play with dolls?" Noah smirked.

"Yes...as a matter of fact I do. I've learned to hold on to things that I care about. My doll, Puzzle, is one of the greatest things to happen to me. Growing up, she'd always tell me the truth and confide in me. So...if you want to make fun of me for having a friend, go ahead."

"You...you really mean that?" Puzzle/Farina asked. She had a hand on her heart.

Noah grabbed her other hand and smiled. "I guess I can understand that. It doesn't matter the shape or size of the companion as long as you have someone you can trust. Living or not."

"Exactly. Puzzle is like family to me. Thats why I wish she'd tell the truth. Farina...right? You're a good person deep down, I know you'll do the right thing to protect my brother."

"I've never done the wrong thing," She said defensively.

"You're keeping my family apart, the exact opposite of your purpose. You're choosing favorites and alienating!" Caleb growled, the anger getting the best of him.

"Can you just lay off of her. She isn't doing anything to you...Farina is beautiful and incredible. She'd never do anything to hurt anyone," Noah shouted back.

"Alright, alright...jeez." Caleb said, throwing his hands up.

After Caleb had stormed off, Noah placed a passionate kiss on Farina. Unlike with their first kiss (that Noah could remember), there weren't any sparks. He didn't feel anything at all. The same girl from his night in the dream pod flashed through his mind. When he pulled away from Farina, he could drop this girl's image from his mind. She said her name was Corrine. He shook his head and apologized to Farina, telling her he was tired and wanted to lie down.

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stop replaying the only moment of Corrine he had stored in his memory. Who was she? Why was she so important to him? He felt terribly guilty about his last encounter with Farina. Finally, he had fallen asleep.

"Woah...are you the famous time traveler? Theres a statue of you in legacy park!" Noah said excitedly. He was aware he was dreaming. It felt like lucid dreaming to him because he could control his actions.

"Yes...my name is Emit Relevart. I was waiting for you to fall asleep out of that dream pod to come and talk to you. I don't have much time because this takes a lot of energy, so listen carefully to what I'm about to say." He watched Noah nod. "I don't know if you've heard, but the people of Oasis Landing think that I've abandoned them...I haven't. I've been locked out of Oasis Landing by somebody you're very familiar with. Mason Moon."

"That guy is a jerk in every sense of the word," Noah grumbled.

"He has been trying to change Oasis Landing for years...the dystopian society is his doing. He's changed the future completely. Your wife...and I use that term loosely....Farina, isn't the only family you have. You are one of four children, the middle child. You're older brother, Caleb Gray has been your role model for most of your life. Your younger siblings, Kayden and Daisy are twins and you've been watching over them protectively for awhile, especially Daisy your only sister. I understand you've met them here, but they aren't just futuristic residents. They are your family. You can't remember any of them. Your parents....Levi and Athena, are two of the most incredible people you will ever meet. They've been patient with your amnesia, but what they really want is their son back. They have fought so hard to get the family they have and right now, Mason is trying to squish it for his own personal gain." Emit paused for questions.

"I have...a family? But...this is all a dream, and I want to hear that I have a family so my brain is filling it in with these five strangers." Noah shook his head. "Nice try brain."

"While this is a dream, I am not. I am the time keeper. I know how the future will end up and how the past has changed. If you choose to believe me is your decision, but I've given you the information I know. If you don't believe me, the truth will become clear tomorrow. Farina is going to be the one to spill the information, this I promise. One more thing before you wake up, you can't change the future from the future. Oasis Landing needs a lot of reconstruction and everything you do is going to be erased by Mason. Instead, you have to go back to Lucky Palms. Its entirely possible to change the future from there as long as your siblings keep Lunar Lakes afloat. If you have anymore questions....my daughters are there. You can ask them anything. Leia and Lorie. Sweet dreams Noah Gray."