A New Mission
Tags: Social Justice, Equality, BlackLivesMatter, Fiction, Short Story

A New Mission

Agent 31 and I meet again

Photo Cred: yakudza.tumblr.com

A tap on my shoulder sends a wave of panic throughout my body.

“Is it me you’re looking for?” Agent 31 sings with an evil grin.

“Jeez, you scared me,” I admit. I spin my gaming chair around to face him.

He grabs the can of Pringles on my shelf and plops on my bed. “You always have the best snacks.”

“What do I owe this special appearance?” My eyes bounce back and forth between my chips and him.

“You haven’t been writing my story, man! What the fuck?” Anger flickers in his eyes but disappears just as quickly as it came.

“I-I’m sorry.” The words hang onto the tip of my tongue.

He shoves a stack of chips in his mouth and nods. “Brian, I like you. Cookie would kill me if I shot ya.”

We both grin at each other. He fights back a laugh. “Really, though. I’m bored as hell. I mean at least you didn’t stash us in a complete dump but come on.”

My eyes fall to his tattoo-covered arms. “Have you been working out?”

A smile surfaces and races up to his eyes. He flexes for me. “Yea. The house still has electricity, water, and it’s got its own gym. You really hooked us up.”

“How’s Cookie?”

He shakes his head and shoves more chips in his mouth. He jabs a thumbs up my way. “She’s a damn good cook. I can’t tell we’re rationing at all. She’s been reading too. She finally got to relax for a second.”

I lean back in my chair. I lose him to his thoughts for a moment. I take a long swig of my grape Monster and wait patiently.

He shakes his head and lets a sigh loose. “I almost didn’t wanna come here.”

“So she wouldn’t have to leave again.”

“Y-yea.”

Silence fills the space between us. I turn and load Medium up on my laptop.

“I’m pulling you off your original mission.” My voice is softer than I intend.

“Yea? What’s going on?” He leans in, focusing on me.

I take another drink. I swallow hard and try to get my words in order. “Everything. Let me show you.” I pull myself closer to my desk and open a new tab. I pull Twitter up. His hands clench the back of my chair. Neither one of us says a word; I can hear his steady breathing.

Immediately the protests fill in my timeline. “W-what the fuck?”

I slowly scroll down, giving him time to read the titles and such.

“This is — this is real?” His words come out in a whisper.

I nod and keep scrolling. We stumble across a post sharing the horrendous news of another black trans woman being murdered.

“You could have pulled me earlier,” he tells me.

“What’s done is done. Nobody could have prevented this.”

I scroll until he backs away. I spin around in my chair to see him staring at one of my Black Panther posters. He turns back to look at me. The pain in his eyes stings. In a flash, it’s replaced with rage. He rips away from our gaze.

“What do you need, boss?”

“Just whatever they need. Help wherever you can. People are getting kidnapped and hauled away in vans. Supplies are being pepper-sprayed. Peaceful protesters are getting beaten and jailed — “

He cuts me off. “Jesus Christ.”

“It’s bad, man.”

He whips his phone out, an iPhone 8 with a cracked screen. He taps something and brings it to his ear. “Hey — Cookie, I’m at Brian’s. You need to see this. Yea? Okay.” He slowly removes the phone and plops back down on the edge of my unmade bed.

A few moments later, my door slowly glides open. Cookie pops her head in. “Brian!”

“Cookie, how are you, baby?” I can’t push down my happiness.

She grins from ear to ear as she steps in. “You couldn’t have found a better place for us. Come here.”

I push myself up from my chair. She yanks me into a warm hug. “It’s been so long.” She sighs.

“It has — “

Agent 31 breaks in. “We’ve got a new mission.”

“What? We’re not going after Coviden anymore?” She gives me a confused look but doesn’t let me go.

“No. I need you somewhere else,” I admit.

“Must be bad if you’re pulling him out of a mission already in action.”

Agent 31 gently grabs her by the arm and pulls her closer to him. “It is.”

Her eyes widen. Her gaze goes back and forth between the two of us. “What’s wrong, Brian?”

“I need you back on the ground. There’s a lot — a lot going on,” I say. My eyes find Agent 31 again. “You can’t be an Agent here. You have to be — “

“A civilian?” He asks.

“Just on the outside. If people find out you’re an agent, they won’t trust you. You’ll be just another cop to them,” I tell him.

“Shit, you’re right.”

Cookie grabs his hand and intertwines their fingers. He forces a grin and tosses it her way.

“What’s my name this time?”

“Malik. I’ll send over your profile sometime today.” His real name pops into our heads, but we don’t dare speak it. He yanks his shoes off and scoots back on the bed. I watch as Cookie follows his lead.

“You think you could bring Ginger inside?” He asks in a soft voice.

“Of course.” My hand finds Cookie’s shoulder before I leave the room. Of course.