Editing Story:ROAD TRIP! (Warhammer High)/Part Five (section)

===Jake's New Swag===


Jake’s parents’ new ride settled on the roof of their little apartment.  Jake stood and breathed in the cycled air.  “Home, sweet home,” he said, peering up into the endless maze of aircar lights.

“It sure is,” George said, opening the trunk.  “Grab a few suitcases.”

Jake and his mother grabbed some bags and cases and followed George into the apartment.  Jake paused at the threshold as he looked around.  “Man, I know I should know better, but I can’t help but compare this to the hotel room in Clymene.  Venus got us into the Imperial suite,” Jake said.

“Really?” Sandra asked.

“Yeah, it was bigger than the whole apartment here,” Jake said.  “Here, let me take that,” he said, hefting the massive case his mother had taken.

“Say, someone’s been working out,” George said.

“Yep!  Alex gave me a workout routine to do on the ship, since there was basically nothing else to do,” Jake said.  “I’ve gained ten pounds since I left, all muscle.”

George nodded his approval.  “Good for you,” he said.  “And I understand Nocturne was Terra-plus on gravity and pressure?”

“It was,” Jake confirmed, setting a case on his bed.  “First few days were hell.  I just dealt with it after a while.”

Sandra opened one case to help expedite unpacking, and her eyes widened.  “Jake, what in the world is this?” she asked, withdrawing the suit he had purchased on Nocturne.

“Oh, that was a present from Remilia,” Jake said.  “That formal dinner I talked about, where Alex’s dad was a dick, I didn’t have anything suitable, so Remilia bought that for me.  Don’t worry, I felt bad afterwards, that’s what matters, right?”

“Jake, this is…this is a seven thousand credit suit,” Sandra said.

“And Remilia’s a generous girl,” Jake said.  “She swore before we left that she’d buy all my clothes for me for the trip.  The thermoreflective outfit, this, all of it.”

“I hope you thanked her,” Sandra said.

“Profusely,” Jake said.  “She’s a sweet girl, though, she was happy to do it without even being asked.”

“Which one is your girlfriend?  I can’t tell,” George quipped, feeling the fabric.

“The one who made me that watch,” Jake laughed.  He walked out to the car and returned with yet more suitcases.  “I washed most of this on the ship, so I can just put it away,” he said.

“Oh, good,” Sandra said.  She closed the suitcase.  “You know, Jake, your friends are really generous to you,” she said.  “I’m sure you’re smart enough to thank them for everything, but does it ever feel like they’re just trying to buy favor?”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Jake asked, sliding the gift card into his wallet.  “Favor from who?  Some hiver they went to school with?”

“Well, I just…I know that a few of the Lords Primarch set up charities or private companies or what have you after the Crusade, and some of them are basically used as tax sinks by the rich to dodge paying full taxes,” Sandra said.

Jake stared.  “And you want to know…”

“If you ever get the feeling that they’re being generous to you out of pity instead of genuine friendship, yes,” Sandra said carefully.  “Obviously I don’t think Venus is, but still.”

Jake sank into a chair, staring at his mother.  “Wow.  Holy shit, Mom, that…wow.  That’s fucking mean,” Jake said, feeling anger stir in his stomach.

“Jake, don’t talk like that to me,” she said defensively.

“Do you honestly think I’m either stupid enough or pathetic enough not to tell the difference?” Jake asked, gripping the armrests of the chair.  “Sure, there are Royal Family members who look down on me, but I don’t hang out with them!”

“Jake, it’s not just that,” Sandra said.  George looked back and forth between his wife and son, silent.  “After the Crusade ended, the Royal Family-operated charities and so forth, like Lord Primarch Fulgrim’s Foundation, they had people flock to them.  Not the recipients, either, but the people who just wanted to have some of his glamor rub off on them,” she said disgustedly.  “Jake, all I’m saying is that when I see you come home with these gifts, I feel like maybe they’re just giving you these things because they feel that it absolved them of some…moral problem, or something.  You see it all the time in the business and political worlds.”

Jake stared at her as she finished her recitation.  “Mom, do you know why Remilia gave me all that stuff?  I doubt I’ve told you,” he said coldly.  “She gave it to me,” he said, cutting his mother off, “because she was horribly depressed by an act of abuse in her household, and you may not, under any circumstances, repeat that,” he said, pointing at both of his parents, who recoiled, stunned.  “She was broken, sad, confused, and when she asked me to help, I did.  It made her feel better, and she wanted repay me.  I said she didn’t have to, and she said she did, so I let her pay for something I could never have bought on my own and thanked her for it anyway,” Jake said, trying to rein in his temper.  “They’re PEOPLE, Mom.”

“There are good people and bad people, Jake, and some of them are rich and some are poor,” Sandra said flatly.

“Yeah, and I don’t treat any of the Daughters interchangeably, and I certainly don’t spend time with the ones who pity or dislike me,” Jake said.  “Now are you done questioning my judgment?  I have a gift card to spend before we leave.”

“To where?” George asked, speaking at last.

“Remilia gave me a gift card for my birthday, for Keller’s Electronics,” Jake said, tapping his wallet.  “I want to build a new gaming rig.”

“That was nice of her,” George said before Sandra could say anything.

“It was,” Jake said, putting the last cases in his room.  “See you guys later,” he added, swiping the keys for the car off of the table on the way out.