5 Home

Olympus Space Station, just like all the other Space Stations surrounding 'Second Earth', was an autonomous region with its own populace and governmental bodies.

It had the overall shape of a deformed egg and was separated into 3 Sectors, which was: the Northern Sector, the Central Sector, and the Southern Sector in reference to its position relative to the geographical pole of Second Earth.

Irvine had been born in the Eastern side of Zeta City, which was one of the cities located in the Northern Sector of Olympus.

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As the artificial sky darkened for the people in the Space Station, Irvine could be seen walking alongside the main road of what looked like a suburban area of the city.

Street lights were posted at regular interval where similar-looking houses with big lawns and picket fences decorated the left and right side of the road.

Since it was not yet deep into the night, one could sometimes see the occasional electric cars passing back and forth through the main road.

Before long, Irvine stopped in front of a house with the number 177A written on the front mailbox. His heart thumped loudly as he felt his nerves becoming more and more unsettled.

"Mom... Dad... Thea..."

This had been a very long day for him. From the time he was at the laboratory for the serum trial, to when he had discovered that he was back in 218 Greenwood High on a Friday afternoon.

The hecticness and the surprise from finding out what had transpired had caused him to focus on every little thing in front of him one step at a time but,

Now that the nostalgic surroundings and activities had come to pass and the day was turning to a close, he suddenly found himself being overwhelmed by the prospect of meeting his family from the past.

He might've gotten a second chance for his dream, but what about the rest of his family?

His sister had been doing well as the managerial member of the Zeta Androids, becoming a well-known figure in the sports circle.

Last he'd heard, she had bought his mom and dad a villa for their retirement home, and they had gotten along well with the people in their new community.

His mom had gotten a new best friend there, and his dad's health had stopped declining ever since they'd moved in.

It might not have been a very smooth journey, especially from his side, but it had a happy ending.

The people that mattered most to him were all happy in that future.

And if what had happened to him this time undo that future in some ways...

"..."

Suddenly, Irvine felt like the responsibility was on him to make sure that the people close to him still achieve that same level of happiness if not more.

And it felt heavy.

'Right... Whether I make it or not this time around, I at least have to make sure that the good things in that future stay with them this time as well.'

*nod*

After reaffirming his resolve and priorities, Irvine finally mustered his courage to push open the picket fence gate to his house and walked to the door.

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*DING* *DONG*

The doorbell of the Lang residence resounded through the living room where Edward and Judy were sitting around chatting and watching the television through a cutting-edge projection screen.

"Sweetie, can you get the door please?" Irvine's mom, Judy Lang, ordered his sister.

Just like Irvine, his mom had the same dark brown colour for a hair. The only difference was that hers was long and wavy rather than short and straight.

"If it's someone selling subscription, shoo them away!"

Edward on the other hand was a tall guy with jet black hair colour that was inherited by his daughter.

The couple were in their early-forties but still looked like their late-thirties selves.

"Coming." Althea raised her voice a little as she proceeded to the front door from the dining table where she'd been playing with her phone.

She flipped over the door lock and proceeded to open it.

*CLICK* *FWIP*

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The moment it was opened, Irvine saw the familiar-looking figure to him in the form of a teenage girl with straight black hair standing on the other side of the door.

Unlike her mature and rather intimidating appearance in the future, the current Althea still had her innocent looks about her, even though she's still a calm and collected person outwardly.

Irvine remembered that she had always been this way even as a teenager. A calm and obedient daughter who thought things through before doing anything.

He hadn't known back then that she was actually a passionate fans of Battle Arena just like he was. Not until the day she's suddenly hired as the Zeta Androids' manager.

Only after he'd asked his mom about it at that time did she tell him that her sister, Althea, had been wanting to talk to him about the sport ever since junior high but was to shy to initiate it everytime.

'I haven't been paying much attention to my surroundings...' Irvine thought regretfully in his mind as he kept staring at his sister.

"..."

"?"

"...Where's your key?"

"Ah!"

Only now did he realize that he had his home key with him the whole time. He didn't really have to ring the doorbell.

He was subconsciously used to it whenever he visited his parents in their retirement home in the future.

Irvine quickly ransacked through his pockets and fished out a set of keys linked together with a keychain.

"Forgot I had one." He said with a straight face.

"Hah?"

Althea who saw his brother's antics showed an incredulous on her face as if watching something unbelievable.

"Have you eaten dinner?" Irvine asked.

"Yeah, we just finished."

"Then I guess I'll just have what's left over." Irvine slowly entered his childhood home for the first time in a while after being let in by his sister. He tried hard not to show his nervousness.

"I thought you usually eat out on practice day?"

"Yeah, usually." He took his shoes off in the entranceway as he replied,

"...By the way, why didn't you join our school's Arena team?"

"Huh?? W-why would I?" A rare fluster appeared on his sister's face at the sudden question.

'So she really is a closet fan... But why would she be shy about this?'

Just like him, Althea was also attending Greenwood High this year as a freshman. That was why he had made the suggestion earlier.

"I dunno. It's fun to play, and if you're ever interested in becoming our manager you can learn about management and analytical skills early, those are the kind of stuff that'll be advantageous to have no matter what your future job is."

"...You've unexpectedly thought this through." After just a couple seconds, her face had already returned to its usual calm demeanor.

"What do you mean unexpectedly..." Not wanting to argue further with his sister, Irvine started to walk towards the living room to greet his parents.

"Sh-should I really apply for it...?"

He barely walked a couple steps when his sister suddenly spoke out once more in a barely audible voice which caught him off-guard.

'I didn't know she could act like this...' He thought to himself, 'She was very stern when she's leading the Androids into countless victories in the future.'

"You can try it. Ah, you can only apply next semester though since this one's almost over."

"I know that." She replied as if Irvine had spoken something obvious.

"..."

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"Sweetie, is that your brother?" Noticing some whispers in the hallway, Judy stood up from the couch to see if she had guessed correctly.

"Mom." Almost at the same time, Irvine turned towards the living room from the hallway entrance, showing his figure to both his parents.

Seeing the younger looks of his mom and dad, Irvine experienced a mixed feeling of relief and guilt.

During the course of his pro career, he had caused no small trouble for the both of them, from missed holidays to countless other worries like him being a bachelor at 40 years of age.

"I'm home." The words felt heavy to utter even after the fact.

"Oh, you're rather early today. Have you eaten?"

The same question everytime, even though he usually never bothered to eat at home during practice day. But his answer this time was a little outside of his mother's expectation.

"I'm about to, thought I'd just eat what's left over."

"Now that's rare, well you can just heat them up a little if they're cold." His mom quickly went back to sit on the couch.

"Dad."

"How's practice?" Edward nodded at the greeting.

"Just the one practice match today, not many people showed up since our loss last week."

"Kids these days really have no perseverance." He lightly commented.

"Ha, I know right. By the way, can I talk to the two of you for a bit?"

"Hm? Sure." "What is it?" His mom and dad replied almost at the same time.

Irvine entered the living room with Althea following closely behind.

She was rather curious as to what his brother had to say. Especially since his behaviours had felt... Somewhat different to her after he came home.

'He looked more... Mature? No, that can't be right?'

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"Arena Athlete License?" His father raised his eyebrows.

"Yes. I'm thinking of applying for the one at the end of April since the tests are held on a bimonthly basis."

"And you said this was for a chance at athletic scholarship?"

Although his father casually watched Battle Arena as well, he didn't have much knowledge on how the whole college scenes worked.

"That's right."

"I see... Well, might as well try, We were wondering why you haven't told us about your plan for college."

'That's because the previous me was a young brat without any plans.' Irvine mocked himself in his mind,

'But they were waiting for me to talk to them myself huh... They always thought too highly of me.'

He once again found some parts of his past where he had disappointed his parents.

'I'm sure there are many more...'

"Well, there's just one thing. If I happen to pass the test, then I'll also need to get my Gene Modification, and the cost for it..." Irvine hesitated a little.

Gene Modification serum was very costly thing especially for a student.

In the end, it still required a proper medical procedure, and it could go upwards of 20,000 Credits depending on the type, which was roughly the price of an economy car.

"...Didn't you say that the tests are very hard, which is why it could get you many offers from colleges should you pass?"

"They are."

Edward tried to clarify the matter, but in turn saw the confident look on his son's face. A mature look that he had never seen on him once before.

"Then you shouldn't worry about the money if you pass. We have some savings set aside for the two of you you know."

Truthfully speaking, Edward was already very glad that Irvine could have some concerns regarding their financials when they talked about this.

His mother, Judy, also smiled as she listened in on the side.

His family was quite alright, financially speaking. Although they're not excessively rich, they would have no trouble putting their 2 children through college themselves should they needed to.

"Thank you very much!" Irvine thanked his father and mother sincerely. Something he thought he hadn't done quite enough in his past.

"Don't worry about anything and go apply. If you get a scholarship, you'd have saved us a large amount of Credits anyway." His father concluded their talks on his own.

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In the dining room, Irvine was heating up his dinner in the microwave when Althea approached him from behind.

"You're thinking about becoming a pro player?" She asked with a straight face.

"Oh, what makes you think so?" Irvine threw a baiting question of his own.

"Almost nobody passes their Arena License before college, average players only pass them during their sophomore year." She started explaining.

"If you actually pass, the door to the pro league will pretty much be half-open for you, unless you somehow mess-up your college games really badly."

"You seem to know a lot about it." Irvine looked back at her with a grin.

"...I read about it online." Once again, a rare bashful look appeared on his sister's face.

"You know, I think we should watch and follow the next season's games together here at home, how about it?"

"W-why would I--"

"It'd help you learn things if you were to enter the school's team."

"..."

"Plus, it's been lonely for me to be the only one who watches sports regularly in this house. What do you think? I can teach you."

"...You don't need to teach me, I can learn on my own." His sister replied sternly.

'You're probably already familiar with it right...?' Irvine remarked in his mind but didn't say it out loud.

"Haha, that's settled then." He gave a warm smile at the end which confused Althea even more about what had happened to her brother at school today.

"Hey, don't change the subject. Are you really thinking of going pro after college?"

She knew her brother was a good Arena player, but she didn't think he was THAT good.

"It's an option." Irvine also answered nonchalantly.

"...Confident you'll pass the test?"

"I intend to." He said without missing a beat.

"..."

Althea walked away from the kitchen shortly after, leaving Irvine to eat his dinner alone for the night.