Chapter 2: Traveling

~~ December - Week 50 - 2094 ~~

So here he was, on a starship with his family crossing solar systems to go find his dad.

He still couldn’t believe he had gotten a job in Utopia and a berth on the ship. When the girls tried to convince him to send in a resume’, he had been very reluctant. If their dad wanted them, then why didn’t he send for them?

The twins decided that they would just go and find out. The other kids also agreed. They wanted to find their dad too. Justin grinned and wondered if the people doing the hiring had taken pity on a guy just short of twenty years of age with seven dependants.

The Ubobo’s had been given the two rooms with four bunks in each on level three. The four girls got one room, and Kim was bunking with the boys. He had been surprised when they let Kim bunk in with them.

He had told the Doc when they were doing their medicals that Kim had nightmares and would come looking for him, she felt safest when with the boys, and even considered herself one of them. The Doc had talked to Kim and then he had recommended the two, four-bed bunkrooms for them. He promised Kim that he wouldn’t mention her gender unless it became an issue.

They had all agreed that Kim thought she was a boy anyway, so it worked out fine. She always slept in the tent with the boys when they when fossicking anyway. Justin had to laugh because he had never seen Kim in a dress, and she sure dressed like a boy. She had refused point-blank to own a dress, not even for school.

Kim even had her hair cut the same as Brad and Tyson. People thought she was Tyson’s twin brother. The family decided not to enlighten the rest, and then no one would realise Kim was a girl and kick up a stink about her being in the boy’s room.

The only other people on board who knew her gender was the doctor, Glenda and her husband, Tomos. They kept an eye on the family of teenagers for a few days but decided there wasn’t a problem. The doctor told Glenda he was also impressed with just how well Justin looked after his siblings. Glenda had to agree.

Glenda was surprised that Justin was also strikingly like his dad in looks, possibly even more handsome. He was also as tall if not a little more and had his father’s build. She wondered if he had the assets as well. Going by the fit of the jumpsuit that he had taken to wearing aboard ship, she believed that any girl that got him would be lucky.

His younger brothers were also heading in the same direction she decided. She had already observed Brad at just short of eighteen chatting up one of the sixteen-year-old girls and had to smile. He was still about 5cm shorter than Justin was, but she didn’t think it would take him long to catch him.

As for Allan’s daughters, at nineteen, the twins were very striking, and both were topping 187cm. They had already received several offers of entertainment. Amusingly the guys trying to chat them up, become very daunted in their pursuit when Justin turned up. He had the skill of intimidation without a word, down to a fine art as his father did.

The younger girls either side of Kim at sixteen and fourteen also lucked in on the gorgeous looks and Justin was going to have a hard time keeping them virgins as well. He was very protective of the girls, but he wasn’t overbearing about it, and the girls all respected his judgement and obviously loved him.

She had noticed that while Justin looked, he had not attempted to approach the interested parties and politely rebuffed those that got game enough to try. It was amazing how many of both persuasions and of many different age groups did approach him.

The fact that nearly two-thirds of the passengers were female also gave him plenty of choices. Many of them were young single professionals that had engineering and/or teaching qualifications. This fact wasn’t lost on the other young men aboard either.

On observing the brothers, Glenda noticed they also obeyed Justin without arguing about the decisions he made. He had done an excellent job taking over as dad. She wondered how he and Allan were going to get on.

Lee and Sean were also wondering if they had done the right thing, including Allan’s kids. Lee told Sean if Allan didn’t wish to acknowledge them, she would settle them in Clarksville. She believed they would be an asset to either community.

Sean agreed this was an acceptable solution. They too were impressed with how Justin and the twins looked after their younger siblings and treated them all equally.

Glenda was amused to note that the other teenager’s, who were seventeen and above, tended to flock to Justin, Brad and the twins. The younger teenage girls congregated around Ariel and Barbie, and the boys gravitated to Kim and Tyson. Kim was the ringleader of their little group.

When the Ubobo’s were out and about, the others soon found them.

The crew soon learnt the family all had musical talent.

They tended to take over the end of the diner near the stage and then the stage. On their first night aboard, Jamie had found the Baby Grand Piano. Tammy had left it on board as they made a Grand Piano in Clarksville for her. Jamie had played through the scales and then opened the lid and fiddled inside. She spent about half an hour, tuning the piano to her satisfaction.

The old crew had also erected a set of drums and an electric keyboard that lived on the stage. Brad was playing with the drum set and adjusting bits and pieces until he too was happy with its output and alignment for his height. Meanwhile, their siblings had gone and got their instruments.

Apparently, the group loved a form of Jazz music but also played just about any other type depending on the whims and moods of the members. Jennie favoured an acoustic guitar and Tyson like bass, but they also swapped when it suited them. The three younger girls mostly played wind instruments.

Ariel played Sax, Barbie the trumpet and Kim the clarinet or harmonica. Justin could play the violin in classical, jazz and country styles and often walked around with a harmonica in his pocket. Glenda had noticed that Kim and Justin could play just about any of the instruments if they wished.

The family limbered up, and Justin started on a slower song with the fiddle. They all joined in. Then it changed, and they upped the beat. The diner was soon full. Just about anyone who wasn’t doing anything in particular and some that should have been, ended up in there.