#Glitch Pulse Joseph Frost | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

yrpspiritsintheshadows · 4 years

Text

Tech Time

Okay, something’s amiss here.

Mom spent all day yesterday doing a big ol’deep clean of everything.

Now, there’s tons of food being made…

Hikaru hummed in thought, trying to think of what kind of event it was. He still wasn’t too familiar with the extended family. Not too ready to meet a bunch of people yet still.

Hm… Then again…

“Is it auntie? Cause you know she loves to talk-” Ken stopped mid sentence as Carmen raised an eyebrow, saying nothing. “Crap.”

“No.”

Yeah. If it was her side of the family, we’d probably have heard something.

Hikaru walked around the house, leaving Hideki and Carmen to their cooking. He didn’t wanna interrupt, they seemed pretty content to be where they were.

He moved to the back deck, finding Ken playing with Okami.

“C’mon, you want it?” The six year old asked as Okami hunched down, her tail wiggling in the air.

“Go… GET IT!” He threw the ball in his hand as hard as he could as it ricocheted across the yard. Okami nearly tripped over herself chasing after it.

“Geeze, she’s hyper today.”

“Ahuh.” Ken smiled, bouncing in place as Okami found the toy, rushing it back over. “Good girl!”

“So, what’s up with Mom?” He asked, thumbing inside, dodging as the ball sailed over his head. “Hey, watch it!”

“Sorry! What about Mommy?” Ken tilted his head.

“Why’s she doing all the cleaning and… and that freakin feast! Tamales, fried plantains, all that freaking steak and the tortillas?”

Ken smiled as it clicked now.

“Oh!” He giggled. He knew exactly what this was all about. “That’s cause Uncle Joseph’s coming over!”

Uncle Joseph…?

Hikaru tilted his head, confusion in his eyes.

“Huh?”

“You’ll see.” Ken took the ball from Okami again, running off to play with her in a different area. “Wanna keep playing with us?” He called after.

“No thanks!”

“Awwww!” Ken pouted. “Why not?”

“I got a robot to tinker with! Just be careful, no falls!”

“Okay!”

Hikaru looked off towards the road and downhill, the wind that picked up blowing his hair around.

“Uncle huh…?”

I wonder if they’re like Dad…

Or like us.

Hikaru hung around outside until the sun was starting to set. He was content to just have his tablet with him, texting Marco via Skype.

The wind was picking up as he shivered a little.

He looked up, meeting Carmen’s eyes as she peered out of the door. Her eyes widened before opening the screen door.

“Hikaru, why aren’t you wearing a jacket!?”

“I’m fine. Who’s Joseph?”

Carmen looked behind her towards the kitchen.

“Eiji?”

“I’m on it love, go.”

She grabbed something before heading outside, joining her son offering him a black knitted sweater that had a dark blue shark fin stitched into the back.

“Ponte un sueter.”

Hikaru shook his head.

“Hikaru, this isn’t up for debate. It’s cold. Put on a sweater or go inside.” Carmen crossed her arms, raising a single eyebrow.

Hikaru gulped, taking it and slipping it over him… He hated to admit, it was just what he needed.

“Sorry.”

She sat down next to him, looking down the hill towards the road.

“So, who is this Uncle Joseph Ken mentioned?”

Carmen smiled, leaning back in her chair. There was a nostalgic look in her eyes.

Of course, it’s my little inventor who is the most curious.

“Well, Joseph isn’t really my brother but we’re close. He’s my best friend.” She chuckled, shaking her head. “Honestly, I don’t get to see him often but whenever I can, it’s just wonderful.”

“So, that’s why all the food and stuff?”

“Gotta pay him too.” At the confused look, she got, she grinned. “A couple of months ago, Eiji’s computer was infected with a pretty bad virus. His computer that he uses for work.”

Hikaru’s jaw dropped open a little.

“Yeah, that’s the face your father made too. Kenny had thought he won a free video game system and… yeah. He clicked a link that he wasn’t supposed to, thus, infecting the computer fully with a virus that was going to destroy work Eiji had uploaded since high school.”

Hikaru winced, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. Ken was a good kid, but he was still that - a little kid, who didn’t fully understand the effect his actions had on others sometimes.

“Ooooh Titan…”

Carmen nodded, sighing.

“So, I called up Joseph. He and I went to college together too, we had the same graphics design course and hung out sometimes. He’s extremely skilled with computers, so anytime something like this happens, I call him up. He recovered everything successfully and yeah. So, he’s coming over to give a check on the computer and see if anything hardware wise needs repair too.” She smiled, giggling a bit. “He insists it’s nothing but I like giving him a good meal at least.”

“I get ya… Huh. Good to know.”

They saw headlights coming up the hill as they both stood.

“And that’s his car. C’mon.” Carmen lead the way to the front of the house near the driveway, waving to the driver.

Hikaru kept a few paces behind her, curious.

The car came to a stop, parking behind Eiji’s, the driver stepping out. He was a young man with dark skin and brown hair, a bit of cowlick sticking up on the back of his head. He was wearing a black jacket with a graphic tee under it. His teal eyes were full of warmth as he waved to them.

“Hey, Carmen!”

“Joseph, good to see you!” She hurried up to him, giving him a hug.

He chuckled, hugging her tightly.

“Great to see you too. Trust you’ve been well?” He asked as they pulled away, heading up to the door.

“Really well.”

Joseph nodded, looking to Hikaru. A curious look came to his eyes as he nodded to him.

“And whom might this be?”

Carmen brought an arm around her son’s shoulders as Hikaru gave a sheepish smile.

“This is Hikaru. He’s my eldest son.”

“We… We joined the family not too long ago.” Hikaru bowed his head quickly. “It’s good to meet you!”

“Nice to meet you too, kiddo.” Joseph shook his hand, a gentle look in his eyes. “It’s great to meet another nephew.”

Hikaru smiled, perking up.

“Yeah... Oh! Wait till you meet Hideki. C'mon!” He hurried inside.

Joseph looked to Carmen, a chuckle escaping him.

“He seems like a good kid.”

“He’s a great kid. Bit like you too.”

“Ah, I see. Maybe I can have some tinker time later.” He suggested, following her inside.

The house was as it always had been… provided there were two new voices, joining the cacophony of sound within.

Joseph barely had two seconds in the doorway before Ken bolted up to him, arms outstretched.

“UNCLE JOSEPH!!!”

“Whoa!” He laughed, scooping him up. “Missed you too Kenny! Oh, look at you, you’re getting so big!”

Ken giggled, throwing an arm over Joseph’s shoulder.

“Not too big for hugs!”

Joseph chuckled, ruffling his hair.

“There’s never such an age!”

“Heee!”

Eiji poked his head out of the kitchen, a smirk on his face.

“Ah, the man of the hour. Hope things have been well?”

“Oh, plenty.” Joseph chuckled, carrying Ken into the kitchen, inhaling the scent that was wafting around it, a content sigh leaving him.

This was definitely a favorite part of his visits.

“Carmen, you outdid yourself. It smells incredible.”

Carmen laughed, walking in behind him, a proud look in her eyes.

“Wish I could take credit for it.” She admitted. “I did a few of the dishes and we made the tamales all together as a family… but the rice? The pork?” She gestured to Hideki, a grin on her face. “That, goes to my favorite chef right here!”

Hideki blushed, smiling sheepishly, giving a quick bow.

“H-Hi.”

“Hey there. You must be Hideki.” Joseph gave him a gentle look. “I’m Joseph. It’s a pleasure to meet you… and I look forward to trying that food.”

“I promise, it’ll be good.” Hideki smiled.

“I have no doubt.”

Goodness, they’ve been busy.

“Hey, hey, Uncle Joseph!” Ken poked his shoulder, getting his attention. “I got better at my rolls and cartwheels. You wanna see?”

“How about after dinner? You can show me while I’m doing the computer check.” Joseph offered.

Ken smiled brightly, hugging him again, letting out a small giggle.

“Okay!”

Hikaru opened his mouth to say something, instead choosing to go help set the table.

Would he be okay with me helping? If he knows about tech stuff… Maybe I could ask him for some advice…

It wouldn’t be too much, right?

After dinner, Joseph went down to the garage with Carmen to see what currently was going on with the computer.

Hikaru and Ken followed after, the smaller boy more interested in the parkour hurdles and balancing beams placed around the opposite side of the room.

“Ah, still a beauty.” Joseph chuckled, looking over the computer. To some, it would’ve been a powerful gaming computer. Electronics lit up the console’s side paneling, the keyboard having inset lights that glowed an eerie shade of blue. No one would have suspected it housed over ten years of paranormal evidence, files and server information.

“It should be. You helped make it.” Carmen smiled, leaning against the wall.

Joseph nodded, setting down his tool bag, getting out a few specialized tools. Hikaru’s eyes went wide as he watched.

“Whoa…” He knelt down next to him, peering down into the bag. “H-How’d you swing these? These gotta be custom, right?”

“I made them myself.” Joseph held up one in particular as it lit up with teal colored light. “All for really seeing what’s going on inside and keeping things in check.”

“Incredible.”

Carmen exchanged a glance with him, gesturing with her head towards Joseph. Hikaru shook his head slightly…

“Hikaru?”

“Y-Yes?”

Joseph had a gentle look in his eyes, offering one of the tools and a headset to the teen, as Hikaru gave him a stunned look.

“I could use an assistant. If you want to.”

Hikaru nodded, excitement coming over him as he slipped on the headset. In an instant, he could see numerous codes appearing across the screen, commands and options appearing as well.

Joseph glanced at the necklace around his neck. He knew all too well what that symbol meant.

I think my brand of weird would be right up his alley.

“Comfortable?”

“I might never give this back.” Hikaru admitted, letting out a small chuckle as he took a tool into his hands.

Joseph got to work, sifting through the programs and files, smiling as he saw no signs of virus activity or malware.

“You really like working with technology, huh?”

“I wanna dedicate everything to it.” Hikaru replied, his voice soft as he entered a code. “I’m in the bot club at school, actually. We make robots to take to competitions and fight but I wanna also make stuff for the world.”

Joseph gave him a curious look before going back to his work.

“That so huh? What kind?”

“Robots that can assist people who need help getting around. Round the clock carers. Robots that, if you're allergic to pets but want a robot animal, you can have one and have it as a therapy pet that can detect stuff like seizures or anxiety.” Hikaru replied, grinning. “And develop some new types of bots for surgery too. I’m already trying to figure out the coding for the precise movements. One of the new fighters we’re making is a cobra so I can really practice how fast but precise it needs to move. A-And video games.”

Joseph was impressed as he logged into Hikaru’s headset, noting how fast he was going. Fast but thorough. He looked at him, reminded of himself.

“Ah, I’m quite familiar with that stage. Eager to learn everything so you can practice and refine those skills later.” He smiled. “Very good choices… and I have no doubt that you’ll reach those goals.”

“Think so?”

“Try know so. I was like that when I was your age. Programming, tinkering… All of it fascinated me so much. I could hardly get enough of it… Dedicated my life’s work to it.” Joseph threw one of his tools into the air, catching it behind his back with ease.

“What exactly is it you do?”

“Well, I run two things - I have Frost Laboratories, which is the medical equipment company my family runs.” Joseph explained, exchanging a look with Carmen. She gave a nod as he continued. “And my cyber security company, Glitch Pulse.”

“Whoa…” Hikaru’s eyes widened. “Mom, was not kidding when she said you were skilled.”

Joseph chuckled as he finished the software check. “I’ve just had a lot of practice.” He adjusted the headset. “Alright, now for the hardware check.”

“One quick thing.”

“Hm?”

Hikaru pointed to the left side of the room as he turned.

Ken waved to them before taking a running start, grabbing one of the hurdles and leaping over it.

“Ta-da”!

“Hey, that’s getting better! After this, I’ll show ya something really cool.”

“Joseph, no!”

“Yessss.”

Hikaru raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, what? Does everyone do parkour now?”

“Oh no, no, I don’t do that crazy stuff but I’ve got a few things useful for it.” Joseph unscrewed the console panel, revealing the motherboard within. “Alright, speak to me… I’m listening.”

“Huh…” Hikaru looked at the equipment in his hands. “... Hey, Uncle Joseph?”

“Yeah, kiddo?”

“Can… Can you teach me some stuff? Any of this.”

Joseph looked up, giving him a warm look.

“Consider it a deal, kiddo. C’mere, lemme show you how this beauty was put together.”

Hikaru nodded, getting closer as the two started to work, Joseph showing Hikaru where certain panels were meant to go or explaining the algorithm of programs he had developed for the system.

Carmen leaned her head back, content.

Her sons were happy, one of her closest friends was there.

All together… Just like it should. Happy and safe.

She smiled softly at the look of wonder Hikaru had on his face.

You’re going to do great things.

I just know it.