A little bit later, Norman and I were sitting by ourselves on the twenty-sixth floor of the Wake Up, America show building, in a lobby area, though a security guard perched behind a big desk was keeping an eye on us. I really liked the view from up there, how all of New York City seemed to be stretched out before me. I know that most people think of New York as a crazy, dangerous place, but sometimes when I’m that high up and can see a big chunk of it, the buildings and traffic and bridges and the East River, it weirdly brings me some peace. I can’t explain it.
Elsewhere, staffers from the show were trying to find my parents, calling police stations and hospitals. I had never been more worried in my life. I thought I’d be apart from my parents for ten minutes, tops. But it had been more than an hour.
And Norman . . .
I should have said that I was sitting in the lobby. Norman was stretched out across my lap, still fried. Looking at him, I felt totally helpless. If only I was a computer genius like my dad, I might have been able to figure out a way to get the robot running again. But I was just me.
Still, I kept trying to wake him up by saying “wake up” over and over again. Well, isn’t that how you wake someone up?
“Wake up, Norman,” I said for the seventy-third time. “This is a voice command override.”
Nothing.
“Please, please, please wake up,” I tried.
Nothing.
“If you wake up,” I said, “I’ll sing one of those Frenchy songs with you.”
More nothing . . . Wait. Did Norman just twitch?
“Norman, can you hear me?” I bent close to his head. “If you can hear me, say something or do something. Give me a sign!”
Th-th-th-th-th, Norman snickered. Then he opened his eyes, sat up, and gave me a mighty hug. I just stared at him, bug-eyed. At least I sure felt bug-eyed.
Norman was okay. He was okay!
“Bonjour, mon frère,” the robot said, leaning back and grinning. “So pleasant to see you again.”
“Are you really okay?” I said, stunned. Imagine thinking your beloved pet hamster was dead, but just as you were planning the burial he jumped up and went for a run in his wheel. It was that kind of feeling.
“Tell me, Matt, did you enjoy my performance?” Norman asked.
“Your performance?” I said. “What do you mean ‘performance’?” Norman just smiled. “Wait a minute! Are you saying that all the weird stuff you did on the show was a fake job? Just an act?”
“Oui,” Norman said, nodding. “While I have no formal training in the dramatic arts, I hope that my acting was suitable.”
That was definitely the old Norman, the ham-headed showoff. He was back! “So why’d you fake being fried?” I asked.
“Simple,” he said. “I thought that if I could show the spies and the rest of the world that I was junk, a malfunctioning ‘robot,’ perhaps they would leave us alone. And we could carry on with being just another American family.”
Brilliant! Norman was brilliant! Then I thought about what his words really meant. They meant that Norman’s big goal was to just be part of a family. But . . . isn’t that the exact thing most of us people want?
I was about to give Norman a high five, when I saw a worried look take over his face.
“Maman and Papa?” he said. “Is there any word of their whereabouts? And what about my dear uncle and cousin? Any news from France?”
“No news,” I said, trying to sound confident. “But lots of people here and in France are looking for them. I’m sure they are all safe.” I wished I was as certain as my words.
“Yes, they have to be okay,” Norman said, blinking fast like he was trying to process something. He then smiled warmly at me, and I calmed down a little, felt reassured. No matter what was going on elsewhere in the world, I did have a brother, right there by my side. Sweet.
“You know something, Norman?” I said. “As far as brothers go, you’re pretty much aces.”
“Merci,” he said. “And this ‘aces’ is a good thing? Apologies, but no such word exists in my English language database, except as referring to a playing card, a person who excels at an activity such as an exam or a driving lesson, or a serve in tennis that cannot be returned.”
“Yeah, it’s a good thing,” I said, starting to feel a little mushy. But since we were in public, I just punched Norman on the arm, a little harder than I had planned. I hoped that I didn’t dent the poor guy.
The robot and I peered out the big windows at our city. Far off, a helicopter moved across the blue sky. Closer, cars, taxis, and buses crawled along the streets. Millions of people were busy living their lives. Right there in front of us! It’s . . . it’s . . .
“Magnificent,” Norman said, finishing my thought. I think I read somewhere that brothers could sometimes do that.
You know, I always sort of felt ripped off by Lucien’s death, that life pretty much owed me a brother. But with Norman . . . Well, it was like the world was finally starting to make sense.
Just as I was about to go check with the security guard to see if there was any news about my parents, there was a sudden sound of a couple dozen shoes clomping up the hallway to the left of us. A stampede of people.
Then I saw them, my mom and dad being followed by Fig, Nancy, lots of staffers, and a guy holding a video camera.
Mom and Dad were safe! Yes!
Norman and I flew out of our chairs and ran up to them as they were hurrying to us. Collision! We all sort of melted into a big, messy clump of hugs, kisses, and tears. It was so good. So very, very good.
The show employees broke out in applause. I glanced at the ones I could see, while clinging to my dad. Some of them, like Fig, had wet eyes, while others looked like they were trying hard to keep it together. Silly people. Go ahead and lose it!
“We’re safe now,” Dad informed Norman and me. “The spies are locked up in jail and aren’t going anywhere.”
Yes! Incredible! I hugged my dad even tighter.
“So, mister,” Dad said to me. “I think someone has a whole lot of explaining to do.”
But I only nodded and sniffled. I didn’t want to talk—I just wanted to enjoy this moment with my family. I hoped it would last for at least a zillion years.
Norman and I switched, me hugging Mom and Norman kissing Dad. Mom smooched the top of my head, and then, I could hardly believe it, she smooched Norman’s head. I heard Nancy say, “And so we have our happy ending.” I was thinking those words were for me and my family, summarizing the crazy morning for us, but then I saw Nancy gazing into the video camera, and the camera guy giving her the thumbs-up. Jeez! These people.
The herd of humans we were stuck in slowly moved back up the hallway. Mom and Dad were safe, and Norman was okay too. I was the happiest kid in the universe!