It was a practically normal day for the citizens of New York City. Horns were honking, taxi cab drivers were cursing, and businessmen were going to work. However, strange things were going on in Central Park. Two 7 year old kids, named Liam and Krista, were playing around in the playground when a creature with scales emerged from the bushes. Its head was rough in texture and it had sharp teeth. On its feet were pointed claws that could make you bleed at the slightest touch. It moved on all fours, like a lizard, but it crawled instead of walked. The creature, curious about the commotion going on around it, approached the playground. Liam looks over as it walks up and his face lights up. “Krista!”“Huh?”“Come look at this!” Krista runs over and sees the mysterious creature. Now, if the kids were smart they would try to get as far away as possible from the creature. But they are kids after all, so they approached it with the intention of catching it. Liam reaches out to grab the scaled creature, and it scratches him on the hand. He winces in pain and tries to jump on it, but it runs away in fright. Him and Krista run after it and it dives into the sandbox, throwing sand all over them. After being flustered for a few minutes, Liam and Krista began to laugh hysterically. Liam runs over to his father, who wore a black suit. He was checking his phone anxiously. “Dad! Dad!”“Hm? What is it?”“I think we just saw an alien!” He chuckles. “An alien, you say?”“Yeah!”“I highly doubt that.”“But we both saw it.”“And do you have a photo of it?”“Um...no.”“Anyways, what did it look like?”“It was scaled, like a lizard! And it walked on all fours!”“You sure it wasn’t just a lizard, buddy?”“It didn’t look like any animal I know.”“Well...I will keep an eye on this ‘alien’ of yours.” Liam looks to the ground. “Dad...do aliens exist?”“No. They don’t exist in any fashion. It’s purely fiction.”“But they seem real to me.”“The internet has a way of falsifying things.”“Huh…but what about the one we saw?”“Trust me, you probably didn’t see an alien. It was probably just a lizard.” Liam runs off to rejoin Krista and turns to face his father. “I’ll prove it to you! Just you wait, dad!”“I’m sure you will.”“I know I will!” Liam goes to investigate the sandbox and finds a scale. “Look at this, Krista.”“A scale?”“From the alien.”“Oh.”“Will you help me.”“Help you with what?”“I wanna show my dad that I'm right about the alien.”“But there’s no way we can do that. The alien is gone.”“We’ll find another one.”“Really?”“Yep. And you are gonna help me.”“I’m in.” They bump fists and laugh. “Hehe...you know what we are doing right? We’re gonna prove the existence of aliens.”

It has been 7 years since Liam and Krista saw the alien at Central Park. Liam was hit with a devastating blow when his father mysteriously disappeared while at work. His whole mission to prove the existence of aliens was directed at his father, but with him presumed dead, the target had to change. Liam now wanted to prove to the world that aliens existed. He told many friends at school the story of his encounter with the lizard alien, but no one believed him. Krista was the only one who stuck with him through all of it. In fact, she was even nice enough to allow him to live at her house after his father’s death. Liam never knew his mother. His only family now was Krista. But he wasn’t upset about that. He really likes Krista. He has developed a crush on her, but he refuses to tell her his feelings. Liam also never knew what his dad’s job was, despite his death. No one ever told him how his dad died. Lately, that has been the one thing on his mind. He was currently looking at a photo of his dad with a somber face. Krista’s mother walks up to him. She knew his father personally, but never told Liam anything about him. “Are you ok, Liam?”“I knew so little about him…”“Maybe it’s better that way.”“Ms. Saxe, you knew him right? Why do you never tell me anything about his career?” Ms. Saxe looks to the ground and sighs. “He never wanted me to tell you.”“But he’s gone now...I think I deserve the right to know.”“I’m sorry...I just can’t tell you…”“Right.” Liam storms off and heads to Krista’s room. “Oh. Hey, Liam.” He enters, not saying a single word. “I know you miss him...but if he didn’t want you to know...there’s probably a reason for it.”“But I want to know. It’s unfair! It’s insulting. I don’t even know how my own father died.”“Hm…”“That’s all you have to say? ‘Hm?’ That’s it?”“Liam, I...I don’t know what else to tell you.” Liam sighs. “Sorry...I’m just so frustrated…”“It’s alright...It’s alright…” She caresses his shoulder as he looks out the window with sadness. Liam was not looking forward to the school day tomorrow. Not one bit. And he had good reason to, for the next day was agonizing for him. All day, he heard murmurs of conversation between other students about the amazing jobs their parents had. Hearing them talk about their dads being ceos and big bosses made him jealous and angry. He wanted to know what his father did just like everyone else. After school, him and Krista walked home together. She could tell he was upset. “Liam…”“Just let me be, ok?”“But-”“JUST LET ME BE!” He breaks down crying as Krista looks on with worry. “I’m sorry...I should have never said anything…”“No...it’s me who should be apologizing. Not you.” He wipes off some tears. “Come on...let’s go home…”“Ok…” They head home silently. Krista glances at Liam periodically. He pretends not to notice. No one could tell him what he wanted to know. Suddenly, he had a realization. “That’s it!” Krista turns to face him in confusion. “Huh?”“Oh sorry. I was thinking about something.”“Right.” Liam knew there was only one way he could find out about his father and that was by searching his old house. But first, he needed to ask a couple of vague questions. So, later that afternoon, Liam cleared his throat at dinner. Ms. Saxe turns to face him. “You want to say something Liam?”“Yeah. Is my father’s house still the way it was?”“Well...yes it is. He requested in his will that it remain under my care.”“So everything is still there that he owned?”“Yes...why do you ask?”“No reason…” Ms. Saxe raises an eye. “I hope you aren’t planning to break in.”“Why? Even if did break in, it’s my old house so it would be perfectly legal.”“But it would be dangerous as well.”“That’s true…” He stands up from the dinner table and walks into the living room to think. “Where are the keys?”“Why would I tell you that?”“Because it’s my old house.”“I’m not going to allow you to break in.”“Who said anything about breaking in?” Liam smirks as he heads upstairs. Ms. Saxe looks at him with worry. “You don’t think he’s gonna do it, do you honey?”“Well...he’s in a lot of pain at the moment, mom.”“But he is planning on breaking in-”“He never said anything about breaking in.”“It seemed to me like he was trying to suggest that.”“You just want to incriminate him, don’t you?”“No, but-”“I brought him into our house to give him hope, but you are just taking it all away.” Ms. Saxe sighs heavily. “Perhaps you are right…” She heads up the stairs to get ready for bed. Krista looked at her with worry. Later, at 10:00, Liam tiptoed out of his bedroom. He sneaks into Ms. Saxe’s room and takes a peek into her personal desk. In it he finds his prize: the key to his father’s house. Liam chuckles and walks towards Ms. Saxe, who is sleeping. “Thanks for my burglering tool.” He quietly makes his way out of the room, and comes face to face with Krista. “Liam...what are you doing up so late?”“Shouldn’t I be asking you the same thing?”“Don’t put the blame on me! I was suspicious of what you were doing. It’s your fault for waking me up!”“Right. Anyway, I was going to check my father’s house with this key, but you seem to be in the way…” Krista frowns. “I’ll go with you.”“But-”“I’ve got nothing better to do, now that I'm awake.” Liam sighs. “Ok…” They quietly sneak out of the house and ride their bikes over to Liam's old house, which is 5 blocks away. The house looked like it hadn’t been kept up in a while. The shutters were about to fall off, the windows were dusty, and the paint on the door was peeling. “It looks like a ghost house now…”“Oh man...” Liam uses the key to unlock the old door and head inside. Cobwebs were all over the ceiling and furniture was all over the place. “I’m to check the bedroom.”“I’ll check the living room.” Liam heads up the creaky stairs and reaches his parents bedroom door. He looks behind him with sadness. There were so many memories within this very hallway. He heads inside and checks the desk in the corner. All the drawers were empty. Liam then notices something white near the closet. He goes to investigate, and finds a white keyhole with a black key in it. “A keyhole?” He turns the key, and a secret panel in the wall opens up and white LED lights turn on. “Woah…” Inside the hidden compartment were silver weapons and gadgets. On the back wall, a single badge hung from a hook. Liam grabs the badge and it reads: Richard Windsor - Men in Black - 070297 “Krista! I found something you gotta see!” She runs up the stairs and enters the bedroom. Her mouth falls to the floor. “What is this?”“I...I don’t know…”“Weapons? And futuristic ones at that?”“Plus there’s this.” He hands her the badge. “Men in Black? What is that?”“No idea. Hey, what’s that you have there?”“Oh, I found this computer on the chair in the living room, but I can’t figure out the password.”“Let me see it.” She hands him the computer, and he opens it. A login screen greets him. He tries various combinations, but none of them work. “What about this number?” She shows him the 6 digit number on the badge. “That must be it!” He enters the numbers 0, 7, 0, 2, 9, and 7. The computer unlocks, and a lens opens in the keyboard. A hologram of the entire universe is shown. “Wait this is…”“Are those...alien planets?”“My dad knew about aliens?”“No way…” They flip through all the data with excitement and wonder, just like that time at the playground. “So then what are these for?” He holds up the weapons in the compartment. “Maybe there are dangerous aliens.”“That’s a good point. But what the heck are these?” He pulls out a long cylindrical device with a red button on the back. “Uh...I would prefer if you pointed that thing away from me…” Liam wasn’t listening. “A button?” He presses it, and a white flash fills the room. Krista’s eyes go wide and she freezes in place. Liam releases the button and drops the device quickly. Krista regains her movement and scratches her head. “W-what just happened?”“That device…”“Huh? When did you pick that up?”“Just now. Don’t you remember? I just used it on you.”“Hm...I don’t...it must have cleared my mind somehow.”“That must be to make sure people don’t know aliens exist.”“Let me see that.” Krista picks up the device and inspects it. “It says ‘neuralizer’ on the back.” She tries it on Liam and his eyes go wide. She releases the button. “Ah. What just-” She holds up the neuralizer. “I used the neuralizer on you.”“Neuralizer?”“That’s what is written on the back of this device here. It really does clear a person’s mind.”“Wow…” Krista checks the time on the computer. “We better get back home. It’s almost 12:00.”“Oh, uh, right.” They leave the house quietly, and Liam takes his father’s badge and computer with him. Once they made it back home, Krista turns to face him. “Goodnight.”“Right back at you.” She smiles and heads into her bedroom. Liam glances back at her door before entering his own room. After getting back under the covers, he inspects the badge with curiosity. “This is crazy…” He places it on his nightstand and looks up at the ceiling. All they had discovered that night was more than he could have imagined. Despite all the memories he had with him, Liam really didn’t know anything about his father at all.

When Liam and Krista left for school the next day, they didn’t tell Ms. Saxe about their adventure last night. As much as he wanted to rub it in her face that he found out his father’s secret, Liam didn’t want her to get involved. Krista was not so keen on this plan. She questioned him as they walked down the sidewalk. “Shouldn’t we at least say something?”“I think it’s for the best that we keep her out of this.”“But she could tell us more.”“Or she could tell us nothing and limit our reach.”“Ok...if it makes you happy...I won’t tell.”“Good.” Once classes started, Liam made his way over to the group of students who talked about their parents. “Oh, look who it is. I assume you are jealous of us, no?”“Actually, I have my own story to tell.”“Right. Enlighten us.”“You see, my dad was a secret agent who worked with aliens.” There was an awkward moment of silence. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”“Huh?”“A secret agent? Aliens? Have you been watching Indiana Jones 4 recently?”“Oh, yeah. Very funny. Take a look at this.” Liam pulls out the neuralizer and aims it at them. “Woah...what the heck is that?”“A simple device meant to do one thing.” He presses the button and a bright flash fills the room. Everyone’s eyes go wide. Liam realizes that he’s made a mistake. “Oh, what have I done?” He facepalms and releases the button. “Oh, look who it is. I assume you are jeal-.”“Yeah, yeah. I’ve heard your spiel before.”“What?”“Nevermind.” Liam slowly backs away and retreats to his desk. The rest of the day went by without incident. He never got the neuralizer back out. It was too dangerous to use. When school got out at 3 o’clock, Krista had many questions for him. “What did you do?”“Huh?”“You used a neuralizer didn’t you?”“How do you know that?”“There was a rumor going around in Algebra. People were saying that they forgot everything that happened before first period.”“Shit.”“I knew it.”“I couldn’t help myself, Krista.”“But you used such a device in class! That could have ended dangerously.” Liam sighs. “I won’t bring it tomorrow.” Krista begins to laugh. “Don’t worry. I brought one too.”“Wait, you were just criticizing me for doing that!”“I was teasing you.”“Gah!” They didn’t talk to each other the rest of the way home. Once homework was complete, Liam locked himself in his bedroom. He hadn’t had time to explore his dad’s computer the other night. After entering the password he takes a gander at the different pages. “News, Movies, Inmate Data, The Universe, Diary?” He decides to explore the diary first. The latest post was 3 weeks ago. He begins to read: Today is the day. The Flinters have been located in the middle of the Arctic. In a few minutes, I will leave to fulfill what may be my final mission. I wish I could have said goodbye to my son, but there’s no time. Ms. Saxe is watching over him for me. If I die on this mission, I trust she will adopt him. I only hope that my successor Edward will treat my position with respect and dignity. Liam wipes off a few tears. “Dad…” Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. “Hey, Liam. Are you alright in there? Why is the door locked?”“Ah, Ms. Saxe! I’m really naked right now!”“Excuse me?”“I’m getting dressed and can’t find clothes! Do not come in!”“Do I hear a humming sound in there?”“No, it’s nothing!”“Hmm…” Then, there was a shuffling at the door. “Hey Liam, can I come in?”“Krista? Hold on!” Liam stumbles his way to the door and unlocks it. Krista makes her way inside and locks the door behind her. “Oh, so she’s allowed to come in but I’m not?”“I told you, I’m really na-” Ms. Saxe coughs. “You’re really naked and you let Krista come join you?” Liam suddenly realizes how dirty this situation looks. “It’s not what you think! I would never try to do anything to her!”“Uh-huh.”“Ok, ok. I’m not naked but you still can’t come in.”“Fine, I understand.” She walks away from the door. “Hey Liam…” He turns to see Krista studying the computer screen. “Hm?”“Were you reading this?”“Yeah…”“Ah...are you ok? You haven’t been crying, have you?”“No...yes.”“I figured.” She walks over to him and puts her hand on his shoulder. “It’s ok. I’m here for you.”“Thank god for you, Krista.” She rests her head on his shoulder. “I’m glad that here to help you get through this tough time.”“Man...you’re so nice…”“Heh...yeah…” There was an awkward silence. Suddenly, a faint alarm emits from the computer. Liam runs over as Krista frowns. “The computer says that an alien is firing on police officers at Ray’s Diner.”“You aren’t thinking of going there, are you?”“Well…” Liam pulls out a box from under his bed. It was full of MIB weapons from his dad’s house. “When did you…”“I snuck out when you were doing homework.”“So you want to go chasing after an alien with a gun?”“Yes...but when you put it that way, it sounds dangerous.”“Because it is dangerous.”“Hmpf. I’m going with or without you.”“Shut up. You know I’m coming anyway.”“You said it, not me.” They quietly sneak out of the house with a weapon and neuralizer each. Liam grabs their bikes and they ride out to Ray’s Diner. The roads were unbelievably crowded. Civilians were trying to escape, and police officers were trying to get in. It was a hot mess. “Let’s go around.” Krista nods, and they head to the backside of the building. They approach the back door with caution. Liam turns to Krista. “Be careful…”“Same to you.” They smile and open the door slowly. From the back kitchen, they could see a bug like alien that walked on two legs. It had a futuristic gun and was firing at officers outside. Liam aims at the alien fires. The knockback sends him to the floor. The alien is hit in the back and turns around to face him. “Krista, I’m gonna need he-” But she was nowhere to be seen. “Krista?”“Little kid. Get out of here before you get hurt.”“Put the gun down!” Even Liam was surprised at how grown up he sounded. “Haha...you think I could be intimidated by a-” A shot hits the alien in the stomach and explodes into pieces. “Ugh…” Liam gets to his feet and sees Krista standing with the police. He makes his way over to her. “Thanks.”“No problem.”“Uh, you kids have quite the firepower there.”“It’s not ours.” Liam pulls out his neuralizer and clears the officers’ minds. The cop scratches his head. “Hey...what just-” Suddenly, a black van drives up, and men in black suits jump out. They quickly knock out the officers and place the two kids in the van. There were no windows on this truck. It was pitch black inside. The driver’s seat was the only area where there was a window. But it was blocked off to the kids. They finally arrive at an abandoned looking building. “Get out.” The kids are ushered out of the van by the agents. They are led to a gate with a black handpad. One of the agents uses his badge on it, and the gate opens up. A doorway appears in the old building which leads to an elevator. Upon exiting, Liam and Krista are shocked to see a giant command center with white walls and black accents. “Stop stalling.” The agents push them along and they are led to an interrogation room. “Wait q.l.” The agents leave and an older agent comes in. He crosses his arms. “Let’s cut to the chase. My name is Edward, but you can call me Agent E. Care to explain why you have these weapons?” He places Liam’s weapons on the table. “They’re my father’s.”“And what is your father doing with these kinds of weapons?”“Does this answer your question?” He hands Agent E the badge with his father’s name on it. Edward’s eyes go wide. “So you’re his son?”“Yes.”“Hm...I think he did mention you a few times. Who is this girl?”“Um...uh...she’s my...girlfriend?” Krista blushes and her eyes go wide. Agent E smirks. “I have to say, she’s a good fit for you.”“Eh?”“But that’s besides the point. You didn’t have any authorization to use these weapons. We have the right to imprison you.”“What?! But we saved those officers!”“Yes, but you two interrupted the investigation. We are the ones who are responsible for stopping threats like that.”“Well, we were just trying to protect those officers. Unlike those agents of yours who knocked them out.”“The officers are fine.”“Don’t imprison us. We can help you. My dad’s computer may have data that is useful for-” Agent E slaps him in the face. “Listen, kid. Your father is dead. Just because you have your father’s last name doesn’t mean that you are innocent. In fact-” Suddenly, another agent came running in exhaustedly. “Sir, the flinters have escaped.”“Oh, you’ve gotta be shitting me.” They run out quickly. Liam glances at Krista. “We should probably esc-” She slaps him in the face. “I’m not your girlfriend…” He shrugs. “It was the heat of the moment.” She glares at him. Really, she didn’t mind that he called her his girlfriend. She was extremely happy that he saw her that way. But she got flustered after he said it. She couldn’t think straight. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.” Liam grabs her by the hand and they run down the hallway. Agents were going back and forth with haste, weapons in hand. It was super chaotic. “Let’s head for the garage.”“But who will drive?”“I will.”“But you don’t know how to drive!”“Exactly!” They eventually make their way to the garage where various futuristic cars were locked to the ground. “They’re locked!”“Is there a key nearby?” Liam looks around the garage for a key or something, but he was out of luck. “I can’t find one.”“Ah, shit.” Liam then notices a door in the corner. “Wait. Look there!” Krista looks to where he’s pointing. “That might lead outside.” They make their way over to the door and it takes them to another garage next door. “Another garage?!”“That’s a nice car.”“Hm?” Liam looks over and sees an old fashioned Ford LTD Crown Victoria. “Woah...hey, it’s not locked! And there are keys inside!”“Well then let’s go!” They make their way into the car and Liam opens the garage. He starts the car up and prepares to drive, but the car doesn’t budge. “What’s going on?”“Hehe...You’re pressing the brake.”“Oh.” He presses the ignition and they drive out of the garage. Little did they know, a blue alien orb was hiding out in the glove compartment.