“Emily? Emily?” a plaintive voice called from miles away. My shoulder was shaking, so I put a hand on it to stop the shudders that were racing through it. But my hand landed on another hand, not a shoulder. I came rushing back to present time and saw that it was Kaliyan’s hand.
I gave a strained smile. “Back,” I said jokingly, and my best friend returned my expression. “I was just thinking about that day, in the woods…” I looked up at Skylar, who was looking at me. “You’re Nobody? Nobody is you?”
The look that Kaliyan gave me was beyond confusion. “He’s Skylar.”
Skylar and I laughed in unison, and soon, for some reason, tears were streaming down my face. Her confusion wasn’t all that funny, but my nerves were a little frayed.
“Yes, I’m Skylar,” he said. “But…I guess you could say I’m Nobody, too.” He bit his lip and averted his eyes, looking extremely uncomfortable. “And, to answer one of your other questions, I saved you because…” He paused. “I saved you because I knew you were lost.”
He looked back up at me. “It would have been extremely rude of me to leave you there,” he added, “so I went back, in wolf form, to drag you back to your treehouse—yes, I read your mind—and then, because I was curious, changed back and went to check on you.”
My strained smile melted into a true one as I recalled how he’d found me still on the ground, looking dazed and brushing myself off. “I was so shocked about being carried off by a wolf that I couldn’t even stand up,” I remembered. “You came up and started giggling, and I got offended and…” I broke off, wondering if he recalled what had happened next.
He laughed: apparently he did. “You got very offended,” he echoed, “and told me everything about the so-called ‘giant wolf’ that had carried you there in its mouth. Then you began to stutter and look dazed, as if you’d hit your head. You’re a great actor, by the way.”
He said this slightly as if he’d rehearsed it, but I ignored the feeling. “Thanks,” I replied. “It’s a hobby of mine, to act dazed after being carried around by a gigantic wolf. Besides, you’re a better actor; you acted as if you’d just seen the wolf run past…”
I hear a rustling to my right, and flinch; a creature making noise is the last thing I need right now. What I really need is to keep my head about me and think logistics, but of course that isn’t going to happen. There’s another noise, and suddenly the so-called creature steps out of the bushes. It towers above me, casting its huge shadow over me and sending chills along my spine, and its tawny, brown, and black pelt gleams in the afternoon sunlight.
A giant wolf, I think. It’s beautiful.
Suddenly it leans down and clamps its powerful jaws on my shirt, bringing me up in the air so that my legs are dangling a good 3 feet off the ground. Then it runs, so quickly that I feel as if I’m flying through the air. We reach my treehouse in seconds, and I’m dropped onto the ground at the wolf’s feet. It bows its head to me, like it knew what it was doing, then trots off into the trees again.
I wait for a few minutes, stunned, thinking that perhaps it will come back. It doesn’t, so I attempt to get to my feet; I definitely know the way back home from here. But my legs feel like the bones and muscles had just disappeared, and I can’t rise more than an inch above the damp forest floor before plopping back down again.
There’s another rustling, this time from directly in front of me. This sound is quieter and more subtle, though, and soon I realize why as a young boy steps out from the underbrush. I quickly recognize him as Nobody, and brush my legs off. “Hi, Nobody,” I say a little shyly.
Nobody waves. “Hi,” he says, his tone amused. “Are you okay?” His face adopts a concerned expression, which looks kind of silly upon an 8-year-old boy’s face. He walks over to me in 2 long strides, then squats down to my level. “I, um, saw this huge creature go past, with a…small person in its mouth, so I, uh, followed it and I guess it was you, because…here you are,” he finishes lamely.
“Yeah,” I say uncertainly. “It was this huge wolf that came up just a few minutes after you l-left me, and I was just so surprised that it, well, was so huge and wolfy, and just came up to me and grabbed me by my shirt and carried me here. I don’t know how it knew where my treehouse was, but…”
I stop abruptly, having realized what I’m saying, and blink. “Never mind, it was nothing. I guess I…well, my head hurts a lot, so I guess I might have hit it, and—” I try to adopt a dazed expression “—just…never mind. Never mind.”
Nobody sits down and crosses his legs, his concerned expression faltering to reveal his intensely entertained one underneath. He struggles with it for a few moments, then unexpectedly breaks out laughing, his high, clear voice echoing among the trees as he clutches his gut and falls to the ground. His chortles slowly fade, and he slowly sits up.
“What? What’s so funny?” I demand, feeling affronted. “That’s not funny!”
Nobody grins widely, his white teeth gleaming as he responds with another laugh. “Yes it was,” he argues, still grinning. “It was very funny. But I’m not telling you why!” His face is suddenly very serious as he swiftly stands and runs off into the woods again.
“You’re sure good at disappearing, Nobody,” I murmur, then stand and walk slowly out of the reserve and towards my house, mind whirling with thoughts of Nobody and the giant wolf.
I blinked. “Sorry. I did it again,” I said, before anyone could tell me that themselves. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to, it’s just…I finally figured out who Nobody was, and it’s kind of…I’m sorry.”
Both of my companions stared at me. Skylar then broke the awkward silence with an amused, “It’s okay. You don’t have to be so sorry.”
A blush crept up onto my face. “Sorry,” I said automatically, then almost slapped myself. “Sor—Ugh. You know, I’m just gonna stop talking now.”
Kaliyan laughed. “Nice job, Em,” she grinned.
“Anywho…” Skylar sighed. “Do you want to, I don’t know…do something besides sit here and daydream? Maybe we could…” Suddenly his spine stiffened and his sentence changed course. “Maybe we could—I’ve got to go. I’ll be here tomorrow if you need me.”
Then he stood, gave a tight smile, and ran off just the way he did all those years ago.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Friday, June 26, 2009
Chapter Two: The Boy Called Nobody
“Erm, excuse me?” a diffident voice asked, when Kaliyan and I had stopped laughing about a particularly funny joke. “Could I sit here? All the other tables…well, you know, they’re full.” The tall, chocolate-haired boy looked at me curiously as he spoke.
I nodded. “Of course,” I said, and he took a seat in the chair next to me, which was right across from Kaliyan. “What’s your name, anyway? Mine’s Emily, and that’s Kaliyan.” Something was nagging at me in the back of my mind, but I couldn’t think of what it was. The boy looked somehow familiar to me, but there was nowhere that I could have met him…
The boy grinned widely, and I noticed that his canine teeth were significantly larger than the rest of his teeth. Whatever, I thought, dismissing my fantastical thoughts. It couldn’t be. “I’m Skylar,” he answered in his clear, melodic voice.
“Cool,” Kaliyan said shortly.
I smiled as I took one last sip of my iced coffee. “So, anyway, what’s—”
“Oh, my god!” Kaliyan interrupted, her voice silencing the many people surrounding us. She waved a hand to them, and conversations slowly picked up again. My best friend looked Skylar in the eye and narrowed her eyes slightly. “You’re a werewolf.”
Skylar sighed. “Yes, I am. You’re telepathic, and she’s psychic,” he responded monotonously. “I’m telepathic as well, if you’re wondering why I know this.” He frowned. “And I prefer the term ‘lycan.’”
My smile widened. “So I was right,” I said without thinking, then stuttered, “That is, I, um…isn’t it hot outside today?” I laughed nervously.
“You noticed my teeth,” Skylar broke in. You’d think I’d be used to this by now, I thought, Kaliyan being telepathic and all…But of course I’m not. “And yes, you were right. You’re very observant, you know. Not many people would notice such a small thing.”
Kaliyan shrugged. “I would have noticed it, too, if I was sitting right next to you like Emily is,” she harrumphed, tossing her empty cup into a trash can. “Anyway, we should probably get going. We wanted to go over to Valley Fair today, remember, Emily?”
I laughed, then answered, “Yeah, but that was at 1. It’s only 9:30 in the morning right now. We have plenty of time.”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
Skylar looked from me to Kaliyan. “You want me to leave, don’t you?” he asked Kaliyan. After a very brief pause in which Kaliyan opened her mouth to protest, he added, “And you’re somehow sad that you have a boyfriend, whose name appears to be Dusk. Cool name, but why would you be sad to be his girlfriend? He seems cool enough to me, from your memories.”
“Dusk’s plenty cool,” Kaliyan said. “But being single has its perks, too. That’s all.” She laughed lightly, then adjoined, “By the way, Emily thinks you’re hot and that your eyes are really pretty and blue. Just so you know.”
Blushing, I sank down in my chair. Suddenly my shoes were very interesting. Behind all my embarrassment, I heard Skylar laugh. “I think my eyes are pretty, too. Don’t worry about it, Emily; it’s fine. They’re your own personal thoughts, after all.”
Suddenly I felt a warm hand beneath my chin, which was lifted up so I was facing Skylar, who was smiling down at me. “She shouldn’t have intruded on them in the first place,” he stage-whispered. This time it was Kaliyan’s turn to blush and descend.
“Well, I am telepathic,” she muttered. “’S not like I can help it.”
Skylar sighed. “You could if you tried hard enough. Anyway, whatever. It’s fine.” He ran his hand tiredly through his hair.
"You know what? I don't care what you think. Shut up." Kaliyan crossed her arms across her chest, but grinned at Skylar.
Then it clicked. “You’re that guy from the forest!” I shouted loudly, but thankfully we were almost alone now. The few people that were in the shop were too focused on their drinks or laptops to pay me, a lone 14-year-old girl, any mind.
Eyes widening, Skylar abruptly stood, beckoning me to do the same. “Let’s go somewhere more private to discuss this,” he requested, and I nodded immediately. I wanted to find out more about him, especially now that I knew why he was so familiar.
Kaliyan just looked confused, but she stood and followed us down the long hallway and out into the warm summer day. The three of us strolled briskly down the busy street, Skylar in the lead, until we reached an empty park. “Here,” Skylar said shortly, taking a sharp left into it.
“Why?” Kaliyan asked.
Skylar shook his head and headed for an empty picnic bench. Kaliyan and I sat on one side, with him on the other. Then I unleashed my curiosity. “Who are you? Were you the wolf that you supposedly saw? Why did you save me? Who are you? What—”
“Hold on,” Skylar laughed, holding up his hands, “one question at a time. I’m Skylar, or Skye, a 15-year-old lycan who you just happened to have meet as you were walking to…well, as you were walking somewhere in the preserve. It was nothing.”
I nodded, lost in the memory of that day…
Creak. Creak.
“Erm, excuse me?” a diffident voice asks. “Could I use this? All the other ones…well, you know, they’re taken.” The slim boy, who looks to be about my age, is smiling cautiously as he gestures to the swing beside me. His voice is high-pitched, as young boys’ often are, but almost musical. I like it.
First I take a moment to absorb his short chocolate brown hair and bright turquoise eyes, and his evenly tanned skin, a fantastic feat for living in Minnesota.
Then I nod. “Of course,” I say, and he sits gingerly down in the swing. “What’s your name, anyway? Mine’s Emily.”
The boy grins widely, and I notice that his canine teeth were significantly larger than the rest of his teeth. “I’m nobody,” he answers in his clear, melodic voice. Then he starts pumping, and soon he’s swinging just as high and fast as I am.
“Your name’s Nobody?” I ask jokingly. “Nobody what?” He apparently takes it for a serious question, though, since he shrugs his skinny shoulders.
He looks back up at me, his unfathomable eyes sparkling in the summer sunlight. “I don’t have a name,” he says plainly, “so you can call me Nobody if you want to.” He bites his lip and scuffs his bare feet in the sand as his swing passes it. “What’s your name?”
“If you don’t get a name, I don’t get one either,” I say like the stubborn little girl that I am. “You can call me Somebody.” I smile, then ask, “How old are you?”
He shrugs again. “I dunno. Probably ‘bout 8 or 9. How ‘bout you?”
“You dunno your own age?” I ask incredulously. “How come you don’t know your own age? I’m 8 and a quarter years old.” My new friend Nobody nods, then returns my smile, his short hair already windswept from the swing.
He then shrugs for a third time, then slides off the swing. “I just dunno,” he says.
“Where’re you going?” I ask him, and slide of my own swing. “Don’t leave; you just got here! Besides, you should know how old you are.”
Nobody frowns and crosses his arms. “Well, I don’t,” he says sharply, “and I gotta go home now. My family’s gonna worry about me.” He nods vaguely towards the nature preserve by my house, then takes off at a speedy pace.
Without thinking, I follow him to the forest; I know the whole reserve like the back of my hand, and am confident that I can find out where he lives and get back home in no time. He quickly runs over the wooden bridge and slides off at the corner like I often do, to get to my treehouse. That makes me grin to myself, as that’s the part of the reserve I know best of all.
I slide off the bridge as well, and am soon running down a dirt path, my hair streaming behind me. I can see Nobody, who just spun right onto a smaller path, and quicken my pace a little bit. “C’mon, Nobody, cut me some slack,” I whisper to myself, my legs churning beneath me as I turn right and go full-out for a little while. My breath is already coming in short bursts.
Nobody is now running at about the same pace as I am. His hands are strangely stuffed inside his jean pockets and he’s whistling a beautiful song as he sprints along. I follow him for a long while, but suddenly he hooks a sharp left and disappears into the woods before I can turn the corner. I can’t see him anywhere, and am already far too tired to start sprinting again.
“Hello?” I call. “Nobody? Where’d you go?” There’s no answer. “Come on, Nobody, this isn’t funny! I know you know I was following you.” I keep yelling for a good few minutes, but he was either very good at waiting or gone. I guessed the latter.
I sigh, then look around to take in my surroundings. Dread settles into my gut; I don’t recognize this place at all. The trees seem to lean in around me, and a cold fist closes on my heart. I had thought that I knew the whole place, but right now I feel like I don’t know much of it at all.
The boy called Nobody has led me to what seems to be the only place in Hyland Reserve that I don’t know.
I nodded. “Of course,” I said, and he took a seat in the chair next to me, which was right across from Kaliyan. “What’s your name, anyway? Mine’s Emily, and that’s Kaliyan.” Something was nagging at me in the back of my mind, but I couldn’t think of what it was. The boy looked somehow familiar to me, but there was nowhere that I could have met him…
The boy grinned widely, and I noticed that his canine teeth were significantly larger than the rest of his teeth. Whatever, I thought, dismissing my fantastical thoughts. It couldn’t be. “I’m Skylar,” he answered in his clear, melodic voice.
“Cool,” Kaliyan said shortly.
I smiled as I took one last sip of my iced coffee. “So, anyway, what’s—”
“Oh, my god!” Kaliyan interrupted, her voice silencing the many people surrounding us. She waved a hand to them, and conversations slowly picked up again. My best friend looked Skylar in the eye and narrowed her eyes slightly. “You’re a werewolf.”
Skylar sighed. “Yes, I am. You’re telepathic, and she’s psychic,” he responded monotonously. “I’m telepathic as well, if you’re wondering why I know this.” He frowned. “And I prefer the term ‘lycan.’”
My smile widened. “So I was right,” I said without thinking, then stuttered, “That is, I, um…isn’t it hot outside today?” I laughed nervously.
“You noticed my teeth,” Skylar broke in. You’d think I’d be used to this by now, I thought, Kaliyan being telepathic and all…But of course I’m not. “And yes, you were right. You’re very observant, you know. Not many people would notice such a small thing.”
Kaliyan shrugged. “I would have noticed it, too, if I was sitting right next to you like Emily is,” she harrumphed, tossing her empty cup into a trash can. “Anyway, we should probably get going. We wanted to go over to Valley Fair today, remember, Emily?”
I laughed, then answered, “Yeah, but that was at 1. It’s only 9:30 in the morning right now. We have plenty of time.”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
Skylar looked from me to Kaliyan. “You want me to leave, don’t you?” he asked Kaliyan. After a very brief pause in which Kaliyan opened her mouth to protest, he added, “And you’re somehow sad that you have a boyfriend, whose name appears to be Dusk. Cool name, but why would you be sad to be his girlfriend? He seems cool enough to me, from your memories.”
“Dusk’s plenty cool,” Kaliyan said. “But being single has its perks, too. That’s all.” She laughed lightly, then adjoined, “By the way, Emily thinks you’re hot and that your eyes are really pretty and blue. Just so you know.”
Blushing, I sank down in my chair. Suddenly my shoes were very interesting. Behind all my embarrassment, I heard Skylar laugh. “I think my eyes are pretty, too. Don’t worry about it, Emily; it’s fine. They’re your own personal thoughts, after all.”
Suddenly I felt a warm hand beneath my chin, which was lifted up so I was facing Skylar, who was smiling down at me. “She shouldn’t have intruded on them in the first place,” he stage-whispered. This time it was Kaliyan’s turn to blush and descend.
“Well, I am telepathic,” she muttered. “’S not like I can help it.”
Skylar sighed. “You could if you tried hard enough. Anyway, whatever. It’s fine.” He ran his hand tiredly through his hair.
"You know what? I don't care what you think. Shut up." Kaliyan crossed her arms across her chest, but grinned at Skylar.
Then it clicked. “You’re that guy from the forest!” I shouted loudly, but thankfully we were almost alone now. The few people that were in the shop were too focused on their drinks or laptops to pay me, a lone 14-year-old girl, any mind.
Eyes widening, Skylar abruptly stood, beckoning me to do the same. “Let’s go somewhere more private to discuss this,” he requested, and I nodded immediately. I wanted to find out more about him, especially now that I knew why he was so familiar.
Kaliyan just looked confused, but she stood and followed us down the long hallway and out into the warm summer day. The three of us strolled briskly down the busy street, Skylar in the lead, until we reached an empty park. “Here,” Skylar said shortly, taking a sharp left into it.
“Why?” Kaliyan asked.
Skylar shook his head and headed for an empty picnic bench. Kaliyan and I sat on one side, with him on the other. Then I unleashed my curiosity. “Who are you? Were you the wolf that you supposedly saw? Why did you save me? Who are you? What—”
“Hold on,” Skylar laughed, holding up his hands, “one question at a time. I’m Skylar, or Skye, a 15-year-old lycan who you just happened to have meet as you were walking to…well, as you were walking somewhere in the preserve. It was nothing.”
I nodded, lost in the memory of that day…
Creak. Creak.
“Erm, excuse me?” a diffident voice asks. “Could I use this? All the other ones…well, you know, they’re taken.” The slim boy, who looks to be about my age, is smiling cautiously as he gestures to the swing beside me. His voice is high-pitched, as young boys’ often are, but almost musical. I like it.
First I take a moment to absorb his short chocolate brown hair and bright turquoise eyes, and his evenly tanned skin, a fantastic feat for living in Minnesota.
Then I nod. “Of course,” I say, and he sits gingerly down in the swing. “What’s your name, anyway? Mine’s Emily.”
The boy grins widely, and I notice that his canine teeth were significantly larger than the rest of his teeth. “I’m nobody,” he answers in his clear, melodic voice. Then he starts pumping, and soon he’s swinging just as high and fast as I am.
“Your name’s Nobody?” I ask jokingly. “Nobody what?” He apparently takes it for a serious question, though, since he shrugs his skinny shoulders.
He looks back up at me, his unfathomable eyes sparkling in the summer sunlight. “I don’t have a name,” he says plainly, “so you can call me Nobody if you want to.” He bites his lip and scuffs his bare feet in the sand as his swing passes it. “What’s your name?”
“If you don’t get a name, I don’t get one either,” I say like the stubborn little girl that I am. “You can call me Somebody.” I smile, then ask, “How old are you?”
He shrugs again. “I dunno. Probably ‘bout 8 or 9. How ‘bout you?”
“You dunno your own age?” I ask incredulously. “How come you don’t know your own age? I’m 8 and a quarter years old.” My new friend Nobody nods, then returns my smile, his short hair already windswept from the swing.
He then shrugs for a third time, then slides off the swing. “I just dunno,” he says.
“Where’re you going?” I ask him, and slide of my own swing. “Don’t leave; you just got here! Besides, you should know how old you are.”
Nobody frowns and crosses his arms. “Well, I don’t,” he says sharply, “and I gotta go home now. My family’s gonna worry about me.” He nods vaguely towards the nature preserve by my house, then takes off at a speedy pace.
Without thinking, I follow him to the forest; I know the whole reserve like the back of my hand, and am confident that I can find out where he lives and get back home in no time. He quickly runs over the wooden bridge and slides off at the corner like I often do, to get to my treehouse. That makes me grin to myself, as that’s the part of the reserve I know best of all.
I slide off the bridge as well, and am soon running down a dirt path, my hair streaming behind me. I can see Nobody, who just spun right onto a smaller path, and quicken my pace a little bit. “C’mon, Nobody, cut me some slack,” I whisper to myself, my legs churning beneath me as I turn right and go full-out for a little while. My breath is already coming in short bursts.
Nobody is now running at about the same pace as I am. His hands are strangely stuffed inside his jean pockets and he’s whistling a beautiful song as he sprints along. I follow him for a long while, but suddenly he hooks a sharp left and disappears into the woods before I can turn the corner. I can’t see him anywhere, and am already far too tired to start sprinting again.
“Hello?” I call. “Nobody? Where’d you go?” There’s no answer. “Come on, Nobody, this isn’t funny! I know you know I was following you.” I keep yelling for a good few minutes, but he was either very good at waiting or gone. I guessed the latter.
I sigh, then look around to take in my surroundings. Dread settles into my gut; I don’t recognize this place at all. The trees seem to lean in around me, and a cold fist closes on my heart. I had thought that I knew the whole place, but right now I feel like I don’t know much of it at all.
The boy called Nobody has led me to what seems to be the only place in Hyland Reserve that I don’t know.
Chapter One: School's Out Forever
“No, Chase, don’t go. The movie isn’t even over yet,” I muttered in my sleep. I was having an amazing dream that I was on a date with this hot guy in my class named Chase, but he was saying that he had to go home. I just wasn’t ready for it to end.
Then, of course, my alarm went off, erasing the already one-sided choice altogether. “Dang it,” I mumbled, sat up, and rubbed the fog out of my eyes. Finally, it was the last day of school. I slid quietly off my bed, thoughts rushing through my head. My last day as a freshman, I thought with a smile, then heard my cell phone go off. My ring tone cut through the silent room, and I quickly snapped open the phone to silence it; the sound was far too loud for my hardly-awake ears.
“What?” I said blearily as an opening, and heard Kaliyan’s voice on the other end. She was my best friend in the universe; we’d known each other since we were just barely considered toddlers.
“Hey, Em,” she greeted me. “Ready for the last day of school?”
I sniffed. “Sure.”
“Why ‘sure’? I mean, we’re almost sophomores. And more importantly, we’re almost not freshmen,” she said, and I mumbled my agreement, still waking up. “So, anyway, we’d better get ready for school.”
“Yeah, I know,” I said, my voice clearing up now that I’d been awake for a while. “Anyway, yeah, I’ve gotta get dressed. Seeya!”
We said our goodbyes, and I snapped my phone shut, looking forward to a good day at school. Kaliyan and I were in almost all the same classes, since our intellects were almost identical. I couldn’t wait for today to be done—Kaliyan and I were having a slumber party marking our 13th ‘anniversary’ at my house the next day.
I dressed quickly in loose khaki shorts and a light blue tee, pulling on a pair of ankle socks and my favorite VANS. Then I grabbed my messenger bag and climbed onto the bus, just in time. It seemed like seconds before Kaliyan walked onto the bus, but it was about 14 minutes. She grinned and waved jauntily.
“Hey,” she called from up the aisle, flashing a smile. I grinned back and patted the seat beside me. She got the message and sat down. “I can’t wait for today to be over. It’s gonna be kind of awkward not to get homework today, though, you know?”
I nodded. “But we’ll probably get that reading journal…”
Finally, we arrived at school. I quickly unpacked my bag, stuffing my lone binder into my otherwise empty locker. Then I headed over to Kaliyan’s locker, keeping my mind carefully blank. When I was right behind her, I thought, BOO! She jumped about a mile into the air, which was a lot higher than she usually jumped. “Jeez, Em! What the heck was that for?! You don’t need to do that every day, you know.”
I shrugged. “I dunno. I guess I figured that you’d get used to it, since I’ve been doing it all year so far. You still don’t expect it…It’s weird. Anyway, I did predict that you’d jump pretty high today, so I was kind of eager to do it.”
She chuckled. “Sometimes I forget that you’re psychic.”
Yeah, you heard me right. My best friend can read minds, and I’m psychic. We’re pretty quirky that way.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At last, school was over! I rode the bus with Kaliyan again, practically vibrating with exhilaration, and occasionally throwing comments over my shoulder to the people in the seats around me.
When Kaliyan made to get off, I grinned and thought to her, Seeya tomorrow. I was extremely excited for tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day…sleeping in on Mondays seemed like a far-off dream. I smiled to myself, then noticed that the bus had arrived at my stop. I stood, walked down the aisle.
“Have a good summer,” the bus driver said as I got off. I nodded, and thought, Will do.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I opened my eyes, immediately awake. I was on my couch, and it seemed like I’d just closed my eyes at 10:30 pm, after instant messaging Kaliyan, Paige, and Genesis for hours last night. I checked the clock. Sure enough, it was 10:31. I sighed, then immediately noticed that the sun was shining through the window. It was 10:31 in the morning!
My eyes opened, and I got up, practically inhaling a breakfast of cinnamon toast and milk. Then I remembered that I still needed to decorate for the party, which started at noon. I checked my cell phone’s clock: 10:41. So I still had plenty of time. I put up some balloons, a banner saying “SUNNY DAYS”, and a few streamers in the living room. I stifled a grin as I took it all in: it was pretty pathetic, if I did say myself.
It was only 11:03, so I flipped open a book and read for a while. I got so into the story that it took 8 times for me to notice that my phone was vibrating on my leg. I picked it up and slid it open, quickly reading Kaliyan’s message that she was on her way, and would be there at exactly noon.
“Cool,” I responded quickly, then returned to my book.
Hardly 4 pages were turned before the doorbell rang, and I got to my feet and opened the front door, thinking, You’re a minute early. Kaliyan rolled her eyes and I opened the door wider to let her in. “Wow, Em, this is pretty pathetic,” Kaliyan said jokingly, and I poked her in the side.
She flopped down on the couch, and soon the hours were whizzing by as we stayed up until the wee hours playing True Colors, Truth or Dare, and tons of other teenage-y games. Let’s just say that lots of giggling ensued as we talked and talked.
I woke up at about 7:30 the next morning, and since she wasn’t up, I shook Kaliyan awake. She blinked, muttered, “Noooo, Dusk,” then woke up fully, complete with a scowl, just for yours truly. “What?”
Shrugging, I stood up and changed into some forest green sweat shorts and a lime green Capri-sleeved shirt with “Grand Cayman” written across the chest—my ‘lounge clothes’. I yawned, and went downstairs to make us some pancakes.
When I got downstairs, I quickly fixed the pancakes. When they were done, I kept them on the oven burners, but turned off the oven so that the pancakes wouldn’t burn. Then I went back upstairs to find that Kaliyan was dressed and ready to go.
“Pancakes are ready,” I announced, and soon enough we were both downstairs, enjoying the pancakes to the chorus of our two voices.
Kaliyan stood up. “Come on, let’s go to the mall! We’re going today, right?”
I nodded, hoping Kaliyan didn’t read my thoughts, which were: I bet she wants coffee… because she REALLY needs caffeine.
What I said out loud was, “Yeah, we’re going. MOA, right?” Kaliyan nodded her assent: MOA—or the Mall of America—was gigantic, and it was only about 4 minutes from my house. It proudly donned the title of first mega mall in the United States.
In only a few minutes, we were there, at the mall. We stopped by JC Penney, Aeropostale, Hollywood Movies, and a music store, until—finally—Kaliyan spotted a Caribou Coffee. I wasn’t surprised when she headed towards it, and quickly followed behind her, quickly purchasing an iced coffee and heading towards the nearest vacant table and stirring my drink around.
Finally, Kaliyan joined me, her coffee in hand, and we chatted idly for a long while, sipping our coffees and people-watching, just generally relaxing and taking in the summer atmosphere. We watched as teen after teen entered the store and crowded around tables, gossiping and laughing and having a great time. Strangely, we weren’t jealous of their laughter; we were comfortable in our silence.
Moments later, my life changed forever.
Then, of course, my alarm went off, erasing the already one-sided choice altogether. “Dang it,” I mumbled, sat up, and rubbed the fog out of my eyes. Finally, it was the last day of school. I slid quietly off my bed, thoughts rushing through my head. My last day as a freshman, I thought with a smile, then heard my cell phone go off. My ring tone cut through the silent room, and I quickly snapped open the phone to silence it; the sound was far too loud for my hardly-awake ears.
“What?” I said blearily as an opening, and heard Kaliyan’s voice on the other end. She was my best friend in the universe; we’d known each other since we were just barely considered toddlers.
“Hey, Em,” she greeted me. “Ready for the last day of school?”
I sniffed. “Sure.”
“Why ‘sure’? I mean, we’re almost sophomores. And more importantly, we’re almost not freshmen,” she said, and I mumbled my agreement, still waking up. “So, anyway, we’d better get ready for school.”
“Yeah, I know,” I said, my voice clearing up now that I’d been awake for a while. “Anyway, yeah, I’ve gotta get dressed. Seeya!”
We said our goodbyes, and I snapped my phone shut, looking forward to a good day at school. Kaliyan and I were in almost all the same classes, since our intellects were almost identical. I couldn’t wait for today to be done—Kaliyan and I were having a slumber party marking our 13th ‘anniversary’ at my house the next day.
I dressed quickly in loose khaki shorts and a light blue tee, pulling on a pair of ankle socks and my favorite VANS. Then I grabbed my messenger bag and climbed onto the bus, just in time. It seemed like seconds before Kaliyan walked onto the bus, but it was about 14 minutes. She grinned and waved jauntily.
“Hey,” she called from up the aisle, flashing a smile. I grinned back and patted the seat beside me. She got the message and sat down. “I can’t wait for today to be over. It’s gonna be kind of awkward not to get homework today, though, you know?”
I nodded. “But we’ll probably get that reading journal…”
Finally, we arrived at school. I quickly unpacked my bag, stuffing my lone binder into my otherwise empty locker. Then I headed over to Kaliyan’s locker, keeping my mind carefully blank. When I was right behind her, I thought, BOO! She jumped about a mile into the air, which was a lot higher than she usually jumped. “Jeez, Em! What the heck was that for?! You don’t need to do that every day, you know.”
I shrugged. “I dunno. I guess I figured that you’d get used to it, since I’ve been doing it all year so far. You still don’t expect it…It’s weird. Anyway, I did predict that you’d jump pretty high today, so I was kind of eager to do it.”
She chuckled. “Sometimes I forget that you’re psychic.”
Yeah, you heard me right. My best friend can read minds, and I’m psychic. We’re pretty quirky that way.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At last, school was over! I rode the bus with Kaliyan again, practically vibrating with exhilaration, and occasionally throwing comments over my shoulder to the people in the seats around me.
When Kaliyan made to get off, I grinned and thought to her, Seeya tomorrow. I was extremely excited for tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day…sleeping in on Mondays seemed like a far-off dream. I smiled to myself, then noticed that the bus had arrived at my stop. I stood, walked down the aisle.
“Have a good summer,” the bus driver said as I got off. I nodded, and thought, Will do.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I opened my eyes, immediately awake. I was on my couch, and it seemed like I’d just closed my eyes at 10:30 pm, after instant messaging Kaliyan, Paige, and Genesis for hours last night. I checked the clock. Sure enough, it was 10:31. I sighed, then immediately noticed that the sun was shining through the window. It was 10:31 in the morning!
My eyes opened, and I got up, practically inhaling a breakfast of cinnamon toast and milk. Then I remembered that I still needed to decorate for the party, which started at noon. I checked my cell phone’s clock: 10:41. So I still had plenty of time. I put up some balloons, a banner saying “SUNNY DAYS”, and a few streamers in the living room. I stifled a grin as I took it all in: it was pretty pathetic, if I did say myself.
It was only 11:03, so I flipped open a book and read for a while. I got so into the story that it took 8 times for me to notice that my phone was vibrating on my leg. I picked it up and slid it open, quickly reading Kaliyan’s message that she was on her way, and would be there at exactly noon.
“Cool,” I responded quickly, then returned to my book.
Hardly 4 pages were turned before the doorbell rang, and I got to my feet and opened the front door, thinking, You’re a minute early. Kaliyan rolled her eyes and I opened the door wider to let her in. “Wow, Em, this is pretty pathetic,” Kaliyan said jokingly, and I poked her in the side.
She flopped down on the couch, and soon the hours were whizzing by as we stayed up until the wee hours playing True Colors, Truth or Dare, and tons of other teenage-y games. Let’s just say that lots of giggling ensued as we talked and talked.
I woke up at about 7:30 the next morning, and since she wasn’t up, I shook Kaliyan awake. She blinked, muttered, “Noooo, Dusk,” then woke up fully, complete with a scowl, just for yours truly. “What?”
Shrugging, I stood up and changed into some forest green sweat shorts and a lime green Capri-sleeved shirt with “Grand Cayman” written across the chest—my ‘lounge clothes’. I yawned, and went downstairs to make us some pancakes.
When I got downstairs, I quickly fixed the pancakes. When they were done, I kept them on the oven burners, but turned off the oven so that the pancakes wouldn’t burn. Then I went back upstairs to find that Kaliyan was dressed and ready to go.
“Pancakes are ready,” I announced, and soon enough we were both downstairs, enjoying the pancakes to the chorus of our two voices.
Kaliyan stood up. “Come on, let’s go to the mall! We’re going today, right?”
I nodded, hoping Kaliyan didn’t read my thoughts, which were: I bet she wants coffee… because she REALLY needs caffeine.
What I said out loud was, “Yeah, we’re going. MOA, right?” Kaliyan nodded her assent: MOA—or the Mall of America—was gigantic, and it was only about 4 minutes from my house. It proudly donned the title of first mega mall in the United States.
In only a few minutes, we were there, at the mall. We stopped by JC Penney, Aeropostale, Hollywood Movies, and a music store, until—finally—Kaliyan spotted a Caribou Coffee. I wasn’t surprised when she headed towards it, and quickly followed behind her, quickly purchasing an iced coffee and heading towards the nearest vacant table and stirring my drink around.
Finally, Kaliyan joined me, her coffee in hand, and we chatted idly for a long while, sipping our coffees and people-watching, just generally relaxing and taking in the summer atmosphere. We watched as teen after teen entered the store and crowded around tables, gossiping and laughing and having a great time. Strangely, we weren’t jealous of their laughter; we were comfortable in our silence.
Moments later, my life changed forever.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
The Four of Fame - info
Name: Emily Elizabeth Kimbro
Age: 14 years young
Looks: Auburn hair; tan, green, and blue eyes (layered); super pale; no muscles whatsoever
Species: Human being
Name: Skylar Anthony Blue
Age: 15 years young, but can change age at will
Looks: Chocolate brown hair; turquoise eyes with blue, green, and other colored specks (and another color, but you can find out about that later); nicely tanned; super-strong
Species: Werewolf/lycan--CAN control self in wolf form
Name: Kaliyan Uk Fricke
Age: 14 years young. Mostly.
Looks: Long, brown hair; eyes the same color as hair; super-tan-looking skin, but it's natural; average strength for a human. Mostly.
Species: Human. Mostly.
Name: Daniel "Dusk" Elijah Moore
Age: Forever 15.
Looks: White-blonde hair, honey-colored eyes, super-pale skin, extremely strong.
Species: Vampire
I did say "a little", didn't I? Yes I did. So no complaining. You get the gist.
Age: 14 years young
Looks: Auburn hair; tan, green, and blue eyes (layered); super pale; no muscles whatsoever
Species: Human being
Name: Skylar Anthony Blue
Age: 15 years young, but can change age at will
Looks: Chocolate brown hair; turquoise eyes with blue, green, and other colored specks (and another color, but you can find out about that later); nicely tanned; super-strong
Species: Werewolf/lycan--CAN control self in wolf form
Name: Kaliyan Uk Fricke
Age: 14 years young. Mostly.
Looks: Long, brown hair; eyes the same color as hair; super-tan-looking skin, but it's natural; average strength for a human. Mostly.
Species: Human. Mostly.
Name: Daniel "Dusk" Elijah Moore
Age: Forever 15.
Looks: White-blonde hair, honey-colored eyes, super-pale skin, extremely strong.
Species: Vampire
I did say "a little", didn't I? Yes I did. So no complaining. You get the gist.
The Four of Fame - pictures
This is Kaliyan and I (from left to right). Kaliyan has darker skin and slightly lighter hair, and I have green and blue (not greenish-blue. Green AND blue) eyes, not brown, and my hair is darker than that. Otherwise, we're good. ;)
That's Dusk Elijah Moore, Kaliyan's boyfriend/vampire. That's pretty much how he looks, no changes needed. FYI, though, his hair is white-blonde and his eyes are honey gold. In case you wanted to know that.
And last but CERTAINLY not least, it's the boy who I love so very much, Skylar Anthony Blue. He has chocolate brown hair and intense turquoise eyes. And he's hotter than hot.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
