Girl Giant and the Monkey King

by Van Hoang

  And now Amber was sitting there. Next to Thuy, the girl who’d rejected her best friend. In Thom’s own spot. And worse, the two of them were taking selfies, Thuy’s arm outstretched, as they grinned and tilted their heads just right. The same exact way Thom and Thuy used to, the lighting perfect, casting warm glows on their skin.

  Thom felt the strange urge to rush at her best friend and push the other girl away. And yet at the same time, she wanted to run, and never talk to Thuy again. She thought about it for a second, just leaving, even though she had come all the way here, even though the Monkey King had flown her across the country just so she could see that her best friend was okay. Instead, Thom reached for her phone with shaking fingers. She found Thuy’s number and hit DIAL.

  Thom watched as Thuy laughed at something Amber said while they looked at the selfies they’d just taken on her phone. Thuy’s smile froze for a second. She must be seeing Thom’s call.

  Thom held her own phone up to her ear. “Pick up,” she whispered, her chest throbbing painfully with hope.

  Thuy pressed a button.

  In Thom’s ear, the ringing stopped, leaving behind a low, echoing drone.

  Thuy had rejected her call. She turned back to Amber and said something else that had them both cracking up.

  Thom had been replaced.

  Something in her chest twisted sharply. What had Thuy said to Amber? Was it about Thom? Were they making fun of her, the same way Bethany and Sarah whispered to each other, then glanced at her to make sure she knew? This explained everything. Why Thuy could never talk when Thom called. Why she didn’t text back. She was probably hanging out with her new BFF, her new Thom. The girl who had never been nice to her was now in her spot.

  This hurt more than all the times Bethany and Sarah had tripped her, a bone-deep, buried ache she couldn’t reach.

  She thought about marching up to them. Demanding that Amber leave. Accusing Thuy of not picking up the phone.

  But what good would that do? She didn’t live here anymore. She didn’t go to this school. She went to DeMille Middle now, and there, she wasn’t one student among many, she was the sore thumb, the weirdo who stood out, who would never fit in.

  That wasn’t Thuy’s problem. Thuy had her own problems, her own life, her own friends. She had moved on.

  And maybe it was time Thom did, too.

  17

  THOM DRAGGED HER FEET ACROSS the grass, but she didn’t care that her sneakers would get caked with dirt after how hard she’d struggled to keep them clean. She turned to look back at her old school, feeling silly and embarrassed about how excited she’d been to see it.

  Who got excited about a school? Why had she missed this place so much? The portable classrooms were gray blocks on black concrete, the brick buildings crumbling. The basketball courts were missing actual baskets, and the tennis nets drooped.

  Even the cafeteria courtyard she’d loved seemed decrepit now, the cherry trees dead, the branches like claws waiting to snatch kids and steal them to a dark corner of some fairy-tale forest.

  And her friends … They didn’t miss her at all. They had probably forgotten about her by now. She’d spent the past months in Georgia wondering about them, thinking about what they were doing without her, and all this time, they hadn’t given her a moment’s thought. She was gone; she might as well be dead to them.

  A gust of wind flared, making her stumble, blowing dirt into her eyes, and she screwed up her face. One thing she didn’t miss—the Santa Ana winds rushing through with their dryness and heat, stirring up dust. She pressed a fist in her eye to rub out whatever had gotten in, and her knuckles glistened with something wet. It was just the wind, though, she told herself, making her eyes water.

  “Have fun?”

  She whirled, squinting because her eyes still burned. “Oh,” she said. The Monkey King lay on his side in the grass, a pinky finger digging into his ear.

  “Did that cheer you up, seeing your old friends again?” he asked. But with a closer look at her face, he didn’t need an answer. To her surprise, he stood up slowly and pulled her into a hug. “It’s okay, Thom-Thom. Some friendships aren’t meant to last forever.”

  “How did you know?” What she really meant was, how had he known to say that? She hadn’t told him what had happened. She was tempted to bury her face in his fur, which now smelled like flowers and, weirdly, the cold but fresh quality of snow. Where had he been?

  “Believe it or not, I’ve had many friends.” He held her shoulders, his grin crinkling his eyes. “And enemies. Friends who turned into enemies. Enemies who became friends.” He giggled. “Friends who are also enemies.”

  “How?”

  “When you’re a demon and a god.” He shrugged and didn’t explain further.

  “Has anyone ever betrayed you?” she asked, thinking of Thuy and Amber together in her usual spot.

  “Oh, many. Too many to recount.”

  “Shing-Rhe told me how the Jade Emperor made a mockery of you by making you Master of the Horses, and how everyone laughed at you.”

  He nodded. “It was humiliating. The horses never did anything I asked. And they were bossy. I was not a master, but a servant! To horses! Me! The Great Sage of Heaven! The handsome Monkey King!”

  He puffed out his chest and stood tall. Thom couldn’t help snickering. The Monkey King deflated, pouting at her.

  “Why did you want a seat in the heavens so much anyway?” she asked. “Weren’t you happy on the Mountain of a Hundred Giants? Weren’t your demon brothers enough for you?”

  He considered the question carefully. “It wasn’t fair. The gods and the fairies, you should see where they live. Elaborate temples made of jewels—everywhere you go, everything is beautiful. And the food! Feasts of meats, and peaches for dessert, the sweetest peaches you will ever find. Servants to serve you, soldiers to protect you, and all day just lounging and having fun.” He shook his head. “And what did demons get? Most of us are banished to the hells. Only the lucky ones, the ones you’ve met, got an island.”

  “But your island is beautiful,” Thom said, thinking of the blue waters and the lush green cave.

  “It wasn’t always. It was chaos at first. Too many demons. Always fighting.”

  “But your monkey brothers are so peaceful,” she said. “They wouldn’t really hurt each other.”

  “They’re not the only ones who live on the island. They’re the only ones allowed in the sanctuary, but there are others. They live in harmony now, but it wasn’t always like that. The strong picked on the weak. The weak stole from the strong and did none of the work. It was a nightmare.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “Until I came along, of course,” he boasted, “and made everything better.”

  He leaned back and kicked his legs as if he were floating in a pool. “It wasn’t easy, you know. Why should they have listened to me? My monkey brothers only wanted to be lazy. They weren’t willing to work. They’re not strong like you. They’re not warriors.”

  She felt a small thrill at his compliment.

  “And the demons,” he said. “They only respect power.”

  “Was that why you left?” she said. “To learn how to grow more powerful?”

  He sat up and crossed his legs. “No, I was sick of them. I had no intention of coming back. But after I left, I met the Lotus Master. He’s a Taoist legend, the only master willing to show me anything about the Seventy-Two Transformations, and he taught me there was so much more to the world, so much power to be gained. I only wanted more.”

  “So you went to the heavens.”

  “The looks on their faces!” He cackled. “They were so shocked—I had broken in, and no other demon had before, you see, but I was not to blame. Their defenses should have been stronger, considering they have giant horses in their army. I declared myself the Great Sage of Heaven, because I was smarter than all of them. You should see the court, Thom-Thom. So many bright colors and gold and jade and diamonds. The gods and goddesses of the council s
it on crystal seats.” He mimicked sitting bolt upright, making his voice high and pompous. “‘I declare we must have sunshine today. And flowers, pretty flowers, so that the birds may sing. The peaches—I worry they are not growing in wisdom. The horses—they are worried their new master does not brush them with love.’ They discussed very silly things. No one wanted to hear about the lives of demons.”

  Thom smiled at his high-pitched mimicry of the fairies. She imagined them as dressed-up versions of Bethany and Sarah, wearing silly hats and bossing everyone around. “What did you ask for?”

  “I wanted my brothers to have the same benefits as the fairies. You know, entrance into the heavens, freedom to roam the gardens, maybe a few peaches here or there. They deserve pretty things, too.”

  “The immortals said no?”

  His lips curled over his teeth. “They laughed.” He seemed faraway, his eyes glazed. “They laughed. And they banished me from the heavens.”

  His voice was tight and full of hurt, and Thom wanted to reach out and hug him like he’d done when he knew she was sad, except she didn’t know how exactly. She was about to give him a stiff pat on the shoulder, but he moved away at the last minute, giggling as he flipped into the air, all smiles again.

  “So I returned to the Mountain and lived happily ever after!” He skipped and twirled, and eventually settled on his side, resting his head on his hand.

  Thom tried to match his grin, but something still weighed her down. The Monkey King’s story did not have a happy ending, no matter how cheerful he pretended to be. The demons were still isolated on an island, and the Monkey King had been imprisoned. Everything he’d fought for remained unchanged.

  “I’m sorry I couldn’t help make you feel better,” he said, reading something in her face.

  “Don’t be sorry.” She gave his shoulder a playful punch, as soft as she could manage. It landed with a thunk, and he took several steps back. His eyes gleamed.

  “You’re still holding back,” he said.

  “I wasn’t really trying to hurt you, you know.” She smiled and looked down at her hands. It was nice to be with someone and not have to worry about breaking their bones.

  “Why not? It might help you feel better.”

  “Is this what you do with your friends? Fight them?”

  “Only the ones I like. Come on, as hard as you can.” He pointed to his shoulder.

  “Can’t I just toss you?”

  “Last time, I almost got lost.”

  “More reason to do it again.”

  He giggled. “Just once, please? Please!” He held his hands together and batted his eyelashes. “Please, Thom-Thom!”

  “Okay.” She laughed. “Just once.”

  He stood with his legs apart, braced for impact. As she pulled her elbow back, he gave her a reassuring nod, cackling his monkey cackle. She let her fist fly, but at the last second—she just couldn’t help it—she held back. Still, her fist collided, and the Monkey King sailed backward. He dug his feet into the grass, ripping up chunks of dirt until he skidded to a stop. Thom was horrified. Sure, this was the Monkey King and he had asked for it, but that would definitely leave a bruise.

  To her surprise, he launched into the air. “Wooo-hoooooo! Let’s see what else you can do!” He reached down for her hands and swung her around in circles.

  Thom giggled.

  The Monkey King stopped over the basketball courts. He dropped her at one end and curled up into a ball in front of her. “Think you can make it?” he asked.

  “What do you mean?”

  He floated, knees against his chest. “Isn’t this a silly game you mortals play? With a ball?”

  She looked from his curled-up body to the basketball hoop on the other side of the court. “You want me to shoot you?”

  He cackled gleefully. “Yes, yes! You are strong, but you must also be disciplined. Here. I’ll make it easy.” And right in front of her eyes, he shrank, his body constricting into a sphere. His face grinned at her through the circle of his arms.

  “Okay,” she said hesitantly. She touched him with careful movements, holding him between her palms. He was no bigger than a basketball now. “Okay, but like … but what if I hurt you?”

  “We’ve been over this, Thom-Thom. I am the great and powerful and invincible Monkey King. I am unhurtable.”

  Thom smiled. It did look sort of fun. The basketball court wasn’t as big as a soccer field, but she was used to kicking the ball, not throwing it. She held the Monkey King up to her face, and he let out a giggling shriek as she tossed him straight at the basketball hoop.

  Her hands flew up to her mouth as he was about to sail over the backboard, but right before he whizzed past it, he burst into his full form, arms and legs spread wide. His toes touched the top of the backboard lightly, and he landed with the grace of a cheetah. Then, like an acrobat, he flipped, arms outstretched, and, cartwheeling through the air, he dove into the hoop.

  Thom clapped as he bowed and bounced back to her. When he reached down, she also reached up, and their hands met, fingers interlacing before he pulled her onto his back.

  “Where are we going?” she asked as he lifted them both into the sky.

  “You’ll see,” he shouted over the wind. “You’ll see!”

  They were zooming along too fast to be able to talk as they flew up inside a cloud of mist and fog. Then they burst into the clear blue expanse of the sky. A dark flock of crows flew ahead of them, and the Monkey King cawed loudly, as if mocking them.

  The birds suddenly changed formation, banking to the right, and swarmed her and the Monkey King, and Thom gripped the fur on his shoulders even tighter.

  “Ahhhhh,” she shouted, but she wasn’t sure he could hear, because the crows had started cawing at them from all sides. Their aggressive cries, the wind in her ears, the flapping of wings, the Monkey King cawing back just as loud: They were going to die. He was going to drop her, or the birds would peck her to death.

  “Wukong!” she cried, ducking when a crow dove for her head.

  Just before it reached her, the Monkey King darted, flipped in the air, and twisted his way out of the formation. The crows followed, but the Monkey King stayed just out of reach, letting them catch up before zipping away, and then laughing maniacally when their cawing got even louder, more menacing.

  Eventually, the Monkey King descended, and they landed in a junkyard, surrounded by piles of metal, parts left over from abandoned vehicles.

  “Are you insane?” Thom cried, slipping from his back and shoving him away. “We could have died.”

  “What? Because of a bunch of birds? One snap of your fingers, and they would drop like flies. You’re stronger than you think you are. How many times must I tell you?” Then he turned abruptly and surveyed the junkyard he’d dropped them in. “Pick that up,” he demanded of her, pointing to an old car.

  She had trouble catching her breath. “What if someone sees?”

  “There isn’t a mortal around for miles. Come on, take it.”

  The mountains of scrap metal hid them from view. It was better than having to punch him. And she wanted to learn; she needed to control her strength if she was going to have to live with it. Thom took a deep breath, but the Monkey King didn’t give her a moment to hesitate, pushing her to the car. He took her hands and guided them to the bottom of the car.

  “You can do it, Thom-Thom,” he whispered, and then disappeared.

  Alone, Thom faced the car. It was small, one of those egg-shaped compacts, the white paint covered in dust. She lifted it. Easily. She held it over her head, surprised at how effortless it felt. The Monkey King popped up next to her under the car, grinning at her beneath its undercarriage.

  “Excellent,” he said. “Now this one.” He pointed to something bigger, an SUV. It was only slightly heavier to her than the car had been. The Monkey King’s giggles led her around the junkyard as he instructed her to pick up one vehicle after another, each heavier than the last.

&nb
sp; When they got to the giant eighteen-wheeler truck, Thom leaned back and shook her head. The truck was missing a few tires and was hunched to one side like an animal with an injured leg. That rush of wrongness was back, the guilt that had overcome her when she’d accidentally used her strength. But this wasn’t an accident. No one had been hurt. “I don’t think I’m that strong,” she said.

  “Yes, you are,” the Monkey King said. “You are stronger than you think, stronger than anyone I’ve met, stronger than a Jade Soldier. You could be a soldier, a true warrior.”

  “A warrior.” She was no warrior. She was just a small middle schooler. But the idea of it, of being a great fighter, of being someone strong—really strong like a soldier, not clumsy like her—seemed so cool.

  “I can teach you to be the greatest warrior there ever was,” the Monkey King said. “I can train you to control your strength.”

  Thom wanted it. She wanted to be able to use her power, to not be afraid of it. She nodded.

  He pointed to the truck again. “So pick that up. And then we can go home.”

  “I don’t know…”

  “You can do it. Show me what you are capable of.”

  Thom clenched her fists. She crouched next to the truck, positioned her hands underneath it, and pushed upward. At first, it didn’t budge. The metal where she gripped it bent beneath her fingers. The truck rumbled and creaked, threatening to break apart, but then when she’d thought about giving up, the entire thing eased up. She held it above her head and turned to the Monkey King.

  He laughed and clapped so loud she almost didn’t hear the crunch of metal as she set the truck back down.

  “You’re strong, you’re strong!” the Monkey King shrieked, somersaulting so fast he became a blur. His excitement was contagious, washing away Thom’s uneasy feeling, along with the sad weight dragging her down, deep in her chest. She felt light, elated.

  Their laughter was drowned out by a dog barking, and they both stopped as a wiry-haired mutt appeared between two piles of scrap metal. Thom grinned and held out a palm, but the dog growled at her, hackles raised.