by R. J. Wolf
Anthony calmly slid back from the table, but paused when she tilted her head around and stared into him. Her eyes had gone pure white, absent of any expression. It was as if Anthony was looking into nothing. She brought her hand up with her fists closed tight. She held it high above the table and then slowly opened it, dropping what had to be the bones of small rodents onto the table.
She closed her eyes again and then began to speak in a voice that was not her own. A soft, high pitched voiced echoed through the room like an evil fairy.
“They will come, they will come for you. The Earth shall claim many lives.” She panted moving her head in a circular motion. She stood suddenly, knocking over the chair and opening her eyes. They had returned to normal and her dull brown pupils rested on Anthony.
“They know.” She whispered in her groggy, hushed tone. “Run!” She screamed, her voice shaking the room reverberating in their ears.
They all looked to one another in confusion. Madame Mimi was still bobbing her head around in a daze. Anthony shrugged his shoulders at Mikey and smirked.
“RUN!” Madame Mimi yelled again. This time her voice seemed to come from everywhere. “Run and don’t look back!”
Anthony jumped to his feet, her voice still bouncing off the walls as she collapsed to the floor. He threw his hands over his ears and screamed to the others. “Let’s go!”
They all jumped up and at light speed made for the door. The room started to shake even more violently and lights flickered on and off. The knives and plates on the wall fell to the ground with a clang as the light bulbs in the lobby exploded.
They tumbled out of the front door into the storm outside. Madame Mimi’s psychotic shrills died as the door swung closed.
“What was that about?” Mikey said with a bewildered look.
No one answered as they hurried to climb onto their bikes. Without another word they rode off, pedaling like mad men. The rain was coming down in buckets. The streetlights were out, but the constant flash of lightning illuminated the night. Gusts of wind blew them from side to side as they rode through the desolate streets.
Within minutes the outskirts of their neighborhood came into view. They pulled up to Anthony’s house and dropped their bikes in the front yard. In a stamped they darted inside and slammed the door. Following Anthony everyone piled into his room and fell to the floor panting, out of breath.
When Anthony could finally formulate words he turned to Mikey. “That is absolutely the last time we listen to you.”
Mit nodded in agreement holding his side breathing hard.
“Did that lady say she was gonna kill you?” Steve said in between his high pitched wheezing.
“I don’t know. She said something about someone coming and the Earth eating somebody.”
“You guys suck,” Mit laughed. “That lady is a crazy gypsy, the next time you find a card from a psychopathic bully, leave it.”
Anthony stood up, nervously staring out of the window. He gawked down the street expecting a crazy old lady to emerge from the darkness at any moment. Mikey smiled at him from the bed and laughed.
“You should be thanking me dude. You know that was fun.”
VIII
SUTHERLAND & SOCCER
High school had finally started looking up for Anthony. The twins had withdrawn and the going rumor was they were being admitted to a mental institution. Anthony was out of detention and he claimed he was finally gonna ask out the girl of his dreams. Nickie Sutherland was a tanned, brunette sophomore who had been captain of the girls’ soccer team since her freshman year. Steve applauded Anthony for aiming high, but was convinced that only he possessed the skills needed to reign in such a vixen.
Anthony’s life was definitely on a positive upswing. On the other hand his wings were still problematic. They once popped out in the shower, tearing the shower head from the wall and landing him a week of dish duty.
He’d had the idea of wrapping his entire torso in ACE bandages, but after one day of walking around like a mummy he decided against it. Now he just took frequent bathroom breaks and brought extra shirts to school. He was convinced his condition was “manageable.”
The run in with the Madame Mimi was still a hot topic. Mit had taken it on himself to find out more information about her. He’d spent every bit of available time at the library and at the county office researching records.
Since that night, Madame Mimi’s office had been closed down and condemned. When they asked around, no one had ever even heard of her. They contemplated telling someone about their encounter, but there was no longer any proof that her office had ever existed.
Mit managed to locate a picture of a Marilyn (Mimi) Ablescu in the country records. She was the spitting image of Madame Mimi, but she died in 1946. For the following weeks he continued to search tirelessly, but he couldn’t find any other information besides the picture. They all tried to put it to the back of their mind, there were enough bizarre things to keep up with already.
Anthony was the most shaken up. He couldn’t get past the fact that she knew about his wings. The entire episode left him with a very eerie feeling. And as a matter of safety they’d all agreed to avoid sewer covers and all other types of holes.
Today however, Anthony had much bigger issues on his mind. Only two things mattered, the love of his life, Nickie Sutherland and his favorite sport. Soccer season had started and after school he’d be trying out for the varsity team.
Anthony sat at the back of the room getting pointers from Steve as the bell rang. He gave him his “Rules of Female Engagement.” They sounded more like the way to catch a bank robber than land a girlfriend. But, Steve was never without a girl so something was obviously working.
Like always, they met up with Mikey and Mit in the hallways before heading off to Music Appreciation.
“I’m gonna do it today.” Anthony smiled as Mikey walked up.
“Do what?” Mit and Mikey asked in unison.
Steve strode over and put his arm around Anthony like a proud father.
“My little caterpillar has grown wings.”
Mikey laughed, “No way, you’re gonna ask out Nickie?”
Anthony smirked, nodding his head while Steve patted him on the back. Mit frowned at them and walked off. Mikey raised his eyebrows and gave Anthony a thumbs up as they headed off to class.
“What’s his problem?” Anthony asked and nodded towards Mit.
“Oh, you know….stuff with his parents.”
Anthony took a deep breath. “Yeah, it’s tough.”
Together they followed Mit to the back of the classroom and took a seat. Mikey gave him a reassuring smile and then waited for the class to start.
Anthony sat through Music, daydreaming about Nickie. In his dream he’d become captain and leading scorer of the varsity soccer team. After making the game winning goal Nickie ran from the bleachers, leapt the fence and buried Anthony in kisses.
Mrs. Thunderspat’s high pitched shriek brought him back to reality. Anthony looked up to find her in the front of the room serenading the class with one of her “classics.” It was her way of reliving her performing days, but to the class it was concrete evidence of why she had become a teacher.
Sticks may have been the only one that enjoyed Mrs. Thunderspat’s singing. He sat in the corner tapping his foot, bobbing his head around. Even his sidekick, Maxey seemed annoyed by his enjoyment.
“Cut it out…you’re embarrassing me.” Maxey snapped as she elbowed Sticks in the side.
Steve grinned and tried to catch her eye with a wave. Ignoring him she straightened up in her chair and faced the front of the classroom.
By the time they made it to lunch Anthony had worked himself into an anxious mess. His t-shirt was soaked in sweat and his hands shook violently. He sat at the lunch table being interrogated by his friends like they were homicide detectives.
“So are you gonna get this over with or what?” Mit asked as Nickie walked into the courtyard.
&
nbsp; “Yeah, dude. There’s no time like… ya know.” Mikey grinned.
Anthony sighed and got to his feet. He buried his face into his hands and took a deep breath.
“You can do it,” Steve cheered him on. “Just like I told you man.”
Anthony walked off glancing backwards like a man on death row. Steve applauded as he marched away from their table. Time seemed to slow down and he felt like every eye had turned to watch him.
Nickie sat on the far side of the courtyard with a few girls from the soccer team. Her friends, mostly juniors and seniors looked like something out of a Sports Illustrated photo shoot. Steve had declared that if Anthony failed he was going to date all of them
Anthony walked up to Nickie’s table with his head down. He casually looked up and cleared his throat. Almost immediately he was lost in her vibrant green eyes. He moved his mouth, but only incoherent babble came out. She stared back at him and raised her eyebrows.
“Um, you need something?” She asked.
Her friends hid their face as they started to laugh. Anthony still couldn’t speak and just shook his head in a circle.
“Okay creepy kid, go back to the nursery.” One of the girls added in an arrogant tone.
Anthony’s shoulder twitched and he jolted forward. He squirmed a bit and scratched at his back. The girls looked to one another and giggled. Rolling his eyes he huffed then looked back at his friends who were cheering him on. Swallowing the lump in his throat he turned back around and faced the table.
“Nickie, I um wanted to know if you wanted to catch a movie or something?” He asked in a voice barely above a whisper.
Her friends all started to laugh harder.
“No way weirdo. Nickie this kid can’t be serious.” One of the girls said as she rolled her eyes.
Nickie stared at him for a moment and bit her bottom lip. “You’re Anthony, right? You played with Haggerty last year?” She finally said.
Anthony nodded, surprised that not only was she talking to him, but actually knew who he was.
“Nice game against Van Huesen. Have you seen Devils Island?” She twirled her finger in her hair and tilted her head to the side.
“Um no… no haven’t seen it,” Anthony stuttered.
“Ok, take me to see that Saturday.” She said to the bewilderment of her friends.
“Nickie, you’ve got to be joking.”
“It’s a date,” Anthony blurted out anxiously. Nickie smiled at him and wrote her number and address on a napkin. He snatched it up and shoved into his jeans pocket.
“Um, you have to pick me up though.” Anthony said bashfully. Nickie laughed then nodded.
“Yeah, I’ll pick you up.”
“Of course she has to pick you up. Were you gonna ride her on your handle bars?” One of her friends giggled.
Anthony gave an awkward smile then turned around and ran back to his table. As he slid back into his seat, Mikey shook his head and laughed.
“It’s ok dude, we all strike out sometimes.”
“What’d she say?” Mit leaned forward.
“I’m taking her to the movies Saturday!” Anthony declared throwing his hands to the side and jumping in Mikey’s face.
Steve leapt from the table and hopped into the air like a coach who’d seen his star running back score the game winning touchdown.
“Booya! I told you, my methods are flawless.” He gave Anthony a high five and then a crushing bear hug.
Mikey smirked at him and then sat quiet the rest of lunch. When the bell rung and they started getting up Mikey nudged Anthony with his elbow.
“Hey, you think you can hook me up with one of her friends’ bro?”
Anthony laughed and then nodded.
“No, seriously dude.” Mikey smirked.
Anthony was still riding high as he showed up to soccer tryouts later that day. The sun was beating down on the field and even the grass felt like fire. He looked around and by his count there were at least fifteen freshmen trying out and another forty or so upperclassmen.
He quickly started to calculate his chances of making the team. The roster was capped at twenty and only four freshmen had ever made varsity in the school’s history. The high of getting a date with Nickie was starting to wear off.
“Alright ladies, time to work off that pizza and donuts.” Coach Haggerty eyed them skeptically. “I’m not sure if I see a soccer player among any of you…we’ll find out.”
At the coaches whistle they all took off on a three mile run. They took a path behind the school down a dirt road near the edge of a cliff. The uneven ground caused a few sprung ankles and Anthony tripped and fell twice. As he neared the finish line he felt that all too familiar burning sensation in his back. He grunted through it, willing his wings to stay put.
He finished the run a little ahead of the middle of the pack at eighteen minutes. He bent over gasping for air as another five players trudged to the finish line. Coach Haggerty looked at his watch then turned to his assistant.
“Anyone else comes in send them home.” He said as he headed off.
Anthony stood up, gripping his side. He suddenly realized how difficult making the team was going to be. Looking at the other kids standing around in shock it was obvious they were all coming to the same conclusion.
The next two hours consisted of some of the craziest soccer drills Anthony had ever completed. They ran more, hiked up bleachers and even swam laps in the school swimming pool. He wasn’t sure if half the drills they did were actually to evaluate their skill or some sort of hazing. Some of the team veterans got the idea that each player should defend the goal with their hands tied behind their back. It wasn’t until two freshmen suffered broken noises that Coach Haggerty finally put a stop to it.
By the end of practice Anthony was sure he’d ran fifteen total miles and kicked over one thousand soccer balls. His legs burned and dirt and sweat had dried to his sun baked face. He laid on his back staring up at the cloudless sky praying that the worst was over.
“Okay everybody get in here.” Doug Mersky, the current team captain yelled.
He was a lanky kid with scruffy hair and a missing front tooth. He wasn’t the most technical soccer player, actually nowhere near it. But he had moved from New Zealand where he played rugby, and his sheer violent nature made him a force on the field.
“Everyone worked hard today,” he huffed brushing the hair out of his face. “Tomorrow check the board and if your name is up, welcome to the team. If your name isn’t up, don’t think of trying out next season. Now hit the showers.”
Everyone tore off for the locker room like they were handing out free pizza. Anthony slowly limped back, hoping his muscles could carry him. While his body ached like he’d been hit by a freightliner he had a good feeling about tryouts. He’d scored eighteen of twenty goals and placed in the top ten in sprint drills. His day had gone so well in fact that he had completely forgotten all about his wings that were now threatening to erupt at any minute.
Anthony rounded the corner into the locker room like the last wounded soldier limping from the battlefield. As he passed the benches and turned left he nearly ran into a pimple faced freshman named Tim. Startled, he edged around him and dropped his gear on the ground.
He stopped at his locker and gripped the cold metal handle. Suddenly a piece of his wing popped out making a giant lump in his shirt. Tim shrieked at the sight of it and jumped backwards and tripped over the bench. Anthony quickly threw his hand over the lump and turned pressing his back to the locker.
“Oh, that’s just a bag of ice. I got a stinger out there today.” Anthony blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
Tim nodded and pulled himself up off the floor.
“Yeah, kinda freaked me out was all.” Tim mumbled. He stared at Anthony for a moment longer and then went back to getting his things.
Anthony slammed his locker shut and shimmied towards the stalls with his back pressed against the locker doors. He stopped where the
row of lockers ended and looked back to Tim smiling. Tim smirked at him then turned around. Anthony ran for the stalls and right before he dove in both wings erupted tearing his shirt completely off.
Tim screamed at the top of his lungs. He scrunched his face and crinkled his fingers like he was having a seizure. Anthony stepped towards him and he tried to crawl into the locker.
“Calm down, I can explain I swear.” Anthony held his hands out pleading with him.
“Get away from me, don’t touch me get away!”
“Ok, ok.” Anthony said as he backed up.
Tim slowly pulled himself out of the locker never looking away from Anthony. Once both feet were on the ground he tore out of the locker room in a full sprint. His hands flailed in the air as he screamed at the top of his lungs.
“He tried to eat me!”
Anthony yelled after him, begging him to stop, but Tim had taken off like a bullet. He ran through the soccer field, out of the parking lot, and down the road screaming the entire way.
“You left your shoes.” Anthony screamed as he slumped onto the bench and his wings curled back.
IX
FIRST FLIGHT
The next day at school the rumors of Anthony’s wings had spread like wildfire, but didn’t have the intended affect. Timothy Lancaster had a reputation as being a bit of a compulsive liar. Anyone that he told, including his parents, had blown him off or just made fun of him.
”Oh no, it’s the creature kid, please don’t eat me.” Mikey smiled as Anthony approached.
Steve grinned at as Mit shot Anthony an awkward look. He’d been the only one that seemed as concerned as Anthony about someone seeing his wings.
“It’s not a joke.” Mit said rolling his eyes at Mikey.
“Yeah, but you know dude…it’s funny.”
By the time lunch started everyone had pretty much forgotten about the entire incident. Rumors of who was dating who were more important than some freshmen and his wings. Anthony was happy to roam the halls again unnoticed.