Wings From Ashes Trilogy

by Linda Nelson

  His uncle had promised him a new set of weights after they were fully moved into their new home. They just had one more truck full of things to pick up and then everything would be moved. His dad had this last haul planned for this weekend. Afterwards, Neil had plans of spending time at his uncle’s garage, learning to fix cars. What guy didn’t like working on cars anyway? Neil certainly did, besides his other hobby, baseball cards.

  Neil had a huge collection of cards ranging all the way back to ’81. Some of the cards he had gotten from his uncle as gifts. Like his Barry Bonds rookie card or his last edition of a Yastrzemski card before he retired. He was always in search of the newer rookie cards. If the player made it big, then they would be worth the big bucks.

  This was how he had made a couple of new friends on his first day at Brantwood. By bringing in a couple of spare rookie cards to show off and potentially trade he had something to spark up conversation at his lunch table. He found a couple other guys who were into baseball cards like he was, thus the beginning of a new friendship was born.

  One kid’s name was Logan, and the other kid’s name was Ethan. They both ate lunch with him during his first day at Brantwood and talked baseball and cards. They were so into the sports talk that none of them ever noticed the girls sitting at the two tables looking at him. With Karla and Darcy at one table and Maggie and Ashley at the other table, at that time girls were the last thing on his mind.

  Neil liked girls. He had a couple of girl friends at the previous schools he had attended, but he also learned not to get too attached to them. With his dad's military career, it made it difficult for Neil to try a long term relationship. They were always moving every couple of years.

  One thing that came in handy for Neil was the fact that he came from a rather large family. He had aunts and uncles all over the place, or so it seemed that way. They always moved close by to one of them, they were either on his dad’s side of the family or his mother’s side. Maybe his dad tried his best to stay somewhere near to a family member, Neil couldn’t be sure. Last time they were living close to his mother’s sister.

  His gram was just down the street from his house. It was kind of nice getting to be able to spend time with his grandparents. His grandpa was the best.

  This time they were close by to one of his dad’s brothers, Uncle Conner.

  After school, Neil took the bus to his uncle’s garage. It was on the other side of town. A gray building wedged in-between two townhouse apartment building with two garage bay doors. The doors had dirty glass windows beginning halfway up the door. Neil made a note to give those windows a good washing in his spare time.

  Neil entered through the front door that opened into the office and waiting area. Conner was sitting at a large metal desk filling out paper work for a job he had just finished. The customer would be in later, to pick up their car.

  “Hiya,” Neil said as he dropped his olive green backpack into one of the chairs.

  Conner looked up, “Oh, hi Neil. How was your first day? How many fights were you in?”

  “Well for starters, no fights, at least not officially. Nothing I can’t handle in the future. So I guess I can say, my day was not too bad.”

  Chapter 4

  The week continued to go by with Neil following Karla from one class to the next. Manny never did make another attempt at harassing Neil, which seemed strange to Karla. She knew what kind of kid Manny was. He was another one of those school bullies who liked to terrorize the new kids. She had heard that before she had arrived at Brantwood and had befriended Carol, Carol had been just like Manny. But in the past few months all that had changed.

  A lot of things had changed since she had first arrived at Brantwood.

  Her old friends were now too busy for her. She guessed that was just a fact of life and nothing more than that.

  The best thing that had happened to her was the fact that her mother was no longer around. She loved her mom but then she hated the way she would act and how mean she always was toward her. But now that her mom was in rehab for her drinking problem maybe things would change and they could have a real mother daughter relationship.

  All week long Darcy and Heath bugged Karla about asking Neil out. They kept telling her that he liked her and how she should ask him out to the school dance that was only about a month away.

  Karla didn’t need to ask anyone out to the dance. She was sure she wouldn’t get to go to it anyways. Her dad had her under strict curfew since her return from that road trip she had gone on only one month ago with Carol, Max and Rod. Carol was spending the next few months in a drug rehab for teens after she and Karla had been released from jail for stealing that car. They had only taken the car so they could get help for Max. Why didn’t the officers understand that?

  Instead, both girls had spent almost a month in jail before they were both released to the custody of their parents.

  When Karla returned home she not only learned how Carol was sent to a rehab, but she had also lost her mom while they were in jail. The whole experience had turned traumatic when Rod used that substance Bath Salts to get high. It was only a matter of minutes before he went after Karla’s boyfriend Max and began hammering him with his fists for just looking at him. She had never heard of anyone going off like that. The whole incident was bizarre.

  She still hadn’t heard from Max, and as far as she knew he was still her boyfriend. Karla just didn’t know where he was or when he was coming home. What she did know was that he was still alive. For a while, she was unsure he was going to live because of the way Rod had gone after him.

  Rod was the one who had died in the end. His death came about from his use of Bath Salts. She had heard that the drug had done something to his heart, and he had died from a heart attack. The rest of what had happened to him was vague, and no one was talking about it. Most likely this was due to the fact that he had only attended Brantwood for one week before his disappearance with Karla and Carol.

  Karla had another reason why she didn’t want to ask Neil out. She had a boyfriend already, and she wasn’t the type of girl to cheat on a guy.

  She was sure Max would return, she just wasn’t sure when it would happen. So every day she walked to and from school with Darcy she would keep her eyes open in search of Max possible standing on a street corner waiting for her.

  Every day her heart would sink – he wasn’t there.

  It all happened so quickly and unexpectedly, the moment that Neil had been bracing for, when the school bully struck, and Neil would be forced to defend himself in front of the kids at school.

  It didn’t happen the way he had hoped it would, but just the same it did happen.

  Neil was just about to put his lunch tray on the table. In a flash, Manny was right there. He chucked his lunch tray across the lunch room.

  “Oh look at what you did – now go clean it up,” ordered Manny. Several of his friends had gathered about him.

  Karla, Darcy, and Heath sat at an adjacent table and looked on.

  Heath was sure that if Carol had been there right now, Manny would have thought twice about his move. Not that she liked the new kids, but she was always the first to start harassing them, not Manny. He could see that things were now changing since Carol was not around.

  Neil just stood there, as if he were waiting for perhaps a teacher to step in, which didn’’t happen.

  From the looks of it, Manny was having a hard time intimidating the new kid. It was like Neil wasn’t afraid of him. That was when Manny reached out and shoved Neil backwards. He did it once then twice. After the second push Neil struck back.

  It all happened in the flash of an eye. Before anyone knew what had happened, Manny was on the floor, and Neil was on top of him with him in some sort of leg lock. He was twisting him, almost close to snapping his legs like twigs.

  “All right boys – enough... There will be no fighting in the lunch room... Both of you to the office now,” Mr. Candace hollered at the boys. Instead of grabbin
g the back of Neil’s collar he grabbed Manny’s collar instead.

  “Did you see that,” Heath asked the girls.

  “What happened?” Karla was confused. Did that kid just take on Manny and whip his ass?

  “I think the new kid is a wrestler by the looks of it.” Darcy took a sip of her milk.

  Heath was grinning. “It’s about time someone got the best of Manny. If anyone deserves it, he does.”

  Heath had many a run in with Manny over the years going all the way back to grade school. The only one he knew of that had ever whipped the kids butt before was Carol. It was funny to think about how that girl could fight. She not only demanded respect, the respect that she never seemed to get at home, but she ruled the school when she was around unlike now, if only she would hurry up and be done with her program and get back to school where she belonged.

  On the other side of the lunch room, Maggie and Ashley watched as Manny and Neil fought. It was obvious, Ashley was in love with the new kid and she couldn’t stop talking about him.

  “Did you see that?” Ashley brushed her long hair away from her brown eyes and looked dreamily at Maggie.

  “You really need to go ask him out.” Maggie continued to insist that she do so ever since Neil’s first day at school.

  “Did you see how he just flipped him on the floor and whipped him into that leg lock, just like a professional wrestler?

  I wonder if he will be a pro wrestler someday. There’s big money in that. Have you ever watched it on TV? My dad says it’s nothing like back when he was watching it, when Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage went at it. He says it is all fixed and an act. I don’t believe him. Not now, not after seeing what Neil just did.” Ashley was rambling again about Neil.

  “I keep telling you Ashley, you seriously need to ask him out before someone like that ho Karla gets him before you do. You know it is only a matter of time before she sinks her hooks into him just like she did to my Gerry.”

  “I’ll ask him out Maggie in due time. I have to work my nerve up first.”

  “Well I’m just saying because I’ve seen how he follows that ho bag around from one class to the next.”

  “He follows her because he is in almost all her classes. Darcy told me so. Darcy also told me that Karla has no interest in him. She thinks he is fat. But I don’t think he is fat. He’s just right, especially if he is going to be a wrestler someday.”

  There was that dreamy look in Ashley’s eyes again. Maggie wanted to shake her. It was frustrating watching this girl go on and on about a boy and never act on it. What the hell was she waiting for? Didn’t she believe her when she said that Karla, the slut, would steal him away from her in the wink of an eye?

  Maggie had to do something about this before Ashley missed her opportunity to get the boy she dreamed about. She had to come up with some kind of plan to ruin Karla’s chances of sinking her claws into the guy before her friend got up her nerve to ask the new kid out. How she was going to do it, she had no idea, but she did have to do something soon. She could see that Neil’s actions not only caught Ashley’s attention, but from the looks of it, Darcy, Heath and Karla had noticed it too.

  Chapter 5

  Mr. Petradona was the worst math teacher Karla ever had. Or so she thought. It may have had something to do with the fact that she had missed so much while she was out a few months ago or the fact that math was one of her worst subjects, especially geometry.

  She waited, a lump formed in the middle of her throat. He was handing back their mid-terms, and she knew it was not going to be good.

  “Miss Centon – will you see me right after class?” Mr. Petradona laid her test on her desk upside down so she could not see the score.

  There wasn’t anything Karla could do but nod her head in response while she tipped the paper up to reveal the big fat zero on the top of the paper in red ink. The paper showed all blanks where there should have been answers written. Karla was sure she had written something down on the paper. But its blank lines were the only thing to be found.

  She remembered struggling with each question when she had taken the test a week ago. So seeing the blank paper before her puzzled her. Had he done that on purpose to make sure she flunked the quarter? A good chunk of her grade was riding on this mid-term test.

  Neil sat at the desk next to her. He could not help but notice the mark at the top of her paper. It kind of surprised him too. He would never have figured Karla to be one to fail a test or refuse to take the test to begin with. She looked scared to him. Could her grades undoubtedly be that bad?

  When he had first met her, he pinned her to be one of the smart ones. Probably an honor student like himself. Maybe she had been out sick and had missed the chance to take the test. If that was so, then she probably had a make-up exam coming up.

  Moments later the bell rang signaling the end of not only the class but the end of the day and the week. Neil packed his book into his backpack and decided to linger behind and wait to talk to Karla before going home. What could it hurt to ask her if she wanted any help with Math? It was one of his favorite subjects, and he aced every test.

  He waited outside the door for her.

  “Miss Centon – you did see the score I gave you on your test?”

  Karla could still only nod. She wondered if he was going to give her a detention or call her dad.

  Mr. Petradona continued, “I gave you that score for a reason. Your original score was a sixty-five. I think you are much capable of doing better, so I am prepared to give you another chance to pass this class. I do know that you have been trying since your return from your recent escapades. You have two weeks to prepare and retake the test.”

  There was nothing Karla could think to say. Mr. Petradona was not her favorite teacher, and he really intimidated her. She squeaked, “Thank you.”

  “You better use that test as a study guide. I think you can use all the help you can find. You’re dismissed.”

  Once again Karla nodded in acknowledgement and gathered up her math book and backpack before Mr. Petradona changed his mind.

  No sooner did she step outside the classroom and into the hall the new kid stepped out in front of her. “Karla – I hope everything is alright. I couldn’t help but notice your grade on the test. I’m pretty good at math, and I was wondering if you would like me to help you, maybe tutor you – I would be willing to do it for free.”

  His offer fully caught her off guard. Karla could only stand there and stare into those deep blue eyes. They were as blue as the ocean. How she missed the ocean, even if it had been the one and only time she had ever been to it. It had only been a couple of months ago, but it seemed like it had happened so long ago. The night she had done it with Max, he had made her feel so good, even when he had been so mean to her.

  Karla missed Max.

  “So what do you say?” Neil pulled Karla back to the present.

  “What?”

  “I asked you if you want me to tutor you in math. I’m sure I can help you pass the test.”

  Karla looked down at the test she still clutched in one of her hands. She looked back up at him, and she could see over his shoulder where Darcy stood waiting for her. She had a big smirk on her face. She was sure she knew what Darcy was thinking too, but it wasn’t true, Neil was not asking her out. He just wanted to tutor her in math.

  There was no question about it. Karla absolutely needed help if she wanted to pass the class. She was surprised that Mr. Petradona was going to allow her to retake the test with no questions asked, in fact, it was all his idea and it totally surprised her. She would never have pinned Mr. Petradona for a teacher who cared about his students but obviously she was wrong about him.

  What was she to do? If she accepted this kid’s offer, then Darcy would think she was going out with him. Would that actually be such a terrible thing anyway? Like Darcy said, he certainly wasn’t that bad looking. He could stand to lose a few pounds, but it wasn’t like he was a candidate for Biggest Loser. W
hat should she do? She certainly could use his help.

  Karla found herself relenting. “All right… You really think you can help me pass this?”

  “I’m sure of it – when do you want to meet and where – my place or yours?”

  She raised her right eyebrow in question. Karla was surprised to be asked such a question. She thought for a moment. “My place – my dad will be home by six. Can you come over at seven?”

  “Sounds like a plan. That will give me time to get some of my things done before I come over. I’ll see you at seven tonight.” He turned to walk away.

  “Don’t you want to know where I live first?”

  “You live in the apartment where what’s her name lives – Darcy – right?”

  “How’d you know that?”

  He chuckled, “we’re in English class together. She talks a lot.”

  This was something Karla knew full well. Darcy did like to talk. She hoped she hadn’t said anything too bad about her. What was she thinking? Of course, Darcy wouldn’t say anything detrimental about her she was all about fixing Karla up with Neil.

  “All right then, I’ll see you at seven – apartment 41. Third floor.”

  Neil waved and took off at a jog before he missed his bus.

  “What was all that about?” Darcy asked as soon as Karla approached her.

  “It’s not what you think.”

  “Like what?”

  “If you are wondering if he asked me out, the answer is no.”

  “So then,” Darcy rocked her books back and forth in her arms awaiting an answer.

  “He’s just coming over later to tutor me in math. I totally need the help, and he is sure he can help me pass the class.”