ExtraNormal

by Suze Reese

  I stretched my legs on the bench and put my face up to the sun.

 

 

 

  Bringing my face down, I scanned the school campus, which looked so new and different, even more than on my first day.

 

 

 

  Everett came out of the cafeteria and stood watching me. I stared right back, squinting my eyes at him.

 

 

  Geery groaned.

  I smiled to myself, but didn’t bother to think of a response.

 

  I turned my back on Everett.

 

  How I wished. But with his fair skin, black hair, blue eyes—there wasn’t a chance.

 

 

 

  I didn’t respond.

  Geery sighed.

  In sixth period, Jesse paused near my desk. The emotion was too profound for words. I glanced at Dr. Alison, who was chatting with Everett. Dr. Alison stood and started in our direction. I put my head down and closed my eyes. I might be able to deflect my emotions, but Jesse couldn’t. All Dr. Alison had to do was step near us to sense our connection.

  Jesse continued on his way before Dr. Alison reached us, his disappointment trailing behind him. I let out a sigh of both relief that Dr. Alison hadn’t gotten close and sadness for Jesse and the confusing situation he was in. I tried to stay focused on recording Dr. Alison’s lecture. I hadn’t been able to manage it last week and figured my chances of staying on the planet were directly related to how pleased Mom was with my investigative skills.

  Midway through Dr. Alison’s lecture, Mom broke through with an urgent message.

  I kept my gaze on Dr. Alison, who could easily spot a student streaming.

 

 

 

  My mind raced with possibilities through the remainder of class. I started my work shift as usual. But when Jesse saw how anxious I was he insisted on helping me get my work done then driving me to my corner. We rode in silence.

  “I know I invited you to my backyard,” I said when he pulled his car to the curb. “But maybe tomorrow.”

  He just nodded, resigned to his fate of remaining confused about our relationship.

  “I’ll see you in the morning,” I continued.

  He gently placed his hand at the back of my head, tangling his fingers in my hair. “Promise?”

  I could feel both love and hurt emanating from his fingertips. “I promise,” I whispered, suddenly gripped with fear over Mom’s surprise and what it might mean to that promise. I pushed open the door and ran from the car, not slowing until I approached Becca’s house. I stood under the tree in the neighbor’s yard and caught my breath. It was stupid to worry. Mom didn’t even sound upset. I pushed my anxiety and feelings for Jesse to the back of my mind, pulled my curiosity to the fore, and approached the front door.

  And while I wasn’t sure what to expect, it definitely wasn’t the tall, handsome man who greeted me.

  “Mirishka!” Dad opened his arms wide.

  “You must speak the language,” Mom said in a cheerful but disapproving tone from the back of the dark room.

  “Mira,” he repeated, smiling broadly.

  “Daddy!” I gasped. “I don’t understand.” Without waiting for a response, I stepped inside and fell into his embrace. I rested my head on his chest, heard his heart pumping, and breathed him in.

  He stroked my hair affectionately. “The distance was too difficult.” With his arms still around me, he pulled me along in three eager strides to the couch—where Mom sat—Dad and I dropped onto the couch, drawing Mom into our circle—our arms and legs wrapped around and through one another. It was like diving into a pool of deep affection. Part of that feeling was familiar, like an old blanket I’d grown up with. Yet there was an element to it I hadn’t before recognized for what it was.

  “It’s been harder than we expected,” Mom touched her forehead to Dad’s. “Being apart.”

  I nodded, blinking back tears at the sight—and feel—of my parents together again. I understood what they were going through better than I could let on. We sat for a long while, enjoying the feeling of being together.

  “So how did you get here?” I finally asked.

  “I took a sabbatical. Only temporary.”

  “I never planned to be away from home as much as I have,” Mom said, still looking at her husband. “So it made sense to bring him here. To keep you company.”

  “I see,” I said. Just starting to really see.

  “If anyone asks why I’m suddenly residing here,” Dad said, “just tell them your parents are working on their marriage.” He winked at Mom.

  “Human relationships are so complicated,” Mom added. “They’ll probably let it go at that.”

  “And…how long will you be here?” I asked, doing my best to think only about my excitement for our reunion.

  “Just two weeks.”

  I stirred within our tangle of arms and legs. My time with Jesse was counted in hours, not days. With Dad as my new companion it would be counted in minutes.

  “So,” Dad said, pulling his arm away from my shoulder. “I can’t tolerate the anticipation another moment. Your mother has promised me an outing in her Saab.” He said the word as if it were magical. Then stood and pulled both of us to our feet. His enthusiasm made it possible for me to push away my worries. I followed them to the garage, climbed into the backseat of the fancy sports car, and settled into the lush interior. Dad spent several minutes studying the car—the engine, the tires, the windshield wipers—before getting into the passenger seat. He then inspected the steering wheel, seatbelts, radio. He was still kneeling on the seat when Mom pulled out of the driveway.

  “Look at that lamp post!” he exclaimed. “Oh! And that Betula alba…exquisite.”

  “Please just call it a tree.” Mom glanced his way.

  He didn’t appear to notice. “Look! A mail receptacle. Can you believe they actually inscribe correspondence and physically transport it? It is so…quaint.”

  “Sweetie, you really need to sit down and put on your seatbelt. You’re going to attract attention.”

  Despite the jubilance that I couldn’t help sharing, I was relieved when we got home. So Dad could show his enthusiasm in the privacy of our house. Mom was never more than a foot away while he examined the appliances—even taking apart and reassembling a clock radio. His zeal was literally contagious. But as the evening wore on I began to worry about reaching Jesse. If I didn’t stop him he would come by in the morning to pick me up.

  I slipped into my room while my parents prepared dinner, opened my top dresser drawer, and pulled the corner of the paper towel with Jesse’s number written on it. It seemed like so long ago that he’d left it for me. Could it really have just been a week? I punched the numbers into my cell phone. After several rings a woman answered. “Hello?”

  The pleasant voice s
tartled me. I pushed the red off button. Why would an adult female answer Jesse’s phone? Shaken, I sat on the edge of my bed and considered the situation. Dad must have boarded the transport shortly after my dinner with Mom. The one where I’d thought I’d been so clever. I grabbed the pillow on my bed and held it to my chest. Sure Dad would have jumped at the chance to come to Earth. But what if he really came because they’d figured everything out? I gasped and squeezed the pillow. Maybe he came to take me home.

  I tried the number a second time with the same result.

  After a sleepless night, I arose before daylight, got my emotions enough under control to say goodbye to Dad, then walked to the corner of Palm Avenue and Kinbrae. Jesse looked surprised when he saw me standing by the street light waving him down.

  “The phone number you gave me isn’t right,” I said as I climbed into the car.

  “Huh?”

  “Some woman answered.”

  He looked over his shoulder to check merging traffic and grinned. “That would be my mom.”

  “Your mom?”

  “Yeah. It’s my home number.”

  “Why don’t you have a cell phone?”

  He shrugged. “Used to have one. But I haven’t really needed it…for a while.”

  “You haven’t needed one?”

  “No. But I can get one.” He touched my cheek. “What’s wrong? Why did you come to the corner?”

  “That would be good,” I said. “If you had a phone.”

  He put both hands on the wheel, his brows knitted together. “Okay, I’ll get it figured out. But what’s wrong?”

  “Why haven’t you needed one?” I asked.

  His gaze darted from the road to my face. “A phone? Are we still on that?”

  “Yes. You need a phone in case I have to reach you. And why won’t you tell me where you were last year?”

  “What are you talking about? I thought you said that didn’t matter to you.”

  “It doesn’t. I just need to know more about you. I want to know everything.”

  “Yeah that would be something, wouldn’t it? No secrets?” There was an edge of anger to his voice. Until he turned and looked at me—saw that I was about to burst into tears—and his voice softened. “Mira. What’s wrong?” He touched my cheek again with his finger.

  Tears flooded my eyes. One escaped onto his finger. “It’s my dad,” I said in a husky voice. “He came home last night.”

  Jesse checked over his shoulder then parked the car at the curb. A block away from the school. “Is he…did he…do something to you?”

  “What?” I blinked several times, processing the question. “My dad? No! No, really. My dad’s harmless.”

  “Yeah? You seem pretty scared of him.”

  “No. It’s not that. It’s just…you won’t…you can’t…”

  He nodded, suddenly understanding. “So I shouldn’t expect a dinner invitation any time soon?”

  “No,” I whispered. “He’ll be at the house pretty much all the time.”

  “I see. So we just have our car rides.”

  I nodded. I should give those up as well, but didn’t say so out loud. “School’s about to start,” I whispered.

  “Maybe you should go ahead,” Jesse said. “So we’re not seen together.” It wasn’t said with bitterness, as I might have expected. But with sadness.

  I nodded, sensing his disappointment. I forced myself out of the car—leaving behind his hundreds of unanswered questions. As I walked I realized that since my change I had two overwhelming directives. The first was to be near Jesse at all costs. The other was to act in his best interests. It was, however, impossible to do both. Any choice I made went against my own instincts.

  Maybe Dad’s visit was the best thing that could have happened. I wasn’t capable of leaving Jesse of my own will. That was clear. But if Dad forced me to return with him, Jesse could finally be safe from the whims of the governing council. Assuming he could survive the separation. Either way, it seemed logical that the sooner I left, the better his odds of survival.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  I groaned at the sight of Everett approaching our lunch table.

  “Ladies…” He straddled the chair next to Lacey. “Are you all ready for homecoming?”

  The other girls at the table giggled in unison. Causing girls to giggle seemed to be his one great talent.

  “Hey Mira.” Everett picked up an orange slice from my tray. “Shame about your folks. Guess that’ll put a cramp in your style for a while.”

  I stared, still chewing. A bread crumb fell from my mouth. I hadn’t told anyone but Jesse about Dad, not even Lacey. And there was no way Everett and Jesse had been chatting. I looked at Lacey, then back at Everett. He grinned while sucking on the orange. The Stones probably knew. But why would they tell something like that to Everett? Unless…

  I opened a stream to Geery on my way to my locker to get my English notebook.

  Geery streamed back.

  I bumped into a boy and turned my head away.

  Geery asked.

 

 

  I arrived at my locker and spun the lock.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  I looked up when I saw Lacey approaching and jumped. Everett was with her.

  Geery continued.

  I turned my back to Everett. I slammed my locker closed. I started down the walkway to my next class.

 

  I paused to keep myself steady, tried not to think of Jesse. I swallowed, trying to lose the lump in my throat.

 

 

 

  I looked back the way I’d come, at Everett and Lacey laughing near the lockers. Lacey’s gaze was glued on Everett. He looked above her head, directly at me. I whipped around and continued walking, then turned a corner towards my English class. I paused outside the door to the room.

  The answer didn’t come right away.

 

  r />
  I saw Jesse walking in my direction and put my hand on my stomach to stop the familiar butterflies.

 

  Jesse paused for just a moment in front of me. Long enough for me to take a deep breath and get my head all muddled.

 

  Jesse nodded politely, his eyes speaking volumes, and continued on his way. He knew better than to stop.

 

 

  I looked at his back. The easy way he walked. His strong shoulders, slender hips and fine jet-black hair.

 

  I continued to watch him move away from me, pretending we meant nothing to each other, and considered the ramifications of letting Geery in on my secret.

  When English class started I pretended to listen to Mrs. Barnes—the only woman I’d ever seen with a mustache—but instead participated in a high-paced, rapid-fire debate with myself. Letting Geery in on my charade was a definite risk. But it should be reasonably small. If there was one person I could trust it was Geery. And it would be a relief to finally tell someone. Besides, it was the only way to learn the things I needed to know about repatterning. And Everett.

  When Mrs. Barnes asked me a question I gave her a blank stare, trying to pull up a memory from seconds earlier. But I had no idea. “I…I need to go to the restroom,” I said.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

 

  A girl came into the restroom where I was crouched in a corner listening to Geery’s tirade. It had taken several tries to find her, and right now I wasn’t sure I should have made the effort. I kept my face blank and watched the girl go into a stall.

  Geery continued.