by S. L. Giger
I better not even thought about all the things that could bother me.
Then all the movement around the woman in the video stopped, and everybody focused on her. I couldn’t make it out very clear, but it looked as if her flesh began to shrink. Her skin wrinkled until it fell flat to the ground like a balloon without air.
“When she died, the energy left her body, and all reactions failed,” Melissa explained. “Humans and animals then first stiffen before they start to rot. I guess since we’ve been in a frozen state for so long, it’s like with food you take out of the freezer. You then can’t keep the food for much longer once it’s defrosted. Once we are dead, we start decaying right away. The muscles and flesh shrink and cannot be used for research anymore.”
Then, one Siren after the other lit a small log and threw it on top of her.
“Since it’s not a pretty sight, they have funerals where they burn the bodies,” Luke added.
“I see,” I said. “Wow.” I couldn’t lift my eyes off the screen, although the video was over now. “And how did you become a Siren?” I asked her.
She stared out at the ocean for a while. I almost thought that she didn’t remember anymore and had to think hard. Then she turned to face me.
“That’s something I’ll never forget. You probably still feel the pain of the metamorphosis too, as if it happened yesterday. Mine lies thirty years back. I was twenty-eight, married for a year, and four months pregnant. Apparently, a car hit me, while I was doing my daily cycling route. The driver took off, which cleared the way for the Sirens. That happened somewhere in the north of Provence in France. Michaela, who saved me, was a scary woman,” Melissa shook her head. “So, once it was safe to take my chains off, I actually thought she was some kind of cannibal who wanted to kill and eat me. But then she brought me to Claire in Ireland, where I spent the first three years. Michaela is good-hearted, but she likes to keep to herself. I was depressed for a long time, and my English was not so good.” She looked at me with affection. “You really are doing such a great job. You seem to have no problems at all in adjusting to your new life and the new body.”
I shrugged, “To say the truth, I kind of like it. I feel great. I have so much energy. I wish I had this energy as a human,”
Melissa smiled. “It’s nice to have you here. Anyway, luckily Claire didn’t give up. She read books to me and one day, she came home and told me that there was a part time job at the kindergarten for me. It didn’t have anything to do with my former job at an insurance company. So, I don’t know where she got that intuition, but it was what got me back on track. My English improved and after a while, I started to study and train as a pediatric nurse.”
“So, you didn’t have the easiest start either,” I observed.
“No, believe me, many times I had preferred to be dead instead. But we have to see it as a chance.” She readjusted the blanket we had wrapped around us.
“Mhh. I’m not ready yet to call it a chance. For that, I still think about my family too much,” I pursed my lips. “Today, my heart skipped a beat when I saw someone at school who looked like my sister,” I said.
Melissa gave me a short squeeze at my shoulders. “Otherwise, school is going alright? No problems with hiding our secret?” She then asked.
“No, all is well. Even lunch isn’t a problem. There are actually many kids who don’t eat since it’s uncool to eat cafeteria food.”
Melissa covered her eyes with her hand. “Seriously? I would love to enjoy some tater tots. They shouldn’t act so spoiled.”
“You still miss food sometimes?” I asked.
“I do. To just eat a normal meal and behave normally. But nothing can beat a nice and juicy heart now.” She chuckled.
“Roisin doesn’t seem to have problems with anything,” I stated.
“She was a wild spirit from the beginning. We found her in my third year as a Siren. She was the first casualty that had the right aura to be transformed. I watched Claire jam a needle that was already filled with someone else’s heart energy into Roisin’s chest. She woke up in one of the rooms at Claire’s house. Roisin was only nineteen, and it seems that younger people are better in adjusting. She was a fast learner, like you.” Melissa smiled at me. “But it was too hard for her to be so close to her family and friends and not be able to go back to them. That’s why we decided to go to New York together. We had always been curious about that city. It was a great time, the two of us, living in that tiny apartment in the East Village. I was living a second youth. I luckily found work as a nurse right away and for the rest of the time kept my eyes on the streets to help out 911.” Melissa moved her curls on one side of her head and ran through them with her fingers. “Roisin started studying zoology and helped out at Bronx Zoo. When she turned twenty-one, she also started working at a club during the night. On my night off, I visited her. The free drinks were a big plus of course,” Melissa smirked at me. “It was sometimes hard to resist when I had one of these cocktails standing in front of me, knowing that I couldn't drink the whole thing or it would kill me.”
“How about Cathy? What is her story?” I asked.
Melissa hesitated for a moment. “She had lived with other Sirens in Vancouver before but said that she wasn’t satisfied there anymore. Then, she came to New York. I actually don’t know much about her; she likes to be on her own.”
“Why was she there in the cave with us then?”
“She had been in the area as well. It’s Siren code that we save someone who can be saved.”
“But she didn’t really want to save me.”
Melissa chose her words carefully: “I’d say, she had respect for the responsibility.”
“To me, she doesn’t seem like anybody who is afraid of something. And you were there; she could have walked away, couldn’t she?”
“You know, for someone who was so repellent in the beginning, you ask an awful lot of questions now.” She laughed lightly.
“Yes, and it appears that always when I get to the interesting ones, you don’t answer me,” I moved my chin forward.
“Oh no, don’t feel that way. I really enjoyed our conversation right now, but I don’t have the answers to all the questions either,” She said.
I narrowed my eyes. Something was odd, but I couldn’t place my finger on it. However, I didn’t want to start an argument for no reason at that moment, so I asked another question instead.
“And Luke, did you meet him when he was a Siren already?”
The corners of Melissa’s mouth automatically wandered upwards.
“No, he was human at first. Already very good looking then.” She smirked. Then she continued, “he should tell you his story himself, though. It’s much more entertaining when he enacts it. However, we left the city because of him,” She sighed. “As you know, Luke has his bad days, and on those, it’s better to be in a quiet area.”
Chapter 9
School quickly became routine. Teachers liked me because I did my homework and had good grades. What they didn’t know was that I never slept and so actually had enough time to do everything they expected me to do. Also, I was quiet during the lessons. I didn’t have anybody in my own grade to talk to. Therefore, I looked forward to lunch, which I mostly spent with Phe, Joe, and Sam. They were happy about any kind of food I shared. I felt like I had found actual friends in them. For everybody else, I soon wasn't such a novelty anymore and they didn’t pay extra attention to me. Except for that one cute tall guy who caught my eye on my first day.
He was in my history class. In my second week, he finally seemed to have worked up the nerve to talk to me.
“Hey, what’s up?” He said. He was wearing the basketball shirt of the school team, of which he was captain. It set a nice focus on the muscles in his arms.
“School, I guess,” I replied.
“Yeah, you know, we have this game on Friday, and a bunch of my friends is coming to watch it. You should come, too.”
“Okay, I’ll think about it. Maybe my friends want to come as well.” He wasn’t bad looking after all. If he had a bigger interest in me, I better had some support around, who can distract me. In case a good-looking guy weakens the control I had worked up over the past month while being among humans.
“These losers? They are so boring, why would you hang out with them anyway? Sam is about the size of a pet dog; his best friend is a mute and Phe hurts to look at with all these bright colors. She used to be different in primary school.”
“So, you are a friend of Timothy?” I said coldly.
“Um, yes, why?” His face showed confusion.
“Thought so. Sorry, but I prefer to spend my time with people where I can be whoever I am without being judged. You’d probably be a nice guy too if you hadn’t the need to have to prove something every second.” I started walking away.
“Hold on. Okay, maybe that wasn’t so nice of me.” He held his hands up in defense. “You could still consider the game.” He flashed a smile at me.
“I’ll think about it,” I said.
“Why is it so hard to get a simple yes from beautiful girls?” He demanded to know.
A short laugh escaped me. This was the first time someone I found appealing, openly told me to my face that I was beautiful. I shook my head since I knew now that he was only attracted to me because of my Siren aura.
“What?” He asked.
“Nothing. I’ll think about it. See you.” Time for the next lesson.
“I’ll walk with you for a bit.” He said and came with me. “It starts at seven, and they will be selling very delicious hot dogs, so that alone is reason enough to come.”
“Wow, you don’t give up easily, do you?” I smiled.
“If I gave up easily, I definitely wouldn’t be captain of a team.”
“So, here is my room.” I had math.
“Alright, so see you on Friday,” he said and walked on.
“Maybe,” I called after him.
I walked into the classroom and quickly stopped at Sam’s desk whose face looked like a question mark.
“What did Kyle want from you?” He asked.
“He invited me to come to the game on Friday,” I sighed. “I’d only go if you go.”
Sam laughed. “No, sorry, I don’t see a chance in that. I can tell you a whole list off the top of my head of better things to do. Neatly re-arranging my t-shirts at home is only one of them. But you can go. But probably, if you have seen it once, you will gladly stay home as well.” He warned me.
The bell rang, and I walked to my desk.
“Alone? Where’s the fun in that.” I hissed before I sat down.
Later that day, I became a witness of another episode of Timothy’s bullying. I was walking toward Phe, as she was putting things in her locker, but Timothy was ahead of me. When he was close to her, he pushed the friend next to him, so that he hit Phe and she banged frontally into her locker.
“Ooops, sorry.” Timothy laughed, and all his friends laughed with him. I really felt sorry for Phe, but I was even angrier at him for treating her this way for no reason. Therefore, before coming to her aid, I pretended to walk into the bathroom. Just to dart out again in Siren’s speed. Nobody saw how I repeatedly ran past Timothy until there was a good moment to make him trip. He fell to the floor for what seemed no reason at all. Again, people laughed but this time, at him.
“Man, if Coach would have seen this, you’d be sitting on the bench during the next game,” Dave told him.
I darted back to the toilet and walked out of the door at a normal speed.
“Phe, are you okay?” I asked her emphatically.
She shrugged, “I guess so. This was nothing actually.” I could see she was sad.
I gave her a quick hug. “Well, this has got to stop. That’s more than simple bullying. You could get hurt.”
“It won’t stop. He has too big of an audience.”
“That audience saw how he tripped over his own feet. Karma starts paying back.”
Phe gave a weak smile. “Yes, at least something.”
I definitely would not go to the basketball game.
On Wednesday after school, I accompanied my friends to Boston. Phe drove us in her car. I was excited to go to this city for the first time. Phe had to go to the different schools to present them her portfolio. We didn’t bring the sculpture, though. She just took a few pictures of it, which she glued on a black paper.
The first stop was at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. This wasn’t going to be a sightseeing trip, I realized. We really were looking at schools. Then again, the others had probably been to Boston a million times. I was the only newbie here, but they didn’t know that of course. Either way, it was worth coming. The buildings were beautiful! While Phe had her interview, we walked through the park and imagined what it would be like to attend this school. We admired the students. They looked so sophisticated with their bags, glasses, and books. The awesome thing was that the college was like a little village. There was everything; book stores, small supermarkets, places to eat, coffee shops, and so on. I let go of a sigh when I accepted that I had to wait another year until I would be able to live this life as well.
“Being here somehow makes it a lot more real,” Sam said as we walked through a gallery with paintings of alumni who made themselves a name in this world. “So far it has only been an idea that will eventually become the present. But now, it feels like college lies just around the corner.”
“First, we’d have to apply to some schools,” Joe remarked. “Sure, but there’s enough time for that, and with our GPAs, I’m not so worried. But imagine all of us in Boston!”
“It will be awesome.”
They were so excited about that change that was coming in their lives while I was still trying to cope with the new circumstances I had been thrown in.
“What do you think?” Sam asked me.
“Hm?” I had been completely absorbed by my thoughts.
“About the fact that soon one of us might call this hall their path to lunch.”
“It’s a bit overwhelming,” I said. “But I will have a year more to worry about this anyway.”
“You will have an advantage since you will have us to tell you about how everything works.”
“You’re right. Have I told you that I am glad that you are my friends?”
“No, not yet but don’t think too highly of it anyway. We thought being nice to a stranger would get us good karma for our future.” Sam winked at me.
When we walked outside to wait for Phe we already saw her walking down the stairs with her portfolio under her arm.
“How was it?” Joe asked.
“I have no idea.” Phe’s cheeks looked flushed. “I couldn’t read their faces. They were totally expressionless. They were friendly, but they also asked me weird questions that had nothing to do with my paintings.”
“Like what?” I asked.
“For example, what was an important moment in my childhood that I remember. I didn’t know I’d have to have spontaneous answers ready to cover my whole life,” She said exasperatedly.
“So, what did you tell them?” Sam wanted to know.
“At first, my mind went blank. I couldn’t remember anything out of my past. The first thing that came to my mind was the funeral we had in our backyard when our cat died. Now, they probably interpret that I am a teenager on the verge of depression who likes to dwell in sad memories. Why didn’t I mention a birthday gift when I got my first paint brush or something like that.”
“I’m sure they were just making conversation to get to know you as a person and not only as your pictures.” Joe comforted her.
“Well, they could have picked an easier topic.” She sighed. “What were you up to?”
“We checked out the area. It would be cool if we could visit you on these grounds, so we agree unanimously that you are allowed to go here. Then Nathali
e declared her love for us as her friends. You should have been here; it was a very moving speech.” Sam wiped away an invisible tear. I rolled my eyes.
“Aw, thanks, Nat. I’m glad not to be the only female that hangs out with these two dopes anymore.” She grinned and put her arms around their shoulders.
“You heard that, Sam? She calls us idiots. Now, let me ask you again; who spent hours to work on projects with you and accompanied you to Boston for moral support? Could it be that you accidentally picked the wrong word? Yeah, actually that’s most likely the case, you have never been the best with proper English language.”
“You know exactly how much I love you,” Phe said looking at Joe, slightly blushing and then also looking at Sam.
“Such a sentimental group today. Maybe it has something to do with the moon.” Joe said.
We needed to get going to the University of Massachusetts to be there in time for Phe’s second interview. The campus was right next to the water, which made it a beautiful place to stroll around. Phe left us again, and we wandered around aimlessly.
“It must be so nice to take a nap under one of these trees in the summer. I think I could study here.” Joe said.
“Yeah, you should mention this in your application letter.” Sam joked.
Meanwhile, my attention was focused on something else. Or rather, someone else. A little ahead there was another building with a glass front on the first floor. It was the wall of a coffee shop and next to the window sat the most handsome guy I had ever seen. He had a strong chest and broad shoulders. I could tell they were packed with muscles from the way his t-shirt was tight around the shoulders but looser in the middle of the back. He could be a football player. There was no fat visible on his stomach. I imagined that it must be nice to lean on a strong chest like his. This had never happened to me before. I had to stare at him for the simple reason of enjoying seeing something beautiful. He was working on his laptop. The little curb between his eyes from concentrating hard was an extremely sexy feature. I had to get to university quickly if they had things like that walking around here. I hadn’t even realized that I had stopped walking.