Flight of Life (Essence Series #1)

by E. L. Todd

  Scott nodded his understanding. “Are you joining us at Fresno University?” he asked as he shoved his hands into his pocket.

  “That’s the plan,” Calloway said. “We’re all applying there.”

  “Cool,” he said. “Let me know if you need me to show you around. Weston’s friends are my friends.”

  “She isn’t interested in you,” Easton said quickly.

  Calloway stared at her in astonishment. Scott looked at her with a confused expression, unsure why she said such a comment. “Excuse me?”

  “She flirts with every guy she sees,” Easton said. “Don’t take it so personally. She never has a boyfriend because she prefers being single. I’m just warning you. Every guy drools over my sister.”

  Scott nodded. “Thanks for the heads up,” he said as he drank from his glass. “I assumed she was out of my league anyway.”

  Easton rolled her eyes. “She thinks she’s above everyone else.”

  “You don’t like your sister very much, do you?” Scott asked.

  “No, I do,” Easton said quickly. “I love my sister.”

  Scott stared at her for a moment. “You weren’t making that very clear.”

  Breccan shook his head. “Ignore her,” he said. “She doesn’t know how to act at parties.”

  “At least I’ve been to one before,” Easton snapped. “This is your first.”

  Breccan glared at Easton for a moment.

  Calloway stepped toward Scott and pulled him away. “I apologize on my behalf of my annoying friends,” he said. “What are you studying at Fresno University?”

  “It’s okay.” He laughed. “My major is English.”

  “I was considering pursing the same degree,” Calloway said. “Are you enjoying it?”

  “It’s a lot of reading and writing so it’s time consuming, but other than that, I love it. I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything else.”

  “And what do you want to do with that?”

  Scott shrugged. “I really don’t know,” he said. “I’ll figure that out when graduation nears. I’ll probably just change my mind anyway.”

  Calloway laughed. “College students are known to do that.”

  A guy walked over to Scott and they embraced each other. “What’s going on?” the man said. “I didn’t know you were going to be here.”

  “Weston invited me,” Scott said. “I couldn’t say no.” He turned to Calloway. “Calloway, this is my friend Michael.” They both shook hands.

  “It’s nice to meet you, Calloway,” Michael said. “Are you from Fresno University, too?”

  “No,” Calloway answered. “I’m still in high school—a senior.”

  “That’s cool,” Michael said. He turned back to Scott. “You’re still stuck on Weston?” he asked. “She’s too free to be tied down. I suggest you look for someone else.”

  “I know.” Scott sighed. “I had a high school girl tell me the same thing.”

  “That’s just embarrassing.” Michael laughed.

  “Yes, I realize that,” Scott said.

  Michael turned to Calloway. “How do you know Weston?”

  “I’m friends with her sister,” he answered.

  “Cool,” he said. “I’ve never seen you around before. Welcome to the party.”

  “Thanks.” Calloway smiled. He noticed both men wore expensive jeans and jackets that were more costly than his entire wardrobe. Calloway realized he was wearing an old sweater covered in holes, and his pants were washed out from all the spins in the washing machine. But then he realized that neither of these guys cared—they didn’t even notice. They didn’t mind that he looked poor—no one did. The knowledge made him feel at ease. He felt at home with these people and was excited to start college. He looked forward to being around students that didn’t care about what clothes he wore or how much money his family made.

  Easton and Breccan finally stopped fighting and rejoined him. Calloway turned to his cousin. “Are you guys done?”

  Breccan rolled his eyes. “We’re never done.” He introduced himself to Michael and they discussed the university and what major Breccan should declare.

  Weston walked back over to them and hugged Michael. Calloway watched Weston wrap her arms around Michael’s neck and then Calloway focused his gaze on the strands of brown hair that fell across her back. He noticed Michael’s hand around her waist.

  “I’m so glad you came,” she said as she pulled away. “You have to a take a break at some point. You can’t study all the time.”

  “I agree.” He smiled. “Even though you never study.”

  “I do sometimes.” She smiled. She turned to Scott. “I hope my sister isn’t bothering you. She can say the weirdest things sometimes.”

  Calloway laughed at her words and Easton glared at him.

  “No,” Scott said. “She’s been great.”

  Weston rolled her eyes. “If she becomes too annoying just walk away—that’s what I always do.”

  “Stop acting like I’m a child, Weston.” Easton crossed her arms over her chest. “You’re the only one who has a problem with me.”

  “I have a feeling that isn’t true,” she said as she smiled at Breccan.

  Breccan’s face turned red, and when he tried to smile it turned into a grimace.

  “Are you sure you want to go to formal with her?” Weston asked Breccan. “It’s not too late—you can still back out.”

  Calloway laughed. “Yes, he does,” he said as he elbowed Breccan and snapped him out of his stupor.

  Weston looked at Calloway and he felt his heart race. “Have you found a date?” Weston asked.

  “No,” Calloway answered. “I’m going stag.”

  “You can’t go to winter formal alone—that’s lame,” she said.

  Calloway laughed. “Yes, it is, but I can’t find a date. I would prefer not to go at all but my aunt is making me.”

  Easton stepped toward Calloway. “Everyone makes fun of Calloway because he defended this girl at school and now her boyfriend has made it his life goal to harass Calloway at every moment. Why don’t you go with him, Weston? Calloway wouldn’t be a loser anymore—he could be cool—and Hawk might back off.”

  Calloway shifted his weight. “That’s unnecessary,” he said quickly. “Ignore her, Weston, and forget that she even asked.”

  “You defended a girl and now you’re the biggest loser in school?” Weston asked incredulously.

  “It’s a long story.” Calloway sighed. “Basically, this jerk was harassing this girl in my class, and when I intervened he started to tease me instead. This has been going on for a while and the guy never lets up. He hands me McDonald’s gift cards in class because everyone knows I’m poor. He even broke my camera in photography class so my family would have to pay for it.”

  “Who does this guy think he is?” Scott asked angrily. “He can’t get away with that.”

  “That’s unacceptable,” Weston snapped. “You should tell the principal.”

  “That’s the problem,” Easton said. “His dad is the principal.”

  “I don’t see why that matters,” Michael said. “He has to follow the rules like everyone else.”

  Calloway shrugged. “The school year is almost over—soon I won’t have to see him ever again.”

  Weston placed her hand on Calloway’s shoulder and the touch made Calloway flinch. “I would love to go with you, Calloway.”

  Calloway felt his cheeks blush. He avoided her gaze for a moment before he finally looked at her. “You don’t have to, Weston,” he said. “It’s not a big deal.”

  “We’ll have a great time.” She smiled. “And we’ll teach this bully a lesson.”

  “It can be a double date,” Easton said happily.

  Calloway nodded. “Thank you for going with me,” he said to Weston.

  “What are friends for?” She smiled at him. She walked away and returned to her other friends at the party. Calloway watched her for a moment before he turned back
to his friends. Breccan was staring at him with a dumbfounded expression and Easton was smiling.

  “Well, that worked out,” Calloway said.

  “I can’t believe you are going with Weston,” Breccan said. “Every guy at formal is going to hate you for showing up with someone as hot as her.” He looked at Weston across the room. “Now I wish you were going with Easton.” He sighed. “I could be going with Weston.”

  “I’m standing right here,” Easton said. “I can hear you.”

  Breccan ignored her. “I’m so jealous.”

  “I wouldn’t be,” Calloway said. “I’m probably going to make an idiot out of myself. What am I supposed to do with her? I don’t even know how to talk to her.”

  Easton rolled her eyes. “Just talk to her like how you talk to me,” she said. “You can be very charming, Calloway. Weston wouldn’t have agreed to go with you if she didn’t like you.”

  Calloway felt his heart race. “She likes me?”

  “You know what I mean,” Easton said.

  Breccan stared at Calloway. “So this is what you do,” he said. “Bring her flowers and candy—the whole package—and tell her how beautiful she is the entire evening.”

  “But she probably gets that from guys all the time,” Calloway said. “And she knows that she’s beautiful—I don’t need to remind her.”

  “Do you want to kiss Weston by the end of the night or not?” Breccan asked.

  The idea of kissing Weston sent him into a panic attack. He’d never kissed a girl before and didn’t want to start with an older and more experienced woman. Calloway shook his head. “No, I don’t want to kiss her,” he said. “We’re going as friends—nothing more.”

  Breccan stared at him with an incredulous look. “You can’t be serious,” he said. “You’re going with Weston and you aren’t even going to try to make it a date?”

  “If she wanted to be something more she would just tell me,” Calloway said. “And she has made it very clear—we are just friends. Besides, why would she date a guy who’s still in high school?”

  “That doesn’t matter,” Breccan said quickly. “Just do what I say and it’ll work.”

  “You’ve probably never even had a girlfriend,” Easton said.

  Calloway was certain she was correct but he didn’t want to embarrass his cousin. “I see Weston just as a friend. I’m not going to put the moves on her like every other guy. I’m sure she gets tired of it.”

  Breccan rolled his eyes. “You’re never going to get a girlfriend with that attitude.”

  The lights in the basement suddenly turned off, leaving them in complete darkness. Breccan’s face was obscured in shadow, and Calloway couldn’t see his nose in front of his face. Everyone stopped their words in mid-sentence as they looked into the blackness.

  “This happens sometimes,” Easton said.

  “What?” Calloway asked.

  “The power goes out,” she said. “Weston needs to fix the power switch upstairs.”

  Calloway played with the glowing orb in his pocket. “We should probably go anyway,” he said. “It’s getting late and I have work in the morning.”

  “You already sound old,” Breccan said.

  Calloway ignored his comment. “Let’s help Weston on our way out.”

  They grabbed their bags from the surface of the table using the light of Easton’s cell phone then walked up the ladder. When they came into the living room, Weston was studying the switches on the wall. Calloway and Breccan both walked over to the electric breaker and stared at the buttons.

  “Press this button to reset the power,” Calloway said as he pointed to the switch. Weston held her light over the switch and she could see Calloway’s finger. She pressed the button and the lights came back on in the house.

  “Thank you,” she said as she stood up.

  “Of course,” Calloway said.

  “Are you guys leaving?” she asked.

  “Yes,” Calloway said. “It’s past our bedtime.”

  Weston laughed. “Drive safe,” she said.

  The three walked out of the house and into the car down the road. Calloway felt his heart accelerate when he thought about the winter formal. Weston was gorgeous and eye-catching—she would be the most beautiful girl in the building—and she agreed to go with him. He just hoped he wouldn’t embarrass her and make her regret her decision to be his date. Calloway hoped that arriving to the dance with an older, attractive woman would make him more popular and less likely to be teased, but he knew that wasn’t likely—Hawk would never stop.

  Innately Good

  “I’ve been here for four hours and not a single customer has walked in,” Calloway said as he leaned against the counter. He already cleaned everything and restocked all the supplies—he didn’t have anything to do. Calloway looked at the television in the lobby and watched the football game on the screen. It was the playoffs.

  “That’s for two reasons,” Marquan said as he opened the plastic around the cookie and started to eat it. Their boss said his employees could eat whatever they wanted on their break, and he didn’t care if the workers snacked when it was slow, but Calloway could never allow himself to do it—he felt like he was stealing. “One—it’s Sunday. And two—the playoffs are on. Everyone is eating pizza and hot wings. No one cares about sandwiches.”

  “I’m bored,” Calloway said. “Is there anything we can do?”

  “I used to be like you.” Marquan laughed. “But not no more.”

  Calloway sighed. “I don’t like the idea of being paid to do nothing.”

  “Joe knows that we’re slow on Sundays—he doesn’t care. You can even do homework if you want. At least you’re being productive that way.”

  Calloway shook his head. “I would feel uncomfortable doing that.”

  “Do you have finals coming up?” Marquan asked.

  “Yes,” Calloway answered. “I can’t wait until winter vacation. I need a break.”

  “And then you have a whole semester left,” Marquan said. “But don’t worry because it’ll go by fast.”

  “I hope so,” he said. “How is school for you?”

  “It’s fine,” he said. “I just have some papers to write and some labs to do.”

  “What’s your major?” Calloway asked.

  “Biology and Chemistry,” he answered.

  “That sounds hard.”

  Marquan rolled his eyes. “It really isn’t,” he said. “If you put the time in, you’ll be fine.”

  “What do you want to do with that?”

  “I haven’t decided,” Marquan said. “I was thinking about medical school but I’m just a freshman—we’ll see if I survive.”

  Calloway laughed. “I’m sure you’ll do fine.”

  “I’ll let you know,” he said. “Have you picked a major?”

  “I’m thinking about English.”

  Marquan nodded. “That’s cool,” he said. “Any reason why?”

  “I’ve always liked English—reading the classics and writing essays—I just enjoy it.

  “That didn’t answer my question.” Marquan laughed. “You just explained why it’s a hobby. Why do you want to study it?”

  Calloway thought for a moment. He didn’t have a specific reason. Mr. Avey was a huge influence in his decision. He was the first teacher that ever made a class enjoyable. “To teach others, I guess.”

  “So you want to be a teacher?”

  “Yes,” Calloway answered. He looked at the clock on the wall and realized his shift was over. He just had to wait for the evening employees to come in.

  Marquan caught his look. “What time is it?”

  “It’s four.”

  “Good,” he said as he stuffed the rest of the cookie into his mouth. “I’m ready to get out of here.”

  The door opened and the night manager walked in. “Hey, Calloway,” she said with a smile. “Hello, Marquan. Is everything done?”

  “Of course,” he said. “Cal and I got this.”
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  She smiled then walked into the back, clocking in and returning to the front.

  “Let’s go,” Marquan said to Calloway. They both clocked out and walked outside the store. “You wanna ball it up?” he asked.

  “What?” Calloway asked.

  “Do you want to play basketball?” He laughed.

  “Sure,” Calloway answered. “I’m not very good though.”

  “That don’t matter,” Marquan said as he got into the car. They drove to the high school and parked by the basketball courts. Calloway left his bike in the backseat and both of the boys walked to the nearest court. They decided to play in their work clothes because they didn’t care about getting their uniform dirty—they were just going to wash it anyway.

  Marquan made a shot in the basket then Calloway dribbled the ball back to the free-throw line and made a shot.

  “Not bad,” Marquan said as he ran to the ball and dribbled it back. “So why are working while you’re in high school?” he asked. “Is the money for you or your family?”

  “My family,” Calloway answered as he stole the ball from Marquan and made the shot. “I made a stupid mistake and it cost my aunt and uncle a lot of money.”

  “You don’t live with your parents?” he asked.

  “They are dead,” Calloway said bluntly. He passed the ball to Marquan but Marquan didn’t move try to make a basket.

  “I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t know that.”

  “It’s okay,” Calloway said. “It was a long time ago.”

  “What happened?”

  “Well, my mom got sick and passed away when I was young. I’m not sure why she died. Every time I ask my aunt, she starts to cry and can barely talk.”

  “Is your aunt your mother’s sister?” Marquan asked.

  “Yes,” Calloway said. “And my father was mugged then killed when he was walking down the street. I have memories of him but not many. That’s when my aunt and uncle became my legal guardians.”

  “And what did you do to cause them such grief?” Marquan aimed the ball and made the basket.

  Calloway ran to the ball and retrieved it. “The same thing I already told you—I defended that girl who came into the shop yesterday.”

  “I’m not following.”

  “Well, the guy started to direct his aggression toward me when we were in photography class. He took my camera and smashed it in the ground and destroyed it, making my family responsible for repairing it since it was checked out under my name.” Calloway aimed the ball and made it through the hoop. Marquan didn’t retrieve it.