Nate realized that something was up. He grabbed Mark, demanding to know what was going on. The conversation took place within earshot.
"Mate, I'm staying out of it."
"No, you’re not. Indy has been getting some nasty looks today. Tell me."
"I think you should hear it from her."
This is crazy, and total bullshit. Nate looked at me and shook his head in the direction of the large gum tree. He wanted to talk away from everyone. I got up and followed him.
"So what's been happening all day?"
"Bloody hell. You know I had a case yesterday and I got the girls to drop me off at a house. When they picked me up, my hair was falling out everywhere and I was grinning. They think I met some guy and hooked up."
Nate stared at me, turned his back, and burst out laughing. Luckily, he was far away enough that they couldn't gauge his reaction. I rolled my eyes and waited for him to stop.
“I'll tell the boys that we’re having a break, but we’re still good friends.”
“Well, I thought you would have loved to watch them torment me for days.” A few weeks ago he would have revelled in this same situation and pushed the boys even further.
“What would I gain out of that, Indy?" said Nate.
I was stunned. What had changed over the last few weeks?
We walked back to our friends. Connor was staring at us to see how we were going to handle this new development. I didn’t know myself, would they believe what Nate had to say? Hell, I wouldn’t. For starters, he still lived in my house, we walked home from school daily, and then hung out together after school.
“Hey, guys, lay off Indy. We actually haven’t been seeing each other for a little bit, we just didn’t tell anyone because we didn’t want you to think you had to take sides. We’re both happy with the decision and have remained friends.”
I looked around at the group and they sighed—shoulders dropped and relaxed. The tension released and normal chatter resumed. Mark walked up to me and slung his arm around me.
“I’m sorry, babe. No hard feelings?”
“Yeah, it’s okay.”
The way my friends had treated me today confirmed that they weren’t ready to hear what I truly am. If they had turned on me so fast for something they thought I had done and hadn’t, what would they do if they found out what I did while I wasn’t at school? Especially when I tempted married men into adulterous acts by cheating on their wives with me. It never got to that stage because I was still a virgin in this body, but I still tempted them all the same.
“Nessa, can you come over this afternoon? I want to have a chat.”
I gave an angry look to the other two girls; Connor cringed and looked at the ground.
Casey and Corrina avoided me for the rest of the day. That act alone showed me that one of them was guilty. I had to keep reminding myself that they were young and naïve. I normally didn’t take betrayal too well and placing blame on them when I hadn’t been careful enough wasn’t fair. So much about yesterday went so wrong and the potential danger for those around me had increased.
Chapter Twenty
Nate
After my little white lie about me and Indy breaking up, the day flowed, though Casey was a little off. I wondered if she was the person who had told Mark about Indy. He had then told Brandon. None of my mates told me. Not that it mattered though, it wasn’t a real relationship.
We stood outside as the teenagers poured out the school doors; they were keen to get away from this place. We were all huddled together in a bunch, shielding ourselves from the harsh, chilling winds. I just didn’t get this strange town, one day the sun was blaring down on us, blistering our skins, the next day it seemed like the middle of winter. I zipped up my hoodie to stop the wind getting in. I wasn’t dressed for this weather.
“We’re going down to skate—everyone in?” asked Brandon.
In unison, most of the heads in the group nodded, except Nessa. She was off to one of those sessions. I could hear her trying to convince Indy to go with her. The guy she was scheduled to see freaked her out a bit. I think most guys would do that these days. I shook my head at Indy, we had to stay together. Indy rolled her eyes and looked away from me, I couldn’t see her expression but the small waves of black were enough to tell me she was over this game.
I had to speak up and tell the group that Connor and myself wouldn’t be coming today, we had other plans. Connor himself wasn’t aware of them yet, but I felt it was vital that we spend more time together.
“Connor and I are passing today, we have other plans,” I announced.
Connor was stuffing around with a junior who had a crush on him. He was leading her on. He wasn’t really interested, but I knew this gave his ego a boost. He turned around and looked at me, not sure of what was going on. I had his full attention and grasped Indy’s arm, said my goodbyes, and he followed us home.
No one bothered to ask me questions, they willingly followed. Connor stood on the other side of me, matching my pace. Stepping inside the house, he threw his bag on the floor and went over to the TV. Max cleared his throat and looked at Connor, then looked at his bag. It occurred to me than, he thought we were staying home only to keep everyone safe.
“Connor, I’m getting changed into my sweats, I suggest you do the same. From now on, I’m training you to fight.”
Both Connor and Indy’s mouths dropped open, neither of them had suspected this. They had me pegged as this selfish, nasty person, that wasn’t who I was at all.
“Connor, you need to learn to take care of yourself, anything you potentially learn may be the difference between life and death,” I said.
“I’m sure I couldn’t kill Bernie, Nate.”
“I’m not saying that,” I responded.
I left to put on my long sleeve workout shirt and a thin set of shorts, Connor dressed nearly the same. We started with the basics, going through the various types of punches and blocks. This was a good place to start, they are the most effective way to defend oneself. I stood in front of Connor and he copied my blocks for over half an hour. When I thought he had mastered the basic maneuvers, it was time to put these into practice.
I sunk myself into my natural fighting pose and told Connor to do the same. He placed one leg in front of the other. I was going to be cruel to teach him the importance of readying himself. I swept his right leg— not hard—but enough for them to slightly give way. His pose was weakened and he would easily stumble over with the force of an attack.
“See how your stance isn’t stable enough? You need to put your legs apart more and bent the front leg slightly; the weight distribution should be sixty percent on the front leg and forty on the back.”
“Okay, sure.” Connor moved his legs into a different position and put up his block. I told him never to let it down in a fight. I attempted to sweep his legs again, this time a little harder. His core was ten times more stable. Now were ready to engage each other. At a slow pace I tried to punch him; he had to think at the start which block would be more effective but he improved. Fighting didn’t come naturally to Connor, but I could see he had the potential to properly defend himself if I persisted and pushed him as far as I could. I stuck to punching and didn’t attempt a kick; today he just needed to accomplish the sleek flow from one movement to another.
Indy and Max had come to sit outside to watch us after Nessa left. Indy yelled out loudly when it was warranted but didn’t try and take over. Max looked at both of us proudly. We needed to get over our catty jealousy of the other in regards to Indy and this was the first step. We were now united as a team in the same common goal to protect our girl. If she ever ended up being with either of us, we would respect that decision and move on, but the odds were slim that Indy could ever be anyone’s girlfriend.
I finished training Connor, then jumped straight into sparring Indy; now it was Connor’s turn to watch. Normally when we sparred he played on the PlayStation or was in his room. Today he was watching tentati
vely.
“Connor, sometimes blocking isn’t enough and you need to learn to jump out of the way.” I nodded at Indy and she came at me in a frenzied attack. She demonstrated what it looked like when your opponent wasn’t in control of their style and had one thing on their mind, a quick, brutal fight. I had to duck, weave, and drop to the ground.
“And sometimes you need to learn to just run.”
I was spent by the time I finished sparring Indy. She took all the left over energy and pushed me beyond my normal limits. We had yet another visitor after dinner. I gladly went to bed when it was suggested and slept till morning.
Chapter Twenty-One
Indy
The boys were working very hard. Nate had dedicated himself to making sure Connor could defend himself. I sat out there most of the time with them. This day was going to be full on. Mark was bringing Cindy by a little later this evening, he had convinced her to come along and have a few free sessions with Max. Her parents had been opposed to this as Max had no proper qualifications, but when they heard it was free, they gave up fairly fast, they were at their wits’ end. Cindy hadn’t improved since Nate had exposed Hopwood, and the prosecution wanted to put Cindy on the stand for a testimonial; it didn’t look too good for her. They feared what sanity she had left was going to crack while under pressure and she wouldn’t be able to function properly in society.
While cleaning up my room, my mobile rang. It was Nessa asking permission to come over. Normally I would get annoyed at the thought of her asking, but Mark wanted privacy tonight and he had a good cause. She wanted to show me some of the recital pieces she had put together for her end of year performances. This one had come around so fast, I didn’t know it was here again till she rang me this afternoon to gain a second opinion.
I was always her first choice for a non-biased opinion, my ballet knowledge was very extensive. Nessa had constantly pestered me to help train the little kids but I didn’t have the patience for the tantrums nor could I stomach snotty noses. If Nessa didn’t come to me, she would have to travel around 45 minutes to get to her ballet school in Orange, the trip was too long for just a simple critique.
That yucky smell was hanging off Nessa again. I couldn’t put my finger on it, and no one else was bothered by it. I put it to the back of my mind. Nessa played the music and used my top floor hallway for her dance space, it wasn’t overly large but gave her enough room to do what she needed to do.
The music started and it became a part of her as Nessa performed the timeless steps which encompassed true ballet. Nessa’s arabesque was performed in a true ornamental nature, while her cabriole reached a perfect level of elevation. I couldn’t take my eyes away from her. Max heard the music and wandered up the stairs to watch the show.
The both of us watched perfectly executed pirouettes, the smile on Nessa’s face shone through her performance. It was obvious to us how much she enjoyed dancing. It was her passion and what Nessa wanted to do with her life. The music faded out, leaving the ballet dancer in front me seem like a magical character from a fairy tale.
Max and I applauded.
“Any suggestions, Indy?”
“No, I don’t have any. It was perfect.”
Max cleared his throat, he wanted to add something but didn’t want to barge into our conversation.
“Yes, Max?” Nessa asked, giggling,
“If I could throw an idea at you…”
“Yeah, sure.”
Max walked over to Nessa and asked her to perform her arabesque again. Nessa obliged. Max stood behind her and readjusted her leg, her chin, and her shoulders. As he did so, something strange happened. He pulled a strange face, concentrated for a few seconds, shook his head, then resumed his correction. Max pulled away to look at the pose, then ran into his room to fetch a big mirror I didn’t know he had. Showing Nessa the small adjustment, she smiled wide with joy as she glanced into the mirror.
“I didn’t know you were a dancer, Max. Since when?”
“I’ve have played Prince Siegfried in one New York based academy’s annual performance and the evil musician three times in various places around the world,” replied Max.
Nessa’s mouth fell onto the floor—I would have to be careful to not trip over it. She was in total awe, this was one of her dreams. Before all this mess with Hopwood, Nessa had hoped to become a famous ballet dancer, her dedication didn’t waver but her sessions with the counsellor meant she couldn’t practice as much as she used to.
“Max, why don’t you and Nessa work together to get her technique finely polished? With a tutor as experienced as you and your delicate eye for detail, I’m sure you can get her accepted into a fabulous ballet school,” I stroked Max’s ego heavily.
“If that’s what you want, I’m all for it. I even have a few contacts,” said Max.
Drool flowed from Nessa mouth, I would need a mop soon; her wildest dreams now seemed within her grasp. She could only manage a small nod, this arrangement was going to be perfect. My best friend would move on from this shitty town, leave the crap behind, and embark on a life of tantalising dreams and hopes within her grasp.
I watched Nessa practice over and over with Max, small components of the recital were changed and other pieces added. The basics, which had been choreographed by Nessa remained the same. This pair worked well together and developed an understanding of what they felt worked best.
A small stab of jealously pierced my heart. I thought now with Max here, I would fill the tiny cavity which AJ left. For hundreds of years I’d had my angel brother, someone always there for me to talk to and lean on when the cases seemed to have dried up. In reality that never happened, there was always some dickhead hurting some poor women, but when you live for hundreds of years, they all mesh together and nothing seems new. Even though AJ was never too far away, he had found what he’d been looking for and would never leave her ever again. Love was a sickening disease but at least having that one person by your side was a small benefit, I had to admit.
Max sent me downstairs to check on dinner a few times. They were now finishing up then Nessa would be on her way home. A special friendship had developed tonight, I was happy for my part in its creation; I could see a fag hag in the making. We had some time to waste before Cindy was due to come, I went outside and waited for my turn to fight Nate.
Shortly after dinner Mark arrived with Cindy. This poor girl wasn’t in a happy place, her clothes were creased and she smelled horrible. I didn’t know the last time this girl had showered, My heart went out to her. I just wanted to give her a big hug and take away all of her problems; where I lacked that skill, Max would certainly make up for it. Cindy stepped inside the house. Her eyes darted around the room, looking from Connor to Nate to Max, her head was working in overdrive looking at each male, watching their movement. Max approached her, as slow as his movements were, terror seized her; she sought Mark’s side for protection. I could see this behavior distressed him, the confident smart ass he was at school wasn’t present now, only a protective brother remained.
I was invisible to Cindy. As a female I wasn’t even registering on her radar. I walked around to Connor and whispered for him to go his bedroom and give Cindy some space. I didn’t need to tell Nate, he heard my small murmurs and went to his own room. The compassion in his eyes struck me; I had witnessed a softer side of Nate, but these observations still startled me. He had a bigger heart than most boys.
Max sat on the lounge close to Cindy, the internal radar which alerted us to danger was crying out for her to move. I sat on the other side and grabbed her hand.
“My name is Indy, this is Max. We want to help you,” I pleaded to her distrusting expression, emphasizing my voice on the last few words. I meant my words and wanted to comfort her.
“Okay,” replied Cindy. Her voice sounded confident, and if I placed myself in her position, I understood why. Cindy had visited many mental health professionals over the last few years and nothing had helped. Now that they ha
d a specific trigger for her decline in mental health, they were still no closer in improving her well-being.
Max reached for Cindy’s hand. He moved too fast, and startled her to the point she nearly drew blood with her long nails into my skin. I soothed her with trusting words and nodded to Max to move slowly. Over the next half hour, Max’s hand crept centimeters closer towards Cindy’s other hand. I talked to Cindy about clothing and fashion, taking her mind off what was happening gradually without Cindy realizing Max had a hand on her back.
I didn’t know how Max’s gift worked, but if I had to guess correctly, this would take a lot more sessions before Cindy was able to function as she once had. I could feel when Max drew from the holy spirit, the hand that held onto Cindy’s felt warm and tingly. As he withdrew the gift from himself, a change came over him. Max’s face progressed through a whole range of emotions; the first emotion which registered loudly was shock, it was terrible to witness. The second emotion which surfaced was anger. Oh, Max looked like he wanted to punch someone. The third emotion was really hard to recognize and I couldn’t put my finger on it, next it appeared like he wanted to cry, he had been close to tears and his bottom lip had trembled. Max’s facial expression smoothed out, offering a calm mood. I considered what had happened, I now understood how Max’s gift worked. As Max influenced the emotions of his subject, his own body went through the various stages of grief. To me he absorbed the emotions, processed them in rapid time, and threw them away.
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