Pulse of Heroes

by A. Jacob Sweeny

  Xander was surrounded by the most drop-dead gorgeous guys she had ever seen. There were six of them and each was uniquely handsome; no, not handsome she thought. Absolutely beautiful. They looked to be in their early or mid twenties, maybe their late teens; it was hard to tell. As she passed them by, Michelle couldn’t help but turn her head back to get one more look, especially to see the person Xander was talking to, because her view had been obstructed earlier. And just as she placed her eyes on him, the most beautiful guy of all was suddenly looking right back at her, as if he somehow knew the exact moment to meet her gaze. Did she stop walking? Was she even breathing? Michelle couldn’t tell what was happening to her. Every inch of her body was trembling. Not the kind of trembling that is seen visually; it was different. More like a soundless murmur or a hum running through her body. Look away, she kept thinking. Look away. But her eyes were locked on his. His eyes were deep and blue, dark blue, unusually so. They were unlike any blue eyes she had ever seen before. Michelle wondered how it was that she could see them so clearly from so far away. And what was that scent? It was so familiar, right at the tip of her tongue. Xander turned to see what his companion was staring at, and by doing so blocked her view of the guy she was so fixated on. Somehow everything clicked back into place, and she was back to her old normal self. No more humming or buzzing, and nothing to smell but the warm grease arising from the food court. Oh no, she thought, did Xander finally recognize her? Now she was really shaking and trembling. Am I going to faint, she thought? She had never fainted before. How frightening.

  Michelle heard her mom calling her name and she turned around to see her standing by the glass exit doors. “I’m coming, Mom,” she called back, but her voice came out only as a whisper. Michelle walked towards her mom, all the while trying to figure out what had just taken place.

  When she got to the doors her mom looked at her full of worry. “Lets get you to bed, sweetie. I should have never dragged you out here.” Her mom put her arm around her and they exited the building together.

  Still, Michelle couldn’t make sense of what had just happened. Was she imagining everything? Was it all in her head? She must be burning up with fever. She turned around to get one more look from the outside through the glass doors, but all she saw was Xander standing in the middle of the hallway staring in her direction. There was no one around him; he was alone.

  When her mother finally left her alone in her room, Michelle began to try and make sense of all that had happened that day. Sipping on a warm cup of mint and lemon tea seemed to make everything a little better, more palatable. She thought about the obvious things like the fact that she had gotten out of taking her Italian midterm, and the fact that since she was actually sick there was no way she would have been able to attend the winter formal, date or no date, so she shouldn’t feel too disappointed. When she was done thinking about school and everything that related to it, she finally let her mind rest on the most important development of the day: Xander and his group of boys at the mall. But Michelle didn't get too far with her thoughts on the matter, because five minutes later she was deep in sleep.

  Chapter 3

  Michelle spent most of the weekend upstairs in her room, although she was well on her way to recovery. She was still weak and napped frequently. But when she wasn't napping, her mind circulated back to the events at the mall. She went over every little detail that she could remember, trying to figure out why the whole thing felt so strange to her. She told herself time and time again that whatever it was that she felt was so odd was probably all in her mind. After all, it was the holidays, and perhaps Xander was out with his family. Nothing strange about that, right? That made perfect sense, right? And the fact that the guys all had different skin colors and that one was obviously Asian shouldn't really change the actuality that they could still all be part of Xander’s family. She had read about many famous people that adopt children from different countries and different continents as if they were collecting wild butterflies from faraway forests and jungles. Xander was obviously wealthy. He drove a fancy car and wore expensive clothing, and had probably adopted all the guys while traveling around the world. Yes, she thought, that was a perfect explanation.

  Later that afternoon Michelle attempted to read a book, watch TV, and even played a game of cards with her father. But no matter how hard she tried to concentrate on these tasks, her mind wandered back to the scene at the mall. The whole situation was starting to annoy Michelle, and she began making a deliberate, conscious effort not to think about it anymore.

  By the Monday morning of Michelle’s holiday break from school, she was feeling like her old self again. She woke up early, and was dressed and at the breakfast table before her dad even left for work. She had a voracious appetite and helped herself to seconds. Her parents were delighted, and her father was relieved that she would be able to join them for the holiday dinner at the mayor's house. After the table was cleared away and the dishes dried and put back into the cabinet, her mom led her into the living room where a large Christmas tree stood. Michelle was surprised that it had been there the whole weekend and she hadn’t even noticed it, not even by smell. She might have been a bit cynical about Christmas, but was always powerless to resist the fragrance of a fresh Christmas tree.

  It used to be a family tradition that everybody would pile into the car and go pick out the tree on one of the many lots that dotted the area. This had continued even after Toby left home. Michelle couldn't help but feel disappointed that she missed it this year, and that her father had been forced to go pick one out by himself while her mom was busy worrying over her temperature. Michelle felt sorry for her father when she imagined him walking around the Christmas tree lot all alone, cold and wet without any of the rest of them there. She wished she could have gone along with him.

  The sound of rattling ornaments in a cardboard box roused Michelle from her daydreaming. Usually, the tree would have been decorated by now, but her mom had wanted to wait until Michelle felt better. Every year it was the same ritual of placing each ornament in just the perfect location, while her mom retold the history and memories associated with it. When she was little, her dad would hang them as she pointed out where they should go. Michelle had heard the ornament stories God knows how many times, and yet every time she heard them they still made her smile.

  “Mom, what’s that smell?” Michelle asked.

  “Oh my gosh! The cookies! I hope they’re not burning,” her mom answered in a panic, already rushing to the kitchen. So while her mother was tending to her famous gingerbread cookies, Michelle was left to finish up the tree on her own.

  Michelle was nearing the last of the ornaments when she came across one wrapped in white tissue paper. She couldn’t remember ever having seen it before. It must be made of glass, she thought as she unwrapped it, but to her surprise it wasn't. It was an odd looking pear-shaped ceramic ornament, flat and crudely made, and pressed into the lower section there was a roundish disk that did look to be made of glass, but unlike any glass Michelle had ever seen before. It had whirling colors of blues and turquoise with iridescent specks of purple, gold, silver and green. There was also some sort of crackling effect to it; it almost looked like the glass was somehow peeling, not unlike the colored layers of an abalone shell. Michelle moved closer to a lamp to get a better view, but the light wasn’t bright enough. So she walked into the downstairs bathroom where her parents had recently replaced the regular light bulbs with new iridescent halogen ones. Michelle was shocked. The little piece of glass was beyond beautiful. It had so many layers of color and so much depth; it was unbelievable. She kept tilting the ornament under the light, and as she did so she was no longer looking at the glass but into blue eyes. She had seen those eyes before, but only once. With a sudden fear and realization she dropped the ornament straight into the sink and it made a loud clank and crashing sound. It was those eyes, the eyes belonging to the boy in the mall. They looked just like that glass; that's what had made hi
m seem so unusual. They had layers of blue in them with specks of gold and silver around the pupils. They were unlike any eyes she had ever seen before: beautiful, gripping, stunning, not human, monstrous.

  Michelle was startled by a knock on the door and her mother's voice calling her, “Honey, is everything okay in there?”

  Somewhat frightened, Michelle looked down into the sink. The ornament was lying there, shattered into bits and pieces. “Yeah, I'm ok, Mom. I just dropped my cell phone,” Michelle answered, trying to sound as normal as possible. She heard her mother's footsteps walking back towards the kitchen. Guilt and remorse swiftly filled Michelle's heart. There was no way she could repair the damage, as some of the fragments were no more than dust. She started wrapping the broken pieces in tissue paper, placing them in the bottom of the garbage bin as quietly as she could. To her surprise, the blue disk was still intact and lay beneath a large shard. Michelle carefully picked up the glass and placed it in her pocket. She washed her face and exited the bathroom as if nothing had happened, heading straight to the kitchen to enjoy one of the cookies while they were still warm.

  Michelle contemplated whether she should call Samantha and tell her everything that had happened at the mall. But what if all this nonsense was completely made up in her head? Samantha would surely think her crazy; she might even tell her mom about it. No, she would definitely need more evidence of something strange going on if she was going to share this with anyone. But what kind of evidence could she get, and how? Michelle was determined to come up with a plan.

  Dinner that night was pleasant and festive enough, although Toby was definitely missed during the holiday vacation. They talked about that for a while, and eventually the conversation led to talking about the important gathering they had been invited to at the mayor's house. Her father had forgotten to mention one crucial detail: it was a formal event. Michelle and her mother immediately looked at one another, both with the same thought on their mind. What were they going to wear?

  “Daddy, you could've told me a little bit earlier. I have nothing to wear.”

  Her mother chimed in next, “Darling, you could have given us a smidgen of information?”

  Her father looked confused and almost hurt when he answered that he had no idea it was such a big deal. Her mother responded that in the bigger picture of things, it wasn't, but that formalwear was a much bigger hassle for women than for men because men pretty much all wear the same outfit to any formal event and no one bats an eye.

  Michelle agreed with her mother. “Yeah, you're going to wear the same thing you do to your office every day. All you have to do is wear a fancier tie and nice cufflinks, and you're set.” Her father listened to her rationality and was forced to agree. Michelle continued, “I have nothing to wear, not even shoes.”

  “What about the black and white dress that you wore a couple years ago? It looked so pretty on you,” her mother said.

  The black and white dress was really nice, but her mom was mistaken because the last time Michelle wore it was actually more like four years ago. She had definitely grown since she was 12 years old. Great, Michelle thought. They're going to have to go back to the mall two days before Christmas. What a freaking nightmare! There were always the small boutiques in town, if she had the luck to find something that would fit and be reasonably priced.

  Michelle stood in front of her closet, her feet surrounded by the different dresses turned inside out and bundled like dirty laundry. She was sweating and frustrated. It's not that Michelle didn't have any skirts or dresses, but they were mostly cottony summery types. And the black and white dress was completely out of the question. When she held it up against her body, it looked like a little kid’s outfit. She just wanted to scream! Just then, she heard her cell phone ringing from somewhere in the room, but she couldn't locate it. She frantically searched in her bed, under her pillow, then under the bed, but to no avail. The phone rang its last rotation; if she didn't pick it up right then and there it was going to be sent off to voicemail. Like a star athlete, Michelle dove towards her closet and pretty much belly-flopped onto the pile of clothes that was lying on the floor, triumphantly emerging with phone in hand. She answered just in time. It was Samantha.

  Naturally, Samantha wondered why Michelle was out of breath, and Michelle explained to her how the phone was lost under the clothes, and why she had the clothes on the floor to begin with. Although Samantha was sympathetic, what she really wanted to talk about was the winter formal. In fact, she burst with enthusiasm telling Michelle every little detail of the night, right down to the kind of punch they served. Michelle was happy for Samantha; she could imagine her smiling from cheek to cheek, and she always got that little blush when she was really happy.

  Of course, Michelle wished that she could have been there too, and had a wonderful date like James who not only got Samantha a corsage but also gave her a matching bouquet of flowers.

  “That's wonderful,” Michelle said to Samantha. “You're lucky to have such a nice guy like James.”

  Samantha immediately yelled back at Michelle that she shouldn't forget that James was lucky to have someone like her.

  “Okay, okay. I didn't mean it like that. You know exactly what I meant,” Michelle giggled while holding the cell phone a few inches away from her ear.

  When Samantha asked Michelle what she had been up to, Michelle felt conflicted as to what to tell her, and instead of answering there was a moment of uncomfortable silence that lasted a little bit too long.

  “Michelle, what's wrong?” Samantha asked, sounding sincerely concerned.

  Michelle had to think of something. “Oh, nothing,” she answered. “I just spaced out a little bit. I think it's from being sick you know.”

  Samantha wasn't buying it. She knew Michelle well enough to pick up on when there was something bothering her. It didn't sound like Michelle was in one of her contemplative moods; Michelle was holding something back, she was sure of it. But she also knew how stubborn Michelle could be, and recognized that trying to pry information out of her was a losing battle. Michelle would tell her whatever she needed to when the time was right.

  The girls made plans to meet the next morning for an early walk and then Michelle was going to join Samantha's family for a late breakfast. After hanging up, Michelle realized that she had made a mistake by accepting Samantha's invitation, because she and her mom were going to have to go back to the mall to try and get something to wear for that stupid dinner. Oh well, she thought, she’d have to eat fast.

  The next morning was nicer than what was expected. The weatherman had said that there was a 68% chance of precipitation, but it was beautifully sunny and warm out. Michelle knocked on Samantha’s door as quietly as possible so she wouldn’t wake up the rest of the household, but when no one answered she went to the side yard and began throwing the little prickly round seeds that collected under the maple trees at Samantha’s bedroom window. They were very light, and it was difficult to get them to reach the second floor, so Michelle set out to find small pebbles to get the job done right. She was actually surprised at how hard it was to find any sort of rocks or gravel around Samantha's yard, but eventually she came across a small cactus garden and gathered a few pebbles from there. Michelle had a pretty good aim, and hit Samantha's bedroom window on her first try. Samantha appeared at the window and motioned to her that she was coming downstairs. A few minutes later, Samantha was at the front door and immediately gave Michelle a big hug.

  “Why didn't you just text me?” Samantha asked.

  “Oh, I don't know. I've seen it done in the movies so many times that I thought I should give it a try,” Michelle answered jokingly. “Actually I left my cell at home,” she added.

  The girls started their walk slowly, but every few minutes they added speed to their gait. Eventually, they were fast-walking, so much so that they began sweating. About a year ago Samantha's mom, who was a nurse, told Samantha that jogging was actually quite traumatic to the joints an
d the knees, and that fast-walking would burn the same amount of calories and give her the right cardio exercise that she was looking for. When the girls first began their fast-walking activities they felt very self-conscious and uncomfortable because from the outside it looked kind of silly. It was something that older people did, not teenagers. But once they realized that they broke out sweating within a couple of minutes, they decided to forget about what they looked like to other people. Michelle thought that was very mature of them.

  When they got back to Samantha's house, Michelle told her that she would have to eat-and-run style during breakfast, and for her not to take that as an insult. Samantha felt a little guilty because she had almost completely forgotten about Michelle's wardrobe dilemma. That's how excited she was about the formal that it took up most of her thought processes. Michelle devoured breakfast, and wondered what it was about food tasting different in somebody else's house when it's the exact same food she had at home. Samantha's mom was very impressed by the fact that both Michelle and her mother had the courage to face the crowds and parking nightmare at the shopping mall. Michelle was lamenting over that reality when Samantha became extremely excited and started jumping up and down yelling, “I know, I know! I have the best idea, Michelle you've got to say yes!” Both Michelle and Samantha's mother looked at her peculiarly, waiting to hear this extraordinary idea. “Why don't you borrow my blue dress from the formal! I know you love it just as much as I do, and it's not a traditional prom dress. It would be perfect!” Samantha was smiling proudly, waiting for Michelle's response. Michelle was in shock. She didn’t even think about that dress, let alone that Samantha would let her borrow it. The dress was so beautiful and so elegant and delicate that she doubted that she would let Samantha borrow it if it was hers. But that's why she loved Samantha; Samantha was a better person than she was, by far.