ready to go?” Jake approaches, but I barely hear him, I’m so busy staring at Mouse.
“Where’s Krystal?”
Jake shrugs, long locks of brown hair scraping over his forehead. His backpack is on his right shoulder, and his hands are stuffed into the pockets of his hoodie, just like always.
I’ve known Jake since I was a kid. Since we were both kids. We kind of hooked up because we had something in common. I could disappear, and he could lift things like cars or trucks or anything else no normal human should be able to lift. The moment we found out we were both freaks, we became instant friends.
Now there’s Krystal, her appearance in Lincoln invading our little twosome. Me, I was thrilled to see there was someone else with the mark Jake and I shared because that meant she must have powers like us, too. And she did.
Jake, I can’t really tell how he feels about Krystal moving to Lincoln. Sometimes I think he really likes her and wishes Krystal could see that. Then other times, like now, I don’t know. He looks like he’d rather eat one of those maniacal birds that keep following us than wait another second for Krystal.
“We have to wait,” I say and look away from him because I don’t want to see his reaction. It’s not going to change my mind either way. “I’ve got something to tell you two.”
“You can tell me,” he says and sounds irritated.
“We’re all in this together. I’m telling both of you.”
I do look at him then, but he just sighs and opens the car door. It’s a two-door, so I watch absently as he pushes the front seat up and climbs in the back. With Mouse driving, it probably makes sense for me to ride in the back today and let Krystal ride shotgun.
Fifteen minutes later, we climb out of the car and walk up the steps to the library. Jake is quiet, but Krystal’s talking about how she really enjoyed the Bible study she went to with her mother last night. I’m only half listening to her because there’s so much more on my mind.
We go all the way to the back of the library because there are a lot of other kids there, and we don’t want to be disturbed. But Jake stops in the mythology section first and picks up some books. Krystal changes her line of conversation the minute he’s out of earshot.
“So listen to this, Franklin asked me about doing it.”
I drop my bag down onto the table. It makes a loud thunking noise that has a couple of kids looking up from the table two rows over. Rolling my eyes at them, I return my gaze to Krystal and just stare. “It?”
She nods with a smile that doesn’t quite look happy. “Yeah, it. ”
“Like he wants to do it, with you?”
She nods again.
Wow. Sex. Hmm.
“So what did you tell him?”
“Nothing really, just kind of brushed it off.”
“Well, do you want to? With him, you know, do you want to have sex with him?”
She sits down and drums her fingers on the table. Krystaldoesn’t have nails, so the sound is dull, monotonous. “I don’t know.”
Krystal’s a pretty girl, with her creamy coffee-toned skin and high cheekbones. I guess this is why Franklin is cuddling so much with her. He obviously wants to go to the next step. I wonder what she’ll do and figure since I’m her friend, I should like offer some advice. Problem is I don’t really have any as I’m still holding tight to my virginity as well.
“You should think about it, don’t do anything you’re not totally comfortable with.”
She nods her head. “Yeah, that’s what I was thinking.”
Jake returns.
“They’ve got a whole section on mythology—Roman, Indian, Celtic, Greek. I just grabbed a bunch. So let’s just look through them all and find any references to the River Styx.” Jake is talking and giving out books to me and Krystal like Mr. Emory, the science teacher.
We all sit down and I speak up first. “Before we look through the books, I have to tell you guys something.”
“Okay, shoot,” Jake says but opens up his book like
“Where’s Krystal?”
Jake shrugs, long locks of brown hair scraping over his forehead. His backpack is on his right shoulder, and his hands are stuffed into the pockets of his hoodie, just like always.
I’ve known Jake since I was a kid. Since we were both kids. We kind of hooked up because we had something in common. I could disappear, and he could lift things like cars or trucks or anything else no normal human should be able to lift. The moment we found out we were both freaks, we became instant friends.
Now there’s Krystal, her appearance in Lincoln invading our little twosome. Me, I was thrilled to see there was someone else with the mark Jake and I shared because that meant she must have powers like us, too. And she did.
Jake, I can’t really tell how he feels about Krystal moving to Lincoln. Sometimes I think he really likes her and wishes Krystal could see that. Then other times, like now, I don’t know. He looks like he’d rather eat one of those maniacal birds that keep following us than wait another second for Krystal.
“We have to wait,” I say and look away from him because I don’t want to see his reaction. It’s not going to change my mind either way. “I’ve got something to tell you two.”
“You can tell me,” he says and sounds irritated.
“We’re all in this together. I’m telling both of you.”
I do look at him then, but he just sighs and opens the car door. It’s a two-door, so I watch absently as he pushes the front seat up and climbs in the back. With Mouse driving, it probably makes sense for me to ride in the back today and let Krystal ride shotgun.
Fifteen minutes later, we climb out of the car and walk up the steps to the library. Jake is quiet, but Krystal’s talking about how she really enjoyed the Bible study she went to with her mother last night. I’m only half listening to her because there’s so much more on my mind.
We go all the way to the back of the library because there are a lot of other kids there, and we don’t want to be disturbed. But Jake stops in the mythology section first and picks up some books. Krystal changes her line of conversation the minute he’s out of earshot.
“So listen to this, Franklin asked me about doing it.”
I drop my bag down onto the table. It makes a loud thunking noise that has a couple of kids looking up from the table two rows over. Rolling my eyes at them, I return my gaze to Krystal and just stare. “It?”
She nods with a smile that doesn’t quite look happy. “Yeah, it. ”
“Like he wants to do it, with you?”
She nods again.
Wow. Sex. Hmm.
“So what did you tell him?”
“Nothing really, just kind of brushed it off.”
“Well, do you want to? With him, you know, do you want to have sex with him?”
She sits down and drums her fingers on the table. Krystaldoesn’t have nails, so the sound is dull, monotonous. “I don’t know.”
Krystal’s a pretty girl, with her creamy coffee-toned skin and high cheekbones. I guess this is why Franklin is cuddling so much with her. He obviously wants to go to the next step. I wonder what she’ll do and figure since I’m her friend, I should like offer some advice. Problem is I don’t really have any as I’m still holding tight to my virginity as well.
“You should think about it, don’t do anything you’re not totally comfortable with.”
She nods her head. “Yeah, that’s what I was thinking.”
Jake returns.
“They’ve got a whole section on mythology—Roman, Indian, Celtic, Greek. I just grabbed a bunch. So let’s just look through them all and find any references to the River Styx.” Jake is talking and giving out books to me and Krystal like Mr. Emory, the science teacher.
We all sit down and I speak up first. “Before we look through the books, I have to tell you guys something.”
“Okay, shoot,” Jake says but opens up his book like
Similar Books
