on and my transparent footâand now lower leg, I upgraded as I stole another glanceâwould be exposed.
I had one real avenue of escape: the bathroom.
However, the last thing I needed at that moment was to draw attention to myself. Plus the embarrassment of a seemingly dire bathroom emergency in front of the whole class might upgrade me to fully invisible in one torturous anvil drop. Did I have a choice, though?
I raised my hand to half-mast, committing to embarrassment-door number one. Mr. Bluni was caught up in some discussion about the human genome project I had long since stopped tracking and seemed oblivious to my request. I looked down again. I was up to my knees in trouble. My hand reached higher. Have mercy.
Fortunately, Mr. Bluni finally caught sight of my hand. Instead of humiliating me, he discreetly gestured that I was free to go. I bolted for the door, almost stumbling face-first onto the floor as my feet got trapped on the projectorâs bundle of wires.
Jackson could tell by my panicked expression that something was very wrong, and it wasnât that I had to pee. I heard a few boys chuckle behind me, but no exclamations about my missing feet, so that was good enough for me to exit unscathed.
Hustling to the bathroom, I desperately hoped no one would be lurking in the hallway. My anxious gaze flew back over each shoulder, checking for spectators in any direction. All clear. Until I nearly collided with an angular, beanpole boy who had a shock of reddish-brown hair that stood up like a roosterâs comb. He was just standing there, as if oddly frozen in space, looking as startled as I was by the sudden head-on.
âSorry,â he muttered, with a befuddled, deer-in-the-headlights expression.
I thought I recognized him from one of my classes, but I had no time for pleasantries. I grunted and zoomed by him before he had a chance to notice I was vanishing from the ground up.
I finally made it inside the bathroom, darting for the handicapped stall, the only one that wouldnât give my transparent legs away. Collapsing against the wall, it held me up, but not upright. I slowly slid down the wall, my butt hitting the floor and my head falling between my knees. I could finally breathe. And with more oxygen to my brain came a flood of questions.
Why was this happening? How was this happening? There hadnât been a pulse since Danaâs party, which was two days ago. Under normal circumstances, there was no way my power shouldâve lasted this long.
My powers had never lasted this long.
So what was different? The pulse had been huge, enough to startle Oliverâs mom straight off the road. That was different. Was that pulse extra powerful? Did that, in turn, make me extra powerful? I had to talk to Oliver and Jackson. Were their powers still active too? My breathing transitioned from ragged to deep, and slowly my calves started to reappear. The process gave me more trouble than it had in the past (with the exception of my near freak-out after the accident), but once the process began to reverse, I breathed a sigh of relief.
I looked one hundred percent but felt about fifty when the class bell rang. I rushed back to the classroom to collect my stuff. Jackson had already split, which upset me. Wasnât he the least bit concerned about my abrupt exit? My hurt feelings would have to wait because Mr. Bluni looked ready to check in on me, so I darted off toward the cafeteria before he could follow through.
â¢Â  â¢Â  â¢
My mission was simple: Track down Oliver or Jackson. I pushed my way through the pizza line, much to the chagrin of those already waiting, and found Oliver near the front of the line.
âDr. Ashley not feeding you?â Oliver joked at my determination to join him.
âWe need to talk.â The line wasnât nearly private enough, so I tried to pull Oliver along with me.
âAnd I need to eat.â He dug his heels in until the
I had one real avenue of escape: the bathroom.
However, the last thing I needed at that moment was to draw attention to myself. Plus the embarrassment of a seemingly dire bathroom emergency in front of the whole class might upgrade me to fully invisible in one torturous anvil drop. Did I have a choice, though?
I raised my hand to half-mast, committing to embarrassment-door number one. Mr. Bluni was caught up in some discussion about the human genome project I had long since stopped tracking and seemed oblivious to my request. I looked down again. I was up to my knees in trouble. My hand reached higher. Have mercy.
Fortunately, Mr. Bluni finally caught sight of my hand. Instead of humiliating me, he discreetly gestured that I was free to go. I bolted for the door, almost stumbling face-first onto the floor as my feet got trapped on the projectorâs bundle of wires.
Jackson could tell by my panicked expression that something was very wrong, and it wasnât that I had to pee. I heard a few boys chuckle behind me, but no exclamations about my missing feet, so that was good enough for me to exit unscathed.
Hustling to the bathroom, I desperately hoped no one would be lurking in the hallway. My anxious gaze flew back over each shoulder, checking for spectators in any direction. All clear. Until I nearly collided with an angular, beanpole boy who had a shock of reddish-brown hair that stood up like a roosterâs comb. He was just standing there, as if oddly frozen in space, looking as startled as I was by the sudden head-on.
âSorry,â he muttered, with a befuddled, deer-in-the-headlights expression.
I thought I recognized him from one of my classes, but I had no time for pleasantries. I grunted and zoomed by him before he had a chance to notice I was vanishing from the ground up.
I finally made it inside the bathroom, darting for the handicapped stall, the only one that wouldnât give my transparent legs away. Collapsing against the wall, it held me up, but not upright. I slowly slid down the wall, my butt hitting the floor and my head falling between my knees. I could finally breathe. And with more oxygen to my brain came a flood of questions.
Why was this happening? How was this happening? There hadnât been a pulse since Danaâs party, which was two days ago. Under normal circumstances, there was no way my power shouldâve lasted this long.
My powers had never lasted this long.
So what was different? The pulse had been huge, enough to startle Oliverâs mom straight off the road. That was different. Was that pulse extra powerful? Did that, in turn, make me extra powerful? I had to talk to Oliver and Jackson. Were their powers still active too? My breathing transitioned from ragged to deep, and slowly my calves started to reappear. The process gave me more trouble than it had in the past (with the exception of my near freak-out after the accident), but once the process began to reverse, I breathed a sigh of relief.
I looked one hundred percent but felt about fifty when the class bell rang. I rushed back to the classroom to collect my stuff. Jackson had already split, which upset me. Wasnât he the least bit concerned about my abrupt exit? My hurt feelings would have to wait because Mr. Bluni looked ready to check in on me, so I darted off toward the cafeteria before he could follow through.
â¢Â  â¢Â  â¢
My mission was simple: Track down Oliver or Jackson. I pushed my way through the pizza line, much to the chagrin of those already waiting, and found Oliver near the front of the line.
âDr. Ashley not feeding you?â Oliver joked at my determination to join him.
âWe need to talk.â The line wasnât nearly private enough, so I tried to pull Oliver along with me.
âAnd I need to eat.â He dug his heels in until the
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