Angels Rising, page 17
“Mythology?” asked Amelia, furrowing her brow.
“Yeah,” replied Imorean, rolling his eyes. “That's what I said when I saw that I had it on my schedule.”
“You didn't ask for it?”
“No. Every student on campus has to take it too. It's weird.”
“That is odd. Oh well, some colleges have you take different classes. I suppose that's just one of the ones that Gracepointe wants you to take.”
“True. That's what I had in my mind when I heard that everyone had to take it.”
“What's that like in the classroom?”
“It's really interesting, actually. This past week we covered famous myths and legends. Next week, it's relations of myths to other narrative forms. I hope that later on in the semester we'll be studying mythological creatures. I think that would be really interesting.”
“Doesn't it say it in the syllabus?”
“I'm sure it does, but I don't have it with me right now.”
“Of course,” replied Amelia, shaking her head. “How are all your friends?”
“They're great. I think Roxy is still asleep. Toddy was gone by the time I got up, but I’m pretty sure he had something to do this morning. They might be in the cafeteria by now though. I've made another friend as well. He's the youngest boy on campus. His name's Colton.”
“Oh? How old is he?”
“He's fifteen. He graduated from high school two years early.”
“Wow,” mused Amelia. “What about the Bethany girl you told me about?”
“She’s good. Actually, I didn’t realize it, but she’s been flirting with me for a few weeks now.”
“Imorean, really? You would be one to not notice something like that. Anything come of it yet? Details, details.”
“We’re just friends, but I don’t think I’d mind being something a bit more with her. She’s really pretty. I’d like to see where things go.”
“Good, good. I can’t wait for you to video chat me with her. How about the teams? How are they going? Imagine you getting on the skydiving team? I can barely believe it. When you left you were terrified of heights. You would freak out whenever Rachel or Isaac got up on one of the counters.”
Imorean laughed and looked down for a moment.
“Well, I am still scared of heights,” he said.
“Then why join the team?” asked Amelia, her thin eyebrows coming together.
“For right now it's indoor skydiving, so we're going no great height. The highest we've gone so far is ten feet off the ground.”
“You're a nutcase, Imorean.” Amelia shook her head and smiled, her brown curls brushing over her shoulders. “I am proud of you though, for going outside your comfort zone and doing something new.”
“Thanks, Mom,” said Imorean, his heart swelling slightly in his chest.
“Is your skydiving coach nice?”
“He has his moments,” said Imorean.
“Oh dear. Is he a little strict?”
“He's... he's rude,” replied Imorean after a moment. There was truly no other way to describe Michael.
“Oh...” said Amelia. “Who is it?”
“One of the scholarship representatives. It's the older of the two brothers, Michael. Gabriel is the nice one.”
“I seem to remember you talking about them after your interview,” said Amelia, nodding.
“Yeah. Where are the twins? I haven't seen them yet, not even in the background.”
Imorean sat up straighter as his mother looked away, sadness in her eyes. She was hiding something and Imorean was suddenly on high alert.
“Mom?” asked Imorean, prompting an answer.
“They're in Asheville at my sister's house.”
“Why?” asked Imorean. His mother and his aunt were not on good terms. Something strange must have happened for her to send them there. Imorean's eyes widened as he saw his mother's lower lip tremble.
“I was going to send them to your grandparents' house for a few days, but on his way to pick them up, Papa had an accident.”
“What kind of accident?” asked Imorean, trying to keep the worry out of his voice. “Mom? What kind of accident?”
“He crashed into an animal on the road between here and their house. We assume it was a bear, judging from the condition of the car … and from him. It was around the same area you wrecked your truck.”
“What?” gaped Imorean, his blood running cold. “And you couldn't tell me this? Not even in an email? Why?”
“I didn't want to distract you from your studies, not during the first week,” said Amelia, frowning. “I didn’t want to break your focus.”
“Is Papa okay?” asked Imorean, wishing he was home.
“Yes. He's still in hospital, but he's out of intensive care and the doctors say he's getting better. They say he should make a full recovery. He was very disturbed, Imorean. I was at his bedside and he was rambling about monsters.”
Imorean shook his head, looking away from the computer screen. That explained his mother's frazzled appearance. She must have been running between the hospital, her sister's house, and home.
“Are you angry?” asked Amelia, grimacing.
“I just wish you'd told me. Are Isaac and Rachel doing okay?”
“They're fine, just a bit shocked.”
“Well, I can see why,” snapped Imorean, the words sounding sharper than he had intended for them to.
“I'm sorry,” said Amelia, her voice turning sharp as well. “But I only wanted for your attention to be undivided for the first week of school.”
“Thanks... I guess,” said Imorean. He frowned, knowing that his mother had only acted with his best interests in mind.
“Well... how are you finding the climate over there? I hear it's very different from here,” said Amelia, changing the subject.
“It's nice.” Imorean heaved a great sigh, but he was glad of the change. “It's a lot cooler and less humid than North Carolina. The first couple of days I was here I had to wear a sweater. It also rains more here than it does at home, but it's kind of nice in a way.”
“I wish I could see it,” said Amelia with a sigh. “Take some pictures and send them to me via email.”
“I will.”
“If you happen to see them before you come home for Thanksgiving, take some pictures of the Auroras. I'd love to see them.”
Imorean paused. Thanksgiving. Was their Thanksgiving break even still happening? There had been no word from the staff.
“What is it?” asked Amelia.
“I don't know if we get a Thanksgiving break.”
“What?”
“It's hard to explain. I'll have to send it in an email. I'll check with the teachers and see if they know anything about the breaks.”
“Surely they've given you a calendar.”
“All of that kind of thing is on the school's website.”
“I see. After we get off chat please check on that. I want to know when I'll next get to see you.”
“I will, Mom,” replied Imorean, smiling.
“Well…” Amelia gazed at him sadly. “I think I've got to get going. I told Papa I'd be at the hospital today.”
“Okay. Tell him I hope he gets better soon.” Imorean forced a smile. He really didn't want to say goodbye to his mother so soon.
“Bye, Honey. I'll talk to you soon. I love you,” she said, kissing her hand and placing it against the screen.
“I love you too,” replied Imorean, copying his mother's motion then ending the call. A feeling of heavy sadness settled around his shoulders as his mother's screen winked black. He was concerned as well. His grandfather was in the hospital. How odd that he had been in a car crash in the same place Imorean had just weeks before, and for the same reason. Imorean shook his head. Sheer coincidence? He didn't think so. There was just something too dark and too precise about the situation. And what about the monsters? Imorean couldn’t help but feel that there was something other involved.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Imorean arrived at the library later that evening. He was eager to shake off the bad feeling after hearing about his grandfather’s accident and had agreed to meet Bethany nearby. He sat on the low stone wall outside the library, half wondering if she had been serious about meeting him.
“Kinda wondered if you’d come, kinda knew you would,” said Bethany, approaching. Imorean looked up. So, she had been serious.
“Hey,” said Imorean, standing up. He noticed vaguely that she was wearing a new pair of designer shoes. Something struck him as odd, but he couldn’t tell what.
“Hi,” grinned Bethany.
“What have you been up to today?” asked Imorean, starting to walk.
“Nothing much.” Bethany’s tone was light and playful. “Just relaxing. You?”
“I video chatted with my mom,” said Imorean, noticing her fall into step next to him. He didn’t want to bring up his grandfather’s accident. It would put a damper on the atmosphere.
“Cool. Dad and I haven’t skyped yet, but I’m sure we will eventually.”
“So, you’ve really been flirting with me for the past month, huh?” asked Imorean, tucking his hands into his pockets.
“Well, yeah,” smirked Bethany, tucking a lock of her short hair behind her ear. “You’re a decent guy and you’re by no means average, so naturally I felt drawn to you.”
Imorean grinned. “I’m glad to know you think so highly of me. What drew you to me?”
“You’re good looking, level headed, and I like your humor. A little on the serious side, but that works on you. You’re diligent too. I can tell when you commit to something, you commit, and that’s something that’s pretty rare in a guy today.”
“Seems like you know me pretty well.”
“There’s something different about you too. Something that runs much deeper than just character traits or appearances. Something I can’t quite put my finger on.”
Imorean grinned at her. Bethany had leaned ever so slightly closer as she spoke.
“I’m glad you can see something else, because I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Imorean briefly wondered if Bethany’s flirty attitude was contagious.
“So, why did you agree to come meet me? Can’t have been just because you’re my friend. I’ve seen you glancing at me. I think you’re as interested in me as I am in you.”
“You’re confident, for starters,” said Imorean. “You’re very pretty and you’ve got attitude. We also seem to like the same stuff. We both like sports, yet we’re at home in a classroom. I’m comfortable with you. We’ve only just met, but I feel like I’ve known you much longer.”
“The feeling is mutual then.” Bethany stopped and looked up at him, batting her eyelashes.
“I’m glad about that.” Imorean hardly realized that he had stopped with her.
“So, would you like to get to know me better?” asked Bethany, looking up at him through half-lidded, blue eyes.
Imorean smiled as her pale eyes locked with his brown ones.
“I would like that very much, Bethany.”
“Good.”
A flash of surprise leaped through Imorean as she grabbed the front of his shirt, leaned up, and pressed her lips firmly against his.
Chapter 22
“Keep your body relaxed, Frayneson! How many times do I have to tell you?” snapped Michael from his position in the doorway to the skydiving tunnel. Imorean, Toddy, and Michael were the only ones left in the gym. All the other members of the team had gone back to their dorms. Imorean could barely believe it was already getting toward September. Classes had been going for almost a month now and everyone was starting to get more involved in their coursework. Most had tests coming up.
Imorean looked up in irritation, glaring at Michael through his goggles. The skydiving coach was in a particularly waspish mood today.
“I don't like the speed of the fans,” said Imorean, wobbling in midair and rolling over once. “It's freaking me out.”
“As you progress on this team, you need to learn how to deal with higher fan speeds. It is the only way that you will get used to the elements you may encounter on a real jump. Relax, Frayneson.”
“I'm trying,” called Imorean, raising his voice so he could be heard over the artificial wind.
“The more relaxed you are, the easier this will be,” said Michael.
Imorean panted, trying to listen to what Michael was saying, then his body wobbled again and his feet flipped forward, sending him head over heels. Imorean cried out at the unexpected motion and tensed his entire body. He rolled again and again, continuing to tense his body, wanting to gain purchase on anything to stop the movement. From the door, he heard Michael scoff. There was a whirring thunk as the fans that powered the simulator were turned off. Then Imorean fell, landing heavily on the elastic netting that formed the floor of the skydiving tunnel.
“You disappoint me, Frayneson,” said Michael, folding his arms and leaning on the door frame. “You have potential in the air, you could easily become as good of a diver as I am.”
“Should I take that as a compliment?”
“It is the closest thing you will get to one,” replied Michael. Imorean could feel the man scrutinizing him and lowered his gaze to the floor.
“I'll try again tomorrow, sir.”
“I should hope so,” said Michael, turning on his heel and exiting the now quiet gym.
“Dude,” said Toddy, coming to the wind tunnel doorway. “He had the fan speed up way too high today. Even Bethany was having trouble with it and she's the best skydiver out of all of us.”
“Don't I know it,” said Imorean, finally finding the strength to climb to his feet. “I wish I knew what his problem was. He can be such a jerk sometimes.”
“You disappoint me, Imorean,” said Toddy, doing a near perfect impression of Michael's voice. Imorean laughed and shook his head, glad for Toddy's presence.
“You got the quote wrong. He never calls me ‘Imorean’. It’s always ‘Frayneson’. But seriously, I mean, who actually makes comparisons to themselves?” asked Imorean. “'You could be almost as good as me one day'. It's not like he's perfect or anything.”
“He's just being vain,” shrugged Toddy, pulling his gym bag further onto his back and passing Imorean his own.
“Thanks,” said Imorean with a nod. He checked his watch. It was almost ten o'clock in the evening and was just starting to get dark outside. They normally met Roxy, Bethany, Mandy, and Colton in the library so they could study some of their subjects together. Perhaps it was too late to meet them tonight. Skydiving practice didn't usually go on this long.
“Think they're still there?” asked Toddy, leading the way out of the gym.
“I'm not sure. We can go and have a look. No harm in trying.”
“Alright,” nodded Toddy.
Imorean was surprised to enter the library and find that Bethany, Mandy, Roxy, and Colton were all still in the building. He and Toddy quietly approached their friends’ table, and Bethany looked up as they came near.
“How did you handle the fans?” asked Bethany.
“It was awful,” sighed Imorean. “He had the speed too high. We, or at least I, wasn’t ready for it. He’s pushing us too hard.”
“I don’t know that he’s pushing us too hard. Too fast, maybe.”
“Yeah. I thought you all would have gone to bed already.”
“Nope,” said Roxy, shaking her head. “We're studying for Dr. Haroel's test on Ancient Greek Myths.”
“It’s going to be rough,” said Mandy, shaking her head as she looked up from her book.
“Oh, nice.” Imorean deposited his bag on the floor next to their regular table. “When is that again?”
“Imorean,” said Roxy. “Get yourself together. I'm the one who's supposed to ask those kinds of questions. The test is tomorrow. Are you ready for it?”
Imorean sucked a breath in through his teeth and darted a glance at Toddy. The expression on his friend's face told him all he needed to know. Neither of them had studied for it. Neither had even known there was one coming up.
“Can I see your notes?” asked Imorean as Toddy sat down next to Colton, starting to read along with the smaller boy in the textbook already lying on the table.
“Honestly, you're lucky I'm playing mother hen right now,” said Roxy, sliding her notebook across the table to Imorean and not looking up from the thick textbook she was poring over.
“I certainly am,” replied Imorean. He thought he saw her smile slightly. “It won't happen again, Rox.”
“I told you, you're spreading yourself too thin,” said Roxy, looking up at him. Disappointment and concern were evident in her hazel eyes.
“Sorry,” sighed Imorean.
“That's alright. Find me some red dye or red drink powder and we'll call it even,” she said.
Imorean saw all the others at the table glance at him in confusion.
“She wants to dye her hair again,” explained Imorean with a grin. “Since we're lacking a proper salon here, she's planning on resorting to dip dyeing. I am and always have been her scrounger for hair products.”
“He does a very good job, too.” Roxy took a second to smile up at him.
“You know we're not supposed to be dyeing our hair unnatural colors,” said Colton.
“Oh?” asked Roxy. “Where does it say that?”
“Student handbook, page thirty-five, rule sixty-six, subsection three, line eight.”
“Did you memorize the entire handbook?” asked Imorean, looking up from a page about Perseus and Medusa.
“I had a free afternoon before we came,” shrugged Colton.
“In that case,” said Roxy. “Imorean, scratch the red, it's too close to my natural hair color and fades too quickly. Find me green, blue, or pink, even better if you can get your hands on all three. I'm going to dye my entire head.”
“Are you sure that's a good idea?” asked Imorean, resisting the urge to laugh.
“What are they going to do? Shave my head?”
“I will find red for,” said Imorean, rolling his eyes. “Just because I don't want to see you wandering around bald.”
“Whatever,” shrugged Roxy. She sobered a moment later. “How's Papa doing? Is he out of the hospital yet?”
