Angels Rising, page 19
“Have you forgotten everything that I have attempted to teach you, Frayneson?” snapped Michael as Imorean flailed madly in the air. The team had been working on back flips for the past few days. All of them except Imorean had been able to manage them.
“Work with the air, not against it,” said Michael, shaking his head.
Imorean glared at him. Perhaps instead of criticizing him, he could offer some help. Behind Michael, Imorean could see Bethany and Toddy looking on in sympathy. It wasn't just Imorean who had been on the receiving end of Michael's temper, although he did seem to be the man's favorite target.
Imorean tried one more time to situate his body properly in the air to perform the flip Michael had asked him to, but he just couldn't manage it. Even now in mid-September, Imorean still hated the fact that he had nothing to hold onto, that he could gain purchase on nothing. He had been on the team for weeks now and his fear of heights was still dogging him. Imorean rolled back into his basic, spread eagle position and hovered.
“That is enough,” said Michael, turning the fans off. “We will work on this again tomorrow, Frayneson. For tonight, I have had enough of watching you make a fool of yourself.”
Imorean fell heavily down onto the elastic netting and quickly scrambled over to the door before Michael shut it. The surly, skydiving coach frowned at Imorean and shook his head. Imorean opened his mouth to snap a rude comment, but thought better of it at the last moment. Michael was an unpredictable man and he was a faculty member. Imorean didn't think being rude to him would go over very well.
“Come on, Imorean,” said Toddy from the bottom of the steps. “We've got studying we need to do.”
“I'm coming,” said Imorean, not looking back at Michael as he walked down the steps and picked up his bag. The contents had spilled onto the floor and Imorean hurried to pick them up.
“What's his problem?” asked Imorean as he and his friends left the gym.
“What do you mean?” asked Bethany, studying her nails.
“He's been a complete prick for over two weeks now.”
“I don't know what the issue is,” said Toddy, shrugging and resting a hand of encouragement on Imorean's shoulder.
“I mean if he hates me so much, why doesn't he just kick me off the team? He won't even let me quit.”
“Because he can see your potential.” Bethany sounded huffy and had been in a foul mood all day. “Hell, even I can see it. He knows that you could be a really good skydiver, probably even a wingsuit skydiver. I think he just hasn't quite figured out how to teach you to harness your talent though. I don't think he's angry with you. I'm pretty sure he's just frustrated.”
“Well, he doesn't have to take it out on me,” replied Imorean, holding the door open for his friends as they entered the library. He watched as Bethany passed in front of him. Was she wearing a new set of designer tee shirt and jeans again? Imorean was certain she got new clothes almost every week. Why was it that he found that so strange, he wondered?
Roxy and Colton were already waiting for them at their regular table in the library.
“I still don't get this whole mythology class,” snorted Bethany, taking out their textbook.
“None of us do,” said Imorean. “I know one thing though, it's driving me up the wall. It's an extra class I really shouldn't be taking and the way Haroel runs it, it should be writing intensive.”
“I know,” said Colton.
Imorean rested his textbook on the table and looked across at Colton. The younger boy was doing calculus problems with one hand and reading the mythology book when he finished each problem. Imorean shook his head. Colton really did have a unique ability to multitask.
“By the way, Roxy,” said Imorean, reaching into his bag again and sliding some packets across the table to his best friend. “This is my payment for borrowing your notes recently.”
“Ah!” cried Roxy, looking up from the book she was reading and grabbing hold of the packets. Imorean grinned. She was the only person he knew who could get so excited about powdered drinks.
“I knew you'd pay up eventually.” Roxy grinned at him as she turned the packets over in her hands.
“They took quite a while to find,” said Imorean, “but it turns out that they keep them in the sports concession stands.”
“You’re awesome,” beamed Roxy.
“Are we going to study or gossip?” snapped Bethany, leafing through her book. Imorean frowned at her. Bethany could be temperamental, but remaining in a bad mood for several hours was unusual for her.
“We like to do a bit of both,” replied Roxy sweetly.
Imorean rolled his eyes. He knew from Roxy's tone that she wasn't intending to be sweet at all. As he placed his binder and his pen on the table, he felt Bethany slip her hand into his. He wasn’t sure when they had started holding hands under the table during studying, but he liked it. He was enjoying the quiet, private relationship between them. Not even Roxy knew about it. Yet. Imorean had been planning to tell his friends, he just hadn’t quite gotten around to it.
Imorean delved back into his bag for the third time, searching for the book that they were supposed to be reading for Dr. Haroel's class. He frowned. It wasn't there. But he felt certain that he had put it in his bag that afternoon.
“Imorean, everything alright?” asked Roxy, obviously having noticed his expression.
“Does anyone else have a copy of Osiris and Set?” asked Imorean, looking around the table. They had recently started their section on Ancient Egyptian Mythology.
“Not with me,” Roxy grimaced.
Toddy shook his head. “Mine's back at the dorm.”
“Mine too,” replied Colton.
“I get my copy tomorrow. I'm on a different schedule from the rest of you.” Bethany shrugged, her tone apologetic.
“Are you missing your copy?” asked Toddy.
“Yeah,” said Imorean, frowning. “Oh no... my bag spilled when I set it down in the gym. I bet that's where it is. I need to start reading that book. We're being quizzed on it tomorrow.”
“Do you want me to walk with you?” asked Roxy.
“No. No offense, Roxy, but I'll be faster on my own.”
“None taken,” said Roxy, sitting back down.
“I’ll come,” offered Bethany. Imorean didn’t miss the poisonous glance that Bethany shot Roxy. He felt a twinge of irritation.
“No. I’ll go on my own.”
Imorean left his book bag next to the table and stood up.
He exited the library, then started to jog quickly from the library back to the gym. He hoped Michael hadn't locked up the building yet. The gym was dark as Imorean approached it. He slowed as he reached the top of the steps. Imorean walked onward and rested a hand on one of the gym's glass doors. He pulled, his heart sinking when he heard the deadbolt clang against the metal frame of the other door. Imorean groaned in exasperation and let his head fall forward against the glass doors.
This day was just not going his way. That morning he had just barely passed one of the tests from Norwegian Literature. Dr. Haroel's lectures were becoming much more involved and complicated. Biology was getting harder and Imorean felt that he barely had enough time to study for it, despite the fact that it was his chosen major. Michael constantly made him feel like an insect under a microscope and never missed a chance to point out his faults. Now he had left the very book he needed to study inside a locked building. Could this day get much worse?
“Can't a guy catch a break?” Imorean asked, tilting his head up and studying the starry sky that stretched overhead.
“Not tonight you can't,” said a voice from the shadows.
Imorean turned. That was not a voice he wanted to hear when he was alone in the dark. Ryan. Imorean remembered Dustin’s warning and swallowed hard as he strained his eyes to see in the darkness. This was not how he had imagined the inevitable confrontation.
“Ryan?” asked Imorean, narrowing his eyes and trying to make out a shape he saw lurking in the shadows.
“That's right, albino boy,” said Ryan, finally stepping out of the darkness. Imorean's mouth ran dry when he noticed the other two boys with him. Fighting one-on-one was something he could manage, and had done before. Three against one was just unfair. Right now, his chances of stepping away from Ryan with his face intact were not looking good.
“I've been waiting too long for this,” said Ryan, grinning.
Imorean resisted the urge to curl his lip. “Yeah, a few weeks is a long time for someone with the attention span of a goldfish.”
“You got my football club shut down.” Ryan’s voice had changed. There was something much more aggressive in it now.
“I wish I could say you didn't deserve it,” said Imorean, subconsciously stepping backward. He wanted to put as much space between himself and Ryan as he could. For a moment, Imorean wondered if his friends had noticed how long he had been gone. Maybe. He hoped they had. Imorean rested one hand on the low, stone wall that surrounded the portico in front of the gym.
“You nearly made me lose this scholarship.”
“Bitter about that, are you?”
“I don't like your tone, albino boy.”
“I hear you got passed over for a football scholarship. I guess they thought you were a girl with how much drama you stir up.”
“I'm going to get so much satisfaction out of this,” hissed Ryan.
Imorean watched Ryan’s two friends move closer to him from the corners of his vision. When he felt that they had come too close, he tightened his hand on the rough, stone wall and vaulted over it.
A shock ran up and down Imorean's legs when he landed. His landing had been much more uneven than he had expected, but he didn't let that stop him. As soon as he got his bearings, he bolted. Running from a fight wasn’t something he had ever done before, but he had never before had to fight with three to one odds.
Behind him, Imorean could hear the pounding footsteps of Ryan and his friends. He was grateful he was a distance runner. He could easily run for longer than they could, but could he beat them for speed? From the way the footsteps were bearing down on him, he didn't think so.
Imorean changed his path and darted between two of the main lecture halls, slipping slightly as he took a tight turn. Perhaps that would be enough to throw them off his trail for a little while. Imorean wished, not for the first time in his life, that he wasn't so easy to spot. A brunet would have a much easier time disappearing into the night, but no, he had to have white hair. Ryan and his friends would spot him immediately, no matter how much distance he managed to put between himself and them. Imorean raced around the second corner of the lecture hall and pressed himself flat against the wall, trying not to pant.
“I don't see him,” said one of Ryan’s friends.
“He can't have just vanished,” snapped Ryan. “That guy is owed an ass kicking.”
Imorean could tell from their voices that they were close. Instinct told him that moving was his best option, so he listened and inched slowly along the wall. Crack. Imorean froze. The sound of him stepping on a loose branch split the night like a gunshot. Curse this campus and all its trees.
Before he really knew it, Imorean took off again, sprinting across one of the campus's many lawns. He knew that Ryan and his friends would be right on his heels. Quickly, Imorean glanced over his shoulder. He came to a screeching halt. There was no one there.
Imorean stopped completely and looked around. Where had they gone? A punch struck the side of his head with dizzying force and Imorean clamped one hand over the point of impact, stumbling. He felt as though he had been hit by a train. He couldn't hear anything, save for a high-pitched whining. The world was spinning. Ryan could hit harder than he had anticipated. A second punch crashed into his cheekbone and Imorean tasted blood in his mouth. Off balance as he was, it didn’t take much to send him sprawling on his hands and knees in the grass.
The teenager blinked quickly, trying to look around, to see. He placed one hand against the ground and tried to stand, but a foot collided with his side, sending him rolling a few feet across the lawn. There hadn’t been time for him to try to stand and defend himself.
“Don't mess with me again, albino boy and don’t you dare mention that scholarship ever again,” snarled Ryan, kicking Imorean savagely in the ribs. If Imorean hadn't known better, he could have sworn he felt them break. The world whirled in a nonsensical tornado of color and Imorean had a feeling he was rolling over in the grass. He couldn't find the words to reply to Ryan’s insult. He was focusing more intently on not vomiting.
“Imorean!” called a dim voice from some distance away. Imorean thought it was Roxy. Thank God she had noticed his absence.
“Let's go,” said Ryan.
Relief washed over Imorean, only to be staunched when Ryan stamped down hard on his abdomen, driving the wind from his lungs.
“Imorean! Where are you?” called Roxy again. Imorean wasn't sure, but he thought he heard Toddy's voice as well.
He opened his mouth and tried to answer their cries, but no sound would leave his mouth. He could barely draw breath, let alone cry out for his friends. Imorean wrapped his arms over his stomach and curled into a ball.
Somewhere in the back of his mind, he heard a growl. Imorean opened his eyes and whimpered, still unable to produce much sound. He raised his head slightly and looked around. Were those red eyes that he could see piercing through the shadows or was it just some of the school's lights? That menacing growl came again, accompanied by a rotting smell that made Imorean’s stomach turn. He could have sworn he saw a pair of shapes move through the shadows. ‘Not now. Not now,’ he begged silently.
Imorean struggled to draw breath into his lungs, coughing as he did so. If he had been frightened earlier, he was terrified now. There was more movement in the shadows and Imorean wondered if there actually was a monster hiding in them. Imorean wanted to move, to get up, to run, as he heard bracken crackling under something's feet. Whatever was there was on the move and it was coming closer.
“Imorean?” called Roxy again. She sounded less distant now.
“Rox,” croaked Imorean, looking around. He still didn't want to move very much.
“Imorean,” said Toddy.
Imorean was able to hear footsteps now. There were two sets of them and it sounded as though they were running. He felt a bit more able to breathe now, air gracing his lungs with more ease.
“We thought you were going to find a book, you fool,” said Roxy, kneeling next to him and resting his head in her lap. Imorean could see Toddy leaning over her shoulder, his eyes wide with concern.
“I was,” replied Imorean. His voice was strained and he tried to focus on his friends. To Imorean, it seemed as though they had both turned into liquid and were swimming back and forth before his very eyes.
“Well that obviously didn't go very well, did it? You couldn’t even find your way to the gym,” huffed Roxy, shaking her head. “What happened?”
“Ryan happened,” muttered Imorean. He wasn't quite sure if he had even said the words aloud.
“Imorean, you shouldn’t have kicked the hornet’s nest,” said Roxy. “Now look what you’ve done. This is your own fault, you know.”
“Come on,” said Toddy. “Let's get him back to the dorm.”
'Yes, good idea, Toddy,' thought Imorean. He didn't want to speak aloud. Speaking hurt his head and made everything spin more than it already was.
“Come on,” said Roxy, grabbing hold of Imorean's arm and looping it over her shoulders.
“Can you stand?” asked Toddy as he helped Imorean scramble up.
“I'm not sure,” mumbled Imorean, blinking hard.
“Okay,” replied Roxy, rubbing his forearm in a reassuring gesture. “That's fine. We'll just drag you across campus.”
Imorean quirked a small smile, but felt he was unable to reply.
The white-haired teenager felt an unusual rush of affection when he was dumped unceremoniously onto his mattress. His friends had gotten him back here as safely as they could.
“Are you going to be okay?” asked Roxy, pausing in the doorway.
“Yeah, I think so,” replied Imorean, kicking off his shoes and taking the set of pajamas that Toddy was holding out for him.
“Okay,” nodded Roxy. “Toddy?”
“Yeah?”
“Please take him to the student health center if he doesn't feel better tomorrow, would you? I don't like the look of that knot on his head. He might have a concussion.”
“I will.”
Imorean sighed as he listened to their conversation. He hoped he would feel right by the next morning. He really didn't want to pay the student health center another visit.
“Goodnight,” said Roxy, closing the door as she exited.
“Where's my bag and everything?” asked Imorean, looking up at Toddy. Even the low light in the room and the sudden movement was hurting his head.
“I brought it,” replied Toddy.
“Where's Colton?” asked Imorean. “And Bethany and Mandy?”
“They’re still in the library. Bethany and Mandy said they'd walk with Colton later. I doubt Ryan would try and tackle three of them. Besides, he doesn’t have any issues with any of them.”
“I hope not,” replied Imorean. He found himself wishing for an icepack to press against his head.
After he had changed into the pajamas, Imorean laid back down on his bed and drifted into sleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow.
There was a strong wind blowing. One that Imorean didn't like. He felt that it could knock him clear out of the sky. Air rushed past him at almost two hundred miles an hour. Imorean had no idea why he had consented to skydiving with Michael. Something about redeeming himself. Imorean couldn't remember. Beginnings were always so hazy. A thick, green forest raced up to meet him and Imorean pulled on his parachute cord, confident it would deploy. It did not. Imorean yelped and pulled again, harder this time. Still nothing. Again. Nothing. Imorean could see the branches on the trees now. If his parachute didn't deploy soon he would be speared on the treetops. Imorean wailed and pulled his parachute cord with both hands. At the very last minute, the chute deployed, slowing his fall. It was too late though to navigate away from the forest. Imorean had no choice but to land amongst the trees. The white-haired teenager cried out as sharp twigs and branches scraped his legs and arm, his clothing doing little to protect his skin as he barreled down through the canopy. With a jerk, Imorean stopped. He was still over ten feet above the ground, just dangling. Imorean turned to see what had stopped his controlled fall. His parachute was caught on a large tree limb. If he didn't unbuckle from his chute, he wouldn't be going anywhere anytime soon.
