Reject High (Reject High: A Young Adult Science Fiction Series Book 1) (5 page)

CHAPTER SIX

people mistake me for a ufo

Seconds later I landed in a deep crater on the side of the highway. Holding my arms out helped me steady myself. The area beneath my feet was rocky and uneven. I looked down. There was mud, gravel, and a few broken water pipes. Which was fortunate, because . .my sneakers were
smoking
.

Things got even weirder after I climbed out of the hole which was about twice my height
.
The maroon car that almost hit me was nowhere to be seen. Neither was the trailer and its dead driver, the Jupiter, or Debra. There was a multi-car pileup covering all three highway lanes. I have a pretty good idea I had
something
to do with that.   

Debra! Where are you?
She still needed help. The ditch was gone, replaced by a hill.
Jagged metal poles with round holes in them jutted up from the pavement about twelve yards from the crater. That meant there was a road sign around here somewhere. Where could it have gone? What took it down in the first place?

I rubbed my hands on my shorts. They were shredded at the bottom and so was my t-shirt. My book bag was long gone. Odd bits and pieces of memory pushed against my brain.

The maroon car with the pointy grill hadn’t disappeared – it had almost hit me. Man, it would have if I hadn’t moved out of the way. Where was it now? My eyes drifted, drawn to a curve of streaky cloudy whiteness in the sky. Its arc started somewhere over the horizon and ended in the sky above me. Whatever caused that trail might have landed somewhere close and created that hole.

Something sharp stuck me in the side. Checking my shirt, I found a pointy piece of metal – green on one side and silver on the other. I turned around and spotted a large metal rectangle face down on the edge of the highway about an eighth of a mile ahead. I jogged over to it. The scrap of metal in my hand sure looked like it had come from a road sign like this. I used all my strength to raise it enough for me to get an idea of what it said at the bottom.

“Harleys. . .” I read.
Harleysville? No way!
My chest started to tingle.

Wedging my shoulder against the sign’s long side, I pushed it until the weight almost became too much to bear. It would have said Harleysville, if there wasn’t a two-foot, Jason-sized hole through the bottom of it.

I dropped the sign, dug through my pocket for my cell phone and dialed 9-1-1, but the lines were busy every time I called. Praying that someone would reach Debra in time, I tried dialing the one person who might be able to make sense of what had happened to me.

“Cap?” Rhapsody said in a hushed whisper. “Heard about the cafeteria. Nice!”

I heard her voice echo. She must be ditching class in the South Hall bathroom.

“You
will not
believe what just happened to me.”
I don’t believe what happened to me.

Rhapsody didn’t
sound
surprised. “Try me.”

“I’m in Harleysville,” I said, walking far enough away from the hole to avoid notice from the people below. Uninjured drivers and passengers started getting out of their cars, so I climbed up the hill to sit for a minute and make sense of this.

“So, you cut school? What’s the problem?”

I scratched my jaw. “I
jumped
here.”

Her voice went up. “
What?
That’s like a half-hour away!
”

“Debra and I got into a bad accident, and nobody would stop to help. A car almost hit me, and I jumped.” Hearing the story made it sound crazier, and I was the one living it. “I was only up there for – a few seconds.”

“Up there’?” I pictured her pointing to the ceiling. “Like. . .in the sky? You were
flying?”

“No
.
Listen, my stepmom’s in bad shape, and I’m all the way out here.”

“Can’t you just jump back?” She said it like twenty miles was a puddle.

“It’s too dangerous.” She probably knew it, too. Peters would have said, “Consider the unknown variables, Mr. Champion.” Without control of my speed, angle, or landing, I could fall on someone and, judging by that hole, kill them and myself.

“Well, then you’re stuck. I’m sure someone’s gotten to her by now. When I go to the hospital to visit my dad, I’ll check her out and text you. What’s her name again?”

“Debra Brown. She’s on the side of I-48 in the ditch, not far from the Stephenson Street onramp. You call the police, and I will, too. I’ll get back the best way I can.”

We hung up, and I redialed the police until someone picked up. I gave the emergency dispatcher all the information she needed and then hung up without giving my name.

To be honest, the idea of jumping again was tempting, especially if I tried to match the angle at which I arrived. For all of the times I’d been unintentionally destructive, doing that meant accepting the responsibility if it went terribly wrong. Besides, if I didn’t know how to turn this new power on, what if it turned off all of a sudden? Having a manual would have been nice.

I started walking back in the direction of home and remembered the number I had written on my hand.
His ex-wife must mean something to him. At the very least, I could get a ride home without putting another gaping hole in something.

So, despite my better judgment, I dialed my father and hoped for the best while it rang. His secretary/ fiancée answered instead.

“Champion Law Firm, this is Julia.”

For years now, Julia and I have built a long-term relationship. She was tall, thin, and model-gorgeous. She was half-Egyptian, or Middle-Eastern, with dirty blonde hair. Julia always asked me about my grades and what we were doing in school.

Right before the divorce, she started questioning me about celebrity girls I thought were cute, like I’d actually tell her. Then one day, I overheard Debra cussing Julia out for calling her husband. Later, Debra found out calling was the least of her worries. I didn’t hate Julia for that, although I probably should have. “This is Jason,” I said.

“Junior?” she said with bubbly surprise. “How have you been?”

I rubbed the back of my neck and smoothed out the hairs standing up on it.
I hate being called Junior.
“I really need to talk to my father. Like right now.”

  “He’s in with someone right now. Can I take a message?”

One time, over a pint of Chunky Monkey, Debra told me what “in with someone” really meant if Julia was involved. “His ex-wife is in the hospital, and I’m stranded in Harleysville.” 

“Oh my. . .hold on.”

I guess she had expected me to say something, like “I got an A on my test.” A couple of seconds later, I heard the line click.

“How’d you get this number? What have you done
this time?
And what’s this about Debra being in the hospital? You’d better not be lying to me. I don’t have the time or patience.”

I kept it short and sweet. “She’s been hurt in a bad car accident, and I need a ride home. I’m not lying.”

His voice raised. “Got any cash on you? Take a cab. I’m in the middle of a negotiation.”

That’s my father – Jason Ray Champion, Sr. Questions, no answers, requests for details, but no concern, or an “are you okay?” Just “can’t-you-handle-this?”

“Nope, I’m broke. I’m at the pileup on 48.”

“Did you cause it?” He said it like a joke, but there was probably a part of him that really wanted to know.

“I just need a ride, that’s all.” Asking for a cheese-burger run would be pushing it.

“Alright,” he snapped, like someone had asked him to hold Earth on his shoulders for a minute or two. “Fifteen minutes.” And he hung up. 

With that, I waded down the hill, through the broken glass, spilled fluids, and smashed cars and hopped over the concrete median. Thankfully, the highway was clear on that side, so I ran straight across and waited near the white safety line for my father. He drove a sharp, 2014 silver Cougar ZJ with tinted black windows. In a contest between what he loved more – his firstborn child or the car – I’d lose every time in a landslide. It looked newer every time I saw it. The thing was so perfect that I wanted to spit on it, just so he’d have a small sample of the way he made me feel every day.

For those fifteen minutes, I prepared a speech, in case he asked questions.
Yeah, I do have rage blackouts, but if I ever forget something, it’s a convenient excuse to use.
That’s how I intended to explain getting to Harleysville. The actual truth might get me sent to Susan Lin, my psychologist.

I started dissecting the past half-hour of my life. If the crystal made me really strong, could I actually be i
nvincible?
Otherwise, wouldn’t I have been injured in the sky at that speed, or died landing on the concrete?
Maybe I’ll explore it, when I’m not so freaked out.

Before I knew it, Ray’s pride and joy rolled up beside me, blasting pop music from the custom sound system. No way was my father behind the wheel.

When the passenger window rolled down, Julia stopped singing along and smiled. “Hey Junior! C’mon!”

She looked comfortable in a pair of white slacks and a leopard print blouse. Debra said Julia dressed like she belonged on a street corner and not a law office, but really, I didn’t see the problem.
Wish I could turn her happiness down. She bounces around like coffee powers her brain.

I got in and shut the door. The techno beat of the music stirred up my ADHD really bad, worse than a flickering strobe light. I closed my eyes and rubbed my ears, which throbbed a little from whatever had happened in the air. Yawning to pop them didn’t help it at all.  

She lifted her designer sunglasses up onto her forehead and hugged me. Even though Julia was good-looking, having my father’s twenty-something-year-old girlfriend show me affection was
strange.
She smelled of flowery perfume, but not in a pleasant way, like Rhapsody did. Did she bathe in the stuff and then spray some more on herself and roll around in air freshener? It reminded me of the kind my mom used to wear.
Totally a Ray move to disrespect my mother like that.

“Thanks for picking me up.” I was grateful, but a little disappointed it wasn’t my father. Maybe I would buy him a “Father of the Year” trophy for all the times he let me down.

“No problem,” she said, lingering on the word
problem.
“How’d you get way out here, anyway?”

I spied the trail I figured I’d left in the sky. “I don’t remember – to be honest.” It was the truth, and she knew all about my problems, so I didn’t need to explain.

Julia left it alone and pulled the car forward. Soon we were in sixth gear, speeding way over the posted limit. “We’ll get you to the hospital.”

Dipping in and out of lanes made me nervous. I’d already been in one accident today. I was thinking the fear of death triggered my strength the last time, so I tried to relax and not hold onto any part of the Cougar. I didn’t have to explain how I got so far away from home, but ripping the door off the hinges would be harder to play off. 

My phone buzzed in my pocket. Rhapsody’s name popped up on the screen. “Ur stepmom’s in stable condition @ the hosp,” the text read.

I breathed easy and tugged at the collar of my t-shirt.

“Hot?” Julia cranked the level of the air conditioner, which felt great.

Rhapsody messaged me again. “& ur on the news.”

My heart raced again.
What does that mean? Did someone see me?
I switched the dial to the Top 40 radio station.
Should have asked first, but this was important.

“Hey,” she said, faking anger. “Be careful. Your dad is touchy about who. . .”

Who cares? “Yeah, I know,” I said with disgust.

Witnesses say an object launched from somewhere over the highway, broke the sound barrier, and landed on a stretch of I-48 headed downtown. The unknown object, which police are stopping short of calling a bomb or incendiary device, caused a crater nearly ten feet deep.

Julia gasped. “That’s near where I picked you up. Did you see that?”

I actually caused it.
“Nope.” Truth be told, all I recalled was a collection of blurred images and not being able to hear for a few seconds.

Did I really break the sound barrier? I swear – if one more ridiculous thing happens to me today, my brain will explode. I sent Rhapsody a text message back.
“Talk tont?”

I waited for her response.

“Definitely,” she sent back. “C u @ the hosp. #127.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

rhapsody in blue

Julia
finally
slowed down at the emergency room entrance. She’d made a thirty minute drive in half the time and we hadn’t gotten pulled over. Whenever I’d mentioned we might get a ticket, Julia said she’d “drop a button or three.” I could totally see that working.

“Here we are.” Julia leaned over and gave me a kiss on the cheek. “Take care, Junior.”

I patted my stomach. “Say, Julia – I’m starving. Could you. . .”

She waved her hand. “It’ll be our little secret.” In the backseat was a black purse I knew cost more than everything I’d ever owned combined. “Hand me my Hristoff, will you?” she asked me.

I reached into the backseat and grabbed the purse. I’d heard stories about Julia’s collection of Zara Hristoff designer handbags and shoes. If this was the one I thought it was, my father flew her to Europe just to buy it. I picked it up by the straps with two fingers, afraid to put a spot on it.

“Silly!” She snatched it out of my hand, unlocked it, and handed me a fifty dollar bill from inside of it. “Just like your father. Here. It’s the smallest bill I have.”

I wondered if any vending machine would change a fifty, but it was a good problem to have. Neither Debra nor my father would ever find out. She’d take whatever money he threw her way and never sued him for child support for me or for my baby brother. We could be living so much better if she had.
Was it too late now?

I folded the money and jammed it into my right jeans pocket. “Thanks.”

A few minutes later, I’d made my way into the hospital and found my stepmom’s room. From the door I watched her sleep. She looked peaceful while she rested. She had a wide white bandage on the top of her head, which must be where her forehead hit the dashboard. Her nose looked broken, too.

The teaser for the five o’ clock news caught my attention. At the top right of the screen was a blurred camera shot of the sky, with
UFO
superimposed in white letters over a red square graphic. From that angle, I could have been a supersonic kite, a one-winged airplane, a meteor, or a runaway letter “L.”

“Have to say, Cap, you leave an impression.”

I turned around to see Rhapsody, but not the girl I knew. This one wore no makeup. The bright blue polo shirt and tight-fitting black jeans made her look like a regular girl. Her hair was still spiky, but not as much as usual. I noticed her body since it wasn’t covered up as much. She really wasn’t a big girl, at all – what was Ruby’s problem, anyway? 

She tucked her thumbs inside her jean pockets. “Pápa likes seeing me this way.”

My skin heated up. “T-thanks for keeping an eye out for my stepmom.”

Rhapsody bit her lip and shifted her weight from leg to leg. “No problem. I was here, anyway.”

“Where’s your dad?” I had no intention of meeting him, but I wanted to be nice to her.

“Third floor,” she said. Without warning, she grabbed my hand and pulled me in the direction of the elevators. “C’mon. I’ll introduce you.”

I pointed back towards Debra’s room. “I think I should stay. . .”

“It’s two floors. It’ll just take a minute,” she insisted. “She’s sleeping anyway, right?”

In no time, the elevator doors opened. I’ve never met a girl’s parents before, but I pictured it differently than this. I’d bring her flowers or candy and say a lot of impressive things I’d rehearsed ahead of time. Now, the only thing in my pockets beside my phone, keys, a couple of bus tokens, and the money Julia gave me was lint. The most impressive thing I’d done today was leap over our town. No one could know about that. She had not let go of my hand, even when I started sweating. 

“Pápa?” Rhapsody called from the door. She spoke in a soft voice, like a little girl. “There’s someone here to meet you.”

“Bring him in.” His voice wavered. Rhapsody’s mom sat in a chair near the television, apparently interested in the UFO reports. 

I walked in and tried not to stare. George was bony and frail. He offered his skinny left hand, as his right one had needles buried in the top. Rhapsody followed me closely enough that I could shake her dad’s hand without letting her go. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Lowe.”

“It’s George. So
this
is the famous Jason Champion.” He said my name like I mattered. “I’ve heard quite a few things about you, young man.”

I looked at Rhapsody.
What did you tell him?
I asked her with my eyes.

Rhapsody’s mom stood up and pulled the hem of her cherry red blouse down over her waist. She gave me a wide smile. “I’m Ruby, Rhapsody’s mother. Nice to meet you.”

Rhapsody finally let me go, so I quickly dried my hand against my shirt and shook Ruby’s hand. “Same here.”

She put her right hand on my shoulder and squeezed. “That school needs more boys like you. The school system wasn’t anything like this when we went.”

I turned to Rhapsody and felt my expression shifting with alarm.

She caught on and responded. “You stood up to a bully, Jason, don’t be so shy.”

Selby? He was the
least
of my problems. “I guess.”

“I’m sure he wants to go visit his stepmother, Ruby,” George said. “You go with him,
Rana.
Máma will text you when she’s ready for dinner. Jason, you should join us. Ruby brought some
linguica
and
jagacida
.”

“Okay, Pápa.” She bent over her father and kissed him gently on the forehead.

We walked out, again, hand-in-hand. Once we neared the elevators, she finally unlaced her fingers from mine. She explained nothing about why I had to meet her parents.

I broke the silence. “What was that about?”

“So,” she giggled, smiling, her eyes flashing upwards. “What was it like, Jason?”

That was the second time she’d called me by my name, not Cap or a dumb nickname. I pointed back towards her father’s room. “Did they enjoy that show?”

Her lips and nose wrinkled. “My mom’s traditional. If a boy calls, texts me or anything – she
has
to meet him. No way you’re coming over to my house. It had to happen here.”

That sort of made sense. We boarded the elevator and I pressed the number three. I hadn’t eaten in hours. A home-cooked meal sounded delicious to me. “What’s lingewy-sah and jaga-whatever?”

“Linguica
and
jagacida?
Don’t worry, it’s good. It was my dad’s favorite after a shift at the plant, before they closed it.”

“He worked at the chemical plant?” I asked her. “My mom did, too. Wonder if they knew each other?”

“Maybe.” She moved in closer. “Now that we’re alone,” she said, anxious. “Tell me – what was it like?”

“I don’t remember much.”

Rhapsody popped me in the shoulder with her fist. “You broke the sound barrier, dude! You have any idea how
fast
that is?”

Over 750 miles per hour.
I tried to hide my smirk. Without a doubt, it was the coolest thing that’s ever happened to me. “Wish I could control it.”

“You will,” she admitted. “We’ll figure it out soon enough.”

She said it with confidence, like there was some secret summer boot camp for super-powered kids that I didn’t know about. I was no fan of heights either – at least when crashing to my death was a real possibility. If I had a handle on jumping and landing, at least they would be useful.   

“Don’t worry,” I assured her. “We won’t have to be ‘traditional’ for Debra. She’s cool.”

We walked down the corridor to my stepmom’s room. The nurse on duty had just finished checking her vital signs and passed us in the doorway. “Your mom is doing just fine,” she said on the way out.

It didn’t seem like the right time to correct the nurse, so I didn’t. Debra waved us in and parted her lips to call out, but must have thought better of it. We came closer, though Rhapsody trailed me by a couple of feet. She practically lived in the hospital with her dad since he got sick. I expected her to be used to the smells and the sounds and the sicknesses, but it seemed just the opposite. Hospitals reminded me of my mom, too, but I focused on Debra. “Hey,” I said quietly.

“Hey, yourself,” she mumbled.

Before I could wonder exactly what she remembered, Debra started talking some more.

“I drove,” she said, her voice trailing off. “I crashed and ended up here?”

The fewer details she had the better. “How are you feeling?”

Debra’s eyes rolled back, the way they did after she worked a double-shift. “Mild concussion, busted nose, some bruises and bumps. I’m staying overnight.” She noticed Rhapsody behind me. “Hello?”

“Hi,” she said with a nervous wave. “I’m Rhapsody. Jason and I go to school together. My dad is upstairs, with my mom. He has bone cancer.”

That’s weird. My mom died of bone cancer. The plant, bone cancer – did they have anything else in common?

My stepmom looked at me funny, like she expected me to share that information with Rhapsody. 

I thumbed over my shoulder. “They asked me to dinner upstairs. Is it okay if I go?”

“Of course,” she said graciously. “Aunt Dee has Zachary. You can call her, or bus it back to the apartment, if you want, or be with your brother.”

She knew better than to suggest I remain at the hospital. “I’ll go home.”

“We’ll give him a ride, Ms. Champion,” Rhapsody offered.

Debra shifted and winced. “Thank you, Rhapsody. Tell your parents thank you, as well.”

I skirted around the hospital bed and kissed my stepmom on the forehead, like Rhapsody had done with George. We didn’t show each other much affection at all, but she did almost die. Thankfully, she didn’t make a big deal out of it. “I’ll catch a bus up here after school tomorrow.”

She didn’t argue, which meant a temporary pardon from Vivienne Coker and Hidden Potential. “See you then.”

Almost as if she had timed it, Rhapsody’s mom called us up for dinner right as we left Debra’s room. This time there was no hand-holding. Apparently it was a one-time thing.

“Just so you know,” I mentioned in the elevator. “Her last name is
Brown.”

“Forgot. Sorry.” If anyone understood parents and last name drama, it was Rhapsody.

About halfway down the third floor hall, I smelled something wonderful in the air – garlic, onions, peppers, and
meat
. My stomach rumbled. When Rhapsody’s mom served us, it turns out I was right. Ruby said a prayer and did that Catholic cross-thing. I dug in, shoveling the smoked sausage, red and green peppers, onions, and red beans and rice into my mouth. I didn’t stop until Rhapsody’s dad spoke directly to me.

“Glad you joined us, Jason,” he said.

“Me, too,” I mumbled between bites. Before I could even think about asking for more, Ruby spooned more into my bowl and set a Sprite on the floor by my seat. “This is awesome.” 

“There’s plenty more,” she reassured me, though I was fine with this second helping. “I like to cook.” 

“How did you meet
Rana
?” George asked me.

I popped the top to the Sprite and took a sip. “Rana? What’s that mean?”

“You’re such a gringo,” she laughed. “
Rana
is Spanish for frog.”

I laughed a little.
This
was the Rhapsody I knew.

“We wanted to be surprised when she was on the way,” Ruby mused. “We bought everything with frogs on it, just in case she turned out to be a boy. George has called her
Rana
ever since.”

Rhapsody coughed to interrupt them. “Jason and I met at school, Pápa. Last Friday was his first day. Oh, and he needs a ride home tonight, if that’s alright.”

George cleared his throat. “You
didn’t
know Cherish, then?”

“Pápa!” Rhapsody said, almost choking on her food.

The mention of her name shrank my appetite down to nothing. “No, I didn’t.”

Ruby unsuccessfully stabbed her fork at a piece of sausage in her bowl. “Rhapsody has this crazy idea about that girl. I’m surprised she hasn’t tried to convince you of it yet.”

I glanced over at Rhapsody, who kept silent and breathed deeply. If she got too upset, her powers would kick in gear. Then I’d have to fake not knowing how she vanished into thin air. She fidgeted in her seat, like she wished the cushions would open up and swallow her body whole.

“She thinks someone killed that girl, and won’t accept the
truth
,” said Ruby. She leaned back in her chair. “Cherish was
crazy
. She dressed like a boy and liked Rhapsody. She always got my daughter in trouble. Cherish shot herself in the head, Jason. That’s the truth – and people like that go to. . .”

“
Enough
, Ruby,” George interrupted. “Believe what you want, and let our daughter think what she wants. There’s no harm in having a different opinion about things.”