Sapphire: A Paranormal Romance (15 page)

“Fine,” he said
quietly, but still with enough menace to raise the hair on Jimmy’s arms. 
“Fine, I’ll leave.  But if you think this is over, kid, you had better have
another think.”

“That’s the second
threat,” Rachel said. 

“Yeah,” Mr. Little
replied.  “Fine.”

He stood there for
another moment, still chewing on his lower lip as if it were a dog’s chew toy. 
Then he turned and walked away.  Mr. Little brushed past the principal and some
other teachers that had gathered in the hall outside the infirmary and
disappeared out into the hallway.

Rachel let out a
sigh.  Jimmy saw, for the first time, that she was shaking.  She turned and
smiled at Jimmy.

“You just rest,”
she said, “he won’t be bothering you anymore.  Your mother will be here soon.”

“You’d better keep
that mace handy,” Jimmy said.  “She’s likely to be much worse than that guy.”

Rachel laughed and
patted Jimmy’s arm before walking away. 

Jimmy laid his
head back and moaned.  He had never felt more miserable than he did at that
moment, and that included the time last year when he had gotten food poisoning
and spent the better part of a week vomiting.  He would have willingly gone
through that again, though, to not have to face his mother. 

Jimmy could barely
remember the events beneath the bleachers.  He remembered thinking about
Sapphire, and then the feeling that something had entered his body and his
mind.  He remembered how intense and vivid things had become.  The rest all
seemed like a movie, like it had happened to someone else.  He felt as if he
had stepped out of his body and someone else was controlling things.  Had he
really head-butted Stan Little and broken his nose?  Had he really sent the
three biggest bullies to the hospital?

It was too much to
comprehend.  He closed his eyes and thought about Sapphire.  It was as if he could
reach out his mind and touch her.  He could sense her mind, her eyes, her form
in his mind.

What have you
gotten me into?
his imaginary self said.

We have so much
yet to do,
was the reply he heard in his mind.  It
was as if she were standing right there.  He could sense her reaching out to
him.

What are you?
he asked.

You’ll know
soon enough
, she replied.

In his mind, he
was standing in a dark room.  All around him was absolute blackness, and it
seemed almost alive.  Shapes and voices moved and undulated and spoke in the
darkness.  There was a solitary cone of light, and within that were Jimmy and
Sapphire.  She was wearing a white dress instead of the blue one, and she was
almost glowing.  She was smiling, but there was a sadness behind her eyes. 

I’ll tell you
, she said.
I’ll tell you at some point, Jimmy. But you have to
keep searching first.

Why?
Jimmy asked, reaching out and finding her hands with his own.  She
felt so real beneath his fingertips.

I can’t tell
you, Jimmy.  I don’t even know all of the reasons myself.  I just know that
somehow we are attached.  Through our minds, our souls
—
I don’t really know.  I just know that when I reach out, I find
you.  Somehow, you and I connect in ways I have never connected with anyone
before.

I don’t
understand any of this
, Jimmy said.

I don’t, either
, Sapphire said. 
It’s going to get dangerous, Jimmy.

It already is
, he replied.

Sapphire shook her
head. 
Nothing like it’s going to be.

“Where is he?” a
voice said from outside the infirmary.  The dream—or whatever it had
been—vanished like a puff of smoke, and Jimmy opened his eyes.  The light
stabbed into the back of his eyes again.  His head throbbed.  He knew that
voice.  “Where is my son?”

Jimmy’s mother
rushed into the room.  There was a look of absolute fear and terror in her eyes
that Jimmy had not seen before.  Ever since Jimmy’s father died, his mother had
been a pillar of strength.  Now, Jimmy saw that much of her world hung on his
well being. He felt a twisting in his gut in addition to the throbbing in his
head.

“I’m fine, Mom,”
Jimmy said.

“He’s right,”
Rachel said.  “I am going to recommend that Jimmy spend the next three days at
home.  That’s probably overkill, but he did hit his head pretty hard.  I’d even
suggest taking him to an ER to get him checked out.  I’m surprised that he
doesn’t show signs of concussion, but you have to be careful with head
injuries.”

Jimmy’s mom came
over to stand beside the bed.  The worry in her eyes now that he could see her
face was tinged with anger.  Jimmy knew that this meant he was in for a lecture
despite the fact that she was relieved he was OK.

“How did this
happen?” his mother asked.  “It all has to do with that girl, doesn’t it? I can
tell that she’s somehow involved in this.  I told you she was trouble, Jimmy.”

Rachel came over,
her forehead creased in confusion.  “What girl, Jimmy?  Was there a girl out
there?”

Jimmy shook his
head and then winced.  “No, Rachel.  Never mind.  It has nothing to do with
what happened here, I promise.”

“Don’t you dare
lie to me or to Rachel,” Jimmy’s mother said, nearly shrieking.  “Tell her.”

“Mom,” Jimmy said
forcefully, “I swear to you that this had nothing to do with Sapphire.  This
was just between me and the jocks.  The same jocks that have been tormenting me
and the people like me around this school for years.”

Jimmy’s mother
shook her head.  “That’s a lie.”

“Look,” Rachel
said quietly, ever the model of calmness, “I don’t know what happened over the
weekend or who this girl is, but this was a fight between Jimmy and three football
players.  These kids are known to have bullied kids in this school before. 
He’s right about that.”

She put a hand on
Jimmy’s mother’s shoulder.  Jimmy’s mom looked at her with sadness and sorrow.

“I am going to
suggest that you take Jimmy home,” Rachel said.  “Just let him rest, but don’t
let him go to sleep until after ten o’clock tonight.  Check on him regularly. 
He’ll need to go back to the doctor if he starts exhibiting a change in
behavior, repeated vomiting, one pupil being larger than the other, prolonged
headache, or slurred speech. Those are all important symptoms to look for after
a head injury.  Jimmy already told me that he doesn’t think he needs to go to
the hospital, and I’m taking his word on that.  He isn’t showing signs of
concussion, despite the blows he took to the head.  He is likely to have a
headache for quite a while, however.  Give him some Tylenol and, after tonight,
let him rest.  I’ll make sure someone gets his homework to him, OK?”

Jimmy’s mother
nodded and turned to look at him again.  She shook her head, just a slight
movement.  It was something that Jimmy could see, but Rachel probably didn’t
notice.

“Let’s go, Jimmy,”
his mother said.

Jimmy nodded and
slowly sat up.  The rush of blood to his head made his brains feel like they
were pounding against the inside of his skull.  He moaned and nearly lay back
down, but he steadied himself and got to his feet.  His head hurt, but the
world had stopped the wild pitching and rolling it had been doing when he had
first woken up.

His mother grabbed
his arm and held on as they walked through the infirmary.  The principal was
there, but he had his back to both of them as they walked past.  He was talking
loudly on the phone and his hand waved in the air.

Jimmy and his
mother stepped into the hall.  Kids were standing around all over, trying to
look as if they were not staring at Jimmy, but only managed to call greater
attention to themselves.  Jimmy felt a blush crawl from the very bottom of his
feet up his body to his face and the tips of his ears.  He lowered his head and
tried not to look at anyone.

His mother led him
out of the building, and he watched as the tile of the school hallways changed
to the concrete of the steps and then the concrete of the sidewalk.  He could
see the finely manicured lawn of the school out of his peripheral vision.  He
heard a bell sounding somewhere inside the building and wondered what time it
was.  What class was he missing right now, he wondered. 

When he reached
their car he waited while his mother unlocked the passenger door.  He slid
inside, his head still pounding, but not nearly as bad as it was just a little
while ago.  He eased into the seat and lay his head back against the headrest. 
His mother got into the driver’s side and shut the door.  Jimmy closed his eyes
as the car roared to life and his mother pulled away from the curb.  Jimmy
wondered how long it would be before his mother picked up the conversation from
where it had been a few moments before.  It didn’t take long.

“So are you going to
tell me what happened?” she asked.

“I would prefer
not to,” Jimmy replied.  “At least, not right now.  Just suffice it to say that
I got in a fight.  The good news is I won.  I sent the three jocks to the
hospital.”

There was a long
silence and Jimmy knew that his mother was trying to contain her anger.  “Is
that supposed to make me feel better?” she asked.  “Am I supposed to be proud
of the fact that you got into a fight and sent kids to the hospital?  Because
that is not something I am proud of, Jimmy. “

“No,” Jimmy said. 
“I’m just saying, it could have been worse.”

“What started
this?”

“Does it matter? 
These guys have always made my life miserable.  I’ve been beat up and tormented
by them since I got here.  This was just the first time I ever fought back,
Mom.  I just decided I had had enough.”

They rode in
silence for a time.  Jimmy’s mother sighed several times, and he prepared for
another onslaught.  Then she just settled back.  Finally even that stopped, and
the silence that followed worried Jimmy even more. 

“You’re grounded,”
she said as they made the final turn that would take them to their home.  “For
two months.  No computer.  No cell phone.  No hanging out with George after
work or school.  You come straight home and you head to your room.  You’ll work
on your homework and then go to bed.  Is that clear?”

By that time,
Jimmy’s head was starting to pound again.  He wanted nothing more than to pop
two Tylenol and then lay down.  The punishment could have been worse and he
decided he could live with it.  It certainly wasn’t worth fighting over, and he
figured he could send George out as his own personal private investigator. 
Plus, Jimmy had learned a few things about sneaking out over the years.

“Fine,” Jimmy
said.  He didn’t even bother to open his eyes.

The car pulled
into the driveway and Jimmy got out slowly.  His mother looked worried, but she
was trying hard to maintain her angry air.  She did a good job.  She had had
lots of practice.

Jimmy went
straight to the medicine cabinet and found the bottle of Tylenol.  It was
actually the store-brand version of Tylenol, but it had always worked in the
past.  Jimmy took three of them and drank an entire glass of water.  He made
his way to his bedroom and lay down.  Rachel had told him to stay awake, but
his body decided it knew better, and he dozed off.

Jimmy’s
eyes snapped open; someone had knocked on his door. Jimmy realized that the
knocking had been going on for a few minutes, with increasing urgency. 

“Yeah?” he called.

The door opened a
crack and his mother peered in.

“You awake?” she
asked.

Jimmy was tempted
to give a smart-aleck answer, but decided his mother didn’t deserve that.  She
was just doing the best she could; a wave of guilt washed over him. 

“I’m OK, Mom,”
Jimmy said.  “I may try to do some reading or something.”

His mother
nodded.  “OK.  If you want to come out and watch TV, that’s fine.  I’m going to
make burgers and French fries for dinner.  I am not in the mood to make much
else.”

Jimmy nodded and
smiled.  He had always loved his mom’s burgers.  As a kid he had pronounced the
word as “hanga-burgers.”

“Sounds good,” he
said.

She closed the
door and he eased back on the bed.  He looked toward the window and realized
that it was late afternoon.  Clouds had come over the sky, blotting out the
blue and draining the world of color.  What little of the sky he could see
through the slats of his window blinds was gray like metal.  It would probably
rain.

Jimmy shook his
head.  He had never in a million years imagined that he could have a day like
this.  How could his life have changed so much so fast?  It all came down to
one thing:  Sapphire.

Jimmy closed his
eyes and tried to open his mind.  He wasn’t entirely sure how one opened their
mind, but he tried.  It turned out that just relaxing and trying hard to think
about nothing accomplished it nicely.