Stepping into the Sky: Jump When Ready, Book 3 (4 page)

All I Have To Do

Nikki could tell that Naomi was already in the kitchen when
she came downstairs the following morning. Naomi’s music was something new and
she’d installed a transistor radio on the counter, its antennae cocked toward
the window so she could get better reception of the oldies station she
preferred. Nikki couldn’t help smile, remembering herself and the others trying
to convince Naomi that better technology existed now—that she didn’t have to
put up with the static and the occasional need to adjust the antennae. It had
also occurred to Nikki that there was a certain amount of irony in the fact
that Naomi had developed a typical teenager’s obsession with music while
ignoring the music being recorded today.

Nikki knew, of course, that Naomi’s radio and her taste
in music were both throwbacks to the era she’d known. Nikki couldn’t imagine
how Naomi had found a station featuring artists like Elvis Presley, Fats Domino
and Buddy Holly but clearly she had. That the station actually existed surprised
Nikki a little. She’d just figured stations featuring music that old had all
gone by the wayside. But it was a real station and not just something streaming
from Naomi’s imagination, made evident from the commercials pushing present day
products. How they received the signal confounded Nikki, for some reason even
more than the fact that they could go on the internet. Why, she wasn’t sure,
since essentially it was the same concept.

As Nikki walked into the room, Naomi stood at the kitchen
counter mixing batter while tapping her foot to the music. Nikki wouldn’t have
recognized the song before but now she knew it had been recorded by the Everly
Brothers.

“How’s it going?” Nikki said.

Naomi jumped back, the whisk flying out of her hand and
clattering onto the counter. “Jeez, you scared me.” She spread her hand against
her chest and laughed.

Nikki couldn’t help laugh too seeing her wide eyes and
the trail of splattered mix. “Sorry. I guess that’s one of the pitfalls of
rocking out while you bake. You can’t hear people sneak up on you.”

Naomi turned down the radio.

“Here, I’ll get that.” Nikki grabbed a sponge and started
wiping up the mess.

Naomi retrieved her whisk and went back to mixing.
“Actually, I’m not baking right now. I’m making crepe batter.”

“I love crepes,” Nikki said. “Are they hard to make?” It
was kind of a silly question since Naomi was such a natural with food. Lately,
she’d been branching out even more, creating breads, muffins, croissants and
quiches to go along with the desserts she’d mastered.

“The batter is easy,” Naomi said. “Not sure about the
actual crepes yet. What’s new with you?”

For Naomi, the question wasn’t just automatic. She
remained genuinely interested in learning about those around her. The fact was,
Naomi was a great listener. Which, Nikki had to admit, was part of the reason
she’d decided to join her in the kitchen.

“Not much,” Nikki said, “Just thought I’d hang out for a
while. If you don’t mind, that is.”

Naomi smiled. She might have been changing lately too but
Naomi still smiled like a kid. Happy, open, not the least bit reluctant showing
how pleased she was to be with you. “Of course! Do you mind grabbing the crepe
pan? I’ll get the stove going.”

Nikki opened the cabinet and squinted at Naomi’s various
pots and pans. Which one was the crepe pan? You needed a special pan to make
those?

“It looks like a frying pan,” Naomi said. “Just not very
deep.”

“Oh, yeah. I know,” Nikki said. “The one that looks like
a crepe pan, only it’s a crepe pan.”

Naomi giggled. She knew Nikki too well and didn’t buy it
for a second. “There’s something you wanted to talk about, isn’t there?”

The fact was, Nikki did tend to seek out Naomi’s company
when trying to work something out. And, as usual, she hadn’t gotten to the
point right off. Nikki knew that about herself—she could be a little
standoffish emotionally. Unlike Naomi, it took her a while to open up. Still,
Nikki felt hesitant telling her about what had happened yesterday. Mostly
because she didn’t want her to worry.

Nikki passed her the crepe pan. “Well, sort of. I mean,
I’ve kind of had something on my mind.”

“Is it about Henry?”

“What makes you say that?”

Naomi thought for a moment. “I don’t know, really. Just a
feeling, I guess.”

“Well, it
involves
Henry,” Nikki said. “And, in a
way, it also ties in to what happened with my sister.”

Naomi kept her gaze on Nikki’s. “You said she married a
man who wasn’t very nice.”

“That’s right,” Nikki said. “And there wasn’t anything I
could do to help her. Even though I was right alongside her, reading her,
knowing how unhappy she was.”

“That’s really sad.”

Naomi set aside her preparations, the burner glowing
forgotten on the stovetop. Nikki felt bad for having ruined the lighthearted
mood but it was too late now.

“It
was
sad,” Nikki said. “But that was a long
time ago. Yesterday, though, Henry and I learned about a girl who was about to
marry a very bad man herself. Some things happened—bad things—that left her
trapped. Martha and Lysrus spoke to us and asked if we’d be willing to help.”

Naomi’s eyebrows shot up. “You spoke to Lysrus?”

That part, Nikki had also been hesitant to mention. Until
now, they’d shared all experiences as a group. At the same time, she wasn’t
about to lie. She knew from their talk last night that Henry felt the same
way.       

“It was…
interesting
,” Nikki said. “I’ll tell you
more about it later. But the thing is, what Lysrus asked us to do might be
dangerous.”

“And you’re worried about Henry,” Naomi said.

How was it possible that Naomi could sense that so
easily? After all, she’d guessed it before Nikki had even started talking. Then
again, Naomi was changing in many ways. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that
her intuition was maturing as well.

“Yeah, I am,” Nikki admitted. “The thing is, I want to
help her. This girl. Her name’s Rose. I know it can’t change how my sister’s
life worked out. There’s nothing I can do now about that. There never was, I
guess. At the same time, it’s almost like I can feel my sister next to me. Like
she’s looking on from somewhere, wherever she is, and she wants me to do this.
Almost as if it will set things right for her. I guess that doesn’t make any
sense.”

Naomi kept her eyes on Nikki’s. “It’s how you feel,
right?”

“Yes.”

“Then you should trust that feeling,” Naomi said. “Maybe
somehow your sister knows how much you wanted to help her. But you couldn’t,
not back then. Now, you have a chance to help someone else. Maybe, in some ways
it does make things right because you won’t feel guilty anymore. Maybe it’s
about you, not her, and she wants that to happen for you.”

Nikki stared at this girl, with her long, straw-colored
hair, her baby face, rolled up jeans and a plaid, cotton shirt. In so many ways
still a child from a different era. But her big, brown eyes showed a wisdom
Nikki admired more each day. Nikki had no idea who Naomi might become again in
the future but she didn’t doubt that person would be both kind and well-loved.

Nikki tried to ignore the tear pricking at the corner of
her eye. “You’re kind of awesome. You know that, right?”

Naomi shrugged and smiled. “Thanks. I guess I have my
moments. Why would helping this girl, Rose, be any worse for Henry than for
you?”

There wasn’t any point in lying. Evidently, Naomi could
see right through her. And there Nikki was, the Reader, the only one among them
supposedly who could see inside people’s minds.

“It just doesn’t seem fair,” Nikki said. “Especially
given how much he’s been through. I mean, of all of us, he’s the most recent to
Transition. Then, right away, that thing happened with his sister. Then there
was Curtis. Ian, I mean. In our time, those things were just basically a few
months apart. Now this.”

Naomi remembered what she’d been doing and set the crepe
pan on the stove. She picked up her whisk and started mixing again. “Were you
thinking you’d rather try on your own?”

“I didn’t get the feeling that was a choice, but that’s
kind of what I’ve been thinking about.”

Naomi surprised her by smiling.

“What?”

“Henry’s going where you’re going,” Naomi said. “Don’t
you know that by now?”

Nikki’s face warmed but Naomi didn’t see her blushing.
She’d turned to spoon crepe batter into her pan. Nikki watched as she picked up
the pan and swirled it to spread the batter evenly, like she’d been doing it
forever.

The back door swung open and Simon poked his head in. “We
thought we smelled something.”

“We?” Nikki said.

Simon tilted his head toward the back yard. “Jamie and
me. We’re racing Air Hogs.”

Nikki smirked. “Wait, Air Hogs? You mean the toys kids
flew around when Henry was a kid?”

Simon shrugged. “What? They still make them. Those things
are smashing, by the way. Wish I’d had one of those when I was kid.”

“When you were a kid, marbles were mind-blowing.”

“Hi, Simon,” Naomi said.

Simon glanced over at her and smiled. “Hi, Naomi. What’s
cooking?”

“Making crepes.” Naomi plucked the crepe from the pan and
flipped it with her fingers. “Ooh, these are fun.”

“They smell wonderful,” Simon said. “I love crepes.”

“What kind of food don’t you love?” Nikki said. “Wait,
let me guess. Brussel sprouts.”

Simon crossed the kitchen and stared down at the pan. “What’s
wrong with Brussel sprouts? I love those things.”

“Oh, my God,” Nikki said. “Of course you do.”

Jamie came in from outside too. “Did someone say crepes?
Good idea, Naomi! I haven’t had those in ages. You making the dessert kind or
the other kind?”

“You can use them for either,” Naomi said. “But I could
add some cocoa to the batter. Hmmm, maybe I will for some of them.”

Naomi peeled out some wax paper and set her first crepe
down. She added more batter to the pan. Nikki wasn’t surprised to see that the
first crepe looked perfect.

Jamie turned his attention to Nikki. “Where did you and
Henry take off to yesterday?”

Nikki hesitated, then she and Naomi exchanged a quick
glance. Jamie’s eyes flicked back and forth between them.

“When do you flip that thing?” Simon said, still staring
at the pan.

“Oh, right!” Naomi plucked the crepe from the pan and
flipped it. “Ouch, burnt my finger.”

“Okay, what’s going on?” Jamie said. “Naomi almost never
burns herself and she absolutely never forgets food on the stove.”

“Nothing,” Nikki said. “As you can see, Naomi’s making
crepes and I’m planning to eat one of them just as soon as—”

“We should probably tell them.”

All heads turned toward Henry, who stood in the doorway.

“I mean, if you still feel the same way.” Henry kept his
eyes on Nikki’s.

Nikki hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

“I already know,” Naomi said. “I mean, just a little.”

“I’m almost afraid to ask,” Jamie said. “But, okay,
whatever it is, I’m in.”

Henry stepped into the room. “Well, that’s the thing. This
doesn’t involve all of us. At least, not yet anyway.”

“What are you talking about?” Jamie said. “Since when
don’t we do things together?”

Henry glanced at the floor, then raised his eyes again.
“I know. We do, totally, but—”

“It wasn’t up to us,” Nikki said.

Simon finally tore his gaze away from Naomi’s crepes.
“Who else would it be up to?”

“Yeah, who else would make that call?” Jamie said.

As much as Nikki loved to needle both Jamie and Simon,
the hurt in Jamie’s eyes nearly broke her heart. As for Simon, he just looked
confused. But she felt for him too. All the same, given what she knew about
what she and Henry were about to sign on for, she’d rather have hurt feelings
to deal with than see the entire group in danger.

“It’s some weird thing Lysrus asked us to do,” Henry
said. “And Martha, kind of, but mostly it was Lysrus.”

Henry’s face flushed with nervousness, something Nikki
hadn’t seen often. She understood that he was trying to make it sound like
Martha had little to do with it. After all, she’d always looked after all of
them.

“What kind of weird?” Jamie pulled absently at one of his
mohawk spikes, checking for straightness, something he did when he felt
uncomfortable.

Simon pulled out a chair at the table and plopped into
it. “If it involved that Lysrus bloke, I’m guessing all kinds of weird. Is he
even a bloke? I couldn’t tell. Mostly because I was going blind at the time.”

“Long story.” Henry pulled out a chair too.

Nikki snorted. “Really long story. I’m guessing at least
a thousand years.”

Jamie remained standing, his eyes dancing back and forth
as he listened. “You met with Lysrus?”

“Um, yeah,” Henry said. “But it wasn’t like we asked to
meet with him. He kind of picked us.”

“So, Lysrus is definitely a he?” Simon said.

“Us who?” Jamie said.

Nikki almost answered but stopped herself. This was
between Jamie and Henry, she knew. They’d been friends from nearly the moment
Henry arrived.

“Lysrus asked me and Nikki to try something,” Henry said.
“It’s not like he didn’t want all of you guys in too. It’s just more in the
Speaker, Reader category.”

“What does that mean?” Jamie said.

“He said an Emerger might be too powerful. At least, at
first.” Henry rolled his eyes and sighed. “Come on, Jamie. You know how much
that thing you do can freak people out.”

Nice move, Nikki thought. And it was so like Henry to
find a way of protecting his friend’s feelings.

Jamie thought for a moment, then shrugged. “Yeah. Sure.
Sometimes. Lysrus really said that?”