Bugged Out!

by Matthew Porter

  “Didn’t you have a burger for lunch?” asked Abby.

  He crossed his arms. “It’s not against the law to eat the same thing twice in one day.”

  She sighed. “Well, as long as it’s somewhere that has healthy food, too.”

  “If you guys don’t mind heading out of the city, I have a suggestion,” Kelly said.

  “Joel’s?” I said, and she nodded.

  “Do they have burgers?” Nick asked, still rubbing his stomach.

  “The best on the Force-Pointe Islands,” Kelly said.

  Nick beamed. “Then let’s do it!”

  ***

  We crossed the bridge to get back to Force-Pointe Island. Joel’s Place was in a small port town called Old Shiloh, about five miles from my house.

  We parked in a small lot that overlooked the pier and walked down a brick sidewalk to the restaurant. It was an old brick building with tall stained-glass windows.

  As we were walking in, I happened to glance over toward the docks. Once again, I saw the woman in the trench coat. She stood on the sidewalk where we’d just been. She was studying me with interest, like I was some kind of science experiment.

  “What is it?” asked Kelly, who startled me so much that I jumped.

  “I just saw that woman again…” I muttered without thinking.

  “Woman?” she said, craning her neck toward the pier. “What woman?”

  She was gone. How was she doing that?

  I looked apologetically at Kelly. “I think perhaps I spent too long in front of that game screen,” I said. I didn’t want to worry her, and I didn’t want her to think I was crazy.

  I followed Nick and Abby into Joel’s and tried to act like nothing was wrong. Kelly was still looking toward the pier, but it didn’t seem like she saw anything out of the ordinary.

  “Good evening, welcome to Joel’s,” said the hostess as I walked in. “How many in your party today?”

  “They’re with us, ma’am,” said Nick when Kelly and I caught up to him and Abby.

  The hostess nodded, grabbed four menus, and asked us to follow her.

  Joel’s Place was eccentrically decorated. Its walls had red-and-gold-striped wallpaper, hung with expensive looking oil paintings of various people and places that looked like they belonged in an art museum somewhere.

  We walked down the four steps into the dining area. It was laden with red carpet, and the tall ceiling was a domed stained-glass window.

  The window depicted a young woman wearing tattered rags. She was on her knees, with her hands folded at her chest as if she were praying, and she had chains on her hands and feet. In the background, half of the sky was blue and clear, while the other was blackened with storm clouds that rained white and red fire down upon the ground.

  “That’s an... interesting piece,” said Abby, looking up at the domed ceiling and wrinkling her nose.

  The hostess led us to a table under the stained-glass ceiling. We sat down, and the waitress came by and took our drink orders. She told us she’d give us a few minutes to look over the menu and left.

  “So, what’s good here?” Abby asked, opening the menu.

  I scanned the menu for my favorite dish. “Everything is good here. I always get the—”

  “Dude!” Nick yelled, and the whole restaurant stared. His eyes widened. “They have a food challenge?”

  Kelly pointed at the description on the menu. “Yeah, but it’s forty-six dollars if you fail. You have to eat seventeen burgers in under an hour.”

  He swatted the air and smiled, “Psh, I can handle that, no problem. I want that free T-shirt. Plus, it says that if I can do it, my meal is on the house.”

  “Let’s put the matter into perspective,” I said matter-of-factly. “It’s statistically improbable that you would manage to eat all seventeen in an hour or less. Even if you were successful, your gastrointestinal system would be in distress after such an excessive meal. We have school tomorrow, and I highly doubt you would feel like going after eating seventeen hamburgers. You wouldn’t want to miss your second day of school, would you?”

  He sighed and dropped the menu onto the table. “I guess you’re right, J-Man. Darn it, you and your logic bringing me down.”

  I looked down at the table and quickly apologized.

  Nick laughed. “I was just kidding.”

  The waitress came with our drinks. She grabbed her notebook, clicked her pen, and asked what we wanted. I ordered my favorite thing from Joel’s: the southwest burger with extra jalapeños. Abby ordered the grilled ginger chicken wrap, Nick ordered the double-bacon BBQ burger, and Kelly ordered the garden-fresh salad with raspberry vinaigrette.

  “All right, I’ll bring those out right away when they’re done,” the waitress said.

  As our food came out, Kelly turned to Nick. “I have a question for you guys.”

  Nick took a big bite out of his sandwich and looked at her. “Wha’ ish ih?” he managed to say.

  She giggled. “You have some BBQ on your chin.”

  He grabbed a napkin and wiped his beard. “Sorry. So, what do you wanna know?”

  “Why did you transfer here all the way from California?” she asked. “It seems a little odd that you would come all the way here and not to another school district there, especially if the rest of your family still lives there.”

  Abby and Nick gave each other troubled looks.

  Kelly seemed to realize that they looked uncomfortable. “I’m sorry I brought it up, if you don’t want to talk about it. It’s really none of my business.”

  Nick gave a thin smile, but it didn’t quite meet his eyes. “It’s okay. Our old school didn’t agree with us, so our mom transferred us here because it’s a good school…and she thought it would be a good experience for us, that’s all.” He paused for a moment, and his smile got thinner. “It was a hard decision to make, but our mom knew that we had to go to school somewhere else.”

  “Our mom and stepdad have to stay in California to take care of our grandma,” Abby said, wringing her napkin. “It’s been rough moving away from home, but we’re doing okay.”

  There had to be more to the story, but they didn’t seem to be comfortable with the subject. I had to keep my curiosity at bay, so I didn’t press it.

  Kelly didn’t seem to want to press it further, either. “Well, I’m glad we got to meet,” she said cheerfully.

  “I concur,” I said. It really was a good feeling to have friends now. I suppose I never really knew what I was missing.

  “I’m glad we met, too. You guys seem cool,” said Abby, cheering up a little.

  Nick’s smile became more genuine. “Yup, I’m looking forward to hanging out more often. So, Kelly?” he said, looking at her curiously. “Can I ask you a question now?”

  For some reason, Kelly’s ears turned red as she nodded and said, “Sure.”

  He poked at her hair, which made the redness in her ears spread to her cheeks. “How come your hair is so long?” he asked. “Have you, like, never cut it before?”

  She touched her hair and smiled at him. “It’s a family tradition,” she answered. “More of an honor, really. The women in my family never cut their hair. It’s just something passed down through the generations of the Azusa family. I want to keep the tradition going. It’s something I’m proud of.”

  Usually Kelly got annoyed whenever people asked her about her hair, and I was surprised she didn’t get defensive about it with him.

  “That’s pretty awesome,” Nick said, smiling warmly.

  ***

  It was 9:30 by the time we were done eating. Kelly was a little panicked as we made our way back to the car. If she was even five minutes late getting home on a school night, she’d be grounded for a week.

  As we approached the car, a voice called out from behind us.

  “Excuse me, children?” said the voice. It was smooth and feminine, and oddly familiar.

  I groaned when I saw that it was the woman in the trench coat again.
I feared that I was going crazy, because every single time she showed up, I was the only one that noticed. Part of me was relieved that the others acknowledged her now, as well. But the other part of me was fearful about what this woman was doing, walking up to us in an empty parking lot at 9:30 at night.

  “I need to speak with the four of you,” the woman said. She stopped right in front of me, putting her hand on my shoulder.

  I broke away from her and took a step back.

  “What do you want?” I said. “You’ve been following us all day, haven’t you?”

  The woman didn’t answer. She just stood there, looking at me.

  “She even confronted me when I was alone in the hallway just after school. She was at the mall as well,” I told the others.

  “You following us, lady?” asked Nick, his eyes narrowing.

  The woman seemed to study Nick for a moment before answering. “Yes, I have been following you. But I assure you, it’s not what it seems.”

  Nick’s fists clenched. “It seems like you’re a stalker. You trying to sell us drugs or something? Or do you just like following minors around?”

  “Nothing of the sort, Nicklaus,” she said reproachfully.

  He glared at her. “How do you know my name?”

  She smiled. “I know each of your names. Nicklaus, Kelly, Abigail, and James,” she said, looking at each of us in turn. “I have something that I must discuss with you.”

  “Yeah? Well, not interested. C’mon, guys, let’s get out of here,” Nick said. He unlocked the car and we got in.

  “I really wish you wouldn’t do that,” the woman said slowly.

  “Sucks for you,” Nick said defiantly. He slammed the door and started the car.

  The woman knocked on his window. “Please listen to me,” she said, but her voice was muffled. “You’re in danger, and so is everyone at your school. You need to listen. You can stop it before it gets worse.”

  “Go away or we’ll call the cops,” he yelled back at her.

  “I’m not letting you leave until you listen to me,” she said as she moved to the front of the car.

  The woman lifted her hands high in the air, and they started to glow.

  “We need to get out of here before we get shot at,” I said, thinking the glow might be from a gun or something.

  Nick quickly put the car in reverse and sped out of the parking lot.

  I looked back at the woman. She was just watching us drive away, not moving a muscle. Her hands were still straight out above her head like they were the hands of a clock that had just struck twelve. Before we turned the corner, she put her hands down. A brilliant flash of light came out of both her hands, and she was gone.

  “D-did you guys see that?” I asked as I turned back around and buckled my seat belt.

  “See what?” asked Kelly, looking back.

  “Nothing,” I answered, not wanting to sound as crazy as the woman I just saw poof out of existence.

  “Whoever that psycho chick was, she needs to get her head examined,” said Nick as we drove toward Kelly’s house.

  “Yeah, and that trench coat and sunglasses were so tacky,” said Abby crossing her arms. “Like, excuse me, but the 1940s mafia called and would like their outfit back.”

  “It’s weird that she knew our names, though,” mused Kelly. “I’ve never seen her before. Have you, James? Other than today, I mean.”

  I shook my head. “I’ve only seen her today…at school, at the mall, and here. I will say that I am a little curious about who she is, though, and how she knew our names.”

  “And it’s crazier because you two just got into town. How could she have known you guys?” Kelly asked, looking at Nick and Abby.

  Nick huffed. “I bet she’s just some weird conspiracy theorist or drug dealer or something. She probably overheard us talking to each other and got our names that way. I’ll tell you one thing, though, if she comes near us again, I’m definitely gonna call the cops.”

  We arrived at Kelly’s house and dropped her off.

  “Thanks, guys,” she said. “I had fun, except for our run-in with that crazy woman.”

  Nick laughed. “Yeah, she’s definitely from the funny farm, that’s for sure. See ya tomorrow, Kelly.”

  The whole way to my house, I didn’t say a word. All I could think about was that strange woman. What did she want? Maybe she worked for the government, or she may be a spy of some kind. Or, like Nick said, she could just be a drug dealer. And what exactly were those bright lights I saw before she vanished from sight?

  As Nick parked in my driveway, Abby turned around to look at me. “You okay, James? You’ve been awfully quiet since we dropped Kelly off.”

  I nodded. “I’m alright. Just curious about that woman.”

  “Forget her. She’s obviously off her rocker,” Nick said. “Anyway, we’ll see you tomorrow, J-Man.”

  I got out of the car and walked up to the house. I turned around and waved Nick and Abby goodbye. Nick honked as he pulled out of the driveway and drove off.

  I suppose Nick’s right, I thought as I opened the front door. We’ll likely never see her again.

  I let myself into my house, and I heard my mother come down the stairs. “James? What are you doing getting home so late? Were you at the library again?”

  “Not this time,” I said, shaking my head. “I told you I was going out with friends. We went to the arcade and got some food.” And we were being stalked by some madwoman.

  She smiled at me. “You made some new friends?”

  “Kelly and I both did,” I said, returning her smile. “They’re new students. Twins, a brother and a sister. Fraternal, of course.”

  “They aren’t gang members or anything, are they?” she asked, crossing her arms.

  My eyes widened. “N-no, Mother. I don’t think so.”

  She laughed. “I’m kidding, son. How about you invite them over for dinner soon? I’d love to meet them.”

  “I just met them. Isn’t that a bit soon?” I asked. I didn’t know how these things worked.

  “James, they’re your friends, not your date. Invite them to come next week sometime.”

  “Okay, I’ll talk to them about it.”

  “Good. Now, don’t wake your dad. He has to get up early.” She went back up the stairs.

  I headed up to my room and turned on the TV to see if my DVR recorded the documentary Outbreaks in the United States.

  Before I got the chance to look, something on the news caught my attention. Apparently, a body had been found on the rocks on Deathborne Cliffs. The man had been identified as Roman Carmichael. He and his girlfriend had gone missing after they’d decided to hike the cliffs. His girlfriend, Cassie Pollok, was still missing.

  According to reports, Roman had died from extreme exhaustion, and had puncture wounds all over his body. This was not the first case like that, either. A few other bodies had been found just two weeks prior, and their condition was similar. They had all been found near Deathborne Cliffs, close to the cave.

  Deathborne Cliffs and the surrounding shoreline were off limits to the public due to dangerous conditions. It was unfortunate that people were found there all the time, all of them adventure seekers who wanted to make a name for themselves by trekking the cliffside or surfing the tide. Something about this particular incident made me wonder, though. This man had died of extreme exhaustion, not from being crushed or drowned or impaled by the rocks. What had happened to him, exactly? And where was his girlfriend?

  With those happy thoughts, I went to bed, but it was hard to sleep. I stayed up thinking about everything that happened today. It made me happy that I made friends…me, Dr. Stumpenstein, had made friends! But my thoughts quickly turned to that woman. Who was she, and what did she want with us? And what about that strange insect I saw? Little did I know that the very next day my questions would be answered, and I wouldn’t at all be prepared for the truth.

  CHAPTER 3:

  The fateful day—ja
mes

  I awoke the next morning wondering if the previous day had been a dream. It was hard for me to grasp the idea that I had gone out on the town with not just one, but three friends. Add that strange woman who had been following us and that strange insect, and it became quite a tale indeed.

  I took a shower, brushed my teeth, had oatmeal and guava juice for breakfast, and read an article about the recent dramatic increase of measles in the US in the American Journal of Epidemiology. The bus stopped in front of my house, and I grabbed my bookbag and headed out the door.

  I sat in my usual seat and glanced out of the window, expecting nothing out of the ordinary. Naturally, I was shocked to see someone standing in my yard, staring directly at me. I couldn’t believe my eyes—it was the woman from the previous night, wearing the same garb as before.

  She was as still as stone, her sunglasses hanging down just enough so that I could see her eyes piercing mine. The bus started to drive off. I quickly grabbed my phone so I could take a picture of her to show the others. I pointed my phone at the woman, but she was gone. Vanished. Once again, nobody else seemed to have noticed her.

  I told Kelly what had just happened when she got on the bus.

  “What?” she said, wide-eyed. “She was at your house...just standing in the yard?”

  “Staring right at me,” I added.

  She shivered. “This is getting creepy. Maybe we should tell the police. This lady might be dangerous, and she knows where you live.”

  I’d never felt so unsafe before. I thought my neighborhood was the safest place in the world, my house especially. It was situated on a hill, and you could see the police station just across the small field at the bottom. But no matter how close the station was, if this crazy woman knew where I lived, how safe could I be? She could kill me in my sleep before I got the chance to call the police.

  As Kelly and I got off the bus, we heard someone yell, “Hey!”