by H. D. Gordon
CHAPTER 2
The morning passed by in a blur. I stood and introduced myself to the class three more times. Sat through lectures, took notes, read some of the novel I was into while pretending to follow the prescribed text.
I actually enjoyed the practice of learning, had been taught its value at a young age—which was why I’d enrolled myself in the high school the day after arriving here. But I just wasn’t super enthusiastic today, for obvious reasons.
As I’d told the classes, my name is Aria. But what you don’t know is I’m only half human. The other half of me is Fae—hence the last name, a personal joke of mine, as Halflings like myself only have a single name—but I’ve lived the majority of my life among humans as an operative of the Peace Brokers. The Brokers are an organization of Halfling supernaturals that try to maintain peace between the races. I’ve studied in the human schools, eaten the human food, and absorbed the human culture, right down to the Van sneakers on my feet and the skateboard I ride around on.
But I’ve never felt completely comfortable among full humans. The other half of my blood is Faevian, and that world, the world from which my mother hailed and where I’d been a liaison, was nothing like this one. Now that she was gone, and my superiors had shunned me, I was stuck on this side of the veil permanently. I had no reason to return to any of the other supernatural worlds anyway.
It would be a lie to say that the idea of pretending to be a human, of living a normal human life, didn’t deepen my depression. I’d always thought I was meant for something more. As it turned out, I was mistaken. I wasn’t even a legal adult yet, and I’d already messed up everything irrevocably, lost it all with a few tosses of the dice. Now, in a city full of people, I felt utterly alone.
So when the lunch bell rang, I was more than ready to find a quiet corner to eat and lose myself in a book. If you’ve never experienced the power of a good novel, the way the words can carry you away from your problems and into a new world where the stakes are not your own, I feel sorry for you.
Books have saved my sanity more times than I can count, and if I’d ever needed saving, it was now.
I followed the sea of students into the cafeteria, keeping my guard up against the onslaught of emotions that could overwhelm me in a crowd this big. It was something I’d gotten good at, as any Fae Empath who hopes to make it through puberty must. Full human teens were a particularly sensitive bunch.
The cafeteria was small, too small, I thought, to hold all of the students flowing in, with off-white walls painted with the school’s mascot and colors—blue and white. Signs reading things like, Go Bluejays! and Stop Bullying! hung in various places. The chatter and hustle of the crowd swallowed me up, and I watched my feet, careful not to make eye contact.
I don’t want you to think this anti-social behavior is typical of me—it’s not. With the Peace Brokers, I’d been taught since childhood how to be diplomatic, how to treat all life with the honor it deserved, how to get people to like me, to trust me. The power of persuasion I had over most people was also part of being a Fae Halfling, and the Brokers had used this ability of mine to the fullest.
Until I was kicked out of that whole universe, anyway.
I sighed, chewing my lip, and grabbed a tray with a cheeseburger and fries, the sight of the food comforting me. I was of the belief that one of mankind’s greatest creations was a good burger, and it was one of the things in my life that had become familiar, a constant. I may not be like all the other people around me, but all in all, the human world itself had accepted me as one of its own.
And yet, I am adrift in a sea of agony, I thought, my inner somber poet rearing its head.
I paid for my food and stood looking at the cafeteria, forgetting until just this moment how terrifying it was to pick a lunch seat at a new school. You had to choose a good one, because you could end up being stuck there all year. It was not too different from the Sorting Hat in Harry Potter.
Luckily, I didn’t have to choose, because I noticed some students exiting with their lunches through a glass door that led outside, and followed them. Much to my relief, when I pushed through the door, I found that there was a square courtyard. It was surrounded on all sides by brick buildings, and the air was still rank with exhaust and garbage, like any city, but there was some grass, a few trees. When I looked up, there was the sun, still warm in early September.
It was a small blessing, and I took it. As half Fae, I thrived in an outdoor environment. Spotting a corner with an empty bench, I hurried over with my food and took a seat, instantly feeling more at ease now that I’d settled.
I ate, and no one bothered me, for which I was glad. I felt lonely beyond words, but there was not a soul near that could make me feel otherwise. Or so I’d thought. It’s funny the things you learn as you get older.
Shoving the food in my face a little less aggressively than I would have in private, I watched the other students with a practiced disinterest. People watching always entertained me. It’s a quiet, personal activity that opens up time for reflection.
Problem was, at the moment, I wasn’t ready to do any reflecting.
A sound pulled my eyes to the center of the courtyard, where a group of girls were standing, and I looked up just in time to see what looked like a brand new laptop fall to the concrete near the group, the device cracking with an unmistakable sound.
The small courtyard grew as silent as a stuffy church. No one even seemed to chew their food.
“Hey!” said a thin, strawberry blonde-haired girl. Her voice raised in pitch, and it was obvious she was fighting back tears. “You broke it!” She looked like she was a freshman or sophomore, but the other three girls standing in front of her were definitely seniors.
She went to pick up the laptop, but the largest of the senior girls blocked her path. My shoulders tensed, my stomach dropping. The fear the blonde girl was feeling rolled off her in waves, hitting me with nauseating force.
The bigger senior girl—the ringleader, from where I was sitting—had her hands shoved coolly in her jacket pockets. She was an average sort of pretty, tall enough to be a model, but corded with muscle in a way that suggested sports instead. She had short, cropped brown hair and hard brown eyes that revealed Latino descent, and wore a lettermen jacket that more than likely belonged to some hotshot football player.
I suppressed an eye roll. The whole scene could not get any more cliché. The dynamic could be found in any high school across America. But that didn’t make it any less uncomfortable. I swallowed the last bite of my burger, no longer tasting it.
“You know the deal,” said the brown-haired bully. She held up a paper. It had a red B written at the top. “I told you to write me an A paper.” She pointed a finger at the sheet in her hand. “What does that say, Sammy? Is that an A?”
“It’s a B,” the blonde girl mumbled, tears welling in her eyes. She was looking at the ruined laptop with utter dismay. “You only gave me a day to write it!” she yelled, and then instantly recoiled.
The brunette—Andrea—rolled up the sleeves of her jacket, her hands clenched into fists. There was hardly an intake of breath in the entire courtyard. I realized belatedly that I was now standing.
Andrea gave a smile that was toothy and twisted, and shoved Sammy hard in the chest, making the smaller girl fall back onto her butt in a way I knew had to hurt her tailbone. Andrea moved to stand over the girl, but I found myself blocking her way.
It seemed to take Andrea a moment to absorb what I’d done, and her face screwed up as she took note of me. “Get out of my way, puta,” she spat, confirming my guess about her roots.
I held up both of my hands, palms out. “Why don’t you just leave her alone?” I asked, my voice amicable, soothing.
Andrea looked confused, which I chose to believe was her default state, given what I’d seen from her. “Who the hell are you?” she asked.
I shook my head, still holding up my hands, but my body having moved itself into a defensive
stance; right leg back, knees slightly bent, shoulders turned sideways to provide a smaller target, loose and ready.
“I’m no one,” I said, locking eyes with her. “No one at all.”
She said nothing, only took a step back. I’m pretty sure she would have walked away, too, if her friend hadn’t spoken up. I wondered how many times in a single day I could keep my eyes from rolling. It was a habit of mine I was trying to break, because it seemed to me to be terribly juvenile, but some situations just called for it.
“You gonna let her talk to you like that, Andy?” asked the sidekick.
Andy still looked confused, but then the dull anger came back over her. I saw the idea form in her head even before she took the cup that Sidekick Number Two was holding, knew what she would do even though she tried to be quick about it.
My reflexes are too good, and I know the ways of people too well. So when she tried to dump the drink on me, and instead I popped the bottom of it up with my hand, and it splashed all over her face, there was no way to avoid what came next.
I’d find out later that Andrea Ramos—Andy to her friends—was not only the star athlete and senior bully at Grant City High, but she was also a trained boxer. Her father owned a chain of gyms that trained fighters, and her attitude was just as strong as her right hook.
As it was, I stood before her now, soda dripping down her face, every eye in the courtyard on me, my hands held out before me like I was some lion tamer. To say the least, this was not how I’d wanted to start my first day at a new school.
There was no time to think anything else, because Andy swung at me with a hard right, and I ducked out of the way, feeling the air whoosh over my head. She’d swung hard enough to knock out my teeth had it connected, and this pissed me off.
My body just acted, despite my rule never to use my abilities against humans. It really wasn’t fair to them. My Fae blood gave me stronger senses, faster reflexes, more stamina and strength. So when I swept Andy’s legs out from under her with a clean swing of my leg, spinning around and standing upright again before she even hit the ground, you can imagine the look of shock that was on everyone’s face.
For a moment, the whole city seemed to go silent. I used the time to scoop up the broken laptop and back out of there, grabbing the blonde girl’s arm and taking her with me inside the school.
We escaped. But I didn’t need to be full human to know my troubles with Andy Ramos were not over.
As it would turn out, they were going to be the least of my worries.
CHAPTER 3
Once we were inside, I realized I didn’t know where to go. GHS was a tall and old stone building, the classrooms cold and the stairways many. It was going to take me some time to be able to navigate it, and at the moment, I was a little too shaken up to think straight.
I hadn’t meant to embarrass the girl like that.
“Come on,” said a voice near me, and I realized the blonde girl was still standing beside me. She took my arm and pulled me toward a staircase. I didn’t know what else to do, so I followed.
We took a set of stairs up and made three rights, coming to a hallway that was mostly empty. Glass windows made up one long wall, and I could see into a large room filled with computers and other electronics. Inside were maybe eight other students. They were all wearing headphones and staring at screens.
“What class is this?” I asked, not seeing a teacher anywhere in the room.
She reached into her bag and took out an ID card, scanning it over the sensor on the door. A little light went green and allowed us access to the room. She held the door for me. “It’s called CODE,” she said. “But we just call it the game room. I’m Samantha Shy, by the way, Sam to my friends. And before you ask, yes, that’s really my name .”
I hadn’t been about to ask that, but whatevs.
“Aria Fae,” I said. “It’s nice to meet you… Sorry about your computer.”
A couple of the other students in the room looked up, but then just looked back at their screens. I followed Sam to the back of the room, where there were three round tables and several chairs. Bookshelves surrounded the area, giving it a sense of privacy. I took a seat at one of the tables, placing my backpack and the broken laptop I was still holding on the table.
Sam shook her head so fervently I couldn’t help a small smile. She had a certain endearing quality. “Don’t worry about it. I can probably fix it,” she said, pulling the ruined computer toward her. “Besides, you kinda saved my butt back there. Where’d you learn to move like that?”
I swallowed before answering. It seemed I could do nothing right as of late. I’d been at this school all of half a day and already I was drawing too much attention.
“I took… uh, karate when I was a kid,” I said, and yes, it came out sounding super lame.
Sam sat down across from me and began examining the broken laptop. “You must’ve had an awesome teacher.”
“The best,” I mumbled
“Where’re you from?”
“I moved here from Blue Hook.”
“Oh, I love Blue Hook,” she smiled. “It’s one of my favorite Jersey shore towns. I used to go there during the summers when I was younger. Why’d you move here?”
I shrugged. “My mom got a new job,” I lied. It sounded better than, My mother was killed by a crazy Fae Queen and the people I devoted my entire life to refused to do anything about it, and then banished me when I decided to take matters into my own hands.
Yeah, definitely couldn’t say that.
Sam seemed to pick up on my low mood, and she busied herself with disassembling the computer. Without looking up, she said, “Andrea can’t get us in here, but I’m sorry for getting you in trouble with her. She can be really mean, and it’s hard being on her hit list.”
I waved a hand at this. “I’m not worried about Andrea,” I said. “I’m just a little… homesick.” I stood from the table, suddenly uncomfortable. “I better go. I’ve got class and the teacher will be looking for me if I don’t show.”
Sam nodded, her shoulders sinking just a touch. “Okay,” she said. “Unless you want me to hack into the school computer system and message your teachers that there was a schedule mess up and not to be looking for you.” She rambled quickly, then gave a little laugh and snort.
I paused. “You can do that?”
A look came over her face that suggested the question was somehow insulting. “Yes,” she said. “I can do that. Computers are my homies.”
I couldn’t help a return laugh at that, and found myself sitting back down. “Okay, Bill Gates,” I said. “Let’s see it.”
“Really?” she asked. “You’re not worried your parents might find out?”
I raised my eyebrows. “You just offered to hack into the school computer system and you’re asking me if I’m worried about my parents finding out?”
Sam considered this. “Right,” she said. “Okay.” She stood and went over to one of the desktops and sat down, her fingers flying over the keys.
I went and sat beside her, the screens flipping too fast for me to even keep up. Her aura lit up as well, and I could tell that sitting before a computer was where Samantha Shy felt most at home. Seemed her name was an apt fit.
After a moment, she turned toward me, a grin on her face. “Done,” she said.
“How do I know it’s done?” I asked.
Her fingers flew over the keys again, and like magic, screenshots popped up on the monitor. I leaned in close to look at them, and saw that they were messages sent to my teachers from what appeared to be the school’s guidance counselor. I watched in utter amazement as the teachers confirmed receipt of the messages right before my eyes.
“You’re a friggin’ genius,” I said.
Sam flushed, pushing her black-rimmed glasses up on her small nose. “Not really,” she said. “It’s just like I said, computers are my homies.”
My curiosity in this new friend of mine went up exponentially. Computers and technolo
gy were the equivalent to magic in the human world.
“So you can, like, hack into shit?” I asked.
This made her laugh. “Yes,” she said. “I can ‘hack into shit’… among other things. I write code, basically. It’s just a language that makes sense to me. Not as cool as being a karate master.”
Now it was my turn to laugh. “Trust me, Sam. When you say it like that, it doesn’t sound cool at all.” I realized my mood was slightly better, and was more than surprised by the feeling. “So what am I gonna do now that none of my teachers are looking for me?”
Sam had turned back to the computer and was working her magic again. “Let me just make sure none of mine are looking for me… There.” She looked at me over her glasses, and her bright blue eyes narrowed conspiratorially. “Wanna go on a field trip?”
I found myself nodding, grinning. “I’d have to grab my board from my locker but… What’d you have in mind?”
***
As it turned out, Grant City was having a technological expo at the Red Garden Convention Center. It was a sunny Friday, and when we got there it was clear many people had taken the day off for the event.
“How are we gonna get in?” I asked, pausing as I saw that there were ticket checkers at the main entrance. There were also police officers, and I was worried we were going to be questioned about why we weren’t in school.
Sam dug around in her canvas bag and produced two lanyards with VIP I.D. badges. “With these,” she said, grinning again in that conspiratorial way of hers.
I took the badges, careful to act natural. “Where’d you get these?” I asked. “They must’ve cost a fortune.”
Sam took one and slid it over her head, then slipped mine over my head. She glanced around before answering. “I made them,” she said, her voice lowering. “Remember how I can hack into shit? Well, I hacked into the ticket selling database and scored these.”
“Why’d you get two? Who were you planning to bring?”
Pushing her glasses up on her nose, Sam took my hand and began pulling me toward the entrance, as excited as a puppy with a new toy.
