A Girl Between

by Marjorie Weismantel

  I commented to Mercy, “And why would he be mad at us anyway? We didn’t do anything, right?”

  “Yeah, right”, Mercy responded with a little smile.

  While our attention was focused on them I figured I’d ask Mercy about Ian. “Mercy, do you know anything about Ian Miller?”

  “Not really. I think he used to date Tonya a while back. He’s certainly one that’s easy on the eyes. I don’t know much else about him. Why?” Mercy looked at me curiously.

  “I was just wondering,” I responded. “Do you think he hangs out with THEM?”

  “I wouldn’t know. ‘Course, I only moved here last spring, and I’m not exactly in the know of high school society here. I haven’t seen him hang out with those guys much before though. Isn’t he out of high school?” asked Mercy.

  I answered, “Yeah, he’s in college now. I think he graduated from school last year. Do you know anything else about him?”

  “I think he’s aware that he looks like a god, but at the same time I don’t get the impression that he’s a dumb, arrogant jerk like a lot of great looking guys.”

  “You talking about me?” asked Will laughing.

  “Maybe the dumb, arrogant part,” I responded.

  Suddenly we all hear a big whoosh . . . . . . . The fire had been lit so we all turned to it. It was beautiful against the darkening sky. In the background, I could hear the cheerleaders chanting and the band clanging away. It sounded like school spirit was revving up.

  As our attention was distracted by the mesmerizing fire, I felt a strange sensation at my back, like someone was just barely touching me. It was creepy. I quickly glanced around. Who was there? Abruptly the touch felt like a thrust that forced me forward onto the ground. Having initially sensed something, I had just enough time to put my hands out to break my fall. My face just barely scraped against the edge of a jagged metal piece that was sticking out of the ground. I felt my face where it hit. There was blood just above my right eyebrow. Will was right there, bending down to help me up. “Are you OK? That was weird. Did you trip on something?”

  “No, but I felt somehow like I was shoved,” I answered while looking around. “Maybe I tripped on something.”

  Will questioned, “How could that have happened? I didn’t see anyone directly behind you. And how did you get blood on your face? Let me get a good look.” He got up close and examined my forehead. It was hard to see in the darkness so he leaned in close. “Do you mind me touching it? It’s hard to see in this light.” As he gently pressed with his fingers, he pulled a handkerchief out of his pants pocket and handed it to me. “Fortunately, the cut looks pretty shallow; however, the head always bleeds more than most places. It looked like it got cut open with some metal piece.” He bent down to examine the ground before adding, “You may have to get a tetanus shot.”

  Sam added, “That metal part may have been an insert for a soccer post. This area used to be part of the old soccer field. I can’t believe that wasn’t pulled out of the ground when the field was moved. That’s pretty bad!”

  I glanced over at Mercy. What was up with her? She looked really pissed. She was watching Tonya and her gang who were laughing hysterically. What’s that about? “Mercy, why are they acting like that?”

  “I was wondering the same thing,” she responded grimly.

  Everyone turned to look at Tonya’s gang. There’s Tonya, Red, Guy (with the slicked back hair), and Stacy, one of the cheerleaders. Bully Boy is nowhere to be seen. They all seem to find something rather amusing in our direction. I couldn’t help but notice that Ian was gone.

  Mercy was livid. “She did that to you. You know that, don’t you? You could have been killed or severely injured.”

  I didn’t respond but had a gut feeling that she was right. I remembered viewing Tonya’s aura. It was troubling to say the least. I saw flaming arcs of dark red and waves of black and gray. I sensed hatred, malevolence, evil intent.

  I was holding the handkerchief up to my head and feeling shaky. It shocked me to think someone out there was deliberately trying to hurt me. “Mercy, how could that make any sense? They were way over there.”

  Doug commented, “You know, I’ve heard some weird stuff about Tonya. Something about telekinetic powers. I know that sounds crazy.”

  “She definitely has an evil streak, and who knows with Tonya. I wouldn’t put anything past her,” Will added, while staring over at her.

  “I think it’s time for Tonya and her group to get a taste of their own medicine. I’ve been battling it out with her by myself ever since I moved to town. I’ve been their victim, but I’ve ignored it most of the time because I just didn’t care. Now, she’s spreading her evilness to you, Tess. You’re her new play thing. I think it’s time to fight back, and you can help me.” Mercy announced.

  “What can I do?” I asked.

  “Ever since that day you stepped into the fight between me and Tonya, I knew you had abilities that were out of the ordinary. In your case, it’s just underdeveloped because you’re unaware of what you can do. Believe me, I have a good sense of this. In fact, Will, I also sense some abilities from you, too. And, I think you know what I’m talking about.” Mercy stared pointedly at Will.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the Will’s reaction. I expected him to loudly proclaim that she was nuts but instead he looked back at her, a gleam in his eye. “What did you have in mind?”

  Mercy stopped for a minute and looked around. Then, she turned to Will and shook her head. “That’s OK, Will. I think I’ll do this myself. Tonya and her gang will be sorry they started something with us. I can fight fire with fire! Just check this out!”

  I grabbed Mercy’s arm, “Mercy, I don’t know what you have planned but I don’t think this is the time or place to start a fight.” I had a feeling that Mercy was more powerful than she looked. Who knew what she had in mind.

  Mercy looked at us, her eyes blazing. “Look, this has become very personal for me. You guys don’t know what it’s been like since I’ve moved here. Tonya zeroed in on me the first day I showed up at school and she hasn’t let up. I knew I didn’t have the power to do anything about her all by myself, so I existed by lying low and staying out of her way as much as possible. I haven’t made any friends here because I knew she would just torment them to get to me. I realized there were a few other students in the school that had special gifts, such as you Will, but it wasn’t enough to fight Tonya and her pals.”

  Mercy’s full attention turned to me. “Tessie, when you showed up, everything changed. I knew it the minute you barged into that fight. You have power, REAL power, and Tonya knows it. She wants to frighten you into becoming a mouse like I’ve been. It’s time to turn the tables.”

  Mercy regarded Sam, Doug and Will with a gleam in her eye. “Should I pull Tonya down a notch?”

  “Hell, yeah, it’s time for some vengeance!” yelled Sam.

  Doug screamed, looking like a wild man, “Yeah, it’s time to pull her DOWN!”

  That was all Mercy needed to hear. She faced the blazing fire that was several yards away, took her finger about waist level, and pointed it at the fire. She closed her eyes like she was trying to concentrate on something. Then she opened them and slightly traced an arc from the fire over to Tonya’s thick golden French braid. Against the blackness of the night, some sparks from the fire moved, over the crowd and landed around the end of Tonya’s braid. At first, there was a little smoldering and wisps of smoke. Then, suddenly, a flame broke out at the end of her braid. No one noticed for a few seconds, and then, all hell broke loose.

  “Aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh, MY HAIR’S ON FIRE!!!!! Tonya got up and started running around in circles, screaming. Red grabbed her and threw her on the ground throwing her jacket over her head, trying to smother the fire. “Get that damn jacket off of my face, you idiot!!” Tonya shrieked.

  “I was just trying to put the fire out. It worked, didn’t it?” yelled Red.

  “I guess. Just look at my
beautiful hair. It’s ruined,” she screeched.

  Red retorted, “Hey, it could’ve been worse. Your clothes could’ve caught on fire and your face and body could’ve been burned. Your hair is nothing.”

  While our group’s attention was glued to Tonya, I realized that my hands were a little sticky from the blood. I was also feeling overwhelmed. I wanted to clean up, but I also felt an urge to get away from here for few minutes. This drama with Tonya was freaking me out. “Will, I have to go somewhere and clean myself off. Where are the restrooms out here?”

  He looked closely at me. “Are you sure you’re OK? Why don’t I go with you?”

  “No, no, I’m fine. I’m not bleeding or anything right now. I just want to wash my hands and my forehead off. If my aunt sees any blood on me when I get home she’ll get all upset. I’d just as soon avoid that. There’s nothing for you to do.”

  “OK, if you’re sure. The bathroom is pretty close. Remember that squat building near the football bleachers? Well, the restrooms are in the back.”

  “OK, be back in just a few,” I answered.

  I started toward the building. Crap, there was actually more than one building back here and it was pretty dark. You’d think there would be more lights near the restrooms. I don’t think Will realized how little I knew about this school. I proceeded around to the back of one of the buildings. There was nothing here. This actually looked like an equipment shed. I’m starting to feel really spooked out. My senses were screaming that something wasn’t right, so I turned to go in another direction. I still wasn’t right.

  I could hear a whrrrrring sound getting closer. It was a motorized wheelchair coming around the side of the building. Was that Bully Boy? I couldn’t see his face yet because of the darkness. What was he doing here? I really didn’t want to talk to him so I looked around for a way to elude him and realized that there’s no way around him from here. In one direction was a cement abutment about 2-3 feet high, followed by a steep downward slope. On the other side, there was a dense hedge. Then, coming at me is Bully, staring at me like he wanted to swallow me whole. I went over to the hedge to see if I could push through but I found a chain link fence right behind it. He was almost there.

  I finally spoke, “What do you want?”

  He spoke in a guttural tone, “I haaate yoooouu!”

  I realized that the stroke had affected his ability to speak clearly, but I knew what he was saying.

  I stood up outside of the bushes and took a step toward him. I didn’t want to show him that I was scared. “What have I ever done to you Bul . . . uh, Jimmy?”

  Youuuuu diiiiid thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis,”he lifted his left hand and gestured toward himself. He sounded drunk but I knew it was from the stroke.

  “Why would I hurt you Jimmy? I hardly know you. It just happened. It was a stroke. People can’t make other people get strokes,” I reasoned. Somehow I didn’t think he could be reasoned with.

  I heard a snap. Suddenly a knife blade appeared in his left hand. “Yoooooooooou witchhhhhhh. Yooooooooooouu liieeee!” His wheelchair whirred right at me.

  I grabbed the only thing I could to defend myself, a large prickly branch of hemlock from the hedge. As he came closer, I danced around and rubbed the sticky branch in his eyes. I could see the knife stabbing at my right hand, so I shifted around and continued jabbing at him as fast as I could. Fortunately, his arm movement was slow. His big wheelchair was pinning me in though. I was stuck between the big wheels. He was even trying to stand up so he could overpower me. I started screaming. I could feel a burning jab in my right hand. What was I going to do? My left hand was trying to push him back. It wasn’t working.

  Abruptly, Bully sat down. I could see him struggling to get up but he seemed stuck in the chair. In fact, his arms and hands looked like they were glued to the arms of the wheelchair. His knife was still in his right hand, but his hand wasn’t moving. It was time for me to get away from here! As I tried to squeeze by him, I looked up and saw Mercy and Will several yards away striding toward us. They weren’t looking at me. They were staring intently at Bully.

  He noticed them too and he appeared distraught. He was wiggling his body like crazy but he seemed to be stuck. The wheelchair spun around and faced the abutment that trapped me earlier. At that point, I looked up and saw both Mercy and Will. They stopped walking. Will was holding onto the top of his head but he seemed to be concentrating on Bully. Mercy was just staring at Bully. His wheelchair inched forward toward the abutment. He continued to try and get up but to no avail. His wheelchair came up to the edge of the abutment and stopped. Bully was shaking his head back and forth and trying to say something, but it came out like a low groan. Now, his wheelchair was actually lifting off of the ground. What was going on?

  “Will, Mercy, what are you guys doing?”

  Will glanced over at me and barely shook his head. He was still holding his right hand over his forehead with his eyes closed. Bully’s wheelchair was still rising. He was almost on top of the abutment. It was so surreal. In the background, I could hear the students’ frantic cheering and the band pounding away.

  Bully managed to let out a squeal when his chair balanced on top of the abutment. The wheelchair slowly turned downward. After a little pause, the chair descended into the darkness. Bully tried to scream but it came out like an odd gurgling sound. I ran over to watch. His wheelchair careened down the steep bumpy hill. I could see Bully’s head jouncing along with the movement of the chair. Suddenly, it hit something hard; probably the asphalt parking lot below the school. CLANK . . . CLANK . . . CLANK . . . What was that? It was too dark to see very well. Oh, my God! The chair must’ve hit a parking curb at the edge of the parking lot while going at a high rate of speed. That’s what caused the wheelchair to flip over and over and over.

  20. Aftermath

  After Bully’s horrific descent, we all took off. We knew that Bully Boy would get some help because we could hear shouts and screams from the parking lot down below. I should be upset about what happened to him but, I’m not. He enjoyed tormenting the innocent and it turned back on him. I would call it Karma.

  I touched the knife wound on my hand. Yikes, it’s bloody! I rifled around in my purse until I found a packet of Kleenex in there and held it against my thumb. Again, things were happening to ME. It was so frightening. What was up with Bully? What was Mercy talking about when she said that I had REAL power? Whatever she meant, I didn’t want any part of it. I wanna be my old self, moving through life in a fog of ignorance. It was easier and a whole lot safer. Although, that’s not working out for me, is it?

  Will suggested that we head home. When we got into his car he took out his first aid kit and washed off my cut with an antiseptic wipe and wrapped it in some gauze. Then, he pulled out of the parking lot.

  For that entire time, I hardly said a word. The initial shock of what happened had worn off, but I still felt numb. My mind was repeating the whole Bully scenario with his stabbing knife and then his wheelchair bumping down the hill. One big question was really nagging at me. I finally turned to Will and asked him, “How did Bully get up and over the wall in his wheelchair?”

  “I was waiting for you to ask me that,” he sighed.

  “Well”, I retorted, “are you going to tell me?”

  “I don’t know if I can,” he remarked, looking at me anxiously.

  “Please try.” I asked, glaring at him.

  He didn’t say anything for a minute while he was gathering his thoughts. Then, he took a deep breath and pulled over to the side of the road before he continued, “I’ll explain it as best as I can. You’ll have to be patient, so just listen.” His look implied that I wasn’t very patient!

  Will turned and faced me before he started. “One day when I was a little kid, I was sitting in my bedroom bored out of my mind. I was eight years old at the time and I was sent to my room for the day as a punishment for something. I can’t remember what it was. Anyway, I started playing around. I’d always bee
n interested in magic shows and so I was trying some magic trick I saw on television. I was trying to move an object with my mind. To my amazement, I was able to move a penny about a quarter inch on the surface of my desk by concentrating my mind on pushing that penny.”

  I knew I was being impatient but I couldn’t help myself. “One-quarter inch? Are you sure it wasn’t just your imagination? And what does this have to do with tonight anyway?”

  Will glared at me. “Tess, remember, patience! I know you’ve had a rough night but you have to just listen. I’m trying to explain it so that you understand. Otherwise, it won’t make sense to you.”

  “Sorry, Will. I knew it was weird for you too.” I answered. I decided to calm down and listen.

  Suddenly, we could hear sirens approaching from the distance. It sounded like the police, but no, it was an ambulance. It flew down the street, flashing lights and blasting sirens. Will said grimly, “It’s probably going to get Jimmy.”

  My anxiety crept up a notch but I tried to ignore it. “So anyway, Will, continue with what you were telling me about moving the penny.”

  He continued, “Even as a little kid, I knew not to tell anyone about it because they’d think I was crazy. However, I did continue to practice in my room whenever I got a chance and I’ve gotten pretty good at it. For example, just last week I was able to lift my Physics book a foot off my desk and move it across the room onto the book shelf.”

  “Will, are you telling me that you lifted Bully Boy up in his wheelchair?” I asked skeptically.

  He replied, “Not exactly. I couldn’t do that, at least not alone.”

  I was taken aback. “What do you mean by not alone?”

  “I’m pretty sure I did it with Mercy. I believe that in our charged frame of mind, our adrenalin kicked in and helped us to lift him and keep him up. You know how you hear about people who are able to lift heavy objects like cars when they are in an extreme state of stress such as feeling imminent danger or fear? That’s due to excessive bursts of adrenalin. I believe that Mercy and I put our telekinetic powers together which increased its effectiveness, plus we were both pumped up with adrenalin. I knew I was terrified that Bully was going to stab you and I’m sure Mercy felt the same way. I didn’t even think about what to do at the time. I simply reacted. The adrenalin may also have enhanced our telekinetic abilities. I developed a splitting headache which is just beginning to go away.” Will started rubbing his forehead.