Flight of Life (Essence Series #1) (9 page)

Calloway’s hands were numb even though
they were covered in thick gloves to protect his skin, and his body
was shaking from the intense cold. He pedaled his bike harder to
keep his body warm. He locked his bike when he reached the campus
and walked into the library an hour before school
started.

The librarian stared at him from across
the room, making sure he wasn’t eating, and then looked back at her
computer. Calloway caught her glancing at him every now and then,
paranoid that he was going to eat at the computer station, but he
tried to ignore her perpetual looks.

He logged onto the computer and
searched for part time jobs that were student friendly. After
listening to the conversation he heard last night, he knew he had
to find employment. He couldn’t let his aunt pay for his mistake.
He refused to let that happen. He finally found an opening at a
nearby sandwich shop and he printed out the application to fill out
later. The librarian marched over to him and saw that he was
searching for a work position.

“
The computers are for
academic use only,” she snapped. Her eyes looked larger than he’d
ever seen them. He wasn’t sure why she was so adamant about
enforcing the rules with such a vicious attitude and it was
starting to irritate him. He held back his anger and humored her.
“I apologize,” he said. He typed on the computer and pulled up the
SAT website then looked back at her. “It won’t happen
again.”

She marched away and Calloway could
hear the sound of her heels echo against the ground. He grabbed the
application from the printer before she could confiscate it and
shoved it into his backpack. Calloway explored the website and
clicked on the registration link. There was a schedule of upcoming
test dates before the deadline for college applications and he
chose the exam scheduled for next week, but when he selected the
date they asked for the payment information and Calloway sighed in
frustration. He refused to ask his aunt and uncle for the money but
he had no one else. Calloway assumed he could pay for the exam on
the day of the test.

Calloway glanced at the clock and saw
the time. School was about to begin. He logged out of the computer
then left the library, walking to his English class in the
classroom building. Just as he suspected, Beatrice completely
ignored him when he walked in. She didn’t look at him or
acknowledge him in any way. It seemed like she hated him for what
he’d done. He assumed she refused to talk to him because she didn’t
want to be seen conversing with a school loser. The thought angered
Calloway but he ignored the ferocity coursing through him,
remembering that he would have done it whether she appreciated it
or not.

Calloway saw the students place their
essays into a pile on the teacher’s desk, and he recalled that he
had a paper due today but he had forgotten about it—again. When he
reached the teacher’s desk, Mr. Avey looked at him expectantly,
waiting for him to place his own paper on top, but Calloway passed
the stack and walked to this desk.

When Calloway approached his seat, he
spotted a small box sitting on the surface. It was a McDonald’s
value meal apple pie and ‘Poverty Boy #2’ was written in permanent
marker on the cover. Calloway tossed it into the garbage and the
students started to chuckle at him. He sat in his seat and ignored
the rest of the class to the best of his ability. He didn’t know
who was responsible for the prank but he didn’t care anymore—he
hated school.

Mr. Avey stared at him for
a moment then shook his head slightly before he started lecturing.
They were reading another Shakespeare play,
Henry V
, and all the students took
out their own books. Calloway borrowed a copy from Mr. Avey since
he wasn’t able to afford his own. Different students read aloud the
prose of the play but Calloway found it innately boring to listen
to. He loved reading Shakespeare but not when it was being read to
him. He read much quicker in his head.

When the bell rang, Calloway grabbed
his backpack and was about to head for the exit when Mr. Avey spoke
to him.

“
Please wait a moment,
Calloway,” he said. “I’d like to speak with you.”

The students laughed as they walked out
the door, enjoying the sight of Calloway being disciplined for
something.

Calloway sighed and approached Mr.
Avey’s desk. “Yes?” he asked.

“
You’re serving detention
with me after school.”

“
Why?” he asked. “I did
nothing wrong.”

“
Really?” Mr. Avey asked.
His blue eyes shined brighter when he spoke and contrasted against
the white hair of his head and chin. He held his hands together on
the desk. “Then where is your essay?”

Calloway was quiet for a moment. “I—I
didn’t have time to finish it.”

“
So, you started it?” the
teacher asked.

“
Well, no,” he said
honestly.

“
Now you’ll have time in
detention,” Mr. Avey said. “Be in my class immediately after the
last bell rings. You will serve one hour.”

Calloway sighed. He never heard of a
student receiving detention because they weren’t completing their
work but he decided not to challenge the instructor. Calloway
tightened his backpack strap then left the classroom, fighting his
anger as he walked to his next period.

When he walked into his math class, he
sat in the back row and didn’t even glance at the front board,
where the teacher was writing down the homework for the day. The
teacher started to lecture but Calloway didn’t care about anything
he said. He was very good at math—always had been—but he was barely
passing the class because he failed to complete his assignments.
His high exam scores carried him with a passing grade.

He closed his eyes and sighed, shutting
out the world with his mind, and stopped listening to the teacher.
He couldn’t concentrate anyway. Calloway was too distracted with
the stress of his life. Now he had to work a job in addition to his
other responsibilities, plus he had to fight for all humankind. The
depression spread through his body and poisoned his mind. He didn’t
see the purpose in any of this. What was the point?

As soon as the bell rang for lunch,
Calloway practically ran from the room and headed for the library
across the way. When he walked inside, Easton and Breccan were
already sitting together. Calloway sat down without saying
anything.

Easton immediately picked up on his
mood. She had a woman’s intuition. “Do you want to talk about
it?”

“
No,” he said. He looked
around the room and spotted the table in the back of the library,
hidden from the librarian’s sight. “Let’s go in the back. I can’t
stand to have the librarian gawk at us all day and berate Breccan
for eating.”

Breccan smiled as he chewed the chip in
his mouth. They grabbed their bags and moved to the back of the
room. The librarian watched them move away and she glared at them
as they disappeared behind the bookshelves.

“
I think we should bring
her donuts,” Easton said.

“
Why?” Breccan
asked.

“
So it will lighten up her
mood,” she said. “The woman is obviously stressed about something.
Why else would she act that way?”

Calloway felt guilty for being so
judgmental before. You never knew what a person was experiencing in
their life—the good and the awful—so it was unfair to criticize
her. Calloway understood what it was like to be judged unfairly.
Everyone thought he was a horrible student who didn’t care about
his education, but he simply didn’t have the time or the resources
to be successful. He was given a label that didn’t portray him
accurately whatsoever. “I think that’s a good idea,” he said.
“Besides, it’ll make the environment much better for us. She
probably won’t care if we eat in here.”

Easton pulled the book from her bag and
placed it on the table. It was still dusty despite its constant
use, and the dirt swirled in the air when she turned the pages. It
seemed like the ancient dust was embedded into the paper
permanently.

Breccan looked at his cousin. “So, did
Beatrice say anything?”

“
No.” Calloway sighed.
“She pretended I didn’t exist.”

“
That’s so cold,” Breccan
said.

Easton shook her head. “I agree. She
doesn’t have to be your friend but she could at least acknowledge
what you did,” she said. “This is why I hate people.”

Breccan opened his sandwich and started
to eat. “She cares about her image too much,” he said in between
bites. “She doesn’t want to risk her reputation by talking to a
poor loser.”

“
Thanks,” Calloway
said.

Breccan shrugged. “It’s the
truth.”

“
Have you seen Hawk
today?” Easton asked.

“
No,” Calloway said. “But
there was a McDonald’s breakfast on my table. I suspect he had
something to do with that.”

“
Or his social torture has
spread throughout the whole school,” Breccan said.

“
Great,” Calloway said
sarcastically. “I don’t even care anymore. I don’t care about
anything.” He leaned back in his chair and sighed. Calloway wished
he was home-schooled.

Easton stared about him. “Yes, you do,”
she said. “You care about the things that matter.” She tapped the
book with her finger. Calloway stared forward and didn’t
acknowledge her words. They meant nothing to him at the moment.
Easton tried to change the subject. “How did it go last night with
your parents?”

“
It went really well,”
Breccan said as he ate his sandwich. “Our parents weren’t mad—they
didn’t punish us.”

Calloway shook his head. “It was
horrible,” he said. “I heard my aunt say she has to get a job if
they’re going to pay rent, so I’m applying for a job after school
to help out. They shouldn’t have to pay for Hawk’s
coldness.”

Breccan stopped eating. “When did this
happen?”

“
I overheard them when I
went to the bathroom,” Calloway answered.

“
I’m sorry to hear that,”
Easton said. “My offer still stands.”

“
No,” Calloway said
quickly. “But thank you.”

Easton flipped through the pages. “I
didn’t decipher anything new last night—I was too tired, but I
think we should start working in the Grandiose Historian Library.
That’s where Calloway saw the first Hara-Kir—perhaps there are
more.”

“
So, now we’re looking for
them?” Breccan asked.

“
No,” she said. “But it’s
a possibility they might be there, even though I find it unlikely.
And the library is deserted so we’ll have plenty of privacy. Also,
there may be more books hidden inside that we could use. We can’t
always use my sister’s basement and we can’t stay at the school
library. I think it’s our best option.”

The Grandiose Historian Library was
convenient because it was deserted, and it was also the place the
book was hidden, so Calloway agreed with Easton—it was the best
location. Plus, they could practice their attacks on a wandering
Hara-Kir. “I think it’s a good idea.”

“
What do you think?” she
asked Breccan.

Breccan was still chewing his sandwich.
Even though Calloway was slightly larger than his cousin he didn’t
eat nearly as much. Breccan always seemed to have an appetite even
if he already ate. “I get a vote?” he asked with a mouth full of
food.

She made a disgusted face. “Of course,”
she said. “What do you think?”

He swallowed his food and shrugged. “I
guess it’s as good as any other place.”

“
No,” Calloway said. “It’s
better.”

“
So that will be our
headquarters?” she asked.

“
I guess,” Calloway
said.

“
Let’s refer to the
Grandiose Historian Library as the Headquarters, just in case
someone is eaves dropping on us.”

Breccan laughed. “No one cares about
the activities of a bunch of high school kids.”

“
Well, we aren’t going to
be in high school forever,” she said. “We’re graduating
soon.”

“
And that day can’t come
soon enough.” Calloway sighed.

Easton smiled at him. “It’ll be over
soon,” she said. “Just hang in there. I know exactly how you
feel.”

“
I do, too,” Breccan
said.

Calloway smiled at his two friends.
“Thanks.”

The lunch bell rang and they rose from
their seats. Breccan shoved the rest of his chips into his mouth
and dropped crumbs across the table and floor when he couldn’t fit
them all inside.

Easton glared at him. “Now you have to
pick those up!”

Breccan shook his head. “That isn’t my
problem.”

“
The librarian isn’t going
to let us come in here anymore,” she hissed. She bent down and
started picking up the pieces and Calloway helped her. Breccan
sighed then scraped the broken chips off the table. They threw the
contents into the garbage then walked to class. Calloway went to
his history class and didn’t pay attention to anything during the
lesson. The teacher collected the homework that was due but he had
nothing to turn in. He forgot about the assignment.