《Fat Boy Hero》


 Chapter 1: A Day in the Life

    The most beautiful girl in school sat on my bed while she unbuttoned her shirt.


    I think it needs to be said that she isn''t there because we''re dating, or because she is interested in me. The best word to describe me is rotund. Fat, humongous, ginormous, and holy crap that dude is huge, have also been used to describe me. No, she is there because I have the highest grade in A.P. Chemistry and she needs a good grade to get into the colleague she wants.


    A day ago, Abigail approached me during lunch. If that wasn¡¯t weird enough, her talking to me I mean, she sat down at my table. Right then a plethora of red flags went up. None of the more popular people talked to me. But she was nice and she needed my help. What she really needed was a tutor, but because of her after school activities, she didn''t have the time. So she made an offer I couldn¡¯t refuse. If I wrote a couple papers for her she would let me see her boobs. Not only that, but I could touch too. Only with my hands. How was I supposed to say no to that?


    Aside from knowing what I look like there are other signs that she doesn¡¯t want to do this. Her hands shook as she was working on her light blue blouse. She wouldn¡¯t meet my eyes when I looked up, which I only managed to do because her hands were trembling. While I wasn''t the most social person I could still pick up on the signs her body language made.


    I placed my hand on her¡¯s. She flinched, confirming my next move was the right one. ¡°You don''t have to do this, Abigail.¡±


    ¡°But ¡­ but I have to pass. I can''t afford to get anything less than a B.¡± Her voice trembled when she spoke. I was the biggest slimeball ever.


    ¡°You will, I promise. But not like this. I shouldn''t have let it get this far.¡± I dropped my hand and my gaze. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    Her warm and soft hand touched my cheek. She gently lifted my head so we looked at each other. ¡°Don''t be sorry. This was my idea. I¡¯m sorry I put you in this position. I¡¯ll just go.¡± She rose off the bed with one hand holding her blouse closed.


    ¡°I will have the first paper done this weekend. I¡¯ll have another by Monday. You will get your B,¡± I said.


    ¡°That''s not ¡­ ¡°


    ¡°Yes, it is. Just because you are not going to ¡­ you know. Doesn¡¯t mean that I can''t do this for you. You want to pay me back then pay it forward. Maybe together we can make the world a better place one school report at a time.¡±


    She kept a straight face for all of six seconds. Her laughter infected me a second later. We both ended up sitting on my bed to keep from rolling on the floor.


    ¡°I think I will pay it forward, but I am not going to give some eighties movie wanna be speech while I do it,¡± Abigail said.


    ¡°Fair enough.¡± I stood and held out my hand to shake. Abigail surprised me by standing and hugging me. The shock of her arms around me, kind of, kept me from returning her embrace. If I¡¯m being honest there was a creepy moment where I smelled her hair. Don''t judge me.


    After she left I laid on my bed and thought about what I had just given up. Not only was I going to see my first set if IRL boobies, but they were Abigail¡¯s boobs. That alone meant they were going to be the greatest boobies I would have ever seen.


    I pulled a pillow over my face and screamed. There might have been a tear or two to go along with it. I can neither confirm nor deny that though.


    The ringing of my phone is what brought me out of my pillow exile.


    ¡°Hello,¡± I said.


    ¡°Hey, Big Time!¡±


    ¡°Oh hi, Anaya. How are you?¡±


    ¡°Me?¡± She asked. Incredulity in her voice. ¡°How are you? I¡¯m not the one feeling up girls as payment for doing their homework.¡±This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    ¡°Neither am I.¡±


    ¡°Really? Why not? I mean just because it makes you a pig doesn¡¯t mean you shouldn¡¯t. This is Abigail Thompson we''re talking about. If not for my strickly dickly policy I would hit that,¡± Anaya said.


    That made me laugh. Something she did often. ¡°I couldn¡¯t do it, Anaya. I could tell that she really didn''t want to so I stopped her.¡±


    ¡°Are you regretting it now?¡± The first serious thing she said since calling.


    ¡°Yes. But I did the right thing. So you know, a win.¡± Even I could tell from my voice that I didn''t feel like a winner.


    ¡°Don¡¯t sweat it, Big-Time. Your time will come. Virginity is not a terminal condition. I mean they made that movie, Forty Year Old Virgin. I think it was meant to be an anthem of hope for losers like you.¡±


    ¡°You wound me, Anaya.¡±


    ¡°Serious though, don¡¯t beat yourself up. You did the right thing and I¡¯m proud of you. And look at the bright side. You don¡¯t have to put in the time to write her reports.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, about that ¡­ ¡°


    ¡°Tell me you didn¡¯t agree to do it anyway?¡±


    ¡°Um ¡­ ¡°


    ¡°Oh. My. God. You did! Your whipped and you didn¡¯t even get to the baseball diamond to play a damn game. Wow! I could see if you got to first base. But nothing?¡±


    ¡°I got a hug.¡±


    ¡°Wow.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk about this anymore.¡± Yes, I was pouting.


    ¡°Alright fine. I¡¯m sure living the rest of your life regretting this will be torture enough,¡± Anaya said.


    ¡°Yeah, thanks for making me feel better,¡± I said in a deadpan voice.


    ¡°Anyway. You want to come over. My mom is baking cookies.¡±


    ¡°Chocolate chip?¡±


    ¡°You know it.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be right there!¡±


    Grandma Burger, my grandmother, sat on the couch watching her stories. Which is a term she used for every show she watched including The Price is Right.


    ¡°I¡¯m going over to Anaya¡¯s,¡± I said. I stopped next to the couch. ¡°I should be back in a couple hours.¡±


    ¡°Okay, baby. Have fun and don¡¯t be a bother to Ms. Crispen. She is good people.¡±


    ¡°I never am,¡± I replied.


    ¡°I know, baby, but it is my job to remind you. Just like it''s your job to go to school and get an education so you can afford to put me in a good home one day.¡±


    ¡°Come on, Grandma. You know I¡¯m never going to do that.¡±


    ¡°That is what they all say, honey. Go have fun and I will be here when you get back.¡±


    ¡°Okay, love you.¡±


    After the customary kiss on the cheek, I leave our small apartment and go across the hall. Anaya, my best and only friend, lives there with her mother. Being close friends with Anaya and loved by her mom has afforded me a few privileges. One of them is not having to knock. So I open the door and let myself in. I lock it behind me because we don''t live in the safest of neighborhoods. The only reason it is open is because I was expected.


    ¡°Hey, Reuben!¡± Ms. Crispen says from the kitchen.


    ¡°Hello, Ms. Crispen. Did you get plastic surgery again? I swear you look ten, no, twenty years younger.¡±


    ¡°Ha, ha. Go see my daughter before I have to put you over my knee.¡±


    ¡°Etu, Ms. Crispen? Etu?¡±


    She laughed and made to hit me with a hand towel. ¡°Get.¡±


    This apartment was just as small as the one I lived in. A few steps down the hallway on the threadbare carpet and I was in front of Anaya¡¯s door. It was closed, which was unusual. I knocked and she called for me to enter.


    Anaya¡¯s wheelchair sat in the middle of the room with her sitting in it. Her slender shoulders and what I could see of her back was bare. I froze with one foot in the room.


    ¡°I uh ¡­ I can come back.¡± I stammered.


    ¡°Oh?¡± She looked over her shoulder at me. ¡°Here I thought you wanted to see boobies. Was I mistaken?¡± A devilish grin splits her face.


    ¡°You are wrong for that.¡±


    Anaya laughs. She pulls a shirt up over her shoulder. To my relief, she was not topless but had it undone in the front and pulled down.


    After she had her clothes back in proper order she grabs the wheels of her chair and spins to face me. The smug grin she wears lets me know she got the reaction she wanted.


    ¡°So tell me, were you excited?¡±


    I don''t respond.


    ¡°Maybe a little?¡±


    If I had the courage most guys seem to be born with O would have answered yes. Hell, we would either be dating by now or no longer talk because I would have said what I felt. I don¡¯t think there is any going back after a revelation like that.


    ¡°Okay, no more messing around. Sit down and talk to me, Reuben.¡± I sat on her bed ignoring the creaking protest of the mattress springs. The space is small enough that our knees touch. Anaya has been afflicted with some sort of degenerative disease so I know she has feeling in her legs, but our closeness doesn¡¯t bother her.


    ¡°Are you sure you want to do Abigail¡¯s work for her?¡± She asks.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have a problem with it. I get to help her achieve her goal of getting into a good colleague. How could that be a bad thing?¡±


    ¡°I guess it''s not a bad thing, but I don''t want to see anyone take advantage of you. More so now after you decided not to take advantage of the situation with her. I really am proud of you for fighting off temptation. Who knew the bitch¡¯s name was Abigail?¡± She growled that last part.


    ¡°It''s not that big of a deal. I probably shouldn''t have agreed to it in the first place. I ¡­ I don''t know what happened. One minute I was alone and the next she was there. All I could say was yes. It was like something took over my mind.¡±


    ¡°That would be the hormones. Enough talk about Abigail. Let''s watch a flick.¡±


    ¡°What did you have in mind?¡± I ask.


    ¡°I got the new Ultra Beast movie.¡±


    I sat up straighter. ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah. It''s in my book bag. Pop it and get comfortable.¡±

 Chapter 2: Wheels of Fury

    I covered mouth as a yawn took it hostage. Morning and I do not get along, early mornings more so. And getting up for school counted as early morning. My usual school morning routine consisted of getting ready than waiting in the hall for Anaya. Which was where I was when the evil yawn of mighty duplicity hit.


    ¡°Good morning to you too,¡± Anaya said.


    Her appearance was so unexpected that I jumped and spun around. She sat in her chair with a smug expression on her face. Something seemed off, different. It was her chair. Normally I would hear the motor whining from a mile away, but this time there was no sound before she startled me.


    ¡°How did you do that? Sneak up on me I mean?¡± I asked.


    Anaya laughed. She pushed the joystick on his armrest to the side causing her chair to turn in a circle. ¡°You like it? It¡¯s my new Gubment chair. They delivered it late last night. You would think they would know better than to deliver to the ghetto at night, but here it is.¡±


    While the chair spun around I noticed it was different, more streamlined and painted blue. Her old chair had been orange. I couldn¡¯t tell the difference at first be cause she had moved her pillow and blanket for the old chair to the new one making it hard to see the machine from the front.


    ¡°You ready to go, scary ass?¡± Anaya asked.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m ready. Let¡¯s get going.¡± As she turned to leave I whispered, ¡°Jerk.¡±


    ¡°Huh? What was that?¡± She asked over her shoulder.


    ¡°Nothing,¡± I said. I followed her down the hall to the elevator.


    That day started off like most. Us walking to school, or me walking and Anaya rolling. Just don¡¯t tell her I made that distinction. She has strong arms from using her other wheelchair that is unpowered.


    After hitting the street we had to go two blocks down and go right to get to school. Another four blocks down was where the school sat. We stopped though, after the first right. Our side of the street was blocked by yellow police tape. That was not uncommon in my neighborhood, but the sight beyond the tape was.


    A family owned store took up the bottom floor of the apartment building. The front of it looked to have exploded out. Chunks of the building and glass littered the sidewalk and street. It was like nothing I had ever seen in real life.


    ¡°When did we step into an action movie?¡± I said.


    ¡°Beats me?¡± Anaya said. I could hear the awe I felt in her tone. ¡°We need to get going though, school waits for no action hero explosion.¡± She was right about that.


    One of the police officers on the other side of the tape noticed us. He waved and shouted stopping us from crossing to the other side of the street. ¡°Hey, you two!¡± He ran over. ¡°Have you guys seen anything unusual in the last hour?¡±


    ¡°No, sir,¡± I replied.


    ¡°We just got here,¡± Anaya said. ¡°We were in our apartment building a few minutes ago. Sorry, Officer.¡±


    ¡°I expected as much. Don¡¯t sweat it.¡± He looked at Anaya¡¯s wheelchair for a second before continuing. ¡°Follow me, I can get you through the tape. No need to go all the way around.¡±


    ¡°Oh shit,¡± I mumbled. It was a bad idea to offer Anaya special privileges because of her condition.


    ¡°What is that supposed to mean?¡± She snapped. ¡°Little cripple girl can¡¯t manage to go around like a normal person? Is that it?¡±


    ¡°Um, no.¡± The cop started to look around nervously. ¡°I didn¡¯t say that. I just wanted¡­¡±


    ¡°To treat me different because I¡¯m in a wheelchair? Is that it?¡± Anaya crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her head to the side.


    ¡°Look, I¡¯m sorry I offended you. Have a nice day.¡± He turned and walked back to the crime scene.


    ¡°Not smart to antagonize a cop like that,¡± I said. I made sure he was out of earshot before speaking. I didn¡¯t have a disability that I could hide behind if he was a bad apple and got upset.


    ¡°Whatever!¡± Anaya waved my comment away. ¡°These ¡®normal¡¯ people need to learn that they are no better than me or anyone else in a wheelchair. Just because I¡¯m different doesn¡¯t make me every asshole¡¯s charity case so he can go home and tell his friends about the ¡®good deed¡¯ he did. Screw that noise!¡±


    ¡°I get it, I really do. But how about you don¡¯t get me beat down because you can¡¯t keep your ego in check?¡±


    Anaya wheeled on me. Her look could have scorched the earth it burned with so much rage. I swallowed a lump in my throat and stepped back. After a second her sneer faded and she laughed. ¡°He wasn¡¯t going to beat your ass because of me. Come on, let¡¯s go.¡±


    As we passed the crime scene I saw a piece of the rubble had dark red wet spots. The sight made me more curious. But it¡¯s implied meaning also made me wonder if not know might be for the best. Blood doesn¡¯t appear out of nowhere, after all.


    We made it to school with no other incidents. Other than Anaya mumbling about showing the asshole what it¡¯s like to be stuck in a wheelchair. It was best to just let her get it out of her system. She does have a point though about not being treated differently. I think this common thought is one of the reasons we get along so well. That and she told me we get along. I try not to argue with her. So get along it is.


    Anaya and I had a class together, but it wasn¡¯t first period. So we split after entering the building. She went left and I went right. Our lockers were also on different ends of the building. I grabbed my books for Algebra two and put my bag in my locker. My class was upstairs which made it a pain to get too. While the school did have an elevator it was primarily for people not capable of walking under their own power. nothing got me dirty looks and snide comments faster than being the fat riding the special needs elevator.


    When I made it to my desk I was out of breath and out of gas. I sat down and took a minute to catch my breath. But a minute I didn¡¯t have. The loudspeakers crackled to life then.


    ¡°Attention students and faculty, attention. This is principle Johnson. I need everyone to report to the auditorium for an emergency gathering. Please do so now.¡± A click signaled the end of the transmission.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Mrs. Dupree walked in then. ¡°Well, you heard the man. Let¡¯s get going. Be sure to take your things with you. I repeat, do not leave anything in the classroom. This means you, Tony Ballentine.¡±


    ¡°Why is she always picking on me,¡± Tony grumbled in a low voice.


    ¡°Because you are always forgetting things in my class, Mr. Ballentine.¡±


    ¡°Oh, right,¡± Tony said. That elicited a chuckle from the rest of the class.


    ¡°Okay, people, let''s get moving,¡± Mrs. Dupree said. she then left the classroom.


    While the in class entertainment did help to make me forget that I was still winded that was short lived. Because I had to get up and walk halfway across the world, again. A few minutes and a gallon sweat later I stood outside the auditorium waiting to go in. There were two large double door entrances with kids around my age filing in and being shouted at by teachers to maintain order.


    I stayed where I was. Anaya had a lot farther to go to get to the auditorium than I did and the line to ride the elevator was usually a pain in the rear. Which, as usual, left me standing around¡­


    ¡°Watch it fat-ass.¡± The words came before I was shoved out of the way.


    ¡°Hey, jerk! Watch where you are going!¡± just because I was big didn¡¯t mean I had to put up with that kind of treatment.


    ¡°What did you say?¡± The person in question stopped. For a second I was staring at a blue and gold letterman jacket that lead up to a mop of blond hair. Jeremy Taft spun around. Which meant he had to have heard about the deal Abigail and I made. While nothing happened I was more than sure enough happened for her all-star, and all American jock boyfriend to be upset. This wasn¡¯t going to go well for me.


    Jeremy got right in my face towering over me and looking in my eyes. He breath splashed against my face in waves. I was thankful he had eaten some mints recently.


    ¡°Back off, Jeremy,¡± I snarled. ¡°I won¡¯t take shit from you or anyone else. I don¡¯t care what sport you play or who you think you are!¡± Nowhere in the Fat-Kid Handbook did it say I had to let people push me around. My own reflection did more than enough to make me feel bad about myself. I didn¡¯t need outside help.


    ¡°I heard about you little study session with my girl. I am not amused,¡± Jeremy said.


    ¡°If amusement is what you want I suggest you back off and go catch a flick. I hear there is a theatre playing The Sound of Music this week. Maybe you can catch a showing if you leave now.¡±


    Jeremy stepped side to side and got a few inches closer. ¡°You must really want me to pummel you,¡± He said.


    ¡°Do it and I promise my big ass will fall and land right the fuck on you,¡± I retorted.


    ¡°Are you boys done playing who has the biggest testosterone gland yet?¡± Anaya¡¯s voice came from behind me. Damn her new quiet chair.


    ¡°Stay out of this,¡± Jeremy snapped.


    ¡°Or what? Huh? Are you going to beat up the cripple after you finish with the fat kid? Is that how bullies get off these days?¡± Anaya¡¯s voice was calm as she spoke. ¡°Maybe I should find a little girl with a sucker so you can steal it after. And a puppy to kick for good measure? How does that sound, tough guy?¡±


    Jeremy backed up and shot Anaya a dirty look. ¡°Whatever, bitch.¡± He turned his attention back to me. ¡°Roller Bitch isn¡¯t always going to be here to save your fat ass.¡±


    I watched him as he turned and got in line. I didn¡¯t move until he was inside the auditorium. Then I turned and faced Anaya.


    ¡°I know, I know,¡± She said She held up her hands to stop me from responding. ¡°You had him right where you wanted him. I get it, but I felt like opening a can of whoop ass too, so I jumped in. Too bad he was too much of a chicken to go toe to toe with your¡¯s truly.¡±


    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that be toe to¡­¡±


    her arm shot out and grabbed my wrist. ¡°Finish that statement at your own peril.¡±


    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t dream of it. You ready to head inside?¡± I asked.


    Anaya gasped and placed her hand on her chest. ¡°Were you waiting for little ol me? And here I was thinking there were no more gentlemen in this abhorrent day and age. Why thank you, kind sir.¡±


    ¡°Nope, not getting an award for that performance. Better luck next time.¡±


    As we got in line and inched forward I realized what just happened. In the blink of an eye not only had Anaya deescalated a very bad situation, but she also calmed me down. If not for her I would have been fuming. There is nothing I hate more than people thinking they can scare me because I¡¯m fat. I do no do bullies. I spared a glance at my friend. She was moving along next to me with a slight smile.


    Once inside we didn¡¯t have to go far. Anaya liked the back. She thought the front was for squares and the farther back you got the cooler you were. It worked for me, and it let us make fun of whoever was talking without getting caught.


    So I took my seat and Anaya pulled up next to me and set her brake. We were close to the end of the line so we didn¡¯t have to wait long for things to kick off.


    ¡°I will make this brief,¡± The principal said into the microphone. He wasn¡¯t wearing his sports coat and had the sleeves of his white shirt rolled halfway up his forearms. It was weird to see him looking so informal.


    ¡°As I am sure many of you know, there was an incident not far from here. The police have not yet caught the parties responsible for the damage, but they believe they have moved on. So they have assured me it is now safe enough for you all to go home, but you need to do so quickly and stay in doors once you are there.¡±


    A loud droning filled the room as all the kids started talking a once. A few rose to their feet, including me.


    ¡°Wait, I am not yet finished. Please remain quiet and sit down for a few more minutes.¡± He let out a puff of air whisk hit the mic while waiting for the room to settle. ¡°I have some bad news. During the incident this morning one of our own was injured. his parents have given me permission to release his name, so as you leave keep Clayton Clarke in your thoughts. He is currently in the hospital fighting for his life. When we reconvene classes I will be passing around cards for everyone to sign and we will be collecting money to help his family deal with this crisis. I realize some of you may not be in a position to lend monetary aid. That is fine, if you can, please do. Anything helps. Now get home safely. We will be in touch with your parents to let you know when to return to school. I expect it will not be before tomorrow. Stay safe until the police have this situation under wraps. Dismissed.¡±


    The sound of hundred of kids talking erupted once more. Anya and I were close to the door so we rushed out beating the traffic jam.


    ¡°Do you need to go to your locker?¡± I asked her.


    ¡°Nope, I¡¯m good to go. you?¡±


    ¡°I can leave from here.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s get going then,¡± Anaya said.


    The school quickly devolved into a mad house. Excited freshmen darted around shouting profanities at each other. The jocks decided that was a good time to play catch and a bunch of other kids were just standing around talking. Me, I wanted to get home. So I followed Anaya as she dodged jocks and wheeled around chatterboxes milling about.


    It took twenty minutes to get outside. A lifetime of weaving in and out of people and stopping and going as other got in the way. I almost pulled my hair out twice. I managed to get by without self-harm or harming anyone else. Even though I wanted to a couple of times. While I am not one of those types that get upset at people for stepping on my shoes and getting them dirty, it still hurts.


    We walked in silence after leaving the school. My mind kept wandering to the wet blood on the debris we passed on the way to school. It had to belong to the kid that was hurt. Or, it could belong to someone else since the principal didn¡¯t say if anyone else was injured. But I couldn''t help but think I was looking at a part of Clayton that was forcibly removed and left behind.


    A scream was the only warning we had. I jumped in front of Anaya turning to face her and put my back between her and the source of the scream. The storefront next to us exploded out causing me to jump. My arm came up shielding my face. Anaya screamed. Multiple things hit my back and side. I screamed. Thick dust swarmed us blocking out our view of everything except each other.


    After a moment of silence, I dared look around. I could make out the shape of the building next to us, but not much else. Anaya was still clear to me as she was right in front of me. She was coughing and wiping dust from her eyes. I reached out and placed my hand on her arm.


    Movement caught my eye. My head turned to follow. I caught a glimpse of a large guy with muscles that belonged on Schwarzenegger when he was in Conan shape. The dust swirled around him then closed the little gap his movements caused. Then he was gone and all was quiet.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± I whispered to Anaya.


    ¡°Yeah, she whispered back. ¡°What the hell happened?¡±


    ¡°I think it was one of those super powered guys we hear about in the news.¡±


    ¡°You think so?¡± Her eyes went wide. ¡°We need to get out of here.¡± Her tone became frantic, but she kept her volume low.


    ¡°Yeah, but I think we need to see if anyone needs help first.¡±


    ¡°That isn¡¯t a good idea,¡± She hissed.


    ¡°I¡¯ll go check. Get next to the wall there and stay quiet. I will be right back.¡± She grabbed my arm before I could move. ¡°It will be okay, I swear. But I need to go check. What if someone needs help and they will die if they don¡¯t get it now? I can¡¯t just walk away.¡± Anaya nodded and let go of me. I waited for her to get closer to the building before leaving. Her chair kept turning left and right as her hand on the control shook. She managed alright though.


    The reduced visibility and the chunks of building all over the ground made me take my time. Glass crunched under my foot s I stepped into the store proper. My second step resulted in my toe hitting something. This caused me to do the one legged dance and curse. The item turned out to be half of a large cash register. There was a part of the machine that looked like fingers had pressed into it hard enough to create dents. That scared me, but not enough to turn back.


    The store was demolished. Shelves were overturned and bags of chips were crushed. The chips broke my heart a little. One of the walk-in freezers looked like an egg that had been cracked open. I didn¡¯t see anyone in the small space so I went to the counter.


    ¡°Hello? Is anyone here?¡± No response.


    I went around to the side and looked behind the counter. My entire being stopped. On the floor behind the counter was a pool of black liquid with a red tint. It slowly spread to me as it grew. My eyes followed the blood to the motionless body. The blood was seeping out of a large wound in the brown skinned man¡¯s neck. If the torn flesh wasn¡¯t enough to prove he was gone then the nearly right angle of his neck was enough.


    Motion returned to me in the form of tears running down my face. Followed by a sob the broke free of my mouth. I turned and ran. If not for Anaya calling out to me I might have forgotten she was there. I rushed back to her.


    ¡°Rueben, what is it?¡± She started crying as she asked.


    ¡°He¡­ he is ¡­ We need to call the cops.¡± I couldn¡¯t bring myself to say it.

 Chapter 3: Consequence

    Police Detective Alfonso Grayson took it upon himself to walk Anaya and me home. No one said a word while we were on the street. I can¡¯t speak for Anaya and the detective, but I for one had nothing to say. A man died and I was too late to help him. On top of feeling like I was a day late and a dollar short there was the image of him laying in the pool of blood that kept popping up.


    I sway his blue shirt stained from the fluid he lost due to his wound. His skin which I knew from having shopped there was normally a golden brown had become an ashen gray. Then there was his eyes. Hollow and glassy. No actor I had seen in a movie was capable of making them selves look as dead as him.


    I was sure that if the detective and Anya were not there I would have stopped and broken down. Even if it was just me and Anaya I might have. But the detective was an unknown quantity. If high school had taught me anything it was to never show weakness in front of strangers. So kept in.


    Before I knew it we were stopping and Anaya said something to the Detective. I left the horror playing out in my head long enough to realize that we were home. Our outside the building we lived in. The detective and I followed Anaya up the ramp to the front door. He held it open as we walked in then waited for it to close behind him.


    I pressed the call button for the elevator and the detective spoke. ¡°What you was a horrible thing for anyone to see. I want you to know that none of what happened was your fault.¡± I turned and looked at him. Amazed that he seemed to have gotten in my head. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that. A lot of people in similar positions walk away feeling guilty for not having done more. It is called survivor¡¯s guilt. And ten times out of ten the people experiencing it do so wrongfully.¡±


    The elevator dinged and we enter. Anaya was looking up at me with an expression I couldn''t read. As she did her left hand found my right and she gave it a little squeeze. She didn¡¯t let go after her show of solidarity. I could have kissed her for it.


    ¡°What floor?¡± The detective asked.


    ¡°Third,¡± Anaya said.


    The detective continued as the elevator began its slow ascent. ¡°If you feel overwhelmed by all of this I want you to know that is normal. Also, that you are not alone. Please call me and I can get you some help in dealing with the emotions.¡±


    I opened my mouth to protest and voice my desire to not see a shrink, but he cut me off. ¡°I know, I know. No one wants to see a head doc. I used to feel the same way until I had a need for one. He helped me get my life back in order and keep my job. He also taught me that we can¡¯t be afraid to ask for help. Which is what I am saying to you. If you need help,¡± He placed his hand on my shoulder. ¡°Reuben, don¡¯t be afraid to call me. I will do all I can to help you.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± It was all I could think to ask.


    To that, he smiled. ¡°Because you showed some serious bravery back there. While I don¡¯t recommend you enter into a situation like that again I can say doings so has made you a hero in my book. True heroes never walk away unharmed. But most are too proud to ask for help. Don¡¯t be.¡±


    The elevator dinged. The doors slid open to reveal a man standing in the hallway. I didn¡¯t recognize him and if I had seen him before I would have remembered. He had the outline of a heart in red tattooed on his cheek just below his left eye. It was the last thing I expected to see a guy have tatted on his face. He stepped a side and waited for us to get off the elevator.


    Anaya lead us to her door. I looked back as the doors were closing to see him smirking at us. As far as I knew there were only three tenants of the four apartments on our floor. Mine, Anaya¡¯s, and the old Army vet, Mr. Johnson. Could he have been here for Mr. Johnson? That didn¡¯t seem likely since no one ever came to see Mr. Johnson.


    As we reached Anaya¡¯s door the Detective spoke again. ¡°This is your place, Ms. Anaya?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir. My mother should be home if you want to speak with her?¡±


    ¡°That is exactly what I would like to do.¡± He turned to me. ¡°Where about''s do you live?¡±


    ¡°I live just across the hall.¡± I pointed to my door.


    As I looked back I saw something that caused me to pause. Anya had her keys in her right hand and as she moved the one for the deadbolt closer tot eh lock her hand trembled. While she couldn¡¯t stand up for more than a second on most days she was the first person to pull up her sleeves and show off her slender and toned biceps. To see her hand shaking and ¡­ I paused the thought as I watched. Her whole arm began to shake making it impossible to line up the key. After a moment she let out a sigh and grabbed her right hand with her left. She then guided the key into the hole and used both hands to turn it.


    ¡°Doing okay over there?¡± I asked her?


    ¡°Huh?¡± She looked over and up at me. ¡°Yeah, silly. Just a bit shook up by the day''s events. Go home and give Grandma Burger a kiss for me.¡±


    ¡°Will do,¡± I replied. My eyes wander down to her lap where her left hand massaged her right. I didn¡¯t say anything because I could tell by her tone there was nothing else she was going to say.


    ¡°I will be by after I talk with Ms. Crispen¡¯s mother. Make sure your Grandmother is expecting me. And you might want to wait for me to tell her what happened. It will be easier for an objective party to tell her without freaking her out.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said. I turned and put my key in the lock.


    The detective grabbed my arm and gave it a gentle tug. I faced him. ¡°She is going to freak out after she is told. Try to get her some tea or something to ease her into it before I get there. It is best to do as much damage control as we can.¡± He threw me a wink then went into the Crispen residence.


    I knew my grandmother so I knew he was right. Grandman Burger was going to overreact in a big way. I would be lucky if I saw the outside world again in this century. I took a deep breath to steady my nerves, which it didn¡¯t, and went in.


    ¡°Oh, Reuben!¡± Grandma rushed to me from the kitchen. ¡°What are you doing here? Did you hear about that mess down the street? Please tell me you weren¡¯t a part of that nonsense?¡± She took my face in her hands and looked me over. ¡°What is it, baby? You are shaking like a leaf.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°Can you go into the living room? A Police Detective will be by in a few minutes. I¡¯m going to get us some hot cocoa, okay?¡± I think the only reason she went for it was because my voice shook as I spoke.


    She nodded her head slowly. ¡°Okay. But maybe I should get the cocoa while you sit down?¡±


    ¡°No, I think I would like to do it. I want, no, need to move around for a minute.¡±


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll be right here if you need me.¡± She took her time going into the living room. Every other step she would look back at me and look like she was expecting something. I smiled at her every time, but by her expression, I don¡¯t think it eased her at all.


    The Detective knocked on the door just as I was setting the mugs of steaming cocoa down on the coffee table. I let him in and he nodded in way of a greeting. I lead him to the couch and sat down next to him.¡±Hot cocoa?¡± I offered.


    ¡°That would be great.¡± He picked up one of the plain white mugs and blew on its contents before taking a tentative sip. ¡°That¡¯s good.¡±


    ¡°What is this about?¡± Grandma Burger asked. ¡°I''m guessing the legend of the greatest cup of hot chocolate is not what brought you.¡±


    He chuckled. ¡°I wish I could say it was. I¡¯m here about the incident that happened at the Quicky Mart down the street and your grandson¡¯s involvement.¡± Grandma Burger took a sharp inhale and eyed me quizzically. ¡°It was not something he is guilty of, in fact, he is as much a victim in this as anyone. Let me explain.¡± Grandma listened quietly as the detective spoke. She looked at me with concern when he mentioned me finding the body. When he was done Grandma clucked her tongue but didn¡¯t seem to know what to say.


    ¡°Your Reuben here is a hero. I just wish he didn''t have to see what he did. If you need anything from me I left my card with Reuben. I also instructed him to call if he was having problems dealing with what he saw. You folks have a nice evening.¡±


    ¡°You do the same, Detective Grayson,¡± Grandma Burger said. ¡°Reuben, see the man out please.¡±


    ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am.¡± I walked the detective to the door. After opening it he stepped out and turned to me.


    ¡°I was serious about calling if you need help. Don¡¯t hesitate. And call if you have questions. There is no such thing as a stupid question. Got it?¡±


    I nodded. ¡°I will, Detective Grayson.¡±


    ¡°Good. Have a good night and try to get some rest.¡± Then he left.


    I closed the door and went back to the living room. I wasn''t done telling Grandma bad news. ¡°Can I get you a refill?¡±


    ¡°No, baby, just sit down and tell me what is eating at you.¡± I never could get anything past her.


    ¡°Okay,¡± I sat down on the couch. ¡°I got into a little trouble in school today.¡± I proceeded to tell her about my encounter with Jeremy and the event that lead up to it. I knew she wasn¡¯t going to be happy about any of it, but we have always had a relationship of trust and sharing.


    ¡°I can¡¯t say that I am happy about you having had a half naked girl in my house, but you did handle it well.¡±


    ¡°She never got past showing a little cleavage,¡± I corrected.


    ¡°Not helping your case any,¡± She replied. ¡°As I was saying, I¡¯m not happy, but I don¡¯t blame you. I remember what it was like to be young and have hormones coursing through you, making you do stupid things. I forgive you and we will move on like nothing happened, as long as it is not going to happen again. Am I clear? I didn¡¯t raise you to be that disrespectful of women.¡±


    ¡°It won¡¯t happen again,¡± I said.


    ¡°Good, now go get some rest. We will figure out what to do with you tomorrow.¡±


    I got up off the couch and made it to the hallway before Grandma Called out to me.¡°I love you, Reuben,¡± she said.


    ¡°I love you too, Grandma.¡±


    I took a long shower in an attempt to get clean. After I toweled off and got dressed I still felt unclean. It was weird, my skin felt fine, but I felt like I need a lot longer under the hot water. Then I climbed into bed. It was a little later than usual, but I didn¡¯t have to go to school the next day so I was sure Grandma would let me sleep in.


    I stared up at the ceiling for a long time. The memory of finding the clerk haunted me. Every time I closed my eyes he was there. Eventually, I slipped into sleep without noticing. In my sleep, I replayed the scene over and over. The first couple time it was the store owner I saw, but then he changed. It went from being a he to being an indistinct female. The next time around she became clear and it was Anaya.


    I shot up in bed knocking the blanket off of me. The cold air chilled my sweat soaked pajamas. My breath came and went in ragged gasps. I didn¡¯t see my room just Anaya¡¯s cold dead eyes. I laid down on my side and curled up into a ball. I cried for a long time thinking of my best friend dead in my dream.


    I must have fallen asleep at some point because Grandma shook me and called my name to wake me. ¡°Reuben, baby, are you okay? Wake up, honey.¡±


    :¡±I¡¯m okay,¡± I croaked. ¡°I¡¯m up. Am I late?¡±


    ¡°Late for what?¡±


    ¡°School.¡±


    Grandma Burger laughed. ¡°No, there is no school today. It¡¯s just late so I thought I would check on you. Anaya was by earlier and she seemed a little down. I told her I would send you over after you woke up.¡±


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll get up and go see her.¡±


    ¡°Before you leave be sure to stop by the living room for a minute, okay?¡±


    ¡°I will Grandma.¡±


    Half an hour later I was cleaned and dressed. Due to the sweating I did the night before I had to take another shower. A much quicker shower this time. Grandma Burger was on the couch watcher her shows. Which happened to be Blocks of Fortune the game show. She called all of her shows her stories, not just the daytime soap operas.


    ¡°You wanted to see me?¡±


    She scowled for a moment before looking up at me. ¡°I know you are trying to be a tough older boy, but you need to play it safe.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m talkin about going into that store. That might have seemed like a good idea at the time, but it wasn¡¯t.¡± Grandma leaned forward and placed a hand on my shoulder giving it a little squeeze. ¡°I can understand your desire to be a hero, and I know how much you love those stories, but you need to think about others too. Do you know what happens to heros?¡±


    I thought I knew where this was going but I didn¡¯t want to look stupid in case i was wrong so I shook my head.


    ¡°Heroes die. They do something stupid with the intention of helping others and get themselves killed. Sometime they save the people they tried to help, and sometimes not.¡±


    I was way off base with where i thought she was going. I didn¡¯t expect Grandma Burger to go so dark. It wasn¡¯t like her to look at anything other than the positive in life.


    ¡°The other thing they all have in common is the consequences of their selfish actions. Those consequences are Anay, her mother, and me. If you die we have to spend the rest of our lives grieving the grandson, friend, and adopted son we lost. Do you understand me?¡±


    I nodded not trusting myself to speak without breaking down.


    ¡°We love you very much, Reuben and we don¡¯t want to see anything happen to you. So when you feel like you have to be a hero then walk away and find a phone. Let the police do their jobs, and be the person that helped them. That is a heroic act as well.¡±


    We sat in silence for a while after that. Grandma sat back in her chair picked up her book. I couldn¡¯t image how much my world would change if I lost Grandma or how me being gone would affect her.


    Grandma was the one to break the silence. ¡°There is a twenty on the counter if you want to go to the store and get us something sweet.¡±


    ¡°That sounds like a plan,¡± i replied. As I passed her chair Grandma Burger patted my arm. Sometimes she knew how to say the right things without talking.


    With my favorite corner store destroyed by a super powered guy I was forced to walk the extra block to my backup spot. They had a small deli like the other place, but it wasn¡¯t as good. Considering Grandma wanted something sweet that was a non issue. Grandma and sweet meant one thing, ice cream.


    I grabbed a pint of Rocky Road for me, and Mint Chocolate Chip for Grandma. I passed the twenty to the short guy behind the counter and waited in awkward silence ads he counted out my change.


    I will be the first to admit to not having an abundance of willpower. So I used a plastic spoon from the condiments section and took nibbles from my pint as I walked. Considering the volatile nature of ice cream I was forced to walk at a brisk pace. So between gasps for breath I would pop a spoonful in my mouth. Breathing around ice cream was not fun, but the flavor made up for it.


    I turned the corner and my building came into view. The bag containing Grandma¡¯s Mint Chocolate Chip and my open pint of Rocky Road fell from my hands. Thick black smoke billowed out of the windows of a third story apartment. My apartment was on the third floor.


    ¡°Grandma,¡± I whispered.


    I ran for all I was worth. A minute later I was entering the front door of the building. A few more minutes and I was bent over on the landing to the second floor catching my breath. I didn¡¯t stop for long because Grandma needed me.


    I made it to my floor and my heart beat so hard I thought it was going to launch out of me and take up a low orbit around Mars. Each breath was a ragged gasp that burned going down. But that didn¡¯t matter. I opened the door and stepped into the hall.


    ¡°Help me!¡± The voice of a man came to me from the closed door of the first apartment.


    ¡°Crap,¡± I said.

 Chapter 4: Where There is Smoke

    The door was locked. The damn doorknob moved back and forth a fraction of an inch. The man inside screamed louder yelling that he was in there. I took it as a sign he knew I, or someone, was trying to get in.


    There are times, rare as they may be when weighing upwards of four hundred pounds comes in handy. Needing to get through a cheap apartment door to save an old army vet from certain death is one of those times.


    I put my back against the wall across from the door which gave me about three feet to move. That was not a lot of room to work with. But like I said, cheap apartment doors. I ran forward as fast as I could, which was not fast at all considering the space I had. My right shoulder hit the door and I felt the thin wood crack and split into several places. My body pushed right through it splitting it into three pieces. The biggest piece tangled up in my legs causing me to hit the floor.


    ¡°Damn, son. That is one hell of an entrance.¡± He finished his statement with a harsh cough. ¡°I would be pissed if that damn fire weren¡¯t out there gobbling up the building. You¡¯re that Reuben boy from down the hall, that right?¡±


    I pulled myself free of what was left of the door and stood. ¡°Yes, sir.Reuben Burger.¡±


    ¡°respectful as well as brave, I like that, son. Not qualities you see in kids your age. Well, you obviously broke my door down to save my old crippled ass. Let¡¯s get to making a proper hero out of ya. Be a pal and grab my walker, would ya?¡±


    ¡°Sure thing, Mr. Smith*.¡± So I grabbed his walker, which was closer to the front door than he was, and brought it to him. As I carried the thought of how we were going to escape with him farting along on a walker ran through my head. That and an image of us both curled up on the floor dead from asphyxiation. ¡°I don¡¯t think you''re going to be able to use the walker. We will have to move as fast as possible¡­¡±


    ¡°And an old man on a walker don¡¯t move fast at all, is it? I get that, son and I¡¯m worried about it too. But there isn¡¯t a heck of a lot of options. I would say you can carry me but¡­¡± He was kind enough to not say he thought my big ass was incapable of doing it.


    To be honest, I thought that too, but I was not about to admit that. ¡°If I am supposed to be learning to be the hero then it is high time I learned what it feels like to carry someone to safety.¡± I stuck out my chin to emphasize my point.


    Mr. Smith* chuckled. ¡°I like you kid. It¡¯s too bad I had to wait for a fire to get to meet ya. That being the case, I want you to call me Sarge. Did a couple tours in Nam and trained up a shit ton of recruits in my day. I think I earned the honor of being called Sarge till the day I keel over dead. Alright, here is what we are going to do.¡±


    A few minutes later, Sarge, had one arm draped over my shoulder and held a cane in his other hand. The idea was that the cane would relieve some of his weight. If it was working I sure as hell couldn¡¯t tell. Sarge was a heavy guy which seemed weird considering he was so skinny looking.


    Despite the encumbrance, we managed to get out of his apartment. Once the door was opened a rush of black smoke hit us. I nearly dropped him when I started coughing. Mr. Smith Did drop his cane.


    ¡°Grab my cane,¡± he said between coughs. ¡°I¡¯m leaning against ¡­¡± Cough. ¡° ¡­ the wall.¡±


    I bent down but didn''t respond. To open my mouth was to cough again. Not something I wanted to do. The air down lower was a lot cleaner, but still carried the stink of smoke. I took in a few lungfuls of air as I grabbed the cane.


    Another cough threatened to overtake me as I stood. I fought back the urge and passed over the wooden rod. Mr. Smith Put his arm over my shoulder and I groaned as his weighted settled on me again. We shuffled to the door not far from his apartment.


    I pulled the door open and a cool sweet smelling draft hit me. I might be exaggerating that a little. By sweet, I meant a urine tinged gust of air that was a good ten times better than the smoke-filled hallway. We rushed into the stairwell and shut the door behind us. The smell of smoke was not yet strong enough to overcome the urine smell, but it was getting there.


    ¡°Let¡¯s take moment before we start the long trek down,¡± Mr.Smith said. ¡°Going down two flights is going to be a bitch. How are you holding up, kid?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m ¡­ OK.¡± I managed to get out between breaths. ¡°Just a ¡­ little ¡­ harder than ¡­ I thought.¡±


    ¡°Hang in there, Kid. We will be through this in no time.¡± Mr. Smith patted my shoulder. ¡°I need you to know that I would die in that cardboard and duct tape piece of shit apartment if not for you. Most people would have kept going to save their own hides. I am grateful to you, kid.¡±


    ¡°Reuben.¡±


    ¡°Come again?¡±


    ¡°My name is, Reuben, not kid.¡± I knew as I was able to speak a lot smoother than it was just about time to go.


    ¡°Ha! Damn straight it is. Don¡¯t let anyone walk on ya, I like it, ki ¡­ er ¡­ Reuben. Forgive me.¡±


    ¡°I think we should get going. I¡¯ve caught my breath and I am as ready as I am going to be,¡± I said.


    ¡°Good call. Let¡¯s get to it.¡±


    We took the first step down and I realized what I was in for. His weight came down on me and I had to work to keep my weight from falling forward and his. Not for the first time, I mentally cursed at gravity for being the bitch it was. The only saving grace was the slow pace we kept. Each step was a chore in and of itself, but we managed.


    ¡°You got a girlfriend?¡± Mr. Smith Asked me.


    ¡°Are you messing with me?¡± I snapped at him.


    ¡°What? No way. It was an honest question.¡±


    ¡°Have you seen me?¡±


    ¡°You think because you are big that no woman would want you? I expected more from the guy willing to brave a burning building to help a neighbor he barely knows.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    ¡°Wha ¡­ what do you mean?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Come on, kid. What you look like is not what others judge you on. Well, maybe at first, but the content of your character is what will keep people around or send them packing.¡±


    I halted our progress and looked at him, which was a bit uncomfortable since my face was inches away from his. I wondered briefly what my breath smelled like before I spoke. ¡°So you are saying it doesn¡¯t matter what we look like? Then why are all the famous people super pretty?¡±


    Mr. Smith laughed. ¡°Let me put it this way. If you are the good guy If I think you are then it will not matter what you look like. If a girl finds your size to be prohibitive, then she is not worth your time. Do you get me?¡±


    We took the next painful step. I expected him to say something else, but he didn¡¯t so we went down another. After five more we were halfway down the first flight and my legs shook from the strain. The light blue shirt covering my upper body was turning a darker blue as sweat-drenched it. Mr. Smith Didn¡¯t say anything about the moisture saving me from further embarrassment.


    I needed something to keep my mind off the pain but didn¡¯t want to return to the same subject. I had enough to think about in that regard. ¡°Can I ask you something? Something else I mean.¡±


    ¡°Son, you single-handedly saved my life. You can ask m about the damn birds and the bees if that floats your boat. Let it rip.¡±


    ¡°I have a friend and sh .. uh ¡­ this friend is hiding something.¡±


    ¡°Like hiding something in their pocket, or keeping something to themselves?¡±


    ¡°Keeping something to them selves,¡± I replied.


    ¡°Ok, I am intrigued now, go on, Son. Let¡¯s see what we can come up with.¡±


    ¡°Well, sh ¡­ um ¡­ my friend.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s cut the shit. You have almost said she a couple times now. I¡¯m guessing you are talking about the pretty little wheelchair-bound girl I have seen you with?¡±


    ¡°I ¡­ I ¡­ I mean, I can¡¯t ¡­¡±


    ¡°Anything said stay between us, Reuben. She won¡¯t know what I know. I can promise you that.¡±


    I let out a puff of air. ¡°Okay, yes she has been covering up her hand. It shakes when she uses it and doesn¡¯t seem to be as strong as it was. I know something is wrong like she is getting worse, but she is covering it up. I want to say something but I don¡¯t know what to say. Maybe I should tell her mom, but if I do I might lose my only friend. I don¡¯t know what to do.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s take a couple more steps. You doing okay?¡± He asked me.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll manage.¡± In truth talking about my concerns for Anaya made me forget about the pain in my legs.


    ¡°I think your best bet is to be straight up with her. Just come out and tell her what you are thinking. Now I understand this could be a sensitive subject, so you need to keep that in mind. Be supportive and let her know you care. The important thing is to build trust or if you have that leverage it. No one likes to ask for help, even though we all need it. Let her know the help she needs is there. I¡¯m sure if you get that message across she will be a lot more willing to open up.¡±


    ¡°You really think so?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yeah, I do, Ki¡­ uh, Reuben.¡±


    We started back down after that. I was too busy in my head letting his words roll around and hoping they would stick to say anything. Mr. Smith Let the listens carry us down the stairs.


    We reached the last step leading to the second-floor landing when the door above us was blown in. The force of the explosion shoved us forward. Mr. Smith was blown free of me and smacked headfirst into the wall. O got my hands up in time to stop my own skull from cracking the drywall. My knees slammed into the tile floor and pain shot up my thighs.


    ¡°Ouch,¡± I mumbled. It was my go to reaction to pain whether big or small. As much as my legs hurt they were second to the fact that I heard a ringing instead of my own words and the ringing was not stopping.


    I repeated my admission of pain as my hands moved to my ears. A tacky fluid met my hands and I feared my eardrums may have burst.


    ¡°Mr. Smith!¡± In my pain, I had forgotten about my charge.


    He lay on the floor next to me face down. His forehead was pressed against the wall causing his head to be cocked back at an unusual angle. Fear raged in me. I responded by standing over him and sliding my hands under his arms. I heaved sliding him away from the wall then. I took a knee at his side and took a couple deep breaths. Then I rolled him over onto his back.


    ¡°Mr. Smith!¡± The lack of sound from my own mouth enlightened me as to how dumb I was for yelling.


    After shaking him three times he did not stir. If not for the rise and fall of his chest I would have thought Mr. Smith was dead.


    ¡°Crap,¡± I said as my shoulders slumped. I knew what had to happen, but I didn¡¯t want to do it.


    ¡°Okay, Reuben, let¡¯s do this.¡± I slid my arms under him and paused. If I can¡¯t hear myself speak and there is no one around to verify it, did I really speak? If a tree falls in the woods and no one is there ¡­ Now I¡¯m just stalling.¡±


    I lifted Mr. Smith Off the floor. It proved to be the single most difficult thing I can remember ever doing. The muscles in my arms felt shredded and ached. My back felt like I had broken something and a steady fire burned in my thighs.


    Then I took the first step down. A sharp pain blossomed out from my lower back and I swore I heard something pop, which was odd since I still couldn''t hear. I took the next step. Not because I was feeling stronger, but because the smoke started to fill the stairwell and each breath burned a little more than the last.


    The second step was more of a stumble than anything resembling a controlled moved down. And so was the next. I went with it.


    My body moved quickly down the stairs and my legs fought hard to maintain control. The step before the last my left foot slipped forward. My balanced tipped forward and as I tried to correct it shifted to the front. I got my right leg under me and stopped from falling, but not from keeping my left knee from hitting the floor.


    ¡°Ouch! Damm it!¡± At that moment I was glad I couldn¡¯t hear the filth coming out of my mouth. Made for good plausible deniability should Grandma Burger ask. Not that I really thought she would ask if i was cursing. Funny how pain makes one think the strangest things.


    ¡°Come on Reuben we are almost there.¡± I thought it was important to keep up with the positive dialogue even though I couldn¡¯t hear it. It¡¯s the thought that counts.


    To my great surprise, my leg muscles brought Mr Smith and I back up to standing. Or I stood and Mr. Smith remained cradled in my arms. Which brought another thought to my mind. Every movie I would see from then on where the man carried his bride across the threshold with a huge smile on his face was going to get popcorn thrown at the screen. No more would I buy into that lie.


    The good news was that we were on the bottom floor and four steps away from the exit. I pressed my back against the door and pushed. It gave with ease and a snap of cool air rushed by. It was glorious. In the blink of an eye, my lungs filled with new air and the sweat on my face cooled to sub-zero-ish temperatures.


    I turned to find a man in a large yellow and brown jacket waiting with his arms out. He took Mr. Smith from me. It was the first time I could ever remember feeling light. If not for the pain in my arms, legs, back, neck, chest, fingers, toes ¡­ you get the idea. I would have been able to enjoy the absence of weight.


    ¡°Follow me, kid. You need to get checked out and get some good ol fashioned fresh O2 in a can forced down your face,¡± The fireman said. I followed him to the waiting ambulance. As we walked my head spun from left to right and back. I looked for Grandma, Anaya, and Ms. Crispen. They were absent.


    Before we made it to the ambulance I stopped walking. The people I cared most for were not there. The entire reason I walked into a burning building against all thoughts of common sense was still in there.


    Slowly I turned back around. The world around me was a blur as my thoughts were of Grandma and Anaya. One foot followed the other until I found myself back in the stairwell breathing in the foul smoke-tainted air.


    ¡°Here we go again.¡± I jumped. I heard me and the fireman. ¡°Woop, Woop!¡± I took a second to celebrate before heading back up the stairs.

 Chapter 5: Impossible Aparment

    I looked up at the stairs and I shit you not they got taller as I watched. Well, that may have been an exaggeration. But I was tired and my legs hurt. I let out a sigh and took the first step up. While it was painful the trip up didn¡¯t take as long as I thought it would. There was a need for a short break once at the top to catch my breath and let the burn in my thighs and butt subside. I mean seriously? My butt?


    The smoke grew thicker as I went up but it was manageable. Meaning it was thick enough to make me cough but not enough to suffocate me. I was worried that once I opened the door a wall of smoke would drown me. Considering the stakes it was a risk I was willing to take. Using the back of my hand I tested the door to make sure it wasn¡¯t hot. It was warm so I moved to the metal knob. I had a few false starts where I pulled my hand back without having touched the doorknob. My imagination was working overtime and I swore I felt my skin searing off my hand. I managed to touch my hand to the metal on the third try. It was also warm, but not too hot to use.


    The smoke in the hallway was thicker than in the stairwell. I had to crouch down as I walked which left me doing more of a duckwalk than an actual walk. That was not fun considering how much pain I felt in my legs before I got lower. Fortunately, the door to my apartment was closed and unlocked.


    ¡°Grandma, are you here? There is a fire and we need to get out!¡± I shouted. I moved into the living room checking the kitchen as I walked by it. She wasn¡¯t there. The fact that she hadn¡¯t responded to my call worried me the most. Grandma Burger was not hard of hearing and could hear better than most people. Something I learned by mumbling under my breath and catching a slap upside my head. ¡°Grandma, are you here!¡±


    I went down the short hallway that leads to my room first, then her¡¯s. My door was open and I briefly considered going in to grab my most precious belongings. As I peered at the bed and desk I couldn¡¯t come up with anything worth taking the time to go in for. I shut my door and moved to Grandma¡¯s bedroom. Her door was closed so I turned the knob and opened it. Under normal circumstances there was no way in hell I would have just walked in and a part of me hoped beyond hope that she wasn¡¯t  behind the door in her underwear in the middle of a wardrobe change. The room was empty, which caused me to let out the breath I was holding. Wait, when did I start holding my breath? No matter. At the same time, I felt my anxiety levels rise by a factor of ten. ¡°Where are you, Grandma?¡± I whispered.


    For a moment I considered checking all the windows to make sure they were closed and close all the doors. That would have taken time I didn''t have, or Anaya and Grandma didn¡¯t have. Instead, I left the apartment and shut the door in my wake. Hopefully, that would be enough. If not, it was just stuff.


    Anaya¡¯s apartment door was closed but not locked. I turned the knob and slowly pushed the door open. Smoke swirled in from behind me. I jumped back and look down at my hand realizing that I hadn''t checked the door to see if it was hot first. Since the skin was still there and not searing on the doorknob I figured I was fine and probably lucky.


    ¡°Anyone here?¡± I shouted as I walked in. With the clock ticking I rushed through the apartment. Anaya¡¯s room and Ms. Crispen''s was as well. I stopped for a moment in the living room and scratched my head. ¡°Where the hell is everyone?¡±


    It was clear that I was not going to get an answer to my question. I left and closed the door as I did. It was when I heard the click of the door shutting that I noticed the apartment down the hall. It was supposed to be vacant but the door was half open.


    ¡°Uh, hello? Anyone still here?¡± I said the words as I walked toward the door. I crept along ready for anything. If we had a squatter than violence could be the outcome of me being nosey. I''ve seen my share of unbalanced homeless people in my neighborhood to know that just because someone needed help didn''t make them safe to be around.


    I put my back to the wall and leaned close to the door. What I saw caused me to forget all pretense of stealth and just walk in.


    The walls of this particular apartment were metal and much, much longer than should have been possible. The far wall had an arch leading deeper in. The thing was, the far wall was far enough away to be outside of the building. It was so amazing that I couldn¡¯t help but to step in farther.


    Alcoves evenly spread out on each side contained metal tables and various robotic arms. It was like someone had combined a morgue and a car manufacturing plant. Thoughts of what the space could be used for flashed through my mind. None of them seemed to be good and sent should vers running through me.


    I stopped at the arch. The space beyond it was a lot darker than the room I was in. Still, I couldn¡¯t stop my curiosity. Naturally, I took that next step into the dark space.


    Being an avid fan of all things Sci-Fi and Fantasy I kind of expected lights to come on when I entered. That didn¡¯t happen. Instead, there were mire alcoves with colored LED lights on the machinery. Some of the creepy operating stations had a white spotlight shining down on the stainless steel tables.


    One table midway caught my attention. It was off to my left and had a dark spot on it. I stopped walking and stared at the table. The spot was not a uniform pattern but more of a pool of liquid that was smeared on one side. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    Deep down I knew what it was and that I should keep going. That was deep down. The thoughts on the surface all screamed at me to go closer and see. To be sure of what I suspect. Did I mention I am far too curious?


    As I got closer to the table I spotted one of the lights that had been on in a few other stalls. It was a few feet from the table on a stand with wheels. I ignored the table and went straight for the stand. It wasn¡¯t until the stand was next to that table that I looked at the spot.


    At close range, I could see hints of dark read before turning on the light. My hand h9vered over to toggle switch for a moment. I contemplated whether or not I had seen enough. Even wondered what it mattered seeing as I wasn¡¯t a cop. In the end, my curiosity won out and I flipped the switch.


    Dried black and crimson blood marred the otherwise flawless stainless steel table. The blood had started to flake where it was smeared. I felt the gorge in my stomach rise. Of the blood had been wet and I smelled it I was sure to toss my cookies. Since it had dried and there was no smell other than dust and the antiseptic sterilizing agent I was able to keep my lunch down.


    I flicked off the light and walked to the edge of the alcove. With my back to the bloodstained table, I took a minute to decide what my next move was. It was fairly obvious that no one I sought was here. My gaze drifted to the arch and the well light space beyond. There was a promise of safety that way. Then I looked toward the direction I had not gone.


    Darkness shrouded everything. From where I stood I could tell what I thought was a solid wall turned out to be a half wall partitioning off this space from what lay beyond. I looked back at the table and pictured gray aliens experimenting on people.


    Then is when the horrid image of Anaya laying on the table split open like a cadaver came to me. I had assumed that she was not here or that Grandma and Ms. Crispen were also absent. The thing was, I didn¡¯t know that for sure. All I really knew was where they were not. My choice was that I had no choice.


    I continued on my journey. The distance to the partition wall turned out to be maybe fifteen feet. I reached it pretty quick but every step closer made my heart race faster. By the time I reached it and placed my back against it I thought I was going to pass out. I leaned my head back and took a deep breath. I held it for a sec then let it drain out slowly. I repeated until it no longer felt like my heart was going to go the way of the xenomorph and burst out of my chest.


    With measured steps, I eased forward along the wall. At the edge, I took another look around to make sure I was alone. Naturally, my imagination put gray aliens in every dark nook and cranny. I closed my eyes and rubbed them before taking another look. There was no one and nothing there. Satisfied that I was indeed alone I moved to the edge and peered around the corner.


    There was a small space lit up by a large window. There was no one there so I stepped in. The space in question was just solid walls other than the entrance and the adjacent window. Through the clear glass, I saw a control room. It looked like what I imagined a N.A.S.A control room would look like minus the people. There were numerous workstations consisting of screens, keyboard, mouse, and some had additional control devices. The extra controls were like something right out of Star Trek.


    I spun in a slow circle to make sure I didn¡¯t miss anything and looking for an entrance into the control room. When my back was facing the window a shadow flashed passed mine on the wall. I froze. Slower than I had just been moving I turned around completing the circle.


    A tall guy in a dark suit stood in the middle of the control room holding a phone to his head. He waved his arms around and the veins in his neck stood out. He seemed to be yelling, but I couldn¡¯t hear a sound. I stayed motionless as I watched him. I couldn¡¯t place his face but I knew I had seen him before.


    He turned his back to me and went to one of the control stations with the additional device. He slammed his index finger on a few buttons and then turned a knob. His hand went back to waving around in time with his conversation. Or ass chewing by the look of it.


    A loud click echoed in the room I was in. I looked from left to right and right to left. The source of the sound remained hidden from me. I noticed the guy reach down and press another button.


    The wall to my right moved. I looked right at it in time to see it slide into the wall next to it. A blue light came one revealing a big device that looked like a chrome cannon. Tubes and hoses came off of it at uneven intervals. One side had black fins sticking out. The air above the fins began to waiver and the fins turned a glowing red.


    I swallowed the lump in my throat as I realized the opening for the cannon was pointed right at me. A small orange light flickered to life at the back of the tube. It slowly grew in intensity. While this device was new to me I was pretty sure none of what I was watching was a good thing for me.


    I gave the guy in the suit one last glance. He was still yelling at the phone with his back to me. I turned to leave. The exit was gone.


    ¡°Oh no.¡± I pushed against the wall and ran my hands along it. Then I hit it with my fists. It only took a couple blows for the pain to put an end to that plan. I rubbed my hands together and took another look around. ¡°Oh no,¡± I said again.


    The guy was my only hope.


    ¡°Hey!¡± I started screaming as loud as I could. ¡°Hey! Mr. Man! I¡¯m in here. HEY!¡± I jumped up and down waving my arms. ¡°HEY!¡±


    The man stopped for a second. He looked up as if listening but didn¡¯t turn around. Then he went back to yelling.


    I looked at the cannon. The orange glow was bright enough to spill out of the barrel now. I resumed my yelling and started banging on the glass. It felt as hard as the metal walls and did nothing to get his attention. I let out one final cry of frustration then backed away from the glass. I looked at the barrel. Orange light streamed from it like a Halloween themed flashlight.


    I looked back at the window. I had no desire to watch as the cannon blasted me to atoms. The man in the suit was staring at me. His mouth and eyes were open wide and the phone hung limply from his grip. Time slowed as his mouth moved forming what looked to be, ¡®what the¡­.¡¯


    Orange light washed over me for a split second.


    I blinked back the tears and spots that resulted from the bright light. The man was pounding on the glass and yell. I think yelling was the only way he knew how to talk.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± I said. I moved my mouth in an exaggerated fashion since I knew he couldn¡¯t hear me. ¡°Look, I¡¯m fine. It was just some light.¡± I raised my arms to bring home my point.


    In response, he looked over to the cannon. His eyes went wider than they had been, which was really freaking big. I looked over to see what he saw.


    The cannon was still glowing. The light was now an angry red in color. ¡°Oh crap,¡± I said.


    The red light exploded from the cannon filling my vision. Warmth spread over my skin. It grew hotter by the second until my entire body felt like it was on fire. I screamed from the searing pain. The moment my mouth opened I wished it hadn¡¯t. Liquid fire splashed over my tongure and ran down my throat. My scream was choked out by the pain. I gaged trying to expell the fire. The light forced my mouth open so wide the corners of my mouth split and my jaw creaked. A torrent of magma filled me.


    Then it was over. The light was gone, pain had ended, and the fire was doused. The man stood in the window half covered by the red spots dancing in my vision. A look of pur hatred met my gaze. Then my knees gave out and the world became darkness.

 Chapter 6: Rude Awakening

    To my surprise, I woke up.


    Before my eyes crept open I heard a steady beeping sound followed by a whooshing sound that reminded me of Darth Vader¡¯s breathing apparatus. When I managed to get my eye open I understood why.


    Before I get into that I need to make it clear just how much I hurt. It took a while to get my eyes open because my eyelids felt like they had spent a day at the gym under the orders of the world¡¯s most sadistic trainer. My eyelids also happened to be the least painful part of me. Even breathing sent waves of agony through me.


    When I undertook what had to be one of Hercules¡¯ trials and opened my eyes I saw a tube coming out of my mouth. It was an opaque white with ringed segments. I had seen them on plenty of hospital drama tv shows. Everything beyond the tube and my nose was a blur and my brain hurt so much I wasn¡¯t able to decipher the meaning of the tube. I


    I was so tired that sleep seemed to be easier than trying to figure out what was going on. So I let my eyes slide closed and welcomed pain-free darkness.


    The next time I woke a good chunk of the pain was gone. I still hurt all over but to a much lesser degree. This allowed me to open my eyes with a lot more ease and boy was I glad I did. The first thing I saw was Anaya¡¯s gorgeous face staring down at me.


    ¡°It is about time you got your lazy ass up,¡± she said. The waterworks that started stream down her cheeks ran counter to the sarcasm in her voice.


    ¡°It is good ta see you too,¡± I replied. I tried shooting up to a sitting position but Anaya stopped me with a hand to my chest. ¡°I have to get up and figure out what happened to Grandma!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, Reuben.¡± She chuckled. ¡°Everyone is fine. As far as I know, you were the only person hurt in the fire. Which seems really odd considering you were out when the fire started.¡± She leaned back and I realized she was sitting on the bed with me. Her back was pressed against a metal railing attached to the bed giving her a stable position.


    ¡°Um, are you supposed to be on the bed with me?¡±


    ¡°Maybe I am!¡± She snapped. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me how to live my life.¡± She poked a finger against my chest. As she did so I felt something cold brush against my side.


    ¡°Ah!¡± I jumped. The movement cause every muscle involved to spasm in pain


    ¡°Oh crap! Sorry, Reuben.¡±


    ¡°What was that?¡± I asked between clenched teeth.


    ¡°Um¡­ my foot?¡± She raised her eyebrows in the all too familiar, ''it wasn¡¯t me,¡¯ look of hers.


    ¡°Wait? You are under the blanket with me?¡± I raised the blanket and looked underneath. Not only did Anaya have her legs under the blanket but I was wearing one of those hospital gowns that were famous for leaving a person¡¯s rear exposed. I felt my face grow warm.


    ¡°Anaya, do you know that my gown, I hate myself for saying that, has moved up and you are on my bare side?¡±


    ¡°Um¡­¡± She wrung her hands together. ¡°I may have noticed but didn¡¯t say anything because warm? Hehe.¡± Anaya¡¯s cheeks reddened as she spoke. ¡°This is a good thing though,¡± She continued. ¡°It means you¡¯re usefulness to me has just increased tenfold.¡± She put her hands up in the air pumping them up and down. ¡°Yea.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help but to laugh which ended with me wincing in pain. Still very sore. ¡°That has to be one of the craziest things I¡¯ve heard you saw.¡±


    Anaya stopped in mid arm-pump. Her eyes narrowed and her mouth tightening into a thin line. ¡°Are you saying that I am crazy?¡± She asked. Her voice took on an ominous tone.


    I shook my head slowly before answering. ¡°Batshit crazy. Yup, that is what I am saying.¡± She stared me down for a moment, then we both broke out in laughter. Mine was short lived. ¡°Ouch, ouch, ouch. I need to stop laughing.¡± I laid my head back on the pillow and shut my eyes. ¡°Why must it hurt so much?¡±


    ¡°My guess is because you lack the training every fireman gets before he attempts to rescue people from a building fire.¡± My eyes open and I turned my head to see who spoke. Ms. Crispen walked up to the bed frowning at me. ¡°Seriously, Rueben, what the hell were you thinking?¡±


    I spared a glance at Anaya looking for some support. Her smile had faded and she was looking down. ¡°I¡­¡±


    ¡°No! You get to listen right now. You have shown a serious lack of decision-making skills. Rushing into a burning building is one of the dumbest things you have ever done. No, I take that back. Going into that corner store and putting my baby in danger was the dumbest. The fire rescue was the second dumbest thing you have ever done.¡±


    I looked away because I didn''t want her to see me cry. She was right but I hadn''t thought of it in that way until now. If something had happened to me, well worse than what did, I could live with that. But if¡­ I looked at my friend who now had as much water flowing from her eyes as I had. She turned her head so her hair blocked her face.


    A soft hand wiped the tears from my right cheek. I looked up at Ms. Crispen and she took the opportunity to wipe my other cheek. ¡°I get that you want to help people, Rueben. I really do.¡± She ran the back of her hand over her cheeks. ¡°But you need to think about the outcome of your actions. Anaya, your grandmother, and I would all be heartbroken if you did something that resulted in you being put into the ground.¡± Anaya let out a sob. ¡°Do you understand what I am saying?¡±


    I broke eye contact with her. ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am, I do. I didn''t mean to make you guys worry, really I didn''t. I just wanted to save grandma and you, and Anaya from the fire.¡±


    She placed her hand on the crown of my head. ¡°I know you did. But there are better ways than putting yourself in danger. In this case, you could have called the fire department. There is a station a few blocks away from our building. They would have and did, arrive in plenty of time. I just want you to take a moment and think before you act. We all love you and want you to stick around.¡±


    ¡°You need to listen, Reuben. M. Crispen is talking for all of us, and I am sure Anaya will agree. As wonderful as it is that you want to help others there are still those of us that need and love you.¡± Ms. Crispen moved aside so Grandma Burger could stand next to my bed. ¡°We would be devastated if you got yourself¡­ well, we all feel better knowing you are okay.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, grandma. I didn¡¯t mean¡­¡±


    ¡°I know, baby. No one thinks you put yourself in harm''s way on purpose.¡± She patted my cheek.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    ¡°Oh, you will be happy to know that Mr. Johnson is here in this hospital and doing well. He says he wants to see you when you feel up to it,¡± Ms. Crispen said. ¡°He speaks highly of the kid that saved his life.¡± Her frown vanished and a smile took its place. ¡°I am proud of you, Rueben. You did good by Mr. Johnson.¡± He smiled then shifted into a dark frown. ¡°But never, ever, do that again.¡±


    ¡°I promise I won¡¯t.¡± I pulled up on the covers exposing my hospital gown covered belly.


    ¡°Who there, Hoss. What do you think you are doing?¡± Anaya asked. She grabbed the blanket and pulled it back up over me. She also pushed against my chest stopping it from rising.


    ¡°I have to go check on Mr. Johnson,¡± I said. ¡°I want to see how he is doing.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to go right now, dummy. You need to rest until the doctor says you can go. Until then just be happy knowing that he is okay. Didn¡¯t you just say like two seconds ago you were going to stop boing stupid stuff?¡±


    ¡°I¡­¡± There wasn¡¯t much I could say to that, so I didn¡¯t. I took a couple deep breaths and felt myself start to sweat. It was possible that maybe I was not up to moving around yet.


    ¡°You see what I mean?¡± Anaya asked.


    ¡°Yeah, I see and feel it. I¡¯ll go see him when I feel better. I do have a serious question though.¡±


    ¡°What is that? Anaya asked.


    Ms. Crispen and grandma turned their heads to look at me. Ms. Crispen even leaned forward some. Apparently, they had turned to talking to one another while I wasn¡¯t looking. Time to drop the bomb on them.


    ¡°When are we going to eat?¡± I asked.


    I looked from Grandma to Ms. Crispen, to Anya. The first two had their mouths wide open in shock. Anaya shook her head but had a sly smile on her face. She wasn¡¯t surprised by my question.


    ¡°I guess that is our cue to go get this boy some food,¡± Grandma said.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure these two would rather hang out without the old fogies around too,¡± Ms. Crispen added.


    ¡°It¡¯s not really like that mom. Except, you know, it kind of is.¡± Anaya said. She stuck out her tongue. ¡°Nothing personal, just because old.¡±


    ¡°Not too old to put you over my knee,¡± Ms. Crispen said. She smiled while she said it.


    ¡°So,¡± Anaya said once the old fogies were gone. You wanna watch a movie?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t really feel like watching a movie,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m kind of tired and maybe need a nap.¡± In response, my stomach let out a loud gurgle. ¡°After some food, I think.¡±


    Anaya laughed. ¡°Yes, yes. The grub is coming.¡± She looked down at her hands and stopped talking. This was unusual for my best friend. It did draw my attention to her hands though, while we sat in awkward silence. As like before her right hand shook. It wasn¡¯t as bad but it was still there.


    ¡°Rueben,¡± Anaya said. She didn¡¯t look up as she spoke. ¡°Promise me you won¡¯t do anything stupid like that again.¡±


    ¡°Anaya, I¡­¡±


    ¡°Promise me! And don¡¯t think of saying another fucking word until you do.¡± She looked up and I saw the tears running down her cheeks as well as the rage that burned in her eyes.


    I swallowed a lump in my throat before answering. ¡°I promise, Anaya.¡± I reached over and put my hand on hers. A slight pinching sensation from the IV in my hand made me wince. ¡°I never meant to make anyone worry. I just couldn¡¯t sit outside while you guys were in the apartments. I thought I was doing the right thing.¡±


    ¡°Maybe, just maybe, the right thing would have been to think that we are capable of understanding the ramifications of black smoking filling the building. And that maybe, just maybe, we are not too stupid to leave before we get burned the fuck up. You think that might become a thought in your head should that happen again? Or does the mighty hero think us women folk have our heads stuck too far in the kitchen to realize we are in danger?¡±


    ¡°No, it''s not¡­¡±


    Anaya turned her face away from me and wiped at her eye. ¡°You really scared the shit out of me, asshole. I thought you were going to die.¡±


    I tried to imagine the pain I would feel if our roles were reversed. My heart skipped a beat or three and tears welled up my eyes. I understood why she was upset with me.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Anaya. I didn¡¯t think. But I didn¡¯t mean to hurt you either. While I understand you are upset and why I think it is time you let it go.¡±


    Her head snapped up and I saw a look that was equal parts anger, hurt, and surprise. There was going to be a murder if I didn¡¯t choose my next words carefully.


    ¡°Because food is coming and you should never eat on an angry stomach,¡± I said. Then I flashed her my best smile.


    ¡°I should fucking punch you,¡± Anaya said. Instead, she smiled and shook her head. I was really grateful for that. ¡°Instead, I am going to be the bigger person and not throttle you. You are welcome. And now you may heap praises upon my magnanimous self.¡±


    ¡°Gee, thanks,¡± I said in a voice rich with sarcasm. ¡°So what do you have planned for our entertainment?¡±


    ¡°What makes you think I planned something?¡± Anaya asked as she batted her eyelashes at me. My response was to raise my eyebrow. She sighed. ¡°You know me too well. Yes, I have a movie ready to go.¡±


    ¡°Anything I know?¡± I asked. Secretly, I hoped for it to be, Mechaman: The trials of the hero Hardcase. My favorite movie based on the life of a real superhero.


    ¡°Not Mechaman, that is for sure,¡± Anya said. I pouted. ¡°I figured you were hoping for it. I got something new. A flick called, Golden Blossom Blade.¡±


    ¡°The new, new from China?¡± I asked excitedly.


    ¡°You know it, big boy.¡±


    ¡°Well fire it up and let''s do this!¡± I shouted.


    A nurse popped into the room a second later. ¡°You need to keep it down in here,¡± she said. ¡°This is a hospital, not a rumpus room.¡± She cocked her head to the side and looked from Anaya to me and back to Anaya. ¡°Are you supposed to be on the bed with the patient young lady?¡±


    ¡°The doc said it was okay as long as I didn¡¯t disturb his IV.¡± She lifted my arm causing a slight pinch as the needle in my arm shifted. I grimaced but didn¡¯t make a sound. ¡°See, all good here.¡±


    ¡°Okay?¡± The nurse¡¯s voice was chocked full of skepticism. ¡°But I will be back to check on you two. Don¡¯t let me find some inappropriate behavior happening. I know how you kids are these days with your raging hormones and your BET.¡±


    ¡°Uh¡­¡± I looked up at Anaya and for the first time, I let the thought of us enter into my mind.


    ¡°Not going to happen,¡± Anya said.


    I kept my eyes on her face, on her cute button nose. I pictured her leaning over me and our lips brushing. How soft her full lips must be.


    ¡°You okay there?¡± Anaya asked. Her words brought me out of the daydream and to my horror, I felt a tight throbbing between my legs. ¡°I said are you okay?¡±


    Anaya LEaned forward and raised her hand. Time slowed to a crawl as her hand went straight for my crotch palm down. A surge of excitement ran through me even though I knew she was just going to put her hand on me to support herself and not¡­ well, you know. My hand shot out and grabbed her wrist before she could touch me and things became extremely awkward.


    ¡°What the hell?¡± Anaya shouted as her face twisted into a scowl.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± I retorted. I grabbed her laptop from the table next to the bed and lifted it up into the air.


    A new surge of energy rushed from my chest to the hand holding the laptop. My skin prickled along its path. Two blue sparks shot out of the machine and into my hand then it popped and a cloud of smoke wafted out of it.


    ¡°My computer!¡± Anya shifted and reached across me. My fingers had loosed enough that she easily pulled her hand free and set it on my leg. She reached across with her other arm and snatched the laptop away from me. ¡°What did you do?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said. I looked at my hand and saw a spark dance across my fingers before sputtering out. ¡°Wow.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s toast,¡± Anaya said. I looked over to her and saw that she had opened the laptop and was using my belly for a desk. I didn¡¯t even feel her set it on while I was looking at my hand and thinking about the odd sensation I had felt.


    Anaya slammed the laptop closed. ¡°Now what are we going to do?¡± She snapped.


    My mind went back to that fantasy of her leaning over me and preparing to kiss me. Fear of her seeing me stand up between my legs made it easy to push the thought away.


    ¡°I hope you two are hungry,¡± Grandma said as she walked into the room. Both of us looked at the door and saw Grandma walk in holding a tray piled high with food.


    ¡°I guess we''re going to eat,¡± I said.