Time Spent by J. David Clarke Read Free Book Online Page A

energy.
Mia stepped out onto the rooftop and into a howling windstorm.
Amber was at the center of it, perhaps   was   the center of it, her open
mouth unleashing a howl of sound and biting cold that swirled
around her to engulf the building.
    Mia tried to move closer, but the
pain near her left ear intensified, and she swayed, unsteady on her
feet.
    A spark jumped from her to Amber,
and back again.
    Soon, others arrived, and sparks
jumped from Amber to Mia, to the others, and around again. Finally,
an area near Amber darkened, and the world seemed to crack open and
peel away. When it came together again, Kevin stood on the
rooftop.
    Lines of energy arced between them
now, and then arced into the air above the rooftop. And where they
came together, the sky darkened. A shimmering hole began to form in
the air. A sound rose, like the sound of cracks opening in ice,
only a million times louder.
    ______________________
     
    Mia walked through the cafeteria,
looking for a table. Finally, she sat, picking at her food with her
fork: some kind of meatloaf supposedly, and it was definitely a
loaf, but meat? She wasn't sure.
    "Can I sit here?"
    Mia looked up. It was a girl,
small like Mia herself, with straight, light brown hair that fell
between her shoulder blades. She was very thin, and wore a baggy
sweatshirt and loose-fitting jeans. She was pretty though, and Mia
was instantly taken by her eyes.
    "Sure," Mia said. "Yeah, you
can."
    The girl sat down across from
her.
    "You don't have a tray," Mia
said.
    "I'm not hungry," she
said.
    "Oh." Mia looked at her tray. "I'm
not really that hungry either. You want to split these apple
slices?"
    "Okay, thanks," the girl said,
taking one.
    "I'm Mia."
    "Amber."
    She's so
pretty,   Mia
thought, but she didn't want to say anything, didn't want her to
know.
    "I just started here," Mia
said.
    "I know," Amber said. "I mean, I
knew I didn't recognize you. From before."
    "Yeah, I went to a different
school before..." Mia thought about it, and decided to risk a
little. She leaned forward and whispered, "I was in juvie. For a
year and a half."
    Amber's eyes widened. "What did
you do?"
    That, Mia could not tell. Never.
"It was nothing, it was stupid. Nothing."
    Amber quietly ate a slice of
apple.
    "Anyway," Mia went on, "yeah, I
used to go to Catholic school. St. Anthony's."
    "Did you like it there?" she
asked.
    Mia considered. "It was okay, I
guess. The sisters could be mean."
    "Sisters?"
    "Yeah, the nuns."
    "Oh," Amber said, "Duh! I'm
stupid."
    "No you're not." Mia said. "You're
just not Catholic. Which is good for you, trust me."
    They laughed.
    "I am stupid though. Everyone's
always saying that."
    "No!" Mia became very serious.
"You're not. Don't say that!"
    Amber ate another slice of
apple.
    "Well well, what do we have here?"
Brock had come up beside their table. "Aw, do we have a lezbo love
connection?"
    "Go away," Mia said, annoyed.
"God, you're such a caveman."
    "Is that it, Amber?" Brock asked.
"Are you in love?"
    Amber looked down and stayed
quiet.
    "Leave her alone," Mia
said.
    "You might want to be careful with
this one," Brock said, and he reached down to yank Amber's baggy
sleeve up, revealing dark scars crossing her arm. "Homegirl has
issues!"
    Amber recoiled, yanking the sleeve
down.
    Mia stood up. "LEAVE HER ALONE!"
she screamed.
    The whole cafeteria went quiet.
Brock laughed. "Whatever" he said, and turned to leave.
    A quick hand scooped up Mia's
meatloaf, and she stepped up on her chair and climbed up on the
table. Hearing the noise, Brock turned back. Mia grabbed his shirt
collar with one hand and with the other she smashed the meatloaf
into his face.
    "What the fuck?" Brock said,
sputtering the meat and sauce out of his mouth and wiping it from
his eyes.
    Two teachers ran from the other
side of the cafeteria, to break it up.
    Amber watched as they ushered the
two of them out of the cafeteria and toward the principal's office.
Around her, the whispers began:
    "Did you see