Talent Hall

“I’m touching you, I’m touching you!” Jared snickers, pokes the back of my neck. I deeply sigh. I’m both petrified and irritated at the same time. The class tells him he’s acting like retarded. That’s when I boldly state a rude opinion of mine and chuckle, clearly stating that I’m annoyed.

“You guys are silly. He isn’t acting.”

The classroom is filled with shock. Jared stares at me with pure hate in his eyes. It’s like like staring at a motorcycle gang and sticking up your middle finger. The chances of surviving that are very, very slim and not likely to happen. If it does, you’re probably dreaming.

He glares, but I don’t care. “Dude, get away from me before I seriously hurt you.”

“I’d Like to see that, shrimp.”

“Don’t test me.”

Kamron sighs and immediately comes to my defense. “Leave him alone. He’s not playing. He was expelled for breaking someone’s jaw in Seattle.” Obviously, she’s lying, but I’m willing to do anything to get him to leave me alone. So I go with it. He isn’t buying it though.

Jared laughs. “Oh, please. He’s just a child that killed his mother.”

My heart rapidly beats before my fist makes contact with Jared’s throat. The class gets excited. I sit on top of him and growl, holding him by his hair.

“Listen, here. If you ever mention my mother again, you will be sorry.” I pull his hair harder. “Understand?”

He whispers a faint, “Yes.”

Mrs. Bryanti walks in with another English teacher and is horrified by me nearly killing the class bully, shouting for me to get off of Jared. I immediately stand up. “I might need to disinfect my jeans.”

“Young man,” the other teacher says. “What authorized you to touch your classmate? Especially during your first week of school.”

“I’ve only been here for three days and I feel like it’s worse than my last school because of Jared.”

“That is no reason to attack another student.”

I place a hand on my hip and scoffs. “If he can talk smack about my mother, he can handle what he deserves.”

“I didn’t say anything wrong,” Jared says with venom in his voice. “Just the truth. The fact that he’s the one who murdered his mother.”

“I loved my mother,” I say. I can feel my voice cracking. I already feel guilty enough that I let Mom down. I let someone hurt her, and it’ s tearing me apart. And Jared can sense that too. That’s why he continues to push.

“Oh, really? Then wh-”

“Enough! Both of you go to the principal’s office now!” Mrs. Bryanti shouts. Thank God. Although she’s angry and is sending me to possible suspension, she’s saving me from embarrassment of crying in front of the class.

Out of habit, I roll my eyes and exit the classroom. I can tell that just infuriates the other teacher. I turn a few corners and pass Kevin the Mocha Guy, receiving a Mocha and a three minute conversation until a hall monitor tells us both to get to class. Once again, I roll my eyes and continue down the hallway.

By the time I get to the hallway with the many offices, Principal Williams is waiting for me when I reach her office with a smile and a file with my name on it. She pulls me inside her office and closes the door. With an amused laugh, she asks, “Alright. I have to say, I was shocked when I got the message that you were coming… What did you do?”

“Jared said something about me and my mother, I lost it, punched him in his throat, got on top of him, and pulled his hair.”

Williams laughs and told me to sit down. Staring at this woman and wondering what is wrong with her, I don’t hesitate to sit down. “Mr. Colton, although we don’t tolerate violence here at Talent Hall, but between you and me, I’ve never been more proud of a student in my many years or being principal at Talent Hall.”I can’t believe what I’m hearing. “Jared is an exchange student from Finland. We didn’t want to do this, but we are in the process of removing him from this school.”

“Thank God,” I mumble.

“However.” Ugh. “This is the second incident I’ve heard about, so it seems you are his favorite target.” What was the first incident? “I’m sorry to say this, but you may need to distance yourself or control your outburst.”

Gladly.

Well, at least I’m not in trouble. Not ready to go home and tell Lisa I got sent to the principal’s office during the first week of school.

The first place I go when I get home from school is my bedroom. I spend a good half an hour In my room scrolling through Facebook and whatnot before Lisa notices I’m home. She’s been talking and laughing with Blake in their shared Master bedroom, so she didn’t notice before. Although Blake scares me because of my dad, I respect him for the way he treats Lisa and am happy for them both.

Giggling, Lisa stumbles in my room with Blake behind her, but he vanishes down the hallway, calling for Holly and her tablet. Lisa’s sweatpants indicate she didn’t do much today, and her wet hair says she got out of the shower not too long ago. I bet today was a day of eating, relaxing, catching up on Netflix or Pinterest.

“Hey, sweetie. How was school?”

Not feeling the need to tell her what happened in English, I answer with a “School was okay.”

“Then why did your principal call me about an incident in English class with another student?” She puts a hand on her hip.

Groaning, I explain the situation and how Jared made me feel. About how Mom’s death is my fault.

Lisa sits next to me on my bed and pushes my bang back. “Listen. By now I’m sure you’re aware that your mother and I had issues. I won’t deny that, but when it comes to you, we always got along to help you.”

“What’s your point?” I sigh.

She thinks for a minute and then continues. “If Blake were to kill me, would you blame Holly?”

“She’s just a little girl,” I whisper. “Of course it wouldn’t be her fault.”

“So why do you believe that what your father did or allowed to happen or your mother’s death is your fault?”

“Because if I had disobeyed Caleb. If I had chosen Mom over that stupid party, she would be alive! She didn’t deserve what happened to her.”

“And you did? What did you do to deserve what your father did to you?” I shrug. “That’s because there was no reason for it.”

After an awkward moment of silence, Lisa instructs for me to come With her. Not caring where we’re going, I willingly follow her downstairs to the kitchen. When she hands me a bowl of fruit, I just sit at the table and stare at the bowl as if I’m expecting an Apple to attack me or something. Lisa makes me some coffee and then sits down, softly sighing.

“Daniel, you were never going to hear about this from your mother and the only reason I’m telling you is because I can’t stand to hear you blame yourself anymore. You’ve been doing this for far too long.” I nod slowly. “When you were young before Jack made the biggest mistake a person can make, he got involved in some freaky stuff. Its called The Elimination and they believe in wiping out children in genocide like manner.”

I look down at my coffee and can already feel something coming back up. Whatever it is, it must be from last night because I haven’t eaten today. Wait… Did she just say The Elimination? So Mom was on the track then. She always suspected he was.

I snap my head up and struggle to find the right words to say. She immediately takes that as a demand to continue. “They believe that the world’s problems are caused by children. Economic problems, food shortages. The list could go on. Anyways, back to your father. That was a milestone in his life. He thought he had to prove himself.”

“Are you telling me I was raped because he believes children are a nuisance?”

“That’s what they believe children deserve for their alleged sins. People in the world are messed up, and it’s not your fault. It’s just the way people are.” She kisses my forehead. “It’s never your fault. Always remember that.”

My lips form a light smile as I prepare to take a sip of my coffee. Holly runs in with a pink lollipop and offers me a lick. I politely refuse and give her a small hug. She kisses Lisa’s cheek and runs off.

“She’s always wanted an older brother.”

“That’s something I’m really scared off,” I say.

“Being an older brother figure?”

“Yes. It’s actually pretty stupid, but not being there for someone scares me. Like, I feel like I have a responsibility.”

“I understand, but you don’t have to be there for everyone. Sometimes you need to take care of yourself. That’s what I want you to do. It’s important that you do that.”

Lisa feels the need to spend a lot of money on me and Kamron just to make me feel better, even though i attempt to make it clear that Mom and Caleb spoiled me enough, and that I’m fine with just coffee. But that doesn’t work too well. Since she doesn’t work today, she takes Kamron and I to the mall and buys us whatever she thinks our little heart’s secretly and desperately desire, which is close to everything.

When Kamron insists on paying for a pair of sneakers, Lisa pays anyways. “I still owe you for all those countless hours you spent watching Holly when Blake and I had to work full time to keep up with the bills.”

Kamron grumbles.

After this, we’re going to look at party dresses. Kamron got invited to a graduation party and Lisa insists on paying for it. I’m being forced to watch them go crazy over what dress she should wear and what shoes match. The entire time I roll my eyes and take a sip of my slushy. Soon enough, I catch Jared’s eyes on Kamron and I. His eyes filled with rage and possible jealousy.

Kamron sips on her water and coos over a light blue dress. I roll my eyes while Lisa and Kamron talk about it for what feels like six hours and glance over to see Jared leaving eventually I have to remind them that the employees probably have lives, families or gambling habits to tend to. Lisa scoffs. “You’re picking something too, Danny.”

“For what? I have a storage locker of a closet full of clothes.”

Kamron giggles. “I totally forgot to run this by you. You’re going to the party with me.”

I laugh. “Oh, you’re hilarious.”

The way Kamron rolls her eyes makes my stomach do somersaults. Lisa hands her a dress to try on. Once she’s inside the stall with the door closed, I pull Lisa a few feet away and ask what Kamron is talking about. She puts her hands up in defense and clears her throat.

“Hey, that’s between you guys. I’m just the nice lady who took you guys shopping.”

“So you didn’t plan for me to go somewhere?”

“No, I didn’t, but since we’re talking about this, now seems like the perfect time to tell you... I have to go on a business trip to France for my job and Blake will be home. If you want, you can stay with Blake while I’m gone or you can go to Florida with Kamron and her older sister. Either way, I know you’ll be safe.”

Sure about that? I cross my arms and grumble. “And you didn’t plan this.”

“No, but it’s up to you.”

I sigh and sit down.

That gives Lisa the hint that I’ll be spending the weekend with Kamron in Florida. Being around Blake just scares me after what my dad did. I know I can take Kamron and Lilly if needed, but I’m fourteen and five foot four; I’m not going to be able to take a six foot one man by myself, and if I do, well, I’ll die of Cardiac Arrest afterwards so it won’t really matter.

Kamron comes out of the dressing stall in a long light blue gown. Lisa covers her mouth. A tear trickles down her right cheek. I roll my eyes.

“You look great, let’s go look at sneakers,” I say.

Lisa sighs. “You look beautiful. Kamron I’ll have to steal your dad’s gun so he doesn’t shoot up the party before you even go.”She nods, laughs, and takes a picture.

Lisa talks to the woman running the register while I look through a clothes rack with Kamron and a cart right next to us. A pair of black skinny jeans and short really speaks to me in the most beautiful way. Kamron holds up a leather jacket. I nod and smile.

“Who all is coming?” I ask.

“Us, Lilly, and Anthony,” Kamron says.

“Find anything?” Lisa calls from a distance.

“I’m trying it on,” I say and head to the dressing room.

As soon as I come out of the dressing room, Lisa smiles and Kamron snaps a photo of me. I look at my black high tops and make eye contact with Lisa.

“Is it wrong that I don’t want to change?”

Lisa pushes my bang out of my eyes. “Not at all. Just don’t get your shoes too dirty,” she says.

Best case scenario: School was canceled due to an explosion in the West Science lab. The only bad side of that is we have to make that day up on a less important holiday such as Presidents’ Day or even at the end of the year. The funny part about this is Jared really got himself in hot water and has to spend the whole eight hour school day cleaning up the rubble and effects of the attack with the other kids from ISS. The school has an Emergency supply closet for situations like this. It’s full of supplies that could be used for every possible situation. Ranges from vomit on the lunchroom table to a nuclear explosion or bomb exploding or being dropped on the school and he’ll be around that all day. Karma is a beautiful thing.

Anthony decided we’re leaving early in the morning because of the cancellation of school. Otherwise I wouldn’t be awake at five thirty in the morning making sure I have everything packed for the weekend in Florida. I am not a morning person. Coffee just prevents me from killing someone. Helps me practice patience and the ability not lose my mind.

Blake stands in the doorway and whispers. “Danny, can we talk?”

“I guess,” I shrug.

“I need you to be completely honest with me.” My heart pounding, I nod for him to continue. How do you really feel…? About being here.”

“Fine.”

The fact that Blake sighs and leans against the desk with the laptop on it says he isn’t buying it. “Look, I know you didn’t have the happiest childhood growing up. Angelia didn’t either.”

“Hard to imagine why. I mean, she has a family that loves her. She always seems so happy.”

He waves his hand for me to follow him to his room. I hesitantly follow him. He picks up a picture of Angelia at a younger age. She looks ten at least. The background of the photo indicates she’s in a hospital of some kind.

“I adopted Angelia when she was eight years old.” I was close. “Biologically, she’s not mine like Holly is. After I signed the papers, I found out where she came from and that she was raped by a monster who ran a prison for children.”

This all sounds too familiar… I’ve heard of these prisons before, but I’m not sure what it’s called. Whatever it’s called, they taught us about them in the fifth grade as a required course.

Supposedly, it’s considered a dark time for America, right next to The Great Depression. Millions of children vanished off the face of the earth and into child labor-abuse prisons. A couple prisons were discovered about six to ten years ago. The nation is in the process or bringing other missing children home. Supposedly.

Blake continues. “I wasn’t sure how to help her. Especially since she was deeply afraid of me. Every time I touched her, she would scream, cry, and flinch. It shattered my heart. And the woman I was seeing wasn’t a very good influence on her either. At that point I realized how much I really love Angelia as my own, and made some changes to our lives. I forced her through counseling and home schooled her. Whatever I had to do to make sure she had a chance at being happy. She opened up, told me her story in confidence. Slowly began to trust me.”

“That sounds like a dream.”

“It was more like a nightmare to me. Especially after I met Holly’s mother. Holly wasn’t intended, but I knew that leaving Holly with her alone wouldn’t be the right thing to do. So I stayed with her and helped out in anyway I could until one day, bruises covered Angelia’s body and I knew it was her because Angelia cried in her sleep about her and later told me it was her. And now, because of that, I don’t feel Holly is safe with that woman.” Blake sighs and looks at me with concern.

At this point, tears are trickling down my cheeks from Blake’s storyabout him, Angelia, and their painful journey. I’m still shocked by the fact that other people suffer and have horrifying backstories, not just me. Kamron, Mom, Caleb, and now Blake and Angelia. My entire life I’ve been so selfish, thinking bad things only happen to me. Not once did I take time to realize bad things might happen to other people too. Sure, I’ve heard stories about bombings and shootings in other countries, but my mind processes those only as myths and folklore. Fairytales with no real chance of happening.

“I’m really sorry,” I choke out.

“Don’t be. I just want you to know that you’re not alone. Ever. I don’t want you, Holly, or Angelia to ever feel like you’re fighting battles alone because Lisa and I have our moments too. Just remember that, okay?”

“But I feel bad because I’ve given you such a hard time and you accepted me for who I am from the start.” Or at least pretended to accept me for who I am.

“No, you didn’t. When your aunt told me about you, I expected you to be afraid, and I still don’t expect you to have deep conversation with me right away. Angelia didn’t, but I need you to know you can talk to me about anything.”

“But I don’t want you to wait for me to trust you. It took me months to trust Caleb. Almost a year.”

“I’m willing to wait.”

A voice shouts up the stairs. I recognize it as Kamron’s voice. Blake follows me to my room and takes my suitcase downstairs. I don’t even bother arguing with that, but he hands me a red envelop, I insist that I can’t take that. Unfortunately, he’s been with Lisa for too long and is very persistent, so I roll my eyes and accept the money.

Before we take off, I grab my laptop and phone charger. Blake waves and stands in the doorway until we drive off. Lilly acts as if she is afraid to strike up a conversation with me and waits twenty five minutes. As I answer her questions, I make sure she knows I’m easy to talk to, but at the same time, the fact that I talked to Blake willingly runs through my mind. Growing up, I always believed if I were to be touched or talked to by anyone I didn’t really know, I would die.

I mean, was I scared? Yes.

Did I survive? Yes.

Did he hurt me? Not at all.

As soon as I put my phone down, Kamron starts a photoshoot and invites me in on it. Lilly smiles and pulls to a police officer. He immediately smiles and starts a conversation with Lilly. She just says we’re going to Miami and she has for tickets for the Wrain. He looks down at his tablet and approves us all. Lilly drives the car to a parking lot, puts a large paper with her last name on the windshield, and walks towards the Wrain where the rest of us follow. I sit on the bench with my legs crossed and the fact that I’m sitting next to Kamron means I gave her permission to drag me in a photoshoot. Anthony and Lilly eventually join in. The more people, the better it is.

Anthony locks the door and plops on his bed with a box of pizza. I already know what’s coming with Ana, so I refuse politely before he has a chance to ask. He shrugs and opens the box. I grab my laptop and turn it on. It takes a while to start up. Anthony uses that as a topic starter. “I hate how technology is slow when it wakes up… Is that a Macbook Pro?”

“My mom got it for me when I got my black belt.” Granted, that was in fourth grade, but it still counts for something right. “To congratulate me.”

“You and Lilly will be great friends. She was raised to be a killer.”

“She? As in, only her?” He nods. “Is she…-”

“Adopted? Yes.”

I smile, look back down at my now running laptop and log into my Social Media Combo account. When it takes me to the dashboard, I see Kamron has the four of us tagged in some photos. I like it and on impulse, click on Anthony’s name and friend him on his page. One side of me is hopeful, but the other side is scared of rejection.

I take a deep breath and swallow my anxiety before clicking the blue icon and typing a status. I slightly smile and pick up my vibrating phone. A text from Lisa appears on the screen, “reminding” me to eat something. I order the watermelon and it’s delivered in exactly five minutes. As I eat quietly, I watch YouTube videos, using the SM app. The thing I hate about it is it takes up too much storage on my phone, but it works.

Suddenly, Anthony gasps and makes eye contact with me. I look around and ask if he’s alright. Not getting a response, my chest tightens. I slowly look down at my arm and realize the concealer on my arm had faded away, revealing my cuts from two weeks ago. I stare at them, not knowing what to say. Luckily Anthony says something.

“I’m going to tell you a story.”

I roll my eyes. “It’s not that big of a deal.”

“Yes, it is! I lost a close friend to self harming because he cut too deep and hit his radial artery. The hospital couldn’t save him… I may not know you that well, but I don’t want you to hurt yourself too.”

I shrug. “If that’s true, then you know it’s difficult.”

“Difficult, yes, but that doesn’t mean impossible. I want you to call me if you ever feel like hurting yourself. This has to stop, Danny.”

Once again, when I don’t respond, he makes me pinky promise I won’t cut. I promise just to get him off my back. I already know I’m going to do it again. I don’t care about that. What I’m really concerned about is why my concealing isn’t lasting the full twenty four hours. Now I want a refund. The problem is the company isn’t nationwide, and I don’t want to go to Seattle to get my money back.

The next morning I wake up to Anthony throwing his phone in frustration and cursing in Spanish, he sheepishly apologizes and rubs his eyes. I take a deep breath and sit upright in the bed, and run my eyes as well. He apologizes again.

“What’s wrong?” I whisper.

“My dad called me,” he sighs.

“Do you guys fight a lot?”

“I’m going to be honest with you, man. This is the first time I’ve talked to him in years. However, he did something and it was unforgivable to me,” he sighs.

“If you need to talk… I’m here.”

He nods and sits on his bed, clutching a knee to his chest, not even caring that his phone is probably broken. “When I was five, my dad attempted to kill Antonio. My mother tried to save him and was nearly murdered as well. He was sentenced to prison, but escaped a little over three years ago and has been sending letters to us. My mom says he got mixed up in some sadistic stuff.”

The air flees from my lungs, leaving me breathless. I’ve heard this about my own father before. My mom told me Jack was involved in some pretty bad stuff. Then Caleb and Lisatold me the same thing except they were a little more specific.

“Is your father a member of The Elimination?” I softly ask.

“That’s what my mother says…” He eyes me. “How did you know?”

I look down. “My aunt said the same thing about my dad.” Tears are threatening to explode. I can feel my voice preparing to crack. “He beat my mother to a pulp when I was six… after she found out he had let his female friend rape me for two years.”

I turn to face Anthony. His facial expression shows he is horrified by what I just told him. I slightly feel regretful now that I’ve told him.

“I-I’m- I had no idea… Does Lisa know?”

“She flew to Montana the minute my mother told her over the phone.”

He touches my shoulder, his hand as light as air. I bite my lip to cut myself off from flinching. The blood from my lip flows towards the back of my throat. “I’m really sorry… I just want you to know it was not your fault.”

“Well, all my life I’ve wanted an answer. That’s it.”

“So have I. That question floods my mind everyday, but now that I’m older, I know the truth, and I think you do too. You’re just having a tough accepting it.”

He’s right. If I know about The Elimination and what they stand for, then surely that gives me the answer I desperately wanted growing up, but what if it isn’t enough?

Anthony changes the subject. “Do you like to read?”

“Anything and everything,” I say.

“Tell you what. We go to the party early and I’ll get you some study tools to help you understand The Elimination better.”

“That’d be awesome, Anthony.”

We arrive at the party location two hours early so Anthony, Lilly, and Kamron can help set up tables and such. The guy throwing the party, Axil, invites me to his home library connected to his bedroom and says I’m welcome here anytime and even provides me with a milkshake, which I gladly accept and thank him for.

I don’t expect him to be this kind to a freak like me. I’m starting to maybe realize that not everyone is a bad or inconsiderate person, but when someone is nice to me, it’s nice, but scary at the same time. Always catches me off guard. I’m still trying to figure out why Lisa brought me to New Jersey with her instead of letting me stay with Caleb or going into foster care. Oh, yeah.The law said Caleb wasn’t eligible and Lisa was the best option, but that doesn’t mean she had to bring me with her…Right?

I sit in the comfortable reading look with some printed articles, book, and on my phone on my phone. The first book I reach for is a giant textbook with red bold words. The History of The Elimination.

It’s as if the book is a thousand years old. Dust flies in my nostrils, and it causes me to hack like I have fatal asthma, but that doesn’t stop me from flipping through pages and staring at gruesome, R rated photos. At this point, nothing will.

I end up so deeply trapped inside the books and articles that I nearly cry like a toddler when Kamron literally drags me down to the party.

Judging from the house when I walk downstairs, I’d say Axil either hired more help or these people work really fast. Air spray fills the air. A giant chandelier sends sparks and beautiful lighting throughout the ballroom. A window is reflecting the beautiful lighting back. A long table holds plates, pots, and pans of food. Healthy and high in carbs and calories. Axil has his hair nicely styled up, is wearing a black tux, and overall just looks flawless. The light really brings out his brown eyes. I can tell he has all the girls tripping over their heels for him.

He approaches us and smiles. “Find anything worthwhile up there?”

“Definitely,” I say.

Kamron looks at me obviously confused, but doesn’t say anything. “Well, please. Feel free to take all the books home with you. My aunt wants them all gone.”

“I’ll let you guys talk,” Kamron awkwardly says and walks away.

I nod and shyly smile. “Um, you’re lucky to be done with school.”

“I actually like school.”

That statement makes me want to kidnap him and hold him hostage in my suitcase until we get home. Too bad that’s actually what comes out of my mouth. “Would you like to come home with me?”

He laughs. “You’re funny!”

“I’m serious. What’s your secret. I’m dying to know.”

“Well, you can’t be self-conscious. A lot of people are and it adds to distress during high school days. I told myself I wouldn’t care what people thought and would always look for the positive.” Blake Jr. “If I fell down the stairs, which I did, several times, I laugh. If I peed myself, I still laughed. It can be hard, but it worked out in my favor.”

“Well, at least one of us can do that. If I pee myself in public, I’m going to cry in the bathroom.”

“Aren’t you going to Talent Hall?” I nod. “Yeah, Talent Hall is pretty good with the no bullying policy. It might be hard to believe now, but trust me, it’s a great school. My kids are going there as soon as they exist.”

I groan and stand next to Kamron, watching her spike the volleyball over the net. I can’t believe I let a female force me to play a sport. My own mother couldn’t even do this. What makes Kamron so special? I’m highly disappointed in myself right now.

A girl in the front row on the opposite team spikes it back. It darts towards me, sending a wave of panic throughout my body, causing me to punch the ball, sending it to the other side. Kamron jumps and claps like the preppy cheerleader she is. I shrug. The other players on our team praise me for my good work. The other team nod in approval and say my skills are indeed impressive.

Dinner is served right after the volleyball game. Of course that doesn’t mean you have to eat right now though. The other reason I’m eating here is because there’s an abundance of fruits and vegetables, and the fact that Lisa will fry me if I don’t eat something and she finds out.

Music blast through the room. Kamron runs up to me and asks if I’m done eating. Before I can even answer, she claps and yanks me to the dance floor. I pout. I was actually going to eat my strawberry… Juicy ones are the best.

I groan. “You’re in a dance class for goodness sake! Come on. Just let loose and have some fun,” Kamron says.

For the first ten minutes I stand around like a wallflower, but my mind eventually decides to float with the hip hop music. That encourages me to dance alongside the other kids. It feels amazing to just let it go and have fun. That’s something I really need to work on.

At the end of the party, Axil leads me back to the library and hands me a black duffle bag and throws some books in the bag he is holding. I do the same. Axil and his aunt want all these books gone. Said something about bad memories. To me, that only says they are linked to The Elimination too. I already suspected something like that when Anthony told me they have books that could help me to understand, but I guess I never really paid attention until now.

When Axil introduced me to his aunt, Ava after the party and told her I would be taking their books away, she got on her knees and talked to me like I was a king or something. She was so happy. She specially stated that she wanted “every book or article about The Elimination gone. Far away from this house as possible”. That’s when she said they bring painful memories back and asked if I was related to Lisa, and of course I told her I was her nephew from Washington.

Axil and I also exchanged social media accounts. Social Monkey. He told me to check out a site called SeeWE.com. I’ve never heard of it, but I told him I’ll check it out. Anthony, Lilly, and Kamron are still cleaning up downstairs. I’m beginning to realize how OCD Anthony is about a clean house. Before I realized the party was over, he was scrubbing the already clean, sparkly, and spotless wall. That’s dedication at it’s finest.

As I zip up the duffle bag, I can see Axil’s aunt in the corner of my eye. She’s holding up a plate of cookies and a vanilla shake. Axil smirks as he reaches for one, but has his hand smacked. He immediately pulls away and pouts. I get the gist the cookies are for me and reach for one. She smiles once I bite into it. It’s like my brain is made of skittles. Pure happiness over the rainbow. That’s how delicious these cookies are. I’ve never tasted anything like it.

After we finish packing the books, we say our goodbyes and Lilly drives us to our hotel so we can get our belongings. Kamron and I put everything in the car while Anthony tidies up the room and Lilly pays and checks us out. Eventually, Kamron and I have to drag Antonio out of the room with him screaming “Demon, be gone!” as he sprays air mist everywhere. From the room to the parking lot. Lilly starts to open the door, but looks at me when I violently clear my throat.Turning red in the face, I ask, “Are you eighteen?”

“Don’t have to ask twice. Go for it,” she says as she tosses me the keys. I catch them. “Stop at the gas station.”

Lilly and Kamron immediately fall asleep after we leave the gas station. The soda they got obviously didn’t have enough caffeine. Anthony nudges me. I glance at him to let him know he has my partial attention, but I also have to keep my eyes on the road so we don’t crash.

“What did you discover in the two thousand books you flew through in one night.”

I clear my throat. “I took some notes. Check my backpack.”

Anthony reaches behind my seat in front a sleeping Lilly to grab my black backpack. “In the binder that says ‘research’?”

I nod. He pulls out a paper. I glance at it and then keep my eyes on the road.

“You take good notes, dude.”

“Only on the topics I need to know or am interested in. Ask me to write about any other war in history, it’d be one paragraph long.”

Fifteen minutes later, I’m carrying bags on the Wrain with Lilly, Kamron and Anthony. When the Wrain takes off, Lilly rubs her eyes and leans against Kamron’s shoulder, still sleepy.

“Sorry, I fell asleep on you, Danny.”

“It’s no problem,” I say.

The wrain makes his chug chug sound and takes off. It runs at a decently fast speed, but we don’t feel a thing. Its as if it’s not even moving. There are no standards here. We can get up, mingle, walk around. There’s even a pop and snack machine.

I unwrap the cookies in my bag and nibble on one before pushing it towards Kamron. She crosses her arms and pouts. I awkwardly apologize and bring it back.

Anthony laughs. “It must suck to have to watch your weight. As a cheerleader that is.”

“It sucks worse to not be Lilly. She can eat whatever and look amazing. I have to eat healthy to stay in shape.”

“I was gifted with a fast metabolism,” Lilly brags.

“Well, that gift makes me loathe you,” Kamron says.

Lilly falls right back to sleep after finishing her book and throwing a tantrum about it. We’ll be wonderful friends, Lillian Anderson. Not only am I a bookworm, but I throw tantrums daily about cliffhangers and the deaths of my favorite characters.

My phone vibrates with an email. I open it and read it to myself.

Dear Mr. Colton

You are receiving this email because you are currently enrolled in the Dance I program at Talent Hall.

First and foremost, I would just like to thank you for choosing to attend our beloved Talent Hall. We sincerely hope you will enjoy our school for the remainder of your high school life. Our goal is to ensure that your learning environment is enjoyable, safe, and peaceful. We at Talent Hall aim to provide a wonderful place for every student to learn and grow, and our biggest fear is that we will fail to do so.

The reason for this email is to inform you that you are nominated for the Talent Hall Awards by your dancing instructor who claims to have witnessed your incredible talent.

We wish you the best and hope to see you at the Talent Hall Awards.

Sincerely,

Talent Hall staff.

My phone beeps again with another email. If I had received this as a letter, these two would have been stapled. It’s an invitation to the Talent Awards with schedules, important dates, and an explanation at the bottom. I guess Talent Hall Awards is a talent show being held in London and only certain people are chosen to go so it’s a privilege to be there. I shake my head and sigh.

“Everything okay?” Anthony asks. “You seem quiet.”

“I’m... Still wondering if I made the right choice to come to Talent Hall,” I say as I scan over the email again. “That’s all. Nothing to be concerned with, Anthony.”

He leans over and reads the email to himself and then screams, excited. The girls jolt awake. The other passengers on the wrain stare at him. Kamron rubs her eyes and flicks Anthony in the head. He just refers to my phone. I hand it to her. She yawns and reads it to herself. Lilly leans over to see the screen. Kamron holds the phone and then hugs me tightly. I almost fall back into the wall, Kamron on my lap. I look around for someone to get this girl off of me. It isn’t working.

“This is so exciting! You get to go to the talent show in London! This is an opportunity of a lifetime.”

I guess the talent show is well known around here because the former angry passengers clap their hands and congratulate me and say they understand why Anthony got excited.

“Thanks... But it can’t be that big of a deal...” I insist.

Kamron dials a number in my phone. I get the gist she’s calling Lisa when she says her name and says I think going to the talent show isn’t a big deal. She puts the phone on speaker and I can hear Angelia and Holly screaming. It sounds like there’s an earthquake going on. Then Blake tells me to expect a lot of screaming for a while. because it’s a huge deal and not everyone gets to go. I roll my eyes. At least I know what to expect now.