Tale of Life (Essence Series #2) (3 page)

“I actually really enjoy the art. If Hawk wasn’t in that class, it would probably be my favorite period.”

Beatrice looked down at the ground. “I’m sorry, Calloway. If it weren’t for me, this wouldn’t be happening to you. Hawk is a complete jerk and I never should have dated him. I apologize for letting you endure this.”

Calloway nodded. “
It’s okay, Beatrice. Let’s just forget about it.” Her verbal regret of dating Hawk implied they were no longer together. He felt his heart race when he thought of the possibility. “Are you still together?”

“No,” she said. “I broke up with him.”

Calloway tried to hide the smile on his face but he was failing miserably. The lines around his mouth formed a half grimace as both emotions tried to take dominance. A passing student stared at him for a moment with a confused expression then dodged out of the way, frightened of Calloway’s odd features. Calloway wasn’t sure what this meant. Now that she wasn’t with Hawk anymore, she was talking to him. Did that mean something? “I’m glad to hear that,” he said. “You deserve someone better, Beatrice. I have no doubt you’ll find him.”

“I hope so.” She smiled. She stopped when she reached her classroom. The other students were lined up outside the room waiting for the teacher to unlock the door. “Thanks for letting me spend lunch with you.”

Calloway smiled at her—a normal smile. “You’re always welcome,” he said. “I apologize on behalf of my friends. They’ll come around.”

She nodded. “
It’s okay, Calloway. I don’t blame them for acting this way. I wish I had friends that would do that for me.” Beatrice waved goodbye and walked into her classroom. Calloway watched her go and stared at the blonde hair that trailed behind her back. After a moment of staring, he walked away and headed to his next class.

Calloway couldn’t remember what was said in any of his classes. All he thought about was his lunch date with Beatrice. He’d never had a conversation with her and now they spent an entire period together. The ease of their conversation really surprised him. She wasn’t pretentious or snobbish like he assumed she was—she was just a conformist. Now that she apologized for what she did and ended her relationship with Hawk, he felt immensely better. Even though the memories of last semester still plagued his heart, he couldn’t hold her accountable any longer. His initial impression of her was right—she was a good person that just made bad decisions. The fact that Calloway had stolen Hawk’s girl made him even happier, and it reminded him of what Mr. Avey had said—he was the better man. He wanted to enjoy his unbridled bliss but he knew his friends would bring him down with the facts of reality. Calloway couldn’t forget about all the wrongs that Beatrice committed, and they would never approve of her. And did he really want to date someone who had any interest in Hawk to begin with?

When he stepped into his photography class, he was surprised to see Hawk leaning back in his seat with a forlorn expression on his face. He was extremely docile and quiet. He ignored Calloway completely. When Calloway sat down next to Breccan, he felt his body relax and his heart slow. It was the first time that Hawk didn’t tease him mercilessly, and the other students in the class kept glancing over at them, waiting for the storm that was coming, but it never happened. Calloway assumed Hawk was too depressed that Beatrice dumped him to tease Calloway. It made him wonder if Hawk knew about their lunch meeting. Would the insults be worse once he found out or would he be embarrassed?

When the school bell rang, Calloway walked out of the class with his back straight and his shoulders squared. He never felt more at ease or confident after his photography class and he actually felt happy—elated.

“I can’t believe that happened,” Breccan said. “I could get used to this.”

“Don’t jinx it.” Calloway smiled. “I want it to stay this way.”

“Why was Hawk so quiet today?” Breccan wondered. “He acts like you don’t exist.”

“I think Beatrice said something to him,” Calloway said.

“Did she say that?” Breccan asked. They walked across campus to the parking lot where Easton was meeting them. Breccan had a cookie crumb in the corner of his mouth but Calloway decided not to say anything—he would probably just eat it.

“No, but I can’t think of any other reason,” Calloway said. “Or he is so depressed that Beatrice broke up with them that he doesn’t have the heart to harass me.”

“She broke up with him?” Breccan asked incredulously.

“Yes.” Calloway smiled. “They are done.”

“Good,” he said. “That girl finally got a brain.”

Calloway nodded. “I told you she just made a bad decision—she’s a good person.”

“Don’t get any ideas,” Breccan said. “Just because she broke up with Hawk doesn’t mean it vindicates her crimes for the past few months. And you better not go for her.”

“Why not?”
Calloway asked.

“She isn’t right for you—that’s why,” Breccan said. “I thought that would be obvious.”

“We get along great,” Calloway said. “She’s really cool.”

Breccan shook his head. “Just because she had lunch with you doesn’t mean she’s interested. She’s probably just trying to make up for what she did. Don’t assume anything.”

Calloway sighed. “Thanks for ruining my day.”

“I have to tell you the truth,” Breccan said. “I wouldn’t want you to make an idiot out of yourself.”

“So you don’t think she likes me?” Calloway asked.

“No,” Breccan said. “You aren’t her type.”

“And what type is that?”

“Rich,” he said.

When they reached the parking lot, they saw Easton standing next to her car, waiting for them, but they stopped when they heard the yells and screams nearby. Hawk was getting into a small car while a woman in the driver’s seat yelled at him loudly, attracting the attention of everyone around them. She was wearing dirty pajamas and her hair was in a messy, oily bun.

“Don’t you ever keep me waiting again, you brat,” she yelled. “Otherwise you can just walk home!” She glared at him as he shoved his backpack into the backseat. “Come on! Let’s go!
The Young and the Restless
is coming on.”

When Hawk opened the door he saw Calloway and Breccan staring at him. He ignored them and sat in the front seat. His mother drove them out of the parking lot, yelling at him the whole way. They could hear every word through the open window from the driver’s seat.
              Calloway and Breccan walked across the lot to Easton.

“That was quite a show,” she said. “What happened to his jeep?”

Calloway shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“He probably lied about the whole thing,” Breccan said. “It probably belongs to his father. I haven’t seen him drive it to school once.”

Even though Aunt Grace drove a run-down car, Calloway never felt embarrassed when she picked him up from school. She never screamed at him like he was a nuisance in her life, and she always made him feel cherished. Perhaps Hawk had money but he definitely didn’t have any love—only sorrow.

Playing it Cool

Calloway looked at the clock and was delighted to see it was almost closing time. Business at the sandwich shop had been slow, with only a few families coming in for dinner along with a high school football team. Their last customer left two hours ago. They cleaned the walls and scrubbed all the dishes but the tasks were completed quickly, leaving them bored and unoccupied. Now they were waiting for the clock to reach nine o’ clock—the hour of their freedom.

“Has bird boy given you any more trouble?” Marquan asked. He counted the money in the drawer then closed it. The money in the register had been counted three times but there was nothing else to do.

“
Bird boy
?” Calloway asked.

“Hawk.”
Marquan laughed. “That’s what I call him—bird boy.”

“No, not really.”
He laughed. He completely ignored me today, which I have no complaints about, and kept his distance. I hope it stays that way.”

“Let me know if it doesn’t,” Marquan said. “I have no problem paying the kid a visit.”

“I don’t think that will be necessary.” Calloway smiled. “But thanks.”

“No problem,” Marquan said. He turned off the register and switched off the heater for the soups. The counters were so clean that you could see the reflection in the tile. The floors had already been swept and the chairs were stacked. Calloway wondered why their boss didn’t shorten the store hours—no one came in past eight.

Calloway leaned against the counter and crossed his arms over his chest. “Are you excited to start school again?”

Marquan stared him. “Is that a serious question?” He laughed. “Who wants to go back to school?”

Calloway shrugged. “College is better than high school,” he said. “I wouldn’t mind.”

“Well, being in the White Wing is time consuming. Plus, I have to work for a living. It’s nice to have some spare time for the little things in life—like sleeping and watching television.”

“I understand what you mean.” Calloway laughed. Studying the Hara-Kir in addition to his school studies was a hassle for him. Any possibility for a social life had been terminated when he started his job. “How do you get accepted into the White Wing?”

“It’s an arduous process,” he said. He leaned against the counter beside Calloway and stared at the television in the lobby. “Before you are offered an acceptance into the society you have to be interviewed and researched extensively—they want to know everything about you.”

“Why do they go through all that?” Calloway asked. “It seems like a lot of work.”

“We have to make sure that no one is a spy—that would be bad.”

“But if they look like humans—most of them—how do you really know?”

“That’s why I’m trying to research a way to determine how to discover them. And what do you mean
most of them
? They all look identical to humans.”

“They do?” Calloway asked.

Marquan stared at him. “Have you seen one that wasn’t?”

“No,” Calloway said. “But the one that chased me sounded demonic and beastly—not human.”

Marquan shrugged. “As far as we know they all look like humans. We haven’t discovered anything else.”

“So there is no possibility that they could be something else?”

“I don’t know about that,” Marquan said. “Anything is possible.”

“Have you found any portals?”

Marquan shook his head. “I don’t think we’re ever going to find one—it’s impossible.”

Calloway nodded but said nothing. Even if he knew the location of one of the portals he wouldn’t tell Marquan—it was too risky.

The bell over the front door rang as it swung open, and they both looked at the customer that walked inside. Calloway’s eyes widened in surprised when he saw her—it was Beatrice.

He stared at her for a moment before he was able to speak. “Hey.”

“Hello.” She smiled. She stood at the counter and Calloway wasn’t sure if she was ordering.

Calloway approached the counter and continued to stare at her. He wondered if she was here to visit him but he dismissed the idea immediately—she had no reason to speak to him. “Did you want anything?” he asked apprehensively.

“No,” she said. “I was hoping to see you after work.”

Calloway felt his heart race and his hands grow cold and sweaty. Did she just ask him on a date? He wasn’t sure if he was jumping to conclusions. “What did you have in mind?”

“We could get a milkshake,” she said. “Everyone likes those.”

“Sure,” Calloway said. “We’re closing right now.”

“Okay,” she said. “I’ll wait outside.” Beatrice left the shop and sat in her car, a Toyota Corolla, and waited for them to close the store.

Marquan smiled at him. “Calloway has a date tonight.”

Calloway turned to him. “Is it?” he asked happily. “I can never tell what women are thinking.”

“If a woman comes to your job as asks to see you afterwards, then yes, it’s a date.” He laughed. “She’s really into you.”

“You think?” He smiled.

“I think that’s obvious.” Marquan laughed.

“Well, what am I supposed to do with her? What do I say?” Calloway felt the panic rise in his throat. He could talk to her at school but he had never been alone with a girl, not even Easton. “Should I change? I don’t have any jokes to tell.” Calloway wiped his sweaty palms on his shirt. “What do I do?”

“Calm down!” Marquan said. “Just be yourself. As long as you don’t act like that bird boy you should be fine. Be cool, Cal.”

Calloway took a deep breath. “Okay. I think I can do this.”

“You better.” He laughed. “Now help me close the store. I have a basketball game waiting at home for me.”

They restocked the produce in the walk-in freezer and put the money in the safe before they set the alarm and left the store. When they walked outside, Marquan turned to Calloway. “Good luck.” He smiled. “Be cool.”

Calloway took a deep breath. “Okay. I’ll be cool.” Marquan got inside his car and left the parking lot, leaving Calloway alone with a girl. The lights were off in her car but he could see her smiling at him through the front window. Her eyes were glossy from the streetlamps and they shined in the light. Calloway walked to Beatrice’s parked car and got into the passenger seat.