Close Encounters of the Bus Kind

[42]

So many questions. She always had so many questions and no grasp on what the truth was supposed to be. Put them away. Set them aside. They’ll be answered in time. Now, they had to hide.

Erin and she ducked under the nearest bus, crawling over rough pavement and gravel as Leslie carefully floated to a blind spot at the top. It was claustrophobic and every bit of exposed metal felt like it was going to snag on her clothes and slice her flesh. She had been under a bus a few times before for servicing, but this felt like being trapped and yet still not hidden enough to be safe. It didn’t take long before those ominous, slicing heavy footfalls arrived right in front of them. Dark, sharp shadows blotted out the buzzing lights above.

Erin pulled on her arm and dragged her over to the right. Breathing was difficult with the tight fit and her eyes teared up with the cacophony of metal, oil, and dirt. They drew back as far as they could. But it sounded like the figure in front of the bus was crouching to peer underneath. They didn’t have enough space to hide. Nadia imagined pulling all the way back and slipping under another bus. She also imagined using her unknown power to freeze Tonya in place. Would it work? Was what she learned in that strange, other reality also true here?

Before she could test that thought, a metallic noise came from one of the buses nearby, like a hard rapping. Tonya paused and seemed to straighten before hurrying towards it. That continued with sounds leading her further away as Erin and Nadia slowly worked their way out from underneath the bus. Their clothes had rips and mud marks. Nadia idly wondered how she was going to explain all this as simple stargazing to her dad.

Working the other way around the twists and turns of buses, they managed to get close to the lockup fence. A few minutes after that, they met up with Gina and Eva drenched in sweat. Instead of trying to shut down the security system again or yank the lock with telekinesis, they just waited for Leslie to return. She provided the distraction, knocking on the buses. It took her a while to feel confident enough to fly back without being seen.

She had to lead them one at a time over the fence because whatever intangible muscle represented her flying ability was getting exhausted or strained. The rounds of ferrying were uneventful, but they kept checking behind them with every hint of a noise. Once on the other side, not even the blackness of the T-section hallway raised alarms. It had been roughly an hour and Gina phoned her mother for a pick up as the group considered how much distance to put between themselves and the buses. Hiding amidst the solar pylons seemed sufficient even though Eva eyeballed the houses and churches across the street.

While they waited, there was so much to cry and scream and puzzle over to one another that they all remained silent. Leslie rested her floating but occasionally slipped along like the rollerblade sneakers motion she mentioned earlier. Gina confirmed over and over that the video was transferred onto her phone but didn’t do anything else with it aside from opening up Google Drive before realizing that she was still on mobile data. Eva watched her screen attentively but also seemed as exhausted as the other version of her had been. Erin appeared closest to grappling with the events and their implications. She peered around, as if the firmament of the world had shocked and disappointed her. Nadia understood that feeling. Still, no one spoke.

It took a little longer than ten minutes for Mrs. Ferris to arrive. Everyone piled into the car frantically. Gina‘s mom was cordial and curious about how everything had gone but she had to suffice with the tense, awkward silence. Nadia and Erin sat together, pressing against one another while Leslie enjoyed one end of the backseat as Eva sat as far from Gina in the front as the car would allow her.

Eventually, Gina confirmed with her mom that they got the evidence but suggested that they had a run-in with something like a “man in black”. Erin shuddered but didn’t say anything. Leslie was the first dropped off and Nadia seriously considered spending another night with Erin but ultimately bid her a good evening. When it was finally her turn in front of her house, she had already formulated the explanation that it was muddy, and she had to crawl around and adjust a telescope. That’s why she was such a mess. Diligently, she worked through the happenstance and details. Lies tend to be more detailed than truths, so she did her best not to focus on answering, but at least give this version of events enough weight that it sounded credible.

She briefly considered hopping the fence to wash herself off in the backyard but knew that someone would probably see her before she was done. Her father met her at the door. Despite all the mental preparation, she wasn’t quite ready for that. He greeted her with concern but kindness as he asked how the event went and it slowly dawned that her clothes were disheveled and dirty.

“My princess, what happened?”

“It was good. I saw a lot of things. It was a lot of fun.”

Her father inspected her clothes again. All she really needed to say was that it was very hands-on with a lot of grass and moving around. He accepted it. She listed off all sorts of heavenly bodies and how beautiful they were. Unfortunately, she also invoked Mars and her father was puzzled about that, as he noted that it wasn’t likely to be visible until the end of the month. Nadia covered for herself by saying it was a photographed time-lapse image from some other time that she was shown. As far as pictures of the event, she put that all on Eva with a guarantee that she would send them around soon.

Duman gazed deeply into her eyes. He probed them with care but also concern. She hated having to lie, to this man most of all. But she assured him everything was fine. Luna appeared from down the hall, clinging to the banister and leaning from the stairs. He asked her if there was anything else and Nadia shrugged and smiled. That was all. He let her go.

Luna hugged her big sister but then had to head back upstairs because it was past her bedtime. It was late for Nadia as well even though it didn’t feel that late. She couldn’t remember when she had a bedtime but hurried through washing up in the shower before sifting through the remains of her homework. It was just a little bit of reading from English.

Despite looking everywhere earlier, this time it didn’t take too much trouble to find her schedule. She had honors English and AP Geometry, which made Paul’s brain quake in fear a little. Biology and Economics were both honors classes and then she had an absolutely useless Spanish class. Her electives were music theory and team sports with a focus on volleyball. That hadn’t been there before. Another slip of reality or a treat by Beyond?

So, she was for sure on the volleyball team. But then who was off? Ten girls were the maximum. And did she want to be coached by Nesbitt?

There were bigger issues than any of that. Tonya had been awake when they were abducted and hadn’t been a part of whatever happened. Then she had shown up at the bus, seemingly to do the same thing they were doing. And then that vision, that world that could’ve been. Tonya had some sort of immobilizing device which sucked the energy and life out of them. She had managed to survive it only because it seemed she knew more than Tonya was expecting of her. Nadia sighed and slumped against her pillow. She sent a text message to Erin, wishing her a good night.

More was left unsaid, and Erin didn’t seem ready to say it as she simply responded with the same well-wishing. Putting her phone away, Nadia tried to let all the jagged thoughts in her head and unfiltered possibilities just stay there for a few hours as she rested.

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Morning came all too soon, frantically and without the luxury of dreams. She didn’t have a uniform to wear to school but there was an assumed dress code. Something similar to what she wore to shopping didn’t seem that weird. Jeans, a cardigan to make Eva proud, a jacket for the cold morning, a floral hat because she felt like it, and silver sneakers.

It all felt so chaotic from stuffing some measure of breakfast in her face to exchanging glances with Luna as though they had a special language that neither quite knew if the other understood. Taliah took half of them in her car while Duman took the other half. Nadia did her best to poke her brothers and tease her other sisters while sheltering Luna.

Before Luna was dropped off, she bent up and whispered in Nadia‘s ear, “Please, be careful. I love you.” And gave her a quick peck on the cheek. Then, she was gone. She knew well by now to heed Luna‘s warnings, but she wasn’t quite sure what she was warning her about. Did she know about Tonya? Nadia smiled and held her tongue as they made their way to Red Rock High.

Being back here felt like a failure. It felt wrong. Paul had done all four years in this place. No fond memories. No wish to do it again. Maybe just a little curiosity to see it from different eyes. But she didn’t know the first thing about how a teenage girl was supposed to act in this setting, decades ago or now.

The campus had several sizable fences herding the masses towards a central point of entry and exit. The listless, dragging procession along the sidewalks and muddy grass felt intimately familiar. Her first class, honors English, was at the far end of campus towards the grass amidst the “temporary structures”. The worst part was arriving where checking online had told her to go and yet still feeling lost.

Guys and girls waved at her as though she should’ve recognized them on sight, and she did her best to respond with a smile and a wave of her own. It actually wasn’t long before she saw someone she did recognize.

Tonya.

She raised an arm high above her head and greeted Nadia like an old friend.

“Bus driver! Oop. Sorry! Good to see you. How are you holding up with everything? Did you decide on a name? Are you registered? Oh my gosh! Do you have Mr. Harcourt’s English class? What a small world! I’m actually tutoring for him through the college and providing supplemental materials for preparatory curriculum.”

Tonya looked absolutely normal in the light of day. She had dark eyes with a slate gray tone but they didn’t look menacing, inhuman, and out of sorts. Being slightly taller than Nadia wasn’t a huge accomplishment, but it still left her feeling intimidated. She did her best not to show tension or any other suspicious warning signs and simply smiled back before mentally composing her response.

“Hey… I am okay. A lot has happened. Seems like the world decided I should be Nadia Miray Baris, who I am. I hope I’m registered. I think I am. This should be my class. Glad to see… a friendly face.”

Tonya grinned widely, adjusted the colorful bow in her long hair, and pushed her glasses up. “Same here. But don’t expect me to go easy on you. Haha.” Nadia put on the best fake smile she could manage and gave a quick chuckle in response. Part of her wanted to throttle whatever this creature was in front of her, no matter if it meant security might drag her away. She barely resisted the urge.

The wind sliced coldly between the buildings, with cruel energy, as if it intended to strip the flesh from their bones. Tonya offered her a stick of gum, but Nadia smiled and said she was fine. She wanted one of the other girls to show up. Anyone else. Ideally Erin. If only she had some sort of tracker app on her phone too. But she was alone with this creepy and mysterious girl. If she didn’t know what she knew, would this moment standing next to her have felt weird or unsettling in the same way?

No one was freaking out about Tonya. Everyone was going about their Monday. But it felt wrong. So many things felt wrong. She shouldn’t be in high school. She shouldn’t be alone. The world wasn’t right anymore. Everything felt broken. She closed her eyes and took a sharp breath.

“…Nadia!” Erin‘s voice. Erin’s blessed, glorious soothing voice as a respite in the darkness. She opened her eyes and saw Erin rushing from the main quad toward her. Nadia stepped away from Tonya and opened her arms wide. Even though it had been mere hours since they’d last seen each other, it felt like a reunion of ages apart.

They embraced and held each other close, even though Nadia wanted to do more, to kiss her and have it all out in the open. Erin whispered in her ear.

“I saw her last night at the bus. With black eyes. Not human.” Nadia looked back and gave a little nod. Then, she leaned close and whispered similar statements about seeing creepy things around Tonya. She wanted to say more, reveal the full extent of her vision, but she dared not to delve deeper with the object of so much uncertainty and questions standing so close.

They both looked at Tonya, who kept a pleasant expression like nothing happened. “Oh, Bus Driver and Coach. Sweet nothings. So cute!”

Erin took a deep breath and relayed, “Nesbitt is the coach now. She’s apparently going to reform the team at her discretion. I don’t expect to be on it.”

Tonya mimed distress and concern. She even touched upon the ‘bewildering’ notions of how things had been altered. But Nadia couldn't take anything she said as sincere. Erin just calmly bobbed her head before reaching over to embrace Tonya.

The gesture seemed to surprise each of them. Erin spoke softly by Tonya’s ear but she made sure that Nadia could hear what she was saying. She relayed how much trust she had in her assistant coach, recounted difficult times they’d had together, and expressed immense gratitude for everything she had done, emphasizing what a fantastic player and teacher she was and what an honor it was to be her coach. Nadia could see Tonya’s smile rising bit by bit with each fragment of flattery. Erin finished by encouraging her “former“ assistant coach in all her future endeavors.

Tonya wiggled her head and remarked that, even though she was immensely loyal to Coach Reeves, she had a hunch that she might be able to fix several things with Nesbitt. She emphasized this with a wink and a smirk. Considering what she was able to do in the other reality, Nadia had no doubt about her abilities.

But what was Tonya? There were so many stray elements to put together to make sense of it all. Clearly not human. Was she like Beyond? She clearly wanted their powers for some reason and could suck the life force out of them. If Nadia trusted her visions or whatever they were. It seems like the best idea to stay in public like this with her around. She didn’t want to be caught alone with her.

Erin smiled lightly and kept her poker face firmly positioned as she wished Nadia a good day. It ached that they didn’t have the same first class. None of the other girls were in it. They were sure to meet up for snack and then lunch, if nothing else. And then, she was gone.

Nadia had a hard time looking over at Tonya, but she didn’t even bother to explain it as already missing Erin. Tonya didn’t seem to mind. Mr. Harcourt arrived with a desert-whipping blast of wind and ushered the class up the ramp.

She was just one student in the crowd, one girl among many, no one special. And yet, she was overflowing with secrets.