Page 33 of Misfit Monsters
A tingle sweeps through my body that has nothing to do with any emotions I’m picking up from him. I’m not sure what to make of it, but I’m abruptly self-conscious that my hair is going to start glowing in some embarrassing color.
A hint of deeper color touches Jonah’s brown cheeks. I catch a dash of something even sweeter and richer before he steps back. “Anyway, I should let you get to your other classes. I’ll see you later, Peri.”
I watch him stride off, the strange feeling still bubbling in my chest.
Is there something wrong with me that I wish I could see more of him right now? Just sit with him and ask all about his childhood, what his powers mean to him—everything?
Run my fingers through his hair… and over other parts of him too?
Maybe that would be okay to try. Another time. When I’m more sure of my emotional control.
With a new spring in my step, I head toward my dorm. A trio of beings chatting outside a classroom stop and look in my direction.
If we’ve had classes together, I don’t remember their names, but one of the women nudges her friends with her elbow. “Look, it’s that know-it-all newbie.”
The other two women giggle, one with a hiss of her overlong tongue. “Got any tips for us, sssmartie pantsss?”
I let their mocking tone slide off me. They don’t really know me. It’s not me they’re actually put off by.
“I’m not trying to bother anyone,” I tell them. “I’m sorry if I upset you.”
Even my apology sets off a flare of annoyance in the women. The first one sneers at me. “We’re notupset. We just think a nitwit like you should figure out your place before you spout off at the rest of us.”
The second woman giggles again. “In self-defence class, she was shaking like a dandelion in a breeze.”
The third chimes in. “Telling us not to be scared of the assholes out there when she’s terrified of all of us.”
I frown. “I’m not afraid of you.”
“No?” the first woman says.
Before the sound has finished leaving her lips, the second woman lunges forward. Her face transforms into a grotesque visage, all wrinkled purple-black skin, searing scarlet eyes, and vicious fangs she snaps inches from my face.
With a startled squeak, I stumble backward. The demon reverts to her human-esque form a moment later. She and her friends burst into laughter.
The third woman points at my head. “She’s freaked out now. Like a living mood ring.”
A prickle runs through my scalp. My hair is glowing.
All thought of my harassers flees my mind. I spin on myheel and dash back to the room where I had my one-on-one training session.
“Shanty!” I say breathlessly as I burst in, but the chair behind the desk is empty. She’s already gone.
My gaze latches on to the mirror. I hustle over just in time to see the yellowish sheen dwindling in my hair.
Can I make it brighter again?
I recall my jolt of panic when the demonic woman sprang at me, but the glow fades completely away.
I peer at my reflection for several more beats of my heart, resolve building inside me.
That woman helped me, even if she didn’t realize. Any time people hassle me or embarrass me, it’s a chance to practice.
I just have to keep turning my problems into gifts.
12
Mirage
