Hi. I'm Jaz. You don't know me, and you'll probably never meet me. I know I'm starting to sound all sci-fi right now, but I swear it's not a sci-fi thing. Though it does certainly test reality.
I'm writing this not because you need to know, but because I think my story is something special that people should know about. Hell! It's not like I'm special, but he is!
I guess it started the day we met. I wasn't in school, because I hated school with a passion. It wasn't so much the learning as the stupid idiots who hindered my learning. Instead, I was slinking around town on the dreariest day known to man. The sky looked like God was glaring at it, but the rain was holding off for now. My destination was a small cafe down the road. I knew the owner, Jim, kept his mouth shut about my excursions from school even when I skipped out halfway through the day.
Don't get me wrong! I'm not a bad kid. I just get a thrill at escaping that brick prison they generously term 'school'. This is exactly what I had done today.
"Jim," I yelled as I stepped into the little cafe and heard the bell tinkle above me.
"Yeah!" The voice came from the back of the kitchen where I knew he would be. "I'll get it!"
I smirked and slid into my favorite booth against the back wall underneath the poster of Underworld. I admired Selene which was the reason that, out of all the movie memorabilia decorating this place, I sat here.
Jim bustled out carrying a vanilla milkshake and a plate of fries.
"Hey, Jaz," he smiled as he sat teh shake down on the table. "Preparing for those days after graduation?"
I grinned. Jim may not be remotely near my age, but he had a sense of humour. "Naw. You know me, Jim. I would never skip school like that."
He winked. "I know."
The bell tinkled, and Jim left to tend to the customers. I didn't concern myself with his disappearance. He always seemed to pop back up. I sipped the mikshake and minded my own business. That was when I felt the chill crawl up my spine. I knew that tingle. Danger. My anit-drug.
I looked around the shop until my eyes rested on the customers. It was a group of boys. They were unusual to say the least. All three were dressed lightly, t-shirts, jeans, and jackets. They were joking around like normal boys and being foolish in general, so I don't know why I got that danger vibe from them.
I turned back to my milkshake but couldn't help glancing back at them. They were HOT, and I was a girl still. It seemed like they came in three sizes. One boy was lean and flexible with flashy movie star blonde hair. Another had golden brown hair that stuck up in mini-spikes along his forehead. Lastly, there was a brute but not in a bad way. He was the hottest brute I'd ever seen.
The bronze one suddenly smiled and elbowed the brute in the ribs. They whispered heatedly for a moment before the brute glanced at me.
I admit I seem a bit punkish. I call it like it is and dress as I please. If that happens to be labeled 'punk', then so be it. I mean, the sky is sky and crap is crap. A brute walking toward me is a brute walking toward me. So, I did what I do best. I drank my milkshake and glared.
The bronze haired boy's smile twitched. I almost swore he knew what I was thinking. Lord, please help him if he does. If someone were to read my thoughts, he had better want a beating. Bronze's (as he is now dubbed) smile died. Gosh! It wasn't like I was super human or anything. He smiled again. Turd.
"Hey," said the brute above me.
I glared at him while noisily slurping my milkshake until I had sufficiently froze my brain to near extinction. "Hey, yourself."
He slid into my booth. MINE. Did I mention the number of people I had beat for such an offence?
"Punk?" he asked in a playful manner.
Oh, no, he didn't! He did NOT just labe me! Hell, I'll kick Beastboy's butt to high heaven for that! He must've see the fire in my eyes. I am one of the easiest people in the world to read, but this fact just made him smile wickedly.
It happened so fast. Bronze lept up and shouted something as my hand connected with Beastboy's pretty nose that sat right below those playful golden eyes.
The pain! Oh, God, save me! The Pain! I couldn't scream. It was too bad. I had no air! I 'm suffocating! Bronze covered my mouth. I saw him through bleary eyes. He was holding his nose. A light tap on my head then blackness. Glorious blackness. . .
--
Beep. . . Beep. . . Beep.
The continuous sound pestered me. It was loud and obnoxious. I tried to lift my hand to whack my alarm clock, but my arm was too heavy and just kind of overall floppy.
"Ah," I heard a voice say. "She's waking up."
I hate assumptions, so I naturally quieted my body into stillness.
"Hmmmm. I could've swore she was coming too," said the same voice.
"Don't assume things," said a flatter voice.
A smile almost split my lips. Great minds think alike.
"Too bad Edward isn't here. He could tell for sure."
Edward? The doctor?
"Jasper, what happened?"
"Edward had the bright idea to have Emett bug her, and naturally, he offended her." It was my fellow great mind speaking.
"Didn't you see where this was going?"
"No," he answered truthfully. "Her moods changed pretty fast. Besides, it was entertaining."
It seems like my 'Great Mind' was just as annoying as everything else. I pretended to finally 'awake'. I wanted these jerks out of my room. . . wherever I was. I stretched and opened my eyes lazily. They widened in surprise.
I had a movie star and an absolutely gorgeous doctor in my room. And me only in a hospital gown. I tried to think of something to say but came up with only a lame question.
"Why am I here?"
Of course, I knew why I was in the freakin' hospital! I punched the brute, and instead of being soft and pliable like a normal human being, he had to be a freakin' rock!
"You fell, dear," said the doctor gently.
"What?!"
"You reached to punch one of my boys, but you must've slipped and fell. You unconciously braced for the impact and shattered some of the bones in your wrist."
"No! That's not it!"
I searched my memory. That wasn't what happened! I accept that I'm not the strongest person in the world or have the greatest memory, but I'm sure of it! I felt skin before. . . the pain. Smooth unimaginably perfect skin. . .
"You may be confused. That kind of pain and trauma sometimes causes hallucinations. Combined with the anestesia, it's certain."
I turned to the movie star with a much calmer attitude but a still thoroughly confused mind. "Why are you here?"
He opened his mouth but was cut off by the doctor.
"My sons wanted to make up for the stress their meddling caused you."
"I want to hear it from him," I said without taking my eyes off of my movie star.
The doctor shrugged and nodded.
"I'm Jasper," said the movie star. I felt this was a fitting beginning after all the trouble they had caused. I should at least get a name. "We're visiting from another town right now. We really didn't mean to cause you all this trouble, but we figured paying your medical bills was the least we could do. That was a nasty fall."
"Liar," I practically shouted. "You and I both know I punched Beastboy, and he turned out to have the density of a brick wall!"
I noticed 'Jasper' twitch an eyebrow, buy my rant was far from over.
"You and ol' Bronze just sat your butts over there and let it happen! I bet you even flew in Doc over her from wherever the-heck-your-from to patch me up, so I wouldn't sue you till all you had left was the clothes on your back! Do you have a posse of lawyers outside that need to talk to me as soon as Doc says I'm free?! Because, Jasper, if that's even really your name, I am not going to stand for it! I want out now!"
After saying this, I huffed noisily and turned to the grueling work of extracting an IV from my person.
"Hey! Hey! Careful."
I felt Doc's gentle touch as he properly and delicately extracted the IV from my arm. It was cold, his touch, but so very relaxing. My eyes snapped open as I began to focus a bit better,a dn the very air seemed to shine brighter. The smooth perfect skin touching mine. The same perfect skin. . .
"You're just like Beastboy," I whispered.
Doc looked at me dubiously. "I beg your pardon?"
"Your so-called son that I punched," I explained recklessly. I could still feel the danger pulsing through me, and it only fueled my daring nature.
"Emett? I would say so," he said gently. "He is my son, after all."
"Hmm," I said. "Emett. Well, that turd owes me an apology."
"I'm sure he does," said the doctor.
I didn't know what else to say. The doctor just seemed to absently agree to everything. Jasper just didn't care. I wondered vaguely if he might know something more. I stayed silent for once.
--
I must've slept. I do that when I'm bored. The sound I woke to was footsteps. I know that seems strange, because tons of people walk by a hospital room, but these footsteps were bold and a bit. . . I don't know. Dangerous?
When he walked into my room, I was strangely calm and collected. It happens on rare occasions.
"Hey," he said in the most sheepish and guilty voice I have ever heard.
I immediately assumed he was just being an ass since that's what all guys are doing when they sound that severely guilty, though he did look sincere. I hoped his father had at least taught him to have a conscience if not manners. "Well? How about an 'I'm sorry'?"
"You know my Dad chewed me out about this," he said like I actually cared. "He wanted me to come in and beg for forgiveness on my hands and knees, but I think that would be too formal. Don't you agree?"
"Quite the contrary," I said with a totally serious face. "I find that very fitting." I had always wanted ot see a stuck up brat kneel before me, much more so if he looked like he was carved by freakin' Michealangelo! God bless you, Micheal!
He laughed! Beastboy laughed at me! I don't mean a 'ha ha' laugh. I mean an 'I'm gonna fall on the floor and die' laugh. I bet you're thinking 'Holy crap! She's gonna blow up and try to kick his butt again!' Guess what? I didn't. I do have some self control, you know.
I waited a few moments before saying testily, "Are you done yet?"
He sat down in nearby armchair with that grin still pasted to his face. "Sorry about all that." His grin was too infectuous.
I couldn't help it. I know my face turned a curious shade of red that I hated. This hadn't happened since kindergarten when I though Mark Stone looked cute in his pull-ups. I pushed him into the basket of LEGOs for inspiring such thoughts in my young self.
"Not good enough," I said through gritted teeth.
He looked surprised, but I was surprised at myself as well. Inspiration is a dangerous thing. He felt guilty, and I could use that.
"Tell me the truth," I said. "Jasper and Doc say I fell, but I don't believe them. Tell me what happened."
I admit that was a little bit daring, but if I wasn't daring, there wouldn't be a story. He looked pained. Maybe torn. I don't know.
The clouds parted, and a shaft of sunlight pierced through the sky. It was divine intervention. It had to be. The sunlight hit him for a split second then was swallowed right back up in the dark sky.
"Wow," I said. "Either my mind just played a very strange trick on me, someone has doused you with glitter, or you just sparkled insanely."
I'm inclined to think the latter. My mind doesn't play tricks like that as I'm more likely to hallucinate a juggling panda than a sparkling man, or some glitter salesman offered Beastboy a free sample. I can't see someone pouring glitter on such a brute much less Beastboy allowing someone to do that. Therefore, Beastboy sparkles. Alot.
Ever heard of the brains and brawn theory? Well, I think that was what was happening here. Beastboy obviously had the brawn therefore no brains. Quick answers that are actually smart were quite hard to come by.
"I was attacked by a glitter salesman," he said with a totally straight face.
"Yeah right," I said. "And Jasper is really Tom Cruise, Bronze is a taco-holic, and Darth Vader is your father."
Beastboy smiled. "Of course!"
I was about to go psychotic ninja on him when a knock sounded at the door. It was Bronze.
"What do you want?!" Misdirected rage?
"I would appreciate it if you didn't inflict pain on my sibling."
"How long have you been standing there like a crappy statue?!"
"What can I say? I'm the guard."
I hated these people. There were all freakin' spies! I wanted to leave quite badly, but there was no way I was going to waltz out of the hospital much less this room in only a hospital gown. I had no desire to be ogled. Bronze grimaced.
"You should probably stay awhile," he said.
I also had no desire to listen to a turd talk incessantly. The question was: Which fate is worse?
"Don't worry. I'll be quiet," he said.
"Hmph." I suppose the former is worse.
"Where's Jasper," asked Beastboy. I suppose the right thing to do would be to refer to him as Emett, but I've never been into stuff that's right and proper. Besides, Beastboy owed me. He would make a great slave.
"What," asked Beastboy as he looked at Bronze with suspicion.
"If only you knew. . ."
May God punish you for unfinished sentences, Bronze! He was too secretive, but he was comfortable about his secrets. It couldn't be a guilty type of secret. Maybe he was in a cult along with the rest of his whacked family. An absurd picture of them dancing around a campfire singing chants popped into my mind. Yep. That had to be it.
Bronze suddenly couldn't contain some sort of odd joy and burst out laughing. I had the unique sense that it was because of something that happened yesterday. He laughed harded.
There is somethint way wierd with that freak. It's almost like he is reading that little ticker tape I call my mind. Yes, there was definitely something odd going on with these freaks. It was right then and there that I decided I would find out what exactly was going on.
I guess that's how it all started. You probably don't want to be bored by me any longer, so just go on with life. Maybe you don't need to know about all those secret predators out there. I mean, if you get caught, what are you going to do about it?