"What's meant to be will always find a way"
― Trisha Yearwood
CHOSEN
November 19
The skies were a perfect, bright shade of blue that were covered with puffy clouds like cotton balls. The sun brightly lit the sky, radiating the earth with its bright rays. The leaves rustling with the calming blows of the wind.
In the city of Bellwood, everything was in top-notch shape. People would do their errands, children would go to school, and businessmen would go to their corporate jobs. Just like any average day in Bellwood.
In one neighborhood, in a beautiful, peaceful suburb called Meadow Parks, there was a small, one-story house with yellow brick and dark roofing. A tall oak tree stood in the front yard, a housing for the singing birds of Bellwood. A beautiful patio contained hanging plants and a white colored bench that rested next to the large, white framed window.
Inside, an adolescent girl was getting ready for another day of high school. Gathering her things, she walked into the kitchen to meet her grandmother making breakfast.
"Good morning, Mae," her grandmother greeted, laying the plates of waffles and bacon on the table.
"Morning," Mae replied, yawning. She licked her lips when she noticed the steaming food that was her breakfast.
She quickly grabbed the fork and knife, devouring the food. Her grandmother chuckled, grabbing her cup of hot coffee. She sat by her granddaughter, watching her gobble and vacuum her food.
"Don't eat too fast, Mae. You'll choke," her grandmother stated, pouring sugar in her coffee.
Mae swallowed hard, sighing. "Sorry grandma," she said, grinning. She quickly placed her plate in the sink and grabbed her backpack that rested by the table's leg. "I'll have to go. I gotta run,"
Her grandmother chuckled, replying, "You always 'gotta run', Mae,"
"What can I say, grandma, I'm a person who has places to be," she stated, shrugging her shoulders.
Mae kissed her grandmother's temple and quickly shuffled out the kitchen. She wished the small, orange tabby with a swinging tail that rested on top of the windowsill good-bye, running through the hallway.
Her grandmother gasped, yelling out the doorway of the kitchen, "Oh! Congrats on your acceptance to the school's Honor Society!"
Mae yelled over her shoulder; "Thank you!"
She closed the door behind her and picked up her resting bike. With one foot pushing the pedal to start the bicycle going, Mae rode through the yard and then raced down the sidewalk. Pedaling down the sidewalk on her street of Haven Boulevard, she greeted some of her neighbors with big grins and friendly waves. Her short, brunette hair whipped around as she raced through the chilly air and blowing winds, grinning ecstatically.
It was a good day for Mae. She was, in fact, accepted in The Honor Society at her school through her hard work and restless nights of studying. She was so close to reaching her goal to be successful – to reach higher places. It was the only thing that she could do. Besides her schoolwork, she volunteered in her community to help those in need; she always had a knack at wanting to help others. In addition, Mae was in her high school's soccer team and, currently, is on their lacrosse team. But, it was hard to manage everything at once. Being a junior is difficult, but Mae is determined to keep going.
The grin that stretched from ear to ear couldn't be erased. Mae was going to have the greatest day today, if it is the last thing she'll get.
At the corner of the street of Haven Boulevard and Deerpark Drive, a car with green and black paint lingered by the curb. A person inside eyed the brunette, adolescent girl who raced down the street with her bicycle. Smirking, the person put the car in drive and turned around to pursue the teenager. Steadily behind the bicycle, the car followed.
After a block or two, Mae began to realize a suspicious car has been following her. Instead of quickening her pedaling, she slowed down to the point of halting. However, the car was steadily passing her. Mae looked through the thick window, not seeing a person inside. Then, the car quickly sped up and turned the corner.
Mae rose a brow, saying to herself; "Weird…"
During her bike to her school, Mae couldn't get the car out of her mind. She began to wonder who that person was and why that person stalked her. However, Mae wasn't scared or anxious – she felt curious. She pondered and pieced together that a car like that wasn't recognizable in the normal city she lived in. The car was too…exotic.
She lifted her leg over the seat, slowing down as she approached the front of the school. She placed her bike in the bicycle rack, securing her bike in place. Pushing a strand of her hair behind her ear, Mae threw her backpack over her shoulder.
"Mae!"
She looked up and noticed a charming girl with long, silky blonde hair running towards her. Mae smiled warmly, recognizing her close friend.
"Autumn! Hey," Mae greeted, standing up from kneeling.
Autumn smiled, but she frowned. Mae gotten confused by Autumn's sudden change of expression. "What's wrong?" Mae asked.
"You didn't attend this morning's mandatory club meeting," Autumn stated, hands pressed on her hips.
Mae fell silent, quickly realizing her mistake. However, it wasn't to no surprise that Autumn would know about Mae missing from the meeting - she was the President in the club. She was perfect in every way, in Mae's opinion. Perfect attendance, grades, and looks. However, Mae loved more about how she was; she was smart, kind, and responsible. Then, Mae realized that Autumn was waiting patiently for her excuse. Right, she had totally forgotten the meeting because she was up all night studying for her Physics' exam. In summary, Physics is her hardest subject.
"It slipped my mind," Mae stated, grinning sheepishly.
Autumn sighed, she replied; "You're too forgetful. How did you make it this far?"
"It surprises me, too. I'll try to remember next time, okay? I have to go,"
Autumn continued to scold her as she quickly left her friend behind. Autumn sighed again, defeated. She told herself that that girl was always trouble and a huge responsibility.
Mae rushed through the hallway, greeting familiar faces. She ran into her first period, Physics, and quickly went to the desk that was at the back of the room. She wanted to cram as much as she could before the first period officially starts. She threw her backpack on the top of her desk and unzipped it. However, she noticed an alien object packed inside. She pulled it out and noticed its strange appearance. It was a circular disk with a green, hourglass-shaped object decorating it.
"What's this?" Mae asked, wondering how this item got in her backpack.
The bell rung.
Mae jumped in her seat and shoved the object back in her backpack. She knew it wasn't time to think about that disk now. She placed her backpack on the side of her desk, waiting for her teacher to arrive.
Her teacher strolled inside the room with stature and stride. She was tall and lanky with curly, thick red strands. Her face was droopy and engraved with wrinkles. Her glasses hugged around her large hook nose that flared every time she spoke. Her big eyeballs eyed everyone in the room. She cleared her throat and croaked: "Please take out your holopens and begin your exam!"
Leaning to the side to grab her pen from her backpack's front pocket, Mae heard a loud beeping coming from her backpack. Mae's heart stopped.
Her teacher's head snapped to the back of the class where Mae sat. Her classmates followed the teacher stomp furiously to Mae. Each whispering amongst each other about how Mae is going to be murdered by her.
Mae grabbed the disk and noticed the hourglass blinking. Mae shook it and banged it against her chair.
"Shut up!" Mae hissed, trying to find a way to turn it off.
Quickly, a lanky hand swiped it from Mae's small hand. Her Physics teacher's nose flared as she scrutinized the alien object.
"Well, Miss. Johnson, I would have never expected yourself to be a cheater," her teacher squeaked.
"Ms. West, I promise I wasn't cheating. That's not even mine!" Mae claimed, pointing at the object.
"Oh? Then, why is it in your backpack?"
Mae fell silent, green orbs staring at the object and at Ms. West's bulging orbs. "Um, honestly, I have no idea,"
The class chorused with giggling. Ms. West glared at her students and back at Mae with a scowl.
"Funny, Miss. Johnson. How about this?" Ms. West sneered, her nose flaring again; she continued, "Principal's office,"
Gawking, Mae sat frozen on her seat. Ms. West stomped her foot and pointed at the door. "Now!" she exclaimed.
Mae's head fell, slowly grabbing her backpack and trudging through the isle of desks. Ms. West handed her the object (that finally stopped beeping) and slammed the door behind her. Mae flinched, but sighed.
Looking down at her hand, she glowered at the object. She cursed at it, calling it names and telling it how it caused her a zero on a test grade.
She waited in the administration's office, tapping her foot nervously. The boy before her left the room with a large piece of pink paper, grimacing and frowning.
"Miss. Johnson," the principal called her in.
Mae sighed, lifting her heavy body off the seat. Her backpack slung over her shoulder and the object in her hand, she waltzed into the room.
The principal, Mr. Chanister, sat in his seat with a hologram screen illuminated on his desk. He told Mae to take a seat; Mae followed.
Sitting in the chair of punishment, Mae looked at her feet with shame. Mr. Chanister looked at the sullen teen, sighing. He turned the hologram off and rested his chin on his intertwined hands.
"I'm speechless, Miss. Johnson. I would have never thought to see you here in my office," he stated, shaking his head.
"Please, Mr. Chanister, I could explain. This thing-" Mae showed Mr. Chanister the object, continuing, "is not even mine! Someone must have slipped it in my backpack somehow. I swear, Mr. Chanister, I have been framed!"
Mr. Chansiter took the grain of salt, asking Mae for the object. Mae handed the object to Mr. Chanister to let him look at it. As he looked at it, the object began to beep again. However, the beeping was louder and seemed more potent than the last.
"See!" Mae yelled over the loud beeping, "It did that!"
Mr. Chanister grimaced from the loud sound, trying to look for a button to turn it off. But, as soon as Mr. Chanister was about to speak, the beeping instantly stopped. Mae looked at Mr. Chanister with piercing green eyes.
She said, crossing her arms, "Told you,"
Mr. Chanister deadpanned, passing the disk to Mae. Mae retrieved it, holding it in the palm of her hand. Mr. Chanister told Mae that he will let her off easy, but with one circumstance.
"Detention!" Mae exclaimed, then stammering, "But, but, but! But, The Honor Society! My rep at school!"
"Miss. Johnson, please relax. I will talk to the sponsor of the organization to let them know about the misunderstanding. Also, during detention, you will make-up your test,"
Mae puffed, crossing her arms. "The Wicked Witch won't even let me try,"
Mr. Chanister puckered his brow, upset about Mae's comment. "I understand how you feel, Miss. Johnson. But, it will only be today after school. Tomorrow, you will be let off easy,"
Mae sighed, but she smiled. She was relieved Mr. Chanister will let her go. Even though that the strange object that she had is not even hers, she felt like she got away from a crime.
The principal showed her out of the room and still handing her the large, pink paper. Mae held the sheet of paper with shame.
"Wow, never would've thought that the Wicked Witch of the West would do such a thing. Well, that's wrong – she would do something like that. But, to you! Now, that's cruel!" Mae's friend, Oscar, stated.
Mae was in detention. Her forehead resting on the top of her desk as she sighed miserably. It was just her and her friend sitting in the dull, empty room.
"Linda, you shouldn't fret about it. You're lucky Mr. Chani let you off easy," Oscar stated, letting his chair balance on its hind legs, "I've been here for a whole week,"
Turning her head over to look over at her friend, Mae sighed again. "That's because you did graffiti on the school's property, Os. But, like, I've worked so hard and – because of that stupid disk – all of it was almost taken from me,"
Oscar perked up, curious about this "disk" that Mae was mentioning. "Como? What disk is this?"
"Okay, it's this weird disk with some hourglass on it," Mae stated, leaning over to open her backpack. She pulled the disk out and showed it to her friend. She noticed Oscar's dark eyes pop open, shocked by the appearance of the object.
"You know what this is?" Mae asked, noticing Oscar's expression.
Oscar quickly shook his head, stating that he never seen something like that in his life. He grabbed the object and scrutinized it. He pushed a strand of hair out of his eyes and let his fingers rub across the surface of the alien object.
"So, this is what almost caused you to lose your rep as a nerd?" Oscar asked, jokingly.
"Har-har. But, yes. It was loud and beeping like crazy!" Mae replied
Oscar rose a thick brow. Letting his finger tap his chin, he began to think. "Maybe someone is trying to call you? Or it could be a distress call? I don't know; I'm not a huge tech geek,"
"Would your brother know?" Mae inquired, desperate for an answer.
Oscar shrugged his shoulders, replying; "Maybe. But, I don't know if he'll be able to help; the little dude always has something to do,"
Oscar's little brother – technically a half-brother – Luis Gomez, is a techy genius! He knows any type of circuit board inside and out – that goes for any sort of technology. Even if he wouldn't know, he would dissect it and, almost instantly, find an answer. Oscar and Luis looked alike, besides the fact that they're siblings, almost like twins; however, Luis is a year younger than Oscar. They have the darkest brown hair and caramel-colored skin with the same dark, brown orbs. But, Oscar had long, straight hair that reached down to his shoulders with some facial hair on his chin. Luis, on the other hand, was more clean and organized.
Mae banged her head on the desk, frustrated. "I have no idea what that thing is. I don't even know how it got in my backpack. And I have no leads or answers,"
"Are you an alien?" Oscar asked, seriously.
Mae glanced up and noticed Oscar's unsmiling expression. Mae wasn't sure if he was joking or being serious, but Mae felt her gut tighten.
She nervously chuckled, trying to ease the tension between them. "No way, dude. That's ridic. What makes you have that idea?"
Oscar chuckled, shrugging his shoulders. "I don't know," Then, Oscar smirked, a witty comment coming to mind. "Maybe because you're out of this world ,"
Mae groaned, but giggled anyway. "Dude, that was bad,"
"Yeah, I know," Oscar replied, smiling.
After detention, Mae was accompanied by Oscar to the bike rack so Mae could get her bicycle. She unsecured it from the rack and pulled it out. She wrapped the chain around the handle bar and locked it into place.
The sky was slowly darkening, turning into dark shades of blue and purple. The sun was slowly disappearing, hiding behind the trees that lined up by skyline. It was almost time for dinner, Mae noted.
"Hey, you want to hang at Mr. Smoothy," Oscar asked, then added, "They have a special for any smoothies before seven," He helped Mae put on her backpack; receiving a "gracias" from Mae.
"I wish, bro. But, I have tons of homework to catch up on," Mae replied, saddened. "But, maybe next time?"
"Sure, next time," Oscar agreed.
He wished Mae good-bye and walked to the school's parking lot. Mae got on her bike and started her way home. By the end of the street, the same green and black mustang was waiting. The person inside was resting his head on the headrest, slowly dozing off. However, the monitor that was the person's radio was beeping. The person woke up, startled by the loud beeping. He noticed a green hourglass moving along the 2-D street.
"Finally," the person grumbled, turning the engine.
Mae was slowly bicycling her way home, enjoying the sunset. The soft, cool breeze grazed across her face as she rode down the sidewalk. Her hair dancing along with the wind, Mae let her bike sway side to side.
However, a beeping that came from her backpack interrupted her musing. She groaned, stopping. She placed her backpack on her lap and took out the annoying object. The hourglass was blinking and the beeping was becoming louder. But, just behind her, she heard a familiar purring from a particular exotic car.
Turning around, she noticed the sports car that was stalking behind her.
"You again?" Mae asked, irritated.
She threw her backpack over her shoulder and raced down the sidewalk. She let the object be half-held in her hand as she rested her hands on the handlebars. She quickly cut across the street, in front of the stalking car, and took a detour. The mustang roared and began racing after Mae.
Mae looked behind her, her hair blowing all over her face as she sped down the street. She pedaled with all her might. She heard the wind roaring passed her ears and the cold, harsh wind made her eyes teary.
"Why are you following me!" Mae yelled over her shoulder, "Leave me alone!"
Her thumb accidently pressed the surface of the object, illuminating a three-dimensional map. Mae halted to a stop, gawking at the object.
"Whoa,"
She noticed a red blinking point that beeped every time it flashed. Then, she noticed the white light that supposedly meant her location. Mae instantly realized what she needed to do.
She looked over her shoulder and saw the mustang screech around the corner. Mae gasped, pressing her feet on the pedal to start racing again.
She followed the directions of the map. She cut through people's yards, recklessly through corners, and through the neighborhood's park. The car was persistent; close to Mae's tail. However, Mae was smart and finally lost the stranger.
Panting loudly, Mae turned a corner into an abandoned trailer park. She hid her bike behind the solid fence and let her back rest against the solid metal. She peeked over the edge and noticed the mustang slowly prowl down the street. Seeing it disappear, Mae sighed in relief.
Letting herself rest on the dirt floor, Mae let her head fall back against the fence. The adrenaline still pounded and pulsed in her veins. She looked at the 3-D map, still noticing the blinking red dot. Groaning, she pushed herself off the ground and trudged across the trailer park.
She met a big, rusty RV that seemed to be aging in the same spot for years. She looked one side to another side of the RV, trying to find a way inside. She found the door on the other side. The door was rusted brown and the handle bar had slight fungus growing on it. Mae grumbled about how crazy she was for doing this.
She turned the map off and placed the object in her back pocket. She forcefully opened the door and a big puff of old, smelly air blew at her face.
"Gross!" She exclaimed, quickly covered her mouth and nose with her hand.
She took one big step inside, trying to ignore the pungent smell of fungus and old smelly socks. Mae wondered how long this rust bucket was neglected. It was ridiculous, Mae thought.
She pulled the object out of her pocket and noticed the hourglass blink faster as she went down the aisle. She met a large, worn curtain at the end of the RV. She pressed her hand on the edge of the curtain, but a large mass of moths flew at her face.
Mae screeched, dropping the object from the sudden surprise of bugs at her face. She swatted at the bugs, jumping up and down.
The swarm of bugs flew away and out the RV. Mae panted, a hand pressing on her chest.
"I hate bugs," Mae stated, shivering.
She grabbed the object from the ground and carefully proceeded forward into an abandoned room. The room was covered in cobwebs and dust. The room contained two large desks with piles of paper and books that have dust piling on top. A small, white mug was tipped over at the edge with aged coffee staining the inside. Shelves hung on the walls with pictures and other books that Mae never recognized.
Mae read multiple types of books, but never recognized any of these. As she approached the desk, she let the mug stand properly and looked at the pile of papers.
The papers were classified documents that Mae never saw before, except for movies. They had pictures of strange creatures that looked like reptiles, amphibians, or neither. These things looked like something from some weird classic sci-fi movie that she use to watch when she was a kid. She wondered why someone, who was in this rust bucket, would be interested in these types of things. Mae wasn't comprehending what she was reading. She noticed, with a large, red bolded stamp at the center of each of the documents read "MISSING".
"These monsters are missing?" Mae wondered, "Who would even kidnap them?"
A picture frame that hung on the wall, below the shelves, perked Mae's curiosity. Mae leaned over and turned on the ancient lamp that stood on the corner of the table. She let the light lean over at the picture to let Mae get a better look. She wiped the dust off the glass and noticed three teens with an old man in front of the familiar RV. However, the RV looked new and wasn't covered in rust or fungus.
But, one particular person had Mae interested. It was a boy who looked oddly similar to her. He wore a green leather jacket with a tucked in black tee underneath. He had the similar piercing green eyes and brown hair. The features on his face was like hers: the nose, the thick eye brows, and the round ears. An idea sparked in her brain making Mae's heart instantly stopped.
"No way," Mae whispered, "Is this..."
A loud beeping and buzzing came from the object, interrupting Mae. She grabbed the object from the table and pressed the hourglass.
"Omnitrix in proximity," the object said in a monotone voice, "Plumber badge activate transformation,"
"It talks!" Mae gasped.
Instantly, the room was rumbling and beginning to change. The shelves were pulled inside the walls and spun to show mass amounts of never-before-seen weapons. Computer monitors appeared out of the walls through opening doors and the closet spun to show a gigantic safe that had an engraved circle in the middle.
Mae was frozen still. Part of her wanted to quickly leave and wash this out of her mind. This was so insane that Mae wasn't able to fathom the situation before her very eyes.
The engraved hole began to blink and beep quietly. Mae looked at the hole on the safe and at the object in her hand, getting an idea. Steadily, she approached the safe and pressed the object in the hole. Yet, nothing happened. Mae deadpanned, feeling the anticlimactic situation.
"Wow!" Mae drawled, sighing, "Fantastic,"
She tried pulling the object out but it wouldn't budge. Grunting, Mae tried to pull it out. She pressed her foot on the safe and tried to yank the object, but it wouldn't work. She sighed, giving up. Tapping a finger on her chin, she stared at the badge and contemplated what she could do.
"What if I…" Mae trailed. She turned the object clockwise and the rim of the object hissed. The object sunk into the gap and turned another one-eighty degrees. The hourglass shined brightly green and changed into a diamond shape. Sounds of locks clanked and the safe hissed with puffs of air coming out of the edges. The door opened and a bright flash of green light blinded Mae.
Mae, in the corner of her eye, noticed a soft, green glow. Peeking, she noticed a watch inside a levitating glowing orb.
"Whoa. That's just – whoa," Mae said, shocked.
She reached inside the safe, slowly. Her fingers lingering inside the glowing orb. The orb quickly vanished and the watch dropped in Mae's hands.
It was large, grey and bulky and seemed slightly heavy in Mae's nervous palms. But, a feeling inside Mae's gut turned and knotted. It was like some sort of déjà vu that Mae couldn't shake off. The watch beeped and the display flashed: "Scan commencing!". Mae threw her watch at the floor when she noticed a ray of green light surveyed her from top to bottom.
"Scan complete. Recalibration sequence starting!"
Mae was speechless. First, the weird alien documents; second, the photo on the desk; and third, the talking watch. Silent, she gawked at the watch lying a couple feet from her. She slowly stepped close to it and reached down to grab it, careful to not let it turn on again.
In that moment of connection, Mae's phone was buzzing inside her backpack. Out of shock, Mae almost dropped the watch (again). She quickly recovered and tried to whip her backpack off her shoulder to answer her phone.
She noticed it was her grandmother and groaned.
"Grandma, what's up?" she answered.
"Where are you, Maven Johnson! It is late and you aren't home!" her grandmother yelled on the other side.
Mae looked at the watch in the palm of her hand and scanned around the exotic decorated room.
"Sorry Grandma! I was at Autumn's house, uh, studying! We have a big test tomorrow," Mae lied. She winced when she noticed that she had answered to quickly. Maven wasn't a great liar.
Her grandmother paused, but she answered briefly, "Okay, next time please call me,"
"Yes, Grandma. I'll be home soon." Mae said, letting the phone press on her cheek as she shoved the watch and the badge in her backpack.
She looked over at the pile of documents and stack of books, realizing that she needs those too.
"Okay, well, dinner is in the microwave. I will see you here," her grandmother stated, then she made small kissing noises.
"Bye-bye" Mae hung up.
Before Mae was going to bolt out the room, she quickly stopped and looked at the photo of the familiar boy. She took the photo out of the picture frame and folded it to place it in her pocket.
Outside, in a dark alley, the exotic car waited outside the trailer park. He watched the familiar girl race through the exit with a big, hefty backpack on her back. The stranger in the car chuckled, smirking.
"Just like herding cattle," the stranger stated, looking at the blinking hourglass on the monitor's screen.
