Jumper: Cent's Story

Cent will try to uncover more about the mysterious, John Bale. Meanwhile, strange men-in-black show up at the school, but their sights aren't on Cent, but on someone else entirely.

I can feel the excitment already! Enjoy the story!

Chapter Four:

Not The Only Jumper

Cent was up and ready before her alarm clock went off.

The weird thing about it was that she has never been like this before. She was filled with excitment. Couldn't wait to get to school. It was completely unlike her.

Some part of Cent knew what the excitment was all about. She couldn't wait to see John Bale again.

Dreams of John came and went for Cent. Some were romantic and nice. Some were moments when he would leave her and no matter how loud she called out for him, he would never return.

Why am I acting like this? Cent asked herself as she grabbed her bag and ran out of her bedroom.

When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she almost ran into her father, who was carrying a cup of coffee.

"Whoa!" David teased her and laughed. "Where's the fire?" He paused and saw the excitment in her eyes. "And why do you look like five years old again? I haven't seen you this happy since I bought you your first bicycle."

Cent smiled and rubbed the back of her neck.

"Don't know," she responded. "Just have this energy to be on the move for some reason."

"I bet!" Millie appeared from the kitchen, with a wash cloth in her hand. "All of that sleep must have done you some good. Maybe you should try it more often."

Cent smiled and leaned forward, kissing her dad on the cheek. Then she ran up to her mom and hugged her.

"I think I should get a head start to school," Cent said, with excitment.

"But dear," Millie protested, still laughing. "It isn't even seven thirty yet. School can wait for another forty minutes. Besides, I made some biscuits and gray, along with some orange juice."

Cent looked at the time and realized that her mother was right. It was barely time for her to head school yet.

What is happening to me? Cent asked her herself. I didn't even notice the time and I had gotten out of bed before my alarm clock.

Cent shook her head and giggled.

"Sorry, I guess I'm in a ball of energy to get started today. Biscuits and gray sounds good. Nothing can beat your cooking style, mom."

Millie smiled and put her arm around her daughter's shoulders.

"At least someone congraduates me on my cooking," Millie stuck her tongue out at David.

David laughed and said, "Hey! I congraguate you all the time! Do I have to remind you of yesterday morning? When we nearly tore up the entire kitchen?"

Millie's face turned red.

Cent laughed and said, "Okay, guys, information I do not need to know. Your sex life does not need to include me into the picture."

Millie and David laughed.

"Sorry, darling," David walked with them into the kitchen. "I just couldn't resist the urge to say it with you in the room. Now, where are these biscuits that my beautiful, sexy wife made?"

Millie laughed and ran up to him, pressing her lips against his.

Cent giggled and sat down at the family table.

The morning for Cent and her family was perhaps the best morning they had together in years.

Hours passed and Cent couldn't get her mind off of John Bale. The moment that they had in the hallway yesterday past through her head a thousand times. She couldn't quite figure it out why she was so interested in a boy who only said three words to her.

Cent was already at lunch. She sat with her friends and was able to get her mind off of John for a while.

"Okay, have you heard about the school prom coming up?" Emily asked, all excited.

Rachel rolled her eyes and said, "Who hasn't heard about it? It's all you ever talk about."

Ashley and Cent laughed.

"Okay, who are you guys going with?" Emily looked at all of us.

"I'm hoping Robert will take me," Rachel said, smiling.

"You know me, I'll be going with James," Emily replied.

"And, I'll be going with my childhood sweetheart, Michael," Ashley stared off into space for the moment.

Cent, Rachel, and Emily laughed.

"Okay, who are you going with, Cent?" Ashley turned to her.

Cent's smile disappeared and stared at the rest of the girls, who were waiting for an answer.

"I... I... I don't have a date for the prom," Cent finally revealed.

"We can help you get one," Emily bounced up and down in her seat.

Rachel's eyes widened with excitment.

"Going shopping for hot dates is going to be fun," she said in a slow voice. "I say that we do it."

Cent laughed and said, "Don't worry about it. I don't think that I'll be going to the dance anyway."

"WHAT?!" Emily shouted.

A few heads turned there way.

"You have to go!" Rachel leaned forward. "It's the best time of the year! Only time to get some privacy without school officials!"

"Yeah," Ashley cuts in. "You have to go! You must!"

Cent shook her head and said, "No, I don't think so. Besides, I'm not in the mood of looking for a date anyway."

Then she looked over to the table aways from them and saw John Bale. For a split second, her heart stopped.

He was sitting by himself, eating his food and staring out the window. He still had his alert stare going on. Everything about him was just getting more mysterious by the second she stared at him.

Something inside Cent's heart begged for her to go to him. She suddenly felt bad for him. She felt bad because he was all alone. She also felt bad for the scars on his arms.

Cent barely noticed as Ashley waved her hand in front of her face.

"Earth to Cent," she whispered. "Earth needs saving her."

Then the girls turned to see what she was staring at.

Emily giggled and looked back at Cent, who still had her eyes on John.

"Someone must got it bad!" Rachel elbowed Cent on the shoulder.

Cent came back to her senses and shook her head.

"I was just... staring," she said too late.

Everyone raised their eyebrows and smiled.

"Just staring uh?" Ashley teased. "Then why was that stare more than a minute long?"

Cent's face turned red and smiled, weakly.

"Okay," she admitted. "Yesterday, me and him had a run-in after school."

Emily raised her eyebrow at her and said, "Define 'run-in'."

Cent laughed and continued, "I dropped my book and he was there to help pick it up for me. We stared into each other's eyes for a while. Then he just left."

"So much for the kiss and the happily ever after concept," Rachel joked.

Everyone laughed.

"It was nothing," Cent finally said, concluding the conversation.

"Okay...," Ashley winked at her and smiled.

Emily clapped her hands together and said, "Alright, since we are talking about prom. I need some help with the dresses. I say that we go shopping right away."

Cent blocked out the conersation as she stared at John.

She didn't know why, but she was studying his skin and his muscles. She watched he took every breath and she was moved by it. She could feel the herself lunging for him.

Stop it! she commanded herself. He is just a boy! Nothing else! We just met in the hallway yesterday. He was only trying to help.

Suddenly, she watched as John flinched. He moved his hand near his pocket and carefully had the handle of a small knife at the tips of fingers. Normally, someone would scream at the sight of this or report it to the teachers. But Cent just stared and wondered what set him off.

Turning towards the window, she saw what he was staring at.

There were three men-in-black walking across the sidewalk of the school and entering the front doors.

What are they doing here? Cent asked herself.

When she turned to look back at John, he was gone.

Fear struck her heart and panic rose. She moved her head around and finally saw John walking out the doors of the cafeteria.

Where is he going? she wondered. Maybe I should follow him.

But at the last minute, she decided against it and stayed with her fellow girlfriends.

The final school bell rang for the end of school and everyone was walking out of the door of the classroom.

Cent was in a hurry to get home and grabbed her stuff. She walked as fast as she could, putting her stuff in her locker and finally made way to the front doors of the school.

Suddenly, she heard talking inside the front office and stopped.

"Is Mr. Bale here today?" a strong and powerful voice asked.

Cent looked inside the open door and moved towards it to get a better close up. She saw the same three men-in-black from lunch earlier. The same ones who set off John.

The front desk woman shook her head and said, "He was for the first three quarters of the day, but he has checked himself out."

"And why was that?" the second men-in-black asked.

"He said he wasn't feeling well," the woman responded. "I made arrangements for him to go home. That is all, I'm afraid."

"Is there a home address for Mr. Bale?" the third man-in-black asked. "We need to talk to him about something. It is very urgent."

The woman looked through her computer and shook her head.

"Sorry, I don't have one."

"Thank you ma'm," the first man-in-black said, nodding. "You have been a great help today."

Without another word, the three men-in-black exited the office and made way towards the front doors.

Getting curious, Cent walked into the office.

"Excuse me," she said to the woman.

"Yes, the same girl from yesterday," the woman smiled. "What can I do for you?"

"Um, I was just curious, why were those men here?" Cent asked.

The woman looked towards the doors and smiled.

"They are part of the FBI," she explained. "They needed to see John Bale about something. They wouldn't say what, but it sounded urgent." She paused. "Funny, though, how you asked yesterday about him and now the FBI. He must be famous or something."

You have no idea, Cent thought.

"Well, thank you," Cent said and walked out of the office.

Once she was out of the school's front doors, she saw something out of the corner of her eye.

Turning to see what it was, she saw John Bale. He was sitting on a bench, watching the men-in-black getting into a black sedan and driving away. John was dressed in completely different clothes. He even wore a hat to conseal himself.

Why is he here? Cent asked herself. Shouldn't he be sick?

Then she watched as he got up from the bench and began to walk down the sidewalk.

Finally fed up about the whole secretacy thing going on, Cent followed him and watched as he turned into an alley.

"What is it with him and alleys?" she whispered under her breath.

Running after him, she finally turned towards the alley, but found that it was empty.

Okay, where did he go? she looked around. He must have some way of disappearing.

Suddenly, Cent saw something up ahead. It was like almost invisible. But it could be seen. If she didn't know better, it looked like... visible air.

Moving forward, Cent got close and saw that it was in midair, floating.

Then... Cent knew what it was.

A jump-scar! she yelled inside her mind.

Her father explained to her one time that a jump-scar was a small force after a Jumper jumps to a location. It acts like a scar in the air, like the jump had left a portal open. Nothing could pass through it, unless you happened to be a Jumper.

Why is there a jump-scar here? she asked herself. There was no way John could have done this.

Cent pressed her hand inside the scar and watched it disappear inside.

Suddenly, the scar came to life and pulled Cent right on through. She disappeared from the alley.

Cent came crashing down on the floor. She felt pain in her body as she landed on the ground. She groaned in pain for the next few seconds and finally forced herself to get up off the floor.

Cent finally came to realize that she was standing in a living room. There was a flatscreen TV right across from her, a couch, and a small glass table. She could tell that the room was actually part of a bigger building.

Then Cent realized that she was standing in John Bale's home. She had crossed a jump-scar to his own home.

"Uh, I wasn't expecting company," came a voice from behind her.

Cent spun around. She gasped as she stared into the eyes of John Bale, who was standing at the enterance of the living room she was in.

"Sorry," she said too weakly. "I didn't realized that I would actually get here like this."

John smiled and walked forward.

"Glad to know that I'm not the only Jumper in Los Angeles."

Sorry, but I love cliff-hangers! They make things for exciting!

Please review! Do you like John Bale? Or how about those men-in-black guys?