High School Again? Ugh! Ch. 08

"Thank you, thank you," I grinned and took a bow.

"Asshole," Jimmy said, shaking his head.

"Jealous?"

"A little," he laughed in reply. "Then again, Jenny is hotter than both of them."

"Arguably," I agreed easily enough. "Of course, you don't have a shot with her and everyone knows it."

"Not everyone," Jimmy retorted.

"Okay," I snorted. "Everyone except you and Tara Kingsly."

"And are you really going to trust her judgment?" Mike put in. "That's girl is crazy!"

"But hot," Jerry sighed. "It's a shame she's so way out there. I tried talking to her last week and I didn't get anywhere. Frankly, it felt like she was laughing at me the whole time."

"She's that way with pretty much everyone," Mike put in, and then looked at me and frowned. "Well, everyone but John."

"Hey! You're right!" Jimmy cried in realization. "In fact, you should have seen her flirting with his yesterday after lunch.

"Not another one!" Carlos groaned.

"I'll pass," I said, shaking my head. "That girl is scary. Besides, I've yet to close the deal with Pam. Let's not rush things."

"It's only a matter of time," Mike said confidently. "After all, you are our all-state linebacker and we are so going to take states this year." I shook my head. Mike saw and added, "I'm serious. Look at me. I'm not the best looking guy, but I've got Tracy. I figure it's one of the perks of being the team captain." I thought Mike was selling himself short, but I sure as hell wasn't going to say that now.

"The girl needs glasses," one of the other players chimed in.

We finished showering and got dressed quickly. The late bus wasn't schedule for a while yet. I could have gotten a ride with Mike, but he already had a full car. I wasn't in the mood to squeeze in so I passed. I went outside to wait for the bus.

I notice a small group of people walking toward the back field. I couldn't see it from where I was. The JV football team usually practiced there, but they had an away game today. My curiosity got the better of me. I followed them. We rounded the last corner I saw that there was a soccer game going on. I didn't know much about soccer and frankly, I could care less about it, but it was something to do. I moved closer.

Ten minutes later I was thinking about going back to the bus stop. It was our varsity team and it didn't take someone with knowledge of soccer to see we sucked. I had no idea what the score was, but in the short time I'd been watching the other team scored twice.

The only bright spot was one kid on offense. He was pretty good, but without support even he couldn't do much. He did get a shot on goal once or twice, but neither went in.

"Not all soccer is this bad," a voice said from behind me. "You should see the World Cup." I turned and saw a woman standing there. I had no idea who she was, but there was something unsettling about her. She was obviously talking to me. There was no one else near us.

"You related to someone on the team?" I asked politely.

"Zeus no!" she snorted, and then shook her head, adding, "This is downright painful."

"If you're not related to someone then why are you watching?"

"I'm not really," she replied, facing me for the first time. "I came here to talk to you."

"Me?" It was a bit creepy the way she was looking at me.

"Yes, you," she replied succinctly. "I'm here to warn you. Stay away from her. The Fates have plans for her and they don't include you. If you get involved with her their vengeance will be swift and I'll be the one delivering it."

"Hunh?" I asked, totally confused. "Who are you and what are you talking about?" The woman actually sighed.

"I'm Nemesis, but I can see that my name means nothing to you," she replied. "And the Fates are...well, the Fates." I had a vague recollection of the Fates having something to do with Greek mythology, but that was about it.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," I said, shaking my head.

"What do they teach kids in school these days?" the woman snapped, but then shook herself and refocused on me. "Look, the bottom line is stay away from her and you'll be a happier man."

"Seriously?" I asked, unable to stop myself.

"I'm dead serious," she replied, looking at me in a way that made me swallow with some difficulty. "You do not want to cross me, or the Fates for that matter."

"Okay," I said slowly, deciding to humor the woman. She was even more crazy then the dark haired girl from the hospital. Of course, I could have imagined that one. This one, not so much. "Just one question. Who is the 'she' you're talking about? Who do you want me to stay away from?"

"Tara, of course," the woman replied.

"Of course," I said, nodding slowly, but having no understanding of what was going on. "Tara Kingsly?"

"Is there another?" the woman snorted. I was sure there were plenty of girls named Tara, but I had the feeling that bringing that fact up right at this moment would be a mistake. I don't know why, but this woman scared the crap out of me.

"I guess there's hope for you yet," she smiled. It wasn't particularly pleasant. I decided that it was time to leave.

"Well, nice meting you," I said carefully and started to step away.

"One more thing," she said, stopping me with a look. I felt like a bug under a microscope. "Something's going on that even the Fates don't understand. You aren't in their plans and they've been working toward this for a millennium. They say that something changed and you've become problematic at best."

"You're also under Hera's protection for some reason and that's bad news. It offers you limited protection, but only for so long. The feeling is that she is planning on using you. I'd advise not letting her get what she wants."

"Hera? Isn't she the goddess of the fields or something?" I frowned. "And what exactly does she want?"

"Fields or something?" Nemesis asked, shaking her head. "Seriously? Hera is Zeus's wife and one of the most powerful gods."

"Interesting," I said, not sure how else to react. "And what does this have to do with me?"

"We don't know," she replied. "And that's saying something for the Fates." I had enough.

"Lady..." I began, my frustration rearing despite my fear. I was going to tell her just how crazy I thought she was!

"I wouldn't," she interjected, holding her pointer finger up, tilting her head slightly and raising her eyebrows in warning. My sense of self-preservation returned full-force and I swallowed what I was about to say. She smiled and added, "Better." That didn't stop her from reaching out and grabbing my shoulder. She didn't have a particularly strong grip, but that didn't matter. My body locked up at her touch and my shoulder burst into pain.

"By the way, this is your one and only warning." I heard the words, but couldn't make sense out of them until she removed her hand and the pain dissipated. She was gone by the time I was able to focus again. I don't mean she walked away. She had simply disappeared.

My shoulder was throbbing. I lifted my shirt and saw the burn marks on my skin. There was an actual hand print where the woman had touched me. I stared at it for a few moments before letting my shirt go. I stood there feeling numb despite the pain. What had just happened?

"Hey Buddy, are you okay?"

I was startled by the voice. I looked up and there was one of the soccer players. It took me a moment to recognize him as the one decent player on the team. I glanced around and realized the game was over.

"Did you just see a woman with me?" I asked.

"No," he frowned. "You don't look so good."

"I'm fine," I said in a tone that didn't even convince me. He frowned.

"Look, I want to make the late bus," he said. "So I need to get into the locker room and get changed, but if you need me to..."

"I'm good," I said more strongly. It still wasn't true, but sharing my problems with him wasn't going to help. He hesitated a moment longer.

"Well, I'm Jake if you need someone to talk to later," he offered. I could tell he was serious. Who knew a soccer player could be so cool?

"John," I replied, and then added with a grin, "I'll see you on the bus, but only if you hurry." He smiled and started jogging toward the locker room. I made my way to the bus stop, still in a daze.

The conversation with the woman was way past surreal. It was out and out crazy. The one with the blue eyed brunette at the hospital was odd enough, but I was still mostly out of it at that point. She also wasn't very specific. I was willing to chalk it up to the coma or maybe the drugs the doctors were giving me. This was different and far more concerning. I'd either just had a conversation with a crazy lady or I was losing it.

Had I imagined her? Jake hadn't seen her, but I guess it was possible that he missed her, especially if she could disappear like she seemed to. Disappear...yeah, that made me feel better. And don't forget her parting gift. The pain in my shoulder had dissipated, but I remember it well enough.

So here I was, either crazy or facing a woman who could both disappear and burn my shoulder with a touch. I didn't need to be a genius to figure out which was more likely. Unable to resist despite the obvious answer I lifted my shirt from my shoulder one more time. The burn marks were gone.

"Shit!" Yep, I was definitely losing it. I took a couple of deep breaths trying to convince myself that everything was okay.

"Sure, hallucinating isn't that big of a deal," I snorted to myself.

The question was what should I do about it? I mean, I could tell my parents, but after the coma something like this would probably make them put me back in the hospital. I didn't want that. Sure, I was scared, but I didn't want to ruin my chances of going to a good college, and ending up back in the hospital would definitely do that. Besides, the doctors had already done all the tests they could think of. What would going back solve?

I knew I wasn't being particularly rational at the moment, but then again this wasn't a rational situation. Maybe this was just my subconscious's way of dealing the residue of whatever caused my coma. Yeah, I know how lame that sounds, but...

I decided the best approach for the moment was to take it slow. I could always tell my parents if it got worse. The important thing was not to blow my chances at a scholarship. My first game was tomorrow night and I couldn't miss that. I told myself that I simply had to hold it together until just after football season. I needed to show the scouts who were interested in me last year that I was ready.

I didn't really feel better by the time the bus came, but at least I stopped talking to myself. I stalled the bus driver until Jake came running out of the school. I owed him that. We sat together and bullshitted. It helped distract me and like I said earlier, he was pretty cool for a 'foot fairy'. Still, I couldn't stop my mind from occasionally wandering back over my conversation with the woman.

The first thing I promised myself was that I would stop over at the library soon and do a little research about the Fates and Hera. Maybe it would help me figure out what my subconscious was trying to tell me. It was at least worth a try.

The second thing I promised myself was to avoid Tara Kingsly until I figured out what was going on. Something or someone didn't want me to go near her. That was either some crazy woman who scared me more than I wanted to admit or my subconscious. Either worked for me.

Not that staying away from her would be hard. Sure, our lockers were close together and we had lunch at the same time, but we ran with different crowds. Okay, so she was pretty and for some reason we were getting along better recently, but it wasn't that long ago that she used to intimidate me, although I was never sure why.

I was still more than a little confused, but at least I had a plan of sorts. Although, if I was being honest with myself then the only thing that I felt remotely confident in was that I'd probably end up in a Looney Bin before this was all over.

I made it home without any other hallucinations popping up. Score one for my sanity!

Having dinner helped. Mom was a great cook and her food hit the spot. Pop asked about football and we talked about what happened during practice this week. It was our normal Friday night routine and it was very comforting.

"So, what are you doing tonight?" he asked once dinner was over.

"Some of the guys are meeting up later at Darby's," I replied. Darby's was a local ice cream parlor. "But I'm not sure I'm up for it. Big game tomorrow."

"You might as well go," mom put in with a smile. "You sound like you could use a distraction. Besides, you don't want to just sit here all night with us old people and worry about the game."

"What old people?" pop deadpanned. My mother rolled her eyes, but she was smiling as her eyes met his. It was obvious that my parents were still very much in love. I shook my head and I smiled. I hoped that one day I'd meet someone who made me feel the same way.

Just a month ago I thought that it might be Tiffany, but then the whole coma thing happened and she dumped me for Brad. At least I found out before I really fell for her. My mind wandered to the other woman in my life at the moment.

I thought about Pam. She was nice and fun to hang out with, but suddenly I realized that I couldn't see it. I can't even explain why. I mean, I was attracted to her, but I couldn't see myself settling down with her. Of course, it might be too early to tell. Not that I was looking to fall in love, not with college coming next year...especially not after what happened with Tiffany. I had time.

My mind drifted to some of the other pretty girls from school. Some, like Tracy were off limits. She was Mike's girl and it had little to do with him being the football team captain despite our earlier discussion in the locker room. They were the perfect couple.

Jenny was hot and a redhead to boot, but she really wasn't my type. She was wound too tight and frankly, was too easily offended. Besides, I couldn't do that to Jimmy despite the fact that he had no change with her. I almost felt bad for him when Tara fanned his hope in that area.

Tara. I knew it wasn't the smartest thing to think about her after what just happened. The problem was that if I was being honest with myself then I had to admit that there was something about her that got to me.

What was I thinking? I shook my head and focused on that simple fact that Tara was so damn strange. I could just imagine my parents' reaction to my dating her. Date Tara? That was crazy.

"Can I borrow the car? I want to take a ride to the library before I got out," I said suddenly, remembering my earlier promise to myself to look up the Greek gods. Pop was clearly surprised, but didn't comment. I wasn't the studying type although my grades were good.

"Sure," mom smiled. "I'm glad you're working at catching up on your classes." I nodded. I hadn't really planned to do any school work, but I still did have a lot of catching up to do. I grabbed my book bag and mom's keys before slipping out the door.

I spent about twenty minutes looking up the Fates, Hera, Nemesis and the Greek gods in general. It only confused me more. I borrowed a couple of books to take home for later because after my initial research I decided that I didn't want to think about it tonight. Instead, I cracked open my book bag and actually worked on catching up on some of my classes. An hour later I stood and stretched. Enough studying. It was time to go out.

Darby's was packed as usual, but my friends already had a table. Carlos, Jerry and two other teammates were sitting in a booth. They made room as I joined them. We spent a little time talking about the game and a lot more talking about girls. Nothing new there.

The two other guys had a double date later and left after we finished our ice creams. Carlos, Jerry and I hung out for a bit longer. We were just about ready to leave when three girls walked in. Pam was one of them. She saw me, smiled and came over.

"I was hoping I'd catch you here," she said. Her eyes were a little shiny and from her tone I could tell she'd been partying. She looked just as good as always, only her mass of blond hair looked a little wild tonight. I liked it.

"What happened to your sleepover?" I asked, moving in and giving her room to sit. She was supposed to be spending the night with some friends.

"We got bored and decided to come out for some ice-cream," she replied, sitting next to me.

"I'm not sure if it was boredom or a simple case of the munchies," the tall, thin brunette who came with her put in with a laugh as she and Pam's other friend joined us. The third girl was also a brunette, but she was shorter with much larger breasts. Carlos and Jerry were quick to make room for them as well. It wasn't long before we were all packed tight in the booth. Pam's thigh suddenly pressed up against mine. I turned to her and her eyes met mine. She smiled sexily. Things were definitely looking up.

Introductions were made and Carlos, Jerry and the two girls quickly paired off. Carlos with Angela, the short, big chested brunette and Jerry with Carla, the tall thin one. We sat through the ladies eating their ice-cream and every one chipped in when the check came. Of course, the ladies excused themselves to the bathroom before we left. Pam was smiling that sexy smile again when they came back.

"You know," she said. "My parents are out and won't be home until late. We're going back to my house to hit up their liquor cabinet again. You three feel like hanging out a little longer?"

"Definitely," Carlos answered quickly. He was obviously very much into Angela. On the other hand, everyone knew Carlos was a horndog.

"Sounds like a plan," Jerry smiled. I hesitated, but one look at Pam and the decision was obvious.

"So much for the team curfew," I shrugged.

"Don't worry, you'll be home before it's that late," Angela said, looking at Carlos pointedly. She clearly had his number. "We want to hang out and have a little fun, but nothing too crazy." Carlos didn't look put off at all. Knowing him, he took it as a challenge.

Pam's house was very nice and the liquor cabinet well stocked. I stayed away from the hard stuff because we had an important game the next night, but after a while even I was feeling no pain. The lights were low and there was a movie playing on the television, but none of us were paying attention. I'm not sure who started it, but suddenly all three couples were making out.

Pam turned out to be a very good kisser. I couldn't resist brushing my tongue against her lips after a while. Thankfully, her mouth opened slightly giving me access and our kisses grew more passionate.

"Keep youth hands to yourself!" I heard Angela said at one point.

"Spoilsport!" Carlos snapped in reply. It was obvious that neither one of them was really angry, but their exchange was funny enough to make us all take a break from our kissing to laugh. Five minutes later we were at it again, maybe not even that long.

I lost track of time for a while. I was betting that everyone else had as well. Pam's lips were full and soft and I loved the feel of her breasts pressed against my chest. I wanted to reach between us and squeeze them, but I didn't want her to get mad and stop kissing me so instead I rested one hand on her shoulder, letting my thumb creep toward her breasts ever so slowly.

She had to know what I was doing, but she didn't stop me so I became more brazen. I finally reached between us and cupped one of her breasts. She didn't react badly so I squeezed. For a moment her kisses became even more passionate, but then she suddenly pulled back from me and stood.

"I want to show you the house," Pam said, holding out her hand. I was disappointed because I figured she wanted to take a break to slow things down.