“Did Ameana see it?”
“Yeah.”
“So, she hates me?”
“You kissed her boyfriend, you asked him out in front of everyone and she lost her wings for attacking you. I don’t know if she hates you, but I wouldn’t be expecting a hug from her anytime soon.”
“You think I deserve all that’s happened to me, huh?”
“I think you deserve to be happy. I’m sure there is a guy who can help make that happen. Have you ever thought about Henry? He’s nice.”
“What are you doing?”
“What? You don’t like him? I had him checked out. He has a good heart and Rio says he likes you.”
“So, just like that I’m supposed to replace what I feel for you with another guy?”
“I want you to be happy.”
“You want this thing between us to go away so that I’m not hurting anymore.”
“Is that wrong?”
“You can’t get over me. What makes you think I can get over you?”
“Maybe you’re stronger than me.”
“Doubt it.”
“You shouldn’t be alone. You should be with someone. That way you’ll be happy.”
“You’re with someone—are you happy?”
“Not at the moment.”
“But you’re sure that’ll change soon?”
“Meana and I’ll work things out. We have to.”
“And if you don’t?”
“We will.”
“Is she talking to you?”
“No.”
“You talking to her?”
“No.”
“I’m gonna wait on the finding someone. ‘Cause I don’t think I could handle being as ‘happy’ as you and Ameana are.”
“Look, we have to live with the situation the way it is. We all have to deal. But that doesn’t mean that you can take shots at my relationship.”
“I don’t have to shoot at it Marcus, it’s already dead.”
“I am not leaving her.”
“Yeah, I got that part. And I see how well that’s working for you.”
“Go to class.”
She glares at me and goes inside. I lean on the wall and rub my temples to relive some of the pressure but it doesn’t help; the pressure is all in my mind. Moments later Jay calls out my name.
“Marcus?”
“What’s up?”
“Why do you look like death is coming for you again?”
“I’m not that lucky.”
“Man, c’mon. Let it go. We gonna go play some Ball, do some Diving and take in the best concert in a century. It’s all good man.”
“Who’s playing this year?”
“Marley. Marley is back, man.”
“What? When?”
“I overheard a Traveler talking about it. He’s back for Triweekend.”
“We have to go see him.”
“Go see who?” Emmy asks as she walks out of class. I didn’t even realize the bell had rung.
“There’s a Triweekend concert down in Jamaica and we’re going.”
“We’re going to Jamaica?” she says, taking her voice two octaves higher than it needed to be.
“Yeah, Saturday night,” Jay says.
“I have never been to Jamaica.” She jumps up and down like she had won something.
“Well, we ‘bout to get it poppin. I ain’t missing this concert for nobody, son,” Jay says.
“Who’s performing?” Emmy asks.
“Marley,” I say.
“Marley who?” We look at her like she was clueless for asking.
“You mean…?” She is so shocked she can’t close her eyes.
“The very one.”
“How?”
“Every Triweekend, the council sends Para angels to entertain us. This year it’s Marley in Jamaica. The year before that was Selena,” Jay says.
“And we get to go? Seriously?”
“You know I don’t play when it comes to Reggae music. I would never make a joke about Marley.”
“Where are the others?” she asks.
“I don’t know if they’re coming. But I told everyone about it. But for right now, I need to play some ball. Let’s go,” Jay says.
“They know where to meet us if they want to come along,” I say. I hope in the back of my mind that the twins and Ameana would join us.
****
The meeting spot is an hour outside of New York City. Once a week, you could walk into a state park and find the outline of wings on a ball. It could be spray painted or drawn by hand. Wherever you saw the picture is where all the angels would gather to go to the ball field. We took the train upstate. I thought that would give time to whoever wanted to come along but was undecided.
When we get to the park, there is a Native American guy in his early twenties sitting on a boulder that had the Runner Ball sign. He spoke as we approached.
“Wow, Guardians in the house? This is gonna be good.”
“You Travel or inhabit?” Reese asks, not sure if he had wings behind him.
“Travel. I get the right news to the right people,” he says proudly.
Then he studies Emmy.
“That the human?”
“Hi, I’m Emmy,” she says as she extends her hand to him.
“I’m Apoleo. Nice to meet you.”
“Yeah, you too.”
As we stand there, more and more angels came to the spot. Most of them are Travelers but there are a few Ground Walkers who come in the body of young athletes.
“You the one who gonna help save the world?” one of the angels asks Emmy. Everyone turns to hear her answer.
“I was thinking I’d do that later. I just came to play some ball,” Emmy says.
Everyone starts to laugh.
“What?”
“Emmy, you can’t play. If the ball were to hit you, it would actually kill you.”
“I think we should take that risk,” someone says.
I turn around and find Ameana standing a few feet away.
“Hey, girl. You playing with us?” Jay asks. He tries to defuse the situation by being light and casual.
“I was planning on watching. But I’m not sure if it’s okay with Queen Emmy,” she says sharply, turning to Emerson. Suddenly everyone was looking at us.
“I’d like it if you came along. It would give us a chance to talk,” Emerson says.
“You’re a second-rate, desperate human who thinks she can get away with taking what doesn’t belong to her. What’s there to talk about?”
“I wanted to say I’m sorry for what happened. I wasn’t trying to…can we just move on and forget everything?”
“Forget everything? You must be on something.”
“Ameana, give it a rest,” Reese says.
“No. I think it’s very ungracious to try and steal a girl’s boyfriend when that girl came all the way down here to save your ass,” she says.
The rest of the angels looking on all nod in agreement. It was like she was putting Emmy on trial. The jury was on Meana’s side from the word go.
“I just wanted to tell him how I feel,” Emmy says.
“We all know how you feel. You want him. But you’re too weak to have him. He’s a First Guardian. What use would he have for a girl that is so useless, she can’t stop a simple little human from gutting her only friend?”
That last comment hurt, I can tell. Emmy turns away and bites her lip to keep from crying. Sara was a fresh wound for Emmy.
I walk up to Meana and take her off to the side.
“What is wrong with you?” I ask, disgusted.
“Me? What about her, Marcus? Why don’t you ask her what is so wrong with her that she would try and break up two people who had to die to find each other?”
The crowd was eating it all up. Meana turns her attention to Emmy who was standing with Reese protectively by her side. Ameana speaks to Emmy in no uncertain terms.
“You touch him again and I will kill you. Ask about me.”
She glares at me and walks out of the Park. Everyone in the crowd starts talking all at once. They were placing bets—not whether Ameana would kill Emmy, but how long and in what way.
I go over to Emmy.
“You okay?”
“No, I’m not.”
“I’m sorry about that. She would never hurt you.”
“Again you mean. I don’t know if you remember, but she slammed me into a wall not too long ago,” she spits at me.
“She wouldn’t kill you. She’s just pissed off.”
“She’s a raving lunatic.”
“You can’t just make a play for some girl’s guy and except it to be drama-free. I didn’t tell you to ask me out.”
“So, you’re the victim in all of this?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“You didn’t say anything. You don’t care what happens so long as you get to keep your precious word. You made a promise to her a long time ago and it doesn’t even matter that you have changed your mind. You’re just gonna stay with her out of guilt and some distorted sense of duty?”
“I don’t know who you’ve gone out with, but I do not walk out on people.”
“Well I do.”
She turns on her heel and stomps out of the Park.
I turn to Jay and Reese. “Go get her.”
It was already time to go to Ireland and play Runner Ball, but I knew that not one angel in crowd would budge. Travelers and Ground Walkers alike wanted to see how this would all play out.