Counselor Jones wrote down Ryan's available days and times to meet with an angelkin from the Ergbear Phylum.
"You'll be meeting with Roy Vincent," she said. "Confirm the appointment when he messages you."
"Thank you," said Ryan.
"I'll be attending the appointment. If your mother's not present, I'll have to reschedule."
"Okay."
Counselor Jones ended the appointment and Ryan thought about Miss Aldridge.
---
Mr. Ross dropped Ryan off at school and drove off. Ryan walked into school by himself with a grin.
Chase sat at his desk in Homeroom miserably.
"Chase, we can talk in the corridor," said Ryan.
"Hmm-mm," he said, pressing the crutch into the floor. He limped behind Ryan.
Troy sat in Ryan's chair, sideways, waiting there. Ryan looked at him curiously and walked out of the room with Chase.
"I know you have problems, but don't read everything I do," said Ryan.
"This is why you want to talk to me? You could've waited 'til History."
"No, I can't say what I want there."
"What do you want to say? You see me locked up in the hospital, psych ward again?"
"I never saw you in the psych ward," said Ryan. "Look, go to this website." He handed him a piece of paper.
Chase read "Eljorian, League of Angelkins at www.eljorian.org" on it.
He scoffed. "I need an angel? I'm not a devil, red cock! You just hate what I say."
"I don't and don't call me that!"
Shantel stopped in-between them. "Chase, why does a red cock bother you? It's just like yours, but it has red hair instead of brown. What's the problem?"
Ryan blushed and Chase grimaced. "Why don't you kiss it then?"
"Why don't you?" she said and slipped inside the room.
"Looks like weird girl's crushing on you. Maybe she thinks about your red cock all day."
"Chase, you have an entity on you," said Ryan, feeling his heart swell.
Chase grabbed Ryan by the shirt and got in his face. Ryan saw a red figure with a devilish face behind Chase. "Don't you dare start that rumor or I'll - "
"Knock it off, Chase!" said Sloan and shoved him back. He stumbled into the doorway, dropping the crutch on the floor.
"You're going to pay for that - runt!" said Chase angrily.
"Chase, stop it!" said Ryan. "Sloan, tell him what you saw on him."
"You had this white thing behind you with a skeleton face," said Sloan nervously.
"What kind of thing?"
"An evil thing," said Ryan. "And it wants to hurt you bad. You better do what I say this time." He picked up the crutch and pushed it into Chase's chest, walking into Homeroom.
He saw a snirver on Chase, but didn't want to talk to him about it.
Ryan flushed. Shantel talked to Troy quietly and he got out of Ryan's chair reluctantly, but she didn't look up when he sat down. She retied the bow on the front of her pink blouse.
---
Chase clipped Ryan on the shoulder on the way to Social Studies and Troy eyed him irritably.
---
Ryan ate a tuna sandwich in the cafeteria glumly, staring at Shantel, but she didn't look his way.
"She said what?" said Pablo, munching a peanut butter and jelly sandwich like a chipmunk. "That girl's got brass."
"Chase is pissed at me," said Ryan, watching him eat lunch at a table with Luke and Troy like he swallowed bad medicine. He mixed the tomato sauce in his macaroni and ground beef on his plate tensely.
"He looks sick," said Sloan. "Did that entity really hurt him?"
"Yes," said Ryan.
"He needs to get rid of it," said Jamal. "He's in bad shape."
"Ooo, she just looked over here," said Pablo. "She wants you."
"Cut it out, Pablo," snapped Ryan. "Shantel's classy. I don't want her to think we're a bunch of jerks."
"Then ask her out already," said Jamal.
"Yes, make her yours, bro," said Pablo.
"I'm working on it," said Ryan.
"It's not that hard," said Sloan. "She sits behind you everyday."
"Don't wait too long," said Jamal. "You got competition."
Troy sat across from Shantel at her table, finishing the green beans on his plate. Chase looked on pettishly like he wanted to drag him away. Luke whispered something and Chase picked at his blueberry pie agitatedly.
Shantel talked to Troy stoically and he smiled, laughing a little.
Ryan passed by the cafeteria, trash bins and threw his trash out in the kitchen bin. Margaret washed a big pan in the sink sadly.
He sneaked to the side corridor and gaped.
Dolores held a piece of paper in one hand and a tissue in the other, dabbing her damp cheeks. Principal Pearson took the corner and disappeared.
Ryan walked to her shyly.
"Dolores, what's wrong?" he asked.
"Oh - nothing, Ryan. How about some garlic, bread sticks?"
She folded the paper in her pocket and filled a giant bag with soft, bread sticks in the kitchen and tied it.
"Put these in your locker," she said.
Ryan took the heavy bag. "Thanks. Why are you crying?"
"They don't need me around here anymore," said Dolores. "They're getting someone new."
"You're leaving?"
"Today's my last day," she said. "The vice principal went over the security videos and saw your dad take potato puffs outside this morning after he dropped you off. I can't give him anything, honey."
"It's not your fault," said Ryan.
"You better get that bread in your locker before someone sees it," she said.
Ryan hurried to his locker and hid the bread. Then he sat at his table.
"Where's Dolores?" asked Sloan, licking his lips.
"She got fired," said Ryan.
"For what?" asked Jamal.
"Giving my dad food without me there."
"Aw, no - bro," said Pablo. "No more crackers and stuff?"
"Over," said Ryan.
He blinked slowly. He saw what happened, but failed to change it and his ability startled him.
---
Ryan staggered out of Mr. Ross' car, holding the bag of bread sticks. Grace got out of the car and let them in the house.
She headed to the kitchen and opened the fridge, taking out a small, pork butt. Then she rubbed paprika on it at the counter.
Mr. Ross took the bread bag from Ryan and sat down at the table, eating one. He griped about his neighbor, Russell from Europe, who played Polka music at night for hours.
"So - Dad, reading a book would be better, right?" Ryan snatched a chocolate-chip cookie from a bag on the table and smiled.
"Yeah, but I don't know if he can read."
"I read, Dad."
"I hope so."
"Yeah, I'm reading that book I got at the book drive. It was full price, but some guy there bought me it." Grace looked at Ryan curiously.
"Hmm. You got lucky, buddy."
"Did you know about it?"
"No. Why would I know about it?"
"I saw him at the library too when I walked home."
"Maybe he likes to read."
"You mean, you don't know anything about it?"
"What did he look like?"
"He has red hair cut in a cool way."
"Sounds like a rich guy, but I don't know him."
"Someone left a message on your answering machine about me reading the book when I was in your apartment."
"It could've been the wrong number," he said, shaking cookie crumbs from the bag into his mouth.
"He said 'Ryan'."
"A lot of guys have the name 'Ryan'. It's a good name. I read too, you know."
"Uh, you don't have any books, Dad."
"Whenever I get one, Rye." He wiped crumbs off his chin with the back of his hand.
"What happens if I don't read the book?"
"You want to read it. It cost you and me nothing and it's very educational."
"You knew I still had the coins. You didn't ask me how I paid for it."
"You're just a kid. Maybe someone let you have it."
"So, you're telling me there's no one out there, but you that wants me to read it?"
"If you picked it out, you want to read it."
"I didn't pick it out, Dad. The man did."
"Why did he do that?"
"I wanted a book about entities."
"And he helped you get one. What's the problem?"
"It was like . . . planned."
"No. It was meant for you to finally get something you want for free. You can't keep hitting up your old man."
Ryan huffed.
He played Avalonia by Dar Tenian in his room and took out the disc jacket, reading the liner notes. He found "Join Dar Tenian Fan Club at www.dartenianfans.com".
He turned his tablet on and typed in the website address.
The latest pictures of the band covered the homepage. Ryan noticed the man who bought the book had the same haircut as Adam Dar Tenian.
Ryan sighed.
Dar Tenian played Fairpark Stadium in Chicago in May and the good seats cost a pretty penny. Ryan entered his name and email address in the fan, updates page.
Suddenly, Roy Vincent messaged Ryan for an appointment on Thursday at seven pm with him and Counselor Jones, reminding him to invite his mother. He clicked "Confirm".
Mr. Ross used the bathroom and Grace sliced zucchini on a cutting board at the kitchen counter.
"Grace," he whispered. "I made a video appointment for a Hard Rock singer to sing to me and get rid of the thing that hit me with the branch. But I need someone who's at least sixteen there. Can you sit with me?"
"Okay, what time?"
"Seven pm on Thursday."
"How long is this going to take?" she asked impatiently.
"Five minutes, I promise."
"Alright," she said, grabbing a pepper shaker.
"Don't tell Mom and Dad," said Ryan. "It's private."
"Okay, Ryan, but you owe me."
"What do you want?"
"Ask Dad to pick you up from school first tomorrow, so I can get some time with Shawn Woods after school. He blows the horn like a truck driver and I can't talk to him right."
"I'll try, Grace. But Dad does whatever he wants."
"Just ask."
---
On the way to school, Ryan asked Mr. Ross to pick him up first with the lame excuse that he needed to escape from the vice principal. He sympathized, but just this once.
He dragged Ryan into the cafeteria kitchen and Ryan smiled. Margaret heated oatmeal in a long pan.
"Hi there, Margaret. You working alone today?" asked Mr. Ross.
"No, Beatrice will be here soon. She's running late."
"Beatrice? Where's Dolores?"
"She doesn't work here anymore."
He lowered his head. "Okay, thank you."
When Ryan ran into Homeroom, he didn't see Mr. Connelly anywhere and sat down in front of Shantel, who wrote in her notebook obliviously.
Chase whispered something to Troy and he just shrugged. Then Sloan walked in with Pablo.
"Ask her now," said Sloan, sitting down. "Perfect opportunity."
"I can't," said Ryan.
"Chicken," whispered Sloan.
"I'm not," said Ryan.
"You are."
Ryan read Shantel's notebook upside down, but didn't see his name or "red hair" anywhere.
"Yes?" she asked Ryan in a question.
"Nevermind," said Ryan nervously.
"Shantel, my parents are taking me to the movies on Saturday. You want to come with?" asked Troy cordially from his seat.
"I'll talk to you at lunch," said Shantel.
"Okay, that's cool."
Troy whispered something to Chase and he crossed his arms.
Sloan turned around. "This is bad. Troy's stealing your woman."
"She's not my woman," said Ryan quietly.
---
Mr. Bailey stepped out of Algebra and Chase limped past him. The he sat in a slump behind Ryan.
"Hey, Ryan. I checked out the website. It's crap."
"Whatever," said Ryan.
"Troy's looking for a new love. Ask Shantel out now and get rid of him. Want help?"
"No. If Troy likes her - there's nothing I can do about it."
"Well, she likes you. Troy doesn't care. He peeked at her locker combo yesterday."
"What happened?"
"He opened it this morning and took the notebook. Turns out she writes stupid poetry in it or something. One's about a guy with red hair and blue eyes. Luke's got green eyes. I copied the whole thing. Want to see it?"
"I don't think Shantel wants anyone to read her poetry," said Ryan.
"Can't handle the truth?" he said.