The people of Lancet Falls, Idaho are changing, and it's all because of an otherworldly light that only a few can see, but the changes are affecting everyone. Animals are dying, people are disappearing, and what's with the men in jackets twenty year...
"Jordan! It's time to get up! I can't let you make me late for work. I'm already on thin ice, and it's only my second week!" her mom shouted banging on her door.
Delilah Bryant, Jordan's mother, had been on edge ever since her dad had left them, and then one morning, before the sun was even up, she woke Jordan up and told her to pack her things. They drove practically nonstop from Brooklyn, New York to Idaho stopping only for food, gas, and sleep. Even then, they just slept in the car for a few hours at a time. Her mom had been scrambling ever since. She'd negotiated the purchase of a house online with money Jordan could only guess at the source of, and had accepted the first job she could find. That happened to be as a waitress at a local diner that agreed to pay her exclusively under the table. Jordan wasn't stupid, she knew they were running away from something, but she was sure she didn't want to know what. She had learned her lesson, knowing only made things worse, and it certainly wouldn't change anything.
"Jordan! Let's go! I'll leave you today! Don't think I won't do it!"
Jordan rolled over onto her back and felt the indentations on her face that the carpet had left. She usually had weird dreams, but that one topped them all. Maybe her mom was right, all those science fiction movies were getting to her head, but it was the first time they were so realistic that she'd actually gotten out of bed in her sleep. Something else was off, she could just feel it. She surveyed her room to trying to place what it was that was digging at the back of her mind.
"That's it Jordan! I'm leaving you!" she said punctuating her statement with the slam of the front door.
She scrambled around her room picking out the first clean clothes she saw and threw on her New York Yankees baseball cap. In Idaho, she had discovered it didn't matter what she wore any given day, because people were going to judge her anyways. She might as well wear what she wanted, and get some extra sleep while she was at it. If I were actually able to sleep, she thought. She grabbed her backpack, a bagel, and her copy of Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein and rushed outside to catch her mom before she drove off without her. Her mother was waiting for her in the driveway with a stern look on her face, but the passenger door was open and waiting for her. Before she hopped in, she noticed a dead bird on their lawn. Weird.
The two of them sat in silence before about a minute until her mom broke the silence, "Jordan," her mom paused "I want to talk to you about something."
Here we go "What did you have in mind Mom?" she asked.
"I just wanted to see how you're adjusting to your new school is all," she said conversationally.
"It's going great!" Jordan said injecting good cheer into her voice that she did not feel.
"Jordan, can we please have an honest conversation? I called your teacher." her mother said.
"My grades are great too Mom, there must not have been a lot to talk about," she replied coolly.
"I just wanted to make sure everything is going smoothly. I understand how hard it can be to make new friends at your age."
Jordan turned away and looked out the window at vast expanse of muted green and yellow plants passing by. "I really don't think you do Mom," she said feeling tears start to dot the corners of her eyes.
"Try me," she said.
"It's not a big deal Mom, I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself. I've had to do it enough by now."
"Jordan, I know you're not happy with me, but I'm your mom and I love you. Please just talk to me."
The love and warmth that bled through her mom's voice opened the floodgates and hot tears fell down her cheeks. "It doesn't matter how long we're here Mom! I'll never adjust! Half the people here have never seen a black girl and none of the other kids in class have except in movies! They don't even look at me like I'm a person! They're not mean, but the way they look at me is like I'm some foreign creature they are still trying to figure out! It was hard enough for me to fit in back home Mom!"
"J, they're only twelve years old. They'll figure it out. I promise."
"It's not just the kids. It's everyone. My teacher looks surprised every time I get an answer right or do well on my tests. She even moved me away from one of the "smart" kids for no reason. I could tell she thought I was cheating, but couldn't prove it. People hate what they don't understand, and they'll never understand me. I wish I could disappear like Dad!"
Her mother recoiled from those last words like she had been slapped in the face. Then she did what she always did when things made her uncomfortable, she shut down. This is why she never told her mom anything. She couldn't deal with anything that was hard, and Jordan knew that's why her dad must have left. Her mom wouldn't work on her relationship with her dad and she wouldn't work on her relationship with Jordan.
Their conversation sparked something that Jordan had been repressing deep down ever since they'd moved, probably since her dad had left. The tension between them felt palpable, and it hung in the air crackling with the energy of their unspoken emotions. At that moment, the radio felt it too. Whatever pop song that had been playing was substituted with garbled static. She looked down and the hairs on her arm were standing up straight. She feared what would happen if she stayed in the car any longer. "Mom, I love you. Let me out of the car, I'm going to walk from here something weird is going on"
"What are you talking about J? It's just a little radio static. It's probably just from living outside the city limits. I'm not going to let you walk to school. I'm here for you. I'm not going to leave you sweetie."
Whatever was happening in the car was growing stronger as they talked. "Mom! Just let me out of the car!" Jordan shouted over the radio static.
"We're almost there Jordan, just hold tight."
Something very bad is about to happen. Jordan reached and grabbed the passenger side door intending to throw herself out of the vehicle. The second she touched the handle, all the energy that had been building up in the air rushed into her and through her into the tips of her fingers. It shot out of her hand and coursed into the door instantaneously melting it at the points her fingers touched. She hurriedly grabbed the handle to hide what had happened. She felt the superhot plastic start to burn the skin of her hands, but Jordan did not let go. "Mom, if you do not let me out of this car, I'm throwing myself out. You know I'll do it."
"Okay, Jordan," her mom said lightly stepping on the brake.
Jordan grabbed all her school supplies and her book being careful to block sight of the door with her body. She stepped out of the car and prepared to slam the door, but the look on her mother's face gave Jordan pause. She looked like she needed to say something. Jordan stood there on the side of the road and waited for her mom to say it.
"Jordan, you're nothing like your father. Be thankful for that."
Jordan shut the door and started walking towards school. That's when she figured out what was wrong this morning. She hadn't seen Albert.
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Author's Note
Thanks for reading. I hope the more focused insight on Jordan helps you understand her a little better.
If you enjoyed, vote vote vote. Actually, if you just voted once, that would be cool too.
Share with me your thoughts. Do you think Jordan handled things well with her mother?? What happened to Albert?
