Unsung

Chapter Sixteen

All his features were dark. His eyes, his hair, even his broody demeanor suggested an edgy vibe. He looked Eastern European or something; his eyebrows thick and slanted sharply downward toward his equally sharp cheekbones. His face was all angles and his body was tall and sinewy. He would've been almost beautiful if his attitude wasn't so stand-offish.

As it was, he was the last person I would've wanted to meet in a dark alley. So why was he here?

"Take it down a notch, Ris," McKayla said, stepping in between us. "You know she was just mesmerized by the coat. We all are. It's very...twisted chic. Although, if you ask me, I'd say jewel-tones are really more your color."

"Nobody asked you," Ris said, though there was no aggression behind it. It was like the fire had blown out of him and he'd been left...bored.

"Well, whenever you're ready for that makeover, you let me know," she added with a smile. "I like a challenge."

Ris just sneered.

"Hi! Kida, was it?" a girl walked over to me and held out her hand. Hesitating at the formality, I glanced over at McKayla who just raised her eyes to the ceiling. So I put my hand in the girls' and shook it.

"I'm Sophia Larchmont. I can't tell you how fantastic it is to have another female in the group," she said, cheerily. Her eyes were wide and genuine as she stared at me intensely. Slightly uncomfortable by how closely she was standing to me, I tried to take a step away from her, but she kept her hand firmly planted on my arm as if to make sure I couldn't run away.

"Hi," I said, finally managing to build a little space between the two of us. "It's nice to meet you, too."

Now that I was far enough away from her that I wasn't up close and personal with her pores, I took in the rest of her. Sophia was pretty. Not in the way that McKayla was. McKayla was drop-dead. Sophia was reigned in. Kind of homely. Reserved. The words 'prim and proper' came to mind. Her auburn hair was neatly tucked into a bun behind her head and she wore little to no makeup. When she wasn't busy making with the arm touching, her hands were held low in her lap, gripping them firmly where her fingers met her palms. It was almost as if...

"My God, Soph," McKayla exclaimed. "You've gotta loosen up. It's not like she's the second-coming."

"McKayla, I've asked you over and over again, not to use the Lord's name like that," Sophia said, a frown creeping onto her face, but her voice still sounding happy. "Please. Have a little respect."

"Oh, don't get your habit in a bunch," McKayla said, matching the girl's cheery demeanor. She walked over to me and slung an arm around my neck. "This one's still chaste. Plenty of time for me to turn her to the dark side, yet."

I looked over at Garrick and saw him raise an eyebrow thoughtfully. I blushed.

What the crap had I gotten myself into?

"If you're looking for someone to worship, I'm always accepting new applicants," a black guy said, sauntering over to us confidently. He examined each of us with interest before nodding in my direction. "Hey girl, I'm Ty. Pleased to meet you."

"Uh, you too?" I said, the words coming out more like a question.

Ty was built kind of like my brother, which made me think he was definitely a jock. His smooth skin showed off tufts of muscles and the shirt he wore was just tight enough to illustrate that the definition didn't end with his arms. You couldn't deny he was nice to look at: beautiful skin, perfect lips and closely-cropped hair made him undeniably good-looking. The black-rimmed glasses he was currently sporting made him appear smart and educated. I'm sure it was an enticing combo for most girls.

And it seemed like he knew it, too. As I watched, he changed up his stance and I got the feeling that he was posing for us. Like there were unseen photographers snapping away somewhere. Or maybe he expected us to take mental images that we could play back later? Either way, he was a little too...much for me.

"Moore's the last name, because when I roll out onto the field, people just want 'more, more, more!' " Ty said, raising his hands like they were a megaphone and smiling like he was reacting to a stand full of fans.

Was he serious?

"Oh, my gosh, put it away, Ty," McKayla said. "In case you hadn't noticed, the crowds are gone. It's just us and we're not impressed."

"We'll see about that," he said, taking a few steps away from us, and beginning to stretch.

"Just ignore him," McKayla said to me. "If his head gets any bigger, it'll explode."

"And last but not least..." Garrick said, motioning over to a guy who was sitting on the ground just a few feet away.

"I'm Austin," the guy said, taking his cue from Garrick. He didn't bother getting up from where he was currently stretching out his legs, which was fine by me, but he did give a friendly wave and smile. Wearing soccer-style pants and the same Hero tee everyone else had—reminder: I had to get my hands on that shirt—Austin seemed pretty low-key. He was average height, medium build, light brown hair, trimmed but not military short. Just your basic kid next door. No muss, no fuss. And after all the personality I'd just been introduced to, it was nice to meet someone who was a little more on my level. At least as far as I could tell.

"Kida," I said, grateful that all the awkward introductions were finally over.

I don't know why, but meeting new people always had this way of making me feel incredibly...alone. Since you didn't really know each other yet, both parties were sort of playing this heightened version of themselves, which wasn't really real to begin with. And then of course, as I'd mentioned before, kids my age didn't really get me, so I was often left stressing over what we could possibly have to talk about while we were "getting to know each other," and how I'd rather be anywhere but holding an uncomfortable conversation with someone I'd probably never talk to again.

It was a process I tried to avoid if I could help it and was probably the reason I only had two friends at school.

"Here he is!" McKayla whispered, sounding more excited than I'd ever seen her. Well, aside from when she'd tackled the girl at the mall.

"OMG, do you think he sees you?!" Garrick said in his most girly voice, while jumping up and down.

"Language," Sophia warned.

"It was an abbreviation, Soph," Garrick argued. "I didn't actually say the word."

I giggled. Again.

And then nearly cursed for real.

What is happening to me?

"How's everyone doing today?" a booming voice called out, causing an abrupt end to any lingering conversations.

Those who weren't already sitting down, did so then, and we all turned our attention to the man with the toothpaste commercial perfect smile, who was busy addressing the crowd from the front of the blue mat. His presence was commanding but approachable, and he was wearing black slacks and a black button down. I half-expected him to rip the material open to reveal a big letter "H" on the shirt underneath, just like Superman did when he was transforming into his hero self.

But the man just stood there, hands in his pockets, looking out at us—at all of us, not just McKayla, I noticed. Though I could see how she would make the mistake—as if he were smitten. The way he set his eyes on every single person there, made it seem like he was addressing us individually. Trying to make each one of us feel important.

It was a heady experience.

"I see we have some new blood today," he said, scanning the crowd. I was sure he was singling me out at first, but as I looked around I saw that there were others who weren't wearing the standard Hero garb, too. Guess I wasn't that special after all.

"For those of you who don't know me, I'm ProfessorCain," the man continued. "And I created this school in the hopes of findingtomorrow's heroes. Now, the question is: is that hero you?"