The bus driver stomped on the gas petal and the bus once again zoomed forward, this time faster and wilder than before. The grappling hook from the white van came clattering down to the road.
“Think everybody! Think!” I screamed. The lights flickered as Bri stared up at the lights in shock. Cynthia shrieked and covered her ears, the boy with glasses started searching his backpack, Leah screamed for help.
What should we do? Was the only thought I could decipher from my rattling brain.
“Guys listen!” I shouted, trying to get their attention, “GUYS!”
The panic wouldn’t stop, it was like trying to throw a rope over a raging bull that was bucking and running all over the place.
“GUYS!!!” I screamed with all my might until my throat burned. All of a sudden I was shooting up into the ceiling of the bus like a bullet rocketing into the sky. My head hit the ceiling. Pain went shooting into my head. I squeezed my eyelids shut. I screamed in pain and with one last look at my surroundings, I came crashing down as the world faded into black.
I woke up to towering trees framing the blue sky.
A voice rang out in the distance, “This deer really likes me!”
Yes. That was the first thing I heard after I mysteriously flew up to the ceiling and hit my head.
Another voice exclaimed, “I can’t get the pencils to come down!”
What the heck? I thought to myself. Did I really hit my head that hard? I sat up, fighting the pain in my head and really every other part of my body. I was surrounded by trees, the light weaving in and out as the breeze ruffled the leaves. Chatter behind me caught my attention and I slowly turned my head to look. Leah was talking to the bus driver, Charlie was standing next to her. I watched her babble on for a moment, then she met my blank stare and smiled broadly.
“Hailey you’re awake!” She said as she practically danced over to me. Leah held out a hand and helped me up.
“Yeah, I know.” I replied weakly.
“You passed out after you hit your head and Leo attacked the white van with flying pencils!” Leah said, “We drove out here for some reason and we laid you down for a bit.”
I nodded subconsciously, “Who’s Leo?”
Leah gasped, “Oh right you didn’t get introduced! Leo’s the guy with the glasses, the one over there.” She pointed to where Leo was jumping up trying to grab… floating pencils?
“Why are the pencils -?” I started.
Leah cut me off, “Oh Leo can control pencils, that's how we got away! He made the pencils start poking into the white van’s tires until the tires went flat.”
But I wasn’t listening, Leah’s voice dissolved into background noise. So Leo had powers too? That means Cynthia, Charlie, Leo and Bri have powers, could that mean that I had powers too? I searched my brain for evidence but the only thing that came was how I flew up to the ceiling.
“Did I… fly?” I started talking even before I knew I had something to say.
Leah’s big brown eyes were focused on me, she was silent for a second. I realized this was probably the one time she had been silent.
“Maybe.” Leah whispered.
“Most likely” A voice said.
I whipped around to find Cynthia leaning against a tree and gazing up at the sky.
“I mean what else could it be?” Cynthia said, finally turning toward.
I stood rooted to the ground, staring into the distance trying to think of what else it actually could be.
“Well.” Leah said, “Cynthia can hear the future, Charlie can see… something through colors. Bri can control lights, Leo can control pencils, and you can fly.”
“We are one weird bunch.” I mumbled.
“We are.” Cynthia confirmed, “But what about Leah and EJ? What can they do?”
I glanced over at EJ who was watching Leo and Charlie attempt to get the floating pencils down. He hadn’t shown any evidence of having powers, maybe his power was just hard to see.
“I’m gonna… go.” Leah trailed off and rushed into the forest unexpectedly. But before I could comprehend Leah’s disappearance, I caught a flash of purple light in the corner of my eye. Gasps from the others rocketed around the forest. EJ had disappeared. A moment later he popped up in the tree. All I could see was the fear in his eyes as he gripped the branch and stared down at Leo and Charlie. Me and Cynthia ran over.
“Hailey, you should…” Cynthia started, but I was one step ahead of her. I jumped as high as I could and strained to reach the tree. Suddenly, my feet were in the air, the wind was swimming in my hair as I flew up to EJ.
“What happened?” I asked, hovering near him.
“I… I don’t know.” EJ stuttered, “We were trying to get the pencils down and I… I really wished I could get up on the tree and grab them and then… and then… I did.” EJ smirked.
I stared at him and muttered, “So you can teleport?”
He nodded and grinned then he bellowed, “I CAN TELEPORT!” So everyone could hear.
My first thought was, What a unique reaction.
“Okay, um, then you can teleport down then.” I said awkwardly as I floated down.
“Bragging much.” Bri grumbled.
“Well, now Cynthia can hear the future, I can see colors around people, Hailey can fly, Bri can control lights, Leo can control pencils, and EJ can teleport, what are the chances that we all were assigned to the same bus?” Charlie joked.
“I don’t think it was a coincidence.” Cynthia said.
This time Bri didn’t snap, Leo didn’t weigh the odds in his head, and I didn’t question it. Because we all agreed with Cynthia, even if we weren’t brave enough to express it.