Chapter 9: Chapter 3: Fate’s Second Punch Part 2

The spider picked Zavier out about ten feet away from the table. He gave a slight head nod to acknowledge him. Zavier had waited for this to move in any closer to sit down. He did want any sort of defensive reflex from the man. Zavier reached the table, gave a quick glance around to make sure no one was within earshot of a quiet conversation, and sat down.

“I assumed May would be here.” the Spider flashed his disappointment in a very deliberate manner.

“She’s ok with me speaking for her. We thought it would be better to have someone stay behind.” Zavier hoped his implication was not lost on the man.

“You know I’m employed by the public school district. I’m not a gangster at all. My real name is James. You didn’t have to use these small kids and families as your collateral.” Zavier scowled at the framing of May and his strategy for safety.

James ignored his reaction and continued, “I know you two are high school kids at the other school across town from here. My gut tells me you were just kids buying weed. But I also was hit with something from an unknown assailant and woke up on the ground with only my car left. I’m not ready to trust my gut about the two of you until you give me a reason too. I can go to the police.”

“You’re dealing to kids.” Zavier shot back

“I’m dealing stuff that’s basically legal for seventeen year olds to try to make rent because I don’t get paid enough. Let’s stop with the victim crap.”

“Who would the police think are the real victims? We’ve done nothing wrong but buy.”

“You don’t know the other guy at all?” James said sternly, as if to signal lying would be a cardinal sin.

“No. We told you that before. We ran as fast as we could when he hit you. We thought you were dead and we could be witnesses.” Zavier let a bit of his frustration with the last twenty-four hours trickle into his voice. He did nothing to conceal it completely. He wanted James to understand that they really were just kids who had nothing to do with it.

James paused for a second, looking down as if to gather his thoughts. He then looked up, gave Zavier one more look that practically begged him to admit if he was lying and then spoke, “I believe you. Look man, I really just trying to make a little extra. I don’t want to cause problems for you or anyone. I’m just scared.”

“You nearly died, it’s fine.” Zavier did not let himself overplay it, but he tried to feign concern for this man in order to solidify his benign stance to May and him.

The Spider looked down again and then leaned in and spoke a slightly muffled voice, “I’m done for awhile. My friend at the station who does some of their computer stuff says there has been some bizarre shit going down in this area.”

“Really?” Zavier replied, trying to maintain his interest to keep James friendly.

“Yeah, two people found in comas the last few days, and a security guard in the ER with burn marks. He said some guy tried to burn him when he saw a trespasser at the old plant down the road. It’s going to be in the news tonight and they're going to recommend a curfew for kids. Probably not all related but just a lot of stuff the last few days, especially after that bad storm last weekend.” Zavier did remember the storm James was referencing. He had played video games through it but he remembered guys on the soccer team being pissed the next day a game got canceled. It was a violent thunderstorm that came out of nowhere.

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“Thanks for letting me know, man. I’ll keep a lookout for it.” Zavier meant this as a departing word as got out of his seat.

“Just don’t go looking for other plugs in the next few weeks.” James said hurriedly as Zavier made his departing intention clear. He then gave Zavier a friendly smile. “I’m just looking out for you guys.” Zavier forced a smile back, his effort amplified by the belief it would be the last he would have to give to Spider.

Zavier quickly walked back up to the main floor and went out to the mall parking lot. Whipping out May’s phone, he saw that she had texted him at the beginning of the sit down. Watching. He texted back to meet at the car. He quickly made his way over. He beat May by about a minute. They glanced at each other and got into the car silently.

May spoke up the second the door shut and auto locked. “How’d it go?”

Zavier responded in a genuinely relaxed tone, “Fine, we’re going to be fine.”

“Great! What did he say?” May’s excitement was palpable.

“He’s not hurt, he doesn’t blame us, he doesn’t know the guy at all.” Zavier rubbed his eyes and yawned after he said these words. He was going to take the longest nap when he got home.

“Let’s go!” May exclaimed as she thrust the keys into the car and started the engine. She began her drive and set on some pop music. It was incredible to Zavier how quickly this girl moved on. He was ready to spend the weekend in his room thankful to be free of this incident. She seemed more like she had wrapped up just another week. Zavier smiled at this thought. They really were two different people and he was a lot more content with living his life versus May’s than he had been in a long while.

May reached her driveway and unlocked the car. Zavier made a motion to get out. As he was stepping out of the car he stopped and turned to May. “One more thing,” Zavier said trying to be as concise as possible to placate her already returning impatience with him, “You should avoid anything crazy this weekend. Ja- I mean the Spider told me a lot of other weird shit is happening lately at night on the other side of town. I’m going to be pissed if I have to help you again.” Zavier only half joked at the end.

May was looking at her phone and didn’t even look up to say, “Don’t worry, I’ve got friends who will watch out for me.”

Zavier shrugged and left. He usually would be a little peeved at May’s dismissive tone with him, but he really couldn't care less at the moment. He’d see that girl next Monday at the store and honestly he probably would have opted for a longer break if he could. He got into his car and drove home and a second wave of relief washed over him. The best part was that it was Thursday. He only worked Monday through Wednesday nights. He might not show up to school tomorrow if he didn’t feel like it. His days missed were way behind some of his peers in their last semester of high school and if he needed a three day weekend to sit inside and play video games, he was going to take it.

Zavier felt giddy as he parked in his garage fantasizing about a potential staycation he had coming. Why not start now! He walked into the kitchen, snagged a huge bag of chips and headed to his room, where his gaming chair and computer waited. He walked in and flipped all the lights off. Setting the bag off to the side for later, Zavier sunk into his chair. He took what seemed to be the deepest breath of his life and reached for his mouse. 

Or at least he thought he did. His arm didn’t move. Zavier tried to move it again. Still nothing. As his effort increased, he could feel more and more resistance to it. It was not a case of his arm falling asleep, he very much felt the strain in his bicep and shoulder and he tried to break whatever was holding his arm in place. Zavier tried to turn his head to look at his arm. His neck strained to accomplish the task but he had no such luck. His head was in the same lock as his arm. Panicking, he moved his eyes to his arm, pushing his pupil to his peripheries. His eyes were at least free. A clear examination of the arm revealed no physical restraint on it, yet Zavier could see the tension in his forearm as continued to put his strength into the basic task. Zavier began to feel a primal panic come over him in his helpless state. Not only was movement impossible, but there was no clear explanation or solution to the predicament. In desperation, Zavier tried to yell. His parents were not home yet, but hearing his voice would reassure him he could alert them in a few hours if nothing else worked. Even that was a failure. Zavier felt his throat begin to burn. He was desperately trying to speak but something was constraining his vocals.

There was suddenly a kick to his swivel chair and he spun around. Still essentially paralyzed, he could even change his facial expression to show shock or surprise. Standing in front of him was the unknown attacker for the night before, his right arm stretched outward with his palm facing upward and his figures in a claw formation. It looked like he was trying to crush something in his hand but his hand was empty. A faint yellow glow emanated from the outline of his arm, starting at his fingertips and fading away at his shoulder. Zavier's mind reached a bizarre state of mild panic. While this was objectively the most concerning development of his afternoon, his inability to express his fear outwardly in his face or his body had a dulling impact on his internal feelings.

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