Un-Ordinary Girl

Chapter 11

          The next day I ignored the fact that Jackson was suppose to pick me up for school. I left out of the Wong's apartment early so I could go to the public library without being seen by mom, Nana, or Jackson. I know that it is indeed wrong to skip school but I can afford to miss one day even though I really didn't want to. Besides, I wasn't ready to face my classmates after I passed out and nearly died in class yesterday. And after the way Jackson acted yesterday, we were probably gonna be mobbed by questions asking if we were dating. I wasn't sure I was ready for that. I don't want to hear the words that he would surely say. About the girl he truly wants to be with and who she actually is. I know she isn't  me. And that knowledge hurts me a lot.

          I decided that the first thing I was going to do was look up things that pertained to things that had started happening to me this week. The abnormal growth. The thinking about eating raw meat. The new aggression. The entire personality change. The fact that since I woke up this morning, my sense of smell was stronger. I was able to smell Jackson from the Wong's apartment. Then there was this mysterious panic attack thing. I know what use to trigger it and now there are more triggers that I can't exactly identify.

          With all that typed into the google search engine, it gave me two possibilities. The first one was steroid, d**g, and alcohol a***e. I may be troubled but I am not that deeply disturbed where I would be using any of those disgusting things. But the last one was even more far fetched than the first. It said that I was becoming a werewolf. Werewolves didn't exist. They were things that only existed in fiction stories. I wonder what lonely quack posted this article online. The article writers name was, Alexander Whitewolf? Was this my dad? They have the same name and I highly doubt that many people have a last name such as Whitewolf.

          I clicked on the article and read it thoroughly. It seemed like something straight out of science fiction story for real. But it also seems like some people took him seriously. I really hope my dad wasn't a lunatic. That could possibly be why mom didn't want to be with him after a while. I continued looking through the people who commented on his article. One name particularly stood out to me. Leroy Stewart. He said that he wanted to meet up with my dad to discuss things about exposing this secret. How was werewolves a secret when they don't really exist?

          I found my way into some random websites that could tell me who this Leroy was. I was looking through a list of people with either the same first name or same last name or both when I smelled Jackson. "Yep. That was my dad." I jumped and grabbed the spot where my heart was. He scared the mess out of me. "Why didn't you come to school today? I scared your grandmother when I asked if you were in the apartment. I was really worried about you and thought something had happened to you."

          "I was just doing some research. How did you find me?" I was curious about how he found me. He hasn't known me long enough to know where I like to hide at. Plus he just moved here so how would he know where the public library is? He started to look uncomfortable. "Look. If you aren't going to tell me, then I need you to start leaving me alone. I have enough to deal with without having to worry about whether or not I'm safe with or can even trust this person who I barely know. It isn't like I am asking for much."

          When he didn't respond, I logged off of the computer and left him standing in the library. I rode my bike home fighting back tears. I possibly just lost the only best friend I had. It hurt. It hurt a lot. But I had to be firm about this. I need to start protecting myself better. I soon arrived back home and ran into the Wong's apartment. I went into my room and cried on my bed. I really wanted to stay friends with Jackson. I really cared for him. In fact, I'm pretty sure that the reason I have been feeling the emotions that I feel towards him are because I actually have a crush on him. Wouldn't it really suck that my first crush ever is on someone who would never like me back.

          When I finished crying, I took two aspirins for my migrain and started cooking the mushu pork. It took me two hours to do it properly but I was indeed happy with the end result. It looked just like Mrs. Wong's mushu pork. I grabbed my bowl and put a heaping helping of rice into it. Then I topped it with the mushu pork and some chives because I really liked chives. I tasted it and it even tasted like Mrs. Wong's mushu pork. I grabbed the bowl that matched mine except that it was green instead of purple. I fixed it like mine and wrapped it with plastic wrap. I sneaked over to Jackson's and left it in front of his door and then ran back to the Wong's. Hopefully he would find it and eat it before it got cold.

          I don't know why I did that. I did invite him over but I'm pretty sure I rescinded that invitation when I told him that I didn't want to be friends anymore. I felt a pang in my chest at that thought. But I still wanted him to be a part of the tradition. I'll leave a note for the Wong's to invite him over for mushu pork Wednesday. I knew them very well. They would jump at the chance to help him out even if it was for something as simple as cooking a meal and inviting him over for the meal. While I was washing the dishes, I smelled Jackson's scent get really close. A light knock came from the door and then his scent got farther away. I went to open the door and found a clean bowl with a note in it. I put the note on the table and put the bowl away. I still had to wash my chopsticks and then I would read the note. When I finished, I dried my hands and read the note.

Katelyn. One day soon I'll be able to tell you. It's just that the time doesn't seem right to me. I'm not sure you would even believe me if I told you. I really hope that you will still be friends with me even though I'm so secretive. I'll wait for you in the front of the building in the morning. If I see you approach me, I'll take that as we can still be friends. If I don't, then I will leave you alone as you want and not bother you unless you want to talk to me. P.S. That was the best mushu pork I have ever eaten. You should become a chef someday. You are really good at cooking. P.P.S. See you at work.

          I sighed and put the note in my back pocket. I knew I was about to forget something. Luckily I don't have to be in for another hour. I cleaned the table and got my jacket on. I was going to ride my bike to work today. On the way, I let my mind wander. Things have gotten even more complicated since Jackson showed up. If I find out that he is the source of all my problems, I'm going to have to drop him like a bad habit. That one thought hurt me even more but I know that it would be the wise, smart, and responsible thing to do. But that still didn't make it hurt any less.