Barcode: Legend of Apollo (40 page)

Every part of our bodies react to each other enchantingly. I enter into another dark region, but this time I know I’m on earth, connected to it. The only person that can reach me is already along for the ride.

With a stroke of her hand, Michelle knocks off my wristband and the rest of my upper body armor falls along with it. I pull her blouse above her head and a smile appears that makes me fall in love three times over. Michelle kicks off my boot strap and the last bit of gear falls off. With the strength from my tattoos, I pull her pants off by spreading them apart. I know her legs are strong enough to hold the weight, and the material rips easily. I didn’t realize that I had her underwear in my grip. They vanish as well. We both chuckle.

When she steals herself away from the laughter, our bodies magnetize. Even with her face approaching, I feel something pushing me. We’re both dressed in nothing but a layer of protection covering our upper bodies. I unhook hers as she slides her hand around my back. Michelle pulls tightly on one of the straps until it snaps. Then, she unravels my bandages slowly.

I’m finally here. With more stress in one year than I’d ever experienced, it took me all this time to find love. I’ll never forget the pain I felt receiving these bandages. Now, I’m watching as the woman I adore the most frees me of their bondage.

When the last strand is removed, a loud tuning fills the room. Michelle ignores it and pulls me towards the bed. I hear her moan as my barcode turns the black walls golden. I slowly fall on top of her, and her skin takes the driver’s seat in my bloodstream. The intensity of our connection magnifies as my tattoos attempt to find some sense of balance.

Michelle’s eyes watch me with the softest expression as we situate ourselves on the bed. Once we’re comfortable, she traces her fingers down my tattoo lightly, and I shiver uncontrollably. Then, we form the physical connection I’ve wanted since the moment I knew I belonged to her.

***

Later that night, I sit up in the bed feeling traces of Michelle’s data within me. I reach to pick up my armor, but she follows. We both stand with our barcodes still shining, speechless. She’s invading my privacy again. I don’t think she can stop.

Against her own knowledge, she touches me in a way that causes my eyes to burn. Her lips press firmly against my chest. She doesn’t stop kissing.

A river forms at our feet. We’re both crying, and I’m losing my breath.

I search my heart, wondering what I want.

I can’t find the answer.

The only thing I do know is that she must stay alive. I never want her to suffer. Pushing Michelle away, I whimper a bit before regaining my composure. I try laughing, but I only cry more.

“Don’t,” she says with a voice that draws me closer to her.
I can’t
echoes in my head. It’s not Kode’s advice or Helios’ threat of returning that’s pulling me away. I’m the one doing this because I can’t see her hurt. I’d lose myself to this world forever if anything were to happen to her. Michelle is the only thing on Earth that holds me and makes me cherish my life.

My eyes weld themselves to the ground as I step away. I can’t have the strength I need to leave while looking into her hazel eyes. I can’t leave thinking about how I love her.

“Kiss me,” she shouts, trying to control herself. She hits me, and the electric connection between our skin reestablishes itself firmly. I suffer from the love in her touch.

“Don’t run away. Kiss me. Love me.” Her tears turn to screams and her love turns to anger. “Spencer. Spencer!” She says my name so many times I have to convince myself I’m someone else to avoid returning. The second I look at her, I’ll belong to her again, and I’ll never leave.

Grabbing my armor from the floor, I try to reactivate it, but hesitate long enough for her to ask a question that forces me to search my soul for an answer that’s already written on my skin, “What do you want?”

“I don’t know,” my obvious lie still causes her to whimper. That sound. It’s like I’ve stolen her heart.

“Why are you here Spencer? Spencer. What do you want?” Unable to understand why I won’t answer, she blares, “Spencer!”

“Not you,” I say so nefariously she covers her mouth and doesn’t make another sound. I sense a stream flowing down her face because of what she’s taught me. To feel.

I attach my wristband and the rest of the armor does the work for me. Fully clothed in my gear, I slam the door and listen to her scream into her own hands. I might as well have killed her myself.

Michelle senses the truth. She senses how deeply I desire to have her by my side every minute of the day, but there’s a difference between feeling and hearing the words.

I walk down to Leo’s apartment, but leave several dents in the wall along the way. It seems that not even MMIBS reinforcement can withstand my wrath. Sound has cut itself off from me. My worlds have combined. Though I’m not completely in the dark, I’m not on Earth either. Right now, I think I need a friend.

I open the door and expect to discover Leo stretched out amongst his junk. But that’s not what I find at all. Instead, I find him making out with someone. I try slipping out without him seeing me, but they’re both so startled that I’m able to see his significant other clearly. He and Patrick stare at me fearfully.

I don’t stay long enough to catch any more details.

Images of Michelle and Leo blind me.

Her pain. The expression on his face once he noticed me.

Before I can think of where I should run, I find myself forty floors away from my room, in our gym.

Driving my fist through a practice dummy, a digital projection appears behind me that’s slowly building its color.

“Took me forever to find you.”

“You knew but you didn’t tell me?” I say savagely to Antonio. I’m taking my anger out on him when really I should apologize for bursting in. That’s Leo’s place, not mine. I invaded his space and intruded on his relationship. How can I judge someone for their decisions when I can’t manage my own?

“There’s nothing you could have done if you knew. You would have overreacted, just like you are now.”

“He’s gay and he’s been living with me.”

“Leonardo’s bisexual and he’s living in an apartment on your floor. Stop pretending like you took showers together.”

Antonio walks towards me, but has to calibrate first.

“When did you find out?” I ask, punching the limbs off a steel dummy.

Antonio looks away during his calibration and says, “I was his first boyfriend. Leonardo was the love of my life.”

My eye twitches from the excessive amount of information I’ve received in one night. Overload.

“You guys hid this from me.”

“Okay, let’s hear this then. Hey Spencer, you testosterone-filled jerk that thinks with your biceps more than your heart, I’m Antonio, dead data conformed to a computer. I’m Leonardo’s ex-lover who died trying to protect him from Eli.”

“Antonio.”

“Only, I never made it that far. I was killed by a boy my age because I was in the wrong arena at the wrong time.”

“Antonio,” I say angrily.

“Oh yeah. Leonardo’s seeing Patrick by the way, and he’s all queer.”

“Antonio!” My voice booms around the room. “Maybe another night. Possibly on a day where I’m in a good mood.” Tears race down my face, “Maybe some time when I haven’t just broken her heart, alright? I don’t want to understand or care…or not judge. I need to be pissed and angry and blow something up. Don’t...” I trail off for a moment, “Don’t start tonight.”

Antonio nods his head and slowly approaches me. He wants to comfort me, but has issues of his own. Antonio can’t feel. He needs to get back to the one person that’s probably geared up to jump.

Still, I can’t save him. I can hardly save myself. I just wish things would go back to normal. I was alone and prepared to run away. I didn’t hurt the person I cared mostly about, and I found pleasure in my painful life.

The hologram disappears without a word and I can finally cry. Freely.

Forty One

The next day, I decided to take a shower in the locker room and head to campus early. I accidentally left my jacket in my room last night. I guess I’m forced to head to school without my safety blanket.

As I walk into the arena from the entrance to the garden, I overhear students complaining about finding an open route to school. It seems that almost all the streets were closed. Only those local and arriving by helicopter could make it in.

Many students are local to Griffith Park, but some, like Kyle and Wesley, won’t make it today.

I receive a text from Dennis saying that my training’s been canceled all week. Supposedly a few of the professors will be out as well.

The garden’s become too popular. With all the people destroying the serenity, I decide to sit outside of my class. Quite a few students approach me with foods and gifts. Even the humans that were bumped into the demigod classes thank me and walk away. Abby leaves me a tiny, nicely wrapped box, and kisses the crown of my head. Selena drops a off first aid kit, which I obviously need after all the bloody incidents in my apartment.

I’m given so much that one student runs off to steal a basket from the cafeteria. When he returns I ask, “What’s all this for?”

“Well, I’m sure everyone has bought something for you by now, but you’re always busy. Once everyone finds out that you’re in classes today, you’ll get a lot more.”

“Great, but
why
did they buy me this stuff?”

The freshman looks away and says, “We’re really not supposed to mention it, but rumor is that you’re training hard to defend us from Helios. They say after Arnold’s death you took on an even larger responsibility. I guess I should say thanks man.” The freshman awkwardly pats me on the back as though he wanted a hug and runs off with a smile.

Kode walks up to our classroom door and pushes a few buttons on his phone to unlock it.

“It’s amazing how blatantly you hack into the school’s system.”

He reaches into my basket, steals a bagel, and attaches it to his mask. It vanishes after a few seconds. “You’d think they’d catch me by now, but something’s wrong with the security at this school. I’m warning you.”

Professor Gardezi watches closely as we stroll into the room. His classroom is scheduled to stay locked until eight-fifteen and we’re five minutes early so I can understand his surprise. I leave the basket of snacks and gifts on his desk, which distracts him long enough to not ask how we got inside.

As we find our seats, Kode mumbles, “You had an eventful night.”

“It was pretty amazing.”

“Just a heads up, Hannah’s ready to punch you in the face. Anyway, how are you feeling?”

“Look at how happy I am right now and take a guess.”

“You have two of the hottest girls at this school fighting over you. I don’t have much sympathy for your
issues
. In fact, I think you’re an ungrateful dick.”

“Jealous much?”

“More than you’ll ever know.”

Professor Gardezi walks closer to us, “Are you talking to me?” I shake my head and point to Kode. “You’re talking through Tartarus?” Kode and I both nod. “You think there’s any X-Eyes in that basket?” Gardezi manages to find some pretty strong alcohol. He drinks the bottle with trembling hands, staring at us. We watch back, amazed.

Our classmates trickle into the room. Hannah pulls her chair right next to mine, “How could you?” I don’t respond, and she’s probably not used to me treating her how I once did Michelle. I’m sure they spoke about this on the phone for hours, but I can’t do anything about it. “She says she’s not coming to school today.”

“Good. You go home too,” I say, looking over at Kode. He waits until Hannah follows my gaze before nodding his head.

“If something happens, I’m fighting. That’s what we trained for after school all this time…why couldn’t you let her help? She’s strong enough and would back you up better than me.”

Professor Gardezi begins the class, but I slowly turn towards Hannah and speak loudly enough for everyone to hear.

“Because I love Meesh, like she’s a piece of me. I don’t want her to die. If you’re staying, stop bugging me and get ready to fight. Otherwise, join her.”

Hannah doesn’t say another word to me for the rest of the school day.

Leo never shows up, though I don’t know what I would say if he did. I imagine Dennis scraping his remains from the curb because I didn’t have the courage to admit I shouldn’t judge him.

I make it all the way to Professor Gonzales’ class and listen as the final bell rings. I turn to Kode, “Wow dude. You really had me hyped up about explosions and death. I thought I’d get some action.”

He chuckles before releasing a force from his chest that causes everyone in the room to stumble.  When I’m upset or Angie’s yelling, the pressure we exert resembles someone pushing down on your chest. Yet, Kode’s presence feels like a literal shock wave.

He mumbles, “How the hell did I miss that?”

As though he were a search dog, sniffing his surrounding, Kode’s head searches the room.

After he analyzes whatever he was searching for, he dashes through the doors. Yes. Through them. Both wooden barriers fall over as if they were the beginning pieces of a domino set. I try chasing him, but his head start already has him trampling students in the hallway and making his way to the entrance.

When I finally catch up, Kode exits the school and closes the double doors, trapping us inside. Then, he does something that I thought was impossible. He transmutes the solid doors until they’re too heavy to move. Did he set me up?

Before he finishes the transmutation, I punch holes in the door. Once the process is complete, I’m no longer able to break through. The door has undergone MMIBS and won’t open any time soon. Other students crowd behind me. Angie and Hannah bully their way to the front. They peek through one of my holes to see what’s happening outside.

Kode waits silently, leaning against the opposite side of the barrier.

“What’s up Kode?” I ask, “You know there are other ways out, right?

“Yeah. You might want to get someone to cover those.”