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Chapter 5: Limited Hope
The day was gray and cold. Rain began to fall down in waves as wind blew hard against the house. A storm was coming. Wasn't it odd? A storm? In the season of fall? Of course, if that kind of erratic weather pattern appeared during winter, then I guessed that a blizzard would appear.
Not my problem, booooring.
Sitting on top of my bed with my legs crossed, I flipped through a series of comic books: Spiderman, Superman, X-Man...
God, being locked up in my room with no where else to go was horrendous! I shifted my position and brought one of my wings forward to my side. They had gotten a lot bigger since the day that they came out. Now they were able to cover myself entirely down to my knees. It was possible that they could still grow as I continued to grow. Softly stroking the silvery feathers, I bit my lower lip as I thought about my situation.
Dad had gone to Dr. Triden's place again. He said they might have found a way to get me back to normal. I shuddered at the thought. What kind of brutal things would they do to me? Dad had locked up my bedroom door because he was afraid I might make some stupid phone calls that might alert others about my "illness".
I shrugged.
One of the feathers got loose and it landed on the bed sheet. I picked it up and brought it close to my face. It was pliant... and somewhat lovely... I shook my head as I tried to get my thoughts straight. There was no way I would fall in love with what I was right now. No way in hell would I accept the fact that I was a mutant. No way in hell would I endure the kind of punishments that I was going through right now. But I was, wasn't I?
I had breakfast, but it was brought up in a tray by my Dad. Mom had left the house really early, for she didn't want to see me. I could never eat in the dining room with my parents now. Never. I could never go into the living room and watch TV now. Never. I could never go back to the school and be bullied by those who were bigger than me now. Never. Oh sure, I could access the shower room, but even that had proven an obstacle for me. Fitting those wings into the glass panels was a tiresome job. And if I was not careful, I could bump into one of the metal bars and could seriously hurt my wings and myself.
I groaned out loud as I started to lean backward, but only to jump up with shock and pain as my wings were bent slightly beneath my back. I hated these things! Why must I had to bear things that were not supposed to be borne by humans?
Water droplets pounded against the window. Rainwater filtered out the colorless light outside, and was creating this mixed up colors on my desk. My room was messy, even more disorganized before I sprawled my wings. I had created massive windstorms in my room occasionally. I couldn't help it. My wings would have cramps that were hard to withstand if I didn't move them after a long time.
Thinking about that, I started flapping. Wing tips brushed against the wall. Sheets of loose papers floated in the air and randomly landed on the ground. I didn't care anymore about making more untidiness. No one would come into my room directly and scold at me about this. It was true. I was all alone most of the time over the past few weeks. My room, before was fun and entertaining, had now become my eternal confinement.
My train of thought got broken in half as I heard something thudded against the window. I jumped onto the floor from my bed and headed toward the source of the sound. Cautiously, I opened the window and a small blue jay came flying in. I ducked my head in surprise. It circled around once before settling on the bookshelf.
Water was starting to flow into the room. I quickly closed the window as I searched for something to wipe up the excess fluid.
Finally, I sat on a stool near the blinds, eyeing the bird. It turned its head here for a second, then there the next. Almost like a robot, it was observing my little chamber of extreme boredom. It shivered a little, letting small rainwater droplets to land on my books. Then it chirped loudly as it looked at me sideways. I slowly extended my wings as it sang even louder.
Without warning, it flew down, across the floor, and up into my lap. I was so stunned that I almost fell over the stool. The little flying creature was like a ball. Along its puffy back, the feathers were blue-colored with short, black lines streaking across several times near the tail. Its belly was white, like snow. It had a curt, black beak with tiny, black eyes. A dark ring circled around its nearly invisible neck. It nudged against my bare stomach as it walked along my upper legs.
I stared at it with fascination. It wasn't afraid of me! Why? Was it because I had wings?
The little blue jay chirped again as it leaped and flew onto one of my shoulders. Its talons dug into my flesh, but I didn't mind the pain. This mini fellow was keeping me company, and I savored each and every single second that it was spending with me.
I couldn't help but smile. Knowing that at least someone, even if it was just a wild bird, wasn't afraid of coming near me had made me felt better.
The animal looked around with great curiosity as it continued to perch on my shoulder. I shuddered a little when a chilling breeze came into the room through a crack. I swept my wings closer together to keep me warm. Mom was extremely slow at modifying my clothes. Right now, I still didn't have a shirt to wear. I guessed that she didn't care whether if I froze to death or not.
I turned my head slightly and whispered: "What are you doing here? Are you here to stay out of the rain?"
The blue jay watched me. It didn't move a muscle.
Sighing, I chuckled slightly. "Aren't you afraid of me? Like other people? Like my parents? Even the doctor is starting to fear me. Aren't you even scared of my appearance?"
As if it could understand what I was talking about, it let loose a few sounds while fluttering its wings. It sounded as if it welcomed me as a... friend.
"I'm glad that I can meet you..." I gulped down the dryness in my throat. I felt hot, stinging tears started to appear. I fought for control, but it proved futile. A tear rolled down my face. "I... I am lonely here... To stay in this place by myself twenty-four-seven... I..."
The bird tweeted as it came closer to my tear-stained face. I slowly raised up a hand, just below its talons. It glanced down for a second then jumped onto my extended finger. I gently patted its tiny head with my other hand.
I knew that I had made a friend right there on the spot. Even if it was not a human being, it was still a friend.
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A loud crash woke me up from my nap. Dazed, I looked around, trying to get my bearings. The bird was marching along the table beside my bed. I gazed out the window. The sky was calm. Though it was starting to get dark, the worst of the storm was over. I opened a crack and let the blue jay out. I thanked it for being such a nice friend.
Unexpectedly, lots of voices were shouting outside downstairs. I wondered what was going on.
"No! You can not have an interview with him! No! My son is not an animal in a zoo! Get... hey! Get your freaking mother f- feet out my door now!" Dad was screaming at the top of his lungs.
I quickly got to the door and tried to turn the handle. Then I remembered that I was locked in.
"You guys want me to call the police and get an arrest warrant for y'all? Get out of my property now!" The front door slammed shut as Dad cursed loudly. People, and I suspect they were reporters, continued pounding on the door, threatening to bring it down.
I heard footsteps outside and the bolt clicked open. The door swung in and my Dad sighed as he stood in the doorway. I huddled within my wings as the cold, winter air seeped in.
"Those damn reporters... they've found out about your... condition," he started to talk. "Apparently, Dr. Triden, the one who has promised me never to tell anyone about your wings, have consulted several other surgeons about our plans to cut them off. Now the medical science field is in an uproar. I'll bet that today's evening news will have information about you as well."
What did he say? Cut my wings off? A chill flowed through my body. I stayed in the same spot like a statue. Dad looked at me once before he groaned.
"Why me? ME! Why? I mean, other people can have a normal child, but why do I get you?" He pointed at me furiously.
"It isn't my fault, Dad. Why do you hate me so much? I didn't-" I decided to retaliate because I couldn't handle this any longer. But I didn't get far.
"You didn't? You didn't what? Causing enough troubles already ever since you are born, and now you are becoming a... a freak!"
"I'm not a freak, Dad. I don't even want these wings!" I raised my voice.
His chubby face was red with anger. His fists trembled like crazy. Veins popped out of his biceps muscles. "Don't you dare talking back to me with this attitude, Tobieaz! I am your father, and in this house, I hold more power than you do! Get that fact straight and into your thick skull!"
I remained silent as he continued to bombard me with threats and blames. I didn't cry, probably because my tears had run dry a long time ago.
Now car doors were banging close outside our house. I could hear it clearly. Apparently, people in the neighborhood had come to find out what was the chaos in front of our overgrown lawn.
Dad muttered with rage as he left me alone. He ran down the stairs and opened a window on the side of the main gate.
"Get the hell out of here! That's it! I'm suing you all for disrupting my family's peace!"
"Mr. Redil! Mr. Redil! Please, wait! Can you verify that what Professor Triden has said is true? Is it true that your son is growing, according to the other physicians, a pair of wings? Mr. Redil! Any comments regarding to-"
"Shut the hell up!"
I closed the bedroom door. Somehow, one way or another, I was feeling relieved. Though I didn't want to admit it, but perhaps with the media knowing about me being shut off from the rest of the world for well over two months could grant me freedom. Maybe people would feel so sorry for me that they would come and help me, come and take care of me. I managed a grim smile. Could I be free? Could I go walk outside in the streets again like everybody else, only this time with an extra pair of wings?
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Winter came by slowly, but was gone quickly. Now spring gradually trotting in, bringing life across the land. Flowers bloomed richly and grasses lavished freely. Birds outside were flying in the blue sky under the warm sun.
I had remained in my house for five months now, and still, I wasn't granted freedom. My parents had gone to the court and got an order to tell those news reporters and critics to back off.
For the past three months, our house had turned into... a zoo. There were so many people wanting to see me and my even bigger wings that they were holding up the traffics in the nearby streets. Police had to be dispatched and keep the crowd in check. Despite the fact that the county courthouse had already issued a mandate to stop the media from coming within two hundred feet of our house, they had suddenly increased in number. Now they were literally "camping" on our lawn just barely touching the border. Vans and cars were parked outside. Cameras with hundreds of cables were set up. People were sitting on their chairs or standing around, eating, drinking, and hoping to see my wings and me.
Now Mom and Dad had a tough time trying to back out of their driveway and going to work. People were like ants. They swarmed the van and the truck, bringing both massive vehicles to a stop.
Like now, I could hear horns beeping rapidly and loudly. That would be Dad, trying to get to his office in Downtown through a human chain. It was morning, and again, I was barred in my room. A good thing had happened though. My parents had rigged a cable connection to a small TV that they had brought up from the living room. I was grateful for that. Now, I didn't have to read only novels and textbooks. I could surf the channels like other teens.
Most of my things had moved out of the room since I had created such a mess by flapping my wings constantly. I told them to get rid of the ones that I didn't need, such as bookshelves, small cabinets... I had been practicing to use my wings, or rather, to direct my wings in different angles. Who knows? It might come in handy.
Although Mom had given me a handful of modified clothes, but I still didn't wear them. I was used to being half-naked now. And with my wings helping me to keep the coldness away, I didn't need them. Besides, now it was spring, I didn't cold anymore.
As I was watching the shopping channel (nothing good was on currently), I heard something scraping on the window panel. I turned my head instantly and saw a news reporter hanging on for his dear life on a tree branch, trying to capture me with a small camera in his other free hand.
I got up and closed the blind. He was shouting, trying to get me to open the curtain again, but I only turned up the volume louder. I thought I heard a thump a moment later...
I was annoyed. I had somehow become an exhibition for other people to see and criticize. That wasn't what I had in mind a few months ago. I switched to the news channel. A special report about me was made. So what else was new? My history and my family's history had been broadcast millions of time now. It wasn't interesting to see or hear anymore. A photo of me appeared. I looked young, even though it wasn't that long ago.
I had grown taller now. I was more muscular, especially my back and shoulders. All those hours of fluttering my wings had created big ripples of muscle near the joints where the wings were connected to my spine and shoulder blades. My wings were gigantic right now. My room just didn't have enough space for me to open them up freely anymore. So now I had to flap in short bursts without really extending them.
I continued to stare at the snapshot of me in the TV. At that time, I wasn't so depressed, worried, and nervous. I looked so young. Now, when I looked into a mirror, I saw a guy that was five foot six, long black hair, with a face that looked like seventeen years old. My green eyes looked back at me, haunted. I didn't know why my irises in both of my eyes had changed their color. It sort of happened without me knowing it. Oh great.
Even though I had grown significantly taller and bigger, my weight was still getting lighter. Thirteen years old (almost fourteen in another few days), I was at fifty pounds. Sure the rate of getting lighter was slowing down, but it was terrifying to see the scale falling lower and lower.
Telephone on the first floor was ringing. No one was home. Yup, no one was home. I wasn't at home. I wasn't a human. Yup. I was a nobody. I was a shadow. No one was home. It just kept on ringing and ringing and ringing. I gripped the remote control tightly. I gritted my teeth and while closing my eyes. It was still ringing like mad. Just ringing. Bells, small bells, were jingling, were ringing. The phone was ringing. It, was, freaking, ringing! And it, was, freaking, annoying!
"Ah, just leave me alone! All of you! Just freaking leave me alone, damn it! Damn you all! Leave, me, alone! Stop pestering me! Stop treating me as if I am something special! I, am, NOT" I exploded and shrieked.
I threw the TV control at the wall before me. It broke apart with a large bang and fell to the ground in pieces. Batteries rolled along the carpeted floor. I lumped onto my knees, paralyzed... Didn't know what to do, didn't know what to hope for.
~End Chapter 5~
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