Over the next several weeks, we will be sharing excerpts of the angelic characters from a work in progress, THE DARKNESS WITHIN, Book Three by Angelica Hart and Zi.
ANGEL WINGS OF HOPE
Afriel's and Charmeine's coalition of
hope
Brattleboro,
Vermont, Amherst Mass., Albany, NY
Hebrews 13:2 - Do not neglect to show hospitality to
strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it.
Jerry Sarin had
been labeled a nerd but wasn’t born with the brilliant gene. Yes, he loved
everything sci-fi and fantasy. Yes, he buried his head in books. Yes, he
blushed to his brain cells when around a beautiful girl. And, yes, he didn’t
have any friends. Which was a recent event, the one he had moved.
"Jerry...
Jerry... is a fairy!" came down the hall as the boys approached. Laughter
followed. This was typical.
One bully pushed
Jerry's face into a metal locker as the group passed.
All others
seemed out of his purview. The bright and upcoming nerds were in classes where
Jerry couldn’t compete, and then there were the preps. He couldn’t keep up with
the fashion. The skaters who wore things such as Dickies and Converses, well,
skated. Jerry had weak ankles. The Goths basically scared him. Geeze, they
never smiled. He took a stab at fitting in with the Emos, allegedly depressed
teens who wore straight legged jeans and band t-shirts with perpetually messy
hair kinda fit his look. His own hair
looked like it never saw a comb. He was short and bony, but Jerry didn’t like
their heavy metal music and he simply couldn’t manage to be that sad all the
time. They were almost an off-shoot of the Goths. He didn’t even dare consider
being a jock. Jerry had an athletic disability; he couldn’t throw, kick, catch
or hit a ball in any way, in any capacity. He tripped when he ran. He was too
small to build up speed for the swim team, and he didn’t have the strength for
wrestling. Maybe, he could turn his stringy body into something muscular, but
he didn’t have the ambition. There were other high school clicks but Jerry just
didn’t fit anywhere.
Jerry Sarin,
youngest son of a white mother and East Indian father, was average in everything
else. It was annoying not fitting in and
hurtful being bullied.
This day he was
targeted again. It was not the first time one of those groups had singled him
out. Nope, probably wouldn't be the last either. There it was the switcher-upper, someone changed the lock
on his locker. How cruel. The worse was it was premeditated. Someone actually
went out and bought a brand new one just for him. Should he be flattered?
Shouldn't they have more in their life than pick-on-Jerry plans? Why? It was
insane. The reason didn't matter. What mattered was he couldn’t get in. His
homework was there. His lunch was there. His freaking life was in there. He
smacked the metal container as if he could break in. "Why me? Why all the
frickin' time me?"
“Won’t do any
good.”
Jerry turned,
two boys around his age stood before him. They had the appearance of being dweebs
like him, but he hadn’t seen them around. New kids?
“Hi,” Jerry
managed. “Can’t get in.”
“Someone change
out the lock?” The taller one asked.
Jerry shrugged.
“Yea.”
“Let me,” the
other said, put his ear against the cylinder and fiddled for just over a
minute. It popped open.
“How did you do
that?” He asked looking at his locker.
The boy showed
him. “Just listen for the clicks.”
Jerry nodded as
he gathered what he needed. “This has happened to you?”
“Yes. And other
stuff.” The one said.
“I hate it. I
hate them!” Jerry was adamant.
“Hate doesn’t do
any more good than smashing your hand against the locker.”
Jerry began to
walk toward his free period in the auditorium, the others tagged along. “It’s
hard to just ignore.”
"Stand for
yourself and your rights to be treated fairly has to be a fundamental
imperative. Sure it is scary, but let the rightness lead. Be a shining example
for yourself, and others."
The fuller bodied
of the newbies added, “Actually, at times, ignoring is the key. If they realize
it is not affecting you, they stop. No reaction, no fun for them.”
A bell sounded.
Jerry walked more quickly. “It can’t
possibly be that easy.”
Something
flashed amid his being, infusing onto his soul. His chest puffed as a sense of
fairplay grappled against cowardice. His eyes riveted on one simple thought, he
was stronger.
No one
responded, and when Jerry glanced backward, thinking he walked ahead of the
boys, he discovered he was alone. “Where did they go?” he said aloud, his voice
demanding attention.
“Who?” asked a
popular girl with her trio of friends about her. This was unusual for anyone to
dialog with Jerry, but he commanded a reply.
“Um… two guys,
one tall, the other a little fuller.”
She looked down
the length of her pert little nose. “No one was here but you, Goose.” Goose was
a nickname they called him because his sneezes sounded like a honk.
Jerry scanned
the hall. They were right. He was late for the next period and the only other
ones in the hall were the girls. He did not shrivel from what he knew to be a
fact as he oft did trying to fit with others. What had happened?
Jerry felt
different because of the brief encounter. Why? How?
Unknowingly,
Jerry had just conversed with two angels. Why? They brought their blessings to
his world to be forwarded to all through him.
Afriel and Charmeine had altered their forms and offered
Jerry not just some sage wisdom, but left a bit of themselves. Their invisible
wings touched his torso and empowered it, broadening his shoulders. Every angel
was poised and their confidence infused him, bringing a solid clarity to his
reasoning. Yes, he stood a bit taller, felt smarter, and shyness seemed to
evaporate. He recognized that he had been helped, but didn’t know how these two
vanishing boys did it.
He was not the only ones who noticed his metamorphosis. To
the girls, he appeared bigger, stronger, less dorky. “You been working out or
something, Goose?” asked the leader of the Starlets as they liked to think of
themselves.
“My name is Jerry. Jerry Sarin.” Bold. Direct. Commanding.
After the period, the crude boys walked down the hall and
again bantered, "Jerry... Jerry... is a fairy!"
Normally, Jerry would have hung his head, attempted to be
invisible and flee as quickly as possible, hoping no one would follow with
taunts. Instead, Jerry took deliberate powerful steps toward the boys, grabbed
the parroting prankster creep by the shirt collar, pushed him to the wall. His
voice steady, forceful but not loud. "I want my lock back. Make it
so."
The boy pushed back probably expecting little resistance,
but a new-founded strength with Jerry, overpowered as he held the boy.
Further, the boy couldn't bring himself to even twitch. More
than Jerry held him. Was it fear? Fear of this nobody? It felt like an
invisible grip, a paralysis he had never experience. It was eerie.
The amassing group of rubberneckers watched in utter
amazement. Jerry could have hurt him, but only showed enough strength to assert
his point. When he released the boy, Jerry backed away only a step, awaiting a
response.
"I'll... I'll ask," said the wannabe bully.
"Get it done."
Jerry walked away.
Every eye watched him.
From that moment on, Jerry took a position on bullies. He
ignored their antics while standing defiantly and passed those nuggets of
information and strategy on to others. When bullies tried a more hands-on
tactic, he stood, literally stood against them, not moving, not fighting back,
not yelling, but bracing himself and staring past them. When one tried to hit
him, it was as if they smashed their fist against an invisible wall. Jerry
smiled as if they were children, an action which rattled the assaulter. When
two tried to move him, it was as if he were anchored in place. A simple stretch
of Jerry's arms propelled them away. There it was, he was no longer a victim.
Jerry would tell all that you either believed in something or you stood for nothing. He stood for no
tolerance when it came to bullies. Confronted every occurrence with a direct
non-violent confrontation. Eye-to-eye he would make his point, that the weak
were not fair game.
The school
noticed his stand on bulling. Parents heard the stories from their happier
children. Mothers and fathers and teachers made it a mandate that their
community was a no-bullying one.
They brought his
phrasing to the school district as a model. The district adopted Jerry’s Rule,
which was then approved as a regulation for all schools. Jerry’s angelic
interaction created anti-bullying regulations for all of Vermont.
Ironically,
Jerry was shot when he confronted a man in New York City who was mugging
another. Did he die? No. Did he waver his ideal? No. Did the mugger win? No.
The mugger exploded into a meat shower.
***
About the Story: The Darkness Within is a fast-paced supernatural thriller involving, kidnapping, romance, gypsies, and supernatural beings. The tale revolves around private detective Brie (Gabriella) Tyler's investigation of several missing young women believed to be runaways. Somehow, it connects to a past she cannot remember. While trying to find his missing niece, Jake Marlo, the owner of prestigious private detective agency, crosses path with Brie. Independent and feisty, Tyler resists Marlo's help and romantic attention. The two collide as heinous henchmen and supernatural forces threaten to destroy their lives.
We'd love to hear from anyone interested in what we do. Anyone who writes us at writingteamcw@yahoo.com (Write - Blog Dawn - in subject line) and leaves an s-mail address, we will send you a free ebook (choose erotic or romantic thriller) and add you to any future mailings.
Angelica Hart and Zi ~ Vixen Bright and Zachary Zane
www.champagnebooks.com - www.carnalpassions.com - angelicahartandzi.com
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