G-Force (Book 1): G-Force Read online

She giggled. “You know what I mean.”

  “Yeah. I do. Linda, can we eat together at lunchtime or are there girls you would rather sit with?”

  “No. Lunchtime would be great. We could have a longer time to talk then.”

  “Okay, it's a date,” he said cheerfully.

  “Everyday?” She asked.

  “Why not? Well, except for two days a week.”

  “Why?” She asked.

  “School is closed on weekends.”

  She laughed again. “You're a pretty funny guy Brad.”

  “Thanks.” He said. But he didn't think he was all that funny. She was just glad to be talking with him. He could tell. He was certainly glad to be talking to her! It's about time, he thought.

  “Okay, it's a date five times a week with weekends off to recover,” she said.

  Brad laughed. He liked how she used the word “date”. Hint, hint! He thought to himself. This could get interesting.

  She was laughing with him. He began to notice that she had a melodic sound when she laughed that was very infectious. Then she put her hand on his shoulder looking him in the eyes intently and said, “I'm really looking forward to this Brad.”

  “So am I,” he said.

  “I have to get going now. The bell rang at least two minutes ago,” She informed him.

  “Uh oh. I didn't even hear it,” Brad said truthfully.

  She laughed her sweet laugh again. “I'm glad you didn't notice. That tells me something.”

  “That I'm deaf?”

  “No. That you must really like me for you not to hear the bell.”

  “Oh. Well, yeah. That's true,” he admitted.

  “See you at lunch,” she said with a man melting smile then hurried off down the hall, short shapely legs carrying a short shapely body and lovely long black hair.

  Boy am I glad we both have the same lunch period! He thought as he watched her go. She was very attractive. He had taken a long time to notice that about her or any girl.

  The very next day he spent his lunch time with her. They ate and talked and laughed. He felt a strong kinship with her from the very beginning. He finally got brave enough after a couple weeks to call her at home after she gave him her phone number. He dialed her number and waited for her to answer. She didn't but her mom did.

  “Uh. Hello. Is uh, is Linda Day there?” He asked a bit flummoxed. Why didn't it occur to me that someone else besides her might answer the phone?

  “Linda Day? Well. Let me think for a minute. I don't think there are any other Lindas in this home. So, it must be Linda Day that you're asking about.”

  “Yes. Yes, it is. Is she there.” he asked timidly

  “Yep. She's here alright. Thank you for calling. Goodbye.”

  “Oh! Uh. No. Could I talk to her for a minute?” This was becoming excruciating.

  “Oh. You don't just want to know if she's here. This isn't a fact-finding mission? You actually want to talk to her?”

  Brad was quiet. He didn't quite know how to deal with this harassment.

  “Helloooo. Anybody there?” Linda's mom asked.

  “Yes, I'm here. Could I please talk to Linda for a minute?”

  “Should I time it so you can be notified when a minute is up?” Linda's mom asked.

  “Well, maybe it will be a little longer than a minute.” At this point Brad was ready to give in and hang up.

  “Richard. I have a young fella on the phone who would like to talk with our daughter. Are we ready for all of the stuff that goes with that yet?” She called. Apparently, her husband must have been in the next room as loud as she spoke.

  Ah Geez! Just shoot me now and get this over with! He thought.

  “Naw. Let him have a shot at her,” Richard said from the next room. “Just explain to him that I have a shotgun and can have a shot at him later if he doesn't behave.”

  “Okay dearie,” Mom said to Brad. “You passed the first hurdle. The next one will be higher. Because I am going to let you talk to my daughter. That's a much higher hurdle. Linds?”

  She called even louder into somewhere else in the house using Linda’s nickname. “A boy wants to talk to you Linds. On the phone. I think he would be scared to talk to you here at our home.”

  Linda picked up another phone and clicked on. “Hello. Is this the person I am talking to?”

  “Oh my gosh Linda. You guys are killing me,” Brad said in frustration.

  Linda just started laughing a cheerful infectious laugh.

  “I heard that young man!” the mother's voice said still on the other phone.

  Linda laughed again and said, “Come one Mom. Hang up now.”

  “Okay darling. Just call out if you need me to rescue you.” Brad heard a click.

  “Okay Brad,” Linda said with amusement in her voice. “It's safe to talk to me now.”

  “It doesn't feel safe,” He retorted.

  Linda laughed again, “You're okay Brad. We just like to give people a hard time on the phone. It gets really hilarious sometimes when all three of us are at it. We like to gang up on people.”

  “Yeah. It was a real knee slapper. Let me catch my breath. You know I almost hung up.” Brad stated flatly.

  “Glad you didn't. Let's start over. Hi Brad. Thank you for calling me. What a surprise!”

  “All right all right. Can we talk now?”

  “Nope. Your minute is up.” She started laughing again.

  Their conversation never did get serious. Linda and her parents had him so far off his game he could not even begin to think of things he wanted to talk about. Linda volunteered to help him out.

  “What do you want to talk about?”

  “Oh well thanks for the conversation killer,” He said. “Nothing kills talking like the question 'what do you want to talk about.'”

  She giggled again. “My dad doesn't really own a shotgun.”

  “Good to know...”

  On and on it went with minor inanities. But even at that, Brad enjoyed talking to her.

  They hung up a few minutes later with no serious words spoken between them. When she saw him the next day at school Linda apologized to Brad for how she and her parents had behaved when he called.

  “We just like to kid around with people that call our place. You didn't get any exclusive treatment."

  “No, I sure didn't,” Brad responded. “Just, maybe next time I call I could get just a little exclusive treatment. You guys could try to be nice to me.”

  “How would that be any fun Bradford McShaw?” She said teasing him just a little more.

  Then he did something totally unexpected. He grabbed her shoulders and pulled her up to him and gave her a big hug. She stood dumfounded for all of about 0.3 seconds, then she hugged him back. He let her ago only after all the jeers and catcalls had begun to diminish from the few students that were around them.

  “See. That's exclusive treatment,” Brad assured her.

  Her face was blushing. She looked at him very studiously. Then with a half-smile that came and went quickly, she nodded her head, winked at him, turned and walked away. That subtle little wink went all the way through Brad. His reaction wasn't subtle at all. His interest in her was compounded. He was feeling romantic feelings for Linda.

  Brad was trying to hurry to his last class of the day after a prolonged discussion with a teacher. As he exited the class. He decided to make up time by cutting though the gym. He crossed the gym diagonally and just as he would have stepped into a hallway that led away from the gym, He heard Milo's voice in the hallway talking in his usual forceful negative manner. Brad stopped walking, concerned about running into him. He listened to find out if Milo was bullying yet another victim.

  He distinctly heard Milo stating, “I don't like the little wimp. He irritates me to no end and I'm going to smash his scrawny little butt into the ground.”

  Then Brad heard the other voice. His blood ran cold. It was Linda. Is she in trouble? How would I be able to help her against this giant?


  Brad heard her words. “You have no right to pick on every one you meet Milo. You've done enough damage already.”

  “I don't need to have the right. If I don't like him, I can pound him. Who do I need to get permission from? You?” Milo snorted.

  “Just leave Brad alone. You know he is no match for you.” Linda said.

  “It's not my fault he can't fight. It's not my fault he's a tiny little rat. I don't like him, so I'm going to kick his butt up around his ears!”

  “What did he do to you Milo? What? She demanded. “He never touched you or made fun of you or anything.”

  “Just because he's your boyfriend doesn't change anything. I want him under my foot and so that's where I'll put him.” Weathers answered her coldly and with menace in his voice. “Did little rat runt beg you to stick up for him like this?”

  There was a long silence. Brad imagined that she must be looking at Milo with daggers in her eyes. Just glaring at him.

  “That little rat runt is more of a man than you will ever be.” She said in a cold quiet voice.

  Then he heard the slap of a hand on skin. He bolted out into the hallway before he thought about it, sure that Milo had smacked Linda.

  But Milo was holding the side of his face with his left hand while his eyes blazed with fury. His right hand knotted into a fist and began to rise up in an offensive position. Then he saw Brad.

  “Leave her alone Milo!” Brad said. His voice trembled with rage and fear. “Just let her go.”

  Milo's hand came off his face. His face was beet red with distinct finger marks on his cheek where she had hit him. His left fist doubled up and he slowly turned to face Brad. There was no taunting or ridicule in his demeanor. It was pure hatred. The hot coals burned even brighter than ever after having been struck with such force. Brad knew at that moment that if he had not stepped out in the hallway Milo would have knocked Linda's petite little body flying through the air with his massive fist.

  Now Brad was once again endangered. The three of them were alone. Brad's spine started tingling very strongly. His instinct fought against his will power to let loose with a powerful dose of anti-gravity energy that would seriously harm Milo. Brad made the decision. Finally, He was going to do it. He couldn't let Milo get in contact with him or he would be the one who was seriously hurt. Before Milo would be allowed to do any damage to him or Linda he would stop him.

  Milo stepped toward him. Brad stepped back long enough to say just one thing before he let loose. “You are an animal! I'm going to treat you like one.”

  Milo was closing and Brad was still backing up. He concentrated very briefly in order to let the energy loose. Suddenly the football coach was there behind Milo and Linda. Came out of nowhere. Brad did not see where he came from.

  Mr. Stewart was an old footballer himself. He tackled many men larger then himself in his time on the field. He was still young enough and strong enough to subdue Milo. Stewart yelled harshly, “Stop!”

  Milo froze. Brad dialed back his release of energy and kept it in control. No one knew. The coach walked around Milo and stood in front of him with his hands on his hips staring at Milo. “That look on your face says that you want a piece of me. Do you really want to try this? I will grind you into the floor Weathers. Then I will have you hauled out of here in handcuffs for intent to injure a young man much smaller than you.”

  “I was just getting ready to pat him on the back and congratulate him for being the biggest wimp in the school,” Milo said.

  “Go touch him and see what happens.” Coach Stewart said in a quiet measured voice.

  Milo stood quietly wanting to stare the coach down. Linda walked over to stand next to Brad. Brad was trying to get his breathing under control. That was close Milo. You can whip me in a fight but I would never have allowed you to touch me.

  The coach deliberately turned his back on Milo, daring him to attack him from behind. Milo didn't take the bait. Stewart looked at Brad and Linda and said, “Go to your classes. Don't let me catch you trying to incite a conflict with this jerk again.” He pointed his thumb over his shoulder at Milo.

  Linda opened her mouth to defend their actions but the coach pointed at her and tipped his head to the side and forward to emphasize his unspoken words. “Don't talk. Leave.”

  They walked away hearing the coach say to Milo, “You could have been on my football team. A giant like you would have made all the difference. We could be the champs. But I try to build men, not coddle boys. Not just win games. You are a boy Milo. Without self-control or discipline. Come to my office right now. We're going to have a talk.”

  One would think that the coach, being the only person in the entire school big enough to control Milo, would have been able to put some fear and respect into Milo after their talk. Such was not the case. Milo only raged more because he had been humbled in front of Brad and Linda. Brad was going to go down. Linda was going to get slapped around in return for what she did. And He would find a way to hurt the coach when the coach wasn't ready for it.

  Brad had come so close to letting Milo have it. He admitted to himself that he was still terrified of Milo. Not an easy thing for a male to admit to in their testosterone driven world. He was afraid. But he was also changing his mind and becoming more determined to never allow Milo to hurt him if he could help it. The intimidation ran deeper with every confrontation. Such is the nature of a small sized boy or man in a world of bullies.

  They spent many days getting to know each other. Brad hugged Linda a couple more times, and finally kissed her when no one else was in the classroom that had just been vacated by all but them. He looked forward to each new day with a zest that he had lacked since moving to Florida. One day between periods, when Brad was in the restroom, he pondered on the idea that it would soon be time to work up the nerve to ask Linda to one of the school’s sports games or a dance. But he would never ask her out by calling her at her phone. Kidding or not, her family was difficult for him to stay focused when he called her house. He would have to ask her in person. No interference that way. But that seemed daunting even after having kissed her. With his mind thus engaged as he opened the door and left the restroom, he heard the hoarse voice he had come to dread.

  “There you are rat boy! I knew this day would come.”

  Brad's mouth went dry, and he began to shake a little. He'd heard the voice but hadn't located his enemy yet. There were four tall kids standing in front of him smiling at him with Milo hiding behind them. He'd been set up. He knew in a flash that Milo had seen him go into the restroom and waited him out. Milo roughly shoved the four kids aside and stepped up grabbing Brad's shirt. He slammed Brad up against the restroom door knocking the breath out of him. Opaque glass rattled in the door frame.

  Suddenly, it came out of nowhere. Brad hadn't planned it. He didn't have time to. Just when Milo's hand nearly slugged him, Milo suddenly went flying up to the ceiling his grip on Brad's shirt broken! Brad felt the tingling in his spine. He hadn't made the decision to modify gravity as a defense, yet it had happened. He had rooted himself to the ground as he sent Milo flying up.

  Milo yelled down in shock and panic. Everyone in the hall including Brad looked up at him in surprise and awe. Brad didn't notice that a few feet away from him stood Linda. First, she looked up at Milo, and then she looked intently at Brad who by now had a satisfied smile on his face. He grinned from ear to ear. The ceiling was ten feet high and Milo was in a spread-eagle position tight against it! Linda's mouth slowly rounded like she was going to blow out. She scowled at Brad in a thoughtful expression.

  “Help me down!” Milo demanded of his friends.

  But when one of them went underneath him to try to reach him, he began to float as well. He yelled in panic as Milo had during the incident. Brad almost burst out laughing, but he stifled it, clamped down on his smile and said, “This is too weird for me, I'm out of here!”

  Brad was hoping his words would deflect ownership of this strange incident fro
m himself as he walked quickly down the hall. He did not notice Linda staring after him. He turned and looked, trying to maintain the act, but also still keeping Milo pinned to the ceiling!

  Brad yelled back to the crowd, “I don't know who could be doing that or how, but this whole school is too weird for me!”

  When Brad was a safe distance away he released his hold upon Milo. Both kids fell to the floor with a loud slapping and thumping sound that only flesh and bone can make upon impact against hard surfaces. The sound resonated through the hall. Brad turned down another hall leaving the situation behind. He therefore did not know that upon impacting the floor, Milo had broken his arm.

  The incident had happened on a Friday. Upon coming to school on Monday, Brad saw Milo from several feet away. He could see that Milo was sporting a new cast on his arm, and Brad could not help but chuckle and shake his head in satisfied amusement. Once again, he did not notice that Linda was a few feet away and saw Brad looking at Milo, then laughing. She stood there in frozen silence just like she had done on Friday. She watched Brad walk away while she was deep in thought. A terrible suspicion was growing ever stronger in her mind that Brad had everything to do with what happened Friday, and that alarmed her.

  Having a predator continually hunting him had raised Brad's anxiety level to the point that he had a hard time sleeping in the early morning hours before his alarm went off for school.

  Knowing that Milo was not able to attack him for the time being gave him some respite. The relief was showing in his expression and his body language.

  “This cast comes off in six weeks and then you’re dead rat boy!” Milo said to him from behind.

  Brad had forgotten momentarily that Milo would be somewhere close by. When he was trying to befriend Linda these last few months, he was also keeping a lookout for Milo. But not this time. Brad looked over at Milo and saw that he not only had a cast on but there was also a device that kept his elbow bent and his forearm pointed forward. Well that put a smile on his face.

  Not saying a word in response to the bully, Brad quickly put some distance between him and Milo. He had not purposely planned on using his “talent” on Milo, but it had happened just the same. Brad came to the conclusion that it was becoming pure instinct in him to use his strange ability. Then he thought back to the first time he'd used it in the tornado. In fact, at that point in time he did not even know he could do such a thing. Pure Instinct. He thought.