Annica: Starseed Ambassador

Chapter 7: Above and Beyond

"Annica! Come on!" Mavis shouted while pounding on the door to Annica's bedroom. "You're late for school!"

Mavis flung the door open. "You're still in bed?!" she exclaimed. "And your clothes... Is that what you were wearing yesterday?!"

Annica's eyes felt like they were sealed shut. She wiped away some eye gunk and forced them open.

"Get ready!" Mavis commanded. "NOW!"

Annica dragged herself out of bed and checked the time. Oh no, I really am late, she thought. She realized that she wouldn't have time to eat breakfast or take a shower. She hurried to the living room and grabbed her duffel bag, then brought it back to her room. It was a Friday morning, and the gym clothes were unambiguously due for a wash. Annica grimaced from the smell while pushing her head through the neckhole of her gym T-shirt. She tossed her normal school clothes into the duffel bag, then grabbed her hairbrush on the way out of her bedroom.

"I'll drive you," Mavis said, picking up the keys to the family car. Normally Annica walked to school on her own, sometimes with minimal interaction with her parents.

"I don't know what's gotten into you lately," Mavis chastised as she and Annica buckled their seatbelts.

"I told you, I've just been stressed," Annica answered defensively, quickly brushing a few of the larger tangles out of her hair.

Mavis started up the car. "Did you see Mr. Abelman yesterday?"

"Noah? Yeah."

"What did you talk about?"

"That's private," Annica said dismissively, still brushing.

Mavis sighed as she came to a stop at a red light. "Is there anything you can tell me?" she pressed, shifting her attention from the road to Annica.

Annica silently stared straight ahead while pulling her hair through an elastic tie. She waited for the light to turn green before asking, "What do you think caused that crop circle?"

"Oh, that nonsense," Mavis muttered under her breath. It was the first time since the incident occurred that anyone in the family had spoken about it. "Probably just teenagers."

Annica waited until the car was only a block from her school before saying, "Maybe just one teenager."

"Why?" Mavis asked, struggling to split her attention between Annica and the road. "Did you see something?"

Annica waited until Mavis pulled up in front of the school. "I see lots of things," Annica said, opening the car door and grabbing her backpack and duffel bag. "Thanks for the ride, Mom!"

Annica leaped out of the car and slammed the door closed before Mavis could respond, then she hurried over to gym class. It was already in session out in the football field, with students stretching in single-file lines.

"You're late," the gym teacher scolded.

"Sorry."

"You need to get a tardy slip from the office."

"It's only a few minutes!" Annica pleaded.

The gym teacher pointed in the direction of the administrative office. "Go. Now."

Annica turned around and rolled her eyes. She dropped off her backpack and duffel bag in the locker room, then walked to the administrative building. It was an abnormally cool late September morning, and a passing breeze cut right through Annica's shorts and T-shirt. She considered how much colder the weather would be in a couple of months. Maybe switching gym class to first period was a mistake...