This Town Called Nowhere

Chapter 6: Chicken Fight

6

"Chicken fight!" the light blonde says and Tony Rutledge reaches down to let her sit on his shoulders.

I was going to swim away so that I won't be a part of their game, but Artemis grabs me and hoists herself on to my back.

"Artemis!" I call her, and she bends her back forward so that she's looking at me upside down.

"What?"

I shake her but she doesn't yield. "Get off!"

"Why?" her eyebrows furrows.

"I don't know how to play this game."

Her eyebrows furrow even more and her eyes shoot disbelief as she asks again, "What?"

I sigh. "Get off."

I really don't know how to play this game. In fact, I don't know how to play and do any kind of outdoor game and activity. I've been inside the house for the most of my time, or to put it the way it was, Mom kept me inside of the house most of the time, I never had the time to hang out with my friends just for fun. All of this, the things surrounding me here, are all my first interactions.

"It's easy, Armstrong. Come on!" She wiggles excitedly on my shoulders and I try hard to keep my balance. Damn, what did she eat? She's heavier than how she looks. I'm guessing she's even heavier than me.

"Just get off, Artemis. I don't want to play." And you're heavy. You're crushing my shoulders.

She groans. "It's easy. Look, all you have to do is to go forward then backward, forward then backward. Then I will do the rest," she explains to me while motioning with her hand how to do it.

"That's it?" From the way she explains it, it really is easy.

"Yeah, it's easy."

"OK," I murmur and she bends down, and though hesitant, I add, "Let's do this."

She grins when she straightens her posture and messes my wet hair up. "That's my astronaut!"

Her astronaut. That sounded weird.

"On guard!" she exclaims and I do as she says.

I watch other girls get on other boy's shoulders. The white-headed boy is in the water with another Valley High student on his shoulders. Another Valley High couple stands behind Tony. A pair I don't know where from is in front of us.

"Artemis," I call her and she whips her hair down as she bends her back forward.

"Ano?" I raise my eyebrows. She sighs, and with her bored face, she asks, "What? . . . Ano means what, remember that, Armstrong."

I nod. "Where are these other kids from?"

"Middleton High School is where I'm from. Everyone here is either from your school or mine." I nod at her again and she goes back to her position.

We are called to form a circle, and as every pair run their eyes on everyone, all Valley High students pause their gaze on me. At least 6 or more students stare in shock and confusion when they see me, then look at each other with the same expression. And exchanges a different expression that looks like, "Fuck, what's O'Donnell doing here?" to each other.

This is going to be a huge talk in school next week. I just hope everyone here signed up to a non-disclosure agreement.

If not, then damn me.

"Ready?" Isaac's voice bellows from the riverbank.

A chorus of yeses circles the river and Artemis squirms on me. I shake her and as she stops on fidgeting, she mumbles, "Killjoy," then squirms harder this time.