Cheryl Ntumy - Unravelled

“You’re not talking to them,” he hisses, pulling me away. “We’re leaving. Now.”

“Hey! Let go!” I try to pull my arm away, but Rakwena is the strongest boy I know. “Rakwena! You’re hurting me!”

He drops my arm instantly. “Sorry. But you’re being so… Please, let’s just go. I’m starving.” His voice turns coaxing. “I’ll make us dinner.”

I stare at him, rubbing my sore forearm. “You know, this Jekyll and Hyde thing you’ve got going on is really starting to get to me. What’s going on with you?”

“Nothing, I just want to go home.” He keeps his eyes on my face, almost as though he’s afraid to look in the Cresta Crew’s direction.

“It’s not nothing,” I persist. “You paid someone to keep me away from them at the party, and now you’re acting crazy. Why are you so worried about these guys?”

“Because they’re obviously dangerous,” he blurts out.

“Obviously?”

“Yes. And they’re taking too much interest in you. They’re suspicious.” He lets out an exasperated groan. “You promised to stay out of trouble!”

“Ja, well, I’m un-promising. If you’re so concerned, you can wait here.” I start towards the boys again, and again Rakwena grabs me, this time almost pulling my arm out of its socket. “Ow!”

“Connie, please.” His eyes are bright and pleading. “What if they try something?”

“In the middle of a mall full of people?” I snap. “We’re going to talk about this, but right now I’m going over there, and I swear, if you try to stop me, I will scream this whole place down. Got it?”

I stalk off, furious with him. My whole arm is aching. What on earth is the matter with that boy? I glance over my shoulder, expecting to see him standing there glowering at me, but the space where he stood is empty. I catch sight of him walking – no, practically running – away, fists clenched. He’s angry, too. From this distance I can’t tell if he’s giving off blue light, but it’s a good thing he’s getting out of sight before he sparks up.

I take a deep breath and turn back to the Cresta Crew. They’re frozen in their seats, glaring at me, almost daring me to take another step. They’ll soon learn that I don’t scare that easily.

By the time I reach their table their expressions have changed. The twins look incredulous. Spencer looks surly. Duma looks nervous, Rapunzel impressed and Hulk…well, like he wants to smash something. All of them are giving off high energy levels and blocking me as though they were born doing it. I finally have my confirmation – they’re all gifted, and I’m not talking about a little sliver of sixth sense. Whatever their gifts, they’re powerful.

I offer them a bright smile. “Hello, gentlemen. I’m Connie. But you already know that. Want to tell me why you’re staring at my boyfriend?”

No one says a word. A few of the others glance at Hulk. I see – there’s a hierarchy at work. Hulk takes a long, languid sip of his Coke.

“Should I pull up a chair, make myself comfortable? We have a lot to discuss.”

He looks at me. His eyes are clear and intelligent…and dangerous. Suddenly I’m all too aware of his size and proximity. Big and close enough to knock my brains out, to be precise. “Afternoon, Conyza.” His voice is like black crushed velvet, soft and thick. Not at all the voice of someone who intends to squash me flat. “It’s good to finally meet you. Duma hasn’t stopped talking about you since the party.”

“Really?” I glance at the kid, and he flashes his adorable grin. “Where did I get the idea that you guys weren’t exactly thrilled to see him talking to me?”

Hulk shrugs. “We keep to ourselves. You understand.”

“Yes, I do.” Curiosity is mounting, but Hulk gives me the impression that his patience has limits, and I’d rather not be there when it runs out. “You know my name. It’s only fair to tell me yours.”

His gaze is steady and unblinking. “You can call me Temper.”

Somehow that doesn’t put me at ease. “Right. Nice to meet you, Temper.” I wait for the others to tell me their names, but they remain silent. No one’s eating, either – it seems I’ve put them off their food.

“There’s something on your mind,” Temper muses.

I look at Spencer. His handsome face is marred by a sullen, brutish scowl, as though he’s had his toys confiscated. I drop my voice to a whisper. “Look, let’s not mince words, OK? I know you’re gifted, and that’s not a problem for me. My problems are your interest in Rakwena, and your boy’s relationship with Kelly.”

Spencer lets out a choked laugh of incredulity. “And who the hell do you think you are to tell me what to do?” The outburst makes the others flinch.

“Man, chill,” whispers Rapunzel, who is sitting on Spencer’s left.

“No, she has no right to come over here and start throwing her weight around!” His gaze is so venomous I take a step back and hold up my hands to ward him off.

“Hey, I’m just worried about Kelly.”

“You don’t even like Kelly,” he spits out. How the hell does he know that?

“That’s enough.” Temper glares at Spencer.

But it’s too late. I’ve seen enough to make me certain that Spencer is a ticking bomb, and if he stays with Kelly he’s going to decimate her. I turn to Temper. “I don’t know what your story is yet, but I’ll find out. In the meantime, I suggest you keep this guy away from ungifted girls before somebody gets hurt. Is that clear?” I turn back to Spencer, who’s snarling at me. “Stay away from Kelly. I’ve gone up against bigger fish than you, so don’t think your little temper tantrums scare me.”

He leaps to his feet. Suddenly he doesn’t look so handsome anymore. “Back off , bitch!”

Whoa! My jaw drops. I don’t think anyone’s ever called me that before. What follows happens so smoothly it almost seems rehearsed. Rapunzel and Elias get to their feet in one fluid motion, and march Spencer out of the restaurant. Simultaneously Duma and the remaining twin pack up what’s left of the food, sweeping it into bags so fast their hands seem to blur, then follow the others.

In seconds the table is clear, the curious onlookers from other tables have returned to their conversations and Temper is the only Cresta Crew member left.

“What the hell was that?” I demand. “Spencer clearly has issues and has no business dating anyone, let alone an ungifted!”

“You’ve made your point,” Temper growls. Ah. His patience has reached its limit. He gets to his feet and walks away.

Because I have absolutely no instinct for self-preservation, I follow. “Hey! What happened just now? And you still haven’t told me why you were staring at my boyfriend. You owe me an explanation!”

“I owe you nothing.” He whirls around to face me. He’s so big I have to crane my neck to look into his eyes.

I gulp, and my words vanish. “I…uh…just…Kelly…” I take a deep breath. “Spencer’s dangerous.”

“Not as dangerous as me,” he whispers, and turns away, leaving me standing on wobbly legs.

I wait till he’s out of sight before walking to Rakwena’s car. My head is swimming. I don’t know why Spencer erupted the way he did, but there is nothing more dangerous than a gifted without self-control. What happens if he loses his temper with Kelly and hurts her? Hell, even without gifts that boy is scary, and I get the feeling Temper knows this. Why is he allowing Spencer to keep seeing Kelly? He’s clearly the leader of the group – he should stop it.

When I reach the car, I quickly realise I have another problem on my hands. Rakwena is sitting in the driver’s seat, hands gripping the steering wheel. His head is bowed and blue sparks are crackling on his knuckles. He looks like he’s in pain.