Everyday People Read Online Free

thing. Better believe someone’s going to get fucked up.
    This spirit thing appears, green and see-through, kind of a ghost, but the music lets you know it isn’t. It circles around them like it’s interested. The two of them don’t move; it’s like a
Star Trek
rule: Just stand there.
    â€œRun!” Janelle French calls.
    â€œWhere they gonna run?” Cardell says.
    â€œI don’t know,” Janelle says, “just run!”
    â€œI’m not picking up any readings,” B’Elanna says, and then—
whoosh
—the thing shoots into Tom Paris. His face changes like he ate something he’s not too sure of, like he’s going to throw up. The music gets loud, then goes soft, then ends. All of a sudden Tom’s better.
    â€œTom!” B’Elanna calls, and runs over to him. She goes to touch him but doesn’t. Everyone knows they’re gonna make it one of these shows, girl just doesn’t know what she wants. Crest always thinks it’s like him and Vanessa, you know, just meant to be, no sense denying it. But V needs aman. She never says, but Crest understands. The doctor says it makes no sense, he should retain full feeling—that’s the way he says it too, all official, like Crest can’t do this. Fuck, he wanted to say, and make it plain: it doesn’t fucking work.
He
doesn’t fucking work. Vanessa tried twice. She cried the first time; the second time she just let go and looked at him all cold, like it was his fault.
    â€œAre you okay?” B’Elanna asks.
    â€œI think so,” Tom Paris says, rubbing his head and looking googly as ever, like he doesn’t even know the thing’s in him. B’Elanna calls Captain Janeway to beam them up, and as they’re being transported, you can see the green shape inside Tom’s body.
    â€œAw,
man!
” Little Nene says. “Cuz is in for some serious shit.”
    â€œThing went right down his mouth,” Cardell says, and the two of them act it out, clowning, the girls laughing at them.
    Crest has already seen this episode, it’s a repeat. The new season doesn’t start till next week, but no one complains, it’s still fun. This might be the last nice night, and school’s kicking in, homework, part-time jobs. Pretty soon he’ll be back in his room, just him and Brother Sony. But not yet, not yet.
    The green thing is the last of its species and won’t leave Tom. The Prime Directive kicks in and The Doctor has to figure something out. Crest sits there watching, laughing when everyone else does, going quiet when The Doctor opens Tom’s lips wide with this steel thing and shines a light. And then, of course, a commercial.
    All day he’s been waiting to be with someone, just lying in bed while the buses and rush hour went by, watching talk shows, then getting up and eating lunch with the noon news. Drive-by on The Hill, Pirates still three-and-a-half behind the Astros. All afternoon he let the set charge, listening as the school buses dropped the little kids off, and then the music of cartoons from the other apartments. Moms came home long enough to make supper, then left before Pops and U drove up, both of them too tired to give a shit. They ate at the table but it was just chowing down, pass this, pass that. No one asks, “What did you do today?”
    I laid up in my crib and boomed the new Wu Tang, same jam over and over.
    I drank all the red Kool-Aid and then emptied out my bag cause it was getting full.
    I watched TV.
    No one wants to hear that shit. Fuck, Crest thinks,
I
don’t want to hear that shit.
    â€œGoing to your meeting?” Pops asked like every night, and like every night, U said, “If that’s all right.”
    â€œIt’s fine with me.”
    â€œMe too,” Crest said.
    â€œYou oughta come. You’d be surprised, some of the people you meet.”
    â€œz’at right?”
    â€œâ€™member