Free Galdoni by Cheree Alsop

hard to wrap my mind around their
easy acceptance of each other’s faults and idiosyncrasies.
    “ Kale?”
    “ Yes?” I asked, jolted back
to the present.
    Jayce smirked and Brie smiled. “I just asked
if school met your expectations.”
    “ Exceeded,” I replied. I
motioned with my fork, a habit I’d unconsciously picked up from
Jayce. “It’s amazing how much you’re taught every day. It must take
some practice to remember everything in time for a whole new day to
start tomorrow.”
    “ You think we remember
everything?” Jayce said with a laugh. “It generally goes in one ear
and out the other, then we have to cram it back in for the
tests.”
    The others laughed and nodded in agreement.
“The goal is to graduate,” Nikko said. Jayce looked at him in
surprise, and I wondered if they had argued the point before.
“After we have our diplomas, we can start our own lives. This is a
holding point until then.”
    My brow furrowed. “But this is your lives.
If you keep waiting for the ‘after’, you’ll miss everything that
happens now.”
    Brie nudged me with her elbow. “That’s what
I keep telling them. I think they’ll catch on eventually.”

Chapter Six
     
    The weeks flew by. Galdoni
were being arrested and brought back to the Academy. We caught
every scrap of news about the Galdoni round-up we could find.
Rumors continued about the A rena reopening. They released
statements that the Galdoni were a danger to the public and that
they needed to be used for the purpose for which they were created.
Galdoni were considered a national threat, and anyone found hiding
them were prosecuted as accomplices.
    Reporters claimed that funds from the Arena
were going to be reallocated toward the building of new city
centers. Nothing surfaced about the Academy’s lawsuit and the
original closing. Even Nikko’s research came up empty. The only
real facts he found hinted that the charges were being dropped
toward some of the major officials, and that the fights were to
start up again soon. It seemed like the drop in gambling and cost
of relinquishing the Galdoni hurt more than initially
projected.
    I expanded my studies with Dr. Ray to better
understand what they did to create us. The splint on my knee was
eventually removed, and though I still limped, the doctor promised
that the pain would go away with time.
    “ Now about those wings. I
took the splints off yesterday. Have you taken the chance to try
them out?” Dr. Ray studied me intently.
    I hesitated, aware that Brie and Jayce
watched from the other couch. A pit formed in my stomach and I
shook my head.
    “ Nervous?” Dr. Ray
guessed.
    At my lack of answer, he gave a knowing
smile. “Many of my patients are afraid to test their limbs after
their casts are removed. It’s normal. But in your case, it’s the
only way to see if what we did worked. I know you have to do this
in your own time, but try to have some faith.”
    I smiled at him. “One of your other
intangibles.”
    “ Well then, if you won’t
give me hope, belief, faith, or prayer, you’ll truly have to do it
on your own. Good luck with that.” He nodded at the others and left
the room with a chuckle.
    Brie pushed away from the table. “I’m tired
of studying. Does anyone want to get some fresh air?”
    My head hurt from all the cramming, and I
breathed a silent sigh of relief that someone else felt the same
way. “Definitely.”
    Nikko laughed. “Two weeks of school and
you’re already acting like a student.” He pointed his pencil at me.
“But beware; once you start slacking, it’s all downhill.” He put
the pencil behind his ear and sat back with a biochemistry book on
one knee.
    Brie shook her head. “Jayce’s slacked off
for years and he still hasn’t reached the bottom of the hill.”
    “ I heard that!” Jayce
shouted from the kitchen. The refrigerator door closed and a can of
soda cracked open. I fought back a grin.
    Brie grabbed my hand and headed for the
door.
    “ Hey,