Missing a Human Heart

What the hell was I doing? I had just agreed to let three mutant guys into our house! The mutant part aside, they were guys, guys we didn’t know! They’d probably rape us or watch us shower or take hair from our hairbrushes, keep it under their pillows, and then smell it when they were all alone.

This was completely the wrong thing to do. Completely and entirely wrong. I thought of my parents and teachers shaking their heads at me in disappointment.

I didn’t care. I was tired of being a good girl. I didn’t want to be the perfect one anymore. It was time to take a risk or two.

“I’m not responsible, and I’m not a leader,” I thought, clenching my teeth in determination.

But then there was the awkwardness of the situation at hand. I was straddling him. Centaur or not, I was straddling a man.

“You’ll want to hold on,” Charlie smirked. I didn’t bother to argue, although I knew I was turning red. I wrapped my arms as loosely as possible around his chest. He suddenly took off at a gallop, and I squeezed even tighter. Pandora also grabbed onto me as he darted in between trees, changing direction with such speed that I was sure I’d either fall off or we’d run into something.

Charlie suddenly ground to a stop at the edge of a clearing. There was a bubbling stream leading into a small pond, and the grass was surprisingly tall and lush. I momentarily wondered if Charlie ever ate grass. Did he have a horse stomach or a human stomach? Did he have two stomachs? Many animals such as giraffes and deer naturally had more than one stomach, so it wasn’t that much of a stretch. Maybe he had to search for food that was compatible with both his human and his horse stomachs.

“Are you polygastric?” I asked Charlie as he helped me slide off his back. He gave me a puzzled look and ignored my question, turning to lift Pandora to the ground.

“Really, Pamela? That’s the only question on your mind?” she hissed as soon as she was standing next to me.

“Well, not the only one…” I shrugged, wondering why it was so strange to be curious.

“Ooh, visitors,” another voice suddenly said. I looked up just as a man sprang to his feet. He had been lying down in the grass, so I hadn’t noticed him before. He looked about as old as Charlie but had red hair and golden brown eyes. He was missing human ears, and instead, a pair of furry dog-like ears swiveled on the top of his head. A fluffy, red-brown tail flicked behind him.

“A kitsune!” Pandora gasped beside me. Wow. Something she knew that I didn’t. For once, I was speechless.

“Good. I was starting to get hungry,” the kitsune grinned, slowly licking his lips as he stepped towards us. I protectively grabbed Pandora’s wrist, ready to run. I knew this was a bad idea.

“Cut it out, Damon,” Charlie rolled his eyes. He turned to Pandora and me. “He won’t hurt you. He’s just messing around.”

“Hey, Tempest!” Damon walked over to the pond and kicked a rock into the water. “Come on out!”

The surface of the water rippled. A man rose from the water and lifted himself out with strong arms. Either he was moving slowly, or my mind had broken down into slow motion. His upper half was bare, the water dripping down his incredibly buff arms and torso. I felt like I was watching a porno. He tossed his pale blond hair out of his face as he pulled himself the rest of the way out. Long lashes framed his large aquamarine eyes. I now saw that his lower half was a scaly, silvery-blue tail.

“Were you holding your breath, or do you have gills?” was all I could ask.

“I have special filaments inside my nostrils which filter the water for oxygen,” the merman replied with a smile. I realized that I myself had been holding my breath that entire time.

“This is Pamela and Pandora,” Charlie said, gesturing to us. “They’ve offered to let us stay with them for a while.”

“How long is a while?” Damon asked, raising one eyebrow.

“As long as you need,” Pandora smiled kindly. I was too busy worrying about the logistics of it all to answer. Would Mom and Dad really not notice? Surely they’d notice the food disappearing at such a fast rate, and from what I saw of teenage boys, they ate a lot. What would they do all day? What if Mom decided to clean the guest room? What if Dad walked into the bathroom to see a merman casually lounging in the tub?

“Can you turn back into your human forms now?” Pandora asked. “I don’t think we can fit a horse into the car.”

“Yes, but you might want to turn around,” Charlie replied.

“Why?” Pandora asked curiously.

“Tempest and I will be naked,” Charlie explained. Naturally, any clothes they had on when they went from human to mutant wouldn’t fit anymore and probably burst apart at the seams.

Pandora and I whirled around quickly. I saw that Pandora was also blushing. I still couldn’t believe we were doing this. We were just asking for trouble.

“All right,” Charlie finally said. We turned around, and they were all standing behind us, looking just like normal guys (except that Tempest was dripping wet). Charlie had retained his tall, broad-shouldered stature, Tempest was still long and slender, and Damon looked exactly the same except for his new human ears.

We started walking back to the car. I didn’t even attempt polite conversation as I tried to think of a way to make this very unreal situation fit into real life. Pandora saved me the trouble of talking.

“So where are you guys from?” she asked cheerfully.

“I’d rather you didn’t ask any personal questions,” Charlie said coldly. Pandora quickly clammed up. The only sounds were the sound of twigs and leaves crunching beneath our feet and the occasional bird call.

“So were you from here originally, or was this just the first place you ran after you escaped from the laboratory?” Pandora asked after a few minutes had passed. I had to laugh a little to myself. That was Pandora, persistent as always. If she wanted something, she was going to get it.

“We can’t tell you,” Tempest replied, also seeming a little amused. “But what about the two of you?”

“We’ve always lived in Gorham,” Pandora answered. “We’re juniors in high school, so we still live with our parents. Pamela wants to go far away for college.”

“Cornell and Princeton aren’t that far away,” I scowled. “Besides, it’s important to experience a different life during college.”

“If you get into Cornell or Princeton, chances are you don’t get out to experience life much,” Damon grinned.

“You shouldn’t look down on her for having her priorities straight,” Charlie frowned. “Pamela, I think it’s great that you’re aiming so high.”

I still felt like he was being condescending, so I rolled my eyes and didn’t say anything. Pandora continued to chat with Tempest until we finally reached our car. I noticed that someone had stolen a hubcap during our absence and groaned.

My cell phone started beeping, and I pulled it out as the guys climbed into the back of the car.

“Everyone stay quiet!” I instructed, calling my parents back.

“Pamela, where are you?” Mom immediately barked.

“Sorry! I forgot to tell you that I had an extra math club meeting today,” I explained. Damon snickered quietly. I turned to give him a dirty glare over my shoulder.

“That’s not like you, Pamela,” Mom replied suspiciously.

“I know. I’m sorry. I’ve just been really stressed out lately,” I said, trying to make myself sound tired and worried. It wasn’t hard. These mutants were an incredibly unexpected problem, and as much as I felt sorry for them, I really couldn’t see the merit in helping them.

And then, all of a sudden, I did. If I could find a cure for them, universities would beg to have me. I would get research grants right and left. I’d have no problem finding a job after graduating. Forget my research on sickle-cell disease. With this, I’d be on the front cover of every major scientific journal in America!

“What are you smiling at?” Damon asked suspiciously.

“Nothing. I just thought of a good plan,” I lied. I had a plan, of course, but that wasn’t why I was beaming happily.

“What is it?” Tempest asked curiously.

“I’m going to find a way to make you all exchange students,” I replied confidently. “A couple of fake, official-looking documents combined with the big favor a certain school counselor owes me, and you’ll have a place to live and roam free. You can even go to school, if you’d like.”

“I didn’t finish high school,” Charlie admitted. “It would certainly be helpful if you could pull it all off.”

“Don’t worry. We’ll take care of everything,” I smiled sweetly at Pandora. I had no doubt that she could pull a few strings of her own.

I leaned back in my seat, smiling contentedly. Life couldn’t be better.