The two of them stared steadily at each other, each of them realizing how much their friendship meant. “Well,” Tres shook off the tender moment in typical fashion. “Now that you’re among the living, I’d better go let Dr. Gomez know.” “Alright.” Tres crossed the room and stepped through the door. After it had closed, he turned to look at the various gifts on the table before him. James read the cards in the flowers and saw that both Tres’s parents and Eliza’s parents had bouquets sent to him along with cards expressing their love. He smiled at the thoughtfulness of the gesture. He picked up the first card and saw it was from Ricky. He laughed out loud as he read it.As soon as you’re better . . . you + me = strip club!!! yah! BOI! He shook his head, thinking of his crazy friend, then read through the rest of the cards. Even Jennifer West had sent him a ‘Get well soon’ card. Dr. Mara Gomez entered the room just as he was finishing up with the last card. “You have quite a lot of

Thankfully, after only a few days the side effects of the Ambrosia started to wear off. That first day though, had been ridiculous. Being stuck in a room with limited air movement is not the best place to be when your skin is glowing a dull gold and you smell like the most tantalizing scents in the world. In each class it had seemed every girl—and a few boys—had jockeyed for the position of being closest to him. It had been completely embarrassing to James and he was sure none of his affected classmates were getting any actual work accomplished while he had been around. Even Ms. Allie, his English teach from last year, had stopped him in the hallway and had asked him how he was doing. From the way the incredibly beautiful woman had kept gazing into his eyes and flirting indiscriminately with him, James had feared she would ask him out on a date or something. Gratefully, Tres had shown up acting like a blubbering, love-sick fool. Ms. Allie had laughed at his antics, but the distrac

“You sure you’re good with this?” James asked Tres as he finished packing some hygiene items in a small suitcase. Already a couple pairs of extra clothes had been thrown in, one of which was a nice version of the school’s uniform to wear to meet Christian and his mother. Blakeney had asked he and Eliza to have something nice to represent the Academy properly. His cymbal bag was already waiting by the door and now James was about ready to go meet Eliza so they could be on their way. “What!?” Tres was incredulous. “And miss a perfectly good opportunity to wreak havoc?” His face was filled with indignant disbelief. “Are you crazy? I’m afraid you don’t know me at all.” He turned away and placed a hand to his forehead like a distressed damsel in a Romance novel. “It’s over between us.” James laughed deeply at the antics. “Oh, shut up.” Tres grinned toothily. “Just make sure you and Matt don’t tell anyone,” said James. “And how long do you need again?”

The sky was jewel-like, crystalline blue as James pulled the sleek navyblue Mercedes onto the causeway. Driving towards Melbourne beach, he grinned like a kid playing with a shiny new toy for the first time. He looked out over at the water and saw the blazing sun dancing across the waves, the palm trees waving lazily in the cool ocean breeze. Being in this environment brought the book he had read last night to surreal life. To him, the novel was more than just a representation of a man struggling against nature and age. It was a kind of metaphor for life. Sometimes, thought James, we go after our dreams based on preconceived notions and ideals of success and life doesn’t always work out the way we intended. But like the old man, he figured you had to keep going no matter what. Because as is the case with real life, just as in the book, there is always someone watching and learning from your example. James sighed softly as he studied the beauty all around him, the book’s characters r

“God,” complained James. “I look like a door-to-door insurance salesman,” he said, remarking on what he was wearing. A pair of pressed khaki chinos, white oxford button-down shirt, and navy-blue tie with diagonal sky-blue stripes were paired up with his nice Doc Martin leather boots. He wished he could have just worn his Chuck’s but Blakeney had said no. To him, he looked like a prep school snob. “I think you look handsome,” Eliza countered. During continued grumblings, she asked, “How long do you think Tres will keep the network down?” Blakeney chuckled jovially as they pulled to a stop in front of the Somers’ house. “I don’t see a problem there. I told Anita to ask him for help when she called late last night.” He laughed deviously. “She has no clue that he’s the one who crashed it in the first place. And apparently the students almost rioted when the satellite and internet shut down, so I’m sure she has her hands full.” Blakeney shook his head. “Well, let’s go.” They ste