Last Hero
Chapter 03: Heroes Against Adventurers
Leo rolled his eyeballs. “You're really serious about kidding, huh? Okay, so the three of us started coming in here this semester. We're really familiar. You did everything I told you, gave me your dessert, and did my chores—“
“Leo!” snapped Piper.
“OK. Ignore the last part. But we are friends. Well, Piper is more than just your friend, the last few weeks—“
“Leo, stop!” piper's face flushed. Jason could feel that his face was warming up as well. According to Jason, he must have remembered that he was dating a girl like Piper.
“He had amnesia or something,” said Piper. “We have to tell someone.”
Leo grunts. “Who, Coach Hedge Sir? He will definitely try to cure Jason by shaking his head.”
The coach was in front of the group, banging orders and blowing his whistle to organize the children; but he occasionally glanced back, at Jason, and frowned.
“Leo, Jason needs help,” Piper insists. “She's concussion or—“
“Yo, Piper.” One of the other guys retreats to join them while the group heads for the museum. The new guy nudges himself between Jason and Piper and bumps into Leo until he falls. “Don't talk to these losers. You're my partner, remember?”
The new guy has dark Superman-style hair, sunburned tan, and teeth so white that they should be tagged with a warning label: DON'T LOOK AT TEETH DIRECTLY. THERE CAN BE PERMANENT BLINDNESS. He wore Dallas Cowboys uniforms, Western jeans, as well as boots, and he smiled as if he was God's gift to delinquent girls everywhere. Jason hated him for a moment.
“Go, Dylan,” grumble Piper. “I didn't ask for a group with you.”
“Ah, it cannot be so. It's your lucky day!” Dylan hooked his arm to Piper's arm and dragged the girl through the museum entrance. Piper threw the last look over his shoulder as if to say, Help me!
Leo stood up and cleaned his body. “I hate that guy.” He reached out to Jason, as if to walk him in together. “I Dylan. I'm really cool, I want to date myself, but I don't know how! What if you were the only one with me? Wantsome? You're so lucky!”
“Leo,” says Jason, “you're weird.”
Jason felt that if his best friend was this kid, his life would be pretty messed up; but he followed Leo into the museum.
***
They walked through the museum, stopping here and there so that Coach Hedge had the opportunity to lecture them with his megaphone. The megaphone alternately makes the coach sound like Sith Lord or echo strange comments such as: “Babi says nguik.”
Leo kept his nuts, bolts, and cotton ropes out of the pockets of his army jacket and put them together, as if he had to keep his hands busy all the time.
Jason was too restless to pay much attention to the objects on display, but the theme was about the Grand Canyon and the Hualapai tribe, the owners of the museum.
Some girls just keep looking at Piper and Dylan and scorn. Jason suspects these girls are a popular gang. They wear matching jeans and pink tops as well as thick makeup that is suitable for Halloween parties.
One of them said, “Hey, Piper, what is your tribe that runs this place? Can you enter for free if you do the rain dance?”
The other girls laughed. Even Dylan who said “pair” Piper also held back a smile. Piper's feathery snowboarding jacket hides her hand, but Jason has a hunch that the chick is clenching her fists.
“My father was a cherokee,” said Piper. “Not Hualapai. Of course, you need a few brain cells to understand the difference, Isabel.”
Isabel widened her eyes, pretending to be shocked. But he just looks like an owl addicted to make-up. “Ow, sorry! Is your mother a member of this tribe? Oh, yeah yeah. You never knew your mother.”
Piper lunged at Isabel, but before the fight could start, Coach Hedge's sir snapped, “That's back there, enough! Show me a good example or I'll take out my baseball bat!”
The group moved to the next display room, but the girls kept calling for scathing comments on Piper.
“Definitely happy yes, back to the shelter?” ask one of them in a sweet voice.