Have you ever had that dream where you’re sailing through the air, simply admiring the sky and the wispy strands of the clouds as you pass through them? But then, you fall. You can flap your arms and kick your feet, but to no avail. You reach terminal velocity and your heart races as the Earth gets closer and closer until you strike something like a car, Then, everything goes black, and you wake up.

I woke up to the sound of my alarm clock and wondered if it had triggered my subconscious to give up on my Peter Pan fantasy and return to the land of the normal. I pulled back my comforter and noticed I was still in the clothes I had worn the day before, which was not something I ever did as one cannot fall asleep fully clothed and ignore the liberating feeling of a comfy set of pajamas.

“Good morning, Taianna,” Mom said as I pulled on my blouse while walking past the kitchen. I almost thought about changing into a shorter skirt, but my ride was on the way.
“Mom, do you remember when I got home?”
“I want to think it was a little after nine. You said you had fun playing mini golf but had slipped on a spilled drink. I had no idea you liked to play.”
“Neither did I,” I replied as I hoisted up my backpack, “I guess we just had to give it a try.”
“Matthew was very charming to you. How serious are you with him?”
“Mom, can we have this conversation later? I have to get to school.”
“Of course, of course. Your father said Matthew was going to take the four of us out this Saturday to Dusty’s Steakhouse.”
I nodded, opened the front door and waved goodbye to mom. An eight-ounce steak from Dusty’s was about twenty-five dollars. I shook my head at that cost for a moment until I saw Tony’s car come up the driveway. The thought of my nightmare came through as I saw myself falling again onto the hood of a car. The thought fluttered away as Matt opened the passenger side door.
“Good morning, babe,” Matt said as he stepped out of the car and moved the set forward to allow me into the back. He then sat next to me and reached out to close the door.
“Good morning, Matt,” I kissed him on the cheek before I turned to the front. “Tony! Congrats on that hole in-one-on the back end hole. That was nail biting.”
“Yeah, it would have been horrific if I failed,” Tony replied as he looked at me in the rearview mirror and reversed the car.
“No one would have died, Tony. How many tacos does Chris owe you?”
“More than his colon’s going to be able handle,” Matt laughed as Tony accelerated.
I smiled at Matt, and he grinned back at me.
“Hey, Tai, how do you feel about going out this weekend? I’ve invited your folks to dinner.”
“You don’t have to do that. That place it expensive.”
“You are worth any price I have to pay,” Matt replied, and Tony abruptly changed lanes to pass a war.
“Keeping you happy is the most important thing to me.”
“Thank you,” I said as we kissed, and I felt a surge in my blood to do much more.
“Later?” I asked.
Matt nodded.

I walked into first period with Katie meeting me at the door.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes, why wouldn’t I be?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Last night.”
“Oh yeah, it was nothing, just a slip and fall due to a spilled soda, nothing big,” I replied with a wave of my hand.
“Oh, did you win?”
“Tony got the lowest score. I think mine was in the thirties. Mini golf is not my forte.”
Katie nodded as we walked to our desks.
“Oh, and Matthew’s taking me and my parents out Saturday night.”
“Oh girl, you know what that means, right?” Katie squealed as we sat at our desks.
“I have my thoughts,” I replied as I flashed a ring on my left hand.
“I like the ring.”
“Thank you, Matt gave it to me last night.”
“So, it is a promise ring?”
“It is,” I replied.
“Can I admire it?”
I looked at the ring and then at Katie before I allowed myself to remove it from my finger. I held it out and Katie took it in her hand.
“So, how was mini golf last night?”
“Oh yeah, it was nothing, just a slip and fall due to a spilled soda, nothing big,” I waved my left hand at her again.
“Oh, did you win?”
“Tony got the lowest score. Mine was in the thirties. Mini golf is not my forte.”
I stopped for a second and felt dizzy for a moment, but I avoided showing any pain.
“You’ll win the next game.”
“I don’t know, sometimes I feel like they’re all cheating.”
“Like you’re under some kind of spell? Sometimes it’s best to be the skeptic when everything is going your way.”
“I’m just kidding. I’m really not good at playing the game, but they enjoy it, so I play along.”
Katie nodded as Mr. Fredrickson jogged into the room with a large cup of coffee and stood in front of his desk. “Attention class! I have an important announcement. If Einstein were a rapper, he’d be called MC Squared. No, the real announcement is the pop quiz on the board that I doubt anyone has noticed. Books and binders off the desk. Pens and paper only.”
The classroom was quiet with only the sounds of pencils and pens scribbling across graph paper until a blast of crunching metal cut through the silence.
Everyone stood up to look out the window, but Mr. Frederickson got there first and just stood there as a giant robot stomped around the parking lot, crushing every car in its path. Before it, there was something that looked like a suit of armor absorbing each shot with a blue electrical field. I looked to the far end of the lot to see someone who looked like Chris running at full tilt towards the other two.
“If that’s Chris…then…”
Lightning flashed, followed by a violet road of thunder. The giant robot and the armored man fell to the ground. The school’s fire alarm sounded as the lights went out.
“Students let’s back away from the windows. In fact, we should go to our tornado shelter. Let’s go!”
Mr. Frederickson stood at door and waved the class out of the room, but I stood next to the window and stared in horror as the armored man removed his helmet and the robot shrunk down to the size of a man and its metallic face turned human. They were yelling at each other and pointing in Chris’ direction.
“Matthew! Tony!”
I ran out of the room and fought through the sea of students in the darkened hallway until I reached the end of the hallway and slammed into the exit door, forcing it open. There was the smell of gunfire, and some exceptionally large shell chasings littered the parking lot. I looked as the three of them continued to scream at each other until Chris knocked them down again with some sort of concussive blast. Matthew and Tony donned their helmets again and both of them grew into large robots against Chris.
“This is some serious evil green ranger Megazord shit!” Riley yelled from behind me. “What the hell are you doing out here?”
“Trying to stop them from killing each other!” I yelled back as the gunfire started up again as Tony jumped into the air and fired down at Matthew, but he stopped, held aloft by something Matthew was doing, until Chris threw his hands back and then forward, causing Matthew to lose control over Tony., but not before several shots fired in our direction.
“We’re going to need a miracle!” Riley yelled as shells filled the air and we ran for cover.
I could only nod as there was a loud ringing in my ears. We ducked back into the school as a piece of shrapnel nearly impaled Riley.
I crashed into his arms, and we fell to the floor as something whizzed through the air and exploded at the other end of the hall.
“Shit!” Riley exclaimed as we turned around to see Katie standing behind us. “Can you make this go away.”
“I can’t,” she replied as she looked out the door as another explosion rocked the building.
“Have you come to gloat about how we’re stupid about dealing with wishes?”
“Nope. I will admit the truism of absolute power corrupts absolutely does fit this situation.”
“Will they kill each other?” Riley asked.
Katie shook her head. “They’re at a stalemate. The only they can do now is grandstand, bluster about who’s the stronger man and quit or continue to fight each other to the death.”
“How do we stop them? I asked.
“It’s not a ‘we’ decision. The two of you together can’t stop them,”
“They’re our friends, if we go out and explain to them…”
“That didn’t work earlier, Tai,” Riley moaned.
“We have to think positive they’ll come to their senses.”
Katie turned around and shook her head. “You know that won’t happen.”
“Like I said,” Riley said as he took a deep breath, “we need a freaking miracle.”
“How about a wish?
We turned to Katie again and stared at her for a second as another rumble occurred followed by a siren in the distance.
“Wait, what?” I asked.
“You never wished for anything.”
“Uh, look at her,” Riley replied as he motioned at me like I was a prize to be won.
“You never wished for this. This was put upon you.”
“By Matt?
“By all four of them, but,” Katie took a pendant, bracelet and ring from her pocket and threw them onto the floor, “Matt and Chris worked together to create these items to manipulate you. Without them, they couldn’t control you without causing injuries to themselves.”
I turned to Riley, and he lowered his head and nodded.
“They got damn superpowers, Tai! Like Colossus versus Magneto, what could I do?”
“What did they do to me, Riley? What did you allow to happen?”
“I didn’t allow anything, Tai. There just wasn’t anything I could do to stop it.”
“I know something’s all screwed up with time. How many days have gone by?
“It’s still Tuesday.”
An ordinance explosion rocked the school again, and a verbal one spewed out of my mouth. “What happened to me, Riley?”
Katie silently walked a few steps back and then turned to Riley, causing him to swallow hard.
“Uhh, well, he, they…we..., you see…”
“We what, Riley?”
“You want it bluntly, or the calm way?”
“I don’t fucking care how you say it! Just tell me!”
“Yeah, that was it.”
“What was it?”
“We passed you around.”
“You son of a bitch!” I yelled as I punched Riley in the stomach.
He doubled over and nodded.
“How many times?”
“I don’t know,” he replied as he stumbled back. I had to admit I was shocked at my own strength,
“How many times, Riley!”
“I don’t know, honestly! After, after the first time I told them how wrong it was, how, it abusive it was and how I really wanted to have a wish to counter everything.” Riley looked at Katie, who ignored his pleading look.
I moved towards the battered door.
“You probably don’t want to go out there.” Riley wheezed.
“Oh, I do. I want to kick all three of their asses.”
“How?”
“I could use my wish to put an end to this and then if I must be Tyler once again, that’s how it will be, I’ll be ‘me’, again.”
Katie smiled for a moment, walked back to us and put her hands on my arms. “You are you. You’re how you view yourself in your heart and mind. It was just brought out and used against you.”
“I can’t use my wish to stay like this when they’re out there blowing up the city!”
“Why not?” Katie asked.
I closed my eyes and pondered the choice of being a girl by my own free will or stopping the anime-inspired carnage. I placed so much thought into it that I started to get a headache and pressed on my temples.
“Uh, Tai, I mean, Tyler?”
I looked at Riley who gawked at me as I returned to a male form. I made a few checks by touching parts of my body, which were still covered by my blouse and skirt. My hair was also short once again. I was about to sigh about how things couldn’t get any worse when the repressed memories flooded in. I could see the four using me in every way that could be done. I didn’t feel anger, and I didn’t feel a lust for revenge, just a wave of sadness.
The Armageddon outside abruptly ceased so I walked out of the building to see the three of them lying on the ground in a bloody heap.
“Oh my God!” Riley yelled as he ran to them. ‘Guys! Guys! Hey, it’s Riley!”
Riley slapped Matt’s face and shook Chris and Tony, but to no avail.
“Tai, you gotta bring them back. They were our friends.”
“Were, Riley,” I whispered. “Goodbye, guys. It was nice to know you, at one time.” I turned around and looked to Katie. “I wish…”