Pheus rubs the back of his neck.
“If you aren’t talking to Penelope or your mom, who are you talking to?” he asks. “There are things, for sure, I don’t tell my parents. But most of the time, I can talk to them about anything. And if not, I can turn to my friends. Who’s got your back, Eury, if you’re not allowing the people who love you the opportunity to help?”
If only it were that simple.
“Do you believe in God?” I ask.
“My father believes there are spirits that guide you in this life and the next,” he says. “He does this mix of Catholicism and Santería and Buddhism. It’s whatever works for him. My mom doesn’t, although she grew up Baptist.”
“And you?”
“I don’t know. I think we got this life, so we better make the best of it,” he says. “But hey, if prayers or churches bring you peace, then do you. What do I know?”
Pheus would never understand how Ato came to be. The only remedy I have is a belief that perhaps something out there will save me. Incantations to protect those I love. Prayers may be useless, but I have no other choice.
“You don’t believe in spirits or ghosts. Demons?” I ask. Perhaps I feel braver standing with Pheus by this church. I am testing the water to see where Pheus’s truth lands.
“No,” he says. “I only believe in what I see. In hard work.”
He pauses.
“Wait, what does that have to do with the thunder?”
His response only proves my instincts are right. He would never understand.
A woman dressed in a frumpy suit steps out of the rectory.
“May I help you?” she asks with a stern face.
“We’re taking a break from the rain,” Pheus says.
“Mass starts at 4 p.m. today. Please come back then.”
“Isn’t this church for the community?” Pheus says. “I’m part of the community.”
The woman asks us to leave.
“I guess people like us are only allowed to borrow snippets of this city,” Pheus says loudly. “It’s only on loan, even a church.”
Penelope and Jaysen are across the street. My heart has slowed back to a normal rate. The sun shines brightly. Ato is nowhere to be found.
“Thank you, Pheus,” I say. My hand still holds the pinwheel.
“I got your back,” he says before Jaysen and Penelope reach us. “No matter what.”
My smile feels foreign. When was the last time I actually felt happy? Happiness has been unattainable for so long. But it wasn’t always like this. Ato was my friend first. He was there when Papi left me. He stored my fears and secrets. I trusted him like Pheus right now is asking me to confide in him. But for Ato, friendship always meant possession.
Ato sits beside me underneath a grand flamboyán. Red petals sprinkle the ground before us. A couple of the petals even grace our bare toes. We are protected from the light shower drizzling down from above. Although it is raining, the sun still shines brightly. We sit in anticipation of a rainbow.
“There might be a treasure at the end,” I say. “We should find out.”
“You are the treasure.” Ato taps his feet against mine. I stick my tongue out at him. He is so serious when he talks like that. It’s a little silly.
There is a clanging of pots coming from inside the house as Mami prepares dinner. A few weeks ago, Mami told me to stop talking about my imaginary friend. At eleven years old I’m too old for such foolishness, she said. I’m learning to keep Ato to myself.
A neighborhood boy runs up to us. His name is Mateo. I like him. Sometimes at school Mateo will let me play with his Nintendo DS. He is always very sweet to me.
“What are you doing?” Mateo asks. His round face is flushed from running.
“Nothing, just waiting for a rainbow to appear,” I say.
“Oh.” He sits down beside me. Ato glares at Mateo. He doesn’t like people interrupting our time together. Ato thinks everyone is out to get me, but Mateo is not like that. I ignore Ato’s reaction and talk to Mateo.
“Did you finish your homework?” I ask.
“It was easy,” Mateo says. I nod in agreement. Ato bristles and suddenly stands.
“Tell him to go away. Tell him you are busy.”
I don’t listen to Ato. Mateo is a friend. I don’t have many. The kids in school think I’m too quiet and a little weird.
A fruit from the tree across the way drops to the ground.
“I’m hungry,” Mateo says. “We should eat some. Don’t worry, I’ll get it.”
Mateo gets up, heads to the tree, and starts to climb.
“Leave him alone. He’s not doing anything,” I tell Ato, who continues to stare at him.
Mateo straddles the tree like a monkey. He reaches a branch and slowly crawls over it, managing to stand. He stretches toward a dangling guanábana and says, “This one looks ready.”
I smile at Mateo, but when I turn to Ato, his whole face changes. His eyes are completely black. And his face … His face appears to erase itself, like someone used a pencil to blur his features.
I shake my head. I must be seeing things.
Suddenly, a gust of wind picks up. Mateo, unable to keep his balance, falls from the tree. He cries out, and I run to him. Tears roll down Mateo’s cheeks as he clutches his ankle.
“It hurts so much,” Mateo cries. I don’t know what to say.
“I told you to send him away.” Ato’s face is normal again, but he has a scary smile. Mateo continues to moan while a knot forms in the pit of my stomach.
Pheus stands before me, offering me his hand, and I’m not sure if this offering comes with a price. I’m in fear of what tomorrow will bring. Another storm to destroy everything I love. A wind to carry me away from this place.
What will Ato do to Pheus or to Penelope? I can’t involve them in this. I can’t.
“You guys think you’re slick, but you’re not fooling me. Hiding out over here,” Penelope says. “What should we do now?”
“I want to go home,” I say. Penelope’s face drops.
If I stay indoors, I might have a chance of protecting myself. I don’t know how this works. There is no book to detail what Ato is or why he is coming after me. There is only me pretending to know what I’m doing.
“Okay,” Penelope says. “Let’s go.”
We head toward the nearest train station. Pheus walks alongside me.
CHAPTER 7
Pheus
“What’s up, ’mano?” Jaysen asks.
The train is crowded, but Eury and Penelope snagged two seats at the far end. I can still see Eury from where we’re standing. My sweaty hands clasp the metal pole tight. My whole body is tense.
“Nothing, bro,” I say. “Everything’s good.”
Jaysen makes a smacking noise. “You lying. Did she turn you down?”
Penelope gave me the stink eye when I tried to explain to her how Eury and I ended up alone. She knows something went down. When Penelope asked again why we were in front of the church, I told her a story about there being historical significance to the building. Blah blah bullshit.
Eury keeps looking my way. Or maybe it’s me who can’t stop checking to see if she’s okay. She said it was thunder that freaked her out. The storm triggered something in her. There was real fear there.