When your dreams become reality, reality becomes a nightmare.
Maya dreams of perfect skin, beautiful hair, good grades,
and Eric Brighton—the boy she’s been crushing on since middle school. No matter
how hard she tries, all these things elude her. But when a creepy college recruiter
arrives with news that Maya has omnipotent powers, things change quickly.
Having everything she wants is a lot harder than Maya
expects, though. Will she give it all up for the chance to be normal again,
even if it means losing Eric?
Here is an excerpt. Enjoy!
In this scene, after an “odd” morning, Maya meets her mentor
and finds out the extent of her powers.
“I
have a bad feeling you don’t want to talk about college.”
His
lips straightened to a thin line. “No. I’ve never even been to college myself.”
Maya’s
unease became a bat and struck her into panic mode.
She jumped up from the
chair, her heart racing. “Who are you? What do you want?”
Edgar
shrugged. “I’m your guide, Maya. Your mentor, so to speak.”
“Mentor
for what?”
“We
have a lot to talk about. Would you please sit?”
She
backed up until her rear slammed against the door. She fumbled for the handle
and pulled it open. A rush of hot air hit her as she turned to the sting of
hundreds of tiny pebbles thrashing her face. Maya raised her hands to protect
her eyes and peered through her fingertips into the blinding rays of a
low-hanging sun.
The
cascading sunbeams warmed her cheeks and illuminated the outline of a figure
that looked a lot like the Sphinx in Egypt. She gasped and choked on air
riddled with blowing sand.
Edgar
laughed behind her. “Let me guess. You were thinking that you’d rather be
anywhere but here, and somewhere deep in the back of your mind, you always
wanted to see the Great Pyramids.”
He
appeared beside her, and she allowed him to close the door. Sweat poured from
Maya’s brow as the room instantly cooled.
“Do
you want to be back at school?”
She
nodded, terror constricting her from any other movement.
Edgar
turned the handle and pushed. The
secretary looked up from her computer, narrowing her eyes. He smiled, waved,
and closed the door again.
Numbness
crept from Maya’s toes and up her legs. Had she gone mad?
Stumbling,
she allowed him to guide her back to her chair.
Edgar
eased her down. “Are you ready to talk to me now?”
She
shook away her fright. “How’d you do that?”
“I
didn’t do anything. You did.”
“Me?
That’s crazy.”
“Not
really. Any of our kind can move from place to place. Anywhere we can imagine.”
“Our
kind?”
He
reached across the desk and grabbed a pitcher of water that Maya didn’t
remember seeing a moment ago. Goosebumps riddled her skin as he poured a glass
and handed it to her. She reached for the cup, wishing it was something more
soothing like cocoa with marshmallows, and jumped when her hand grasped a hot
mug. The porcelain slipped through her fingers, and the drink spilled across
the papers on the Vice Principal’s desk.
“Holy
crap! Seston’s gonna have a fit!”
Edgar
grabbed her hands. “Calm down, Maya.” A rushing wave of serenity
rolled
over her. He raised his left brow. “Better?”
She
nodded, and her gaze dropped to the neat stacks of clean, dry papers on the
desk—and a full mug of hot cocoa set directly in front of her seat.
“What
the frig is going on?”
Her
desire to freak out struggled against the calm creeping through her body.
Edgar’s
gaze locked on her, consumed her. She fought against the presence invading her
mind until his strength overwhelmed her. Her resolve snapped, and against her
better judgment, she allowed the tenseness to ease from her muscles.
Edgar
smiled. “Enjoy that little splash of relaxation. It’s probably the last time
I’ll be able to do that for you.”
“What
do you mean? What’s going on?”
“I’ll
try to explain as it was explained to me. You are adopted, are you not?”
Maya
shifted in her chair. Her hands grew cold. “Yes.”
“We
all were. Atrusians, for the most part, don’t raise their own young. Too many
complications.”
“What
are you talking about?”
“You
are special, Maya. You have gifts no other child here has. You can make pretty
much anything happen, just by wanting it.”
Her
stomach plummeted. That morning, she’d wished she didn’t have to wear glasses,
and her eyes instantly focused. She wanted eggs, and they suddenly appeared.
It
had to be coincidence. Stuff like that just wasn’t possible. “You’re crazy.”
“Am
I?”
A
bird cawed over her head, and Maya jumped from her seat. Water rose and fell
gently around her and all the way to the horizon on every side. She, Edgar, the
desk, and two chairs stood alone amongst the rolling waves of the ocean.
She
snapped her jaw shut and turned to him. “I didn’t do this. I wasn’t thinking
about the water!”
“No.
This one I did. I’ve always enjoyed the sounds of the ocean.”
“Well,
I don’t. Take me back!”
He
smiled. “If you want to go home, just desire it strongly.”
Maya
grit her teeth. She could feel Edgar wiggling his fingers inside her brain,
pulling against her need to negate everything he said—forcing her to feel
confident, to understand. Her disbelief washed away as she closed her eyes.
The
gentle sounds of the lapping water disappeared, and she found herself back in
the Vice Principal’s office. Maya’s inner fear once again struggled with
Edgar’s calm until he overpowered her once more, and serenity and understanding
wiped away her unease.
Maya’s
eyes fixed on a stain mottling the carpet at her feet. She wished it gone, and
it slowly faded away. The rational side of her brain laughed, still unable to
process what she’d seen.
The First Day of the New Tomorrow can be purchased at the following links:
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While not off visiting other worlds, Jennifer calls the East Coast of the USA home, where she lives with her wonderfully supportive husband, three energetic boys, and a pepped up poodle.
Full time team leader, full time mom, and full time novelist... what more can you ask for? Writing help did you say? Well, sure! Jennifer hosts an informational blog aimed at helping all writers be the best they can be. Stop on by and chat. She loves to hear from fans! http://www.jennifermeaton.com/
Her contemporary
sweet romance, Paper Wishes is currently available in ebook format. The Dystopian novelette “Last Winter
Red” is available as part of the “Make Believe” Anthology. Each title is available from
Amazon.com and Barnesandnoble.com and Smashwords.
Paper Wishes: Jill has no idea what she wants for Christmas, but when it
looks like her best friend Jack is going to get exactly what he asks for, Jill
makes a Christmas wish that will change both of their lives forever.
Last Winter
Red: In search of a husband, Emily leaves
the safety of the city and risks her life stepping into the outside world. What she finds there will question the
foundations of everything she believes in. Available as part of the Make
Believe anthology.
The First
Day of the New Tomorrow:
Maya dreams of having everything she wants, but when she gets it, she can’t
give it back fast enough. (Coming in September, 2013 from Muse It Up)
