The Freak - S01 E01

2 months ago

The Freak - S01 E01

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 1

8:19

ال

December, 1960

My story doesn't start here, but this is where I've decided to begin -in church. It was the first week in December and a surprise blizzard had dumped almost ten inches of wet sloppy snow overnight. Luckily, I had a 4-wheel drive Jeep with big knobby tires that were great for snow or for driving on the beach, something I did occasionally in the summer at my parents' bungalow on Long Island. It was slow going over the eight miles from my home to St.. Catharine's, but still arrived in plenty of time to get a seat on the end of the pew.

I had been there maybe fifteen minutes when I stood for the start of the Mass. I couldn't help but notice the striking young woman standing just behind me along the wall. Looking down I could see from the puddles at her feet that her shoes were soaked through. She had walked a long way in the snow. I'm a gentleman so I exited the row and pointed her to my seat. "Thank you," she whispered with a smile.

I tried to pay attention to the priest, but, truthfully, I found the girl much more interesting. As I concentrated on her I realized that this was her lucky day, but had to be in the right place at the right time. Just before the service ended I walked quickly to the stairs at the main entrance where pulled two carefully folded objects from my coat pocket. They were Korkers-rubber soles that strap to one's special shoes or boots with numerous sharp metal studs that give incredible traction on the slickest surfaces. Once they were in place I stepped to the icy sidewalk and waited.

It was some five minutes before she appeared with the throng of worshipers who signaled that Mass had ended. I stepped in closely behind her, grabbing her firmly under her arms even before her shoes slipped on a small patch of ice and she fell backwards. Had not been here she would have landed on her back, smashing the rear of her skull onto the sharp-edged concrete below. She would have died from a brain hemorrhage long before any emergency services would be able to reach her. Instead, I helped her to her feet and suggested she take my arm.

"I noticed your shoes were wet in church. Once you came out into the freezing temperature those wet soles turned to ice. You're lucky I'm an observant person. You might have been badly hurt." We had walked almost half a block before I spoke again. "How far do you have to walk?"

"Just to the other side of Lincoln Avenue."

"Okay...that's more than a mile. I think I'd better give you a ride. You'll be a lot safer in my Jeep than on these sidewalks. I'm sure that a lot of them aren't shoveled yet."

"You're right. I wish I'd worn my boots, but I was almost halfway here when realized how wet my feet were becoming. I would have been really late if had returned to my home. I don't know you. I don't even know your name."

"I'll tell you everything at the diner. I'm sure you're hungry. You received communion so you haven't eaten anything since last night. I'll give you a dime so you can phone your family as soon as we arrive. Incidentally, if I hadn't caught you when you fell you would have hit your head on the concrete and died. I'll explain how I know that, too. Okay, there's my Jeep-that green monstrosity at the corner. I don't think you'll be able to get in on the other side because of the snow, so....." bent over, lifted her legs with my left

arm and placed her gently onto the passenger seat. I was in my seat when I pointed to the shoulder/lap belt. "You might want to use the seatbelt. They'll be mandatory in another twenty years. It will protect you if we have an accident. I'm a safe and careful driver, but I can't account for others, especially in snow and ice." I pulled the Jeep out, driving slowly and turning right at the comer. Three minutes later pulled into the diner's parking lot. We had just stepped into the restaurant when the waitress directed us to a booth.

"Here's the dime I promised you, but before you go want to show you something. Are you having coffee?" I continued when she nodded. "Then you'll probably want some sugar" I held my hand on the table and a second later the sugar dispenser slid into it.

"How....how did you do that?"

"Make your call. I'll explain everything while we wait for our breakfast...or lunch if you prefer." She was shaking her head in dismay as she walked to the phone booth. I watched her dial and speak briefly before returning to the seat facing me. She sat quietly as I began my tale.

"It happened while was on vacation with my family in Florida. I

was in third grade and playing hide and seek with my two cousins

and my two sisters. I was "it" and had my head resting against a

palm tree while I counted to 100. A storm blew in from the ocean;

lightning struck the tree running through my brain and down my

arm to my elbow." I opened my collar and turned around so she

could see the inch-wide burn scar. "That runs all the way to my

elbow. It used to be on top of my head, too, but took care of it so elbow. It used to be on top of my head, too, but took care of it so I'd at least look normal."

"But, you're not, are you?"

"No, I am definitely not." The waitress gave us menus and we ordered omelets with coffee for her and hot chocolate for me. "I woke up a day later in the hospital. I'm sure you've heard that opposite charges attract and like charges repel. Well, for a split fraction of a second that tree and I had incredible negative charges. Being lighter and not stuck in the ground was repelled- forty feet, I was told-into the side of a pickup truck.

"When I woke up still had my eyes closed and when tried to figure out what was wrong with me I got the shock of my life. Starting at my head I could essentially 'see' inside my body. I actually saw the two cracked ribs, broken bone in my forearm, and broken shin in addition to a load of bruises and cuts on my head, body, and legs. Once I knew that I wondered if I could also make my body and bones heal faster than they would normally." "I'll bet you could."

Yeah, could and I did. I've read recently that human beings only use about ten percent of their brain's capacity. I should have been killed, but instead, something happened when I was struck that changed my brain. I had a high IQ before, but I've been tested more than a dozen times since and my score is always off the chart. Of course, that alone is no sure sign of success. That takes a lot more like motivation and willingness to work hard.

"Oh...I'm so sorry. I just realized that I never introduced myself-I'm John...John Joseph French, but please call me Jack. live in Chester Heights...know where that is?" I continued when she nodded. "I go to Tuckahoe High School. I'm a senior there, just turned eighteen three weeks ago."

Her name was Barbara...Barbara Millard She was an orphan-her parents killed in an auto accident when she was three-and she had lived with the same foster parents, the Gleason's, ever since. She was also eighteen-roughly a month older than me and a senior at a Catholic girls' school run by the Archdiocese of New York in nearby Yonkers.

"Okay, there's a lot more to tell so I'd better get back to it. I had been in the hospital about three weeks. My dad had driven my sisters back to New York while my mom stayed in Florida with me. That was when I told the doctor that I was completely healed and I wanted the casts removed. Of course, he scoffed so I suggested a wanted the casts removed. Of course, he scoffed so I suggested a deal. If he would have my ribs x-rayed and they weren't healed I'd stay in the casts. But, if they were healed wanted x-rays of my arm and leg. You already know what happened. I was completely healed although the doctor was mystified. I couldn't tell him how it had occurred. He would never have believed me.

"I love to read the newspaper, especially the sports section. I noticed almost immediately that certain teams seemed to jump off the page. Then my parents told us that they were going to Yonkers Raceway on Friday night. They did that at least once a year with their group of friends. Monday night I looked at the newspaper's racing form and five of the horse names stood out. The following day I checked and they all had won."

You could make a fortune with that."

"Yeah," I chuckled, "my thinking exactly." I paused while our eggs and sides of bacon were served. "On Wednesday night I gave my father a sealed envelope and asked him to sign his name across the seals then I put it onto the refrigerator door. The following afternoon I brought in the racing results and opened the envelope in my parents' presence. They were shocked that all of my predictions were correct. Then I gave then my predictions for Friday when they were going to the track along with two dollars from my allowance and directions for placing two bets for me.

The first was a horse in the third race with high odds. It went off at 18 to 1 and paid $38.20. The second bet was a parlay-the entire thirty-eight bucks-on the Perfecta in the ninth race where the odds would be roughly 4500 to 1. I also gave them three other races in between. I explained that I did this so they would trust my predictions. I know my dad; he'd go to the track and not bet for me, telling me he forgot if I didn't prove that knew what was doing. thought it was funny at the time that I couldn't see the results of every race and that's never changed. I can usually see five or six out of the total. The same is true with baseball or football schedules.

"Long story short, everyone bet on my choices, but fortunately not so much as to create suspicion. My mom and dad and all of their friends bet ten bucks on the perfecta, winning almost $46,000 and I won almost four times as much. I took half knowing that my parents would have to pay income tax on their winnings and placed $10,000 into a bank account for college then invested the rest through a friend's father who is a stockbroker."

"Did that work with stocks, too?" My smile answered the question for her.

ال

"Needless to say, my parents went to the track more often and my personal money has grown into a fortune. My friend's father no longer charges for my purchases and sales, but he does use the information with his other clients so he makes plenty that way. Then again, so do all of the brokers at Merrill Lynch. I actually have a contract that they have to make my trades first-before releasing the information to the other brokers.

"When all this happened I was a tall skinny and bookish kid, but I loved sports even though I was terrible so I wondered if could make myself into an athlete. For me the obvious place to do that was the public library where I could learn all about the traits and skills that great athletes have. I was able to make myself strong, fast, and quick. I love basketball so became ambidextrous and grew my hands and feet and body to what I thought would be perfect for playing and I developed excellent depth perception. Then one day found a set of New York State law books in the library's research section. That's where I learned that eighth graders could play high school sports with the principal's permission. I was in sixth grade then so I had time to gradually improve my body and my skills. I can dribble, shoot, and even write with both hands. I can run like the wind and jump like you wouldn't believe."

"I think would believe even though what you've told me is unbelievable."

"Everyone in school thought was crazy for trying out in eighth grade, but made the team. Our first games were on a Friday night -junior varsity at six and varsity at eight. I didn't start the JV game, but went in midway through the second quarter and played very well so the coach told me that he wanted me to suit up for the varsity game. I had to throw my sweaty uniform back on and run out to the gym to tell my parents.

"I did get to play when our first two centers got into foul trouble and again I played well, but we lost the game. The following Tuesday i played more and we won. The next day I was promoted to first tean. I've been there ever since and we never lost again, winning four straight state championships."

"Did you win any awards? Is that what they're called?"

I smiled. "Yeah..awards' is good. I made second team all-league in eighth, first team all-league and all-county ever since and last year I was All-State and All-American, too. I'm sorry, I've monopolized the conversation."