The Prodigies [First Draft]

Nine

Kenny didn't like Miss Brennan very much. The woman was too talkative. As if that weren't enough, she spoke to Kenny as if the girl was a child who didn't understand simple things, like why the grass was green (because the chlorophyll inside it reflected the green part of the visible light spectrum) and what political party the current president belonged to (the Green party). Then there was the fact that Miss Brennan spoke slowly when saying long words to Kenny and sharply when pronouncing shorter syllables, which was a nuisance all in itself.

It was only a few minutes before Kenny longed for nothing more than for Miss Kaylee to come back.

Kenny worried about her teacher. Something wasn't right about the way she had looked before she left the girl with Miss Brennan. When Kenny put that together with the fact that the two had to leave Snowcoast on such short notice, she began to grow suspicious. Had Miss Greenwood's failure to respond to Miss Kaylee's emails cause them to come later than they should have? It was already over a month into the school year. Would Miss Kaylee be fired for being tardy? Would she have to take Kenny back home with her?

Kenny hoped Miss Kaylee was okay as she stepped into the Clinic. LED lights glared from above, reflecting off of the whitewashed walls. The young girl looked down to protect her eyes from the harsh lighting and focused her gaze on the smooth cerulean tiles below her feet. The room smelled of heavily anesthetics and disinfectant, but there was a faint scent of pumpkin spice, as if someone had lit a candle that was now coming to the end of its stick. There were two offices on either side of Kenny: one was full of color and had stickers on the walls while the other had the same white glare as the room they were in now.

Miss Brennan led Kenny into the room with the stickers.

While a nurse pulled up Kenny's previous medical files on a computer and waited for the doctor to return, Miss Brennan tried to converse with the young girl. The longer she stayed with Miss Brennan, the more Kenny realized how ignorant the woman was concerning Kenny's intelligence. Miss Brennan thought Kenny was a normal five-year-old. That puzzled Kenny. Wasn't this a school for gifted children? Weren't all of the kids here geniuses with IQs higher than Albert Einstein's? If not, what did the 'Gifted' in the Academy for Gifted Children mean?

Perhaps I'll find out when I meet other children, Kenny thought to herself.

"Okay, sweetie, the doctor's ready to see us!" Miss Brennan's voice brought Kenny back to reality.

The two went into a smaller room with more bright colors and more faded stickers. A doctor measured Kenny's height, weight, heartbeat, eyesight, and hearing until Kenny had taken so many tests and answered so many medical questions, she could barely remember her own blood type. However, the doctor was patient with Kenny's index cards, and the only questions she asked concerning the young girl's muteness were if she was hearing impaired or if she had a speech problem.

"We're almost done, Kendall." The doctor smiled warmly at Kenny. "I just have to give you a few injections and then you can go."

Kenny's heart beat faster in her chest. Injections? Kenny had to get shots? The young girl shivered at the thought of a needle going through her skin. Every instinct she had told her to run, but she sat still and tried to reason with herself. This won't be too bad. You probably only have to get one shot, maybe two.

"You just need three."

"Three?" Miss Brennan asked, her eyes growing with the pit in Kenny's stomach.

"Yep," the doctor confirmed. "The good news is, after this, you won't have to take any more shots other than Influenza for a year or two."

The doctor left to go get the needles just as Miss Kaylee came back. She took one look at Kenny's face and asked, "How many shots?"

"Three," Miss Brennan responded. "Doctor says she has to get her IPV, Varicella, and Influenza shots."

Miss Kaylee frowned. "Influenza? You only get flu shots once year, around your birthday. Why are you getting—"

And then it hit the woman harder than a stampede of wild cattle. Miss Kaylee stared at Kenny in shock, and the young girl stared back. Kenny thought she had known.

"It's November 13, isn't it? Happy birthday, Kendall."

The doctor walked in, carrying a tray bearing the vaccinations and Kenny's worst nightmare. "Yes, happy birthday, Kenny. And now for your shots."

****

A nurse had to hold Kenny down for all three vaccinations. Kenny cried. She cried and cried, and she didn't stop crying until Miss Kaylee led her away from the Clinic. Only then did her tears slowly reduce to sniffles. Miss Brennan took it upon herself to tell Kenny of the time she had also gotten three shots. Kenny didn't bother to pretend she was listening.

After going on about work she had to do, Miss Brennan left for the main office. Miss Kaylee took Kenny's hand in her own, leading the young girl into another building. The white glare of the Clinic gave way to blue, white, and gray walls. LEDs were replaced with uplight chandeliers that cast a soft glow down the winding hallways. Kenny realized this was the school building.

"In here, Kenny." Miss Kaylee brought the two to a stop in front of an empty classroom. She pressed her ID card to a black panel next to the door and the doorknob clicked open.

Inside, a short, chubby man stood waiting. He had a bald spot on the top of his head that was as pink as his flushed cheeks, and his dark eyes were serious. "Come, come!" he urged. "We don't have much time if Miss Frodell is to make it to lunch."

Kenny was ushered to a desk in the middle of the front row. A thick packet sat atop the desk, but Kenny was told not to open it. Instead, she looked around the room while Miss Kaylee and the short man spoke in hushed voices. On the chalkboard, the next day's date and lesson plan was written in a sloppy scrawl that was a mix between cursive and script. Encouraging posters and neatly colored history projects hung on the walls around the room. Kenny spotted a student-made poster that listed the major religions in the world and another that talked about the ancient city of Athens.

"Alright, Miss Frodell," the chubby man stated, turning toward Kenny, "let's get on with it. I'm Mr. Gregory, and I'll be administering your test today. You and I are to be the only ones in the room." He stared at Miss Kaylee for a long moment, and the woman took that as her cue to leave.

"Good luck! You'll do fine." Miss Kaylee beamed at the girl before heading for the door.

"Meddling guidance counselors, always trying to watch one of the tests as they're being conducted," Kenny heard Mr. Gregory mutter under his breath. The man made sure Miss Kaylee was gone before continuing.

"The instructions, where did I put—oh yes. Here we go." Mr. Gregory cleared his throat, reading from a small booklet that had the same emblem on the front as Kenny's packet did—a white snowflake on a navy-blue background with a Latin phrase written under it. Kenny sat up straighter in her chair, ready to start.

"Today you will be taking a standardized test called the Gifted Enhanced Intelligence Measure, or the GEIM. The first part of the GEIM will measure your level of intelligence, test-taking skills, and speed. The second part will measure your aptitude for learning and remembering what you have learned. Before we start, write your name and the date on the front page of the test."

Mr. Gregory handed the young girl a pencil, and Kenny wrote the information that was asked of her on the front.

"Good. Now we shall start. The first part of the GEIM is academic ability section. Questions in this section start with the basic knowledge of a Pre-Kindergartener and work their way up to a average college senior's curriculum. If you find you do not know the answer to a question, skip it. If you find you do not know the answer to the rest of the questions in the section, say, 'done,' for you will have finished this part of the test. You have exactly one hour to complete one hundred questions. You may start...now."

Mr. Gregory clicked the stopwatch around his neck, and Kenny opened her test booklet to the first page. The test had begun.