The Exchange Students - 8. Chapter 8

**

“It’s OK,” I said. “Emma, it won’t work for Oscar and me, and it won’t work for you and Frank. Give it a shot. I want you and Oscar to be happy.”

She looked at me with a sober expression and said. “I couldn’t do that.”

“I want you to. Please.”

**

“I’ll think about it,” said Emma. “But I’m worried about you.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll be OK.” I tried to convince myself as much as Emma. “I’ll tell Oscar that he can ask you out.”

She took my hand with a sorry look and said. “Come on, let’s catch up with the others.”

I sat silently with Emma on the drive back home. They dropped me off in front of my house, and I went to my room, showered, and slept, or tried to sleep, until morning.

My dad dropped me off at school at the regular time on Tuesday morning. I didn’t want to be there and particularly dreaded the second period with Oscar.

Ralph was sitting in my seat between Oscar and me. They stared at each other, and a tangible tension filled the air.

I sat beside Ralph and opened my tablet to the current chapter with my notes for the class. Ralph turned away from Oscar and smiled, saying, “Your name is Matt, isn’t it?”

Ralph caught me by surprise. He was indeed a beautiful boy with intense, penetrating blue-gray eyes. The last thing I needed right now was another hot new student as a “friend.”

“Hi, yeah, I'm Matt. You’re Ralph, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” Ralph said. “I’m a new student.”

“Where did you transfer from?”

“I attended a private school outside of Munich,” Ralph said.

“I’d like to visit Germany someday. Does your family still live there?” I asked.

Ralph hesitated, perhaps unsure how to answer, then said, “Yes, yes, they do.”

Don called the class to order. “Today’s chapter discusses some of the developments in molecular biology in the second half of the twentieth century. Does anyone have an opinion on the impact of the publication by James Watson and Francis Crick in 1953, based on an X-ray diffraction image created by Rosalind Franklin and Raymond Gosling, identifying the double-helix structure of DNA?”

Ralph raised his hand.

“Yes, Ralph,” said Don.

Ralph stood. “Das Zwillingsspirale was discovered and identified by Herr Doktor Frederick Ehrlich in 1931.”

“Where do you come up with stuff like this, Ralph?” asked an exasperated teacher.

Ralph looked at Don with what looked like an expression of contempt and then, turning to Oscar said.

“Why don’t we take it a step further? Oscar, why don’t you tell Herr Larkin all about CRISPR?” Ralph prompted, a smirk playing at the edges of his lips. “You know all about it, don’t you, Oscar?”

Ralph turned back to Don and said, “I imagine Herr Larkin thinks it was discovered in the 1980s and 1990s in Japan and the Netherlands. Why don’t you enlighten him with the real history and the true state of the technology?”

Oscar rose with a determined expression and directed a steely look at Ralph. “Are you sure you want this confrontation, Ralph?”

Ralph's eyes narrowed, and his voice dripped with disdain. “You think you’re something special just because you’re Generation Six.”

In an instant, everything shifted. It was a blur of movement, almost slow motion, but faster than the eye could track.

Before I could fully process it, I found Ralph slumped in his chair, looking utterly bewildered and disoriented.

The event caught Don Larkin off guard. He stood stunned.

“Mr. Larkin, it appears that Ralph has experienced some sort of medical episode,” Oscar stated with an unsettling calmness. “He might need medical assistance.”

Don called emergency services as the students exited the classroom. I would have asked Oscar to explain what happened, but I wasn’t ready to talk to him yet.

I had a third period, History, with Carson. There was a new student in the class. Mr. Dearborn introduced him as Albert, another seemingly perfect image of a teenage boy. Something was definitely going on. I saw Carson react to Albert almost exactly like Oscar did to Ralph the first time we saw him last week. Carson was hyper-alert and observant of Albert.

That afternoon, at lunch, Frank invited Emma, Brad, Amy, and me to the Norwegians' house after school for snacks and an important meeting. I could see Frank, Carson, Oscar, and Jakob discreetly scanning the students present in the dining hall that period.

I noticed some new faces in the hallways between classes that day. They were all lean, tall, and … stunning.

I called my dad to let him know I’d be a little late and not to bother picking me up.

We arrived at the Edgehill house at a quarter after four. It was only a mile from the school.

Upon entry, I immediately observed that the house was trashed. Most of the drawers and cabinets were open, and the contents spewed on the floor.

Frank said, “We had a break-in while we were in Tahoe. We discovered that someone had searched the house, but we straightened much of it up last night. We expected them to break in, but they got nothing except the computer hard drives. Pretty useless since the drives are heavily encrypted and the backups are stored safely off-site.”

“All six new students are Generation Five,” said Carson. “They are still dangerous but are unlikely to confront us directly.

Turning to Amy, Brad, Emma, and me, Carson continued. “The generations are different. Each generation is between ten and fifteen percent more capable than the generation before.”

“Except Generation 6. By the time we are twenty-six years old, we should be thirty percent more capable than Gen 5, maybe more. Gen 5 doesn’t look it, but they are, on average, eight years older than us. They are mature but still no match for us.”

“We are stronger, faster, and have better reflexes, stamina, vision, and hearing. Our brains process information more quickly; we’re smarter than earlier generations.”

“Matt, you saw an example of our capabilities in Science class today,” said Oscar.

“We purposely left the house vulnerable to a break-in to gain intelligence on them. We know where they live and monitor their communications,” said Frank.

“Why didn’t Ahnenerbe send Gen 6?” asked Brad.

“The German and Polish Generation 6 are busy battling the Norwegian Gen 6 in Norway and in smaller numbers around the rest of the world. That is one of the reasons we are here,” said Carson.

“There are rumors that there might be a chapter of the Ahnenerbe founded in the 1930s somewhere in the United States. We thought they might be in California, but we've investigated thoroughly and found nothing.”

“Norway is a difficult country to invade,” said Frank. The Norwegian Ahnenerbe is countering the Germans and Polish invasion with a guerrilla operation. The Norwegians are at a disadvantage, but the outcome is not inevitable.

“There are a hundred and thirty Generation 6 associated with Norway and fifteen hundred of the earlier generations,” said Carson. “We also have influential friends helping us counter Germany and Poland.”

“Why are you telling us all this,” I asked.

“You four are our connection to the normal world,” said Oscar. “The world we want to be part of when this is all over. We need you to guide us in this world that is so new to us.”

Carson continued, “All the Ahnenerbe involved in the Übermensch program are related, mostly first, second, or third cousins, though some are half-brothers. We never meet those who bear us or bear our children. We are removed soon after birth and placed in other Ahnenerbe locations.”

“As you may have guessed, genetic manipulation is involved. You may have also noticed that the math doesn’t work out right. Since the program started in the 1930s, there should be nine or ten generations instead of just six. Some earlier “experiments” went badly in the 50s and 60s. Those generations did not survive. We suspect they were euthanized.”

“Now you know our history. Is there anything else you want to know?” asked Frank.

“Why is all this happening now,” I asked. “Norway revolted against the rest of Ahnenerbe, and Germany and Poland are reacting violently. Why now?”

“The Munich chapter wishes to consolidate the movement and exert influence in Europe and the rest of the world. The far-left and far-right political movements of late are susceptible to Ahnenerbe’s message and control.

“There is a recent communication I intercepted this morning between the NSA and FBI,” said Carson. “There is activity in southern Minnesota classified as ‘potentially subversive.’ It has the earmarks of an Ahnenerbe operation. We may have found the American chapter.”

“How many of each generation are in Minnesota?” asked Frank.

“The NSA intelligence isn’t clear, and the FBI listed it as ‘low priority,’” said Carson. “We are unlikely to learn more from American surveillance organizations.”

“They must be dealt with,” said Frank.

Ralph was absent from Science class on Wednesday. The other five Generation 5 five boys still attended classes.

I sat alone in a quiet spot next to the athletic fields during my free period. Since Sunday evening, when I suffered heartbreak, I found that being alone suits me more and more. Emma and Brad were concerned, but they left me alone most of the time to ‘heal.’

As I sat there, lost in my dark thoughts, Jakob walked up and sat beside me. I didn’t mind. Jakob was one of the only people that always made me smile.

“Oscar mentioned he and Emma were going on a date,” Jakob said.

“I know,” I said sadly.

“You have a crush on Oscar, don't you?”

I froze, feeling exposed. “Does everyone know?”

“I doubt it,” he said. “I don’t think even Oscar knows.”

“Can we keep this between us?” I asked.

“No problem.”

“Thanks, Jakob.”

He looked at me, a hint of uncertainty in his expression.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

After a pause, he said, “What’s wrong with me?”

“What do you mean?” I replied, puzzled.

“Why don’t you like me?”

“I do like you, Jakob,” I said.

Jakob continued to look at me.

The tumult in my head began to settle. I looked at him with a newfound awareness.

“I’ve never thought about you that way,” I said. “You’re so young.”

“I’ll be fifteen in April,” Jakob said.

“I’m less than a year older than you,” I said.

We exchanged glances, the atmosphere shifted, and I focused on Jakob as if seeing him for the first time. We stared intently into each other's eyes. I leaned in, he leaned in, and we kissed.

We stayed like that for several minutes. I was so excited I thought I might lose it in my pants. But there was something else. I felt a warmth and closeness to Jakob I’d never felt with anyone before.

We broke for a breath, and Jakob said excitedly, “Come by our house after school. We can have sex!”

My heart raced.

“Won’t Frank, Carson, and Oscar mind?” I ask, concerned.

“No, they’ll be happy. They’re tired of me complaining about being horny all the time.”

“I’m not very experienced,” I admitted shyly. “I’ve never had sex.”

“Neither have I,” Jakob said, “but I know what to do.” Frank and Carson sometimes leave their bedroom door open when they’re doing it. It’s not that I’m perving on them; they intentionally leave the door open. It’s part of my education.”

“We don’t have to leave the door open, do we?” I asked.

“Not if you don’t want to. At some point, Frank and Carson will want to check on my progress. They’re really good at sex and can give us advice.”

I blushed deeply, but at the same time, I thought, ‘It might be hot being watched. Not now, but someday.’

By the way, Jakob smells incredible and tastes even better. He’s so sexy.

My life is perfect!