I was kicking ass in an alleyway the next day—the same alleyway those two supers kicked my ass the other day, which appeared to be a well-known getaway spot for criminals.
The mugger looked me up and down, addressing my assumed age as he grinned. His eyes twitched, and he dipped into his back pocket for a loaded gun. I grinned. I was devoid of dread. Oh, no. What should I do? I chuckled at my sarcasm. The man pointed a gun at my face while shaking hands. That was a huge mistake.
"I don't want any trouble, kid. Get on your knees, and let me walk away." I took a step forward.
"Shoot me." I enticed the man. I wasn't suicidal or anything. Bullets don't do a damn thing—maybe just a tiny scratch.
"You're that super, aren't you?" Duh. Is he that stupid? The man took one step backward. I stepped closer. He shook the gun in my face again, and I looked down at my invisible watch.
"I don't have all day, so if you're going to shoot me, just do it already."
The barrel clicked, and a bullet ripped through my favorite dark sweatshirt, which Derek had given me for my birthday. Then it bounced off my chest and disappeared behind an adjacent brick wall.
Shit.
As we slammed into a fence at the end of the alleyway, I pushed forward, my chest colliding with him with raw force, and I seized his wrist, gripping tight while trying to avoid a snap. The man finally screamed when the gun dropped from his grip. Instead, he used his other hand to break my superhuman grip.
"Dammit, kid. Let go, you freak. " He pried my fingers. I was sure I'd left a visible bruise. I smirked beneath the hood as I grabbed his shoulders and lifted my feet off the ground, floating towards the sky like helium was pulling us above the neighboring buildings.
"Would you please explain to me? You're going to surrender; you got that? Otherwise, I will do more harm than good.."
He scoffed. "Yeah, what else can you do, kid?"
"I can drop you. Do you realize how high we are?" His gaze fell to the ground, and I followed it.
He gulped, and his hands lifted in the air to surrender, but he recoiled, throwing his hands around my biceps as a chuckle escaped. What a baby.
"Okay, okay, you got me. Can you please put me down?" The man wailed, squirming under my grip, and as I flew higher, he dug his fingers into my back.
"The worst people to fly with are bad guys," I murmured, tightening my grip on him. As he went higher, he panicked.
"Put me down," the man stressed. Our eyes locked as the man shifted positions. Doesn't this guy know I have school?
I flew higher toward the sky, watching as the weightless man lost consciousness in my arms. Then, on my way out of the alley, I looked at the ground. I kept my eyes on my brother, gripping the unconscious man tighter.
I took a deep breath and locked eyes with my brother before the man slipped from my fingers and dropped into my brother's cop car, leaving a noticeable dent in the hood. I expected my brother's dissatisfaction as I flew back behind the safety of the alley and pulled my hood from my head, landing on solid ground.
As I walked out of the alley, a wind blew by me. I drew my gaze to a man in a hood who stood at the end of the tunnel, his eyes gleaming violet, tracking my every move. He stood there watching me walk past him, but he didn't pursue me, so I dashed out into the open, past the cop cars.
My brother's police cruiser had a huge crater right in the center of the hood, and the glares he gave me told me he was furious. For a little while, I averted his gaze. Instead, my brother stood agape as he tightened the man's wrist cuffs. Derek could never get over the fact that I have superhuman abilities. He was usually stunned, and I always surprised him with something new, but he was also aware of my limitations, which enabled him when I helped him.
His expression changed as he lowered his eyes to me, gestured with only his eyes at the wreckage of his car, and dragged the man from his vehicle, heaving him into the car while I flew off to school.
∆∆∆
The following hour it slammed into me like a ton of bricks. The school monitors illuminating the halls aired a fuzzy snapshot of my face from the other day, concentrated on the Phoenix news media. It took half of the screen up. It was a decent photo of me but it didn't disturb me because my face was blurry.
The lead story's title read PHOENIX TEEN HERO? WHO'S BEHIND THE HOOD? The news of the new supers and my alter-ego spread. My secret identity would have made me the most popular student in the school. It wasn't the first time a super stayed in the city to cause mayhem. It wasn't the first time I felt compelled to deal with the situation.
Mark pushed through the double doors, trailed by his pals. He raged about how I was the real enemy and blamed everything on me. Mark claimed I was why these supers appeared out of nowhere and terrorized the city. He was right.
I searched my locker for schoolbooks and was out of the chaos. Mark pushed my face into the locker door, pinning me in place. Two of his friends took over, holding me inside my locker while Grant swept my feet from under me.
"Good morning, freak," Mark said, standing above me with a broad grin. Mark ruffled his fingers through my messy hair and smashed my head into the back of the lockers. As I drew hesitant breaths, I glanced up at him, pulling my fingers into my fists.
"What do you want?" I grumbled. Mark's lips grew wide into a grin. I hoped I wouldn't do anything stupid.
"We're just having some fun." he spat. "My gym suspended me, so you're the next best thing."
Fucking great, I thought to myself. Just, "Great," I mumbled with a groan. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes for my sake. If I did something right now, my father would kill or attempt to kill me.
"Why don't you tell people the truth? Why you're so freakishly strong and shit." He barked. I bit my lower lip and stifled a laugh. Has he lost his mind? I don't think anyone would catch me dead telling my father about my powers, let alone my school.
Mark slammed his foot into my chest once again. Mark's team backed up a foot after I swung at them. "Do it, Knight." His knee pinned my chest against the lockers. "Or do you need me to tell them?"
The bell almost spared me. My hands pressed into the ground, leaving grooves on the concrete floor, while Mark pounded my head into the lockers one last time. He chuckled and walked away, leaving me to get up.
∆∆∆
When I stepped in, Mrs. Rooke sat at her desk, sitting at her desk, reading a book. Mrs. Rooke didn't seem to notice that I was late as usual. As I tossed my bag on my desk and sat down, I watched her adjust her spectacles back on the bridge of her nose and flip a page. Mark sat three rows behind me, but Lucas Alexander sat behind me.
"James," Lucas whispered. While doodling in my notebook, I tried to block him out. He repeated my name, "James," He buried his pencil into my neck this time. When I glanced around, I saw Mark chuckling. I threw my hoodie over my shoulders and ignored Lucas again. Mrs. Rooke read her daily schedule, and I sat at my desk. After an eraser hit my back, I sat up.
Damn it.
Mark scoffed at me. He watched my every move. I kept my eyes on Mrs. Rooke, engrossed in her book. She focused too much on her work to pay attention to me.
I leaned over to pick up the eraser from the floor, and Lucas extended her foot to pull my seat from underneath me. I stumbled forward and landed on my hands and toes. However, I didn't move from my plank position because I wanted to play it safe.
Mrs. Rooke leaped from her chair and walked over to check on me. It wasn't as amusing as everyone had assumed.
"Are you all right, Mr. Knight?" Mrs. Rooke grabbed my sleeve, attempting to lift me off the floor. I was not okay. Lucas pissed me off; I wanted to tell Mrs. Rooke. He just tripped me off my seat.
"I'm fine," I said, pushing myself up from the ground and dusting myself off. Mrs. Rooke said no.
"I'm sending you to the nurse, Mr. Knight, to ensure. "As my gaze flew toward Mark, I crushed the eraser to dust.
"I-I don't think that's necessary," I stuttered.
"Just go, wimp," Mark yelled in mid-laughter. It infuriated me how Mark got a kick out of this. I grabbed my backpack and walked out of the classroom.
∆∆∆
"I don't see a scratch on you," nurse Marina grinned. Do you see what I mean? Not a damn scratch.
"Thanks, I guess." I scowled. Mia walked in from the opposite room, juggling a pile of papers as she smiled at me.
"Hey, James," she exclaimed.
"Hey, Mia," I gushed, dragging my fingernails through the back of my dark blonde roots. "Do you need help?" There were about fifty files in the stack. Mia slid them onto the counter beside her, balancing them in her frail arms.
"I got it," she stated. Mia was frail, so watching her juggle that much weight shocked me. She used her index finger to curl her hair. I blushed as I followed her gaze to my enormous chest, grabbing my t-shirt from the table next to me and slipping it over my head.
"Uh," I couldn't think of anything to say.
"Do boys like you all feel uncomfortable about their bodies?"
"Hmm," I tilted my head again, attempting to figure out her question as if it were a math problem. "No?" I copied her tone and responded with something resembling an inquiry. So that you know, one thing you should keep in mind. Girls don't like it when you're shy. Her brows wrinkled in bewilderment before softening into a playful grin as she struck her hand against my powerful biceps.
"Here's a tip. Don't be." She groaned as she rushed by me, rubbing my shoulder. I made a mental note of it.
I motioned to the door, "I guess I'll have to go now.".
You don't need to tell me.." Her lips curved into a half grimace. "Just get out of here."
"All right," I mumbled. I walked out the door, clueless. If Mia was taunting me for fun or if she liked me. I wanted whatever it was, and I was pounding even more now.
∆∆∆
When I came home, my heart was pounding because I was in love, and I think she finally liked me back. I entered the kitchen, snatched a half-eaten sub sandwich from Derek's fingers, and bit into it.
Derek muttered, "I was eating that." He stood in the opposite corner of the room, across from Sam.
Sam giggled and said, "It's James's sandwich now."
I took another enormous bite of fresh Ham, pickles, lettuce, tomato, and cheese before reaching for a beverage in the refrigerator. With my thumb, I plucked a plastic bottle and flicked the cap off the top. But before I could even sip, Derek yanked it from my grasp.
"This is mine now. Let go," Derek screeched. "Besides, you know how caffeine affects your powers." I let go of the drink with a nod.
"Is there anything new?" As I took my third bite, I wondered aloud.
"Radio silence for now," Derek said as he sipped his drink. Sam stood in the corner, watching us.
"What's up, Sam? You seem quiet." Derek and I looked his way.
"You tell me," Sam replied, sipping his beverage before meeting my gaze. "Are you excited about something?"
"I talked to Mia again."
"That's what this is?" I baffled Derek.
"Yep." I gave a weak grin.
"Superboy has a crush? I didn't think that was possible." Derek took another sip of his beverage.
"Don't call me that. You know I hate it when you call me Superboy," I roared.
"All right, Alpha."
"Shut up," I growled at Derek.
"You'll get used to it someday." Derek shrugged and patted my shoulder as he walked by me to the other side of the kitchen, where he left a couple of ham and cheese slices on the counter.
"Sure," I said, rolling my eyes.
"Any power gain?" Sam pondered. I smiled as I took another bite of the sandwich before tossing it. Derek chewed on a ham slice and took two deep gulps of his soda.
"Maybe?" I tried to pull myself onto a stool by resting my palm against the counters. Sam and Derek winced as part of the marble counter broke off in one piece.
Derek yelled, "Dad is going to kill you! Have you already had one of these today?" He held up his drink."
I didn't give a damn. "Yeah, why?" I queried.
Derek sighed, pointing to the marble chunks and debris on the floor. "James, you turn into the goddamn incredible hulk when you drink caffeine."
"Yeah, no shit. I know, genius." I retaliated. Derek and Sam exchanged frowns.
Sam took another sip of his drink. "Okay, Mr. High and Mighty. How much do you like this girl?" After I threw a glare at him, Sam pushed back. "You need to calm down before you hurt someone, bud. But about that thief. How easy was it to throw him?" I sighed and rolled my eyes.
"Sam!" I reprimanded as I pushed myself away from the counter. Sam gave me a sidelong glance.
"You need to calm down before you hurt someone, bud," He stated.
Another section of the concrete slab broke off by accident. "I can't control it." I panicked.
Derek sighed. "Take a deep breath, James, and tell yourself to calm down. Do you need a walk?" A walk sounded like a good idea. Derek and I went on hikes on rare occasions when I couldn't calm down. It was one of those rare occasions.
"If you don't mind, I'd like to go for a walk right now?"
"I'm free right now if you want to go," Derek said. "But try not to destroy anything else."
I laughed. "Sure, I'll give it a shot." Derek sipped his drink and took a bite of Ham. I shoved the rest of the sandwich in my mouth.
"Let's go," I screeched. Then we were off.
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