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"What-the-fuck!" I growled, panic pounding my beating heart. Derek drove his car slowly through our neighborhood, taking his time as we approached our block. Still, instead of going straight home, he turned the corner and rushed up the hills into the nearby mountains, looking over at me in the mirror to ensure I was okay. I sat in the back seat, my tensed shoulders dropping momentarily.
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"Breathe, James." He soothed me. I took a sharp breath in and let it go.
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"Dad was right there. RIGHT THERE! And there's another fucking super. What-the-fuck!"
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"James," He softened his voice with a raised eyebrow. "Calm down. I don't think dad noticed, and even if he did, it's time he knows."
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"I don't know if I want dad knowing about my powers, Derek. What if—" Derek stopped me almost mid-sentence. Then he pulled over to the side of the road as a car raced past us at the top of the hill.
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"Dad most likely knows about your powers. You're not the quiet superhero type, and he buys your hoodies. He doesn't want to accept it." I sat back against the window, watching the starry night sky at the top of the hill. Derek watched with me momentarily and rolled down the window, inviting the light, chilled breeze that brushed our faces.
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"You were exceptional today." He continued. "Don't let your modest mentality set you back. Be proud of the hero you've become." Derek said. I wanted to tell him so badly that I did it because it was the right thing to do and not because I wanted fame or anything out of it. I instead rather hide in the shadows than be the hero everyone sees me becoming. However, Derek already knew that.
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"What do you think dad will say when we get home?"
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"I don't know, but I would take off your hoodie if I were you. You can throw it between your feet and grab it when dad returns to work," Derek answered. I groaned, unbuckling my seatbelt. Then, tugging my hoodie off the sleeves, I pulled it over my head and threw it down on my sneakers. "But, it's not like dad doesn't know what your hoodie looks like," He finished as he started the car again. Then he pulled back onto the road in front of him.
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Sam and my father sat on the couch together when I walked in. They sucked on a beer. Their eyes met mine. "How was the mall?" My father greeted Derek and me.
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Derek and I froze in the doorway for a moment. I tucked my hoodie in my arms, and we all gawked at each other like deer in headlights.
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"It was something," Derek laughed nervously, drying the silence and saving my damn ass again.
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"Yeah," I agreed with him.
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"Where were you when the robbery was going down?" my father's eyes met mine again. There was more silence as he watched me walk across the hallway into the living room with Derek, who leaned against the open doorway.
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Instead of pushing me further, my father relaxed his raised eyebrow and said, "There's pizza in the kitchen if you boys want some." I was famished, and I'm sure Derek was too. I usually was starving and exhausted after doing something super, such as saving the city or some shit like that, and I was ready to eat the paint chips off the ceiling if I had to.
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Derek and I exchanged glances, and he walked off into the hallway yelling, "I'll bring you some, James," so I stayed in the living room, exchanging glances with Sam this time. Iconic and ironically enough,Ithrew my hoodie over my back and tied it around my neck like a cape.
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"Did you see anything that happened?" Sam asked. I watched him with a squint. "You're kidding, right?" Instead, I told a slight lie rather than an entire lie about my powers, like I usually did in front of my father.
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"Uh, maybe? There was too big of a crowd to tell what was happening, but I caught some of it."
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"What dumbasses. Who stands there watching an armed robbery in progress with a video camera and doesn't do a thing to help the situation?" Derek appeared behind me, passing a paper plate filled with four thick warm pepperoni pizza slices. Sam put it together in five, ten minutes tops. Not to throw hate on Sam's cooking because the man could cook. I nearly scarfed down two slices in two minutes without realizing it as I took that first bite.
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"I don't even get a thank you," Sam jokingly begged for appreciation as I looked up from my food. Then he tipped his beer my way.
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"Thanks, Sam," Derek and I paused between bites and tipped our pizza slice towards Sam. My dad drank his beer while laughing at us. Sam gulped the rest of his beer down.
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"Are you going to bed?" my dad asked me.
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"Yep," I said.
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"I have an early morning shift," Derek added. Then he patted my back, saluted our dad and Sam, and walked off.
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I sucked in a sharp breath. "I'm tired, too," I said. I took another bite of my pizza and tipped it at Sam and my dad again.
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"Good night, kiddo," my dad said.
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"Good night," I replied and walked towards the staircase to my bedroom.
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Sam found me sitting on the couch watching old reruns of a superhero show. He reluctantly sat beside me and sighed as he slipped the clicker from the middle couch cushion and turned off the TV.
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"It's two in the morning. Why are you still up?" Sam asked me. I didn't have a reason to be awake beside the overwhelming piles of homework on my desk that I was avoiding. Also, my glowing amethyst eyes lit up my entire bedroom and some. It only happened when I had a power spurt or was emotionally distressed.
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"I'm not tired," I shrugged him off. Sam knew me better than that. There was silence for a moment. Then Sam sighed and said, "What's on your mind, kid?"
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I shrugged. "Not much. Some new kids at my school seem to be total dicks. One even went as far as allying with Mark."
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Sam watched me with an uneasy stare. "New kids? Is there any connection to these new supers showing up?"
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I pursed my lips in reflection. "I'm not sure, but it seems somewhat suspicious," I replied. "I think it's them." Was it not obvious by now? I can't believe I led myself to contradict everything.
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"You should get to bed, James. We'll talk more about this at a later time." He pulled my arm. "I'm still working on the cure, and you have school in the morning. Go to bed."
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I rolled my eyes and stood up from the couch. "Good night, Sam," I said.
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"Good night, bud," He replied, nodding his head. You can try meditation in your room for a while before sleeping. It may help you feel better."
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I bounced back at him and said, "Thanks. I will try that." We locked eyes—my mind wandering to the two new boys. Could they have been the supers? Did I even need to think about that? And if they were, what did they want from Sam? What kind of trouble was Sam this time, and when would it bite us all in the ass?
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