Everything's Super (On Temporary Hold)

Chapter 4 - "You want her to go undercover?"

Though both Dominic and Clint stared at Taylor, their looks were opposite ends of the spectrum. Dominic stared with a deep wariness as if Taylor were about to announce that there was a bomb in the school they needed to deal with. Clint stared with the intense alertness of someone ready to deal with any and all situations. Based on their combined history, neither expression was surprising in the slightest.

"Tell me now," Dominic said. "Is this the type of problem that can be said while standing here, sitting down right here, or finding a table to sit at?"

A strange question but one Taylor saw gave a lot of information for what she was about to say without coming right out and saying it.

"Table should be best," she said.

Again, both boys reacted in opposing ways. Clint relaxed with a hint of disappointment while Dominic let out a relieved breath, letting his head fall back.

"Let's get a table then," he said.

The Time Stop dropped away and the trio exited the aisle. Knowing the curiosity and observational skills of the librarian, Taylor chose a table towards the far side of the library, not in the direct path of the librarian's gaze. The book blocking his face didn't fool her, he would be aware of them.

Taylor claimed a chair on one side of the table.

"I'm not sitting next to Gym Boy," Dominic said, moving to circle the table to Taylor's side.

Clint reached out and took hold the back of Dominic's shirt, jerking him back.

"You are because I'm not risking you have a private conversation with Taylor," Clint said. "I'm part of this team."

"Why you are still confuses me," Dominic said.

"You want to have this conversation again?" Clint asked eyeing Dominic.

In their face off it would look like Dominic's size would have the upper hand but Taylor knew Clint's martial arts skill would overpower Dominic. To keep either of them from injury and a sentence of detention for fighting, she spoke. Even though she wondered if letting them fight it out would be better.

"We have five minutes left of break," Taylor said.

She didn't say it loudly or even forcefully, but both boys turned away from their face-off and took their seats.

"I feel like I should point out that time is irrelevant to me," Dominic said.

"Then make it," Clint said.

Dominic stretched his leg out and Taylor felt his shoe hit hers. At the connection, the world once again stilled. After months of experiencing it, the strange sensation of an absence of noise was nothing noteworthy to Taylor.

In an odd way, it had become something no longer strange but comforting. In this place of completely stillness, she always felt safe.

"Okay," Clint said. "Tell us."

Dominic unzipped his backpack and took out a bag of trail mix. Clint shot him a look and Dominic returned fire.

"We are in the Time Stop," he said. "That means whatever world ending disaster we could face would still be waiting for us when it dropped. Me eating or not eating will not change the fate of the world. Quit judging."

"I don't think you should joke about world ending disasters," Clint said.

Dominic pointed to himself. "Stopping time here, gives me the right to joke as much as I want since it would be my abilities that would help end the disaster."