My Life as a Teenage Superhero

Chapter 33

Hey guys :)  I know, it took me forever to upload D:  I'm so mad at myself, and I'm so sorry!  But I've been so busy, trying to decorate for Halloween and I had parties and I kept telling myself I would write but I never did!  It was terrible, especially with all the things I left hanging! 

I finally have some authors for you guys!  Freakygeek, queezle97, jkudria45, writergirl1322, Lieneke, emygrl99, resa1887, dragonblast09, and "Cheater" by miniMina.  If you recommended a book and the authors not there, can you send it in a message, and I'll post it next time :)   By the way, Tess isn't in this chapter, but she's still alive, so don't go celebrating!

Here's the chappie!

RECAP***************************************************************

We trooped back to where the rest of the students and teachers were waiting nervously.  They all cheered loudly when they saw us walking up, bruised and scratched up, but alive.

Even though the one place I'd ever called home was in ruins, at least my friends were all still together.****************************************************************

The air was filled with something not very common at our school- silence.  The teachers talked in hushed, worried voices, trying to decide what to do, but aside from that nobody said a word.  Everyone was probably thinking about the people that had been in the building when it blew up, fighting for us.

I couldn't tear my eyes away from the ruins, as I pictured the last time I saw the Boss, tied to the chair and begging me to leave.

I heard a small shuffling from behind me, and I whipped my head around.  Tanner was standing behind me, his hands in his pockets, staring at the building with an unreadable expression on his face.

Instantly I was filled with guilt.  The whole time I'd been worried about my other friends, and I hadn't thought about what was happening to Tanner at all.  I know we wern't technically friends, but still, for some reason the thought of him dying seemed unthinkable.

He caught me staring, and he locked eyes with me.  His dark eyes were filled with a mixture of shock, disbelief, and....guilt.

He tore his eyes away from mine and looked at the ground, using his foot to trace patterns in the dirt.  I could tell something was wrong, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

"Tanner... are you okay?"  I asked tentatively.  He grunted a response, but it was obvious he didn't want to talk about it.  Changing the subject, I asked quietly, "Where were you when it happened?"

"I was going to the Boss's office to discuss something with him, but when I got there the room was empty.   I knew something was wrong, because the Boss never just... leaves.  I went looking for him when the alarms went off."  he explained, running his hand through his hair as he talked.

I nodded, feeling a pang of sadness thinking about the Boss.  I prayed and prayed that he made it out alive, but even I knew that the chances of that were slim to nothing. 

"Why did you do it?"  Tanner blurted suddenly, catching me off guard.  "What?"  I asked, puzzled.

"Why did you go back for your friends?  You put your life in danger, to save some people you didn't even know needed help."  he said, curiosity filling his voice.

I didn't have an answer to that.  I looked at him, surprised.  Did he really think I could just leave my friends to die?  What are you supposed to say when someone asks you that?

"Wouldn't you do the same?"  I asked.  "If I left them there, I could never forgive myself."

He nodded like he understood what I was trying to say.  He was staring into my eyes like he was trying to tell me something, but I had no clue what it was.

"I was worried you wern't going to come back."  he admitted, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment.  His cheeks had a slight red tinge to them.  He looked so vulnerable, I just couldn't resist.

"Awwww, was Tanner worried about me?  Is big, tough Tanner finally admitting he cares if I die?"  I teased, my eyes sparkling in amusement.

Tanner scowled and mumbled something that sounded like "Shut up."   There was no denying the fact that he was blushing now.

I couldn't help it, I burst out laughing.  Everyone around me turned and gave me funny looks, but I just couldn't stop.  I put my hands over my mouth to smother the sound, but my whole body was still shaking in silent laughter.

Tanner watched, chuckling, but his eyes suddenly turned serious.

"Nikki."  He said, pulling my hand away from my mouth to get me to stop laughing.  "I always cared if you died or not."  His tone was dead serious, and I knew he was telling the truth.  Instantly, I had a flashback of him kissing me, and it was my turn to blush.

Thankfully, I was saved from the awkwardness that would have defiantly followed by a loud voice coming from a microphone at the front of the crowd. 

 "Students, we are about to be taken to a secure location.  You will go with the people in your dormitory to a chosen location we have picked specifically, and when we're sure it's safe, you'll be taken from there to our safe house."

Murmurs filled the crowd, as my classmates digested this information.  Someone called out, "How long will we stay there."

The speaker, who I knew as Ms. Middlebrooks, a middle aged woman who was the vice principal, made her mouth into a thin line.  "As long as necessary, young man.  We have supplies, food, and everything we need there, and that will be our new school for the time being."

I wondered what the new place would be like.  Would it be as big?  I doubted it would have room for just two people for dorm room.  I hoped I could still stay with Rose, I didn't really want to share a room with a stranger...

I would have probably kept pondering over this, but I didn't have the chance.  Ms. Middlebrooks  started calling out orders to everyone and pointing the students to their buses.

I found where my bus was, and I got on, choosing a spot near the back.  Rose immediately plopped down next to me, her usually bright eyes dull and tired.  Looking around, I realized that just about everyone else wore the same expression as Rose- tired, lifeless, and grief-stricken. 

That's when I realized that sharing a room with a new person should not be my biggest concern about the new school.  It wouldn't be the same, not now that most of the kids had lost the Boss, the man who had been a fatherly figure to most of them, and the place they'd called home for years, right in front of their eyes.

They had just seen a glimpse of what the world was like outside of their safe, protected school.  It would take a while for many of them to be the same again.