Skid

Skid - Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

Like most things- porn, toy stores, gift shops, and the internet, which I guess includes porn- the library has a superhero section. And like droves of kids before me, I had spent a good third of my childhood scouring the shelves, huddling down in the beanbags and re-reading the comics until they had to restock, or redo the plastic they press on to minimise the damage that stray fingers cause.

I haven't gone into that section for a while, though, not for a few years at least, so it's a welcome change to step back into the closed-off section next to the coffeeshop and flip through the shelves. Every time I turn, I bump into things- knocking books over, stumbling into walls. It's gotten smaller since I've last been here.

After a while of debating, I stick a wedge of Titanium Man comics into my rucksack, and then a few Switch comics, just to spite my ten year old self.

The guy at the counter scans them, judging me through each beep of the scanner. I get the nagging urge to tell him to go screw himself, that it doesn't matter that I haven't washed my hair because said hair has recently been under a superhero mask, because I wear a superhero costume, because I am a SUPERHERO. I do SUPERHERO THINGS, like save your ass from a giant robot because that is what SUPERHEROES do.

But I hold my tongue, don't smile at him as I grab my comics and stuff them as carefully as I can into my rucksack when I'm also trying to get out of range of judging eyes as fast as possible.

They bump comfortingly against my hip the whole way home.

Said comfort doesn't last long. When I open the door to the dorm, my team sits around the lounge. Rose continues to clack away at her laptop from the kitchen, but it's as good as a glare. Without looking up, she says, "Anything good?"

The rucksack suddenly feels heavier as I lift it to dump it down on the table. "A few, yeah." I go to sit down, and my ass is less than an inch from the couch when Rose says, very firmly, "You're an idiot."

It doesn't take a genius to see Riley's pseudo bored look aimed at the wall, Jessie's tight expression, and put two and two together. I flop down onto the couch, but don't go for the remote. "In my defence,” I say, “We were drunk."

"That's even better. Drunk making out directly in front of the paparazzi." Rose sighs, fingers flying. "Addie, I know you're a teenager, I get it, we've all been there, but for god's sake keep it in your pants."

Riley is giving the wall a once-over, and then a twice-over, and then again for good measure like the many and varied secrets of the universe is somewhere inside it and she is damn well going to figure it out if she stares hard enough. I throw my arm in her direction. "She started it!"

"And she finished it by dragging you back inside! What would you have done if it was up to you, grope each other until the reporters got uncomfortable and left?"

Probably, I acknowledge silently, but I'm not letting her have the last word. "It got us noticed! Isn't that what you told us to do?"

"Yes, by rescuing kittens and taking down bad guys, not drunken hookups with your teammates! There are already articles being published about your illegitimate lovechild in Switzerland!"

Three days, it's been. Three days, and there have been speculations on our supposed wedding vows, apparent sightings of our honeymoon in Egypt, bastard children and promises to run away together.

Christ.

My mouth moves silently for a second before spluttering, "I- she's fifteen."

If I didn't know any better, I'd say Rose is hitting the keys harder than she usually does. "They don't know that, and if they did, it'd just make it all the more scandalous. The both of you need to lie low until this blows over."