Super (Ish)

Chapter 9: A Response

The moment I hear keys rattling in the door, I yank it open. Ryan blinks at me in surprise before I pull him inside and slam the door shut. Ryan stumbles, coming dangerously close to dropping all the things in his hands. Common sense seems to come back to me.

I reach forward, steadying him by grabbing his arm and pulling him back to me. He stutters for a moment as our foreheads nearly smash together, and he takes a step back.

"I'm so sorry," I huff. "Are you okay? I did not mean to do that."

Ryan swallows, looking up at me anxiously. "You about to beat me up, or am I safe?"

I let out a laugh. "Sorry."

"It's okay," he responds, handing me a cup of Starbucks, the chocolatey smell filling me with warmth. "I also got us croissants... do you like croissants?"

"Who doesn't?" I grin, taking one of the paper bags. Relief briefly washes over his features as I gesture for him to sit down.

"Yeesh, someone's way too energetic for someone with no caffeine in their system."

"Shhhhh," I say, sitting beside him. "We've got a response."

"Really?" he gasps, almost dropping his drink.

I nod eagerly, taking a quick sip of the mocha. "I think it's Topaz talking for my mum. If not, then it's an incredibly intelligent telepath, and we're all doomed."

Ryan frowns.

"I'm kidding," I say with a worried smile. I pull out my phone and show him the text that was sent to me twenty minutes ago.

The frown on his brow doesn't move. "Astahraykee?"

"It's pronounced asteráki," I correct him. "It's Greek. Mum used to sing these old Greek lullabies when I was little. She would tell me that I'm her little asteráki. But she would never use the name around my dad or Teddy. It was a secret only the two of us shared."

"Is that why you called yourself Astral?" he asked, taking a bite of his croissant.

I smile. "Yeah. That is why. And because you called me Star when we first met."

"You did have some sort of glow about you after you knocked the dude unconscious." He chuckled. "You would make a great villain by that look alone."

I shake my head. "It was the lamplight."

"Oh, of course. Not the fact that you felt powerful and strong. No, not at all," he says, sipping his latte.

I shove him sideways. "Can you focus, please?"

He coughs a little. "I'm just trying to enjoy my breakfast," he groans, shuffling away from me. 

I sigh, fighting the smile on my lips. "We need to decide what to do next."

"Mhmm," he hums, swallowing his last bit of croissant. "And you have no doubt this is your mum or Topaz?"

"Well... not no doubt. Like I said, a very intelligent telepath—"

"Okay, but what are the chances?"

"Very, very slim."

He nods, sipping his latte again. "That's good. That's what we like to hear. God is smiling down on us today."

"Is that so?" I raise a brow, sipping my own drink.

"You don't believe in God? Or any sort of higher power?" he asks, shuffling closer to me again.

I shrug. "Seems unfair for someone to have that much power, don't you think?"

"But there are supers with mighty powers."