Number Eight: Apocalypse (Umbrella Academy)

7

2002
The next morning when Heather got up, right after her workout, she silently walked around the empty hallways of the house.  When she arrived in the kitchen, she took a quick but thorough look around, and then decided to make herself some breakfast, but as soon as she touched the cabinet handle, she got this feeling in her brain.  At first it felt like she got his by a car, then images started to form in her head, and soon, it was like having a movie playing inside her mind.  She saw Coblin coming down and freaking out, making a huge scene, and it ended with her getting forcibly removed from the house.  In an attempt to avoid that future, Heather just decided to crawl out her window after removing the screen and went out to the breakfast place down the block.  A few minutes after being seated, Basir  followed the waitress and sat across from Heather.  All Basir did was smile, and that's when Heather knew he wasn't alone, she asked, "why don't you invite your friend to come sit with us to?  It's rude to make a woman of her beauty sit alone."  Basir smiled and signalled his friend, who was a tall long legged and super fit black woman with long Jamaican braided hair that would have fallen down to her lower back if it wasn't in a high bun.  Gracefully, she sat down beside Basir and stared right at Heather with a dangerous and high strung look in her eyes.

Heather slouched back in her seat with one knee raised to her chest and twisted the straw in her drink expectantly at the new arrival, who sat up straight with perfect posture and hands folded professionally on the table.  Heather held the young woman's stare, but in the corner of her eye, she could see Basir fidgeting a bit, like he was either really nervous or excited.  Heather looked at young woman with little interest, and then said, "so you are the infamous Martina.  I thought there would be more to you?"  Martina, who was a little startled at Heather's knowledge of her name, straightened her momentarily startled body posture and said, "so, Heather, Basir tells me you are one of us.  What's your deal?"  Heather slightly closed her eyes and stretched her neck as another premonition passed through her mind before she said, "nothing as involved as your gift.  You have to tell me, what is it like to physically change your molecules and walk through walls?"  Martina looked at Basir, and even though nothing was said or any hand signals were exchanged, Basir shook his head, and Martina's attention reverted back to Heather as she admitted, "you are pretty good, so I know you are not telepathic, so why don't you tell us what your real gift is?"  Heather, still twirling her straw, shrugged, "nah, I'm good."  Basir tried to signal Heather by banging the table, but Heather ignored him, keeping direct eye contact with Martina.  Martina started with small talk, "Basir tells me that you are a member of the Umbrella Academy, fancy."  Heather stretched her stiffening back and revealed, "just because I have a tattoo doesn't mean I was a part of their little cult."  Martina looked at her, "you don't seem so special to me."  Heather shrugged, "that's because I'm not, ghosty girl."  Martina slapped her hand on the table, but in her rage, her molecules changed and her hand turned ghostly and went right through the table.  Heather said tauntingly, "don't worry Martina, one day you will learn how to control your gift."  Basir smiled as he poked Martina and pointed at Heather.  Martina looked at him, almost disgustedly, as she fumed, "her, really?  Why her?"  Basir kept pointing at Heather and nodded firmly, eventually, Martina rolled her eyes and said in a blatantly obvious annoyed tone, "for some messed up reason, Basir seems to like you, and for some even more messed up reason, he wants you to join our little group."  Heather met them in the eyes, alternating between them, then politely declining, "I really wish I could..."  Basir clenched his hands in the pleading position, and once again, Martina rolled her eyes annoyed.  Then Heather had a sudden and motivated change of heart as she said, "you know what, I would love to join your little group."  Basir smiled, Martina did the exact opposite.

Martina payed for breakfast, and Heather and Basir went back to the orphanage just as Alexa, Colbin, and the rest of the children were geared up for a search party.  As soon as they walked through the door, Alexa almost shouted, "where have you two been!  We were worried sick!"  Heather instantly threw Basir under the bus, "was just going for my routine morning walk, and Basir followed me.  As soon as I found out, I brought him right back home."  Basir rolled his eyes playfully.  Alexa was still calming down as she stared at the two of them with motherly fury and said, "you cant just disappear like that, even if it is just for a morning walk, do you understand?"  Both Heather and Basir nodded quietly.  After the family got out of their outdoor gear everyone sat silently at the table for breakfast, which was fine with Heather, since talking at any sort of eating area was a foreign concept to her.  Everyone, except Heather, was uncomfortable as they waited quietly and listening to the eggs cook and move across the pan.  When breakfast was served, Colbin was the first to notice Heather and Basir not taking much, so he asked them, "is there something you both don't like?"  Then Thomas piped up with a mouth full of scrambled egg, "they went out for breakfast at that really good place at the next block."  Both Basir and Heather looked at Thomas, wondering how on earth he knew where they were, until Mackenzie piped up, "yeah, Arnold saw them their with that Martina girl from the barnyard, he texted me earlier and I got it just after they got home."  Alexa looked at Heather and asked, "Heather, is this true?"  Heather shrugged and casually said, "yep, I was hungry, but to be fair, I honestly didn't know Basir would follow me."  Colbin asked, "why didn't you eat something here?"  Heather said, gently stabbing her eggs with her fork, "because snacks are not a healthy, nutritional or filling breakfast, and after seeing you in the kitchen yesterday for dinner, I didn't think it was a good idea to use your cookware without permission."  Colbin was about to argue, then nodded in agreement as he knew that he hated people touching his stuff, especially his cookware.