☫ Chapter 22 ☫
I didn't quite see where the 'we' in this situation was.
Of course, I'm no detective. Please condone that time I called myself Sherlock Holmes. I was clearly overestimating myself. It's just, there's something about Dark Wonder that really has me puzzled. See, I'm fully aware that he's actually a really great superhero. Despite his casual and theatrical demeanor —which is strange on its own because one would think these two traits would clash with each other— he knows exactly what to do in every situation. No matter how crazy the situation may appear. At least, that's how it's been.
The fact is, I'm just a newbie and if we were to weigh everything on a scale, Dark Wonder is overwhelmingly better at this superhero thing. I won't deny the evidence that's so prominent to the extent that I just take a step back and let him do his thing. But even though this is all true, there's one thing that I will never be able to comprehend about Dark Wonder.
"—then, like, I obviously told them that there was no way," he continued with his rant. "These idiots were all over the place, man. I was gonna count, you know? So I can sound smart or something but I lost count. That's how many people there were!"
It's the way he's so unpredictable while being so incredibly predictable.
"Hmm," I hummed in response, glancing at the door every now and then while pressing the earpiece against my ear so it wouldn't fall. That option didn't seem like the worst thing to happen.
I genuinely didn't know what to expect. Here, I was thinking that I'd have to quickly dress in my costume in one of these small bathroom stalls. However, that wasn't the case at all. Instead, I was standing awkwardly, shifting from side to side and walking along the tiles as he spoke, not necessarily paying attention to what he was saying.
"Are you even listening?" He clicked his tongue and I was sure an eye roll was his next action.
"No," I answered truthfully. I looked out the window, pivoting slightly. There's something about talking too Dark Wonder that makes me brutally honest.
Then there was silence.
I didn't like it.
"So what's this problem you were talking about?" I bit down on my lips, smacking them lightly. I was a bit impatient with the sudden and dramatic long pause and just with the entire position I was in.
"You see," he abruptly began. He stopped again, making me tap my foot against the tiles. He cleared his throat and let out a long sigh, almost like he was annoyed at something. Or someone. Okay, it's probably me. I'm not even going to pretend that I'm that dense. "The problem is," he continued. I refrained myself from doing something stupid as I waited. "That you don't listen to me."
I blinked. "What?"
This time his groan was more on the verge of what I assumed to be agonizing and with a breath, he merely answered, "You're the problem."
"Right," I said, understanding the clarification, holding in my laughter. I folded my arms against my chest while shaking my head. "Of course. Now, what can I do for you?"
"Well, since you asked so nicely," he replied in almost a condescending manner if that made any sense. "I was just checking on you like a good friend."
"And that whole other part of the conversation was just for fun?" I questioned him with a frown. "Wait, friend?" I repeated slowly, my heart stuttering for a moment. I attempted to play it cool and picked my head up. "I don't know. I feel like you just want to use the intercom."
"Isn't it legit?!" He exclaimed over enthusiastically. "We're so legit."
I laughed finding his excitement contagious and somehow forgetting his previous statement. "Yeah. Super legit."
"You're learning," he commented. "I knew you would be super good for the team."
I cringed and looked down at the floor, covering my face in the process. I could imagine him winking at me as he said that. But one of those really sloppy winks that no one actually takes seriously.
"I really do have to go, though," I informed him.
"Alright, I give you permission." He popped his lips, the sound echoing in my ear uncomfortably. I didn't bother to tell him that I didn't need his permission. "Bye!"
The corners of my lips quirked up just a bit. "Bye."
I think I'm starting to get used to Dark Wonder and his antics. I thought as I stuffed the earpiece in my pocket. And I think he's starting to grow on me.
☫ * ☫ * ☫ * ☫
The lunch table was filled with more people than the original amount only moments ago. I raised my eyebrows when I noticed Kyle, his brown curls sprouting in every direction. He had a silly smile on his face while conversing with Jenna. They were both in front of Jude. Jenna was running her fingers through her hair as she laughed, her head leaning back and her eyes squeezed shut. Jude, however, wasn't paying them any attention at all. The more they spoke the more he itched towards the edge of the table. It was like he'd rather fall off then sit across from them. I inwardly laughed at that and nervously made my way to the table.
Maybe I wasn't entirely sure on what was happening but this was better than continuing the conversation I was having with Jude before getting a call from Dark Wonder.
I felt a tug on my shirt and then suddenly I was dragged down onto the seat rather aggressively. Jude's breath fanned over my ear as he rushed a whisper. "What the bloody hell is this little fest?"
I turned to him, my eyes a little wider and replying with the little knowledge I knew. "I have no idea."
"Helpful," he muttered, scanning the two of them and then looking back at me with agitation.
"Why are you looking at me like this is my fault?" I frowned, still making sure to speak quietly. I gulped when he glared at me. I looked down, stammering over my next words. "I-is it r-really so b-bad?"
His orange eyebrows rose up. "They aren't the problem." He clicked his tongue. "It's what comes with them."
"What do you—"
"Hello. Hi. Yes, it's me. " Lucas Trevor took a seat on my other side. His hands were occupied with Slurpees and turkey sandwiches. He somehow managed to balance them with a hug of his arms. He began handing me the Slurpees and tilting his head towards Kyle and Jenna, gesturing for me to give it to them for him. I did what he implied mutely, slightly petrified while doing it. "I know what you're thinking. Your lunch is gonna be so much better now that I'm here."
That's not the first thought but a close second. I stared at him, completely confused with not only the seating arrangement but the very detail of him being here, to begin with. I pursed my lips and analyzed the scene. Jenna and Kyle were now talking to Lucas Trevor who was grinning at them widely. Like actually full on smiling at them. I've never been more scared in my life. Since when did Lucas Trevor smile?
"Keep staring Vincent and someone might think you have a crush on me." Lucas Trevor teased with a wink and proceeded to take a sip of his Slurpee.
My face grew red and I immediately turned my head towards my lunch. I could feel the vibrations of Jude's chuckle. I wrinkled my nose and narrowed my eyes at him, expressing my betrayal through the expression I was making.
"Look at you, bruv," he said in a mocking tone with a small smirk. He made a 'tsk' sound. "You think Chad should feel threatened by this?"
"Nah," I answered and attempted to suppress any indication of amusement by blowing my cheeks up and looking away. He was never going to let that joke die. I'm sure he caught the hint of a smile on my lips but I pretended otherwise.
I decided that the best course of action would be going with the flow. If it's any consolation on my behalf, it didn't seem like anyone sitting here hated me. Jenna was a nice person so I knew we were good. Kyle has always been friendly towards me so I wasn't worried about. And Lucas Trevor is sitting next to me so he couldn't possibly want to do anything bad to me. Right? That's how this works, right?
"I'd want flying powers," Jenna said. "Like in the realm of superheroes that are real and not comic book wise, I'd want Blue Gravity's powers."
My ears perked up at the mention of powers and superheroes.
"Right," Kyle agreed with a snicker. I knitted my eyebrows together. Wasn't Kyle obsessed with Dark Wonder? If I'm recalling this correctly, he even stalked the guy. I can hardly believe that he wouldn't want his powers. "I, of course, love Dark Wonder." He put his hand on his chest in defense as he explained himself, sneaking a teasing glance towards Lucas Trevor.
I should probably stop calling him by his whole name. That's weird. I shook my head. I'm being weird. It's just...I don't think I'm at the level of first name basis. You know what I'm saying? It's already a big deal that was sitting at the same table. Or maybe I'm overthinking this situation just a bit too much.
I scooted a little farther from Lucas Tre— I mean Lucas, not wanting to push it and focusing on the intriguing conversation they were having.
"You'd rather Blue Gravity's?" Lucas piped in, seeming offended and looking hurt. Stunned if anything. "All he's really got is flying." He pursed his lip against his straw, glaring at Jenna and Kyle as he bit it threateningly.
"He can literally make things float!" Kyle exclaimed. "Imagine not having to get up to get the remote." Yeah, the gravity manipulation part is pretty helpful when doing the dishes actually. "Telekinesis wins."
It's actually gravity d—
"Doesn't matter," Lucas countered. "Dark Wonder can do so much more. Like, he has super senses. Imagine that." And then he turned to me, eyes ever so serious. "What do you think?"
"I d-dunno," I mumbled at first, looking away from him, wondering why he's even asking me. "Dark Wonder's power seems pretty cool."
"So if you would choose between the two?" Kyle leaned forward with a smile.
"What about the invisible guy?" Jenna added. "He's been around for a while."
I furrowed my eyebrows. Who?
"But no one really knows about him. Like yeah, he can turn invisible and has electricity powers but he's not like a superhero," Kyle said to Jenna who was nodding in agreement.
"I wonder what's his deal though." Jenna played with her hair, thinking about it as she spoke. "I heard that this guy was around when Dark Wonder was kidnapped by Razor Blade."
So we weren't just going crazy? I remember the two of us felt like someone was following us but we didn't actually see anybody. Why am I only finding this out now? I should talk to Dark Wonder later.
"Guys, that's not the point." Lucas dismissed them with a wave of his hands. "Jeremiah still hasn't told us which superhero he'd rather be."
All three pairs of eyes directed their attention at me. I noticed Jude texting under the table, not paying attention to what was happening. I bit my lips and squirmed under their gazes.
"Uh." I scratched the back of my neck, feeling my face heat up. "Dark Wonder?"
"That's right." Lucas slammed his hand on the table. I jumped, startled but he didn't dwell on that and continued while beaming. "He's fan-freaking-tastic!"
"Let's just say," he said with a smirk. "It's fan-freaking-tastic!"
I instantly looked back at Lucas, my eyes wide. Maybe that's a common phrase? It could be. I live under a rock anyway, so I don't know if that's a normal thing to say. Thing is, I've only ever heard it come from two people. Dark Wonder and now Lucas Trevor.
"Hmm," I hummed, tapping my fingers and against my bouncing knee as I thought about it.
☫ * ☫ * ☫ * ☫
How could I have screwed up so badly?
I paced back and forth down the Carson's hall, shaking my hands in a nervous manner and then running them through my blonde tousled hair. You're so stupid, Jeremiah. I let out a frustrated groan. So stupid. Stupid. I could hear the muffled sob coming from Layla's room. My heart ached at the sound.
"Layla?" I opened her door quietly.
"Go...go a-away," she hiccuped.
She was sitting at the edge of her bed holding on to a ziplock bag tightly. Her knuckles were turning white from her strong grip. I slowly walked closer to her, the pit in my stomach growing. As my steps advanced she quickly scurried further away.
"Go away!"
I put my hands up in surrendering position. She opened one eye, attempting to be discrete as she glanced at me. I slowly opened my palm, revealing a Kit Kat bar. Now both of her eyes were open. She huffed and looked away in defiance but out of the corner of her eyes, she was watching me. I walked to her, taking my time, just to be safe.
"I'm sorry," I apologized and sat down next to her.
She still wasn't having it. She turned her cheek away from me. I loudly ripped the wrapper of the Kit Kat bar. She flinched, almost like she was holding herself back. I then dramatically broke the Kit Kat into two, a small smile slipping. Any moment now.
"I mean it's not your fault." She faced me.
I shook my head. "It is," I informed her. "I didn't realize that you believed in the tooth fairy. I should have thought about that before opening my mouth. I'm sorry."
Truth is, I've been stressing out for the last thirty minutes. Tobe still hasn't come home and the police say that I shouldn't fret and if he doesn't come in the next twenty-four hours to file a missing person report. I wasn't about ready to wait that long but apparently, it's normal for teenagers to get home late. What I usually do is pick up Layla from her elementary school while Tobe rides his bike home from middle school. But this time when I got home, Tobe wasn't there. I was so distracted that I might have accidentally sort of let it slip to Layla that the tooth fairy doesn't exist.
Big mistake.
Now I was trying to fix that mistake.
"I'll forgive you," she started, a catch was about to be presented with her next words. "If you give me a piece."
I held up the Kit Kat. "Oh, you want?" She nodded. I played with her hair, a grin on my lips. "Of course you can have, why do you think there's two?"
She giggled and neatly broke the individual Kit Kat piece into multiple ones. "I'm not telling mommy or daddy that I know there's no such thing as the tooth fairy," she told me. I raised my eyebrows at her as I took a bite of my own piece. She placed her ziplock bag, which contained her tooth, under her pillow. "That way they keep giving me money!"
I laughed, glad that she wasn't crying anymore and took the smart route.
"So where do you think Tobe is?" I asked while getting up.
"I don't know." She shrugged. "Oh, can we put traps in his room? Like, prank him."
"Layla, I don't think that's such a great idea." I offered an awkward weak smile.
She opened her mouth but a loud bang interrupted whatever she was going to say. There was a rustling sound coming from the entrance. I put my finger of my lips, signaling a quiet sign to Layla. She vigorously nodded her head and hid behind me. We tiptoed our way to the front of the house and that's when we saw Tobe.
I scanned him, checking for any injuries or cause for concern. He seemed fine. Perfectly fine actually. Fine enough to give me a call and let me know where he was. My eyes twitched.
"Where were you?!" I asked him
"School," he answered, his eyes narrow as he dropped his backpack on the floor. He took a couple steps back as I came closer to him. He seemed confused, a little shocked.
My nostrils flared and through clenched teeth I questioned him. "You didn't think to maybe call?"
"Oh, yeah."
I closed my eyes briefly and opened them to see Tobe gulping. I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose as I thought about it. I think I'm scaring him. "Tobe," I said. "I want you to pay very close attention to what I'm about to say."
His eyes were wide and he let out a hiccuped, "O-okay."
"If you are even a minute late call this house phone right here." I pointed at the phone. "And tell me where you are and when you will be home. Understand?"
He looked down, playing with his fingers. "Yes."
"Great." I placed a hand on his shoulder. "So why were you late anyway?"
Tobe's frown instantly turned into a big smile. I furrowed my eyebrows, slightly unsure but happy that he was beaming and wasn't so jittery like before. He smacked his lips together and licked them. I noticed him hiding something in his hand behind his back.
"What's that?" I looked over his shoulder, getting curious.
He shoved the paper in my hand. I blew my cheeks up and unfolded it, knitting my eyebrows together as I did so.
"Progress report," I read aloud. I snuck a glance at Tobe who stared at me expectantly. His eyes darted from the paper and then back at me, waiting for me to continue. "Tobe Carson has improved with his courses and as of now will not find it necessary to apply for summer classes. His grade average has allowed him to return to his athletic position—"
I looked up at Tobe, my mouth wide and my face flushed. "Tobe!" I exclaimed. "This is great."
His smile grew. "Keep reading."
"Okay, okay," I answered, hearing a chuckle in response. "If he continues with this growth, past accommodations will change and he will be back on regular classes."
My eyes widened. "No way?"
"Yup!" He did a little jump. "I was welcomed back to the baseball team today. That's why I was late..."
I smiled at him. "I'm really proud of you, Tobe."
His face reddened a little and he pursed his lips. I've never seen him like this. He looked up at me. "You think I'll be able to skip a grade?"
"Keep this up and I'm sure of it."
"I will!"
☫ * ☫ * ☫ * ☫
Finn let out an aggravated groan accompanied with a string of cuss words as he sat himself down. Kelly raised an eyebrow at me and tilted her head to Finn. To translate: she was asking what's wrong with him. I shook my head, a faint blush on my cheek. Translation: I was slightly flustered that she was communicating with me and I had no idea what was up with Finn. She folded her arms over her chest. I nodded.
"Hey, Finn," I greeted cautiously. "You okay?"
"Not that we care," Kelly added, chewing her infamous gum. "But you're acting pretty strange."
He forced a chuckle and try to derail the conversation. "It's nothing really."
I scooted closer to him and whispered gently just in case he didn't want Kelly to hear. "You sure?"
He jolted, his face red and squeaked, "Y-yeah."
"Awesome." Kelly clapped her hands together. "Now that we got that out of the way, let's pass our classes."
I blew up my cheeks as we did just that. Every now and then I checked on Finn, an occasional glance to see how he was. He always seemed to catch them. His eyes would then grow wide and he quickly looked away. I frowned, tapping my pencil on the table. Something's definitely off. I wasn't going to pry but I couldn't help but feel concern.
Zipping open my backpack, I took out a notebook. Seeing as I was the clumsy person I was, a few things fell out during the process. A wrapped up pink jar with heart patterns rolled against the floor. Kelly picked it up for me and set it down on the table with a glare.
"You didn't eat them yet?" She looked over at me.
I glanced at it and then back at her. "Oh, I forgot about those," I muttered to myself.
Valentine's day felt like forever ago. In reality, it's only been a few days. The cookies are probably still edible.
"You forgot?" She repeated with a frown, suddenly fiddling with her fingers and biting her lips.
"No n-no no," I amended my previous words, my face flushing. I scratched the back of my neck and looked over at her with a soft smile, coming up a reason that wasn't necessarily true towards what I was saying but still a fact. "They j-just look r-really nice and—"
"Whatever."
I quickly grabbed them and opened the jar. "There —there really a-amazing and er uh em." I cleared my throat. "And if I-I were to eat t-them then it'll be gone." Yeah, that seems like a legitimate reasoning. There's a logic behind it somewhere.
"That's sort of the point," she said while rolling her eyes. "You're supposed to eat them."
"I-I will!" I took out a cookie and bit into it.
Apparently, the cookie was burned. I continued chewing it down.
"Such a weirdo," she mumbled, probably thinking I couldn't hear her. But I did. And I saw the little smile and the way her face was pink and my heart just stopped.
"Is this good?" Finn pushed his paper to me.
I picked it up and in that very second, I felt a chill run down my spine. Like I could feel there was something wrong. But what? I looked around, my eyes darting from one scene to another. I stopped and focused on what was happening outside.
From the window, I could see a hazy figure. It was fast, almost inhuman. It was engulfed in fire and rather than it screaming in terror or trying to put out the fire, it walked forward it's fist clenched. With each step, a burned footprint was left. The silhouette only offered so much information. I shook my head and took my glasses off. I focused my eyes, using bird's eye view and that's when I realized something.
It was heading straight for this tutoring center.
________________________________________
A/N
Heyyyy humans!
Where do I even start?
First, I'm so so so *insert an infinite amount of so* sorry! I don't even know why I didn't update. Like it's been almost two months and that's ridiculous on so many levels.
What do you guys think about this chapter? Hehehe, so much foreshadow and hints that literally none of you will ever get. Like you guys will get like two of them but almost every paragraph is a hint and I think that's beautiful. *wipes tears*
What do you think is up with Finn? Jenna? Kyle? Kelly? Jude? Lucas? Tobe? JEREMIAH?! Ahhhh so many characters. I love it!!! But honestly, tell me your theories. I can totally just use them :P
Next chapter is gonna be littt (lol that's a hint) ;)
By the way, some scenes may seem not so important but let me remind you something. Every little thing is important. Whether it's for character development, understanding Jeremiah and his life, future referenced or just about anything. There's no such thing as a scene just for whatever. :)
So yeah, I really hoped you liked this chapter.
Now, this is what you guys really wanted. STORY TIME: First things first, plot twist on my life. Most of you guys don't know this but this year was my last year of high school. Bless be He, the Lord for He is good. So that was exciting enough. But then apparently I was valedictorian?? I was shocked. Like yeah, I get some nice grades but really? Kinda ironic when I got suspended, detention, banned from the lab and teachers hate me. I'm like the prime example of a model valedictorian student. I mean it's nice but that meant that I would have to say a speech and if you guys don't know this I'm stage fright affff. Like heart hammering against my chest, throw up, curl up and die. Somehow I managed, you know until the point I cried when I mentioned a thanks to my grandma in that speech. Yeah, I sort of just bawled. It was great. I was the highlight of that boring graduation, ur welcome.
I literally cried so much that night. "My mom was like you're really happy about leaving?" And I being dramatic, stared at her sternly while tears were streaming down my face. "I will finally be out of this hell hole." She laughed so hard and ran to my dad to tell him about that. As you can see, my family thinks I'm funny. *flips hair*
And lol this teacher came up to me like "I never knew you were emotional!" And i'm like bish, I literally cry over melodies and commercials in class, you know nothing bec u ignore me. Get away from me. All I did was smile and nod tho. Gotta be respectful still.
And yeah. So my huge family was at the graduation and my brothers friend who is now my friend was there too. He told me he came to check out the girls (I go to an all girls school) and embarrass me. lol so my grandma had the audacity to say that when I cried I looked at him. I wanted to yell at her and say she made me cry cuz shes awesome and that i was looking at her. Eff that tho. She's convinced that I like the guy and sure he's nice and cute af but let's back it up bec no wayyyy
Which leads me to so many stories between him and me which I will tell you know next time because this authors note is ridiculously long but it's been two months and a lot has happened and I wanna tell you guys! [My sister yelling at me rn that then I should update weekly again so I wont have long a/n and actually be able to tell you everything] I will try. :)
Things are going to take a turn in this book.
This chapter is dedicated to my best friend! Happy birthdayyyy *confetti*
Please vote, comment, share, smile, live life!
P.S: if you have any tips, ideas, suggestions please pm me, that would be awesome. Any idea is good because I could just base a chapter off of it and update quicker ;-). So if there's a certain thing that you want to happen just comment it!
Love ya'll <3
Yours truly,
A N O N Y M O U S