by R. J. Ross
“It scrubbed off! Mostly,” she says before practically disappearing and reappearing next to Jimena. “Do you like My Little Pony?” she asks. “I know it sounds like a little kid’s show, but it’s amazing!”
“Um... I haven’t seen it?” Jimena offers, staring at the stuffed toy.
“You should.”
“She actually sits still long enough to watch it?” Trent asks me.
“It’s the only peaceful time we have--more than half the dorm watches the show,” I admit. “But it gets a bit scary if someone tries to walk between them and the television.” Trent starts laughing.
“I’m sure I’ll find out sooner or later,” he says.
“Hey, hey Trent,” I hear over my earring. Trent touches his ear. “Liz says she wants to come with us--so does Aubrey,” Emily says. “Aubrey wants a Fluttershy!”
“Yeah? Who does Liz want?” Trent asks.
“Oh, she wants Princess Luna, but I don’t think they have her--” she pauses and I hear someone speak in the distance. “Oh, she says that if she shows up in full uniform that’ll be fixed really quickly. No it won’t. No, seriously, it’d probably still take months even with you terrorizing them, Liz. Okay, a month. Maybe. That’s definitely going to get Double M yelling at you, though.”
“Um, not to interrupt the whole... pony thing,” Jimena says, “but what exactly are we doing?”
“We’re going to challenge the group to a fight, right?” Carla asks.
“Not exactly, we’re going to set up a competition,” I say. “Jimmi, call Speed, have him and the gang meet us in front of Walmart, they’ve got a big enough parking lot and we can get permission easily enough. Once we get this wrapped up we’re going home.”
“What about the cameras and stuff?” Trent asks.
“We’ll get them soon enough,” I say, “all we have to do is cause a sensation.” I head over to my motorcycle, getting on. “Follow--” Carla hops on behind me, much to my surprise.
“Can we get me some new sneakers before we do this? I busted mine,” she says.
“I don’t... I don’t know if I like this idea,” Jimena says. “Are we just out to embarrass them? Or is there--”
“When I first met the group they were planning on destroying Flint’s home to get to me,” I tell her bluntly. “I’ve got an entire folder of things like that they’ve done at his place, things I bet you never heard of.”
“And they’re claiming to be teenage supers,” Trent says, his jaw tightening. “Even our super villain teens have more class than that. They aren’t professionals, they’re just thugs.”
“But--” Jimmi starts out. “I... does it have to be on television?” she asks. “They’re going to hate me if I do this to them.”
I hesitate and then shrug. “If you’d rather stay here and in the situation you’re in, it’s no skin off my back.”
“I--I just don’t want to be hated, Vinny!” she protests.
“Fine. We’ll find them ourselves,” I say.
“Wait,” Carla says, getting off and going to Jimena. “Hi. I’m Carla.”
Jimena blinks at her. “Hi,” she says slowly.
“I’m second in command of the zoo kids! So it’s my job to make sure everyone gets to where they should be, right?” she says before I can protest. “I’ve got a LOT of stuff I have to take care of, like feeding everybody and making sure they don’t skip class, and making sure everybody actually comes out of their rooms--it’s a lot of work. And I don’t think you’re in the right place right now. Are you?”
Jimena slowly looks into Carla’s eyes. “No,” she whispers, “I’m not.”
“Do you want to be in the right place?” Carla asks gently.
“Yes,” Jimena says, “I do.”
“Are you going to be a super?”
“Yes.”
“Then you should deal with bad guys a lot, right?” Carla says. “Even if it means they don’t like you.”
“It’s not that easy--”
“It’s as easy as you make it,” Trent says. “Look around,” he goes on, “remember this moment, because it’s the moment you decide which way you want to go.” I look at him. He even sounds like his dad right now. “Either you stay someplace you don’t belong, or you go somewhere you will.”
“Can I... can I talk with Tank before the competition?” she asks. “I at least owe it to him to break up with him face to face.”
“Fine. Call him first,” I say. “We’re going shoe shopping.” I rev the bike (which doesn’t do much--electric bikes aren’t very noisy) and Carla grabs me around the waist--I didn’t even notice her getting back on. I glance over my shoulder at Jimmi, and then wish I hadn’t. I’m still irritated about that comment about having everything.
That... is completely out of character for me, I realize a bit blankly as Carla tries to reach the switches in front of me. Why am I still in a bad mood? I should just forget about it and go on with my life.
Yeah, that sounds good.
***
She watches them go for a long moment, wondering why the fact that Vinny is still irritated with her chafes so much. Sure he’d SAID he didn’t hate her, that she’d just hit a sore spot, but the moment his friends from Central showed up, he’d practically ignored her. What, exactly, is his relationship with Carla, anyway? Sure she looks like a little girl, but she was still awfully quick to hug him--
No way. She is NOT getting jealous over that guy. He’s got ice in his veins half the time, the other half the time he just flips over some unfinished sentence! She hadn’t been talking about his family! She’d been talking about his friends! Like the fact that he asked just last night and here they are, all the way from Missouri, ready to do whatever he wants them to!
None of the gang ever does that for her, a vicious little voice taunts her. She’s asked for help a dozen times from the gang, only to get told they don’t have the time, or they’re too far away, or they’re just plain busy. Busy doing what? If Vinny’s to be believed it’s probably causing terror for the norms. And it’s all her fault, she adds, her shoulders slumping. She’d just thought they liked how the tubes glowed. Maybe she is an idiot.
She looks at her phone, bringing up the directory and finding Tank’s number. She doesn’t have to stay an idiot, she decides. “Tank?” she asks as he answers. “Can you meet me at the smoothie place? Oh... um... I’m skipping today. Okay. See you when you get here,” she says, hanging up and staring forward blindly.
She’s seen the information on the zoo kids. It’s all on the Hero website, how Central Hall broke them out of their glass cages. She watched the part where Vinny came out of his cage a million times, practically. He’d been saved by America’s Son, who had shattered the wall with a single punch. He’d looked so calm compared to the other kids, even packing a few things before coming out, mostly notebooks. She wonders what he’d written in them.
Knowing how much he’d gone through just because he has powers makes her feel sick to her stomach. She pulls her legs up to her chest and rests her chin on her knees, starting to reevaluate her life. A father that is too much of a pushover doesn’t even compare to a see-through cell. She feels a tear trickle down her cheek as she realizes just how selfish and spoiled she’s been over the past few years.
The biggest names in the South Hall were bending over backwards just to keep her from getting in trouble for something she was actually doing. At the time she hadn’t understood what the big deal was--after all, she’s the daughter of Voltdrain. That makes her special, right?
She looks up as Tank pulls his massive truck to a stop in the parking lot. Her hands get clammy and she wonders if she can do this. What if Vinny is wrong? He’s only been around for a week, right? He hasn’t seen all the things Tank can do--
“Hey,” Tank says as he gets out of the truck and heads for her. “You could have told me you were skipping today.”
“It was a... last minute decision,” she says, looking down rather than looking at
him. “Tank, we need to talk.”
“Yeah? What about?” he asks as he drops down next to her, draping a large arm over her shoulders.
“I think... um... that we should break up,” she says, looking at him finally.
“What?” he asks.
“I think we should break up,” she repeats, pushing his arm off of her shoulders and getting to her feet to look at him. “Are you and the gang just using me?” she demands. “You’re using those tubes as a boost, aren’t you?” She reaches forward, pulling the glow-stick out from under his shirt and ripping it off of the string. “You’re using me for this!”
“Give it back, Jimmi,” he says, his eyes narrowing. “It’s that Vinny guy, isn’t it? He’s been messing with your mind and you think he’d be a better boyfriend than I am--a better super.”
Jimmi wraps her hand around the glow-stick and pulls the energy out of it. “He says you and the others need to meet him in the Walmart parking lot. You can prove you’re a super there.”
“You killed it,” Tank says, his eyes focused on the empty glow-stick. “Why did you DO THAT?” he demands.
“If you’re a real super you won’t need it,” she says. “Walmart. If you don’t show up in half an hour I’ll assume you’re forfeiting and call the cops on you.” She runs off before he can reply, but she hears him bellow with rage behind her.
The guilt and relief she feels right now is making her a bit light headed.
***
“These sort of suck,” Carla says as we come out of Walmart. She’s wearing a new pair of sneakers, one of the off-brand names that they sell, but she’s not very happy about it. “They aren’t going to last all the way home, Vinny!”
“Well since I’m the one paying, they’re the best you’re going to get,” I tell her patiently, “and seriously, Carla, none of the shoes meant for norms are going to last for long.”
“How about this,” Trent says, seeing she’s about to start crying, “when we’re done here we’ll talk to the South Branch about seeing one of their tailors, okay? We’ll get you a specialized pair.”
She nods, looking up at him with a hint of adoration. I groan. “Trent, quit babying her,” I say. “If she doesn’t want to ruin her shoes we can send you both home in a car, or something.”
“NO!” Carla says, looking a bit panicked. “I can’t stand car trips! They’re so boring and you’re stuck inside forever and--” Trent looks at me with a slight frown before touching Carla’s shoulder and making her stop.
“Hey,” he says, “why don’t you go find an empty part of the lot where we can have the competition while I talk with Vinny for a bit?”
She nods slowly, looking at me. I nod. She takes off, leaving me with Trent.
“What’s got you so mean today?” he asks bluntly. “You’ve practically been ripping heads off--for you, at least. You and I both know that Carla needs a gentle touch--all of the younger zoo kids do, don’t they? You’re usually the guy offering that.”
I feel guilt rise up and I let out a sigh. “I know,” I mutter, sitting down on my bike. “This trip’s gotten to me for some reason. I’m here to save a spoiled rotten brat that’s got as close to a perfect life as I could imagine,” I admit slowly. “And last night she tried to go off on a rant about how I’ve got everything. All because I’ve got friends and the only thing she has are posers.”
Trent shocks me as he starts to laugh. “What?” I demand.
“I was there,” he says.
“Last night?”
“No. Where she’s at--I was there.” He drops down on the ground next to my bike, stretching his legs out in front of him. “I wore my specialized boots,” he points out, “they’re made for super heavy wear. But like I was saying--I was exactly where Jimena or whatever her name is. No friends, couldn’t play sports, couldn’t show off the stuff I could do, because my secret identity would be blown. I’ve got great parents, you know? My mom and dad would have moved Heaven and Earth for me, but I was so stuck on the fact that I was all alone in this world that I didn’t even notice.”
I look at him. When he just grins at me I smack him upside the back of the head. “Feel better?” he asks, not even moving with the slap.
“A little,” I admit. “Still, it’s so stupid!”
“It’s human nature,” he says, “if you’ve got nothing to compare your circumstances to, you always see the bad parts as really bad. Being different isn’t easy, Vinny. Being looked down on or avoided by all the people around you, it sucks. With me they instinctively knew I was different if I did something to draw attention. With Jimena--well, you saw her eyes. Can’t exactly hide something like that. I would have done anything to be able to join the football team--to fit in. Instead I was looked down on by the jocks in the school since I had to sit out gym.”
“You had to sit out gym?”
“I had a running excuse with my coaches,” Trent says, “asthma and a few other weird things. I had to just sit there and watch as the norms ran around in circles. It was sort of like how Carla feels about car rides--boring.” He looks at me. “Want to know what changed things for me?”
“What?”
“Max. He showed up following Zoe around like he always does, and found me. Within minutes he had me pegged as a cape--maybe even seconds. Even if he was one of the biggest super villains around, I still felt... indebted to him, like I owed him for it. So when he told our group that we were going after you, well, I was the first to volunteer. He took my girlfriend, instead. Not sure on that one--did she flirt with you?” he asks curiously.
“Emily isn’t my type and I’m definitely not hers,” I say, looking down at the guy who’s already almost twice as broad through the shoulders as I am. You wouldn’t believe how happy I am that I’m telling the truth--making him jealous could easily classify a guy as suicidal. “She robbed me for smoothie money and told me a little about her past. Then Ditto totally blew off a guy hitting on her, saying you were cute enough for both of them,” I add, grinning slightly at the memory.
“Yeah? What guy?”
“One of the guys I plan on showing up today,” I say. “So... are you dating just Emily or are you dating both of them?” I ask, unable to help myself.
“Trying to take Ditto from me?” he asks.
“Nope.”
“Honestly? Ditto IS Emily,” he says after a moment. “That she says different things, and that she reacts differently once in a while, well... Emily has a history of abuse. Dad says she spent so long removing herself from what was happening to Ditto that she started thinking about her as a different person. I don’t know if that makes any sense, but, well, when it comes right down to it--even if Emily winds up making more duplicates than just Ditto, or changes Ditto to look like someone else, whatever she does, that’ll be a part of her. To me, as her boyfriend, all it really means is I gotta pay closer attention when one of them looks innocent and pay twice as much on a date. It’s a really good thing I’m getting paid by the Hall now.”
I stare at him for a moment, and then let out a heavy sigh. “So basically what you’re telling me is that Jimmi can change with a chance, so I shouldn’t be biting people’s heads off over it,” I summarize.
“And that a duplicator girlfriend can get seriously expensive,” he agrees. “You can’t have a duplicator girlfriend unless another one shows up out of nowhere, though, so the whole changing part is the important thing.”
“Hey Vinny! I found it!” Carla calls from across the parking lot, waving her arms over her head--the blue stuffed toy held firmly in one hand.
“Did you HAVE to let her buy the pony, though?” I ask Trent. “Couldn’t it have waited until after the job?”
“It made her happy--and that kept her running beside me, because she spent the entire run down here telling me all her favorite episodes,” Trent says with a shrug. “If they make fun of her we’ll knock them out, how’s that sound?”
I think of the group running like chickens the moment the
sirens started, leaving me buck naked and arrested. “Sounds excellent,” I say as I mount my bike and start it up.
“That is one awesome bike,” he says as we start for the area Carla chose. She’s sitting on the ground poking at her new tennis shoes with a frown.
“Fine. After this is over we’ll talk to Century,” I say, giving in.
“Thank you!” She hops to her feet, bouncing up and down for a bit before stopping. “Jimmi’s here!” she adds, racing away before I can say anything.
“She’s changed,” Trent says. “You’ve done good--she’s not nearly as shy as she was when you first showed up.”
“She’s one that has,” I admit. “I’ve got another six that still don’t talk to anyone other than other zoo kids and your dad.” I watch as Carla drags Jimmi over, silently noting that her eyes look red.
“They should be here soon,” Jimmi says, wrapping her arms around herself. Before we can say anything else, a truck pulls to a stop just a foot behind her, almost hitting her. The door swings open and Tank jumps out, racing straight for me. He’s got a glow-stick in his hand, I realize too late.
The punch slams into my face, sending me flying backwards. I grunt as I hit a car, sliding down it and falling to the concrete, a bit stunned. “VINNY!” Jimmi yells, racing for me. Tank grabs her arm, hauling her back.
“You think you can just storm in here and take everything?” Tank demands, completely ignoring Jimmi’s struggling. “That you can take my girl, take my place? I think not,” he says, uncapping the glow-stick with his teeth and shoving the open end to his chest. He literally starts to glow and his muscles start bulging.
“Vinny,” Trent says, hauling me to my feet, “this is your fight, isn’t it?”
“Unfortunately,” I say, popping my neck. “But you’re welcome to interfere if it doesn’t seem to be going my way,” I add evilly. He lets out a surprised laugh and steps back as I drag my shirt off. Should I feel guilty about beating up a norm? Not when he hits like that, I decide, lighting my hands on fire and rushing forward. I slam a flaming fist into his gut, sending him back through the air. He’s heavy, I notice. He doesn’t fly nearly as far as I’d hoped for, and he lands on his feet, catching his balance quickly.