by R. J. Ross
"Promise?" Max asks.
"Yes, I promise," I say. I'm... confused, actually. You're confused, too, right? I mean, here you've got a guy that can lift giant things with his mind and we're arguing over cupcakes. I look at Sunny, who looks like he's got a headache. But Max is already heading into the gas station, as if he wasn't here earlier to rob some poor guy of his slushee. "Everyone put your hands--" I hear him say.
"MAX!" I bellow, racing in after him. He's insane! He's absolutely insane! Sunny reaches him first, wrapping his arms around him and pulling back.
"He's joking," Sunny tells everyone in the place. "He's just got a really stupid sense of humor." He gives Max a dark look, pushing the other teen away from the counter. "We're just looking for the cupcakes," he adds over his shoulder as I race after them.
"Your faces!" Max says, breaking out in laughter. "Oh man, that was too good!"
"It's not funny!" I say.
"No... it's a little funny," Sunny admits. I give him a dirty look and he shrugs. "No, seriously, you're a jerk, Max," he tells the other boy almost blandly. "You about gave me a heart attack." That definitely sounds like a lie.
Max grins. "Do you know how many of us there are?" he asks. "Teens or kids. Not adults. And even those, do you know how many of them are kept under wraps? Completely hidden--even with all the hacking I do of the Hall's information, I can't find them. We need each other, guys."
I get the feeling, strangely enough, that he isn't just trying to sway us over to his idea for an Anti-Hall league. Or maybe I'm just an idiot. Yeah, I'm really leaning towards the idiot conclusion. There's no way a super villain of Maximum's league has anything other than his own prerogatives on his mind.
"How many?" Sunny asks.
"Probably fifty five in all--but we're talking all over the world," Max says, straightening and starting to walk down one of the aisles of snacks. "In this town we've got... oh, counting the three of us, probably six or seven that have come into their skills." He picks up a three pack of cupcakes. "I haven't met them. I want to, though."
"For your idea?" I ask.
"Sure," he says, looking at the price. "Can you guys afford two fifty?" he asks.
Sunny looks at me and I can almost hear him thinking. "Yeah," he says finally. "We can afford it."
"Sweet! I get my own!" He hands the pack over to Sunny, who's digging out his wallet. "We'll keep looking around while you check out," Max says.
"I'm going with Sunny," I say, following my brother. It’s a dangerous decision, I realize belatedly. We're only here because we're playing along with a psychopath. It's not like we're friends with him. It's not like we're friends with anyone, really.
I don't think he is, either.
He's following along behind us, his hands in his pockets and a curious expression on his face as he watches me. I get the feeling, though, that I don't have his full attention. The bell over the door rings and he turns, looking at the person that just walked in. I can't help but follow his gaze.
I barely stop myself from saying Jack's name. The teenager is standing there, staring at the three of us at the counter with an expression that I can't read. Then he speaks. "Didn't get very far, did you?"
"Who're you?" Max asks.
"I think that should be my question," Jack says.
"Come on, Max," I say. "Sunny's paid for the cupcakes already." This time it's me grabbing his hand to tug him towards the door. Sunny follows us--the only problem is that Jack's standing in the way of the door.
"You think you're pretty tough, huh?" Max asks.
"I'm tough enough."
"No, kid, you're not," Max says, moving closer. Sure, Jack's a lot taller, so it seems a little ridiculous--or it should. I am completely on edge and have been since this entire thing started, so all it seems is dangerous to me.
"Max, come on!" I say, tugging at his hand.
"Move out of the way, Jack," Sunny says. "We're just getting a cupcake--it's got nothing to do with you."
"Who is he?" Jack demands. "Does it have something to do with you two being su--"
"He's my boyfriend!" I say a bit too loudly to cover the "S" word. I don't even have time to wonder when he figured it out. The entire world seems to go still as all three males look at me blankly. "You know, the guy we were talking about at dinner--he's not so bad after all, okay? So would you move already?"
Silently, with a rather shocked expression on his face, Jack takes a step to the right. Thankfully Max is just as stunned and I manage to haul him out the door. I should be stunned, myself, I know, but I don't have time! I'm the only one sensible enough to know that a fight between Max and Jack would be ridiculously one-sided.
"Are you a moron?" Sunny asks once we get to the parking lot. "Now Jack is going to tell the entire house you've got a boyfriend!"
"So? We were running away, anyway, right?" I say. "Don't yell at me, Sunny, I need to think!" My head hurts.
"So you're coming with me?" Max asks. I almost jump out of my skin, having forgotten for a moment that I was holding his hand. I'm still holding his hand. I'm... holding... Maximum's hand.
Oh for crying out loud, that's nothing compared to what I just did!
My face turns so red that I feel faint. "I--I was just--that wasn't--" I stutter, tugging at my hand. He's not letting it go.
"I don't mind," he says. "Y'know, using me to get rid of a guy. But if you're running away, that means you two have decided, right? You're going to join my group, right?"
I look him in the eyes. "You're acting, aren't you?" I say. There's a sharp look in his eyes that makes a mockery of his innocent tone. "You're making out to want to be our friend, but what you really want is for us to join your league of evil."
For a moment I swear there's a hint of hurt in his eyes. I almost take my comment back, almost feel the urge to beg for forgiveness, but then he straightens, appearing taller. He smiles slightly. "I almost had you, huh?" he says with amusement. "You're smart, too. I like that. But before anything else gets said--where's my cupcake?"
Sunny hands over one of the cupcakes. He's not saying anything and I wonder if he thinks I've gotten us both killed. I’m pretty sure I have.
Idly Max looks at the cupcake. "I can kill someone with this," he says idly, tossing it into the air. It floats there, as if it's a balloon. "You'd be surprised by what I can do with my powers. Even though I’m perfectly capable of doing things on my own I want a team. That's not all of it, though. There are fifty five of us--six or seven in this area that I know of. No one other than me is using their ability, no one other than me is trying to take over the business. We are the future--either side. Regardless of who our parents are, or whose side they're on, none of us are exactly human."
I want to argue. I even open my mouth, but nothing comes out. Maybe we aren't. Maybe we're... something else. I just wish I knew what that was. Super. Yeah, that was the term the heroes and villains get. But just because you could do something like we can, does it make you super? Superior?
I flinch away from that word. Those two years in the system have made the word "superior" a four lettered word for me. I don't want to start claiming it for myself just because some guy might or might not be our father.
"You two are new, I'm not even sure who your parents are, but the super world--it's not as black and white as they make it out to be on TV," Max goes on, making the cupcake dance in the air. "Sooner or later you meet everyone--regardless of what side you're on. They all know each other. They all know that somewhere in their past their grandparents or great grandparents were best friends, or possibly even cousins. Or enemies. Or all the above. We will never fit in with regular humans, guys, because the ones like us never do. We will never be like your pal, Jack--no matter how much he might want to act like one of us. So yeah, I want you two at my side. I need you. I'm pretty sure you need me, too. All we have is each other."
I move closer to Sunny. Who would have thought I'd be in this position?
"Tomorrow," Sunny
says. I look at him in confusion, not realizing what he's saying for a moment or two. "Tomorrow we'll give you our decision. Let us sleep on it tonight."
"I wish I could believe you," Max said with a sigh. "I wish I could know that I'd wake up tomorrow, come out here, and you'd both be packed and ready to move into my place. But you're already packed now, aren't you."
"We--we didn't want to tell you this," Sunny says. I'm panicking here, I have the idea that he's going to kidnap us both and brainwash us into becoming his perfect little lackeys. "Max--it's a lie."
"What?" I ask before Max even can.
"We're not supers. We just sent that email to get attention--to try and get out of the house. Do you have any idea how much it sucks sharing a bathroom with six other people?" Sunny goes on, looking Max straight in the eyes. When did he get so good at lying? "We didn't realize how important this would be for you--I mean, we figured the Hall would just ignore us, or maybe come out and we'd get famous because they did, but--we're sorry."
"You're lying," Max says, but there's a hint of doubt in those chocolate brown eyes. He has beautiful eyes--STOP, Zoe, just STOP. He's looking at me now--I'm not sure I can bluff, besides, what if he brings out a cell phone or a computer or anything? The lie will be blown! I can't control it! Really, I would if I could! "Zoe, you wouldn't lie to me, would you?" he asks, moving closer.
Oh man, oh man, oh man, do you have any idea how awkward this is for me? I don't have boys doing this to me! I don't usually even have boys talking to me! Especially cute ones! Especially SUPER VILLAINS. "I--I'm sorry?" I say, taking a step back. "We just--we just want attention," I say, finding myself caught by those brown eyes.
"Mine?" he asks.
"Te--Tech--" I find myself whispering.
"Technically the Hall's," Sunny says, jerking me back.
"Tech... Techni..." Max has caught on. I look at Sunny, only to literally jump as Max bellows a surprised curse. "Technico! Holy crap I should have seen it! Why didn't you TELL me?" he demands. "That hair--that face--you look just like him! You're right, you're not supers--you're freakin' Superiors!"
"What?" I ask. Did he read my mind? Why is he calling me the very word I hate?
"Superiors," Max says, grabbing my hands. "I changed my mind," he says, looking me straight in the eye. "I'm going to hold you to that boyfriend comment. You and me, we'll make a great couple--" He's jerked back, tossed across the street and into a tree, much to my shock--and surprisingly, both his and Sunny's, as well. But Sunny's the first to recover. He's standing between me and the super teen, his hands in fists at his sides.
"I said we're not supers. And there's no way on Earth that I'm going to let a super villain date my twin sister."
I can hear creaking around us. The trees on the side of the road are starting to move slightly, responding to Sunny's temper. Max is standing up and dusting himself off. He doesn't look too bothered by Sunny's blowup by the way that he's grinning. "What a load of crap, man," he says. "I can't believe I almost fell for it for a second! Not supers. Like a norm could send me flying like that! But even with that, you get no say in who your sister dates, Sunny. She likes me. Don't you, Zoe?"
Now they're both looking at me. What do I do? I--I--I'm starting to get irritated, actually, now that I think about it. "I don't like you," I tell Max. "Sure, you're cute, but you're also insane. I can't believe you held an entire Super Bowl hostage! Are you crazy?"
"It made for a good halftime show!" he protests. "C'mon, Zoe, you'll like me if you get to know me, you know you will. And like you said, I'm cute, right?"
"No, I absolutely won't," I say. "Especially since you're talking like you're going to try and kidnap us to get us to work with you! How can I like a guy that doesn't even let me make my own choices? You're trying to manipulate us."
"Fine," Max says. "I'll let you decide--IF you guys don't go running off to the Hall like I'm betting you've been planning."
I look at Sunny.
"If you are the kids of Technico, do you really think they'll trust you?" Max adds. "You'll be considered villains before you even think about donning a cape. You should think about that when making your decision."
"So... you're coming back tomorrow?" Sunny asks.
"Maybe," Max says, grabbing the cupcake that has just been floating there, waiting for him. "Don't get your hopes up that I'm gone, though," he adds, taking a bite. "I'm not done with you two. Especially you, Zoe," he says to me. "You and me are going to get to know each other a lot better."
"In your dreams, Max," I reply. I can't believe I just said that. Just twenty minutes earlier I would have sworn he would kill me for a comment like that. Now a part of me isn't surprised when he gives me a devilish grin.
"There, too," he says.
"Man, that line was seriously lame," Sunny says. "Really lame."
"Hers or mine?" Max asks.
"Both." Somehow we're walking back to the home. What worries me, though, is that Max is leading the way. I was right. He does know where we live. As if to prove it, he stops right at the steps of the house, turning to look at us.
"I don't want to force you," he says. "But you'll understand soon enough. I'm your only chance."
"You're what, seventeen?" Sunny asks. "How are you going to be any help?"
"I can give you a home. A real home, not a place that's overflowing with kids with nowhere to go. I can give you purpose." He's looking at me again. Do I have something like "sucker" written across my forehead? Don't answer that. "We can be a family."
"Yeah? Well you can't date your sister, so stop staring at Zoe," Sunny says, moving to block him from looking at me. "Go home, Max. It's past lights out."
For a moment a dark look crosses Max's face and automatically I reach out to grab Sunny's arm. If he's going to be attacked, we both are. Then Max shrugs. "Fine. I have some stuff I need to do anyway. See you tomorrow, Sunny, Zoe," he adds, glancing at me--then taking to the air.
"Don't fly without your suit on, stupid!" I say. "Or at least a mask!" He lands.
"Yeah, yeah," he says. "Tomorrow." Then he's gone. It's like the world takes a breath with him not there, I know I do.
"What in the heck were you thinking?" Sunny demands, turning on me.
"Wh--what? What were YOU thinking?" I demand. "You threw him across the street!"
"Because you were just standing there like a moron! Don't tell me you like him! He's an insane super villain!"
"Yeah? Well so is our dad," I snarl before storming up the steps. I head straight for my room, not wanting to talk with Sunny anymore. What really makes me mad is that he's right. I am a moron. I mean, why did I feel so sick at the idea of Jack liking me--who's only done petty stuff--yet feel oddly happy when Max, who's a super villain, calls me cute?
I drop down on my bed, glower at the poster of Justin, and fall on my back to stare at the ceiling. "Superior," I whisper, wondering why he called us that. I don't like it, even if I'm the one saying it, but I can't help but think it’s more than just a word in this case. Man, now I wish I hadn’t ran off from Sunny. We have things to discuss!
Doesn’t change the fact that I’m mad at him, though. What right does he have to say who I can or can’t think is cute?
Er... yeah. Probably not going to sleep tonight, huh?
CHAPTER THREE
Morning comes. I’ve only been asleep for an hour or two, knocked out by exhaustion, and my alarm clock is going off. What do I do? I didn't plan on going to school today, not when I was planning on running away. I haven’t done my homework, but staying here is dangerous, too, right? I mean, Max knows where we live. Who’s to keep him from showing up? I kept wondering all through the night if he had even left. Who’s to say he didn't sit in some tree, just watching to make sure Sunny and I didn’t bolt for it?
My roommate is already up and gone--probably trying to get the hot water before it runs out. The Justin poster is staring at me. I can feel it even when I’m not looking at it. I really don’t see what she sees
in the guy. I turn my back on it and dig out my clothes, getting dressed quickly. I have to stand in line for the bathroom, but it’s so common by this point that I wind up leaning against the wall, dozing as I wait for my turn. Bad mistake.
“Who is he?” Jack asks from behind me. I jerk awake, straightening quickly.
“I have no idea who you’re talking about,” I say snottily.
“Short kid, tan skin, black hair, got up in my face. Who is he?” he demands. We’re trying to whisper, to keep the others in the line from staring at us, but they’re looking anyway. I’m sure this is going to be the big story of the house within minutes. Jack and I never talk unless its a flat out bellowed fight.
“My boyfriend,” I lie. “You shouldn’t mess with him.” That’s the truth. I don’t like Jack one bit, but I don’t want him smashed like a pancake. Much.
“You made him out to be a stalker at dinner last night,” Jack snarls, “now you’re dating him? What the hell, Zoe? Are you a masochist or something? Who is he? He doesn’t go to our school!”
“How’s that any of your business?” I demand, turning on him. “I will tell you right now, do not mess with Max. Don’t go near him, don’t speak to him, don’t even look at him! Do. You. Understand?” I say, poking him in the chest. He is, shockingly, backing up, a look of shock on his face. It twists, turning to anger.
“Are you saying I can’t handle myself? You think that short little twerp can take me on?”
“I’m saying that short little twerp can smash you like a pancake,” I hiss. It’s not just anger that’s driving me, I realize. I’m actually scared. Why? Because Jack is a norm.
“I’m not some pushover, you know,” he says, stepping forward. We’re practically nose to nose, but I’m not about to back down.
“No, but you’re a norm,” I whisper harshly. The world seems to stop. You can hear a pin drop, even with this many people in the hallway.
The toilet flushes. Everything jerks back to normal, although it feels more awkward than usual. I take a step back. “Don’t... just don’t mess around with this, Jack. Please,” I say quietly.