Gifts

by Ethan Marsh

His body lays on the ground. Blood piles out of him like a parade, exploding out of the wound that I made. And all I can do is flee. As I run out of the building, I look back to see my guardian, the one who raised me, the one who cared for me, laying on the ground holding his chest, people surrounding him, trying to help.

  I walk down the streets, crying, sobbing, not knowing where I am, where I am supposed to be, or where I want to be. I don't want to be anywhere, to tell the truth. My clothes are splattered with blood, blood of my guardian. All I can think is that I have killed my guardian. An innocent man who had done nothing to me, but loved me.

  After awhile of pacing up and down street the same street over and over again, hiding in the bushes nearby so I can stay hidden from the rescue sub that had come for Steve, I come upon Connie, or Dr. McKensie. She is walking to the building that I was just in, probably to talk to me before the experiment. That will not happen though.

  I catch her as she is just about walking into the door. I pull her away, not wanting to be seen by anyone.

  “Roman! What are you doing here? You must get-”

  “No. I'm not participating in the experiments,” I fire back, knowing how she would finish her sentence. “I've been experiencing more of the things.” I expect that she will want me to say more.

  “What?” she asks, like she is confused. She takes my hoodie off, due to the dirty blood. She doesn't ask about it. I will not tell her about Steve. I pause, sealing my lips shut best I can.

  “Roman, you can tell me. There is nothing to be ashamed of.”

  I crack. I tell her everything, the burning, the how I broke out of the building, and how I killed him. I do not tell her about the blasts that came out of my hands and feet. That is a secret that one person, one person only should know.

  She stares at me for awhile, blank faced, almost exactly how Steve had looked. Only I can tell that there is a lot on her mind.

  “Come with me, Roman,” she says, walking past the door. I don't follow immediately.

  I think and then tell myself, she is really the only one that I can trust. Tedd is idiotic, my guardian are dead, and I think Henry is going crazy.

  I decide to follow her.

  We get into a sub, much like Henry's, only much smaller and lower to the ground. It is something that I have really never seen before.

  Luxury. The vehicle is luxury, no doubt about it. Connie looks at me in a funny way because I guess I was stargazing at all of the flashing lights and buttons inside the sub.

  She laughs.

  I smile back at her, but do not laugh. I do not think that I will ever laugh again after what happened.

  A big rumble sounds and then the sub starts to move. I notice that the levers are the same colors as they were in Henry's sub. The sub moves pretty fast, but not as fast as Henry was driving. I wonder if he is okay. I pray that he is, because I don't want to lose anybody close to me for a long time.

  “So, do you think these “things” are dangerous?” she asks, hands still on the throttle.

  “Yes, that's why I didn't participate in experiments, because...”

  A pause. Then her eyes widen and her expression beams.

  “You thought it would be dangerous if other people have it,” she says like a light bulb had been flickering, and just now tightened to realize the truth.

  “Yes,” I confirm.

  Another pause. “Let's go back to my office,” she says. “I have something to show you.”

  “Hey Connie? Where am I?” I ask.

  “The Prevalent zone,” she replies. “where the common people live, like people who have some money, but not a lot.”

  “Okay, thanks.”

  We head down the same speedtrack that Henry drove me down. It haunts me to think about that moment.

  How could I have ever done that? I would never, ever think to do that now.

  The throttle on Connie's sub was on;y halfway to the max limit. It makes me feel much more comfortable to be riding with her.

  Eventually, we arrive at the chrome building where I met Connie. The same features consist. non-smeared windows, shining glass, people walking in and out.

  “Well...Welcome back!” Connie says as we walk in the door. I don't wear the lab jacket anymore, and I'm not sure what happened to it or why I was wearing it in the first place.

  We arrive at her office, after walking through the series of hallways. These I don't memorize, because I know Connie will lead me out of them eventually. The yellow and black caution sign does not bother me this time. Walking into her office seems like deja vu to me, except for the fact that Henry isn't here with us.

  I sit down on the bed as I was sitting before.

  “So? You've been going through more of the things?” she asks, sounding like a professional, turning back into the serious version of herself. She chuckles after she says this. I smile, but still, do not and will not laugh.

  “Yes,” I say, again.

  “Is there more than what you have already told me?” Connie asks as she puts on a pair of her big, round eyeglasses, instead of the rectangular ones that she normally wore.

  “Actually, yes. It seems in the moment of danger, I seem to have ridiculously fast running speed,” I reply, which wasn't the entire truth because I have not yet actually experienced this, but I felt that I was moving much faster than I could ever move before.

  “And also... there is something else,” I say, getting ready to sweep some real dust off of my shoulders.

  I tell her everything that happened in the events that occurred with Henry. The jumping, the falling, the capturing, and the flying.

  She gazes at me for awhile.

  “You..” she begins. “..are a very special child, Roman.” It bugged me that she called me a child. Technically, I am, but I am thirteen years old, I think I should be called something else besides a child. Being called this makes me feel small, powerless, feeble, and worst of all, tame.

  I have known that I was special for awhile, ever since I was told about the adrenalin, and I know that it is true when someone says it themselves. I smile at her, this time my teeth showing. I feel like she actually cares for me. I wish that she could be my new guardian, instead of...

  “Hey, Roman,” she asks.

  “Yeah?” I say.

  “Would you mind if I performed some experiments on you? Just some basic scans. I think this 'adrenalin' is a very interesting topic.”

  My eyes dart to her, at first with anger, but then excitement. My automatic answer would have been no, but Connie is the only one I can trust. The only one. I have to really think about other people here, not just myself. I might be a hypocrite for doing this, but Tedd is a maniac. The slightest smirk appears on my face; I know I am doing evil.

  “Sure. I'd be glad to.”