The news reports were rapidly switching from story to story, each broadcaster having their own tragedy to tell.
"Today a school bus has flipped over, all of the children are injured and the bus driver in a critical condition,"
"At 5 A.M this morning there was a murder of a small family of four,"
"Firefighters are completely astounded at the height of the fire! They are calling in extra men to battle down these monstrous flames,"
"The city is going on a riot throughout Washington D.C! They are demanding that the president fix all the problems!"
"Rick, I think this city needs a miracle to get through,"
"No, Sonia, this city needs a hero."
Suddenly the T.V shut itself off. I cocked an eyebrow thinking something was wrong with our satellite again. When I looked for the remote I found it in my father's hand. He had been the one to turn off the T.V.
"Shouldn't you be getting ready for school? Why do you want to watch this depressing news?" He tried to lightly joke about the subject, but I knew his game.
I grabbed the edges of my skirt as I thought about the words I wanted to say, yet I was afraid to speak. Whenever I brought up the subject it always caused problems. But, it was just something that couldn't be ignored.
"Dad, people are dying," I spoke. My voice was steady so far.
"I know that, Calli. People die every day; it's the way life is." He knew it was coming, but he kept a calm tone.
"Yeah, but they don't have to. You heard what he said Dad. This city needs a hero." I was almost there.
"Calli, I don't want to talk about this." He dismissed as he pinched the bridge of his nose, either feeling a headache coming on or anger. But, I would not be ignored this time.
"But, Dad, I could take on every one of those bums! You know I can!" I stood on my two feet as I gestured to the city view through our window. "If you could just let me try-
"Calli, enough! You are not a hero, and you never will be! Be a doctor, a lawyer, a scholar, not some vigilante running the streets!" My father shouted. His face was red and a small throbbing vein seemed to pop out his forehead. He was raising his blood pressure again. "Why do you continuously persist to try to change my mind? You know what I'm going to say and you know what I expect from you."
I paused, the confidence I once had was shattered. "…Because, I know I can make a difference. I could save lives-
"No, you could lose your own." He interrupted as he continued to berate. "My answer is no, and will always be no. Please, Calli, don't ever bring this up again. Do you understand?"
My throat began to burn as I felt my eyes brim with tears. Why couldn't he just understand? I refused; I refused to stand down this time. "No, do you understand? People are dying out there Dad. How can you expect me to ignore it when I know I can save them? Dad, I was bullet proof ever since I was born! Fire can't burn me and I could lift the world out of orbit if I wanted to! Why won't you let me save them? I want to protect my city, I want to defend my world."
At first, he looked shocked. Never once had I snapped at my father, I always gave up my argument or subsided to see things his way. But, I'm not going to do that anymore. I will never put my indestructible self over someone else. It's just not right. God gave me these powers for a reason, and I should use them.
"Calli, shut up and get out! I will not tolerate this foolishness. When you come home from school young lady, your grounded! For a month, no a whole year!" My father was off the charts angry, but I had already made up my mind and I won't let this slide. Not this time.
"I don't care! It's worth it if that's the price I have to pay for saving someone's life." I picked up my school bag and walk straight out the door I did the classic teenager line. "I hate you!" Finishing with the grand finally slamming of the door.
Later, I realized just how much I regretted making those my last words to him.
God, I feel like the worst daughter ever! I was literally moping all throughout my classes. Already I was planning what to say to apologize to my dad. First, I'll stop by that ice cream shop and get him his favorite cone. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going back on what I said. I will save people whether he likes it or not.
But, I rather use a method that doesn't hurt him in the process. My latest plan was to sneak out at night or to pretend I have an extracurricular to go during the day. But, then I would have to make a costume that covered my face so he won't know it's me if I'm ever on T.V. And, I get to pick a superhero name!
Yes, score for me! Then I dropped my head in shame. But, that still means I'll have to be a complete liar to my dad. I'm being such horrible person, yet a good one at the same time. Well, at least I get a super hero name.
"Are you okay?" The girl next to me voiced. "Your kinda acting a little weird over there." She grimaced at me. Great, she probably thinks I'm a freak because I was thinking to myself. That's embarrassing.
"Yeah, I'm just you know. Doing my own thing." I replied, trying my best to seem normal.
"Yeah, okay," She sort of scooted away from me as she grimaced again. Yeah, she definitely thought I was a weirdo.
I didn't mind though, if we were meant to be friends she'll come around. Besides, it had always been this way. I've never been good with fitting in or making friends. I guess people could always tell that I was extremely different. I wasn't allowed to do the things of a normal kid while I was growing up. I always had to be careful of what I did since I didn't know how to control my powers that well (and still don't).
My Dad really restricted me from a lot of things. I never played sports, because my Dad said it was a chance I could over exerted my strength and hurt somebody. I couldn't get close to others either; he said it would put me in danger of someone learning about my powers. You know, I once thought why did my dad even put in school at all? Why couldn't I just be home schooled? But, I really think that it's better this way. I think just getting the chance to interact with others is way better than being shut off completely from the world.
Don't you think so?
I've always been sort of an outcast because of my powers, but it didn't really bother me when I realized that my gifts were something I could use for a great cause. I could save the world one day and maybe even get to meet the real super heroes that are out there.
It's my greatest dream to get one of their autographs. I know most likely I will, I will, at least get to meet one of them in my lifetime. I decided I wanted it to be Superman because Batman can disappear so quickly, then again Batman always has Robin. Nah, Robin can get away too. Superman it is then.
Suddenly, the class phone began to ring. In that moment, as I watched my teacher answer the phone call from the office. I felt my heart sink. Something was terribly wrong. I didn't know what, but it was bad. I began to feel the fear rise as the teacher called out my name. "Calli Cain, you have an early dismissal. Just report down to the office and your parents will be waiting for you, dear." The teacher smiled, I think her name was Ms. Henkel.
I froze when I reached the office. Two policemen were waiting inside. Upon my revival they turned to look at me. One of them was smoking a cigarette while the other checked the papers in his hand. "Are you Calli Long?" The policeman with the papers inquired.
I let out a small squeak, "Yes,"
"Right this way," They escorted me out of the building to their police car. Oh my gosh, what the French toast is going on? I was practically beading up with sweat. Did I do something illegal? When's the last time I ever broke a law? Have I ever broken the law before?
I felt my head spinning as the policemen drove through the city. It seemed like we were going into the direction of my house. I summoned the bit of courage my racking nerves possessed and asked the police a question, "Am I in trouble?"
They looked at each other as if they were struggling to find the right words. "Let's just say your father is the one in trouble." The policemen in the passenger seat replied.
"My father?" I said aloud, skeptical. "You must have the wrong man. My father never broke a law in his life! What did he do? I'm sure this is a really big misunderstanding!"
"No, Miss. Cain it's not that kind of trouble. I think it's best if you see for yourself." The policeman explained. "If you're composed we just want to ask you a few questions about the scene. Just sit tight for now, alright kid?"
"Alright," I settled in my seat. I didn't know how to describe how I was feeling right now. I'm guessing this is what they mean by a 'state of shock'. In my head I was making sense of everything he had just told me. I understood what he meant and that was the problem.
He said, 'scene', did he mean a crime scene? What happened to my Dad?
I looked out the window to us turning on my street. But, I didn't see my house. There was a pile of rubble for where it should have been. Everything was in shambles as if someone had bombed the place. Mix with the piles of rock I could see pieces of our house destroyed and broken down. I couldn't even find the sidewalk to our door.
They parked the car and I immediate open the car door to exit. I didn't even take my seat belt of first. I walked to the edge of where the cracked and mildly damage street stopped and where the wreckage began. I stared, simply looking at what was left of my home. The home I had lived in since I was small.
Where I had grew up with just my father to raise me. Its ironic how I used to think our home was so empty and spacious since it was just us in a three story house. But, look at what it is now. I couldn't even think of the right words to say to describe even the surface of how I felt or what was left of my house.
All I could really figure out of what I wanted to say was… "Dad?" I spoke, quiet at first. "Dad, are you there? You're okay right? Dad?" My voice was starting to crack as the warm tears rolled down my cheeks. I didn't even realize I had been crying for some time now, maybe since I got out of the car.
The police waited in an awkward silence. Hands in their pockets, eyes cast down to their hard shoes. What was there to say to a young girl who just lost her father? Whom just lost her home? And, everything she ever cherished or owned or made or had? Not just including objects, but love. The love she had for her father whom she could not find?
What was there to say?
I pushed aside rocks as my calls became louder, "Dad! Where are you? I'm going to find you okay! Just stay where you are!" I began to lift, shove and dig past all of the rubble. I didn't even care that the police were going to acknowledge my superhuman strength. I just wanted to see my father. I want to tell I'm sorry that I said such a terrible thing to him. I wanted to hear him say, 'it's alright Calli everything will be fine'. Then after he got out of the hospital we would finally go on that family vacation we never had during the summer. Everything was going to be just fine. I just had to find him.
I became inpatient and started throwing rocks aside. I didn't care where they landed. I just wanted to find my daddy. A hand grabbed my before I could bring it down to throw more rocks. It was strong, yet gentle. It was to restrain me, but not hurt me.
"You're not going to like what you see if dig up his body, Calli," It was man, neither one of the police officers though. This man's voice had more, significance to it. It seemed like the voice of a leader, it was very clear. Not demanding, but maybe, concerned.
"He'll die if I don't save him! He can't breathe under there!" I sounded like a small child that had just lost her favorite stuffed animal. My voice was shaky because of the crying. I snatched my hand back as I continued to dig and found a piece of our ceiling underneath the dirt.
It was a lot harder with properly digging out the entire thing, but lifting the piece of dry wall was nothing I couldn't handle. But, what I found underneath it was something I couldn't. My father's dead body practically flattened from the weight of the house crashing down on him.
I couldn't even recognize what that thing was until I realized the bit of fabric it was wearing was of my father lab coat. I felt that same hand on my shoulder. Strong, yet gentle. I didn't notice I had crumbled down on my knees until he touched me.
"He hadn't even left for work. He didn't even get his shoes on. He didn't even get the chance to hear me say I'm sorry." I cried, I had no more words left to say and even if I did my throat felt so closed I wouldn't even be able to speak them.
My father was gone, my father was dead.
"Calli, it's going to be alright." The man spoke. I felt him kneel by my side. "You're not alone."
He was speaking my father's words to me. I turned my head to at least have one glimpse of this man since I knew this would probably be the last time I would ever see him.
And, who I saw put me back in a state of shock. His eyes were blue and filled with kindness. His jet black hair slicked back except for a single curl that remained at his brow. His suit donned the colors of red and blue with a heroic cape to match. Across his chest he wore proudly the red 'S' that everyone knew and recognized.
He was Superman.