CHAPTER ONE
Wishes
A/N Completely revised. Well, sort of? Lets just say I am going through each chapter and either tweaking, adding or fixing grammar and all that good stuff.
"Dad you're doing it again." An annoyed brunette mumbled, never looking up from the book she had opened up on the dining table.
"Hm?" He suddenly realized his fingers were tapping the hard marble surface of the table and quickly laid his hand down flat on the table to keep from continuing. "Bad habit."
The small brunette just flashed him her forgiving smile before returning to her current fixation. Her dad always had a habit or two that annoyed her to no end. She knew he must be nervous, but did it mean he had to do the annoying tapping on the table? Seriously! The book she was reading had an essay written all over it. If she didn't write it by tomorrow, she'd fail her History class and have to repeat it. She took a bite of her Captain Crunch, her favorite cereal of all time, never letting her eyes leave the current page she was reading.
"I recruited your aunt to watch over you while I'm out of town for a few days. Think you can handle it?" He then took a small sip of his hot coffee and sat the cup back down.
The words that came from her father made her eyes look up at him. "Do I have a choice?"
"Nope." He answered, not showing any expression as he read the Daily Planet newspaper.
She shook her head with a small snort, "Figures."
The older man gave her one of those 'come on' looks he gave every time the subject came up of her never being able to stay home alone. The last time he left her alone, he had to rush home from clear across the country just to get her out of jail. Luckily, the couple she had 'vandalized' never pressed charges.
She sat back in her chair, folding her arms to her chest and let a grin spread across her lips. "Oh pops, one of these days you are going to have to let me go. It's time for your bird to fly." She then flapped her arms as if mimicking a bird and decided to throw in some sound effects of a mentally challenged vulture.
He couldn't help but smile at her dramatic display and shook his head in amusement. "You know that's not why."
"Dude, I said I was sorry. Besides, I told you, I was covering for Anna. If her parents would have found out she was the one who broke their new window, she'd have gotten in so much trouble. Plus I was thirteen." She shrugged and took a mouth full of cereal into her mouth and chomped loudly, earning an annoyed look from her father. With her mouth full, she smiled obnoxiously.
"What are we, three?"
"Nope, sixteen almost seventeen." She emphasized the 'almost' part as if trying to hint something to her father.
He was about to say something in regards to her having to be babysat, but stopped; hearing a car pull up into the dirt path that led to the farm house they called home. He got up from his seat, leaving his newspaper on the table as he headed in the direction of the kitchen door. He didn't make it that far before the screen door opened to a beaming blonde.
"Hey, Clark!" She greeted happily.
"You're early Chlo." He embraced her in a hug and stepped back to look at her confused. "Thought I was dropping her off?"
"I thought I'd pick her up since Jimmy decided to take the kids to the Zoo." She pushed a strand of a loose, long lock of hair from her face before putting her hand on her hips. "So where is my favorite niece anyways?" She asked, as she walked towards the dining room where she already knew her niece would be, most likely eating her favorite cereal.
"Why Zooey, you look like crap!" She teased upon finding her at the table. It was her favorite niece after all – well her only one.
Zooey didn't bother getting up. She just leaned back in her chair for the second time that morning, displaying a small smile. "That's what I get for sleeping so late."
"And whose faults that?" Chloe asked eying Clark.
Clark threw up his hands, trying to look innocent. "Hey, I told her to go to sleep. Not my fault she didn't listen." He then folded his arms against his chest.
Zooey got up from her spot at the table and strolled over to Chloe putting a hand on her shoulder. "I'll grab my bag." With that she turned to head up in the direction of her room.
"You already had your bag packed?" Chloe asked raising an eyebrow.
"I learned a long time ago, if dad goes on a business trip, I am forced to pack what bags I do have, knowing whose house I'd end up at." She wrinkled her nose at her dad, earning her a slight chuckle from him.
"Smart one." Chloe commented.
It didn't take long for her to get up the stairs. Every once in a while she'll find herself stealing a few super speed moments to get to her destination. Her dad never liked it. Knowing that he couldn't stop her though, he settled on always reminding her to be careful of using her genetic powers in front of strangers. Since the only people who ever came to the farm were people who knew about their powers, she didn't hold back on using them in the house.
She picked up her bag and noticed her favorite photograph still on her desk. "I knew I was forgetting something." She muttered under her breath.
She let her bag fall to the floor and walked over to her desk to pick up the photo. She traced her finger over it, trying to take in every detail. She didn't know why every single time she looked at it, it was like looking at it for the very first time.
She didn't know when it happened, but it did. She hated when she cried. It was weakness. A weakness she couldn't help but accept. She slid the photo into her coat before turning around to grab her bag. When she looked up, she then noticed a concerned Chloe at the door.Here come the questions.She then sighed preparing herself.
"You okay kiddo?" She hated when Chloe got concerned. It always seemed that anyone who questioned her mood, made it seem like it was bad to be feeling anything. You couldn't just feel something and get it out of your system. Instead, you got the third degree or got questioned.
Zooey itched the side of her head, not really knowing how to lie to her aunt. "Yeah, I uh...yeah I am fine."
Chloe sat down on the bed, her hands now in her lap. "Sit with me." She gestured towards the empty spot beside her. She couldn't help but let her body guide her so that she was sitting next to Chloe. She let her head fall, not knowing what to say at a moment like this. What could she say?
Chloe watched as her niece started to play with the hem of her light yellow cotton jacket. "I miss her too, you know." Chloe gave her a knowing smile. She had stood in the door long enough to watch Zooey slide the family portrait within her jacket.
Zooey then looked up at her, trying to fight back the tears and couldn't. Every day, of every minute she was alone, she couldn't help but think of her. She dreaded being alone. She knew as soon as she was, her thoughts would get the best of her. So today, she let them stream from her eyes silently as Chloe draped an arm around Zooey's shoulder, her other free hand tucking a strand of hair behind her ears.
Zooey wiped the last few tears that fell from her face. She then let her hand take the portrait from within her coat and looked at it again. "I don't remember this day." She confessed. "I try to, but I can't."
Her aunt gently took the portrait from her hand, and examined it. "This was the first family outing for you guys. I wasn't there, but your mom told me about it." She placed the picture back into her niece's hand.
"How come you and dad keep me from knowing her?" She tilted her head to look at her aunt, her eyes holding a glossy gaze.
Chloe cleared her throat. "It's complicated," is all she could say. She didn't want to tell her that talking about her cousin made her break down, that she was still angry that she was gone. Talking about her would open past wounds she didn't want to open.
"I understand." Zooey said as she got up from the bed and grabbed her bag, heading out of the room. "We should go."
He couldn't help himself. He usually never eased dropped on his daughter but he sensed something was wrong, so he decided that just this once he would use his super hearing to hopefully get an answer to his worries. And there it was. Now he wished he never listened in. His heart jumped at the mention of his late wife. It was a subject he tried to avoid as much as possible in fear he might become weak. And weak he couldn't let happen. He had to be strong for his daughter. If he let on that at the mere thought of her affected him, he would let down his daughter and most of all, his wife. He wouldn't be able to live with himself if he did.
His heart sank for her. He knew that it tugged at her that she didn't know her mother, but he never could sit down with her. He couldn't sit there and tell her all the wonderful things that he knew of her mother. He knew it must have made Chloe feel uneasy when she asked why they kept from talking to her about her own mother. It made him look back to his and Chloe's conversation a month after his wife's death.
"How am I going to tell her about her mother, Chloe?" Clark had looked up to Chloe, pleading for an answer.
She pulled out the dining room chair next to Clark and sat down, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I'm not sure. I wish I had the answers to everything, but I don't."
He shook his head and continued to look down at his hands. "Maybe…" He then cleared his throat dreading to ask the question, but did it anyways. "...maybe you could tell her? You know when she's old enough?"
The subject itself must have scared her because she quickly got up, her hand massaging her forehead. "Clark, I know that I could do it, I just can't do it. I don't want to." She turned to back to face him, "You are her father. Telling her about Lois would be something you'd have to do. Maybe not now, but when she is old enough to understand."
"I don't think I can do it." He confessed.
"I don't blame you, but she is going to want to know everything about her mom; even the bad things…" She went back to her chair and sat down again. "It's something you will have to figure out on your own. I'm just the cousin."
He placed his hand on hers, squeezing it gently. "You're more than just a cousin Chloe. You're like a sister." It didn't feel odd saying it and he didn't regret saying it, either.
If young Chloe were sitting here in front of her best friend, she would have let her heart break at the thought of being his sister, but the last few years have felt like they were siblings, even if in the past she had a little crush on him. "I can live with that. Brother." She teased giving him her big smile. He softly laughed, forgetting for that moment that Lois was gone.
He snapped out of his thoughts, hearing a shuffle in his daughter's room. Deciding it wouldn't be a good idea if his daughter found him in the hallway listening in on her conversation with her aunt, he did the only thing he could think of and sped off down the stairs back into the kitchen.
It didn't take long for the two females to head back down the stairs and back into the kitchen where they found Clark shutting his brief case. Usually he'd see smiles on their face, but this time their faces were placed with a certain sadness he wished wasn't there. He cleared his throat and placed his hands into his pockets. "You guys all set?"
"Yeah." Zooey said before heading out the door, a messenger bag draped over her shoulder and a hand gripping her sports bag.
When his daughter was clear from ear shot he grabbed his brief case and shot Chloe a concerned look. "You both okay?"
"Yeah, I hope so." She half smiled, but it was enough for Clark to leave it at that. "I guess we should go."
He let her go first and followed her outside noticing his daughter already in the passenger seat. He didn't know whether he should leave without saying goodbye or walk over and demand a hug from her. He decided he would just leave her be. He didn't notice the door swinging open, until he felt a poke on his shoulder. God she looked like her mother, he thought before smiling down at her. "You gonna leave without saying bye?" She asked him with a grin.
"Why would I do such a thing?" He loved their ability to be themselves. He could be a teasing friend and a father all at once and he loved that. Without warning she hugged him. It was a hug that made him proud he was a father.
She let go of him, thanking the gods that her father was strong enough to with stand any hug she gave him. "Don't work too hard, Superman. Don't want you getting any gray hairs." She teased ruffling his hair before waving her father goodbye.
He watched her as she went into the car and smiled to himself. So much like her mother, he thought. He needed to stop thinking about her so much. It only made his heart long for her even more. He waved back to his daughter and Chloe as he watched them leave the dirt path that lead to the main road. He sighed, took a deep breath and he soon followed, going a different direction.
Later that evening Zooey found herself laying in the guest room extremely bored out of her mind. As much as she loved being here, there was nothing really for her to do except tease her cousins. Since they weren't back from their outing with their dad, it was quickly thrown out of the list of things to do. She did however get an invite from her Metropolis friends to go to the mall and hang out. However, she told them that she would get back to them if she got up the nerve to ask her aunt for permission. She then sighed, hopped off the bed and decided that's exactly what she was going to do.Just do it smoothly, she thought.
Her walking pace to the kitchen was normal. There was no need to hurry to get denied her request to join her friends at the mall by her aunt. She found Chloe on her laptop at the kitchen table as she slipped in the seat next to her. "Hey Chloe, what are you up to?"
Chloe practically jumped off her seat apparently startled. "Oh my god Zo, you scared me!" She nervously chuckled.
"Sorry. Habit I guess." She gave her a wink and nudged her with her arm playfully. "Is that for the Daily Planet?"
Chloe nodded, "Yep. I've been trying to work on it all week. The deadlines tomorrow though, so I have to get this done."
"I can take a hint." Zooey then got up only to finally ask the question she feared the answer for. "Uh Aunt Chloe, I was wondering if I could go to the mall with a few girlfriends?"
"Yeah sure. Just be sure to be back before 11." She didn't even look up at her as she gave Zooey, her answer.
"Thanks." She didn't wait for Chloe to respond and left the room.
Zooey knew she could handle herself. After all she did inherit certain powers from her super hero father. That was something she couldn't out and say to her friends. They weren't that close to her to even say anything about herself.Come to think of it, she thought,I have no close friends. She frowned at that thought. She didn't know why, but she always found it hard to make close friends. She couldn't trust a soul unless they were her family. And sometimes, even family couldn't be trusted.
She walked on the sidewalk outside of the mall, spotting her friends hanging out by the entrance. They waved her over as if she couldn't see them. She shook her head at that fact and walked up to them. Four pair of eyes looked up at her and greeted her.
"What's up?" She asked sitting next to one of the guys in the group.
"Not much. Just trying to figure out what we're going to do tonight." One of the girls had said.
Zooey nodded to her, "Alright. But uh, thought we were going to just walk around the mall?"
"That was until Henry found this kick ass place next to that old building on 1st street." The boy that had informed her of their findings took a cigarette and placed it in between his lips, not really lighting it. Not yet at least. She hated smokers, hated the stench of it, but didn't bother letting it known.
She then raised an eyebrow at the cancer stick smoker, "The one that mysteriously burnt down a year ago?"
"Yep that's the one." The cigarette dangled from his lips as he spoke.
"Who would open shop beside a burnt building? Isn't that kind of...creepy?" She asked.
The boy shrugged, "Not as creepy as Superman in tights." He then snorted.
At this point she would have punched him and said something that would put him in his place, but she knew her dad wouldn't have approved. She knew this boy all too well. He was trying to be funny, but obviously no one was laughing.
"Let's go people." Henry gestured for everyone to follow him and that's exactly what everyone did. Zooey felt a twinge of danger hanging out with this group, but she always did. She just pushed it aside as she walked with them.
There it was. The shop they talked about. The building next to it was scorched from the fire that happened a year ago. She remembered it because her dad had to save the people that were caught inside of it and she had to wash the evidence off his 'super suit'.
The group walked inside, not knowing what they were walking into. Only Henry had an idea, but the rest were clueless. Inside, there were heaps of candles that were all lit up, illuminating the room and giving off an eerie environment. The only light in the room that actually came from a light bulb was a vintage lamp that sat on the cashiers counter. Zooey scoped the room with a cautious eye. Items laid on shelves such as necklaces, pendants and other jewelry that looked as old as she did. She couldn't help but notice a few other out-of-place items as well. There were few shelves filled with fancy small glass bottles with some kind of liquid in them that had corks as its only seal. A lady stood on the other end of the shop adjusting a few of the ships merchandise.
The lady didn't even budge from her current task of arranging bottles as she spoke. "How may I help you?"
The group continued their tour, every so often picking up a few items to examine them, not knowing what to think of them before one of them decided to speak, "We are just looking."
She couldn't understand but she found herself curious of all the different things she noticed on the shelves. Was this woman some kind of witch? She has seen people with abilities before – heck she was living proof of someone with abilities, but a witch was someone she never knew existed, nor thought she would ever come across.
Zooey didn't notice the lady beside her, staring at her. "You don't belong with those kids." When she heard the ladies voice behind her she slightly jumped. The ladies eyes gestured towards the laughing delinquents who kept poking fun at the different items displayed before them.
Zooey turned to stare at the smiling shop keeper who looked overly happy. Her blonde hair hung over her shoulders, curls hidden in her hair in a few spots. She wore a beige dress with beads hanging from her neck and bracelets that clicked together every time she moved her hands. She looked almost like a cross from a hippie and a gypsy. It was kind of cliché if she had anything to say about it.
"You think?" She already knew she didn't belong with them. These friends belonged, nor answered to no one. She of course was different from them. Believed that her elders were wiser and knew exactly what they wanted. These kids knew nothing but doing whatever they wanted without care or consequences. Zooey never felt she fit with them but enjoyed not being bored while she was in Metropolis.
The woman gave her a tiny smile, "I know." She said, before coming a little closer. Zooey didn't move. Some would be scared of a stranger, but Zooey was tough and didn't feel like this woman was going to hurt her. "You are missing something..." She then pointed to Zooey's chest above her heart. "…here."
What was this lady talking about? She wondered. "I don't know what you are talking about."
"Ah but you do." She pointed to the shelf in front of her as if telling Zooey something really important was on it. "I have something for you. It might ease the pain you feel of your lost one." She then walked over to the said shelf, pulling off a necklace with a small purple pendent as its center piece.
How did this lady know her pain? She knew nothing. The mention of her feelings made her want to run out of the room, but she couldn't do it. Something kept her there. Her curiosity kept her there.
"This is yours. It belongs to you." The lady was too cryptic, too easy.
"Uh, I can't accept this." Zooey said handing it back, only to get it pushed back to her.
"Trust me my dear, this will solve your questions, your wishes, and will fill that painful feeling in your heart." She winked at her as she saidwishes. What did that mean?
"Come on Zo, we are gonna head out. You coming?" One of the girls had said heading towards the exit.
Zooey suddenly had a lump in her throat and she quickly swallowed it, "Yeah." She shoved the necklace into her coat pocket before following the girl outside looking back a few times.
The lady smiled brightly as she watched the child leave her shop, a knowing expression on her face.
Zooey had come back to the loft, not wanting to be out anymore. Plus it was almost eleven already and she didn't want her aunt getting worried about her or furious about her not listening to her. She returned and didn't say a word as she headed to the guest room. Chloe watched her niece walk in, wondering why she was making such a hasty retreat, but dismissed it knowing her niece would want to be alone. She silently made a mental note to ask about it tomorrow.
She walked into the guest room and flopped on the bed, stretching out her arms and legs in the process. The necklace the mysterious lady gave her, slipped out as she rolled over on her bed and onto her stomach. Noticing it, she grabbed it in her hand and lifted it so it dangled in front of her view. She titled her head wondering what she should do with it. Then the woman's voice rang through her head.Trust me my dear, this will solve your questions, your wishes, and will fill that painful feeling in your heart.
"If I were to wish anything it'd be: I wish I knew my mom." She shut both eyes, then opened it and sighed. "Ha, fake." She said before stuffing it back into her pocket.
She felt so sleepy. It hit her like a freak train. She yawned before curling herself into a small ball and let herself drift off to sleep, not knowing the sudden glow of the mysterious necklace making a small unnoticeable blow, her jacket still on.
What Zooey didn't know was that as soon as she woke up, things would be different.
TBC!