Everything Burns

Chapter 2

Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

The boy, Chris, looked up at the garish, yellow neon sign.

"McDonalds?" he asked quizzically, raising one eyebrow slightly.

Johnny suppressed a chuckle at the boy's unfamiliarity with the establishment. "Yes, McDonalds. It's the nearest place without me having to shell out a butt load of cash for a fancy meal," he said with a broad smirk.

"I-I'm not hungry," Chris mumbled, staring down at the concrete floor, watching the rain water wash over his scruffy trainers.

Johnny's eyes narrowed slightly. "Either way, it'll be warm. Go on, get inside."
Chris was about to protest, but the look in Johnny's eyes told him otherwise. He pushed the large doors open and shuffled into the –oh so warm- building. Still staring at his trainers with an awkward and distinctly nervous air.

Johnny followed him closely, looking at him with deep thought.

He was obviously in trouble, he thought, and wasn't that what the-. What Johnny was about now? Helping people. And he obviously needs help. Those wounds didn't come from nowhere.

Chris slid onto a plastic seat, pulling Johnny's jacket tighter around him, despite the fact that the room was a lot warmer than it had been outside.

Johnny sat down opposite him, watching him silently before he spoke out. "What do you want to eat then? And don't give me that 'I'm not hungry' bullshit."

Chris opened his mouth, but then shot daggers at Johnny. "Uhm. I..I dunno," he said, shrugging his skinny shoulders.

Johnny frowned once again, but got to his feet and proceeded to the counter. Shivering slightly as icy droplets ran down his neck. Though they quickly evaporated. He was a human radiator.

A few minutes later, he returned to the table, Chris looking up at him in quiet complaisance.

"Two Big Macs," Johnny said happily, smirking as he placed the meal in front of the boy.

"Are you sure that I ca-"

"Yes. Eat it," Johnny cut through him, already starting to devour his French fries.

For the next five minutes, the two ate their meals silently. One vastly quicker than the other. Shortly after they had both finished, Johnny eyed the boy up.

"So, why were you out there?" He asked bluntly.
Chris looked up at him and smirked –a trait that matched even Johnny's- broadly. "Why were you?"

It seems the meal had returned some of his teenage sarcasm.

"After all, you are The Human Torch, right?"

Johnny looked down at the temple, repressing his obvious anger at the former title.

"I was," he said quietly. "Your turn."

Chris didn't point out that Johnny hadn't answered his question.

"I was just going for a walk," he said edgily.

"In a storm?"

"I was out before it started storming," Chris said quickly.

"It's been storming for the past three days," Johnny said, raising an eyebrow.

"I know," the boy said quietly.

"Wait. So, you've been out for the past three days? Shouldn't you be at home, with family?"

Chris stood up quickly. "I have to go. Thanks for the food, but I really should get going."

Without waiting for a reponse, Chris hurried towards the door, pushed through it and was lost in a spray of rain water.

Johnny gaped after him and followed, almost as quickly.

"Chris! Wait!" he shouted after him, lunging to grab the boy. Grabbing a handful of his own jacket, he pulled Chris towards him.

The boy span around, looking at Johnny with fear in his eyes. "Let me go!"
"Let me help you," Johnny said firmly, not releasing his grip.

"I'm sorry," Chris said softly. With a quick gesture of his hands he pulled away.

Johnny briefly felt a red hot mark on his chest before he was blown backwards, the explosion that had spontaneously occurred on his torso hurtled him backwards into the wall of McDonalds. Luckily, his powers saved him from the worse of the force.

Before he blacked out he saw Chris, a look of horror on his face, flee.

- - -

Susie Storm and the new Reed Storm stumbled into their apartment, a tangle of kisses and fondling. Giggling, Sue turned on the lights, letting the man sprinkle butterfly kisses all over her neck. Her laughter quickly vanished as she caught the scent of burning. Reed looked up, frowning.

"Where's that coming from?" he asked blankly, looking around the apartment as if had only just noticed where he was.

"Over here!" Sue exclaimed, striding towards the deformed lump of rubber beside the window.

With a gasp, she realized what it was.

"Reed!"

"What?" Reed asked, looking from the charred rubber to his wife.

"It's Johnny. He's g-gone."

To be continued.