Strong & Silent

Chapter 4

"Small Sacrifice"

"You…want…to…WHAT?"

"I want to marry Rebecca."

Samuel Stronghold, sitting at the kitchen table, put his head in his hands and tried rubbing his temples to relieve the headache he was getting from this statement. The past year had already been a nightmare for him what with losing his youngest son, and now his oldest, who had just powered up and started attending Sky High, had fallen in love with an older girl and wanted to get married.

"You CAN'T be serious," he said to Steven, "you're only fourteen."

"I looked up the law," said Steven, "and the legal age in this state is fourteen. I can marry Rebecca…if she'll take me."

Sylvia was sitting on the other side of the table from her son, and though she was as stunned as her husband about their son's announcement, she was calmer about it. She had always understood both her sons better than their father did; it wasn't that Samuel was a bad father; it was just that he didn't know how to connect with Steven in certain ways. While he could teach him how to control his strength and fight villains, when it came to the emotional stuff that all teenagers went through it was up to Sylvia to see things through.

"Steven," she gently said as she reached across the table and held her son's hand, "it's wonderful that you and Rebecca love each other, but this is far too soon to be talking about such things…unless you mean you HAVE to…"

Steven was puzzled for a moment about what his mother said, then his face turned deep red as he realized what she was implying.

"Mom," his eyes unable to look at her even as he spoke to her, "we haven't…you know…"

Both Samuel and Sylvia breathed a sigh of relief. Though they were looking forward to grandchildren that day was far off, hopefully long after Steven had graduated and gotten a few years of world saving under his belt.

"Then why are you so set on marrying her?"

"Because…" Steven couldn't begin to express himself.

"Is there someone else? Is Rebecca seeing another boy and you're afraid of losing her?"

"No," said Steven, "there's nobody else…for either of us. She's just…special."

"You'll have to be a little clearer," said Sylvia.

"She…she took my powers away."

"WHAT? THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE! HOW DID…?"

"Sam, get a grip," said Sylvia, before turning back to Steven, "is this true Steven? Did she take your powers away?"

"Only for a little while…and only after I begged her to."

"Why in God's name would you DO that, boy?"

"I WANTED TO FEEL NORMAL AGAIN!" Steven bellowed back at his father as he slammed his fist onto the tabletop. Though it was actually titanium painted to look like oak, the table was still dented from the blow.

"I was scared…" said Steven, calming down a bit, "I haven't been able to feel anything for the past few weeks…it kept getting worse and worse. My muscles were so strong and my skin was so thick I couldn't feel cold or heat or…anything. But Rebecca fixed that. She took my powers away for a few hours, and I felt the breeze in my hair…grass under my bare feet…and I could feel Rachel's kisses. When it wore off I thought I'd go back to being numb…but I didn't. I can feel the water on me when I shower in the morning…Mom, just now when you held my hand…I felt it. My strength and invulnerability returned…but now I can feel again too."

"Son," said Samuel, the implications of what he had heard now sinking into his brain, "why didn't you tell us you were having this problem…this numbness. We would have gotten you help."

"I thought it was natural," said Steven, "I thought being so strong and invulnerable MADE you all…numb."

"God no," said Samuel, "I took plenty of cannon shots during the war, but I sure felt each and every one of them. I couldn't have very well been able to hold your mother or you when you were a baby if I couldn't feel anything."

"I didn't know that," said Steven, "I just thought…it was the price I had to pay."

"Son," said Samuel, "there are a LOT of us who have to pay some way for having their powers…Mr. Lightning has to wear rubber long johns underneath his clothes or he'll accidentally shock people…Titaness is stuck at being ten feet tall so she doesn't have a private life…and don't get me started on the poor Undergrounders. Don't get me wrong, they're great kids but…creepy."

"What your father is trying to say is that you can always tell us if something seems wrong…about your powers or anything else."

Steven nodded as he understood. He felt lucky to have such great parents, as he knew some of his friends at school didn't have good home lives; Baron's father was gone nearly all the time, and Boomer's dad was in the military, helping to whip new marine recruits into shape.

"Now," his mother continued, "have you asked Rebecca yet?"

"Well…no," said Steven, "I wanted to talk to you first. I wanted to ask her earlier this week, but she hasn't been at school and I can't get anybody to answer the phone or come to the door when I knock. I hope they didn't do something to her."

"They? Who do you mean?"

"You know, Dr. Zeus and the higher ups. He threatened to kick her out of school and…"

"I took care of Zeus," said Samuel with a hard look in his eye, "all I had to do was make a couple of phone calls and the matter was settled. I won't stand by and let that pompous jackass manipulate people like that, especially a young girl."

"Thanks Dad," said Steven, "that really means a lot. But I'd still like to know what's going on with Rebecca."

"I can have somebody check with her father…he's on security where her father works. Says he seems like a nice guy…little on the quiet side…"

"Samuel," said Sylvia, "did you have this "somebody" check up on Rebecca's father when Steven first started seeing her?"

Samuel realized he had let something slip that his wife was not going to let him wiggle off the hook for. He blustered and tried to change the subject, but it was no good.

"Alright," he admitted, "I asked around about her dad, okay? He does a lot of the secret super science stuff and I just wanted to make sure he wasn't…you know…"

"What, a "mad" scientist?"

"Well…yes. Its one thing for her mother to have been a…you know…sidekick, but some weird egghead father on top of that…"

"What's wrong with her mom," asked Steven, "so she used to be a sidekick. Sidekicks are important."

"Son," said Samuel, "in time you'll learn that sidekicks are…useful, but not all that important."

"Suppose Rebecca was a sidekick and we still loved each other? Would you have a problem with that?" Steven's temper was starting to flare at what his father had said.

"Well," said Samuel, totally clueless about what was going on, "she's NOT a sidekick, thank goodness, but…"

"You wouldn't let me see her, would you?"

"Now Steven, there's no need to get all steamed about something that won't happen."

"Samuel," said Sylvia as calmly as she could as she saw Steven's anger building, "just shut up."

"Now Sylvia," said Samuel, "it's time the boy learned how things REALLY work in the world. How sidekicks are usually only good for diversions and drawing fire while the heroes do all the REAL work…"

"And if Rebecca was a sidekick I couldn't see her?" Steven asked again.

"Of course not," said Samuel, walking right into it, "no son of mine will be seen out with a sidekick, not when he can do a LOT better."

Steven stood up from the table, looking down on his father like he was something totally alien to him now.

"And suppose I was a sidekick? What if I hadn't powered up before the school year started? I would have been put in sidekick class…what then?"

"Steven," said Samuel, "don't even JOKE about that. My son a sidekick? The very idea…"

Steven just turned around and walked out of the kitchen, leaving his father to wonder what had just happened, and his mother shaking her head in dismay.

Within an hour Steven had leapt back to Rebecca's house and was on the front step ringing the doorbell constantly. Why wasn't anyone answering?

"There's nobody home," said a voice to the side, and Steven turned to see an elderly man in the yard of the house next door. He had been raking leaves, and the fact a huge young man had been standing there ringing the doorbell of his neighbor's house for over twenty minutes finally made him speak up.

"Do you know when they'll be back?"

"Can't say for sure," the old man said as he leaned on his rake, "come to think of it I haven't seen any of them for a couple of days…no lights on at night and you may notice the newspapers ain't been picked up."

Steven looked down and chided himself that he hadn't noticed the small pile of papers he had nearly been standing on. He picked them up and saw that the Sunday paper was at the bottom of the pile. That meant that no one had been home for nearly the entire week…about as long as it had been since the last time he saw Rebecca.

Something was wrong. What if his dad had been wrong? What if he'd only been told that everything concerning Zeus and his threat was just a lie so that they could do whatever it was they planned, and his dad would be none the wiser until it was too late?

Steven's mind was racing with all kinds of doubts and worries, including the sudden dread that maybe Harlan Quinn may have done something to harm Rebecca and her parents for her having taken his power from him. If that little freak had done something to her, there was nowhere on earth he could hide.

"It may have something to do with the ambulance that was here about that time. I'd have never known it was there if I hadn't looked out the window and saw it. The lights were flashing but there hadn't been any siren…strange too."

"What was strange?"

"I went outside to see what had happened, and by the time I did it had vanished…wasn't on the street anywhere. Almost like it flew off or something."

Ambulance? That meant…but disappearing like that? Steve was frightened for a moment, and then he remembered that there was a special paramedic unit that took care of supers if they fell ill or were badly injured after a fight. Could that ambulance have been them? Were they able to fly like the busses that took the students to Sky High? Why was it here to begin with…who did it take and where?

Steve thanked the man and raced off to get to a payphone and call home. Luckily his mother answered and he quickly told her what the neighbor had seen.

"If it was the Supers Emergency Unit," she said, "they would have gone to the sub-level beneath Maxville General. They take care of all the supers and those related to them…it was where you and Theodore were born."

Once he got the directions how to get there and where he had to go and what to say to be allowed access to the level, Steven took off like a shot, leaping to the fullest of his power. He didn't care if anyone saw him now. Nothing mattered except getting to the hospital and finding out what was going on.

He arrived there in a few minutes, and there he followed his mother's directions to the letter. His eyes and fingerprints were scanned to match those on the records at Sky High, and then he was allowed access to the ultra sophisticated Supers Emergency Unit. He was amazed at everything…it was like walking into a science fiction movie far beyond anything he could even imagine. But he quickly shook off his sense of awe and hurried to the front desk.

"Can you tell me where I can find Rebecca Crane? She was admitted a couple of days ago…and…what's wrong with her?"

"I'm sorry," said the nurse, "only family is allowed in to see her right now."

"I'm…" Steven knew he had only one way in. He hated to lie, but it wasn't really a lie. He never told his parents he wasn't going to ask Rebecca.

"I'm Steven Stronghold…I'm her fiancé."

The nurse was surprised by who the boy revealed himself to be and his connection to the patient. She knew that he had to be stretching the truth, but there was something about him; the look in his eyes and the worry on his face told her that it would be better to just go along with it.

"She was admitted when she collapsed suddenly the other evening. Though she was conscious there was no response to any physical stimuli at all. It was as if she couldn't feel anything."

Steven felt his heart chill at the news. She was numb? But that would mean that she had…

"Her room is down the hall," continued the nurse, "room 009 on the left hand side. You can't miss it."

"Thank you," said Steven, and he resisted the urge to run down the corridor to get to the room. In a minute he was there, and he stopped to catch his breath and try to compose himself. He had nearly lost control when the nurse told him what was wrong, but he fought back the panic and steadied himself. He quietly opened the door and stepped in.

There she was.

If he had thought she looked frail and vulnerable when he first saw her all alone in the cafeteria at school, it was nothing compared to what he saw now.

She was lying in the hospital bed, wearing one of the thin gowns and had the covers pulled up to her neck. Her breathing seemed shallow, yet labored somehow; at least she was able to breathe on her own. Her hair was draped limply across the thin pillow looking like a black halo around her pale face. She was still connected to a heart monitor, which beeped slowly.

Steven swallowed hard at what he saw. Tears were already forming in the corners of his eyes, but he fought them back as he entered the room as quietly as he could. He had to be strong. He always had to be strong. He approached her bed and stood beside it, every fiber of his being aching to reach out and take her in his arms, to hold her and protect her and love her as he had been longing to do ever since he first laid eyes on her. At that moment he didn't care what his parents thought…he would marry Rebecca the moment she was better, sooner even.

As if sensing his presence, her eyes slowly opened, and she looked up and smiled weakly at him.

"Steven," she said in her familiar whisper voice, "what are you doing here? I didn't want you to see me like this."

"Why?" he asked as he gently touched her face with his fingers, feeling her cool skin, "You're just as beautiful as ever."

"Liar," she smiled again.

"A Stronghold NEVER lies," he said solemnly.

They both remained silent for several minutes, the only sound in the room being the steady beep of the heart monitor. No words needed to be said.

"Why?" he finally asked.

"Why what?"

"Why did you…why did you keep the numbness? It was MY burden to bear…not yours."

"Because you were in great pain," she answered, "you didn't feel it physically, but your heart and soul were in agony. I could see it in your eyes and hear it in your voice even before you asked me to take your powers away."

"You were going to do it the entire time, weren't you?"

"How could I be called a hero and not help the one I love?"

"Give it back. Let me shoulder it again."

"No."

"Silence, please…"

"No."

"Rebecca…"

"Steven, enough," she said with a sudden energy he didn't think her capable of in her condition. "The doctors say that I'm recovering nicely. It was just a shock to my system to absorb and hold the side effects as I gave you back your strength and invulnerability. My body is…adjusting to it. In a few days I'll be able to go home."

"No," he said, "I can't let you do this. I know what it's like to not feel anything…it's not for someone like you. You need to feel the sun on your skin…the pages of a book between your fingers…grass under your bare feet. I'm just the big dummy who's supposed to go out and punch and break things…it doesn't matter if I don't feel anything…it'll probably make it easier."

"It matters to me," she said, "you're more than what you think, Steven Stronghold. You're more than just a big lump of muscle to go out and beat on villains and monsters…you're a good and kind young man who's being forced to grow up faster and shoulder responsibilities sooner than anyone your age should ever have to. Everybody thinks you're destined for greatness and they're right, but not in the way a lot of them think. You are great because of your strongest muscle…your heart. Follow it always no matter what."

"I already did that," he smiled, "that's what led me to you."

He then bent down and kissed her gently on her lips. He could feel their softness against his own…the slight breath on his cheek…and could hold back the tears no longer.

"Please," he whispered softly to her, "give it back."

"No," she returned without blinking as she slowly reached up and wiped away the tears from his cheek, "this is far bigger than me. Your destiny is one of greatness…to be a champion to all those out there in the days ahead. They're going to need them too."

"What do you mean?"

"I…I've heard things around the school the past few weeks. Just because I don't talk all the time a lot of people think I'm deaf too, so they just ignore me. But there's nothing wrong with my hearing…nothing at all."

"What have you heard?"

"Whispers. Rumors. It seems there's quite a bit of unrest lurking amongst the less popular of the students."

Steven didn't know what to think. Unrest amongst the students…but they were the future heroes of the world…what could THEY have to be upset about? How many of the normal kids their own age would love to have powers and be able to attend a great place like Sky High? Still, if there could be demonstrations on college campuses, it was only a matter of time before high schools would see their share of trouble as well.

But that wasn't important now. All that was important was for Rebecca to get better…and to hell with the rest of the world.

"You need to rest," he said as he leaned over and again kissed her, "I'll be back every day until you can go home…then I'll come there too."

"Don't ignore your classes," said Rebecca, "just keep going to school. I'll be home by the weekend and you can come visit me then."

"Okay," said Steven, though he didn't want to do what she asked, "but I'll call and check up on you. The second you're ready to go home, I want to be there."

She smiled at what he said, and that puzzled him.

"What?"

"All those muscles," she smiled, "and you're soft as a marshmallow."

"That's me," he said with a shrug of his wide shoulders, "the amazing marshmallow boy…tough on the outside, soft on the inside."

"Don't ever change," she said.

With one last gentle squeeze of her hand he left the room, looking back at her as she gave him a tiny wave. He then left the room and dropped his brave façade to lean back against the wall and try to calm down.

"Mr. Stronghold, what are YOU doing here?"

Steven jumped, and saw Dr. Zeus confronting him. This was the last thing he needed right now.

"I'm here…seeing someone," Steven replied.

"Miss Crane, doubtlessly," said Dr. Zeus with his thick arms folded across his broad chest. Even in his expensive suit there was no mistaking the physical power the man had.

"Yes," said Steven, seeing no reason to cover things up, "I just found out she was here or I'd have come sooner. I was going to pick up her homework at school tomorrow too."

"Well, you need not bother," said Zeus, his entire demeanor one of sheer business, "as it won't matter as of today."

"What do you mean?"

"If you need to know," said Zeus, "I've come to tell Miss Crane that she is hereby expelled from Sky High for her flagrant disregard of not using her powers. This last incident involving you of all people has enabled me to convince the board that I was right to begin with."

"But I ASKED her to do it…and my powers are back just fine. She's even in here because it's MY fault…she took on the numbness I was suffering from and she won't give it back. She's a real hero…you can't just…"

"I CAN and I HAVE," said Zeus, getting angrier by the second. "You crying to your father may have saved her for a while, but this was the final straw. Now not even he can keep her in my school, and if I had my way I'd be rid of you too. You Strongholds are all alike…arrogant, self-righteous, and thinking the world owes you everything."

Steven was stunned by what he was hearing. He had never had any problems with Dr. Zeus, but apparently he had a LOT of problems with Steven and his parents.

"Please," said Steven, "don't do this. Kick me out if you want, but Rebecca deserves so much better. She doesn't deserve this."

"I will decide who deserves what Stronghold," sneered Zeus, "it's time ALL you little brats started learning there is an order to things…and that rules WILL be strictly enforced."

He then got in Steven's face as he hissed, "and there's NOTHING your miserable father can do about it."

That's when it happened.

Steven Stronghold finally snapped.

To Be Continued