Power Anomaly
Stephen has been living in Odessa rather unnoticed for a few months now. He has also joined school during that time, where he quickly fit in with the 'freaks' as they were called by the popular kids.
But even in that group he didn't make any close friends yet, since he's still getting used to this dimension and getting over the fact that in all likelihood he won't see his family or any of the tomorrow people ever again.
One day he's taking a nap at the refinery, which he's been visiting ever since he's arrived in this dimension and gets woken out of his slumber by a thought he hears telepathically "why can't I just die?" the voice asks herself. Getting up and looking down from the building he was sleeping on he sees a blonde girl about 2 years younger than him and a dark-haired guy he recognizes his name is Zach.
The girl is wearing a cheerleading uniform, belonging to the same school he's going to.
'Hmm I wonder what they're doing out here and whose thoughts did I just read? I thought I was the only one going to this place other than the occasional rave.' Stephen thinks watching the girl run up the stairs, leading to a bridge about 70 feet of the ground.
"Camera ready?" the girl asks.
"Yeah almost, hold on. This is like 70-80 feet this is so unreal." Zach replies.
"OK, I'm good." The girl yells, having climbed over the railing and hanging on it.
"OK." Zach yells up and the girl lets go of the railing plummeting to the ground screaming.
"Crap." Stephen curses and tries to catch her with his telekinesis, but she's fallen down too far already for him to catch her.
Zach, still filming everything runs over to her panicking, until she gets up with one arm in a weird position until she pops it back in with a crunch. She then turns to the camera and says, "This is Claire Bennet, that was attempt number 6."
"Alright, I got it. But I think there is someone else up there." Zach tells her and looks up to where Stephen is peeking over the edge of the building he's on.
'Looks like there are people with powers here as well but that didn't look like any of the T's.' Stephen thinks, looking down at them.
"Hey Zach, how's it hanging." Stephen says jokingly and starts to make his way down to them.
"You know him? Who is that? Did you tell him to spy on us here?" Claire asks Zach suspiciously.
"What, no that's Stephen. He's the amnesiac kid that joined school a few month back. He often hangs around here, I thought you knew that." Zach replies.
"How should I know that, I didn't even know his name." Claire hisses quietly since Stephen has almost reached them.
"Hey Stephen, what're you doing here?" Zach asks him when Stephen reaches them.
"As usual, thinking about stuff, at least until I heard you guys and saw blondie regenerate inhumanly fast. By the way you have a few ribs sticking out." Stephen replies, pointing at the ribs sticking out of Claire's left side.
"Hey, my name's Claire not blondie." Claire replies annoyedly while she pushes in the two rips which pierced her skin.
"Alright, well nice to meet you. I'm guessing you want to keep what I just saw a secret?" Stephen asks.
"No, I want to be a freakshow. Now what do you want to keep quiet?" Claire replies sarcastically.
"Hey, calm down. I don't want anything." Stephen says feeling her fear.
"Hmpf, we'll see everybody wants something sooner or later." Claire replies, starting to walk and lead them back to town.
"Man she's got a temper, doesn't she?" Stephen says jokingly, turning to Zach.
"You don't know the half of it." Zach replies, and the two guys go after her, catching up in a few seconds.
"So, anyway I haven't introduced myself yet." Stephen starts to say, turning to Claire.
"Stephen, the amnesiac boy, Zach just told me about you." Claire says uninterested in striking up a conversation with him.
"amnesiac boy huh? Guess we'd make a pretty cool superhero team then, amnesiac boy and regeneration girl." Stephen replies laughing, causing Claire to lose her glare for a second and grin at the joke.
"You wish, as if I'd ever want a useless sidekick like you." Claire then says trying to make Stephen back off on the subject or stop talking to her at all if possible.
"So, why is princess being so mean?" Stephen taunts her.
"Leave me alone, I'm just depressed." Claire replies.
"What why? I mean other that I'm so grossed out I almost fudged myself, this is the single coolest thing that happened to this town in like a hundred years." Zach says looking over the video again.
"Not if nobody finds out it's not." Claire reminds him.
"Then why did you want me to tape it?" Zach asks confused.
"I have my reasons." Claire replies.
"It's not like you're not gonna be popular anymore." Zach says.
"Popular? Who said anything about being popular? My live as I know it is over OK? I've got the bishop game next week, sat's in October homecoming is in three weeks from today and I'm a freakshow." Claire says saddened.
"You're being a little dramatic don't you think?" Zach asks unlocking his bike.
"No, I don't think! I have busted like every bone in my body, stabbed myself in my chest. Rammed a two-foot steel rod in my neck and I don't have a scratch on me." Claire yells.
"Claire, I'm sure you'll figure it out eventually." Stephen tries to reassure her, knowing what being different is like first hand.
"Just give me the tape OK?" Claire says expectantly, and Zach gets out the tape, handing it to her.
Claire starts to leave and Zach offers "Hey, I can give you a ride on my handle bars if you want."
"Look, thanks OK. I'll talk to you in front of people at school tomorrow, promise." Claire says saddened and tired before walking off.
Stephen follows her asking "Hey, is it cool if I walk with you?"
"No not really." Claire replies annoyed, while thinking 'what does he want?'
Stephen hears her thought and decides that since he knows her secret she can know his too, not like she can actually prove his to others anyway.
'I already told you, I don't want anything other than to talk.' Stephen tells her telepathically.
"What the?" Claire asks looking at him shocked.
"What? Surprised you're not the only special one around princess?" Stephen asks smirking.
"Can you heal like me too?" Claire asks hopeful.
"No, but I've got other gifts." Stephen replies.
"great, still doesn't help me with my problem." Claire says disappointed that he can't help her.
"Hey, just because I don't heal doesn't mean getting used to being different was any easier than it's for you." Stephen tells her annoyed that she's so self-centered.
"I guess you have a point. So did you mean it when you said it get's easier?" Claire asks.
"Sure, once you get used to what makes you different you can actually enjoy it from time to time." Stephen replies.
"how am I gonna enjoy healing? I still feel the pain every time I hurt myself." Claire asks expectantly.
"I don't know are you into extreme sports? Point is, give it time. I'm sure you'll find an outlet making you glad you have your powers." Stephen tells her.
"I hope you're right, cuz if this is how I'll feel for the rest of my life my future looks pretty bleak." Claire says dejectedly.
Claire and Stephen then come across a trainwreck, which is still burning. the firemen are busy trying to extinguish the flames and Claire ducks under the barricade, running towards the fire.
"Claire, what are you doing?" Stephen asks following her to the burning wagon but waiting outside because of the heat coming from the flames.
"Claire, what is the point of this?" Stephen yells.
"Go away, I have to know if I can end this." Claire shouts back.
"Stop, this is not the way." Stephen tells her and teleports over to her, grabbing hold of her while holding back a falling beam telekinetically and then teleports them out of the wagon.
"What just happened?" Claire asks looking around confused.
'Like I said, I have a few gifts myself.' Stephen says telepathically while he's coughing because of the smoke he inhaled.
"there is still somebody in there." Claire says, looking into another wagon and runs in, getting the man out and bringing him to the firemen. One of the firemen puts out the fire burning on her clothes and sees that she has no burns. Claire, panics and runs away when the man's attention is on the man she pulled out of the fire.
Meanwhile Stephen saw all this and picks up Claire's bagpack which she threw down to help the guy in the burning wagon and teleports away, a bit down the road Claire has taken off to.
"So, still think I'd be a lame sidekick?" Stephen asks her smiling, while he hands her the bag and takes off his Jacket, putting it around her, since the fire has damaged her cheerleading clothes quite a bit.
"Guess not." Claire replies timidly.
"Do you think they'll recognize me?" Claire asks realizing the danger she put herself in.
"I don't know but if they do, just tell them you were with me, if your reputation allows that." Stephen replies.
"Thanks and I don't care about that. I just wish I could lead a normal live." Claire replies.
"Look, I know it's hard and will probably be for a while but like I told you, things will get better." Stephen tells her hugging her.
"Thank you. So what is your story? Do you really have amnesia?" Claire asks him.
"No, but it's a better story than the truth." Stephen answers.
"Which is?" Claire inquires.
"Alright, but never tell anyone about this OK? I'm not from this dimension. I stopped a madman from killing humanity by throwing him and me into a portal leading to Limbo, the place between death and life. I was able to get out of there but I now am stranded on this earth." Stephen explains sadly.
"So you have no one?" Claire asks.
"No. My family and the few friends I had are all still back in the other dimension, hopefully alive." Stephen says.
"I'm sorry, that has to be hard." Claire says.
"Yeah, well at least I have one new friend now." Stephen says cheering up a bit and putting his arm around Claire, leading her away from the wreckage.
"So what can you do?" Claire asks.
"Hmm let's see, I have telepathy, telekinesis, teleportation and time stopping and appearantly I can mix all of them but that takes a lot out of me right now." Stephen tells her.
"Wow, must be cool having some powers with actual use." Claire says enviously.
"Well not all of them are good all the time. For example I woke up to you thinking why can't I just die. Hearing things like this doesn't feel very good." Stephen says.
"I see, well anyway I better get home, or my parents are gonna freak." Claire says and tries to walk off.
"Wait, let me accompany you. You might need my services, or do you want your family to see you in that?" Stephen asks her pointing at her cheerleading outfit, which has bloodstains, dirt and scorch marks all over it.
"Alright, but don't think anything of it and you don't get to meet my parents." Claire warns him.
"You have my word." Stephen replies, and she leads them to her house, where Stephen uses his powers to open her window telepathically and teleport her in her room.
"Thanks." Claire whispers from her window before closing it.
'I hope he can be trusted. He'd make a great friend if he wasn't just pretending, that he's handsome is also a nice addition.' Claire thinks but Stephen overhears her.
'I think You're good looking yourself.' Stephen tells her telepathically, heading home while Claire curses herself that she forgot about his telepathy.
"Well that was an eventful day, but it's good to know that there is someone out there with gifts as well." Stephen says
later that day
during dinner Claire tells her mother and brother that she walked thorugh fire but her mother plays it off as a metaphor while her brother just thinks she's weird, making Claire think that talking to her family is useless and the only people who'll believe her are Zach and Stephen.