5: The New Girl

Jason headed to his last class, gym, in silence. Everyone around him was talking about the Homecoming Dance. Even Gray was excited but that was because by some miracle he had secured a date with Penny Rogers. His best friend had an extra spring in his step since yesterday. Jason was genuinely happy for Gray but he wasn't sure if Gray knew that. Jason's sullen mood had definitely prompted some probing questions from Gray but he was too prideful to admit what was really the source of the problem. What really bothered Jason was that as much as he wanted to go to the dance, he didn't have anyone to go with. He knew it was mostly his fault but he couldn't help it. Even though there were tons of girls to ask out, none of them seemed to stand out to him. He didn't feel it would be appropriate to ask a girl out for the sole purpose of getting to the dance.

The second he was in the locker room, Gray attacked him again. "Jase, you've been scowling all day. I know I've already asked but I'm not going to give up until you tell me what's going on."

Jason pulled on his gym uniform and then sighed. "I don't have a date to the dance," he muttered so quietly that Gray almost had to guess what he'd just said.

"Then ask someone."

"It's not that simple."

"Yeah it is," Gray said testily. "'Hi, I'm Jason. Do you want to go to Homecoming with me?'"

Jason frowned. "Unlike some people, the girls that I choose to ask are those that I actually have feelings for."

Gray only grinned at the accusation. "Come on, Jason, you can't tell me that there's not a single girl in this school who has caught your eye."

Jason gave him a look. Gray actually took a step back. It was the same look Superman gave his enemies when he was done negotiating. From that look, the conversation was clearly closed. Following Jason outside where the class was assembling, Gray decided to stick with safe comments about teachers and homework assignments. Jason seemed to mellow out as he listened to his friend make fun of their history teacher.

By the time they made it to the football stadium where the track ran around the outside of the field, Coach Green had already revealed that they would all be running on the track for the coming week to build up stamina. The girls had been assigned to run first and were already in the middle of their first go around. Jason and Gray joined the other boys who were relaxing around the bleachers, waiting for their turn.

"Hey, Gray, have you seen the new girl?" Thomas Adkins, the star quarterback for the school's team, asked.

"No," Gray answered, leaning leisurely against a set of bleachers. "Which one is she?"

"There," Thomas pointed.

Jason followed his finger which was pointing to a blond chick that seemed to be completely at ease running at a decent pace on the opposite side of the field from where the boys were gathered. Her long locks streaked behind her like some kind of cape and even from here Jason could tell she had a great figure.

Gray whistled. "Wow, where did she come from?"

"Turns out she just moved to Metropolis," Cary Jean, the editor of the school paper, answered. He tended to know the ins and outs of every bit of news in the school. If you ever needed to know what was going on, a conversation with Cary was guaranteed to bring you up to speed. Unfortunately, he also was the number one source to go to if you wanted to start a rumor, which Jason was always the victim of; he was the jocks number one punching bag. Gray usually kept the football players in check but the jocks had figured out how to get him out of the way; send a girl in Gray's path and they were home free to knock Jason into next week.

"Did her parents get a new job or something?" Jason asked. The football players gave him dirty looks that obviously meant to say: don't even try to make a move on the new girl. They had little to worry about. There was no way Jason was dumb enough to get in their way when they were on the prowl.

"Actually the rumor is that she's staying with her aunt and uncle while her parents are traveling around to find a place to live," Cary said, unaware of the tension between Jason and the jocks. "I heard she's from a place in Kansas. Callville?"

"Smallville?" Jason suggested.

"Yeah, that's it," Cary said. "You heard of it?"

"Um, I think it's famous for a meteor crash that happened over thirty years ago," Jason hedged.

The jocks rolled their eyes. "Of course the only reason Kent would know about the place is because its involved with space," Thomas teased. "Science nerd." Several of his friends laughed stupidly behind him.

Jason could feel a punch bag moment coming on but just then the girls ran past, temporarily distracting the jocks; spandex shorts were always a welcome diversion. The girl from Smallville ran past, seeming at complete ease. She hadn't even broken into a sweat. Instead she had a cheerful smile on her face listening to a girl with short brown hair who was gasping for breath with every step she took.

Jason's super hearing may not be as strong as his dad's but he strained just enough to be able to pick up their conversation.

"I can't...believe...you're not out of breath," the brown haired girl muttered.

"I guess running isn't that hard for me," the Smallville girl answered. "You have to walk around a lot where I come from."

"Now I'm envious...wish...I'd grown up on a farm...like you, Thora."

"Come on, Helen, I think that growing up in the city is a good thing."

Helen laughed but it turned into a cough. "Just wait until you've been here for a while," she gasped.

"I don't know...so far I..."

Thora's voice went out of Jason's range. He stared after her, watching her figure sway gracefully back and forth while her hair danced on the wind. He'd been able to get a good look at her face when she ran past and found that it was incredibly appealing. Thora's eyes were a bluish hue, shaped like large almonds. Her nose came to a slight point and her lips were fuller on the bottom than the top, a soft sunset pink. And then there was her name. It was so exotic. Jason had never heard anything like it before. As he stared after her, he knew from the moment she passed that there was no way he could ever talk to her. She was the typical expectation for the football players. Even her hair was the desirable color! And when he was finally able to look away from her, it was unmistakable to see the hunger on Thomas's face.

Jason felt his stomach drop. Yep, his chances were zero to none.

"Alright boys, you're up!" Coach Green shouted.

Jason tried to avoid the smug look on Gray's face. His best friend knew him too well. He'd seen the way Jason had stared at the new girl. If anything, Gray would do all he could to spur Jason forward; somebody had to push him. If he didn't act, Thomas or one of the other idiots on the football team was going to snag her. Silently deciding on what flirting tactics he could advise, Gray ran alongside his best friend with a smile.

o0o0o

Thora joined the rest of the girls on the bleachers. All of them were completely winded besides her. Thora found it strange that the ten laps around the track hadn't even been a challenge for her. Trying not to make a big deal out of it, she turned her attention to the boys who were running around the football field. As she watched, one black haired boy immediately caught her attention. He was tall and slender but from the way he was built Thora could somehow tell that there was more to him than met the eye. His clothes were obviously a size too big, hinting that he was trying to hide himself. Despite that, she could see he had a very nice jaw line.

"Who's that?" she asked casually, pointing to the boy.

Helen looked up and saw where she was pointing. "Oh, that's Dick Grayson," she said with a small giggle. "He's cute isn't he? He's also the biggest playboy in the school."

Thora's eyebrow's threaded together. "He doesn't look like a playboy."

"Are you kidding? Look at the way he's dressed! That muscle shirt is an obvious indication that he's plainly inviting the first girl to approach to rip it off."

Thora then noticed the boy running next to the one she had her eyes on. He had on a red muscle shirt that indicated what Helen said. "I wasn't pointing to him," Thora said.

"You weren't?" Helen asked, confused.

"No. I was pointing to the guy next to him. The one in the slightly baggy clothes."

Helen actually started laughing. "You're kidding, right? You honestly weren't checking out Jason Kent, were you?"

"Why do you say his name like he's something terrible?" Thora asked, feeling the need to defend him.

Helen looked over at the cheerleaders and lowered her voice. "Jason Kent is on the black list."

Thora raised an eyebrow. "Meaning?"

"The jocks hate him," Helen elaborated. "He's one of the least popular kids in school. Everyone stays away from him, except for Gray. If you ask me, I think he keeps him around for comic relief."

Thora raised an eyebrow. "That's not a very nice thing to say, Helen."

Helen shrugged. "I'm just trying to stay neutral. I get along with everyone for the most part. If I started hanging out with Jason Kent, I'd be an automatic outcast. Trust me, Thora; don't get close to him if you're trying to fit in. And believe me, since you're the new girl, everyone has their eye on you. Hanging out with the most unpopular kid in school won't do you any favors."

"If he's so unpopular then why does Dick Grayson, whom you say is popular, hang around him?"

Helen shrugged. "Like I said, maybe for the comic relief."

"What do you mean by that?"

"See for yourself," Helen said, pointing.

Thora turned back to see Jason running around the track in last place. Several of the other boys who had already finished their run laughed as he passed them, throwing things at him. All of a sudden Jason tripped and fell, toppling end over end. Laughter erupted all over the field. Jason clumsily got to his feet and put his glasses back on. Thora felt a surge of anger towards all the kids who'd laughed at him. Anyone could have tripped like that. But no sooner had she thought this, Jason stumbled, nearly losing his balance again. Had he hurt himself in that fall?

"And that's Jason Kent, through and through," Helen said, as if stating the obvious.

"I still don't get what you mean," Thora said.

"He's the clumsiest person you'll ever meet," Helen explained. "He trips over his own two feet more than any other person I've ever met. It's common to find him locked in the boys' bathroom. He's constantly walking into doors and stumbling over trashcans. And he's notorious for being found inside of his locker at the end of the day."

"He locks himself in his own locker?" Thora asked, dubious.

"No that last one is the football players trademark," Helen sighed. "I guess you could say that when Gray's not looking, Jason Kent is the football team's number one punching bag."

"Who's Gray?"

"Oh, Dick Grayson goes by Gray."

"Oh."

Thora turned to look at Jason again. He'd finished his last lap and looked completely winded, leaning over to breathe. Gray had been moving towards him but then one of the cheerleaders caught his attention and dragged him back to the bleachers. Seeing Gray distracted, the jocks moved in like wolves. Thora immediately started looking around for Coach Green but the teacher seemed to have disappeared.

"Where's the coach?" Thora asked.

Helen was already moving towards the girl's locker room. "No idea," she replied. "School's out so he might be in his office. Why?"

Thora pointed across the field to where the jocks were surrounding Jason. Helen grimaced. "Leave it, Thora. Come on."

Thora looked at Helen then looked at Jason and made a decision. Who cared about popularity? Beating up someone for fun wasn't something Thora could tolerate. It was filled with dishonor and a true warrior wouldn't be caught doing such a cowardly act. To this last thought, Thora's head suddenly pounded uncomfortably in her skull. Dishonor? Warrior? Where had that come from? Shaking her head, she looked back to the small gathering of boys. "I'll see you later," she said, moving towards them.

Helen sighed. "Your funeral."

Thora watched her go and felt a certain amount of disappointment. She liked Helen but her new friend didn't seem to have a backbone. Dismissing her choice in friends, Thora moved around the bleachers when someone caught her arm. Twisting her around painfully, a pair of strong arms wrapped around her waist.

"Hey beautiful," a husky voice said in her ear.

Thora pulled away just enough to see some redheaded jock had dragged her underneath the bleachers. He had a square face with a long pointed nose and sapphire eyes. In other circumstances Thora might have found him attractive but from the way his hands were flying up her stomach, such thoughts drowned out in anger.

"GET OFF ME!" She shouted, struggling.

The boy silenced her by thrusting his mouth over hers, his tongue invading her personal space. His hands snaked around her waist and pulled her into him before traveling down past her hips. That was the last straw. With incredible speed, Thora ripped the boy's hands off her. Furious, she placed both hands on the boy's chest and shoved him away from her with all her might. An obnoxious crack rent the air as the boy went flying. His body crashed through two support beams before slamming into a third where his limp form crumbled into the dirt.

Thora's eyes widened in terror. Not knowing what else to do, she ran.

o0o0o

Jason was in the middle of a punch session with George Sanders when his sensitive hearing picked up what sounded like the groans of support beams being severed. Glancing to the bleachers, a feeling of dread overcame him. What if someone was under there and the bleachers fell? He had to check. But how? He was being held by two jocks while a third was punching him repeatedly in the jaw. The blows would never draw blood but Jason was sure he would have a bruise. All of a sudden someone's fist connected with the side of George's head.

"What the heck do you think you're doing?" Gray roared, pulling his fist back to punch a disoriented George right under the chin. The jock went flying. Seeing this as a golden opportunity, Jason ran away as fast as he could towards the bleachers.

Rushing around to the stands, he skidded to a halt in horror. Lying in the dirt, pale as winter, was Thomas Adkins. It looked as if he'd been thrown mercilessly through two support beams before slamming into a third. Jason broke his shock and ran to Thomas as fast as he could go without hitting super speed. "This is bad," he muttered, looking over the boy and seeing bruises already forming all over his body. "Bad, bad, bad, bad!" He knew that if Thomas didn't get to a hospital immediately, he wasn't going to make it.

Cupping his hands to his mouth, Jason hollered with all his might, "SOMEBODY! HELP!" He knew his dad would come. He had to!

In seconds, Superman was there. "What happened?" he demanded, surveying the scene.

"Dad, please, he needs to get to the hospital!"

Without another word, Superman lifted Thomas and blasted into the air, hitting supersonic twenty feet from the ground. Jason sent up a silent plea that his dad would make it to the hospital in time. Shaking, Jason looked around, surveying the scene. What had happened here? Why had Thomas been behind the bleachers in the first place? Not wanting to get caught at the scene of the crime, Jason hightailed it back to the field where he found Gray chasing off the jocks, threatening to flay them alive if he ever caught them punching Jason again.

"Dude, where did you go?" Gray asked angrily.

"We need to get out of here," Jason said.

"Why? Jason, what's wrong?" Gray asked, immediately picking up the panic in his friend's tone.

"Not here," Jason muttered before rushing off the field as fast as he could, his senses on high alert. His eyes darted everywhere, picking out even the slightest movement, but it was hard to find anything suspicious when the entire student population was quickly filtering out of the school heading for home.

Jason waited until he and Gray were the last ones in the boys locker room before telling him what he'd found. Gray listened with rapt attention. "What do you think it was?" he asked.

"I have no idea," Jason muttered. "Your guess is as good as mine. All I know is that if I hadn't called for my dad when I did, Thomas would probably be a corpse."

Gray shuddered. "You realize that this is going to have to be reported, right? It's a crime scene Jason and you were the one who found it! You realize this could be really bad, right?"

"I know," Jason snapped. "But what was I supposed to do? Let him die?"

"Of course not," Gray retorted. "But you can't just simply walk off campus and not report it."

"I know!"

Just then, the door leading out to the football field opened and Superman came inside. Jason opened his mouth to speak but Superman shook his head. Walking passed him, he moved towards Coach Green's office. The coach nearly had a heart attack when he saw who was standing in the doorway.

"Excuse me," Superman said, "but could I talk with you and the principal out on the football field? There's been an accident."

"Oh my gosh, is everything alright?" Coach Green asked, jumping out of his seat.

"It will be. I've already called the Police. They'll be here in less than five minutes."

Coach Green picked up the phone and in minutes Principal Henry came bursting through the doors. Catching Superman standing in the boys' locker room caused him to pause but then he was all business. "What happened, Superman?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Superman responded as he headed out to the football field. With a look at Jason, Superman plainly was telling him to follow. A crowd had gathered the second Superman was spotted strolling across the field. Police officers had materialized on the scene and were roping off the area where Jason had found Thomas twenty minutes ago.

"Twenty minutes ago I had just finished dealing with a bank robbery when I heard a cry for help," Superman explained to the authorities and Principal Henry. Superman gestured for Jason to step forward. "This young man had been the one to sound the alarm and when I arrived he told me to take a fellow student to the hospital."

Officer Hampton turned to Jason. "What happened?" he asked.

"I came around the stands and saw this exactly as you see it except Thomas was lying over there in the dirt," he said, pointing the third support beam which was cracked.

"Did you see anyone?" Superman asked.

Jason shook his head. "No."

Superman seemed to nod in approval before turning back to the adults to describe Thomas's injuries as well as what transpired when he took him to the hospital. "He's going to recover but he's in the ICU as we speak. I'm unclear as to who would do such a thing to a young man but I trust there will be further investigation."

The police officers nodded. "We'll look into it, Superman."

"Thank you," the Man of Steel said before turning to Jason. "I'm glad you were able to find that young man when you did. If you hadn't called for help, he wouldn't have made it."

"I only did what anyone else would do," Jason responded.

Superman nodded before taking off, leaving the police to finish up the crime scene. Jason held back a sigh. Everyone was looking at him and the whispers were already flying. Some were calling him a hero, others suspected that he might have had something to do with the attack, and the rest were marveling over how close they'd been to Superman. Slipping into the dispersing crowd, Jason caught sight of Gray and headed in his direction.

"I need to get to the Daily Planet," Jason sighed.

"I was just going to ask if you needed a ride," Gray said, nodding. "I expect you're going to be doing a debriefing?"

Jason shrugged his shoulders. "Welcome to my life."

Gray cracked a smile and the two made their way to his car.

o0o0o

Thora ran as fast as she could, her arms wrapped protectively around her. Tears streamed down her cheeks in full force. Thankfully nobody seemed to be paying attention to her. She'd left her regular clothes and shoulder bag in her locker in the girls' locker room but she had no intention of going back there; not when there was a possibility that creep had friends lying in wait to finish what he started.

True to his word, Richard's car was waiting right where he'd dropped her off hours before. Relief flooded through Thora at the sight of Richard. Yanking the door open, she flew inside and latched onto him.

"Wow, Thora, what happened?" Richard asked, pulling away from her. Thora shivered uncontrollably, her arms held protectively around her body. Richard immediately thought the worst. Seeing the bruises already forming on her arms, anger temporarily turned his vision red. Grabbing Thora by the shoulders, he looked into the girl's eyes. "Thora," he said sternly, "What happened?"

Choking back sobs, Thora cried, "Some guy grabbed me and pulled me under the bleachers. H-He started to touch me and when I tried to break free, he kissed me and...and..."

Richard pulled her close as the girl broke down in hysterics. He couldn't believe what he'd just heard. It was her first day of school in Metropolis and some idiot had tried to seduce her. She'll never go to school again after this, Richard thought to himself. He stroked Thora's hair as she continued to sob into his shoulder, her body shaking as if it was going to shatter any second.

"Shhhh," he soothed. "It's going to be okay. You'll be alright."

For the next twenty minutes Richard held Thora as she cried. After awhile, her hysterical sobs lessened to sniffles and her eyes were finally free from falling tears. Her grip didn't lessen any, however. It was as if Richard was a life preserver and even if the storm had died, Thora was still terrified to let go. Richard kissed her hair gently and continued to rub her back. Here, with him, Thora felt safe.

"Don't make me go back," she whimpered.

"No, of course not," Richard muttered, holding her tight. "Hey, I've got an idea. Why don't we pick up Lana, go home, and order a pizza? Sound good?"

Thora nodded. She allowed herself to slip out of Richard's protective arms but she wouldn't let go of his hand. She felt like she might shatter completely if she did. Her mind was spinning out of control. She hadn't been able to tell Richard the most terrifying part of the experience, of how she'd thrown the boy like he was a ragdoll and sent him crashing through solid columns of cement. For all she knew, she could have killed him! She had no idea that she would throw him so far or so hard when she'd tossed him away from her. She'd only been thinking about getting away but even she knew that what she'd done wasn't normal. And if the boy was dead...how could she ever live with herself? Mortified, spiraling into darkness, Thora had run to one of the few individuals she felt could keep her from losing her mind. Her grip on Richard seemed to be the only thing keeping her from slipping into the darkness that wanted so desperately to consume her.

Richard picked Lana up and filled her in with all the details he could. Lana immediately wrapped her arms around Thora from the backseat and didn't let go of her all the way home. When they arrived at the house, Lana got out, opened Thora's door, and enveloped the girl in a hug. It was only then that Thora let go of Richard's hand. Pulling away from the hug but keeping their fingers interlocked, Lana led Thora into the house while Richard ordered a couple of pizzas. The three of them spent the evening in silence. Richard managed to get Thora to eat a couple slices of pizza before the poor girl fell asleep in Lana's arms.

"She's not going back," Lana whispered fiercely.

Richard agreed. "I'll take off work tomorrow as well. I don't think it wise to leave her home alone."

Lana nodded. Richard got up and left the room to call Perry to let him know why he wouldn't be coming into the office tomorrow. Even from the living room Lana could hear Perry's colorful language.

"She's fine, uncle," Richard assured. "No, we're not going to send her back to school. Yes, I'm going to stay with her all day tomorrow. What? Fine, bring dinner tomorrow. Yeah, I think she'll like that. Thanks. Okay, bye."

Richard sighed as he came back into the room. Lana looked at him with a small smile. "Your uncle is a good man."

Richard smiled tiredly. "Yeah, he is. He's going to bring dinner tomorrow."

"I'm sure Thora will like that," Lana muttered, looking down at the girl in her arms. She noticed the bruises and had to quell the anger threatening to boil her blood. "Where on earth was the coach?" she growled. "This never would have happened under adult supervision."

"I'll call the school and report it," Richard said as he turned on the news.

"Apparently the accident occurred just before school ended," the reporter was saying, causing Richard to pause. Lana turned her attention to the big screen as well. The camera was showing what looked to be an accident under the bleachers of Metropolis High School. "Thomas Adkins, star quarterback for the Metropolis High football team, was found unconscious by a fellow student, having suffered severe injuries. When found, the student cried for help and Superman flew to the scene, taking Thomas to Met General in the nick of time. Police are unsure what could have caused Thomas to break through two cement support beams but have urged the students and staff of Metropolis High to be on their guard. Thomas left the ICU two hours ago and is now recovering in the hospital."

Richard and Lana looked at each other with raised eyebrows. The wreckage they saw on TV was shocking. Both of them had heard Thora say that a boy had dragged her under the bleachers and tried to seduce her and how she broke free before he could really do anything. Her story and the one from the news were suspiciously similar. But that left the question that neither of them wanted to ask. Had Thora done this? One shared look told them they both thought so. That could only mean one thing; Thora had super powers. How else could a boy fly fifty feet through two solid pillars of concrete?

"Don't call the school," Lana said fiercely.

"Right," Richard replied.