"Let me get this straight. You weren't listening earlier when I explained the reasoning, and you
are refusing to show your powers?"
"It's more complicated…"
His eyes hardened, clearly knowing she thought he was stupid. "Sidekick!" he yelled with his
powers, causing Layla to close her eyes and her hair to blow in the wind caused by the sound
waves.
"You!" he said, pointing to me. "You mentioned that not all powers are magical. Care to
demonstrate?"
I shrugged, before launching myself up the 4 foot gap, and sending my feet at his face as I
came out of the spring. He was knocked onto the floor. I then hit his arm, nearly breaking it, but
controlling myself before doing a spinning kick that stopped right before the side of his knee.
The room was silent. Had my foot connected, it would have shattered his knee. Although my
hand squeezing his jugular just enough that he was struggling to breath may have gotten my
point across better.
I let go and he bent over, gasping before saying. "You ever trained under Jetstream?"
"No. Self-taught. But thank you."
He nodded. "What about your magical powers? As much as that hurt, that wasn't what someone
with superstrength would have done."
I nodded my head back. "Well, it's hard to demonstrate, but I can see the future, or at least the
future five minutes from the current moment. I cannot read minds, but it sometimes comes out
that way, as I can see what someone would say in a future situation that would happen without
intervention. I can say that your wife will call you in approximately three minutes, that being two
after the bell sounds. Assuming nothing you do tips her off, she will ask you if you brought your
whistle and if you will be home in time to help with your son…" I lowered my voice. "The more
exact words would be 'your son's transformation.'"
His eyes widened. Then he whispered, something I had thought was impossible for someone
whose voice was magically enhanced to be loud. "How do you know about that?"
"As I told you," I spoke at a normal volume. "I heard your future conversation."
I noticed that the boy that was beside the fire boy had stiffened, clearly suspecting something
had been revealed when his father went stiff like that. As he would say when asking later, his
father had never stiffened up like that, except when 'Warren' (I assumed the fire boy),
discovered his secret."
I kept myself from turning my head towards the boy whose future flashed in front of my eyes.
The coach had been trying to talk to me, but I interrupted. "I'm sorry. I didn't catch any of that. I
was focused on the future. But I saw it five minutes earlier, so I can say I'm no snitch." He
snorted at that name, knowing it was throwing attention off of the conversation I had caught.
Making it seem like the whispered part was some wrongdoing the coach may have done that
wasn't all that serious, considering I wasn't going to tell.
"Sidekick."
"I expected that," I sighed. "But can I ask why?"
"You have a pretty awesome power, and great fighting ability, but this uncanny ability to see the
futures of anyone you're near will make you even more avoided than sidekicks. Whoever
becomes your partner will be a lucky person."
His voice had come softly as if from directly into my ear. I realized that he had directed the
sound to not reach anywhere but my ear, probably to prevent his son from hearing the
whispered words.
"Thank you." I knew that his son would have words and perhaps tensions over such a secret. I
was honored that he had been willing to keep my secret.
He clearly trusted me with his secret, and didn't want his son to stay away from me, as indicated
by not allowing the boy, who I had deduced by now was a werewolf, and not some other shifter.
How did I know? The fact that it was a secret and not lauded meant he was cursed with it, not
born, and therefore could't always control it, making most people see him as dangerous.
The bell had rung, and everyone, barring the werewolf, fireboy, and Layla had left.
I stepped down from the platform, ignoring the suspicious look that was sent my way by both
boys and grabbed Layla's hand, leading her from the platform, where she had been watching in
shock ever since I had thanked him for my placement.
"Come on, flower child."
She slapped me playfully, knowing that I had let it connect, as there was no way I wouldn't have
seen it coming and also that I was more than fast enough to stop her.
We walked off to the lunch room.
"Zach, don't fall for it," I said quietly when I caught up with him from behind.
He jumped. "Jeez, Wonder Woman! You could have killed me this time!"
The tables around us went silent. I glared at him. "Sorry, Wonder Woman. It wasn't your fault" he
muttered.
I softened, "Yes, it was." I hugged him, having no qualms with people knowing he was my best
friend. If they construed it to mean anything else, then Zach or I would set them straight.
We sat at a table. Surprisingly, Will chose the one next to Warren Peace. But I guess the poor
kid didn't notice everyone leaving the three tables near the boy empty. With the amount of
people here, they would probably fill up, but clearly they were avoiding those seats. All except
for wolf-boy. They sat down, discussing something seriously. I could hear their voices, they were
discussing me. I must have gotten close enough to the boy while grabbing my lunch to have
connected with him temporarily. He stared at the back of my head. He relaxed a bit, saying to
Warren that I wouldn't put my back to him if I knew his secret.
"I wouldn't be so sure," Warren replied. "Afterall, I turn my back to you."
"That's different."
"How?"
He opened and closed his mouth. There was no difference, except that they seemed to have
known each other a long time before coming to school.
Will's voice broke me out of my thoughts. "Am I crazy, or is that guy really looking at me?"