To Be a Hero | MLB

6: The Boy

Taking time for myself was not supposed to mean crying by myself on a park bench.

But, here I am, anyway.

I know how much that vase means to my mom, and I... I should have tried harder to protect it. I shouldn't have wasted my time talking to Jaxon, and...

I don't know why I blamed my brothers. This is all my fault.

A tear falls onto my leg, and I don't even bother wiping it away. I don't realize how loudly I'm sobbing until someone takes a seat next to me, and my sense of self-awareness comes flooding back. I glance up at the person and wipe at my tears.

"I'm so sorry, I..." Then my words catch in my throat, and my brain turns to putty as I find myself looking into the most brilliant set of green eyes I've ever seen.

The eyes belong to a boy—a boy my age!—with caramel-colored skin, curly dark hair, and light freckles patterning his nose and cheeks. His eyes practically radiate warmth, and the concern in his gaze makes me want to cry... again.

He might possibly be the most attractive boy in Paris.

"You do not need to apologize," he says in English with the most adorable French accent. "You seemed upset, and I only wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I... uh. Yeah." Well, I am now. But then I remember why I was crying in the first place, and the boy's freckles aren't even enough to distract me from my distress. I glance away to blink back my tears.

"Are you sure?"

I look back at him, considering lying and telling him I'm fine, but he looks like he honestly wants to know. And just telling him how I'm feeling can't hurt, right?

"No. I'm not. I—" But then his phone buzzes, and he apologizes, pulling it out of his pocket. Its screen lights up, and I can see a reporter with short, raspberry-colored hair speaking, while words below her flashed red.

AKUMA ALERT.

"We need to get somewhere safe," the boy says, and I notice people around us fleeing from the park.

"I don't understand. What's an akuma?" I ask as we stand and start toward the park's exit gate.

The boy smiles at me. "I'm assuming you're new to Paris." Then he offers his hand to me, and I take it. Together, we run toward the nearest building, which happens to be a bakery. We duck inside and ask the couple in charge if we can hide out there until everything is safe outside, and they agree, so we go to stand by the window. I'm about to ask what an akuma is again, but I'm distracted by a rumbling coming from outside.

Then, a band of pigeons swoops down from a rooftop with a man riding on their backs.

"What in the world..." I wonder, but the boy beside me just chuckles. He has a nice chuckle.

"It's just Mr. Pigeon again. He's harmless, so... we honestly could have stayed outside."

It's not long before the two "superheroes" Jaxon drew earlier show up, and all the pigeons flutter to the ground.

"They are Ladybug and Chat Noir," the boy tells me, and I squint to see them. Even from afar, I can see them fist bump before Ladybug throws something and flies away, and Chat Noir propels himself away with an extending pole. "They protect us from Hawk Moth's supervillains."

Even as he explains the superhero system, I just feel more and more lost. There are Lucky Charms and butterflies and magical jewels, and it's all just so hard to believe that I can't seem to keep up. I just nod along and stare at the boy, hoping it seems like I understand.

"You don't understand," he says suddenly, smiling. He has a really nice smile. "It's all right, maybe I can explain this further some other time."

I nod a little too quickly, already looking forward to seeing him again.