Scott - School Days

-4-

Dante had been out of the picture since back in January without as much as a letter or text. He was just... gone. And maybe that's what scared Scott the most. After all, he had just lost his parents and in the midst of that life altering event, he witnessed his best friend unveil his, for lack of a better term, superpowers only to vanish.

Apparently, Dante had been enrolled in a program which allowed him to take his courses with the assistance of a tutor, away from the school, but Scott never could figure out just where Dante was participating in those events. It certainly wasn't at the group home he was supposed to be staying at, Scott hadn't seen Dante there since the day he was given the tour by Miss Margaret. Dante had slowly transitioned into a mystery, a myth even and the absence of his best friend put another hole Scott's heart that slowly filled with anger. At this point in his life, Scott wasn't sure how much more loss he could actually withstand. But there, just outside the school walls, stood someone with similar mannerisms and a vague appearance that resembled the young man he considered his brother.

Could it really be you, Dante?

Scott struggled daily with the traumatic events he had been through. Still a teenager, he had seen more devastation and loss than others who were decades older than he. Living in Watts, he had seen his fair share of gang violence, been in multiple fights at school, and had seen firsthand the ascension of the beings which would later be classified as the Specials.

When he was younger, Scott's grandmother passed away. Obviously, such a loss was hard, but it was almost crippling for him. The state he was in at the time was particularly hard for Scott's mother. She did everything she could to comfort him and guide him out of the darkness he was in. However, no matter what she tried, she felt as though she fell short. That is, until she spoke to Scott about writing a letter to his grandmother. Her mother had passed down this very coping mechanism years ago when Scott's mother lost her best friend to a hit and run incident.

"But, nana's gone, momma. She's not gonna read any letters I write," Scott said.

"Sure, physically she's gone, but your grandmother will always be with you," Scott's mother said while she placed her hand on his chest. "In here. Nana's always in your heart, baby."

"Where would I even begin?" Scott asked.

"Getting started is easier than you're making it out to be, sweetheart. She loved spending time with you. That might be underestimating just how much she truly enjoyed being with you. She looked forward to every moment she had with you. She liked hearing about what you were interested in. She liked when you would tell her about what you were learning in school, who you were becoming friends with, and she even loved when you would talk to her about videogames." Scott's mom continued.

Scott giggled and his mother wrapped her arms tightly around him, picked him up, and sat him in her lap at the edge of the bed.

"Hey! Don't forget that she also liked hearing about how cool you think your dad is!" Scott's dad shouted from outside the bedroom.

"She loved hearing everything about her favorite boy. Just try it, I'm sure you'll see that it'll make you fee better," Scott's mother said as she gently laid him on his bed, and pulled the blankets up over him. "Tomorrow, that is. It's pretty late. I love you my handsome little man."

And the very next morning, he did just that. He went to his bookshelf, grabbed the notebook his grandmother had given him and started to write. This continued for several months and each time he signed the end of the letter he smiled, placed the notebook on his chest, and carefully put it back on the bookshelf.

It had been years since he had last written in that notebook, but he cracked it back open when Dante had stopped coming around. He knew Dante's secret abilities. He knew that his best friend was the reason he was still alive, but he did not know why his friend had abandoned him. He wrote a few letters to his friend that would most likely go unread by the target audience and the first of those letters was optimistic, but the final letters were shrouded in disappointment and disdain. Scott had a hard time coming to an understanding of how anyone could voluntarily leave him when they were the most needed.

Now, with a monster bearing down on him within shouting distance of the school, a person resembling his best friend was in his sight. Scott's understanding of Dante's powers was that he could fly, but the strength, resilience, and downright heroism were traits and abilities that must have developed in his time away.

The beast stared its opposition down then shifted his gaze toward the school and just as it did, the monster dug its claws into the ground and launched itself to the outer wall, just above the AV classroom window. From inside, they could hear its claws slamming into the concrete as it ascended the building. The quiet that was in the air was abruptly interrupted by the blood-curdling screams of students above him. Scott froze and was overcome by a feeling of helplessness. He wasn't like the person who confronted the beast. He was shaking, sweating, and paralyzed by fear.

I'm no hero.

Scott's focus changed from the ceiling to back outside of the school. The all-black clad hero stood there defiantly, staring up at the beast as it ascended the building. The hero outstretched his arms and began to raise himself above the grass of the courtyard and as he raised his right arm and began to fly upward, his back was met with a blast from what Scott could only assume was a missile of sorts.

The impact sent the hero tumbling forward and he came to a stop once his body slammed into the building. Just beyond the trees was a camouflaged SUV that slowly maneuvered through the courtyard before it came to a halt several yards from the fallen hero.

"Got him," said one of the soldiers who stepped from the vehicle.

Wingard. Scott thought, squinting as he tried to focus his vision through the dirt and debris outside. No, not Wingard. Wilson.

Weapons drawn, Wilson and several other soldiers approached the hero just outside the window.

"Stand back!" Wilson shouted toward the students and teachers on the other side of the glass.

Just as he finished barking his command, the hero who was just lying motionless stood up in front of the soldiers who had their weapons aimed at his head and chest.

"No, stand down. Put your god damned weapons down! If one bullet goes astray, we could risk hitting someone in the building," Wingard shouted.

"Good call," the hero said as he leapt into the air and flew into the sky and away from the school.

With the beast out of sight and the hero flying off into the distance, Wilson and accompanying him reentered the SUV and pulled off as quickly as they had appeared.

Scott backed away from the window, turned around, and let out a scream that was a little higher pitched than he was proud to admit. Steve had managed to escape the main office, track Scott down, and somehow silently entered the AV room and stood behind Scott for who knows how long.

"Dude, I think that was him... I think that was Dante," Scott whispered to Steve.

"I know. I know..."