Sidekick

Epilogue

A year later

I plop my tray down on the table before sitting next to Cam. I'm back to our little corner of the cafeteria. It's not the greatest spot like I remember it being, but it's with my best friend and that's what matters.

"Hey," Cam says, a smirk on his face.

"Hey. What's with the look?"

"You got an admirer." He nods in the direction of Peggy's table.

I look and catch her watching me. She ducks her head and joins back in on the conversation that her friends are having. It's been a while since me and her have sat and had a talk about our relationship. It was about a month ago that she stopped me in the hall after school and asked how I was doing. I know that wasn't all she wanted to ask but the fact that she just asked the one question tells me she's trying. I sigh. "Cam. You know it's not like that."

"She misses you though."

"I know." I miss her too, but not a lot. It's been nice to have time to figure myself out again. I've been able to get back into sewing, so much so that I now have a job at Maxine's Cosplay. I've even started to work on some of my own commissions, even though I'm not the greatest at it. But I'm really enjoying my time there.

"So, are you still coming over to my place after school?" Cam asks, moving onto a different topic.

"Sur-"

"Students." The intercom above us crackles to life. "Please remain inside the school as there is a villain active downtown. School will remain as normal throughout this lockdown."

I turn to Peggy's spot, but she isn't there. And when I look at the cafeteria doors as the cafe interrupts into chaos I see a slip of pink hair disappear through the doors right as the slam shut.

I hit Cam's arm. "Open your news app."

Teachers flood into the cafeteria. They try fruitlessly to get the students to sit and continue their day like normal.

He sighs. "I still don't get why you don't just download the app."

"Because I don't want to be notified everytime Star Bine saves the day."

The few students who aren't causing chaos are either crowded around their friends phone watching the fight like me and Cam or are sitting and eating and chatting like nothing is wrong.

"And yet you watch on my phone every time there's any attack," he mutters.

I ignore his comment as the footage loads. The image flickers to Star Bine flying above a girl dressed in a yellow and green suit. I cringe. The colors don't go together at all. But that isn't what I watch while the fight goes on. Even if Peggy and I aren't a team anymore I still worry for all the bystanders that still watch the fights. But ever since I stopped showing up to the fights I think Peggy has started to notice all the destruction her fights cause. So now she's more careful whenever she fights. And the number of injuries that happen during them has gone down a ton. It probably also helps that people have noticed that whoever was protecting them has stopped showing up and have started to watch her fights far away and through a screen.

I watch with a proud smile as the fight comes to an end with no one being injured.

"She's getting better," Cam comments.

I nod. "She is."

Cam turns his phone off and continues to eat. "So, how does it feel?"

I quirk my head to the side as I pick up my apple. "How does what feel?"

"How does it feel to not be the sidekick anymore?"

I grin. "It feels great."