In the following days, I couldn’t stop thinking about the woman that I saw at the mall. I was probably being silly, it couldn’t have been her. I was just so desperate to find her, almost as desperate as my father that I wanted to hang on to any piece of her I possibly had. I always wondered what my life would have been like with her around. I wondered how she would have reacted to things, what she would have thought about certain situations. I barely remembered her. I wondered how my father would have co-parented. He was struggling with raising me alone, I could tell. Uncle Tony always told me about how hard it was for my daddy to adjust to modern life after he woke up from being frozen. It was definitely a weird thought that my dad was alive for World War Two, especially now that we were studying it in History.
“Does anyone know who the main parties were in World War Two?” Mrs. Hughes asked. I sighed, looking up from my History book. I definitely didn’t want to be talking about that. No one knew who my father was, so I really had to watch what I said. I zoned out for a while, just staring at the white brick wall and thinking about how truly extraordinary my life was. But, of course, what was extraordinary to other people was normal to me.
“Bethany?” Mrs. Hughes asked, snapping me out of my trance.
“I’m sorry?” I jumped.
“What role did Captain America have in World War Two?” Mrs. Hughes repeated the question. Of course. Of course I would be asked that question.
“Da—Captain America…” I caught myself, stammering. I heard a small snicker from the back of the class “Captain America was a source of hope to the population. He symbolized everything that America should be: free, strong, and courageous. He motivated a nation that was stricken with grief,” My voice rose with that same courage and strength. My father’s blood flowed through me “He saved soldiers. He motivated soldiers. He showed that the smallest man can achieve the greatest of things. He was just a kid from Brooklyn.”
The class was silent for a moment. Everyone sat in awe for a moment. I was a very quiet kid in class, I was intelligent but I honestly didn’t much like showing it. My whole family was special, so I didn’t really want to be. That’s why I never told anyone who my family was. I didn’t want the attention. I wanted to be loved for me.
The class broke into applause, and I sank further into my seat, face reddening.
“That was powerful, Miss Rogers.” Mrs. Hughes nodded.
The bell rang and I couldn’t get out of that room fast enough.
