A superhero's true identity is revealed.
As I was flying back to the small house with a basement twice the size of the space above it that I called home, I noticed people pointing me out much more than usual. I understood the smaller kids pointing me out and jumping around, the teenagers who pretended not to care but couldn't hide the sparkle in their eyes from seeing a superhero, and the adults giving me warm smiles before attempting to herd their kids into whatever place they were going, but to have the parents shush their children and give me hard glares, others not even able to look at me, and even some who shouted obscenities was the opposite of what I was expecting.
I felt my phone buzz in the inside pocket of my jacket and landed on a nearby rooftop to check it out. It was a text from one of my cousins whom I was close with as a child but hadn't seen in several years in a group chat I realized included every one of my family members.
Lindsay | Why didn't you tell us?
Tell you what?
Lindsay | You know what.
What didn't I tell you?
Mom | That you're Morph.
What?
How did they find out?
I opened MeTube and everything I saw, every video, every post had my face and name on it. Multiple news stations were live, so I opened one at random.
"-to you, Bill. What do you make of the Morph Conspiracy?"
"Well, Martha, I'm just surprised that Morph would do something so dire to conceal her identity; even more so that it would fail so spectacularly."
"Thanks, Bill. Now, to Eliza with the weather." My mind lost focus on the video and instead wandered to the possibilities of what could have happened. To my knowledge, I had never done anything drastic to conceal my identity, just the typical mask, hairstyle change, and making sure no one followed me home.
I was jolted out of my pondering session by a loud BANG. I turned to the source of the noise, a door that connected the roof to the rest of the building. Multiple security guards were flooding out of it, although there were no real police officers, so I didn't feel too bad about flying away before they could do anything. I ensured my path was clear before turning back to check if the guards had guns, and luckily they didn't.
I directed my attention forward, noticing all too late that there was a billboard smack dab in front of me that I failed to dodge in time. I tried to slow down, flapping my wings in an up-and-down motion to get higher, but my efforts failed as I flew straight into the hand of the model for the depicted perfume ad. I collapsed to the ground of the building below, hand instinctively reaching to my bruised face. Luckily, nothing was broken.
I noticed flashes out of the corner of my eye and looked up to see a few people gathered near the rooftop entrance on the other side of the billboard, phones out, recording me. I hid my face the best I could, sprouting small fingers that hid the recognizable features of my face from the onlookers.
I beat my wings again, flying away as panic rose within me. What if they post those pictures and videos online? What if my reputation plummets again? What if the rest of my family cuts me off too? My swirling train of thought felt like a hurricane inside my head, whipping everything else away and forcing my attention on the fact that my life could be and probably was over. Mind racing, I approached my house and dove into the woods nearby.
After I landed, I retracted my wings and the fingers still covering my face, praying nobody would notice me. I removed my mask and pulled my suit off, attempting to conceal it under the baggy sweatshirt and sweatpants I had hidden in a bag under the skirt part of my outfit.
I jogged my way to my house, hair pulled back into a bun that looked believable in the story I was planning to tell if I was caught and questioned; that I was just going on a jog. I was glad that no one but my boyfriend knew where I lived, imagining the chaos that would ensue if the press showed up there.
I jogged up to my house, took my keys out of my pocket, and stepped inside my house. I slid down to the floor, knees to my chest. My breaths came much quicker, the storm in my mind coming to a peak, the panicked thoughts in my mind shouting over each other. My vision blurred both from tears and the simple fact that I was close to passing out. My chest ached; my lungs were forced against my ribs again and again and again.
"Katie?" I looked up, half-blind in my panic and tears, but I could make out Levi rushing towards me. He took me into his lap, rubbing my back and huddling me close to his chest. "Are you okay, baby?" My breathing slowed, little by little; the swirling storm in my head slowed to a stop; my tears stopped flowing.
"I think so." I gazed up at him. His eyes were filled with concern, worry, and a tinge of sadness. I reached my hand up to his cheek, trying to convey how I felt without speaking, afraid that if I did, Levi would leave me too. "You know what happened?"
"..." Levi just kept looking at me with those concerned blue-grey eyes.
"...Levi?"
"Yes, Kate. I heard what happened from your parents. I'm here for you, so please, tell me whatever you need. I hope you'll open up to me about everything when you're ready," Levi said with a hint of curiosity in his warm voice. I reached up and petted his fluffy blonde hair, wishing this moment would last forever; that we could just stay like this for the rest of time.
"I love you, Levi."
A/N Might post a second part to this later.
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Oneshot Collection
General FictionJust a collection of prompts that I used to practice writing; trying to achieve part of my resolution this year.
