The Ripple Effect

Chapter 1 : IT'S ALWAYS THE ORANGE ONES!

By now, school must have ended about an hour ago.

Like every time I decided to skip classes, I found myself waiting on the sofa for Jiwoo to come back home after only a few hours of being alone. Superhero tales could never keep me occupied for more than a little while. Reading about their heroic acts and fun adventures was fun and all, but it only made me realize even more how boring my life was. When I was younger, I often played wonder-woman with my mom. She was the civilian in danger and I was the hero who flew to her rescue. At that time, there was nothing I desired more than a radioactive spider coming to bite me, or for my mother to reveal that she actually found me in an extraterrestrial capsule at birth. However, even when I finally got such powers, my hero dreams remained unachieved. I encountered no special creature, I didn't awaken any hidden origins and I didn't live through any other circumstances that would explain my new-found gifts like the heroes on TV. I think that fact added to my and my mother's panic at the discovery. I believe that knowing those powers had a clear origin would have at least reassured me in the fact that I may have been strange, but not completely inhuman. You know, I would have something that would make pop culture view me as an admirable being that belonged in a tight silicone bodysuit and not spread on a scientist's lab table. Instead, I simply woke up one day feeling thirsty before realizing that I had inadvertently created a mass of water beside me. Not quite the tale to be broadcasted to the world, right? 

I pity my mother who stayed by my side through that whole ordeal. Most mothers have to handle all kinds of quirks and childish whims while raising a toddler. Nevertheless, my case wasn't as simple as me wanting expensive toys. In fact, I don't think that average 10 year olds could spawn water by wiggling their hands a little. While other parents brooded over their kids having imaginary friends, my single mother fretted over me being an alien. So we started moving all the time in fear of me getting caught and experimented on. What at first was a dream come true quickly became a heavy secret that I was tired of having to hide. That is until my mom met Jiwoo's mom. This little sunshine became my first friend as he was the first who I didn't have to hide this ability from.  After all, he shared my strange condition. Since that day, we never left each other's side, our two tiny families of two single moms and their only child became two generation of best friends living under the same roof. Which brings us to the present where Jiwoo and I share a home while living our boring high school years while our moms aren't in the country. Auntie Seo got a job opportunity as a scientist in some faraway jungle while my mom simply couldn't be kept in one place. She had always been quite the energetic lady, so it actually saddened me to see her stuck in one place while growing up. Fortunately, when Jiwoo and I reached a mature enough age, I convinced her to go on and see the world. I don't even know where she gets her money from but now, I often receive postcards from the different countries she visits. The last time I called her, she was on an elephant's back in thailand and was yelling through the phone that she would be visiting soon. People might think I resent her for leaving me behind, but I never felt even an ounce of hatred for her. It's quite the opposite actually, I have always admired her free nature: she always did what she wanted and never let anything hold her back. Yet that doesn't mean she doesn't get worried about me. She often calls and visits, in addition, everytime she does she brings me gifts and fascinating tales of her adventures to enjoy. My eyes met my phone screen who suddenly brightened as I received a message. The mail was unimportant but the time showed on the screen made me worry. It has now been almost two hours since school ended and Jiwoo still isn't back. I even had time to reminisce on my entire life story! Plus, knowing our incredible social life, Jiwoo had no one to hang out with after school. That's why I assumed he must have gone to buy cat food again when our drawers are already overflowing. I clicked my tongue in annoyance before catching sight of three tiny figures behind the garden sliding doors. It was the cute stray cat trio who often came to eat our place. I immediately run to open the doors for them. As I did so, I heard the house's front door bell ring as well before a joyful voice announced its presence.