I Guess I'm a Hero

Sometimes, Weird is OK

We all sat there and looked at Jess for at least a full minute without saying anything. You would think that with all the weird going around today, Jess admitting that she'd had a dream similar to Peg's would be like a government official admitting that he's taken a bribe or two in his day. Nothing spectacular. Nothing surprising. Just par for the course. But we were all surprised. Imagine the odds! Well, there is nothing really to compare this to, so the odds would be a little hard to calculate; but four people who are close friends and living in the same town all having the same kind of strange experience? It boggles the mind, really. And it throws the whole coincidence theory right out the window.

"Jess, what..." Tim stammered. "Why didn't you tell me? Tell any of us?"

"I was going to. I just didn't know where to begin. It didn't seem like a whole lot when I put it up against Bill's strength or your speed." Jess gave a heavy sigh. "I'm sorry. I should have said something; especially after hearing that Peg dreamed about Bill lifting his car."

"It's OK, Jess," Peg said. "When did you have the dream? Last night?"

"No. It was this afternoon. I woke up with a monster headache, as you know. Around noon I tried to take a nap. I had a dream that Bill and Tim were leaving the restaurant and a truck was going to hit a little girl, but Tim ran to save her. In my dream, he ran faster than it should be possible."

"Well, that sounds about right; even as far as the timing of the event," Tim put his arm comfortingly around Jess's shoulders. "What happened then? Was there more?"

"Nope. I just woke up."

"OK," I got up and started pacing around the room. "That is very much like Peg's dream. She woke up right after I performed a super-feat in her dream. The same thing happened to you when you dreamed of Timmy. The only details in both dreams were of everything that happened before each of you saw us use a super-power." Here, I stopped and faced my friends sitting around the table. "But what does it mean? Is there a reason that Jess dreamt of Timmy and not me? Or how about the other way around: Why was Peg's dream just about me doing something super and not what happened outside the restaurant?"

I looked hopefully at the other three, waiting for some kind of answer. I think there was a lot of that going around, because they were all looking at each other or at me, probably hoping for the same thing – an answer.

We all waited: Jess, Tim and Peg sitting around the table while I stood. A couple of minutes passed and a few times one of us would open our mouth as if ready to speak, only to close it again with a shake of the head. Obviously there wasn't going to be a quick and easy answer to this right away. How could there be? This was so far beyond any normal experience...well, it was a little too optimistic to hope for something quick and easy.

"Ok," I joined them at the table and sat back down. "Obviously we don't know too much yet. So let's skip over the 'why' for now and move on to something else. How about the 'what'? Peg, you said we should test our limits. See how strong I am and how fast Timmy is. We can do that. But I also think we should test out you two girls. Do you only have precognitive dreams or are there other powers like telekinesis or ESP?"

"Bill, dude," Tim interrupted. "Now you are just getting weird. Mind powers? Really?"

"Timmy. I lifted my car today. You ran at an impossible speed to save a girl from being hit by a truck. I think we are going to have to use 'weird' as our baseline here. If we are going down this road, we shouldn't reject any idea – no matter how crazy it sounds."

So, we split up. Tim and Jess worked together in the living room, while Peg and I sat at the table. I put a pen, a quarter and a golf ball on the table and asked Peg to try and move each one. I told her to imagine the weight of each one and push against it. Truth be told, I probably sounded a little like Yoda. Do or Do Not – There is no Try. I chuckled to myself at the madness of it. She wasn't able to affect any of them. After about an hour I put away the three objects and took out a deck of playing cards. I held up each card and concentrated on it, willing the image on the face into Peg's mind. In the end, she only got one or two, which is about what the law of averages says a person could possibly get just by a lucky guess. After an hour of that, we switched. I worked with Jess and Tim worked with Peg. Another two hours of the same drills with Jess and still there were no results. Of course, that doesn't mean that the girls didn't have the powers. It just means that they don't know how to switch them on yet if they do. But my guess was that there were no additional mind powers.

"Tim, you got anything?" I asked. He shook his head.

"Ok," I stood up. "It's one o'clock on the morning. I think we are about done here for now. I am sure the ladies' brain muscles are getting worn out. Now, just because nothing happened doesn't mean there are no powers. It could just be a matter of learning to access them. But if I was forced to guess, I would say that there are no other powers than the precognitive dreams."

"So tomorrow..." Tim started.

"Tomorrow, it's our turn. We meet back here at 7 tomorrow night?" Everyone nodded. "OK then. Girls, remember to write down any dreams you have tonight." I shook hands with Tim and hugged Jess. "'Night Timmy. 'Night Jess." I opened the door for Peg and we walked out to our cars.

"Well," she grinned and looked up at me, "You sure know how to show a girl a good time."

"Yeah," I laughed back. "Strangest first date...ever. I'm sorry Peg. It's not how I pictured it would be."

"Oh? And how did you picture it?" I could hear the playfulness in her voice.

"Truthfully? I pictured me never getting up the nerve to ask in the first place." I chuckled as we reached her car. "But really, it was good spending time together. Even if...well...you know, even if it was a little weird." I opened her car door and closed it behind her after she got behind the wheel.

"Good night, Peg," I said as she rolled down her window and started her car. "Get some rest and I'll see you tomorrow. And don't forget to write down any dreams you have tonight. No matter how insignificant they might seem."

"Good night, Bill. See you tomorrow. And don't worry. Sometimes 'weird' is OK." She smiled and pulled away.

I stood and watched her car go down two blocks and then turn. I shook my head and went to my car, wondering what could have been different if we hadn't discussed our respective super-powers all night. What about Timmy and Jess? How is this going to affect their relationship? I started my car and headed towards home, deep in thought. There were so many questions that we all had, and there were too few answers. Sure, it's easy to accept something when it is inevitable; when there's nothing you can do about it. I mean, if something is going to happen, no matter what, screaming at the uncaring sky will only get you a sore throat. It won't do you a bit of good. But that doesn't mean you have to accept something out of blind ignorance or even blind faith. Knowledge is power. It's OK to ask questions because "why" is the beginning of wisdom. Many of our technological breakthroughs came about and many of the problems that had plagued mankind over the years had been solved because someone first admitted, "I don't know."

These thoughts, and others, stayed with me all the way home...and then some. My mind was so busy running through all that had happened today, I was sure I wouldn't get any sleep. But eventually, I did. Occasionally, I would wake up to a crashing sound or distant gunfire or a siren. But that was standard fare in this day and age. What was really strange was that once, when I was awakened by something – I don't know what – I thought I heard the wind rush down my street; and I could swear I also heard a whooping sound. Like a cheer. Like someone was having the time of his life. Crazy...