EXISTENCE

CHAPTER 16: Letting Go

Gabriel stared at Nadia, unsure of what to say.

"I...I have powers," Nadia repeated.

Gabriel sighed. "That's all you wanted to tell me?"

"What do you mean, 'that's all?'" she shot back. "Don't you think this is pretty heavy stuff?"

He tugged at his bandanna. "Well, sorry to make you feel unimportant, but we already knew."

Nadia went silent. "You...knew?"

"We've known for a long time, man." He folded his arms. "One of the abilities of a person with powers is that they can sense people who do have powers. They give off a certain energy, and we can pick up on that energy." He put his hands in his pockets. "It's how we found out about Hawa, and how we stopped that lunatic back at the mall."

Nadia went red. "Why didn't you tell me you guys knew?!"

"The better question is, why didn't you tell us you had them? We knew you had them but since you never came forward about them, we didn't want to bother you about them." He looked serious. "But you should have done something about them. If we had more help, maybe Adam wouldn't have gone through the wringer the way he did."

Nadia went quiet, her thoughts flashing back to the bloody mess that Adam was. "I... I..." She struggled to find the words to retort with.

Gabriel placed a hand on her shoulder. "Look, it's not your fault. Nobody could have seen that coming." He looked down. "If anything, I should be the one to blame. I'm supposed to be his older brother, the one person who has to protect everything. And I wasn't there to help for shit."

Nadia looked up at him. "Gabriel..."

"That's why," Gabriel responded, "we have to keep fighting. I'll train you, Nadia. I'll teach you the basics." He smiled. "I also have to learn more about my own powers. The way I fight now just isn't cutting it anymore. I'm hoping you'll be able to help me with that."

Nadia gave him a warm smile. "I'm trusting you on this one...Boss."

Gabriel tugged at his bandanna. "Oh man, that's gonna sound weird coming from a girl." He looked back at Nadia. "Get to class. We'll start our training after school."

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As Juan walked through the gym's corridors, he couldn't help but wonder about what it must be like to join a sports team. The gym itself was huge, but walking through these hallways all alone felt...lonely. Adam was around here somewhere as well, probably explaining himself to the coach.

I wonder how the poor kid's holding up. He didn't deserve this shit.

The hallways were dim, presumably due to the lack of any real sport at the moment. In the dimness, Juan could make out a light coming from one of the hallway doors. 

That must be where Adam's at.

Hastening his pace, he walked towards the door and stopped at the window. Looking in revealed a tall black man and his friend Adam shaking hands, the boy with a big grin on his face. Juan smiled in relief, letting out a sigh.

Ain't no use worrying about that kid.

As he turned to leave, he heard the door open behind him.

"Oh, Juan!"

Juan turned to face the boy. "Yo, bro." He smiled. "How're you holding up?"

Adam smiled. "I'm fine! I can officially be a team member again." He looked down. "Although, I do wish I could've played those last matches."