What He Heard

Chapter 7

            Willow inhaled sharply, part of her wishing the mask didn’t cover her mouth since it made breathing more difficult. The rest of her was focused on the stir of movement in the crowds coming towards them, breaking the patterns of swaying and grinding that made up the dancers. She got up on her tiptoes and saw the familiar faces of Mrs. Dixon and Mr. Schulze coming towards them, expressions set into deep frowns.

            She turned to look at Rune, who stood beside her in their little cluster of admirers. “Oi, Spidey,” she called. “Someone called the fuzz.”

            His eyes went to her and she jerked her head towards the approaching teachers, the two of them coming from opposite directions, effectively blocking them from getting back into the hallway. “Uh-oh. I guess this neighbourhood isn’t too friendly to Spiderman. What do you think, Deadpool? Rush and run?”

            Willow shook her head. “And deny our loyal readers the show? Perish the thought. Follow my lead and you’ll be fine. You are bulletproof, right?” She didn’t wait for a reply, instead letting out shrill blast of air out through her pursed lips. The whistle pierced even the thud of the music, causing heads to swivel in their direction from all sides. “Fellows, fans, and frowners alike, we regret to inform you that our time here has come to a close. But a hero’s work is never done. I’ll leave you with these immortal words. Run, run, run, as fast you can, can’t catch me, I’m the Deadpool man. Run Spidey!”

            While the crowd stared, Willow took off, racing towards the gym’s side door, open for ventilation, Rune on her heels. She heard a shout from behind that she thought came from Mrs. Dixon, but didn’t turn around. She flew down the stairs, the cool night air welcome after the heat generated by over a hundred bodies crammed into the gym.

            She could hear the rattle of the stairs behind her as Rune kept up with her, neither of them looking behind to see if they’d been followed to the stairs. Willow didn’t slow when she hit the parking lot, but continued her race forward, aiming them at the park across the street. She didn’t think the teachers would follow them outside, but on the off chance they did, the shadowy park would be a good place to hide.

            Grateful that her half-bear nature gave her better than average night vision, Willow picked a path through the tree roots and rocks that were scattered throughout the grassy expanse. She aimed them towards the back, where the play structures were. It was also the area most surrounded by trees, and with the streetlamps few and far between around the edge, it was the ideal place to hide.

            She slowed as her feet hit sand. Willow stopped in front of the swing set, grabbing the chain of one and settling into it. She could hear Rune’s footsteps come to a halt in front of her, his breath coming in light pants. She’d thought he was in better shape, especially since he’d started hiking with her, but she guessed even that hadn’t prepared him for a sprint through the dark. She wondered if she should see about getting Rune into some of Andre’s lessons, if he’d have any interest in them…

Willow idly twisted back and forth on the swing, watching what she could see of Rune in the orange glow of the nearby streetlamp and the faint silver light of the half moon. He dropped down into the swing beside her and shook his head. “I have never run that fast in my life,” he said, his breathing still heavy.

            She chuckled. “Well, it was either run or get caught by the teachers. You saw them closing in on us. I only hope they won’t go so far as to check this park for us. In hindsight, maybe we should have just left things quiet after the costume contest debacle.”

            Rune laughed. “No way! That was the best part. We couldn’t have planned it better. You winning the costume contest was already awesome, but when you refused to take off the mask and instead stole the medal…I thought I was going to die. Especially with the expression on Amanda’s face when you grabbed it.”

            “I felt kind of bad about doing that to her, but I pretty much had to to stay in character and not take off my mask. My favourite was when you reloaded your webs and did that blitz attack right in the middle of the biggest cluster. You could actually hear the screams over the music.”

            “We were definitely crowd favourites. How’d you like being a celebrity for the night?”

            Willow grinned. “It was fun. I heard a bunch of girls talking about us when I was in the bathroom. There was a lot of betting and guessing on who we are. I didn’t hear anyone say our names, so I think we’re safe for now. Which is good, because I think when Mr. Marsden finds out about this, we’ll have wanted posters up.”

             “That would be epic! I would steal one and frame it.”

            “You would.”

            Rune shook his head again. “I’m still surprised you agreed to this. Normally when I try and create havoc, you try and stop me.”

            “That’s because I’m trying to keep a low profile, remember? If I’m in the thick of things, spreading chaos and all that, people are going to be paying way too much attention to me. And by extension, my family. But tonight, since we both had masks on, it was fine. No one can prove it was us. And it’s not like I have anything left to hide from you.”

            He turned to look at her, face moving beneath the mask into what Willow guessed was a grin. “How long have you wanted to do this kind of reckless, crazy thing?”

            Willow chuckled. “Far too long. It’s why I hang out with you.”

            “Hey!”

            She laughed again and Rune joined her, the only sound to break the stillness of the night.