Stolen From Superman-The Sequel To Waiting for Superman

Chapter 27- Leaving

I lay awake for hours, staring out the window. Jordan’s arms rest around me gently, his chest moving up and down softly in sleep. We haven’t been able to really let go of each other since what happened this morning. I just want to be close to him. Who knows how long we have left? I don’t think any of that should go to waste. I can’t stop silent tears from running down my face. The term you only live once seems to have particular relevance now. There are things I want to do before I die. I might only have time to do a few. One in particular, I think, I will do soon. It’s far past time that I should. But I shouldn’t even be dwelling on this. There’s every possibility that I won’t die. Even as I think it, I know it’s a lie. Even if I don’t die, I’m going to be taken from Jordan. And I know that, deep down. Even if it’s not now; even if it’s when we’re old and grey, it’s going to happen. But I don’t want it to. I don’t want to leave him. I don’t want him to leave me. But none of this is my choice anymore. Joey stole that choice from me the moment he fired that gun. More than anything, I don’t want to die. Even if I’m taken, I’ll still have a chance, however slight, of getting back to him. But as soon as I’m dead, that chance is gone. There have been times that I wanted to die. Times that I even considered doing the job myself. But now, everything’s changed. He is my life. By dying, I take myself away from him too. And I can’t do that, for myself and for him. I don’t want to ever live without him. I would take all of the drama and insanity over dying any day, if it meant I could stay with Jordan forever.

But a small part of me wonders still, if this could be a sacrifice for the greater good. Self-sacrifice has always been noble. By dying to these people, could I save others? If they are going to keep hunting me until I die, and hurt other people in the process, would it be better to just give up now. I shake my head mentally. No! I can’t just give up. But by doing so, I could save so many lives. I could have saved those people in the hospital. Those people at the mall. Just by dying. One person, over many. But the arms around me keep me from doing this. I can’t give up on him. I’m fighting to stay with him. Because he is worth more to me than the entire world, as awful as that might sound. The decision won’t be easy. I’ll probably decide when the time comes; because that is when you can truly believe what you did was right.

*Mitch’s POV*

My day starts out with the smile of Jerome. Bright and radiant next to me. I can’t help but mirror his expression. Little did I know it was probably the last time I’d smile that day.

Almost as soon as I’m down the stairs, there is an heir of trouble and anger around the house. I frown, unsure of why it should feel this way. We’re all such happy people; it seems ridiculous to think that we would be depressed. Well, that isn’t true of everyone, unfortunately. I bite my lip, and Jerome looks at me “What’s wrong biggums?” he says, raising an eyebrow. I wrinkle my forehead “I’m not sure. But something’s not right.” I walk quickly into the kitchen, which is generally the communal meeting place of the team.

Ty and Adam lean up against the counter, seeming to whisper things to each other, which they quickly stop as soon as we walk in. “What’s going on?” Jerome says, as confused as I am. They look at us awkwardly, exchanging fleeting glances. Adam shifts his weight uncomfortably, seeming to wait for Ty to speak. “Um…I think we have to leave.” He says, almost inaudible. My eyes widen in shock, and it takes me a moment to really comprehend this. Leave? Leave the team that they started!? “What are you saying?” Jerome asks, a tone of betrayal and anger coming through his voice. “There’s been too much that we don’t like going on around here. We’re out.” Adam says. “You can’t just leave!” I say, eyes flaring. “Yeah, Mitch, we can! This team is becoming too money oriented, and it’s not healthy for me.” Adam says. “What do you mean, money oriented?” Jerome says, face turning red. “We mean that you guys aren’t in this for the fans anymore.” Ty says, voice deadly and harsh. I feel like I’ve been punched. For him to say something like that…it crosses a line. “How dare you tell me what I’m doing this for?! I do this because I love it! The fans and the money are a bonus. My fans are great people, and some of them need me. The money has never mattered!” I say, clenching my fists. “I’m not so sure, Mitch.” Adam says. I swallow, tilting my chin up. “Fine. Leave. Crush the fans if you want. I hope you know what you’re doing. Because no one is going to be happy about this.” I say quietly, glaring at each of them. With that, I turn on my heel and walk out, face red, and heart aching. I just lost two of my best friends. Not to mention, this is going to absolutely destroy the fan base. Do they have any clue what this might do to them? I storm up the stairs, slamming the door to my room behind me, and sinking to the ground, closing my eyes. I put my head in my hands, just wishing this had never happened. I sit for a moment, and then grab my phone. A few seconds later it buzzes, with Twitter notification from Adam and Ty, announcing the recent decision. No drama, they say. That is so far from true, I don’t even know what to think. No one is going to believe this. I clench my teeth, and dial Ali’s number, wanting some support. “Ali?” I say when she picks up. She yawns “What’s up, Mitch?” she responds. “Did you see it?” I ask. “Um, no…what was I supposed to see?” she asks, confused. “Adam and Ty are leaving.” I say, voice quiet and angry. “Oh…” she says, going suddenly quiet. “I’m so sorry Mitch.” She then says. “I can’t believe them.” I say, some of the pain starting to show. As much as I’m trying to deny it, this hurts. They don’t believe in me anymore. They think I’m a money hungry jag. “I…”she starts, but can’t seem to think of an answer. “It’s fine, really. I just wanted to talk.” I say, covering up my pain as quickly as I showed it. “Speaking of awful things, there’s a terrorist organization after me.” She mumbles. I blink, trying to tell if she’s joking or not. But as the silence continues, I know she isn’t. “What?” I say, horror pouring through my voice. She explains everything, and my fist clenches. She could die. And all because of Jordan. “Be careful Ali. Please.” I say, rather desperately. Because, the way she speaks of it, it almost seems like it doesn’t matter to her if she dies. But it matter to me. “I’ll try, Mitch. But please don’t obsess over it. It’s probably nothing.” “Probably nothing?! You could die!” She sighs. “Please Mitch.” I take a deep breath. “Fine. Just…stay safe for me.” I say, and hang up, not wanting to hear whatever depressing thing she has to say next.

I lean my head back against the door, squeezing my eyes shut. I couldn’t have imagined that today could be so awful. That so many things could have gone wrong. But they went ahead and went wrong, no matter what I’d predicted. And that’s how it’ll always be.

A/N: OHHHHH BABY. DRAMA. Lol thanks for reading, and if you enjoyed, slap dat vote button and drop a comment!

-Argo