home // freddy freeman [1]

12

By the time Riley and Freddy were able to get to the place the bus had been falling, Billy had already saved the people. Riley rolled her eyes at the sight of everyone cheering on her brother and the fact that he was even getting interviewed.

All he had done was saved a group of people that he had put in danger. Billy had just been correcting a wrong he had made and now he was getting praised for it?

Riley and Freddy shared an annoyed look before walking up to Billy who was saying goodbye to the interviewer. His eyes lit up at the sight of them and he threw his hands up in the air.

"Guys! Guys, guys, guys! Did you see that?" Billy asked. "Yeah, you electrocuted a bus and almost killed these people," Freddy told him as they came to a stop in front of the man.

Billy stood there in silence for a second before giving them an 'are you dumb' look. "And then I caught it!" Billy argued.

"Freddy, Riley, I caught a bus with my bare hands. I caught a bus like people catch fly balls like who does that? I do that!" Billy exclaimed.

"Billy!" Riley yelled and her brother looked to her. "You did nothing but correct a wrong that you had made in the first place."

"Riley's right. You do nothing. You. . .you take selfies and make people pay you," Freddy said. "No, forget it. I can't really talk to you when you look like this." He gestured towards Billy in his superhero form and Riley nodded in agreement. She saw more of the superhero side of Billy than she did the face of her twin.

Freddy turned to walk away and Billy frowned. "You just wish it was you," Billy called after him. Riley glared at her brother once she saw Freddy tense up. "No shit!" Freddy exclaimed as he turned to glare at the boy.

"You think? I would kill to have what you have. Just everything I do is like some. . .like some desperate attempt to get people to notice me," Freddy said and Riley's gaze softened slightly while Billy looked to the ground guiltily. "To not feel sorry for me. I mean look at me! Look at me! Do you even see me?"

Freddy's eyes were filling with tears now as he gestured towards himself and his crutch and Riley swallowed thickly as she watched the boy. She wanted to say that she saw him, that she cared about him, but now wasn't the moment and she knew that. But the next words that left his mouth felt like a punch to the gut.

"Cause most people don't," Freddy admitted and Riley's eyes flickered over to look at her brother, knowing exactly what the boy was talking about. "Cause they don't want to. And now you don't either."

"I mean, you think this is who you are? Billy, you're fourteen and now you're no better than the Breyers," Freddy said making Billy look to him with wide eyes. "You don't even seem to care about your own sister for Christ's sake! All this power and all you did was turn into a showoff and a bully."