Taekook Oneshots

Hero

"Solar Flare, please! We have nowhere else to turn!"

I scowl. "How did you even find me? And why the hell won't you ask the person who actually gives a shit?"
"We did. He laughed in our faces and told us that he only deals with real emergencies."

I freeze where I am, unable to believe that for a moment. This is someone who claims to be the hero of the whole nation. Someone who believes that he's the one who can protect everyone, to the point where he'll do ridiculous things just to keep his reputation of a wonderful man who cares more about others than himself.

We were friends once upon a time, when the world was a simpler place. Of course, he'd never admit to it now, being friends with the worst villain in the world. I don't think I'm particularly awful, but now I have a reputation to upkeep, and that is important, I suppose.

All I do is support some random protests, and sometimes I'll steal from rich people. Or sometimes I'll leak information about something that I think needs to be investigated. And for whatever reason, that turns out to be something that's unforgivable. Suddenly, I'm demonised for trying to do some little things to solve the situation for others in a way that's not completely legal.

When I turned sixteen, I went to hang out by the river with a few friends. And then, for whatever reason, I slipped and fell in. One of my friends, Jaeyoung, dived in after me, tried to save me.

We didn't know at the time that the river was clogged up with radioactive waste. And sure, it could've been deadly. I don't know why things ended up the way they did, and maybe it would have been better off for the rest of the world if we both drowned that day.

But no.

The radiation gave Jaeyoung the ability to breathe underwater, among other things. He found that he had power over plants. And then he declared to me that he was going to be a superhero, when he discovered his powers. He said that he'd found his calling, that everything was settled. He would become Shadowleaf, the man who could call upon Nature itself to save those in need.

We didn't know then that I had also been given powers.

I only realised what was up when I aced the next test we took at school, when I finished it so quickly that the paper was literally smoking on my desk. Jaeyoung was thrilled.

He said we'd form a perfect team, that he would lead us into stardom, that we'd become legends. But I didn't want to be a legend. I was still a student, and I wanted to be normal. The attention that 'Shadowleaf' was getting was too much for me, and I didn't want to be involved. When I told Jae that, he was furious.

And so he declared me his enemy, demanded that I create my own superhero name or he'd share my identity with the world, and I guess I panicked.

And that's how I became Solar Blaze, after I took the time to explore what I could actually do. My abilities were confusing, at first, but after a lot of soul-searching, I found a pattern, and used that to create the name. I wear a mask when I'm in 'Solar Blaze' mode, but that's pretty much all I do. I don't really care about my public persona as much as Shadowleaf does.

I look at the family who are staring at me with hope in their eyes, and something clicks in my brain. This could be a chance for me to actually prove myself as a good person, instead of the villain that I've been forced to become by someone who I thought was my friend. This could be my chance to actually make a difference, even if the stuff I do isn't the worst thing that could happen.

The only reason people see me as evil is because of the stories that are made up. An anonymous criminal is either me, or an associate, according to the media, who are controlled by some of the most powerful (and in some cases, corrupt) people on the planet. So I don't really have a chance. This will probably be a case that's attributed to Jae once he finds out about it succeeding, if it does.