Firefall

Tabitha

I never clean up. I mean, very few teenagers do, but I unfortunately take that to the extreme. Usually, my room is a mess of clothes and random trinkets I'll never use. There is rarely a full square foot of rug showing through. I decided to fix that today. Sure, I'd gotten a little bit annoyed of stubbing my toe on puzzle cubes and whatnot, but the main reason I undertook this job was I needed a distraction.

Ever since I was six, I've had the power to control the wind. My twin brother Bot could manipulate energy, but neither of us really knew what we were doing. We trained every day, fighting for real control, but sometimes it felt like we hadn't made any progress. As if that wasn't enough, the wind distracted  me. I was constantly enthralled by its power and beauty; unintentionally intensifying its strength, therefore captivating me further. It was a never ending cycle that made concentrating on anything impossible. Doctors tried to diagnose me with ADHD, but they had no way of knowing what was actually wrong with me. I know it sounds crazy, that's why we keep it a secret; even from aunt Linda. If she found out, she might kick us out. We have been forced to live with her ever since our parents were kidnapped. The Willow Heights police searched for four years, but never found any trace of where they went. Ever since we stepped foot in her dark manor, she made us fend for ourselves instead of doing her job as our 'caretaker'. Even though she hated us already, I'd much rather be living with her than on the streets.

I continued to shove small toys in my closet so that my room appeared to be clean.

Just as I was putting away the puzzle I got five years ago for my birthday, Bot walked in.

"Thanks for knocking." He never knocks. I really need a sign to protect my privacy. I know he's my twin brother and best friend and all, but still. I sometimes get sick of seeing him every second of every day and need a little time to myself. That's a little hard to do when he just barged in unannounced.

"Anytime sis. Wait... whoa. Your rug is blue? I never noticed." He said open mouthed.

I rolled my eyes, and tried to stop my mouth from curving into a smile. I mean I never really noticed that either.

"Wow Bot, what a revelation." I replied, making sure to load sarcasm onto the comment.

Now it was his turn to roll his eyes.
"What I meant was, you never clean up." He clarified as he plopped on my bed.

I raised an eyebrow... or tried to. Instead it just sorta looked like I was constipated.

"Are you calling me messy?"

He started laughing at my expression, and this time I couldn't stop myself. His laugh is too contagious. Soon enough, I was doubled over laughing so hard, my stomach hurt. I could always count on Bot to cheer me up, but realizing that was a mistake because it made me remember why I was cleaning in the first place. My face fell, and I sank into my desk chair. Bot seemed to notice my change in mood, and patted the space next to him on my bed. Instead of sitting like he expected I would, I flopped face first onto the pillow.

"You only clean when you need to distract yourself." He said and placed a comforting hand on my back. "What were you trying to avoid?" Bot whispered as if saying it too loud would startle me.

I struggled to sit back up so I could actually talk without the pillow muffling my voice.

"It just all hit me. How abnormal our lives are. For some reason, I never realized how permanent our situation was. For better or worse, we are stuck with these powers for the rest of our lives. We don't even know how to control them. I mean... we are getting better, but still. Shouldn't it be instinctive? Controlling the wind is never going to be easy, especially since it always wants to fight against me, but I keep wondering... should I be better at it than I am? Sometimes I wish we could have teachers for this, so we don't have to figure out all the answers ourselves. It's just so tiring not knowing what to do next. We have to hide these... whatever these are from the world, and I try to act like it doesn't affect me, but it does."