Rise of the Dark Heroes (BOOK #1)

Chapter Seven

STEVIE

THE DEVIATE took a flabbergasting step backward, his gaze stitched to my luminous hands and stammering, "I—what?" 

I took a bold step forward, triggering him to shuffle back. "Now, you listen to me because I didn't come all the way across town for nothing."

The masked Deviate released a defiant huff, crossing his arms.

"Something has happened to me, and I don't know what. One minute, my life is average; the next, I'm blasting people away with my mind and making my furniture float," I continued.

He covered his head with his hands as if he had a face to hide. "So, what do you need me for? Why am I here?"

"I need you to tell me how to manage it. If I don't get this under control, my future is going to be very different," I explained hastily, my voice breaking. Just thinking about getting kicked out of college threatened uninvited tears to swell in my eyes.

The Deviate started to pace like he was carefully considering what he was going to say. After a while, he paused and took in an exasperated sigh. "Look, Bean—can I call you Bean?"

I felt my veins sizzling again under my clothes. "Stevie."

"Look, Bean. I'm not a mentor. I don't even know how to control my own abilities." He took a second to exhale. "I'm sorry that this happened to you, ...really, but I'm just not your guy."

"Yes, you are! You're the only Deviate around who isn't—" 

"What? Crazy, dangerous? Go on, say it," he snarled, crossing his arms again.

"Selfish!" I snapped. My retort silenced him, but he didn't budge, permitting me to continue. "These other Deviates, they're using their abilities for greedy, sadistic reasons. They're stealing, killing, and terrorizing innocent people. And all I've seen you do with your powers are help people. You helped me when you didn't have to. So, you can put on this tough-guy façade all you want, but I know deep down that you care."

He stared at me for a long time, as impassive as before. Finally, he shook his head. "Well, that just shows what you know, which is nothing."

"Excuse me?" I threatened. My veins were so heated; I felt like I could set fire to anything I touched.

"You think I care about the Normals? All they do is treat me like garbage, and that's all they'll ever do in this godforsaken town. Maybe I just want to beat up some jerks. Is that too much to ask?" I was stunned by his words, now unable to fight the unwanted tears frombefore as I listened. "I'm not a teacher, okay? I have a future too, and I'm not going to jeopardize it by associating myself with some random girl who keeps popping up in my life. Good luck." He pushed past me, storming out of the alley.

I clenched my fists, tears visibly streaming along my face. "So," I started, making the Deviate slowly stop in his tracks, "the day we met...when you knelt down beside me to make sure I was okay, ...that was you, not caring?" My voice was crumbling like a house of cards.

Without turning around, I could hear the Deviate releasing a tired breath, his shoulders slumping. "Goodbye, Bean."

With that, he continued walking. The second he was out of view, I frustratingly wiped away my tears, my body growing hotter by the minute. My only chance at a better future just strolled away.

And for once, I didn't have a plan.

-

Once I made it back to the floral shop, I saw police cruisers parked up and down the street in the distance. I couldn't tell them that I was the one who busted the glass, so I snuck through the back door and quietly placed the bag down, hoping the store manager would find it eventually.