Friday

An orange, open-top Jeep with sun baked mud splattered halfway up the doors and countless dents and scratches pulled into the driveway and honked. The house that this driveway belonged to was nothing special, every third house in the neighborhood was almost exactly the same; Only the cars and flowerbeds set them apart, and even those didn’t have much variation. The jeep was clearly out of place here but the driver didn’t seem to care.

Inside, Erick Stark hurried with his jacket as another honk sounded. He paused only to check himself over in the hallway mirror. His dark, curly hair was cut short and made countless loops over his scalp. Erick pushed a few of them away from his forehead. His dark eyes and tan skin contrasted strongly against the paler skin of his family in the the picture frame beside the mirror.

“I’ll be home by midnight,” he called over his shoulder, trying hard to get out the door as fast as he could without appearing too eager.

“What time was that?!” Jack, Erick’s step-dad, bellowed as he moved to block the front door. The newspaper Jack had been reading moments before was already rolled in his hand like a club.

It took very little to set Jack off. He seemed to despise Erick on principle. In fact, Jack had become even more aggressive over the last couple years as Erick neared graduation. Erick figured it was due to the fact that he’d soon be moving out and away from Jack’s controlling grip. Buzz cut hair, bleached bone white skin, and sculpted muscles defined much of Jacks appearance and identity.

Jack crossed the entry hall, glaring at Erick and backing him into the wall. Erick tried not to break eye contact. Jack could be like a savage beast waiting for a moment of weakness to strike. He continued to stare straight through Erick with his hard eyes, daring him to do or say anything.

Erick flinched.

Jack jabbed Erick hard in the shoulder with his newspaper. “You’ve only got three hours this week,” he said, doing little to hide how much he hated giving Erick even that much free time. “What time is it now?”

Rationing Erick’s free time on the weekends was a new measure this year. If Erick followed the rules, aced all his classes and basically followed every one of Jack’s whims, he’d award Erick with free time to go out with his friends on the weekend. Every infraction resulted in time lost. On Monday, Erick made the mistake of failing to bring in Jack’s newspaper before the new sprinkler system, the one Jack installed himself and set the timer for, went off. The paper had been ruined.

Erick fought down the urge to argue, it always came and he always had to suppress it. Even after all these years, Jack had never been able to crush him into total submission. Erick took the abuse, but come the end of the school year he’d be free.

“I said,” Jack’s voice growled dangerously, “What time is it?”

Erick checked his watch. “Seven thirty,” he answered him.

“Then you better be walking back through that door,” Jack jabbed a finger toward the door, “No later than ten thirty.”

Erick nodded and moved to leave but Jack shoved him back against the wall, snapping his head against the wood paneling. Erick grunted in the pain but refrained from saying anything.

“Honey,” Erick’s mom, Megan, came around the corner, a shopping list in her hand, “What kind of steak did you want for tomorrow’s barbecue?”

Her manner was casual and her gaze never turned to Erick but he knew she was trying to help him. That was how it had to be. Jack let her distract him as long as she never made any obvious pleas on Erick’s behalf. On the rare occasions when Erick and his mom were alone they teased and played with each other like best friends and it was those moments that made him regret his eventual escape from the house.

“Set your watch so you don’t forget,” Jack said and he left Erick so he could look over Megan’s list, “You don’t want a repeat of the last time you were late.” Jack almost smiled as he left the hallway with Megan.

Before he could open the door, Erick’s half-sister, Rachel, came around the corner with bulging bags of garbage held aloft in each hand.

“Sorry, watch out,” Rachel said. “Come on,” she whispered as soon as she drew level with Erick “Dad’s coming back,” and Erick gladly hurried out the front door.

“You and mom are lifesavers,” Erick whispered.

“You’re right,” Rachel smirked, “Though you’ll be dead if we get caught so hurry up. And you probably should set your watch,” she added as an afterthought before intentionally spilling the contents of one of the bags of garbage on the front step.

Moments later Jack opened the front door and he was so thoroughly distracted by the mess that he completely forgot to stop Erick.

Rachel was a couple years younger than Erick, looked nothing like him, and was usually their mom’s accomplice whenever Erick needed help getting out of trouble. Jack never saw fit to punish his own offspring as harshly as he did with Erick.

Erick jogged over to the driveway where Mark’s jeep sat grumbling, hopped in, and set the alarm on his watch.

“Dude!” Mark exclaimed as they pulled out of the driveway. “What happened to your car?”

He pointed briefly to the wreck parked on the side of road in front of Erick’s house. The tarp that was suppose to be pulled over it had slipped and was revealing the whole driver side with its smashed windows and dented panels.

“I told you, I left the window down and something got in and freaked out when it couldn’t figure out how to get back out.”

Mark gave a flat stare that stated all too clearly his disbelief. Unfortunately for Mark, his round boyish face with sun bleached hair, sticking out at odd angles from beneath his baseball cap ruined all chances he had of ever being taken seriously.

“You’re saying squirrels did that?”

“Sure, whatever,” Erick sighed, getting tired of the lie. “One giant, angry squirrel.”

“Speaking of Jack,” Mark said with a sly grin, “what time you got tonight?”

“Enough for the movie and not much else,” Erick said.

“The others said they’d meet us there,” Mark said with just a hint of forced casualness.

As Mark drove, Erick fiddled with the radio, searching for something to listen to and failing entirely. The drive to the theater was a good fifteen minutes and for a while Erick thought they would go the whole distance in silence. The sky had been threatening to rain all week and the clouds seemed to have finally made up their minds as large drops of water began to spatter down on top of them. It didn’t take long before the cold rain forced them to pull over. Mark got out and ran to the back where he pulled out the soft top. Erick climbed out and together they began to button, velcro, and zip the soft top into place.

“Angry squirrel, huh?” Mark said as they worked, almost having to shout over the now pounding rain.

“That’s what I said.”

“And what was it attacking your car with? A crowbar?”

“No,” Erick said and then added, “though there was an assortment of other tools that got used. I’m not sure which ones exactly since I made sure I wasn’t anywhere near when it happened in case the squirrel decided to use them on me.”

Mark stopped zipping a particularly tricky section of the soft top and stared at Erick. “Dude, are you serious?”

Erick laughed at Mark’s expression, a combination between concern and drowned rat. “How else was he going to get the doors off?”

“No, I mean, would he actually have used them on you? It’s one thing to tear into your car. Tearing into you is something else.”

It was good to have someone that he could to talk to. Mark was the only person outside of Erick’s family who knew anything about his home life. He and Mark met in elementary school when Mark’s family moved to town. One day a train stalled out on the tracks that ran between their two neighborhoods and together they’d sneaked out at night to investigate. They were just beginning to explore when Jack showed up. He didn’t see Mark and assumed Erick was alone otherwise Jack never would have said or done the things he did. Ever since then, Mark had been able to see through the lies Erick told about weekends he couldn’t go out.

“The squirrel,” Erick said as they finished with the soft top and clambered back into the jeep, soaking wet, “started with the doors. When those were off he unbolted the seats and stripped out the interior. He seemed to loose interest, though, once the steering wheel and gear box were dismantled.”

“That bad?” Mark asked.

It had been three weeks since the incident and Erick hadn’t had any weekend time until now.

“It wasn’t so bad, the squirrel didn’t show much interest in me once I was out of the car, just kept going to town on the car.”

Mark cursed Jack under his breath but there wasn’t anymore opportunity for conversation as they’d just arrived at the theater. They ran through the parking lot, hunched over against the rain, until they reached the theater, dripping wet once more. By the time they paid for their tickets they were late.

“Probably gave up waiting for us and went in,” Mark said, scanning the lobby and not finding any of their friends there.

They handed the ticket taker their tickets. “Theater four, on your right,” she said in as bored a voice she could muster.

She was short, probably a Freshmen, and though Mark walked right passed her without a second glance, Erick had the distinct impression that Mark was planning out a pickup line to use on her the next time he saw her. It was more than just a guess. Erick knew. Impressions like that came from time to time and while he could never tell where they came from or why, he was usually right.

“Do you think she’ll still be there when the movie’s over?” Mark asked when they stepped into the dark theater.

Erick chuckled but made no comment. The previews were still running and as one trailer ended, darkness filled the room before the next trailer began. Mark was in front and he paused, causing Erick to run into him and almost knocking them both to the ground.

“What are you doing?” Erick whispered, trying not to draw attention to them.

“It’s dark, Mister Bright Eyes,” Mark hissed back.

Few people still remembered Erick’s old nickname from elementary school but Mark brought it up whenever he could. He found it amusing, Erick found it irritating. It wasn’t his fault everyone else had such terrible vision in the dark.

“Can you see them?” Mark asked, squinting as the screen flashed again with light.

“Yeah,” Erick said, pointing to where their friends were sitting before realizing that wouldn’t help Mark. “Middle left.”

Mark still didn’t move and Erick had to push him forward. They reached their seats just as the movie started.

“What took you guys so long?”

Mark glanced at Erick just briefly before responding. “We—”

“Shut up!” the guy behind them growled and kicked the back of Mark’s chair.

“Dude!” Mark all but shouted as all of his popcorn spilled to the floor.

Mark couldn’t see the guy very well, none of them except Erick could. “Leave it,” he warned Mark under his breath.

“Yeah,” the big guy behind them murmured so only they could hear, “listen to your girlfriend.”

Mark bristled but let it go as the movie picked up. Nothing like a good action sequence to make a person forget their troubles.

About fifteen minutes into the movie, Mark’s chair began to squeak as he rocked back and forth. The squeaking wasn’t loud but neither was it quiet enough to ignore. People began looking around for the source of the squeaking and scowled when they pinpointed Mark.

“Shhh,” several of them said.

Mark’s jaw was clenched and by his jostling motion it was clear he wasn’t the one making his chair move. A quick look back confirmed Erick’s suspicions; the guy behind them had his feet propped up against the back of Mark’s chair and was pushing against it to his great enjoyment. Mark started to turn around, he hesitated a moment, and returned to facing forward. Erick offered Mark some of his popcorn in consolation.

“That’s right,” the guy behind them whispered with obvious relish.

Mark eyed Erick as the movie wore on and the guy behind them kept harassing them. The muscles in Marks jaw flexed and his lips pursed in frustration. Erick risked another glance back at the guy and subtly shook his head at Mark.

“Soon as the movie ends and the theater’s dark,” Mark whispered during a particularly loud series of explosions, “I’m gonna stand up and punch that guy square in the nose, you with me?”

Erick gawked at Mark.

“If you’re worried about being late getting home you can just take my jeep and go,” Mark went on while he flexed and massaged his knuckles in preparation for the fight to come. “I’ll catch up later with the others, but I’m going to do something about this idiot behind me.”

It was ridiculous but Erick didn’t have time to voice his opinion. The moment Mark stopped talking the movie ended and in the darkness before the end credits began, Mark shot up to his feet, turned on the spot and planted his fists, one right after the other, into the guy’s face. Shock and awe mesmerized the guy for only a moment before he plowed Mark back with his own flurry of blows. It was clear to Erick who the winner of this fight was going to be, and not wanting to see his friend beat into a pulp, Erick climbed quickly over the row of seats so he could get a better angle on the guy.

“Hey!” Erick shouted and prodded the guy in the ribs to get his attention.

“What?” He asked with fury and turned to face Erick.

Without hesitating, Erick delivered a swift punch to the guys throat followed by an elbow to the side of his head. He went down without further resistance. If there was one thing Erick could thank Jack for, it was classes on self defense that he’d forced Erick to take most of his life.

Erick made his way back over the row of chairs to check on Mark who was nursing a bloody lip and one of his eyes was already swelling shut. The rest of their friends were in shock, having had no warning for the fight.

“Now let’s get out of here before someone calls the cops,” Erick said and they began to hurry out of the theater, pushing past the many onlookers.

Once outside, they found that it had stopped raining during the movie, but that now a thick blanket of fog hung over everything and made it impossible to see more than a few feet in front of their faces. The rest of their friends were still upset with Mark and Erick for getting into a fight and so left them almost at once.

“They’ll get over it,” Mark said while trying not to move his split lip and ending up speaking with a slight slur.

“Yeah, well, don’t count on me always being there to bail you out the next time you decide to pick a fight with someone twice your size.”

“He was twice your size too.”

Erick shrugged. He didn’t blame Mark for wanting to lay into that guy. Truth be told, Erick was glad he got to join in and use up some of his pent up frustration. For just a moment he imagined it was Jack he’d been hitting and a smile spread across his face.

“Now where’d you park?” He asked Mark and they began wandering through the mist.

As more people left the theater and began looking for their own vehicles, flashes of light began to strobe here and there as headlights blinked on and off in response to their owners clicking their key fobs to help guide them to their cars. Before long shouts of laughter and the sounds of running feet began to mingle with that of car engines starting.

“Sounds like some of them are playing tag or something,” Mark commented while they searched yet another row of cars without success. “Bit of a stupid thing to do in a parking lot.”

Before Erick could respond, the mist in front of them churned and a girl nearly ran into them. She stopped just in time, panting slightly, and looked up at them. Erick recognized her at once. Sarah Collins was, in Erick’s estimation, one of the funniest and most interesting girls in their school, though they had never been formally introduced to one another. She seemed to recognize them and her eyes brightened.

“It’s partner tag,” she said quickly, taking Erick by the hand, “and I lost my partner.”

Without waiting for a response she took off at a run once again and towed Erick along behind her, leaving Mark standing alone.

“You’re going to be late!” Mark called after them but he was swallowed up so quickly in the fog that Erick immediately lost track of which direction he was in.

Sarah dodged to the side as a parked car loomed up out of the fog and jerked Erick out of the way just in time.

“Gosh,” Erick half laughed, half shouted in surprise, “We’re going to crash into something.”

Erick didn’t want to lose Mark and wind up being late getting home, but neither did he want to lose this opportunity to actually get to know Sarah. She had, after all, chosen him to be her partner.

Sarah slowed down and they slipped in between a couple of parked cars to get out of the flow of traffic. More people had found their cars now and were slowly making their way out of the parking lot. Whenever one of them passed by, it’s headlamps briefly illuminated the fog to a blinding white and then was swiftly swallowed back up in the fog.

“Sarah Collins,” she stated, shaking his hand in feigned formality. “Erick Stark, right?” she asked without waiting for him to respond.

“Oh, yeah,” Erick was having trouble thinking of what to say now that he actually had the chance to talk with her and so shook Sarah’s hand once more for lack of anything else to do and then let it go.

BEEP BEEP BEEP

“What’s that?” Sarah asked.

“My alarm,” Erick explained, clicking the button on his watch to silence it.

“Why do you have an alarm?”

“I need to get home,” Erick was beginning to panic. “Which way did we come from?”

“I don’t know,” Sarah answered, “I’m just as lost as you are. What are you doing?”

Erick had climbed up onto the hood of the nearest car. From his vantage point, his head barely poked out above the fog.

“Mark?” Erick shouted while he looked around hoping to spot the top of the Jeep. “The theaters over there,” he said, pointing even though he knew Sarah wouldn’t be able to see. “Which means Mark’s car is is parked somewhere to the left,” and then added under his breath, “I hope.”

As soon as Erick hopped down he took Sarah by the hand and they were off again in search of the car. It didn’t sound like many people were still playing the game of tag but Sarah didn’t protest and Erick was glad for the excuse to spend more time with her.

“What time do you have to be home?” Sarah asked.

“Ten thirty,” Erick checked his watch: 10:00 PM. “Jack’s going to kill me.”

“It won’t be that bad,” Sarah said, “I’m sure your parent’s will understand.”

Erick snorted but left it at that. Sarah didn’t need to be bothered with details.

“So,” Sarah ventured, “if it’s really that important why don’t you call and explain the situation to your parents?”

Erick opened his mouth to begin explaining to her why calling would only make things worse but thought better of it and instead maintained his silence.

“It could be worse.” Erick said, giving Sarah a faint smile that she returned.

All at once, their heads popped out above of the fog and they stared back toward the theater. Unnoticed by either of them, the parking lot sloped gradually upward on this side and the steady rise in elevation had carried them out of the fog.

“Mark?” Erick shouted again, still with no response.

“I think we’re pretty close to my car,” Sarah said and pulled out her keys. She clicked the key fob once and a yellow glow blinked in the fog not far from where we were. “Yeah, I’m parked right there,” she said.”If you need a ride, I could take you.”

“You don’t mind?” Erick asked.

Sarah shook her head, sending her long hair shimmering across her shoulders. “Least I can do, just let me tell my parents I’ll be a bit late.”

Sarah pulled out her cell phone and sent a quick text.

“Shall we then?” Erick asked when she put her phone away and he proffered his arm to her. Sarah took it, even as Erick groaned inside at how stupid he was acting.

They were careful to keep their bearings once they reentered the fog and Sarah clicked her keys periodically to make sure they weren’t getting off course. Cars passed by, most moving at a crawl because of the lack of visibility, though a few sped by with reckless abandon and Erick and Sarah were careful to keep an eye out for them. At last, Sarah clicked her keys and the car lights blinked revealing it was only a few parking stalls away. Erick considered going over and opening Sarah’s door for her but thought better of it.

“Watch out!” Sarah screamed as the fog around them turned blinding white and Erick became aware of the roar of an engine.

Reflex took over and Erick spun around as a car broke through the fog at a terrifying pace. Erick’s mind sped up and time slowed down. Wisps of fog floated gently out of the way of the oncoming vehicle before spiraling off to the side. Sarah’s scream lingered in a low, drawn out tone and she appeared frozen in mid leap as she dove out of the way of the oncoming car.

Something pulsed through Erick. It began at his chest and flowed out through his arms. For a split second the air in front of Erick wavered and then rippled. A faint blue light began to grow though where it was coming from Erick couldn’t guess.

Time caught back up with Erick as the blue light flashed far brighter than the white of the headlights and the car, rather than running Erick over, exploded, tossing Erick through the air like a rag doll.

Sarah’s scream cut off even as other screams joined the cacophony of the screeching tires and shattering glass. For a time, Erick couldn’t see or move as his body evaluated the damage he’d sustained and all the noise and commotion washed over him without comprehension. Erick’s mind finished checking himself over and, to his surprise, found nothing was seriously injured.

“We need to go,” Sarah was at his side, kneeling, and trying to get him to sit up. “Can you move?”

Her demeanor was completely changed now and without waiting for a response to her question, she grabbed Erick by the arms and helped him to his feet. All around, the fog had been pushed back and the damp chill of night was replaced by a hot mugginess. Several onlookers stood in the clearing, looking back and forth from Erick to the ruined car. The front end of the car was crushed all the way back into the front seats. Bits of glass and metal lay strewn across the pavement. Inside the car, airbags obscured the driver and any passengers there might have been.

“Look at the ground,” said someone from the crowd.

Sarah guided Erick back to her car and as they passed the spot he had been standing moments before and he saw a small crater carved into the asphalt. Steam, not fog, rose from the center of the crater and the bottom looked smooth and polished like glass.

“We need to go,” Sarah whispered again, though more to herself than to Erick this time. “We need to go now!” her eyes darted from person to person as many of them began taking out cell phones. “Erick, let’s go!”

The urgency in her voice forced Erick to turn away from the crowd and really look at her for the first time since the accident. Sarah was a mess, bits of asphalt stuck in her face and hair from the explosion, small cuts along her cheeks showed where some of the faster moving pieces of debris had hit her, and she was almost crying. Erick’s common sense told him that they should stay there and wait for the police or an ambulance but, again, Sarah wasn’t waiting for Erick to answer and she continued to push him over to her car.

He could feel the fearful eyes of the crowd boring holes through him as he got into the car. He half expected someone to stop them but none dared say or do anything.

“Are you okay?” Erick finally found his voice as Sarah started the car.

Sarah watched intently as several of the onlookers entered into deep conversations on their cell phones. She maneuvered the car through the crowd and out of the parking lot.

“Sarah…?” Erick’s voice quivered. He glanced over to make sure she was all right. Sarah’s white knuckled grip on the steering wheel suggested otherwise.

“Let’s get something to eat,” Erick suggested.

“No!” Sarah answered so abruptly that she swerved and almost ran into another car, “We have to go to your house.” And just like that her voice became flat, almost automatic like she was reading from a script. She refused to look at Erick when she added, “Your parents will need to know.”

“Need to know? Need to know what? I don’t even know what just happened!” Erick had to keep himself from shouting. “Jack won’t care. He’ll say that’s what I get for being late.”

“Please, Erick?” Sarah’s voice was back to normal but she still gripped the wheel tighter than was necessary.

Silence. Erick kept his eyes on the road and Sarah drove.

He’d been running on autopilot ever since the accident but now he had time to think about the recent events; he stopped the car, destroyed it, without so much as touching it. Not to mention melted a hole in the ground. As unbelievable as it seemed Erick knew that it was the truth. There had been other times when he’d felt that pull from inside his body, like he did before destroying the car, though never on that scale. The year before, Erick was playing baseball with some friends and a line drive heading straight for his face stopped right in front of him. Erick watched in puzzled shock as it hung in the air for a moment and then dropped to the ground. A few other things had happened, but nothing on the scale of the car, and they always happened out of reflex.

They passed an ambulance parked on the side of the road, its lights flashing. Someone had wrapped their car around a tree. A short distance down the road a police car, lights flashing, raced by going the other direction.

Erick watched it in the rear view mirror. It didn’t stop at the accident and Erick knew that the police car was headed to the theater instead.

More time passed and Erick found himself counting the road markers to keep his mind occupied. Sarah turned the car from time to time, following this road and then that one until the neighborhoods began to look familiar to Erick.

“How do you know the way to my house?” Erick blurted out when he realized where Sarah was going.

Sarah shook as if waking up but left the question unanswered.

“What is going on?”Erick asked.

Still, Sarah remained quiet until she pulled the car over, Erick’s house on the opposite side of the road. The lights were on inside of the house, but the front porch light was notably off.

“Turn the car off,” Erick instructed and Sarah obeyed. “With any luck,” he went on, “Jack won’t have seen us yet.”

“Are you all right?” Sarah asked and reached a trembling hand up to brush some debris from Erick’s face.

Erick entertained the idea of leaving and never coming back.

“Erick?” there was a new urgency in her voice.

Erick let out his breath in a low, steady sigh. “You should go home.”

Sarah’s face said it all, they were in this together.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” he said.

Resigned to the worst, Erick got out of the car. A cold breeze picked up as they drew closer to the porch and sucked the last of the evening’s warmth away, adding to Erick’s growing unease. Not only was he late, he was bringing Sarah. Jack would make his own assumptions about that.

Pausing at the door, his hand almost on the doorknob, Erick shut his eyes and prepared for what he knew was coming. Sarah’s discomfort was palpable beside him. Erick opened the door.

There was silence for a moment. Long enough for Erick to think that by some miracle Jack had decided to be merciful for once. And then the shouting started.

“WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?” Jack yelled from the living room, his heavy footsteps signaling his approach. “I’m gonna beat you so—” Jack’s voice cut out the moment he saw Sarah. His eye’s passed from Erick to Sarah, making connections.

“What’s this?” His voice was low and dangerous as he nodded his head toward Sarah as his massive figure blocked them from entering any further into the house.

“There was an accident, Jack,” Erick spoke with as much control as he could manage.

Jack stared hard at Erick for a few seconds before shifting his gaze to Sarah.

“What kind of accident?”

Sarah shrank back.

“A car accident,” Erick answered.

Sarah shifted and Jack raised an eyebrow.

“There was fog when we got out of the movie,” Erick clarified, “We were trying to find our way to her car and I got hit.”

Jack’s lips curled into a smile and he slid his hand through his salt and pepper hair.

“Okay,” he said, roughly dusting off some dirt from Erick’s shirt. “I can buy that. You’ve got some scrapes and bruises,” he brushed his hand over Erick’s scalp and came back with a piece of gravel. “But I thought it was supposed to be just you and the guys tonight? Who’s this slut?”

Sarah blushed at the insult.

“What do you want from me?” Fresh adrenaline rushed through Erick’s veins.

“The truth, Erick! Let’s start with that.”

“FINE!” Erick yelled. “The truth is I was almost run over but I stopped the car, blew it to pieces, and, oh yeah,” he added with rising fury, “I MELTED A CRATER IN THE—

“SHUT UP!” Jack shouted as he grabbed Erick by the shoulders and slammed him back against the wall, knocking the wind out of him.

“It’s true!” Sarah cried out in shock at Jack’s behavior.

Jack paused mid step, fists still raised and ready to lay into Erick. It seemed to take an eternity before he lowered his fists and then, inexplicably, motioned for them to follow him into the living room. It was more than Erick could take. Jack lost his temper all the time, that was nothing new, but what in the world was going on? What did Jack and Sarah know that he didn’t know?

“What is going on?” Erick demanded as they entered the living room.

“Sit down,” Jack replied dismissively.

“No I—”

“Sit!” he repeated right as his cell phone rang. He pointed forcefully to the couch and then left the room.

“We should probably sit down,” Sarah said and made herself comfortable on the couch.

“…uh huh, yeah,” Jack’s voice reached Erick, “he just got here, some girl’s with him.”

“Who are you talking to?” Erick called out but still couldn’t quite bring himself to go after Jack and so he stayed standing with Sarah staring at him from the couch.

A few minutes later, Jack came back into the room and grabbed Erick by the arm, steering him toward the couch. “Get over there,” he growled, “sit by your girlfriend, she looks lonely.”

“Is anyone going to tell me what’s going on?” Erick ventured again, though his hopes of receiving an answer were lessening.

“SIT!” Jack barked and Erick finally obeyed. “Now listen,” Jack went and settled himself down into an armchair, “I’m gonna tell you what’s going on and then you’re going to shut up, okay?”

“Fine by me,” Erick replied.

“Good. Now you were a year old when I married your mother, and you were already doing some strange things. You disappeared for hours on end and then would reappear in the oddest places. We found you on the roof, inside the fridge, and once you were found sitting on top of the neighbors dining table with a bucket of ice cream in front of you and a spoon in each hand.” Jack looked as though he were about to chuckle, though the moment passed and his usual grimace returned.

“Objects moved around you without anyone touching them, and sometimes, when you were angry, you’d break things, things you shouldn’t have been strong enough to break. I won’t lie to you Erick, you were a freak and only your mother kept me from just, well, we were contacted by a neurologist from Purge City, Dr. Spielman, who was studying hyperactivity in brains. He’d heard about you and wanted to see if any of his research could be applied to you.

“To be honest, Erick, I didn’t understand what all the scans and such were for exactly, but once it was all done, Dr. Spielman told us that, while a normal person will use a hundred percent of their brain throughout any given day, they usually aren’t using all of it at once. You were. He also explained that because our bodies use electricity to control our muscles, send signals, all that stuff, our bodies create a slight electric field. For most people, that field is so weak it doesn’t effect anything and so we never notice it. But your field was so strong that it distorted most of the scans they tried to take of your brain. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that, with you doing all those things as a baby, there was no way of telling what you might be capable of doing as you got older. So I beat it out of you, every time I caught you doing something you shouldn’t. It only took a year or so for you to catch on. Your mother complained at first, but she had to agree with me when she saw the results.

“We thought that all was well until we got another call from Dr. Spielman. Turns out the government thought you were a sweet little tool they could use. Your mom sobbed, begging them not to take you. Even I put in a good word for you though I can’t remember why I did it now. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, you were mostly normal by this point in time and they lost interest in you. Though you can bet they’ve kept tabs on you, just in case you ever showed any sign of your powers again. Even offered me a sweet bonus if I could ever get you to use your powers again.”

Someone knocked on the door and Erick jumped.

“That’ll be them,” Jack said, getting up from his seat and walking to over to open the door. “Looks like I’m going to get my pay day.”

“Already?” Erick asked.

“You don’t honestly think that we wouldn’t have other people watching you besides your parents,” called a voice from the hallway, “do you?”

A moment later, a group of men came into the living room, followed shortly after by Jack. The men were dressed in identical black suits. Each one wore an earpiece and there was a suspicious bulge in their jackets just beneath their elbows that suggested they were armed.

“I’m Special Agent Reese,” the man in front announced. “We’ve been keeping an eye on you for some time now, in case something ever happened and, well, tonight something happened. Considering all the damage you caused you’re lucky no one died. We’ve already explained to your dad—”

“Step-dad,” Erick interrupted before he could stop himself.

Special Agent Reese managed a brief smile and cleared his throat. Jack muttered something about getting drinks for all of us. “Yes, well,” Special Agent Reese continued, “as I was saying it’s nothing too serious from what the paramedics can tell. A few cracked ribs, maybe a broken arm and the driver has a concussion but is expected to recover without any lasting effects. The point is, Erick, you’re dangerous. And we’re here to protect everyone else from you.”

Jack returned with a case of bottled water and began handing them out. Erick gladly accepted the bottle from Jack as the knot in his stomach twisted tighter. This all had to be a lie, or a dream. It couldn’t be real.

You’re mine.

Erick paused in the middle of taking a drink. Special Agent Reese’s mouth didn’t move but the voice was distinctly his.

We’ll squeeze you ’til there’s nothing left. Just like the other one.

“You’ll be taken to a secure facility where you can learn to control your powers. If, after a period of observation, we believe it safe you’ll be allowed back to live a normal, monitored, life—”

His voice was drowned out by the one in Erick’s head.

You’ll never see this place again. You’ll be lucky if you see the sun.

“You’re lying,” Erick wobbled in his seat and his head suddenly felt as though he’d been spinning for the last several minutes.

“This is for everyone’s protection, Erick,” Special Agent Reese said.

I’ll kill you if I have to.

Erick tried to stand but his body wasn’t responding properly and Sarah had to steady him with both arms to keep him from slipping off the couch.

“Whose protection, mine or yours?” Erick asked, looking at his water bottle.

As Erick’s body turned numb as he saw Special Agent Reese taking out a pair of handcuffs. There was little Erick could do to stop him now and panic gripped him as he was slung forward and his hands were bound.

“Whudyu put inma whata?” Erick managed to say and he was shocked at how slurred his speech had become.

“Can’t tell you how happy I am to finally give him that drink,” Jack was saying to someone.

You’ll sleep for hours.

“No,” Erick squirmed ineffectually as a couple of the other Agents lifted him off the couch and began to drag him toward the door.

When they reached the hallway, time, again, slowed almost to a stop. Erick could see his mother and half-sister, Rachel, peaking out through their doors at what was going on and Jack was in mid-step on his way to shoo them back into their rooms. Sarah sat slumped on the couch, not meeting anyone’s eyes as she stared down at her feet.

As Erick lost even more control and awareness over his body he became aware of something else; a pulsing inside of him. He didn’t feel the pulsing so much as he sensed it. It must have always been there, he’d just been too distracted by his other senses to notice it. As time crept onward at its maddeningly slow pace, Erick concentrated on how he’d felt earlier that night right before he destroyed the car. Special Agent Reese and his men were, for the most part, right in front of him and Erick figured this was his last chance to escape. Without all the other distractions associated with his mind and body, Erick found it surprisingly easy to channel whatever it was that he sensed inside of him and at once a blue orb took shape in front of his chest.

Time snapped back to normal and Erick found himself looking from the blue orb at his chest to Special Agent Reese, who too had noticed its appearance.

Shoot him! Special Agent Reese’s voice screamed in Erick’s mind.

“Shoot—”

Blue light flashed and the room exploded and the men on either side of Erick lost their grip on him as he was thrown backwards through the open front door. Erick tumbled through the air and then fell and fell and fell into darkness.

Hot wind whipped at his face as he fell faster and fast and still he couldn’t see. Sounds of voices surrounded him, though what they were saying he couldn’t tell. Some were shouting, others were screaming. One voice in particular screamed above the rest, a shrill, panicked voice. He didn’t know why, but he felt an overpowering urge to help whoever it was that he heard screaming. If only Erick could get to that person, he knew he could make everything okay.

BANG

A gunshot rang out and Erick’s eyes shot open right as someone slapped him hard across the face. Whoever it was, they were silhouetted against a glaring reddish-orange light.

“Move,” said the strained voice.

“Who’s there?” Erick asked, and as he did so, his vision began to slide into focus.

Sarah’s face was cut and bruised and everywhere she was covered in a thin layer of ash.

“Come on, Erick, we’ve got to move,” Sarah said, this time more emphatic.

Erick tried to wave her away so he could see where the light and heat were coming from.

“Erick, please!” Sarah all but screamed.

His sight finally returned to normal and everything came into focus. They were on the front porch. Erick was on his back and he had a perfect view through the open front door. Fire poured out of the floor and cascaded up the walls and across the ceiling. There was no sign of Special Agent Reese or his men among the rubble that use to be the house’s interior nor was there any sign of Erick’s family. Above them, the eves of the house gave an awful moan and Sarah grabbed Erick and dragged him out of the way, barely in time before the roof collapsed.

Erick gaped at the pile of rubble, shocked by the possibility that he may have just killed everyone inside. Sarah continued dragging Erick even though it looked like the effort was taking every last ounce of her strength.

“No,” Erick muttered and he stretched his hand out toward the ruined house, “my family.”

Sarah ignored him and kept dragging him away from the flames.

Aside from the flames, all was silent and as each possible explanation for why his family would be silent at a time like this played through his mind, Erick cursed himself more and more.

“Sarah, my family!”

He tried to break free from Sarah but his strength was still gone, and what was more, that strange pulsing inside of him was faint, barely noticeable anymore.

“No one’s coming out of there,” Sarah said and her voice carried all of the shock and terror that Erick felt.

At last they reached a large oak tree on the far side of the yard and Sarah slumped Erick up against the trunk before collapsing into a sitting position beside him.

“What have I done?” Erick asked, breathless.

The burden of carrying Erick for so long had taken its toll on Sarah and she didn’t look like she’d noticed Erick’s question. For a while they watched the house burn, crumbling into itself at odd intervals. Erick’s neighbors were beginning to congregate outside, several of them asking if anyone knew how it had happened. Erick wondered if any of them had thought to call the fire department.

“Are you all right?” Sarah asked after a while.

Erick shut his eyes against the blaze, hot tears streaking down his cheeks. “I’ve killed them,” he muttered, “I’ve killed my family.”

Sarah pulled Erick into a hug and stroked his hair. “I barely escaped as it is,” she said, “I don’t think any one else…” her voice trailed away.

“Mom…Rachel,” Erick sobbed freely into Sarah’s shoulder. “I didn’t mean for this to happen, I only wanted to get away.”

“Why didn’t you just go with them?” Sarah asked, her voice full of accusation. “This is what they were trying to keep from happening.”

Erick shook his head. “No,” he said bitterly, “they were lying. I have no idea what they wanted me for, but it certainly wasn’t to protect others.” Erick tried to move but still lacked the strength. “We need to get out of here.”

“Didn’t you hear what that Reese guy said?” Sarah demanded.

“Of course I did,” Erick shifted his weight, glad to see he was regaining some of his motor control, “but I also heard his thoughts and I’m telling you, he was lying.”

“You heard his thoughts?” Sarah did not sound convinced. “how could you—

“I blew up a car tonight…and my house…right in front of you,” Erick said without emotion, “Trust me when I tell you that I read his mind.”

“I still think we should wait for the police or something,” Sarah stated firmly. “You’re a danger to everyone around you until you can learn to control…whatever it is that you do.”

“And what if I’m right?” Erick asked. “What if they’re lying?”

For a long time Sarah didn’t say anything and the firelight played across her face, distorting her expression such that Erick couldn’t tell what she was thinking. When she finally did speak, her voice was serious. “What do we do, then?”

“For now,” Erick said, “I think the best thing to do is to get out of here, find someplace safe where I can figure out my next move.”

“And what about me?” Sarah asked.

“What about you? You’re going home.”

“And how do you expect to get anywhere?” Sarah gave him a shove and Erick, still too weak to catch himself, fell over.

“Ow,” Erick groaned as his face hit a root, “Not cool, Sarah.”

“I’m sorry but it seemed like the best way to prove my point,” she said.

At that moment a pair of headlights came into view, speeding down the road towards them. As the van neared the house it slowed, parting the gathered crowd of spectators, and pulled into the driveway. Whoever was inside the van turned a spotlight onto Erick and Sarah.

“Erick,” a voice called out through a speakerphone, “stay where you are. Do not attempt to resist or you will be shot.”

“I’m fine, thanks for asking,” Sarah shouted to them and waving her arm.

“We need you to move away from the young woman,” the voice said over the loudspeaker.

“I can’t,” Erick said, still lying face down in the grass.

“Move away from the girl now, Erick,” the voice repeated.

“It’s safe,” Sarah shouted, “he can’t move.”

Doors opened and shut and the sounds of heavy footsteps began making their way towards Erick and Sarah.

“Sarah, they’re lying,” Erick whispered, “You have to believe me, please.”

Sarah looked into Erick’s eyes and he held her gaze, begging her to believe him, to help him.

“There’s nothing I can do,” Sarah whispered back.

“Yes there is.”

“What?”

“Get behind the tree.”

Erick reached inside himself once more that night and tapped into the pulsing deep within himself. The pulsing was getting fainter, but even still, it was there. His body strengthened and he sat up as Sarah’s eyes grew wide at the sight of the air in front of Erick’s chest wavering and turning blue.

“Erick you can’t—”

“Move Sarah, now!”

Someone cocked a gun and Sarah jumped.

Black night turned to brilliant blue as gunfire and explosions melded into one terrible burst of noise. The spotlight went out and Erick, no longer blinded by it, could see plainly once again; his eyes piercing the darkness without difficulty. Men flew through the air like leaves in the wind. Their van flipped over and tumbled across the neighbors yard, bouncing and rolling without showing any sign of slowing before crashing into the neighbors house. Those that had gathered to watch the burning house were now scattering for shelter.

A few men were still standing, or else in good enough shape to fight back and bullets thudded into the ground and tree trunk around Erick. Sarah screamed and Erick could see her scrambling, trying to get behind the oak.

Erick shot out his hand and smacked a barrage of bullets out of the air right in front of Sarah. She froze, having seen what Erick did.

“We need to get to your car,” Erick shouted over the gunfire and smacking another spray of bullets out of the air, this time saving his own life.

Sarah didn’t move from where she lay, cowering from the gunfire. Erick tapped the last of the pulsing and scooped Sarah up in one arm. He dashed across the lawn as fast as he could while swatting bullets away with his free hand.

He had no idea how he knew when or where the bullets were coming from, or how he managed to stop them with nothing but a wave from his hand. What he did know was that the pulsing inside of him was diminishing at a startling rate and he doubted very much that he would be able to keep this up much longer.

When Erick reached the pavement, Sarah came to her senses enough that Erick could put her down and together they ran the rest of the way to Sarah’s car, all the while Erick was busy deflecting the many bullets that were being fired at them. Erick was hoping against hope that his strength would hold out as he noticed that his hands were beginning to hurt and his head was beginning to throb. Sarah’s car grumbled to life and Erick knew they weren’t far from escape. Sarah had the back door open for Erick and he collapsed into the backseat, his strength gone. Glass shattered as the windows nearest their attackers were shot out and Sarah screamed. The gunfire paused.

“They’re shooting at me!” Sarah whispered intensely, “Why are they shooting at me?”

“Just, drive!” Erick managed to say as his vision began to darken.

Sarah slammed the car into gear and peeled out onto the road and Erick breathed a sigh of relief. All around him he could smell the smoke from the house and feel the aches and pains from the night’s many explosions, but for the moment he was safe.

“Thank you, Sarah,” Erick managed to whisper.

A faint whimpering was all he heard back before unconsciousness overcame him.