We went our separate ways. I stopped by the gas station on the walk back home and picked up a few things I knew we didn’t have. I went back to the training grounds and blasted my heart away. I was so excited that I had finally found another person with some sort of power. What was it? How long had they had their powers for? Could we teach each other? How long did I have to wait to see her again? These questions created turmoil in my mind, excited and happy turmoil. I practiced physical fighting, fighting with my powers, imagining scenarios, meditating, sharpening my senses, and strengthening my mind. By the time I was done, I was exhausted. I chugged one of the bottles of Diet Coke I had bought, as well as a water bottle. Hydration is key, after all.
I found out that I could cause individual objects to explode. I had tried to summon a sphere low to the ground but, instead, several pebbles exploded around the spot I was focusing on. This was discovered, of course, accidentally, and wound up spending over an hour and a half making random inanimate objects explode.
That night, I stumbled home. Unwary, sweaty, dirty, tired, and uncomfortably awkward and clumsy, I stumbled and tripped up the stairs to my room. I saw the clock. 7:39 p.m. I missed supper. Great, now my dad would-
My dad would have…
I blinked. “Dad?” I called. I shouted louder. “Dad! DAD! DAAAAD!” No response. I looked about, hoping my sister was there. I called out for her, as well, but got no response. I, frenzied and panicked, scoured the house from top to bottom, bottom to top, hoping to find them.
To my dismay, they were nowhere to be seen. I started to thump my forehead with the butt of my palm. “Think, man. Think! Did they say they were going anywhere?” I looked around for a note, but didn’t find one. I scratched my head. “What the hell?”
Suddenly, there it was.
The anxiety attack.
The massive anxiety attack.
I waited for three hours. Four hours. Five hours.
My stomach twisted and curled into knots, and my mind grew fuzzy. I became light-headed, and sat on the couch. I turned on the television to try to clear my mind.
“A missings persons case has just arose in the city of-” the announcer began, but I slammed my index finger into the power button on the remote. I threw it onto the ground and it shattered. My mind was roiling and anxious as it had never been before. I grabbed my housekey and locked every door and window I possibly could of the house. I ran to my grotto in the forest, and launched a small missile of energy into the opening in the canopy above. The flare sounded like a whining ‘Kat’ and the letters were spelled out in the sky. I did this a few times, before I sent one up that said, ‘Help.’ I could only sit there and pray that she got the message, launching more and more, each weaker than the last. I was growing tired, and if she didn’t come quickly, there would be no conscious person to come to.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After another half hour, Kat came running into the forest. “Potato! What’s the matter? What’s wrong?!” She called. My face was dark with emotions and exhaustion. “My family… is gone…” I rasped through my panting. It seemed to finally click that I was extremely tired and unable to maintain strength very much at the time, and she gave me a concerned and scornful look. “You ought to be in bed, family or no family. Don’t do this to yourself.” I shook my head, unable to speak.
“I think… someone may have… taken… them…” I struggled out a couple of minutes later. Her eyes widened. “No, no, no… no, this can’t be…” she looked up. “Did you see something weird run through this forest? Tall, blood red, and unimaginably bulky and muscular?”
“Y-yeah…” I said. I would have been surprised if not so tired.
“Oh, no. Potato, your family… they’re…” she paused, her face shaded by her hair. I could see tears trickling from her face.
“They’re what..?” I panted.
“Dead. They’re dead, Potato. Dead as dead can be.”
I sat there, finally gaining control of my breathing. “I don’t understand.” I said, despite understanding perfectly well.
“They are no more. Gone. Dead. Their souls left their bodies. They’re ghosts; gone…” she looked up at me.
I felt like crying. I felt like killing. I felt like forgiving. I felt like blaming.
Then, all at once, I felt… nothing.
I felt like a blank slate, nothing written on me. No purpose to my existence, the only things I lived for being erased.
I looked up, my face neutral. “Okay.” I said merely. Kat gave me a look of insanity. “How can you not be sad at your own family’s death!?” She screamed. I looked down, face neutral still.
“I think I’ve broken my emotions.” I said. I merely sat there while Kat stood up, sat down, and stood up again. She almost put her arm around me, but hesitated, then tried again but didn’t. Stand up, almost sit, almost stand, almost crouch. She finally settled on sitting.
“I…” she said. I looked up, steel grey eyes seemingly lifeless.
“I have nothing left to live for.”
She teared up and threw herself at me in a giant hug. I didn’t move, my neutrality slowly deteriorating.
Better she thinks I don’t feel than know how truly bad I feel. I thought to myself.
“I’ll… I’ll walk with you home. I can stay the night. I can-”
“Only if you want to, Kat. I couldn’t care less.” I walked nonchalantly to my home, and heard Kat following me.
Great, I thought, Yet another potential friend to be ruined by my misery.
We walked in silence, heads held low.
I found out that I could cause individual objects to explode. I had tried to summon a sphere low to the ground but, instead, several pebbles exploded around the spot I was focusing on. This was discovered, of course, accidentally, and wound up spending over an hour and a half making random inanimate objects explode.
That night, I stumbled home. Unwary, sweaty, dirty, tired, and uncomfortably awkward and clumsy, I stumbled and tripped up the stairs to my room. I saw the clock. 7:39 p.m. I missed supper. Great, now my dad would-
My dad would have…
I blinked. “Dad?” I called. I shouted louder. “Dad! DAD! DAAAAD!” No response. I looked about, hoping my sister was there. I called out for her, as well, but got no response. I, frenzied and panicked, scoured the house from top to bottom, bottom to top, hoping to find them.
To my dismay, they were nowhere to be seen. I started to thump my forehead with the butt of my palm. “Think, man. Think! Did they say they were going anywhere?” I looked around for a note, but didn’t find one. I scratched my head. “What the hell?”
Suddenly, there it was.
The anxiety attack.
The massive anxiety attack.
I waited for three hours. Four hours. Five hours.
My stomach twisted and curled into knots, and my mind grew fuzzy. I became light-headed, and sat on the couch. I turned on the television to try to clear my mind.
“A missings persons case has just arose in the city of-” the announcer began, but I slammed my index finger into the power button on the remote. I threw it onto the ground and it shattered. My mind was roiling and anxious as it had never been before. I grabbed my housekey and locked every door and window I possibly could of the house. I ran to my grotto in the forest, and launched a small missile of energy into the opening in the canopy above. The flare sounded like a whining ‘Kat’ and the letters were spelled out in the sky. I did this a few times, before I sent one up that said, ‘Help.’ I could only sit there and pray that she got the message, launching more and more, each weaker than the last. I was growing tired, and if she didn’t come quickly, there would be no conscious person to come to.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After another half hour, Kat came running into the forest. “Potato! What’s the matter? What’s wrong?!” She called. My face was dark with emotions and exhaustion. “My family… is gone…” I rasped through my panting. It seemed to finally click that I was extremely tired and unable to maintain strength very much at the time, and she gave me a concerned and scornful look. “You ought to be in bed, family or no family. Don’t do this to yourself.” I shook my head, unable to speak.
“I think… someone may have… taken… them…” I struggled out a couple of minutes later. Her eyes widened. “No, no, no… no, this can’t be…” she looked up. “Did you see something weird run through this forest? Tall, blood red, and unimaginably bulky and muscular?”
“Y-yeah…” I said. I would have been surprised if not so tired.
“Oh, no. Potato, your family… they’re…” she paused, her face shaded by her hair. I could see tears trickling from her face.
“They’re what..?” I panted.
“Dead. They’re dead, Potato. Dead as dead can be.”
I sat there, finally gaining control of my breathing. “I don’t understand.” I said, despite understanding perfectly well.
“They are no more. Gone. Dead. Their souls left their bodies. They’re ghosts; gone…” she looked up at me.
I felt like crying. I felt like killing. I felt like forgiving. I felt like blaming.
Then, all at once, I felt… nothing.
I felt like a blank slate, nothing written on me. No purpose to my existence, the only things I lived for being erased.
I looked up, my face neutral. “Okay.” I said merely. Kat gave me a look of insanity. “How can you not be sad at your own family’s death!?” She screamed. I looked down, face neutral still.
“I think I’ve broken my emotions.” I said. I merely sat there while Kat stood up, sat down, and stood up again. She almost put her arm around me, but hesitated, then tried again but didn’t. Stand up, almost sit, almost stand, almost crouch. She finally settled on sitting.
“I…” she said. I looked up, steel grey eyes seemingly lifeless.
“I have nothing left to live for.”
She teared up and threw herself at me in a giant hug. I didn’t move, my neutrality slowly deteriorating.
Better she thinks I don’t feel than know how truly bad I feel. I thought to myself.
“I’ll… I’ll walk with you home. I can stay the night. I can-”
“Only if you want to, Kat. I couldn’t care less.” I walked nonchalantly to my home, and heard Kat following me.
Great, I thought, Yet another potential friend to be ruined by my misery.
We walked in silence, heads held low.