My name is Angel Romano. I’m going to be honest, I picked that name because it sounds cool. I grew up in an orphanage, where they asked me my first name, in a small town called Union City, Tennessee. There wasn’t much to do at first, but that all changed when a man showed up at my doorstep.
He told the people who had adopted me a few weeks earlier at the age of 13 that I was dangerous and could not be trusted. I ran to my room crying because I had no clue what he meant. Luckily, they didn’t believe him and my “dad” held up a shotgun to tell him to leave.
The next day was the worst day of my life. I layed in bed for the entire day, hiding under my blankets and watching Ferris Bueller's Day Off over and over again. It’s a good movie, you can’t blame me. I was sweating so much that my sheets were changed at least 3 times in the same day. My fever at one point exceeded 103 degrees, but my new parents didn’t take me to the doctor because they were too focused on trying to take care of me. And because we were a little short on money.
The next morning however, I could see and feel all of the electrical currents running through everything in the house. I discovered quickly that I could give and take any amount of energy I wanted. I had set fires in the house multiple times when my new parents had finally remembered the man who showed up to our door. They asked the orphanage and they said that I was dropped off anonymously. No one was with me.
I controlled my abilities until about 4 years later. That's when I exploded. Literally exploded. My house was gone. My room was gone. My Ferris Bueller's Day Off DVD was gone. But most importantly, I had lost the only people who had ever wanted to take care of me. Over those 4 years, I had become really close to them and could not imagine life without them.
I promised myself that I would never become close to someone again because of how it had ended.
Now, back to the present.
I lay in bed. Not my bed. I haven’t slept in a bed in 4 years. I sit up and look around. Not my bed. Not my room. Standing up, my feet guide me to the other side of the room where I find a dresser. I start pulling out clothes, even though I don’t know what any of them were. On top of the dresser stands a mirror. The person staring back isn’t me. Sure, he does have the same blond hair, but not the same style and there were no scars. No dirt. And no muscles. This kid was a twig compared to the real me. Not my body.
I look to my right and see a TV. Thank god. I reach out and try to strengthen myself with some electricity, but it won’t work.
I search my body and find stitches on the side of my neck. Confused, I walk out into the kitchen to find a woman and a little girl. The woman looks tired as she drinks a large mug of coffee and the girl pokes at some very unappetizing food.
“Devi mangiare, Ariana,” my supposed mother says in italian. I have never heard italian in my life. How could I understand this? She turns to me. “Ciao,” she says with a smile, “please eat something Leon, your sister is ignoring me.”
“Mom, you know I hate these,” Ariana says.
I walk over and rearrange the foods so that they look a little more appealing, then walk over, and grab an apple for her.
“You’re awfully quiet today, what’s going on Leonardo,” she took my shrug as I didn’t want to go into it. The truth was that I don’t know if I am going to say the wrong thing. “Angelo’s parents are going to drop you off at school today, I have another shift at the clinic.”
“You really need to take a few days off mom,” I blurt out without realizing. I hold my breath as I pray that I didn’t just make a fatal mistake.
“You know I can’t Leon. We need as much money as we can just to pay the rent. Just look outside, this city is crazy!”
Wandering over to the window, I pull up the curtain and stare out into the far expanses of New York City. Not my city. Strange. Knowing that I might get sent to a mental hospital for this, I decide it’s best to act like I’m Leonardo. He seems to know exactly what to say.
I grab my breakfast from the counter and head into the living room to watch TV. I press the power button and start to eat. A man on the TV talks about a fugitive kid who is very dangerous out on the loose.
I often don’t care about these. I am classified as a vigilante, even though everything I do is to protect myself. However, something about this guy’s voice strikes me as odd. I look up from my disgusting food and freeze. He’s here.
The man in the white suit stands in front of a bunch of reporters as he tries to describe my previous image, which only made me wonder what happened more and more. As he keeps talking, I realize there is something he wants from me. Whether that is the stone or not I don’t know. I need to find that stone is all I can think about as I try desperately to finish my breakfast without focusing too much on the TV and the strange man chasing me.
“Respond please,” I turn to see my new mother standing with her hands on her hips.
“Hrm?” I say with a mouthful of nastiness in my mouth.
“You have to go to school,” she glares at me, “your ride is waiting for you on the street.”
I scoop the last of breakfast into my mouth and rush towards the door, my mom trailing close behind, and making sure to grab my backpack on the way out.
“Hey Alexandra,” a chubby Mexican man waves out the window as his son in the back seat nods his head in my direction.
“Thank you so much for this Miguel,” Alexandra says to the driver.
“It’s no problem, always good to have Leon in my car.”
I hop in the back which was activated by a button that Miguel pushed in the front seat. “What's up dude,” the teen sitting next to me says with a slight not without looking up from his phone, where he scrolls through Instagram.
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“Not much,” I say, while pulling out my own phone, “How ‘bout you?”
“I’m just watching this dude getting absolutely pummeled,” he says, half laughing, half terrified, “Look he even gets thrown off a building!”
I watch the video in horror as I see myself running along that skyscraper, lightning flying through my fingers. Horrified, I see the demoni chasing me and my plummet from the rooftop. As my body picks up speed, I watch the ground for the hole. Any second now. It never comes. Even stranger, the man in the suit isn’t there either. It’s confusing and terrifying. I look away and back down at my own phone where I unlock it monotonously and start texting people, I assume from school.
“Yo, dude I’m so sorry, I forgot,” the kid next to me whispers, somehow I now know his name is Angelo.
“About?” I turn my eyes toward him with one eyebrow up.
“Y’know, the video I just showed you. Given what happened with your dad and all.”
That strikes something. “It’s all good,” I spit out quickly. A memory from Leon’s life comes rushing to the forefront of my mind. Watching something on the TV. 3 years ago. A man falling of a tall building. Moving to a new place. A new house. My heart rate rises as I try to shove it out of my brain.
Automatically, I put my airpods in and tune out to some song I have never heard before. My heart rate lowers again and I can focus again. Angelo apologizes at least 3 more times on the way to school.
As we arrive at school, I pull out my phone once again. This time I need to check what classes I have. First is geometry. Great.
“Have a great day guys!” Angelo’s dad says from the front seat.
“You too sir,” I reply with a smile.
The building is weird. Not weird in a good way.
As I walk up, countless people wave to me. On instinct I nod my head to each one of them, not quite sure who they are. A girl breaks off from a nearby group and runs up next to me.
“Hey,” I look over at her and extend my hand for a fistbump.
“Hi,” she replied with a massive smile, “Nice of you to show up to school today. I’ve missed you in geometry. You know how boring she makes it.”
“Of course. That class is as boring as a duck would be in a desert.”
She laughs a little and we keep walking. We spend about 15 minutes before school talking to a few people. I try my hardest to stick to mainly talking to Angelo and the girl whose name I now know as Katie. Katie is short-ish with long dark hair that stretched down to her mid back. You can tell from her build that she is a runner, and a good one at that.
A one minute bell rings and we all head to class. Angelo splits off and heads down a different hallway towards Chemistry while me and Katie continue down towards Geometry.
“So, now that the problem child is gone, when do you want me to be at your place tonight?” Katie asks with a smirk.
“I’ll have to ask my mom,” I reply on instinct, “You have a track meet tomorrow right?”
“Yeah, why?” she looks at me with a little confusion.
“Maybe I should come watch. If you're ok with it.”
“Of course. You told me you hated running though.”
Oh crap. “Sure, but I won’t be the one doing it.”
That settles that conversation. I text my mom before heading into class asking for a time.
Geometry goes smoothly. At least, as smooth as it can go. Leon is about as dumb as a rock. And I’m not much better. Luckily, Katie is smart and we sit right next to each other.
3 classes and lunch go by and I’m sitting in our study hall. I sit in the back with some guy named Mike who looks like he just wants to go to bed.
“You’re quiet today,” Mike catches me by surprise. He is about as pale as one could get. Short of putting sunscreen on him he looks like a piece of computer paper.
“Yeah, I guess I just don’t have that much energy.”
“Alright, my name is Mr. Kellet,” The substitute teacher standing at the front of the class calls out in a strange voice. He reads through the names and I raise my hand when he says Leonardo.
The entire class goes silent. I look up to see them all staring at me. “What?”
“You aren’t Leonardo.”
Slowly I start to panic. Can they all see who I really am?
A kid at the front raises his hand and explains that I go by Leon. There is another kid in the class named Leonardo, but he is out sick today. I breathe a sigh of relief.
. . .
Katie arrives at 5:45. My mom greets her with a hug and a smile. “So good to finally meet you!”
“Good to meet you too,” Katie says with a small smile.
The night goes on until Katie leaves and I am able to excuse myself and walk back into my room. I look back around at the walls to see trophies everywhere, most of them first place. I pick up the closest one. Basketball? I guess this kid is athletic because baseball, skiing, and swimming line the shelves.
A knock on the door makes me jump.
“You ok?” Alexandra appears in the doorway.
“Yeah I’m fine”
“You seem kinda jumpy. You have been really quiet too today.”
Great. This kid is supposed to be talkative. “I’ve just been a little busy with school.”
“Ok. I put the leftovers in the fridge in case you want any more.”
She leaves me to my contemplation for the next 45 minutes. During this I think about how I got here and how I can fix it. There is still a feeling in the pit of my stomach that I need to find that stone.
I get up and walk to the fridge and unwrap rigatoni covered in meat sauce and steak. Underneath the bowl is a card. On the front was an owl with antlers and a ring on fire around it. On the back it said: “I know who you are Angel”.
Back to the place of my death I guess. Back to Houston.