Alex appeared in the park just as he had suspected. He was met with various notifications that he mentally swept away. He would look at them later. For now, he wanted to take in his city.

The park he was in looked exactly as he remembered it. It had been replanted and the landscaping was all new from when it had burned down a few years ago. It had been such an important piece of the city, so city officials wasted no time in gaining some free goodwill. Most of the new park had been donated by philanthropists, which meant that hardly any of the funds came from taxes. This was a godsend for mayor Harold Anderson. He had been up for reelection that year and his prompt attention to the park all but assured his victory.

Looking at the park had given him a feeling he couldn’t quite describe. For some reason, this park had been the origin point for two of his most major life events-his accident and his awakening. It was a complete coincidence, but he felt a strong bond to the location nonetheless.

People passing him by gave him strange looks, which he had also anticipated. He looked like he was either extremely fashionable or totally inept when it came to how he dressed. He guessed that if he were more handsome, people wouldn’t even question his wardrobe decisions. Luckily, he had seen drastic improvements with his physique otherwise he would feel much less confident right now. He would definitely look the part of a superhero, he just didn’t look it right now.

There were a million things he could think of that needed his attention at the moment, but he ignored them all. There would be time to tackle all of that later. For the first time in a year, he could breathe. He wasn’t under constant threat and he hadn’t realized just how much pressure he had been under.

Behind him a twig snapped and he instantly spun around ready to strike, dropping all of his stuff in the process. He met eyes with a squirrel and felt immediately stupid. He identified it just to see what would show up.

Squirrel

Level 1

“Well that’s going to take some getting used to. I guess I’m still not at ease,” Alex said aloud.

A guy walking by took a quick glance at him. They met eyes for just a moment and the man walked quickly away, glancing back a few times to make sure he wasn’t being followed. The sudden interaction had taken Alex by surprise. It wasn’t until a few seconds later he realized why the man had been looking at him so strangely. He was currently poised to attack a squirrel perched on top of a rock in ill fitting clothes. All the while, he was talking to himself.

I look like a crackhead. I need to get myself together, Alex thought while gathering up his belongings.

Not talking out loud was a good start, but he felt that he was fighting an uphill battle. Transitioning from his life on Saxar IV to Earth life would be difficult. He would also need to transition from superhero to regular guy, so he felt like he would get a lot of practice in the coming days and months.

He spent a few more hours just roaming the city. He wanted to get used to it before he did what was at the forefront of his mind. He needed to find the girls and talk to them. Sarah, Katy and Taylor were the most important people in his life. Alex was a little worried about how they would react. It had been a long time and it wasn’t like he could have sent them a message. One day he was there, the next he was gone. He was even supposed to meet them the day he went missing. It was going to be a lot for them to take in all at once.

He had changed a lot and he hoped that they would recognize him. He was probably twice as big size wise and to top it off, he could walk now. They really hadn’t even known him when he could walk aside from his quick rescue of them. The entire rest of the time had been him in a wheelchair.

Are they gonna think I’m a fraud? It would be weird for someone to fake being me. What would they have to gain? It’s not like I was super wealthy or anything.

He realized that he was just procrastinating. He knew what he needed to do. It didn’t matter how long he wandered, this still had to happen. The longer he waited, the less he felt like he would actually be able to do it.

He knew that Sarah would be at work right and that the girls would be at school. He felt like it would be better to talk to Sarah first. She would know how to break the news to the girls. He walked towards her office.

Hopefully she still works there. That would be super awkward. She’s a real estate agent, they usually stay with the same company right?

Stolen story; please report.

He stood staring at the office door for longer than he cared to admit.

Why is this so hard for me? I should be dying to see them again. I don’t know how many times I thought about this moment.

The door swung open and Alex’s heart stopped. There she was. Sarah looked just like he remembered her, down to the ponytail she always used to pull her brown hair back. She looked like she was in a hurry. It was the afternoon so she would either be on her way to show an apartment or off to pick the girls up from school. Alex wasn’t sure what time it was, but he knew that he needed to do this now.

He dashed across the busy street, several cars honking at him in the process. Sarah didn’t even look in his direction. He hustled to catch up to her, careful to make sure he didn’t drop anything.

I should have found something to carry all this junk. I look stupid.

He was catching up to her, but she was still a ways ahead of him.

“Sarah! Sarah wait!” Alex called out.

She turned slightly as one did when they thought they heard their name, but she kept walking when she didn’t see anyone she recognized.

“Sarah! Hold on. I need to talk to you.”

She looked around again, this time stopping. She scanned the people walking around her. She even met eyes with Alex briefly before continuing her search. She resumed her brisk walk.

She doesn’t even recognize me. I knew it. I knew she wouldn’t. This is probably going to be more of a shock to her than I thought.

Alex tried to make up ground as quickly as he could. He weaved in and out of the throng of people, his newfound agility on full display. Before long, he was right next to her.

“Sarah. It’s so good to see you again.”

She looked at him with a strange expression.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know if we’ve met before,” Sarah said.

She went to continue on her way, but Alex grabbed her and pulled her back. He was careful not to use too much strength. He didn’t want to hurt her after all.

“Look, dude! I don’t know who you think you are or who you think I am, but…” she trailed off, actually looking at him this time.

Past the weird, poorly fitting clothes and the muscles, she saw someone that she knew. Then she shook her head and tried to walk away again. Alex just stood there for a second, not understanding what had just happened.

She recognized me. She recognized me, but doesn’t care? No, that’s not it. It like she didn’t believe it.

“Wait, Sarah we need to talk. It’s me Alex.”

“I don’t know who you are, but I can’t deal with this. What kind of a messed up joke are you playing anyway?” she said.

She stopped in the middle of the crosswalk to talk to him. A car was speeding in her direction, unaware of the pedestrian in the road. Alex saw what was going to happen and dashed toward her, dropping everything in the process.

He picked her up and out of danger, before she even realized what was happening. The car continued through the crosswalk, still unaware of what they had almost done. Alex looked back at his stuff and nearly cried. His pot of Thryntal had been run over, spilling its contents all over the road. He took a few calming breaths and then looked back at Sarah.

“Are you ok?”

“Yeah I’m fine. Thanks for that. Even though I probably wouldn’t have been in the road in the first place if you weren’t following me. I don’t know how you know me or how you know Alex, but I’ve got news for you. You aren’t him. He’s dead. You can’t be him.”

“I am him. I’ve been gone for a year and I want to tell you everything. And I will, but Sarah, it’s me and I’m alive. Better than ever really. Well mostly anyways.”

“Well that’s proof enough for me.”

Alex’s hopes soared. Then, they came crashing down again.

“Alex has been gone for two years. Not one,” she continued.

“Two years? What do you mean two years? It hasn’t been that long. It’s been almost a year to the day.”

“No. It will be two years in a week. So you can’t be him. He would know that.”

“Look. I can’t explain that right now, but all I know is that I was supposed to meet you and the girls for ice cream a year ago and then I was pulled away. I just got back today.”

“I don’t know how you knew about the ice cream, but there is something fundamentally wrong with your ruse. Alex is paralyzed. He had been in a wheelchair for the entire time I knew him.” She gestured at his legs. “You are not paralyzed. And you’re about twice as big as he was.”

“Just give me a chance to explain. Can we go somewhere to talk? I just need some time to make it all clear.”

“That doesn’t sound like a good idea. Plus, I have somewhere I need to be. I have a meeting with someone and if I don’t show up, they’ll get worried. So, don’t even think about kidnapping me.”

Alex held his hands up defensively.

“Who said anything about kidnapping? Geez you’re so dramatic. You always have been. And you always wondered where Katy got it from. She is your spitting image in more ways than one.”

Sarah’s eyes were fiery.

“Don’t even mention my daughter! I’m going to call the cops. How long have you been following me? Why are you doing this?”

This was not going as he planned at all. He had envisioned a lot of outcomes, but even the worst one had gone smoother than this. People started looking at them and Alex was getting a bad feeling.

“Hey! Look! I’m not trying to do anything except reconnect with you all. I don’t have anyone else. You are all the family I have left,” Alex said with misty eyes.

“I can tell you’re going through some stuff. I’m sorry. I really am, but leave me and my family out of it. I hope you get the help you clearly need, but I can’t give it to you. I’m not who you think I am.”

Without a moment of hesitation, Sarah walked away. Alex let her. He wasn’t going to give up on them yet. How could he? He would have to come up with a way to actually have a conversation with them. In hindsight, it was pretty stupid to just spring this on her like that, especially since she was clearly in a hurry.

I need to fix this. I don’t know what I’ll do without them. I can’t do this alone.