“LEA! Your butt better be already out of bed and ready for school!” My Mum shouts from downstairs. She’s most likely in the kitchen trying and failing to make something for breakfast. My Mum, Riley, could only make one thing successfully and edible in the kitchen and that was crepes, not delicious moist American pancakes, crepes.
My Dad, Liam was the cook in our family, but since my parent’s abrupt divorce when I was 9, good tasting food was a privilege these days. It makes me appreciate the weekends when my Dad comes over.
“Lea come one, John is on his way!” I groan. I leap off the bed and put on my shoes. John was a teacher at my school and to my disgust he was also casually seeing my Mum. I don’t know how him being here day in and day out counts as “casual”, but my Mum seems happy when they’re together so that gives me the willpower to put up with him.
I sling my bag over my shoulder and take one last look in the mirror. My semi long black wavy hair was tied up today in a high ponytail. I dressed in my natural all black clothing which Mum teasingly says makes me look like I was trying to fit in with the goth kids, but that wasn’t the reason I just liked black.
I raise my wire glasses higher on my nose and stare at my face making sure my subtle make up was flawless. My blue eyeliner lines my brown eyes just right and my blush was giving me a nice glow. Lastly, I checked my teeth making sure there was nothing stuck in them like last time.
I can’t wait to be out of high school, being chauffeured to and from by a teacher is bad for my reputation. I was sick of making sure I fit in there, heck I didn’t want to fit in there. It sucked trying to keep a low profile, which you would think would be easy, but not in that school.
I exit my room and jump down the stairs two at a time and almost crash into my Mum, who appeared out of nowhere standing still like a statue with her arms crossed. Her black hair was tied in a messy bun on the top of her head and her bright green eyes where giving me the aggravated mum stare. Yet, she looked less threating with her soot covered apron and what looks like batter on her cheek. She was also wearing oven mitts which just made me look funny. Considering how dangerous this woman actually was, her actual self looked down right innocent.
“Are you trying to break your neck?” She asks pointing to the stairs. “Please use the stairs like a normal human being.” I laugh at the irony of that. I doubt that is something that should be said lightly in this house.
“I was in a hurry like you asked.” I pointed out. I followed my Mum into the kitchen and perched myself against the island. I grab a mug and poor myself some coffee.
“What are you making?”
“Nothing, the stupid stove broke.” She kicks said oven and flinches when it bent and the glass on the front shattered. I hiss dramatically and my Mum turns to me slowly biting her lip.
“We speak of this to no one.” She makes a zipping motion on her lips.
Seven years of being inactive and she still hasn’t gotten used to not using her powers. Whatever those powers may be. She and Dad never actually had the superpowers talk with me so I have never been able to figure out what powers they have.
Through pure observation and common sense I figured out a few of them and by doing some digging on their Wikipedia pages and old newspapers articles, Mum and Dad have similar powers, but those where basic powers that almost all the superheroes from the roasters have, flight, super strength, probably super hearing too since Mum once heard a boy leave my room last summer. That one doesn’t sound that impressive, but she was at the grocery store. I was grounded for a month after that.
Dad on the other hand I have seen in action a few times and he has the very useful ability to teleport. He used it when he woke up late one morning and I was late for school and presto, I was at the entrance in the blink of any eye. “You never tell your Mother about this.” And he vanished in the next second. I stared at the spot he was just standing in, doubled over and started throwing up. Teleportation is not a beginner’s superpower it seems.
I can trace our powers through both our family tree too since every member of both our families have powers which makes family reunions interesting. Every five year old walks around displaying their new power like peacocks, but not me, I get the sad sympathy eyes each time. It’s like you’re the single person at a family wedding and your relatives who you can’t remember come and tap you comfortingly on the shoulder saying “Don’t worry, you’re next.”
Yep, that’s right, unlike every other member of this family, I never developed any powers. While everyone pities me, I have never once felt jealous about their powers. I have enough of that in my daily life. Especially since, well, my Dad is still an Active. Sort off.
“I’m pretty sure if you call Maddy, she will be able to get you one from your super hero collateral damage insurance.” Mum snaps her fingers at me and nods her head in approval.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“I knew it was a good idea to have you.” I snort.
“By the way, me and Orion are hanging out after school.” My Mum shakes her head in disgust every time she hears his name.
“What is it with ex supers giving their kids obnoxious names?”
“I like it.” I defend my best friend. I take a sip of my coffee.
I grip my mug for warmth and support. I had spent half of last night rehearsing this speech in my head, not out loud because she would have heard me. Today is the day that I said I would do it and I will do it. I needed to tell my Mum this and she was going to listen. I didn’t want to go to that school anymore. It was annoying and not where I belonged. “Mum I-”
“Good morning all!” Or course, I would be interrupted that’s how these things usually went, so cliché. I bang my head on the island and my Mum rubs my back.
“John’s here. Go get your stuff, sweetheart.” I moan kicking the island and sit upright.
“How’s everyone’s morning so far?” John walked in and gave my Mum and kiss on the cheek. It doesn’t bother me to see them together, I just wished they would do it somewhere where I was not.
“Good, great, excellent. Ok, get moving you two.”
“You seem to be in rush.” John comments. He looks down at his watch and realization kicks in.
Mum ushers up both out of the kitchen and I notice the time on the clock hanging on our living room wall. It was almost 8 which meant Dad was about to pop in.
“Say high to Dad for me! Make sure you guys stay away from my room!” I order.
“Why are you worried we’ll find something?” Mum jokingly asks.
“No, I’m worried you guys will break something again. Last time you broke my laptop. My assignment was on there and I got an F.” The memory of having to tell my teacher how my presentation had been broken during a superhero scuffle wasn’t fun. “Make sure to tell Dad that he promised to take me to the mall on Saturday and this weekend I’m not staying with him because we have a test on Monday.”
“Will do.”
“And also, that he said he was going to help me out with one of my history papers.”
“Will do.”
“And don’t forget to call Maddy about the over.”
“What happened to the oven?” John asked.
“Lea, I remember.” She reassures me. I pull my Mum in for a big hug like I do every Monday to Friday morning.
“I love you. Please both of you be careful.”
“We always are sweetheart.” Mum kisses me on the head and gives me a hug that only Mum’s can give. “I love you too.” She whispers.
I let go and walk to the car with John speed walking next to me. “Just once I would love to stay and see them in action.”
I open the passenger door and slide in fast. I never wanted to be here when Mum and Dad did their thing. There was a time when both of them where a team, but because of the bill a few years ago my Dad signed with a company that he hadn’t looked into properly. He signed for a government company that was against superheroes. Mum was one of the names on that list. Dad never told us how they even got her name, but they knew who she was and sent my Dad after her.
Thankfully, when my Dad examined the contract there where some loop holes that put my mind at ease. Like the bill stated ex heroes where to get normal 9 – 5 pm jobs, five times a week, which was basically office hours. They never set a time limit on the termination of all the heroes and when they told him to hunt them down, my Dad being the mad genius he was played them like a fiddle.
As long as he tracked all the them down and fought them and literally punched out at 5pm he could do whatever he wanted. They agreed that he would go after one hero at a time and he would make his way down the list. And he started with my Mum knowing that she would be able to hold he own in a fight since they needed physical evidence that there was a fight. Which is where Maddy comes in handy by filling all the insurance damages. I once asked why they never faked their fights, but they said that wouldn’t work and never explained why.
So, Monday to Friday they total the house because it’s away from civilians, Mum claims the damages back from the insurance and at the stroke of 5pm, Dad clocks out and we have dinner sometimes if they’re not too exhausted.
“I don’t. Both of them know what they’re doing, but I still worry. All it takes is one slip, one bad day, one day where you’re not feeling your best and that’s how you die.”
“Way to bring down the mood kid.” I scowl at John. “Listen, I may not know who they were when they were dressed up in leather and fighting crime, but they seem to know what they’re doing.” I keep forgetting that John has no idea who my parents were. “After all, they used to be… The Pirate and Phoenix.” He says slowly making the first guess of the day. Every morning it’s the same routine with both of us. John tries to guess who both my parent’s superhero alter egos where and I laugh at his ridiculous guesses. It boggles my mind that in the time he’s been seeing my Mum he never guessed the two most likely heroes. Not like I would tell him if he was right anyway.
“Not even close.”
“Damn it. I spent all night looking at old articles too.” John starts the car and we pull out of our driveway and I looked at my phone and we have two more minutes before 8. I stick my head out of the window and see a man in the sky flying our way. I smile brightly and wave at my Dad. John slows down for me.
“Good morning Daddy!” My Dads figure is blurred with how far up he is, but he stops and gives me a big wave. He pulls something out of his pocket and my own phone vibrates in my hand.
Have a good day at school, Lioness. My Dad text makes my smile even bigger. That was his nickname for me, Lioness.
I don’t text back because I know he can hear me. “Be careful not to kill each other. Also, Mum broke the oven!” I can see my dad shake his head and he give me a thumbs up. He points himself towards our house and before he leaves, he blows me a kiss.
“Gross Dad.” I call out.
“How you find it in you to act normal is a gift.” John states. He starts driving again giving his full attention to the road.
“I can’t act any other way. If I show them that I’m worried or scared then they’ll be worried and scared.”
“Parent’s often do that.” John offers very unhelpfully. We drive in silence the rest of the way and I sigh loudly when I see my school’s towering surrounding prison like walls. We had to go through three check point to even make it to the parking lot, but then again, I guess that would be necessary for this school. It’s a once in a lifetime experience being admitted here like my Dad keeps reminding me.
I must be the only kid on the planet who hates attending a super hero high school.