Page 14 of No Capes
“I vote worse,” Molly says in anI told you sotone. We are seeing exactly why she hates Supers.
Fox continues his grumbling, “Why?We don’t know anything about Supers. Who are they really, how do they get powers? Why are they acting upnow?”
“That’s the problem,” says Molly, “No one knows.”
Aaron, at last, contributes, “Someone knows.”
Kristen spins in her seat. “Dun, dun, dun,”she mouths.
Mr. Meyers jumps in. “Thank you for starting our discussion for today, Mr. Levine. Before we get too far into theoretical history, notactualhistory, let’s turn to today’s episode of the port cities and trade during the Age of Exploration…”
We pass our homework forward, but the class stays quiet. When Golden Ace fights a villain, and when Flare used to, destruction is minimal. Golden Ace usually brings his fights to areas of the city that are coming down anyway, like the downtown district Raincoat Guy found me in. Most of us, including me, have never watched a Super purposefully set an entire building on fire. As much as I want to learn about what happened a thousand years ago, the present moment feels more pressing.
D.S. is planning something. And he wants my help.
And another thought I can’t shake: D.S. doesn’t seem much older than myself. He could be anyone. In fact, it’s not too far-fetched that he could be sitting right there in my first period history class.
~
The somberness of this morning’s tragedy casts over everything for the rest of the day. When school ends, no one whoops or swears down the hall, and students rush to the buses like they’re the only way to escape from talking about Dr. Milligan. It’s a relief to peel off to the pool for the afternoon.
The Capital High Swim Team has “optional” second practices after school, which I join on the days I’m not babysitting. Optional, meaning not school-sanctioned, but Arielle will threaten even earlier morning practices if you skip without a good reason. My favorite thing about second practices is that Fox rarely comes. There’s no way that he has a good reason, but Arielle lets him get away with it.
When we were six, our parents signed us up for swimming lessons, during which Fox cried so loudly that a lifeguard thought Fox’s appendix was going to burst. It took Fox a year to put his head underwater, and he only liked the part at the end of lessons when he could flip off the diving board. He only swam because I did. But then in middle school, Fox grew tall, coordinated, and used to winning. That’s why, whenhe knewI wanted him to quit, he stayed on the team after our parents’ accident. But now for Fox, swimming isn’t about me. Not anymore. It’s only about winning.
When I step into the locker room, neither the fire, D.S.’s deadly lasers, nor the color of Damian Scott Jr.’s freckles matter—I only care about how quickly I can dive into the water.
I unzip my duffel bag and pull out my shimmery blue bathing suit. Every Super has a signature suit that’s designed to enhance their abilities and make them look extraordinary. Golden Acehas his gilded spandex and metallic mask, which Kristen loathes but everyone else reveres. Flare wears a red skirt and orange spandex that glow like fire when she flies, and Materio, who’s mostly retired, suits up in purple feathers from head to toe. As I put on my bathing suit, I feel like I’m about to be called into battle. It’s how the Supers must feel when they tug on their gloves and secure their masks: invincible.
I finish changing and head to the pool deck before most of my teammates are even in the locker rooms. As usual, Arielle waits on the wet tiles with her tight ponytail and polished clipboard, but today, she’s occupied by the rare appearance of Fox in the wild.
Arielle and Fox exchange harsh whispers, and neither notices me when I dig through the pile of kickboards and pull out my favorite. Fox hasn’t changed yet, and he looks out of place wearing normal clothes at the pool—faded jeans and a crumpled hoodie. Even when his parents and our mom were around, Fox and Arielle were never close—she’s always held herself above him like she holds herself above me, but she never fully iced him out.Why are they having a secret meeting?
Their conversation stops abruptly when they finally see me.
“Afternoon…” I say, sliding into the pool. Arielle clamps shut, and Fox jogs to change, so I definitely interrupted something. Is Arielle giving Fox extra workouts? The thing about exercise is that workouts follow the Law of Negative Returns, which is why elite athletes train longer and harder than beginners: once a swimmer hits a certain skill level, they need more blood, guts, and tears to advance to the next level. Did Fox think he plateaued? DidIplateau? Neither of them would tell me if I had.
As I adjust my goggles, the unthinkable happens: Arielle approaches me. She squats on the edge of the pool, hovering above my lane.
“I need you to keep an eye on Fox,” she says, her voice low. “Tell me immediately if he acts different than normal.”
I need you to keep an eye on Fox, please. I don’t sass my sister aloud though. I don’t feel like scrubbing the nearly-invisible-to-the-naked-eye mold from the bleachers today.
“Different how?” I ask. “And I’d like to know why.”
“Just different. I can’t get into it.” She stands and surveys the empty deck. “But it’s important.”
Oh, it’s important!? Why didn’t you say that first?I sigh as Arielle stomps over to the locker rooms. She hollers at the kids inside to hurry up and change. Obviously, something is going on if Arielle broke her silent-coach-treatment to talk to me about it—And Fox showed up at second practice to have a secret meeting with her, but I sincerely doubt anyone’s life is at stake here.
Be careful who you trust.
Water erupts as Aaron dives in. Unlike the other kids, who are postponing their second swims by dilly dallying as much as possible, Aaron launches right into his laps, drawing long, elegant strokes. His perfect abs tear away, and I take my time pulling on my swim cap. Thinking about Aaron beats thinking about Dark Static.
If only Kristen didn’t have another detention, we could watch Aaron together.
“S’up, Maddragon?” Fox reenters the deck. “Thanks for the homework help last night.”
Water splashes into my eyes as he jumps in, and I taste the chlorine when it drips down my face. I want to ask what he was talking to Arielle about. I want to give him sass for forgetting his homework last night. I want to splash him back.
