short story, story promptViv is certain that she knows superheroes aren’t real, but is that all about to change?


 

“Adrian, you have about ten seconds to explain why you pretended to be a superhero.” Viv held the phone in her hand. “If not, I’m calling the police and telling them the identity of the ‘mystery man’.” She pointed at the TV screen, the news broadcasting the details of the accident and a blurry picture of a man in a blue, full-body suit with a mask on.

My eyes flew to her face. So she really had seen me earlier today. I had hoped I’d gotten away before she recognised me. Apparently not. Viv crossed her arms and tapped her foot impatiently, giving me a hard stare over the top of her glasses.

I scratched the back of my head and decided to go for the clueless approach. “Superhero? Me?” I laughed, but from the look on her face, it wasn’t convincing. “Seriously, could you really see me being the superhero type?”

“I can see you being the idiot type and pretending you’re one of those comic book superheroes. You’re always reading those things lately.” She pointed to the incriminating pile of comic books on the kitchen table.

I shrugged. “So? I like them.”

“But you’re not a superhero, Adrian. They don’t exist. Gallivanting around town in a sparkly suit doesn’t give you super powers.”

“Hey! It’s not sparkly,” I said defensively. Clamping my mouth shut, I cursed myself for being the idiot she’d already accused me of being.

A satisfied light gleamed in her narrowed eyes. “I knew it was you!”

“That’s not what I said,” I protested, weakly. “I meant that you can’t tell if it’s sparkly from the picture they’re showing on TV.”

Obviously, the comment was about as convincing as my fake laugh. “It was definitely you, Adrian. Before I dial the info line and claim my reward for handing you in, you’ve got an extra five seconds to share your reasoning behind dressing like an idiot and then fleeing the scene.”

I sighed. “There is nothing wrong with the suit and I wasn’t running away. I was trying to catch -” I stopped myself before I said something else she could make fun of.

She pushed her glasses up her nose. “Let me guess, you were trying to catch the person responsible for almost killing those kids? You were trying to get the ‘bad guy’?”

“I had to try,” I mumbled.

“He was in a speeding car! There’s no way a guy on foot could catch him.” She pressed the call button on her phone. “I’m letting them know it’s you. It’s for your own good – you’ll get yourself hurt if you keep this nonsense up.”

“Viv, please,” I began.

Breaking news!” Viv and I both turned to the TV, where the reporter was excitedly relaying information. “It appears the man responsible for the accident involving the three children was found unconscious near his car, cuffed to a sign post. He later told the police that a man in a sparkly blue suit had opened his car door while the car was still speeding and yanked him out. The car was severely damaged when it crashed into the wall of the old shoe factory, but strangely, the culprit is more or less unharmed. Experts say that anyone in a collision of such force would certainly have been killed, lending credence to the man’s supernatural story. Police are now on the hunt for anyone who matches this description.”

The phone slipped from Viv’s hand, the glass screen cracking as it hit the tiled floor. Her eyes were wide as she slowly turned to stare at me. “Impossible,” she whispered.

I glanced again at the fuzzy photo they were showing. “It’s not sparkly.”


Another great prompt from Cracked Flash! 🙂

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