Some time has passed since I came to this strange new world; it was like a combination of the comic and show.
On a random afternoon, just a few days after coming back from the hospital, I caught Nolan flying into our house. I was surprised to find out that they hadn't told the previous version of me about him having powers yet. Although, super powered people were pretty common in the world so I guess they decided to wait until he was a bit older to understand the nuances of keeping identities hidden.
Nolan ended up sitting me down and telling me about where he came from. As he began to tell me the fabricated story about "The World Betterment Committee" I devised a plan to get my body physically ready for the upcoming conflicts. When he was done, I pestered him with questions any common seven year old would have, in my current position; was I really going to be able to fly? Would I be able to lift really heavy things? And was I really going to be as strong as him?
He gave me the typical, "You have to wait until your powers kick in to even think about reaching my level." talk, but also told me that I should get into the habit of exercising if I wanted to get a head start. I asked for examples and he said I should start running more, eating more, and doing push-ups, sit-ups, & squats to get my body ready.
I did as he advised and started off by doing three sets of 20 of those exercises, and running in the backyard everyday; I steadily did this until I reached the age of 12, and had increased the number from 20 to 100, and started running around the neighborhood every morning. However, that wasn't the only thing I was doing. When I reached the age of 13 I journeyed to the library everyday for an entire summer; I wanted access to a plethora of information that Nolan couldn't suddenly become suspicious about when I brought new things up during conversations. I also wanted a job there because I didn't want to work at Burger Mart.
I heard they got rats in their mayo.
I had visited the place so much that the librarians began to know my name without me having to say it. One day, a librarian asked me why I visited so frequently. I made up a story about my dad being a travel writer, Which wasn't a lie, but we didn't get to spend a lot of time together so I wanted to take an interest in his profession, which is how I ended up being enamored by the information the library presented and decided to visit for an hour each day. The librarian became convinced and some weeks later, offered me a chance to shadow the happenings at the library; I found out that they did a lot of work and a person actually needed a Master's degree to become a full-fledged librarian.
I still can't believe it, for watching some fucking books. But, it does make sense, they have to be knowledgeable about various things and areas of the library, and about information people may need.
Then, I got something that was very important to me, something I've been wanting since I got to this world; I got a fade. And all I can say is, my shit is beautiful.
At 14, I was given an opportunity to become a librarian's assistant, they paid pretty well, a lot more than that fake ass Burger King, that's for sure.
At 15, I signed myself up for certain short term classes at the community center; from boxing, to jiu-jitsu, to judo, to karate, and finally gymnastics. I didn't care much about the classes themselves since the techniques behind them were going to be partially useless when I was airborne, but they gave me a way to not only teach me fundamentals of combat, but also helped sculpt my body more into as peak of a condition as a young bull could get to.
Now at 17, I have the physical body of an ever developing five star athlete mixed with the knowledge of an introverted hermit. With all the continuous exercise I've done since youth, I'm standing at a whopping 6'0" 200 lbs. of nothing but muscle. All that was left to do now was play the waiting game with my powers.
"Mark! Get ready for school, you're going to be late!" Debbie called out.
"Alright Ma! Just getting ready!" I responded, putting down the barbells I was lifting.
Other than building my physique up, not much has been atypical in my life. One thing I found interesting was that I did not really see Nolan around at all really, growing up; it's really been just me and Debbie for the most part. Nolan was very preoccupied by the various dangers the Earth faced on a daily basis.
And I mean daily, this unsafe ass world has a threat happening everyday, crime truly does not sleep.
When he is here, he's a pretty normal father, I can even go as far as saying that he's a really good one. Which is probably what messed the original Mark up when Nolan revealed that he was actually evil. School isn't anything special either. In my past life I was always generally a good student, wasn't a genius or nothing, I just knew how to prioritize and multitask; 90% of it is just paying attention and asking questions, even if the stuff was boring.
When I'm there I meet up with my homie William and other friends I've made.
I don't try to stand out too much, but it's hard to do that when your body is growing at a rate where people can't help but notice. The amount of times I've been asked to join one of the school sports teams is pretty astronomical, but each time I just make up an excuse that I only play sports for fun or, organized competition isn't really my thing.
Which is a lie, I'm very competitive, and our school teams are kind of ass, I know for a fact that I would dominate. But, my long term ambitions take priority over my present desires.
As for social life stuff like dates: I've had a couple, seen a few girls, and I've even gone on some mixed tag-team dates with William.
I'm not saying I'm slinging meat across the school yard or nothing, BUT, there's just something about a phatass in jeans or a skirt that makes me stop using my brains sometimes.
"Hey, you're looking as big as ever." William greeted me by our lockers.
Pause!
"Cause, I'm always putting in work." I said, flexing my bicep.
"Speaking of work, I hear the Maulers got worked today attacking the White House." he said, scrolling through his phone. "Pretty nuts, right? I can't believe the Guardians of The Globe let them get that close to killing the president."
"That place gets attacked four times a year, he should be more prepared for situations like that. Besides, he ain't die."
"Oh yeah, I forgot who I was speaking to, the superhero apologist." he rolled his eyes.
"I'm not an apologist, I just think we gotta see both sides of the situation before casting judgement on super powered do-gooders."
"Whatever man. You up for some clash crash tonight? I got a level 40 chest armor, but I need help with the dungeon boss." he asked.
"Can't, got a shift tonight."
William groaned. "That library job?! You're still doing that?! What's even with you and that place? You just suddenly started going there everyday that one Summer."
"There's a lot of interesting things in those books man."
"Like?!" he questioned.
"Kamehameha."
"Kame-hame-what?! What the hell is- You mean Kama Sutra, you idiot." he voiced.
"Yea, yea, same shit. All I know is, there were pictures of people getting it on in there; I'm learning a lot from that job."
"Reeeaalllly? Is that what you showed Monica, the senior, at that party last summer?" he probed, smirking.
"Nah, I showed her something else I thought she'd like."
"That being?"
"I showed her these nu-" before I could finish my thoroughly crafted response, we were interrupted by the sounds of arguing amongst two students.
"Don't walk away from me, what are you a lesbian or something?" a male voice asked.
"Oh my god Todd, I wish! Would you leave me alone then?!" a female voice responded.
As I proceeded towards the two, William placed a hand on my shoulder. "Hey, I know what you're about to do and I want to let you know that you shouldn't do it."
I quirked a brow at him. "Man what?! Someone needs help right now."
"Yeah, I know. That someone is me." he said. "Because every time you "help someone" I'm always getting dragged into it too."
"Aye man, we're good Samaritans."
"Good Samaritans?! You're the devil! And where is this "We" word coming from?!" he questioned.
"William, William, William." I shook my head. "We're about to do something good right now, embrace this destiny."
"There it is again, throwing that word in there. You selfish bastard!" he said as I rushed off to the scene.
When I arrived, I crossed my arms and leaned on a nearby wall. Then I cleared my throat. "Hey! The lady said no!"
Been practicing my intervening skills.
The arguing duo stopped and stared at me. "What the fuck?!" the guy uttered.
"My associate, William Clockwell, and I couldn't help but overhear all this pandemonium going on in these beautiful hallways!"
"Oh my god, he's doing it." William said facepalming.
Todd stared at me disbelievingly. "Huh?"
"I guess I have to put it in a way you can understand." I cleared my throat again. "NoOoOo….MeAnS…..NoOoOo!"
He didn't like that one bit, telling by how his confused face quickly turned into anger. He proceeded to lunge at me, but I evaded him easily. Then he swung right then left, but those too were dodged.
"Aye buddy, you gotta put your weight into your punches, you're just swinging wildly at this point." I said as I mockingly showed him how to throw a straight. "Aye William you were right, this guy isn't strong at all."
"I did not say that! I am not affiliated with this individual!" he pointed at me.
Todd, winded and angry, finally gave up and left. "See, that wasn't so bad." I said to William
"One of these days you're gonna mess with the wrong person and get what's coming to you." he declared.
"Ahh, you worry too much." I responded back, then I noticed the girl being harassed, walking up to us.
As she walked up I noticed her warm brown eyes and black, voluminous hair flowing about.
Oh, this is Amber right?
"Thank you." she smiled gratefully.
"Ahh, it was nothin'." I waved off, then I watched as she made her way off.
That face, and that ass in those jeans, gaawwdd damn! No wonder Mark was trying so hard to save his relationship in the original timeline.....But this ain't the original timeline, so I must refocus.
Things like these were just a normal everyday occurrence that I had gotten used to as I awaited the day that everything would change for me. After school, I went straight to my shift at the library; nothing ever really happens there, it's quiet and peaceful for the most part. I usually just sort and accurately reshelf books and other materials, especially during a late shift. After my shift, I was feeling a bit restless, so I decided to do some late night workouts at the community center; it was typically empty by ten, this particular night felt no different.
As I wrapped up my final set of pull-ups, I wiped sweat off my face and headed for the exit. I walked through the heavy glass doors and stepped into the cool night air of the quiet suburban street. My shoulders ached with an unfamiliar burn, but I thought nothing of it; it was probably just my muscles strengthening after another intense session.
I barely walked three blocks when a jolt of pain hit me. I quickly recognized that It wasn't the typical muscle fatigue I was used to. This was different—a sharp, intense current that started in my core and flashed through every nerve ending, making me stumble and grab onto a nearby mailbox for support. The streetlights overhead flickered violently, buzzing in sync with the energy coursing through my veins.
"What the fuck?!" I gasped as my vision blurred. It felt like every cell in my body was suddenly vibrating at an impossibly high frequency. Then, just as abruptly as it started, it stopped. I straightened up slowly, breathing hard. The world seemed sharper, the night air cooler, and the distant hum of the area amplified. I also felt incredibly light.
Could it be?
I examined my body and everything seemed fine; arms were okay, legs were fine, right hand seemed fine, but the left had pieces of the mailbox I was holding onto.
I couldn't help, but crack a smile. Life was now about to become anything but normal.
It's about time.