Free Super Powereds: Year 2 by Drew Hayes Page A

I’d just hoped you would have been a little more helpful.”
    “Hope is a beautiful thing, you hang onto that,” Michael said. “What else did you want?”
    “Oh, well, the other thing I wanted is to say ‘thank you’.”
    Michael tilted his head in skepticism.
    “No, I mean it. Not only for setting me free from living a lie, but for helping me see how wrong I was last year,” Vince said.
    “What do you mean?”
    “I kept thinking that by limiting my power intake I was keeping everyone else safe. I was so scared of losing control that I purposely kept myself as weak as possible. But if you hadn’t stirred up the whole campus, I doubt George and Persephone could have slipped off with our friends and in that whole fiasco I realized something important: I can’t keep anyone safe if I’m weak. I have to get past my fear of losing control and start using my power to its limit and then some. If I really want to keep everyone safe then I’ve got to be stronger than everyone and everything else,” Vince explained. “So, for that lesson, I sincerely do want to thank you.”
    “You’re welcome,” Michael said with a sneer. “Let me know if there’s anything else you want me to teach you.”
    “Oh, I don’t think there’s any need for that,” Vince replied. His voice was the same, as was his stance, but something seemed to shift to Michael. He couldn’t put his finger on why, however he was certain something about this situation had become vastly more dangerous.
    “I took that lesson to heart, Michael, and I think you’ll find I’m now far less hesitant about how much power I keep held within me. I genuinely meant that thank you, and I do hope one day you and I can become mutually respectful peers, if not outright friends. That said, until you get past whatever issues you seem to have with me, you should stay away. From me, and especially from my friends.”
    “Big talk from a freak,” Michael said. “I think someone needs to be reminded which of us always wins our fights.”
    Michael took a step forward and readied himself to charge. Suddenly he felt his breath slip out of his chest as the air around him rippled with heat. In less than a second the temperature had leapt up by tens of degrees and it was only getting hotter. He tried to gulp down new air but it burned at his lungs and gave him little relief. He fell to a knee in hopes of seeking cooler air closer to the ground. Then, just as soon as it had started, it was over. The heat dissipated and Michael was able to take several ragged breaths to sooth his pounding heart.
    “I’m not here to fight. I just wanted to ask you a question and say thanks,” Vince said calmly. “I don’t have interest in fighting you, Michael. I never did. The difference is that I’m not going to put up with your antics anymore either. Please keep that in mind next time you decide to ambush me, because I’m done pulling punches.”
    Vince turned and headed off toward his dorm, leaving Michael still panting for air and fuming with rage.
     

11.
    It was later than he expected when a series of sharp knocks rang against Nick’s door. He glanced at the clock and saw the glowing digital numbers flashing nearly midnight. He supposed it was a Friday night, and Mary and Hershel would want to get some couple time in after all. Still, it was a good thing he was a night owl or else Nick might have been perturbed at the intrusion.
    He opened to door to reveal Mary, dressed for the night in sweatpants and an oversized t-shirt, who walked briskly past him and plopped down in his desk chair.
    “Can I help you?” Nick asked.
    “You sure can,” Mary replied. “We need to talk about the team.”
    “Wouldn’t that require the rest of the aforementioned team to be present?”
    “Don’t be an ass. I trusted your judgment on picking Camille and Alex today. That doesn’t mean I don’t want to know why you thought they were the best choices,” Mary said.
    “Someone is feeling