Free Super by Matthew Cody

fingers. Two times now Eric’s power had failed him. And he’d been present on both occasions.
    “Inconclusive,” said Daniel. “And our attempt to repeat it just now was a failure.…”
    “So we wait and see.”
    Daniel nodded, but he was frustrated. Daniel wanted tobe
doing
something—he was a detective, and that meant that he looked for answers. He didn’t just wait around. But what else could he do?
    “We’ll stay in touch,” said Eric. “If I have another of my episodes, I’ll let you know. If you start flying around the treetops, you let me know.”
    The two friends shook hands and said goodbye, and Daniel picked his way through the trees as Eric flew off into the distance. The morning so far had left Daniel with equal parts relief and frustration. His thoughts were a tangle, and he was at the same time disappointed and guilty at feeling disappointed.
    The morning didn’t get any better when he returned home to find a smirking Theo Plunkett waiting for him. Eating Daniel’s lunch.

Chapter Seven
Theo and the Bridge
    T errific sandwich, Mrs. Corrigan,” Theo was saying, crumbs spilling out of his mouth as he talked. “Pastrami’s so thin, it reminds me of Manhattan’s best.”
    “It was two for one on lunch meat at the local grocer,” said Daniel’s mom. “But thank you anyway.”
    Theo Plunkett was sitting at Daniel’s kitchen table contentedly munching Daniel’s lunch. It was so surreal that for just a second, Daniel feared he might be back in his dream.
    “Theo, what are you doing here?”
    Theo shrugged. “You said you’d take me on a tour of Noble’s Green today. You forget? Your mom was nice enoughto let me wait here for you. She makes a terrific pastrami on rye.”
    Daniel had forgotten. After yesterday evening’s events he’d forgotten about Theo Plunkett altogether. He seemed like such a minor concern now, a nuisance. And now the kid wanted a tour?
    “Oh, yeah, right. And your dad’s okay with it?”
    Theo snorted. “Heck, yeah. You made quite an impression on him yesterday. Thinks that it’ll be good for me to spend some time with a fine, upstanding citizen such as yourself.”
    Theo must’ve caught the look Daniel’s mother was giving him, because he hastily dropped the smug smile and looked sheepish.
    “I mean, I’d really like to make some friends around here too,” he said. “It’s hard being the new kid, you know?”
    “So,” said Daniel’s mother. “Theo here tells me he’s the boy from the accident the other day? The one with the
car
?”
    The way Daniel’s mom stretched out the word
car
, she might as well have been saying
life sentence without parole
. Of course she’d heard the story of the creek accident (the edited one, anyway—no need to mention the flying boy), and she hadn’t had much good to say about someone who made first impressions by stealing his father’s car and driving it off a bridge.
    “Uh, yes,” said Daniel.
    “But we’re going on a
walking
tour today,” added Theo. “I’ve sworn off, uh … other people’s cars.”
    Daniel’s mother was unamused.
    “I told Theo’s dad I’d show him around,” offered Daniel.
    “Promised, actually,” added Theo.
    “Right,” said Daniel. “I guess I promised.”
    His mother eventually relented, but Daniel could tell that she was still wary. So was Daniel, for that matter.
    Daniel’s mother shoved a pastrami sandwich and a banana into his hands and told him to be home before dinner.
    Once they were outside, Theo gave him a good-natured slap on the back. Daniel grunted as he wolfed down the food. Theo was obviously misreading Daniel’s sour mood. It had little to do with Theo per se. Daniel just didn’t want to see anyone right now. He wanted to be up there in the sky.
    “Hey,” said Theo. “Sorry about all this, but my dad was driving me crazy and I just had to get out of the house. He was on the phone with the mechanic and shouting about the cost of all the repairs to the