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A piece I did for one of my uni assignments. Hope you enjoy~
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He lounged upon my sofa as he tried to make sense of what he saw. Arm over the back of it. Legs kicked up on the coffee table. A feeble attempt to look nonchalant but the cogs whirred, trying to calculate what made me the way I was. What made him turn into me. My grin widened and I leaned toward him, the same eyes meeting each other, “Something the matter there, kiddo?” and I noticed the instant recoil.
“You seem...different. Not what I expected...” his light voice trailed off as he studied me, my own smirk growing. Oh, how I knew I would be a surprise to him. His bright eyes and go-get-'em attitude seemed so difficult to break, of course I knew otherwise. It wasn't that difficult when I think back on it, but to him it would be the worst possible outcome. For a little while at least. But he'll see in a couple of years time. Every hero turns into a villain at some point.
“I guessed as much.” was my only response and when he rolled his eyes I chuckled, “Still the same person I see. Underneath it all”
“Well yeah, you're me.” he scoffed and my eyes narrowed for a moment. Still raring with hormones. Still fancying Talia in my chemistry class. Still wearing that mask to fight crime, playing cops and robbers with that comic book twist.
Crossing my arms I leant back in my chair, my voice lowered “Yes, well...not for long”
He moved his legs from the table and put them firmly on the ground. His feet were placed in such a way, that if anything happened, he could move swiftly. Hmm. The corners of my lips tugged as I met my own eyes again.
“What is that supposed to mean?” He questioned and mirrored my movement from before. He leaned forward this time, and I couldn't help the smile from breaking onto my face.
“You'll see.” A small chuckle slipped past my lips as my eyes trailed across his jaw line, trickling down to his neck and shoulders. I had this nasty burn that liked to peak out of most clothing I wore, but as my eyes lingered I could only see clean flesh. Pristine. Untainted. So he's yet to have that experience then. This makes things more interesting, now doesn't it?
My smile slipped into a smirk and I looked away from his innocence with amusement, a sound outside catching my ear. Screaming. Muffled through the closed windows, but still clearly heard with honed skill. I had realised the city had delectable frequencies once I tuned into them. Screaming. Running. Chasing.
My eyes casually wandered back to myself, curious to see if he heard it as well. Back straight. Eyes focused. Wired tension. He had heard it. I was always so on form back then. Ready to jump into any action, to perform a circus act to my awaiting audience standing below. Sometimes I saw Talia, pushing me across that tightrope even more. She was grinning. Motivating me.
"Aren't you going to do anything?"
I felt myself recoil in surprise at his question, "Excuse me?" When had I got so forward? Creasing my eyebrows, I tilted my head trying to make sense of what was held in his eyes. Something I couldn't recall. But this was me. I should be able to remember that glint. The little twinkle caught in the dim light.
"Something wrong?" He asked me, his own smirk growing whilst mine did the opposite.
My shoulders tensed and back straightened. A reflection of each other. The smug meeting the scowl. The familiar face all heroes wore when they thought they were winning. The pride they felt whilst being in control. Did he really think it was just the heroes that felt that way? We both have our shared tightrope to walk and now we were at a stand point in the middle. I wondered if either of us would fall?
"Why would anything be wrong?" I managed to say after a moment of silence, turning away from myself to stop the twitching fingers.
The sirens and screams outside amplified in my head as I sat across from him. They calmed me. Weaving into my ear was a melody I had once experienced. Screaming. Chasing. It was the first time we had confronted those things. The first time we felt any responsibility. Any guilt. "I'm sure you remember" I muttered quietly to myself.
"Remember?" he questioned with the same air of arrogance that I had started with. The twitching worsened. I forced myself to stand up and make my way to the window where the melody became clearer.
"Yes. Remember." Swivelling round, I placed my hand swiftly onto his right shoulder and whispered by his left ear. Close. Goosebumps. Shivers. "April 19th. The year of our 14th birthday. Come now," I tilted his head towards mine, "You can't have forgotten already?" I clicked my tongue in mock disapproval but made him hold my stare, relaying everything that he wouldn't be able to understand.
Hairs pricked, almost touching my own skin and I watched his pupils dilate. His smirk had melted off his face as quickly as I had uttered that date. My whisper in his ear only lowered his body temperature that forced him into place. No movement. No sound. Just sirens.
"What we do to ourselves, ey? What we do to our loved ones on days of celebration. Tell me, do you still celebrate that day?" Mock curiosity slipped into my voice. I knew the answer, but I also knew the reaction. The slight furrow of his eyebrows, and downturn of his lips was exactly what I expected.
His lips pursed at my expression, eyes wavering from mine, "You know I don't. Not after what happened. How could we?"
Oh, such a heavy weight on his shoulders. Such a burdened voice. Something I had almost forgotten about. "It's funny you should say that..."
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He lounged upon my sofa as he tried to make sense of what he saw. Arm over the back of it. Legs kicked up on the coffee table. A feeble attempt to look nonchalant but the cogs whirred, trying to calculate what made me the way I was. What made him turn into me. My grin widened and I leaned toward him, the same eyes meeting each other, “Something the matter there, kiddo?” and I noticed the instant recoil.
“You seem...different. Not what I expected...” his light voice trailed off as he studied me, my own smirk growing. Oh, how I knew I would be a surprise to him. His bright eyes and go-get-'em attitude seemed so difficult to break, of course I knew otherwise. It wasn't that difficult when I think back on it, but to him it would be the worst possible outcome. For a little while at least. But he'll see in a couple of years time. Every hero turns into a villain at some point.
“I guessed as much.” was my only response and when he rolled his eyes I chuckled, “Still the same person I see. Underneath it all”
“Well yeah, you're me.” he scoffed and my eyes narrowed for a moment. Still raring with hormones. Still fancying Talia in my chemistry class. Still wearing that mask to fight crime, playing cops and robbers with that comic book twist.
Crossing my arms I leant back in my chair, my voice lowered “Yes, well...not for long”
He moved his legs from the table and put them firmly on the ground. His feet were placed in such a way, that if anything happened, he could move swiftly. Hmm. The corners of my lips tugged as I met my own eyes again.
“What is that supposed to mean?” He questioned and mirrored my movement from before. He leaned forward this time, and I couldn't help the smile from breaking onto my face.
“You'll see.” A small chuckle slipped past my lips as my eyes trailed across his jaw line, trickling down to his neck and shoulders. I had this nasty burn that liked to peak out of most clothing I wore, but as my eyes lingered I could only see clean flesh. Pristine. Untainted. So he's yet to have that experience then. This makes things more interesting, now doesn't it?
My smile slipped into a smirk and I looked away from his innocence with amusement, a sound outside catching my ear. Screaming. Muffled through the closed windows, but still clearly heard with honed skill. I had realised the city had delectable frequencies once I tuned into them. Screaming. Running. Chasing.
My eyes casually wandered back to myself, curious to see if he heard it as well. Back straight. Eyes focused. Wired tension. He had heard it. I was always so on form back then. Ready to jump into any action, to perform a circus act to my awaiting audience standing below. Sometimes I saw Talia, pushing me across that tightrope even more. She was grinning. Motivating me.
"Aren't you going to do anything?"
I felt myself recoil in surprise at his question, "Excuse me?" When had I got so forward? Creasing my eyebrows, I tilted my head trying to make sense of what was held in his eyes. Something I couldn't recall. But this was me. I should be able to remember that glint. The little twinkle caught in the dim light.
"Something wrong?" He asked me, his own smirk growing whilst mine did the opposite.
My shoulders tensed and back straightened. A reflection of each other. The smug meeting the scowl. The familiar face all heroes wore when they thought they were winning. The pride they felt whilst being in control. Did he really think it was just the heroes that felt that way? We both have our shared tightrope to walk and now we were at a stand point in the middle. I wondered if either of us would fall?
"Why would anything be wrong?" I managed to say after a moment of silence, turning away from myself to stop the twitching fingers.
The sirens and screams outside amplified in my head as I sat across from him. They calmed me. Weaving into my ear was a melody I had once experienced. Screaming. Chasing. It was the first time we had confronted those things. The first time we felt any responsibility. Any guilt. "I'm sure you remember" I muttered quietly to myself.
"Remember?" he questioned with the same air of arrogance that I had started with. The twitching worsened. I forced myself to stand up and make my way to the window where the melody became clearer.
"Yes. Remember." Swivelling round, I placed my hand swiftly onto his right shoulder and whispered by his left ear. Close. Goosebumps. Shivers. "April 19th. The year of our 14th birthday. Come now," I tilted his head towards mine, "You can't have forgotten already?" I clicked my tongue in mock disapproval but made him hold my stare, relaying everything that he wouldn't be able to understand.
Hairs pricked, almost touching my own skin and I watched his pupils dilate. His smirk had melted off his face as quickly as I had uttered that date. My whisper in his ear only lowered his body temperature that forced him into place. No movement. No sound. Just sirens.
"What we do to ourselves, ey? What we do to our loved ones on days of celebration. Tell me, do you still celebrate that day?" Mock curiosity slipped into my voice. I knew the answer, but I also knew the reaction. The slight furrow of his eyebrows, and downturn of his lips was exactly what I expected.
His lips pursed at my expression, eyes wavering from mine, "You know I don't. Not after what happened. How could we?"
Oh, such a heavy weight on his shoulders. Such a burdened voice. Something I had almost forgotten about. "It's funny you should say that..."
