(Jason POV) -Verse 1 - A Brother

I scrolled through my phone on a windy and slightly rigidly cold afternoon. School had just ended not too long ago and I was freezing my nuts off standing idly between two iron rails which separated the bike stands dwelling just outside of the school grounds. I restlessly leant against one of the iron poles playing its part in upholding the arch glassed shaped roof, shielding the chained bikes.

I hate nothing more than having to wait for someone expected to arrive almost an hour ago to arrive. I probably checked my watch about 10 times in the last hour already . “He’s running late again.” I frowned whilst rubbing my labella and admonishing myself for believing he would be on time today. Tobias arriving on time was just as rare as a flying pig. it was always that way for as long as I could remember. Only once he saw that jovial grin of his most trusted friend, there was no use still carrying any ill will towards him.

I saw a few familiar faces making their way home. We were all dressed in the plain grey and red plaid uniforms. I wouldn’t call myself one of the popular kids, but I somehow ended up saying hello to numerous people along the way, the chest club, mainly consisting of shy speaking girls. The jocks, who I used to play sports with often. My circle of friends was quite tightly knitted though, I had one best friend and a few casual associates who I spent my break times with from time to time.

My ears captured the sounds of a turning wheel from a bicycle. I somehow could recognize those rusty chains squealing from a long distance away. I twisted towards the opened front gates coloured in decaying green paint. A gentle sigh leaves my lips whilst I finally set my eyes upon the fellow I had been eagerly waiting for since the end of school bell rung.

“Tobi! You call this getting here on time?” I barked at him loud enough to be heard 40 or so meters away before he reaches me. My best friend Tobias smiles broadly at me, his round face and chubby cheeks crease into a jovial mask, his dimples briefly appear before going hidden beneath his baby fat. “Tsk! I blame myself for having false hope.” I whispered beneath my breath, watching him struggle to maintain his control over the aged bike beneath his chubby frame.

Seeing those saucer shaped lenses of his slightly fogged, I can tell he must’ve rushed to get here. My ire slightly calms down once he’s close enough for me to notice he’s been sweating profusely. A light-hearted chuckle escapes my relaxed mouth. Tobi was one of the very few people in my life who I couldn’t actually stay angry at. We shared a bond deeper than anyone I’ve ever met before. He was like my brother despite our obvious different tastes in things. For example I enjoyed sports, free running and hiking adventures. Tobi was the complete opposite to me, first of all I imagine the thought of doing anything physical would make him want to throw up. Since he would rather spend most of his days locked inside of his man cave. Spending countless hours on games, porno, social media or planning his next obtuse invention.

By the time he finally reached me he was huffing and panting with his tongue out, like a dog who hadn’t received any water after a lengthy run. His pinkish round face looked a little like a plum, which kind of made me laugh.

“Ja-ja-jason…s-sorry. I hope you wasn’t waiting too long?” His voice breaks whilst he struggles to catch enough breath to string a clear sentence. I wave his apologies away, I wasn’t truly angry per se. I merely just got frustrated standing still for so long. Which leaves me wondering if I might actually have ADHD like some of my not so favorable teachers seem to think I had.

Once Tobi caught his breath we eventually leave the dumping grounds and head down the highway towards one of the nearby residential districts. Both me and Tobi happen to have grown up here. So we practically knew all the hidden shortcuts and places to go during our spare time.

Tobi decided he had enough of struggling to balance his pudgy built onto the creaky iron bars, and pushed the bike alongside him instead. We spent most of the journey with Tobi telling me another one of his domestic episodes at home involving his Mother and his new stepfather. I started to involuntarily tune him out though once he started to creepily describe the sounds he tended to hear her making late in the night after another one of their fights.

Safe to say I was very much used to his crude way of thinking by now. I guess that might be his hidden charm. ‘When he finally gets a girlfriend I’ll ask her.’

“Oh snap Jason I just remembered something! What have you got planned right now?” Tobi asks me with a surprisingly child like expectancy within his tiny eyes

“ errrr Arcade?” I said to him jokingly.

“Ah cmon let’s hang for a while. Summer begins in a few days time, we’ve definitely both failed our exams. So why not spend this late afternoon exploring with me?”

“Exploring?” I replied back with a slightly raised brow.

“Haha you heard me correctly my friend. There’s a place I heard just opened not far away from here. But I haven’t really had the time to go there you see…”

I exhaled a deep breath already know where he’s going with this.

“Alright-alright but I can’t get home too late, you know how mother…” the thought of my Mom giving me an earful again sent shivers running down my spine.

“Ah of course- of course. Say how’s Mrs Parker doing these days anyway?” He asks me with a slight smirk creased against his chubby face. I immediately catch the innuendo and scowl back at him in response.

“Don’t make me beat you. Also, what’s so special about this place anyway?” I ask him in a bid to change the conversation away from my…Mom.

“Oh, wel…apparently and again hear me out before you dismiss it. Ahem…apparently this place is actually a magic shop! The owner is supposedly from the Rhian Islands. And supposed to be this renowned mystic, who can make all your dreams come true for a fee.” I stare wordlessly at his side profile, you would think he actually believes in this crap by the way his eyes are lighting up. More so, how many times was it now where one of his schemes to gain us powers fell horribly wrong.

Which leads me into the other thing which bound us both together. You see in this world there were two kinds of people. There were mortals like us, but also what we called ‘Marvels.’ And a Marvel was someone with super abilities. They say that in todays time 2/3 children inherited the Marvel gene which was said to manifest itself by the tine they turn age 9. I remember the day we both turned 9 and were taken to the institute of the gifted situated on a remote site on the edge of the Metro City. Only to be told the gene hadn’t manifested. Tobi’s Mom was devastated, surprisingly my Mom looked slightly relieved. Also a late bloomer was something not entirely unrealistic given the volatility of powers, some appeared randomly or after a particular traumatic event.

10 years forward from that very day and our powers still hadn’t bloomed. I did take it hard during my early teenage years, especially when some of the kids I grew up alongside in the neighbourhood had already had theirs bloomed and were whisked away to the glorious Metro City to begin their tutelage underneath the Heroes Union. Perhaps that’s what spearheaded my choices in the kinds of hobbies I attached myself too.

“J-jason? Why you gone quiet all of a sudden?” Tobis's voice breaks me free from my daydreams.

I glanced at his faux pleading puppy eyes before scratching the side of my head. “ fine but I’m not paying for it.” I tell him.

“Pfft no problem.” He responds before taking out a wad of money out from his pockets. My eyes widened upon swiftly noticing he has about 300 bills in total on him.

“H-h-how?” I stammer out

“How else…stole them from my step dad of course.” He remarks as though it’s the most natural thing in the world to do. And as such my surprise swiftly turns into that of disgust

“Sigh, he’s going to beat you up once he finds out you know.”

“Not if I return with powers my friend. Then we’ll see who does the beating up.” He triumphantly says.

Safe to say Tobi was definitely beaten up later on that day. But this unfortunate and yet should’ve been expected kind of journey did spark a chain of events that went on to change our peaceful lives forever.