Part Three

I spent the next few days thinking about my powers. Or at least, my potential powers, so far the most they'd given me was a couple electric shocks from the toaster. And the phone and the lamps and the microwave. Dear God the microwave was the worst.

I constantly wanted to try them out, but I didn't. I'm not entirely sure why but I didn't, I guess I was worried that it would be a disappointment. Again.

Despite my reluctance to try again, I couldn't let it go. I couldn't bring myself to accept that it was nothing. I couldn't accept that it was just a side-effect, that it wasn't something more. I could not live the rest of my life avoiding the microwave without a good reason.

OK, it maybe cliché but I couldn't accept that there was no reason behind these powers.

I had been staring at the pencil for an hour now. I think. It was some length of time anyway, I don't know what I expected to happen, but I felt something. Maybe it was a bad burrito, but I didn't think so.

My hand was shaking as I lifted it. I was barely aware that I was doing it but before I knew it, I was pointing at the pencil.

a small, thin, white boat shot from my fingertip and towards the pencil, which flew from the tabletop and across the room.

I stood up from my chair and stared at the pencil, a mix of both excitement and fear swelling and swirling in my stomach.

The pencil was on fire.

"Oh shit!"

As I realised what had happened I leapt across the table, and landed flat on my face, I was hardly the elegant superhero.

I stamped frantically on the pencil.

The carpet was scorched.

"Aw nuts."

Some quick repositioning of the furniture later and I was watching TV.

A thought occurred to me.

I stared and stared at the screen.

'click'


It went blank.

I chuckled to myself.

'click' 


It was back on again, as if nothing had happened.

I smirked. This was going to be fun.

Part Two

I woke up to sunlight flooding through the window. I had fallen asleep on the floor.

As I got to my feet, everything seemed normal, Maybe it was just a nightmare. I reached for the light switch.

'Click!'


The room was flooded in light. I clicked the switch again and it went off.

"OK," I said, "I'm normal. It was just a dream."

I got in the shower. And sparks began to flood over me.

I screamed out in pain. . . But it didn't hurt.

I buried my head in my hands.

It wasn't a dream.

I spent the majority of my day alone, trying not to draw attention to myself and luckily my 'powers' didn't act up or give me away.

In fact they didn't show up for a few days, just as I thought I was becoming normal again, they reappeared.

I was walking home again, and I stepped in a puddle. Just then they popped into my head again, and sparks began to fly everywhere.

"Uh-oh."

I stared down at my foot, still in the puddle, the sparks were becoming less and less and i watched until they were gone.

"OK," I said, "I'm not normal. But I'm gonna have some fun."

Still staring down at my foot I began to focus. I was staring at it, not daring to blink, willing all my energy into my foot and out into the puddle.

My foot started to tingle. I could feel something stirring. I was going to create a giant puddle of sparks.

Finally I released.

A single spark fell pathetically from the top of my toe.

I walked home, annoyed at myself.

"Stupid powers!"

Part One

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP.

I hate the sound of alarm clocks. Why do they have to be so annoying? 

"Shut up!" All my energy went into saying it, which wasn't a lot, I am not a morning person. 

Almost as soon as I'd said it the sound stopped. I opened my eyes and glanced at the machine. 3.36.

Great! I thought, my alarm's broken. 

I didn't give it a second thought and the rest of my day was the same as always, or at least, the same as it had been since the accident, all smiles and pats on the shoulder, until I was on my way home. 

I was walking home from the train station, the normal route . . . OK the new normal route 

It was getting dark and the street-lights were flickering on. They were just warming up, not quite full beam yet. 

As I drew close to the first it started to glow brighter, it's warming up, I thought, so I didn't take a second glance, until I got to the next one. As I approached this one it too began to glow brighter until I was right under it, beginning to walk away from it, and it started to fade the further away I got. 

I stopped. 

"That was weird." I turned on my heel and stared up at the light, back now to its soft glow.

I shook my head. "That accident messed with my head." I muttered.

The same thing happened again as I walked under the next street light.  

"OK, I know I'm not crazy." I walked backwards, back towards the street-light. It grew brighter, I walked away and it faded again. 

I looked over my shoulders before breaking into a full on sprint, every street-light flickering as I passed without fail. 

I burst through the front door, sped up the stairs and slammed my bedroom door and pressed my back against it.

That's when I noticed that the light was on.

I glanced over at the switch. I had an idea. I flicked the switch to off. Nothing happened. I flicked it on and then off again. The light stayed on.

"What's happened to me?" (OK, I know it sounds cliche but I was terrified.) "WHY WON'T YOU JUST GO OFF!" I screamed.

I was plunged into darkness, except for the street-light outside my window, which began to flicker and fade.

The Beginning

I always wondered what it would be like to have superpowers. . .

"I walked past that same generator house everyday. Twice. It never registered much on my radar, it was a blip. Less than that in fact, it was just, there. I guess i may have wondered about it once or twice, but there was never anything that interesting. Just a way to take my mind off the walk.

I never suspected that it'd be the single most important building in my life.

It was a normal day. It was evening, and I was on my way home from college. Walking past the generator house again, same as ever, barely registering its existence, when all of a sudden, there was an explosion. A car blew up in the car park on the other side of the generator house. They said that if it had been parked in the next spot along  the explosion never would've affected the generator house. If it had been in the next spot in the other direction, the explosion would've killed me, just like those other two.

Maybe it was destiny.

The flaming debris flew in every direction, showering over the car park. A piece of the engine flew straight into one of the outer generators causing it to explode, or, something. Anyway, the whole building was ripped apart and thrown outwards in a ball of electricity and fire. Most of which, hit me."

"Wow." She sipped her tea and looked at me, a sort of half smile crept across her lips and she studied me. "It truly is a miracle Mr. West, you're one of the lucky few. Not everyone would have been so lucky. What happened next?"

"Well, I woke up in hospital and was told the same story I've just told you."

"And you were dead . . . for how long?"

"Seven minutes. Seven and a half really."

"Fascinating." She quickly scribbled in her notepad and paused for a second before saying, "well, I think that's everything. Thank you again for agreeing to meet with me." She stood and shook my hand.

"Any time."

I waved as she walked out of the cafe and again as she walked past the window.

Now, I don't want you to get the wrong idea. I'm not trying to feed my ego with interviews, I swear that was the only one. Well OK, maybe I was feeding my ego a little, but anybody would have done the same. Plus my parents could use the money.

I finished the last of my drink and got ready to leave.

I walked home, it wasn't far and I didn't mind the walk, it's safe to assume I didn't go past the generator house. It's not that I didn't want to, I was alive, and I wanted to see where it had happened, but they had closed the area off.

The accident had changed my life, Everybody knew me now, which was strange, but I knew it would go away sooner or later, once a new story came along. What I couldn't get used to were the smiles. Don't get me wrong it was nice to see everybody happy, but it was creeping me out.

But of all the ways the accident had affected me, none had a bigger influence on me than what was to come.