Chapter 2:

The ceiling was an off burgundy. It bothered me in a way that waking up in a stranger’s house didn’t. The bed was comfortable, the pillow beneath my head soft, and I was only mildly surprised I hadn’t burst on the concrete like a ripe fruit. 

I sat up. The room was tidy; it looked well-kept but not lived in. I slid from under the blanket and staggered to my feet. There was an awkward shuffling, and it was only after a momentary dizziness that I regained my balance. I stumbled to the door and slipped into the hall. 

The house was large. I walked from the hall toward the staircase I saw, but when I passed by a bathroom, a need came over me and I stopped. I flicked the light on and the sight in the mirror startled me. 

It was me. And not me. There was an uncanny difference I couldn’t spot at first glance. I leaned in. The pores on my face were gone; my skin had paled and been left without blemish. The shadow that haunted my chin and cheek was gone. My hair hung a bit longer, scratching my eyes, which too had a strange change. The usual brown was dappled with the barest hint of purple. 

I put aside my curiosity when nature called. 

Moments later, I walked down the steps, feet bare, and came to a foyer. The sounds of clinking dishes and the smell of cooked food lured me to the kitchen.

There was a woman there, auburn hair waving as she moved, tending the stove, and she was dressed in comfortable looking purple pajamas. It only took a moment to realize the connection. 

I leaned against the doorway. “You must like purple.”

She jumped, swirled around, and raised a knife. Her panic settled when she realized it was me. The woman looked between me and the knife and set it down with a hint of guilt. She strode over, and it was then that I realized she was maybe half an inch taller. 

She looked me up and down. “You’re not hurt. I’m glad.”

“Didn’t you save me?”

Her head shook. “No, by the time I got to you, it was too late. You had already hit the ground.”

“How am I alive, then? I didn’t have a parachute.”

She crossed her arms. “You might have Changed, that’s the only thing I can think of.”

Changed? Me? I looked down at my hands. I didn’t feel stronger or faster. I did look a bit different. How would I feel if my superpower was as simple as looking handsomer and surviving heights? I’d be the perfect villain hostage. Though considering my history, maybe I already was.

She dragged me to the table and pulled a chair out. I looked between her and the chair, but sat obediently. She hustled across the kitchen, put a couple of plates together, and set the table with a professional grace. The food was plated with a culinary finesse I hadn’t expected. 

“Want some coffee?” She asked. 

“Sure,” I said. 

Shortly after, I was sipping on my drink and enjoying a good meal with a superhero. 

We ate in silence until I set my fork down and looked at her. 

“Why didn’t you take me to the hospital?”

“Hmm?”

“That’s what most people would do, right? Why take me here when you don’t know me?”

She frowned, wiped her mouth with a napkin, and met my eyes. “Do you know much about the Radiants?”

I shrugged. “I know what everyone knows.”

“Yeah, I figured.” She sighed, and leaned back in her chair. A sour look passed over her face. “Things are about to change big time.”

I raised an eyebrow. “How so?”

“The government’s stepping up, guess they finally got their shit together. They’re wrangling all the heroes into one convenient bundle. Me included.”

She grimaced. “We’re about to be a lot more regulated. Documented, and I don’t like the sound of it.” 

“So you wanted to spare me the trouble?” There was an amusement to my voice.

The woman shrugged. “Guess so. Not a lot of people would do what you did, just wanted to pay the favor back, I guess.”

I smiled. “I appreciate it. If I Changed.”

She laughed, and we finished our meal. I took our dishes to the sink, waving her to sit back down, and looked over my shoulder as I rinsed.

“Who painted your ceiling?”

“Huh? Me.”

“You should repaint it. Ceilings shouldn’t be darker than the walls, makes the room look smaller.”

She snorted. “What, is your power interior decorating?”

“It’s definitely not yours.”

“I think I’m regretting bringing you here.”

I turned the water off and flashed her a smile as I walked back over. I wiped my hands dry and held one out. “I’m Sam.”

“Hannah,” She said, taking mine. 

I was halfway home when I thought to check my phone. There was a litany of messages, most from Chris, a few from my mother, and one from my ex. I deleted the last without reading it and tapped my mother’s first. 

It was a simple check in. She texted to ask how I was doing, if I needed food. She mentioned Paul was cooking barbecue that week and asked If I’d be coming over. I told her I would, and she made me promise to bring Chris. 

Would they have had barbecue if the stranger hadn’t saved me? Maybe for the wake.

I called Chris. He answered on the second ring. 

“Hey, what’s up?”

“Dude, I’ve been calling you for five hours, I thought you were dead.”

“Was at a friend’s.”

“Sam…let me know, at least. I’ve been freaking the fuck out all day.”

“Yeah, sorry, I’ll be home soon.”

“Grab some food on the way home—you owe me.”

He hung up before I could tell him I’d already eaten. I sighed. He hadn’t even told me what he wanted. 

How pissed would he be if I hit the hardware store and brought him back a handful of nuts and an oil can? I’d probably be laughing when he broke my neck. 

I settled for chicken. 

The walk home was nice. The air seemed fresher today, for some reason. I hummed as I stepped, bag in hand. I was in an unusually good mood when I cracked open our door and walked in.

Chris looked up with a frown, smiled at the chicken, then forced the frown back when he got up to chastise me. 

He slapped the back of my head. “Tell me next time.” He yanked the bag from my hand and danced to the kitchen counter, giggling as he tore the box open. “Oh, chicken, good choice.”

I shook my head. He’d never change. Had he heard about the upcoming Radiant crackdown? If I told him, I’d need to explain how I learned it. And I didn’t want another two hour Chris lecture. 

“I’m gonna hop in the shower.”

He waved me off, his mouth stuffed full of chicken. 

I pulled the bathroom door shut, tossed my clean clothes on the bathroom counter, and pulled the dirtied ones off. My reflection caught my eye again. Was I thinner? I shook my head, and warmed the shower while I washed my face.

The streaming heat was a welcome reprieve. It soaked into my bones, and I retreated inside of myself. It would be nice if I could stay there. Maybe it was because I was so familiar with that dark space that I noticed something was different. 

My mind brushed the thing that was birthed in my fall. It was an energy, a heat in my heart that cried for my touch. I willed it forth.

Like a geyser, the energy rushed from my heart through my body. My breath caught, and a buzzing spread across me. My heart pounded, and I felt a Change come over me. 

My feet slipped, and I fell to my knees with a thud. A purple static coursed over my skin, and I felt everything shift. The energy spread around me.

I looked in wonder, even as my body cracked and morphed, at the droplets of water that froze in the air. Like a shell, they froze in place, not unmoving, but held aloft, fusing with each other even as more water sprayed around me. They bubbled together in the way liquid does when free from gravity. 

The liquid curtain grew, and my attention was drawn to my body. I looked at my arms and my hands and my chest as they changed. They became smaller. Softer.

My breath caught when my chest rose into two new peaks. Hair fell in front of my face, growing, the pigment shifting from familiar brown to stark white. 

When the energy settled, the purple static sunk back under my skin, and the water dropped with a rushing wave, nearly spilling from the tub. 

I stood, shaking, my hair sticking to my unfamiliar body. I turned the water off and stepped out of the shower. 

It was one step until I was in front of the mirror. My hands traced over  my figure, and a hope bloomed in my core.

Was it possible? I was afraid to look. I swallowed.

I moved in front of the mirror. 

There was a woman. She had snow-white hair, amethyst eyes, and a fair countenance like none I’d seen before. I raised a hand to my cheek. The woman did the same. 

My lips trembled. 

The world had color for the first time.