The sharp intake of breath, and a muffled gasp in the night. On her bed in the dim light, Evelyn Rowell moved weakly, causing Evan to look up in concern. He rose from his seat across the hospital room, walking as fast as he could, though he hardly moved at all. He could now hear the beeping of her vital monitors, piercing and eerie as he tried to push his limbs faster.
Evan needed to get to her. But, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't cross the room, as it grew larger and larger and ever larger. Evelyn's bed was drawn away from him, even as he broke into a run, panting in pace with the increasing beeps from so far away. Evelyn's voice came to him, from beneath her oxygen mask, calling his name in growing panic.
"Evelyn! I'm coming, I'm right here, don't be afraid!!"
Evan couldn't tell if his sister heard him. She was rapidly being drawn away across the room, even as it splintered and exploded into the sky in a million shards of the memories they had together. Evan charged past them all, across a meadow, across a mountain, across a trail of falling stars. And yet Evelyn was nearly out of sight.
"E.. Evan!"
Evelyn shrieked in an unearthly tone one last time, and then she was taken from his sight. And Evan woke up.
It was still before dawn. Evan was startled out of his thoughts by the screeching of his alarm clock, and he quickly slammed his hand on the 'sleep' button.
It was just another dream.
He passed a hand over his face, not surprised to find it wet from tears. He shook his head, and began to slowly get dressed for the wintry atmosphere of Millennium City.
After the meteors hit, the city had been in something of a mess ever since. Fires raged through the night, and rubble still lingered in the streets. The Rowell family had the fortune to live away from the darker precincts, but not quite 'middle-class', not these days. Not with the hospital debt.
A bit later that morning, Evan quietly edged out the front door, taking a route on the back streets to reach his daily warehouse job. It took the better part of an hour to get there most days, and today Evan arrived a few moments before nine. Many, many thoughts had been revolving in his head this morning. The fresh image of Evelyn; the mysterious message from 'L30', whoever that was supposed to be; the derelict and half-destroyed homes of many former neighbors, crushed and burning.
It's not like any of this is connected. It's just... still too soon.
Evan jolted back to reality as the morning bell rang. He sighed, and wandered into the warehouse to begin.
On his lunch break that day, Evan again re-read the message from L30 over a steaming bowl of potato soup, trying to focus on something else. Anything else.
If you receive this message, then the meteor shower changed you. We both know there's no escaping from it. I know for certain, 'cause it changed me too.
Evan rolled his eyes. He hadn't been changed. Well, at least not on the inside. Still, it was strange what L30 said. Somehow, they had learned that Evan now possessed unnatural powers, although maybe they didn't know for certain what these were. Evan himself still barely understood them.
There are bad people in this world… People who want to use you for the new abilities you've been given. It's not your fault, but it doesn't matter. Whoever you are now. That's all they care about.
Sure. Of course. And L30 definitely wasn't part of their organization. Evan rolled his eyes the other direction, taking a spoonful of soup and burning his tongue.
Whatever, he thought, slipping his phone away. If anything like that were the case, his life was about to get a whole lot more interesting. But of course, it wouldn't. For a few minutes, Evan absentmindedly spooned soup into his mouth. And then, a text message arrived, from his mother.
We are going out to dinner tonight. Will you be home by 7
Evan just looked at it. He had neither a reason nor a want to go anywhere tonight. And his parents ought to be saving money, for bills and house repairs, not spending it on dinners.
the warehouse is keeping us late tonight. i can't get off before 8 anyway. who are you going out with?
He didn't expect to receive a reply before that evening, as was typical.
L30's message nagged at him. Although he'd been warned to caution, Evan was starting to grow curious, in spite of his own feelings. Could he make a difference with his new powers? Did he even want to try? He couldn't do anything for Evelyn while she was in pain... it just didn't feel right to even be living without her, much less being able to take on the pain of others. What kind of supernatural irony was this? Somewhere, a cruel angel must be laughing at him.
Evan had lied. The warehouse let out at six o'clock in the evening. He just couldn't bring himself to attempt enjoying an evening out. Not without her. Not yet.
It was payday, and Evan was at least looking forward to seeing his savings go up a bit more when the transactions carried through. He usually felt accomplished, just a little, and a little more carefree on these days. But, still... it just wasn't the same.
Evan left the warehouse, padding through the city as he always did, avoiding the main roads and people in general. He only interacted with one person, a streetside sandwich vendor, to purchase his dinner. Eating his warm ham sandwich in the slowly dying light, Evan sat beside a cold fountain to watch crowds as they hurried by. He saw people in bandages, on crutches, even a few on stretchers. But he didn't want to interfere. So what if he had the power to heal others? It only hurt himself. And if Evelyn couldn't be alive, Evan didn't want to hurt himself just so others could keep going on. Why should they deserve that? Why not Evelyn?
As the evening drew on, darkness began to creep on faster and faster. Many alleys led to the fountain square where Evan sat, lost in thought, bundled up against the elements. Maybe he would stir and go home soon. This wasn't the best of neighborhoods, at any rate. There were always bound to be scroungers and wanderers coming in from the outskirts of Millennium City. Evan simply didn't care enough to get up just yet.