The perfect timing

Inside the laboratory a young man was already waiting for us. The guy was tall and in his mid-twenties. He had dark smooth skin and surprisingly bright green eyes, which was an odd contrast to the rest of his body.

I imagined him looking like a professor out of a movie and wearing a white coat, but he was dressed in normal dark washed jeans and a loose fitting black shirt.

The man smiled at the six of us as we walked through the door, but his gaze lingered on me. With big steps he made his way to the middle of the room where we now stood and he offered me his hand to shake. As I shook it he introduced himself as Slade and I gave him a polite smile.

“My name is Celia.” I told him as he let go of my hand.

“I know, I know,” he answered me, his eyes shining bright with excitement and the smile never left his face. He seemed happy by my presence and I didn’t know if I found it funny or odd.

“We can start immediately,” he continued and run towards a strange-looking machine, pushing different buttons and levers.

And suddenly a strange sound was echoing through the room, but nobody except of me seemed bothered by it. It sounded like somebody was gurgling and when I looked around the room to find out where the noise was coming from, one of the walls moved to the side.

Startled I watched the wall opening and revealing another room behind it. You could walk in it through a small door and you could only see the room because of the big glass window.

Slade made his way to the door and opened it for me to walk in. With a wave of his hand he gestured me to walk inside.

I hesitated for a moment and glanced at the people I knew in this laboratory. Kitty and Eric were giving me encouraging smiles, Reece and Juliette both nodded at me to go on and Wyatt gave me a thumps up.

So I took a deep breath and slowly walked through the door, followed by Slade, who closed the door when we were inside.

The room was completely empty. No chairs, tables or other furniture.

The talking outside of the room had immediately started as Slade had closed the door.

“What do you think is her power?” Wyatt asked in interest and even if I wasn’t facing him and looking at the man in front of me, I knew he had took a step closer to the window to watch us.

Slade must have noticed me listening into their conversation and told me with a grin, “Don’t worry, we can listen to them, but they don’t hear us.”

I nodded a bit relieved actually because I was more comfortable to talk to Slade in private. It was enough that they could watch us like animals in a zoo, they didn’t need to listen to our conversation.

“And what are we going to do now?” I asked him, blowing a strand of my hair aside, which had fallen into my eyes.

“First, I’m going to tell you some basic information about super humans,” the man said, making himself comfortable by leaning against one of the walls and I did the same with the wall across of him.

And at the same time we moved Kitty answered Wyatt’s question outside.

“Maybe she is able to fly. I can picture it perfectly in my head,” she said.

Flying? She really thought I could fly like a bird?

But instead of saying something to Kitty, which would be odd, because she couldn’t hear me, I answered Slade.

“Alright, let’s start.”

“Well,” he began, scratching his head, “Where do I start?”

For a while he just thought about it and then he talked to me.

“First you have to know that every power is unique and different. Not even your parents are able to do the same as you,” he added, and I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion.

“My parents?”

“Yes,” he nodded, “You are only superhuman, because one or both of your parents are superhuman too,” he explained.

One or both of my parents had superpowers. This information shocked me more than everything and this thought had never ever crossed my mind before. But now when I thought about it, it only made sense.

For a moment I was unable to reply and tried to assimilate my new gained information. Meanwhile Wyatt answered Kitty.

“Flying?” he asked not really believing her.

“No no.” That is too boring! I think she is able to walk through walls and other objects,” he told her sure of himself.

I then heard Kitty snorting, and she was probably shaking her head and about to argue with him.

“No way!” she exclaimed, and this was the start of a heated argument between this two, which nobody wanted to stop.

So I ignored them and concentrated on Slade.

“I couldn’t have know this, because my parents died when I was younger.” I told him and he gave me a congenially smile.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” he told me and I smiled lightly at him to let him know that I appreciated his words.

“Please, go on.” I then told him, even if I hadn’t digested his previous words.

“Okay,” he answered me. “You also have to know that every super human develops differently and in some cases people never experience their power.”

“And even if you are superhuman you are not immortal.” He added looking me straight into my eyes.

The second information wasn’t that surprising because my parents both died and one of them had to be superhuman.

“When did you notice about your power?” Slade then asked me curious, yanking me out of my thoughts.

I speculated for a second before I answered trying to remember the first time.

“I think when I was about five,” I replied and his eyes widened at my answer.

“Wow, that is really early,” he choked out, and he probably saw the concern in my eyes, when he added immediately, “But that is nothing to worry about.”

I sighed in relief. It was one thing being superhuman, but it was a total different thing if I was an abnormal superhuman. That was also something I wasn’t looking for.

Then a thought crossed my mind about the professor by himself and I questioned curious. “If I may ask, are you superhuman too or why do you work here?”

He laughed heartily at my question and for a moment I thought I asked something ridiculous.

But then he spoke with a warming smile on his face. “No, I’m not superhuman, but my wife is. Long story short, someday I just ended here,” he told me gesturing around, and I followed his movement.

For a moment I looked out of the glass window and saw and heard Kitty and Wyatt still arguing until Eric introverted.

“You are both wrong,” he told them and I raised my eyebrows. The guy must have another assumption. I was inquisitive now and wanted to know about his guess.

Kitty and Wyatt stopped talking and waited for Eric to speak and he replied confidently, “I think Celia can make herself invisible for the human eye and also for us.”

But the squabblers only laughed and told him he was wrong.

Oh, they are all wrong I thought with amusement and averted my gaze, because of Slade’s next words.

“They are a bunch of strange people,” he said, and I laughed, because he was so right. I was also feeling now more comfortable with Slade around. He was a nice and good guy.

This was also the reason why I could answer his next question so easily and sincere.

“What do you think is your power exactly or how would you describe your power?”

I didn’t even hesitate with my answer and said. “I’m able to freeze time and the time stands still around me, but I can move in the meantime.”

“For how long?” Slade asked me then and his smile was replaced by a more professional expression.

“I think for a few seconds to minutes. It varies from time to time,” I added and he nodded.

“Yes that is right,” he said, but was no longer looking at me and leaning against the wall, because he was now standing and looking in front of the glass window.

Of course my gaze moved to the window as well and my eyes widened at the sight. The previously normal looking glass window had now different letters and numbers written on it. They also changed and moving around like on a screen.

“What is this?” I asked Slade taking a step closer to the screen and examining it more closely.

“You could say it is a computer, which can tell me more about your power.”

“But where did it get its information from?” I asked confused, trying to read anything, but it must be another language I have never seen before.

“I don’t know exactly how it works, because I didn’t invent it, but while we were talking in this room, the computer scanned your dates and over this screen it can tell us more about your power,” he told me and I looked astonished at it.

“That’s incredible,” I breathed out and Slade nodded in approval. He was as fascinated as I was. They guy also seemed to like his job and loved what he was doing.

“Is that everything you know?” he asked suddenly, and I titled my head to the side.

“Yes. Why is there something more?”

“Indeed there is,” he told me with a grin. “You are able to freeze time, but there is only a certain radius around you where the time is standing still,” he informed me.

“I don’t know how big this radius is, but we can test it next time,” he added with a smile in my direction and I frowned at his words.

“But I can’t control my power.” I said with a sigh and tried not to show how frustrated I was about myself.

“We can work on that.” Slade assured me, but I wasn’t so sure about it.

“Really?” I asked, and he told me again that he was a hundred percent sure about it.

“That is also everything for today, we can talk tomorrow again,” the guy then said and added, “I gave you many stuff to think about and I’m sure you need a bit time for yourself now.”

How right he was.

I then was about to open the door and walk outside when he stopped me with the words, “Please wait!”

My head snapped around towards him and I raised my eyebrows, but my hand remained on the door handle.

“There is also a saga that says that every super human has one perfect partner, which is assigned for the other one and is your true love.” He told me and I had the feeling that Slade believed in this saga, even if he didn’t tell me.

“And how do you know, who is your perfect partner?” I asked, even if I didn’t believe in any saga.

“You feel it,” he answered me simply and with a smile.

He then turned around towards the screen again and began to read, leaving me alone with my thoughts and alone to face everybody inside of the other room.