19 CHAPTER 19

The events which took place the other day proved that I'm slowly getting a better hang on my powers at a subconscious level. Although it was a life and death situation, I'm glad it worked out. 

That week started like any other week, with me attending lectures as usual. I was in class and the  lecturer seemed to be saying something but I wasn't paying attention, I was lost in thoughts as I stared through the lecturer. 

"Mr. Hendricks, Mr. Hendricks" 

I heard the voice of my lecturer calling out to me from a distance snapping me out of my head as I drifted away from my thoughts and back to reality. 

"Sir." I responded as I gave my undiluted attention to him. 

"Welcome back, Mr. Hendricks. Are you spacing out again?" The teacher stared at me, awaiting an answer, even though he had asked a rhetorical question.

"No, sir. I was just thinking about something." I replied.

"Are you alright? This has been happening more frequently lately." he asked.

"I'm fine." I reassured him.

"If you need help with anything, don't hesitate to visit the school counselor's office." He said, before turning his attention back to the class so he could address them.

Of course I'm alright, I've just been thinking about certain things lately and they have me spacing out often. The lecturer continued to address the class as he made an announcement concerning a school field trip. It had the class excited and pumped up to go to the countryside like they were going for a vacation. 

I wasn't excited but it wouldn't hurt to go sightseeing once in a while, in fact I would like to visit the major cities I have been hearing a lot about in DC. Cities like Metropolis, Star City and maybe even Gotham even though it's a hell hole. 

Tourism isn't my thing but I hope I get to visit them soon and hopefully not get into any kind of trouble with those psychopaths roaming the streets in this verse. 

…

My classmates were excited for the school field trip, a journey to a remote area to study the local flora and fauna. We packed our bags and set off early in the morning, we gathered at a spot near the bus which would take us on the trip eagered  to get started on our so-called adventure.

As we made our way through the countryside, most of the kids chatted and laughed, enjoying the scenery and each other's company. While I sat at the back like a loner trying to avoid anything that might lead to me socializing as I nodded my head to the beats of the music which played from my headphones. I have to admit, DC does have some really cool songs. I blocked out the noise which was being made in the bus by everyone else as I stared blankly outside the glass window. 

After a few hours on the road, we finally arrived at the location and it was as remote as it could get. It wasn't like Central City which was filled with tall buildings and technologies, it was a simple town with simple folks. 

We were allowed a thirty minutes break at a near-by restaurant. Those who wanted to use the bathroom were granted permission while I sat there and observed the lifestyle of the country folks. 

After the time limit had elapsed, we proceeded with the excursion and the students who were enthusiastic about the trip tried to digest every information about the plant life around that region as the teachers explained the plant life and animal life with relation to the earth's ecosystem. While the playful ones kept goofing around trying to make the trip fun on their part. I walked behind the crowd and just observed everything as they played out in front of me. 

It was a nice trip with good scenery but it was time to head back home and everyone started taking pictures. A girl walked up to me and asked me to take a picture of her and her friends as she handed me her phone. 

I looked at her for a second before taking the phone and gave them as many shots as they wanted. Who knew girls took so many photos, not me that's for sure. 

"Thank you, I know you went out of your way to do this. So, thank you." The girl said as I handed back her phone. 

"Sure, I had nothing to do anyway so I might as well help." I gave her a reply which made her give me a surprised look for some reason. 

"You are actually quite a nice person, I assumed you might be rude and easily get annoyed by others or easily get irritated by them. Considering the fact that you are usually on your own and try your best not to interfere or involve yourself with the rest of the class, like you are avoiding everyone or you are a loner." She said to me with a tone like she hoped she did not offend me with the truth. 

"It's interesting how people often assume that I'm rude and unapproachable simply because of my appearance and the fact that I tend to keep to myself. In reality, I'm actually a free-minded person and so long as I don't have an issue with that person then we are cool." I replied with a little smile on my face because it actually amused me. 

"I'm Liv by the way, short for Olivia." She stretched out her hand for an handshake. 

"Nice to meet you Liv, I'm Tom." I replied as I responded to her handshake. 

"I should probably head back to my friends now, it was nice talking with you." She said as she walked back to her friends while she waved at me. 

The field trip had come to an end and it was time to head back home. The bus was rowdy as everyone were chatted and laughed along the way, exchanging their experience and best part of the trip. I sat at the back of the bus with my headphones on so I could tune out everyone else but as we approached a remote stretch of road, everyone's mood suddenly changed. 

Suddenly, we heard a loud explosion, and the bus driver swerved to avoid a massive pile of debris that had been blocking the road.

I was sitting at the back of the bus and couldn't see what was happening outside, but I could hear the panicked cries of my classmates. Suddenly, the bus came to a stop, and the driver shouted for everyone to get out.

I came down from the bus along with my classmates who rushed out of the big bus, and what I saw was a nightmare to most. The road was in ruins, with cars and trucks overturned and on fire. People were running and screaming, trying to escape from a figure in the distance who was causing the chaos. It was a villain, one that I had never seen before. He was dressed in a suit of armor and seemed to be wielding some sort of energy weapon.

My classmates were frozen in fear as the villain approached them, but just as he was about to attack, a blur of motion caught my eye. A speedster had appeared out of nowhere and was running circles around the villain, dodging his blasts and disarming him with lightning-fast moves. I couldn't see anything because I wasn't actually watching, I just wanted to get my ass to safety because the other cars were driving like raging bulls charging against a red flag as the cars tried escaping the chaos before it got to them. 

My classmates were scattered in different directions as everyone tried to escape to any path that felt like safety to them, the teachers and driver tried leading the frozen one's off the road and unto safety as the villain kept shooting energy beams at random, attempting to hit the speedster. 

I ran along through the road as I kept jumping debris and avoiding the cracks on the road when I heard the screeching sound of car tires. I turned my head immediately as I saw an out of control car charging towards me, frozen to the spot as a result of both shock and fear. I closed my eyes and… 

SCREEE BOOOM!!!