Tempest: The Moments In-Between (#1.5)

Chapter Three: Woeful Introspection

Jack Hamilton

The fresh air did me some good since my head felt like it was spinning. But as I got closer and closer to my apartment, I couldn't help but think that if I walked in like this, Gavin would scream bloody murder. The shirt was dry and stiff now, but still, I could hear him scolding me about being in dangerous places, but then, immediately making me comment on how awesome Tempest was.

  Maybe I can pretend its tomato juice or something. Or maybe I just run like hell to my room and avoid Gavin altogether. Yeah... let's start with plan B.

Ever since Tempest saved him, he's been her number one fan. Every time she's on the news, he cries out how his 'goddess' is making history, and then squeals like the truest fan at any boy band concert. Gavin would freak so hard if he ever found out he was only one door away from his favorite idol.

I parked the car and made sure there was no one around. With no prying eyes in sight, I made a mad dash for the back stairwell, and up to my floor. As quietly as I could, I inserted my key into the door. It felt like I was doing something wrong, sneaking in like this, but when I imagined the interrogation and potential psychological screening Gavin would do on me, I knew it was the right move. While I love being Gavin's roommate, he could sometimes be... excessive. And it didn't help that he was a psych major.

Like a mouse, I swiftly slid into my room and gently locked the door behind me.

All the lights were off, but sometimes, Gavin had this bionic hearing that was terrifying.

"Jack?" And there it is—Million-Dollar Man hearing.

"Yeah?" I answered half-panicked as I quickly took off my shirt and stuffed it to the bottom of my hamper. 

The jiggling of my door handle was as loud as an air horn, and I could have sworn my eyes were about to pop out of my head every time the doorknob moved.

"Why is the door locked, Jack-Jack?" There was the briefest pause before he began his interrogation. "Is there a woman in there?"

I held back laughter as I opened the door to a very tired, but wide-eyed roommate. "No, Gavin, there is no woman in here."

"Well, I mean, it's not like it would be the first time." He stuck his tongue out at me as he looked me up and down. Gavin's eyes briefly paused at the bruises and cut on my stomach before saying, "The abs are looking good. Keep it tight for me, ok?" he winked.

I rolled my eyes at him as I walked towards the bathroom, immensely relieved that we weren't playing twenty-questions about my minor injuries. "I was just getting ready for a shower." I lied smoothly. "And if you keep talking like that, I'm telling Jojo."

He cringed at my threat. "You would not!"

I gave him my 'really?' look before he lightened up and started laughing a bit.

"Alright, alright." He put his hands up in defeat. "I give. I'm too tired to keep it up anyway."

"That's what he said."

"OH!!!" Gavin yelped, slamming his hand over his heart as he staggered back. "And this is why we're roommates." He chuckled. Just as I was about to close the bathroom door and be in the clear, Gavin called me.  "Hey, Jack?"

"Yes, Gavin?"

"You were downtown today... weren't you?"

I nearly flinched at his question, and for a moment, I couldn't say anything. I just looked at him. Gavin was frowning—something he rarely ever does. He was always the chipper one between the two of us, and to see him sad honestly made you feel sort of down too. His eyes looked glassy, like he was fighting back tears, and his voice cracked a bit as he asked the one question I was trying to get away from. But looking at him like this, seeing him halfway down the road to woeful introspection, really made me feel like crap for trying to avoid him when he was so obviously worried.

How do you answer something like that? A question filled with so much weight.

I tried to make my sigh as imperceptible as possible before I answered him. "Yes, I was downtown today."

I forced myself to swallow the lump in my throat as fear ran through his eyes.

I had no idea what he was going to ask next, and if I was being one hundred percent truthful, I had no idea what was about to come out of my mouth either.

"Oh my god." Gavin covered his mouth before looking away from me for a moment. "You were in the center of all of that? I knew it." He whispered.

I stood there silently as I waited for him to process whatever thoughts were racing through his mind.

"I tried to call you when Jojo and I saw it go down on the news." He peered back at me—his eyebrows pulled together tightly. "When you didn't pick up..." Suddenly, Gavin jumped on top of me, bear-hugging me with the strongest grip he had. "You're all the family I have here, Jack." He whispered against me before letting me go.  "So, next time I call, you answer the darn phone, ok?"

I nodded, smiling some. "Ok. I'm sorry, Gavin. I didn't mean to worry you." I touched my hands to the pockets of my jeans in what I hoped was subtle. "I lost my phone—" Apparently. "—when everything happened. I should have found a way to call you though."

Although, if I could tell you the whole story, you would completely forgive me for everything. With all the things I learned today, I didn't even realize that I had lost my cell. But I guess, in the grand scheme of things, losing my cell phone is much easier to deal with than losing my life. So... there's that.

"Were you downtown too?" I wondered.

Gavin's brown eyes widened to the point where he looked like he had no eyelids. If our topic of conversation wasn't so serious, I would have died laughing at the face he was making. "No, no. Jojo and I were in Le Café. The barista blasted the volume when she noticed what was going on." He barely took a breath as he placed his hand on my arm and said, "Jack-Jack, watching Tempest fight that thing. Fight, what was its name... Miasma... it was just... just... terrifying! Impressive and amazing, yeah. Oh, absolutely! But also, just... terrifying. I mean, nothing like this has never ever happened before, and now... do you think that it will keep going? More creatures like that coming out of god knows where?"

Des's words rang in my head at Gavin's query. "...the world has always been like this. There has always been magic and creatures that can do unspeakable things..."

"I don't know, but..." I gave Gavin the best hopeful smile I could muster. "If Tempest is going to be around to save us, then, those creatures don't stand much of a chance, right?"

He seemed to brighten at the mention of Cardinal City's resident superhero. "Did she save you too?"

In the biggest way...

"She saved all of us." I paused as I thought of Penn and what she did in order to help everyone. In order to help me. "She was incredible."

"I told you as much." He cheesed.

I couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Yeah... Yeah, you did." I glanced over at the bathroom, realizing that a quick shower would do me some genuine good. Especially if I'm going to head back to Des's hideout. "Alright, well, I'm going to take a shower. You should go back to bed."

"Do you have to go to the lab tomorrow?" My roommate inquired.

"No, I think I'll skip the lab tomorrow. But I have to run some errands really early later. So, don't be too surprised if I'm up before you."

"Alright, but only so long as one of those errands is a new phone." Gavin looked at me pointedly as his lips pursed out—duck-face style.

I chuckled a bit, nodding as I started to close the door behind me. "You got it."