Thunder

Epilogue

I wake up in the same place this entire adventure started: a hospital room.

I was running in circles. Why?

No matter how hard I try, I can't remember. My last concrete memory is of telling Caitlyn to text Kathryn and make sure Kenzie is safe at the park. After that, I have only foggy flashes of memory: a bolt of lightning, Kenzie screaming, Andrew and Ryan fighting on the ground. I am unable to arrange the small bits of information into a memory that makes sense. I decide to give up on the task for now because I have a massive headache.

One image, however, is clear and vivid in my mind: the look on my parents' faces when they saw I was Thunder.

Why wasn't I wearing my hood?

A nurse enters the room to check up on me. She finds me conscious on the bed and gives a warm, friendly smile. "Good afternoon, Kyleigh. It's good to see you're awake. How are you feeling?"

"Like someone chucked a brick at my head," I answer, referring to my headache.

With a slight laugh, she says, "That's normal. You suffered a concussion."

Slightly confused, I ask, "How?"

"The doctor will explain when he gets here," the nurse answers. "You have some friends and family here for you. Would you like me to send them in?"

"Sure," I reply. Perhaps they can fill in the memory gaps for me.

The nurse walks out of the room and I hear her say, "Kyleigh is awake and may have visitors. Please, only a couple at a time, though."

My parents are the first to enter.

"Kyleigh, how are you doing?" My dad asks.

"I have a headache," I answer. "What happened?"

"You were kicked in the head and have a concussion," my dad tells me. "Do you remember any of what happened?"

"Some," I reply. "It's really fuzzy."

"The doctor said you might have some memory loss. He says it should only be temporary, though."

"That's good. How long was I out this time?"

"Just for the night," he answers.

"So," my mom says, sitting in the chair beside the bed. "You are Thunder."

"Yeah... I... I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys, but..."

"Shh..." My mom quiets me. "Don't be sorry, sweetie. Maybe we are a bit disappointed that you never told us, but look at the amazing person you've become. How could we be anything but proud of what you've done?"

"We could never be more proud of you, Kyleigh," my dad adds.

I smile. "Thank you. I love you both."

"We love you, too," my dad says as he gives me a hug.

My mom hugs me as well before saying, "We'll let your friends come and say 'hi' to you, but we will be just outside the room."

"Okay. Wait, where's Kenzie? Is she alright?!" I suddenly panic, remembering her scream in my mind.

"She is asleep on a chair in the waiting room." My dad answers. "We didn't want to wake her. Don't worry, she is safe."

"Good," I sigh in relief.

My parents exit the room and shortly afterwards, Caitlyn and Ryan walk in.

"Kyleigh, how are you feeling?" Caitlyn asks.

"Like someone kicked me in the side of the head and gave me a concussion," I state, growing tired of answering that question.

"Do you remember what happened?" Ryan asks.

"Not completely. What happened to Andrew?"

"You stopped him," he answers. "The police arrested him."

"He won't be out there anymore," Caitlyn assures me. "I told you that you could do it."

"I did it," I repeat. "But... What's going to happen with you?" I ask Ryan, realizing that now he is on his own without a guardian.

"I'm moving in with my aunt," he answers. "Or she is moving in here. It hasn't been completely decided yet."

So Ryan might be moving away. I'm unsure how I feel about that.

"Kathryn wanted me to call her as soon as you were awake," Caitlyn states.

"Oh, so your mom didn't take your phone away again?"

"No. Once she found out why I stole it back, she decided it was a good enough reason to let me keep it. The whole town knows you're Thunder now."

I sigh. "Great..."

"I'm gonna go out and tell Kathryn you're alright," Caitlyn says, pulling her phone out and dialing Kathryn as she exits the room.

Ryan doesn't follow her out. He stays as if he has something to say. I haven't really had a chance to think about things between us yet. Everything has just happened so quickly and strangely...

"So, what does all of this mean... about us?" He asks.

"I... I'm not sure," I reply.

Ryan is on my side, right? Out of all the foggy memories I have of before I went unconscious, I do remember Ryan knocking Andrew off of me at one point. He was helping me.

"I don't know how many times I can say 'I'm sorry'," he says, "but you have to understand that everything I did..."

"Andrew forced you to do," I finish for him. "I do understand that now."

"I really like you, Kyleigh. Would you ever consider giving me a second chance?"

"Maybe. I just... need some time to think about everything. I mean, a lot has happened, and now the world knows I'm Thunder. Who knows how much is going to change from this point on?"

"But you're saying there's hope?" He asks.

"Yeah," I smile. "There's hope."

The door opens and in walks Dr. Carson.

Ryan notices him and says, "I'll go," before getting up to leave.

"Bye," I say as he exits the hospital room.

Dr. Carson takes a seat in the chair. "Good afternoon," he greets. "How much have you figured out before I got here?"

"Well, I was kicked in the head, I have a concussion, I stopped Andrew, and the world knows that I'm Thunder."

He nods. "You don't have a secret identity anymore."

"Did I ever really have one to start with?" I say. "People were beginning to piece it together. There are people who knew I was struck by lightning. Not long after, a girl with the ability to create lightning comes along. There were people out there trying to solve the mystery of who Thunder was. I don't think I had much more time before the evidence would've been put together anyway."

"I see your point there," Dr. Carson agrees.

"I hate that I can't remember what really happened, though."

"Your memory should return as you recover," he assures. "There is a lot that you still don't know, though."

Confused, I ask, "What do you mean?"

"There are some things that I believe you are ready to hear, but you need to recover before you worry about any of it."

"What?" I repeat, completely puzzled.

"You'll find out in time," Dr. Carson says, standing up.

Dr. Carson, always a man of secrets.

**********************

My name is Kyleigh Everson, but you can call me Thunder. I don't know what is going to happen from here on out. All I know is that my life will never be the same again. New challenges will lie ahead, but I think I'm ready for whatever adventures they may bring.