Five // Scott Summers

taste

No one knew from where the boy came, nor what was happening to his eyes, which were covered by both of his hands.

He stumbled through the streets of the town, desperately digging in his brain to remember the path he used to walk to and from the school.

Only few sounds registered in his ears: the sound of his rapidly beating heart, his feet slapping against the sidewalk, and his ragged breathing.

Bystanders whispered little worried mumbles when he nearly bumped into them. Any eyes on the streets had squinted at the boy, confused by all means.

"I wonder where he came from..."

"Maybe he's blind?"

"Then where's his stick?"

"Someone should help him home..."

One voice that hit his ears stood from all the others, simply because it was not spoken in a hushed tone. She sounded to be facing the opposite direction in which he walked.

"...Yes, J, I know I picked the movie last week, but... Ugh, obviously I'm aware... Okay, so maybe we've seen A New Hope one too many times, but I'm still saying that it's the way to-- oh!"

Perception on where her voice was coming from didn't work for him. Nose first, he crashed into the girl.

Instinctively, his hands dropped to his throbbing nose. He was quick to slap both hands over his eyes protectively. He continued to stumble backwards.

"I'm so sorry," he panted.

"Be careful, yeah?" chuckled the girl.

Suddenly, underneath his feet, he staggered across a square of bumps on the sidewalk. He tripped over his feet trying to a stop before he entered onto the busy street. He failed.

His crash to the pavement was hard. It forced his eyelids open on impact alone. In the quick second they were unsheathed, they directly seated into a girl peering over him.

"No!" he shouted.

Scrambling to his knees, he feverishly combed across the pavement for the girl's body. His hands bumped into a pair of boots. His chin raised into the air.

A shadow, her body, blocked him from the sunlight behind her.

"Don't open your eyes," she said quickly.

"Wasn't planning to," he said shakily. "H-How are you alive? My eyes, I--"

"I think you know that answer," she said quietly.

He jerked away from her. He used a payphone set on the brick building to stand.

"Oh, no. Don't be afraid of me," she assured.

"It's not you I'm afraid of," he mumbled. "Look, I just need to get home before I hurt someone, before I can--"

"Hey, calm down okay? If you want to get home without being ran over, let me help," she offered.

He  tried to catch his breath. "I can do it alone."

"Yes, because you did a wonderful job so far."

"Why? Why do you want to help?"

"Uh, honestly, I'm the least likely to die trying."

Her hands lightly grabbed the sides of his yellow jacket. His chin raised high into the air. Chuckling, she applied her hands to his cheeks, forcing his covered eyes to meet her own.

Although his hands were protection enough, he went the extra mile by squeezing his eyes shut tight. He didn't want to hurt her.

"You just got them, which probably means you think you're either a God, or you think it's a curse, or a punishment. I've seen it all," she was diagnosing under her breath. "But, from the way you're trying so incredibly hard to ensure you don't open your eyes, I know you're scared. It's okay to be. If you let me help you, I can take you to people who can change you. You won't be afraid of what you can do anymore."

"Who are you?" he breathed.

Beside them, a car screeched to a stop. A worried woman reversed until she was parked directly in front of the two teenagers.

"Who is it?" he asked.

She raised her brow. "I have no clue."

"You get in this car this instant, young man!" yelled the woman.

"That's my mother," he told the girl.

"That's my cue," she said in return.

Scott hurried to reach for her hand before she could leave. "Wait, wait, you never told me your name. How am I going to find you? What am I supposed to remember you by?"

Her touch lighter than a feather, the girl tilted his chin down, then kissed the corner of his lips softly. She barely leaned away from him to whisper, "You can remember that."