(#1) Roommates by Day, Enemies by Night

Chapter 22

We do not have to become heroes overnight. Just a step at a time, meeting each thing that comes up ... discovering we have the strength to stare it down. ~Eleanor Roosevelt

Dedicated to my great friend, who I met this weekend, IIWolfieII. I had a great time talking to you, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Dylan

I was in a big pavilion, one where all those around me were either my friends or people I knew from school. Looking down, I saw that I was in my Warrior outfit, and that I was standing in the middle.

I rushed to the bathroom, and was horrified by what I saw. My mask and visor were gone, along with my voice tuning device that was built into my suit. My identity was revealed for everyone.

"Dylan?" A voice echoed, reverberating around the tiled bathroom walls. Siena stuck her head in and saw me in my outfit.

'Hey I was-" Her voice died off as her eyes widened, taking in my appearance.

"No, no." I rushed towards her. "It's not-"

"What it looks like?" She finished with a dry laugh. "How many times have I heard that before? I bet you're having a grand old time running around with Black Hawk and just laughing about your powers." She sneered, staring at me accusingly.

"Siena, I really wanted to tell you, but I couldn't. I didn't want you to get into trouble because of me. I wanted to keep you sa-"

"Safe, right?" She said, her tone freezing. "I can take care of myself." She regarded me coldly. "Forget it." With that she walked out.

I woke up in my bed, jerking straight up and nearly giving myself a fresh bump on my head. My heart was beating at a thousand miles per hour and my breaths were short and shallow. I pressed a hand to my chest to try and calm myself.

Once I realized that it was just a dream, I calmed down and got out of bed, going to the bathroom and showering. Today was the last day of school before winter break for Christmas, and both Siena and I were staying in the city for most of break. I was going to visit my parents on the 26th, and so was she.

Walking out of the shower, I dumped a pile of cereal into a bowl and poured some milk into it. After yesterday, there was no way I had enough energy to make anything else. Finding the clues with Black Hawk was exhausting, and my brain felt like it was stuffed with cotton.

Siena yawned as she walked into the room, stretching her limbs out and giving me a sleepy stare. Although she was fully dressed, we were both in that state of confusion that happens when you wake up and want to go back to sleep.

"Hey." She muttered, taking a seat across from me and letting her head rest on her arms, which were on the table. Her hair spilled over and covered her face.

"What's up?" I asked sleepily.

"Didn't get much sleep either?" She questioned. I shook my head. "Me too."

"Yeah, I was just going all over the city trying to get things done for school." I explained.

"Shouldn't we be going?" She asked. I glanced at my watch and nodded.

"Yeah, let's leave. Did you eat something?"

She shook her head. "No, but I'm fine." I gave her a cautious look and she rolled her eyes. "Seriously, I can go without eating it for one day." I opened the car door and slung my bag in, starting the engine.

We drove to school in silence, and I took them time to let my mind stew over what had happened yesterday. People had motives for the things they did, so what was Gemini's? Why did they want these specific ingredients?