Everything's Almost Fine (Reignfinite)

After leaving the school, Adam and Tyler found themselves walking through the city, with Adam making small talk about a lot of things. Tyler listened idly and replied only when necessary at first, but ten minutes into their conversation, he started to open up to Adam. As it turns out, they both shared a love for DC comics. They actually spent five minutes arguing about who was better, Green Lantern or The Flash.

'This feels... nice,' Tyler thought with a small smile as Adam animatedly listed down all the reasons why Green Lantern was way better. It's been a long time since he'd had such a lighthearted conversation with anyone. Sure, he had a few friends who helped him get through the... incident, but they never really truly understood him. They didn't have powers or anything. In fact, when he tried to tell Bobby, his best friend at that time, he looked at Tyler as if he had grown a second head. Tyler shook his head a bit and looked up at the clear blue morning sky. 'The past is in the past,' he thought, 'and I came here to start a new life. Everything will be fine.'

He looked back down and abruptly stopped. His eyes widened in panic. In front of them was a crowd. People were everywhere. Businessmen were rushing to work, young people were entering and exiting cafes, children were playing on the street. They were in the heart of the city, and majority of its inhabitants were waking up. 'No, no, no!' he thought in panic. Just three minutes ago, the streets were almost deserted with few people around them. ;Where did this crowd even come from?!; "Wait, Adam!" he called out to the taller boy and grabbed his arm.

Memories of all the people he met and made insane, temporarily and permanently, came rushing back. He saw his cousin screaming and bashing his head against a wall, calling out for his dead mother. He saw his neighbor scratching and clawing at his own skin until it bled, claiming that he could feel the worms underneath his skin. He saw his own mother screeching and slamming the vase into the back of her husband's head, taking her son into his arms and whispering crazed promises into his hair. Tyler was aware that he was on the verge of having a panic attack. His breathing was turning ragged and the grip he had on Adam's arm grew tighter and tighter with each image.

Tyler bit his lip and tried to control his breathing. 'Panicking will only make your powers stronger. Don't. Panic.' he forcefully reminded himself. "C-can't we, um, go through a l-less crowded r-route?" he suggested, looking at Adam pleadingly. He can't go through this crowd. He can't let any one of them see him. He can't.

@"Reignfinite"

Tyler's eyes widened in fear when Adam suddenly burst out laughing. His breathing quickened, and his eyes flitted around them nervously. Adam's laughter was going to attract attention. His laughter was going to make people stare, to make people look. He can't have people looking at him. Not here where he was supposed to start a new life. Not now when he was supposed to learn how to be in control. He took a deep breath, reining in as much of his panic as possible.

"Sure. You gotta... you gotta tone down first. I can't... concentrate on the road like this."

He smiled in relief and loosened his grip on Adam's arm, feeling calmer after his scarred friend managed to reply. They still had a problem though. Adam was only barely stopping himself from laughing out loud. He couldn't even get a sentence out without chuckling or snorting .

Tyler looked at Adam, saw him laughing but without any real joy behind it, and felt guilty. 'Maybe if I told him about my power earlier, we could have avoided all this,' he bit his lip for the nth time that day and sighed quietly. He knew his power was dangerous, yet he kept it a secret from Adam, the person who approached him and offered him his help and friendship without asking for anything in return. He was friendly and warm, and his smile showed as much. It was obvious from the first time Tyler saw him. He blinked. 'Saw... him?'

Suddenly, Tyler was struck with an idea. "Don't look at me. Just lead the way and I'll follow, but don't look," he instructed Adam softly. The traveling psychic told him that his powers worked through sight. So if his powers only worked when Adam could see him, then all he has to do is look away.

Tyler felt his panic recede as he followed Adam away from the crowd. He smiled, feeling really grateful that his new found friend understood, even a little.

"Hey, if you look at a mirror, would you feel the euphoria people feel when they look at you?"

Tyler smiled bitterly at his question, knowing Adam wouldn't see it. 'He still thinks my power is making other people feel happy...' He knew better than to blame Adam though. The blame fell entirely on him. "Not everyone feels... happiness at the sight of me," he said quietly as they turned a corner. "In fact, I think you're the first person whose reacted to my power like that."

Tyler knew that he was dancing around the topic, but he can't help it. What would Adam think of him after he knew his power? Would he avoid him? Would he pity him? Tyler bit his lower lip again. He didn't want either of those things to happen. He didn't want to be seen as the freaky boy who could make anyone insane, nor did he want to be seen as the pitiful victim of an unfair life.

He stared at the back of Adam's neck, at the visible burns. He glanced at his wrapped hands and thought of the long scar on his otherwise handsome face. Maybe, just maybe, Adam would understand. Maybe he wouldn't push Tyler away or look at him with pity if he knew. "My power's are, um, unsavory," he said uncertainly. 'That's an understatement,' Tyler thought wryly as they turned another corner. "I, um... I could..." He broke off with a hesitant pause "I have the ability to basically make other people insane. Literally." There, he said it. He pulled at his sleeves and waited for the other boy's reaction.

Tyler stiffened when Adam stopped in his tracks. 'This is it,' he thought anxiously as he prepared himself for rejection, for Adam to suddenly make an excuse about having to go somewhere and never return, for Adam to call him a freak. He clenched his fists and tried to keep calm. He kept his eyes on the ground, not noticing Adam staring at him. He waited as Adam kept silent for a long while.

"Oh."

He clenched his fists tighter and bit his lip. Will it be rejection or fear or pity or acceptance? 'Just like the Wheel of Fortune,' the voice inside his voice whispered cynically, 'only this time the chances of getting bankrupt is 9 out of 10.'

"I'm sorry to hear about that."

There was his answer. Pity. He's still going to be seen as poor little Tyler who can't control his powers. That wasn't what he wanted. He wanted to be seen as a friend, as someone who could do things other people could do so easily, like maintaining eye contact and being part of a crowd. He wanted to be normal. He didn't want to be treated differently. He closed his eyes shut and gave a quiet sigh of dismay.

"I can't even begin to imagine what it's like to... Anyway, let's go get you that nullifier fast. The faster we nullify your powers, the better you'll feel about, well, everything."

Tyler opened his eyes and looked at Adam's back in shock. 'Wha-?' He heard the determination in his voice and saw the resolve in his stride. He can't believe it. Did Adam still want to be friends with him? Did he still want to help him, stay with him, be around him? Even after knowing how dangerous he could be? He stood frozen in his place and watched Adam walk away with single-minded determination, and then he laughed in relief. It felt as if he could float, as if the invisible chains holding him down had dispersed into thin air.

"Wait up!" Tyler called out, happiness lacing his voice, and ran after Adam. 'I'm fine now,' he thought happily and with new found confidence as he caught up with his friend, 'Everything's going to be fine.'

"Here we are. I don't actually know if they sell anything here other than blades, but I figured they might have some nullifying potions or at least magical trinkets, you know."

"So cool." He whispered in awe. Tyler's eyes widened when he saw the building in front of him. It looked like something from the Middle Ages. When they entered the shop, he gasped. "Awesome." He exclaimed quietly as he took in the interior of the store. It looked like something from a MMORPG, except better. Weapons lined the wall and potions filled different shelves around the shop.

Tyler was even more in awe when he saw a huge old man behind the counter. He was probably more than six feet tall. He looked around the shop again, leaving Adam to talk to the old man who was probably the owner. He wandered around the shop a little, glancing at the different weapons. There were axes, maces, swords, bows, spears, he even saw a scythe.

He kept looking around until he saw a wall displaying lots of daggers. "This is so cool," he murmured under his breath, staring at the different designs of the hilts and the blade itself. 'Woah, an anelace dagger!' He picked it up. It's blade had a dark blue tint and the hilt was pure black with a simplistic design. Tyler was so in awe, he barely heard Adam asking about potions that could possibly nullify his powers. He stood there in front of the daggers, waiting to hear the old man's answer.