I Can See...

Johnny was excited to finally go back to school. He had such amazing news to tell his buddies.

“Now Johnny,” his mom intoned from the driver’s seat. “If you start to feel bad at all, you tell a teacher right away.”

“Yes mom,” Johnny agreed. He knew it was better to agree than argue.

“And if your head hurts, especially around the scar over your eye, you stop whatever it is you are doing and go to the school nurse.” She eyed him through the rearview mirror.

He smiled back at her and nodded his head. “I will. I promise.” His reflection in the mirror caught his eye and he stared for a moment at the red line that cut through his right eyebrow.

The car coming to a stop at his elementary school brought his attention back to the matter at hand – finding his best friends.

As he tore from the car, his mother shouted after him, “I love you honey!”

He waved back over his shoulder as he ran towards the old oak trees on the side of the school. That was usually where they met. People stared at him as he ran by. Quiet and not-so quiet comments reached his ears. All were wondering how he had survived with only a scar to show for it, but they didn’t know the truth. He had changed.

Johnny’s face lit up as he saw his buddies Lenny and Sammy sitting under the trees. He called out, “Hey you guys!”

They looked up and jumped to their feet. Running the few feet to meet him, they began chattering at Johnny.

“I can’t believe you’re alive!” Sammy exclaimed.

“Yeah, a meteorite! Just like superman!” Lenny shouted.

“Superman came here in a meteorite, dummy, he wasn’t hit by one.” Sammy punched Lenny in the arm.

“Close enough.” Lenny grumbled as he rubbed his arm.

Johnny reveled in the attention for a moment before speaking. “It didn’t hurt. Or at least I don’t remember any pain, but they said I had a concussion because it hit me in the head.”

Both of them examined his scar closely, ooohing and aaahing.

Sammy asked, “Does it hurt now at all?”

“Nope.” Johnny grinned.

“Do you have any superpowers?” Lenny asked, his eyes full of hope.

Johnny grew serious as he pulled them closer to him. “You have to promise not to tell anyone.”

Their eyes grew wide, but they nodded.

Taking a deep breath, Johnny whispered, “I can see the elements.”

Confusion filled their faces. Sammy scratched his head as Lenny rubbed his chin.

“What do you mean?” Sammy finally asked.

“I mean, I can see the basic elements of things. Right now, the world is a swirl of colors. Each of you is a jumble of different shades and tints. Sometimes I can’t make heads nor tails of it, but it’s pretty cool.”

Disbelief settled on their faces. Lenny frowned. “There’s no way. Your brain would go on overload with all that sensory information.”

Johnny shrugged, “It did bother me the first day, but then I got used to it.”

“I don’t believe you. Prove it.” Sammy crossed his arms.

Johnny’s brow furrowed as he thought hard about how he could show his friends the truth. Then it happened and he knew exactly how to prove it beyond a doubt.

Grinning, he said, “Easy. Lenny just passed gas.”

Lenny’s jaw dropped. Sammy looked at Lenny in disgust.

“But you can’t smell it!” Lenny protested.

“No, I can’t it. A purplish cloud just came out of Lenny’s butt.” Johnny put his hands on his hips. “And that proves that I can see elements.”

Lenny covered his butt with his hands and backed away from them. “How can you know that was gas? It could have been the wind blowing something past me”

“I know because it looks sorta like my gas, though mine is more greenish.” Johnny grinned. “Now that weirded me out the first time I saw it.”

It finally broke through Sammy’s thick skull and he laughed. “I don’t smell anything. I didn’t hear it, but the way Lenny is acting, he must have. Wow!” He turned to Johnny with awe in his eyes. “You’re a superhero. You can see gas!”

Thus Johnny shocked the world, at least the part of the world that mattered – his friends.

(724 words)