Saving a Superhero

3: Noodles+Spices

My stir fry wasn't turning out right, no matter how much spice I added and no matter how long I cooked it. Every time I would test it there was no flavor. Jenna and Josie sat at the breakfast bar, undisguised worry painting their faces. I fought hard against the urge of dumping in the whole jar of paprika. Then if there wasn't a taste I could blame it on malfunctioning spices and not on myself.

"Juliet, you don't have to cook," Jenna offered. She slid off the mismatched barstool, one of three we had collected over the two years we three had been roommates, and stepped closer to me. They had been telling me that for two days.

"You don't have to go to work, Juliet. We'll cover your shifts."

"Your professors will understand if you don't show up for a few days. Someone will make a copy of their notes."

"We can take care of the cooking. You shouldn't strain yourself."

They had managed to keep me in my room for the first afternoon and following morning. While the rain pattered outside after I had given my statement to the police and was released after a quick medical exam. I had tried to find the officer who was in the bank with me, but he seemed to be whisked away to the police station before I could thank him. Not that he did a lot, but I shuddered thinking about what would happen if he hadn't been there. If I hadn't been able to shrug off the initial shock long enough to take the robber out.

Being kept like a caged animal did nothing for my psyche, though Jenna and Josie insisted that I try to get some sleep. They brought up microwave meals and ramen occasionally. Their poor attempts at cooking were starting to pile up before they let me wander the house, always following close behind.

Before dinner today I fended off their advice of making an appointment with the school counseling office. It was a good idea, but I knew how to handle my own therapy. Being a high school vigilante had taught me a few things. All I needed was a few hours in the kitchen and I would be good as new. As soon as I could successfully make a meal I was cured. That's how it had always been.

It wasn't like I was attending culinary school because I hated cooking.

They didn't understand and I didn't expect them to. But, eventually, they realized enough that they took their usual seats and I set about preparing a tofu stir-fry. The tofu certainly limited my ability and caused more challenges than it was worth, but Jenna had insisted on trying to be a vegetarian for a week.

Now I felt like crying into my wok while I stirred the blackening noodles. Maybe my salty tears were the ingredient it was missing. I sniffed and wiped them away before they could spill over. That would only get me another day's suspension from the kitchen.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Josie asked. She had padded over to me as well. Both of them wrapped their arms around me in a hug that lasted as long as it needed to.

I didn't even consider lying. Not only would the attempt be futile as I was clearly not okay, but these were my best friends. They had been my suitemates for two years. Two years that consisted of a lot of midnight board game parties, ridiculous memories, and more than one rigged game of Twister. If it wasn't for them, college would have kicked my butt for the first semester.

"No. I'm not okay."

As they released me so I could stir the noodles that were already beyond help, my phone buzzed on the counter. I gracelessly lunged for it like an addict reaching for a syringe.

Finally.

My lock screen showed the first line of a text from Rory. I had been waiting for her to text back since I got home from the bank. I swiped the screen and the full text popped up.

My previous text was waiting for me.

Juliet: How can I help? We need to find Grace.

Two days later she finally replied.

Rory: Be there in half an hour.

I paused. She was coming to Rhode Island? She could do that. Not only was it a ridiculous idea—no one comes to Rhode Island after all—but it posed more problems than it was worth.

For one, as far as anyone was concerned, we still couldn't meet up without immediately blacking out. That was the one thing that made out secret superhero lives in high school extremely difficult. It was also how we met. One second Harper and Kennedy were walking through a grocery store, the next it was two days later and none of us had any memory of what happened. The problem was easily fixed with detailed schedules that Kennedy always took care of, but whenever there was a mistake we all wound up passed out for at least a few hours and regained consciousness with a few scrapes and bruises.

Sure we hadn't seen each other in two years--well, we had never actually seen each other and remembered, but that was beside the point. Just because there were two years without an incident, didn't mean we would remember anything that happened.

Then was the bigger problem. I was willing to give up a week of memories to find Grace, but first I had to get Josie and Jenna out of the house.

I had spent enough time hiding my extracurriculars during my youth that I knew it was easier to leave while they were gone. Then there would be no unnecessary explanations as to why I was leaving home at ten minutes to nine at night.

"Juliet! Your noodles!"

I turned at Josie's cry and found my stir fry charred and smoking in the wok.

I jumped in to save the house from burning down mode and picked the pan up with a spare hot pad, dumped it into the sink, and turned on the leaking faucet as much as it would.

Probably the spices' fault.

I calmed my breathing. If I lost it now, Josie and Jenna would never leave me alone. I had a job to do. I had to keep my friends safe. All of them.

"You know, I think I'll hit the sack early," I yawned with a stretch. My acting skills were subpar, but I didn't let that stop me from trying. "Maybe you two should take a break too. It's twister night at Clark's and we all know how much Josie likes playing Twister with him."

"Oh shut up," Josie groaned but she was already blushing. "We're not going to Twister night."

Jenna was easier to sell on the idea though. She was playing with a strand of her bleached her while looking between me and the noodles. "You sure you'll be alright?"

I yawned again. This one came out even more staged than the first one. "I'm going to sleep. It'll be fine. You two have fun."

Josie looked shocked when Jenna so easily grabbed her jacket from the coat rack near the door and shrugged it on. "You're not actually considering this?"

"Of course I am. Juliet can handle herself for a few hours."

Then they started bickering, as usual. For being two of my best friends they sure liked to butt heads. Not that their little arguments meant anything. While I shepherded them out the door their spat was already fizzling out. Instead, both turned their attention to me. Like worried mother hens squawking at their chicks, they made me promise to be good and drink lots of water. Then, with promises to be back before midnight--which wasn't going to happen--they disappeared into the early spring chill of night.

Are you ready to get to the story? Because she's a comin'

Special thanks to @nitatakeda for editing this chapter  

Remember: Don't burn your noodles.

-m burton