Chapter 12

As the bus carried us home, I idly watched the sights go by with a content smile on my face. I gazed up at some birds going by and resumed my little game I'd played earlier that morning by freezing them and un-freezing them continuously. But then I wondered what would happen if I'd just kept those birds frozen in the air forever. What would people think? Would the police come to investigate? Then the government shows up to analyze it?

Luckily enough, I wasn't a reckless guy like that. I was always thinking a step ahead, weighing the consequences of my actions before I followed through with anything. I wasn't going to do something stupid like freeze a guy walking down the street and keep him that way forever. What would that accomplish for me? Wow, a funny joke? All it would do is put people into a panic. Word gets out; suddenly it's on the news all across the country, all across the world. And then, when I try to freeze time for myself and anyone else ever again, it's only going to make them freak out.

The possibilities for what I could do with this power were too enormous for me to blow it on childish pranks.

The bus dropped us off at the same spot it picked us up earlier that morning. I headed across the street and back home—a standard high-rise building near the beach. The sidewalk was now bustling with people in their swimsuits and old people with their walkers.

I was still all smiles as I was buzzed into the front door of the lobby. As I waited for the elevator, a familiar face caught up to me from the bus stop and waited nearby with me. It was Sofia, one of the girls from my Biology class.

"Hey," I turned and greeted her.

"Hey," she replied with a slight smile before both of us looked back to see what floors the two elevators were at. I couldn't help but take a moment to look over at her through the mirrors by the elevator doors. She always wore such tight blouses and pants that showed off her incredible bust and the curves of her waist and hips. She was a beauty and having her live in the same building as I was like a blessing.

One of the elevators opened and we both got on together, alone. I pressed for my floor and she pressed for hers, one floor above mine.

I glanced over at her again, causing her to notice. Instead of awkwardly turning away and risking her thinking I'm a weirdo, I decided to embrace my new confidence and strike up a brief conversation with her as the elevator hummed along.

"You know," I said, "you and I don't talk very much."

"Yeah..., I guess not," she quietly replied. She didn't seem interested in talking to me, though I didn't know why.

The elevator door opened—my floor.

"Well, see you tomorrow," I politely said as I departed.

"Bye, Anthony," she replied with just a hint of sweetness in her voice. As the doors closed behind me, I couldn't help but puff my chest out proudly and heave a content sigh. She was totally into me.

That night, I checked out what was on TV, hung out on the internet, and chatted with friends. I was tempted to message everyone on my buddy list and tell them, "I HAD SEX!" However, I wasn't too sure about talking specifics and I doubted too many people would even believe me. Because, of course, people make up stories and talk shit out their asses over the internet all the time. It was just counter-productive to tell anyone.

Instead, I kept it to myself which was more than good enough for me. I still stayed on to enjoy the usual nonsense and bullshittery I did every night anyway.

I called it a night at around eleven P.M., which was surprisingly early for me. I turned off my underwhelming, primitive little computer and started to head off to bed when I got another idea.

I made my way out of the building, downstairs through one of the side entrances, and headed outside. There, I froze the entirety of the world around me and stepped into the silent night. In that instant, the city became all mine.

"So cool," I whispered as I walked out onto the street. I did a quick little forward handspring across it, laughing as I danced around the inanimate cars and people. I raced behind the nearby drug store where my friends and I always hung out; creeping into the inky darkness I wouldn't ever have had the balls to traverse normally. I caught the sight of a nearby homeless guy sleeping under the trees before scaling the chain fence and walking along a quiet back street.

The street lights cast their frozen glow around me as I walked by each one. The city was so peacefully quiet in that area, more so than usual. There wasn't a person or car to be found. It was as if the entire city was tucking itself into bed.

I got down to the end of the road, to an intersection that led back to the main street before I realized I was getting pretty tired.

I sighed and rounded the corner, having myself a personal stroll down the main street, watching the people frozen in place and what they were doing the second they became immobile. Though the idea of having the city all to me seemed fun at first, it was so lonely. The silence, the lifelessness, the lack of the cool sea breeze—it was what made the city. Taking all that away just made it boring.

Although the idea turned out to be a bust, at the very end it had its high point. As I walked back to my building, I looked up and saw Sofia again, only this time in her bedroom. My eyes widened as I noticed she was busy slipping on her nightgown as she prepared for bed. I guess she forgot to draw the blinds, or she just assumed that nobody was watching.

I was totally in awe. Seeing a beautiful girl like Sofia in her lingerie, slipping on her little silk nightie? It made my night for sure. I chuckled to myself as I quickly headed back to the same side entrance I left from, slipping into the time-frozen door and resuming time to let it shut behind me.

I was completely exhausted by the time I flopped down onto my bed. After all of the crazy, eventful excitement that had happened in just one day, my mind couldn't wait to get some sleep.