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Patience, Nick knew, was a virtue and a sign of a good Extraordinary. If he had any hope to become just that, then he needed to listen to the concerns of his friends and not make them feel lesser for sharing. “Because my powers seem to come out only when I’m super pissed off or scared or some other heightened emotion yet to be discovered. And since I don’t want to be mad today, I figure it’s better to be scared by jumping off a building.”
“This is why men don’t live as long as women,” Jazz said. “It’s not your fault. It’s your penis that’s making you do this.”
“Not all men have penises,” Nick reminded her.
“True, but you don’t see them up here trying to jump off a building, do you?”
“But they also can’t move stuff with their minds,” he said. He paused, considering. “Well, not that we know of. Oh my god,wait. Therehaveto be trans Extraordinaries! Do you think we’ll get to meet them?”
“Probably,” Jazz said. “I’ve personally met an absurd number of queer Extraordinaries. Poor straight people. They really don’t get to have much, aside from fake-white Jesus, do they?”
They took a moment of silence for the heterosexuals of the world. When enough time had passed (six seconds—straights didn’t needthatmuch sympathy), Nick clapped his hands and said, “Okay! I think I’m ready to do this. Once Seth gets into position, I’ll …” He peered over the edge again. Had the building gotten taller? It sure seemed like the ground was further away. “Jump, I guess.”
“I feel like we should talk about this more,” Gibby said quickly. “Like, a lot more. Weigh the pros and cons. Make a list! Yes, alist. Nicky, you love making lists.”
“I do,” Nick agreed. “But I know what you’re doing, and I won’t be distracted.”
“Seth agreed to this?” Jazz asked.
“Sort of?” Nick said. “I mean, there might have been some yelling and also some crying, but then I remembered that tears can be manipulative, so I said he could catch me if it looked like it wasn’t going to work. It pays to have a boyfriend who can fly.”
“Yeah,” Jazz said. “Still not used to hearing that.” She glanced at Nick, expression softening. “How’re things with your dad?”
Nick groaned. He’d been waiting for that question. After his confrontation with Dad, things had been weird. They were walking on eggshells around each other, Dad trying too hard to make up for all the shit he’d kept a secret. Every morning, a full breakfast. Every night, dinner that didn’t need to be heated in the microwave. “Weird,” Nick said. “It’s getting better but it’s going to take time. Just when I think we might be on the mend, I have to do things like vet the new doctor he found to make sure they’re not connected to Burke at all.”
“New meds?” Jazz asked gently.
Nick scratched the back of his neck, uncomfortable. “Newmeds. I’m still getting used to them, but they don’t seem to be too bad. I can think without my brain exploding, so that’s good.”
“Speaking of brains exploding,” Gibby said. “I willnotgo to your funeral if that happens, closed casket or not.”
“Her parents aren’t happy,” Jazz told him.
“About the school thing?” Nick asked, watching Gibby rant about the idiocy of queer teenage boys. He knew it was probably a whole hell of a lot more than just theschool thing, but he didn’t know what else to ask without making it sound like he was protecting his father and his job.
Jazz shook her head. “No, they’re mostly okay with that. They went on a campus tour of NCU, and I think they’re coming around. It’s what she wants, and she’s managed to convince them it’s her idea and has nothing to do with us, which is somewhat true. It helps that she’s gonna be valedictorian.”
And even though Gibby was insulting him in the background, a swell of pride roared through Nick’s chest. “Damn right she is. Smarter than anyone we know. Her speech is going to be epic. But it’s not just about school, is it?”
Jazz sighed. “Your dad. And the NCPD in general.”
“Yeah,” Nick muttered. “I thought as much. They’re right, you know.”
“I know. My parents aren’t very happy, either, but I’ve managed to talk them down from sending me to private school in Switzerland, which is good because I don’t even know where that is.”
Nick scowled. “Yeah, that doesn’t surprise me. He’s got a lot of shit to make up for, if he even can. You should have seen the look on his face when he came back from meeting with Martha and Bob. He said she didn’t even offer him any cookies.”
“Whoa,” Jazz whispered. “She gives cookies toeveryone.”
He was about to say that was how he knew she meant business when he heard a voice shout up at them. He looked over the edge of the roof again to see Seth standing in the alley below them. Nick gulped at how tiny he looked. He was at least six thousand feet down.
Nick waved back, ignoring how panicked Seth looked. Heneeded to be in the right headspace. He couldn’t let doubt seed in his head. If it did, he wouldn’t be able to jump off the roof of what had to be the tallest building in Nova City.
Nick took a step back, tilting his head side to side, popping his neck. He shook himself out, wiggling his entire body from his shoulders down to his toes. He looked across from them at the other building, pausing when he thought he saw a flash of movement. Probably a pigeon.
“Okay,” he said, taking a deep breath. “Okay, let’s do this. One time—that’s all it takes. And when I do it andlive”—he shot a glare at Gibby, who rolled her eyes—“we’ll go celebrate by getting our fancy clothes for prom, which is not the best way to celebrate, but I agreed to it anyway because that’s the only way you said you’d come.”
Jazz sniffed. “I won’t have you looking like crap when we make our entrance. It’s going to be the biggest night of our lives.” She leaned forward, dropping her voice. “And don’t forget, we need to go buy condoms in case you and Seth decide to … you know.”
