AllFreeNovel
Share Us
19
Fic: The Truth
Author:Guardian
Chapter 1 of?
4,782 Words
Pairing:Guardian/Pyro Storm,Nicholas Bell/Seth Gray,Lola Gibson/Jasmine Kensington,Minor Nicholas Bell/Owen Burke,Owen Burke/Himself
Rated:PG-13(and I better not get any shit for this, you weirdos!)
Tags:Idiot Boys in Love,Super Queer Girls,Pining,Dad Squad,Lighthouse,A Guy Called Burrito Jerry,Real Person Nonfiction,Autobiography,Happiness,Sadness,Somewhat Anti-Rebecca Firestone,Violence,All the Catchphrases,ADHD Is a Superpower,Neurodiverse Unite!
Chapter 1: We Are Done Hiding
I have a story I want to tell you. Most of it is pretty unbelievable, but stick with me, okay? It’s probably going to go on for far too long, and you might even think that I’m full of shit, but I promise every word that follows is the truth. Right now, I’m sure there are journalists all over the world cursing my name as they read this, especially since I refused to be interviewed after all that happened. I was even contacted by publishers wanting me to write abookabout the last few years. Ridiculous, right?
I refused because I wanted to tell my storymyway. And what couldbe better than writing it down and releasing it for free on our beloved fic site? Takethat,capitalism!
A few things about me before we start: I am seventeen years old. I’m a student at Centennial High in Nova City (home of the Fighting Wombats!). I’m queer. I have ADHD and it’s not the death sentence I once thought it was. Some of the smartest people I know (hi, Jazz and Gibby!) have told me time and time again it’s my superpower and that no one thinks like I do. I believe them because they’re smarter than the rest of us combined. My brainismy superpower, but it’s not the only one I’ve got.
My name is Nicholas Bell. You might know me as ShadowStar744 or PyroStormIsBae, both monikers I used to write fics on this site (and the first person who gives me crap over my ShadowStar744 fics will be yeeted into the sun). But I have another name, one you’ve undoubtedly seen spread across every news channel, every newspaper across the world, given there’s apparently nothing else going on. Someone I love with all my heart (hey, Seth! you’re the best!) once did the bravest thing I’ve ever seen. He removed the mask and revealed the Extraordinary underneath, knowing there would be people who hated him simply for existing.
I was scared for him. I’ve seen what people are capable of. And honestly, I was scared forme,knowing what I could do. I felt like a coward letting him go through it alone. I didn’t have the immense courage he did, and though I wanted nothing more than to join him, I couldn’t bring myself to do it.
But I’m done hiding.
My name is Nicholas Bell. I’m the Extraordinary known as Guardian. And this is my manifesto.
My mother, Jennifer Marie Bell, once held the same moniker. It’s mine now, and I hold it with pride, honoring her memory. She’s gone. That hurts to write, after everything we’ve been through.
Here are a few other things you should know about her.
She was kind.
She was honest, even if the truth was hard to hear.
She loved my father, her husband. They met when they were incollege. It’s the only hetero meet-cute I’ll tolerate (straights, you’ve hadenoughof those): she was on a ladder in the NCU library, trying to reach a book from a top shelf. She slipped, and who just happened to be walking by when she did? Yep. My dad. He didn’t so much catch her as break her fall, and he said that the first time he saw her face, he knew she was it for him.
And like me, she was telekinetic. But that’s not all she was. She was so much more than her ability to move things with her mind. If I can impress upon you one thing, it would be this: she was an Extraordinary, but she was also my mother. I miss her every day, and everything I am, everything I do, is because of her.
Now, let me tell you about my dad, Aaron Bell.
If you live in Nova City, you probably know that name. Shortly after my mother died, my father—an NCPD detective—struck a witness who was being cruel and saying things about Mom. Instead of being fired, he was demoted. But that only lasted for a few years. After the Battle at McManus Bridge Part I (yes, this is probably a thing some underpaid intern thought up; if it’d been up tome,the title would have been much longer and with many more exclamation points), he was assigned to lead the newly formed Extraordinaries Division. It was his job to keep track of the Extraordinaries in Nova City.
But he should have been fired. Or he should’ve quit. No matter what was being said to him, putting his hands on someone was the wrong thing to do. Dad knows I’m writing this. He knows I’m leaving nothing out because it’s important for you to hear the truth, as ugly as it can be.
He’s not a cop anymore. He quit when Rodney Caplan did. Too little, too late? I don’t know. You won’t hear me arguing one way over the other, but I know my father. I know the type of man he is. He’s trying every day to become a better person. And I’m going to be there to make sure he continues to do that, while also making sure I do the same. We owe it to each other, ourselves, and our friends and family to do the best we can.
I have friends. (Yes, yes, I’m bragging.) Gibby and Jazz. Two women who have helped to shape who I am today. Both of them are rad. Protective. Badass. They are two of the best people I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing, and I’m so lucky to have them in my corner. The love they have for each other is inspiring, and we should all try to be like them.
I could say that if you mess with either of them, you’ll face the rest of us. That’s true. But if you mess with Gibby, then god have mercy on your soul because Jazz is coming for you.
Gibby was the rightful valedictorian of her graduating class, only to be stripped of the title because she made the decision to help others at the Attack on Centennial High (Isee you,Nova City School District, trust me on that!).
You’ve probably seen the viral clip of Jazz from last month at that meeting, standing in front of the school board, taking them to task for not allowing Seth Gray to return to school. Though many people spoke that day on both sides of the issue, it was Jazz who struck at the heart of the matter, telling them in no uncertain terms that if they didn’t allow Seth Gray—AKA Pyro Storm (more on him in a moment)—to return for his senior year after being kicked out the spring before, she’d (and I quote):
