Axel walked with his head down, eyes staring past his burgundy bangs, focusing on the intricacies of the cement below him. He enjoyed watching each crack and imperfection of the sidewalk as his foot would step on or over them. He liked seeing how far between each crack his feet took him, and how his position between the cracks changed as he walked. His pale hands rested on the straps of his backpack as he pondered how he would explain his C in chemistry.  

His foster parents weren't very forgiving when it came to grades. They complained about Bs... what would they say about a C? The near future didn't look bright. As he made his way home from school, he passed the abandoned building a few blocks from his house. He contemplated hiding there so he wouldn't have to show his parents his report card, wondering if anyone would ever think to look there. Could he hide there the rest of his life? No, that's ridiculous. He scoffed at how worried he was. What would they do, yell at him? Ground him? Big deal. That wouldn't stop the sun from coming up the next day. That wouldn't stop him talking to his friends at school. And that wouldn't stop him from working on his secret project. 

Eventually, he made it home. It wasn't a particularly large home for 4 people, 3 beds, 2 baths, 1 floor, but it was big enough for his taste. He didn't much care for anything too extravagant. Its dark red exterior worked well in the fall, and it was in a decent, middle-class neighborhood. 

He took a moment to stare at the white door and gather his thoughts. He felt like his insides began to swell and his heart began to rise. He was nervous, there was no denying it. He would retreat to the back of his mind while being yelled at, then retreat to the back of his room while being grounded. He inched forward ever so slowly, reaching out his hand to the doorknob. He could feel his throat begin to dry and his skin begin to heat up. He had to be careful with his hand; it wasn't too late to back out now and go hide in that abandoned house, but when his hand touched that doorknob, the sound of him being home would ring in his parents ears. Gritting his teeth and closing his eyes, he willed himself to grab the doorknob. It took him what felt like a minute to finally turn it and open the door, but he finally succeeded. 

"Hey Ax!" His 19 year old sister shouted from the living room couch almost immediately upon his entrance. He swore she was psychic. "How was the walk home?" That was a question no one ever thought to ask. It was such a mundane everyday task, such a little thing. His sister thought to ask it though. That's the kind of person she was. He took off his shoes while he looked at his sister. Her hair was in a ponytail today. He always thought that was cute. 

"It was alright. Hiding in that abandoned house always seems like a good idea on report card day." His sister took her gaze away from her textbook to pay more attention to him. 

"Abandoned house?" She asked. Had she never passed it? Must not have. Maybe she took a different route home?

"Yeah, I'll show it to you later. It's pretty cool." She smiled at him before returning to her book. 

"Why would you want to hide on report card day, Axel?" The stern voice of his mother shot through his head like a bullet. Shit. He had heard her. Nothing good could come from lying here. He should just be upfront with the truth. They're going to see the report card anyways.  

"I got a C in chemistry." His sister giggled a little under her breath.  

"Something funny?" Their mom snapped. 

"Oh just... C in chemistry. C for chemistry. Because chemistry starts with a c." Diane knew no fear, she just kept smiling like it was no big deal. Their mother glared at her for a moment before turning back to Axel. 

"So, do you want to explain this C in chemistry?" She spoke firmly, like she wanted to yell but was holding it back. Her grey eyes pierced through him. What does she mean explain it? What was there to say? She knew he studied. Chemistry was just his bad subject. It was also the most test-intensive, and he sucked at tests too. 

"I'm bad at chemistry, I'm bad at taking tests, and I don't like the subject so that makes it even harder." He braced for the worst. The raised voices were about to come, and he would be grounded.

What actually happened surprised him. Her gaze faltered and she closed her eyes, tilting her head down like she had given up. A deep sigh leaked out of her. 

"You're sixteen years old. At this point, you know that actions have consequences, and you've been given enough information to know how important your grades are. I won't stay on your back about them, I'll leave them up to you." Diane looked up from her textbook with wide eyes, blown away. She turned her head quickly to look at her mom just to make sure it was the same person she thought it was. 

"Thanks," Axel said, "I appreciate that." She was trusting him with his own responsibilities. That's something parents tended not to do, which ultimately led to children hating responsibilities. He could take his fate into his own hands now, which was huge. He perked up and walked to his room, passing his sister on the way, who looked like she had just seen a ghost. 

Closing the door behind him, he tossed his bookbag on the floor and plopped on his bed for a rest. He closed his eyes as he buried his face in his pillow, thinking about his project. He slowly drifted to sleep.

He awoke to the sound of his ringtone. He recognized the upbeat ringtone, fittingly attributed to his friend from school, Naomi. 

"Hello?" He recited tiredly. 

"Hey Axel! Did you give your report card to your parents?" Naomi asked nervously. 

"No, actually. I just straight up told my mom that I got a C in Chem and she never asked for the report card." There was a silence for a moment, like Naomi was processing the news. 

"Wow. I've never heard of a parent not asking for a report card. I guess it doesn't make a difference though. Anyways, do you wanna come by? We're all here at the pool just hanging out." She asked hopefully. 

"Nah, I think I'll pass today. I'm busy working on a project."  

"A project? I don't remember a project due. Oh shit, is there a project due?!" Axel laughed for a moment. He could practically hear the steam coming from Naomi's ears. 

"No no, it's just a personal project I've been working on." He reassured her. 

"Well, if you say so. But... they all want you to come." She said, tongue in cheek. 

"Oh, they do. Not you. Of course." He grinned at the gesture. 

"I mean if you want to make them happy come. I don't care one way or the other." 

"Of course not. Thanks for the invite, I'll see you all at school on Monday." He laughed under his breath before she said her farewells, and then he hung up the phone. 

He had something very important to work on. He opened his closet to see it. An odd looking black device the size of an old television. Wires and cords hung loosely from it, connecting to eachother and weaving around it like snakes. The device itself was shaped like a regular box, but had lots of strange attachments on it. Two antennae that looked like they were trying to attract lightning towered from the sides. A few of the attachments looked like long LED lights. Some looked like handles but with wires weaving through them. Others looked like regular silverware and even a few bottles. On top was an old monitor and an older keyboard. He pulled the heavy, strange object out of his closet and placed it next to the wall. He took one of the cords and plugged it into the wall, then pressed a button on the back and watched many of the attachments on it light up. The monitor lit up as well, and started producing strings of codes and numbers. He watched intently as he fiddled with it, muttering to himself. Changing a code here, erasing one there, adding code at the bottom. He fell deep into his work. 

After a few hours, he sat back, letting out a grunt of content. He got up, grabbed a mountain dew from the top of his dresser, and placed it in the center of his floor. He put in some instructions on the machine, but right as he was going to click enter, someone knocked on his door. 

"Hey Axel!" Diane shouted. "Will you do the dishes?" Axel sighed and dropped his head. 

"Sure." He said in a normal tone, hiding his frustration. Mom had probably asked her to do them, but she had won that fight many times in the past one way or another. Usually with some physical teasing or torment. They loved eachother of course, but Diane could be rough at times. He shuddered at the sudden flashback of memories. 

As he walked to the kitchen, he noticed his dad on the couch, who glanced up to give him a look of disapproval. Mom must have told him about the C. 

There weren't too many dishes, it only took him 10 minutes to load and start the dishwasher. 

"Thanks, bro." Diane said, leaning over the counter. Even though she was his sister, he couldn't help but be a bit taken aback when she leaned over. Her breasts were quite large, and she didn't cover much up around the house. It didn't help that they weren't related by blood, either. He caught himself staring and quickly jerked his sight up to her face, finding, thankfully, she hadn't been looking. She was staring out the window. This gave him a chance to take a few seconds to admire her face as well. Those deep brown eyes and hair, that perky nose, high cheekbones, full lips. 

"No problem." He said, perfectly masking his thoughts. He hated himself for it. She was his sister, even if it was only by law. It was just hard not to think about with her right there. 

Difficult. 

Difficult not to think about. 

"You wanna go outside and climb the tree?" The tree referred to the one in their backyard that was massive and perfect for climbing. They would sometimes go to their favorite branch, 10 or so feet in the air, very sturdy, and just talk about things. 

"Nah, not right now. I'm busy doing schoolwork." He lied. 

"Really? You should have told me. I wouldn't have made you do the dishes." She was indeed a thoughtful, if not aggressive person. Axel shrugged at the notion. 

"Eh, it was no problem. Really. Just gotta finish my project." 

"What class is it for?" 

"Physics." 

"Oh, you know I'm great at physics. Need any help?" 

"Nope I've pretty much got it." 

"Fine, fine. I'll leave you alone." She turned her back and walked to her room. He stared the whole time, admiring her hips and buttocks. An inner sigh coursed through him. 'What am I doing?' He asked himself. He shook his head to get the thoughts out, then made it back to his device. 

After inspecting it for a while, making sure everything was the way he wanted it, Axel finally pressed the enter button and stepped back. He watched with awe as electricity surged from the two antennae and electrocuted the empty can. The device turned itself off and left the scorched can where it was. 

Disappointment. Axel brought himself closer to the can to inspect it, rummaging through everything in the programming. What went wrong? Why did it just zap the can? Targeting works fine, mechanism does not. Everything seems to be working except for some missing variable that he hasn't considered. What could it be though? He glanced at the clock on his dresser; 6:40pm. It was starting to get dark, and he couldn't afford to test this if it wasn't bright out. Frustrated and confused, he would give up for the night, clear his head, and continue tomorrow. Maybe he could think of some vague questions for his physics teacher to see if he could help. 

"Hey, Naomi. Is everyone still there?" He asked her over the phone. Some relaxation time with friends might do him good and help him look at things more objectively. 

"They all left. You can still come by though for a bit." She said, before catching herself. "I mean, if you want. No biggie." 

"Sure. I could use a swim." He gathered his things before wondering if his parents would care. Maybe he should take his bookbag too, and say he's going to study. Was he grounded? Mom never said anything about that. Dad just gave him some stank eye. He was probably fine, but this could be some insurance. 

Sure enough, on his way out the door he was stopped by his mom. She didn't even look at him, she was just reading on the couch. 

"Where are you going?" She asked coldly.

"Naomi's." He said bluntly. 

"Oh? You don't think you should be studying chemistry?" She scrutinized. 

"She was going to help me go over my test to see what I did wrong." His mom was cautiously optimistic. 

"Well, if that's the case, make sure you thank her." He smiled, nodded, and finally walked out of his house's threshold. 

Axel was never a fan of his parents. His sister was alright, even if she could bully him from time to time. He didn't consider his house to be a home. He didn't consider himself to even have a home. Being with his friends was the closest thing he got to one, which was enough for him. Naomi was silly, hot headed and rough around the edges, but most of all she was fun and adventurous... even protective at times. Dante was shy and reserved around most people, but one of the most caring and helpful people in the world to his friends. The only bullshit excuse assholes could come up with for picking on him is that he was "too nice". Then there was Anya, a calm, collected, ambitious girl who knew what she wanted and took it. The four of them were inseparable. They all vowed to stay friends and keep in touch even after highschool. 

***

"I'm here." Axel texted her as he turned the corner to her house. It wasn't so much a house as it was a 3 story mansion with a basement and an attic. A few moments after he sent the text, he watched as the large, bronze gate opened by itself right in front of him, welcoming him into a magnificent garden, filled with flowers and plants of all shapes, colors and sizes. Roses, daffodils and tulips lined a concrete pathway to a large, extravagant fountain. The pathway circled around the fountain in both directions, joining back together to continue to the doorstep of the mansion, where Naomi stood, waving and smiling at Axel. 

"Hey Axel!" She shouted. He returned her greeting and she went to hug him. As she came closer, he couldn't help but look at her body, clad in nothing but a bikini. Her still developing boobs were just bumps on her chest, unlikely to ever grow too large. She was thin, with a thigh gap so many people seem to like for some reason, but her hips were decently sized and she clearly never missed leg day or squats. "Did you finish your project?" She asked him hopefully. 

"Nah, I decided to give it a rest for today and come over. Sorry I couldn't make it earlier." He offered sincerely. 

"You better be!" She put her arm around his neck putting him in a headlock, and started giving him a rough noogie. "Say it again!" 

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" He exclaimed desperately. She released him, laughing, and he held the top of his sore head, feeling his now ruffled hair. "Jeez, no need to get violent." He whined. 

"That's what you get for putting your project before your friends!" She smiled and patted him on the back. "Now come on, take off your shirt and let's go swimming." 

***

Naomi's backyard was like an oasis. The massive, heated chlorine pool was surrounded with all sorts of trees, bushes and flowers. Many of the trees were fruit-bearing, so occasionally you would find fruit on the ground that had fallen off of one of them. Most of the bushes had berries, and there were enough to wall off the backyard from the outside. It was beautiful, like paradise. 

The two friends played in the pool together, splashing eachother, playing underwater games like rock-paper-scissors, passing a ball back in forth, competing with eachother for 'silliest dive', and seeing how long they could hold their breath or how far they could swim underwater. It was a night of fun and games for both of them. 

After an exciting time of swimming, the two simply waded together in the water.  

"So, Naomi," he began, "if you could have any superpower, what would it be?" Noami dipped her head underwater while she thought about it. She splashed up with her answer. 

"Probably reading minds." 

"Really? Why?" That was an unexpected answer from someone like her. 

"It'd be nice to know what people really think of you. Who's really your friend and who is just stabbing you in the back. I can get self conscious at times, wondering if people actually like my silliness or my aggressive behavior. Or rather... if they hate it." She turned her head away, hiding her face. "What-… what about you?" He had never seen this side of her. Suddenly she was talking more deeply about herself. Where did that come from? 

"The ability to teleport. I want to see the world." 

"That's lame." She suggested. "Out of every super power you could have, you choose teleportation?" 

"Well, yeah. Why not?" 

"If you're going to choose a power that helps you travel, why not choose something else, like flight? Or at least the ability to create a portal, so you can take other people and things with you." She had a point. But there could be scientific reasons to choose one over the other. 

"Well, let's say instead of a superpower, you're using a machine to do it," he started, "If you're going to teleport something, you would need to basically take it apart in one place and put it back together in another place. That would take a lot of power, but I think creating a wormhole would take a lot more power." She nodded in agreement. 

"That's probably true, scientifically speaking. Wormholes would take hella power." He began to see this as an opportunity. Maybe she could help him. 

"So, if you were going to create a device that lets you teleport things... how would you do it?" She looked at him like he just farted. 

"Are you kidding me? I don't fucking know. I'm a highschooler, and the top minds in the world haven't invented teleportation yet." He sighed a little inside. She had a point, she wasn't exactly the best person to ask. "But, theoretically speaking, the teleportation machine would need to have a lot of control over how much power it produced and used. If it used too much, it could destroy the object or fry it. If it used too little, it could just take a chunk out of it. That would be pretty dangerous. There, of course, would need to be a lot of precision, but I guess if you could somehow create a mechanism to do it, you would just need to write a program that calculates the mass of whatever object it's teleporting, and adjusts its power outputs accordingly." He gazed at her, dumbfounded. When did she become so smart? 

"Wow. That's a better answer than I could have given." She grinned at him, wiping her nose. 

"I worked hard for my A in physics!" They laughed together, and enjoyed the rest of their night. 

***

It was early in the afternoon. The moon was just beginning to come into sight in the clear day sky, and the breeze gently rustled the leaves on the tallest trees. Axel had stayed up all night working on his device, and he was still awake. Mountain dew cans and paper plates littered his room, along with the smell of body odor, but he didn't notice. He was close. So close. He would soon finish his project, and test it successfully. He wrote a few more strings of code, took an hour reviewing it all, and sat back with a laugh. "I've done it!" He said to himself. "This time it's sure to work." He took one of his empty mountain dew cans, programmed the device a little, pressed enter, and stood back. He waited eagerly for a good sixty seconds before losing hope. It didn't work. All of that time he spent, all of those ignored texts, all that effort. It had been for nothing. He knelt in defeat, grabbing the targeted can, cursing its name. The device started lighting up, it only took him a second to realize what was happening, but it wasn't long enough. 

A sudden flash of light, and he was out.