The Tartan

Looking up at the boy about to kill me I realized something. I wasn’t the hero in this story — I was the villain. And no one would mourn me when I was gone. No one mourns the wicked.

I had never intended for it to go this far. It was supposed to be a joke. We were so close when we were younger, before they got powers, I just wanted it to be like that again. I should have known better. Word of advice: If your older siblings get superpowers and become superheroes, don’t expect them to spend any time with you. And if you think to yourself, “Hey, maybe they’ll hang out with me if I become a super villain…” Well, think again. Because after building and launching satellites that had the sole purpose of enslaving the minds of the human race, here I was, standing on the edge of the Eiffel Tower, my older brother choking me with his super strength. I had to get out of this somehow. I just needed to explain to them why I did all of this. I twisted my leg out from under my brother and kicked him hard in the face. He fell backwards onto the landing of the tower. I quickly caught my breath and scrambled up to face my siblings. Jessica, with her super speed, Austin, with his x-ray vision and laser eyes, and Adam, super strength, the leader, the oldest sibling. Then there was me, Davy, scrawny runt of the family with a brain two times the size of the rest. I might not have any “superpowers,” but I do have one hell of a brain. “Guys, before you say anything. Let me explain. Please.”

“The time for explaining is done, Davy. Surrender, brother, and we’ll go easy on you,” Jessica responded.

“But I was never going to activate the satellites!”

“You would say anything to escape. There’s three of us and only one of you,” Adam replied.

“And you don’t even have powers,” Austin added. I was in quite a pickle. They NEVER listen to me. Why would they start after I tried to enslave the brains of the world?

“Please, just listen to me! You don’t know the whole story!” I tried one last time.

“We know enough. You are evil, little bro. You let your jealousy get the better of you. It’s not our fault that we have powers and you don’t,” Adam responded. Well, that’s it. I’m done. He just had to bring it up, didn’t he. Never mind that I haven’t even seen my siblings in two years because they’ve been off flying around the world. Never mind that I was constantly picked on at school for having super siblings while I was just a weak little nobody. Never mind that nothing I ever do is good enough in my parents’ eyes compared to that of Jessica, Adam and Austin. Nope, I’m just a powerless loser with no hope of a family or future. My one attempt at connecting with my siblings is probably going to end in my death or arrest. “You have one more chance. Surrender to the authorities, or we’ll have to do this the hard way.”

“Uuummm….is there a third option?” I asked with a smirk.

“Okay, hard way it is,” Adam replied. Austin whipped off his black sunglasses and prepared to stop me with his laser. Jessica began to run towards me and grab me. I expected all of this and activated my new rocket shoes. As Jessica ran and Austin lasered, I hovered above the edge of the tower. Unfortunately Jessica didn’t realize I had flown above the tower as she ran straight toward the edge. She barreled off the side and began to fall down, down, down towards her death. Adam and Austin yelled as I turned off my rocket shoes and plummeted down after her.

The city of Paris became a blur all around me as I spiraled down the side of the tower. Wind ripping cold air through me like tiny knives stabbing my chest over and over again. But I didn’t turn on my shoes. I needed to save her. I couldn’t live with myself if she died because of my stupid plan to spend time with them. So I continued falling, the world turning to slow motion as I fell faster and faster. She began to get closer, to me and the ground. I willed myself to move faster and I did. Before I knew it, the collar of her shirt was in my hands. I turned my shoes back on and tried to slow us down as much as I could. We were too close to the ground though, so rather than landing smoothly and gracefully, we both tumbled onto the grass in a manner that was quite painful, I must say. It makes sense though as I had just fallen from the freakin Eiffel Tower.

Shortly after we landed, Austin and Adam made it to the bottom of the tower. “Are you guys okay?!” Austin asked, concerned.

“Yeah,” Jessica began, “Davy saved my life. I had gotten too far away from the tower to just run down the side of it. I would’ve gone splat if it wasn’t for him.” She looked at me with an expression that was something I didn’t recognize. Was it…pride? Could she actually be proud of me? I put her life in danger in the first place, but I saved her too, so… what now?

“Well… if that’s all then I guess I’ll be on my way. These satellites aren’t gonna demolish themselves.”

“Wait,” Adam said. “Come here.” I turned around to Adam and slowly took a step forward, but every fiber in my body was telling me to just turn and run away. I mean what was he going to do? Punch me? Throw me into outer space where’d I suffocate until I froze to death? What would he tell our parents? That I’m some insane villain who wanted to enslave humanity? I mean I am and I did, but still…it was for a good reason. Since it was taking me so long to move, Adam closed the gap himself. Rather than punch me or throw me into the depths of space, he just wrapped his arms around me and gave me the tightest hug that I think anyone has ever been given. I must admit, hugs aren’t really my thing, so I probably remained pretty stiff, but still. Eventually, Austin and Jessica joined in and it was just one big Miller family hug fest. “Come on, little bro. Let’s go home.” I must admit, those were the words I’ve been waiting to hear for a long, long time.

So what have I learned through all of this? Just talk to your siblings about how you’re feeling? Simply expressing that you miss them and would like to spend time with them can work wonders? That you don’t need to become a super villain to get what you want? …Nah. Becoming a super villain is definitely the way to go. I mean look at it this way. I became famous, got my siblings back AND almost turned the entire world into my own personal army. Oh! And I’m not even going to prison for anything because my siblings are superheroes. So yeah, supervillainy is definitely the way to go. It is important to note though that some things are more important. So choose your moments of supervillainy wisely and your life could really take a turn for the better. Thank you and goodnight.