Mark, Debbie, and Claire finally walked out of the police station after waiting for hours. Mark had been released because they discovered that the device Mr. Hiles used contained a very strong sedative.
"Pleasure to help you with the case," Claire said, smiling at the two of them.
"Thank you so much for helping my son," Debbie replied, gripping Claire's hand. Relief washed over her, her son wasn't going to jail, and nothing terrible had happened.
"Thank you too, Ms. Claire. But could I have your business card?" Mark asked. He figured it was better to have a lawyer to call, since the internet wasn't really booming yet.
"Oh, here." Claire quickly pulled two cards from her purse and handed one to Mark and one to Debbie.
'Let's hope I don't have to call her,' Mark thought to himself as he glanced at the card. Still, he tucked it safely into his pocket, somehow, he already expected that later in life, he might need her help.
"No problem," Claire said with a warm smile. "See you both later. I'll call you when I have news on the case."
"We'll answer it," Debbie assured her.
With that, they went their separate ways. Debbie drove straight home. The ride was silent because Mark fell asleep. As she drove, a small smile appeared on her face whenever she glanced at her son.
'I'm glad nothing happened,' Debbie thought. She had been worried this case might amplify Mark's emotions. Given that her son had powers, it could have been much worse if he lost control.
Before heading home, she made one stop to buy food for dinner. When they finally arrived, Debbie gently shook Mark's thigh to wake him.
"We're home."
Mark opened his eyes and rubbed them. He got out of the car and saw his mom retrieving something from the back.
"Do you need help, Mom?" Mark asked, despite the drowsiness clinging to him after waking up.
"No, it's fine. Go clean yourself up," Debbie said, pulling out a plastic bag of food.
"Alright," Mark replied. He walked to the front door and knocked, waiting a moment.
Someone inside opened it, Nolan, who was home earlier than usual. He looked surprised to see both of them together.
"Hi, Dad." Mark headed inside and went to clean himself up.
Nolan gave a slight nod, then walked over to Debbie and took the plastic bag from her hands. With that, she was able to close the door and lock the car.
"I'm sorry I couldn't cook for all of us," Debbie said, feeling a little guilty.
"It's fine," Nolan replied. He didn't really mind, but then he asked, since it was unusual for them to come home together this late, "Where did you two go?"
"Our son was involved in a police case." As soon as Debbie said that, Nolan's face shifted to shock, his son had never done anything bad. She continued, "His teacher tried to kidnap him. Mark knocked him out in self-defense."
"So… everything's fine?" Nolan asked. If it was a police case, there had to be more to it.
"For now," Debbie admitted, a hint of concern in her voice. "Until the lawyer calls us back."
With that out of the way, the Grayson family finally sat down to have dinner together. As they ate, Nolan asked a question he had been wanting to ask for some time. "You are trying to become a hero, right, Mark?"
"Yeah," Mark answered without looking up from his plate.
"Are you sure?" Nolan pressed. 'If the boy really wanted this, he would have been out there already.' "Is there a reason you haven't gone out to be a hero yet?"
"I don't have a suit," Mark said flatly.
"Ah, you should have said so earlier." Nolan's expression brightened. "I will introduce you to Art tomorrow, then."
"Okay," Mark replied, his tone unchanged.
Throughout this exchange, Debbie was eating very slowly. Her mind was clouded with concern and a lingering wariness about the entire situation, even if she knew Mark had been on the winning side of the fight.
The home phone rang, shrill and sudden. Debbie stood up quickly and hurried to answer it, her heart beating faster as she realized she had been expecting Claire to call back.
"Ms. Debbie, I have great news for you," Claire's voice came through the receiver. "Your son's case has been dropped."
Debbie's face broke into a relieved smile. The tight knot of anxiety in her chest finally began to loosen.
Claire continued explaining. "The police searched Mr. Hiles' house. In his basement, they found evidence he was constructing a bomb."
"Thank you," Debbie said, her voice thick with gratitude.
"You're welcome. Honestly, it's mostly thanks to your son. If he hadn't insisted on checking Mr. Hiles' house, this wouldn't have been resolved so quickly." Claire's voice was warm. "You can rest easy now, Ms. Debbie."
All of Debbie's unwanted emotions seemed to release at once, like a held breath finally let go.
"I'm not going to hold you up any longer," Claire said. "I'm just glad I could help. Have a good night."
"You too. Have a good night," Debbie said.
The call ended with a soft click. Debbie set the phone down gently and walked back toward the dinner table, her steps much lighter than before.
"Mark, your case has been dropped," she announced. "Your teacher was found building a bomb in his basement."
"Oh," Mark said, looking up with genuine surprise. "Can you pass me that?"
Debbie smiled, her posture relaxing as she settled back into her chair and passed him the dish he had asked for. Nolan and Mark noticed the change immediately. They exchanged a quiet, knowing smile, both having observed the deep lines of worry on Debbie's face before the phone rang.
"You know what, Mark?" Nolan said, his voice suddenly energized. "Let's not wait until tomorrow. Let's go meet Art today."
"Sure," Mark replied with a shrug, still not caring all that much.
Right after dinner, Mark and Nolan lifted off the ground and flew away, heading toward Art's tailor shop to get Mark a superhero suit. As they soared through the evening sky, Nolan decided to make some small talk.
"Have you decided on a name yet?"
"No," Mark said.
"Really?" Nolan glanced over at his son. "I thought you would have had at least a general idea by now."
"Yeah, well, I don't. I'm still thinking," Mark replied, his voice carrying a hint of frustration.
Right after dinner, Mark and Nolan lifted off into the night sky, flying toward Art's tailor shop to get Mark a superhero suit. As they soared through the cool evening air, Nolan made small talk.
"Have you decided on a name yet?"
"No," Mark said.
"Really?" Nolan glanced over at his son, a hint of amusement in his voice. "I thought you would have had a general idea by now."
"I'm still thinking," Mark replied.
— X —
Question: What do you think of my new style of writing? I'm trying a new style of writing to see if it's good or not. Between this and my past writing, which is better in your opinion?
For people who misunderstand what I'm asking: I'm talking about my writing style, not the story itself. The story is a separate question.