Chapter Nine

             The next morning, Simon felt weary, unsure. Would Zorb return to San Leandro High? Zorb had “promised” he’d defeat The Spektrum, which means he’d keep coming back until he did. For the sake of the rest of the city, Zorb better, or else it’d be very difficult for The Spektrum to save the day.

            He droned through his morning classes, Band at Zero Block, and Graphic Design during First. Again, he was reminded by the symbol project of his inner nature, as reflected by his full name. He hoped that whoever Zorb chose for him to face, The Spektrum could win with a Code other than Black. Simon also wanted to know what his next Unlockable was, and how close he was to getting it, and if fighting was the only way to get them. He’d be fine with training in between fights like a real game, but with Zorb attacking again and again like he had, would the trend continue? So much had happened in just this first week of being a superhero, Simon was feeling disorientated.

            However, the entire morning was Zorb free. Lunch had gone smoothly for ten minutes when Simon’s friends brought up the Safeway Robbery the alien invader had successfully committed.

            “Why would Zorb and his guys rob a Safeway?” Sam asked.

            “Probably because he doesn’t know Costco deals in bulk,” Alex answered jokingly.

            “Well, heck, with the combined size of that big yellow guy and that leathery steamroller guy, they probably ran out of food,” Bryan guessed. “And they’re not gonna pay for food, so they took it.”

            “As odd as it sounds, I kinda hope Zorb comes back to the school,” Julian admitted.

Everyone, including Simon, looked at Julian. Everyone else was confused, but Simon was surprised, because Julian appeared to be thinking the same thing he was.

“Julian, what’re you talking about?” Bryan asked.

“Well, Zorb got away with the crime because The Spektrum doesn’t have some kind of system that tells him when and where danger is happening. It would be fairer for Zorb to come here and fight The Spektrum head-on.”

            Julian had made such a good point, everyone agreed. Alex and Bryan even applauded him.

            “So, Simon,” Alex asked, “how’s that fan club doing?”

            “Fine,” Simon was strangely nervous. “Why do you ask?”

            “Well, you’ve been there every lunch period since it formed,” Michelle pointed out. “It must be better than ‘fine.’”

            “Well, yeah,” Simon responded meekly. “I mean, it’s nothing much.”

            “You met a girl in that club?” Alex asked abruptly.

            “What?!” Simon blurted.  “No… I mean, there are girls in there, but that’s because it’s a fan club for a male superhero, so they’ve fallen for him, I think.”

He was reminded of the dream he had a few nights ago, of Cyndi becoming Catgirl. He could feel his face slowly burning up as it blushed with embarrassment.

            “C’mon, Simon, you can tell us,” Michelle encouraged.

All his friends moved in to hear what Simon had to say next, but he was stopped before he started by a fellow club member.

            “Hey, Simon!” Cyndi greeted.

Simon turned around so fast he almost cricked his neck.  He could feel his face burning up even faster now that the girl who invaded his dream was right in front of him.

            “H-Hey, Cyndi,” Simon could barely speak; the dream hit harder than he thought.

            “You coming to the club meeting?” Cyndi asked, unaware of Simon’s blush.

            “Huh? Oh, yeah, just gonna finish lunch with my friends.”

            “Oh, okay,” Cyndi said. “See you up there.”

She then went through the door into the stairwell.

            Simon turned back to his friends, who were all smiling at their flustered friend.

            “Knock it off,” he grumbled at them as he finished his sandwich so he could keep his word.

            “Oh, come on, it’s okay to have a crush on someone,” Michelle reassured.

            “Even if she is a Spektrum fanatic,” Sam added.

            “Thanks a lot,” Simon responded wryly after swallowing one last bite.  He threw his garbage away and headed upstairs to attend The Spektrum Fan Club’s next meeting.

 

            “He was what?”

            Cyndi’s friends were looking at her with shock.

            “He was blushing; Simon was blushing after he saw me!”  Cyndi’s reiteration made her friends Jen and Sarah gasp with glee.

            “Do you think he likes you?” Jen asked.

            “He must like you,” Sarah affirmed.

            “Why would he like me?” Cyndi nervously asked.  “He’s got female friends way cuter and hotter than me! Have you seen his female friends?!” Cyndi tried not to think about how that one girl was much curvier than her.

            “Oh forget his female friends, you should be happy he’s blushing over you,” Sarah said as she moved closer. “Especially since you like him, too~.”

            “What?!” Cyndi blurted out.  “I… I don’t--”

            “Don’t deny it, Jen and I saw you blush that one time.  Right, Jen?”

            “Yep,” Jen answered with pep. “So spill! What do you like about him?” 

Jen and Sarah moved in like hungry animals.

            “It’s nothing much,” Cyndi whispered as she fiddled with her shirt’s hemline. “It’s just that, something about him… reminds me of The Spektrum, sort of.”

            Her friends let out an “aw”, the kind when you see something adorable or romantic, or both.  Cyndi wasn’t sure which one this particular instance fell under, but she felt even more embarrassed at how cheesy it was that she had both a crush on a superhero and a guy who just reminded her of that hero.

            “It’s okay, Cyndi, superhero crushes are okay,” Sarah reassured.

            “Yeah, and so are regular crushes,” Jen added.

            “Thanks, girls,” Cyndi said with appreciation.  “Now, let’s get this club meeting started.”

            Club members filed into Room 243 in twos and threes, all with their lunches. Cyndi saw Simon come in, and waved to get his attention.

            “Simon! Over here!” 

            Simon made his way over to Cyndi’s table and sat in the open seat.  Cyndi wasn’t sure, but she could’ve sworn that somebody was following him with a hint of envy in their eyes.

            “Alright, since we’re all here, let’s get to business.”  Cyndi made sure she was very straightforward.  “We need to arrange an interview with our local hero, so we can put it into the San Leandro High Newspaper, The Cargo, and dispel any and all rumors.”

            The room buzzed with excitement at the prospect of getting to interview a true, real-life, superhero.

            “First one to make an appointment with The Spektrum will be the reporter, who can ask whatever questions they fell, then we’ll give the finished report to The Cargo.”

            As Cyndi prayed she be the one to get the interview, she knew that as long as someone got the answers to everyone’s questions from the only one who could truly give those answers, it would be okay if she missed out on the opportunity.

            As club members brainstormed questions to ask The Spektrum, Cyndi wrote them down on the white board with dry erase markers.

            “Well, obviously, how he got his powers is a must,” suggested Caitlin, who had come in with a few friends.

            “And how his powers work, too,” one of Caitlin’s friends suggested.

            “Most of all, his origin, like where he came from,” suggested another club member, which Cyndi recognized as the same guy who watched Simon enviously.  Regardless, Cyndi wrote down his idea on the board.

            “Can we ask him personal questions?” asked Caitlin‘s other friend.

            “Like what?” Cyndi asked back.

            “Like, what is he like when he’s his normal, everyday self.  What are his likes and dislikes, hobbies… What kind of girl does he like?” The girl said the last idea with a blush.  Some other members Ooh’d and laughed, but most of them admitted that the girl’s idea was sound, and Cyndi, who was also blushing at the idea, wrote it up on the board.

 

            After a few more minutes, the brainstorm was over, and the club had quite the list of questions for their hero.

            Simon prepared himself for the possible future of him answering these questions.  He didn’t really care who asked him, but a part of Simon wanted Cyndi to be the one he would have the interview with.  Before Simon’s imagination pulled him into a fantasy about an intimate interview with him as The Spektrum and Cyndi dressed as a cute reporter, someone’s comment caught his attention.

            “When will we see him, though? The Spektrum only shows up when Zorb or one of his lackeys does.  And when he’s won, The Spektrum runs off.”

            “Yeah, he has a point. How do we keep him from running off?”

            Cyndi sat down, a look of contemplation on her face. Simon knew that she knew that The Spektrum’s fleeing the scene was the one and biggest problem in the plan.  Abruptly, Cyndi stood up, inspiration on her face.

            “Maybe we could use the P.A!”

            Everyone was unsure of where Cyndi’s train of thought was headed.

            “We can have them mention our plan during the morning announcements!” Cyndi clarified.

            Now the other club members knew what she was thinking.

            “Yeah,” Caitlin exclaimed. “If we have the P.A. announce it to the school, The Spektrum is sure to hear it, and hopefully, he’ll stay a bit longer so that one of us can catch up and ask him!” 

            Everyone agreed, since there was essentially no other way of guaranteeing The Spektrum would stay put other than outright asking him, and since they didn’t know who he really was, the only way to ask him was to announce their question on such a large scale.

            “So, does anyone know who to talk to about announcements?” Cyndi asked, which was followed by a group reaction of disbelief.  They did not realize their club leader had not planned her plan all the way through.

            “Don’t worry, I think I can help,” said another of Caitlin’s friends. “I know one of the girls that regularly does the morning announcements, I’ll run our idea by her and the others.”

            The club felt relieved that the excitement wasn’t in vain, and as the meeting settled down and tables talked among themselves, Cyndi introduced herself to Caitlin’s friends.  Angela, the girl who knew the announcers, and Jessica, the girl who wanted to ask Spektrum personal questions, were also Juniors, like Caitlin, and despite dressing like preppy girls, were both fans of science fiction and comic book superheroes.

            The guy who suggested the origin question introduced himself to Cyndi. He didn’t look much older than Simon was, so he was likely a Sophomore. He had light brown hair, green eyes, and looked like a skater boy by how he was dressed.

            “Hi, my name’s Gary,” he said as he held out his hand.  Cyndi took it in hers, and casually shook his hand.

            “Hi, Gary, I’m Cyndi, club leader--”

            “Oh, I know who you are, I was here the first day. I just didn’t say much.”

            “Oh, well, do you know the others? Hey, Simon, come over here.”

Cyndi motioned to Simon, and he could tell Gary was a bit uncomfortable with this. But Simon walked over anyway since Cyndi asked.

            “Hey, Gary, I’m Simon.”  Simon held his hand up for a handshake.

            “Hey,” Gary responded blandly as he limply shook hands with Simon. 

            Simon wasn’t sure if Cyndi noticed, and he wasn’t sure why Gary was so standoffish towards him, but he had a strange feeling it was somehow because of Cyndi.  Perhaps Gary wanted to talk with Cyndi alone?  Simultaneously, Simon felt sorry and upset.  He was sorry for making Gary feel awkward, like Gary was the odd one out, and Simon was upset because he didn’t want anyone moving in on Cyndi.

            But why? Was his dream really a message? That other than Catgirl, who he hadn‘t met and had no idea what she was really like, his other option was to be with a girl like Cyndi, a girl he actually knew and who understood the rules superheroes had to follow?  Was Simon falling for Cyndi so quickly?

            Simon was snapped out of his contemplating by Cyndi herself.

            “Hey, Gary, you can sit with us if you want,” she said, motioning over to the table she and Simon were sitting at.

            “Uh, no, no thanks, I… I’ve got things to do,” Gary declined as he went over to where he was sitting.  He gathered his things as Cyndi asked why.

            “I just remembered that I promised my friends I’d meet them before lunch was over.”

            “Oh, okay, hope to see you at tomorrow’s meeting.”

            “Yeah, uh, sure,” Gary said as he exited the room with a skateboard, as Simon had guessed from hit attire.

            “Simon, did I do something wrong?” Cyndi turned to Simon with a look of concern and confusion, which was admittedly rather cute, though Simon suppressed that sentiment.

            “No, I think Gary’s just a bit shy is all.”

            The rest of the day passed by without a disturbance, and Simon was both relieved and worried at the same time. He was glad he didn’t have to fight, he was still sore from the past encounters, but this pause allowed Zorb and his men to recover and increase their strength.

            “Hey, Simon!” Christian greeted.

            “Hey,” Simon groaned back. As before, the two “friends” walked together to Simon’s home. Simon pretended to listen as Christian went on about his day, and instead thought of all the possible things the team of alien criminals could be doing at the moment.

            “One hundred one… One hundred two… One hundred three…” Zorb counted as he did weighted push-ups. 

            Upon his back were two large weights known simply as Heavies. One Heavy was equal to 50lbs, at least, that’s what Zita had calculated based off what they could figure out of Earth units.

            Using the ship’s communication systems, she accessed Earth signals and connected wirelessly to the Earth’s “Internet.” While Zorb and the others were exercising, Zita was researching popular modern Earth culture. 

            Even though humans couldn’t travel past their own moon, female fashion was fabulous, almost on the level of alien cultures. Colors, patterns, shapes and sizes, not to mention fits. “Denim jeans,” as they were called, could be so tight, the female may as well go around without them; and Zita thought her skirts were tight.

            “One hundred seven… One hundred eight… One hundred nine… One hundred ten.”

            Zorb layed down on the ground, and Zita removed the weights from atop his back.  He rolled onto his back and took one Heavy in each hand, and started doing sit-ups, hands at his shoulders.

            She always loved watching Zorb show off his strength and power. She could see fire in his golden eyes, the desire to become stronger and better. His flexing muscles were a display of his raw masculinity, and a testimony to the battles he had won. She loved how dangerous he was, how he was like a living weapon. 

            His father and guardians had trained him in the fighting arts since he could walk, and instructed him on vital information since he could talk. He had inherited his father’s looks and wealth, but had a mean streak all his own. Just watching Zorb was so intoxicating for Zita, she wanted to wrap herself around him and envelop him in her passion.

            But her excitement was restrained by the horrid sight that was their henchmen working out. Sweat was making the Animisian’s fur smell like mold and mildew, Korak looked like a giant Marshonian slug, while Pulverize resembled leather dipped in liquid adhesive, and Smooth was just plain pasty and clammy. All five of them were repulsive.

            She turned back to Zorb, who practically glistened like a jewel. Perhaps it was just because she loved Zorb that made her accept his sweat better than other males, but she didn’t care, she merely wanted to enjoy his manly magnetism, and yearned for his touch.

            “Fifteen… sixteen… seventeen…” he counted as he kept going and going, clutching the Heavies as tight as he could. 

            His eyes were gazing emptily into the room, focusing on something only he could see in his mind’s eye. Zita knew what he was focusing on. It was him, The Spektrum, the only one who had challenged Zorb for the longest time.

            “22... 23... 24...” Zorb counted, keeping rhythm. 

            Zita wanted him and their team to succeed against the human superhero, so that Zorb could achieve his destiny of replacing his father as the Intergalactic King of Thieves.

 

            Zoey and her boyfriend, Shaun, finished their homework and had put away their supplies, then sat on the bed together.

            “Shaun, wait,” Zoey said as he moved in closer to her. 

            She instinctively knew what Shaun was planning. 

            “Shaun!”

            Shaun’s hand slid behind her back, and she whipped her head to find it.  However, she should have known it was a distraction, and his other hand smoothed its way up her side.

            “Shaun! I’ve told you, no.” 

She swatted his hands away and got to her feet. 

“I’ve told you before! You’re not getting to Second Base!” 

She smoothed her shirt, so there was no evidence of Shaun ruffling it.

            “But, Zoey, we’ve been together for over two years.”

            “So? Time doesn’t give you the right to touch wherever you want. You have to earn it.”

            “Earn it?” Shaun was obviously confused at what his girlfriend meant. “Okay, how? How do I earn it?” He was smirking. He was only saying this to humor Zoey and what he took to be her usual quirkiness.

            “Shaun, this isn’t ‘quirkiness,’” she said since she could so easily read his expression. “This is morality and respect for my body. You have to earn Second base by showing me you’re mature, respectful, considerate, responsible, and most of all, that you’re a man.”

            “What?” Shaun was flabbergasted. “How am I not a man?”

            “Because a man would be all those things and more.”

            “How am I not mature?”

            “Uh, duh? You tried groping me without my permission! You’re like some little 13 year old boy who thinks only of ‘boobies’,” Zoey explained, saying the word “boobies” with a comical imitation of a young teenage boy’s voice.

            “Well, then, how am I not respectful and considerate and responsible and all that other stuff?”

            “If you were any of those things, you would know my friends don’t like being mocked and disrespected by your friends.”

            “When have my friends ever done something like that to your friends?”

            “They do it all the time! Whenever I’m talking to members of either the Video Gamers club or the Anime/Manga club, they tease me and whoever I’m talking to.”

            “They’re not teasing you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

            “But they’re still teasing the others, who are my friends. Shaun, what kind of guy let’s his friend taunt and mock his girlfriend’s friends?”

            “It’s not like they mean it.”

            “And how do you know that? Let me guess, they tell you that they don’t mean it when they call us ‘nerds’ and ‘geeks’, ‘losers’ and ‘weeaboos’!”

            “Well, some of those guys are ‘weeaboos’!”

            “Does X even know what that means?”

            “Yes. It is a synonym for ‘Wapanese,’ as in they want to be Japanese.”

            “But your idiot friends use it on people who are actually Japanese! Me, Karina, that guy Ken from the Anime/Manga club--”

            “That guy Eugene?” Shaun interrupted.

            “Eugene isn’t Japanese,” Zoey said, unsure of what Shaun was getting at.

            “Exactly! And yet he goes around quoting manga lines, wearing his worn out, stretched out T-shirt he got from a convention, what? Five years ago? And ruining characters with his lame Cosplay attempts. Last time I checked, Kâne Metaru isn’t five foot five with bad acne and his hairy gut hanging out of from under his shirt.”

            Zoey was reminded of this year’s Halloween and Eugene’s rather… inaccurate Cosplay (or Costume Role-play) portrayal of the manly, roughneck hero of the manga, Ultimate Steel, and how Eugene did a less-than-mediocre job of imitating the character’s mannerisms and look.

            “Okay, so Eugene doesn’t exactly help the stereotypes towards gamers and manga fans, but…”

            Zoey thought about her next word a moment.

            “You like anime and manga, too,” she pointed out.

            “Yes, I do like anime and manga,” Shaun admitted. “But I’m not some nerdy weirdo who goes around dressed in some silly costume pretending to be from an anime.”

            Even though Shaun was completely unaware, this hurt Zoey very much because she, too, enjoyed Cosplay, and even had a collection of costumes in her closet. Of course, he was unaware only because Zoey hadn’t yet told him of her secret hobby.  But she kept herself calm and continued with the argument. 

            “And as your friends, Xavier and the others should understand that they should lay off the jokes--”

            “It’s always about X and how he treats your friends.”

            “Because it’s always X who makes fun of them!”

            “Well, what am I supposed to do about how X acts?”

            Shaun’s last question made Zoey want to collapse from frustration.

            “You’re his friend! You’re supposed to tell him to stop! And don’t just do you’re usual ‘X, knock it off,’ ‘Okay X, that’s enough,’ ‘X! That’s good, you can stop!’”

            Zoey listed Shaun’s ineffective interventional phrases he used whenever Xavier started making fun of her gamer and anime/manga friends.

            “You have to get it through his thick skull that my friends and I don’t like it.”

            “Oh, so I’m supposed to tell X that I’m telling him to quit making jokes because my girlfriend told me to do so?”

            “What’s the matter, Shaun? Afraid they’ll make fun of you, when not even The Great X has had a steady girlfriend since the sixth grade?”

            Shaun’s hesitation was all the answer Zoey needed.

            “Shaun! I can’t believe you’d rather take Xavier’s side than mine! Me, your girlfriend!”

            “Well, what kind of friend would I be if I was telling him what to do in order to still be my friend? And that if they don‘t shape up, I‘ll lose you?”

            Zoey was incredibly hurt by Shaun‘s words.

            “Shaun,” she said in a soft murmur, “I wasn’t going to make you get rid of your friends. I just wanted them to stop…”

Zoey’s voice trailed off as her emotions crept in. When she continued, her voice was quivering and her body tensed up from sadness. 

“I didn’t mean to make it sound like I was actually making you choose between me and them.”

            Shaun could feel Zoey’s gloom, and got up to comfort her. Zoey stopped him with a raised hand. She straightened up, and cleared her throat. 

            “But if you don‘t do something to keep Xavier from making my friends feel like losers, and from annoying girls like he does Karina, I can definitely assure you, your girlfriend will keep you at First Base!”