Rush Hour

Natasha screamed as she looked down to her doom, hanging off the side of the rollercoaster at the amusement park, holding on for dear life. The ride was at least sixty-feet off the ground and unfortunately one of the rails had detached as the cart came barreling through. Fifteen other passengers were also holding on as she was but how long could they keep this up? As she focused back to herself, her hand started to slip. Her palms were sweaty and her hand couldn’t get a grip.

“No, no,” She frantically cried.

As she tried to stop herself from falling to her doom, her hand gave way and she felt gravity calling her body down. She closed her eyes for a brief second and her scream pierced the air again. It went like this for a few more moments until she cracked open an eye. Was she dead now? She looked into the face of a young man who had mesmerizing eyes and a comical smile. He was dressed in a pair of jeans, sneakers and a flannel. His arms were wrapped around her back and she realised she was against his chest.

“You’re fine,” He chirped. He set her on her wobbly feet and looked at the other passengers.

In a split second, everyone one else was standing next to her and the roller-coaster was empty. Everyone was safe.

“Who are you?” She asked.

Her mind began to run through the few articles she had picked up over the last few months about a superhero speedster. The public had not yet given him a name but it was obvious what he could do. Lucky he was nearby to help. She burst into a ridiculous laugh and her eyes suddenly started to water at the full understanding that she was alive and he had rescused them all in the nock of time.

The young man gave her a quick smirk and just like that, he disappeared.

—

Vic pushed through the exit, trying to get home as quick as he could for his daughter’s birthday dinner. The office had been busy with upcoming deals but he wasn’t about to fail her again. He promised he’d be there on time and he wanted to stick to his word. He pushed a few persons aside and unluckily, one oushed back. The momentum swung him off the sidewalk and he lost his footing. He fell into the street and landed on his knee, eliciting a pained grunt from deep in his throat.

“Ahh,” He reached for his knee with both hands and cradled it to his chest.

“GET OUT THE STREET!” Someone shouted.

Vic turned to see a twelve-wheeler, semi truck, turn the corner and the driver tried to signal for him to get out of the street. He got up on his good leg but struggled with the other. The truck started to honk as it was incoming.

Vic threw his hand over his head as the truck barreled past.

Wait...

He looked down and realised he was safely on the sidewalk and the truck had continued on. The people around him gave him space and he felt an arm wrapped around his torso. When he looked behind him, it was the same young man he had seen on the news who saved the rollercoaster passengers.

“It’s you,” Vic whisper-smiled.

The young man gave him a coy smile before disappearing again.

Of course by now the whole city of New York knew a superhero was running around helping each of them out when they were in need. His face wasn’t easily identifiable in a crowd but once you were close enough, you would know.

Vic reached for his knee and someone else offered to accompany him to the bus stop.

—

Maya stood around the counter of her section, competing for the “Cake of all Cakes' ' competition that was currently being broadcasted live. Four other contestants to her right were busy going through their batter as she was but she had to improvise. She had forgotten etten her bag with the decorative tools and the extra bag of baking soda and cream.

She rummaged through the blue bag she had with her stuff lined out beside her. Shit, she thought.

The timer was still a far way from the final countdown as she still needed to slip it into the oven but she had no chance of winning without that final bag. Thinking about it, she had left it downstairs in the lobby next to the main desk. She was running late and because of that, she hurried in without a second thought.

The camera panned over to her frantic state and she tried to play it off with a smile. As the judges and the cameraman checked out the other contestants, a whoosh of air hit her and she stared open-mouthed at the missing bag on the floor by her feet. She looked to the side curtain, catching a smile and a thumbs up from the city unmasked hero before he dashed off.

Maya tried to contain her happiness as she dug into the bag, whipped out the baking soda and started to mix. She set out her decorative tools and turned to the blender. In the next hour, she had the batter ready, the cake baked and was taking her time to skillfully decorate the exterior. In fifteen minutes it was fone and the judges began their walkthrough. As if it was a stroke of good luck, she was named the winner and gave a tearful thank you to the real hero of the day.

—

Jack spied his mother sitting on the back porch with a newspaper in hand. It was her normal routine on a Sunday afternoon and he cuddled up beside her on the wide lawn chair. The cover article read “New York City’s Own Quicksilver” with a picture of a blur underneath.

“Look at that,” He mused.

His mom smiled at it and laughed. “They say a hero’s been going around”

Jack coyly looked away. “Looks like they’ve finally given him a name too”

She shook her head and continued to read her paper. “Eh well, good for him”