The school I attended had the Skiax Red Wolves as its mascot, a name that sounded more like a tribal affiliation than a sports team. My nerves were running high. Even though the tryouts had concluded, I was still pumped with enough adrenaline to run laps all night.

Derek Hampton and Andrew Wright kept a close eye on me from the corner of their vision as I strolled out onto the outfield wearing shorts and a white T-shirt that seemed a tad too small, clutching onto David's old mitt that fit perfectly.

The baseball team mainly comprised seniors who appeared highly dedicated to the sport. I wasn't exceptionally knowledgeable about baseball, but my brother couldn't resist the opportunity to watch me try out for the team. I had only seen him play twice and suspected I had underestimated him and his teammates.

Standing in the open field, glove in hand, I glanced at the dugout to glimpse my brother watching me.

"Hey, are you David's brother?" I heard a voice say. I turned to see a guy from the other side of the baseball field approaching me. I had met all of my brother's teammates except for this one. He stood about six feet, his light brown bangs peeking under his backward cap. He casually tossed the ball into the air, catching it gracefully in his mitt. "You okay, dude?" he inquired.

"Oh, yeah, I'm good. Sorry, yeah," I replied, focusing on the approaching ball. I barely caught it in my glove, drawing the eyes of my potential teammates.

"Well, it's a good thing you can catch," he remarked. Indeed, if not for my superhuman reflexes, that throw might have struck me in the ribs. "I'm Jeremy."

I nodded in acknowledgment, but my gaze shifted between David and the coach, engaged in conversation by home plate. David occasionally glanced my way but avoided prolonged eye contact. I threw the ball back, sending it flying swiftly into Jeremy's mitt.

"I'm Chase," I introduced myself.

"So, do you have, uh..." Jeremy hesitated for a moment, glancing at my brother. "Do you have superpowers like your brother?" My heart raced in shock. Did he ask me that? David was in serious trouble.

"What..." I began, struggling to believe my ears.

"Your brother has super strength. You're wearing contacts, too, right?" Jeremy edged closer to me, giving me only a moment to process his words. "You're joking, right?" I asked, biting my lip to remain calm.

"He showed us once," Jeremy continued. My heart pounded loudly in my chest. Buh-boom. Buh-boom. Buh-boom. I could feel my face flush as I became increasingly agitated. "I'm gonna kill him," I snarled through clenched teeth. "Just a moment."

I stormed off toward David, seething with anger. The coach had departed, leaving only his younger sons behind to observe. "What the heck, David?" I growled.

"Whoa, okay, calm down, Chase," David interjected, extending his hands to push me backward as a group of baseball players restrained me.

I stood a couple of inches from him, fists clenched in anger, ready to pounce. "You told them?!" I raised my voice, and a heavy silence descended, broken only by footsteps.

"Yeah... but it wasn't on purpose," David admitted.

"What the hell does that even mean?" I argued.

"It means I didn't intend for them to find out. We were fooling around, and my super strength slipped out, not once but twice."

"Does the coach know about this?" I growled.

"No, and neither does Gavin," David replied, nodding toward the coach's son sitting in the dugout. "They're the only ones who don't know."

I took a few deep breaths, attempting to calm down, opening and closing my fists in rhythm with my racing heartbeat. "What about Dad? Does he know?" I asked, a trace of anger still lingering in my tone.

"Not yet."

"So, you plan on telling him," I continued.

"I probably should," David admitted.

"Where's the coach?" David asked, changing the subject.

"He went to get something from his car. He said he'd be back," answered Sam, one of the boys.

"Hold on... I never really got this. So, your dad is Shadow Fighter," Cameron, another guy on the team, chimed in.

I rolled my eyes. "I'm walking home," I declared, flipping my brother off as the coach returned to the field and headed toward the school's parking lot. I walked along the side, getting closer to the driveway exit of the parking lot, when I heard a familiar voice and a car pulled up beside me.

"So, how'd it go?" Allie inquired, poking her head out of the driver's seat of a shiny black Mustang. Her top and windows were down, and she pushed the roof back to reveal the car's backside. "Need a ride?" she asked, peering at me through her Ray-Ban sunglasses.

I stared at her, momentarily speechless, before finally finding the courage to speak. "Uh... Nice car."

"Get in," she said, motioning for me to take the passenger seat. I walked over, hoping to find the door to the passenger seat. We pulled away from the parking lot.

"Where to?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

"Is that a trick question?" I replied.

She playfully nudged me as we stopped at a red light. "You're lucky you're cute," she said, catching me off guard. She encouraged me again and pressed the gas pedal harder. "So, you never answered my question about tryouts."

"Yeah, what about them?" I turned my full attention to her, and there was a brief silence as she gazed at me, fascinated, in the rearview mirror.

"How were they, you weirdo?" she finally asked, giggling. Then she nudged me once more.

"Oh, they were fine, I guess. Pretty interesting," I replied.

"When do you find out? Isn't your brother the team captain?"

"I don't know. I think the coach will let us know tomorrow. My brother cannot say anything until the coach gives the green light."

"Oh well. I guess I'll have to ask you tomorrow," Allison said, looking over at me, smiling and raising an eyebrow.

"Keep your eyes on the road, woman," I teased, causing her to laugh. Allison covered her eyes with her hands and quickly removed them.

"You're gonna get us killed," I warned. I noticed we were taking a longer route, but I didn't mind. I loved this. I loved her. I barely knew her, but I was already head over heels. It was a bit scary how my heart raced when I looked into her blue eyes.

"I've been driving since I was nine. My daddy let me take the wheel," she explained, pulling up to a red light and leaning back in her chair.

"Is that even legal?" I asked.

She giggled once more. Her laughter was contagious, and soon, we were both laughing. When the laughter subsided, we found ourselves staring at each other. Then, the light turned green, and Allison's focus returned to the road, making the moment somewhat awkward.

"So, about that anatomy assignment," she began, breaking the silence.

"Oh, yeah," I said, feeling a bit clueless, but I played it off, my eyes fixed on her hands on the steering wheel. "We have an assignment."

"Our assignment is to learn and gather data about eye color, where it comes from, and why people have different eye colors. It's more of a biology project, but I like it. What do you think?" she asked, making me realize that I had thought that but hadn't said it. She must have heard my thoughts.

Out of all the assignments, it had to be this one. I just hoped my father's alter ego, Shadow Fighter, wasn't involved, or things would get complicated.

"You wear colored contacts, right?" she inquired, snapping me out of my thoughts again. She seemed to do that a lot. It was disorienting, but I loved it. We were only a few blocks from my house now.

"Maybe," I replied with a nonchalant shrug, a smirk tugging at my lips.

"What color are your real eyes?" she asked as we pulled into my driveway. We fell into a tense silence, our heavy breathing filling the car.

"Guess," I said, and Allison leaned in, scrutinizing my eyes. I leaned back, feeling anxious, and covered my eyes with my hand.

"Are they blue? Wait, no, there's a hint of purple. Could they be..." I didn't let her finish her sentence. I didn't want her to. I didn't want her to discover that I was the son of the city's superhero. I uncovered my eyes and pulled her closer, our lips kissing gently. A small smile formed on her lips as she kissed me back, but she didn't seem entirely satisfied. I glanced over to the door, where my dad stood, gaping in disbelief.

Allison's eyes fell to the carpet of her car. "I'm so sorry, Allie," I stammered.

"It's okay. I should probably go now. See you at school tomorrow," Allison said, keeping her head down as I hopped out of her car and headed toward my front door.

She only briefly lifted her head to check the rearview mirror as she pulled out of the driveway. My dad was waiting in the doorway, arms crossed. Then, his fist met my shoulder blade as I walked past him and into the house.

"What the heck were you doing?" my dad asked, frustration evident in his voice.

"Dad, she was looking into my eyes. I got nervous."

"And you thought kissing her was the solution?" he retorted.

"Yeah, probably wasn't my best move," I admitted, defeated.

"You think?" he said, closing the door behind us. I made my way to the couch and sat down. My father followed me into the room and sat beside me.

"Is she the girl you like from anatomy class?" His tone was calmer now.

"Yeah," I replied, inhaling deeply.

"... And the project they assigned you has to do with what?" he inquired.

"Eye color and how it relates to my genetics," I answered.

"Isn't that biology?" he prodded, tilting his head to the side.

"Yep," I said, shooting him an uneasy glance.

"She was investigating my contacts, trying to figure out my natural eye color," I added.

"Could she see your eyes?" my dad asked.

"They don't hide the natural color. If you pay close enough attention to us, you can see the red," I explained.

"You've been so lucky..." my father sighed. David walked through the doorway, tossed his bag aside, and entered the living room.

"So, any recruits?" my dad asked, shifting his attention to David.

"Well, Chase was pretty good," David replied, locking eyes with me. "And I see you got a ride from your girlfriend."

"She's not my girlfriend," I protested.

"I don't know, Chase. I think you two would make a cute couple," David teased, sporting a mischievous grin.

"Okay, David, that's enough," my father finally raised his voice.

"Fine, whatever," David grumbled, shifting on his feet. He grabbed his bag and left the room, snatching up a baseball. He tossed the ball in my direction before making his exit.

"Both of you need to end this feud," my dad said sternly.

"It's nothing, Dad," I grumbled. David and I used to get along famously until I turned thirteen. Lately, David had been more distant and agitated with me, and as much as I told myself I didn't care, I knew something was bothering him. Perhaps our mother's death had finally taken its toll on him, or maybe it was something more significant. Whatever it was, I wasn't sure I wanted to know.