Page 12 of Flash Fire (The Extraordinaries 2)

Jo blinked. “No?”

Jazz breathed a sigh of relief. “Then, yes. Mostly. Nick is certainly capable of being Nick.”

He didn’t know if that was a compliment or not. He was about to ask for clarification when Seth said, “Nicky.”

He looked over at him.

Seth shook his head. “You don’t have to do this.”

“Yeah,” he said, “I do. Because Pyro Storm—me—needs to remember how important he is. And not …” He frowned. “Not just to me? Wait, that doesn’t make sense.”

Seth reached over and took his hand, squeezing gently. Nick studied his face, cataloguing the shadows under his eyes, the firm set of his jaw. He looked weary and resigned, something Nick never wanted him to be. “Nick,” he said gently. “They deserve to know, especially since their kids are involved. It’s only fair.”

“Fair,” Nick managed to say, that old, familiar feeling of his lungs constricting causing the word to come out choked. “How is it fair that you always have to clean up the messes I make? You only did what you did because—”Because of me, but he couldn’t get the words out, couldn’t finish because his throat had tightened, his breath whistling between clenched teeth.

Nick didn’t see Dad move and flinched when his father knelt before him, gripping his knees, keeping them from bouncing. Nick’s thoughts were caught in a storm, the knot in his head writhing, and that whisper, that caress in the back of his mind, grew claws, digging in. A headache bloomed quietly, and he couldn’t focus, couldn’t—

“Nicky,” Dad said, sounding far away. “Kid, I need you to breathe. Deep breaths, okay? In. Hold. Out. Hold. You can do this. I know you can. Breathe, kid. Just—”

Nick snapped out of his spiral when the floor began to vibrate. The half-empty plate of cookies rattled across the coffee table. The windows shook. Pictures hanging on the walls swung crooked.

Then it stopped.

Everyone looked around. “What was that?” Trey asked. “An earthquake?”

“Maybe it was a train,” Miles said, though he sounded dubious.

Martha and Bob looked just as confused. “Probably a garbage truck going by,” Bob said. “You know how these old houses get.”

Dad, though … Dad’s hands shook as he reached up and cupped Nick’s face. “Did you … you took your pill, right?”

Anger, then. Anger and embarrassment mixed together. He jerked his head back out of Dad’s hands. “Yeah,” he said, not meeting anyone’s gaze. “I did. Like I always do. Every day. I’m sorry my brain makes me say stupid things, but I can’t always control it.” The bitterness in his words tasted like acid on his tongue.

Dad breathed in and let it out slow. “There’s nothing wrong with your brain. There never has been. You’re just … Nick. And that’s a good thing,” he added as Nick opened his mouth to retort. “I wouldn’t want you to be any other way. We can go. We probably should get you some air.”

Nick shook his head. “I can’t. Dad, this is important.”

“Nothing is more important than your health,” Dad said, voice hard.

“He’s right, Nicky,” Seth said, and Nick couldn’t bring himself to look at him. “There’s nothing wrong with you.” He sighed. “Wehave to trust them, especially since Gibby and Jazz are involved. They have a right to know what we’re doing.”

Nick finally worked up the courage to look at Seth.

Seth—wonderful, amazing Seth—nodded at him. He reached out and took his hand again. Dad watched the two of them, an inscrutable expression on his face.

Nick said, “I’m sorry.”

Seth shrugged. “You don’t need to be. You remember when I came out to you? You had my back then. I know you’ll have it now.”

“Please be my friend forever,” Nick said, because it was the only thing he could think of.

Seth laughed quietly. “Forever is a long time.”

“I know, but you’re worth it.”

Seth brought Nick’s hand to his mouth, kissing the back of it sweetly.

“Oh mygod,” Gibby said, and they both jumped. They looked over to see her scowling, her eyes wet. “Stupid boys. I hate you so much. Incoming.”