My Brother's Keeper (a Superman story)

Chapter 4: Confrontations

Waking up, my face was still stinging from the slap my mom gave me last night. Aside from the soreness I had all around my body, including a few new bruises from last night's rumble, I was pissed at Superman for interfering in our operations. He rarely ever came to this town to save it and now he wanted to keep us from saving it?

I was also angry at the fact he forcefully brought me home, taking my ass into the sky where I had a massive panic attack from being way up there where everything looked about as small as it could.

That was perhaps the scariest experience of my life. I never imagined he would do that to me but then again, he was Superman and chances were he would do just about whatever he felt like doing.

My brother walked in.

"What do you want?!" I demanded.

"I just wanted to see how you woke up this morning."

"Just peachy. Anything else?"

"Omar, we've always been close. I don't understand why you're being so antagonistic with me."

"Because you left me when I needed you the most. You dumped my ass as if I did not matter to you and you went to live your dream life in Metropolis while mom and I dealt with dad's death on our own" I got up and looked at him directly in the eye. "I needed you and you were nowhere to be found. I called, texted, emailed you even, but you never responded."

"I'm sorry I just had a lot going on and..."

"I don't care. Then again, maybe you being adopted means you probably don't view me as your brother" I spat.

"Don't say that. My being adopted does not mean I don't view you as my little brother. To me, you might as well be my flesh and blood brother."

"Well, you didn't act that way when I tried to reach out to you."

"What do you want from me?"

"I don't want anything. Not anymore."

"Come on, don't say that."

"It's true or do you want me to lie to you?" And with that one, he stayed silent. "Yeah, it's what I thought."

"Omar, you need to get past this. Superman and I are quite close as friends and he told me what you, Laurel, Sara, and Oliver have been up to. What the hell are you thinking running around town at night, playing a game of vigilantes?"

"So he snitched to you like a little bitch?!"

"Omar, your language!" he warned.

"Or what, you're going to spank my ass?"

"I mean it. Stop being disrespectful."

"I lost respect for you a long time ago. I'm done with you. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to shower because I'm meeting my friends."

"You're not going anywhere. I'm grounding you!"

"Wow, and I thought that was mom's job. But you're not her or dad, so what makes you think I'm going to listen to you?!"

"Don't test me, because I can be as aggressive as I need to if it means I can get through to you!"

"Whatever, you're not going to make me do anything I don't feel like doing!"

He walked out and I went straight into the shower and then got dressed. I grabbed my skateboard and walked downstairs into the kitchen, where he was sitting by himself, drinking coffee and reading the newspaper.