September 18th, 2020. As part of an assignment for my creative writing class, I was given the phrase "She was speechless", and I was instructed to write a story around that phrase. This is what I came up with...
It was that time of year again. Mid April; the humidity and dew point are almost in perfect equilibrium. The warm air from the south mixing with the cooler air of the north right in the heart of central Nebraska. Jason wasn’t sure what it was about this time of year. Almost as if the magic and wonder of springtime contributed to it. Sure, he had tried it in different months and seasons, always in secret, but for some odd reason it never quite worked. Jason knew he had a unique talent but he didn’t want it to get out for fear of what people might think of him, or even worse, what they might do to him. He was never fond of scientists.
Living in small town Comstock, Nebraska he never really had much trouble keeping it to himself. Nevertheless, he woke up at 4:00AM, just like he did every year as to make sure he had plenty of time before his neighbors woke up. He slipped out of his spider-man pajamas and into his Ironman onesie with a built-in blue LED ring light in the center of his chest powered by 6 AAA batteries. He gingerly pushed open the back door as stealthily as a cat because his neighbor’s pet llama, Stacy, tends to throw a fit if she gets startled. As soon as Jason closed the door behind him he felt the sharp chill of the Nebraska morning breeze. His Ironman onesie was not designed for anything more than casual lounge wear. Jason wanted to buy the Deluxe Iron Man Mens Fancy Dress Avengers Endgame Adult Superhero Premium Suit for $53.95 on eBay which came with a replica Ironman plastic helmet. It would have been much more suitable for the weather, but Jason couldn’t afford it as a part time shopping cart mechanic.
Jason used his breath to warm his hands then sat in the grass in the center of the yard. He began to breathe deeply through his nose. He smelled the foul aroma of Stacy’s droppings on the other side of the fence. As his eyes began to water, Jason was glad only one of his nostrils worked because he had broken his nose last year on his 32nd birthday. Jason returned his focus to his breath and just as the warm, orange sun was just barely beginning to peek through the leaves in the tree, he knew he was ready. He felt the energy of the sun and as if he were iron man himself, he began to rise. Two, then three then 8 then 12 feet above the ground Jason hovered. As if he were a human jet engine running on nothing but Twinkies and barbecue beef nachos, Jason was expelling hydrogen, carbon dioxide, methane, and ammonia through his arse in the form of gas at such a powerful rate that it was quite literally propelling him off the ground!
The force was so powerful it blasted a hole clean through the rear of his Ironman onesie and left a small crater in the yard upon takeoff. He wanted to be a super hero so bad and share his talent with the world and save lives, but he couldn’t help but think of the offensive super hero names he would be given. Not to mention he could only fly for five to ten minutes tops before depleting his gas supply.
Quincy, Jason’s mother, was awaken by the commotion of what sounded like a small jet airplane and proceeded to go see what Jason was up to. She walked sleepily down the hallway until she froze stiff by what she saw. “She was speechless.” Her face frowned as she resumed her walk down the hall. Now she walked quickly with a sense of anger in her steps. She couldn’t believe what she saw. She screamed in a ravenous voice, “Jason, I told you to clean your room!!”
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