Pancakes, Secrets, And The Girl Who’s Coming Later

I wake up to my alarm at 8:47 a.m.

Cliff lifts his heavy head from my legs, tail thumping against the mattress. He’s a massive German Shepherd, and he’s been sleeping on me all night like a weighted blanket.

“Move it, big guy,” I say, pushing him off. He hops down. I swing my legs over the edge of the bed and sit there for a minute, staring at the floor. I hold my hands up, turning them over. Knuckles a little raw. That’s all.

I grab my phone. Seventeen missed texts. Most from Rashon. A few from Maya.

Then the smell hits me bacon. My stomach answers instantly. I pull on a hoodie and head downstairs.

The kitchen is bright. Too bright. Dad’s at the stove flipping pancakes. Mom’s at the table with her coffee. Jakiya’s already dressed, sitting across from Mom, halfway through a plate. The TV’s on the local morning news.

“incident last night at a gas station on Fifth and Madison, where an unknown individual stopped what police are calling an attempted robbery —”

I freeze.

There it is. On the screen. Me. The video. The punch. The big guy dropping.

“Morning,” I say, keeping my voice steady.

Dad glances back over his shoulder. “Morning. You sleep okay? You look rough.”

“Yeah. Just… slept wrong.”

I slide into the chair beside Jakiya. She doesn’t look at me, but I can feel the tension rolling off her. She knows. And she’s still mad.

“Look at this fool,” Dad says, gesturing at the screen with his spatula. “Kid’s gonna kill somebody.”

The news plays the footage again. Slowed down. They zoom in on the punch.

Mom sips her coffee. “Well he did stop the robbery.”

“That’s not the point. Look at how reckless he is. He could’ve killed that man.” Dad sets the pancakes down on the table. “Metas like him are exactly why these registration talks are happening.”

Jakiya finally glances at me. One look that says I told you so.

“Maybe he’s new at it,” Mom says. “Maybe he doesn’t know what he’s doing yet.”

“That is exactly the problem, Lenea.” Dad sits, picks up his fork. “Back when we were out there? We were smart. We had discipline. We had teams. We didn’t just drop into situations hoping for the best.”

I keep my face neutral. “Maybe he didn’t have a choice.”

Dad looks straight at me. “There is always a choice, son. And beating a man the way he did? That was a choice.”

The footage cuts away. Tweets scroll across the bottom of the screen:

“New Haven’s got a new hero 💪”

“Yo WHO IS THIS GUY???”

“That punch was INSANE”

“Was that Vector Prime?”

The anchors start arguing. One calls me a menace. The other says the city needed someone to step up. They go back and forth for thirty seconds before cutting to a legal expert talking about vigilante liability. Criminal charges. The words hang in the air like smoke.

I stare at my pancakes.

Dad watches the TV like it personally offended him. Fork lowered. Coffee going cold.

“You know what happens to people like that,” Dad says, quiet and firm. “They get somebody killed. Themselves or someone else. Usually someone else.”

“He stopped the robbery,” I say. Keeping my voice even.

“Stopping the robbery isn’t the hard part.” Dad turns to me. “Knowing when to stop afterwards, that’s the hard part. Knowing how much force is too much. That kid has no idea where the line is.”

I cut into my pancake. Jakiya still won’t meet my eyes.

Mom sets her mug down gently. “Aaron.”

He stops. “What.”

“You were reckless when you started too.”

Dad pauses mid-bite. “That was different.”

“How?”

He chews. Swallows. Takes his time answering.

“I had you,” he says finally, glancing at her. “You kept me from doing something stupid.”

Mom raises an eyebrow. “You almost got yourself killed fighting that electrokinetic in Nevada. You couldn’t absorb the charge it just passed right through you. You were on the ground shaking, and I had to drag you out before they finished the job. Then I had to sneak you into your own house so your mother wouldn’t see you half-dead.” A small, sad smile touches her lips. “So she wouldn’t finish the job.”

She laughs softly at the memory.

Dad says nothing for a second. Jakiya makes a sound quickly covering it with a cough.

Dad sets his fork down. “That still doesn’t mean.” He stops. Looks up at the ceiling. Sighs. “Fine. Point taken.”

“All I’m saying is,” Mom says calmly, “he might just be new. That doesn’t mean he’s hopeless.”

Dad grunts and picks his fork back up. The news moves on to city council budgets. I tune it out. This is my opening.

“Yo — where’s the syrup?”

“Cabinet,” Dad says without looking.

I stand, grab it, take my time. Let the conversation drift.

Mom watches me sit back down. “You okay?”

I turn. “Yeah. Why?”

“You’re moving a little stiff.”

“Nah. Just sore. Rashon and I sparred yesterday.”

Jakiya kicks my leg hard under the table. I don’t flinch.

“Boxing?” Mom asks.

“Yeah.”

“At the gym?”

I hold her gaze a second longer than I’m comfortable with. “Yeah.”

She nods. “Okay.”

Just okay. But the way she says it… it feels like she knows more than she’s saying.

I pour syrup. Eat. The TV drones on. The news ticker still reads: NEW HAVEN VIGILANTE INVESTIGATION ONGOING.

Dad eats in silence. Jakiya eats in silence. Mom sips her coffee. And I sit there, chewing slowly, while my own dad criticises every move I made last night never once realising the reckless kid is sitting right across from him. Even if he did know… I think he’d say exactly the same thing.

“So what are you two doing today?” Dad asks.

Jakiya shrugs. “Project. Maybe head over to Maya’s later.”

“Jahkeen?”

I swallow. “I dunno. Probably chill. Play some games. Hang with Rashon maybe.”

“Y’all celebrating finishing school soon?”

“Yeah. Talking about it.”

“Good.” Dad wipes his mouth. “You earned it. Just… don’t do anything stupid.”

If he only knew.

Mom stands and starts clearing plates. “Jakiya you helping Maya with her art project?”

“Yeah. She’s been stressing all week.” She turns to me. “And you? Figure out what you’re doing after graduation yet?”

I hesitate. “Not yet.”

“Well, you’ve got time. But start thinking.” She gives me The Look — the Mom Look that says I know you’re hiding something. I swear she knows. She always seems to know what me and Jakiya are up to.

I nod.

Dad’s phone rings. He checks the screen, frowns. “Gotta take this. Work.” He steps out onto the back porch.

Mom watches him go, then turns to us. “You two okay?”

“Yeah,” Jakiya says. “Why?”

“I don’t know. You both seem tense lately.”

“We’re fine, Mom,” I say.

She doesn’t look convinced, but she nods anyway. “Alright. Just remember you can talk to me. About anything.”

“We know,” Jakiya says.

Mom heads upstairs.

It’s just us.

Jakiya leans in. “You need to be more careful.”

“I know.”

“I’m serious, Jay. Mom’s already suspicious. Dad’s one question away from putting it all together. You can’t keep coming home late and banged up like this.”

“I’ll be careful.”

“You better.” She stands, picking up her plate. “I’m heading to Maya’s in two hours. You coming?”

“Why would I come?”

She gives me a look like I’m slow. “Because Arie’s gonna be there.”

My chest does something weird. “So?”

“So you’ve been crushing on her for like two years. Maybe today’s the day you finally do something about it.”

“I don’t”

“Yes, you do. And she likes you too. Trust me.”

I don’t say anything. Can’t say anything.

“You coming or not?”

I think about it. I’m tired. My body aches. But… Arie’s going to be there.

“Yeah,” I say. “I’m coming.”

Jakiya grins. “Good. Maybe you’ll actually grow a backbone for once.”

She heads upstairs.

I sit there alone, finishing my pancakes. My phone buzzes on the table. Maya.

Maya: Hey you coming over later?

Maya: Kiya said she’s bringing you

Maya: Arie’s asking if you’re coming 👀

I stare at that last line for a long time.

Me: Yeah. I’m coming.

Maya: Period. 🤏🏽 See you soon.

Me: 💀💀

I set the phone down. Cliff walks over and rests his head on my knee. I scratch behind his ears.

The phone buzzes again. Rashon.

Rashon: Maya just hit me up everybody rolling over there later

Rashon: Me and Nijah too

Rashon: Arie’s gonna be there 👀

Rashon: Bro please don’t be awkward

Me: I’m not awkward

Rashon: Bro u ARE but it’s okay, Wingman Ray is EN ROUTE

Me: Wingman Ray….. okay.

Rashon: Bro, just talk to her like a normal person

Rashon: actually no don’t do that either cause you’re… nvm bro u got this

Me: I hate you

Rashon: 😂

I put the phone face-down on the table.

The house is quiet. Dad’s still outside on the call. Mom’s upstairs. Jakiya’s in her room. Just me, the dog, and the TV still talking about a vigilante nobody can name.

Me. They’re talking about me.

Dad’s voice plays in my head on loop. Knowing when to stop. Knowing how much force is too much. There’s always a choice.

But what if there isn’t? What if the line doesn’t exist until you’ve already crossed it? What if you have to go too far just to survive?

I take a breath. Push the thoughts away.

Today’s going to be a good day. Arie’s going to be there.

And I really, really hope I don’t mess this up.