The next morning, Bill slowly woke up, his body still weak and aching all over. He had bunkered down on Mako's couch for the night, as after getting discharged, he embarrassingly had to tell Mako that he had nowhere to go.
He knew his father wouldn't even let him step a foot in his house, and all his other "friends" were affiliated with El-Diablo, so he couldn't go to them for help either.
To his surprise, Mako didn't even hesitate before telling him to just come back to his home and stay the night.
********************
The first thing Bill noticed as soon as he woke up was the delicious scent of food wafting through the air. His stomach growled in protest, reminding him that it had been far too long since he had a proper meal. Snapping the sleep from his eyes, he slowly stood up on his feet and made his way over to the dining table.
Once he was at the dining table, Bill was met with the heavenly sight of a freshly prepared breakfast. Croissants that Mako brought back from his night shift at the bakery, alongside a folded cheese omelet, sizzling crispy bacon, and a small pot of coffee sat waiting for him. His heart sank a little as he saw the effort Mako had put into preparing it all, knowing that he wasn't deserving of this kind of treatment at all.
Mako quickly sensed Bill standing beside him as he quickly turned around and gave him a friendly gesture to quickly sit at the table and eat the breakfast.
The beautiful and elegant smell of the breakfast food in front of him was becoming impossible to resist, and Bill finally couldn't help himself anymore. He quickly sat down at the table and started taking big bites of his first proper meal in weeks.
Bill had never been one to take food for granted, but now he realized he'd never truly appreciated it the way it deserved. He was in a full-on trance, devouring each bite like it was the best thing he'd ever tasted because, in that moment, it honestly was.
Having experienced the hell that was that warehouse where he was imprisoned, he never thought that he would ever get to experience another moment like this again. So even though it was just a simple breakfast, Bill cherished every moment of it.
After clearing most of the items from the dining table, Bill finally snapped out of his trance, his stomach filled to maximum capacity.
He noticed Mako catching small glances at him while sipping his coffee quietly on the other side of the table, clearly finding it hard to initiate a conversation.
Bill was hesitant to speak as well, unsure of how to even begin after everything that had happened the night before. He owed Mako his life now, but considering the tense dynamic they shared just two weeks ago, the whole situation felt overwhelmingly awkward.
"I... uh" Bill began, his voice rough. "I don't know what to say, Mako. You didn't have to do any of this for me. I don't deserve it."
Mako paused, then set his cup down, giving Bill a steady, almost resigned look. "Look, I wasn't going to leave you there to die, Bill. That's all there is to it."
Bill swallowed hard, the weight of his earlier emotions still heavy on his chest. He gave a small nod and chose to let the matter rest, realizing Mako wasn't interested in dredging up the past. Still, Bill knew deep down that he was in Mako's debt now, whether Mako ever brought it up or not, and he intended to repay it one way or another.
Mako's voice broke the silence, calm and steady. "So are you going to tell me where you had disappeared to for the past two weeks?"
Before he could respond, the sound of the doorbell rang through the house, breaking the tension in the air.
Mako stood up from his seat, "I'll get that. Help yourself to some coffee."
He opened the door to reveal a man in a delivery uniform, holding a small package in his hands.
"Delivery for Sir Mako Grey?" the deliveryman asked politely.
"Yes, that's me!" Mako replied
"Great! sign here and here." the delivery man said as he brought a form out to fill out.
After filling out the form, Mako received the package, and the deliveryman left just as soon as he came.
Mako made his way back to the living room with the package in his hands, excited to open up another thing he had ordered from the public library computer two days ago.
"What you got there?" Bill asked as Mako sat back down on the dining table opposite him.
"I've never owned a phone before, so I was always out of the loop with the news among many other things," Mako explained to Bill as he picked up a knife and began unboxing his very first holoscreen. "Figured it was time to change that."
Bill nodded quietly as he gulped down his cup of coffee.
Once the unboxing was done, Mako held his mini holoscreen in his hands. It was the only device that fit within his budget, but he didn't mind; he was just thrilled to finally own one.
The holoscreen itself was a sleek, polished piece of glass with a metal frame and a few buttons on the side. Though it looked delicate, it was as tough as steel, capable of surviving a decent drop without leaving a scratch. Mako powered it on and began setting up his account and adjusting the settings, while Bill helped clear the dining table and put the dirty dishes by the sink.
"Oh? That's interesting..." Mako said as he stared at the screen.
"What?" Bill asked as he finished clearing the table.
Mako turned on projector mode as the screen projected a holographic image of the main screen upwards so that they could both see. The display currently was on one of the news channels where there were reports of a part of an abandoned warehouse exploding.
Bill's facial expressions changed the moment he laid his eyes on the screen as anger started to well up from him again, and unconsciously, he started to leak his aura, which didn't affect Mako one tiny bit anymore.
However, seeing Bill's reaction to the news feed as well as his sudden behavior change, it didn't take Mako much time to put two and two together and figure out that Bill was somehow related to it.
Closing the holographic display, Mako turned towards Bill, "Were you in the warehouse when it exploded? That would explain some of your injuries... But what were you doing there?"
Bill met Mako's eyes, hesitating at first, but eventually, he let out a heavy, resigned sigh.
For the next hour and a half, Mako sat in the living room with Bill, showing looks of horror and shock as Bill narrated the entire situation from him getting his ability to working with El-Diablo to then losing his fight against Mako, and being enslaved as punishment and finally escaping, but not without sacrifices as Bill rubbed his hand with the imprint of the key still there on him.
After a small moment of silence, Bill continued as he listed all of the names of the workers who helped him in his escape, but were unfortunate enough to be killed, as the memory of Albert was one of the stronger ones.
After listening to Bill's entire story, Mako stood up from the couch, and Bill instinctively followed suit. Mako walked toward him, and before Bill could react, he extended his right hand.
Bill looked at the hand, confused. He wasn't entirely sure what Mako was getting at.
"I want you to accept my handshake as a token of friendship. You've been through your own hardships, just like I have. In such a short amount of time, you've changed, become more mature and understanding compared to the person who used to bully me. I acknowledge that. So, what do you say we both forget about our terrible pasts and start fresh?" Mako asked Bill with compassion and determination.
Understanding Mako's intentions, Bill shook his hand without a moment of hesitation. He, too, wanted a fresh start. Those two weeks in hell had opened his eyes to the gravity of his past mistakes, and he owed it to Albert to make his second chance count. The pain and struggle had shaped him into a brand-new person.
"Okay, first order of business! You smell!" Mako teased Bill.
"WHAT?" Bill was confused at the sudden change of gesture, but that made Mako just burst into laughter.
Seeing the cheeky move played by Mako, Bill did not get angry as he joined in with the laughter as it was both hilarious and true.
*******************
Mako explained to Bill what had happened at school during his absence. He told him how the school officials reached out to his father after he hadn't shown up to school for a whole week.
It was then that Bill's father had discovered the truth about Bill, that he had gained a level 3 ability and had been using it to mercilessly beat up students, all while the school board couldn't do much of anything due to his backing by one of Emerald City's biggest gangs.
He also shared that Bill's father had made it clear to everyone that Bill was no longer welcome at home. After learning about his son's misdeeds, he had completely disowned him.
It was heartbreaking for Bill to hear, but not surprising. His father had always cared more about reputation than relationships, and now that the truth had surfaced, he wasn't going to let anything tarnish his image, not even his own son.
Until recently, Bill's father had remained in the dark about his son's behavior, thanks to El-Diablo's people cleaning up after him and keeping things quiet. But that protection was gone now.
Wanting to help, Mako offered Bill a place to stay. He suggested they live together as roommates, though he mentioned there would be some ground rules, ones he'd explain later.
At that moment, Bill was in the bathroom, showering in the guest room.
After freshening up a bit, Bill wore some of Mako's clothes that were already in short supply, but they fit Bill perfectly as Mako always liked to wear oversized and baggy clothes.
At this point, Bill was still injured, and while he still felt a bit weak, he could at least move around without much strain. Seeing this, Mako invited him to take a walk toward the forest that bordered his backyard.
It was a strange request, and Bill raised an eyebrow at first, but he decided to go along with it. After everything Mako had done for him, the least he could do was humor him, even if this felt a little weird.
It turned out to be a warm, sunny afternoon, with a light breeze rustling through the trees. Bill found himself actually enjoying the scenery for once, taking in the peacefulness of it.
After walking a short distance into the woods, they came to an open patch of grass nestled between the trees. Without warning, Mako jogged a few feet ahead to put distance between them and turned around with a grin.
Now standing roughly fifteen feet apart, Mako called out, "The reason I brought you here is because, starting today, this is going to be our training ground!"
Bill blinked, caught a little off guard. "Wait… our training ground?"
"I want to learn how to fight properly," Mako said. "I've never had any proper guidance in how to fight, and you and I both know how useless the combat sessions at are school are. I want to be able to fight like a professional, and who better to learn from than you?"
Bill gave a short laugh. "You do realize I'm still pretty banged up, right?"
"I'm not asking for a spar. Not yet," Mako replied. "Just teach me. Show me what you know. I've got the power, but I need the discipline to go with it. That's something you've had drilled into you."
Bill scratched the back of his neck, a little surprised by the request but also kind of flattered. "You serious about this?"
"Dead serious," Mako replied.
With a shrug, Bill cracked a small grin. "Alright, Mako. Lesson one..."
And just like that, the dynamic between them began to shift once again, not from enemies or even just allies, but into something more solid. Something like trust.
Bill activated his level 3 Earth ability to throw small boulders at Mako so that he could train his perception, when all of a sudden, Mako activated his own Level 3 Fire ability to gain additional boosts for activating his ability to easily dodge and even smash the incoming boulders.
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Author's Note: Hey guys! Universal Power System is one of my favorite projects, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it. This is my very first work, so expect some amateur writing and a few slips. However, I always try to learn and correct myself so I can create a more coherent narrative. I hope you guys enjoy it. Don't forget to check out my other works!
Come say hi to me on Discord: https://discord.gg/TvjkrdnbE2