Chapter 20

Soul Sakura took off and flew across the city before gliding over the top of the Shake Shack to get a change of clothes that she had stashed there earlier. One of the drawbacks of her costume acting as a superhero? No pockets.

She landed in the area behind Shake Shack and, after ensuring that she was by herself, she put on the clothing that she wore when she pretended to be Helena Cummings. She grinned as she put on a pair of black flats and wondered what her coworkers would make of her if she showed up in costume instead of her regular attire. Helena's attempt to conceal her true identity by dressing subtly ensured that she would be the topic of conversation at the office.

Helena took her eyeglasses with the plastic lining out of the left pocket of her khaki pants, and she grabbed her cell phone out of the right pocket of her khaki pants, where it flashed with a message from Isaac.

In addition to the fact that my coffee is growing cold, I can't see rays of light.

Helena chuckled as she retrieved her blue boots from the floor. She quickly went to the front entrance of the restaurant after tossing the items onto the roof of the Shake Shack with a flick of the wrist. She skidded to a halt just inside, and as she did so, she noticed a man with a brown hair and a white face waiting in line.

The temperature of Isaac's coffee remained steady. He hadn't even ordered yet!

Helena brushed up against Isaac as she spoke and said, "It's not polite to lie to your best friend."

Isaac gave Helena a sour look and then put his arm around her. He then continued his conversation. He pointed his finger at me as he said, "I figured pity was the easiest way to get you here." By the way, if you're going to be this late when your employer needs you, it's no surprise that he's being crabby.

Isaac was referring to Helena's supervisor at Walmart, a man named Samuel.

Helena had received the text message "M.s always late" from Snapper.

At least it wasn't "Ponytail," which was the previous option.

Helena's recent difficulties at work were the reason she'd asked Isaac to meet at Shake Shack that morning. When Isaac made a comment about her tardiness, Helena rolled her eyes and shrugged her shoulders.

Helena stated that the reason she was running late was not because she had overslept. "I was putting a stop to a theft."

The guy who was in front of them gave her a sideways glance.

"In GTA. Helena continued while laughing nervously, "I was playing Grand Theft Auto."

He turned back around and gave Helena a gentle pinch on the arm. Isaac

"Your inside voice needs an inside voice!

"Isaac mumbled in a low voice.

Isaac had every reason to be correct, but concealing one's true identity was not an easy task. Helena loathed having to constantly have talks behind closed doors because she never knew who was observing or listening. She cherished her identity as a superhero, despite the fact that it made her stand out from other people at times.

After the customer in front of them had completed making his order, Isaac and Helena approached the counter to place their own. They were greeted by a college student with short hair who wore a name tag that read "Callen."

"Hi!" said Helena. "Would it be possible for you to make me a strawberry smoothie with additional whipped cream and just a sprinkling of sprinkles on top, please?""

Callen said as he held a pen over Helena's cup and smiled, "You got it." "Can I ask what your name is? "Lovely lady?"

Isaac gave a smirk while rolling her eyes, and Helena giggled while ducking her head and tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Who, me?"

Helena felt Isaac's hand on her shoulder as he spoke. "Her name's Helena."

"Nice name!" stated Callen. As he spoke, he penned the name "Helen."

Helena made a gesture to clear her throat. "In point of fact, her name is Helena."

"Whoops! Callen scribbled the new name and crossed out what he'd previously written before saying, "My bad." "Better?"

The message on the cup is now. . . Elena.

Helena appeared to be faking a grin while Isaac turned her head and attempted to conceal a giggle.

She responded with, "Close enough." "Are you able to also pack some doughnuts for me to take with me?""

"Do you realize what? As Marcus was beginning to zip up the bag, she instructed him to include an additional sandwich in the package.

Isaac arched an eyebrow, and she responded by saying, "For my employer." Isaac continued to seem puzzled.

Isaac let out a snort. Helena, he is not going to change into a decent person no matter how much food he eats.

Helena sighed. "If you have any smarter suggestions, I'd love to hear them."

Isaac counseled her, saying, "You need to speak his language."

"I do! When he is rude to me, I respond in kind with rudeness of my own.

Isaac sat on the edge of the counter with his arms crossed. "All right, I'll bite.

What is an example of a typical insult in Helena's Cummings?

Helena cocked her head to the side. "Just last week, he told me my grammar sucked, and I told him that"—Helena adjusted her glasses—"that his breath stinks today." She swiped at some spilled sugar on the counter as she spoke. "Just last week," Helena continued, "he told me that my grammar sucked, and I told him that his breath stinks today." "So . . . He was undoubtedly somewhat mortified by the situation.

Isaac smiled and gave his companion a bear embrace. "Helena, being cruel just isn't you. Not at all what I had in mind when I said "speak his language." People like him want to be on top. He shrugged and said, "bold." They are looking for attention.

"Big. Helena echoed her own mantra to herself while nodding her head. "I've got it covered!

But five minutes later, while Helena was taking the elevator up to the second floor of Walmart, she was still struggling to think of any grand or audacious ideas. When she reached the desk of her employer, she had no choice but to wing it. After the elevator doors opened, she paused for a moment to catch her breath before stepping out.

Jordan, who is also one of Helena's closest friends, and Samuel, who was an African man with a scowling face and a bald head, were going over a layout together. Jordan was one of Helena's closest pals. Once upon a time, Jordan played basketball again at his old school, the same school where Helena's boyfriend Jayden played basketball. However, Microsoft X wanted Jordan to assist in watching after Helena, so he sent Jordan to work at Walmart so that he could assist Helena.

Jordan was one of the very few people who shared Helena's ability to wield celestial energies as a weapon. It was no secret to him that Helena Cummings was actually Soul Sakura. Now that Jordan was the most trusted employee, he was always butting heads with other colleagues, to the point that he was constantly scratching his shaved scalp in annoyance. This signified that Jordan was the most trusted employee. . . or suffering.

After exchanging a few words with each other, Samuel and Jordan moved on to the next step, which was Samuel picking up the layout and bringing it back to his desk. Helena made a hasty approach, but before she could utter a word, Snapper clasped his hands around his mouth and yelled across the floor of the newsroom.

"There's a journalist from the Walmart newspaper and article at my desk!

"

Helena beamed at herself and pointed to herself. "Do you know if there's a prize for whoever gets here first? "

Samuel glared angrily in her direction. "Cummings, you do not need to be here for this meeting."

Helena's smile sank a little. "Uh . . . You were interested in seeing the other journalists, and I happen to be one of them.

"You are?!

" Samuel's eyes expanded in a pretend surprised expression as he said it. "Great! He extended his hand with the palm facing up and said, "I'll take that interview with Governor Eric Adams."

It took an incredible amount of self-control on Helena's part to refrain from grabbing Samuel by the wrist and tossing him over her shoulder.

"Don't you recall that he canceled?

" She uttered the words in a tone that was as even as she could get it. "I don't have the interview," the speaker said.

Samuel indicated the direction of the elevator. "Then don't come back till you do," the other person said.

"You're not serious."

Samuel's finger didn't waver. "You need to get out there, Cummings. I'd like to have that interview.

Helena dared to catch a glance of Jordan in the off chance that he may help, but he was intently focusing on a collection of television screens that were located in his office. Helena clenched her hands into fists by her sides and turned on her heel before stalking back toward the elevator. She pushed the down button with such force that the panel sunk into the wall. She quickly put her hands behind her back as she cast an embarrassed glare in every direction.

Now, rather than pondering big ideas, think. Helena regarded this as a really bold move. Doomed from the beginning to the very end. After the second catastrophic event in the world's history, things are different now. In this digital age, I can get a job when I'm only fourteen years old. Everything looks and feels like it would normally be the same, yet it is actually very different.