The next morning.
Daniel woke up early.
After getting dressed, he walked over and knocked on Carol’s door.
He waited for quite a while before the door finally opened.
Carol stood there with messy hair and a tired expression. One look was enough to tell she hadn’t slept well.
The amount of information she’d learned yesterday had been overwhelming.
Her mind had been racing all night, and she’d nearly suffered from insomnia before finally falling asleep in the early hours of the morning.
"Morning, Carol."
Daniel greeted her cheerfully, looking as energetic as ever.
Carol replied weakly.
"Mornin’..."
"Hey! Wake up! We’re going out today!"
Seeing her half asleep appearance, Daniel couldn’t help complaining.
"You definitely stayed up way too late last night."
"And whose fault do you think that is?"
Carol shot back immediately.
Daniel coughed.
"Alright, alright. Go wash up. We’re leaving in thirty minutes."
"Okay..."
"Don’t fall back asleep!"
Daniel pointed at her sternly.
"Go wash your face right now."
As he turned to leave, he added another reminder.
"I’ll be waiting downstairs."
With that, Daniel headed down to the lobby.
The moment he arrived, he noticed Susan sitting behind the front desk reading a book.
His eyesight was sharp enough to immediately recognize it as a textbook.
’She’s really dedicated to studying,’ he thought.
"Morning."
Daniel greeted her with his usual bright smile.
Susan visibly froze for a moment before replying.
"Morning..."
Daniel sat down on one of the lobby sofas.
A few minutes passed.
Then a few more.
Waiting for Carol quickly became boring.
Unable to sit quietly any longer, he turned toward Susan.
"Sorry to bother you, but could you tell me some fun places to visit in New York?"
Susan looked up from her book.
"Are you talking to me?"
Daniel laughed.
"Unless there’s someone else in this lobby."
"Oh!"
Susan instantly blushed.
"Sorry. I wasn’t paying attention."
"Haha, it’s fine."
"What was your question again?" she asked.
"I wanted some recommendations for places worth visiting in New York."
Susan nodded.
"Are you and your sister going sightseeing today?"
"Yep."
"Then I’d recommend visiting the Statue of Liberty first. The Empire State Building is also worth seeing, and Central Park is beautiful. As for Times Square, it’s much more interesting at night."
She continued listing various attractions and local recommendations.
Daniel listened attentively.
"Thanks."
He smiled.
"I’ll definitely take your advice."
The conversation naturally continued from there.
By the time forty minutes had passed, Carol finally came rushing downstairs.
"Sorry! I took a little longer than expected!"
The moment she entered the lobby, she saw Daniel sitting comfortably on the sofa while Susan laughed at something he’d just said.
Carol blinked.
Then she smiled mischievously.
"Uh... I’m not interrupting anything, am I?"
Daniel ignored her teasing completely.
"Finished getting ready?"
"Yep."
"Then let’s go."
Carol glanced between him and Susan.
"That’s it? You’re done chatting already?"
She couldn’t resist poking at him again.
Daniel pretended not to hear, this woman was impossible.
Standing up, he smiled at Susan.
"We’re heading out. See you later."
"Goodbye."
Susan smiled and waved.
...
The siblings walked side by side along the street.
Carol glanced at Daniel curiously.
"How did you end up chatting so happily with Susan?"
"What do you mean?"
Daniel looked ahead.
"You usually don’t talk much with girls."
Daniel suddenly found himself not wanting to answer.
"I was bored waiting for you."
His tone was noticeably disgruntled.
Who said he didn’t like talking to pretty girls?
Back in school, Carol had practically acted like a giant barrier standing in front of him.
Didn’t she realize that?
Besides, none of the girls at school had ever really caught his interest.
Most of his time had been spent lying in the sun getting stronger.
Who had time for romance?
Now things were different.
His confidence was soaring, and Susan happened to resemble an actress he’d liked in his previous life.
That was why he’d chatted a little longer than usual.
Then a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
’Wait a second...’
The actress Susan resembled had starred in a superhero movie in his previous life.
Daniel’s expression became thoughtful.
’Could it really be her?’
A possibility slowly emerged.
’And wasn’t Susan’s younger brother named Johnny?’
He filed the thought away for later.
"Hey."
Carol poked him in the arm.
"I’ve been talking to you."
"Oh."
Daniel snapped out of his thoughts.
"What?"
"What do you mean, what?"
Carol rolled her eyes.
"I asked where we’re going."
Daniel quickly answered.
"How about the Statue of Liberty first?"
"Sounds good."
"After that we’ll head to the top of the Empire State Building, then visit Central Park. Tonight we’ll finish with Times Square."
In reality, he had simply repeated Susan’s recommendations word for word.
"That actually sounds like a pretty good plan."
Carol looked impressed.
"I didn’t expect you to organize today’s schedule."
Daniel accepted the praise shamelessly.
"Of course."
Then Carol asked another question.
"So... how exactly are we getting there?"
Daniel paused.
"..."
"Do you know the way?"
"..."
Daniel’s confidence instantly vanished.
"No."
Carol stared at him.
Then she sighed.
"I was just about to compliment you."
"And then you admit you don’t even know how to get there?"
She shook her head.
"You’re unbelievably unreliable."
Daniel immediately fought back.
"Excuse me? Weren’t you supposed to be handling the planning?"
He pointed accusingly at her.
"What exactly did you arrange?"
"You couldn’t even wake up this morning!"
"..."
"..."
The two immediately fell into their usual routine.
Arguing... Blaming each other.
Neither one was particularly reliable.
After a while, Carol raised her hand.
"Stop."
She ended the argument before it could escalate.
"Let’s find a store and buy a map."
Daniel grumbled.
"If you hadn’t interrupted my conversation with Susan, I would’ve remembered to ask her for one."
"Sure, sure."
Carol waved her hand dismissively.
"My fault... everything’s my fault."
She was too tired to continue arguing.
Besides... she was the older sister.
Sometimes sacrifices had to be made.
Eventually they found a nearby shop and bought a map.
Following the directions, they finally arrived at the Statue of Liberty.
The two wandered around the enormous monument, taking in the sights from every angle.
After circling it a few times, Carol suddenly sighed.
"We should’ve brought a camera."
Daniel immediately fired back.
"And who was the one complaining that carrying a camera was too heavy?"
Carol huffed.
"Well, if I’d known you were this strong, I would’ve made you carry it."
"Heh..."
Daniel responded with only a single laugh.
"Typical..."
Carol pointed at him.
"Always trying to shift the blame."
Even though she kept complaining, the disappointment remained visible on her face.
In the end, they found a nearby photography booth.
For three dollars, they took a photo together.
Once the picture was finished, Carol was finally satisfied.
Immediately afterward, she dragged Daniel into the statue itself.
Eventually they reached the crown.
Nearly three hundred feet above the ground.
Carol stood near the viewing area and gazed down at the city below.
The people, cars, buildings...
Everything seemed so small from up there.
"Daniel, do you know something?"
She didn’t look away from the view.
"When you’re high above the ground, looking down at everything..."
Her eyes sparkled.
"People, buildings, cars... they all look like tiny ants."
A smile spread across her face.
"I love this feeling."
"I know, I know."
Daniel mercilessly ruined the moment.
"You’ve been telling me that since we were kids."
"You love the sky."
"Yeah..."
Carol didn’t care about his interruption.
She continued staring into the distance.
"I really do."
Her voice softened.
"The blue sky. The white clouds."
"Just looking at them makes me feel free."
A dreamy expression appeared on her face.
Then she sighed.
"You know, it would be amazing if humans could fly."
Daniel immediately replied, "Not really."
Carol turned toward him.
"Why not?"
"If you’re flying too fast, your clothes need to be extremely durable."
Daniel began counting on his fingers.
"And it’s better not to have long hair."
Carol looked confused.
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"Because the wind will tear your clothes apart."
Daniel answered seriously.
"And your hair will become a complete mess."
Carol stared at him suspiciously.
"You can’t even fly. How would you know that?"
Daniel almost choked.
"I... I don’t."
He quickly corrected himself.
"But it’s obvious if you think about it."
"It’s just common sense."
Only then did he realize he’d nearly exposed himself.
Originally, he wanted flying to be a surprise for Carol.
When the time came, her expression would definitely be priceless.
Unfortunately, smartphones didn’t exist yet.
Otherwise, he would’ve loved to record it.
As for how he knew clothes could get damaged while flying...
That story was painful to remember.
Back when he’d first discovered he could fly, he’d been so excited that he’d launched straight into the sky without thinking.
A second later, the rushing wind nearly tore his clothes apart.
By the time he landed, his shirt was ruined and his carefully styled hair looked like a bird’s nest.
Thinking about it now made him want to cry.
’The mistakes of youth...’
Daniel sighed inwardly.
’Seriously.’
’Why don’t I have a superhero suit?’
’No glasses, no suit, nothing!’
The resentment in his heart toward his incomplete Superman package remained surprisingly strong.
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