#I genuinely will look down on you if you drive dangerously and think you’re scum if you’re proud of it

[nocturneofrecollection]

I think mostly car culture but also the internet has irreparably stunted people’s ability and care to drive well it’s insane how many people will openly brag about being a dangerous driver like it’s fun and quirky and not something that gets people killed in the thousands every year. Some laws are unjust but i promise you distracted driving and speeding laws are there for a reason not just to make your day a teeeeny bit harder

[flickityfics]

The walk was absolutely silent for Sokka. Zuko was so stiff and awkward yet it was kind of adorable if we're being honest here. This dangerous violent guy was something else but Sokka couldn't let that sway him. It could all just be a ploy to stay under the radar and capture Aang. He had to things out of this fire nation scum and honestly his new predicament was a great blessing in disguise, he'll have to put his research to a back burner to unravel this teens's plans.

"So, I'm Miyuki from the southern water tribe." Sokka figured he didn't have to lie to elaborately.

"Um Lee, me and my uncle are refugees just trying to keep safe and have a peaceful place to stay." Zuko revealed. He wasn't really lying, he was tired of exhausting himself for his father, his honor, he just wanted to stop and be left alone peacefully serving tea at his uncle's tea shop.

"I understand that, the Fire Nation drove my family from our home to. They killed my mother, drove my father to join the war causing me to be left alone and leaving my village to take care of me til I left on my own." Sokka didn't want reveal having a sister or his gran gran. It would just be more complicated.

Zuko could only feel guilt and more anger towards his father and grandfather, they caused this to happen to this innocent girl and so many others and yet his nation also went along with them and saw no problem with this and let it happen anyways.

"They took my mother from me to." He admitted wanting to show Miyuki she wasn't so alone and needing to say it for himself. He needed to quit denying what suspicions he had of his father having a hand in driving her away.

Sokka looked at the somber looking fire bender and was shocked to keep seeing a different side of this teen. He felt his heart soften just a bit. He never thought of Zuko having any hardships honestly and if even he's being hurt by his father and fire nation then why fight for them? Why go on these violent rampages for Aang? Fire prince Zuko was such a mystery to him. He needed to push a bit more.

"I hate the Fire Nation. They're violent and scary." Sokka waited with his head down, hoping to come off as afraid to see how Zuko would respond.

Zuko gritted his teeth in anger but it quickly steamed into sadness. His family and nation caused this fear and loneliness into this girl he thought defeatedly.

"Well not all fire nation people think like the rest, they're just as afraid of their own nation sadly plus you wouldn't put all that hate on a fire nation child who isn't taught any better would you?" Zuko surprised himself with all that came from his own mouth. His Uncle was right, he's always surpressing himself and never expressing the things he needs to acknowledge.

"I-I never thought of it like that. You're right though, I guess I was being selfish and hateful towards the fire nation when I never bothered to see how it looks from the other side. But could you really blame me? It takes alot to forgive and strength to get past something like that, thank you for the eye opener still I wouldn't mind more talks like this with you."

"I understand. And ok." Zuko never had someone who genuinely wanted to listen to his opinions or feelings well besides his uncle and mother but this was different, they were family. He anxiously rubbed the back of his neck nervous to talk more to Miyuki yet happy to be able to have a girl maybe liking him? and showing actual interest unlike what he had with Mai. Miyuki was scary but refreshing and emotional and wild, he knows he feels an attraction to her but he doesn't know what to do with that annoyingly enough.

"Perfect." Sokka smiled up at Zuko. "Hey Lee, can I ask a question?"

"Sure." Zuko whispered turning red from the smile he was receiving.

"Are you a fire bender?" He questioned.

"Ah, no." Zuko's eyes widened in fear.

'Ah, guess he's not ready to reveal that just yet' Sokka thought.

"Then how did this happen?" Sokka then reached his hand to Zuko's scar lightly tracing it from his eye to the back of his ear.

"Please." This was to overwhelming for him, to fast he thought shutting shut his eyes to hold back his pain and shame.

Sokka's heart was breaking watching a lone tear trail down from Zuko's scarred eye. Things were starting to change his opinion about this confusing and broken fire prince.

He hesitantly reached out and wrapped his arms around the fire bender.

"Hush now Lee, you don't have to say anything you're not ready for."

Zuko regretfully pulled himself from Miyuki's arms.

"I'm sorry, I'm just sensitive about my scar. It's ugly." He sighed hating to admit his distaste for his disfigurement.

"No its not, I think it looks cool and wanna hear something that's inappropriate for girls to say?" Sokka didn't know where the line was anymore from flirting as a girl or having it genuinely coming from himself.

All Zuko could offer was a nod already shocked at his scar being something to be cool let alone hearing something inappropriate from a girl, it was unheard of.

"I wouldn't mind tracing along your entire scar with my tongue, giving gentle love bites all over it along with playful kisses to your face." 'shit' Sokka knew this was going weirdly fast and far, probably best to tone this way down.

"I-I" Zuki had no words to say, he felt hot all over and struck still.

"Hey Lee, we're here. Thanks for the walk back."

Hearing Miyuki's voice brought him back to action, he didn't even realize they finished walking let alone at what time he started to hold her hand. "Yeah, looks like that it seems. Uh.. have a goodnight?" He questioned, he had alot of things to question on his own way walk back to the tea shop.

"You too, I'll try to see you tomorrow after my errands." Sokka hurriedly walked away into the inn to his room never looking back once at zuko. He collapsed face down on the bed internally screaming, 'and why are my girl parts throbbing again?!?! What is this?!' Sokka just stayed in bed waiting for sleep to come since he had no idea what to do with this problem. It's probably best to write another letter to Suki again and the gaang now that he thought it about but after some sleep.

[blackfemmecharacterdependency]

13. A Shot in the Dark Part 1

Part One of the "Prologue" chapter.

This could have all been prevented. Had they just not brought it here. This could have gone smoothly. This could have succeeded, but instead of being on one accord and being on the same page, they had all taken various pages out of Simon Laurent’s book. 

“Do you think she’s dead?” Jalicia asked. “I heard at least 6 shots… you think he put them all into her?”

“Shut up, 227,” Sunny said.

“Oh, I’m 227 right now? We’re still on Date Night? Grace just got shot…” Sunny grabbed Jalicia by the collar and the younger one laughed a little bit. “You still tryin’ to be Grace when Grace isn’t here? Because, that’ll be a long ride, considering that she’s dead now.”

“I said shut up. Xan. Pull over.”

“That’s not protocol,” he said. 

“No, it isn’t. But, we were outside, and it wasn’t his home, so one of two things have happened, either he left her there to die, or someone has called for help. Either way, this is a different circumstance.”

“She wouldn’t want us to risk the operation for her.”

“NOW, you care about that? You didn’t care about that when you tried to make Simon an X, BEHIND her back!”

“That was the ONLY thing I cared about!” He hissed at Sunny. “And did I work alone? Was it ME that made her stop trusting her fucking team?”

Now, she grabbed his collar and he swerved the van. “Pull the motherfucking van over!” She growled. He obeyed. They switched seats and she circled back to where Grace had been shot. As suspected, there were police lights, an ambulance, the firetruck. The usual. She tried to pass by slowly and try to see. She couldn’t see Grace, but she did see a covering over an obviously dead body. Xander and Jalicia must have seen it when she did, because he yelped and Jalicia burst into tears. The workers were waving the van along, so she sped up only slightly, to not draw too much attention. Then, she saw him, standing with the police, talking… Simon.

Her breath hitched and she blinked away tears as she continued driving. Neither Xander nor Jalicia mentioned him, so she presumed that they hadn’t seen him. But she had. Now, it was time to regroup.

.

“Yoga and Meditation for Seasonal Depression with Sunny!” the community center board read when Simon stepped into the building with his mat and bag. She had been there for a while. He knew that, because he had too, only from the outside. She had a head full of faux locs that he hadn’t seen her sporting prior to whenever she made him think that she was Grace a few nights before. She saw him the moment he walked into the gym, but her expression was unreadable. He enjoyed that, to a certain degree. He did like that he didn’t have to feel as tense around her as Jalicia or Xander, but he had a feeling that he couldn’t be as relaxed around her as he was around Alexandria, and her little warning that night made him even more weary about the casual smile that she had on now. She was maybe like him… and he knew that he was nothing to toy around with, and would pay her the same reverence, until he understood her better. 

“Hi. I’ve never seen you in the community center before,” She said. She extended her hand, “Sunny.”

“Yeah, the sign says so,” he said, taking her hand and shaking it. They both held tight and shook firm, staring each other down, either trying to outshake or outsmile the other. And in a moment, they made the simultaneous decision to end both. “Is it okay that I’m not a regular? The post and fliers didn’t mention that it was a closed class.”

“It’s open. But, if it gets full and I see regulars…”

“I know my place,” he said. They both smiled again. 

“Well then, find yourself a spot on the floor. Looks like you’ve come prepared. Have you done this before?”

“No. But, I once tried capoeira at a country club.” She frowned. “I’m going to presume that look is because it’s an art form created by enslaved Africans. Trust me, I’ve gotten that speech already.” 

She rolled her eyes and pointed towards the door. “I’ve got other guests to greet. See you later, Monison?”

“What? Simon.”

“Right. If I forget again, I can always go with Surveillance Soccer Mom.”

“I’d prefer if you didn’t?”

“Your preference is… noted.” She cheerily went to greet the people coming in, who she seemed to know, because she hugged them and talked animatedly with them. It was different than how she’d handled him and reminded him again of Grace, and the way that she had a certain obligatory politeness that seemed to be taught and structured and perfected… Sunny had that too, only she was using what he’d called Grace’s “customer service manners” with  him, and the more natural pleasantries with the other people there. He wondered if she had made that choice on purpose, or if it was just a side effect of her not trusting him? At any rate, he noted that she didn’t immediately reach for her phone to alert Xander, the way that Jalicia had whenever she’d seen him enter her space. In fact, she hadn’t done so, even by the end of the class.

She wished several of them well, gave some info on upcoming things, and other warm and gentle dealings, until it was only she and Simon left in the room. Still, he noted, she didn’t get onto her phone. In fact, she seemed to be waiting for him after she packed up all of her things. He knew that she didn’t have to lock up, so he wondered why. She offered no insight. Just stared at him, with all of her things packed away and her bags on her shoulders. Still, no phone. 

Simon collected his things and went up to her, hoping that he could gain something from whatever their exchange was about to be. “I… you know who I am, right?” he asked. She threw her head back and cackled to the skies, echoing off of the gym walls until they were out in the cold of the air and her lungs felt the repercussions. “I now regret asking that.”

“I know who you are. That lackluster writer that has risen to popularity only because you’re in a package that can be rewarded for mediocrity. Timonthy Something.”

“Did you say Timonthy? TiMONthy?”

“I’d call you “Tim,” for short, but that’s one of my favorite characters from The Magnus Archives, and I don’t wanna blend that world with the one you’re a part of. Maybe I’ll say “Mon.”

He chuckled and put on ear muffs. “You seem really chill about me being here, is all. I thought that maybe you didn’t realize. The others are a little bit different about me.”

“Meh. Maybe if I was there, I’d feel differently. It isn’t like I’m not empathetic. I really am, and if the others feel threatened or anxious, I would never discount that for them, but I also have no firsthand experience with you that has given me any reason to personally hate or fear you and I don’t like to say it out loud too much, as it makes space for my loved ones to get really offended and upset, but the people who were there for whatever it is you supposedly did - I’m hesitant to take what they say at face value, because they can be very close minded. Grace isn’t trippin,’ so maybe they are.”

“Then, why did you threaten me?”

“If you read it as a threat, I can’t change that, but it does help to mold my opinion of you and what you’ve been doing to my good sis…”

He frowned and looked at the ground. “Well… when you put it that way, I guess it wasn’t threatening. I’m not a harm to her. I never have been. I don’t think that I could hurt her if I tried. She grew up on the streets. I was in one fist fight when I was 13, and it was mostly me just getting the shit kicked out of me and trying to shield myself.”

She laughed again, “I’ve been told you have that effect on people. What’d you do to get your ass kicked?” 

“I told people that I had a crush on a boy.” She immediately stopped laughing and felt bad. He shrugged his shoulders, “It got me sympathy points and my first boyfriend, so I can’t be too mad.”

“You can, if you choose to, but if you choose not to, I support that. It’s up to you.”

He looked at her and she seemed genuine. She seemed nice, despite him knowing that she was definitely on a murder team. “Okay, so if you’re not threatened or whatever the others are, why’d you come after me?”

“I didn’t come after you. If I had come after you, you’d be in the Field of Nulls. I gave you a chance to be free from that kind of destiny. It is never pretty. Never painless. Never without every bit of suffering that can be provided, and the death is slow and potentially terrifying. It’s death sentences that only the worst kind of scum gets to endure… You seem like high level scum. Just because you have poor impulse control, bad judgment in romance and a passionate death wish doesn’t mean you deserve what we do to people. And Grace shouldn’t have to worry about you, either.”

“The Field of Nulls,” Simon repeated.

“I think you know what that is.” She wasn’t smiling. In fact, she was staring at him with a threatening expression. “Personally, I’d have called it the Wormfood Wonderland. So far, only the Apex and the nulls know what it is. And you know what we do with the nulls.”

“Is that another name for your Xs?” This man’s curiosity blew her mind. She couldn’t tell whether he really was so curious about learning more secrets or if it was a defense mechanism to avoid fear of danger.

“Yes,” She said.  

He started to ask something else, but she waved a finger and said, “Aht aht aht. Have a good day, Salmonella.” 

“I refuse to answer to that one!” He said and huffed a little bit as she got into her car, which looked like a ladybug… like it was one of those red bugs, and she’d added spots, headlight eyelashes, a sunflower on the head, and various bumper stickers of witchy stuff and pro vagina sentiments… He furrowed his eyebrows at the I Heart My Vagina one and really wondered who the hell this woman was. Maybe he didn’t understand her at all… and if he couldn’t understand her, that would certainly make it harder for him to win her over or overthrow her. Either way… when her car started, some loud female rap music began, she tossed something out, and she took a few moments getting settled before she actually drove away. Simon watched her pull away and then looked down at her litter… It wasn’t litter. That was why she left it. He picked it up. It was a flier from his mom’s bistro and in curly q handwriting a message: “I SAID stop,” with a smiley face sticker.

He glared at the direction the car had gone in. She wouldn’t. They couldn’t. What would she do to his mom? Nothing. He didn’t believe her. His mom was an upstanding citizen in two countries, a local feminist icon, in a way - single mother and business owner who frequently allowed gatherings for rallies and stuff in her place of business, and a good, wholesome person. They didn’t even hurt that killer’s wife. There was no way that they would hurt his mother… But… He couldn’t risk it. He backed down. He wasn’t going to press Sunny. She was too mysterious… He… was afraid of her. Unlike the others, even Xander, whose weaknesses he saw, understood and could exploit in the face of danger.. He just couldn’t figure that out with Sunny.

From everything he took note of, she had… he didn’t know how to word it… nothing of value to her. Of course, she seemed like she loved her family and her friends, and the kids, but… she just read like an empty vessel, mimicking a loving daughter, friend, mentor. Even when she was around the yoga students that she seemed to genuinely like, he just felt like her energy wasn’t decipherable enough to throw caution to the wind. THIS. Was definitely a threat. 

He was frustrated after that. He went to the gun range. He spent a few days on a “detox” of sorts. He stayed away from Grace’s friends. He went to practice shooting, visited his mother, got chewed out by his literary agent, and went back to the bookstore coffee shop to try to focus on his book again. All he had at this point was a title: Beauty, Like the Knight… and the tentative synopsis that he bullshitted to Chloe, “She’s an avenging angel who slays child predators and stuff.”

“HOW is that urban?” She had demanded.

“They’re in a fucking city, Chloe,” he’d said, with a low coldness in his voice that she wasn’t used to and he certainly had never used that type of language with her before. The silence between them tipped him off that she was shocked and potentially upset, so he chuckled awkwardly and said, “I haven’t had coffee today, but I’m in the coffee shop. She’s on a quest to end a trafficking ring in an urban setting and… I don’t know, Chloe… I’ve got a lot of notes. I’ll produce an outline today.”

“Yeah. Yeah, okay… Simon, are you okay?”

“I went through a recent breakup… Should fuel my soul for creativity.”

“Oh. Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t even realize that you were involved with anyone. Well… I look forward to seeing what type of urban magic you create.”

He nodded and hung up. Urban Magic… He tilted his head at the screen. Maybe he  should add magic to the story. He shook his head. They didn’t WANT magic from him. Magic wasn’t selling recently. Maybe if he lollygagged long enough, he’d miss this wave of everybody trying to pretend to care about diversity by lazily including POC here and there or telling a tone deaf story, but dipping the language and/or characters in a little bit of color/culture that the writers didn’t understand or know… He sighed… And why did he even care to stay relevant in writing if he was going to be writing crap that he didn’t even care about?

But… he did care about her. He cared about her life. He cared about her story. He missed her and he missed the rush of having her there. But, he knew that he had to make the choice and currently, that choice was that he loved his mom and Grace refused to be around him. Her friends were keeping them apart, but if even one of them would hurt his mother in the process, he had to let go of this remarkable fantasy where this beautiful deadly knight falls in love with a sensible prince, no matter how much he was willing to give to her in the process. Besides, he’d never done this before - let himself be so taken up with someone that he shirked all reason and rationale to know them and to love them… So, Simon decided to move on.

It “worked” for a little while. For a few weeks, he stopped following them, stopped watching, and even got back into the habit of focusing on work and stuff. He was sending Tulip massive therapy checks and whenever his 26th birthday rolled around, he tried to enjoy himself. He and his mom went to Minnesota to visit Tulip and her mom for both his birthday, Christmas and New Year, since those were all three so close and the Olsens were like their family. He opened his social media back up and was regarded with a lot more online love than he had for the weeks he had been set to private, hoping to weed her out. She was gone. He had to just accept it.

Except… he couldn’t deny himself one indulgent little search. It was his birthday, and he had resisted for weeks! That was very big of him, considering that most of his year had been spent focused on her and her alone and this was ONE day where he should have been able to just try to peek and see if anybody saw what she was doing on today… And… she was back…

He saw an account come up in her name on one of the social media platforms “Grace St. Catherine Artwork” and… he was now scrolling through her photos while everyone was having cake… She had artwork she was posting. The Saint and The Shadow… They seemed to be foils, but no… no, no… He understood it better than most of the people giving the works likes. That static figure in the background of the heroine in these images wasn’t an enemy, lurking around her… it was an extension of who she was in the light… and some of them even had a face… His face. She was really good, even though she “dabbled,” according to her. But, she “dabbled” in a lot of things that she wound up being pretty good at. He wanted to go through and like them all, but he was so afraid she might vanish again… and even though he was supposed to just be checking, a small indulgence for his birthday… he knew the moment that he saw a video of her drawing vigorously while Hazel walked around on the desk and read the caption, “Thinking about my ex on his birthday and making what I would have given him. Not gonna show you all, but that’s what I’m doing. 😝” and he noticed that it had been posted today… he felt like he was falling down a dark chute that led him directly back into his deepest feelings. 

“Oh, he’s on Grace’s page,” he heard his mother say and it snapped him back into the room. He looked up and Tulip was staring at him in concern, Mikayla, in confusion and Aunt Meg gave him a sympathetic look. His mother kissed him on his hair and squeezed his shoulder, “We can do gifts later.”

“No. No… I’m good.” He smiled and Tulip noted that it was a different one than the one that he had earlier. She couldn’t tell which one was more painful to look at, that empty one from when they arrived, or this one laced in emotion that she just… worried about.

Whenever she found him later, she reminded him, “You said that you two were over.”

He nodded, “We are,” he said and Tulip knew that he never lied on purpose, but he sometimes… lied to himself and fully believed it. It was fine before Grace, but all she could do now was be afraid for him and his… delusions of grandeur.

“I thought she gave up social media.”

“I guess she felt comfortable enough to return. It’s just a business page, though. Well.. An art page. But, it looks like she sells her work. That’s cool. Good for… good for her.”

“Simon, please promise me that you won’t get yourself entangled in this woman again…”

He frowned and turned to look at her, “No.”

“Simon.”

“I’m not going to promise you anything about her. I can’t. I don’t like to lie, and… I just don’t know. I don’t know what I’m going to do when it comes to her. I never meant to become obsessed. I’ve never stalked anybody. I never… was the person that my emotions for her turns me into. I can’t make any promises anymore, Tools. Not about her.” She sighed and wanted to cry, but also didn’t want to in front of him. He patted her on the back, absentmindedly and went back inside. 

After the holidays, whenever he got back into town, he’d successfully been ONLY watching Grace’s one art social media page (not officially following it, either) and had been “off” of watching her friends or engaging in their business for almost two months! He was proud of himself. He wondered if that was why when he got home, there was a jumbo envelope outside of his door with no postmark and HAPPY BIRTHDAY in big letters and familiar script. He picked it up and opened it before even unlocking his door, neglecting his luggage bag now to see this artwork, drawn onto cloth, of him curiously reaching out for a rose, meanwhile its thorns were wrapping around him and even cutting into his flesh. His face is enamored and the rose is wilting. He looks like if he can just touch it, he believes that at least one of them, or perhaps both might be saved… Or… maybe he looked like if he could just touch it that one of them or both might perish… So, he didn’t really know what message she wanted him to comprehend from it. He guessed that would depend on perspective, and in either… he still needed to touch her. 

.

Simon messaged the art account, “I don’t understand. Why are you doing this to me? I stopped. I left you alone. I let you go… Why are you torturing me? Is this what it felt like to you? Are you punishing me for wanting you too much? For giving up on you and moving on? Please… just… tell me what you need me to do…”

Sunny sighed and held her forehead, then looked at Xander, “What is it that you need him to do?”

Xander rubbed his hands together, thinking to himself, then said, “Arrange a meeting for him, in the Field, since he fucking knows about it now. Make him come alone and… I’ll handle it from there.” Sunny bit her lip and stared at the screen. “Come on, Sunny. You’re the only one that might be able to fool him. He’s too skilled in Grace for any way that I might type it up to actually sound like her. You capture her perfectly. He obviously believes that this is her page.”

“That’s mostly on the strength of Xandria copping her art style. This just… This is going further than what you initially said we were doing, which was figuring out if he really had moved on or if he was just waiting for an opening to come for her again… It feels like we CREATED an opening that he wasn’t waiting for. If you would have told me about the birthday present, I never would have agreed to this.”

“Sunny…” Xander kneeled in front of her and cupped her face, “I would never ask you to do anything that you don’t believe in and I won’t ask you to do anything else for me, ever. But, I  have to protect her and I have to protect all of us. He’s dangerous.”

“I don’t think that he is, Xan…”

“He IS!” He rolled the chair aside and began to type, hoping that maybe Simon was too shaken up to note any differences. “I think we need to face each other and finally settle things, good or bad… I’m not going to live in fear. I’ve done that already.”

Simon wiped away tears, “There’s nothing to fear. I just… Okay. Let’s meet, then. Remember our last date night?”

Xander blinked and looked at Sunny, “Do you know what that means? Is this code? Did she have CODE with him???”

Sunny shrugged her shoulders and shook her head, “He was her official alibi for a few months, just in case, so maybe it’s something to do with that. She’d definitely remember though, and he’ll definitely know that she wouldn’t have forgotten a detail like that.” She folded her arms and watched Xander type.

“I do. But, that’s not what I want. I want it on MY terms. You’ve controlled enough without my permission. Meet me in the place that you weren’t supposed to be.”

Simon suspiciously looked at the message. That could mean anything and while Grace was very vague at times, he usually knew exactly what she was vaguing about... “Your apartment?” he asked. “The storage unit? Where is this place that you’re talking about?”

Xander frowned, “I think he’s made me. Sunny… You have to help.”

“I literally don’t.”

“If he figures out that this is a set up, he’ll react and it’ll be bad.”

“Then just say “Sorry, I can’t do this. I’ve gotta go,” and leave him the fuck alone.”

“NO! I can’t do THAT.”

Sunny rolled the chair back in front of the computer and typed out, “Huh. I was told that you and my Left Hand discussed this place whenever you last saw each other. She was… compelled to give you some advice on the subject.”

“Oh…” He frowned. If she wanted him to come to the Field of Nulls, maybe he understood this drawing, after all… She didn’t think that she could come home unless he was gone. She intended to kill him. He let tears fall down his face. She betrayed him. He knew that she was upset and that she wanted distance, but he never would have thought she would take it this far. He responded, “I don’t like this Grace. It feels like I’ll be harmed. I’m going to have to set up some insurance. If something happens to me, I’ll have to have someone… release things. Are you okay with agreeing to this?”

Xander hissed, “Shit!” Sunny stared at him. At any moment, he could just admit defeat, confess to Grace and work on fixing her anger about it. “Reply something, please?”

She sighed and typed, “Do whatever makes you feel safe. You should know that I wouldn’t hurt you, but I understand why you’re leery.”

This was… oddly trusting, but suspiciously selfish. Grace would begrudgingly agree to do their last Date Night alibi and take upon the potential danger to her group all on herself. As much as it hurt him to know it, she would NEVER allow even the idea of putting them in danger, not for anything, not even him. And… to just contact him and then do so, out of nowhere, when he hadn’t been bothering any of them or her in months? He looked at the artwork again. He began to look through artwork that he had salvaged of hers and he found one that he remembered, of him. He checked it against this one and wow, this was elaborate as hell of a plan and ALMOST got him, but… that wasn’t Grace’s work. It was beautiful, and he loved the whatever the message was or the warning… but, somebody else had made this. He wondered if they had forged the “Happy Birthday,” or if Grace had actually written it, and if she had, had it been for this? That didn’t seem likely. “If you don’t meet me at our last Date Night in 30 minutes, I’m going to set the wheels in motion.”

Sunny tossed her hands in the air. “He made us. You’d better come clean to him and to Grace.”

“It’ll take me less than 30 minutes to get to his house and kill his ass,” Xander said, grabbing a bat with nails hammered into it.

“You can’t be serious. Grace is gonna…”

“Forgive me! Grace is gonna forgive me for fucking up and fixing my mistake!” Xander fussed. Sunny tried to stop him and he snapped at her, “You’re wasting my time! He’s gonna rat on us to the police!” She moved aside, hurt and scared, but when he pulled off, she called Grace. This was going too far and even if he DID successfully kill Simon, he was going to definitely be fucking arrested and thrown into prison for the rest of his life. 

“Grace, this is an emergency. Xander is going after Simon.”

Grace KNEW it was true, because even though Sunny was playful, she wouldn’t play like this and this was the first time that she had ever said his name right. “Warn him,” Grace said first. Sunny typed it into the messages, as Grace added, “And explain it to me.”

After the 15 minutes it took Sunny to explain everything, from the warning Simon to stop, Xander being paranoid that he was still out there, watching and waiting, the fake art page, the gift, the ruse and tonight’s messaging, Grace was already heading for the airport. Xander was going to lose his shit, but Grace was losing hers and Sunny could tell that there was gonna be hell to pay whenever she got back. 

It was hours later that Xander came back home, and Sunny wasn’t there. Jalicia was asleep, but he woke her up and went over it with her. He had gotten a call from Grace. She found out about him spearheading his first executive decision to take Simon out while she was in Canada and she was on her way… She pulled rank on him, and she was probably going to kill him… to… to actually choose this null over him… “She’s unfit to lead, right? She’s… she’s fucking lost it, right? RIGHT?”

Jalicia pulled him into a hug and let him cry on her, “Grace would never hurt you, Xander. Your paranoia is just messing with your mind. Grace would never, ever hurt you.”

“She’s choosing him over us. He threatened us. He said he would turn us over and she’s going to give him what he wants? She’s going to just LET him use her like a puppet? She’s let him void out every part of her that has made her the champion we put all of our trust into!”

Jalicia knew Sunny’s routine enough to remember which tea to make, which grass to smoke, which songs to play and Xander eventually fell to sleep in her bed, crying over it all.

.

Grace called Simon and he picked up, while at her old apartment. “It's me,” she said.

“Hey… Was it you? Before?”

“No, but I’ve been caught up to speed. Where are you now?” He said the address and she froze, “My old apartment?”

“Yeah. I figured that 808 would be less likely to set my headquarters on fire if they were here. The damage that might be done to uninsured neighboring apartments and all that. The thing is that I was trying so hard to get over you and to give you space and they just… didn’t let me. This shouldn’t be allowed. They shouldn’t be allowed to do this to me…”

“Well… Let’s call it even for your previous violations.” They were silent. “Please, Simon. If you ever cared about me, don’t hurt them…”

“Why does..?” he groaned so loudly it scared her. “Why does EVERYONE act like I’M the dangerous person? I’m THE ONLY person in this entire situation who ISN’T fucking dangerous!” He took a deep breath and shook his head, “Sorry, that was unfair, and I’m sorry.”

“You said that you were going to turn them in if I didn’t come to see you.”

“I knew that wasn’t you. They… still don’t know you as well as they think that they do and if they do know, they certainly can’t translate it properly. I wouldn’t hurt them or you, I was just testing to see if they would tell me the truth.” He heard a knock on the door and he froze. 

“Are you gonna let me in?” she wondered. He thought about grabbing his gun, just in case she didn’t believe him and in case that wasn’t her and she had actually sent Xander, after all… but… why go through all of this for that? He looked through the peephole and she was there. He wanted to open it and throw his arms around her, but what if she wasn’t alone? What if she had a syringe and the van was right around the corner? Oh God… He was doubting her. He was afraid now. Xander had won, in a way. He didn’t want to open the door. “Simon, are you in the apartment, or not?”

“How do I know that you aren’t coming here just to finally get rid of your stalker problem?”

“I guess you don’t know that anymore than I know if tomorrow morning, I’ll have a bigger stalker problem than I had yesterday. It's up to you whether you trust that I’m here to try to fix things or whether you break my trust and hurt my friends.” He opened the door and glanced up both hallways before stepping out, but she pushed passed him and went inside of the apartment. It was similar to the storage, but somehow more haunting in a home setting. Her face everywhere and all of the information and surveillance reorganized. She sat on the couch with the Grace mannequin/doll.. Which was now more detailed than before and also now wearing clothes she’d left behind. She raised an eyebrow and shook her head.

“I was never going to hurt you.”

“I know,” she said. 

“I… don’t know what’s wrong with me. I don’t know why I did this. Why I took it so far.”

“I do.” 

He sat down between her and the mannequin, “Because I let you and I encouraged you. I wasn’t sure, but I surely had my thoughts and I liked them. I liked my thoughts of you being so into me that you would follow me around or watch me for a long time, even obsess over my photos and hang on my every word. I don’t know what the fuck love is supposed to look like, in a normal setting. I thought maybe that was one of those things… that this was how it was supposed to be if he was really into you and then, I indulged in the thought of somebody loving me and wanting to serve me, not because we had endured shit together, or because I pledged revenge in their name or I saved them, but just because I’m me. I wanted to be special. I’ve always wanted to be the love of somebody’s life. Even when I was little, before I… before the Apex…. The FIRST Apex, I never had the love that I craved and thirsted for. I suppose those years didn’t teach me much. Because I still managed to get inside of a pretty carriage with a nice man and head directly into disaster.”

“It's not your fault. You didn't ask for anything, and even if you wanted me to... I made a choice and you never knew for sure how far I took it all. But... Please tell me you don’t think that I’m so bad? As that man? That this disaster is like that one...” He looked like he might cry and she reflexively took his hand. They smiled at each other. He exhaled and squeezed her hand, “I found him,” he said.

“What?” she asked, laughing a little and confused about the random turn in the conversation. 

His face turned serious, and hers followed, matching the expression. “I  found  him.” She was still confused, but suddenly apprehended by stress as Simon moved to grab an envelope much like the ones that she got from the flower shop, like the one that he gave Jalicia. He was saying words that didn’t make sense. Stuff like, “Outside of their territories, city limits, neighboring towns news,” and so on and as she pulled out a mugshot of a man who obviously had seen better days, a flood of emotions came rushing over her. This man in the photo, years older, and a lot of stress later, but it was undeniable. She had forgotten certain details, but her body had definitely remembered them in the trauma it stored. If she took off some years, added some money, and a big bright pinky ring, it was him. This was the man that took her. 

This was the man that stole her life and gave her this awful destiny that made it so hard for her to love… She looked at Simon, and he helped her flip through the pages, because she couldn’t. 

This man was arrested not too long after she disappeared, and whenever he got out, he went to a half way house and reentered society… all in a span of time before she ever got back home… He had moved on and lived past it while she had still been in it. The sound that erupted from her was terrifying, but Simon refused to react to it.  Instead, he set the information aside and took her hands into his. 

“I was going to give it to them and try to lure you back to me, but whenever they threatened my mom, I,” he sounded ashamed to even admit it. “I chose her…” 

“They threatened your mom?” Grace asked. “God, Xander spiraled…”

“No, not him, the girlfriend.”

“Alexandria? She’s been out of the…” She stopped, seeing something regretful in his face. Her heart broke. “Sunny?”

“I didn’t know if she meant it, but I couldn’t take the chance. It wasn’t like she knew that I had this, but I wanted to avoid something happening to Mom. I love my mom.”

Grace shook her head, “She wouldn’t have, but, she might have let Xander, if he went for it. She’s… she wouldn’t have, but she didn’t tell me… She told me everything, I thought, but she left that part out. Would she have?”

“Xander making murder attempts, Sunny making immoral threats, do they even… still acknowledge you as their leader, or has the mission changed?” He asked. He wasn’t being manipulative, this time. He was actually very concerned. Because, if the Apex thought that Grace was turning on them… If they thought she was a threat to everything they’d built, or unfit to lead… if they thought that she was a danger to them all…

“I have to go…” She said, collecting the information and leaving the apartment. “Don’t follow me,” she said. “I mean it.”

“I’ve learned my lesson,” he said, choking down the anger of rejection and the disgust of her rushing into potentially dangerous arms with what he thought might be the most important thing she had ever been given in her life! 

Her eyes were soft upon him as she hugged the information to her chest. “Thank you, Simon.”

His anger was gone. He came over and gave her a hug. “You… remember our last Date Night, don’t you?”

She scoffed and laughed, “Duh. That romantic ass shit. Why?” 

“I just… hoped you had.” He smiled at his feet, “You didn’t tell them.”

“I mean, I didn’t tell them any of them. It would be easier to just tell them if the need arose, than to give them several to potentially stumble over. To be honest, it was a shame it was fake. That’s the kind of thing…” She bit her lip and now she looked at their shoes. “That was around the time that I knew how I felt about you.” She turned and left quickly, not offering how she felt. She… knew that he probably knew. He knew everything else about her.

.

Grace felt like an outsider here. Maybe it was the time she spent in the safe house, maybe it was the fact that two of these three people had kept secrets from her and tried to lie to her, whether in her personal interest, or theirs… she hated it, but she also would forgive them. They were held together by interweaving threads. Even if she didn’t fully trust them right now, what could she do? Do this shit without them? Unlikely. And there was the whole matter of Simon. She hadn’t seen him since she had been back. Sometimes, she thought that she felt him watching, but she was always too afraid to turn around to check. More afraid that he might not be there than the thought that he might. 

The X was taking the trash out in the alley, the way he tended to do around this time at the place that he worked as a custodian. Sunny felt conflicted about it, since he hadn’t been a criminal in years. Jalicia felt like the group needed to heal before trying to do a job like this. Xander was willing to do anything to get into Grace’s… well… her good graces. Grace was out for blood and feeling betrayed that only Xander seemed as bloodthirsty about this as she did, and that even this seemed fabricated for her pleasure! 

They had gone over Jalicia’s tactical plan, and it should have been a breeze to pick him up, but whenever Grace got out of the van and to wait and the van was still, in the darkness, the man was cautious. There were no businesses doing anything in the alley at this time of night and he knew that a van meant criminal activity. He didn’t want to get involved and tried to rush back in. Grace knew that the door would lock, so she rushed upon him and when she did, he was prepared and shot her right in the abdomen. 

Should she have known to not rush him like that? Of course. Could she rationalize in the moment that she did? Not really. And whenever Xander started the van, Sunny opened the door to try to grab Grace, but the X was pointing the gun at the van now and Xander swerved out of panic and Sunny couldn’t catch hold of her. The other shots fired and Sunny screamed, unable to see behind the van, but presuming of course, that he finished Grace off, unless he had been firing at the van and simply missed every shot. She didn’t know what the hell had just happened, but Xander was still driving and crying, and not seeming to turn around and mow that motherfucker with this thing. 

.

Simon was out of his car by the time she was shot, his own gun drawn and his heart racing as everything happened much too fast for him to save her from what happened. The first gunshot rang through the night and he watched Grace fall and the van start. They were going to leave her. OF COURSE they were. That’s what they DID. But, he wasn’t going to. He could hardly see the shadow moving and shot him first in the back of the neck, but once the body fell he advanced on him, continuing to fire into him until he emptied the gun and reached Grace. She was unresponsive. It was too dark. He could see a little bit, but the security lights on the outside of most of these buildings hadn’t been changed in a while and the nearest one only gave him a little, so he made sure that she knew it was him. He turned on the flashlight of his phone and found the wound to try to stop the bleeding. He was on the phone and writing something on her hand, and trying to hold it together, but he couldn’t. He was crying and confessing on the phone to having shot someone. They were thinking he meant that he shot the woman he was calling about, but he managed, “No. No… Not her… I love her. I shot him. I’m sure I killed him.” 

He wasn’t crying because he killed someone, though maybe later, that would hit him harder. He was crying because all he had ever wanted to do was help her, save her, protect her, and it was his fault that she was dying in his arms. It was his fault… and she had just gone unconscious...

14. A Shot in the Dark Pt.2

[endlesshero1122]

Heat Wave (Hero Fanfic Chapter 5)

All rights go to Pixelberry. I only own my MCs. Sorry for the long post. Enjoy!

@ladyseaheart1668 @endlessflame @toglidethroughlife @mariussage @countrymusicandncis-blog @sceptilemasterr

On the other side of town, a small squad of police cruisers pursued the black getaway van through the city streets. The young man in the leather jacket swore under his breath as one of the cruisers rammed into the side of the van, forcing it into a dead end. The rest of the cruisers crowded behind the van, effectively blocking the exit.

“We’ve got you cornered!” one of the cops called out as they got out of their cars.

“Well, no shit!” the man called back sarcastically.

The cops readied their guns in response. “Come out slowly with your hands up!”

The door opened an inch…

Then another…

Then another…

Then another…

Then another…

Then another…

Then another…

Then another…

“What the hell is taking so long?!”

“You said slowly!”

The door was forcefully jerked open before a hand grabbed a fistful of the man’s shirt and threw him onto the pavement. He grunted in pain as he pushed himself up to his knees only to receive a swift kick to the ribs.

“Think you’re being funny, smart ass?”

In spite of his pain, the man smirked. “A little.”

“Still don’t know how to respect your superiors, do ya, kid?” another cop snarled as the rest of the squad circled around him.

The man’s face twisted into an ugly scowl as he glared up at the cop. “It’s Caleb, and you’re not my superior!”

A third cop lunged at him, driving his fist into Caleb’s stomach. The others laughed as Caleb sank to his knees, gasping for air.

“We’re the ones who have the power,” the first cop sneered as the rest took turns beating Caleb down. “And you’re just one of the pieces of trash that we have to clean off the streets.”

“You’re nothing,” a third cop growled as he backhanded Caleb across the face. “Nothing but a pathetic nobody no one wanted. Bet no one would notice if you just happened to disappear tonight…”

Neither of them noticed the crystal hidden in Caleb’s jacket began to pulse with an otherworldly glow; the light grew brighter as his blood boiled with hate and anger.

He groaned in pain and doubled over; something inside him was burning as if a fire was growing inside him. It burned brighter and brighter until…

“What the hell?!”

Caleb looked down at his hands as they burst into flames. The fire continued to spread across his skin until his entire body was ablaze. Caleb stared down at his hand curiously; the flames weren’t burning him or causing him any sort of pain for that matter. In fact, he felt strangely at ease. A wicked grin curved his lips as he turned towards the cops. The sight of them quaking with feel gave him a sense of pleasure.

“You scum always use your power to oppress those weaker than you. You fill them with fear, bringing them to their knees, putting them at your mercy.”

He raised his hand, the flames burning so brightly they were almost white.

“Now it’s your turn.”

**

The Next Morning

**

“Man, I never loved coffee so much in my life!” Dax sighed as he downed his fifth cup of coffee.  Kameron smirked as he slowly sipped his third cup while Marjorie and Santiago watched in astonishment. The four of them had decided to meet up at their favorite coffee house, Starbeans Coffee, for their morning break. Alyssa was not present due to leaving with Grayson earlier that morning to meet the candidate for the position of manager at the old cabaret the former had recently purchased.

“How can you two stand to drink that much? You’ll be up all night!”

“In case you haven’t noticed, Santiago, that’s kinda the point,” Kameron stated. “Working late nights is no joke, especially after what happened last Friday.”

“I still feel it’s unnecessary for you to work overtime,” Marjorie said, giving Kameron a pointed look. “After all, you do have… other responsibilities.”

Kameron frowned. He didn’t miss Marjorie’s subtle hint.

“Alyssa knows how to get home safely. She’s always been able to take the train and call or text me right when she gets home. Besides, it’s not like she’s helpless. I gave her pepper spray and showed her a few basics that she can use to defend herself.”

“Please. The girl jumps when she sees her own shadow and has clumsiness down as an art,” Marjorie scoffed, though there was a slight quiver to her voice. “Besides, I highly doubt she would use those ‘basics’ even if her life depended on it.”

“I gotta side with Marjorie on this,” Santiago spoke, his face grim with concern. “We all know Alyssa’s too gentle to hurt anyone. Hell, she wouldn’t even hurt a fly! And I mean that literally; you all remember her first day at Prescott Industries, don’t you?”

“Mmm, yes; she spent an hour shooing that fly out of the building,” Marjorie chuckled. “And that butterfly a month later… and that ladybug about two months after that.”

“Don’t forget about that baby bird from last week,” Dax cut in. “She waited outside with it until its mother came looking for it.”

Kameron rolled his eyes. “Okay, okay, message received. Alyssa is a cinnamon roll who’s too pure for this world, what else is new?”

“We’re serious, Kameron,” Marjorie snapped. “I’m only hard on the girl because I have to be, but all of us, including me, worry about your sister.”

“And for good reason,” Santiago growled lowly, nodding towards the TV in the corner. Kameron and the others followed his gaze as the news switched to the topics of supers.

“A man of stone, then bronze, and now one on fire, all of whom appeared out of nowhere just last night,” the news anchor was reporting; Kameron and Dax exchanged worried glanced at the mention of the ‘man on fire’. “With these three supers roaming freely through the streets, we have to wonder: how many more of them are out there, and are they a threat to public safety?”

“Wait, why would they say Tombstone is ‘roaming freely’?” Dax asked Kameron in a hushed tone. “The cops apprehend him and his crew, didn’t they?”

Kameron glanced discreetly at Marjorie and Santiago; their attention was diverted to the news segment, completely tuned out of the private conversation between the two engineers.

“I honestly doubt there’s a cell the police force has that could hold Tombstone for long,” he answered, careful to keep his voice down. “Even without his powers, he has military training; at the very least, he’d know to pick a lock. The Man on Fire, on the other hand…”

Dax gave a halfhearted shrug. “Maybe he’s friendly…?” he suggested unconvincingly.

Kameron gave him a skeptical look before the two turned back to the TV; the news reporter, Katherine, had shoved the microphone right in DA Meiko Katsaros’s face. Kameron honestly didn’t blame the DA for looking slightly annoyed by Katherine’s obvious lack of respect for personal space.

“DA Katsaros, you just instituted a new campaign against these supers,” Katherine was saying. “Are you sure the police force is up to the challenge?”

Meiko took a deep breath, most likely trying to swallow her irritation, before answering in a cool, firm tone.

“I understand the public’s concern with the police force’s capabilities to handle these super criminals, especially given the fact that a small group of officers was hospitalized after encountering the so-called ‘Man on Fire’—”

“Ooookay, definitely not friendly,” Dax shuddered.

“—but rest assured that we will be working tirelessly to return this city to order. And as for these vigilantes…” Meiko’s expression hardened. “I’d advise you to stay out of our way and let the police do their job. I don’t care if you’re made of bronze, steel, or flesh and bone: your powers do not put you above the law. Try not to forget that, unless you would like to be branded as a criminal.”

Genuine shock crossed Katherine’s face. “But don’t you think it would make more sense for superheroes to fight super-villains? I mean with Talos around to protect us--”

“The police are the ones who protect Northbridge,” Meiko hissed, silencing Katherine’s feeble attempts to sway her opinion. “Powers or no powers, Talos and others like him should decide whether to respect the law or be persecuted. That is my final say on the matter.”

The coworkers turned to face each other as the camera cut back to the news anchor.

“You see why we’re worried?” Santiago stressed to Kameron. “The city is dangerous enough with the rising crime, and now you want Alyssa walking home by herself after dark with super-powered maniacs are running around causing mayhem at free will?!”   

Kameron had to agree with Santiago. Powers or no powers, he didn’t like the idea of Alyssa walking home alone.

Marjorie let out an audible sigh and shook her head. “Even so, these people are dangerous, and we’re only aware of those three so far… the only thing putting me at ease is that one seems to be on our side.”

“You mean that Talos guy?” Santiago snapped, his face hardening. “If you ask me, he’s worse than those other two; parading around, acting like he’s king of the world with his powers. I doubt he hardly cares about the public’s safety as much as cares about the attention he’s getting! People with egos like that are dangerous, especially when others get caught in the middle!”

Once again, Kameron found himself agreeing with Santiago. Not only did Talos take credit for apprehending Tombstone, something his sister was injured for, but he soaked up the fame and glory like a narcissistic celebrity rather than a hero.

“Maybe you guys are right,” he conceded. “There are criminals with superpowers appearing overnight, the police don’t have the means to keep them contained, and the only guy who isn’t tearing the city apart is too busy posing for the cameras to bother actually trying to protect anyone… much less my sister.”

Dax placed a hand on Kameron’s back. “Kameron…”

“I already lost my dad… I can’t lose Alyssa, too.”

Santiago and Marjorie exchanged troubled glances as Kameron gazed emptily into his unfinished cup of coffee. Suddenly, despite his new super strength and bulletproof skin, he felt small and helpless… just like he did when he sat by Alyssa’s bed at the hospital. Was he enough to keep her safe… was he ever?

“I… I think we should head back to work,” Marjorie spoke softly.

The others turned to her as she stood up, straightening herself out.

“There’s still plenty to do, and worrying about the future isn’t going to change anything. We’re all just going to have to adapt and hope for the best… after all, that’s all we can do.”

***

Meanwhile, Grayson pulls his car up the curb in front of The Grand. He turned off the engine before stepping out of his car and circling around to open the door for Alyssa, who was fidgeting nervously.

“Are you sure I look okay?” she asked Grayson as she tried to straighten out the invisible wrinkles in her clothes.

Instead of her usual work outfit, she was wearing a mid-sleeve yellow shirt with a white laces collar and a navy blue skirt decorated with yellow flowers that matched her top. Her hair had been woven into a braid that fell past her shoulder, which she stroked nervously as she followed Grayson to the door.

“You look fine, Alyssa,” he assured her. “And you don’t have to impress anyone.”

“But what if he doesn’t like me?”

Grayson smiled softly. “I can’t imagine why he wouldn’t. It’s impossible not to adore you.”

Alyssa smiled shyly and bowed her head as Grayson took out the key and opened the doors. The two were immediately assaulted by a thick cloud of dust, causing them to cough and cover their eyes as they blindly staggered into the building.

“Guess the —ack!— guess the place hasn’t been cleaned out in a while,” Grayson coughed as he waved the dust away.

Alyssa copied him and looked around the room. The dust was by far the least of their worries. A few floorboards were missing, leaving gaping holes while broken stools, tables, and old posters laid scattered what was left of the floor; for Alyssa, it was no different than a maze of land mines. The scraps of wallpaper that clung to the walls were fading in color and peeling away. Whatever part of the walls the paper no longer covered wore thick coats of grime, along with the aged curtains that framed the stage. The bar was littered with empty, dusty glass bottles and the chandelier above them had come loose from its hanging, swinging just mere inches above their heads.

“It’s kinda sad that something this important to the town was just left to fade away,” Alyssa spoke as she carefully stepped around the gaps in the floor. “I’m glad we’re bringing back to help people around here— whoa!”

Alyssa gave a startled yelp as she tripped over the leg of a fallen stool. Grayson whirled around to catch her, but someone else beat him to it.

“Careful, now!”

Strong arms wrapped around Alyssa’s waist, pulling her close to a well-built frame of a young man. She tentatively looked up at his face, heat flooding her face as she gazed into a familiar pair of grey eyes.

The DA’s son flashed her the same dazzling smile he had when she fell into his arms at the gala, chuckling in amusement.

“Huh… déjà vu.”

Alyssa stammered a quick apology as she pulled away from him, her face flushing from embarrassment.

“Alyssa, this is Kenji Katsaros,” Grayson said, carefully stepping around the stool. “He was at the gala with his mother, Meiko Katsaros, the District Attorney.”

Alyssa nodded mutely, refusing to look Kenji in the eye or at all; she remembered their first encounter all too well.

“Kenji, this is Alyssa, my executive assistant. I take it you’ve already met…?”

Alyssa risked a peak up at Kenji, only to quickly whip her head back down when he shot her a playful smirk. “We might’ve… bumped into each other at the gala.”

Alyssa pressed her lips together to prevent herself from wailing in despair.

Grayson gave her a sympathetic look before turning his attention to Kenji. “I know the place doesn’t look like much, but with some hard work and TLC, we can get this place back to its former glory.”

She peaked back up at Kenji as he cocked an eyebrow at Grayson, giving him a wry grin.

“Its former glory? Why stop there when this place can be so much more?”

Grayson smirked. “You could make it much more… if you’re interested in the job. I hired a remodeling crew to clean up the place, its reputation is your responsibility. That is if you can handle it.”

Kenji’s lips curled into a cocky smirk. “Is that a challenge?”

“... Maybe.”

Kenji’s eyes gleamed. “In that case, I’ll consider your offer. Though we do need to discuss a few things first… my rate, in particular.”

“Well, in that case, I’ll let you discuss that with Alyssa,” Grayson replied as he placed a hand on Alyssa’s shoulder.

The young girl looked up at him with wide, frightened eyes. “Wait, what do you--”

“I gave Alyssa ownership of the club, so you’ll be working with her directly if you accept the job.”

Kenji smirk grew wider as his eyes rested on Alyssa. “Well, that does sound tempting…”

Alyssa flushed furiously as Grayson gave Kenji a faint smile.

“Oh, believe me; it’s a privilege to be able to work with her. I have to head back to the office, so I just need to have a quick work with Alyssa before I go.”

Kenji gave him a slight nod before walking over to one of the booths in the far corner. Once he was out of earshot, Grayson turned to Alyssa.

“I’m really sorry to drop this on you, but I do need to get back to Prescott Industries,” Grayson said quickly. “I’m all for hiring Kenji, but I’d appreciate it if you could convince him to lower his rate. Think you can handle it?”

Alyssa glanced nervously at Kenji, biting her lip nervously. “I guess…”

Grayson gave her a reassuring smile. “You’ll do fine. I gotta go now, but I called Poppy earlier to take you home, okay?”

Alyssa gave him a small nod. After giving her a quick hug, Grayson headed out of the building, leaving Alyssa alone with Kenji.

Kenji smiled up at her as she cautiously approached the booth he was resting in. “Hey.”

“Hi…” Alyssa muttered softly, fidgeting with her hands nervously.

Kenji nodded towards the seat in front of him, inviting her to sit down. Once she was seated, he gave her a playful smirk. “So… shall we begin?”

“Um, s-sure,” Alyssa agreed. “I… I, uh… w-well, you should know that Grayson has other candidates in mind for the job.”

“Is that so?”

Alyssa nodded, hoping she was convincing. “Y-yeah. And compared to them, you obviously have less experience with handling this type of job.”

Kenji arched an eyebrow at her. “So, what you’re saying is that I’m up against a bunch of old guys for this job?”

Alyssa bit her lip and gave a halfhearted shrug. “I guess…”

Kenji gave her a long, searching look, then grinned. “You wouldn’t happen to be trying to get me to lower my rate, now, would you?”

A dark shade of lavender tinted Alyssa’s rosy cheeks. “I-I… well—”

“How old are you?”

Alyssa blinked at him, caught off guard by his question. “Um, e-eighteen.”

Kenji tilted his head. “And how long have you been working at Prescott Industries?”

“About a year and a half.”

“Did you work somewhere else before?”

Alyssa tensed at the question, her eyes drifting down to the floor. “I… no. I was actually having trouble finding a job.”

“So how did you end up at Prescott Industries?”

“...Grayson and my brother were friends in college. When my brother started working for him, he mentioned that we were having trouble saving up enough money to send me to college. I didn’t want to be treated like a charity case, so he offered me a job as his executive assistant.”

Kenji furrowed his eyebrows. “You’re only eighteen, and you’re the executive assistant for the son of the most powerful man in Northbridge?”

Alyssa hesitated, then nodded shamefully.

“...and you haven't even started college yet?”

Another shameful nod.

“I’ve got to admit... I’m pretty impressed.”

Alyssa glanced up at him nervously. “... Really?”

Kenji nodded, a small smile on his lips. “Well, I don’t know how many eighteen-year-olds can put ‘executive assistant for Prescott Industries’ on their resume before even attending college. Might look good on college applications, too.”

Alyssa bit her lip. “I mean, it sounds nice when you say it like that… but I really don’t have much hope for college anymore.”

Kenji frowned. “What do you mean?”

Alyssa shrugged sadly. “Even with the pay I’m getting from Grayson, plus my mom and brother saving money on the side for me, I barely have enough to pay for the first quarter of college.”

“You seem good at your job,” Kenji ventured. “Hasn’t Grayson offered you a raise or some sort of offer to help cover the tuition fees?”

Alyssa let out an exasperated sigh. “He has, multiple times… Working here is actually one of his offers. But I’m only interested in the job, not the money.”

Her voice quivered slightly as she continued. “The only reason I agreed to Grayson’s offer is that this is supposed to help a lot of people, as whole generations of families who’ve lived in Bayside since their great-grandparents moved here in the 1900s. I can’t turn down an opportunity to help them when Silas is threatening to throw them out of their home and tear it down so he can replace it with a bunch of skyscrapers, especially when life is hard enough for them already.”

She took a deep breath to steady her voice, her face set in stone as she met Kenji’s eyes. “I know you know that Grayson is committed to hiring you; he just wanted to see if we could get to accept the job on a lower salary so the rest of the funds can go to protecting the town from being demolished. If you think he won’t pay you enough, you can take whatever he’s offering me as part of your rate. I’m just here to help the people who live in Bayside.”

Kenji studied her for a moment, mulling over what Alyssa had just told him. After a moment, he shrugged. “Okay, I’m in. You and Grayson can work out my rate. I trust you’ll both be fair.”

“Great!” Alyssa beamed. “I’ll let Grayson know and I’ll get you the paperwork first thing—”

“Under one condition,” Kenji asserted, cutting her off. “You have to accept whatever pay Grayson is offering you.” He gave Alyssa a firm look as she opened her mouth to protest. “It’s not charity, and I’m not taking no for an answer. And as for Bayside, I’ll make sure this club can fund both the town and your tuition.”

Alyssa threw him a half-hearted glare, then huffed. “Fine.”

Kenji held out a hand towards Alyssa, flashing her a cocky smile. “In that case, I look forward to working with you.”

Alyssa took his hand, expecting him to shake it. Instead, much to her surprise and embarrassment, he raised her hand to his lips and gently kissed it. He shot her a cheeky wink as she hid her face behind her hands.

“So… now that we’re coworkers, shall we talk business?”

Alyssa gave a meek nod, still flustered by Kenji’s teasing.

“Well, since we’re supposed to boost this place’s popularity with the public, why don’t I throw a secret party here tonight and invite the hottest people in Northbridge? It would definitely build up a reputation for The Grand before it even opens.”

Alyssa glanced around The Grand skeptically; it definitely didn’t look like the type of place to host a party…

“Are you sure people will even come while it still looks like this?”

Kenji gave her a lopsided smile. “I can call a few friends to clean the place up a bit before I send out the invites. Besides, if you ever want to experience the real nightlife, this is exactly the kind of place to do it. The hottest parties are the ones at condemned parking structures, warehouses, deserted buildings, places like those. Of course,” he wiggled his eyebrows at her suggestively, “I bet a pretty girl like you would already know that first hand.”

Alyssa shyly looked down at her feet. “Actually… I’ve never been to a party before.”

“All the more reason have one,” Kenji declared, undeterred.

“I don’t know Kenji…” Alyssa hesitated, still feeling unsure. “I think we should at least ask Grayson for permission…”

“I’m sure he won’t have a problem with it,” Kenji told her, waving his hand dismissively. “He did say it was my job to boost the club’s reputation, and that’s exactly what I’m doing.”

“But what if we get in trouble…?” Alyssa asked, still worried.

Kenji’s expression softened. “Listen, if anything goes wrong, it’ll be on me. I’m the one throwing this party, so anything that happens is my responsibility, okay?”

After a moment of thought, Alyssa nodded. “Okay. But I’d feel better nothing does go wrong.”

“Don’t worry about it, I’ll take care of everything. Feel free to invite your friends, too. I’d love to meet them.”

Alyssa was about to reply but was startled by the sudden sound of a car engine roaring from outside.

“I take it your ride is here?” Kenji guessed.

Alyssa offered him a sheepish smile. “Yeah... I better get going.”

“In that case, I wouldn’t want to keep your ride waiting. I’ll see you at the party tonight, around 10:00?”

Alyssa nodded and started towards the door.

“By the way,” Kenji called, causing her to halt, “I love that outfit on you. It’s cute.”

Alyssa shyly straightened out her skirt. “Thanks…”

“Am I right to assume you like flowers?” Kenji asked, gesturing to the flowers on her skirt.  

“Um, yeah, I guess…”

“Do you have a favorite?”

“... Promise you won’t laugh?”

Kenji smirked as he drew an X over his heart.

Alyssa blushed. “... Roses.”

She didn’t know what she was expecting, but it wasn’t what Kenji said next.

“Well, that’s a relief. Would’ve been embarrassing if you thought they were cliché.”

It took Alyssa a full minute to understand what he was hinting at. She was out the door in a split second, her face burning with more embarrassment at that moment than she had felt in the last eighteen years of her life.

***

“And you just ran out?”

Alyssa moaned and hid her face in her hands.

They were both in Poppy’s apartment, getting ready for the party at The Grand. Alyssa had informed her about the extended invite after the blush had faded from her face (which took about an hour according to Poppy), which the junior editor immediately texted Dax and Kameron about. Poppy then told the boys to meet her and Alyssa at The Grand while she took Alyssa back to her apartment to get ready and to get the younger girl to spill every juicy detail about her encounter with Kenji.

“I didn’t know what else to do!” Alyssa wailed as she snatched one of Poppy’s pillows and buried her face into it. “God, I’m such an idiot!”

“Well, at least we know who K.K. is.”

Poppy was answered by a muffled moan.

“Oh, c’mon, Lyss! It couldn’t have been that bad.”

Alyssa looked up at her friend with a feeble glare. “Yes, it was! And I was already acting like an idiot before that, and now I have to work with him and see him every day and— uuuuuuuuugh!!!”

A thoughtful frown appeared on Poppy’s face as she watched her friend bury her face back into the pillow. She was no stranger to seeing Alyssa be embarrassed or so flustered to the point of not being able to function, but something was different about this…   

“Deep breaths, Lyssa. Deep breaths…”

Alyssa took a few shuddered breaths before looking back up at Poppy.

“He… he saved my life, Pops. Him and Talos… and I didn’t even thank him! I was too busy tripping over my words and my feet and...”

A faint blush appeared on her cheeks as she hugged the pillow to her chest.

Poppy gently rubbed the young girl’s back, smiling softly.

“If you want, I could give you some flirting lessons…”

Alyssa gave a light scoff. “Everyone knows I can’t flirt. Besides, it feels weird… It’s like teasing.”

“You and Kameron tease each other all the time. Maybe if you pretend that Kenji is Kameron—”

Poppy erupted into laughter as a look of horror and disgust crossed Alyssa’s face.

“Okay, maybe not the best idea… But just try to relax and be yourself.”

“I was being myself,” Alyssa grumbled. “My stupid, awkward, idiotic self…”

“First of all, ‘idiotic’ and ‘stupid’ are more or less the same thing.” Alyssa shot Poppy an unamused glare. “Secondly, that was you being shy, not yourself. I mean, sure, that shyness is a part of you, but it doesn’t define you. You’re compassionate, selfless, imaginative, and creative. And if that isn’t enough to make him at least respect you, I’ll slap some sense into him myself.”

A small smile tugged the corners of Alyssa’s lips. “Thanks, Poppy.”

“Of course. That’s what I’m here for: reminding my best friend how wonderful they are, faults and all, whenever she forgets to see it. Besides, it’s not like you have to date the guy.” A sly smile appeared on Poppy’s face. “Although… if this dashing knight in shining armor happened to sweep a certain princess off her feet—”

“SHUT UP!”

Poppy laughed as her friend smacked her with the pillow.

“Okay, okay! Message received! Now, we’ve got a party to get ready for!”

***

Poppy and Alyssa huddled together against the cool evening air as they stood behind the long line of people waiting to be granted entrance to The Grand.

“Is this line even moving?” Poppy asked, shivering as she wrapped her arms around her frame tighter. “And where are the boys? I thought we were the ones who were gonna make them wait.”

“In my defense, there was traffic and Dax drives five miles under the speed limit.”

The girls turned to see Dax and Kameron walking towards them.

“And in my defense, having Kameron backseat driving doesn’t encourage me to go faster!” Dax retorted, glaring at Kameron. “You know, you can take a break from nagging at people every once in a while.”

“He survives off of it,” Alyssa mumbled under her breath, causing Kameron to turn sharply towards her.

“What was that?”

“Nothing!”

Kameron frowned as he looked closely at Alyssa’s outfit. She was wearing a short white and green floral dress with a pink leather jacket. Her hair was curled and hung loosely at her hip while a light amount of makeup had been applied to her face.

“So, I see you discovered the camo-mode I installed in your mask?” Dax grinned at Alyssa. “Figured you’d like it, especially now that you don’t have to wear your glasses to special events in order to see”

“Sure do! Thanks.”

“Isn’t that dress a little short on you?” Kameron cut in, already shifting into his protective mode. “You could've at least worn leggings…”

Alyssa frowned at him. “Poppy’s dress is short, too, and you’re not criticizing her outfit.”

It was true: Poppy had traded her regular outfit for a tight red dress that exposed her midriff. Her hair had also been curled, though she wore a little more makeup than Alyssa.

“I think they look nice,” Dax spoke, his cheeks flushing as he locked eyes with Poppy. “I mean, like, really nice… you too, Alyssa!” he added quickly, throwing a glance at Alyssa.

Alyssa only giggled as Poppy smiled bashfully.

“Thanks, Dax.”

Seeing that Dax wasn’t going to take his side, Kameron crossed his arms and huffed, but said nothing else.

“This guy has a liquor license, right?” Dax suddenly said, a hint of worry in his voice. “Just wanna make sure we’re not participating in anything illegal...”

Alyssa was about to reply when a familiar voice came from behind her.

“May I just say that pink is now my favorite color?”

Startled, she whirled around to see Kenji standing behind her. He flashed her a dazzling smile as he examined her outfit.

“In all seriousness, though, that look suits you.”

Alyssa smiled shyly as her cheeks warmed with a lavender tint. “Thanks, Kenji…”

Kameron’s fists clenched tightly as Kenji chuckled. The fact that his sister’s cheeks were turning a darker shade of lavender by the second didn’t help either...

Kenji turned to address the rest of the group and held out his hand. “You must be Alyssa’s friends. Kenji Katsaros.”

Dax was the first to shake his hand. “Dax Darcisse, I also work with Alyssa and Grayson Prescott.”

“Pleased to meet you. And don’t worry about the license, pal. I’ve got a special permit for tonight.”

“Poppy Patel, Junior Editor of Motif,” Poppy spoke, shaking his hand next. “I’ve heard some things about you…”

She smiled slyly at Alyssa, who turned away to hide the blush on her face.

“All good things, I hope. I’m afraid my ego would be severely damaged if you’ve heard otherwise…”

“I’m sure it could survive the slight dent,” Kameron commented with a slight growl.

Kenji turned to him, still grinning broadly. “I guess I can’t argue with that.”

Alyssa shot her brother a hard look, not missing his less than friendly behavior.

“Kenji, this is Kameron. He’s my step-brother.”

Kenji offered his hand to the younger boy. Kameron didn’t take it.

“You’re the DA’s son, right? I remember you from the gala.”

Kenji shrugged. “My mom needed a plus one, and what kind of son would I be not to accompany her? Besides,” he flashed a cheeky smile, “the free champagne was a nice bonus.”

“I noticed,” Kameron stated flatly.

Kenji paid no mind to his insult as he turned back to Alyssa.

“So… What are we still out here for? Drinks are on me!”

Kameron’s eyes narrowed. “Everyone here is drinking free of charge?”

“Those of age,” Kenji replied. “The bouncer has special bracelets for those under the legal drinking age to let the bartender know not to give them anything with alcohol. Also, drinks are only free to those on the guest list. Anyone who isn’t on the list has to pay to get inside, and for their drinks.”

Dax immediately reached into his pockets, his hands fumbling nervously. “Um, you guys take cards, right?”

Kenji laughed and waved his hand, gesturing for Dax to leave his card in his pocket. “Hey, I’m not charging the VIPs of this party!”

“‘VIPs’?” Poppy repeated, her eyes sparkling.

“Well, technically, this little lady is the person on honor,” Kenji explained, throwing his arm around Alyssa’s shoulders. Kameron’s blood boiled as Alyssa shyly smiled down at her feet. “And since you’re all friends with the VIP, that makes you VIPs, too. Now, let’s party! ”

Poppy and Dax exchanged wide grins as they followed Kenji and Alyssa to the front of the line. Kameron hesitated, his blood still boiling, then followed after them.

After Alyssa received her bracelet from the bouncer, Kenji ushered them inside. The area had been cleaned up rather nicely: the floor was no longer littered with old posters and broken stools, and the holes had been patched up. Dust no longer covered every square inch of the area, and the bar had been cleaned and polished. The walls still wore the peeling wallpaper, but the party-goers seemed to pay no mind as a heavily tattooed  DJ blasted upbeat music at top volume, causing the floor to vibrate. Kenji led Alyssa through the crowd and clambered onto the stage, pulling Alyssa up with him. The DJ lowered the music just enough for Kenji to shout out to the crowd.

“Ladies and gentlemen, THE GUEST OF HONOR HAS ARRIVED!!”

Alyssa flushed as the room erupted into loud cheers, smiling bashfully as she shuffled behind Kenji. Kameron glowered as Kenji flashed his sister a charming smile before addressing the crowd.

“Everyone having a good time?”

The crowd cheered once again.

Kenji grinned broadly. “That’s what I like to hear! Remember, if you like this place now, be sure to come back when The Grand opens to the public! And be sure to tell your friends!”

The DJ turned the volume on full once again, nearly drowning out the partygoers' loud whoops of joy as Kenji led Alyssa off the stage and back to where Poppy, Dax, and Kameron were waiting for them.

“You guys feel free to grab some drinks. I gotta make a few rounds, but I’ll join you all later.”

“Playing club manager already?” Poppy teased, raising an eyebrow.

Kenji offered her a shrug, throwing a wink at Alyssa. “Gotta make sure my boss knows I take my job seriously.”

With that, he disappeared into the crowd.

“You know, that guy is really working my last nerve,” Kameron hissed as the group walked over to the bar. “What was Grayson thinking? Hiring that playboy…”

Alyssa frowned at Kameron but was greeted by a cheerful young man before she could reprimand him.

“Hey there, little lady! Alyssa, right?”

Alyssa blinked in surprise. “How’d you know?”

The bartender flashed her a smile. “Kenji might’ve mentioned you… every minute or so while we were setting up the place. Plus, he said you were the main VIP of the party and announced your arrival.”

Alyssa blushed slightly.

“I’m Skylar, by the way. From what Kenji’s told me, you’re the boss of this place?”

Alyssa shrugged. “I guess… Grayson’s the actual owner of the club, but he asked me to take over for him.”

“Kenji mentioned that, too. So, what can I get you and your friends? Just keep in mind, you can’t order anything alcoholic.” He turned towards Kameron, Poppy, and Dax. “You guys are free to anything on the menu since you’re all of age.”

Kameron shrugged. “I’m not a real fan of alcohol. I’ll just have whatever she’s having.”

Skylar nodded and turned to Alyssa.

“An orange Italian soda, please.”

“I’ll take one, too,” Dax said. 

��Same for me,” Poppy added, flashing a teasing smile at Alyssa. “Can’t have the ‘guest of honor’ feeling left out at her own party.”

Skylar laughed as Alyssa playfully stuck her tongue out at Poppy. “Sure thing.”

After preparing their drinks and pushing them down the counter, he turned back to Alyssa. “So, whaddya think of Kenji?”

Alyssa flushed slightly, causing Kameron to scowl.

“He’s… friendly.”

Skylar chuckled. “Teased you a bit, didn’t he? Don’t worry, Kenji’s one hell of a flirt, but he’s harmless... most of the time.”

Kameron narrowed his eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Skylar shrugged, oblivious to the edge in Kameron’s voice.

“Kenji has a bit of a rep as a playboy and a showboat. He flirts with just about everyone, but nothing really beyond that.”

He turned to Alyssa. “Though I’ve never seen him this interested in anyone before. You should’ve seen him sooner; he was making a big fuss about having everything be perfect for the party.”

“Well, he said he wanted to throw the party to get people interested in The Grand before it opens,” Alyssa offered. “Besides, Grayson’s pretty serious about the club’s welfare. Kenji probably just wants him to know that he’s taking the job seriously, especially since we’re trying to help people.”

“Well, that’s the thing...” Skylar said slowly. “Kenji was worried about you not thinking he was taking his job seriously.”

A look of surprise flashed across Alyssa’s face. “Me? Why?”

“Kenji mentioned you were a little bit hesitant about letting him throw the party,” Skylar explained to her. “He said you were worried that you’d get in trouble if anything went wrong.” He gave her a curious look. “You know... he told me that he was only going to accept the job if Grayson agreed to whatever rate he demanded, but then you made him change his mind.”

Alyssa jumped at the sound of glass shattering; Kameron had clenched his glass so tightly it had burst into thousands of little slivers. He hissed as some of the needle-thin shards slash shallow cuts into his skin, his drink splashing onto the floor and his clothes.

“Kameron!” Poppy gasped, her eyes wide. “What the hell—”

“I’m fine, I’m fine!” Kameron snapped as his face turned a light shade of red. “I just lost my grip…”

Fortunately, Skylar hadn’t seen him break the glass with his bare hand; all he saw were the shards and the spilled drink on the floor.

“Don’t worry about it, man,” he assured Kameron as he passed him a napkin. “I’ll get this cleaned up. How about you guys find a booth to hang out in?”

Kameron muttered a thank you to Skylar as he followed after his friends to a nearby booth in the corner.

“It was nice meeting you guys!” Skylar called after them as he swept up the glass. “Especially you, Alyssa. I can see why Kenji likes you.”

That’s it!

“You guys go ahead,” Kameron told his friends and sister, trying not to let the pure rage coursing through his veins show on his face or in his voice. “I’m gonna get cleaned up.”

They nodded and continued to the booth while Kameron scanned the crowd. He was able to spot Kenji in just a few seconds: his red leather jacket and yellow shirt combo stuck out against the dim colors of the stage. The partygoers shuffled out of his way as he wove through the crowd, careful to avoid his stained outfit. Kenji grinned up at Kameron as the young boy approached him, then frowned when he noticed his hand and shirt.

“You okay there?”

Kameron only scowled. “Dropped my drink.”

Kenji nodded. “Don’t beat yourself up over it. Skylar will clean it up.”

“Yeah… speaking of Skylar, he had some things to say about you.”

Kenji raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Nothing to damage my reputation, I hope.”

“Is that the playboy reputation, or the showboat one?” Kameron baited with a subtle note of snideness in his voice. “Or are those more or less the same thing?”

A frown appeared on Kenji’s face, but he quickly shrugged it off and replaced it with a cool smile. “Okay, I guess I deserve that.”

“You know, I was more interested in what you told Skylar about my sister...”

Kenji quirked his brow questioningly before realization dawned on his face. He let out a heavy sigh, running a hand through his hair.

“Okay, look… I understand how you might’ve misinterpreted that.”

“Oh? So I’m wrong to assume you only took the job to see my sister?”

Kenji rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, it’s not the only reason…”

His eyes widened when he realized how his words must’ve sounded to Kameron. “Oh, shit! I didn’t mean it like that—”

“I know what you meant,” Kameron snarled, keeping his voice low. “I don’t have a problem with you thinking my sister is pretty or anything like that; I grew up with her, I’m not blind. I just wanna make sure you stay in your damn lane.”

Kenji held up his hands. “Hey, hey. I’m not looking to cause any trouble. I know I probably took the teasing a little too far—”

He only realized his mistake after Kamron looked at him with pure murder in his eyes.

“Wait, wait! That came out wrong—”

Kameron wasn’t interested in anything Kenji had to say. He roughly seized the dark-haired man by his shirt and slammed him into the wall. Kenji visibly winced from the impact but didn’t try to break free. Not like he could’ve; he had no super strength… or anything to protect him from it.

“I swear, if I hear another word about my sister out of your mouth, I’m gonna—”

“Kameron, stop!”

Both men were taken aback as Alyssa suddenly materialized between the two of them. She pushed Kameron off of Kenji, using her telekinesis for an extra boost of strength, before taking a protective stance in front of the DA’s son.

“Alyssa…” Kenji began.

“What the heck, Kameron?!”

The delicate features of Alyssa’s face had twisted into a spine-chilling snarl that caused Kameron to instinctively take a step back. He knew that look was only reserved to warn people they had one last chance to back off before things got ugly. It didn’t help that her eyes crackled with a faint pink flash of electricity.

“Cool off. Now.”

He let out an agitated huff, knowing he was defeated. “Fine.”

He threw one last glare at Kenji before storming off into the crowd. Angry, bitter thoughts swirled in his mind as he muttered a string of curses under his breath. The nerve of that guy! Prancing around like some spoiled prince, eyeing his sister like a piece of—”

“Hey!”

Kameron was pulled out of his thoughts as he crashed into a pretty young girl in a leather jacket, causing her to drop her drink.

“Shit! Sorry, I—”

Kameron paused mid-sentence as the girl cast her hand out towards the drink; it’s decent slowed to a near standstill an instant later. He stared dumbfounded at the girl as she swiped up her drink without spilling a single drop.

She flashed him a sly, bewitching smile as she took a sip of her drink.

“No problem, handsome.”

Recognition clicked into Kameron’s head as the girl sauntered off and slipped out the doors. Shaking his head to ward off the dazy spell the girl had cast over him, he followed after her.

“Hey! Hey, wait!”

He stepped out into the chilling night breeze, quickly following after the girl as she rounded the corner. Once he was close enough, he reached out to grab the girl’s arm.

“Wait a sec, would ya?”

The girl narrowed her eyes as she glanced down at the hand latched around her upper arm. “Fair warning, hon: either move the hand, or I will.”

“I just wanna talk, I swear.”

The girl raised an eyebrow at him, then regarded him coolly.

“Fine. What do you want?”

Kameron released her arm, watching her carefully. She had saved his life, his and Alyssa’s, but still…

“You’re that waitress from the gala.”

The girl rolled her eyes. “It that it?”

“What’s your name?”

A look of suspicion crossed the girl’s face. “Who wants to know?”

Kameron stared into her chocolate eyes, his gaze earnest. “The guy whose life you saved. His and his sister’s…”

The suspicious gaze melted into something softer. “... Eva.”

Kameron nodded. “Well, thank you, Eva.”

The girl, Eva, crossed her arms. She studied him for a moment, suddenly appearing more interested.

“What’s your name?”

“Kameron. Anyways, I—”

“Why else did you followed me, Kameron?”

Kameron blinked. “Excuse me?”

Eva smirked. “I’m sure my name wasn’t the only thing on your mind…”

Kameron raised an eyebrow, then imitated her smirk as he caught on to what she was trying to do.

Okay. Two can play that game…

“Well, you’re not wrong.”

Eva raised an eyebrow as she began to circle him, her movements slow and seductive. “Oh?”

“You’re not exactly the kind of girl that blends in...” Kameron drawled, his voice low and husky as he watched Eva sway her hips slightly. He had to admit, she was beautiful…  

Eva leaned closer to him, her lips only an inch away from his. “Is that so?” she purred. Her breath felt warm against his skin.

“It is,” Kameron replied smoothly. He smirked as Eva’s lips grazed his own. “I don’t know a lot of girls who can slow time with a wave of her hand.”

Eva froze, her lips still barely touching Kameron’s, then pulled away with a smirk.

“Well played, handsome. Bet you have all the girls drooling at your feet.”

Kameron shrugged. “I wouldn’t know. You’re the first to catch my eye.”

Eva chuckled. “Careful, Kameron. You’re cute, I’ll give you that, but it’s dangerous to flirt with a girl with powers… especially if you can’t keep up.”

“I don’t think that’s a problem.”

“Oh?”

Kameron flashed her a cocky smile. “Nothing too impressive: super strength, bulletproof skin, the ability to fly… you know, typical powers.”

“I wouldn’t say that…” Kameron blinked as a wicked grin curled Eva’s lips. “In fact, it sounds like you might cause some trouble for me. As smooth as you are, I can tell you play by a certain set of rules; I, on the other hand, break them.”

Oh, shiiiiiiiiiiiiiit.

“On that note, I think it’s time I called it a night.”

Kameron wasn’t given a second to react before Eva cast her hand out towards him. The air swirled and swayed around him strangely as he tried to move; he felt like he was swimming in syrup.

“Don’t worry,” Eva laughed as she watched Kameron struggle. “It should wear off in about half an hour. I get the feeling we’ll be seeing each other again, Kameron. Until then…”

Kameron watched as she strolled off into the night, both annoyed… and intrigued.

***

Alyssa watched as Kameron disappeared into the crowd, feeling both annoyed and embarrassed by his behavior. She turned to face Kenji, her scowl melting into an apologetic expression.

“I’m really sorry about Kameron. He can be a little… protective.”

Kenji gave her a small smile as he straightened out his shirt. “It’s okay, really. That’s his job, right? Older brother and all.”

“Still… he didn’t need to get violent. He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

Kenji shrugged. “Nothing permanent. Gotta admit I was kinda impressed; your brother is a lot stronger than he looks.”

“You have no idea,” Alyssa muttered under her breath.

An awkward silence fell between them, causing Alyssa to fidget while Kenji rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

“So… where are your friends?” Kenji prompted, noticing Dax and Poppy were nowhere to be seen.

Alyssa shrugged. “Dancing…”

“You didn’t want to join them?”

“I… I don’t dance,” Alyssa confessed, casting a wary glance towards the dance floor. “I never learned how, so…”

Kenji shrugged. “Well, there’s not really a right way to dance. You just… do whatever you feel the music is telling your body.”

Alyssa watched skeptically as the party-goers on the dance floor jumped up and down in and out of time with the music, flailing their limbs wildly.

“I think it’s telling me that I’ll either get hit in the face or trampled if I try to join in. Besides, I can’t take two steps without tripping over something.”

Kenji frowned slightly as Alyssa huddled closer to the wall. Now that he thought about it, she didn’t seem very comfortable in this environment. Quite the opposite, in fact: she cringed away when someone came too close to her, covered her ears and flinched when the music got too loud, he even saw her shrink away from the bouncer when he had led her to the front door.

“You’re not enjoying this, are you?”

Alyssa opened her mouth to deny it, then sighed and shook her head. Kenji’s gaze softened as a twinge of guilt twisted his gut. This party was supposed to impress her, to prove that he could handle the responsibilities as the manager. Instead, he had made her feel uncomfortable… come to think of it, the party probably wasn’t the only thing that made her uncomfortable.

Kenji glanced around the room, his eyes falling on a booth in a far, darkened corner. He gently nudged Alyssa, prompting her to look up at him. He gave her a soft smile and nodded towards the booth. “Come with me.”

She followed him as he led her to the booth. Kenji waited until Alyssa had seated herself, then slid in beside her. He smiled as Alyssa visibly relaxed, no longer overwhelmed by the loud sounds and crowded space.

“Better?” he asked.

Alyssa nodded. “Much better. Thanks…”

Kenji nodded. “No problem.”

He frowned slightly as his mind drifted back to their earlier encounter.

“Hey, about earlier… I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable or anything. I was just…” Kenji paused, wincing slightly. He was about to say ‘messing around’, but it wasn’t an excuse. Hell, it wasn’t a good reason.

“It’s okay,” Alyssa spoke, pulling him out of his thoughts. “Skylar says you like to tease, but don’t really mean anything by it.”

Kenji sighed. That definitely wasn’t the impression he wanted to make.

“Can we…” He hesitated, suddenly feeling nervous. “Can we start over? At least give me a chance, to be honest with you. I’ll answer whatever questions you have for me, promise.”

Alyssa shrugged and offered him a small smile. “Okay… what are you really like?”

Kenji hummed quietly, rubbing his chin in thought. After a moment, a bashful smile appeared on his face. “Well, I’m honestly not that interesting. I’m just a regular guy who works out, plays video games, watching music videos on YouTube… and I like to cook.”

Alyssa tilted her head slightly. Kenji chuckled at her obvious interest before continuing. “My parents taught me when I was little. I remember after they would be waiting for me at the front door when I came home from school, and the three of us would cook dinner together.”

“That sounds nice.”

Kenji nodded, his face falling slightly. “It was. The last time we cooked together was the night before my dad died…”

Alyssa frowned as Kenji fell silent, his eyes dimming slightly.

“I’m sorry…”

Kenji gave her a half-hearted shrug but didn’t smile. “Don’t worry about it… it was a long time ago. It just…” He took a deep breath, the sighed. “Things were so much easier when he was still around.”

Alyssa gazed at him imploringly. “What do you mean?”

Kenji gave her a small smile. “Believe it or not, I used to be a pretty quiet kid; stayed out of trouble, got good grades, that kind of stuff. But I still was a bit of rascal, too. Got it from my dad.” He gave a light chuckle. “The two of us would drive my mom crazy, but I don’t she minded that much, especially when we made her laugh. After he died, things weren't the same…”

A sad look fell on his face. “My mom just cut herself off from everything. She didn’t laugh or smile anymore… it was like all her happiness had died with him. I did whatever I thought would make her happy, or at least proud of me. When high school came around, I spent my Friday nights prepping for debate club and Model UN instead of going out with my friends… come to think of it, I didn’t really have that many friends, or at least that many who really cared about me. I don’t know why it took me a whole year into law school to see how unhappy I was… Maybe I wouldn’t have given my mom more reason to be unhappy if I had realized it sooner.”

Alyssa furrowed her brow, not quite grasping Kenji’s meaning. He noticed her confusion.

“I’m sure you noticed that my mom and I had a bit of a row at the gala about my dropping out of law school?”

Alyssa nodded.

“Well, I can’t help but think that if I had been at least a little rebellious in my teen years, she wouldn’t have had such high expectations for me to fail at reaching, or at least have not been too disappointed with my decision.”

A soft, sheepish grin appeared on his face as he tried to hide it behind his hand.

“I’m sorry,” he told her after a moment, looking back up at her. “I just… I’ve never opened up this much to anyone, not even to my relatives.”

“Then why me?” Alyssa asked, genuinely confused.

Kenji bit his lip, seeming uncertain. “Honestly, I don’t know… I guess I find you oddly comforting?”

He hid his face in his hand once again, but Alyssa could see the faint glow of his blushing cheeks in the dim lighting. She gently took his hand and pulled it away from his face, smiling softly.

“You know… that’s actually the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.”

Kenji looked up at her shyly. “Really?”

Alyssa nodded. “Mmhm.”

She frowned suddenly.

“Is something wrong?” Kenji asked worriedly.

“No! It’s just…” Alyssa trailed off, biting her lip. “I never thanked you for what you did… at the gala, I mean. My friends and brother said you’re the one who carried me out of the building. So... thank you.”

Kenji nodded, his gaze soft. “You’re welcome. I’m just glad you’re safe.”

A sudden thought crossed Alyssa’s mind.

“Kenji… before I fainted, I saw something… or someone.”

Kenji gave her a questioning look. “What do you mean?”

Alyssa took a deep breath. “I think… I think Talos saved me, too.”

Kenji visibly stiffened. “Are… are you sure?”

Alyssa nodded. “I saw him, Kenji; he pulled me out of the wreckage.” She turned to him. “Did you see him? When you found me, I mean...”

Kenji swallowed hard, his eyes not meeting Alyssa’s. “I… I, uh…”

A loud buzzing sound startled them both. Kenji blushed as he reached into his pocket and took out his phone. A slightly worried look danced across his face.

“It’s Grayson.”

Alyssa winced. Uh-oh…

Kenji gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze before answering the call.

“Hey, Grayson,” he greeted, trying to sound casual. “What’s up?”

“Kenji. Are you alone?” Alyssa could faintly hear Grayson’s voice ask. “I have to discuss something with you.”

“Uh, just give me a sec,” Kenji replied before pulling the phone away from his ear. “I’ll be right back,” he told Alyssa. “Just… wait for me here?”

Alyssa nodded. “Sure.”

Kenji flashed her a small smile before making his way to the doors and ducking outside, leaving the doors slightly opened. A few minutes passed, then a few more… Alyssa frowned. Whatever Grayson had to talk to Kenji about must’ve been very important. She just hoped neither of them was in any trouble. After a few more minutes, she stood tentatively. Maybe she should go check to see if everything was okay…

Someone screamed, snapping her out of her thoughts. She barely had enough time to register what was going on before another party guest shoved past her, nearly knocking her off her feet. A few more partygoers shoved past her before she was swept into the crowd flooding out the door.

“Hey! Hey, wait!”

Her heart pounded rapidly as her breath quickened as she was forced along with the crowd, the bodies closing in around her. She couldn’t move, she couldn’t see… and it was becoming harder to breathe.

She gasped as she was suddenly pushed onto the hard concrete as the crowd dispersed. The smell of smoke reached her nose as bright yellow and orange lights danced across the street. It took her a moment to realize what was happening: the DMV was on fire.

“Look out!”

Someone’s arms wrapped around Alyssa’s torso and pulled her into their chest just as a car consumed in a ball of fire skidded towards her at top speed. The person turned their back to the car, pulling Alyssa close as they shielded her from the impact. She heard a loud grunt as the car slammed into the person’s back, but was surprised that her savior seemed unfazed otherwise. It was then that she realized that the person’s chest, which her head had been tucked against, was made of cold, hard metal… bronze, to be exact. She looked up to see none other than Talos, who stared down at her with white shining eyes wide with concern.

“Are you alright?” he asked her frantically, carefully cupping her chin as he examined her for injuries. “Are you hurt?”

“N-no,” Alyssa replied shakenly. “I think I’m okay.”

Talos sighed in relief as he helped her to her feet. “Thank God.”

“How did this happen?” Alyssa asked as they stared at the flaming DMV. Thick fumes of smoke filled the air, blocking out the midnight sky.

“I don’t know, but I don’t think this was an accident,” Talos replied, his expression grim. “Find a safe place to hide, and wait for someone to come get you.”

He turned to go, but Alyssa caught his arm.

“Wait, I can help you!”

Talos turned back to her, a look of surprise etched on his bronze face, but shook his head and gently pushed her back. “It’s too dangerous, and I don’t want you getting hurt.”

“But—”

“You need to go, now.”

“I have powers, too!” Alyssa blurted as Talos turned away. He froze, visibly shocked, then whipped around to face her.

“What did you just say?”

“I have powers, too,” Alyssa repeated. “Please, let me help!”

Talos’s shocked expression melted away into a more pleading one.

“I need you to get to safety. Please, don’t make me ask again.”

Alyssa opened her mouth to argue but paused as Talos frowned at her. With a sigh, she took a step back.

“Thank you,” Talos sighed gratefully. “Now find somewhere safe.”

She waited until he had taken off, then ducked into the alley behind The Grand. She pressed her finger to the glowing halo on her bracelet, activating her suit, then did the same for her mask. After making sure no one had seen her, she darted out and headed towards the DMV.

Smoke filled her lungs as she entered the building. She tried to see through the thick, dark clouds suffocating her, looking for anyone who might’ve gotten trapped inside the building when it was set aflame.

“Hello? Is anyone in here?” she called above the roaring of the flames. “Hello?”

She let out a startled gasp as someone roughly grabbed her from behind and slammed her into the wall. Fear gripped her heart as a man with his body set in flames sneered down at her with a wicked grin.

“Hello, cutie.”

***

“C’mon, c’mon, c’mon!” Kameron growled as the shimmering purple field of energy around him began to fade. He sighed in relief when he was finally able to move his limbs at their normal speed. “Finally!”

“Kameron!”

He turned to see Poppy and Dax racing towards him with panicked expressions.

“Where the hell were you?”

“It’s... a long story,” Kameron dismissed. He wasn’t in the mood to be chewed out for his stupidity at the moment. Besides, by the looks on his friends' faces, he could tell there were more pressing matters at hand. “What’s going on?”

“The DMV was set on fire!” Dax told him, a nervous edge in his voice. “It doesn't look like it was an accident…”

“And we can’t find Alyssa!” Poppy added, her eyes wide with worry.

“What?! I thought she was with you!”

“Hey! It’s not like you were keeping an eye on her, either!”

Kameron growled and waved Poppy’s retort aside. “You two get back to the lab, I’ll find Alyssa.”

Poppy and Dax nodded as they took off down the street. Kameron raced towards the DMV, activating his suit and mask. He was about to head inside the DMV but stopped when he heard a scream. It was cut short, but he knew who it was.

“ALYSSA!”

***

Alyssa felt her heart pounding in her chest as the Man on Fire brought his hand up to stroke her cheek.

“What’s the matter, cutie?” he sneered. “Am I scaring you?”

Alyssa turned her face away from him. The man gave a low growl as he roughly grabbed her by the chin and forced her to look him in the eye.

“Answer me.” Alyssa gave a pitiful whimper as he tightened his grip. “Am I scaring you?”

She nodded as best she could.

The Man on Fire chuckled. “Now, was that so hard?”

Alyssa didn’t answer.

The Man on Fire grinned. “You know, I really should thank you for that little tip you gave me... The one about not picking on someone with powers.” He held his palm up just as a flame sparked to life. “It came in handy last night. Don’t think I could’ve gotten away from those cronies in blue if you hadn’t given me the idea.”

Alyssa flinched away from the flame, but the Man on Fire held her still.

“Ah ah ah! Hold still, please. Don’t wanna burn that pretty little face of yours... or do we?”

Alyssa shuddered as the man held the flame closer to her. She felt a tear slide down her cheek as it began to redden from the heat. After a moment of debate, the Man on Fire closed his hand, extinguishing the flame.

“Not yet, I think,” he murmured softly as he wiped her tear away with mock tenderness. “I wanna thank you for giving me these powers... and get a little payback for last night.” Alyssa closed her eyes and shuddered as he leaned in so that he could whisper into her ear. “What do you say, cutie... can you take the heat?”

Alyssa threw her arms out, using her telekinesis to push the man away from her, before making a break towards the door.

“Not so fast, sweetheart!”

Alyssa had only made it a few feet outside before something wrapped around her waist. He gave the fiery rope a sharp tug, pulling her back into his chest. He locked his arms around her shoulders, keeping her pinned against him. Alyssa opened her mouth to scream, hoping Talos or her brother would hear her, but it was cut short when the Man on Fire clamped his hand over her mouth.

“If it’s all the same to you,” the man hissed, “I rather not have anyone interrupt our little date.”

“Sorry to disappoint you then.”

The Man on Fire turned to see who had spoken. Talos stared him down with a murderous glare.

“Looks to me like your ‘little date’ is over. Now let her go.”

The Man on Fire smirked as he pulled Alyssa closer to him. “Let me guess: you’re the other hero wannabe from last night.”

“Actually, that would be me.”

The Man on Fire whirled around in surprise of the second new voice, one that Alyssa recognized instantly: Kameron.

The young man glanced briefly at his little sister before snarling at her captor.

“We could have done this the easy way, hothead. Looks like you chose the hard way instead... big mistake.”

[peakyblinders1919]

Business Liaisons- Part 3

You woke with a headache again, this time not from the alcohol. You could feel the stiffness in your neck. A blinder had escorted you and your men back to your hotel. You had stripped and washed off the blood and muck, climbing naked into your bed.

Your eyes cast over the discarded dress and you got up, investigating the offending item. It smelled like whisky, cigarettes and blood, you felt a pang of guilt and overwhelming sadness, the last you had heard Tommy was in surgery, it had hit his stomach and missed his organs but he had lost a lot of blood. 

There would be far more blood on the streets for this; you had already pieced together in the hospital that it was probably a revenge shooting; some fool loyalist to Sabini or Alfie Solomons who had idiotically chosen the wrong side. 

Your hotel phone was ringing and someone was pounding the door. You grabbed a thick dressing gown and wrapped it around you. 

“What?” you growled at your bodyguard as you yanked open the door. 

“Please Miss, it’s Mr. Capone on the telephone.” you sighed, rushing back to the sofa and motioning to your man for some water as you grabbed the heavy receiver. 

“Y/N? Y/N???” he shouted, god it sounded good to hear his voice.

“Si Al, sono io.” you sounded tired even to yourself. 

“I knew I shouldn’t have sent you over there with those god dam gyspies. Should have kept you here.  Torno a casa aora!!” You laughed a little. 

“This aint no laughing matter! What you laughing at Y/N?? You almost got shot, you think I’d let that happen to you here in Chicago? They’d all be dead.”

“Alphonse, calmati cugino, they’re good people. Tommy’s a good choice in business partner, it was my fault, we were dancing, he was off his guard.”

“Dancing??!?!” Al shouted into your ear again, “What was he trying with my baby cousin?!” you rolled your eyes, if his men knew how their tough boss worried over his female family, he’d never live it down. 

“Al, I’m ok. I’m staying ok? I’ll come home as soon as I can. I’ve tasted the gin, it’s good stuff cousin, I’ll make sure the first shipment leaves before I do. Plus I have unfinished business, they’re our associates now Al, I don’t know who this guy thought he was but…” Your cousin greeted that last statement with a knowing bark of laughter- you did not take kindly to threats or violence against people you protected. 

“Signorina?” Marco stuck his head in the door and you held the receiver away from your ear. 

“Lo abbiamo.” You nodded. 

“Al, I gotta go.” You passed the phone over to your head bodyguard as you went to go get changed. 

  The hospital was silent, it was nearing 1 in the afternoon, the hangover had worn off but the sound of Arthur’s belligerent yelling and then his sobbing the night before still rung in your ears. 

The eldest Shelby had followed the gurney as far as he could. “Not another one, not another one.” He kept repeating it, he didn’t want to lose another brother, you understood his pain. You had sat with Polly and Ada, quiet, as your guards produced whisky and coffee. When the doctor had pronounced that Tommy would recover, you had taken Polly aside and mentioned your idea. She had nodded deftly once and you had left the family to be alone.

You knocked lightly on the door and entered the private room. Tommy was sitting up in bed and you couldn’t help but notice the tattoos on his alabaster skin, the smattering of chest hair and the white bandages which now covered the better half of a toned and muscular torso. He looked up at you, away from the papers he held in his lap and then looked to the corner of the room. There was a blinder sitting there, with a shot gun across his lap. You looked back at Tommy not sure if you were welcome but he only nodded at his soldier to leave you and motioned you forward. 

You sat heavily in the chair next to him, your hand coming up instinctively to rub the back of your neck. You didn’t like seeing Tommy injured, he was always in control, strong, you couldn’t identify the emotion you were feeling but it was creating tension all the way down your spine. 

“I’m glad you’re going to be ok.” You said it genuinely, avoiding the blue eyes that were searching your face. 

“Polly tells me you pulled the trigger yourself.” You look up from the pristine bed sheets then, catching his eye. He’d lit a cigarette and was taking a slow drag waiting for your reply.

You cleared your throat and sat back, crossing your legs, his eyes flitting from your face to your legs and back again. “Is that cigarette part of the prescription for recovery?” you teased gently, not wanting to answer his question. 

He stared at you defiantly giving you that slow blink you had already come to associate with only him. 

“I don’t let my men do what I can and should do for myself, if I give the order then I carry it out, unless I can’t for whatever reason,” you wave your hand superfluously but Tommy knew you were referring to killing Luca.

 “That man, that wannabe assassin fucked with you, he fucked with the Shelby’s, on our ground, he was on some renegade mission despite not knowing that it was Alfie that had fucked you over and how dare he? Does he know who we are? Sabini was scum, low level, near sighted, idiotic, self-absorbed scum.” You almost spat on the floor in your anger but remembered you were in a hospital. 

“No one comes for us, no one. Especially not like that. Not when the family is around, Finn was there and Ada, she has a son for fuck’s sake. So yes I shot him.” You make the sign of the cross, clinging to as much of your catholicism as you could to not displease the spirit of your very catholic mother. 

Tommy nodded but said nothing, looking at you with interest in his eye, you felt your temper in the heat spreading through you but reminded yourself that it was over now. 

“Tell me, Y/N, do all your family members go red in the cheeks when they’re angry like you do? It’s dangerous to have such an obvious tell.” He teased you. 

His voice even more raspy than usual. You rewarded him with a genuine grin before plucking the cigarette from his hand and walking away with it. You stubbed it out in the ashtray that was on the furthest table from the bed and leaned back against it, arms behind you for support. “You’re quite something Tommy Shelby.”  he quirked his eyebrows at you.

Shaking your head you continued, “As we would say in America, you’re a real little shit sometimes.” He laughed, you hadn’t been expecting it and from the look on Ada’s face as she came through the door she hadn’t expected it either. It was a light, lilting sound; you could almost imagine him as a teenager, that sweet, mischievous laugh preceding him during better times. 

“Little eh?” He questioned back and you grinned at him, forgetting yourself. “You will come stay at the house.” You opened your mouth to protest and noticed Ada’s eyes flicking between the two of you.

“It’s not safe, especially when I’m in this condition, you will come stay.”

“I have guards Thomas. I will be fine.” His lips turned up a bit at the way you used his full name.

“You will come and finish our business. I do not have a death wish, I won’t let harm come to Al Capone’s family while they’re in my town.” 

“I’ll get some men to drive you and your boys over.” Ada added with finality.

[imseriousirius]

@ethereal-wishes Happy Secret Santa!!! No sure what time zone you're in but hopefully this dosen't come too late for you

 ​Summer breeze brushed passed her dress as she walked down the dusty lane. Belle breathed deely, glad to finally be alone. After reading, spinning was her thing, her escape. Sitting behind the wheel, listening to the whir of the bobbin she could almost forget. She knew her father meant well, he loved her really.He genuinely believed that marrying Gaston was her only chance for a marginally better life. But if she heard one more speech about ‘oblgation’ and 'womanly responsibilities’ she’d scream, or cry. Or both.

She reached the market square just before midday. She made her way to her usual spot beside the fountain and began to empty the contents of her market bag onto the rickety stand. By the time she was finished, she had worked up a fine sweat and sat back, the square was,full, she saw all sorts of people. Wealthy ladies shopping for fine silks that they didn’t need, to pennyless peasants selling whatever the could to get by another day. It wasn’t long before people started to form a queue in front of her stall, her wool was in demand across the land. The next few hours sped by in a flurry of orders, crowds and coins She decided to close up for a few hours and wander around, maybe find a place to read for a while. 

                                     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After a few minutes of aimless wandering, she decided on an old, wooden bench, hidden by a cluster of trees, barely 10 minutes had passed when she heard footsteps approaching. What she didn’t realise was that her hiding spot was not as effective as she had originally thought.

'Hello?’

She jumped about a foot, and dropped her book. Bending down quickly, she scooped it up and shoved it back into her sachel. She was about to give the mystery visitant  a piece of her mind. But he beat her to it

'I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you’,

He spoke with a strong accent, she wasn’t sure how but she thought it sounded somewhat familiar. He was rather well dressed for this part of the forest, complete with waistcoat and cravats. Suddenly, she was very consious of her torn dress, she hadn't had tme to mend it last nigt. He hadn’t noticed, as he was currently struggling to tear his eyes away from her face. She was remarkably beautiful. Thick, chessnut brown hair fell gently about her face, her eyes held an uncommon astuteness and he seemed to loose himself in seas of azure blue.

'Are you lost?'

'Ahh-umm' he could feel himself turning red, even her voice was lovely.

'Would you like me to fetch someone to bring you home?'

'Ahh(pull yourself together man!)no, no thank you, I'm not lost'

He wasn't sure she believed him, 

'I'm Belle by the way' she said  'Belle French'

He had to be careful here, if he said his real name, there was a chance she'd recognise him, and he wanted to avoid that, just once he wanted to be called somthing besides 'Your Majesty'

''Gideon Gold'' 

She began to stroll back towards the market, he knew that he should probably avoid any public areas, but he felt strangely drawn towards this woman and found himself following her.

''I saw a book in your bag earlier he'd noticed her hurridly shoving in into the satchel and he was intrigued, it was unusual for to be able to read I hope you don't mind me asking what you were reading?'

She gave him a sidelong look, narrowing her eyes as though to weigh him up, see if she could trst him. Apparantly he passed the test because she reached into the satchel and pulled out a beautiful leather bound book. The cover was beautiful, complete with gold lettering and guilded edges.

''Her Handsome Hero''

''It was my mothers, she was the one who taught me how to read. My father's always said that it was a waste of time, that good men would never be interested if I always had my head in a book, she always said we just had to wait for the right one to come along.''

He had to say that he agreed with her mother. There was an air of intellegence and understanding that he had never before seen.

They chatted on for several minutes, until they reached the edge of the forest, he knew that going any further would be too dangerous, what if he was recognised?

''I'm afraid, this is where I have to bid you farewell.

She grinned cheekily  '' Oh! And I've so enjoyed talking to you, I don't tink I've  ever met anyone with the same interest in books as I have before''

''I could say the same to you, I think that you, quite possibly  th stangest, most interesting person I have ever had the pleasure of talking to''

He smiled and bowed deeply.  She looked down at this, trying to hide her burning cheeks. She couldn't believe that he, obvoiusly a man of great prestige and wealth(she wasn't exactly sure what he did for a living. She had asked, but he'd seemed rather vague and uncomfortable)   She wasn't sure why she was so pleased at this, she really shouldn't get so attached to a man she met less than an hour earlier, but, all of a sudden she felt a lot better than he had that morning.

                                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Belle felt unusually lighthearted as she closed up the stall that evening. Usually, a day of relentless bartering and arguing with customers, thawarting rouge teenagers from stealing her goods and enduring sanctimonious glares from snooty rich folk would have dampened her spirits, but scenes from earlier kept replaying in her mind, and she found it quite impossible to remain unhappy for long. She decided to take a longer route home, she knew the minute she arrived, all daydreams and encounters with strange men would be left at the door, and her father would once again be nagging her, Gaston would be plaguing her, and, once again, she would be trapped in a life she didn't want.

She stepped aside to let a carrige by, but instead of passing by, it screeched to a halt. The door swung open to reveal two young men. They were leather cad, tall, and they looked like trouble. Without meaning to, she caught the eye of one.

''Ello love, on your way back from the market?''

''And what if am?''

''Well, I was just going to offer you a lift''

''Well, that's very kind of you, but I'd really rather walk''

He began to walk closer,

''Oh come on love, it's been ages since us lads have had a pretty girl like you''

Closer

She began to panic, she'd heard stories from girls who'd been in similar situations and she did not like the way this was going at all.

Her stomach turned, he seemed to sense her discomfort, and sneered. Now less then a foot away, he began to eye her unpleasantly. She was assaulted by the smell of stale sweat and alcohol. She had nowhere to run, they were both at least a full foot taller her than her, and there was no way she could outrun them both.

''I'd step away if I were you'

The man spun around so fast he almost fell over. Standing there sword face contorted with rage, was the man she had met in he forest earlier. Gideon?

''You.....you're''

''I said, step away''

''You're the bloody king''

''Yes, and you're Killian Jones pirate, thief, general scum. And that lady is my friend, so I'd advise you and your friend to get back in your carrige and drive very far away.''

Jones paused for a minute, seemingly weighing up his options. Apparantly e thought the better of it and he reluctantly began making his way back to hsi friend.

''And Jones?''

''Hmm?''

''If I ever hear of you behaving like this towards any woman, I will personally hunt you down, and carry out your execution myself.''

He didn't lower his sword until the carrige was out of sight. He began to make his wa towards her,

''Are you alright?''

Belle wasn't so sure, it was less to do with what had happened and more to do with the fact that the man she had been talking to was the KING, the king had held her mothers book. The king had bowed to HER.

It wasn't until she looked up and saw a very concerned face that she realised she hadn't actually answered him

''I'm okay, thank you very much..your majesty?''

He winced,

''Yes I, ah, may have forgotten to mention some of the details surounding my occupation.''

She tittered ''Yes, just a few''

''Can you forgive me for being unthruhful?''

She laughed for real this time ''Of course, you just saved me

They stood in silence for a few moments, he was really starting to like her he wanted to see her again, but he didn't want to seem innapropriate or forward.

''Well, I'd better make my way home, I have to start my spinning work for next weeks market besides, my father will worry if I'm not home soon.

 ''You spin?''

''Yes, thats what I sell at the market''

How had he not realised, this was perfect,

''Well, it seems I'm in luck, just last week I was notified that we were in desparate need of a decent spinner. Our regular gentleman has left to help run his fathers businss I don't suppose you'd be interested. Unfortunatley, you would be required to see me quite often, fittings, meetings......'' he grinned

She chuckled ''Just when I thought I'd be rid of you. I'd love to''

He smiled. It was a good day

[ask-de-writer]

MAD - IRRITATED SCIENCE! : Bizarre Borderland : (Part 2 of 2)

MAD IRRITATED SCIENCE!

by

De Writer (Glen Ten-Eyck)

2488 words

© 2017 by Glen Ten-Eyck

written 2008

All rights reserved.  This document may not be copied or distributed on or to any medium or placed in any mass storage system except by the express written consent of the author.

TUMBLR EXEMPTION

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PART 1 is HERE

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Had to wonder, you know, if folks learning to do this sort of thing wasn't the basis of the tales about witchcraft.  Thinking it through a bit more, after destroying a few persistent vermin in my garden, I realized that if this was the foundation of witchcraft, those fears in the general population could be well founded.  It took almost no imagination at all to see how someone with this sort knowledge could be a very real danger to the community at large.  Especially if the general population treated the “witch” badly.  I didn't intend to find out what would happen in a case like that.

I'd just got a pair of deer up close and doing a bit of a step-dance for a big flake of hay when I noticed the dust cloud of a truck barreling along the road from Al's place.  I sent the deer away, cursing Al under my breath.  Bad news only got worse when Al's pickup roared up my drive, scattering gravel as he skidded to a stop.  Al bailed out with a rifle in hand, starting to aim at the retreating deer.

I glared at him.  Al's rifle fell to the dirt from hands gone nerveless.  Wide eyed with anger, he demanded, “Damn you, Art! What did you do to me?”

Not bothering to get up from my seat on the porch steps I replied tartly, “Me?  I'm here on my porch.  You are ten feet away.  From here, it looked like you managed to drop your gun just in time to avoid poaching charges on top of the Felony Trespass and Protective Order violation.”

Frowning in a black faced rage, he flexed his now almost functioning fingers and retorted, “Poaching?  No way!  This is private land so its legal.  No hunting without permission your signs says. Wasn't no time to ask first, so's I was gonna ask after I blasted 'em.  Would'a given me a whole Winter's meat.”

Lips pulled into a tight line I snapped, “Only problem, Al, is I would have said NO.  Those signs allow me to get game from my land.  Desert game is spread thin and I don't share mine.  At least not with you.  I heard from Joe Sanderson how well you share yours.”

Al was looking down at his hands and flexing them.  Still pissed off, he spit out, “Joe had it coming!  Bastard wouldn't pay me for Neighbor Watch.”

I raised one eyebrow and pointed out, “Neither will I.  Looks like your hands are better.  Get into your truck and shove off.  Don't come back, either.”

Al stared to bend over to get his rifle and just kept on going down. He landed in a heap on the scattered gravel of my drive.  “Don't try to take that gun, Al, unless you want to leave here in a hearse.”

Twitching on the ground, Al yelled, “I knew it, you asshole! You've used some sort of evil witchcraft on me.  I'll have the law on you for this!”

I smiled down at him from my vantage point on the steps.  A sensible wolf would have stepped away from that smile.  “One:  Killing Felony Trespassers is legal, and that's what you became when you hauled out that rifle.  Two:  You have a Protective Order that requires you to stay at least a hundred fifty feet from my property line and do nothing to compromise my property, including discharge firearms on or across it.  I can legally kill you for that violation, too.  Three:  Witchcraft IS legal.  Four:  I just sat here and watched you apparently have some sort of seizures.  Five:  I am calling the Sheriff's Office on your Trespass and and Order violations.”

I got on my phone and called the situation in to the County Police. I fixed a sandwich and went back out on the porch to watch Al.  He was staying down.  I knew that he would.

As I started to eat, Ratty popped up from his nest under the house. He did his little rat dance and got his chunk of sandwich.  He settled down by my feet and happily nibbled his bread and cheese.

Al looked on in what I believe was genuine fear.  Trying to point, he exclaimed, “There's the proof!  You are a witch-man!  That's your familiar!”

Amused, I replied, “Ratty?  A familiar?  The worst he could do is nip your nuts while you're down.”

Ratty squeaked firmly.

I laughed, “Right Ratty!  Why should you risk lice and other crawling vermin just to bite Al's privates?”

Ratty expressed his opinion of Al by taking his part of the sandwich and retreating back under the house.  With his tail up to show Al his ass.

Not too much later a deputy arrived.  I greeted him, “Hi, Deputy Mustic.  'Fraid your cousin Al's in a spot of trouble.  Seems to have not only broken the Protective Order, he brought a firearm onto my place.  Trouble is, unless he's faking it, he seems to have some sort of paralytic neurological event.  He's even trying to blame me for it.  Witchcraft, no less.  Can you believe it?”

Deputy Mustic closed his eyes and took a deep breath.  “Of Al?  I'd believe near anything.  I gotta call for a backup and let him do this one to be sure that everything's done right.  If I try to do the arrest, Al's lawyer is sure to try for a conflict of interest or some such because we're related.”   The deputy got on his radio and I overheard him giving dispatch a piece of his mind for sending him out to deal with a relative.

Soon both the backup, Deputy Jorgen, and an ambulance were on the scene.  Al was duly informed of his rights and placed under arrest while the ambulance crew verified with a pin that Al really was paralyzed.  Deputy Mustic took me aside, day book out and asked, “Art, why didn't you call the ambulance?  Even if he is my family, we both know that Al is slime.  Still, you should'a called.”

I nodded, while watching Al being loaded into the ambulance to be hauled away, “I would have, Deputy.  Thing is, he pulled that stunt on Sadie Halloway where he faked an injury on her place.  Since she called the ambulance, she wound up getting stuck for near enough a grand.  Al did it because she wouldn't pay into his neighbor watch scam.  I won't pay him either and just figured he was doing the same to me as he did to her.”

Writing in his day book and flipping a page to finish, Deputy Mustic nodded, “I heard about that.  Thought it might be the reason. Needed it clear for the record is all.”

More anxiously, now that he was done being official, he asked, “Any idea what is wrong?  I mean, scum or not, he is family and I'm worried for him.  Believe it or not, the kids like him at reunions. He does slight of hand coin tricks and card stunts really professional.”

I shrugged, “The slight of hand for entertainment is something I'd not have guessed.  Slick as he is at lifting small tools and such, I should have known something like that was behind it.  As for this, no idea at all.  I am sure that it's not sunstroke.  The AC in his truck was on and it works.  I would guess that it might be an oddball stroke of some kind.  Maybe an aneurysm or bleed in the upper spine could do it.  Just a guess, though.

“Al appears to be sure what it is.  I heard him telling both Deputy Jorgen and the paramedics that it's witchcraft.  If it is, I don't think that I'm the one.  Frankly, I hope he's right.  Witchcraft is legal.”

Three days later, Deputy Mustic was back.  It was an unofficial visit.  Looking sad, he said, “Al died in the hospital, last night, 'bout midnight, Art.  The doctors did find what it was but there was nothing that they could do.  Doctor Collins said that it was the fastest growing neurological tumor that she's ever heard of.  It was just near to the top of his spine.  Inoperable.  Al died swearing to everyone there that you cursed him.”

I watched a hawk soar overhead  for a moment before I replied, “Not to speak ill, but if I could have, I would have.  Didn't like him at all.

“You, on the other hand are one of the best.  Never heard a single bad word about you, even from folks you've arrested.”

Deputy Mustic smiled but only slightly, “Thanks for that, Art.  I didn't expect any sympathy for Al but I figured that you'd want to know.”

“Indeed, Deputy.  My condolences to your family.”

As Deputy Mustic drove away, My mind was in high gear.  I liked it out here, but it did get pretty lonely on occasion.  The ease with which I influenced animals and settled Al's hash led to an interesting line of thought.

The next time that I was in town, I spotted a pretty young lady. Checking her out by 'feel' I found that she was not only available, she didn't like being tied to one guy.  She enjoyed having a variety of lovers.

All that I planted was the urge to drive out my way.  The weekend was fun for both of us.  Besides bed, Sally hiked around the hills with me and even liked watching a hawk or buzzard fly.  We took a bunch of pictures of her around my house and up in the rocks and hills.  Nice cheesecake, barely risque.  Good memories.

It turned out that Sally knew a fair number of other like minded friends.  After she introduced me to her buddies, neither my days or nights stayed lonely.

---The End---

[jugaddict]

Poisoned

Title: Poisoned

Fandom: Riverdale

Pairing: Kevin Keller/Joaquin

Note: I wrote this because I was fed up of expecting this kind of talk on the show. You can also find this on ao3 under  TheKlainer (MoonlightShines)

Joaquin was lying upside down on Kevin’s bed, fiddling with a ruler as Kevin finished up his homework at his desk.

“I need that,” Kevin said playfully, as he rolled towards Joaquin with his office chair and snatched it out of his hand.

Joaquin rolled his eyes, and heaved out a heavy sigh.

“I promise I’m almost done,” Kevin said, “then we can do something fun.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know, you want to watch a movie?”

“I’m here. At your house. In your bedroom. Waiting as you do calculus and trigonometry for an hour, and you want to watch a movie when you’re done?”

Kevin’s cheeks coloured. He hoped Joaquin wouldn’t pick on him for that. Screw him for just wanting to cuddle with his boyfriend for a bit.

Kevin dropped his calculator onto his graph paper. “Babe, we can do whatever you want in five minutes, just let me finish.”

Joaquin rolled off the bed and wrapped his arms around Kevin from behind his chair.

“Your schoolwork can wait, Keller.” He said lowly in his ear,  “I can’t.”

Joaquin’s words spread a warmth in Kevin’s chest. He rotated his chair so that he was facing him again and Joaquin climbed onto his lap, tilting his head down towards Kevin’s so that his hair fell in front of his face. It was too tempting. He needed to finish the damn math. But Joaquin was there, on top of him, arms snaking around him, and he couldn’t stop himself. His hair was so beautiful.

Kevin took a strand and tucked it behind Joaquin’s ear.

Joaquin was so beautiful.

“Yeah?” Kevin’s voice hitched, eyes flitting from Joaquin’s eyes to his mouth.

“Yeah,” Joaquin breathed, and then they were kissing.

Kevin loved kissing Joaquin. For all the toughness he exerted his lips were soft, and he all but melted into Kevin’s embrace. Kevin’s heart was racing, he could almost hear the blood rushing through his veins, his hands almost shaking at the prospect of making him shiver under his touch. It made him feel powerful. How could he keep this treasure a secret? He wanted everyone to know. His friends (they did know, Kevin couldn’t help it), his classmates, strangers, his dad.

Look at this boy in my arms, he’s mine.

“Fuck homework,” Joaquin muttered after he kissed the pulse point on Kevin’s neck, trailing back up to meet his lips.

Kevin’s head was thrown back against the black leather of his chair, eyes closed and breaths laboured as he held onto the exhilaration and bliss that engulfed him.

“Fuck me.”

The weight on his lap disappeared instantly and Kevin opened his eyes slowly, jarred awake by Joaquin’s eerie silence.

He hadn’t meant to blurt that out. He hadn’t meant to at all, but it was what he wanted, wasn’t it?

Joaquin was half across the room, hands tugging his hair and eyes squeezed shut, pacing.

“Joaquin,” Kevin said hesitantly, “we don’t…There’s no pressure at all-”

“You want to be with me? Like-like that? For real?” His eyes were imploring, almost hopeful, and his mouth twitched up into a tragically beautiful smile.

Kevin was taken aback. “I… Yes. Of course, I do. Now or eventually, whenever. You’re my boyfriend.”

Joaquin’s eyes dimmed at those words, and his smile disappeared completely.

“No, I’m not, Kevin.”

Kevin got up from the chair and grabbed Joaquin’s hips. Joaquin’s eyes fell to where his hands were on his waist before looking up at Kevin.

“Joaquin,” Kevin said, soft and caring, “You are my boyfriend. I want to be with you. I don’t give a damn about you being a serpent. That doesn’t change anything.”

Joaquin pulled away from him angrily. It wasn’t fair. Being a serpent didn’t change things. It defined them. All this status, all the trouble he went through to be a part of something where he could take control of his life, and he couldn’t even get what he wanted. He didn’t need to be a serpent to get what he wanted. The only thing he actually ever felt like wanting. It was too late now. He could tell Kevin everything, and then he’d have nothing. FP would skin him alive. He’d be hated by half of the city’s most dangerous men for backstabbing them. Even worse, he’d be hated by Kevin. He’d be digging his own grave.

But Kevin didn’t deserve this. And Joaquin didn’t deserve this false taste of fantasy either.

“You don’t get it Keller,” Joaquin said, shaking his head. “This relationship you think we have? It’s fake! This was all fake. I’m not your boyfriend, okay? It was all a scam.” He’s yelling now, frustrated tears welling in his eyes.

“What?”

“You’re my job, Keller. I’m here because Jughead’s dad wants me to get information from your dad. I don’t even fucking like you!”

“That’s a fucking lie.” Kevin said, narrowing hard eyes at Joaquin. He sounded scary, and it surprised them both, Kevin never thought of himself as threatening, but he would never let himself be taken advantage of. It never happened, and it sure as hell wasn’t happening then. He had the ability to make his words drip with venom if he wanted to. He knew how to defend himself. “You don’t think I would know when someone is fucking with my feelings? Do you think I’d fall for that crap?”

Joaquin stared silently with his arms folded around his jacket. He had such sad eyes. It was something Kevin had a hard time wrapping his head around. How could Joaquin be pulled into a world so messy and violent like the South Side Serpents? He wasn’t aggressive at all.

Joaquin griped his jacket tighter, his knuckles going white. Why did Kevin have to be so smart? With a tilt of his head and a depreciative twitch of a smile he whispered, “I know.”

“Then tell me what the hell is going on.”

Kevin was stone cold angry, but Joaquin, Joaquin was crying.

“I like you. I like you a lot, Kevin. I fucked up. I-I’m  falling in love with you.” Joaquin confessed, his voice cracking through his silent tears.

Kevin stood speechless.

Love?

“I can’t- I can’t . I can’t do this anymore without it being real. I want it to be real so bad, Kev.”

Kevin walked up to Joaquin, and wiped the wetness from his face with his hands. Kevin was taller than Joaquin, he stood over him defiantly, almost passive if not for his caring hands on him, visibly unaffected by watching the boy’s face crumple at his touch.

“Why are you crying? I’m the one who’s been screwed over.”

Joaquin swallowed a sob, “I’m upset,” he snarked, pushing away Kevin as he swiped at his eyes angrily.

Kevin stared at Joaquin, a sniffling mess in his bedroom. What a complex. A snake with a heart.

“You can’t be upset over something that isn’t real Joaquin.”

“…Okay?”

“Don’t you get it?”

“What? You want me to say it outloud? I want you. I fucked up. I just lost the one good thing going for me. I get it, okay?”

Kevin closed his eyes and exhaled slowly. When he opened them, Joaquin was still there, teary-eyed, heart opened and so so unlike the boy he made himself up to be.

Well, he decided, he’d have to show him.

“Was it your idea to get information from me?” Kevin asked.

Joaquin frowned, “…No.”

“Did you kiss me at the drive-in knowing who I was?”

“The truth?” Joaquin whispered, and Kevin nodded firmly.

“FP caught us making out and forced me to do it or else he said he’d find a way to make me regret it.”

Kevin made a face at the mental image of Joaquin being threatened by FP. He felt momentarily bad for Jughead. Then he thought, and hated himself for it, what else did FP force Joaquin to do?

“Do you know who broke into my house that night?”

Joaquin recoiled. “Someone broke in?”

“And stole all of dad’s case files on the case? Yeah.” He couldn’t help the bitterness that crept into his voice.

“No, I swear to god I have no idea.” Joaquin looked so pained Kevin was afraid he was going to throw up.

“Okay,” Kevin shushed him, bringing him in close and hugging him against his chest, “I believe you. It’s okay.”

It wasn’t though. The young serpent said so in protest. It couldn’t be okay, how could you let it be?

Kevin reached down for Joaquin’s trembling hand and squeezed it. “One last question?” He led to him to his bed, sitting crossed legged and insisting a hesitant Joaquin to follow suit.

Joaquin nodded, he’d tell him anything for the smallest chance of keeping Kevin in his life. For Kevin not to never want to see him again. Even if that meant he’d have to give him up.

“If you approached me that night at the drive-in on your own just because you liked me, then what about any of this is fake?”

“What?” Joaquin said blinking up at Kevin in shock. “I lied to you.”

“Yeah, and that really fucking sucks, but you actually decided to tell me when you didn’t have to.”

Joaquin frowned, “I was being selfish Kevin,” he admitted quietly, “I did it for myself.”

“No. You did it because you didn’t want to hurt me. I was willing to sleep with you and you realized not only how much you genuinely liked me, but how much you couldn’t bear me being tricked into thinking our relationship was “fake”. You can’t tell me that was selfish. No other guy would do that.”

“I-”

“Babe, I’m not an idiot. I knew you were a gang member from the beginning, but I trust you because believe it or not you’re not some scum serpent you’re making yourself out to be.”

“I don’t deserve you Keller.”

“Most don’t,“ Kevin sighed dramatically, done with the drama, done with the heartache, “live with it. You’re mine.”

It was the right thing to say. Joaquin finally understood. Kevin actually meant it. Everything really was okay. Joaquin knew that Kevin was resilient and strong minded, but he could have never thought he’d be so compassionate so fast. Kevin still wanted him. He wanted this to work as bad as he did. And just like that the fog was lifted and Joaquin’s signature smirk returned. “I’m yours, huh?” He teased, brushing their shoulders together.

“You heard right, what’re you gonna do about it?”

Joaquin kissed him hard. When he opened his eyes to his boyfriend’s expectantly closed ones, he bit his lip and smiled coyly.

“How about snuggling up to a movie?”

Kevin grinned.

[passportsymphony]

13 common scams in Southeast Asia and how to avoid them

If you’re planning a Southeast Asia trip soon, I suggest you read on. This article is about the most common scams in Southeast Asia. Some of these scams aren’t that dangerous, but some of them can really ruin your trip. Although Southeast Asia has a lot of beautiful places, you should be aware of what can happen to you. Some local people may be genuinely friendly, but there will be a lot of them that will see you as a walking $100 bill.

common scams Southeast Asia

1. The ping-pong show

If you decide to explore Bangkok’s red light districts, you will see countless people showing you their crazy offers for the night. They will try to lure you into one of their ping pong shows. If you look like you’re hesitating, they will say that you don’t need to pay an entrance and you just need to pay for your drinks and enjoy the show. If you decide to take one of these lucrative offers, chances are you’ll be disappointed and you’ll see some disgusting things inside.

You decide you’ve had enough and ask for the bill only to find out that your 60 baht ($2) bill turned into 2,000 baht ($60). When you try to explain that that’s not what you agreed with the promoter, (who is nowhere to be found) they will say that you need to pay for watching the show.

Solution: Just don’t accept these offers! If you want to see a ping-pong show just go to one of the places that already have reputation for that. You’re going to pay a similar amount of money, but at least it will be worth it.

  2. Adorable kids

I know, kids in Southeast Asia look adorable and harmless. However, some of them have been trained to rob people from their earliest age. One night in a bar in Phnom Penh, five kids were tagging along and dancing around us when I saw one of them taking a $10 bill from my friend’s pocket. She didn’t feel anything! There’s also the milk scam when a kid on the street isn’t asking for money, but for milk and food. You feel sorry for them and go to the store and you buy food for them, only to see that kid returning the things you bought to the market and sharing the profit.

Solution: I know they look adorable and harmless, but always be cautious around kids.

  3. Bus scams

There are two most common types of this scum that mostly happen in Thailand and Cambodia. When crossing the border between Thailand and Cambodia, the bus driver might drive slowly on purpose till the border is closed or ferry boats stopped running (if you’re crossing by boat). So we have to stop the bus and rest till the border opens again. And surely it’s a coincidence that one of his friends has a guesthouse close to the border crossing.

The second scam involves VIP tickets. The tellers at most bus station try to pitch the VIP tickets to foreigners. And that’s fine. The thing is most of the time, the VIP bus gets broken and you’re stuck in the regular bus instead, without getting a refund of the price difference.

Solution: There’s not much to do about the first one I guess. Regarding the second one, I always rejected the offer to buy VIP bus tickets and I always travelled by the normal bus. Most of the times, the buses were quite decent.

  4. The scooter thief

This is a very common thing in cities like Delhi and Ho Chi Minh City. I have seen people getting their phones stolen like this on several occasions. The thieves pass by you on a scooter while you’re talking on your phone and they take away your phone bag. They are obviously much faster than you and you can’t do anything about it. Needless to say, finding the thief in these urban jungles is close to impossible.

Solution: I know you must have heard this a million times before, but take care of your things. Hold your bag firm and avoid speaking on your phone when you’re walking down on the main roads.

  5. The drug dealer scam

This is a very famous and dangerous scam that can get you in a lot of trouble. A random drug guy approaches you on the street and he offers drugs to you. You think I could use some weed to relax after a long day and you decide to buy it. Just around the corner, you’re intercepted by a cop that asks for your legitimation and searches through your pockets. Once he finds the stuff, you’re given the chance to bribe him or face the legal consequences. And I’m talking about a big, juicy bribe here, that sometimes goes up to $500 USD.

Solution:  Just ignore the temptation and don’t trust anyone. Drugs are easy to get off course, but never do that in public, and especially not from a person you just met on the street.

6. The money exchange scam

The money exchange scam is typical for countries whose currency has plummeted, like Vietnam and Indonesia. You go to the money exchange and want to exchange your couple of hundred US dollars for few millions of the local currency. You and the teller both count the money, you take it and go to your hotel. A few hours later, you realize you only have 600,000 instead of a million.

Solution: if you can’t follow the teller’s quick hands, always count the money again after receiving them.

  7. The cheap restaurant; common scams in Southeast Asia 

This one begins when you meet a friendly local at one of the tourist sights. He is unusually friendly and after chit chatting for a while, he offers to show you a good and cheap place to try local food. You accept the invitation, but you’re not aware that this guy knows the restaurant owner and they’re running a scheme. After a few hours you found yourself unconscious, drugged (it was in the food) and moneyless. Something similar, but not so drastic, happened to me in Hanoi.

Solution: Even though this types of scam don’t happen very often and some people might be genuinely nice, it’s the best to decline all such invitations by friendly locals.

  8. Tourist information offices

The sign “tourist information” doesn’t have a lot of value in Southeast Asia. In fact, a lot of scammers operate under this name. You will get this from the crazy prices that they are charging. If they tell you that a place you want to go to is closed or something similar that means it’s just not on their tours. You will probably find yourself in one of these offices on a recommendation of a driver, who acts as a middleman.

Solution: Don’t take the advice of the drivers and do your homework before you visit a place. That way you’ll know how much the visit to a certain sight is worth, thus knowing whether you’re being ripped off or not.

  9. The closed monument

You are on your way to visit one of the monuments that were on your list. A tuk-tuk driver asks you where are you going. Even if you decide to ignore him, he’ll tell you that the monument is closed. Or that you are not properly dressed to go there if you’re wearing shorts or a skirt.

If you take the bait he’ll say that he knows a better place to visit. Instead, he’ll take you to a bunch of expensive places, like his friend’s tailor shop, his friend’s restaurant or his friend’s souvenir shop. All of these places will be extremely expensive and he’s getting a commission out of everything you buy.

Solution: If you don’t see for yourself that the monument is closed, don’t believe the tuk-tuk drivers. Additionally, if a tuk-tuk driver offers to take you somewhere for a low price like 20 baht, just walk away. He’ll drive you around to his friend’s shops and only waste your time.

  10. The tour guide scam

When visiting some of the great tourist sights in Southeast Asia, like the Grand Palace of Bangkok or Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, you will meet people that will introduce themselves as guides. They won’t charge much, but roughly half of the things they will tell you will be at least questionable.

Solution: Just walk away and don’t let them lure you in one of their traps. The real official guides don’t target individuals and you can usually see them with big groups.

  11. The special massage

The target of this scam is usually white or western looking males that are wandering around the town on their own. It starts with a girl that approaches you on the street offering you a ‘special massage’ for a ridiculously low price. You agree and after getting to the ‘saloon’ you are flanked by three big guys that will take you to the ATM and take all of your money… or else! And it might be even worse: there’s a corrupted cop threatening you with arrest. And the choice is either pay the bribe or get arrested.

Solution: You need to be really horny to fall for this one. I know it can be hard, but just say no and move on. There are a lot of other safer places where you can do that. The price will be a bit higher, but at least you’ll get to keep the rest of your money.

  12. The border scam

I noticed this one at one of the border passing between Thailand and Cambodia. I arrived at the immigration office and the guy there wouldn’t accept my $30 bill and was asking for 40 even. And there was a clear writing on the wall behind him stating the price of $30 USD for the visa on arrival.

Solution: They are just waiting for you to lose your patience. You should stand your ground, be patient and not accept to pay anything above the $30 fee.

13. The tea party

This one starts when a group of girls approaches you when you’re walking down the street. They ask you to take a picture of them or some other innocent ice-breaker. After some chit-chatting, they invite you to a tea exhibition organized by them and their college colleagues.

You go there and taste few different tastes when they start insisting that you should buy one. The issue: a bag costs around $120 USD.These scams were more commonly used in China, but nowadays they appear in Thailand and Vietnam as well.

Solution: Just politely refuse all invites for tea (or any other kind of) exhibition.

That was the list of the most common Scams in Southeast Asia. I hope you enjoyed this list of the most common scams in Southeast Asia.

      The post 13 common scams in Southeast Asia and how to avoid them appeared first on Passport Symphony.

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