Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Alex’s blood rushed as he opened his closet and pushed away his clothes to reveal the outfit he had been putting together over the weekend. In the dead of night, the clicking of hangers together sounded like smacking rocks together, and just opening the door had been like a massive vault being cracked open. He paused for a moment, making sure no one was awake. His mother usually got up to use the bathroom around now, but it seems tonight was an exception. He took the stash of clothes onto his bed and laid them out. It felt like the complete opposite of when he would get ready for school in the morning. God forbid, he’d be going nowhere near the city tonight. He grabbed the waist of his pajama bottoms, but stopped, deciding that he could use the extra insulation in the cold Chicago night. Slowly, as to not make any noise, he put on the outfit he’d come up with.
Some black pants Alex’d found in a Goodwill, both comfortable and with large pockets. A pair of grey hiking boots his father had wanted to give away after a year of use, but Alex had kept, knowing they would be perfect for this. A Doctor Who tee with a blue base, random to anyone else but for him it felt perfectly on the nose. A light blue windbreaker he half zipped, he liked it and they didn’t call it the Windy City for nothing. He’d expected this to be harder without any light, but it was just a bit slower than usual.
And finally, as any good superhero would, Alex put on a mask. But not something someone like Spider-Man had. For him, he had a scarf, and stared in the mirror with it over his mouth. It was the first time he’d actually put it on, but it didn’t feel right. He couldn’t describe it, something was just off. So he took the scarf off and rummaged around for something else. Eventually, he did end up finding the Captain America costume he was going to wear this Halloween. He felt the inside of it, and flipped it inside out to hide the star.
Alex put the cowl on, and then looked back in the mirror. He looked… cool. He could feel his heart pounding as he checked himself out, even trying the pose Cap did on those old war films from history class, raising his arm as he holding up a shield and putting the other hand on his waist. He couldn’t help but smile.
He then found a small drawstring bag to bring supplies he’d stashed before pretending to go to bed. A bottle of water, obviously, some cash in case he ever needed to spend it totaling $103.43, a roll of tan bandages, a tube of antibiotic cream, bug repellent, a phone charger and plug, a portable battery, an umbrella, a pack of baby wipes, about a dozen zip ties, a flashlight, and a notebook labeled “Deerfield Case” in case he ever found something pertaining to its contents.
Slinging the bag on his back, Alex went over to is window. He looked down, he said NOT want to jump down two stories. So he went over to his bedroom door. The only way out of his house would be the front door. But that then came with risk. His dad woke up before the crack of dawn for his job. If Alex came home too late, he’d be caught red handed. Then again, it WAS possible to sneak past him. He certainly could, but he didn’t like using his powers like that, especially around his father like that. But it wasn’t like he had any other options.
So Alex took a deep breath and snapped his fingers. The breeze of the vent in his room stopped, and the raccoon about to rummage through his neighbor’s garbage stopped moving as the flow of time came to a sudden and seamless halt. He opened the door, and walked to the stairs. Thanks to his powers, no one would hear a thing. He got downstairs, and felt his way through the anteroom to the door. He turned the knob to unlock the door, and slowly opened the door to leave. He then closed the door behind him, putting in the passcode to unlock the locking mechanism, turning the lock shut when the keypad flashed green. He looked down at his watch, he saw that it was 11:44. He snapped his fingers, and the eerie not-so-quiet of night filled his ears, and the time changed over to 11:45. *Three hours* he thought to himself, *three hours of this and I go home, that should give me enough time to sleep before school tomorrow.* He really should have done this on Saturday night instead of Sunday night. At least then he would have not had to worry about getting enough sleep to get up early. But that was behind him, he was committed, and he began walking into his first night of being a superhero.

After half an hour of walking, Alex wished he got flying instead of being able to pause time. It started making sense why Captain America had a motorcycle. Also, he realized he’d overestimated his ability to get anywhere, since after only half an hour he’d only reached the Eden Expressway. His original plan of walking to Deerfield and helping whoever he found along the way seemed more and more unrealistic. At best, he’d get there by 2AM. So Alex stopped at the curb, and hailed a cab.
After a few minutes, one arrived and pulled over for him. The driver put down the passenger window and asked, “Whereto?” He either hadn’t registered what Alex was wearing or decided to ignore it in the name of a speedy interaction. “Deerfield High School.” Alex requested, getting into the back seat as the driver turned on his fare counter and began to drive. After some quiet driving, the driver finally decided to strike up conversation.
“So what’s with the outfit, you some sorta superhero?” He asked.
“Yeah,” Alex responded simply.
“But like an actual superhero, not just some dork running around with a mask?” The driver asked, since Alex’s getup wasn’t exactly professional.
“Yep, superpowers and all.” Alex responded, his confidence boosted by the admission.
“Hope it’s something useful. I tell you, this city needs some superheroes.” The driver began to complain.
“Yeah I get’cha.” Alex responded, sharing the sentiment.
“I mean, why do all the cool superheroes gotta be everywhere else? You got the Avengers, Spider-Man, and the X-Men in New York, Black Panther’s in Africa, the Thunderbolts are on the West Coast. What about us?” The driver began, clearly having thought about this for a while.
“I get’cha.” Alex repeated, unsure how else to respond.
“So you gonna protect the city and give us some superhero rep?” The driver asked, clearly already putting Alex’s superhero persona on a pedestal.
“Uh… I’ll try.” Alex shyly answered, uncomfortable with the sudden perceived burden of responsibility to his city.
“Try? What’s your thing?” The driver pushed.
“My thing?” Alex asked.
“Your thing, your power, your gimmick, whatever they’re called. What is it?” The driver clarified.
“Oh, well I can pause time with the snap of my fingers.” Alex answered, trying to make it sound normal. When it wasn’t, even for him to an extent.
The driver was silent for a moment, wrapping his head around it. “So you can just make everything stop for as long as you want?” He finally asked.
“Pretty much,” Alex answered.
“...That’s actually not a bad power.” The driver complimented.
“Oh, thanks.” Alex said back, taken aback by the compliment.
“Alright, so you can pause time. What’s your name?”
Alex went silent. *crap* he thought to himself, he’d never picked out a name.
“Um… working on it.” He finally answered.
“Working on it? You put together a whole get up, went out to fight crime, and you never thought of a name?” The driver asked, incredulous.
“It just kind of slipped my mind, I was focused on other stuff.” Alex admitted, he really was.
“Alright, well I may not be the smartest guy, but I DO know that branding is hella important. So think of something fast.” The driver advised him insightfully.
“I already am,” Alex agreed, already ruling out “Snapshot” as a hero name.
“So why you going to Deerfield?” The driver finally asked.
“Independent investigation,” Alex answered, trying to sound as professional as a 16 year old could, “I heard about a girl who went missing a few days ago. I tried asking around last week, but didn't get much. Figured I’d find more if I checked around the school.”
“Not bad for a first timer. You know if it was her being taken or something?” The driver commented.
“I’m not sure, she was around m-” Alex began, then stopped himself. Probably not the best idea to give away he wasn’t an adult. “She was a junior.”
“Well good luck, last thing this city needs is someone snatching young people off the streets.” The driver grimly offered.
“I’m hoping it’s nothing like that, but thank you.” Alex responded.
The cab then stopped and Alex looked out to see Deerfield High School. He looked at the fare counter: $42.19.
“Oh wow, that’s a lot.” Alex realized, looking into his bag.
“Hey don’t worry about it. I’ll give you a hero discount.” The driver offered, “Just gimme a 20.”
“Wow, really?” Alex asked, surprised.
“Sure.”
Alex then pulled out a $20 bill and handed it to the driver. “Thank you.” He said, getting out of the cab.
“Good luck with your investigation.” The driver said, driving off and leaving him at the school.

Alex walked up the front door of the school, jiggling the handle to find it locked. He scanned the windows for a way in, only to be met with nothing. Despite having superpowers and a bag of supplies, he was beaten by a high school security system. He looked down at his watch, 12:13, had to get in and out to make it home. He thought about ways to get inside, and took out his iPhone 5 and opened the Safari app to look up, “how to pick a lock for beginners.” Only to realize, as the search results loaded, that the doors had no visible locks to pick. He went over to the windows, no way to shimmy them open. Clearly, a master infiltrator he was not.
He walked over to the left, hoping to find other doors, and finally found a pair of doors with a visible lock. He looked at the search results and found a WikiHow article about picking locks… only to realize not only did he not have any paperclips, he didn’t have any pliers to bend them into a lockpick. He looked down and considered throwing something to break the glass, then quickly discarded that idea. After all, that would do more harm than good. In a moment of frustration, he wrapped his hands around the handle of the door, planted his feet, and yanked on it with all his might. Expecting to have done nothing, and look like an idiot had someone been watching, instead the door flew open with his overexertion of force, causing him to fall over.
Alex stood up, brushed dust and pebbles off the back of his pants, and walked up to the now open door. He rationalized it as someone forgetting to lock it. But as he got into the dark school, in the back of his mind, he couldn’t stop thinking about how someone might have already gotten inside, and may not be open to leaving him to his business. Alex reached into his bag, pulled out his flashlight and activated it. He flashed it in front of him, walking through the dark halls only illuminated by fleeting moonlight.
He figured a good place to look for evidence would be the locker of the girl who went missing. Maybe it would tell him why she disappeared or where she may have gone. But first he had to find which locker was hers. It’s not like he could spend all night checking every locker for hers… Though he could snap and pause time to do so, but he wasn’t gonna do that when an easier method was available.
Eventually finding the main office, Alex found it to be locked. This is where he suspected any information to help him find the locker would be, and yet again a simple door lock beats him. He made a mental note to pack something to get around this next time. By now he noticed the lack of air conditioning in the school, and how the mask was starting to get warm. He considered taking it off, but put it off to focus on getting the door open. He thought about it for a while, but couldn’t think of a way to get it open. Defeated, he kicked the door in frustration and walked away, hoping to find something else. As he walked, his flashlight fell on a cork bulletin board, and a poster caught his eye. It was very basic, no noteworthy graphics, reading, “DEERFIELD GHOST HOTLINE. Have you seen her?!” With a phone number at the bottom and several tabs taken. Alex took out his small notebook labeled “Deerfield Case” and jotted down a note: Deerfield Ghost, possible lead?
Moving on, he continued to walk and theorize in his head. Clearly the Deerfield Ghost was some sort of urban myth, or a story the students were telling themselves. He’d never heard of any ghosts, could that be what caused the girl to disappear?
Trying to find a secondary office, he heard someone walking. Not in front or behind, but above. He walked over to a staircase, where the faint echos of footsteps cascaded from the floor above. He grabbed the railing and slowly climbed up the stair, curiosity driving him to see who could be here after midnight. He stopped when the footsteps stopped, believing he’d been heard. Then he heard the metal clang of a locker being opened. Either a thief, or someone who found the missing girl’s locker before him. He continued up the stairs and turned off his flashlight, the sound of someone rummaging through a locker getting louder.
Alex finally made it up to the second floor, trying his best to keep his boots from squeaking on the linoleum floor. He inched closer to the sound, hiding between rows of lockers and moving between sections, inching closer to the noise. But when he was halfway to the sound, the sound stopped, and someone walked out of the lockers. It was too dark to see any recognizable, but he could make out the shape of the person who’d been rummaging. About his height, long hair. The figure, which he presumed was a girl, turned to face him. They stare at each other, so dark they’re unsure if they’re even making eye contact. Alex tried to raise a hand to wave, only for the girl to bolt towards him. Alex, assuming this was about to become a brawl, raised his hands to fight. He was hoping to talk, but it seemed the girl had already made up her mind. But when he thought she’d stop to attack him, she kept running… straight through him. For a moment, it was like his body had something filling every cavity, his lungs like they were filled with fluid. And then, as quickly as the sensation came over him, it dissipated.
Alex stumbled and gasped, the girl passing through him and running past him. Quickly recovering from the phantom sensation, Alex turned around to see her running for the stairwell. “He-Hey, wait!” Alex called out, getting up to run after her. He sprinted to and down the stairwell, jumping at the third to last step to save time. Running out into the hall, he saw her running down a hall that went away from the main entrance. Alex continued after her, “Wait!” He yelled out, but she didn’t react. She turned a corner into a classroom and Alex followed, only to find it empty, with no sign of the girl. Was she actually a ghost? Alex spun around, looking for where she could have gone, only for a shadow to run past the door. It was her, now running to the exit. Alex rushed out of the classroom, chasing her again towards another set of doors.
Realizing he wouldn’t be able to catch up to someone who treated walls like a suggestion rather than an obstacle, he snapped his fingers. And as time stood still, so did she. He finally put his hands on his knees and took a breath. After a breath or two, he walked over to her still body, caught in the middle of a running step. He turned on his flashlight, and could finally get a good look at her. She didn’t look like a ghost, she looked like a regular person. Long, brown hair put up into a ponytail, wearing black shorts and hoody. She seemed nervous, of what he wasn’t sure. Him? Why would he make her nervous? Alex stepped back, stood just in front of the doors, and raised his hand. He didn’t know exactly what to do, only he needed to make her stop running if he was gonna get any answers.
SNAP
The girl started running again, and Alex raised his hands up like he was bracing to stop a train, and yelled, “I JUST WANT TO TALK!”
She slowed down. Alex called out, “I’m not here to hurt you, I just want answers.”
She stopped in front of him… “What kind of questions?” She asked, suspicious.
Alex quickly pulled out his notebook, “I’m looking for someone who went missing last week. Would you…” He found the page where he’d written her name, “Know a girl named Katherine? Goes by Kat?”
“How do you know that?” She asked, as if him knowing that name troubled her.
“I just asked around,” Alex sheepishly admitted.
She sized him up, “You dress weird for a journalist.”
“Oh, I’m not a reporter. This is my super suit.” Alex explained. Though he had never ruled out journalism as a career.
“Ok…” she trailed off, “What kind of questions?”
“I just want to know what happened. Do you know her?” Alex asked.
The girl seemed to take a moment, then answered, “Well of course I know her, she’s me.”
He was taken aback, both at the sudden Star Wars reference and that the girl he’d been looking for just made him run around a school. “You’re Katherine?” He had to confirm.
“Just Kat, Kat Pryde” She affirmed, then asked softly, “People are looking for me?”
“Well, yeah, you just left out of nowhere.” Alex confirmed.
“Doesn’t feel that out of nowhere.” Kat said, a pinch of bitterness in her tone.
“Then, uh, would you mind answering some questions?” Alex asked.
“Alright, but can I close my locker first?” Kat asked.
“Of course,” Alex agreed, then putting out a hand to shake, “I’m Alex by the way.”
“I thought superheroes had codenames?” Kat asked, shaking his hand. She had soft hands.
“I’m still working on it.” He admitted, following her to her locker.

After Kat closed her locker, she led Alex up to the roof, where she felt more comfortable talking more. After they got out into the cool air, Alex began his questions, pen in one hand and notebook in the other, “Ok, so if you feel comfortable disclosing, how did you run through me?”
“You promise not to tell anyone?” She asked, but it didn’t seem certain she’d believe his answer.
“Yes.”
She took a moment, “Only if you tell me how you somehow got ahead of me.”
“It’s my superpower. I can pause time by snapping my fingers.” Alex explained.
“Alright,” Kat said, surprised by his openness, “Mine is phasing.”
“So you’re not a ghost or part ghost?” Alex asked, unknowingly stirring something in her that caused Kat’s face to sour and posture shrink. That’s when it clicked for Alex. KAT was the Deerfield High Ghost. Then something else clicked.
“The Deerfield High Ghost, that’s a bad name, isn’t it?”
“Yeah,” She revealed, sounding dejected.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you upset.” Alex apologized earnestly.
“It’s fine, you didn’t know.” Kat accepted, “Hey, did the name Tony West come up at all during your bit of sleuthing?”
“No, why?” Alex asked, assuming he was related to the case.
“Cause that’s the asshole who started this whole mess!” She yelled out. She signed with much frustration, “A year together, and all it took was ONE moment where he saw me phase. Next morning, I go to class, and everyone’s looking at me like I have 6 heads.”
“Oh my, that’s awful.” Alex sympathized. He’d never been in a relationship, let alone been the center of a schoolwide smear campaign, but he could see it bothered her deeply.
“Next thing I know everyone’s talking about me like I really am a ghost. And the teachers did jack shit! You have any idea what it’s like standing right in front of someone, looking them in the eye, talking to them, and they don’t respond!?” Kat ranted, overflowing with anger not at Alex but with everyone else.
“And that’s why you ran away…” Alex mumbled to himself. Kat leaned up against the outer wall of the staircase. “How did you get your powers?” Alex asked, an idea in his mind already.
“I don’t know, they just showed up one day.” Kat explained, “Cause I’m a mutant.”
And now it all made sense to him.
“Well, at least you aren’t alone now.” He tried to reassure her, then admitted, “I’m a mutant too.”
She looked at him differently now, as if he actually looked different in a good way.
“Maybe we could help each other.” Alex offered.
“I’d like that.” She agreed.
“So… where do you wanna go?” Alex asked, knowing she needed somewhere.
“Definitely not home.” Kat asserted.
“Why not?” Alex asked, confused.
“It’s a long story,” Kat explained, and he was willing to let it be.
She then pulled something folded up in her pocket, and unfolded it into a brochure.
“What’s that?” Alex asked.
“What I grabbed from my locker. Forgot it when I ran away.” Kat explained.
Alex came over and flashed his flashlight onto the brochure. At the top of the front was the title “Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters.”
“Is that where you wanted to go?” Alex asked. He’d heard of Xavier and the X-Men before, but never considered them within reach.
“Yeah, feels like somewhere I might actually belong.” Kat explained with a tone of longing, “We could go together. It says they always have room for more students.”
Alex hesitated, the whole idea seemed like an extreme measure. “I don’t know,” He began, “I don’t think I’d want to do that. I mean, I don’t really WANT to leave. Seems like a good thing for you, but I don- I have a job, and my parents. Oh man, my family would be devastated.”
“Alright.” Kat accepted… “Do they know?”
“No, no, just you.” Alex admitted, with some regret. He wanted to tell them, but…
“Wait, is that Doctor Who?” Kat asked, finally noticing the tee under Alex’s windbreaker.
“Yeah, why?” Alex asked, bracing for embarrassment or judgement.
“Nothing it's just, never seen a supersuit use a graphic tee before.” Kat commented, not judgement but amusement.
“It's a first draft,” Alex sheepishly admitted. “You like the show too?” He asked, hoping for a connection.
“No, but I've heard about it. Is it any good?” Kat asked.
“Oh it's very good, Alex said, getting into it, “it's my favorite show. They just did an episode where, ok it's a bit simplified but, there's an invisible mummy on a space train killing passengers. It's pretty much their version of Murder on the Orient Express.”
“I remember that book.” Kat recognized.
“Were you forced to read it for a class too?” Alex asked, assuming their school experiences were comparable.
“Yeah, it wasn't a bad book,” She said, “You go here?”
“No, I live in Jefferson Park.”
“Then what are you doing up here?” Kat asked, confused why he would go out of his way to find her.
“Heard about a girl that'd gone missing and wanted to try finding her.” Alex stated altruistically. Kat’s expression softened slightly.
“Do you wanna get off the roof?” Alex asked, hoping she’ll agree.
“Alright, but where would we even go?” Kat asked, expecting something more substantial than his actual answer.
“I think I saw a 24 hour gas station on the ride here. Wanna get some slushies?” Alex offered, knowing those make him feel better.
“I’d be alright with that.” Kat accepted, moving with him towards the exit of the roof.

Exiting the school, Kat and Alex walked to a 24 hour gas station. The pumps were off, but the lights inside the store were still on. Alex opened the door, letting Kat go in first. The guy behind the counter seemed like he was one more counted sheep from passing out. Alex immediately found the slushy machine, leading Kat over to it. A no pressure, low cost way to enjoy themselves that Alex had become accustomed to. Perfect for two kids with not that much disposable income.
He grabbed the small sized cup and put on the lid, perfectly aligning the nozzle into the hole at the top of the lid. Then pulling down the handle, he watched as the blue slurry gushed into the cup. Once the cup was filled halfway, Alex put the handle back up and removed the cup from the nozzle. Then, he placed the cup into the other nozzle, and pulled down the handle to allow the red to flow onto and mix with the blue. Kat stared at his concoction as it filled up to fill the cup and the lid up to the hole in the top, wondering aloud, “Why did I never think of that?”
“You wanna try? Go ahead.” Alex offered, moving over to let Kat try what he’d done. She put the lid on her cup, fuddled for a bit getting the nozzle into the hole properly, and pulled down on the blue handle. She’d pulled a bit too hard, causing the blue to flow rapidly, but she let it up quickly to slow it down. Then once it reached halfway full, she took it out and placed the cup into the other nozzle, and pulled down the handle to allow the red to flow onto and mix with the blue.
However, Kat hadn’t secured the lid as well as she should have, and once the red reached halfway up the lid, it began to spill out from the rim of the cup onto her hand. “Ah, crap!” Kat yelped, stopping the flow and putting the cup down, runoff spilling onto the counter. Alex grabbed some napkins to put around the cup, handing Kat a few for her hand. “Gotta make sure that lid’s on tight.” He commented as he helped her clean up the spill. Once the spill was soaked up, he threw out all the napkins and grabbed his cup, using a straw to swirl the blue and red into a combined flavor. Kat did the same, the lid now secure on her cup. And, without planning, they ended up taking a sip through their straws for the first time. The soft carbonation and fruity flavor like an old friend to Alex. “Holy crap, this stuff is good,” Kat praised, enjoying the slushy. But then they heard from the counter, “Um, are you two gonna pay for those?” The employee seemed to finally remember he was at work.
“Oh yeah, sorry,” Alex said, walking over to pay for their slushies. As he went to pull some cash from his bag, Kat walked up beside him, asking, “How much?”
“One small and one medium slushie that’s… $5.72.” The employee answered.
“Kat, it’s fine, I’ve got this.” Alex said, counting his bills.
“Alex, it’s fine, I have money.” Kat said, trying to assume responsibility.
“No no, you’ve had a rough night, let me take this.” Alex continued, thinking it was only polite he paid since it was his idea to come here. He gave the employee a $10 bill, and after a few seconds of fumbling with coins and bills, the employee came back with $4.38 in change. “Thanks.” Alex offered to the employee.

Exiting the gas station, Kat brought it up again, “Thanks for paying.”
“Oh it was nothing,” Alex humbly responded. He then checked his watch: 1:09AM. “Oh crap, I gotta get home.” Alex realized.
“You sure?” Kat asked, beginning to enjoy this night.
“Yeah, I got class tomorrow. Sorry.” Alex apologized.
“No no, it’s fine.” Kat accepted, “Jefferson Park right?”
“Yeah, you think cabs still operate at this hour?” Alex asked, wondering if he’ll be able to even get home in time.
“I dunno, never been out this late.” Kat admitted.
“Crap.” Alex groaned.
“Well… either way, this was nice.” Kat offered Alex’s kindness having cheered her up, “Thanks for the slushies.”
“You’re welcome,” Alex reciprocated, “You got somewhere to stay? I know you said you weren’t going back home so…”
“Yeah, I can find somewhere.” Kat said.
“How long are you gonna stay in the city until you go to that Xavier’s place?” Alex asked, pulling out his notebook and attached pen.
“I’m not sure.” Kat admitted, the vague idea of getting on a train to Westchester in the back of her head.
“Well, until then, if you ever need help,” Alex began, ripping off a piece of paper from his notebook, “Now you know where to find me.” Hastily written on the paper was his full name, “Alexander Kazimierz Duszynski,” alongside his phone number and home address.
“Oh, uh… thank you.” Kat accepted, taking the note surprised by his offer of continued communication. Alex didn’t think much about it in the moment, just a way to make sure she wasn’t alone from here on out.
“Ok um, well, I best be going.” Kat said, walking away.
“Do you want me to walk you home?” Alex offered, the polite thing to do.
“No it’s fine, I’m good.” Kat rejected softly.
“You sure?” Alex asked again, just to be sure.
“Trust me, I can handle myself.” Kat insisted, walking away.
“Alright, good night Kat.” Alex said, waving goodbye.
“Good night Alex.” Kat returned, walking off.

Hours later, Alex arrived at his house, his feet tired from walking. There were no cabs, at least ones he could find. He ended up snapping to pause time after it reached 1:30AM. He unlocked his door, crept inside, and closed the door, relocking it now inside. He realized he’d have to shower in the morning as he went up the stairs. He got into his room, tossed his bag in the corner of his room, and began taking off his supersuit, revealing his pajamas underneath. Tired from walking for five hours, he collapsed into his bed, unable to stop thinking about what he and Kat had done that night. Snapping to resume time and so he could get some sleep, he pulled his covers over himself, flipped his pillow, and turned over to get some sleep.
But as he began drifting off, a ping of a thought shot through his head that would keep him up for another hour… did he just go on a date?

Chapter Text

7AM.

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BE-

Alex slammed his hand onto the snooze button of his alarm clock. Throwing his blanket off, he groggily sat up from his bed, fingering the gunk out of his eyes and looking across the room to see his supersuit and bag on the floor by the door. There was no going back to sleep, he had school today. Hopping off his bed, Alex walked over to the supersuit and bag, opened his closet, and shoved them in the same hidden spot he’d grabbed them from last night. Didn't need anyone wandering in and finding it haphazardly, even if he had enjoyed last night. Alex rifled through his closet, finding a wool sweater and some khaki pants. He put on the outfit and left his room, stopping briefly to brush his teeth and wash his face. When suddenly…

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP…

He went back into his room to turn off the alarm clock he’d only snoozed.

Finding his way downstairs, Alex walked out into the living room, walking into the kitchen. He opened the fridge, and looked through its cold air for something to eat. He ended up pulling out a carton of orange juice and grabbed a cup, pouring himself a drink before putting the carton back. He then opened the pantry, found the loaf of rye bread, and put two slices in the toaster, setting the knob straight up. He then went back into the pantry and found the bottle of honey. “When you’re done with that, could I have some?” Alex heard, looking over his shoulder to see his grandpa sitting at the table, sipping his tea while reading the Tribune. He had his flat cap on, a sweater similar to Alex’s, still wore pajama pants. He was wearing his reading glasses, and his metal cane was propped up against the table at his side. 

“You can have it right now, I’m just waiting for the toast to be done.” Alex answered, walking over and putting the honey bottle next to him. 

“Thank you, Alex.” His grandpa answered in his old Slavic accent, popping off the cap and dabbing a globule of honey onto a small spoon, which he then swirled into his mug. The honey now infused into the tea, grandpa took a sip, inhaled deeply, and sighed, “Ah, much better.”

“Dad already leave for work?” Alex asked, grabbing the honey bottle and walking back to check on his toast. 

“Tak, said he should be home for dinner.” Grandpa answered, “Getting ready for school, Alex?”

“Yeah,” Alex answered.

“Starting off the week strong?” Grandpa asked.

“Yeah,” Alex answered, just as the toast popped up. He fished the two slices from the toaster, and grabbed a butter knife. Pouring honey on each slice, he then used the knife to spread it evenly on each slice. 

“I’ll be going to the store around 9,” Grandpa told him, “Will you still be coming after school to help?”

“Of course dziadzio.” Alex answered, since that was his job. 

“Weekend was good?” Grandpa asked. 

Alex thought about how to respond for a moment, before answering, “It was fine.”

Another set of footsteps came down the stairs, his mother. 

“Hi honey, you having a good morning so far?” She asked walking into the kitchen, kissing Alex on the cheek.

“I’m good mom.” Alex answered, unable to stop himself from smiling. 

“I’m gonna help Uncle Matt open up, I’ll drop you off at school.” She said, walking over to grandpa. “Good morning, tata.” She greeted.

“Good morning, kochanieńka.” Grandpa answered, looking up to kiss his daughter on the cheek. 

“You want me to come back to drive you to the store at 9?” His mom asked his grandpa.

“That would be very nice.” His grandpa answered, taking another sip of his tea.

“You can eat in the car, Alex. Come on.” His mom said as he was halfway through the first slice. She was at the door, keys and briefcase in hand.

“Yeah,” Alex said after swallowing. He grabbed the plate and walked to the door with his mom. 

As he passed his grandpa, he saw the headline of the paper his grandpa was reading: MUTANT RIGHTS ACTIVIST MURDERED IN RIVER NORTH. Alex paused as he read the headline. Grandpa shook the paper and said, “No need to worry about the news, go learn something.”

“Alright, Alex said, walking away, I’ll see you work dziadzio.” He called back, waving goodbye as he grabbed his backpack from where it was sitting under the coat rack, and walked out the door with his mother. 

Alex walked out to the car, getting into the passenger’s seat as his mom started the engine and began driving to his high school.

“You saw the headline?” His mom asked, having clocked onto his lingering over grandpa’s newspaper.

“Yeah,” Alex answered, finishing the first piece of toast.

“Shame what happened,” His mom commented, changing lanes.

“You think they’ll figure out who did this?” Alex asked his mom.

“Oh, I’m sure they’ll find him eventually.” His mom answered, pausing at a traffic light. Wanting to shift the topic from something so morbid, she asked Alex, “So Alex, you feel ready for school this week?”

“As ready as I can be.” Alex weakly answered.

“Any big tests coming up?” She asked, the red light finally changing to green.

“Not for this week.” Alex answered, vaguely remembering what his teachers had said on Friday about this week.

“That’s good.” His mom answered. Alex then looked down at the pate he’d taken from home and began working on the second piece of honey-rye toast. He also realized he’d forgotten to grab the orange juice he’d poured for himself. Then again, he could probably get something to drink at lunch. 

His mom pulled up to the sidewalk that led into a long walkway up to Alex’s school: William Howard Taft High School.

“Alright, we’re here, you got everything you need?” His mom asked, doing one final check before sending him off.

“Yes,” He simply responded, as he’d already put everything into his bag before “going to bed.”

“Alright then. Your Aunt Dory or I will pick you up later and take you to work.” His mom said, unlocking the passenger’s seat. Alex stepped out, grabbing his backpack and grabbing the door to close it.

“Have a great day, sweetie, I love you.”

“I love you too, mom.” Alex responded.

“I’ll see you later.” She called out. He then closed the door and watched her drive off for a brief moment before walking up to his high school’s front doors. 

8:00AM, time for class.

Alex walked into his first class, algebra, and stared ahead as the class waited for the teacher to show up. Once the teacher showed up, he pulled out a blue pen from his backpack and blue composite notebook scribbly labeled “Mathnstuff.” He opened it up, rested his hand on the page, and wrote the date, “10/13/2014,” before staring at the white board and occasionally taking down notes. He didn’t particularly like algebra, but he knew not paying attention would be costly. He’d gotten a C on the first test of the year, and had to make up for it.

After a 90 minute long math class that was not worth writing home about, Alex walked out into the crowding hallways to find his locker. Going up to the second floor, he found his locker, 0503, and opened it up. He opened up his backpack and pulled out the heavy algebra textbook and dropped it at the bottom of the locker, pulling out the literature book he needed for English class.

Another 90 minute class in English, and again Alex felt bored as the teacher slogged through their reading of the 12th chapter of S.E. Hinton’s “The Outsiders.” While the teacher was turned away writing on the board, he discreetly checked his phone for any messages from Kat. He’d been thinking about her the whole class, the outsider he’d prefer focusing on rather than a group of greasers whose names he could barely remember. He just knew one of them was named after… horses?

No messages from Kat, no texts, no missed calls. He hoped she was doing alright. She said she’d find somewhere to stay the night, but Alex wasn’t sure she had. That headline got him anxious about her being out there on her own. Maybe he should try finding her, or finding her number. She’d be in a phone book, right?

After class, he checked his phone for the time: 11:20AM, lunch. 

He got in line at the cafeteria, grabbing a tray off the stack. Once he was at the front of the line, he just pointed to the things he wanted to the cafeteria workers, giving them a smile as a slice of pizza somewhere between hot and warm, a scoop of pulverized mashed potatoes, and a carton of chocolate dairy drink was given over. 

He found an isolated seat at the end of the table to eat at, next to a wall. He started taking a stab, literally, at the potatoes when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out as he took a bite of potatoes, it was Kat.

“Hey Alex, it’s Kat. Just wanted to make sure this was the right number.”

He smiled, and replied,

“Yep, right number. You doing alright?”

“I’m ok.”

“You manage to find somewhere to stay for the night?”

“Yeah.”

“Where are you right now?”

“Northbrook, didn’t feel like sticking around Deerfield.”

“Hey, did you see the headline? Someone murdered a mutants rights activist in River North.”

“That’s awful!”

“Just glad we’re not anywhere near that.”

“Its scary.”

“Yeah.”

“You gonna try finding out who did it? Being a superhero and all?”

“I don’t think I’m qualified for something like that. Gonna stick around Jefferson Park for a while before I even try to make it to downtown at night.”

“Oh yeah, that would be hard.”

“Still, gonna keep an eye on the story. Hopefully this is a one time occurrence.”

“Good thinking Sherlock.”

He chuckled out loud at that one.

“Well, if the news is making you feel unsafe, you know where to find me.”

“Thank, a lot.”

“Hey, I’m eating lunch right now. TTYL.”

“K, 👍.”

Alex moved on to his pizza, spending the rest of the lunch period with a small smile. He saved Kat’s number in his contacts.

The next period was gym, crap.

He went into the locker room, one of the most uncomfortable places in the school, to change. He grabbed the clean uniform in his gym locker and found an empty bathroom stall to change. It wasn’t what he was supposed to do, but he wasn’t about to let a dozen teenage boys see him in his underwear. 

Once he got changed into a gym uniform, that ironically was as breathable as a plastic bag, he reapplied some deodorant and went out into the gym. Lucky for him, the coach was a portly man in his fifties who always came to class like he’d just lost a bet and had to teach this class as a result. So he didn’t even try to give them something to do, just let them take supplies out of the sports closet and do whatever for the next 90 minutes. Alex just walked around the gym, alone with his thoughts and watching the other kids play basketball or volleyball, each sport often dominated by one gender. 

After the ninety minutes of lazily passing the time at gym class, Alex had one more class: World History. He was paying attention for this one, more interested about this than anything else today. Today was on Ancient Mesoamerica, which was mostly looking at pictures of big stone heads and listening about R-rated mythology. Very metal, very interesting. But given it was the last class before school ended, Alex still was one of the first out the door. 

Going to his locker, Alex dropped off his textbooks at the bottom of the locker and double checked what he’d need to do for homework. Since he didn’t need anything for homework tonight from the locker, he closed it and made it to the exit. Walking up to the circle drive, he found the red minivan being driven by his Aunt Dorothy. But he and his cousins always called her Aunt Dory, like the fish. 

“Hiya Alex, how was school?” She asked warmly, turning down the volume of the radio.

“Eh, ok.” Alex answered, getting into the passenger’s seat.

“Hi Alex,” He heard from the backseat. He turned to see his younger cousin Jake sitting in his car seat, fresh out of elementary school.

“Hey Jake,” Alex said cheerfully to the kid as Aunt Dory pulled out of the school. Jake then pulled out a blue card from his pocket, the upper left corner covered with a small brown smudge.

“Alex look, I traded Mason. He gave me his Tyrantrum for my candy bar at lunch.” 

“Oh very nice,” He complimented, “Can I see?”

“Yeah yeah.” Jake flipped around the card and gave it to Alex so he could see the Pokemon on the front. “Oh yeah, this is very good,” Alex complimented, despite Pokemon not being an area of great interest. He gave the slightly greasy card back to Jake, who slid it back into his pocket.

“Does high schoolers play Poekmon?” Jake asked Alex with a big grin.

“Yeah, a few of them.” Alex answered.

“If I come to school with you, I wanna find someone and kick their butt!” Jake announced proudly.

“With Pokemon?” Alex clarified.

“Yeah, I’m really good.” Jake answered.

“I bet you are.” Alex affirmed.

Aunt Dory then pulled into a parking spot in a strip mall and unlocked the doors. Alex looked out the window to see the white lettering outside the building they’d be going into: “Duszynski’s.”

“Alright, I’m gonna get Jake into daycare, then I’ll come help your mom behind the counter.” Aunt Dory explained, grabbing Jake out of his car seat.

“Alex, are you going to work with jajo?” Jake asked as they walked across the parking lot to the sidewalk.

“Yes Jake,” Alex answered softly.

“Do you ever want to take money out of the money slots?” Jake asked, referring to a register in a roundabout way.

“No, that would be stealing.” Alex responded calmly.

“I would take some of the smaller dollars and go to the Walmart and buy all the Pokemon cards.” Jake explained like he was describing a masterful heist.

“How would you buy all the cards with only the small bills?” Alex asked, humoring him.

“I ask nicely.” Jake said sincerely, make Alex chuckle.

“Ok Jakey, time for daycare.” Dory said to her son, tugging his hand towards the daycare next to the shop.

“Ok mama, bye bye Alex.” Jake called out, waving his hand by rotating his whole arm rapidly.

“Bye Jake, I’ll see you after work.” Alex returned, walking into the shop.

He went behind the counter at his right and walked past the pastry displays to a back door into the back area of the shop. He found the sink and washed his hands, then put on an apron and hair net, which coincidentally were stored under a copy of the A rating sign from the food inspector. He walked back to the register, finding grandpa frying potato pancakes on a pan, a portable radio playing WFMT.

“Cześć Alex, school good?” Grandpa asked, momentarily looking away from the pan.

“Eh, same old same old.” Alex answered, stopping to talk for a bit, “You enjoy the rest of your morning.”

“Oh yes, very much. And my afternoon is even better.” His grandpa answered while flipping one of the golden brown pancakes, “Always better when I’m here.”

“Good to hear, I’m gonna get back to the register.” Alex politely concluded.

“Okay,” His grandpa answered, returning to his work.

Alex got back to the register, setting himself up for the next customer who’d eventually come. He liked working here, kept him close to his family and gave him people to talk to. And there were a lot of people who’d come in here, mostly Polish or Polish-American, some of whom had been getting their groceries here since Grandpa had bought the store from it’s previous owner in the early 60’s. 

The bell over the door rang as his Aunt Dory came in to help his mom by the deli. “Hiya Alex,” She quickly greeted, walking behind him. 

He watched as a couple in their 50’s walked around a corner and pulled out a piece of waxed paper and grabbed two baguettes from the container next to the bread shelves. The couple put them into a paper bag from next to the containers and walked up to Alex.

“Cześć Alex.” The man greeted as he put their basket up to Alex.

“Witam Mr. Smakowski, Jak się masz?” Alex asked as he began scanning items.

“Dobrze, dobrze, a u Ciebie?” Mr. Smakowski continued, watching the screen show how much they’d owed.

“Nie jest tak źle.” Alex answered, opening a plastic bag up and putting items in, heavier and more sturdy ones at the bottom, “Co z tobą, Mrs. Smakowski?”

“Właśnie odebraliśmy naszą córkę ze stacji kolejowej.” She revealed, a warm smile on her face.

“Ona idzie do UIC, prawda?” Alex asked, seeking confirmation of his assumption.

“Tak, przyjdzie świętować swoje urodziny.” Mr. Smakowski explained, a hint of pride in his voice.

“Jak miło. 19, prawda?” Alex asked.

“Tak, kupiłem jej wczoraj ciasto.” Mr. Smakowski answered.

“Alex, czy przyjrzałeś się już uniwersytetom?” Mrs. Smakowski asked.

“Nie, jestem dopiero na drugim roku.” Alex corrected, in his head dreading the day he’d have to figure that out.

Alex finished scanning their items and pressed a few buttons on the screen. “$32.57 proszę.” Alex announced as he finished bagging their groceries. Mr. Smakowski pulled out his wallet and grabbed his credit card, putting it into the card reader and inputting his pin number. Just as Alex finished bagging their groceries, their receipts printed. Alex took the receipts and put them into one of their bags with a bottle of ginger ale. Mr. and Mrs. Smakowski grabbed the bags from the counter and left the basket on the counter.

“Miłego dnia, Alex.” Mrs. Smakowski offered as they left.

“Ty też. Złóż ode mnie życzenia urodzinowe swojej córce.” Alex offered back.

Even though he was anxious about having to eventually go to college, he wondered what UIC was like. The Smakowski’s daughter, Julia, seemed very excited when she first got accepted last year. He figured she’d be willing to help him with getting in if he ever tried. Or maybe just help him in general with applying for colleges. 

The afternoon continued as Alex fell into his usual rhythm of scanning items, making small talk with their customers, and finishing their purchases. Many were returning customers, fathers and mothers, grandparents, young adults. Some were teens like him picking up something to eat from the counter his Uncle Matt worked. Some had kids who would try to add a Prince Polo bar to their parent’s order. 

Around the end of his shift, when few customers remained, Alex felt a vibration from his pocket. But this time it was long and rhythmic. He pulled his phone from his pocket and saw the called ID: Kat.

“Kat, hey, what’s going on?” Alex asked, trying to sound casual.

“Hey Alex, do you have a moment?” Kat asked.

“Of course, everything alright?” Alex asked, bracing for anything.

“Everything’s fine, it’s just… can we talk tonight?” She asked, seeming upset.

“Like, on the phone?” Alex assumed.

“In person. Like last night?” Kat suggested.

Alex thought about it. Did he need to do anything for school tonight? “Of course, where did you want to meet up?”

“Can you make it to the shopping mall on the corner of Willow and Waukegan?” She asks, anxious.

“Yeah, I can get there,” Alex confirmed, picking up on her tone, “Kat, is everything alright?”

“Its-it’s-it’s fine.” She stuttered.

“Did something happen?” Alex asked, trying to keep his voice from being too loud.

“I-I just need someone to talk to.” She finally answered.

“Alright. Well I do-I don’t know when I’ll be able to get there. But I can let you know when I’m on my way.” Alex offered.

“Alright, that’s be nice.” 

“Alright, see you then.” Alex finished, hanging up the phone.

He looked at the clock, 5:30PM, and began to get ready to go home by cleaning up the register and the counter. As he did, he heard the tap of his grandpa’s cane on the floor. “Kim jest ta szczęściara?” He asked with a rising tone.

“Jaka kobieta?” Alex asked, trying to play it cool.

“Ta, do której właśnie dzwoniłeś.” His grandpa clarified.

“To tylko koleżanka z klasy, dziadzio.” Alex fibbed, hoping he’d believe it.

“Hm, dobra, dobra, zachowaj to w tajemnicy.” He didn’t.

“Nie ma w tym żadnej tajemnicy, to po prostu znajomy ze szkoły.” Alex doubled down, hoping he’d drop it.

“Tak, masz rację, „tylko przyjaciółka”.” He wasn’t.

“Dziadzio!” Alex finally exclaimed in embarrassment.

“Żartuję, żartuję.” His grandpa joked, walking away to get ready to go.

His mother walked over from the back of the store and handed Alex the keys to her car. “Alex, go wait by the car, I’m gonna help dziadzio get ready to go home.”

“Thank you mom.” Alex said, grateful to be given permission to escape this scene.

Alex walked out of the store, pressing the lock button on his mom’s keys to hear the distinctive HNK HNK of the car locking to find where it was. Surely enough, it was close to the shop. He walked over, unlocked the passenger’s seat, and sat in it with the door open for about half an hour before his mother and grandpa came walking out. When he saw them, he got out of the passenger’s seat and into the backseat, letting grandpa take the passenger’s seat. As his mother got in and drove back to their house, he just hoped grandpa wouldn’t bring up his call with Kat at dinner.

Getting home, they noticed an extra car in the driveway, owned by Alex’s father. Opening the door, they found him at the kitchen table. Tall, still in his suit and tie, briefcase on the kitchen counter. He was setting out plastic take-out bowls, napkins, and forks. Once he noticed them, he turned to face them. “Hey,” he simply said.

“Hi honey, how was work?” Alex’s mother asked, walking over to kiss her husband.

“Oh not too bad, starting to work on the Peterbilt liable case.” He explained, “Hope you guys were in the mood for Noodles n Company. I drove past it on my way home, figured you guys’d be tired and just want something warm and easy.”

“I was craving some comfort food.” His mom confirmed, sitting down next to her husband. Alex’s grandpa and him sat down too, Alex sitting across from his father. His grandpa sat at the end, between his mother and an empty seat that was next to Alex. The family began to eat, his father had basil pesto cavatappi, his mom had Japanese pan noodles, his grandfather had Wisconsin Mac n cheese, and so did Alex.

“So Alex, how was school?” His father asked in between bites.

“It was good.” Alex plainly answered, focusing on the perfectly creamy and cheesy macaroni.

“Anything notable?” His father pressed, taking another bite.

“Not really, just a normal day.” Alex answered.

“Anything happening this week you gotta prepare for?” His dad pressed.

“Just some assignments to turn in.” Alex answered.

“Any news with algebra?” His dad asked.

“Nothing major yet.” Alex answered.

“Well keep paying attention, we don’t want a repeat of the last test.” His dad warned. Alex just nodded.

“Phillip, did you read the Tribune today?” His grandpa asked his dad.

“Yes, very sad.” His dad answered, “And wasn’t even a mutant, just an advocate.”

“Lesser men would call him a traitor.” His grandpa concluded.

“I bet it’s one of those men who got her.” His dad suggested.

“Her?” Alex asked, worried.

“Yeah, in fact I think my firm was part of a case she was in,” His dad remembered, “And the way they found her was brutal, she was-” 

“PHIL, dinner.” His wife curtly reminded him.

“Right, right, sorry.” His dad apologized.

“So Alex, I saw you talking to the Smakowskis today,” His mom pivoted, “Anything new with them?”

“Julia’s back from UIC.” Alex revealed.

“Ah, Julia. How nice!” His grandpa exclaimed.

“Yeah, she’s visiting for her birthday.” Alex explained.

“I should send them something. The Smakowskis have been good friends.” His grandpa said with a thoughtful face, “Perhaps some pączki.”

“Alex, maybe you can ask her about helping you apply for college.” His dad spoke up again.

“Maybe,” Alex said non-committally. 

“What was she studying?” His mom asked aloud.

“I think engineering.” His dad answered.

“Smart girl.” His mom responded.

Alex then finished his food, standing up and grabbing his bowl and fork.

“Got somewhere to be?” His dad asked, noting how fast he’d gotten up.

“No, I just, just got some homework I need to do.” Alex answered, partially correct.

“Alright, just leave your fork in the dishwasher, you can put the bowl back in the to-go bag.” His mom instructed, and Alex did just that. 

He then made his way upstairs. While he would be doing some homework tonight, it wouldn’t be the only thing he worked on.

Chapter Text

12:46AM

Alex stepped out of the cab, once again in his hero suit, once again his drawstring bag on his back. This driver had also given him a hero’s discount, but he’d yet to come up with a superhero name. But he wasn’t focused on that as he walked through the mall complex to the closed Lowe’s. He checked his phone,

“I’m on my way Kat.”

“👍, meet you at the Lowe’s.”

That text was from half an hour ago.

He stood outside the doors, adjusting the fit on the cowl he was wearing. He then heard something like the wind sweeping in, and saw to his right Kat walking out from the walls of the closed store.

“You weren’t followed, right?” She asked, already nervous.

“Yes, it’s just us,” Alex assured her, “What happened?”

Kat looked to her right, then her left, then confessed, “Someone saw me using my powers.”

Alex let the revelation breath for a moment, then spoke up, “Alright, we can figure this out. How did it happen?”

“Well I was just trying to walk across the street,” Kat began to explain, “When all of a sudden this big limo comes out of nowhere and it isn’t slowing down. I froze, and it just passed through me,” 

“Doesn’t sound like something to be ashamed of. It was an act of self-preservation.” Alex rationalized, but she wasn’t done.

“There was a woman in the car. She saw me, we made eye contact, and she was looking at me like she could hear what I was thinking.”

That gave Alex pause. “So what do you make of it?” He asked.

“What if she was someone important? What if she’s looking for me?” Kat asked, scared of a repeat of what happened in her high school… or worse.

“Well, I don’t think she’s looking for you. I mean, how could she find you by just a glance.” Alex reasoned, wanting to calm her anxiety.
“It felt more than a glance. I don’t know, just…I feel unsafe.” Kat admitted.

“Alright, well hey, I’m here now,” Alex declared, “And I’ll be here as long as you need me to.”

“Thanks, but I won’t keep you long. I know you have school tomorrow.” Kat said, not wanting to make herself too much of a problem.

“Of course, but until then I can help you get through the night.” Alex affirmed.

They started to walk around the mall, but had no plans to leave the area thus far. Alex just stayed by her, wanting to comfort her and give her some ease of mind while still being conscious of crossing a line. Kat, for her part, occasionally looked around, but mostly kept her eyes focused on the sidewalk in front of her. 

Eventually, Alex did notice, in the light of a stray street lamp, the glint of a necklace under her sweater. He wasn’t sure if he should bring it up, or if he should keep looking at it, or if it looked like he was staring at her chest, so decided to stop looking at it. 

“Hey, you never answer my question from last night,” Kat finally spoke up, killing the awkward silence, “Why does your super suit include a Doctor Who shirt?”

“I just like Doctor Who. And I felt it was on the nose.” Alex simply explained, exuding no hint of subtext.

“That checks out,” Kat agreed, despite not being intimate with the Doctor Who series, she partially understood what he was going for, “I don’t remember, did you ever explain how your powers work?”

“Pause time by snapping my fingers,” Alex said matter of fact.

“Wow, that is a MUCH better power than what I got.” Kat lamented, almost jealous.

“Hey, don’t put yourself down. Phasing is an AWESOME ability.” Alex pushed back, genuinely.

“You really think so?” Kat asked.

“Of course. You can go anywhere, hide anywhere, you saved yourself from getting run over by some bitch’s limo!”

Kat giggled at him calling someone a bitch.

“I shouldn’t say bitch, that’s mean,” Alex immediately backtracked, “Plus, it was likely an accident.”

“Well she didn’t try to stop the driver to check on me.” Kat clarified.

“Then I feel better for calling her a BITCH.” Alex reaffirmed, she giggled again.

They shared a moment of silence before Kat resumed the conversation, “So did you ever manage to figure out a superhero name?”

Alex paused to think, “No, I never did. Why?”

“Just curious,” Kat said, “You seem very serious about being a superhero.”

“I am,” Alex affirmed.

“So what if you save someone who can’t know your real name?” She rightfully asked.

“You make a good point,” He agreed, “Maybe while we’re here we can brainstorm some ideas.”

“Yeah, we can do that,” She agreed, a good distraction.

“So far, I know I DON’T want to be called Snapshot.” Alex started off.

“Yeah, that one sounds corny,” Kat agreed, “What about… no,”

“What?” Alex asked, now interested in what she was about to say.

“No, it was a stupid idea.” Kat tried to backtrack.

“Can’t be stupider than telling everyone my full government name.” Alex joked.

“Promise you won’t laugh.” Kat asked, bracing for him to immediately break that promise.

“I promise, I won’t laugh. And if I do, it’s not at you,” Alex insisted, “What’s the name?”

Kat braced herself, then murmured, “Time Lord.”

Alex stared at her, a big dumb grin came out, like he was absolutely trying not to laugh, then inhaled deeply, and exhaled shakily like a hose nozzle trying to hold back water pressure.

“You said you wouldn’t laugh!” Kat exclaimed.

“I’m not, I’m exhaling.” Alex tried to play off. She gave him a small tap on the shoulder.

“Just tell me what you think so we can move on.” Kat groaned.

“I think… I think if I used that name I’d need a really good copyright lawyer.” Alex joked, she finally laughed at that one. 

“Oh my God, I didn’t even think about that, yeah.” She agreed, realising what he meant.

“Yeah, I don’t feel like taking on a major broadcasting network.” Alex joked.

“Ok, ok, we can think of other things…” Kat continued, “How about Shortstop?”

“Like the baseball position?” Alex asked.

“Yeah, cause you stop time and…” Kat trailed off.

“Were you about to call me short?” Alex asked, semi-annoyed.

“...no.” Kat answered.

“Jeez Kat- for the record, I am 5’10.” Alex corrected, incredulous, “And by the way, my doctor said I’m not done growing yet. So there.”

“Congratulations?” Kat answered, unsure if that’s how she should have.

“Thank you,” Alex accepted, “Now, let’s keep thinking.”

“Alright, you got any ideas?” Kat asked, willing to keep this going.

“Hmmm,” Alex mumbled, thinking, “Maybe…well I heard that branding is important for superheroes, so it’s gotta be, like, something to do with my powers.” 

“Which is freezing time,” Kat reminded him and herself.

Alex figuratively sat with that sentence, thinking about what could be done linguistically. Then, in a moment of brilliance, he finally said, “Freezeframe.”

Kat thought about it for a moment, “That’s… good.”

“Yeah, Freezeframe,” Alex repeated, “Freezeframe.”

“I like it,” Kat affirmed.

“I do too.” Alex agreed, “Freezeframe.”

Then suddenly, SMASH! The sound of glass breaking behind them. They turned and saw a van pulled up to the jewelry store diagonally across the parking lot. Men were walking through a broken window, black ski-masks on, with a clear intention to rob the store for its valuables. Alex and Kat froze, watching the blatant attempt at robbery in front of them.

“We should do something.” Kat determined, because no one else was around to do it for them.

“I-I mean we can try?” Alex stuttered.

“Just try?” Kat asked, puzzled, “Isn’t this what you wanted to do?”

“Well I mean yeah I want to be a superhero, but I never thought…” Alex trailed off, feeling overwhelmed.

“Never thought what?” Kat asked, just realizing HOW inexperienced Alex was.

“Never thought I’d have to actually fight someone. I mean, I've never even fought anyone before.” Alex explained.

“Okay, but even I know this is a basic part of being a superhero.” Kat reasoned, hoping to get Alex ready to work.

“I guess. But what about you? I thought you wanted to lay low?” Alex asked, believing there was a contradiction.

“Doesn’t mean I can’t help where I can.” Kat explained. Alex remembered her goal of getting to Xavier. Perhaps that desire to be with other mutants coexisted with a drive to become a superhero like him.

“Alright then, what now?” Alex asked.

“You tell me, you’re the superhero.” Kat responded, putting the onus on him.

“Right, right. Well, I’ll see what I can do.” Alex determined, stretching his arms before walking towards the van. “If something happens, you’ll get involved, right?” He asked Kat, hoping to not be doing this alone.

“Of course, go get ‘em Freezeframe.” She cheered. Alex continued to walk up to the thieves, his heart pounding and his feet feeling like they’d stumble at any moment. He was really gonna do it, he was going to fight grown ups who might have all sorts of weapons. By the time he could see the lettering on the license plate and the men began walking out with loaded bags, he almost forgot he had superpowers.

Alex cleared his throat and tried to sound at least 5 years older. “Gentlement, a word?”

Gentlement? A word? What was he doing?

The robbers stopped what they were doing and stared at him, one still in the store paused mid crowbar swing to watch this 16 year old approach them in a homemade supersuit.

“I-uh, you should put those back where you found them and go home.” Alex implored. The robbers burst out laughing, not taking him seriously at all.

“Is this guy serious?” One of them called out.

“Yeah, no. Go home kid.” Another told Alex.

“I’m warning you, you’re not gonna like what happens next!” Alex called out.

“Oh yeah, you gonna do something? It’s five against one dumbass.” The robber with the crowbar threatened.

“Final chance, surrender or… or…” Alex was not good at threatening people. They were.

“Jeez, this is sad,” The one who looked like he was in charge muttered, “Josh, get rid of him.”

The robber Alex assumed was Josh then ran at him with the crowbar, ready to strike. 

Panicking, Alex closed his eyes and SNAP… When he opened them, Josh was frozen along with the rest of the world, the crowbar gripped in his hand as he was winding up to swipe at Alex mid-step. Alex walked around him, looked over at the other men, then saw Kat watching from around the truck, anxious at what she’d been seeing. Alex looked back at Josh, and walked to stand next to him, leaning his foot out to catch Josh’s and SNAP.

Josh tripped over his foot, falling onto the ground, the crowbar still in his hand. Alex put his fists up, as if to imitate a boxer’s stance. Josh stood back up, and took a swing, only for Alex to SNAP. With time frozen again, he grabbed the crowbar for himself and SNAPPED. Josh unpaused, looking down to find his hands empty, looking around to find Alex behind him holding the crowbar.

“How did you-!?” Josh yelled.

“I warned you.” Alex responded, feeling much more confident. Josh went to punch Alex, only for Alex to SNAP. Time froze yet again, and he thought about how to face this situation. He could just hit Josh with the crowbar really hard, but that seemed disproportionate. He eventually decided on dropping the crowbar on his head. So lifting his hand over Josh, he dropped the crowbar. It began to float in mid-air just before it hit Josh’s head, as if anticipating when Alex snapped again so it could continue it’s momentum. Alex SNAPPED, and the crowbar clanged on Josh’s head, causing him to rub the top of his head in pain. Alex kicked his butt, literally, he kicked Josh’s butt as hard as he could, causing the robber to fall onto his face. Alex pulled his drawstring bag off of his back and grabbed a ziptie to end this, but when he looked up from his rummaging, Josh had already gotten back up, grabbed the crowbar, and had his hands above his head, ready to dome Alex. Alex SNAPPED, and use the time pause to YANK the crowbar from Josh’s hands. He then put his drawstring bag back on his back and took a stance akin to a hitter preparing to hit a home run. Because that’s exactly what he was doing. He SNAPPED, and while Josh was once again confused by how he was no longer holding a crowbar, Alex swung like a hitter and hit Josh in the gut, causing the robber to double over in pain. As Josh groaned in great pain, Alex took the opportunity to grab his hands and quickly ziptie them together. “I TOLD YOU! READY TO GIVE UP NOW?!” Alex yelled at the four remaining robbers.

The leader had pulled out a pistol.

Shit

BANG-SNAP

It was INCHES away from his shoulder. When he saw it he jumped away from it and screamed. Someone shot him, someone tried to shoot him, someone tried to kill him. How could he ignore it? It was right in front of his face. He hadn’t even seen the gun, he thought they’d just had crowbars, maybe a bat. Where were they hiding a gun? What does he do against a gun? What if someone shot at him again and his reflexes didn’t work fast enough? How would he explain a gunshot wound? A few more milliseconds of hesitation, if he had snapped when he heard the gun instead of seeing it, he might be dead. And then he saw Kat, phasing through the truck, trying to attack the robber who tried to shoot him. He had to do something, he couldn’t just let them go, they had to be apprehended. 

He grabbed the crowbar again, and walked up to the shooter. This couldn’t be done outside of frozen time, he couldn’t risk a reaction. So he teed up another baseball swing, and SWUNG.

And passed right through his hands…

What?

Alex was confused, CONFUSED. He swung again, the crowbar going through the robber’s hands. He tried grabbing the gun, he could touch the slide. But when he tried to move the man’s hands it was like waving his hand through water vapor. Come to think of it, when he grabbed the crowbar from Josh, it was too easy. Like the moment he grabbed it the crowbar no longer physically touched Josh. Alex put his hand into the gunman’s arm, like water vapor. He put it through his torso, like water vapor. He shoved his whole head into his body, and it felt like his head was in a sauna. He pulled it out, processing this strange revelation about his abilities: He couldn’t interact physically with anyone while time was frozen.

Which meant he had to get creative.

And right now creative meant throwing the crowbar as hard as he could at the gunman’s face.

Was it crude? Yes. Was there less violent ideas? Absolutely. But this asshole just tried to shoot him, it felt justified.

SNAP

The gunman’s head snapped back as the prying end of the crowbar SMACKED his forehead, causing him to fall back. Kat stepped out of the truck, surprised that Alex had already dealt with the gunman. Alex rushed the gunman and kicked the pistol under the truck, ziptieing his hands while he was still dazed, and quickly SNAPPED before one of the three remaining robbers could grab him off their boss. Alex then grabbed one of the bags of jewels and HEAVED it off the ground. He then flung it at one of the three remaining robbers, and did the same with the other bags at the other two. After SNAPPING, the bags hit the robbers in the chest, stomach, and the testicles. He then picked up the crowbar and bonked the poor guy who got a back of jewels to his jewels and bonked him on the head, causing him to fall over. He turned to the other two, and was surprised by Kat rushing one of them and punching him in the face as hard as she could, knocking him down. Alex then SNAPPED again, allowing him to rush up to run up at the last one, SNAPPING again as he shoved the robber into the ground. He pulled out his drawstring bag, grabbed three more zipties, and gave one over to Kat. As quickly as the could, they managed to ziptie the last three robbers, ending the fight definitively. 

Alex sighed heavily, shaking his hands as he felt his legs finally begin shaking after the intense fight. Kat started cheering, “That. Was. INCREDIBLE!”

“I didn’t know I could do that!” Alex cheered, just now processing the last three minutes, “Oh my God, I beat up four people. Oh my God, I got shot at!”

“And you dodged a fucking bullet!” Kat yelled.

“YES! YES I DID! I SNAPPED FASTER THAN A BULLET! I’M LITERALLY FASTER THAN A SPEEDING BULLET!” Alex yelled, the adrenaline finally getting to his head. He started breathing heavily, looking over the dazed and pissed off faces of the people they just beat up.

“And you, oh man, you were awesome!” Alex complimented.

“You were awesome too!” Kat exclaimed.

“Yeah, but you were extra good!” Alex exclaimed.

“Thanks.” Kat accepted, starting to calm down. She looked over the mess of the fight, thinking about what to do, “We should clean this up.”

“Oh yeah, definitely.” Alex agreed, starting to calm down too. He looked into the store, wondering what they should do… then he had an idea.

“Hey, you bring the bags back into the store, I’m gonna go look for something.” Alex said to Kat before going inside. He found the place the store had the registers and looked for a pen. After finding a pen, he also found the paper the store kept to add notes to the boxes of jewelry they sold. He brought them out, then helped Kat pull the five robbers up to the front of the store. Alex then grabbed some more zipties, tying the robber’s makeshift cuffs together. After this, they brought all the bags of jewelry back into the store atop the display glass, and Alex pressed the paper against the wall and started writing.

“What are you doing?” Kat asked.

“Letting them know who to thank.” Alex answered, confidently, “What do you want me to call you?”

“Oh, uh, you don’t need to include me.” Kat recoiled.

“Kat, you kicked ass, you helped me, you’re getting credit.” Alex insisted, “Now come on, gimme a superhero name.”

“Kat thought for a moment, but couldn’t come up with anything. “You got any ideas.”

Alex thought for a moment too, “I don’t know why, but my mind immediately went to Kitty.”

“No thank you.” Kat politely declined.

“My thoughts exactly, too… immature…” Alex agreed, then had an epiphany, “How about Shadowcat?”

Kat thought on it, “I like it, put it down.”

And Alex did just that.

“We should find a payphone to call this in from. You know, in case they wake up before morning.” Alex strategized.

“That’s smart.” Kat agreed. Together they left the store, the defeated robbers, and the almost stolen jewelry. The note left next to the bags of stolen goods reading:

“COURTESY OF THE CITY’S NEWEST SUPERHEROES: FREEZEFRAME AND SHADOWCAT.”