Tattletale gets Laid (Worm Romantic Comedy)

[Axle]

A/N: My attempt at a romantic comedy. Don't let the title fool you, I won't be putting any erotic scenes in this. I'll try and update this weekly or bi-weekly.

XXX

Pew Pew Pew. 'Murica.

She turned her head and snorted.

Wait, did I say that out loud?

"You might as well have," Tattletale said to him.

He snickered at himself, but didn't apologize. "I'm easily entertatined," he commented.

Inside Lisa's mind, she knew she desperately needed a break from the work she'd been doing. Doing non-stop work since Taylor left the team, Lisa's sole mission was re-establishing Coil's assets to her own proper liking.

Looking around the room, she stared at the blank wall to tone down the volume of her powers. The infromation would still enter her like a smooth river, but she didn't force its entrance like raging dams of water.

She turned to one of her two secuirty guards. Both were veterans but treated their jobs starkly differently. While one treated his job with the utmost professionalism, the other was practically aloof. She wondered whether she should fire him.

She typed back onto her computer, shaking her head disapprovingly to him.

Welp, I've probably lost my job. Might as well pack up once my shift is over.

Matthew sighed. She paused typing from the computer.

If I'm doing something wrong, this girl should really let me know. Seriously, constructive criticism would be super helpful right now.

XXX

Yep. He's definitely fired. Way too distracting. Plus reading him is just... guys are pretty easy to read. They either really want to work with us, or are really bored at the job. The amount of indifference with that guy was just... distracting.

XXX

Alright. I'll go to the next supervillain that pays me well. If I'm lucky, I'll just be moved to another Undersider's base. If I'm not, I'll probably be... Homeless in a month? In prison in a week? Or dead in a day? Meh, worse things could happen.

"Seriously?" Tattletale finally said to him.

I want to assume she reads minds, but I don't want to come off as racist.

Tattletale covered her mouth and began laughing. Matthew shrugged, "it's such a cliche..."

Tattletale shook her head. "No, guessing powers is not prejudice," she mocked.

Matthew shrugged again, "good to know." Matthew noticed she was leaning back from her desk. She probably needed a break from all the work she'd been doing all day. As a security guard, it was his job to make she she wasn't disturbed from her work. But as a person, he felt she needed a break from the heavy amount of work she was doing. A chance to recharge those mental batteries.

XXX

Well, this is interesting. He's about to entertain me.

XXX

Matthew lifted his chin "reading minds must suck. I'm 100% certain you hear things you're better off not knowing. Nudge, nudge, wink wink, Y'know."

"You don't know the half of it," she snickered. "Besides even what guys generally think, the things people are insecure about are astounding."

Matthew felt a challenge initiated, and began recollected all the insecurities he'd accumulated over his life time. The movie Troy made me insecure about my mortal body once. My mum gives me the disappointed look when I see her since I'm still not married. Popular books make me feel like a sheep, but I still read them so I'll have something to talk about with my friends.

Tattletale rubbed the templates of her head. "You get all that?" Matthew asked.

"That, and so much more."

"This is really fun."

"You're the second strangest person I've ever met."

I enjoy making drug jokes even though I've never gotten high. My brothers make fun of me for living in America, so sometimes I send them post cards with monopoly money to piss them off.

Tattletale got up from her chair, furiously trying to contain her laughter. "Okay, I get it, I'll take a break." She headed out the room, "You too Matthew."

"Cool. Are you still gonna fire me?"

"Nah, if I fired everyone because their thoughts were weird, this base would be empty." She headed towards the door.

He took a glance at Tattletale. She was four years younger than him but he could tell she was still blossoming into a young women. He hadn't noticed it until he'd heard her speak, but her speech carried an aura of both genuinity and pride. She really was the smartest person in the room, and she was truly proud of that.

To him, that level of intelligence seemed more like a burden. The phrase "the more I know, the more I realize there's little I can do about it" came to mind. Then again, Tattletale was running a crime ring, so maybe she did have the strings to move the world the way she wanted to. To Matthew though, her, and all the actions she did, felt small, in the grand scheme of things.

"Wanna eat lunch together?"

"Can I take it out of your paycheck?"

"No." Matthew said casually.

"You really don't get the concept of dating do you?"

Ma'dam, would you like me to pull out my coupon book?

"What, oh God no."

"Cool. There's a cafe right across from here. Tea, or Coffee?"

XXX

 

[Axle]

Matthew stared at the wide selection of coffees. Christ, why do they keep adding new ones?

"Take Columbian," Tattletale told him. "It'll balance out the weak caffeine you had this morning."

"I'm glad you're powers let you make the tough decisions. Otherwise, I'd have been here half my break."

"When you say things like that and my powers tell me its true, I wonder how a guy like you became security for high-end criminal organization." She paused, then stared at him blankly. "Oh."

Matthew shrugged, "should I elaborate or would it be redundant?"

XXX

Damn it, I really wish my power told me these things before I opened my mouth.

Lines of information flowed into Lisa's mind like obnoxious telegrams.

Casual tone: Doesn't have a problem conversing about it. Wasn't offended or upset. Word choice wasn't trying to insult me. More concerned if powers made it uninteresting to hear the story from his mouth. Under normal circumstances, he'd explain what happened casually. In Tattletale's case, he believes it would bore her since her power already lets her know the truth. He'd like to tell her if she want to hear it, but wouldn't like to tell her if she doesn't. Complete indifference by his own part. More concerned about Tattletale's eagerness.

"Uh, maybe some other time."

He nodded, and then continued to fill up his coffee cup.

XXX

He looked out the window and noticed a grasshopper standing by. He wondered what parts of the insect made it alive. Was its leap similar to flying? Did it believe that birds don't fly, but just leaped long distances?

How far had it traveled to reach that spot? What if it was the same grasshopper Matthew passed on his way to work? He liked to imagine it was. Matthew pretended it was following him, that it liked the colors of his shoes and decided to stalk him just to get a better look at them.

To him, the grasshopper was as sentient as any of the other animals he'd seen. It survived both with instinct and luck. It moved not solely because of survival instinct, but because it wanted to live. It breathed the same air as he did. It had seen the city just as he had, except on a larger scale. They were both city folk.

What part of it carried the conscious? Would it be funny or cruel to ask a cape to give it flying capabilities? He could imagine it sprouting wings, and being confused of its new found freedom.

Tattletale stared blankly at Matthew. "I can't believe you made staring at bugs more interesting than talking to me."

"Sorry," he said embarrassed. "I didn't mean to offend. It's just-"

"-It's fine." She interrupted, "You know there's no point in talking about yourself since my powers tell me everything about you. You were waiting for me to talk about something that interested me, hoping you could jump in and give your own opinions on it."

She let out a sigh. She once again remembered why she was never fond of dating. Without the thrill that came with learning about new people, Tattletale's powers made everyone an open book. No adventure or excitement came without the building up from interaction. There were no auras of mystery that let her fill in the empty blanks with wrong guesses that could leave her satisfied. Just the bland truth. It was a little disappointing to hear the truth finally come out from her own mouth.

Matthew looked at Tattletale, "Tattletale, can you do me a favor?"

"Does it involve drugs?"

"Nah, you're not cool enough for them yet."

"Says the guy who's never been high."

"Tattletale." He shook his head, "I can get stoned from the air we breathe. If I smoked, I will dangerously reach Nirvana and your powers would self-destruct on me."

"Holy shit, I didn't think about that until now. Now I'm really curious to see you high."

"Anyway," he continued. "I wanted to ask if you could just talk to me like you've known me for years."

XXX

He does this with everyone. He acts like everyone has been a part of his life his whole life. It makes bonding easier. He knows my powers takes away curiosity, so he wants to skip the formalities. So that I can be more comfortable around him, and that neither of us feel out of place.

Of course, he'd be missing out on knowing a lot of things about Tattletale, but he was alright with it. He didn't care about what he did and didn't know about Tattletale or Lisa. To him, he just wanted the company. Both because he was fond of her, and because he felt she needed it.

"Sure." She said to him, "in that case..." She stretched out her arms out and placed her legs on the coffee table. "Wanna hear me rant about geopolitics?"

"I didn't think you liked foreign affairs."

"I don't, but I know way too much about it that I'd like to vent to someone."

"As a guy that knows nothing about the rest of the world..." He leaned back on his chair and grinned, "enlighten me."

XXX

A/N: I'm not sure if Tattletale actually does care about international affairs, but in my mind Tattletale has a boat load of opinions, analysis's, and understandings of different subjects that she'd love to vent out to anyone willing to listen.

 

[Axle]

XXX

I didn't think she was ever going to stop.

Geopolitics. Sociology and psychology. Humanities tied with theology and metaphysics. Tattletale kept ranting on about the world at large like it were an intricate web knit together by the unyielding force of time and history.

She didn't just talk about everything, she knew about everything. Matthew had assumed she could read minds, but he wasn't sure what to think about the teenager anymore. No human could possibly know all those things without powers. And that was what she talked about in her spare time.

He had felt his IQ jump, and he enjoyed every second of it. When she spoke he could sense 'sparks' within her eyes on subjects that she enjoyed. Specific words and conclusions she came up with on a whim.

It was like an avalanche of information that Matthew could hardly wrap his mind around. He still felt partially dazed trying to recollect everything she said to him. A tang of excitement dwelled within him. He wanted to speak with her again.

XXX

Ugh, I hate work.

Tattletale looked at the computer monitors waiting for the answers to present themselves. Number Man was a possibility. As was Cauldron and Accord's access to vials. Overall, she needed another thinker. It was too much work for one person. Number Man could point her in the right direction, but she didn't like the idea of being under Cauldron's heel.

The room was spacious and the four security guards had oriented themselves around the room for Tattletale's liking. Matthew, naturally, didn't show any signs of boredom within his mind.

He's still trying to put together the things I told him.

She smiled. Her goal to pull him out of his aloofness had worked like a charm.

XXX

He felt like studying. Not for Tattletale's sake, but because he hadn't known the world was so interesting. It was as though the things around him had become more vivid than he originally believed.

"What's up pointdexter?"

He looked at Tattletale. He could see her teeth through her smile. "You have spinach in your teeth," he answered.

She quickly covered her mouth, then pulled her hand down. "oh haha, very funny."

"I can't believe you fell for that. Like, seriously, you didn't even eat a salad."

The other guards began chuckling. They weren't supposed to speak, but the conversation quickly relaxed them.

"Insubordination, you're fired!" Matthew walked towards the exit. "I'm kidding, and you know that." She paused for a moment. "Okay, maybe you didn't. But I'm not gonna fire you when I'm talking to you."

He stepped back to his spot. "Good to know."

She sighed. She had to get back to work, no matter how stressful it was. She leaned back on her chair and typed away at the monitors. Occasionally, her eyes would move up towards Matthew's direction.

XXX

His head space is literally the most relaxing thing in the room.

Whereas the other guards wondered about their families or relationships, Matthew's focus were primarily concentrated on things that didn't matter at all.

He'd look at the wall and compare it to other surfaces he'd seen, remembering what it was like to feel new textures for the first time when he was a young boy. He would look down at his hands, and remember that the lines on his palms were surprisingly similar to the lines of a leaf. He'd look up to the ceiling, and his mind would get lost. It was as though he could remember what space looked like from the enclosure of the room.

Unlike staring at a blank wall, analyzing Matthew offered something more for Tattletale. It wasn't just information, it was relaxation. His entire being was utterly calm. The core of his personality was finding the sanctity in the small without being overwhelmed by the world around him.

That was precisely why he enjoyed the conversation with Tattletale earlier. He felt he was understanding the world as a collection of various small events. Events making up the present in a way he had never questioned before.

I thought I could get him more aware of his surroundings, but I'm beginning to think I had an opposite effect on him.

After her screw-up with Panacea, she was forced to acknowledge her potential as a cult leader. She remembered the sense of caution from Taylor after she witnessed her conversation with Amy.

I can turn people into monsters, Lisa told herself, but can I turn people into heroes?

Matthew was the perfect guinea pig for her thought experiment. His relationships with others were flat, distant, and ambiguous. Very few people would feel loss from an alteration of his personality. He was somewhat invisible from people's lives. He was always there, but never formed strong bonds with the people around him. In some cases, he could be called the background character from most people's lives.

He can be my experiment, Lisa thought to herself, can I make you into something the world wants?

In short, Matthew could be built up but not torn down. His impact on the world was so insignificant that an alteration wouldn't take anything away from the world. As manipulative as it might've been, Lisa wanted to know if she had the potential to turn Matthew into a force of goodness in the world. She wanted to see if she was capable of telling a few lies to make him into a better person. To do a few bad deeds for a greater good. To be a bit more like Taylor.

This, she decided, would be her side project.

XXX

 

[Axle]

XXX

"Alright. Alright. Sure. See ya soon." She put the cell phone down and finally stood up from her chair. She took a long moment to stretch her arms out after a long day of work. Matthew, Lisa noticed, was more worried about her well being than his own. He's such a sweet guy, she thought to herself.

"Alright guys. I'm sure most of you have had thrills standing around for ten hours without saying a peep. Or... At least one of you did.... But I'm about to have an Undersiders meeting. So I'm gonna need all non-capes to wait outside. And by wait, I mean you're all relieved for the rest of the day."

Without complaint, they all headed out the doors. Matthew gave a quick nod in Tattletale's direction on his way out. He still believed that Lisa could read minds, so his gesture gave the simple message of "take care of yourself.'

He wasn't the first guard to worry about Tattletale's well being, but gestures like those were always appreciated. Before he exited the door, Tattletale gave a final spin of her powers on him.

XXX

Victor headed down the stairs with Matthew alongside him. "Oiy, you got something going on with the boss?"

Matthew turned his head towards him. As far as strangers could tell, him and Matthew could've looked like cousins. Both their skin complexions were a dark olive tone while their eye sets were a neutral brown color. Few people could guess that their ethnic roots traced back to different continents. The most noticeable differences beyond their facial features were Victor's shaved head contrasted with Matthews short-cut wavy hair.

Matthew casually answered, "not that I know of."

Victor couldn't help but sigh. Matthew's apathetic attitude was something that took him a long time to adjust to. "You know she was looking at you all day today. With googly eyes like she was gonna dissect you."

"Maybe she was dissecting my mind," Matthew answered.

Victor took a step away from him. "Are you being mastered right now? Because if she's listening, I'm not mad, I'm just worried about Matthew."

Matthew chuckled, "I'm pretty sure the Undersiders have better things to do than mess with security guards like us."

He thought about that for a moment. "Good point," he said. Then he added, "but I'm pretty sure she was staring at your ass on our way out."

"I'm not sure whether to feel offended or flattered."

Leaving the locker rooms, the four men completed their day's routine by changing out of their mercenary uniforms. They dressed into casual wares that wouldn't attract attention in the city. Once again, Victor invited his coworkers for beers before heading out.

"No thanks," Matthew answered. It was an answer Victor was used to. He respected Matthew as he did any of his other colleagues, but this time he felt compelled to ask why he was against socializing with his coworkers.

"Hey, Matthew, can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"I don't mean to sound like asshole, but I wanna know. You don't have family here, what do you do when you get home?" It seemed like a lonely life from Victor's perspective. He revolved his entire being hood around his family, and could hardly imagine living a life similar to Matthew's.

"I normally get stoned."

Victor laughed, realizing that Matthew wasn't going to answer his question. "Bullshit, I got the best stuff on the harbor and you never want any." He headed out the building doors with a casual smile, "I'll see you later Mat."

XXX

"That's a disaster waiting to happen," Grue concluded.

Tattletale replied, "Adepts are famous for infighting. They couldn't beat us if they tried. We'd have more capes for smuggling operations, both here and on the other side of the portal. Since Adepts are mostly unpredictable, Accord couldn't use them for leverage against us."

Grue countered, "We're not as good at collateral control as you think. And we're not gonna cause more havoc than what we already do." Grue thought about Bitch, and how poorly she might respond to Adepts on the other side of the portal. "Adding more villains to the mix could easily break the truce that Skitter left for us."

Regent spoke up, "actually, I kinda agree with Lisa on this one."

She perked up, "see?"

Regent nodded, "I heard their orgies are great."

Imp rose up from her chair, "I say we put it to a democratic vote. All in favor of inviting the Adepts to Brokton Bay say ' I '."

Regent and Imp said I together. Bitch, listening while sitting from the other side of the room, simply shrugged. Regent looked to Tattletale, "C'mon Lisa, it was your idea."

"Fuck the both of you."

Imp retorted, "Isn't that why we're inviting them?"

Tattletale rubbed her forehead. "I need a break," she said.

"I think we all need one," Grue added, glaring at Regent from underneath his helmet.

She headed towards the exit, "meet back here in fifteen."

XXX

The concept of family felt very abstract to Matthew. No matter how much he tried, his brothers and sisters felt too much like strangers to him. If anything, they were more like imaginary friends in a distant land than beings who shared flesh and blood with him.

Flesh and blood. He looked down at his hands. Some days he didn't believe he was alive. Like the world around him was just a storybook that someone had read to him, and that someday he would wake up from the odd, unusual world that he had never felt a part of.

But that wasn't quite right either. He had felt alive once, before the incident. He used to be competitive, proud, enthusiastic, excited, and angry. Now he was numb. Void of anything, he was incapable of feeling either anger or happiness.

And so he faked it. Everything about him was fake. His being hood was completely devoid of attachment from the things and people around him. Tattletale had noticed it. It was the last thing she read from him when his shift had ended.

Does not value life.

When Tattletale stepped outside, she made sure to take a deep breathe of fresh air in order to re-orientate herself. The air was frisk and cooled against her skin where her mask didn't cover. She just needed to be alone. Take a step back from everything, even from her powers, to remember where she was and what she was doing.

She was surprised to see Matthew standing a few feet away from her. He was nearby a street light that extended its light at the side of the building. He leaned back on the wall looking up at the gnats dancing around the light bulb. He was lost again. What he did there was hardly different from what he did during work.

She walked towards him.

XXX

 

[Axle]

XXX

"You know, dismissed is supposed to mean 'go home and relax.'"

Matthew turned around to see Tattletale. Surprised to see her, he answered, "it's not so bad here."

She sighed, "if I ordered you to go home, would you even complain?"

"I wouldn't see a reason to."

She rolled her eyes, "there really isn't much to you, is there?"

"I guess not. And to be honest, that's how I'd like it to be."

"Yeah, I think I know why..."

He knew what she meant by that, but he wasn't quite sure how to respond to it. Under normal circumstances he'd expand upon the subject further, give the other person an explanation of his philosophy. In Tattletale's case, he was mostly certain that her powers took away the necessity for an explanation. "Should I elaborate or-

"Matthew." She cut off ."Can you do me a favor?"

"Sure."

"Can you pretend I don't have any powers?"

Matthew thought about it for a moment. It must have been dull for her, to have the ability to predict every conversation as they unfolded. Matthew's intentions had only revolved around keeping Tattletale entertained. That meant keeping conversations spontaneous and largely without depth. Perhaps he'd overdone it. By trying to work around Tattletale's powers, he realized that he was robbing her of an opportunity of an equal relationship.

"Sure." He answered, "in that case..."

He walked up to her and poked at her forehead. It was indeed a slight violation of her personal space, but they both understood he meant no ill intentions by it. "Stop trying to brainwash me during work," he said. "My coworkers think you're mastering me now."

She looked at him for a long moment, then her face turned red. She had clearly realized something that he hadn't. "Mastering you? Is that what they said?" She placed the palm of her hand on her forehead, "crap, what did I get myself into?"

XXX

Of course he's frigging oblivious.

Rumors were something Tattletale learned to despise. They carried so much speculation that the weight of them were usually counterproductive. She read into Matthew to figure out what his coworkers were speculating.

Googly eyes. Staring at his-​

"Fuck." She faced down to hide the redness on her face, "just... Tell them they're idiots."

He saluted her, "will do, boss."

"Anyways..."

She looked into Matthew again, with a new destination for her powers to dig into. Alright, I can gather information. Now I've just gotta find it and use it right...

Numb; Traumatic event; Friends gone; Family distant; Alone...​

Got it.

"You should really think about spending time with your coworkers." She crossed her arms and smiled at him. "You know it's courtesy to accept drinks from friends."

His eyebrow lifted, "it is?"

"Yeah, accepting invites are always appreciated." It was nit-picking, Tattletale thought to herself. She knew what Matthew valued the most, so she plucked at what he believed in for him to behave in accordance to his own beliefs.

Matthew thought about that for a moment. Then another thought dawned on him, "wait," Matthew asked, "are you mastering me right now?"

It was said accusingly, as though he'd discovered her manipulation tactic. "Nope." She answered, "I'm a thinker not a master."

"Then..." He picked his words carefully, "you're digging through my mind to make me do what you want me to do." He gazed at her. It wasn't an intimidating or resentful stare, it was a bland look that only desired answers.

She shrugged, "its not my fault I can't turn off my powers."

"Fair point. But overall, you're just saying what I'd like to hear, to make me act like the way you want me to."

He was right. Tattletale had read that manners and courtesy were important to him, so she carefully picked her phrasing in the hopes of making him act accordingly. Hmm... Not as dim as I thought he was. "I wouldn't put it that way. After all, if I'd known you for years, I'd probably tell you the same thing based on what I knew about you."

"Fair point." Matthew admitted, "and to be honest, I don't mind if you dig around for information. I don't even mind if you wanted me to act in a specific way, but you should know, most people respond better when you make your intentions clear."

"People respond better"; Making it seem like advice.

In reality; trying to trick her into being more honest.​

"Since when were you a people's person?" Lisa chuckled.

"I'm not. But I've been lied to by people who have wanted help me and to hurt me. Being blunt and making intentions clear are always appreciated."

Mechanical response.

Set of values he clings unto.​

Under most circumstance Matthew could be considered a hypocrite. Tattletale could see that he valued his personal sense of principals more than people themselves. "So what?" She asked, "you want me to tell you why I wanted you to drink with your friends?"

"I wanted you to admit what you were doing." He grinned, "I like being right too."

Attempt to emulate Tattletale.​

XXX

 

[Axle]

"18 minutes... 18 minutes and a half." Alec sat slumped on his chair staring at the clock, making sure not to move his head from its resting position.

"Alright," Brian yelled. "I get it, she's late. Aisha, can you-" Brian halted his sentence. He then returned to his chair. "I'll call her in five minutes."

XXX

When Aisha checked the nearby entrance of the base, she was surprised to see Tattletale conversing with a stranger. Hmm... I didn't think she was the type to flirt. After eavesdropping for a few more minutes, she had a better understanding of what their relationship was.

"It's more like... wikipedia. The information comes in, except I don't get a search bar for what I'm looking for. Only links to links of information built off of one another. In other words..." She snapped her fingers."I know everything."

He wore a T-shirt and some loose jeans. He looked like a pot head, in Aisha's opinion.

"And I'm guessing if someone gave you a misleading wikipedia page, your powers spiral into misinformation."

She paused for a moment. "You know, you're a lot brighter than I thought you were."

"My brain connects the dots when it pays attention." He tapped his head, somewhat reflecting Tattletale's attitude from before. These two really need to get a room, Imp thought to herself. He added, "which brings me to my next question. If I asked you questions that didn't really have answers, would your powers explode?"

"I see you see a challenge." She remarked.

He grinned, "Here's one; if God is omnipotent, can he create a sandwich so big that not even he could eat?"

"He could, but he'd eat it anyway."

He paused, not expecting that quick of a response. "What color is a mirror?"

"All of them."

"What happens if Pinocchio said 'my nose will grow'."

"The universe would implode. More likely though, it would grow and then shrink back again."

"Are we actually ourselves, or are we actually our brains controlling a body?"

"The term is called Avatar. And yes."

His mouth shrunk as Tattletale's grin (along with her ego) grew. "If someone with multiple personalities threatens to kill himself, is that considered a hostage situation?"

"Only if the cop is a therapist, and the gun is a bottle of pills."

From Aisha's viewpoint, they spoke like a wedded couple. A part of her wanted to reveal herself just to end their conversation, but a larger part of her didn't want to return to the not-so-exciting meeting.

He rubbed his chin, thinking of more paradoxes. "Anything on your end? Any spazzes or broken data?"

She shrugged, "afraid not."

"Goddammit." He looked to another direction, which happened to be where Imp was standing. "The only thing left to try is-"

"No." She cut off.

"I figured as much." He leaned back at the wall and looked up.

"Hey Matthew," Tattletale said in a low tone. "I know why you joke that way, about drugs."

He stayed quiet, allowing for Tattletale to continue.

"You and your friends were drug smugglers, but none of you ever tried the products. It was an ongoing joke between you guys. You'd all talk about getting tripped, but never actually did..." Tattletale leaned herself on the wall next to Matthew. She looked up as he did. "After they died, you couldn't share the ironic humor with anyone else anymore. You missed it. So its your way of making their personalities live on. You share that joke with everyone else, even if the rest of the world doesn't get the humor."

Aisha couldn't tolerate it anymore. Banter and cheesy comebacks were something she had patience for, but sentimental bull-crap annoyed the hell out of her. She revealed herself, "can you two just bang and get it over with?"

Matthew tilted his head, Tattletale's jaw dropped. "How long have you... Goddammit."

"Seriously, you both need to put a ring on it, get a room, and-" She started doing gestures with her hands.

"Imp," she cut off, "If you so much as whisper a single thing you just heard, I'll tell Regent you spied on him while-"

"Okay! okay! I'll stop..." She flung her hands up in defense.

Gritting her teeth, Tattletale added, "And I'll tell Grue you walked in on-"

"Jesus, you need to calm the hell down. I already said I'd stop. I won't tell anyone about you and your... What was it you called him? Guinea pig?"

"Thought experiment." Matthew corrected.

"Right. Boy toy." Imp concluded.

Tattletale turned around to hit her head against the brick wall. "Just tell Grue I'll be up there in a minute. Tell him I was working on an errand."

Imp grinned from underneath her mask, but she refrained from making a comment. "Right. Errands, that's what we'll call it." She made sure to point at Matthew when she said the word it.

"Just go!" She demanded.

Without another peep, she walked inside.

"She's funny." Matthew concluded.

"She's a pain," Tattletale responded.

"Reminds me of my little sister. I'm beginning to wonder of all 13 year olds are the same."

Tattletale turned her head towards him,"She's not 13, but that's a pretty close guess. How'd you guess that?"

He shrugged, "her voice, her attitude, her sense of humor. I figure she's a bit younger than Skitter." Matthew walked to the sidewalk, finally ready to go home. "In fact, I'm guessing you're fifteen."

"Close again, but not quite right."

"Eh, I doubt you'd tell me anyway."

She looked at him for a bit longer. "Huh," she exclaimed. "Matthew, you're not twenty years old."

"What?"

"Your birth records are wrong, you're actually a year younger."

"What!?"

"I gotta go."

"Hold on, you can't just leave me hanging like that!"

"We'll talk tomorrow." She gestured for him to leave, "now, I'm ordering you to go home. I'm also ordering that you and I start having lunch together from now on."

He let out a short sigh, "for therapy." He concluded. "Are you even certified?"

"Nope, but it'll be fun to try." She winked as she walked inside. "Congrats, you'll be my first test run."

Once inside and away from Matthew's hearing range, Imp revealed herself just to laugh at Tattletale's face. "Desperate!" Imp yelled.

Irritated, Tattletale answered, "says the girl who wants to be Regent's groupie."

Imp stopped, and shut up for the rest of the walk to the meeting room.

 

[Axle]

Lisa sat quietly to herself with her laptop sitting on her lap. She typically didn't bring her workspace to bed, but she considered what she was doing more as a hobby than work. She smiled while she eagerly clicked through Matthew's profile.

Matthew Isaac; Age; 20.

She chuckled to herself, she might have to change that number later.

Family; Both parents immigrated to Chicago from South Africa. Has four older siblings and four younger siblings.

"Guess he's the middle finger of the family," Lisa joked to herself. Lisa let out a sigh as she wondered that made Matthew tick. Or rather, what didn't make Matthew tick.

She looked down at his profile, and quickly read through as to why Coil had decided to recruit someone so young.

Background: Local drug smuggler since the age of 10.

Lisa hummed to herself, "I still can't believe you've never done drugs before…"

Lisa looked over to the next link that said: "Plausible vial candidate"

Lisa's eyes widened. She clicked it, Matthew was ranked 36 among possible mercenaries for Cauldron vial for Coil's base. It said he could rank higher with real combat experience and more training. Lisa shook her head, "what the hell would made qualified?" She clicked a tab that said 'Qualifications' and read:

At 16, was kidnapped by a chemical tinker and survived six months in an isolation experimentation. Psychological assessment: Stable.

Lisa's eyes widened. She didn't expect that at all. Human experimentation from tinkers were rare, reserved for the worst types of capes and considered a taboo among the Tinker community. Moreso than that, to survive something along those lines would equate a person to a war veteran. She wondered if Matthew might have had PTSD.

Lisa read further through the incident report, and used her powers to fill in the gaps of what had happened.

Captured by a chemical tinker with five other peers his age.

Close friends.
Childhood friends.​

Lisa gulped, and read the next line on the file: One of two survivors. Her power told her what happened to the second survivor.

Second Survivor committed suicide shortly thereafter.
​

Lisa paused. Not only had Matthew survived a long term trauma, but he survived the tragedy of his last friend after. All his childhood friends had died in an instance, and he'd chosen to live a mostly isolated life there afterwards. Was that due to trauma? She'd have to speak to him in person to find the answers.

This scenario sounded exactly like something that should've caused a trigger event. But it didn't. Lisa wondered why some people could get powers from isolation, but not someone like Matthew.

She read the final assessment:Psychological status: Stable.

"Stable…" Lisa said to herself. "That can't be right."

People with trauma had to have psychological issues. That's why villains outnumbered heroes, she refused to believe Matthew didn't have something wrong with him. Obviously, the experts were wrong again.

Matthew's profile then said he wasn't recommended therapy before or after joining Coil's ranks. But as Tattletale read through the assessment, she noticed that there were some signs of a mild anti-social personality disorder, it just wasn't severe enough to require medication or therapy.

She then read his personality assessment portion.

Apathetic.

Emotionally drained.

Post-Traumatic Growth.​

Post-Traumatic growth. That was the opposite of what she expected. Matthew must've moved on from what had happened to him. His only flaw was the lack of connection to the world around him, but rather than see that as weakness that needed fixing, he'd simply embraced it.

There was nothing more for Tattletale to fix. He'd gone through the hurdles of pain and loss, lived through it, grasped it, and became his own person. His detachment was now his own choice. He'd simply lost the desire to connect.

Maybe Lisa could change that.

Lisa put it upon herself to make Matthew into another person. She just needed to change who he was, to break away at what he'd turned into, and build him up anew. She wasn't about going to give up that easily.

"Matthew, Matthew, Matthew…" Lisa rubbed between her fingertips, "let's see how much I can change you."

 

[Axle]

Tattletale sat across from Matthew at the base's lounge room. They had both finished their lunches and were about to finish their drinks. He took a sip of his tea as Tattletale chugged down the rest of her coffee.

"You know caffeine is bad for you." Matthew commented.

"Not according to my powers it's not."

He leaned closer to her, "True or false, does coffee keep you shorter?"

"Nope. Just another urban myth."

He slumped back on his chair, "I should stop offering coffee to my enemies..."

She smiled, "let's try and keep focused here." She took out a pen and notepad, "I want you to start from the beginning."

Matthew chuckled at the sight of the notepad. So cliche, he thought to himself. Tattletale, however, was indifferent to his opinion. She knew that people were like webs of information. Everything connected to inside a person's mind. Sure, Matthew wasn't really a priority to her, but she still needed to record essentials of him for her theory to work.

He relaxed, then spoke, "it all started when I was six years old." Tattletale sighed, and already began rubbing the bridge on her nose. "I wanted a puppy when I was six, but my sister was allergic. So I got one anyway. Then her allergies kicked in and-"

She tossed a nugget at his face. "I'm serious," she interrupted. "Start at the beginning. The real beginning."

He sighed. "I don't see what you're trying to accomplish with this." He waved his hand off, "I feel fine. There's not much to fix beyond what the average non-cape needs to have fixed."

"I'll be the judge of that. But for this to work, I'll need to learn some things from you. So for both our sakes, please, elaborate."

Matthew was coming to realize that Tattletale's method of relieving stress involved finding work that distanced herself from her other responsibilities. He didn't mind it, but he was mindful that it was probably bad for her mental health. Then again, mental health was rarely a primary concern among capes.

"I'm guessing you already read my profile then?"

"I might've peaked at it."

"Hehe, pervert."

"Shut up."

Matthew smiled. He also didn't mind being her psychology project. Matthew's curiosity of what conclusions she would draw interested him in. His only caveat was that he saw himself as an uninteresting person. He preferred hearing her talk, rather than hearing himself talk.

"Alright," Matthew said, "I'm guessing you'd rather I skip the backstory, and go straight to what happened I left the hole?"

Tattletale nodded. Matthew then asked, "but first, can I ask what your trigger event was?" Matthew had a hard tendency of asking questions off from the top of his head.
​

"Um..." Tattletale scratched her cheek, "you can't just ask a cape what their trigger event was..."

He shrugged, "I know trigger events are supposed to be bad, but since you already know about me, I was curious to know what caused you to trigger."

"There are no boundaries for you, are there?"

"Not that I know of," he answered honestly.

She sighed, "I know for a lot of capes it doesn't matter, but it still matters to me. So I'd rather not go into detail about what happened." He nodded in agreement, his curiosity wasn't enough for him to pry her for information. She smiled. "Let's get back to the topic. What it was like after you were saved from the tinker?"

Matthew looked up, "What it was like? To be honest, I think re-adjusting was worse than being in the hole." Tattletale stared at him. "In the hole, I understood some things better than others. Coming out, I suddenly went from accepting that I was alone to pretending I wasn't alone."

He thought about it for a moment. He faced towards the window and closed his eyes to recollect how the transition had felt. "It was like I died and became a ghost... Have you ever been in a situation where the world felt less real than it did before? Like something really good or bad happened, and whatever happened next didn't matter in comparison to it?"

Tattletale didn't nod. Matthew continued. "After a few days in the hole, the strong feeling disappeared. Everything else seemed surreal compared to what I went through. The worst part about coming out from that, was pretending everything was alright. This is why I don't like people as much. I mean, I understand people, I've just learned to dislike them."

"Why?" Tattletale asked.

"Because I wasn't alright, but I still had to pretend I was alright." He leaned his head to the side. "Everyone seemed so far away. Like they were there, but not present. Maybe I'm not really the ghost, but everyone else looks like a ghost to me instead. Either way, I was out of place."

Strangely, changing his perception of the world into something negative had helped him survive. he pretended everyone else faked their own world the same way he did. Like masks were molded onto everyone's faces, except that masks were a part of people as opposed to disguises meant to hide something.

"Like everyone were wearing masks," Tattletale said quietly. Matthew nodded, concluding that Tattletale's deduction powers had nearly read his mind.

"And time made it worse." He continued. "Its wrong for people to cut others off. Its like blocking yourself out, and letting your heart rot away. Time moved on and I avoided the people around me. I crippled myself. It was like traveling deeper and deeper into a dark tunnel. I never realized the final destination was worse than leaving the tunnel."

"You..." She swallowed, like she didn't want to form the words.

"Fell into depression, almost committed suicide. Whatever you want to call it." Matthew said it smoothly, he had passed the point from when he didn't want to share. Speaking about it, not allowing it to be a dark blimp from his past, made the present seem less bleak for himself.

Tattletale's mood fell. She looked like she wanted to leave but couldn't ask. Matthew asked for her, "should I stop?"

"No," she said kindly. "You can finish."

Matthew nodded, "the irony, is the only thing that saved me from it was my last friend dying. I guess we were walking the same path, or at least drinking the same kind of poison. Its strange, seeing the world as a guy who wanted to die, and then seeing that mirror reflected onto someone else."

He took a deep breathe, "I know its wrong to say this, but him dying saved me. I gave up pretending people and the world needed to be a certain way. I know I'm still distant, but maybe that's not a bad thing. If the world is like a dream to me, I might as well enjoy it as a dream."

XXX

Tattletale took a long moment to dig into the topic.

Heart beat changed;

Self-blame.

Relaxed posture;

Closure.​

She wasn't sure what to say. She knew that her job was to make him pry open a can of worms to see how she could influence him, but she'd suddenly lost interest in it. "You..." She still had trouble forming her words.

"Yes." Matthew answered honestly.

Does not dwell.​

In a way, Matthew might've been more stable than she was. Tattletale shook her head to wake herself up. "Okay..." She rose up from her chair, "I think we're done here..."

"Sure." Matthew answered. Lisa did her best to avoid eye contact as she headed out the lounge.

Her head space suddenly felt distant. For a long time she looked for answers about how Reggie fell into that hole he'd dug himself into. She never considered that his suicide was more similar to a sickness. That it wasn't even his own fault, much less that it wasn't her own fault. She'd been desiring an answer for years, and one presented itself in the form of a stranger's experience.

Taking a deep breathe, and heading towards her room, she decided to take the rest of the day off. She hadn't spent time to herself in a very long time.

XXX​

 

[Axle]

One hour after Wednesday's meeting.

"So basically... He's her boy toy?"

"That's what I said!" Aisha answered.

Alec crashed his car into another batch of police officers. Aisha mowed down the remaining officers with her automatic machine gun.

"And the weird part is he's a total loser. He has this stoned face to him all the time." Aisha's body moved as she ran away from gunfire.

Alec stayed behind to offer her covering fire. "Sounds like she knows how to picke'm." The two of them worked together to run away from the gun shooters while dropping grenades as they escaped. "Give me details. What's he like? Funny, creepy, weird, charming, or stupid?"

"Depending on who you ask, all of the above." Aisha hid behind a civilian's vehicle. Regent ran a different direction from her. The other officers chose to close in on Aisha. "Godamnit..." She said to the television screen, "This game is stupid."

"You did not just call GTA stupid!" Alec poked at Aisha's head. She squirmed away from him in response. "You just don't know how to play it."

Alec's avatar jumped on the vehicle across from her and began firing a hail of bullets towards Aisha's pursuers. In response, the remaining officers turned their fire towards him and quickly shot him down. "Godamnit..."

"Hate the player, not the game." Aisha commented while sticking her tongue out at him. Alec threw a pillow at her in response.

"Anyway," he put down his remote control and walked to his fridge. "You know what we gotta do right? We gotta play cupid on them."

"Sounds gay." Aisha commented.

"In normal cases, yeah, it's gay. But think about for a second." He offered a beer to Aisha, she shook her head in refusal. "If Lisa's distracted by some guy, she'll be less focused the rest of us. Which means, the rest of us can screw around." He smiled, "a little extra work for a lot more dozing off..."

XXX

Present.

Matthew returned to the base command center. Victor, Mitchel, and Colonel Sanders (his unofficial nickname), all received a message from their buzzers. Matthew looked at his own accordingly.

DAY OFF. GO HOME. - TATTLETALE
​

Victor threw his arms in the air, "Yes!" He cheered, "Now I can pick up my son from preschool!"

Mitchel, a Caucasian man in his mid twenties, blonde haired and a foot shorter than all of them, immediately took out his cell phone and began texting away. "You seriously need a girlfriend," he commented. "You're 22 years old, and you're excited to go to preschool? Seriously man..."

Victor moon walked the rest of his way out the door. As he danced away he flung his middle fingers at Mitchel's direction. He sung the word, "fuck youuuuuu...."

Colonel Sanders (some of his colleagues had forgotten his real name), shook his head. "Welp, its a good thing we get paid salary." His words held a thin trace of an Australian accent. He was shorter than Matthew by two inches, but was much more robust due to his military experience. "By the way Matthew, there's a gift for you on the boss's desk."

Matthew looked at where he was referring to. A large gift basket poorly wrapped in plastic was sitting behind Tattletale's computer monitors. "The person who dropped it off said it passed clearance," Sanders commented, "its safe. Strange, but safe...."

Matthew walked over to it and picked up the note taped to the front. On it were words neatly written in cursive.
​

FROM TATTLETALE, TO MATTHEW
XOXOXOXOX
​

"Hmmmm...." He unwrapped the plastic from the gift basket. Inside was wine, a large box of chocolate, colorful flowers, and fluffy pink handcuffs. He reached for the chocolate, "neat." He began eating them one by one, "you can take the handcuffs Mitchel, I know you're into that."

Without glancing away from his cell phone, he answered, "nah, I'm still recovering from the girl I dated from Toronto." He walked towards the exit, "some advice Matthew, never date a girl who pretends to be a cape when she's not."

Colonel shook his head. "Your generation is really hopeless." Colonel glanced at the gift basket again, "shit like that is why I'm glad I never had kids."

Matthew continued to eat the chocolates. These are really good, he thought to himself. "I'm pretty sure these aren't from Tattletale," he said. "Its unlike her."

"Yeah, my thoughts exactly." Colonel replied, "be sure to get rid of it before she comes back to work tomorrow." He headed out the door the same path his coworkers took.

Matthew picked up the gift basket and was ready to walk off. Suddenly, his legs began to feel heavier.

XXX

Wednesday Night.

"I'm wondering if we should add lubricant..." Regent questioned.

"Nah, it won't fit anyways" Aisha replied. She crudely taped the plastic around the basket, while leaving an opening to add last minute accessories. "I gotta say though, this is the lamest thing you've ever done, and you've done some pretty lame things. A gift basket with a fake note from Tattletale? Cheesy, and I doubt it'll work."

Regent began digging through his pantry, looking for something he'd stored away a long time ago. "Yeah, its lame. But its only lame to disguise real present inside."

She tilted her head, "real present?"

He nodded, "think about it." Alec reached his arm behind the stockpile of foods, feeling around for the various contents inside. "How to people hook up nowadays? It sure as hell isn't through coffee dates."

Aisha thought about that for a moment, but wasn't sure how to respond. "I dunno, but it sure as hell isn't gift baskets either."

"Exactly." Regent began pulling out some cooking ingredients. One of the ingredients included a large box of chocolate mix. "The best way for a quick hook up, is with the help from some love drugs."​

 

[Axle]

Lisa laid back on her bed with headphones around her head. She needed this break. She still had responsibilities she needed to attend to, but a short escape from her life was something she was long overdue for. She'd spent a year wrapped around Coil's thumb, and hadn't laid in her bed peacefully since the day she robbed the bank with Taylor.

Taylor... Even relaxed, Lisa's mind still wondered towards the things that stressed her out the most. She had never imagined that a stranger would drive her into becoming a Brokton Bay crime lord.

Am I guilty? Tattletale asked herself. She was solely responsible for adding Taylor to the team. She'd ruined Taylor's chance of a bright future by dragging her into the underworld for shits and giggles. Lisa's betrayal of Coil was tightly tied with that fact that she didn't want Taylor to become another statistic like her brother was.

Reggie... Self-doubt clouded her whenever her mind headed towards that direction. It was like weights pulled down at her chest every time the name crossed her mind. She had technically moved on from it, or at least, had learned to stop thinking about it. But Taylor had brought back old insecurities in her that had made her act defiantly. She didn't regret any of the actions she'd done throughout her young lifespan, but she still wished she could've made better choices.

How does Matthew do it? He was open, unafraid to talk or think about touchy subjects. It was like a sort of self-therapy, Lisa realized. He preferred to look into the darkness of his own mind and heart, embrace it, and learn to live with it. He wasn't weighed down by his mistakes like she was. Lisa preferred to pretend her tragedies had never happened.

Unhealthy, she thought blandly to herself. But she'd never tried it before, so she might as well give it a chance.

She closed her eyes. She thought about all of the mistakes and self-doubts she'd ever accumulated throughout her lifetime. Coil. Brian. Rachel. Taylor. Amy. Reggie. Mom and Dad. She recoiled. The thoughts were beginning to pain her, but she was beginning to understand the necessity of it. She closed her eyes again, and began embracing the negative thoughts.

I've hurt people, and I need to live with it. No more pretending it never happened.

Her phone rang. She read the caller ID; Parian. "Yo," Lisa answered.

On the other line, Sabah let out a deep sigh. "Y'know..." She trailed off. "Being a villain... It was never on my to-do list... I had plans. I was going to college, I had career goals." She paused, reminiscing what those days were like. "Villainy, it was never on my list."

"Welcome to the club, sister."

Sabah sighed again, "so... I still have my doubts, y'know? I don't want to stay a villain if I don't have to."

"Wait, are you leaving?"

"No, no. I'm not leaving. I'm just saying..." She was doubtful, and unsure how to pick her words. "If I'm going to be villain, could you at least be professional about? Like, give me an upside on this line of business?"

"Um... Okay?"

Sabah took a deep breathe. "I headed to your office today. I figured I could use some more help with my territory, get some more guards and medics around me. I also wanted to chat with you, break into this 'being an Undersiders' thing. Maybe touch base after Skitter had left..." She paused, thinking more about how she could explain it.

"Sabah," Lisa cut her off. "What. Is. Wrong?"

Lisa could hear the pent up stress release on the other side of the line. "So I went to your command center, and I find one of your guards, high as fuck, singing on top of your desk."

Matthew.

Cannabis Chocolate.

Alec and Aisha.​

"Mother-"

XXX

Sabah had hoped to have a more rational conversation with Tattletale, but after five more minutes of Lisa's cursing, Sabah gave up on that and put her on mute. I'm guessing she'll be on her way soon.

The guard sheepishly passed his wine to Lily. Before he let go of it, he paused, and looked at her intensely in the eyes. "When I die, don't wrap me up like a burrito. I don't want to die a burrito."

Lily chuckled, "preach it brother."

"Lily," Sabah said, "Please try to be serious here. We need the Undersiders to respect us. Let's try be sober when Li-, I mean Tattletale gets here." Sabah reached for the wine in her hands, but Lily retracted away.

"Oiy," Lily protested, "I haven't had a drink since I joined the Undersiders, I deserve a break!"

"You're seventeen!"

"That's never stopped me before. Pass me a cup dude!"

"No," Matthew said firmly. "I don't trust teenagers drinking."

"See?" Sabah said

He shot a glare at Parian, "What the hell is wrong with you? I'm fucked up, people shouldn't to listen to me."

Lily held in her laughter,"Can you still pour me a cup?"

"Sure." Matthew answered meekly.

"No." Sabah interrupted. "Tattletale is on her way, we both need to be clear headed when we talk with her."

Lily waved her hands at her, "don't take them too seriously. You have to remember, they're teenagers too."

Matthew pointed a finger at Lily, "Your costume's a lot brighter than I remember." He looked down to his hand. "Oh my God, these are my hands." He pressed his palms against his face.

"Whatever he's on, I want it."

"Now's not the time!"

Lily sighed, "fine. Okay, I'll be serious." She settled the wine bottle on Tattletale's desk, "but I'm taking that home when we're done here."

Matthew let go of his face. "THE UNIVERSE, I GET IT!"

 

[Axle]

The information in his mind connected like gears rotating towards an unknown destination. He didn't question what answers he was looking, but the more questions that came up in his mind, the more determined he was to let it flow.

Questions and answers, questions and answers. As his thoughts amassed into large images of the world around him, the the only words that came out were: "This chair is so beautiful..."

"Aaaaand now he's feeling up the chair." Lily commented. Matthew sat across from her, caressing the chair's fabric while forgetting that two villains were staring at him.

"This world is beautiful." Matthew added.

Lily smirked, "if goes any further with that chair, I'm leaving."

Sabah did her best to contain the growing anger pent up inside of her. A drugged security guard was sitting in an Undersider's command center. From the looks of the gift basket, it was done for shits and giggles. It was a potential hazard, a worthless act, and a complete waste of everyone's valuable time. She wasn't going let this behavior slide.

XXX

If Lisa had to describe Matthew, she'd probably use the word 'air head' upon first meeting him. But, he had surprised her. There was some justification to his ditziness. He wasn't ignorant, he was just smart enough to not be concerned with what he had no control over.

Amplify his apathetic attitude with alcohol, and he'll probably become emotional enough care about the people around him. Amplify his attitude with highly potent cannabis, and his head space will have floated from the clouds into deep space.

Mix the both together? Tattletale wasn't sure, but she was curious to find out.

She entered her office. The first thing she noticed was Parian and Flechette sitting silently in front of her desk. She didn't need to use her powers to see how irritated they were. The next thing she noticed was Matthew, staring deeply at the wall with his hands pressed against its surface.

He whispered incomplete sentences to himself. "What if..." He thought he was on the verge of discovery.

"Wow, he's really messed up," she commented. A large part of her wanted to laugh at the sight of him, but it wouldn't have been appreciated by her teammates. She looked down next to him to see the empty box of chocolates. "Holy crap, he ate all of it?"

"Tattletale," Parian called out. She stood up from her chair and closed the gap between herself and Tattletale.

Heavy stride; swinging fists
Attempt to establish dominance
Desire for respect​

"What's up?" Tattletale said with a smile.

Without facing her direction, Matthew replied, "That is a really good question."

"What's up?" Parian repeated firmly. She pointed to him, "How, and why, did this happen?"

Tattletale scratched her cheek with a weak smile, "I could tell you guys the truth, but you guys still wouldn't like the answer."

"Tell it anyways," Parian implored. It somewhat sounded like a demand.

Tattletale looked over to Matthew. He was more distant than she thought was possible. She heard him mutter something about gravity. Sorry you gotta go threw this Matt, I'll make it up to you later, she promised to herself.

Tattletale lifted her finger, "right now, Regent and Imp are trying to figure out what the new team dynamic is. With you both here and Skitter gone, they want to know what they can and can't get away with. So they decided to do a harmless prank on me." She pointed to the box of chocolates. "They could've easily gone with more damaging drugs, but they picked something that wouldn't cause damage to him or anyone else around him."

"I feel... So much lighter." Matthew pressed himself closer to the wall. "Guys, don't open the roof. I might float away."

"Anyways..." Tattletale continued, "they wanted to know if you'd let them get away with it. Clearly, from what I can tell, that won't be the case."

Flechette and Sabah glanced at each other. "So what?" Flechette asked "This was just a prank? This guy looks like he's about to fall over and die."

"Don't say that!" Matthew yelled. "And give me something heavy to hold onto, before its too late!"

The three girls sighed. Parian asked, "hey, what was your name again? I forgot it."

"Yeah..." He replied, "me too."

"His name is Matthew," Tattletale answered for him.

"Right, so what are we going to do about Matthew?" Parian asked.

"I'm supposed to call someone from downstairs to take him home. But since he lives on his own, it might be better for him to stay here for the night."

Parian and Flechetted looked at each other. Flechette asked, "Wait, are you two an item?"

"No." Tattletale answered casually, "but he is a friend. And I owe it to him to not let him be alone during his first trip."

"Fuck captain crunch, that sonuvabitch ruins the roof of my mouth." Matthew walked over to the gift basket. He pointed the wine bottle. "I've never been so thirsty right now, could you pour me some red?"

"You're too high to get drunk." Flechette commented.

Tattletale sighed, "To be honest, I could use a drink right now. Mind pouring me out some?"

"I'm down with that." Flechette picked up the cups from gift basket, "C'mon Sabah, its about time we share a drink together."

"Wait," Parian said timidly, "one of our guards are high. We shouldn't... Be alright with that."

Flechette poured some wine into the cups. Tattletale replied, "and you also wanted to touch base about the whole 'being an Undersiders' thing, and what better way to do that than with some alcohol in the system?"

Tattletale and Flechette tapped their wine cups together in the gesture of a toast. "Wait," Parian said, "what about him? How can we watch him if..."

Matthew returned to the corner. He stared at the wall without saying another word.

"I think he'll be fine," Tattletale concluded.

"C'mon Sabah," Flechette pressured. "You can't tell me you haven't wanted a break since joining these guys." She swallowed the wine into her throat.

"Damn it," Parian said in defeat. She walked over to them and picked up the wine bottle. "Tattletale, can you just promise me I won't see stuff like this happen again?"

'I won't see'
Would rather be oblivious if a similar situation occurred again
​

"It's a promise." Tattletale said with an honest smile.​

 

[Axle]

Colonel Sanders always made sure to arrive for work an hour before the other boys did. He prided himself in being as efficient at work as possible. When he opened the door to Tattletale's office, he stopped dead in his tracks to analyze the area. After a careful assessment of the situation, he left the office and closed the door behind him. He then quietly sent a text message to the only teenager he could trust.

XXX

Brian woke up at the sound of his phone. He was a light sleeper, nowadays. And a message from his work phone meant something important had come up. Not necessarily an emergency, but important enough that he needed to be ready to move quickly. He glanced at the text message:

Your dumbass teammates are smashed in TTT's office. Come pick'em up.
- KFC Guy​

XXX

Grue knocked on Lisa's office door. He and Regent were both surprised to see a complete stranger open the door in front of them. He was shirtless. He had on the pants of a security officer with an empty bottle of wine in his hands.

He took a moment to look at Grue and Regent. His gaze was blank. It was almost as though he wasn't looking at them, but looking passed them like they weren't there. Regent did everything within his power to prevent himself from laughing. "Well," he blurted out, "you sure look like you had a great night."

Grue crossed his arms, waiting to hear an explanation from him. They were both the same height and looked to be about the same age. But instead of acknowledging Regent's comment or Grue's presence, he simply circled a few steps passed them without saying a word. He nearly left as though they were invisible to him.

"Hold it." Grue demanded, with a dark resonance in his voice.

The security guard turned around, "okay, fine." He re-entered Tattletale's office. Before Grue and Regent could follow him in, he shut the door in front of them. "Just, let me find my shirt first," he said from the other side. "Your teammates are weird as hell..."

XXX

Regent couldn't hold it in anymore. He clutched at his sides. "All of them! I can't believe... All of them!"

Tattletale was sitting on the floor holding an ice pack pressed to her head. She leaned against the floor partially dazed from the headache she had woken up to. Parian and Flechette were passed out while holding each other, unmasked and handcuffed together to Tattletale's work desk.

"In my wildest dreams." Regent did his best to stand up straight, "I never thought that I, Regent, would be the one to bring the Undersiders to their knees!" He dropped to his knees to laugh harder, "and that includes myself!"

"Regent." Grue spoke in a dark voice that held zero remorse or patience anymore. "Did you fucking do this?" He grabbed Regent by the shirt and pushed him against the wall. The accusation was obvious. Grue had concluded that Regent had drugged his team.

"Hold up," Regent said in a moderate tone, "all we did was leave a box of chocolate and wine on her desk. I didn't force them to take any of it."

"We?" Grue asked. He turned to Matthew. Imp appeared next to him with a camera in her hands.

"Gold!" Imp shouted. "six hours of unadulterated gold! Oh Tattletale, you should've seen the things you did with Matthew last night. I bet you're glad I got it all on tape." She grinned as she turned the camera to Tattletale.

Tattletale groaned in pain as Imp recorded. "Damnit Imp, you're both dead for this."

"You recorded?" Regent said with glee. "You are officially my favorite Undersider. Finally, now we can use this tape to control Tattletale, then the team, and then Brokton Bay! Long live the Othersiders!"

Before Imp could join him and his evil laughter, Grue snatched the camera from her hands and deleted the tape. "No!" Imp yelled, "not fair..."

"There is no way in hell I'm letting a video like this exist." He tossed the camera with the empty footage back to Aisha. "The last thing the Undersiders need is a bad show of them all over the internet."

"Godamnit..." Aisha and Alec both said in unison.

"Hey," The security guard finally said. Aisha, Alec, and Brian all turned to him. "Is it alright if I leave? I don't think I actually spent the night here by choice."

Regent chuckled. Brian shook his head. He answered 'no' the same time Lisa answered 'yes'. They glanced at each other.

"He knows Flechette's identity. Her condition for joining was that no one new would see her face."

"Please," Lisa argued, "I've got six guards that know what I look like, and one of them know I have parents looking for me. He's not a security risk just because he knows what she looks like."

Matthew took a seat at the corner of the room. He sat quietly while the rest of them argued. Lisa sighed, "no Matthew, we're not thinking about killing you."

"Kay," Matthew replied.

Grue continued, "But he shouldn't work for us anymore. We can give him hush money to move-"

"No," Tattletale cut off. She pressed the ice pack against her head a bit harder. "I know him well, he won't tell anyone anything. Instead of sending him off on a safety check, keep him here on payroll. He'll still work for no extra charge. Right Matt?"

"Sure." Matthew answered. "It helps that she's Asian. That's a terrible description people want to hear."

Lisa bit her lip, "You're really not helping my case here..."'

"I don't really see why he needs to stay." Brian paused, and shot a quick glance between the two of them, "wait, are you two a thing?"

"No." Matthew and Lisa answered in at the same time.

"Its true," Imp said. "He's only her boy toy. Its a one sided deal."

"I always knew she'd be the dominant one," Regent stated.

"Please stop shipping us." Tattletale groaned, "can I ask what the hell made you think drugging him was a good idea?"

"They drugged him?" Grue exclaimed.

"I was drugged?" Matthew asked.

"Our security body guards," Grue repeated. "Regent and Aisha drugged him?"

Tattletale nodded. "Edibles. I'd yell at them right now, but these migraines are killing me."

Grue turned to Matthew. "You can leave, I need to talk to our team in private." Matthew nodded, and walked towards the exit.

After the door shut behind him, Lily shook herself awake. She sat up, unfazed by the pink handcuffs that bounded her to Sabah. She scanned around the room. "Where'd Lisa's boy toy go?"

Lisa slumped the back of her head against the wall. "Not you too..."

"Well, that is what you called him last night." Lily yawned, "along with a lot of other things."

Aisha elbowed her brother. She quietly growled, "I bet you wish you didn't delete that footage." Brian stayed silent, he didn't disagree.

 

[Axle]

Colonel Sanders looked down at him, "you're lucky I don't shove my foot up your ass."

Matthew sat in the locker room bench quietly. He knew nothing he could say would alleviate the older man's fury. It was extremely rare for someone to get angry at him, so he decided to cherish the new experience while he could.

"We are part of a super villain organization. And you got high in your boss's office?" Saliva shot at Matthew's face as he yelled. He didn't bother to wipe it off, he feigned weakness. But Colonel knew he was full of shit.

Each time the Colonel looked at Matthew a part of him remembered the day he had found him trapped inside that hellhole. It was like staring into the abyss and finding the void eyes of a creature that was that was no longer alive. He remembered how empty they were, they were specks of nothing found within darkness. It was fragile. Like a glass statue ready to break when tilted in the wrong direction. There was no fixing him. Everything that he had once been was lost forever. The only thing left for him was to re-learn to adapt to the world around him.

For Sanders, it was like looking into a mirror. Colonel Sanders had earned his eyes after years of resilience and beatings through campaigning in Asia. The thousand yard stare. When manhood gets shot out of you like a cannon leaving you lost in a world that doesn't make sense. Colonel lost the hope in his eyes after his failed to save an eight year old boy. Matthew lost his will after being forced to sit quietly as his friends died all around him. They were both the same. Except the Colonel had over twenty years of experience to live with his condition, Matthew had less than two.

"I didn't save your life from that fucking tinker just to for you to screw up here." Sanders wanted to get him angry. To draw out a piece of his soul into the surface. It didn't work. "If this were any other organization, you'd have been killed for doing that shit. For fuck's sake, you got tortured by a villain, shit like that could easily happen again. What the hell made you think getting high was a good idea?" Matthew didn't say anything. A part of him was waiting for the Colonel's words to resonate in him. They didn't. "Promise me something. Don't do anything stupid like that again."

Matthew nodded. It was a meaningless gesture. The Colonel added, "I want to hear you say it. Tell me you won't screw around with the Undersiders like that again."

"I promise." Matthew said in a quiet tone. It sounded sincere, but they both knew it wasn't. Neither of them truly knew whether the promise carried any weight to it, but the Colonel was satisfied enough. He walked out of the locker room leaving Matthew alone.

Matthew took some time to start pinching himself on his arms. He was disappointed to realize that the present felt more like a dream than back when he was medicated.​

XXX

Tattletale's hangover was already subsiding. To her surprise, she and Lily had higher alcohol tolerances than Matthew and Sabah did. And here I thought adults were supposed to be better at drinking. Her head was actually in pain due to her irresponsible usage of her powers from the night prior.

Everything was so hazy, she remembered.

Her original plan was to converse with Parian and Flechette about their morals to find out what they truly stood for. She wanted to better understand them through seemingly harmless conversation so that she could improve their synergy with the rest of the team.

She stopped caring about that after her third drink. Why does Alec only have the strongest stuff?

Instead, she spent six hours talking about various topics that she herself considered too personal. Parian talked about her fears of dying alone. Flechette thought she had connection issues due to her unwillingness to reconnect with old friends. And Lisa admitted that Taylor was the only friend she'd ever had.

Fortunately, she didn't say anything that she truly regretted. If anything, the afternoon broke down any barriers Flechette and Parian had between themselves and the Undersiders. It had helped them, and had been an overall enjoyable afternoon for everyone. It was their conversation about Matthew that had annoyed her.

XXX

"You've never had a boyfriend?" Sabah and Lily said.

Lisa shrugged, "don't need one, I guess."

"Have you ever kissed a guy?" Sabah asked.

Lisa chugged down the rest of her drink. She grinned, "nope. Kissless teenager here."

Lily walked towards Matthew. She grabbed him by the shirt, "not for long, Matthew, come here for a sec."

Lisa threw the plastic cup in their direction. "Damnit Foil, he'sh my boy toy, not my boyfriend!"​

​

XXX

Lisa had lost some confidence in her drinking tolerance. Either way, she was glad they were able to talk with her in a non-pressured environment. They'd touched base. They learned to trust her more and she'd learn to become more comfortable around the new members.

No regrets, but she did feel the need to apologize to Matthew on behalf of what Aisha and Alec did to him.

Speak of the devil. Heading towards the diner Lisa found Matthew leaving the locker room. She caught a glimpse of him, he was gripping his arm tightly.

​

Attempt to feel pain.

High chance of future substance abuse.
​

Fuck.​

 

[Axle]

He smiled and waved, "hello."

It surprised her. The look was so genuine. He'd had years to practice it, both from before and after the incident. There was a time when his smiles actually made him happy, now he only ever smiled on other people's behalf.

"Hey," she waved back. Great, now I'm faking it too. "How you holding up?"

Matthew rolled his shoulders, "a little dazed. I feel bad that I don't remember what happened last night, and here I thought I'd unlock the secrets of the universe if I got high."

Lisa chuckled, remembering some of the things he said the night before. "Trust me, you figured out a lot of things, just not the secrets of the universe."

Matthew covered his face with laughter, "man, it stinks that you remember but I don't. How screwy did I look to your powers?"

Lisa tapped at the ice pack on her head, "you're the reason I have this ice pack. I'm lucky the alcohol numbed the pain. But damn, I thought you were literally floating into deep space back there."

"Do you mean literally literally, or figuratively?"

"Both, I was hazy too, remember?"

"I really wish I did, I can't imagine you drunk."

Lisa grinned, and Matthew smiled back in a way that was honest. Ah, humor, everyone responds well with humor. "So," Lisa finally asked, "are you okay? Do you feel any different? I know you never wanted to go that far with drugs before. I also know your pride got hurt a little because of it."

"Yeah," Matthew admitted. "Y'know, I don't have pride in anything. I thought I'd cling onto never smoking, but now I guess it doesn't matter."

There it is, she thought to herself. He had a preset number of principals accumulated in the form of advice and wisdom from friends, family, and strangers. It was all meaningless to him, but it had helped him go from being bitterly cold to sincerely selfless following his trauma.

Apparently she was pushing him in the wrong direction. She'd offered to help him change, and now he was willing to change under unpredictable circumstances. She needed to convince him to pivot back to the way he was a few days ago, to sort of re-kindle the amount of integrity he had within himself.

"I guess I better go home now." Matthew pointed to the exit. "I've gotta go change my furniture now that I'm a pot head."

"You know you're having way more fun with an idea than the drug itself?" He smiled at her again. She sighed and smiled back, "since neither of us are in a hurry to leave today, wanna grab lunch together? Get a quick bite before you leave?"

"Sure," Matthew answered. "Its about time the girl asks the guy to the date."

"You still don't get the concept of dates, do you?"

He shrugged, "I guess not. And to be honest, I'd rather keep it that way."

Lisa shook her head at his comment. I worry way too much about this guy.

XXX

Alec was beginning to regret the actions he had done. He knew there would've been repercussions, he just didn't think they'd be so severe. He was also never serious about helping Lisa get a boyfriend, he just wanted to lift the atmosphere after Skitter left. That aspect of the plan had worked, but the costs no longer seemed worth it.

"Parian," Brian asked, "does that seem fair to you?"

Her head shot up in surprise. Sabah had wanted to be more involved with the team, and Brian was finally giving her a chance to speak. She was also the one most upset about the situation, so it was reasonable for him to let her be the final judge. "I'm... Not sure it that's really a good idea."

"I second that!" Alec shouted. They ignored him. Damnit, I've really screwed myself over on this one.

"It's just," Sabah continued. "He did something extremely irresponsible, and you're punishing him by giving him more responsibly? Are you sure he can handle that burden?"

Brian shook his head, "Alec has more potential than he knows."

"I'm flattered."

Brian continued, "we haven't given him more responsibility for he sake of being fair. I know that taking his territory away would be a blessing for him, it would let him sit on his ass and do nothing. Cutting his pay would be a small punishment since he already makes more than enough. So instead, we do this military style. He fuck up, lets give him more work to make up for it."

"Please say no," Alec said. "Really, I don't have any potential."

Sabah turned her head to Lily. Lily was spinning the pink handcuffs from earlier around her fingers. She shrugged, "I'll back up anything you have to say."

Sabah looked physically conflicted. "How has he handled his own territory so far?"

"I've kicked puppies, burned down hospitals, and kidnapped orphans to conscript them into my army. In a few days, the Othersiders will be real."

"He's making a profit." Brian answered, "low level drug dealing without getting kids involved. Everything is regulated accordingly, he just needs some help for the reconstruction projects."

"As I said," Alec reiterated, "burning hospitals for fun."

"So if he gets Imp's territory, you're sure he'll be able to handle it?" Sabah asked.

Brian nodded, "Imp was never best at suppressing violence. Both of them have impressed me since Skitter left, but Regent still knows crime better than she does. Imp will go back to working in my territory for awhile, and her territory would be divided between me and Regent. Enough for him to get off his ass, but not enough to be a blow to all of us if he monumentally fucked up."

"But if that happened, it would still be a big monumental fuck up," Alec argued.

Sabah nodded in agreement, "alright," she said. "You know your team well, I think this would be better for everyone."

"Not for me!"

Brian struck Alec on the head, "this is your own fault, and you know it."

Alec recoiled in pain, "goddammit." He didn't argue back.

Sabah smiled at Brian, "Thanks Brian, for hearing me out on this."

Brian nodded back, "you're part of this team now, and we won't exclude you guys just because you're new. Don't be afraid to ask if you need anything. Hopefully, Alec won't be doing shit like this again."

"No promises," Alec said. Brian crossed his arms. "Okay," Alec retracted, "I won't do anything like that again."

Lily sighed, "we were so pissed at you yesterday. We couldn't stay mad at Lisa because it wasn't really her fault. But getting a guard high? As a prank? What were you thinking?"

Alec shrugged, "just trying to get Lisa laid." Brian hit Alec's head again.

Sabah rubbed her forehead, "well, it failed miserably."

Lily chuckled, "wow, you really don't remember what happened yesterday, do you?" The rest of the team turned their heads toward her. Lily smiled and continued, "they say alcohol is the best way to get the truth out of people. The things Lisa said about Matt were pretty eye opening."

"Scandalous!" Alec yelled. "Details, girl, details!"

"Nope." Brian yanked Alec towards the door. "What you guys said is between you guys, I'm not interested in gossip."

"What, no!" Alec struggled as he was finally pulled out from Tattletale's office.

 

[Axle]

The contrasts between Matthew and Lisa were as obvious as the ways they drank tea. While Matthew drank his tea quietly with his eyes shut, savoring each sip before slowly drinking the next, Lisa chugged down as much of the hot beverage as she could so that they could move passed the formalities and head straight into conversation. He took his time to cherish the silence between them. She rushed herself so they could head right into the task at hand.

Lisa couldn't see the analogy, Matthew could. "Next week," she pointed a finger at Matthew. "I'll go back to working at my old office by myself. You guys being on guard with me was more like an insurance since Skitter had left. Things'll go back to the way they were before now that the week has gone by without any issue."

Matthew nodded, quietly listening without withdrawing attention from the warmth his beverage offered. "But," Tattletale continued, "that doesn't mean I'll be skipping out on lunch breaks, so I say we still meet up here when noon hits."

Matthew nodded again, his eyes still closed after each long sip taken. Tattletale added, "and about that 'therapy'," she flexed her index and middle fingers on both hands, "You're more stable than I gave you credit for. I mentioned that I can help you connect with people better, and I'm still sure I can, but therapy isn't really what you need."

Matthew nodded again. He moved in an identical motion as he did before. Tattletale's mouth scrunched up, "Oiy," she said in a higher tone. Matthew lifted his chin up in a moderate fashion. "Are you still listening?"

Matthew shook his head, "of course."

She sneered at him, "it doesn't seem like it."

"I just really like this tea."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, but I was paying attention. Couldn't you tell?"

Tattletale formed a weak smile. "My powers aren't working right now. I've still got migraines from yesterday."

"Ah, that makes sense." Matthew put his teacup down and fixed up his posture. He clasped his hands together and established eye contact with her. "Ready."

Tattletale lifted an eyebrow. "Okay." She mimicked him and re-adjusted her own posture. Her elbows touched the table and she matched Matthew's gaze. "I need you to pretend last night never happened."

"But that would really take away potential jokes from me."

"Again," she reiterated "you're having way too much fun for something you don't remember."

Matthew chuckled. He couldn't deny that he was trying to make light of a bad situation. "Sure," he answered, "I'll pretend it never happened." Matthew looked over to his side, realizing something for the first time. "We pretend a lot when we're around each other."

XXX

"It can't be helped," she said.

Lisa was partially worried that she had pushed herself into a corner. She accidentally made Matthew into a potential drug addict, and now she needed to help him before the problem could metabolize.

She wondered to herself, when was the last time I talked to someone without my powers? It had felt strange to her. She picked up on how to read body language through experience, but reading people was half as easy without an assured way to confirm assumptions.

She sighed, this is going to hurt. She flared up a short dosage of her powers.

High chance of future substance abuse.
​

Lisa winced in pain, damnit, nothing changed.

In response to her recoil, Matthew asked, "do you need more ice?"

"Er, no, its fine," she answered. She was a bit surprised by his show for concern. A part of her wanted to check how much genuinity it carried, but she refrained herself from using her powers unnecessarily.

"Advil? Aleve? I've got painkillers if you need them."

"No, no, its fine." She smiled, the gesture was still appreciated. "We just... Really need to talk."

"Alright," Matthew said. Her tone had showed obvious concern. Matthew responded by staying quiet for the sake of listening.

"I think... I might've screwed up." Her mouth jerked. "You... I might've changed you into something you shouldn't be."

Matthew bobbed his head to the side. He didn't show hints of concern about the statement, but he did let her know that he was curious about what she had to say.

She took a deep breathe, "A few days ago we talked about how you had trouble connecting with people. And, albeit it was for my own personal reasons, I wanted to know if I could help you in that department." It was for selfish reasons, he knew that but he didn't mind it. "So, I told you that you had to be open to new experiences. Which involved meeting more people, getting closer with the people around you, and putting more effort into maintaining relationships you have, had or make."

It was simple advice, advice that she had hoped to see resonate into him. "What I didn't consider enough was your trauma. I knew that your lack of connection was due to it, but I forgot that you're more likely to fall into the extremity of things because of your... Apathy."

"That sounds mostly right," Matthew said, confirming her statement.

She nodded. "Me encouraging you to change, Regent drugging you, and your apathy towards everything, right now there's a good chance you'll..." She let the words hang, hoping he'd confirm it.

"Get addicted." Matthew finished for her.

Lisa nodded. He was already thinking about it, she concluded. As much as she'd have liked to have blamed Regent for Matthew's potential pivot towards drug abuse, Tattletale's meddling of his personality would've lead to the same result anyways. If anything, Regent helped surface the potential issue for her to weed it out before it could worsen.

"That's... Really bad." Matthew deducted.

"Yeah," Lisa agreed. Her fingers subtly fidgeted, "I'm the one to blame for it. You're principled, and I told you to change your principals. I'm... Sorry I put you at risk like this. I never meant for you to change like that. Which is why I'm asking for you to forget about yesterday, I don't want you to fall into drug abuse because of me. I also don't want to be responsible for..."

Lisa paused, taking a moment to remember why she wanted to change Matthew in the first place. It was only meant to be a harmless experiment with someone that hardly mattered to the world. She suddenly was ashamed of herself. She realized that to her, Matthew was simply expendable.

"Okay," Matthew said. His tone didn't carry any blame or anger towards her. It was almost casual, like he didn't believe Lisa's concern was worth worrying about. "I'll pretend last night never happened. I'll also promise myself to always stay sober." He shrugged, "don't worry about me. I'm not a burden for you carry."

Lisa nodded, pretending to agree with his statement. Sorry brain, she used her power one more time.

Keeps commitments.
​

Her head throbbed, it was painful, but the information lifted a heavy weight from her shoulders. She rubbed her head, worth it.

XXX

A/N: If this were divided into arcs, this is where the end of arc 1 would be.

 

[Axle]

Alec wrote giant words on the white board: OPERATION: GET LISA LAID.

"Shouldn't we call it operation get Tattletale laid?" Aisha commented.

"Do we really have to be so distasteful about it?" Sabah asked. "Operation get Lisa a boyfriend. Operation get Tattletale her first kiss. Operation get Lisa married... Anything else would be fine, but do we really have to go with a name so..."

"Lewd?" Lily finished for her. She spun around pink handcuffs in her hands while Sabah sat next to her on Alec's couch.

"Yes, why does it have to be so inappropriate?" Sabah asked.

"Because," Alec sipped some water from his cup, "it'll be hilarious when she figures out the name with her powers."

"That I cannot argue." Lily said, "but for the sake of following my captain, I formally request we change the name into something less lewd."

Aisha and Alec groaned. "Why did you invite them again?" Aisha asked.

"Comradery," Alec announced. "They got dragged into this the moment they drank my 1886 Malt Liquor."

"Alec," Sabah said. "When we were invited you hinted that you were going to drug Matthew again. A major reason why we're here is to make sure you guys don't do something stupid like that again. Can you agree to keep drugs off the table from here on out?"

Alec waved her off, "relax, drugging people are never fun the second time." Sabah arched an eyebrow.

"Again," Aisha asked, "why were they invited?"

"He was surprisingly sweet over the telephone," Lily answered. "He said some nice things on why this was worth a shot."

Aisha tilted her head, "Alec? Sweet?"

Alec shrugged, "wouldn't be doing this if I didn't know a thing or two about matchmaking."

Aisha fell quiet, unsure how to respond. Sabah finally asked, "alright, if you guys aren't planning on doing anything like to that gift basket plan, what are you guys planning?"

Alec and Aisha smiled. "Aisha," he said, "elaborate."

Aisha proudly stood up from the ground. She went to the whiteboard and wrote the numbers 1 and 2. She wrote 'bimbo' next to the number one, and 'portal' next to number two.

She began, "today, while Regent was getting chewed out by you guys in Tattletale's office." Aisha shot a glance at Sabah, "I took the liberty to follow Lisa after she decided to leave and heal from her irresponsible drinking. And lucky us, she decided to go on another coffee date with Matthew."

"You spied on their date?" Lily said.

"It wouldn't be the worst thing I've done in costume," Aisha reflected. "So while I was listening in to them, the conversation ended with two bits of very important information." She pointed her marker to the corresponding numbers, "First, Matthew is going on a date with some bimbo later tonight."

"Bimbo?" Sabah asked.

Alec explained, "Anyone who gets in the way of an Undersider mission is a bimbo."

Aisha nodded and continued. "Second, Lisa and Matthew are meeting up at the portal tomorrow at noon. But, she wouldn't tell him why she wanted to meet him there. She said it was going to be a surprise, but I don't think the surprise is the title of our operation."

Alec asked, "did Matthew seriously agree to go on a date in another universe, for a reason he doesn't know, with a villain he's never seen out of costume?"

Aisha shrugged, "I told you he was dense."

"I do remember Lisa mentioning that last night," Lilly said. "She said that she enjoyed his company, but she also went on a long rant about why it would never work between them. I think they'd have actually made a good couple, but Lisa's powers has made her see the worst in him. Which in this case, is him not caring about anyone or anything at all."

"Sounds emo," Alec suggested. Aisha nodded in agreement.

Lily shrugged, "the point is, she knows it would be a one-sided relationship. Her powers made her not interested in him."

"Well who cares about that," Aisha said. "I've seen them talk, he keeps up with her, and that's all that matters."

"I think you guys are missing the point," Sabah said. "Try seeing things from her perspective. Lisa's powers make dating a nightmare for her. She can see problems from a mile away. If a guy is shallow, she won't like him. If a guy still likes an ex, she'll think she's being used. If a guy is narrow minded about how relationships should work, she won't want to give the guy a chance."

"Sounds to me like she doesn't know how relationships work," Alec said. "No relationship would ever work if it didn't involve getting passed a few faults."

"Well," Lily said, "that was surprisingly insightful."

Sabah shook her head, "that's not necessarily the point. Why start a relationship when she knows its doomed to fail?"

"Because relationships require trial and error to work." Alec answered boringly, "she's pretty much giving up before trying. And knowing a few weak points about someone doesn't mean a relationship couldn't work."

"Again," Lily commented, "very insightful."

"Anyway," Alec continued. "I think we all know what we've gotta do. First, we gotta ruin Matthew's date tonight."

"What the hell?" Sabah and Lily said.

Lily added, "You just finished drugging him against his will. And now you wanna ruin his date? Is this operation get Lisa Laid, or operation ruin Matthew's life?"

"Yes," Alec said. He turned to Aisha, "Where did he say the date was going to be?"

"Olive garden."

"Well that's an easy place to break into." Alec took Aisha by the hand, he didn't notice her blush. "You two figure out how to get Lisa to like Matthew, me and Aisha will be at Olive Garden as his anti-wingman."

"That's a terrible idea!" Sabah yelled.

Alec ignored her, "there are more kinks in the closet if you need it for brainstorming." He rushed out the door with Aisha at hand.

Sabah's mouth gaped open, "did... he just suggest..."

"Holy crap," Lily said opening his closet, "he wasn't kidding."

 

[Axle]

"So do you have family in the area?" She smiled, clearly interested in what he had to say.

She sat across from him near the center of the restaurant. Her black and white striped sundress fitted well with her modest physique. "I have family," Matthew answered."But not in this area. I moved out from Chicago because there was job here I couldn't refuse."

"You grew up there?" The brunette asked. Her pale skin color contrasted with Matthew's tanned skin tone.

"Yeah, most of my life," he answered. Matthew, more than anything, was glad that his white dress shirt was a comfortable fit for the night. "Most of my siblings still live there."

"You have siblings?" Her voice piqued with interest.

"I have eight brothers and sisters. Since I'm the middle child, I'm normally called the middle finger of the family."

XXX

Alec and Aisha were sickened by the sound of her laughter.

"Do you guys mind?" They sat a table over and across an aisle from them. They could hear their conversation well, but only from their willingness to listen. Alec yelled in their direction. "Some of us are trying to eat here."

"Sorry," they heard the girl yell. "I'm not," Matthew added. The bimbo laughed again. They heard Matthew make a snark comment about teenagers.

"This isn't working," Aisha said. "They like that they're pissing us off."

Alec agreed, "I didn't think he was a sadist."

"Sadist?" She asked.

"Likes to see others in pain," Alec answered. "You really need to brush up on your vocabulary."

Aisha scrunched her mouth, "I don't go around looking for big words to use."

"It's called reading big books," he said it plainly. "You pick up on how to use big words so that you can surprise people who don't expect much from you."

She turned away, "first you're into this romance crap, and now you're into reading? What are you, Einstein?"

"Not a good analogy."

"Analogy?"

"Wow, you really didn't finish school."

Aisha scrunched her mouth further.

XXX

"I do security," Matthew answered. "It's a good thing capes never target office buildings."

"Sounds like an important job," she commented.

"I like it a lot," he smiled, "nobody gives me shit for staring out the window all day."

XXX

The bimbo laughed again.

"Godamnit," they both said.

Aisha flung her hands up, "that wasn't even funny!"

"That's even worse," Alec rubbed his chin. "It means she likes him enough that she's faking laughter for his sake." Gotta think of something, otherwise this date will go off without a hitch.

A stranger approached their table. She wore a standard Olive Garden uniform and was either a young adult or an older teenager. "Hello," she said warmly, "my name is Mary. And I'll be your waiter for the evening."

"I'll have the fried Mozzarella," Aisha said quickly.

Alec paused, and stared at the women. "Oh shit, I forgot."

"We're going to need more time," Aisha said kindly. "My idiot friend here doesn't know when to pay attention when it counts."

He snickered at her, "says the girl who got kicked out of her house."

"That was your fault!" She jabbed a finger in his direction, "It's not my fault my brother is still pissed after what you did to me!"

"That was your idea!"

"Since when was I ever responsible?"

"Well," Mary forced herself to smile. "How about I come back later when you're ready?"

"Sorry, she's pregnant" Alec said. "Don't mind her and her mood swings."

Aisha paled. The waitress took some time to look down at Aisha's frozen expression. She slowly interpreted Alec's words. "Oh, I'm so sorry!" She fumbled her words, "I mean… Congratulations! I mean…" She stuttered, "I'll come back later!" Mary rushed away before Alec and Aisha could catch a glimpse of her reddening face.

"Seriously?" Aisha said feebly.

"Shhhh," Alec answered. "I'm trying to hear them."

Aisha slumped back on her seat. She turned on her powers, and took some time to yell her frustrations at Alec without attracting attention.

XXX

"Pharmacy?" Matthew said, "I don't know enough about drugs to comment on that."

"Me neither," she found herself smiling at most of what he had to say. "I come from a religious upbringing."

"That makes two of us."

XXX

Damnit, they have things in common. It's bad enough that she's pretty, it's worse that they might actually work out. He looked across from his seat, remembering that he was alone. Wow, it's really lame that I'm doing this by myself.

Alec tapped his fingers on the table. "Yup, I'm leaving." Aisha reappeared in front of him, "Holy crap, I forgot you were here."

"I get that a lot," Aisha sighed. "Can we start flipping their drinks now? Hearing them talk is getting boring."

"Yeah, we will," he answered. "I just needed to check if this date would've sunk without us."

The waitress finally returned, she looked much more nervous than she did before. "So, are the both of you ready for your orders yet?"

Alec turned to her and gave a blank stare. Aisha glared at him. He quickly answered, "I'll have whatever she's having."

Aisha sighed, "I'll have the Fried Mozzarella. He'll have the Lasagna special."

"Hold on," he protested. "I said I'd have what you're having. That sounds way better than Lasagna."

"We're not ordering the same thing, it's weird."

"No it's not, you're making it weird."

"I'll bring both then," the waitress said. She grabbed their menus from them before they could argue any further. Before leaving, the waitress took some time to whisper into Aisha's ear. As she did, she pointed in Alec's direction and slipped a brochure into Aisha's coat pocket. Aisha paled before the waitress finally left.

"What did she say?" Alec blinked, fully aware that the conversation involved him.

"Don't worry about it," Aisha answered meekly. She crushed the brochure in her pocket.

They stared at each other for a moment, then Alec turned to listen in on Matthew's conversation. Aisha finally took some time to let her surroundings sink in. She'd never gone to Olive Garden before, neither with friends nor family. She'd heard good things about the restaurant but those comments were always from people who had gone there for dates. A thought occurred to her.

"Alec," she asked. "Are… We on a date?"

 

[Axle]

Lisa took pride in the work she did. She needed to, it had to become game to her. Whereas most people might be overwhelmed by the complexities of development planning, Lisa forced herself to see it more as a challenge than as a burden.

Maybe Accord was the same way. Though, for Accord it was more like an obsession for symmetry, for Tattletale, it was a feeding of the ego. Accord's plans had laid out the fundamentals for the rejuvenation Brokton Bay. Because Accord was so centered around order, his plan largely revolved around reducing poverty and crime to more easily regulate illicit activity within the city.

A small part of her wanted to admire Accord for the grand plan he had in mind. But she found immense difficulty in appreciating someone so blindsided by the idea of control. She took Accord's plan and carefully dismantled it to her own liking. She altered it so that the Undersiders could benefit more while the Ambassadors would be more vulnerable to constant unpredictable elements. It was never enough to cause permanent damage for Accord's organization, but small damps in his plans were always monumental from his perspective.

When your enemy is temperamental, irritate him. Sun Tzu.

Brian knocked on her door. "It's opened," she called out. He walked in, and Lisa didn't turn away from her computer. She was enjoying herself too much. The moment she stepped away from her work, exhaustion would hit her. Those guards were way too distracting.

Brian looked at her wall of boards, note cards, and strings. "Wow," he whistled, "impressive." Lisa was glad Brian was showing more livelihood ever since the Bonesaw incident. She had been the one talking to him the most since Taylor had left, but ultimately, they both knew he had to move on from it on his own.

"Thanks," Lisa said. "Too bad I'm not even close to finishing it." Haven't updated it since Taylor left. I'll put it on my to-do list, right after finding more ways to piss off Accord.

"Lisa, you're not pushing yourself are you? Some of things written here, can't they wait?"

Lisa chuckled, "funny, Taylor asked the same thing before she left." Great Leaders think alike.

"Hmm," Brian didn't comment further on that.

"So what's up boss?" Lisa said in a brighter tone. She found a good spot to pause her work, and shifted attention onto Brian.

"I wanted to ask you about something, it's been on my mind lately since Taylor left."

"No, Brian," Lisa answered for him. "Aisha is not better off out of the team. I already gave you a laundry list of reasons why she should've joined in the first place. Her leaving now, she'll learn to resent you, all of us. And that's a disaster waiting to happen."

Brian's glanced to the side.

Glancing up-right; Remembering Bonesaw with Aisha
​

Lisa took a deep breathe. This was her responsibility now, making sure that her team could stay afloat.

XXX

"Define date," Alec answered. Alec's relationship with Aisha had grown into his favorite relationship within the Undersiders. Whereas the other members of his team grew obsessed with maintaining Brokton Bay, Alec and Aisha preferred living their lives indulged in the antics that came with money and power.

Of course, the last thing Alec wanted to do was to ruin what he had with Aisha for some cliché relationship that would end in flames. No Aisha, let's not get close enough for you to hate me. "If you mean date, as in two people hanging out, then yeah, it's a date." Alec pointed towards Matthew's direction, "but let's not forget why we're here."

Aisha looked towards where he was pointing, more to avoid eye contact with him than to actually focus on the task at hand. "Right," Aisha said in a small tone, "just making sure."

She pretended she didn't care, but Aisha was much worse at feigning apathy than Alec was. Godamnit, don't make this awkward, Alec thought to himself. Before silence could settle in between them both, Alec finally asked, "You wanna spill their drinks first?"

Aisha's chin lifted up, "hell yes." Aisha took out a pen and began writing on a piece of napkin.

You're such a groupie, Alec joked to himself.

"You're still paying for the meal," she quickly added.

"Wait, what? I thought we were just going to leave without paying."

"Hell no," Aisah snorted. "If this is a date, I'm not letting you be cheap."

Alec rubbed the temples of his head. Damnit, I didn't bring money for THIS specific reason.

She passed the napkin to Alec. On it, she drew a devil's face with horns. Below to it she wrote: "DON'T LEAVE WITHOUT ME : P"

Alec sighed. It was actually reasons like this why he felt Aisha was closer to him as an equal than as a follower. Aisha could tag along with Alec anytime, and neither of them would ever feel out of place. "Wouldn't dream of it," Alec answered.

XXX

Sabah was relieved she could finally gain some peace and quiet with Lily, even though it wasn't at her own base. She skimmed through Alec's fridge before finding an full sized pizza next to a case of beer. Who orders a pizza without eating it? Sabah pulled out two beers for herself and Lily and placed the pizza into Alec's oven. As the food heated, she sighed, "These guys have way too much time on their hands."

"Tell me about it," Lily wrapped up the rest of Alec's 'toys' into a trash bag. "PS Alec, if you're gonna screw with us, please remove the pricing labels from your cheap ass kinks." Lily placed the bag into a trash bin, she took a deep breath as she sat back down on the couch. "He really likes to mess with us. Do you think it's because we're new, or that they just do it with everyone?"

Sabah looked over at the words Aisha and Alec had written on the whiteboard. "Probably the latter," she answered.

Lily stretched her arms, "it's too bad you don't remember what happened yesterday. It was fun, and I even got an idea for what my new name might be."

"Really?"

Lily nodded, "how does Foil sound?

"Who came up with that one? Matthew?"

"No, but he did inspire it." Lily looked over to the tv set. I hope he has netflix, Lily thought to herself, so that we can 'chill'. As she scanned her eyes towards the VCR she noticed a video cassette sitting on top of it. The label read:

MTWXTTT​

"No way," Lily walked over and picked up the tape. On the front, Imp's signature was doodled over the words: NEVER FORGET. She placed the tape into the video player and grinned as Lisa's face showed up on the screen. "Hey Sabah, c'mere. You're gonna love this!"

 

[Axle]

Fair warning: Racist jokes.

XXX

When Matthew was younger he used to play a game with his friends. They called it swindling, but it was just their excuse for being stupid. The game was to go up to a stranger, make them laugh, then walk away. It became easy, Matthew and each person within his group could make crowds of people laugh after months of practicing this game.

Anthony had an offensive taste for humor. He'd often walk the line between what was appropriate and what wasn't, but he'd always say it in a way that that meant no ill qualms towards the people he'd say it to.

Jayden made fun of himself, but he was never insecure. As long as people were laughing, he didn't mind being at the bottom end of the joke.

Soma talked about food. Hell, she'd talk about everything that people didn't think about. She'd make insults and jabs at the little things in life that everyone did but often took for granted.

Mia was the worst among them, or maybe she was the best among them. She called it "anti-humor", where she'd say a pun or joke so terribly unfunny, that it actually became funny.

These were Matthew's most pleasant memories with his friends. And although he was beginning to forget their faces, the experience stayed with him.

Matthew could never outgrow the game, the habit of entertaining others was still in him. He'd often speak to strangers just to pass the time, talking about various small subjects as though he were a long-time friend.

His underlying issue was forming an attachment to people. Like with his friends, Matthew grew to believe that relationships come and go. So any desire to form attachment to people easily escaped him.

Tattletale said it was wrong. That what he had with his friends was worth establishing with others. Katherine seemed like a nice person, but Matthew wasn't sure whether to be flattered or bored by the amount of fake laughter she displayed for him. Regardless, he was set up with her. The best he could do was entertain her and hope that she'd say something spontaneous to charm him.

"You know," Katherine said with a warm smile, "this has gone surprisingly well. I'm glad we met, you're very smart for an ethnic person."

What?

He stared at her for what seemed like a full minute. Wait, did she just say that? In a non-joking way? She still smiled at him, like she was proud of a genuine compliment. Oh crap she's serious.

XXX

Aisha looked down at Matthew's date, wide eyed in surprise. "Holy shit," Aisha said to herself. "That went south quick."

Aisha looked over to see the waitress finally heading their direction with food at hand. "Well Matthew, this just went from trying to ruin your night, to bailing your ass out of this god awful date."

Mary stopped at their table. Aisha snarked her, "PS Mary, I'm not into your religious bullcrap." She pushed Mary's elbow to tilt the food into Katherine's direction.

The pasta fell all over Katherine. Both Mary and Katherine were mortified by the marinara sauce that splattered all over her once gorgeous sundress. Matthew's mouth shrunk, like he were trying to contain a grin.

"I'm..." Katherine did everything in her power to remain calm, "gonna go clean up."

Mary's face was as red as her hair. She nodded, too afraid to say anything. Matthew nodded along with her. As soon as Katherine left to the restroom, Matthew rose from his seat.

"I'm so sorry," Mary squeaked. "I'll talk to the manager. We'll get you something free to go."

Matthew whispered to her, "Thank you," he shook her hand before heading out the door.

"You're welcome," Aisha said, fully aware that he couldn't hear her.

XXX

Mitchel laid back in bed, glad he was able to get two days off from work to enjoy his afternoons. He typed away at his smartphone. I love this app, Mitchel thought to himself. Just as he was almost done with his hobby, his phone rang. Matthew.

Its only 9'oclock... Either the date went really well, or really bad.

"Matthew!" He said cheerfully, "how'd the date go?"

"She was racist," he answered bluntly.

Mitchel paused. Crap, I should've matched him up with the emo girl. "Racist? Katherine? Are you sure?"

"Positive. Apparently I'm smarter than average for a minority."

Well shit-fuck, how I was I supposed to know that? Note to self, ask if a girl likes Donald Trump before matching them up with someone. "Are you serious? Are you sure she wasn't joking, like how you and Victor always do?"

"There's racist jokes, and there's prejudice. She was prejudiced."

"Er, can you elaborate on that?"

"No." Matthew said plainly.

"Oh I get it, it's because I'm white. You racist bastard..."

Matthew sighed, almost as though he were exhausted from a very long day. "Racist jokes make fun of stereotypes out of acknowledgment that they aren't true. Prejudiced is being judgmental based on those same stereotypes from assuming that they're true. It was pretty obvious she wasn't joking."

"Well shit, that explains why comedians can get away with it," Mitchel scratched his cheek, reminiscing on some shows he'd seen from comedy central.

Matthew sighed again, "Mitchel, we work for capes, why is it that you're the one who always meets with the weirdos?"

"Speaking of which," Mitchel recalled what Sanders had told him about having Friday off, 'Damn teenagers can't control themselves.'

"Is it true that you had a foursome with-"

"No!" Matthew cut off, "and don't you dare start any rumours."

"Okay," Mitchel loosened his tone, "Relax, I'm not gonna say stuff that would get you killed. But anyways, did you at least sleep with her?"

"Who?"

"Katherine."

"Hell no," he sounded offended. "I'm not letting some racist freak touch my body."

"But Matt, hate fucks are the best fucks. And what better hate fuck is there than from a racist fuck?"

Matthew hung up. Mitchel glanced down at his phone and shrugged. That guy needs to lower his standards.

XXX

A/N: When it comes to racist humor, I try to keep it within the spectrum of Trevor Noah and Gabriel Iglesia's tones of humor. Hope this didn't feel inappropriate.

 

[Axle]

Thursday Night

Matthew laid on the floor with his hands stretched out towards the ceiling. "Why are applebees so greasy?"

Sabah, Lily, and Lisa sat around the office work desk with Regent's half finished bottle of champagne sitting between them. Drowsiness was beginning to take its toll, and they'd finally learned to ignore Matthew's rants.

Sabah tilted her head onto Lily's shoulder. She laughed at herself, "if the world is ending, then how come I feelz fine?" She slurred out her words.

Lily patted her on the forehead as though she were a small child, "If the world ends, I'll be happy just to have you by my side."

Lisa smiled, "I take back what I said, you both do make a good couple."

Sabah chuckled and pointed at her, "you wanna know something Lisa." She waved a finger towards Matthew, "maybe you wouldn't be such an ass if you had a boyfriend to call you out on your BS."

Lisa twitched. Lily shot her hands to cover Sabah's mouth. "Ignore her," she implored, "that's the alcohol talking."

Lisa sluggishly raised her arm and shouted in a feeble fashion, "you're all fired!"

Matthew sat up from the floor, "okay."

"Dammit Matthew, stop being a sheep."

"Okay," he laid back down.

Sabah pulled Lily's hands away and blurted out, "so when are you both getting married?"

"Never," she answered quickly.

"Oh come on, it wouldn't be that bad." Sabah stepped away from the table. Her body wobbled as she stood up. "When I get married," she laughed, "it's gonna be vintage themed. It's gonna be on top of a hill, and we're gonna say our wedding vows just as the sun setsss." She sighed at her own fantasy, "there'll be classical music, fine dishes served for everyone, even for vegans!"

"Fuck hippies," Matthew yelled.

"Shut up," Sabah yelled back, "or else you're not invited."

"Okay," he answered in a lower tone.

Lily asked, "Who should we invite?"

"Everyone in our territory!"

"Are we allowed to do that?"

Lisa shrugged, "well, there's no official rule against that..."

"We'll force them to be invited!" Sabah shouted. "Lisa, you'll be our best man."

"What?"

"Matthew will be your date."

"What!?"

Lily chuckled, "well, you're not invited unless you have a date by then. So..."

"Fuck you," Lisa sneered, "that's my business, and why would I want to be invited to a stupid wedding anyway?"

"I like how you don't deny that you'd still be single by then."

Lisa dropped her head down, "shut-up," she murmured.

Sabah approached Lisa and poked the top of her head, "alright boss, I gotta hear this. What's your dream wedding?"

Lisa gave off a soft laugh. Sabah was more fixated on her dream wedding than she ever was. "Don't have one," she answered.

"How could you not have one?" Sabah gasped. "Everyone has one! Hey Matt, what's your dream wedding?"

"Sabah, I don't think he'd-"

"Small wedding," he answered quickly. "Courthouse would be nice, but as long as it's small, I'll be happy."

"I stand corrected..."

"See?" Sabah pointed out. "Even he has one!"

Lisa gave off a long sigh. "I used to think about stuff like that. But between working for Coil and waiting for the world to end, it's all so pointless now."

"So you've thought about it?" Lily asked with a small grin on her face.

"Yeah, back when I was twelve." Lisa thought back on it, remembering what it was like before she had powers. "I used to think about getting married on a beach. My friends would be there, I'd have doves released as soon as my wedding vows were said."

"Awww," the other three exhaled together.

Lisa smiled and looked up, "It was kinda nice, thinking about things like that. To be honest though, I've changed a lot since then. My tastes are different, and I wouldn't mind having a-" She cut herself off, and faced away from them, "small wedding..."

"Put a ring on it!" Lily yelled.

Lisa leaned back on her chair and shook her head, "okay, you two have been pushing this on me all day. Do you guys really wanna know why I'm not interested in him?"

They both nodded. Lisa stood up from her chair and walked towards Matthew. Matthew was sitting with his legs crossed and his back leaned against the wall. His head faced the ground, analyzing the floor design beneath him.

"Alright, I'll start out with the obvious. Matthew is emotionally numb." She crossed her arms at him and shook her head. She had realized it early, shortly after they'd met, "He isn't moved easily, and his emotions are fabricated for the sake of others. I wouldn't go as far as to say he's a sociopath, but he does require effort to show empathy for the people around him. And when he does, it isn't real. At the end of the day, he just doesn't care about anyone, and that includes himself."

Matthew lifted his head up, finally paying attention to what she was saying. She continued.

"Second, Matthew here is a high functioning schizoid. That is to say, he can work with people well, but he hates the relationships that people entail." Lisa thought about how he interacted with his coworkers. He spoke smoothly, kindly, and genuinely, but at the end of the day, he didn't want to be a part of any of their lives.

"The closer he gets to someone, the more burdened he feels by that obligation of being close. And it's not something that can be fixed by a few motivational words or getting a girlfriend, his mentality revolves around the idea that relationships are optional. To him, every person is alone, and being committed to someone is more suffocating than liberating. Nothing will ever change his mindset. And I'd be more of a weight to him than anything else."

Lisa remembered how the information had entered her.

Depression; acceptance of isolation

loss; desire to disconnect

numb; unmoved by others​

Lisa sighed, fully aware that nothing she could do would ever change him. "And last but not least, Matthew is a hypocrite."

He chuckled.

"Matthew," she said, finally addressing him. "You've built yourself around these principles in an attempt to escape your depression. And frankly, it worked. You're not as hollow as you were before. But the thing about principal, is that it doesn't matter if you're willing to throw it away the moment someone asks you to."

Matthew was like a clay statue that never solidified. He constantly reshaped himself, never keeping the shapes he chose.

"Like how you were still willing to shoot my friends, even after you saw that Coil was going to make me into his next pet." Matthew's mood changed. He went from being distracted by insignificant thoughts, to realizing what Tattletale saw him as. "You might pretend to be this character, but I know it's just an act. You're more of a liar than I am."

"Not true," Matthew finally replied. His eyes were distant and his head wobbled from what he'd been drinking. He wasn't fully aware of what he was about to say, but he said it anyway. "I'm a liar, but I am who I am because I wanna be. You're a liar, but you're worse because you treat people like play things. I might see people like ghosts, but I'd never look at people like puppets with strings for me to pull. That's the worst kind of liar there is."

Wait, is that what he thinks of me? She turned on her powers:

Intoxicated; won't remember tonight

no swearing; personal insult

Retaliatory insult; non-personal opinion​

He didn't believe what he was saying, but he'd said it anyway. It was a sheer desire to attack her. "That's not true," she lied.

His voice was low, it didn't carry any anger or remorse towards her. It was like a defense mechanism against the insult she'd just shot at him. "Don't be stupid too," Matthew added. He murmured, more to himself than to her. "You're stupid if you can't see this."

Emphasis on 'this'; implying other reasons for ignorance
​

"What?" she said.

He raised his volume, "I said, don't be stupid. Because you're stupid if you can't see that being a smartass doesn't matter."

It was a slap to her pride. She couldn't even return the insult. Attacking Matthew would've been like taking a punch at the air. It wouldn't have mattered to him, and his insults carried so little emotion that the weight of his words were more matter-of-fact than irrational impulse. She stared at him, unsure whether to deny it or to be offended by what he'd said.

Matthew paused, and noticed Lily passed out on the work desk. "Teenagers shouldn't drink," he said.

Sabah exchanged glances between the both of them, "I take back what I said. You'd both make a terrible couple."

XXX

 

[Axle]

Lisa slipped on her tank top after finishing up her shower. She decided to wear something complimentary for both Brockton Bay's autumn and Earth Gimel's spring; Light black jeans with a blue jean jacket over her white shirt. It wasn't her nicest pair of clothes, but Matthew wasn't the type to be impressed by the nicest fashion trends.

Lisa multi-tasked her way across to the kitchen, with a hair dryer in one hand and a toothbrush in the other. She warmed up toast with her elbows while readying herself for the day. How did Taylor make this so easy? She sighed, I need more minions around here.

After stashing her costume into her backpack, she left her door with her toast in her mouth. There were so many traps and precautions for her room that she actually pitied anyone that would try and break in. The rest of the building's staff was co-opted with a legitimate accounting firm that had no ties to her syndicate. Her walk downstairs was equivalent to a young intern leaving for a coffee run.

Along the boardwalk, she double checked her emails from her phone as she walked. She'd caught up to what she needed to do; blackmailing politicians, threatening authorities, bribing gang leaders... She'd set up enough contingency plans to keep the Undersiders untouchable by most major players for a few weeks. Of course, anything could change at a moment's notice, but as far as she was concerned, most of the foreseeable challenges were finally dealt with.

Lisa smiled to herself, proud of giving herself a stress-free weekend. She decided to leave early, hoping to surprise Matthew for when he arrived there.

She sighed. Lisa had wanted to change him before, more as a test for herself than to actually help him, but maybe he was better off the way he was. People were difficult to read, and experience was always more influential than words. Matthew's detachment to the world was more like an abandonment from fear rather than a fear from the world itself.

She misjudged him twice. She was able to apologize to him before damage could be done, but her disappointment within herself was irking her. It was like what she was becoming too reliant on assumptions instead of realities. Brian had mentioned it before to her, "you get tunnel vision when you can't figure something out."

So, today was going a different experiment for her. Rather than try and change Matthew, she was going to try and be honest with him. She wasn't going to use her powers with him for the full day. It was a test to see what kind of person she truly was. And If there's anyone who won't think less of me with or without powers, it's Matthew.

The construction projects were finally picking up. It began with a train station platform. Restaurants were beginning to prop up around the area, and soon mines would be created to extract resources on the other side of the portal. Jobs and government assistance made the city residents enthusiastic for the first time in years.

She looked around. To her surprise, she found Matthew sitting on a park bench near the edge of the work site. Christ, why'd he come here this early?

Breakfast​

Oh. There was a food stand right behind him. She squinted, disappointed that she needed to use her powers to figure that out.

XXX

"Forty bucks says he's too stupid to make a move on her." Alec placed his money at the center of the table.

Sabah lowered her cash, "Eighty bucks says she'll slap him by the end of the date."

Lily raised a hundred dollar bill, "a hundred bucks says she'll make him cry by the end of the day."

"You're all betting against him," Aisha complained with her arms crossed. "Don't any of you think they have a chance?"

They all fell silent.

Brian returned to the outdoor dining table with pastries their at hand. He passed out the orders to each of his teammates. "Are you guys still on about those two? Can't you guys come up with better things to talk about than gossip?"

Alec waved him off, "geez, between talking about Taylor leaving the team, or how the next group of villains will probably try and murder us, you got any nicer things for us to chat about?"

Unable to disagree, Brian grumbled as he took a seat next to Aisha. "So everyone's betting against him?"

Lily stated plainly, "you didn't hear the things Lisa during the gift basket incident..."

"Wow, now we're calling it something?" Alec sounded proud of himself. "'The Gift Basket Incident', I like how we all know what we're talking about when we say it."

"Anyway," Brian said while scowling at Alec, "I'm pretty sure I shouldn't hold too much weight on the things Lisa said half-drunk."

"Half drunk?" Sabah said, "more like really drunk."

Brian lifted an eyebrow, "I thought you said you didn't remember that day."

"Er," Sabah remembered that he didn't know about the existing tape, "I heard it from Lily."

"So," Lily continued, "for, or against them?"

"Neither," Brian said. "I'll bet a hundred dollars they'll stay as friends."

"Well that's lame," Alec said.

Brian shrugged, "you guys forget, I know Lisa better than anyone right now. She's never looked for a boyfriend before, so I doubt she'll look for one now."

"So..." Aisha summarized, "Three betting against them, one betting on the friend zone, and me betting on the birds and the bees."

Alec lifted an eyebrow, "wait, you still think they'll end up together?"

Aisha grinned, "I've got a feeling something will work out."

"Alright," Brian said, "Everyone alright with this wager?"

Before the rest of his team could answer, their beepers went off.

Red Hand. Jewelry Store.

- PRT​

"Deal," Alec said. "I'll call Lisa to tell her to bail on him."

Brian groaned, "you're a dick, Alec."

XXX

Lisa sprinted her way towards the jewelry store while gripping her backpack at hand. Her phone rang. "I know," she answered to Alec. "I'll meet you guys in the alleyway."

"Right, before you go, could you tell Matthew he still owes Regent for that gift basket? Chocolates aren't cheap y'know, and neither are drugs."

Lisa began to slow herself down, "wait, how did you know I was meeting with him today?"

"I uh-"

Operation: Get Lisa Laid.
​

"Lucky guess?" Alec answered, just before hanging up the phone.

 

[Axle]

Matthew watched the sun rise, which was surprisingly more entertaining with the knowledge that he was on another planet. For the first time since he'd moved to Brockton Bay, he felt an escape. Not that he had anything to escape from, but the sounds of cars and construction workers seemed like explosions compared to wind breezing in a meadow.

"Y'know, you're probably the first person lay back on this hill."

Matthew looked up. A blonde haired teenager stared down at him on the grass. Her arms were crossed, and she had a smirk to herself that came off as both arrogant and prestigious.

She added, "Between people coming here for construction work and Bitch scouting the planet for resources, you're actually the first person to lay here and watch the view."

"I'm trying to start a trend." Matthew answered. "This never caught on in Bet. Maybe I can start a movement here."

She arched an eyebrow, "a sunrise watching movement?"

"Yup, not to be confused with the procrastination movement."

"Well, I see you've got the energy for it."

"So much that it cannot be contained," his voice came out dull. "And what about you? I thought teenagers are supposed to spend Saturdays... Shopping."

"You do know you're a teenager too, right?"

"I'm twenty five," he stated.

She squinted her eyes at him, "you're nineteen."

"Tattletale!" Matthew sat up, "I had a feeling it was you."

She smacked her forehead, "I can't believe I just fell for that."

"Glad you made it. Stylishly late I see."

"Yeah, I was busy..." She pointed to her ankle. It was bandaged for what was clearly a sprained ankle. "Being vigilantes isn't is fun as the movies make it. There's always a robbery during the worst possible times."

Matthew stared at her injury. "Hmmm..."

She continued, "Sorry I couldn't make it on time, it was outside my control. But to be honest, I'm surprised you actually waited out here for so long." She checked the time, "It's four hours after we said we'd meet. Did you really just lay here all day?"

Matthew shook his head, "Hmhuuu..."

"I'm Lisa by the way," she extended her hand for him to shake. "Also, my leg will be fine. Quit staring at it."

Matthew lifted his stare from her foot to her gaze. "Nice to meet you Lisa. And rest assured, your secret identity is safe with me."

"I know. Even if my powers didn't tell me you could keep a secret, none of our guards are the type to sell our identities for a quick buck."

"People pay for secret identities?"

"More than you could imagine."

Matthew looked up and rubbed his chin, "hmmm..."

She scrunched her mouth, "Stop that!"

"Stop what?"

"You're thinking too loud."

"Oh, right, my bad. I'll start narrating my thoughts." Matthew pointed to the portal a few miles away from them, "So what was the surprise you had for me on Earth Gimel?"

Lisa began walking ahead of him with her hands held behind her back, "I'll tell you on our way there. I want you meet a friend of mine. "

Matthew looked back down at her ankle again. "Lisa, you're limping. A lot."

Lisa looked back at him. She knew what he had on his mind, and Matthew knew that she knew what he was thinking as well.

XXX

"Y'know," Matthew stated while walking, "I thought villains were supposed to be heavy."

Lisa arched an eyebrow from atop of his back, "Wait, did you just call me fat?"

"No. I'm saying you're too light. Remind me to sneak bacon into your coffee from now on."

Lisa knocked her knuckle onto the top of his head. "Don't tell me how to live my life."

"You need protein." She hit him again while slightly kicking her feet. "Okay, fine, I'm kidding."

Lisa sighed, she wasn't sure how thankful she should've been for him. She was becoming more appreciative towards his small acts of kindness, but she still couldn't get passed the fact that he didn't carry any true value towards her.

Or maybe I'm just judgmental? Lisa couldn't take actions by face value anymore. And how could she? Her own parents had betrayed her once. It was far too easy for her to see the underlying reasons behind people's actions and behaviors. As a super villain, that was a valuable asset. As a person, she couldn't trust people anymore.

Matthew had made her more skeptical about herself. It was like she was inflating his flaws to make more sense out of him. Tunnel vision, Lisa remembered.

Matthew was a non-powered human, yet she was still cynical towards him. He never showed any signs of deceitfulness towards her, yet she still saw him as a hypocrite. Without her powers he seemed ridiculously pleasant, which only made her feel shallow in comparison.

Lisa casually asked, "so how'd the date go?"

"Hmmmm," his tone was abnormally low. He hummed three times to avoid the question.

"Wow, was it that bad?"

"Hmmhuuu," he refused to speak.

"Okay, now I really want to hear it."

He shook his head, "hmmmhmmm."

"Matt, don't make me read your mind."

"Well, I have practiced shrouding my mind with unbearable puns, so go ahead and try."

Lisa smirked, "You know I can't actually read minds, right?"

"Well that's a relief"

"Give me a hint."

"Nooo," he answered singingly with a smile on his face.

Lisa pouted, now I really want to use my powers...

Matthew asked, "can you tell me where we're going?"

"Tell me about the date first."

"Girl, I will drop you."

Lisa scrunched her mouth, but decided to drop the subject. "We're going to visit my friend Rachel. She moved to Earth Gimel recently, and I asked a favor from her."

"Rachel… Why does that name seem familiar."

"Most people know her as 'Bitch.'"

"Well, that's rude." Matthew scolded her, "you shouldn't call people names behind their backs, Lisa."

"No," Lisa shook her head, "that's the name she actually goes by. Her super villain name is Bitch."

"Oh, that Bitch!" he exclaimed. Matthew paused for a long moment, Lisa bursted out laughing. "Well, now I feel incredibly sexist..."

Lisa couldn't stop laughing, "Feel free to call her Rachel."

"Okay," Matthew said, "so why are we going to go meet….Rachel."

"Because," Lisa couldn't stop grinning, "I think I owe you a gift for tolerating my teammates this week."

"A gift?"

She nodded, "you know how you've always wanted a puppy?"

XXX

A/N: Sorry I skipped the Red Hand battle. It felt too out of place for a Romcom. I'll be sure to write a one-shot on what happened. Any suggestions on what I should name Matthew's future pup?

 

[Axle]

A/N: I rewrote chapter 21. I cut down some fluff and took out Rook's introduction scene because it felt out of place here (Rook is in a one-shot I've written, so he isn't completely gone). I also added an Undersiders scene there that feels slightly more relevant to the story.

XXX

The time differences between Gimel and Bet had initially worried Rachel. She wasn't sure how a transition would've affected herself and her family. To her pleasant surprise, everyone had quickly adapted to the new world's sunsets and sunrises. Maybe it was instinct?

She couldn't deny that her crew had been doing exceedingly well. She'd never had so many dogs before, and her people were what made maintaining them all possible. Rachel was collecting dozens of strays from Brockton Bay. Her family had even begun to raise pups that were orphaned from the other side.

Rachel looked off to the field, she was compartmentalizing. People were feeding the dogs some raw meat that they now had plenty of. Later, they would cook for her. She was still trying to learn how to show appreciation towards the people around her. Apparently, people needed more special care than the average dog did. People need to be more like dogs, she thought to herself.

She turned around to the front field of her base. Lisa approached the hill riding on the back of a stranger. Rachel arched an eyebrow.

They approached her. Lisa dropped on the ground with a grin. "Matthew, Rachel. Rachel, Matthew."

"Hello," Matthew extended his hand for her to shake. Rachel didn't take it.

She scanned her eyes across Matthew. Rachel asked Lisa, "He your fuck friend?" Matthew pulled his hand back.

"God no!" Lisa tugged at her hair, "why does everyone keep thinking that?"

Rachel was put off by Lisa's aggressive reaction, but she knew her well enough not to become hostile from it. "It's no big deal," Rachel said. "I'll fuck Biter when I feel like it. I haven't felt like it, but I probably will."

Lisa squinted her eyes, "way too much information."

"Also," Matthew included himself. "You might want to be careful with a guy named Biter."

"What the fuck does that mean?" Rachel glared at him.

Her glare was matched by a blank stare. It was oddly disarming. Matthew answered, "a guy named Biter probably bites while fucking."

Rachel cocked her head back. She looked towards her base with an added pique interest in her eyes.

"Matthew," Lisa yelled, "What have you done?" She smacked his arm.

"She deserves to know," he yelled back.

Lisa covered her face, "Too... Much... Information..."

Rachel returned her stare to Matthew,. "so you're gonna adopt a dog?"

"Apparently, yeah. I've always wanted a dog, I just needed that push to adopt one." He pointed to Lisa.

Rachel nodded. In a casual tone she added, "if you end up hurting any of my dogs, I'll fucking kill you."

Matthew nodded back, fully aware the statement was more of a fact than a threat.

Rachel lead them through her base. It wasn't as glamorous as the other bases in Brockton Bay, but she wouldn't have wanted it that way. They had makeshift supplies to put a roof over their heads. The base was more the field itself than the building.

They reached one of the ends of her field where there was a wide picketed area for the younger dogs. They had just woken up for the day and it was almost time to feed them.

Each puppy was less than three months old. Most of them didn't have mothers, and Lisa had helped provide formula products for them to feed on. She wanted to show appreciation to Lisa for that, but wasn't sure how to. Allowing her friend to adopt one was the best way she could show some gratitude.

And to learn to let go. She needed to learn to let go, too.

"Puppies," Matthew stated in a small tone. "This is a pen... Its full of puppies."

The two girls nodded. "Take your pick," Lisa said.

"Can I go in?" Matthew asked.

"Why?" Rachel asked in a skeptical tone.

"I want to lay on the ground, and let the puppies climb on me."

"That's not how you fucking play with them," she growled.

Matthew squinted at her. "Are you seriously telling me, that since the day you had this pen full of puppies, you've never laid on the ground just to let them climb on you."

Rachel fell silent.

Lisa let out a laughter, "I can't believe I never thought about that before."

"Fine," Rachel said. "Just make it quick."

Matthew stepped into the pen, and slowly dropped himself to the ground. He rolled onto his back as the dogs huddled around him to chew on his clothes. "Lisa, I can die right now, and I wouldn't even be upset."

XXX

"Scoot," Lisa told him. Matthew shimmied his way to the side and allowed Lisa to lay back next to him.

Rachel stared down at the both of them. She was squinting, almost like she couldn't understand their relationship. "Feel free join us," Lisa invited.

"I gotta feed them soon. I'll be back later." She turned around and headed back to her building.

Lisa looked up. It was still morning on Gimel, and it would be nighttime by the time she and Matthew returned to Brockton Bay. A part of her wanted to rush Matthew so she could return to her work, but seeing Matthew so relaxed next to her made it seem morally wrong to disturb that peace.

For awhile, they didn't say anything, which was new to her. As an extrovert silence typically made her feel uncomfortable, but nothing nudged at her to force words that weren't necessary.

The puppies occasionally nawed at their clothes or kissed their hands and feet. To them, they were obstacles for them to play with. Lisa smiled as she oddly tried to play with the puppies, Matthew laid back quietly knowing that the dogs were fully satisfied with his motionlessness.

Lisa began to pet a calmer puppy that had rested itself onto her stomach. Matthew rubbed the ears of a beagle that had climbed onto his chest. "This one's my favorite," Matthew said. "And it has nice eyes."

"You know it's blind."

"Really?" He waved his hand in front of the dog's face, he didn't respond. "This changes nothing."

Lisa smiled, glad that he found one that he liked. "This is nice," Lisa said. "Between fighting villains and running from the PRT, it's nice of find a place where there are no enemies to watch out for."

"Sounds stressful," Matthew commented.

"Someone's gotta do it."

"Is it worth it? I'm sure you have your reasons, but do you still think its worth it?"

"Yeah," Lisa said. "It has to be."

Matthew and Lisa focused a bit more attention to their dogs at hand. Lisa's puppy was a golden Lavender, with fur covered in dirt from playing in Rachel's pen. Matthew's Beagle was surprisingly clean, like it had been given extra attention due to its blindness.

"Y'know," Matthew said, "I almost joined the PRT."

"Really?"

"Sanders had a friend that could get me into the training program. He gave me the choice between working for them or working for Coil."

"What made you decide?"

"Money."

"Oh."

Matthew looked over at her, "I was kidding. You couldn't tell I was joking this time?"

She scrunched her nose, "stop assuming I'm always reading minds." She put on a pretentious tone, "Sometimes, I respect people's privacy."

He chuckled, "yeah, I'm sure you do." He continued, "anyways. The reason I chose Coil was because he said I'd get a favor from him. Coil always bought respect with more than just money. Sanders said that if I ever needed something from him, he'd deliver it."

"You wanted a favor."

Matthew shook his head, "I wanted to want something. I had hoped that if I worked for him long enough, I'd have found something worth asking for."

"You never found something you wanted, did you?"

He shook his head, "Nope. Right now though, this puppy will do."

"Glad I could deliver."

Matthew looked over to her and squinted his eyes, "You're that girl, aren't you? The girl he had tied up when he was defeated."

"Yup," Lisa answered.

They both remembered the day that Calvert had died. Lisa was tied up at his side, ready to become his next pet. Matthew was watching from a distance, ready to shoot on command.

They both fell into silence. An apology from him would've been meaningless, and a justification for his actions would've sounded toxic. Although he wasn't obligated to apologize for anything, Matthew still felt he needed to say something to her.

"I wish I'd known you sooner," Matthew said. "Something would've been different, I don't know what, but I wish I'd known you sooner."

It wasn't a lie, and it wasn't said to gain any approval or forgiveness from her. He'd said it strictly because he wanted Lisa to know the truth. "I believe you," Lisa said, indirectly accepting his apology.

 

[Axle]

Alec swayed his body back, "okay, now I'm offended."

Sabah shrugged. She pointed at Aisha, "I'm just saying, I don't think you're as smooth as you pretend to be."

He crossed his arms. Aisha sat on the couch a short distance away from them. He lowered his voice so that only Sabah could hear him, "first off, that would be a disaster waiting to happen. And second of all," he pointed to Lily leaving the door, she was speaking to the phone in her hand. "I'm pretty sure I'm more experienced on the subject than you are."

Sabah pointed to Aisha again, harder, like she was pressing onto something. "Then prove it!" She whispered loudly.

Alec lowered his head in a disappointing manner. He stood up from the table and approached Aisha. She casually was casually playing video games on the coach when Alec moved himself closer to her.

Without saying a word, he ran his fingers atop of her forehead and slid it down across her cheek. He looked at her, and by the time his hand reached Aisha's chin, her jaw had dropped. Without breaking eye contact, with him only inches away from her face, Alec pulled back his hand, and walked away.

"And that," Alec said to Sabah, "is called 'the check.'"

Sabah slammed her head onto the table. Aisha was too shocked to respond.

"See, when the girl flinches, you can't go for it. But when a girl doesn't flinch, you should go for the kiss." Lily re-entered the room. Alec continued, "guys or girls can use the trick, and it works in most situations. Watch."

Alec walked up to Lily, and landed his hand onto her front hairs. Before he could even sooth his fingers down her cheek, Lily cocked her head back and slapped Alec across the face. "What the hell?" Lily yelled.

"Christ," Alec shouted. "You weren't supposed to hit me."

"You just tried kissing me knowing I have a girlfriend!"

"I wasn't actually going to do it." Alec rubbed his cheek, "you know, I'm beginning to think Lisa's date could actually end up with her slapping him."

XXX

"I've still gotta figure out what to name you," Matthew sat his puppy on his shoulder. It was a month old, and was very likely going to retain its size.

"I'm sure you'll figure something out," Lisa stated.

Matthew passed the pup to Rachel. "Don't make me regret this," Rachel tried to sound intimidating, but the way she hugged the beagle didn't make it seem so.

"You won't. I'll get my apartment ready with pet supplies by tomorrow. I"ll stop by to pick him up right after."

"Ready to go?" Lisa asked.

"Yup," he said. Lisa casually jumped onto his back.

"So… you're like her dog?" Rachel asked.

"Metaphorically speaking, yes," Matthew answered.

For Rachel, that was enough of an answer for her to finally understand their relationship. She nodded her head in approval.

Lisa lowered her head, "minion, go!" Matthew waved goodbye before carrying her off. They walked their way out of Rachel's territory towards the portal.

XXX

"Well," Matthew said, "looks like it just finished raining."

It was three in the morning at Brockton Bay. Neither of them had expected to spend so much time in Gimel, but neither of them had reason to complain. The street lamps were lit, the dirt below Matthew's feet were muddy, but he made sure not to lose his footing as he walked.

"You sound disappointed," Lisa said.

"I like the rain. It's always nice to walk through it."

"You're easily entertained, you know that Matt?"

Matthew reached the sidewalk passed the construction site. The roads were moderately quiet, the night had waned far enough for even late-night residents to begin heading home. It was calm, or as calm as it could get in Brockton Bay.

"When you go a long time without having anything, you're forced to like the little things that can entertain you." Matthew spoke calmly, in a matter-the-fact tone. He almost smiled, remembering what the silent moments were like when he was entrapped in the hole. "Rain drops that fell low enough for me to hear. Spiders that crawled across the darkness. Weeds sprouting from the cracks on the wall. All these things that seemed so alive in a dark place, I learned to get excited by them."

"And getting out from that must have been overwhelming." She couldn't relate to his experience. But the more he opened up to her, the more she felt she had placed him into a category he didn't deserve.

"I remember a story from school once. About a person who lived in a cave their whole life. He got out, and couldn't understand the world around them."

"Plato's cave allegory," Lisa answered for him. "One man in a cave was freed from his shackles, and left the cave to realize how amazing the world was. Because before that, he thought the entire reality of the world was shadows on the cave wall. But after leaving, he was enlightened by the lights, colors, and creatures around him."

"That's the one," Matthew confirmed. "Guess I was in a cave for awhile."

"But," Lisa continued. "Upon returning to the cave, he tried to explain the world to his other two friends who had been shackled their whole lives too. After trying to explain what the world had to offer, none of them understood it, they brushed him off as crazy..." Lisa paused. It suddenly dawned on her that she was reading Matthew like conformity was equivalent to mental health. That having an obscure outlook at life equated to a wrongness in mental health.

"And they stayed trapped in the cave, happy with seeing shadows on the wall." Matthew finished the story for her. "I like shadow puppets, so I guess that makes me crazy."

She felt guilty again. Why did she try so hard to change someone who was never wrong to begin with? She should've known better. Her own desire to exercise her persuasion abilities almost drastically changed someone for the worst. "You're not crazy," Lisa said in a low voice, "one of us might be, but it's not you."

"I thought crazy people couldn't admit they're crazy."

She smirked, "maybe."

"Then it's settled," Matthew announced, "I'm crazy for liking the rain, and you're crazy for putting on a super villain costume."

"Absurdism at it's finest," Lisa added.

Lisa had nearly fallen asleep by the time he'd reached her base. According to Matthew, she'd slept for a solid half hour when they were in Rachel's dog pen. Fighting the Red Hands and not getting any rest afterwards had taken a toll on her.

She yawned as she slipped off Matthew's back.

"Thanks," they both said at the same time. They couldn't help but laugh. Lisa was glad he was courteous to her for the entire day, Matthew was glad she'd invited him to Gimel.

"I'm glad we met up today, I haven't had a nice day like this in a long time," Matthew said.

"Me neither," Lisa admitted. "We should do this again sometime."

Matthew nodded in agreement. Before Lisa could head inside, he walked closer to her, and placed the tips of his finger atop of her forehead.