Front Room

A tastefully designed room that attracts customers of all ages and types. All types off coffee are served here, which helps.

Zayne stood behind the counter, a cup of cappuccino in one hand while he prepared the various industrial-sized coffee machines for the day ahead. In the background came just enough of a hint of music to be heard, despite the young man’s wish to crank it up. He’d learned it was best to have music on the quiet side during the morning and increasingly make it louder in only one portion of the coffeeshop as the day wore on into evening. Some people did not, like him, practically live and breathe rock and roll until it nearly bled out their ears.

Everything else was set and ready to go, for the most part. That was until he noticed how low the waffle/pizzelle straws were – always a hit with the kids. Zayne glared in slight frustration at the short supply of a rather fast-selling cookie and its accusatory, invisible waggling finger. At least he could work on them out here in the front room... Ever since he was a kid he’d found the method of making waffle cones and the like fascinating. Not to mention it was simply easier to place done cookies on their tray rather than carrying them from one room to another. There was even one old man, at least, that liked them practically piping hot off the press!

Without even thinking, Zayne began half-singing the words in the song coming over the radio as he worked... The song almost made him want to blow off work and spend the day amidst chaos in his villainous persona. Almost...

The chance of seeing a certain blonde-haired woman of Spanish descent kept such musings at bay for the time being.

Mercedes walked into her new favorite coffee shop, Inferno. She had promised a large order of coffee for her boss at the office.

Plus, it would give her a chance to see that waiter--excuse her, barista. She stood in line, waiting for chance to talk to him. As the line moved forward, she smiled. He was cute. Once she got to the front of line, she smiled at the owner. "Hi. Can I get a black coffee, a mocha double shot, a latte, and a white chocolate mocha? I'm Mercedes. Mercedes Zavala."

Zayne offered a small smile in return when she approached. He listened to the order intently, not only for accuracy but also to merely hear the woman speak. Considering she did not have three others with her, it was his assumption that this was 'to go'. "Sure can. And I'm running a special today: Buy two coffees and get a pastry of your choice free. Any two you'd like in the display case over here, they're yours," he replied with a nod of his head in the direction of the case in question.

"This for here or to go, Mercedes?" he asked, contemplating whether he should introduce himself or not. He was wearing a name tag... although a quick glance down at it - covered by reaching for both mugs for here and to go thermoses - proved that his apron had hidden the text from view.

It was times like this Zayne wished he could freeze this moment so that he'd have all the time in the world to talk to her. So what if the guy a few people down the line had an irritatingly shrill little boy putting even Tarzan to shame in the lungs department... There was something about this Mercedes woman Zayne couldn't quite put his finger on, and that intrigued him. She was easy on the eyes, to be sure. Certainly wouldn't hurt his feelings to see her more often in the shop... perhaps even on one of his breaks...

Mercedes' smile widened. "Thanks." She was dying to know his name. She couldn't see his name tag because he was moving so fast. She moved slowly down to the pastry case, keeping an eye on the barista. She could see he was fit. Her eyes traveled along his body as he moved about making the coffees she had ordered.

Assuming the display case could only be opened from the inside, she said, "I'll take that blueberry scone and a strawberry strudel." She then heard his question about the 'here or to go'. "It's to go. Sorry... I wish I could stay and chat, but I can't." She wished that her powers included something about slowing down time so they could talk. It'd be great. She was definitely coming back on her mid-morning break.

As she talked to him, she tried to identify his best feature. While she liked his hair, it was his eyes that caught her attention the most. When she was standing directly in front of him, she would have said hazel. Looking at them from this side view, she would have said a ocean blue. She had seen them while standing in line and would have sworn they were gray. Yes, she definitely liked his eyes.

And would have man ever get his son to shut up?! She muttered so only the barista could hear, "My god, that kid reminds me of freaking Tarzan!" Mercedes smiled brightly.

Oh, yes, she was absolutely coming back on her coffee break.

He nodded upon hearing her thanks, the pastries she wanted, and the ‘to go’ part, and nodded. “Know how that goes,” he answered simply as he continued with the coffees. “Next time, maybe...” the man suggested, flashing her a friendly grin but kept his eyes on his work. Not necessarily because he wanted to... Zayne was a show off sometimes, but he didn’t want to mess up her order.

“The name’s Zayne, by the way. Zayne Maddox,” he called to Mercedes while he graced each of the orders that involved cream or milk products with a quick doodle of latte art with Inferno’s logo – a cross between a blazing comet and a coffee cup – on top. “Aprons can be a real pain in the ass, if you follow me...” Zayne added as an afterthought, referring to the fact he’d noticed his nametag’s obscurity.

Lips once again split into a grin at Mercedes’s words about the kid, though this time it was out of humor, as he placed caps on the coffees and put them into a 2x2 holder. “Yeah... I was thinking the same thing, actually...” Zayne remarked and placed the coffees toward her, reserving his additional thoughts on the kid since they were of a much more... villainous... nature. “Let’s see: One Straight Black, a Mocha Double, one Latte, and a White Chocolate Mocha. Labels are on the cupholders,” he ran down the list, and pointed out where to find his chickenscratch-for-notes on the cardboard rings meant to make holding the cups a bit easier.

The barista then retrieved a small flame-shaped box and selected the pastries she asked for. “Blueberry scone and strawberry strudel, right?” he asked even though he had heard and remembered quite clearly, and already placed them into the box and the box into a bag, and set it beside the coffees. Zayne then entered in the prices for each of the coffees on the cash register and announced the price... which was neither unreasonable nor exceptionally inexpensive.

While he waited for her to come up with the cash he plucked a small business card-type object from a pile near the register and used a hole-punch to make 4 holes on the card, occasionally sneaking glances at her from the corners of his eyes.

"Zayne..." Sadies mouthed. She like it. Just the way it tasted in her mouth. She watched as he did the latte art. It was one of the reasons she loved this shop. He was a master at coffee. He always seemed to know just how she liked her white chocolate mocha. She grinned. "I know exactly how annoying aprons can be. I worked my way through college as a waitress at a 50s diner. I am never rollerblading again. Ever."

Mercedes smiled. "Yeah, that's the right order." She grabbed the white chocolate mocha and took as sip as she laid down her credit card. "Here." She smiled at him, as she pushed it across the counter. Her grin widened as glanced at his eyes. They were hazel again. But, honestly, she liked when they were gray.

She never carried cash on her. She just never had time to get to the ATM machine. Ever. Plus, Evan was the one who carried cash. Not her. "Sorry I don't have cash... Evan's the one who carries it, not me."

Zayne chuckled good naturedly – with her rather than at her – about the annoyingness of aprons. “Really? Wow... Those places always fascinate me. If it were me I’d be out on a skateboard, though. But rollerblades are alright.”

He took the offered card, concentrating so much on her azure orbs rather than picking up the card that his hand brushed hers. Zayne hadn’t really meant to, indicated by him breaking away from her gaze to make sure he had card in hand the correct way before scanning it. However, he wasn’t exactly complaining that it had happened either. “Hey, it spends. Not a big deal,” he shrugged, keeping a smile on his face as he swiped the card and handed it back to her.

“Ah... Boyfriend?” Zayne asked, curious and... dare he even say a twinge jealous... upon hearing the name. To be honest he wouldn’t have been surprised to learn she had a boyfriend already. The barista then handed her a pair of receipts. “Just need your signature on this one,” he said, pointing out the dotted line with one finger while his thumb held the receipt down and the other three fingers gripped a pen.

The card with the hole punches on it (there were 8 holes total to be punched with a flame-shaped hole punch) remained in front of him, until with the other hand he pushed it towards Mercedes. “When you turn this baby into swiss cheese – figuratively speaking, of course – you can redeem it for a variety of promotional deals we have going on, or collect a few for even more savings. ... We have catalogs out front, and a web address for those more inclined to use the Internet.”

Mercedes' eyes widened at the mention at Evan being her boyfriend. Then laughter tumbled out of her throat. "Evan? My boyfriend? Ha!" She giggled some more. "He's my older brother." The laughter was a happy sound, not mocking in any way.

As his hand brushed hers, the laughter died away. She blushed a red that didn't complement the blue blouse she was wearing. She quickly signed the receipt and pushed it back to him. She took another sip of her white chocolate mocha. "This is excellent by the way. And I'll be sure to grab a credit card. Computers seem to hate me."

She smiled. "I'll be back. I think I just found my new favorite coffee shop."

At the back of his mind, Zayne heaved a sigh of relief that this ‘Evan’ was her brother and not a boyfriend. Her giggles were rather infectious as mirth often was, causing him to grin and laugh quietly. It wasn’t often he felt so at ease in a person’s presence, save his brother Rhodri’s. Vaguely he wondered how this older brother was toward her, wondering if hers was anything like his pair of older brothers.

Zayne noticed her blush and promptly focused all of his attention on the receipt handed back to him, which he immediately placed under the cash register’s cash compartment. When she spoke again he acted as though their brief brushing of hands never happened. “Thanks – always glad to get positive feedback.” Her comment about computers made him laugh. “One of three reasons I’m here and not holed up in some cubicle somewhere. Computers and I have a love/hate relationship.”

The man practically beamed back at her. “I’ll be here. Have a good one, ‘Sadies.” What he didn’t add to that statement was that he’d definitely be watching and waiting for her next visit. The villain, while villainous even though he wasn’t showing that side of himself at the moment, wasn’t about to come across as a stalker in a room full of people!

For one thing, it’d be bad for business... kinda clashes with the whole maintaining an alterego thing.

((A few hours later))

Mercedes walked back in. It wasn't as crowded. She liked that she had a break from work at an odd time. It gave her more parking choices. Plus, she could come over to her new favorite coffee shop and talk to Zayne.

She wondered what color his eyes were now...

Things had died down from the helter-skelter routine of early morning, giving Zayne a chance for a bite to eat and a white chocolate-and-vanilla chai latte. It had been a few minutes since he'd finished his piece of treacle tart, and now was working solely on the chai whilst listening to a song over the cafe radio. He was actually singing along with it, between an occasional sip or two...

"Remember the old arcade / Blew every dollar that we ever made
The cops hated us hangin' out / They say somebody went and burned it down
We used to listen to the radio / And sing along with every song we'd know
We said someday we'd find out how it feels / To sing to more than just a steering wheel..."

He hummed the next line into his latte, savoring the taste and the heat of the still-piping-hot liquid against his lips. However, Zayne nearly choked on it in response to seeing none other than Mercedes stroll up to the counter. Normally he didn't mind at all if anyone heard him singing with the radio - heck, some parts of that song even fit him all too well - but for some reason he couldn't place, Zayne halted his part of the 'concert'.

She was here! Zayne thought she had meant she'd be back tomorrow, but hey, he wasn't about to complain! For one thing there was no reason to... It meant more business for him, and a chance to speak with her a bit more. He actually rather liked her, for having just met her. Zayne made a mental note to himself to make sure when he struck as Svarog to make sure that Mercedes was well out of the way of his particular brand of chaos.

An old arcade Zayne used to frequent, like in the song, had burned down. Unlike the song, he knew precisely how it had burned down... All he had to do was look in a mirror...

There was more to that memory, but Zayne shook the dark thoughts from his mind and greeted her with a trademark grin and bright eyes that had nothing to do with a caffeine or sugar high. "Hey, 'Sadies," he said, taking on a rather casual, light-hearted tone.

...Had she heard him singing?

Was that him she had heard singing? She quite liked his voice if she had.

Mercedes smiled. He called her Sadies. She liked it. Not many people besides her parents and Evan called her that. "Hey Zayne. Can I get a white chocolate mocha? With just a dab of whipped cream?" she asked, leaning on the counter, smiling up at him. She was on the taller side of five feet, six inches, and she estimated his height to be five feet ten inches or so. Maybe a little taller than that.

The side of her that was a hero, Talhyn, was cautioning her to be careful. But she wasn't worried. After all, there was definitely something between the two of them.

Her blue eyes shined with happiness at being there. Just talking to him.

Zayne couldn’t help but feel his own lips curl into a return smile, keenly aware of little else other than her as she spoke. “I think I could manage that...” he replied jovially and proceeded to make the beverage. Absently, he hummed a little while waiting for the cup to fill and tried to find something else to say that didn’t make him sound like an idiot. “If you don’t have anywhere to be, we could find a table and sit,” he suggested and looked to the clock, the hue of his eyes going from gray to blue to greenish-gray with the movement. “Kinda early for a lunch break, but what the hell – I’m game.”

While he spoke, Zayne formed the dab of whipped cream into a rose, and passed the white chocolate mocha to her. He glanced around to make sure nearly if not all of the other patrons had left. “This one’s on the house,” he murmured, though really had no idea why he’d just said that. All he knew was that there was something about Mercedes he liked. Her eyes, her face, her smile... it was difficult to say what he liked about her precisely, but whatever it was it was more than skin deep.

“So, whatcha say?” the barista asked, arranging a few biscotti and scones on a plate and keeping a small grin on his face.

Mercedes' grin widened. "I don't have to be back at the Police Station for another hour. I'm good on time. I'm game," she said, pushing her bangs back behind her right ear.

She took a sip of the mocha. "Perfect," she said. She noted the way his eyes changed again.

She had just pulled out her credit card, but was stopped by his words. Mercedes smiled as she chose a seat to sit at, waiting for Zayne to join her. She took another sip.

"Really," she thought, "he is a genius with an espresso machine."

Grayish eyes blinked in surprise the moment the words ‘Police Station’ left her lips. Zayne was not at all fond of police stations. What was she doing hanging around one of those? Yet, at the same time, he was elated to know she had time on her hands.

Without delay he placed a sign denoting he was on a lunch break, then picked up his own beverage (though refilled the portion he’d already had to make it full again) and the plate of scones and biscotti. Without much fanfare or drama he strolled over to the table Mercedes had picked out and placed the plate directly in the center of the table, then sat down directly opposite her.

Zayne brought his right leg up and crossed it over his left to get comfortable. “So... Police Station, huh? Something happen?” he inquired. While it was silly to jump to conclusions, the villain couldn’t help but almost want to offer to fry anyone responsible for causing Mercedes any form of stress or upset to a brittle crisp. And even then, it was only almost. Civilians didn’t react well to villains, from Zayne’s personal observations. Particularly if said civilians were really just jealous because he had powers and they didn’t... The odd part was he wasn’t sure why he would even think about offering, other than the fact that – okay – he actually liked her a bit, and hoped to get to know her a bit more.

While waiting for her to speak he took up a biscotti and dunked it into his latte for a few second, then immediately sent the moistened portion of the cookie-like treat to his mouth. “That’s for us to share, by the way,” Zayne said despite having a mouthful of food, the sight of which he’d partially hidden behind his cup. For added emphasis he gently scooted the plate so that it was slightly more on her side of the table than his.

She almost giggled at the look on his face. "No, nothing happened to me. I'm not in any trouble." Mercedes' voice held a slightly proud note. "You're looking at the newest member of the Superville Police Department."

She decided that, even though she had just met him, she'd tell him a bit more. "When I was ten, Evan and I were in a car accident. If it wasn't for the police officers, the drunk bastards who hit us would still be out there, drinking and driving."

She rolled up her right sleeve. "A branch went through my right leg and I broke this arm in three places." The scar on her right bicep was ragged and nasty looking. "It wasn't pretty. Even with a Super with healing powers, it took weeks for my arm to heal."

Mercedes took a cookie and dipped it into her mocha. "Do you make all these yourself?" she asked, truly curious. She took a bite of the slightly soggy cookie.

Her phone buzzed. She glanced at it. It was a text. It read "Sades, i'm coming to superville this weekend. mom and dad want an update asap. <3 Evan"

She held up the phone. "Sorry. My brother texts me at the most inopportune time."

Zayne nodded, relieved to hear nothing had happened. He didn’t comment at first at her statement of not having gotten into trouble before. The villain couldn’t really claim that – one, it’d tarnish his reputation as a villain. Secondly... well, he just plain out wasn’t that innocent. Both eyebrows attempted to dart for the sky when Mercedes mentioned she was a new recruit for the civilian division of the ‘Hero Brigade’ as he often referred to those that resided at the Watchtower. “I see... Awesome,” he replied, though his enthusiasm was a partial lie in and of itself. “Being in possession of good coffee isn’t a crime, I hope?” he teased lightly, grinning, not quite sure how her sense of humor would take that one.

’Great, a cop... Although, this’ll definitely make things interesting...’ he mused, scheming up the perfect way for him to run into her a bit more often during the evening hours. After all... he had a really good quality stereo system, and a love of the night life... “Do you work out in the field, or are they still calling you ‘Rookie’ and shit like that?” Zayne inquired curiously.

Gray eyes glanced downward to the floor, turning bluish-green, before they rose back to the conversation. “Sorry to hear that,” he answered, somewhat somber. Zayne assumed it probably wasn’t a good idea to tell her that one of his earliest spats with the law involved a DWI warning, and thus didn’t say a word on that. He winced slightly to hear of the injuries. ’And here I thought the ordeals with Brock and Jake were Hell... How can she not want revenge from the people that did that to her?!’ he thought.

“Wow... Must’ve been some accident,” he murmured, not sure what else to say.

“I generally try to... sometimes I pay my mother to make them – she owns a bakery somewhere in Gotham. Parents moved back there after my brothers and I grew up and left home,” he explained when Mercedes asked about the pastries. Zayne was about to go into further details when Mercedes’s cell phone, which was apparently on vibrate, caught her attention.

A smirk twisted his lips. “Speak of the devil, huh?” Zayne asked, grinning. “Not a problem. You’re in a café, not a corporate office. We’re cool.

“So... you and your brother are pretty close then?”

Mercedes noted the lack of real enthusiasm in Zayne's voice, but said nothing. "If being in possession of excellent coffee were a crime, I'd be behind bars and not have a job," she said grinning. "Right now, I have too much blood in my caffeine system."

Mercedes cocked her head to the right slightly. "Rookie? Well, they probably will. I just started today and James--that's my boss--told me to take an hour break. We've been working on sorting shit all day since I came in earlier. I really hate paperwork."

She nodded. "Yeah, it was a horrible accident. Evan blamed himself for weeks. Until Lily, the Super who was on my case, slapped him upside the head and told him to get his head out of his ass."

Sadies shrugged. "I guess you could say we're close. Where we grew up, we both had our best friends, but if one of us got in some deep shit, the other would be there. And Evan gets a bit over protective of me. I guess sometimes he still sees me as the 10-year-old that was in that car wreck. Until I remind him I'm the one who got the degree in criminal justice and worked my way through college."

She made a show of turning her phone off. She really didn't want to be interrupted by Evan right now. She knew he would call if she didn't reply.

Despite her being a cop, Zayne was rather enjoying Mercedes’s sense of humor. “Same here – just checking. Wouldn’t want to break the law right in front of a cop, now, would I?” he answered in the same playful manner. The smirking grin on his face didn’t falter even a millimeter. Laughter as warm and rich as a cascade of cappuccino issued from the man. “I have that problem too. I wish all the hospital’d have to do is hook me up to a coffee machine if I ever needed a transfusion.”

Eyebrows several shades darker than the bulk of his hair rose as he nodded his comprehension. So she was really new to the field, then? Zayne found that rather interesting, and knew precisely how to ‘help’ her get out into the field rather quickly... but kept these thoughts to himself. “I see. And yeah, paperwork’s a pain in the ass no matter what profession you’re in,” he replied with a light snicker of sorts, sympathizing. Vaguely he wondered if his file at the station was one of the ones to be sorted, but shrugged it off almost the moment the thought had occurred.

Zayne listened rather intently as Mercedes spoke of her brother; too attentively to be considered your standard vanilla polite interest. He nodded slowly, seeming to be thinking about something. Green eyes turned gray focused a bit more at the news that Evan was over-protective. That could be... interesting. The barista laughed lightly at Sadies’s last statement. “There you go – you tell ‘em!” Zayne chuckled good-naturedly, having found the mental image feasible and amusing. What he wouldn’t have given as a child to get his older brothers to back off... and occasionally even his younger brother to leave him alone, when Rhodri happened to be being too goody-goody for his own good.

“Seriously, though, it’s great you’ve a good relationship with your brother,” he said, watching her switch off her cell phone. It really wasn’t a problem for him but Zayne wouldn’t complain. One would have to be crazy to have issues against such a gesture, clearly placing oneself over that of whoever might be on the other end... especially when the someone in question happened to be the attractive (if Zayne may say so) Mercedes Zavala.

“... I can’t exactly say the same about mine...” he confessed, a trace of bitterness regarding his siblings flitting across his face for scarcely longer than a second or two. "Whoever said 'you can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family' really knew what they were talking about, huh?" The smile he had had previously re-attached itself to his lips. After another sip of his latte Zayne also sported a small, frothy cream mustache.

Sadies grinned. “Of course not. That'd be bad, wouldn’t it? And it should be the shock of your life if you don’t see me with coffee or in here to get some coffee.” She giggled along with Zayne.

Mercedes sighed. “I swear paperwork is the work of the devil. It has to be his way of getting heroes to turn to villains. That's what Lily always told me.” She hoped he didn’t get that she had powers.

She slipped her cell phone back in her purse, ignoring it. “Exactly!” she giggled again. “I think it’s Evan acting on our parents behalf sometimes.” Her bangs slipped into her eyes and she brushed it back with her hand. “Evan and I are total opposites. I focus on my gut, he focuses on logic type thing.”

Sadies cocked her head to the side. Something had flashed across the man’s face and she was sure it was something along the lines of…disappointment? Anger? Hatred of something that happened? “Yeah… I have a few cousins like that… I’ve never heard a truer statement. There’s never been a few things that have happened with my Dad’s side of the family,” she said, masking her face in a mix of anger and disappointment.

She flashed him a small smile at his foam mustache and giggled slightly. “Nice mustache.”

Zayne’s smile widened and he laughed a little. “An empty coffee cup is a sad thing, indeed,” he remarked.

He shifted a little in his seat regarding paperwork, his brows tightening just a little out of curiosity. In a way he wanted to tell her his opinion was the exact opposite of hers. However that would’ve been admitting way too much to her much too soon, and would possibly scare her off if she came to a certain correct conclusion. “This Hero... Lily... always spoke so openly of her powers? I always thought they kept themselves and their powers a secret...” he inquired curiously, then shrugged. “Who am I to know for sure, right?”

Why did it feel so wrong to make her think he was a civilian? It was for his own chaos as well as safety that she didn’t know. For some reason he hated the mask he was now figuratively pulling over his face to hide who and what he truly was.

Relief eased muscles Zayne hadn’t realized he had tensed until just now as Mercedes’s cell phone went back to its owner’s handbag. The barista nodded his comprehension, though was slightly pensive. The moment her gangs fell into her eyes all Zayne could really focus on was how he felt the gracefully-draped locks enhanced the woman’s appearance. Yet, as she brushed the strands away to show off her full face he was suddenly torn which way he liked her hair better. Not that it was really supposed to matter, right? They were recently-met friends, right?

Zayne was actually hoping somewhere down the road it might be a bit more than just that...

“I hate logic... I follow what’s in here,” he snickered, then gave a ‘karate chop’ thud to the center of his chest. “Can’t say it’s always been to my benefit, but that’s just the way I roll, y’know? If I followed what my brain told me to do all the time I’d probably end up doing something utterly boring instead of this...” Zayne waved in gesture to the coffeeshop as a whole. “I love coffee, and music, and I love what I do. If my parents can’t accept I’d rather devote my life to art rather than science... oh well.” He nodded to her mention of her own family, catching the anger and disappointment on her own countenance. For a brief moment he wondered what some of her more unpleasant memories were about home life... not that he would ask or even share his own just yet. Zayne would have to find some quick covers to explain away the use of his powers if he did.

The man tilted his head to the left, gray orbs turning greenish-blue with the shift in lighting. “Mustache?” he repeated curiously, pretty sure he had shaved the mustache off before coming in to work. The beard, on the other hand, he let run a twinge rampant before trimming. Zayne glanced down at his cup and noticed the frothy cap to his beverage was disturbed. He knew why, of course, and a second later he made the connection. Once more his lips split into a grin. “The joy yet annoyance of froth...” he chuckled, stretching his tongue far enough to lick the new mustache from his upper lip.

“My father always claimed surprise that I didn’t have a permanent one throughout my childhood with the way I downed hot chocolate...” Zayne added, running a finger over the top of his lip in reference to the ‘mustache’ that had been there before selecting a scone.

“So, Sadies... any plans for later this evening?” he asked, changing the topic lightly before plopping the pastry like a little raft onto the surface of his latte-brown sea.

At the mention of Lily’s powers and being so open about them, Mercedes stiffened. "Crap…" she thought. She really didn’t want him to guess she was a hero. She shrugged, her voice carrying a hint of something that could be called fear, “I dunno. Where I grew up, there were no heroes or villains, so Lily was more Neutral than anything else. It was when we moved to Gotham City to take care of my cousin’s baby that I found out about heroes.” Sadies wanted to sink into the giant crater she was wishing was there to swallow her up.

On the other hand, she wanted him to know exactly what she was and she didn’t want to hide anymore. In Gotham City, she and a few villains had gotten into a tiff or two while she was in college, and she knew she would always be a hero. It was in her blood. She hated pulling the wool over his eyes on this matter, but she felt it was wrong on this one occasion.

For some reason, there was something about him that was intriguing and she wanted to know more about the man sitting in front of her. In her honest opinion, Zayne Maddox was handsome, charming and funny. She wasn’t psychic, but she felt in her heart and her gut that there was something special about the man sitting across the table from Sadies. She also loved the way his eyes changed colors. It was something that was unique and special to the man.

“I know exactly what you’re talking about. If I followed logic, I’d be working in that hospital on the hill up there, just below that tower. I love working with children, don’t get me wrong, and I want a few of my own someday,” she said, trying to gauge his reaction to her last statement. “But I don’t think I could be a doctor of some sort. Not at all. My little sister, who’s not even my real sister, had issues growing up. She was a drug baby. Iris has hand-eye coordination issues, and she has dyslexia, which I find funny because she likes to read. She’s the one who made me realize I was more cop than doctor.” Sadies smiled at the thought of her baby sister. “My cousin Jessica was 13 when she got pregnant with Iris. My Aunt Delores couldn’t take care of a baby because she didn’t have a job. So it was for the best that we adopted my sister. If it hadn’t been for Iris and my car accident, I’d be in that hospital working my ass off.”

Why was she spilling her guts to this man? What was it about him that made her want to tell all her darkest secrets to him? What was so fascinating and captivating about him?

She giggled at his confusion of his ‘mustache’. “Well,” she said, grinning, “I thought it was kinda cute.”

Had she heard him right? Was he really asking her that? Was she doing anything that evening? “Get hold of yourself, Mercedes! He’s expecting an answer!” Her heart was pounding in her throat and it was screaming at her to accept his offer of going out that night. But her brain and her mouth were obviously not connected at that moment because she said, “Um, what?”

Zayne could almost sense a sudden tension in the air between them. He wasn’t sure whether it was a good tension or a bad one. At any rate it made him feel slightly uneasy. Had he said something wrong? Deciding to keep quiet and hear her out, the man listened. What was that tiny flicker in her voice? It was barely noticeable, and Zayne was tempted to feign sudden ear trouble to cover asking her for a repeat. Instead, he merely nodded contemplatively. “We’ve always lived here in Superville, and my grandparents in Gotham, so I’ve been aware of them all my life. Must’ve been quite an adjustment phase for you, then, hm?” he replied, trying to ease the odd feeling and added a small smile. Zayne had a sneaking suspicion he only made the situation that much more awkward. Perhaps it was just him.

He had nearly been on the verge of explaining that in addition to locale that he was one of the few gifted with superpowers, but held his tongue. Even if he had just left it at superpowers she would no doubt ask questions that could be harmful to their friendship and its potential to go wherever it might lead. His civilian brothers already left him bitter. Zayne didn’t need or want his relationship with the radiant woman before him to turn sour. Perhaps if his life had not been filled with being the recipient of hate for being different, he would’ve been a hero. Then, at least, he knew, he’d be accepted by a seemingly-upstanding member of the police force such as Mercedes. But there was too much villain in him now to change. Zayne wasn’t sure he’d even want to change if he could. He was content with himself as he was. Thus, for the time being, he would have to deceive Sadies and continue to deceive her for an indefinite amount of time. The villain just hoped she didn’t find out in what was best described as ‘the hard way’...

Zayne knew precisely well what she meant by ‘that tower’. It was how he often described the lair of the superheroes, only with a few other well-placed, not exactly kosher adjectives. For a split second he wondered if she were against heroes, though erased it a second later. A hero had saved and healed her – what reason did she have to despise them? Not to mention they helped the police when people like him decided to run amuck.

His face softened slightly at the mention of her enjoying the chance to work with children. Zayne wasn’t quite sure what prompted it. At mention of wanting a few children of her own one day he gave her a polite half-smile and a nod, the light changing his eyes from gray to blue again. Although he wasn’t about to say, Zayne wasn’t sure how he and fatherhood would get along and thus wasn’t sure where he stood on becoming a family man. It was quite a long way of insofar as he was concerned. Listening patiently and interestedly, Zayne took in every detail she provided and did his best to commit it to memory. The masculine features that had softened, hardened slightly at mention of a drug baby. Although a villain, it was clear by his face that he felt some sort of sympathy upon hearing the circumstances of this Iris girl’s issues. The expression wasn’t at all forced or faux. His nose wrinkled in almost playful distaste at the liking to read comment, and then smiled once again.

“It was very... noble... of your family to have adopted her,” he offered, not quite sure what else to say. With a laugh he added, “I doubt I have the patience to be a doctor or anywhere near a hospital. What my two older brothers lacked in ‘raw talent’, you could say, they made up for with jobs that come with nice, big paychecks. Rhodri, he’s my younger brother, and I both believe it’s not how much you make but that you enjoy what you do. I was doodling in the whipped cream on my hot chocolate since I was seven. Drew with just about everything, really... and everywhere.”

He normally did not speak of his family, particularly his elder brothers. The younger sibling he could mention without getting fired up just fine but the other two... Zayne managed to keep himself cool-headed this time and silently berated himself for bringing them up. What had made him do it? Was it her talk of siblings, or something else? Perhaps he hoped that by sharing a tidbit of his own life would cause her to share more of hers prior to their meeting. Mercedes intrigued him for she was very much an enigma, and she was most definitely easy on the eyes. Her sense of humor was spot on, and Zayne was fairly certain that if she were to ask anything of him while not on business he would do it – no strings attached. Well... almost anything. He wasn’t quite that familiar with her yet, but since when did the villain ever back down from a challenge or a goal?

The answer was: Never.

Somewhere between his heart and his abdomen, Zayne couldn’t help but feel there was something unique about the woman he’d just asked out. Normally cops automatically turned him off. But all of the aforementioned characteristics, plus her smile and as cliché as it sounded her eyes all mesmerized him. When it came to picking out a potential girlfriend, Zayne tended to focus on the woman’s face: how they smiled, how they laughed, and so on. Personality came so close a second on his list of valued qualities it might as well have been first. An open mind and a lot of patience were two of the things Zayne felt were needed for a woman to put up with him. Especially if they were going to know about his “other” life beyond the coffeeshop...

Zayne chuckled lightly at the response he received. “I said, do you have any plans for later this evening? I was thinking maybe we could meet again after work, provided you’re available and interested?” he repeated with amusement.

Mercedes smile was a little forced. “Yes, perhaps so. It was a little awkward when I first started going to school. I know I wasn’t used to people having powers and it was a little awkward.”

She picked up at bitter air around him, but didn’t say a word. He’d tell her if he really wanted to, she decided. It really wasn’t her place to poke around in his business, as much as she wanted too.

“Yeah, well, Evan was already out of the house, and he was the one who suggested we adopt her. Mi papá y mamá,” she said, using the Spanish words she had grown up with, “agreed with Evan and Papá and Mamá adopted Iris. Dad wished we had adopted my cousin when she was a baby.”

Sadies shrugged. “I grew up with my brother’s friends. They played cops and robbers and I tagged along. I was always the cop. I loved it. I want to help people, probably as much as you probably wanted to doodle in whipped cream.”

Her eyes were a little bit wide. “Um, as far as I know, I’m not doing anything at all… What did you have in mind, Zayne?” she asked, leaning forward.