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“MOM! You can’t be serious? It’s b-been what twenty years and you choose now of all times to try dating another woman? W-who even are you anymore? F-first it was th-the apps and now this?”
“Jack sweetheart~ I know this is probably weird for you but I’ve~ honestly never thought it was impossible to be with a women. I just had more important things on my mind after your father than dating anybody else. Now that you’re getting older though and Doctor Gere says she’s a lovely woman and well~”
“Mom she has to be what ten years younger than you! Since when have you seen any other patient naked and been like yup I’ll go on a date with you! Isn’t that against the law!?”
“She asked Richard for my information and she’s actually older than I am thank you very much. Besides not many women in Jasper are also interested in me, seven foot and have blue iridescent skin and horns. It can’t be easy for a mutant even here and honestly I can’t say it wouldn’t be nice to have a…..more stable reason for staying in Jasper. The number of “normal families" is even dwindling here and while my work with mutants helps me to stay there might be a day when it’s not enough. You’ve said you wanted to leave after high school and I can’t blame you but…...this is my home. My family is buried here generations back, your father is buried here..I just can’t leave.”
“Mom that is no reason to go dating a demon woman! What are you even going to do with her? What do people like them even do?”
June set down the necklace she was restringing and turned to glare at her son. “Now you listen here Jackson Everett Darby! We do not talk about other people like that and you know it. She wants to take me out for dinner, a drink, and a movie. I know I may not be as young anymore but I still know how to have fun and I think I’ve worked hard enough to go out with someone I find interesting and who finds me interesting as well!”
“Of course you do mom but with a demon woman? With horns and witch powers? Don’t you think that’s like- Jumping into the deep end?”
“Who are you to say how good of a swimmer I am? Hmm? I dated all sorts back before you and your father.”
“MOM!”
“Sweetheart, I’m going to hope you’re just pitching this fit because you’re worried about me but you don’t need to. I won’t be going alone. You know that boy you give rides to every now and then to school- Raf? Supposedly Rachel knows the young man he stays with so we’re going on a double date.”
“How does that make me feel better? I barely know Aldo except that he’s supposedly a mutant too and he just told Raf! How do you keep that sort of secret from someone you’ve known for years, that you live with? It’s shady.”
“I think you’re being too judgemental. You don’t know his situation. I’ll leave you a twenty for pizza or Chinese so make sure to call before eight. You know how I don’t like you being rude.”
Jack sighed knowing he’d lost and there would be absolutely no changing the woman’s mind. “Will you at least tell me where they take you so I know where you are?”
“Of course honey.” June pecked a kiss on Jack’s forehead as she walked over to the boy, pearls in hand. “Clamp this for me will you? I need to get in the shower now if I want to get out and do my makeup. Rachel said she might come early so you at least get to say hello so if she comes while I’m still washing up. Please let her in.” Jack grimaced but did as he was told. June took a moment and returned back to her son. “Jack? This doesn’t have anything to do with what happened at school does it? If you’re still not feeling well-
“No mom.” Jack grabbed at his mother’s hand on his face. Even if he did really want her to not go he wasn’t going to ruin this night for his mother by being that selfish. “I’m fine. Just worried like you said. You barely know this woman and mutant or not….you just can’t trust someone you’ve only met once.”
“Well...I trust Richard’s judgement so I’m going to risk it. If anything does feel off or you need someone at the moment remember you’re always more than welcome to call Molly. She’s always ready to listen.”
“Alright mom. Just go shower.” Finishing off his mom’s necklace Jack headed out of her room to the kitchen and went to look over the few take out menus they had. Most of the places had long since closed down but surprisingly none of the best ones.
The sound of the pipes running filled the whole house with the quiet ambient noise of rushing water and Jack tried to focus on it to settle his nerves. He really was being a bit of a brat and his mom deserved to be happy with whoever she wanted. He really just wished it wasn’t such an obvious mutant. The obvious ones were always the most dangerous, the ones who worked for Malachai. He didn’t care if Richard had vouched for her it was easy for mutants to live a double life here.
The sound of the doorbell pulled Jack out of his thoughts, getting up with a huff he headed over to let his mom’s date in. Swinging open the door he really didn’t know what he was expecting but it wasn’t what he got. The woman just looked so normal in her tanktop, jeans and white faux leather jacket but none of it offset her horns, bright blue skin, and long black claws. “Hey! You must be Jack. I’m Rachel did your mom tell you I was coming by early?”
“Uhh….yeah. Come on in I guess.” Jack couldn’t get a read on the woman. She sounded so upbeat, so….normal. Rachel followed him back to the kitchen and took a seat. She looked unnatural sitting in the small space but not uncomfortable at least. Jack had always been embarrassed to take his friends back to his house but he guessed older people stopped judging at some point. “Do you want something to drink?” Water? Iced tea?”
Rachel seemed to look him over with her bright unnaturally blue eyes before shaking her head. “I’m good. I’ve got my own.” Patting her hip Jack noticed the water bottle she had clipped to her thick belt.
“Oh okay.” Getting his own water Jack took as much time as he could milling about before finally sitting back down. The water had finally stopped so hopefully he would only have to endure this forced meeting for only a little while longer. “So…...how did you meet my mom?”
“At the hospital. One of my birds kicked me and shattered a rib. It fixed up in a few hours but I was worried about internal bleeding so got it checked out.”
“Wh-what type of birds do you have?!”
“Ostrich. I run a ranch, farm, animal rescue thing. It was my husband Cliff’s dream but he died a few years back and I just didn’t have the heart to abandon it. You should stop by sometime. Fresh out of high school I’m sure you’ll need a good job and I pay a lot better than most the places around here. It’s real work but it teaches you.”
Jack stumbled over his words as he tried to think of something to say. A ranch? That was the least witchy job he could think of but then again what was an unobvious witch job? “I’m uhh still in school right now so I don’t think I should take on that kind of work but I’ll think about it once I graduate. If I can risk a year or two of comunity college it might be nice to stay and make some money but my mom has like had a savings set up for me for years now. She’s uhh….really good with her money.” SHIT why did he say that? Why was he saying anything to this strange woman!
“That’s nice of her. Cliff was never great with his money but his family were oil tycoons. When his powers manifested his brothers tried to get his parents to write him out of the will by convincing his father he would die prematurely anyway but his dad wasn’t as senile as everyone thought. Ironically they all died when a hurricane hit florida and their summer home collapsed. So Cliff got everything because he was away at school at the time. Now i’ve got more money than I know what to do with so I just help out who I can.”
“Oh...what could he do that was so bad that they wouldn’t want him running the family?” Rachel laughed curtly as she took a drink from her water bottle.
“It was less of what he could do and more of what happened to him. He was a demon class like me. Great big horns. Hooves. Shiny red skin. Acted like a damn fairy princess most of the time sweet talking falcons, owls, and coyotes like they were house pets but that didn’t matter. His mom swore he’d become the devil. He certainly looked like it. Scared the shit out of his brothers too even though they certainly put a lot of money in trying to bring out their own mutations. His dad though-” Rachel was laughing lightly now. “Cliff said the only thing his dad ever said about his transformation was it would scare the assholes away and it sure did.”
“Well...that sucks….I’m sorry you lost him.”
“Yeah…. but he went out doing his best for the people he cared for.” Rachel took another long drink then sighed mournfully as she capped her bottle. “He would have wanted me to be happy. Not wait as long as I did the last time.”
“Well you’re young I’m sure you didn’t wait that long.”
Rachel laughed again. “Yeah.”
Well, that was awkward. Did he say something wrong? “So...can I just get this out of the way?”
“Two-fifty. Demon class. Danger level seven. Summoning, transfiguration, minor elemental, no thrall. I’ve never been arrested, been to one of Malachai’s rallies and have long since decided he’s not the man I want to put my faith into. Anything else?”
“I uh…” Jack could feel his blush. The way she just rattled that of made it seem like she’d done it for way more than just the average onlooker a few too many times. “Two-fifty?”
“I’m two hundred and fifty years old. I’m uh… bit of a cougar. Is that what the kids still call it these days?”
“WHAT? Bu-bu-bu-”
“I know. I’ve likely had my mutation since I was born so I haven’t really aged much. I’m lucky I at least look old enough to get in a bar without showing off my ID every time.”
“You-you were born before this country! I didn’t even know there were mutants that old!” Rachel nodded solemnly at him in understanding.
“Well back then we weren’t mutants we were legends, cryptids in my case. You know it’s pretty nice to not have to live in a house I built myself. I am not the best carpenter or architect so this rise in mutants thing isn’t all bad.”
“What was it like? In the past really?”
“Uhhh bad. A lot of wars and ya know’....death. I never had a family or home really I don’t remember my parents or anythi past about five or ten. Just the forest…. so I ignored most of everything...stayed out in Canada mostly…. till fashion and makeup became a big thing. Big...big hats. Miss those sometimes. Uhh- Got some foundation and a tutor…..found Greg. I think about it a lot now that technology is the way it is…..finding out where I came from but knowing my luck I won’t have anyone left anyway. Which is why I just choose to move forward.”
“How did you stay secret for so long? It’s just…..hard to believe.”
“I wasn’t really secret but if you live near small towns and move around a lot most people don’t care about you. I was always the local witch, living up in the woods, only coming down to buy new underwear or you know….soap. I hated making soap it was a hassle. Now though I actually really like it. We have goats and their milk makes some really nice soap.”
Jack didn’t know why but suddenly something just….clicked as he laughed quietly. Rachel really was just some random woman trying to just meet someone she thought she might like...even if she wasn’t the normal case. “I honestly can’t see someone like you making soap….or doing really anything that’s not swinging around a sword or hurling magic at grunts.”
Rachel smiled as she stretched her long legs, “Yeah~ I’m pretty ridiculous looking but at least I’m hot. Still it would be nice if I could just walk around town again in my full face and boots and not have people knowing what I’m hiding. I- I kind of liked it better when I kept them guessing…..having more of us all together is a nice trade-off though but they existed back then too- the less mutant mutants…. they were just fewer and further between. Also finding shoes now is nice, the shoes I had to wear back in the day were awful on my feet.”
“And I thought my mom complaining about the eighties was bad.”
“Complaining? I never complained!” The sounds of June’s heels turned monotonous as she crossed into the kitchen. She had put her hair up in a high ponytail and curled the clustered ends making it look oddly like a fancy ribbon on a present.
“Wow June, scrubs really don’t do you justice.” Jack couldn’t help but watch Rachel’s eyes trail up and down as they took in the sight of his mom. He quickly suppressed a shudder, that really was going to take some getting used to.
June didn’t bother to hide her blush as she smirked. “Really? I wish I could say the same but I think I prefer you in cut off shorts and bloody tank tops.”
“Good, then you won’t be disappointed when I don’t put in effort for the day.” June laughed but whispered her actual feelings for Rachel’s outfit as she took the last seat at the small kitchen table.
“Did you two have a decent chat? Jack was a little worried about me going out with someone he didn’t know.” It was hard to miss the almost mocking tone in June’s words.
“MOM!” True or not she didn’t have to embarrass him like that! Rachel just chuckled lightly.
“Well at least he's not trying to get her to go on a double date with you. Aldo’s practically my brother. He is a fun guy to be around though and his boyfriend might actually be your age June, but don’t hold me to that i’ve never met him.
After a bit more embarrassment on Jack’s part and a nice cup of coffee for Rachel and June the two made their way for the door, June waving her son goodbye. She had a bit of a heart attack when she saw Rachel’s bike. She knew the woman rode a bike but she had also mentioned having a pick-up and a tractor,either of those sounded much safer in June’s eyes. He fear softened as she was passed a sturdy looking helmet.
“I know passenger usually sits in back but my arms and legs are long enough that you could sit in front and as much as I’d love to have your arms wrapped around me I much rather have you comfortable.”
“Oh….well if it’s still safe.”
“Perfectly safe. I’ve never had any problems with it before. You can even hold the handlebars~” It took a bit of finagling but soon the two were racing off down the streets and onto the highway.
June had forgotten to ask her date where they were going but as they left Jasper and passed through toll after toll she could only guess nowhere close. That...wasn’t a bad thing but if their date went sour- Not that it would- But there was always a chance. She….could always grab the train.
Despite the initial fear, the longer they drove the more June felt herself settling in. Rachel had an experts ease on her bike and wasn’t afraid to be a little forward when it came to proximity so by the time they got wherever they were supposed to be June was missing the hand on her thigh and the strange coolness of Rachel’s breath by her ear. “Hope you like car races and Mexican food June because that’s what I’m treating you to.”
“Oh! Well I don’t know if I dressed right for the occasion but I’m fine.” Rachel laughed as she slipped an arm around her dates waist. June felt her blush deepen. She usually wasn’t a fan of men being so forward but with Rachel it seemed so fluid like she would do it with anyone she was close to.
“You don’t have to worry. We’ll be watching the race from the restaurant over drinks.” Heading out of the small parking garage Rachel led June down a busy street full of shops and bars, this late at night on a Friday most of them were packed and noisy and June silently hoped they weren’t headed into one of them. She had no qualms about enjoying a few too many drinks and saying things she might not say otherwise sober but it wasn’t generally how she liked spending first dates. Luckily they continued walking to a much quieter street and Rachel pushed open the door to a darkly lit restaurant. Nothing much littered the walls, no tacky decor just a few menus at the front and a few beer ads on the walls the girl at the counter gave Rachel a familliar wave and took them to their booth.
“Race already started but you haven’t missed much. No one’s even spun out yet.” The girl came back with water a few moments later but was in no hurry to ask them for anything. June got comfortable.
“So when will your friend and his boyfriend be joining us?” Rachel pointed to the screen.
“As soon as the race is over. That’s him in the yellow and black Urbana. His boyfriend is in the red and gold Aston Martin. I think this is how they determine who gets to top in bed for the week.” Rachel couldn’t help but smile at her own joke but June couldn’t help but blush a bit. She had been so far out of the game and entrenched in motherhood she didn’t know what was propper. She didn’t like thinking of herself as a prude but well she didn’t know the boys enough to feel comfortable laughing at them like that.
“That’s exciting! Where do they do this sort of thing? I haven’t been to Vegas in years, I didn’t know this was the new popular thing.”
“Uhhh…..I don’t think they do it anywhere special and I don’t think it’s the new popular thing. Pretty sure Amber is streaming this for us and the camera guy is just some nerd with his drone.”
“Ah.” Oh~ June couldn’t help but feel even more flustered. Rachel was so…...up to date. She supposed when one barely aged it was a necessity but she sounded so much more like the young twenty-something nurses. June barely knew how to turn on Jack’s game station to watch Netflix and here she thought she’d been doing pretty well in the digital lifestyle department. D-drones? So they’re legal for civilian use now?”
“Oh yeah. Burgeoning. Starting to become a real pain in the ass too for some. I have one that Aldo set up for me to keep watch of the animals. It doesn’t beat taking a ride out the the fields but it’s nice for those lazy days. The connection of the thing is amazing.”
“What sort of animals do you have? I know about the ostrich but what else?”
“Sheep, goats, cows, horses, chickens, turkeys, plenty of hawks and owls and vultures...other angry birds that I barely know what to do with. A few wild hare. A blind coyote. Snakes. Lizards. Cliff loved everything and he had a real nackt at rehabilitation. I was only able to learn a half of what he knew before he passed but it’s enough to keep the place going and I’ve hired a few good people to help me out.”
“I think I overheard you telling Jack you make soap with the goat's milk do you do anything else?”
“Oh yea loads! We sell eggs, milk, wool.... Funny story when Cliff first started buying chickens he accidentally bought chicks from show hens, they lay just the same but boy are they pretty. When they die we sell the feathers it’s a shame but that’s life.”
“It sounds like a lot of work. How many people work for you? Do you still run the oil business as well on top of that?”
“About twenty and not so much anymore. I’m still technically CEO but board members and higher-ups didn’t like dealing with a guy who looked like the literal devil so they don’t like dealing with his wife either. Cliff gave most of the duties to his cousin Hal and one of his smarmy business-savvy friends. They’re good enough guys and they actually cared about Cliff even after everything which is better than his brothers.”
“I could see you in a stiff black pencil skirt and suit jacket with your feet on the table though.” Rachel smiled sheepishly. “Do you have anyone else besides Aldo you’re close to? It’s been terrible for me after Emmett's death in that department. There are some work friends and my sister Molly but- hmmh- I either feel too boring or they do to be real friends you know?”
“Well...I must admit I’m lucky to have wound up here because I haven’t haven’t had a mundy friend since the seventies, not from lack of trying but….well actually from lack of trying. I….well….it gets hard. I have a few other friends but I’d also classify them as work in a different sense.”
“Are they online? You shouldn’t be ashamed to admit you have online friends. In my twenties I made a German penpal and I still talk all the time with her on the internet. There are also a few girls from college I still talk to even though they live across the county and one lives in Scotland now.”
“Wow June so worldly. No these friends are here but they don’t work for me but it’s….other work. Volunteer city planning, building affordable houses for new mutants, public gardens, bird banding that sort of thing. You see a lot of the same faces as you get to know them.”
“Oh! Well that sounds lovely! I have a garden at the house but I can’t grow more than onions, a few flowers, and some succulents. Well there are fruit trees but they came with the place when we moved in.”
“Well, I’d be more than happy to teach you a few things and hang out even if you don’t want to take things to such a personal level.”
“Putting this all on me, are you? What about you! You can’t honestly say you’re wooed already!”
“Wooed? Yes. I’d give you a thousand dates but I have that luxury. Then again I’ve had some pretty bad ex’s in between Greg and Cliff so you’d have to really ping my radar to not get a second date from me. Don’t let that scare you off but I just give people more of a chance I guess. You can’t learn who a person is in a day and all together we’ve only known we both exist for about six hours.”
“Well, that’s a load off my mind.”
The two continued to chat as they watched the race. Both going through a few beers and a very hard margarita. June had to admit the race wasn’t her cup of tea but seeing Rachel getting so fired up for her friend was infectious. They had just gotten something to fill their stomachs for what looked to be a decently long night of drinking when A short tan boy in a black leather jacket and pants came over to them. He quickly surprised a distracted Rachel with a hug before June could warn her. The look that crossed the other woman’s eyes was so telling but she hid it immediately and she hugged the boy back.
“Goddammit, Aldo you ruin the magic! I thought these things are filmed live!”
“Haha! Live enough. Don’t worry I won’t spoil the ending.”
“Where in the hell is your boyfriend?”
“Went straight to the bathroom to fix his makeup. Some dude clocked him in the face.”
“Oh jeez.”
“Yeah!~ just wait till you see it.” Rachel rolled her eyes and shook her head as she sighed.
“Aldo this is June. Say hi.” Aldo went in for a hug immediately.
“Hey! Aldo! You look great. I’m glad to see you, Rachel was a nervous wreck over whether you’d respond or not!”
Well, that was certainly interesting to know. “Hello dear.” June didn’t quite know what to say or think.“You’re so young! I-I don’t know what I was expecting.”
“Yeah don’t worry I know I look like I could still be in high school. I’m twenty-five. Didn’t grow much-”
“WHAT THE FUCK!” Rachel suddenly slapped the table hard enough for it to lift and tilt it upward a bit, her outburst quickly caught the other’s attention. Bee seemed to know exactly what she was upset over though.
“Yeah! He’s such a great boyfriend isn’t he?” June felt at a loss.
“D-did I miss the end of the race? What happened?” Aldo chuckled as he forced Rachel to scoot over so he could sit.
“Yeah, it’s alright. I was in the lead and coming up onto the tunnel when second place keeps bumping me and trying to get me to spin out into the ditches. Well he finally gets ahead enough and shoves me off totaling my mirror so Kyu-won- my boyfriend he’s in third so he waits till they’re in the tunnel to pull some dukes of hazzard bullshit and goes up the side of this tight, tight tunnel. Hits the dudes front end and basically sticks his car in the tunnel blocking it shut so none of the other racers can even finish and obviously the guy’s car got t-boned by fourth place. He almost died!” June’s face clearly wasn’t one of excitement thanks to wanton destruction.
“I-is that legal?”
“Nothing’s legal, the race isn’t even legal. What else are you gonna do on a dead road in Nevada?”
June felt every fiber of mom in her body going off but she fought against it. “T-that certainly can’t be good for his suspension.”
“Oh god no but we can fix anything. It happens. Some of the roads they get us to race on are murder. I had to jump a gap on the last one I did, talk about killing the suspension!
The noise eventually attracted the server and after having a quick gush with Aldo she got down to asking them for their orders. June had barely even looked the menu over but Aldo was quick to assure her that everything was good. It was a testament to their relationship that the boy even ordered for his partner although it seemed meager to his own order. June dubbed them cute but didn’t know if she could find herself spending more time with them.
She found herself sipping on another margarita as they chatted. She really hadn’t drank like this since college. Even feeling a little like her old college self, surrounded by beautiful young looking people, loving the way Rachel’s eyes looked in the dim light and the way she tipsily playing with her hands. She couldn’t remember ever letting herself be this open with any of the other dates she’d managed to go on over the years. It was nice. Perhaps a little too rushed but June suspected that was just Rachel’s nerves. Perhaps she thought it would ease her mind considering while June still considered herself good looking she was in her forties or perhaps she was simply testing the water, loving a mutant like her couldn’t be easy on some. June however wasn’t part of that group. She didn’t even want to remember back to how much Space Voyages fan stories she’d written in her free time back then. She was in a bit of a happy daze by the time a smooth deep slightly nasally voice was getting her to scoot over and offering her a hand to shake.
“Hello, Kyu-won, nice to meet you.”
“June. You-” June wasn’t expecting the hand to be beautifully manicured with rather detailed fake nails. “You also look suspiciously young.”
“Oh?” He was a hard man to read but June could only hope his dead tone was due to exhaustion and not lack of enthusiasm for the situation. He may have hid his eyebags and bruises well but he had the gentle shake of a person who barely slept. Then again if she’d ever been punched in the face she didn’t know how eager she’d be to socialize after either.
“Well, Rachel mentioned you might be close to my age but you look no older than your boyfriend.”
With a quirk of an eyebrow he gave her a better look.“Are you a mutant?”
“No.”
“Well then if you are close to my age you should probably get checked. I’m eighty-three.”
“What!?” June couldn’t help but look at Rachel and Aldo to see if the young man was joking with her.” Rachel looked a bit shocked and embarrassed but Aldo was smiling like a fool.
Rachel quickly tried to rectify her mistake. “Well, I at least got in the right century. To be fair Aldo is equally close to your age too June.”
Aldo was busy teasing his partner. “I call him grandpa when we make out and most of the time he shoves me off the bed, but not all the time.”
“I do NOT have any children or grandchildren. Do not let him tell you otherwise.”
“No, but he is on social security.” Kyu-won rolled his eyes in exasperation.
“This is why I don’t talk about my age since someone can’t seem to keep their jokes to themselves.”
June couldn’t quiet a sudden thought in her mind as she idly listened to the two's banter. If Kyu-won had this ability certainly Aldo did too right, if not….well it just made it sad didn’t it? Then again if she did end up continuing things with Rachel she would be in the same boat wouldn’t she? “Aldo if you don’t mind me asking, What sort of powers do you have? Regeneration as well?”
“Oh um….a little I think. Nothing like Kyu-won. I umm I can go fast...like slow down time around me so I can move faster, umm….I can…I can punch real good! It’s like changing or channeling force and gravity and science. The main thing I do best is generate electricity. I can steal it too which is real fun.”
“Oh yes oodles, why don’t you tell her how we met?!”
June tried to hold back her laugh and her other slightly sad thoughts. She knew that tone. “Oh no~”
Kyu-won didn’t wait for Aldo to tell the tale. “Oh no is right! I beat him in a race and he stranded me just off the freeway by flagging me down and draining my car battery! Not to mention my cell phone! All so he could drag me here and try to get to know me because his initial plan of beating my face in didn’t seem so appealing anymore.”
“Well, he cheated! I just didn’t think he’d be a good-looking doctor. How could I not go after him after that?”
Rachel slapped Aldo on the shoulder with a grin, “Are you sure it was him you wanted? All I remember you gushing about was the car he was in!’
The night continued on and after food and a few more drinks the four were thoroughly smashed. Thanks mostly to Rachel and Kyu-won who were such natural social drinkers that June was convinced they could get a nun to party with them. Rachel paid for what would have only been quite the bill but the other three were determined to throw in for tip.
Taking their fun to a rather large but fairly empty kitschy bar Kyu-won was fond of they continued their good time. A blessing he assured them because the place was usually packed. June had to admit of all the bars she’d been to this one was amazing. She knew she would have loved it in her younger years. It was decorated in separate sections, pastel carebear, magic pony 80’s goodness, Sci-fi space with stars and impossible ships she’d recognized from various media. Giant fighting robots clad in strange armor with bright neon-lined blasters. It went on.
Ordering heavily liquored fancy drinks to share and glowing ice cream June counted herself lucky. This certainly was a night.There was no way she could do this every date, she really was a nature walk, wine and pottery, local bar concert kind of girl, but this was fun. Too drunk for her own good, nestled on Rachel’s shoulder, and bitching with Kyu-won about horrible patients. He had quite the number of funny horror stories and she had her own that kept him smiling. At some point Aldo pulled him away and onto the dance floor at the center. Synth-pop and old 80’s rock wasn’t the best to dance to but kids found a way to dance to anything. Rachel didn’t keep them at the table long. June had never been much of a dancer but her alcoholic daze found her swaying and twirling as Rachel held her close.
At some point June caught sight of Kyu-won leaving the bar alone, then Aldo sitting alone at their table chugging water. She nudged Rachel to get answers. “Rachel I think something happened?” Sparing a glance Rachel just shook her head.
“Don’t worry Kyu-won’s hubby’s probably on the line. You’re a nurse you get it right?” Oh, work. June did know. She worked long hours as it was, she could only imagine what hours the young man got. He eventually came back in but was quickly gone again. This time Rachel headed back over to the table with her date in tow. “Fun time over BB?”
Coughing down his glass of water he smiled at the nickname. “For me at least. I should be getting home anyway. It’s almost ten. You want to do the usual?” A cold realization set in June as she heard the time. She hadn't texted her son!
“T-the usual?” Digging through her purse she swiped at her phone, no messages. Well….maybe he had gone to bed early after food, or perhaps he’d found a friend to spend the night with. She usually liked to know when her son was going out for the night but she couldn’t quite say anything this time. She quickly typed out a message.
“Stargazing till we’re sober.” Well that was one problem off June’s conscious. It would take some time but…..well Jack didn’t seem to be as much of a nervous wreck as he initially was.
The drive home was done in an almost sleepy daze but when she got home and found the house empty a feeling bubbled in the pit of her stomach. She’d spent plenty of time with Rachel but hadn’t really gotten to know her much. She...she wanted a bit more time. As she wandered back into her kitchen Rachel was refilling her water. “He must have went out. I’ve texted him but I don’t expect him to answer. I’m sure he’s mad at me.”
“Well….if your gonna be a bad girl and stay out all night why not actually make it all night? Would you like to come to my house? We could…..go for a night swim or…..a horseback ride?” Both of those sounded very tempting but she really shouldn’t….that seemed so forward and she didn’t want to lead the other woman on. The way Rachel leaned in close and lifted her chin ever so slightly till they were looking eye to eye changed her mind quite quickly.“Let him think he got away with it right?”
“I need to be back here by seven, is that alright?”
“Alright with me.”
“Let me go grab some things then.”
Half an hour later and she was lounging in a perfectly chilled pool. The past weeks rain had made things humid and sticky and this was the perfect way to cool off. The quiet, and the stars. She’d enjoyed sitting out in the desert under Rrachel’s arm but it was just one more element that made her really feel like she was trying to chase her youth. Despite being old Rachel wasn't and while Aldo and his boyfriend were pleasant she couldn’t help but be reminded of Jack. What he might be doing in a few years time. Surely it wouldn’t be dating a mutant and going on a double date with his boss and a forty year old single mother but who knew really. She much preferred this. The simple quiet stillness of the night and one final glass of very good moscato. She knew she’d be hungover in the morning but she’d wanted to let herself go, let herself chase her youth just for the night because she really hadn’t expected to want a second date, want more time, but as Rachel went on about the soap she was going to make over the weekend and having to feed the animals in the morning and help Aldo fix the broken fence later in the day she realized she did. She didn’t have to be chasing her youth if that’s simply what Rachel found fun, she could do this night again every now and then interspersed with maybe simple breakfasts or nights of homemade dinners and netflix documentaries. Still there was the niggling issue that hadn’t left her mind since the restaurant.
“Rachel?”
“Yeah June?” June slipped from her floaty and carefully walked over. Unsure if what she needed to know was even appropriate to bring up on a first date. She tried to focus anywhere, switching between the long tassels of the other woman’s bikini and her chipped pale blue nails.
“Well...I know it’s not over but I want to tell you I had a lovely night and I’d like to have more with you but there’s just something I need to get off my mind.”
“How this is going to work for us?”
“How…..how you might feel knowing this is temporary in...well in hopefully the longest sense for me but….not for you.”
“Well...Cliff was a mutant, a sturdy one too and he still died...and Greg before him didn’t make it out of his thirties. If it’s getting old and falling out of love I can tell you that won’t be a problem I’ve had crushes on older mundies before, crushes that started young and lasted till they grew old. I’ve watched my friends die. It’s life and if you want to live it like that I’m happy to live it with you. I will tell you though June that…..if you ever want to live more of life there are ways. But that really is up to you. It’s some people’s dream, and some people’s nightmare.”
“What do you mean?” June moved closer to sit on one of the pool steps.
“Well….there’s a guy I know. Big demon class guy…..we call him the Lawyer. Makes deals of all kinds and can get you out of almost any situation. Even death. There’s a ritual he could do for us. While I’m alive, while we’re together you could never have to age another day, maybe even take off a few years if that bothers you and then when you don’t want it anymore it can go away. That easy. Being a mother though I don’t know how you’d feel about that. I’m sure it can’t be easy to know you’ll outlive your son, his children, theirs all because of me. I won’t live forever but I’ll live a long ass time and it’s not for everyone. I’m okay with something temporary. Even temporarily for you. I just...I knew I needed to move on after Cliff because if I didn’t I’d be a three hundred year old weird farm demon lady trying to get someone to go out with me. You just seem like a fun lady June and I’m glad you had a good time.”
“Well…..I’m sorry I brought the mood down.”
“You didn’t. It’s an important question-” Before Rachel could finish her thought her phone started to ring. She looked at it with a glare as if wondering who would call her so late before jumping out of the water to get it. “Sorry ‘bout that June I think this is my bird guy. I’ve got a bunch of baby turkey vultures that need a mama who’s not me.”
June overheard the woman give a few affirmations and apologies before hanging up. “Was that him?” She nodded.
“If you want to put on a towel and some shoes I’ll take you to see them before I send them off. Sanders is a bit of a weirdo but he’s nice enough once you know he’s not a craigslist murderer. I think his mutation hit him pretty bad so he doesn’t like to show his face.” Rachel could tell June was very, very close to a hard pass. She couldn’t blame her Sanders really was a freak but damn was he good with birds. “I’ve got some really cute owls too. You can hold them.”
June smiled, “Alright, I can tell you really don’t want to go alone.
Slipping on some flipflops and a nice wrap skirt Rachel had brought her the two waited on Rachel’s porch with two bottles of water and some microwave popcorn. It was obvious Rachel was a night owl by the way she snacked but then again she could have simply been an all hour person. A slick black car eventually pulled up the long drive and parked. A tall lanky figure in a black leather jacket and nice fitting tailored shorts got out and waved. As he got closer June could see he was wearing a plastic mask of a cartoon girl and clipped onto his shirt was a plastic nametag that read “Hello my name is” and he’d scrawled in the name Sanders in purple sharpie. On his shoulder was nestled what looked like a strange looking magpie but it was much bigger and had a few streaks of red in the feathers. Rachel seemed at ease with the stranger but even with the warning June was put off. Maybe if was the long painted fingernails or the purple boots caked with mud she just couldn’t pinpoint it.
“Hey Sander’s. Thanks for coming.” Sanders quickly signed her a response. That’s what it was he hadn’t said anything, more than that he didn’t even sound like he was breathing and he could stand so still and move so fluidly. Still June felt a bit bad. She didn’t like judging people.
In the small aviary Rachel let her pet some owls as Sanders looked over the vulture babies. Rachel feeding the now awake and noisy magpie a piece of popcorn every now and again till the man poked the bird’s beak with a long digit silencing it. He tsked Rachel with a wagging finger then signed something else. Rachel just shrugged her shoulders. “She’s a bird, they’re best when they’re fat!” Sanders actually chuckled quietly in response, the sound deep and curt but still amused.
With all the birds nestled safely in a crate he quickly left. The two women returned to Rachel’s house. “What an odd man.”
“You’re telling me. I met him at one of my banding events and I nearly turned him away because….well you saw him and I had a lot of teens thanks to the school. Luckily I know ASL and he was more interested in the birds than anyone else. LIke I said, I think his mutation really just messed up his face and he probably just has a weird sense of humor.”
Nearing two in the morning Rachel led June to a guest bedroom. June took a moment to lay out her tank top and yoga shorts before exploring the few doors in the room. Two obviously being to the balcony, two more the closet, one hiding away a television and finally as he’d hoped the bathroom. As she sat in the very deep, very nice tub washing the chlorine and ache of her feet away she couldn’t help wonder about Jack. He really hadn’t sent her anything and she couldn’t help but feel played by her son. Perhaps he’d just had plans all along and was trying his best at reverse psychology. Well...it worked but despite being terribly nervous she forced herself to be alright with it. Jack was seventeen now. If he wasn’t back by by the time she got home she’d go straight to the police.
Back all the way somewhere near Las Vegas Kyu-won was stepping out of his car, the low heels of his boots clacking on the asphalt. He paused when he also spotted his red Honda parked at the edge of the small lot. What was that doing here? He ran the rest of the way to the imposingly blank building. Pulling out his keys he went through a few before fingering a bright red one for only a moment as he shoved it in the lock and tore the door open. The sound of silence greeting him. As he walked down the dark hallway he could hear the sound of arguing voices. Before he could get there his phone stopped him. Aldo. He checked it.
“Hey! Raf’s not at home and I’m freakin’ out! Do you know something I don’t?” A cold dread set in the pit of Kyu-won’s stomach. Well, what was one more lie. He quickly texted Aldo something back as he continued to the argument.
He didn’t know what told him to check the small glassed off office but inside pillows were strewn all over and four kids were settled on the couches and floor. Kyu-won couldn’t hold back his sigh. What in the world had Raf been thinking? And what had the other’s been thinking!? Miko! Sari! June’s son! What were they doing here?
A sharp nasally voice greeted him and it came in near stereo. “Hey, doc!”
“Don’t worry we already had Reflector fix em’!”
“Yup! They won’t be remembering this night!”
“Or the whole last week! You’re losing your touch those, girls have been tailing you since last Friday!”
Kyu-won turned to the twins and gave them a half-hearted smile, at least the choice was already made for him. “I’ve still been getting over my cold and all children start to look the same. We’ve been getting more and more burgeoning little mutants as of late, I go face-blind. Keeping me safe is your job.”
“And we do it with pride. Just giving you a hard time.”
Frankie and Ricky Sanderson. Tweens, or what came as close in Malachai’s organization. They were well into their twenties but still looked almost half that. Soundwave had adopted them likely when they were actual teens and were living with him ever since. The were Malachai’s youth propagators. Doing online college classes by day and rock shows by night with sprinklings of surveillance work. Their ability to switch between each others consciousness and literally see through each other’s eyes if they chose meant they could nearly be two places at once. They were also very good at hacking and creating memes that undermined the government.
“What’s the story Reflector gave them?”
“Got so drunk at a forest kegger that they can’t remember shit!” Frankie smiled widely obviously proud of his narrative. Kyu-won could only roll his eyes.
“That’s not going to work for Rafael he’s fourteen and never leaves the house! He barely has friends let alone enough social standing to go to a kegger!”
Ricky shrugged. “That’s alright, none of them really do but cheeseball got asked by some girls to take him- not these girls- to one tonight, but these girls definitely seem the type to crash a kegger so it’s fine.”
Frankie butted in as he leaned on his brother. “Seems pretty sad that your kid ain’t got no friends, we’d hang out with him wouldn’t we Rick?” His brother shrugged but nodded.
“I’ll make it work somehow. Listen Frankie that’s really very nice of you but you and your brother are literally the human versions of clickbait. The guy I’m dating, his caretaker is only a year or two older than you. You’ll freak him out, mutant or no.”
“We're clickbait! What about you grandpa!? The first thing we ever heard come out of your mouth was “Oh they make t.v.s in color now? How fun!”
Kyu-won just blinked slowly as if to say "so what"? Unlike the twins he wasn’t running around as if he was the age he looked. He had a job!, a home, Taxes! "If you have everything settled then why did you call me here?"
“It’s the girl.” Frankie gestured over to Miko. “Her caretaker and one other problem.”
“Oh jeez. Let’s get this over with.” Heading to the back with the twins Kyu-won pushed open the doors to what looked like a medical room, Beds and IV’s and machinery lining one wall but just a few steps over it turned into a grungy dungeon, the sturdy metal walls splattered with blood and other fluids and studded with chains. It was a set but a well functioning one. No mutant could break out of the restraints they'd installed and all of the equipment worked and had been used before. The only thing that made it a set were the the massive lights and audio equipment on the emptier side of the room but they weren't always there. As Kyu-won's workshop he'd spent a lot of time in the place.
On the rack was one very beefy man, a less impressive twenty-something and some lanky nobody who had been getting too close to hacking certain systems of Soundwave’s who needed to be taken care of. The other two were obviously government.
“I finally got him for ya K.O.! Now spider lady over here says we need to let him go! Fuck that right!” He shivered when he felt Naveen’s heavy hands on his shoulders, his shoulders cracking under the weight. Naveen never remembered his strength when he was excited. The woman in question quickly stepped out of the shadows to make her case.
“We’re under orders not to touch any of Orion’s little team! They’re integral to the community and if they go missing people will notice! You can do what you like on the boy’s they’re nobodies but Basil has to go back home with Miko!”
“You’re just being soft cuz your niece is datin’ her! Basil's been a thorn in my side for forever and he needs to go! Can’t you and Doc Shock clone him and replace him?”
“YOU ATTACKED HER GUARDIAN AND PUNCHED HER CLEAR ACROSS A PARKING LOT! I AM NOT BEING SOFT I AM FIXING AN ISSUE YOU CREATED!”
“It was a love tap and she asked for it. I told her to run!”
“Thomas! It’s not my job to keep this mutt on a leash! He says he brought him in for you so if this was your order you can bet your pasty ass Malachai will be hearing about it!”
“Shut your mouth, Aisha. You’re in my house now and I don’t appreciate threats considering my mutt is indeed off his leash at the moment and you’ve been doing a whole lot of nothing for Malachai as of late.” Kyu-won turned to Naveen. “What happened?”
“I was at the store picking up the loser and Reyes was there with his girl. I couldn’t not just take him in he saw me!”
“What about the girls? How did they connect you to me?” Naveen rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
“I- well- Basil ripped off that keychain you gave me from my keys. I don’t know how the girl figured it out but she had it with her. I got it back don’t worry.” Kyu-won just barely remembered Miko asking him something about a key chain…..that was just after a nasty stripping, he’d been so out of it.”
“WHY IN THE HELL DID THIS GO ON SO LONG THAT WAS A WEEK AGO! WHY AM I JUST HERE NOW?”
“W-well doc we’ve been busy. I told you I picked some people up and the twins were taking care of them till we could get into the studio but you’ve been in a pretty bad daze since we stripped ya. ‘S everything all right?” Kyu-won tried not to focus on how gentle and comforting Naveen’s touch quickly turned. He couldn’t deal with this too.
“As much as I appreciate the gift and I commiserate with you on Basil’s hounding you Aisha’s right. If he goes missing were going to get more than just this greenhorn and the last thing I need is Aldo getting involved.”
“Won’t be so good for the relationship now will it? See I was thinking of you too Thomas.”
“Sure you were. Did you flash Basil?” Kyu-won continued to ignore Aisha.
“Yeah~. Aren’t you gonna do anything before sending him off?” Kyu-won smiled and stroked Naveen’s face to ease his dejection.
“Of course I am.”