Handcuffs chaffed against Jinx's wrists; she knew, tugging at them experimentally, that it would leave angry red circles where the cuffs rubbed her skin. She had always had a nasty reaction to certain types of metals and being in the business of thievery and law-breaking, it was not the first time she'd been restrained this way. It irritated her that she'd been caught, but even more annoying was the rash she was going to have for weeks afterward. At least the sleeves of her dress were long enough to cover it.
Jinx twisted in her chair to look behind her at the blinking security camera posted in the corner. She knew the Titans were gathered somewhere watching her on a screen, trying to figure out what to do with her. She had been on a diamond heist alone and they'd caught her by surprise; at this point the H.I.V.E. team probably still had no idea she was missing from her bed. It'd been an impromptu theft, something to settle the whirlwind of thoughts in her head keeping her awake. Stupid really- they'd all been trained not to go on any missions without alerting at least one other team mate, to avoid situations like this. It could be hours before her team woke up and noticed her absence. By then the Titans would have dealt with her, and she'd be beyond rescue.
In a half-hearted attempt Jinx channeled her powers at the camera, testing to see if it would work. She felt the warmth of the magic flooding through her veins and burning behind her eyes, transforming them into wide pink orbs, and then- nothing. The camera continued to blink, unharmed.
So it was as she'd suspected- the room must have a nullifying effect, a place to keep criminals that might otherwise be able to free themselves. Jinx wondered if it worked on even the powers that couldn't be turned off, like Mammoth's- would it leave him weak as a normal human? Would See-More be rendered blind? It hardly mattered now. She was stuck here until the Titans decided whether to send her to prison or use her as bait to catch the rest of the H.I.V.E. team. She sincerely hoped they chose the latter; she'd never been in jail before but she'd heard enough stories to know it wasn't a place one wanted to go.
The door swung open suddenly and there he was: the yellow-suited boy wonder that had recently been a chronic pain in her ass. He took a few steps forward and closed the door behind him, taking extra care to avoid slamming it. Jinx took notice of this curiously but made no comment. She tipped her chin up and crossed one leg over the other, hiding her growing nervousness with arrogance, and waited for him to speak.
Kid Flash glanced up at the camera, then back at her. His smile was lacking in its usual confidence. "Hey Jinxy. Looks like you got yourself into some big trouble this time, huh?"
"This? This is nothing." She bluffed. "I could've gotten that necklace with my eyes closed if I hadn't been fighting five to one. The odds were stacked against me."
"I thought you controlled the odds. Is it just one of those days?" He was teasing harmlessly but Jinx's temper flared. She was tired and scared and powerless, and her wrists were already starting to itch. Now was not the time for clever banter.
"Did you just come in here to screw with me or did the Titans send you in here for information? Because whatever you're planning to do to me, I'd rather you just do it. I don't like being played with."
"I'm not playing with you, Jinx." He shifted his weight from foot to foot, and Jinx wondered with growing unease why he was acting so differently. Was the nullifying room sapping him of his usual frenetic energy as well as his speed? "I just want to talk."
Jinx narrowed her eyes at him. "Talk."
"Yeah." Kid Flash ran a hand through his hair and looked up to meet her eyes. Behind his mask Jinx could see a furrow in his brow. "You've acting kind of different lately. Going out at random times of night alone, stealing things only to leave them in public places, engaging other street criminals in fights for no reason. Both Titans East and West have noticed that your team is falling apart. You all can't stop arguing, and you don't lead them the way you use to. I'm worried about you."
Jinx's mouth popped open. Her face burned with a mix of embarrassment and anger. "You've been following me at night?"
"I just wanted to make sure you didn't do anything dangerous." He protested. "I think that you're conflicted about what side you should be on right now, and you aren't making good decisions-"
"Don't tell me how I'm feeling! You don't even know me!"
"I know that you're smarter than this. I know that you feel like stealing is your only option, even though it isn't. I know you had a tough life as a kid-"
"Shut up!" Jinx hissed suddenly. She strained against the handcuffs holding her arms back, unable to keep herself from trying to lunge at him even though she knew it was futile. "Just shut up, you idiot! You think you know what you're talking about? You think just because you've been stalking me you've got me all figured out?" She whipped around to address the camera, twisting so hard that her wrists pulled against the handcuffs and broke the skin. "Hey! Take me to prison already! I'm done here! Let me out!"
"They can't hear you." Kid Flash said quietly. "I disconnected the wire to the camera before I came in here."
"Why?" Jinx snarled. "You planning on fucking me once you finish playing therapist? You want one last chance with me before they lock me up?"
"Jinx." He said it softly, almost pleadingly. She turned her head away from him contemptuously.
"Just get out. This conversation is over."
There was a long beat of silence before Kid Flash sighed. He walked forward until he was at the table in front of Jinx and reached down into his shoe. Jinx continued to stare at the far wall resolutely, determined to show no interest. When he came around the table to stand behind her she stiffened, suddenly afraid. She had just made the comment about the nature of his intentions to offend him; was he actually going to touch her?
She felt a slight pressure on the handcuffs and then with a click they loosened, falling away from her wrists and onto the ground. Kid Flash came back around and turned away from her, towards the door. Jinx stared at him wonderingly.
"The Titans aren't out in the Common Room." He said, sounding deeply tired. "They decided to wait until morning to take you to jail, so they're all in bed. If you're quiet you can slip out the door unnoticed. I deactivated the alarm."
Jinx opened her mouth, about to ask him why he was doing this, but stopped. She looked down at the table and rubbed her wrists. There was a strange feeling of guilt washing over her.
"I haven't given up on you, Jinx. I know there's good in you."
She looked up then but he had already stepped out of the room and was gone, a red and yellow blur that she caught only a moment of. Jinx let her head fall into her hands, slumping back in her chair.
Then she was out the door too, forcing herself to get a grip as she vaulted agilely through the hallways and away from everything that had happened in the nullifying room.
