AN: I own only my OCs. I found this quite lacking so I rewrote both chapters.
Enjoy!
It had sounded like a good idea back then when Kate said they should go to bar. It was a Friday night after all. Abigail agreed, even though she was pretty tired.
The whole day of filling in forms wasn't anything particularly entertaining. As if it wasn't enough, her boss decided that some more work had to be done and of course it was up to her to do it.
So after her friend from college, Kate, called and asked her to tag along, Abigail immediately agreed. They weren't close friends. Not at school and definitely not after, but once you had met Kate, she considered you a friend. Or at least someone worth spending her time with.
Abi was never a social type but enjoyed going out to watch movies or occasionally have a drink. After a long and especially tiring week, she could use that drink.
Later at the bar, she didn't think the idea to accompany Kate that smart. The reason for her regrets wasn't her friend but her particular condition.
It was typical for every new born to have a mark somewhere on their body. It had been appearing ever since humanity could remember.
At first, people were probably confused as why there was a sentence or just a single word written on the skin. They figured its purpose soon after and called it a 'soulmate mark'. The basic principle was that a first thing your other half - soulmate, told you tattooed itself on a random place of your body.
There were a lot of studies as why it appeared where it did, but no scientist had figured that bit of information just yet.
But for some also unknown reason, some people were born without this mark. It would never be there. And so society made a name for them as well - unmarked. Kate was one of those people.
That was the problem. Drinking was nice, but Abigail couldn't enjoy herself properly when men were constantly hitting on her.
Her soulmate mark wasn't on a visible place at the moment, which left guys constantly buying her drinks or winking at her. She politely refused all of their attempts since none of them said her words. The sentence that was forever marked on her tender skin.
The two women started with martinis. Each of them had at least two. Abi ended up with two more glasses of whiskey. She was starting to feel more and tipsier with every new drink. The guy behind a bar offered her some water but she could take more alcohol. He pushed another martini to her hands.
Kate soon disappeared with one man and Abi was sure they were going to do it right there, in the bar's toilets. Definitely not a way Abi would do it but everyone knew that Kate was a bit of a whore. She liked to use men to please her own tastes. Abigail didn't judge.
Abi could feel the alcohol in her system, it was messing with her head. She finally took the offered water and hoped the spinning would subside.
Kate ditched her. No way she was returning. Abi wasn't mad, it was expected. She made sure to send Kate a text, informing her of her departure. It was time to head home.
She made her way through the dark streets of Hell's Kitchen. It wasn't exactly safe but she didn't have enough money left for a cab and her flat wasn't that far anyway.
Abigail wasn't looking in front of herself and with her great luck, she stepped right into the puddle. As if it wasn't enough, she was wearing her quite new white Converse shoes. She hoped it was just rain water in there.
The groan escaped her lips and she mentally counted to five. This night couldn't get any better.
Just as the pessimistic thought crossed her mind, strange sound echoed from her left side. Her gaze turned to the dark alley where it came from. It had sounded like something hitting metal.
'What if it is a dog?' she pondered dumbly. Her alcohol driven mind didn't quite understand what might be happening and how dangerous the situation actually was.
Abigail slowly approached the big dumpster. Her eyes landed on a man instead of a lost puppy she was secretly hoping for.
He was leaning on it and muttering something. All she could make out was "stupid...oh shit... what... doing here?"
The last sentence seemed like a question and in her drunken state, she didn't think clearly and blurted out the first thing that crossed her mind.
"Take that mask off when you talk to me!" He was indeed wearing a black mask which covered his face weirdly. It hid his hair and reached all the way to the bottom of his nose. 'Can he see in that?'
The stranger stiffed and looked straight at her or that was what Abigail imagined. That dark mask really covered his eyes so she couldn't be sure.
He gaped his mouth a few times. He didn't know what to say. And then he slightly bowed his head, as if he was ashamed and said, barely audible: "Sorry, I can't."
She didn't register the weak burning sensation on her left leg, just an inch above her ankle.
Then something else struck her. It was well past midnight and she was standing in a dark alley with a weirdo covered in black with a mask over his face. He even had gloves for goodness sake.
Only now she had noticed the dried blood on his shoulder. The red trail continued all the way to his palm and over his torso. She quickly stumbled back and thanked god for not wearing heels.
The last sober part of her brain screamed 'Run!'. It seemed she could really do nothing but run. That person, standing not as far as she wished, could be a serial killer. He wouldn't strike one as an innocent man with the blood covering half of his upper body.
Her mind sobered in an instant. She sprinted to her home, it was only four more streets away, she could do it.
Abigail turned around. There was no one behind her but she still had that creepy feeling that someone was following her.
She was terrified and more sober with every passing moment. She felt so vulnerable and exposed on the street, even though there was no living soul in sight.
She ran the few remaining steps to her apartment building and searched for her keys in hurry. Her hands were shaking but she didn't drop them and unlocked the big glass doors.
She didn't feel safe just yet. The glass could be easily broken. She doubted door like that would stop the dangerous looking man, whom she encountered in the alley.
Abigail opened the entrance to her safe haven and immediately shut them behind her. She was tempted to put a chair or something there, like she saw it done in the movies. Abi also closed all the windows and took out the small pocket knife her brother once gave her.
All the windows were close and she could finally rest. Before she fell asleep, Abi remembered the pocket knife her brother had given her last Christmas. She took it out and placed it near her bed. If necessary, it was in a close proximity and she could easily reach it. She left the lights on.
The ringing of a phone woke her up the next morning. Technically it was the same day since she got home at 3 a.m., but she didn't care. All she cared about was a person who dared to wake her up. Her head was spinning and the ringing was just too loud. She held her head with one hand and took the call with the other. If she had to listen to that beeping one more second, she might throw the phone out of the window.
Abigail couldn't help it and rolled her eyes when she saw the caller's name. Whenever he called, the trouble followed.
"Hey there, my sweet lil sister!" the overly enthusiastic voice of her brother greeted her. She already knew he did something because of his tone. He needed her help again.
"Spill it," Abigail said, not amused. Her head hurt and she had zero patience for her brother now.
"Ah, I see you are not in the mood," he laughed awkwardly. "Okay, to the point then, I could really use some help, you see, I got myself caught in this thing and..."
Of course he did, Abigail knew what was about to come.
"So you need money," she supplied for him, not caring about his excuses.
She heard him sigh on the other side the phone. She had hit the nail on the head.
"Yes, but it is different this time. It's for the lawyer and I also need a ride, can you pay me a cab as well? Please, Abi? I promise it is the last time..."
"Sure, we are family, right?" It was hardly a last time, but she loved her brother and couldn't turn her back on him. Even if her moral code was against many things he had done in the past, or was still doing to this very moment, he was her only family left. He was her brother. They had to take care of each other, no matter the situation. Abigail knew that if she ever asked him to do something for her, however bad, he would and she was the same.
"Just text me an address and I will be there, do you also need a place to stay in?" she inquired but realized what the answer would be.
"Yeah, I actually do, thank you so much sis. Love you!" He hung up with that, surely already texting her the lawyer's address.
Abigail tried to guess how expensive his lawyer would be while making some much needed coffee. She would have to take some money from her savings. What a shame. She was almost ready to invest in a new house. As much as she liked her apartment, it was really small and neighborhood wasn't exactly nice and safe.
Abi hopped into her car the first thing next week. Luckily, Monday was her day off. The only thing keeping the car safe from thieves was that it was super old. Ancient, would be a sufficient word for it.
She had no problem in locating the lawyer's office. The worst part was finding place to park. Everyone was working on Monday, making it hard to find a parking spot in the early afternoon. Abi had to drive around the building with the sign Nelson & Murdock, attorneys at law several times.
When she finally arrived, she wasn't sure what to do. Should she just wait outside or go in? Abigail decided to simply go inside. Her brother was most likely there.
There was another door with the sign Nelson & Murdock which assured her she was at the right place. She contemplated knocking but didn't know if there was just like a small reception in there or if it was lawyer's office straight away. Her head started to pound painfully from all the thinking so she just marched right in, not caring about some stupid attorney or his assistant. She was getting irritated with her headache and was mad at herself for not taking another painkiller.
So she burst in. It was a mistake. 'So polite Abigail, what a first impression,' she face palmed herself mentally. She never took pain very well and it then mirrored in her behavior. She should stop going out with Kate, it wasn't good for her health and others when she was hangover.
All eyes were immediately cast to her until one guy, who was casually leaning on a desk and undoubtedly one of the most handsome man she had ever laid her eyes on, almost choked on his drink, presumably coffee.
"Fine, fine," he breathed out when the blond guy quickly stood up to assist him. His voice kind of raspy from the choking.
"Sorry," Abigail sheepishly apologized. She didn't think she would literally scare someone, maybe insult but not scare.
"I am here for..." she began explaining when the commotion quieted down, but her brother appeared from the other room and introduced her by himself.
"This is my sister, Abigail, she is here to pick me up." She smiled. The situation was quite awkward. But who was she kidding, it was entirely her fault. Of course Abigail couldn't knock like a normal human being.
"Oh, and this is my lawyer." The man who almost killed himself approached her and outstretched his hand.
"Matt Murdock," was all he said. It wasn't exactly welcoming but he remained polite. She appreciated that and gave him a small smile. She couldn't read his expression since he had round red glasses. A bit odd, but hey, no judging. She was never quick to assume anything about person, it got her a plenty of good friends. First impression or fashion choices didn't define a character, in her opinion.
She couldn't help but noticed how he slightly limped and favored his right arm. 'What happened to him?' she wondered.
As Abi waited for her brother to stop flirting with an only remaining woman in a room, she scanned the place. It wasn't very new and also computers and printers seemed second-hand. Maybe she wouldn't pay a fortune for this Murdock after all.
Abigail watched him return to his working space. Everything was normal. He easily walked from her to the desk but it changed there.
His hand was in front of him as if he was looking for something. Abi only now noticed the white cane in the corner, blind people used those. The red glasses... how did she not see it? It was so obvious and yet, he was walking towards her as any other healthy person would (except for the limping).
The whole thing got even more embarrassing. It was really time to go.
"Can we go?" She turned to her brother and ignored the stares from everyone. Only Murdock didn't care about her at all, not like he could stare. Maybe she was just imagining that he ignored her.
"Sure sis. So Matt look, about the payment, I left Abi's number with Karen so call her. Thanks, bye!" And with that he was out.
"Yeah, just call me, I will deal with that," Abigail confirmed, apparently not very happy with it.
"See you later," she decided to greet them before following her brother out. Although she wanted to ease the awkwardness, she just made it worse. 'See you later? Did I say that out loud to a blind guy? Jesus, what's wrong with me?'
XxX
"Matt, buddy, what's wrong? You acted so weird, man," Foggy asked him curious. Matt was always polite to their customers. Especially to those who were going to pay them with real money instead of cakes. Now, he was polite, but Foggy could tell the difference in his attitude. He was borderline cold towards that woman. Short answers weren't abnormal but there was something more behind this.
"It was her." Matt said in a sad voice.
"What? You mean Abigail?" Foggy was now puzzled. He figured it concerned Abigail but was she who he thought she was? Foggy needed a clarification.
"Yes. She is my soulmate and she doesn't remember it." Matt said after a small pause. He couldn't tell her. As long as he was running around in a costume, catching bad people. They could hurt her because of him. He wouldn't be able to live with losing another person. Matt couldn't afford to have a relationship. If something were to happen... he couldn't take it. She was better off without him.
The fact that she didn't remember their meeting was playing in his cards but he was still disappointed. He wanted to be with her so badly. He simply couldn't, Matt decided. He was determined to avoid her at all cost. She couldn't remember. He would suffer but it was better than hurting and disappointing her. Abigail would never want a vigilante, someone who enjoyed beating bad guys till they were bloody.
This is a two-shot. Also it's AU so here, Foggy already knows about Matt being Daredevil and he had already come to terms with it. Just so you know, reviews are highly appreciated ;)
