Hey yo! So, another chapter, number three of six as I have decided, unless something comes up. Just wanted to let everybody know (again) there are two other stories/collections tied to this: "Old School", which is a prequel containing various historical goodies about Jinx and all her friends at the HIVE Academy, and "Jinxed For Life", which takes place after the Brotherhood of Evil incident, and follows Jinx as she learns/is forced to balance the Titans and the HIVE in her life. If you read all three of these, then you will never be confused about what is going on! (And if you review, I'll be encouraged to continue writing!) G'night everybody!

EDIT: Hey yo. Again. Just went through and fixed a couple typos. Probably not all of them, but oh well.


Chapter 3

Kid Flash's apartment was in a disgustingly nice neighborhood, with a doorman and people who said things like "Hello" and "Goodbye" on the elevator. There were very few flaws in the structure, except that it had the unfortunate tendency to make sense, which made Jinx very suspicious. Buildings were not supposed to make sense. They were supposed to make the least sense possible, to throw off would-be invaders and the like. Any building that made this much sense was just asking for it.

His actual space was made of three rooms: kitchen, living room, bed room. There was a small bathroom near it. The kitchen was stocked to overflowing, and the TV screen in the living room was strangely small compared to the mammoth sizes she was accustomed to her friends insisting they "purchase", so to speak.

He wanted her to have the bed.

"It's only right. I want you to be comfortable."

"And I don't want people getting funny ideas!" She snapped back.

"What's so funny? It's not like I'm in there with you."

"Repeat these words. "I slept in Kid Flash's bed." Just try saying them, out of context."

"I slept in…oh."

She nodded emphatically. "If I am indeed staying in this…facility, then I am sleeping on the couch."

He put up his hands in surrender. "Well, at least let me make you dinner."

"No thank you."

"Hey, come on. I'm a great cook, really."

"I'm tired," Jinx said quickly.

"But---" Something buzzed, and he pulled out a communicator. "Oh. Well, I have to go. Please don't mess up my place."

"Oh, you're funny! I like irony. Don't worry, house wrecking isn't one of my habits."

He blushed. "Look, um…I wanted to apologize about that. Your room. I don't usually just barge into people's rooms. I really try to respect people's privacy."

Jinx snorted, remembering the uncountable times she had found Elliot reclined on her bed, flipping through her old sketchbooks, acting like he owned the place.

"Well, help yourself to whatever you want," He said, gesturing around. "I'll be back soon."

He left. She nearly collapsed on the couch.

Never so tired in her life. Never so frustrated. Never so annoyed.

Never so confused.

"What was so bad about a hotel?" She asked no one.

This was the beginning of it. Staying over one night, accepting a free meal if she ever got hungry. Next he'd be referencing to it in public, and people would ask, "What were you doing last night?" Never mind whether or not she had been in his bed. You didn't have to get into somebody's bed to get fucked over.

She had come here because she was tired and fed up. There was no other explanation. She was tired, and getting a little desperate.

And it was admittedly nice talking to somebody with whom opinions had not been established in concrete. Opinions tended to be a group activity with the HIVE. All or nothing. It helped keep the peace, such as it was, if people just agreed on one train of thought that worked for everybody.

Kid Flash was kind of a wuss when it came to arguing, though. Nobody she knew would have given in that easily in any debate.

She tapped her bag with one foot. She should change. Wash her face, brush her hair. Set up shop…


It had been a small bank robbery. No notable villains, just regular guys in ski masks. It was all very old school and relaxed, like something off an old-time cop show, nothing too flashy. Kid Flash forced himself to patrol for a few more minutes before going home.

It had not, honestly, occurred to him that he was inviting a girl to stay at his place, and now that Jinx had brought that to his attention he was a little self-conscious. He had known that he was inviting a person-he-wanted-to-be-of-assistance-to, but gender had conveniently slipped his mind. He wondered if he was giving off weird signals. He wondered if she thought he was trying to get into her skirt.

He wondered if he had remembered to clean up the bathroom.

He zoomed in the door, and was very confused when he did not find her in the kitchen or the bathroom. He chanced a glance into his bed room, and was relieved when she wasn't there. Why wasn't his room clean? He wasn't usually a slob…or maybe what little mess there was there was just heightened by the presence of Girl in the vicinity.

Had she left? There was no noise in the house, not even…

Oh, there she was. Conked out on the couch, still dressed, still with a little makeup on. No blanket, no pillow. Had he told her where those were? Did he even have spares?

He did. He dug them out and covered her quickly. It was November, after all. How could she just fall asleep like that, when it wasn't even warm…?

Then again, how could she wear skirts and t-shirts when it was this cold?

At least she was sleeping now. She had looked so tired. Truth be told, there had been so little of the energy from before. It was scary, and a little bit disappointing. Maybe she would feel better in the morning.

He glanced at the clock. It was only eight. And with her sleeping, he couldn't even watch TV. In his own apartment. He sighed. Nobody had said it was going to be easy…

He would make pancakes in the morning. And they would talk about her plans, her future. She so obviously didn't have a clue as to what to do next. He could help with that. He would.

According to the note, he had had to leave earlier in the morning to take care of "business downtown". Jinx hoped it wasn't anybody she knew.

There was a stack of pancakes on the table, which, according to the note, were for her. She had nibbled on one. Kid Flash had not lied, he was a good cook.

But they weren't Montego's pancakes. They didn't have cinnamon in them.

It was so stupid that pancakes could make her nostalgic for the guys. She decided to take a shower.

In two seconds, Jinx was able to come to several conclusions.

One was that Kid Flash was very self conscious. There was no such thing as a guy's bathroom so clean as his. And he had had plenty of time to clean it last night. What time had she fallen asleep…?

Second, Kid Flash was incredibly vain. He had three different soaps on the rack, and various brands of shampoo and conditioner "arranged" on the counter. Either he was experimenting to see which one was best, or he was using them all, she couldn't tell. They were all half-empty.

One of them was Herbal Essences.

And so, her third conclusion was that Kid Flash was homosexual, or at least flirting with homosexuality. Or he was at least bisexual. He appreciated men. Something like that.

Well, whatever. Beggars couldn't choose their gay hosts.


The business downtown had taken longer than he had thought, so he rushed back to the building, straight up the stairs, into his apartment, and had shot into the bathroom and shot right back out when he realized that the water was running and Jinx was very naked.

In two seconds, Kid Flash was able to come to several conclusions.

One was that Jinx was not shy. She had not flinched at the intrusion (if she had noticed it; he was one of the fastest beings alive), and he could not hear any screaming or shouting or demands for an explanation. This was a big relief, since the situation was embarrassing enough.

Second was that Jinx had very beautiful, flawless skin. No spots or anything. It was rather pretty, glistening the way she had under the water…

The third was that Jinx was anorexic. She was ridiculously thin, and Kid Flash had been able to count her ribs (Twenty-four, naturally. Whoever had come up with that silly idea about women having more ribs than men was just an idiot). Her hip bones and shoulder blades stretched out her skin like…like…well, they did. And not only that, but she hadn't eaten the pancakes. And they were good pancakes.

Kid Flash was prepared to sit down and wait for her to come storming out of the bathroom when he heard an odd sound.

A blow-dryer.

She was blow-drying her hair. After he, a member of the male species, had, albeit accidently, taken a look at her in her naked glory. This wasn't typical female behavior, was it?

Five agonizing minutes later, she appeared, wrapped in one of his towels, which was sufficient for covering up your waist and the nether regions below, but barely covered her from the top of what should have been hidden to the bottom.

"Oh," She said, looking surprised. "Are you still here? You took off so quickly, I figured you had left again."

"I am so sorry about that," Kid Flash began quickly. "I didn't think---"

She giggled. "Calm down, it's fine."

He shook his head adamantly. "No, it's not! I just barged in---"

She snorted. "Big deal." His jaw dropped, and she snorted again. "What, you think you're the first boy to see me naked? I really don't care. It's not like there's much to see."

Was he supposed to say, "Oh yes there is, there is a lot to see, don't kid yourself, you're sexy!" Or was he supposed to say, "Quite right, I'm overreacting, let's forget about the whole thing!"?

"Look," She said, snapping suddenly. "I'm not a slut. But I've been living with boys long enough that I know not to get worked up about this stupid stuff, okay? If I had not learned how to deal with nudity and voyeurism by now, I would be a very pathetic person." She finger-combed her fluffy, freshly dried hair, succeeding in catching her fingers in new tangles. With a small snarl, she pulled her hand free. "Besides, what do you care?"

"It's embarrassing," He said lamely.

"Why?" She brushed past him and began picking clothes out of her bag. "You're gay, so whatever."

Gay?

What?

"Um, maybe I didn't hear you correctly."

She waved his comment away with her dainty little fingers. "Don't worry, I won't tell your fangirls."

"Tell them what?"

"That you are homosexual, or at least have some admiration for the same sex." She pulled out a pair of jeans and underwear, and began slipping them on under the towel. Blushing, Kid Flash looked away.

"How do you figure that, exactly?"

"Kid Flash, don't think you can play coy with me. I'm a girl. We invented coy."

"And what, exactly, have I done for you to think I am gay?"

She gave him a bored look over her shoulder. "You have a Herbal Essences product in your bathroom."

"Th-that was a sample! I can't help what people send to me!"

"Yeah, but you actually used some of it."

"Well, who am I to deny free samples?"

She rolled her eyes. "Keep telling yourself that. Besides, your bathroom is disgustingly clean."

"I cleaned it for you!"

"Really?" She wrinkled her nose. "Why?"

"Because you're a guest? Because it's polite? Because I was worried about your comfort?" He remembered just in time not to turn around, and gave the wall an exasperated look. "Are you dressed yet?"

He heard her chuckle pityingly. "Kid Flash, I have been living with boys for the last six years. I am well aware of the faults and virtues of the male species. I do not give a rat's ass if you see me naked, so turn around so we can talk for real."

"Does that mean you're dressed?"

"Nearly. You are such a prude."

"I was raised that way."

"Okay, I'm "decent". Turn around."

He did. She was wearing the jeans, and a plain black t-shirt, and was pulling out a sweater. She frowned. "This is not the sweater I thought I grabbed…is this even mine?"

It was a black hoodie with faded writing that Kid Flash couldn't read scribbled all over it. Jinx shrugged and pulled it on. Then she pulled out a bag of make up and a hand mirror and sat down to paint her face. Kid Flash decided to take a chance and just ask.

"While we're discussing strange habits and…assumptions, can I ask you something?"

"Yeah, sure," She said.

"Okay…how much do you normally eat?"

"Hm? Oh, the pancakes were good."

"That has nothing to do with the question," Kid Flash said, frowning. First sign: dodging questions. "And what do you mean they were good, you didn't even eat them."

"I ate one," She said, brushing foundation on. "And it was good."

"Okay, well, back to the question."

"I eat when I'm hungry."

"Which would be?"

She pulled out a stick of eyeliner. "I'm not following you."

"You weren't hungry last night. Unless you ate something else, and I will admit that I haven't checked my fridge yet, so you might have done that, but in the event you have not, you did not eat this morning. The last thing I saw you consume with my own eyes was a cup of tea, and that was in the very early afternoon."

She spared him a quick glance, which was now dark and kohl-lined. "I'm sorry, but I completely lost track of what you were saying in that one sentence."

"I haven't seen you eat solid food, Jinx." He sighed. "Look, I'm probably being really nosy, but…like, is there a problem? Are you…I don't know…"

"Anorexic?" She said sweetly, fluttering her eyelashes against her mascara brush. "Not to my knowledge."

Second sign: denial.

"Do you dislike food?"

"No," She said, now frowning. "I don't think so, anyway."

"Are you afraid of getting fat?"

"Not particularly. It's never happened."

"Well, maybe that's because you don't eat," He said sharply.

She smiled, the essence of patience, as she applied blush. "It's not as if I never eat."

"Well, you don't eat enough," Kid Flash raked a hand through his hair. "Look, half my job is being a freak about health, so sorry if I'm getting on your case."

"It's fine. I don't care."

"But why don't you eat? Don't you want to?"

She seemed to think about this seriously for a moment. Finally, she shrugged. "I don't know. It's food. You put it in your mouth. It's not that big of a deal." She puckered her lips for lipstick.

"Tell that to millions of kids starving in Africa."

She wagged a finger at him, blowing a kiss with her now-bright lips. "Oh, no you don't. I had teachers who pulled that same one on me."

"Maybe they were trying to tell you something."

"Maybe they were full of shit. Excuse me. Crap. Stuff? I don't know. What works with your language radar?"

"Stuff, thank you."

"You're kind of anal."

"You're kind of underweight." He was, as they say, losing it. More in sadness than anger, of course. Reel in, deep breaths. At least she was energetic now. He'd wanted that, hadn't he? Sort of. He had wanted that energy he saw during the heist, not…this.

Not that this was bad. It was actually kind of cute. Or it would have been, if they hadn't been talking about her diet.

She stood, pushing something into her pocket. Lipstick or something, no doubt. "Well, see you later."

"Are you going somewhere?"

"No, I thought I would get dressed and mettrais le maquillage just to look nice for you," She rolled her eyes. "That means put on make up. It was also a hint, though I'm sure you have no idea for what. Yes, Kid Flash, I am exercising my right as a human and going somewhere." She pulled out a rubber band and tied back her hair. "So, au revoir."

"What time will you be back?"

She put a hand on her hip and pouted at him. "Are you setting a curfew?"

"I'm usually in bed by ten or so. I thought you might want to know that, since the door will be locked."

She gasped mockingly and put a dainty hand over her heart. "The door will be locked? Oh, heavens, whatever shall I do?" She smirked. "Pardon my French, but a retarded three-year-old could get through your door. Thank goodness I'm a big girl."

"Could have fooled me," He said, shrugging carelessly. "You sure don't weigh as much as one."

As he watched her leave with a wiggle and a wave, he finally noticed that she wasn't wearing boots, just plain black flats. She was oddly short without them. Definitely a lot cuter.

He shook his head. Nobody had said it was going to be easy…


So much better to be out of his place. So much more room to be angry and spiteful and violent.

She took the stairs, the better to pound out her anger without blowing something up. Her ears were ringing so much she was afraid the drums might pop.

Small wonder he had been fine to talk to yesterday; she had been tired. Being tired was like being drunk; you couldn't control your thought process. But not today. Today she was in control, and she realized that this gaynosynerdbastard was not worth the effort of taking seriously.

"I cleaned it for YOU!"

"Further proof that you are GAY. You GAY RETARD."

"I don't usually just barge into people's rooms."

"PEOPLE'S rooms. Obviously I don't count! Obviously it's fine for you to play Room Raiders with MY things, with my...!"

"Why don't you eat?"

"Because I want to be a swimsuit model one day! Because I'm a dancer, didn't you know dancers don't eat? Because I think it would just make me PRETTIER, it'd just FIX the damn skin and hair, don't you think?

"Because my best friend is scared of food, and I feel like a jerk stuffing my face in front of him..."

She missed a step on the stairs and barely caught herself. She sat like that, arm hooked over the banister, for how long she didn't know, gasping for breath and making claws in the air.

Her teachers had used that Africa line. It had been like a double blow, or ironic or whatever, since Seymour was black.

And her things were still back at that guy's place. What had she been thinking?

She looked down at her feet and groaned. She had been in such a hurry to get away from him that she hadn't even put on boots. She hated being short in public. Nobody took short punk girls seriously.

Sometimes she felt like nobody took her seriously if she wasn't wearing those boots.

She hauled herself up to standing and continued downward, calmer now. She would walk it off. Then she would go back later tonight, take her things, and leave. She would leave town, in fact, hitchike to Orange County or San Francisco. There had been a kid at HIVE from San Francisco, and he'd been cute. No one would guess she was there. It would take a hell of a lot of hitchiking, not to mention beating off gross truck drivers, and worrying that somehow, in his strain of miracle-working, Kid Flash would figure out where she was going and suddenly show up...

But nobody had said it was going to be easy.