A/N: well, hello again! I figured I'd post a few more chapters.
Oh, to answer your question, DemonRogue13. Ray left the institute when he was seventeen, a year after I finished GoM. And he's 26 now, so that means... [Counts out on fingers]... almost a decade. Damn, that's a long time...
Oh, the Disclaimer: I do not own anything
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Chapter two: Let's Talk Over Lunch
Ray groaned as the alarm went off at 7 AM. Slamming his hand over the Brookstone torture device, he opened his eyes to be greeted by the sun- stricken building across from his apartment complex in upper Manhattan. He got up eventually, shuffling over to the bathroom to relieve himself. He flushed the commode, and washed his hands. He then went to the sitting room, where he found a copy of the Times already on the coffee table. Plopping down on the over-stuffed white couch, Ray picked it up, and took the remote in his hands. He turned the TV on, to find the news in progress.
"And in other news," the newscaster began, an almost horse-faced man with black hair and dark blue eyes; "Two days ago, Detective Donald Reggins, of the forty-second precinct, was found brutally beaten just within a block of the station. Police have labeled the attack as an assault, not a mugging as it was led to be. Reggins' badge and wallet were mailed to the precinct later that day, from an anonymous sender. Reggins had no recollection of how he became badly beaten; only that he was leaving for work and was knocked out. He was also found to have been electrocuted, suffering from second-degree burns. If you have any information on this attack, you are advised to call the forty-second precinct..."
Ray muted the TV as the phone rang, and looked over to the kitchen counter some twenty feet away, across the two steps leading to the dining room and then the kitchen itself. Holding his hand out, Ray produced to bolts of electricity; the bolts coursed through his hand, and then shot out towards the phone. Picking the handheld up off the receiver, the bolts coursed back over to Ray, going back into his system and leaving the phone in his hand.
Ray answered it; "Hello," he asked, getting up and walking over to the large bay windows overlooking the street below and the harbor.
"Ray?" it was Roberto; "You watchin' the news, man?"
"Yeah, Sunspot, I was," Ray replied, running a hand through his hair as he watched the busy streets fifteen stories below; "Man, I only jolted 'im!"
"Second-degree burns, Ray; that was more 'n a 'jolt'," Roberto retorted. "Look, Sober Joey wants to have lunch at Bicarde's, again. You in?"
"That Greek place?" Ray asked, turning and walking into the kitchen.
"Um, think so. Anyway, I closed the office today, and all my shops are clear. I'm sendin' ya those stock statistics, and then some other tidbits of information..."
"Mmm hmm," Ray said as he opened up a cabinet and pulled out his favorite cereal, Lucky Charms. He began pouring them into a bowl.
"Man, you still eatin' those things?" Roberto asked, hearing the cereal through the phone.
"Hearts, stars and horseshoes, clovers and blue moons," Ray said, smiling as he poured the milk in.
"You are sad," Roberto sighed.
"And a loser, don't forget that," Ray said, taking the bowl and a spoon and going back to his office. He got onto his computer; "Soon's I get a few things sorted out, I'm gonna check out an act for the club, then I'll meet you guys for lunch. What time, anyway?"
"Oh, eleven thirty. Don't be late, Joey seemed excited about something."
"Oh joy," Ray said sarcastically.
"Yeah, same here. Well, gotta go, see ya."
"Yeah, Later."
Ray hung up, and began working. Yes, working on a Saturday. I am sad, Ray thought, laughing inwardly as he smiled at the sight of his stocks. All were up, there was money in all of his accounts at the bank, the businesses were booming. For a kid starting out with nothing but a hundred bucks in his pocket and a mutation, he was doing pretty well.
About an hour later, after sorting files and making appointments and making phone calls, Ray got into the shower. He then got dressed, simple pair of blue jeans, white tank top, light blue shirt left unbuttoned over that, and then his white Adidas. Ray quickly put on his watch, belt to hold up the jeans, and then chose a simply trucker hat. He then ran and got his cellphone, put it in his pocket, put his dishes in the sink, turned the TV off, ran back to brush his teeth, then grabbed his sunglasses and shoulder bag as he left, locking his apartment closed behind him.
Ray ran down the hall for the sheer heck of sliding along the floor, only passing one other door. He owned most of the fifteenth floor, the only other person being a Miss Deon, who only held a little bit of the fifteenth four her second floor to her apartment. Ray slid into the elevator as the door opened.
"I swear, sometimes I wonder if there's just a twelve year old livin' on this floor," the bellboy, Max, said as he helped Ray up and closed the elevator doors.
"Jus' enjoyin' life," Ray said, dusting himself off and putting the shoulder-pack over his shoulder; "So, how's it, Max?"
"Fine, Mista Crisp, doin' fine," Max replied as the elevator made its descent; "Got ta see a Braves Game last night."
"Oh yeah, heard about them playing," Ray said, "Who won?"
"The Braves," Max regarded with a smile of pride. The aging man was a loyal fan, Ray had won tickets once and made the guy's life when he gave them to Max.
The elevator finally stopped, and Ray got off at the first floor; "See ya later, Max!" Ray said with a smile as he went on to his business.
"You too, Mista Crisp, and watch now! Dey just waxed the floors!"
Ray laughed quietly as he left the apartment building, coming out onto the busy sidewalk. Sighing when he heard the familiar beat to "Where da Hook Gonna Be" by Murphy Lee and the vibration form his pocket, Ray answered his phone.
"Talk to me," He said as he went down to the subways.
"Yo, Ray? It's Justin."
"Timberlake?"
"You're a riot," came the sarcastic reply; "Eh, still taking the subway? I thought you were a millionaire."
"Reliving college," Ray said as he boarded the subway that would take him to his destination; "So, what's wrong?"
"Now why would you just assume that every time I call something goes wrong?"
"Because that's just the facts of life," Ray said blatantly.
"Okay, you're right. The act, that was supposed to come by, can't, and the band we booked for Friday can't come either."
"So, call Diane up and just get another band," Ray said as he got off the subway and went into the mob of people to get to the stairs.
"Diane's on vacation, you let her have the two weeks, remember?"
"Ah that's right," Ray said, groaning; "Damn... okay, just... leave it to me, okay?"
"You're the boss..."
"Yeah, noted," Ray said, coming to the crowded sidewalk above; "Look, love to chat but I've gotta get goin'," Ray said; "Anything comes up, tell me. Got it?"
"Yes sir, Mister Crisp."
Ray hung up, pocketing his Cellphone. He crossed the street, nearly got hit by a cab, got in a fight with an Italian at the newspaper stand, gave up, and continued on his way, mumbling about not getting his daily Sport's Illustrated. Grumbling still, Ray walked into the record company, and new one simply called J Records. Well, it wasn't that new, but the building was, so consider it new.
Ray went to the front desk, where the receptionist looked at him; "Can I help you?" she asked, a little too snidely for Ray's liking.
"Yes, um, Charlotte," Ray said, looking at her name tag. He took his hat off; "The name's Ray Crisp, and I'm here looking for your boss, Daniel Andersoll. Is he here, or should I just wonder around the city 'til I find him?" he smirked a charming smirk he knew would give him some slack with the woman.
The receptionist smiled; "One moment, sir," she said, picking up a phone.
Ray turned and leaned against the desk, watching the few people that came and went. A few minutes, maybe two, had passed, then the receptionist rose and tapped Ray on the shoulder.
Ray turned, seeing she was now righting out some sort of pass; "Mister Andersoll is waiting on the third floor, second door to the right," she smiled as she handed the pass to Ray; "If your stopped by security, just show them this."
"Thank you," Ray said, scanning the pass. He smiled to the woman again, then went to the elevator. He caught it, and road to the third floor, getting off and finding himself in another waiting hall-type place. There were four doors, two to sound booths, and two were offices.
Of course, Ray went to the one on the left.
Ray didn't bother knocking, he just opened the door. He was greeted by a man about thirty-eight years old, who had black hair pulled back into a small pony tail and his near-onyx eyes glittering with enthusiasm. The man's clothing was sharp, yet casual, befitting in his line of work.
"Ray!" Daniel said, smiling as he and Ray shook hands; "Long time no see, kid, how are ya? Come on, pop a squat," he added as he moved to sit behind his desk.
Ray smiled and shut the door, coming to sit in one of the leather seats facing the desk.
"So, what can I do for ya?" Daniel asked, the smile seemingly plastered on his face.
"Just here on business," Ray said, "I need an act, particularly that guy Gavin DeGraw you were telling me about."
"Gavin? Really?" Daniel asked, pushing his chair back to retrieve a folder from a drawer. He set the packet on his desk, and began going through it; "Guess this is for your club this weekend, right?" he asked, looking up at Ray briefly.
Ray nodded; "You know it," he said with a slight smirk; "His singles are popular, 'specially that one song 'I don't wanna be'. That was a hit when the DJ played it."
Daniel nodded; "I'll have to call him up, but there's a good chance he'll be in town anyway. How much you willin' to pay, though?" Daniel asked, looking at Ray.
"Ten for comin' and playin', then a fat bonus if the show's good," Ray said, "Deal?"
"Of course!" Daniel said, that smile seeming to get even bigger, if it were at all possible.
Ray knew he paid high, and as he left the record company, he wondered if it was a bad thing. But a hefty tip always kept good ties, and he figured he could get anybody if he wanted to. Yep, livin' large was a good thing, especially if you could afford it.
Ray made his way down the street. Glancing at his phone, he saw it was nearly noon, and he picked up his pace as he went towards the restaurant. Bicarde's was now in sight, the restaurant boasting a patio with black tables and vines making their ways around the small iron spade-tipped fence gating the restaurant in. it was actually two stories, and was pretty popular. The food was excellent, in any case.
Ray walked through the small open part, but was stopped by a waiter. The apathetic man looked Ray up and down before letting out an aristocratic "humph".
"Are you meeting a party, sir?" he asked.
"Yes," Ray said, "Inside, and on the second floor. Mister Joseph Valerio, to be exact. I'm sure he's been by."
The waiter seemed slightly worried as he replied; "Of course. Follow me, sir."
As the waiter led Ray inside and up the steps, he couldn't help but think /Power is the almost the best thing.../ but at that thought, his heart gave a weak pang of emotion. Ray willed it down. His emotions weren't going to get in the way again.
Ray saw that Roberto was already there, seated on the opposite side of Joey at a table near the windows. It seemed like a reserved spot; they always ended up eating here. The two were talking good-naturedly, but when Ray sat down, the conversation ended.
"Sorry if I'm late," Ray said, "Stupid foot traffic is unbearable."
"So, get a cab," Joey said.
Just then, the waitress walked up, a leggy blonde with big brown eyes. /Oh yeah, that hair's as natural as Enron was trustworthy/ Ray thought.
"Hi cutie!" she said, smiling; "I'm Anne, and I'm you're waitress. Could I get you anything?" she asked, studying Ray. /he's is a cutie/ she thought to herself /Hmm... I wonder if he's single!/
"Um, water, please," Ray said, uneasy under the blonde's gaze.
Anne smiled, and walked off. Ray sighed, and looked over at his friends. Joey was holding back laughter, while Roberto was close to gagging it seemed he was so disgusted.
"What?" Ray asked, picking up a menu.
"She was ogling you, man!" Joey finally managed, his face breaking out into a grin; "She wanted you so bad!"
"Slut," Roberto muttered, looking over his own menu.
"Ah, come on!" Joey said; "That chick was nice! And seriously, RAY, I've never seen you with someone! What, are you keeping something from us?" he added suspiciously.
"No, Joey," Ray said, seeing Roberto glance over at him out of the corner of his eyes. Ray sighed; "I'm just waiting for the right one to come along."
Joey rolled his eyes; "You say that every time we try to hook you up," he said casually; "That's actually why I called this get together, to be frank and to the point."
/Oh no, he's getting business-like/ Roberto thought /Damn, Ray'll snap if he goes into that neck of the woods again.../ the Brazilian silently sat back to watch the happenings.
Ray sat the menu down, a solid, silent action that brought on more quiet and tension. Ray looked at Joey; "Joey," he said slowly; "We agreed about you and your 'date choices' for me."
"Look, I could care less if you just pick up a hooker off of Thirtieth and Rose," Joey said; "Pops is throwing some party, for all his business associates and stuff. Don't worry; you guys are getting invites as we speak. But he wants everyone to come with a partner."
"Janette's comin' up," Roberto said with a small smile at the thought of his girlfriend; "all the way from Brazil."
"Well, you're taken care of, then," Joey said; "but seriously, Ray, pops is even worried 'bout cha. He thinks you're queer, I think," he mused.
"And he knows I'm not," Ray said, his hand clenching into a fist underneath the table as he tried to stay calm; "Let me try to explain. I know who I'm supposed to be with, I'm just waiting..."
"You've been waiting for years, Ray!" Joey said; "you've been feeding me that bull for as long as I've known ya!"
"That's that truth, and that's all I can give you!" Ray said loudly, getting up. Grabbing his bag, he shoulder it, looked at Roberto briefly, then left.
Joey and Roberto watched him depart in silence; "Alright, De Costa," Joey said; "Spill. Now."
"I gotta know you won't tell a soul, Joey," Roberto said quietly, "Not a word outside this."
"I swear on my name," Joey said; "Come on, Roberto, I'm seriously worried about him. He's a brother, that alone gives me reason."
Roberto sighed; "Look, Ray got extremely close to this girl in high school. You know how we are... you know..." he coughed; "And, they went through everything, from the government finding us out to Apocalypse. I swear, Joey, they were meant to be together. That soul mate stuff, hell they were the living examples! Imagine being so close to someone, you felt connected. Ray and this chick were connected, we came to find out; "he took a long sip of his water.
"How?!" Joey asked. He'd always been fascinated by mutants, every aspect.
Roberto shrugged; "We're not quite sure," he said, "Our teacher thought that, 'cause of this girl's powers, she also had a little bit of a psychic ability. We went with that. Too bad though, Ray only found out after she left."
"Left?" Joey repeated. HE was hanging off every word now.
"Yeah," Roberto said, nodding; "About three months after Apocalypse, she left. Didn't say why, just did. Ray said she was feeling guilty, she thought she was a burden."
"Wait," Joey said; "There was a girl who got kidnapped from your team, right? Didn't the bad guy like, mess with her mind?" Roberto nodded; "Ray fell for her? Keep goin'!"
Roberto nodded again; "Yeah," he said, "She was messed up, it was slow goin' healin' wise. But, she made it, Ray was with her all the way. He matured like hell, it was scary. One of our teacher's was sayin' that he went from sixteen to thirty in seven a second, like a mustang convertible. Anyway, we all thought she was fine, the school was rebuilt, everything was back on stable ground. For the most part," he paused, looking at the table; "then, she just left. Ororo, she was kinda like our surrogate mom, 'specially for her, was shattered. Our teacher had her go on vacation, but she came up here to visit her family. We've all tried lookin' for her. Ororo said that she had a friend who lived here, in New York City, but it just got bigger and bigger the more we tried.
"Ray couldn't take it, so he moved up here. I couldn't stand the institute anymore, either, but it was go to Brazil, hell no to that. So... I followed him up."
"How old were you guys when this happened?" Joey asked.
Roberto was silent again, looking out the window as memory plagued him; "I was about sixteen, Ray was almost eighteen," he said finally, sighing as he looked at his glass of water; "Ray and me... we split the rent for an apartment. Ray was interested in stocks, and he had a knack for business, so we both bought stocks, hit it big, and started up a few companies. During college, Ray opened up his club, and I bought those businesses. By the time I graduated, we were both pretty loaded. You know, after all of this shit and all this time... he's still looking for her?" he finished, shaking his head with a weak smirk; "I don't blame him... she was somethin'..."
"You think... maybe she doesn't wanna be found?" Joey asked quietly, a little stunned by the story.
Roberto shook his head; "Guilt drove her away," he said, "Ray's bound and be damned if he let's her go."
"I could help, ya know," Joey said, and at this, Roberto looked up; "Yeah, got connections all over the city. Give me her name, I can find her."
Roberto shook his head again; "We think she changed it," Roberto, "That, or she's got everything on hide-away 'cause the government knows about her," he sighed; "This is Ray's hope, Joey, that he'll find her, and everything will be alright. He's blind, she won't be the same. Not after all this time," he shook his head; "Great, now I'm fucking depressed," he muttered, sighing angrily as his fist came into contact with the table. Roberto rubbed his eyes.
"Easy, man," Joey said, "Don't want folks thinkin' your insane here."
"Maybe I am..." Roberto muttered.
"How?"
"... I thought we'd find her by now, too."
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A/N; there ya go, chapter # 2. that should explain some stuff. please review. Remember, this is EXPERIMENTAL. i might not continue