Read on, oh faithful ones...
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Chapter Fifty Six
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Nina talked to herself quietly, trying to work out her nerves as she paced. She wrung her hands together, shaking them out when she caught herself, then starting all over again a few seconds later.
"Mum? Are you all right?" Warren asked, setting his school bag down when he saw his mother pacing and muttering to herself.
Nina stopped short at his unexpected appearance, her hand pressed to her chest. "Super Jesus, Warren! You scared me!"
"Sorry. What's wrong?" he asked.
Nina sighed and started to pace again. "There's something I haven't told you about your father."
Her admission was completely unexpected and Warren went still at her words. "What about him?" he asked, his tone and words careful as he tried not to snap at his mother in mis-directed anger.
"When he was on trial, Barron didn't say a word. He was put on the stand, asked a million and one questions by both his lawyer and the Commander and Jetstream's lawyer, as well as the city's lawyer, but he didn't say a thing. As a result, he was found to be guilty and imprisoned. When that happened, Barron started talking again. Well, shouting, really."
"Okay?" Warren said in confusion, unsure how this related to anything.
Nina rubbed her temples and gestured to the lounge in front of her. "Could you sit down for a moment? I'm not saying this right, and I just... I need to say it right," she said.
Warren sat on the lounge, still confused, but mostly concerned about his mother. Since Nina had gone to get drunk at Frieda's, she'd been distant to everyone. It was as though she was thinking about something so constantly that she didn't have the ability to stay in the present for more than a few seconds at a time. She ate, drank, slept, and worked on autopilot, her mind caught up in whatever she was thinking about.
Warren had been concerned, but Frieda had promised that Nina was all right and trying to work through something, while Honey had said that Nina she just needed more time. He didn't know what she needed time for, nor what she was 'working through', but Warren had tried to give it to her the best he could, working as late as possible six nights a week at the Paper Lantern. He mostly came home to ensure that his mother had eaten and slept in her quasi-zombie state. She had eaten whatever he'd put in front of her, not even noticing that some of the fruit and vegetables weren't in season and Layla wasn't around.
"I heard you when you were talking with Layla the other day. About unjust systems, Jetstream and the Commander, all of that," Nina said, forcing herself to not wring her hands again.
"Oh." Warren was silent for a long moment - that conversation had been almost two weeks ago now, which showed just how out of it his mother had been - and then looked up at her. "You're comparing me to him?"
For a moment, all Nina could see was her baby boy, so angry and upset when yet another of his friends found out about his father being incarcerated and leaving him in the dirt, sometimes bloodied and bleeding. She cupped his cheeks, his skin hot against her fingers, and kissed his forehead, just as she had when he was six years old and crying because no one came to his birthday party.
"I'm sorry, baby. I'm fucking this all up. Words are hard," she added with a laugh, wet with tears and a lump in her throat.
"Mum, just... try. Please. You're freaking me out," Warren said, clutching at her hand and his eyes full of tears.
"Okay. Just bear with me, okay?" Nina said, her voice trembling as she tried to remember how to breathe. "When your father was found guilty by the jury, he said some things that were... practically what you said: the system was unjust, the jury was biased towards the Commander and Jetstream, and one day, they would fail and the world would fall to pieces as a result."
Warren froze, feeling like his power had snuffed out and his blood had turned to ice. The last two weeks suddenly made so much sense. "Mum... I... I didn't know. I swear, I didn't. I promise, I'm not like him. I'm not him; we're not going to end up like he did."
Nina looked up to the ceiling, tears falling down her cheeks with her motion. "I know, baby. You... you couldn't have known what he said. It was never in the court transcriptions, and I never told you. If Barron had told you in your yearly visits, well... You never mentioned it when we talked afterwards," she said, brushing his hair back from his face and seeing how upset he was, sniffling herself. "I still love you, you know that, right?"
Warren didn't look like he did know that, and Nina wished she was better at this sort of thing. She'd always tried to be open and welcoming, but even Nina knew that it was easier to control people's emotions than actually talk about them.
"When I heard you saying those things, I... I admit, I did think of Barron. It was a shock and a surprise, and I hadn't expected it. I thought... I thought I might've done something wrong, driven you away, or it was my fault somehow."
"No, you didn't. It wasn't your fault, Mum. It's my choice, my decision," Warren said firmly.
"I know that, baby. It's taken a while, but I do know that. You're not your father, you're not me, you're you and I recognise and love you for that," Nina promised firmly. "I may not be happy with this choice you've made, but I... shit, I can try to understand how and why you came to that decision, if you're willing to explain it to me."
Warren nodded. "I'll try. You're... you're not going to throw me out, or turn me into the Super Bureau?" he asked hesitantly.
"Why would I do that?"
He shrugged. "Seems like the thing parents do when their kids aren't good or meet their expectations, no matter how unrealistic they are in the first place."
Nina shook her head. "My parents threw me out when I decided to marry Barron; I wouldn't throw you out for doing something I wouldn't agree with. You're my baby, no matter how old you get, and I'll love you no matter what, okay?"
"Love you too, Mum."
"Good. Now, I'm an emotional mess right now, and you hardly feel any better," Nina said, stroking his hair gently. "So why don't we put the explanation on hold until Saturday? Gives us both time to emotionally prepare for more talking," she said with a teasing smile.
"All right. Thanks, Mum," Warren said, standing and pulling her into a warm hug.
Nina hugged him back tightly - just as tight as she'd hugged Barron before the Commander and Jetstream found them and had dragged her husband away in power-repressing cuffs - then pulled away with a smile and sniffle. "Get some sleep, okay? Don't forget to brush your teeth."
"You too," Warren said, kissing her cheek before leaving the lounge room.
Nina sighed, running a hand through her hair and hoping she'd done the right thing.
...
"Ready?" Layla asked Warren, smiling as she pressed a kiss to his cheek.
"Born ready, hippie."
"Good. Try not to destroy a wall this time," she teased.
"I make no promises," he said with a grin, kissing her once more before leaving their table in the cafeteria to go to where Will and Magenta were sitting with Larry, Ben, and Lisa. "Stronghold, can I talk to you?"
Will stared, his jaw hanging open. Warren's words seemed to filter through, and he closed his mouth with an audible click. "Uh... Yes."
"In private?" Warren added.
"Oh. Right. What about lunch?" Will said, looking to his tray.
"It won't take that long," he replied, rolling his eyes.
"Why can't you say it in front of all of us?" Ben asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Yeah, Peace, what do you have to say to Will that you can't say to all of us?" Larry echoed, brave while surrounded by his friends.
"Uh, they've kinda got a point," Will said, shrugging.
Warren had to remind himself of Layla's plan once more so he wouldn't set them all on fire. "I wanted to apologise for starting that fight with you. Sorry," he said, hoping he sounded sincere rather than teeth-gritting.
"Oh," Will said in surprise, his eyes darting around the table to his friends who were in similar states of shock. "I... accept your apology?"
"Great. Thanks, Stronghold," Warren said, turning and leaving before he did something stupid like throw Will through the cafeteria and off the school grounds.
It wasn't worth it; he could fly, Warren told himself, sitting beside Layla.
"How'd you go?" Layla asked, popping a cherry tomato in her mouth.
"I apologised, he accepted, I didn't set anyone on fire," Warren said, shrugging.
"They're all talking about it now," Donny said. "Lisa and Ben are suspicious, but Magenta will probably bring him around. Also, I regret you offering to toast people's food," he muttered, as the fifth student in the last ten minutes approached with their lunch and a dollar in hand.
Warren collected the dollar, shoved it in his pocket, and toasted their lunch until it was cooked through and the cheese was browned. The student thanked him brightly, grabbing their tray and leaving, eager to eat.
"I disagree," Ethan said, grinning. "If Warren continues at this rate of five students every ten minutes for the hour lunch break, he'll be working at thirty dollars per hour, which is one-hundred and fifty dollars per school week. Minimum wage is only seven dollars twenty-five an hour, which is thirty-six dollars and twenty-five cents for the same amount of work."
"What's that mean in English, popsicle?" Craig asked around a mouthful of his own toasted sandwich.
"It means Warren is making money at four-hundred and fourteen percent more than minimum wage."
"Four-hundred? Are you shitting me?" Adam asked, switching to his calculator on his phone. "Fucking hell, man. No one's gonna pay me to spit in their lunch."
Craig snorted a laugh and almost choked on his food.
"How much would people pay me to read their minds?" Donny mused.
"Their own? Not much," Zach said, then grinned broadly. "But other people's? That's how to get business."
"That's an invasion of privacy," Wendy said.
Zach shrugged. "I'm the ideas man, not the 'work out everything after the idea' man."
"Obviously," Wendy said, rolling her eyes.
"What if you offer to find out if people's crushes like them? Someone mentions their name, you get a specific thought about that person."
"Still an invasion of privacy, Craig."
"He's a mind reader!"
"Someone's coming," Donny muttered, causing both of them to go quiet.
Another student approached with a dollar and their lunch. Warren finished his mouthful and lit his hand up.
"Swap puddings, Wendy?" Adam asked, holding out his vanilla one.
Wendy considered it for a moment, then shrugged. "Yeah, all right. Why don't you just get the one you like?" she asked, handing over her chocolate pudding.
"Faster to get whatever's at the front," Adam said, already peeling the lid off.
"What if we all get the same flavour and you don't like it?" Ethan asked curiously.
"Then someone else gets two puddings."
"What's your favourite flavour?" Zach asked, taking a large bite of his sandwich.
"Chocolate; it's the one you keep swapping for, right?" Craig asked Adam, who nodded, his mouth full.
Warren handed the student's lunch back to them, the student thanking him gratefully.
"Are you getting tired?" Layla asked, finishing the last of her salad and sipping at her water.
"It's not much power, it's mostly concentration so I don't burn the food. Also, I'm fucking hungry," Warren said, half of his food still on his tray.
"Someone else is coming, you'd better eat fast," Donny said.
Warren managed another three bites.
"Maybe we should limit it to fifteen people so you actually have time to eat?" Ethan suggested.
"I don't think it's fair to limit the amount of people. Time limits, however, are usually more acceptable to people," Donny added.
"How about the first twenty minutes of lunch and the last ten for the overlapping group? It isn't the four-hundred percent, but you'd at least get time to eat," Layla said.
Another three students lined up and waited while Warren finished the first student's lunch. He finished about five minutes later, shaking out his smoking hand before picking up his fork to eat. "Fine by me. The next person can wait 'til I'm finished," he said around a mouthful.
"You'll get indigestion if you keep eating at that rate. We've got Save the Citizen practice after lunch," Wendy reminded him.
Warren sighed heavily at the reminder, but slowed his pace anyway. "Adam, can Layla and I get encrypted file documents? Or whatever they need to be secure?"
"Uh, sure. When do you need them by?" Adam asked.
"What are they for?" Donny asked, curious when Warren purposely didn't think about the reason.
"You'll find out later," Layla said, then smiled at an upcoming student. "Would you like Warren to heat your lunch, Robin?"
"Yes, please," they replied. "I didn't realise it was a dollar though, so I've only got spare change. I can bring the rest in tomorrow!" they promised, showing Layla a handful of coins.
"Ethan'll be handling that. Can you follow up with Robin tomorrow?" Warren asked him.
"No problem. I'll need a new notebook. I'll be right back," Ethan said, rushing from the cafeteria as fast as he could while not technically running.
"Thanks, Warren," Robin said with a smile.
He finished another mouthful of food, nodded, and lit his hand up. "How hot do you like your food?"
"Not too hot; I've got an assignment to finish, so I want to shovel it in and get to work," Robin said, their smile fading.
"What assignment are you doing?" Layla asked.
"Two-page report on the Spinner Sisters; Media for Heroes," Robin added.
"I remember doing that in my freshman year. Don't forget to mention the bug spray company's advertising and marketing after the Spinner Sisters were captured; that's just as important as the news reports," Wendy added.
"Oh, I didn't even think of that; thank you!" Robin said. They thanked Warren for heating their food and left their coins on the table for when Ethan returned, hurrying off to eat so they could continue with their assignment.
"That was very nice of you, Wendy. Are you feeling all right?" Zach asked, grinning at her.
"I thought that's what we were doing? Nice but evil?" she added, looking to Layla and Warren. "Right?"
"Exactly. Helping with assignments would only be beneficial if we did well."
"That's me out," Zach said.
"Me too. Until next year," Craig said with a shrug.
"Sorry, I had trouble finding a notebook I hadn't written in already," Ethan said, returning to the table with a notebook, ruler, and pen in hand. "What did I miss?" he asked, opening to a new page and creating careful columns: date, name, amount paid, amount owed, paid.
"Discussing helping students to help our image. What d'you need the date for?" Zach asked, sucking through his straw noisily.
"It's easier to keep track of when people have or haven't paid. If someone tries to use Warren's services every day, but doesn't pay, then there's evidence of when and how much they own. Helping students how?" Ethan asked, writing down Robin's name carefully.
"Tips for past assignments, apparently," Donny replied.
"I was thinking about offering tutoring next year."
"How?" Craig groaned. "If you're getting by on, like, two hours of sleep or something, I'll hate you forever."
Ethan laughed and shook his head, then adjusted his glasses. "No, but I have a very strict and detailed timetable. I can work in an hour a day for tutoring. For the right price, of course."
"Eth's even got our make-out sessions on his timetable," Zach said absent-mindedly, trying to get the very last drop out of his juice box.
"Dude, really?" Craig asked, frowning.
"I like the anticipation," Ethan said with a slight shrug.
"What about spontaneity?" Wendy asked.
"Eth doesn't like surprises," Zach said, sucking on the straw one last time before setting the empty box down. "It's what we like, so why're you all bothered by it?"
"I'm not bothered by it," Adam said.
"Neither am I," Layla said, smiling.
"I don't care," Warren said, finishing his last mouthful and setting his fork down with a sigh. "What're you going to tutor people in, popsicle?"
"I was thinking of English and Science. It depends on my final scores; I wouldn't want to offer a sub-par service."
"You've got nothing to worry about; in fact, I'm surprised you haven't been bumped up a grade yet."
Ethan shrugged. "It was offered, but it would have been the middle of the year and I would have had to deal with far too much stress to catch up to the rest of the students. I'm not scheduled for a mental breakdown until senior year."
"Wait, what? You've scheduled that in?" Craig asked incredulously.
Ethan's lips twitched in a smile, then he broke out into a hearty laugh, much to the surprise of the occupants of the surrounding tables.
"Oh, you little shit! I'm never going to believe anything you say ever again," Craig groaned, throwing his empty pudding container at Ethan.
Zach swatted the container away before it hit his boyfriend, looking so ridiculously happy that Ethan was laughing.
"Uh, excuse me, Warren? Could you heat my lunch, please?" Cassie asked, her voice barely heard over Ethan's laughter and the cafeteria noise in general.
"Sure, you've got a dollar?" he asked.
Cassie nodded and set the dollar down, a bright pink lipstick mark on it. She held out her tray, a stubborn pout on her bright pink lips. Warren's sudden disgust and shock swirled on Layla's wrist, and Warren tried to scoot back as far away from Cassie as possible.
"Hippie, help me," Warren said urgently.
"Oh, sweetheart. Come on, why don't we have a talk while Warren's heating your lunch?" Layla suggested, standing and guiding Cassie out of the cafeteria without letting her protest, Cassie's cheeks turning bright pink.
"I'm not missing this," Wendy muttered, almost running after them.
"Aw, man. I want to know what they're gonna say," Zach pouted.
"Don't suggest it, it's creepy as fuck," Donny said to Craig.
"I was just going to say bathroom walls are... wait, yeah, I just heard it. Creepy," Craig said, pulling a face at himself. "Thanks, dude."
In the girl's bathroom, Cassie was gathering her courage and bracing herself for a fight. Layla remembered the listening bug in the bathroom wall too late to go elsewhere without seeming suspicious. She smiled at Cassie briefly, Warren's feelings still spinning wildly on her wrist. Wendy practically burst into the bathroom, flushing slightly when they both looked to her.
"Sorry. Really need to pee," she lied, going to a stall and locking the door behind her.
Layla wanted to roll her eyes at the obvious lie, but focused her attention on Cassie instead. She had no idea how she wanted to handle this, or even how to handle it in the first place, but Layla remembered Gwen's biting remarks at Will's party and knew how she didn't want to handle Cassie's emotions. "So, how long have you felt this way about Warren?" she asked.
Cassie opened and closed her mouth a few times, surprised at the question. "I... uh, a month?"
"So, around the time the bus thing happened?"
"Well, yeah. But it's not because of that! It's because he's... well," Cassie trailed off, realising that Layla was actually Warren's girlfriend.
"Go on, I don't mind. It'll be between you and me," Layla said with a smile.
Wendy's snort of laughter was quickly covered up by the noisy rolling of toilet paper.
"And Wendy," Layla muttered to herself.
Cassie flushed pink again, but seemed relieved that Layla wasn't laughing or stringing her up to the ceiling by a vine, and it bolstered her courage. "Warren's nice, but only when he thinks people aren't looking. I look, so I notice, and I... I think he'll be an amazing Hero. He's also really hot."
Layla smiled at that. "Yes, he certainly is. Now, you realise that Warren is dating me?"
Cassie deflated slightly at that. "Well, yeah, but... he's a guy. My sister said that guys don't, y'know, stay faithful for long once they've gotten what they wanted."
"Bullshit," Wendy coughed from the cubicle.
"Does Warren seem like the kind of person who would be unfaithful?" Layla asked.
Cassie deflated completely then, her shoulders low and scuffing her foot on the tiles. "No, he doesn't. He looks at you sometimes, when you're not looking. It's like... like, you made the world turn just for him. I just thought it'd be nice if he looked at me like that," she said.
Layla was surprised to hear that about Warren, but tried not to smile too much. "I am sorry, Cassie, but Warren and I are happily dating and he has no interest in you beyond a fellow student here at Sky High," she said, trying to be firm and kind at the same time, not wanting Cassie to leave thinking there'd be a chance that she would ever end up with Warren.
"The attention you're giving him is actually very embarrassing for Warren. He's shy, quiet, and too polite to want to embarrass you in response."
Cassie's jaw dropped. "I didn't... I didn't think of that. I didn't mean to embarrass him!"
"I know that, Cassie, and so does Warren. It's flattering that you like him, but Warren doesn't feel the same way. If he wasn't heating your lunch, he'd say that for himself," Layla added, not wanting to sound as though she was putting words in her boyfriend's mouth. "You're an amazing sidekick, and your future Hero would be lucky to have you, but Warren won't be that for you either," she said.
Cassie turned away abruptly, tears filling her eyes. She saw her reflection in the mirror, her skin blotchy and eyes puffy, and winced at the sight as though seeing herself for the first time.
"It's all right, sweetheart. He's your first unrequited crush; you've got nothing to be upset or ashamed about, okay? You're handling this very well," Layla added with a smile. "Now, how about Wendy helps you clean up your makeup while I go see how your lunch is going, okay?"
Cassie sniffled and nodded, too embarrassed to meet Layla's eyes. "Thanks."
"Not a problem, sweetheart," Layla said, leaving the bathroom to return to the cafeteria.
Wendy made a show of flushing the toilet, opening the cubicle door and moving to the basin to wash her hands. "Still have your lipstick on you, sweetie?" she asked Cassie with a wink as she dried off her hands.
Cassie nodded and tugged the small tube - borrowed from her sister - out of her pocket.
"This colour really suits you," Wendy said with a warm smile. "Now, first things first: wash your face and take a few deep breaths, okay? Warren's not the only super out there, and I'm sure that one day you'll find someone who looks at you like you made the world turn for them, too," she said, handing Cassie a paper towel to dry off her face gently.
By the time they finished, Layla was waiting outside of the bathroom with Cassie's tray in hand. "Would you like company?" she offered, handing the tray to her.
Cassie shook her head. "No, thank you. I... uh, thanks for not hating me."
Layla smiled brightly. "I wouldn't hate you for liking my boyfriend anymore than I'd hate myself for liking him. Here, this will last for the rest of the year if you put it in water when you get home," she said, growing a pink rose and placing it on Cassie's tray carefully.
Cassie almost started crying again, though she didn't really know why; maybe because Layla was being so nice about this whole thing?
"You'd better go eat before lunch ends. Come see me if you want to learn more about makeup, okay?" Wendy offered.
With a nod and smile, Cassie headed outside to eat her lunch and recover emotionally.
"How'd I go?" Layla asked as she headed into the cafeteria with Wendy.
"Well, she didn't cover you in a layer of bubblegum and stick you to the ceiling, you didn't bury her in a million plants, so overall, not bad."
"Thanks, Wendy."
"No problem," Wendy replied cheerfully, looping her arm with Layla's. "I'll swap out that dollar so Warren doesn't have a heart attack."
"I appreciate it. I honestly thought he was going to run through a wall to get away from it."
"He might've if you hadn't been sitting there," Wendy said with a snicker. "Have you said hello to Magenta yet?"
"Yes, this morning. I might try to catch her again this afternoon. Will you work on Lisa?"
"Happily," Wendy said, smiling.
...
"I don't know if this is useful, or even what you want, so just let me know if it's too much, okay? I can make it shorter, or change it, or just stop it completely," Ethan said nervously, handing a small stack of papers to both Warren and Layla.
"Let me start with the obvious, Popsicle: what is it?" Warren asked, flicking through the pages in confusion.
"A report on the money from Mr. Phillips," Ethan replied. "Not all of it was money; there were bonds and shares as well as an investment property."
"What?"
"Don't worry, it's already tenanted. They're long-term and there's a real estate handling most things, but I'm checking Mr. Phillips' email address regularly to make sure there's nothing out of the ordinary. The return's quite good, and a lot of repairs have already been made in the past two years, so there shouldn't be anything required for another three years, at least."
"Uh, okay. What's this on page three?" Layla asked, skim-reading the document.
"Oh, that's the uses we've set aside for the money. Adam wrote a program for me, so I can view anyone's bank account as long as I know their BSB and account number," Ethan said, grinning. "I'm saving mine; Craig and Zach are pooling theirs to buy a projector; Adam's spent it at the DMV; Wendy has saved half and used the other half for clothes; you two haven't used it yet," he listed.
"The DMV? I thought Adam was planning on saving it?"
"He doesn't even have a car, and I know it doesn't cost that much for a license."
Ethan shrugged. "I just wrote the report, I didn't follow up with him. I can, if you'd like?"
Warren and Layla glanced to each other, then both shook their heads.
"It's all right, Ethan; we'll talk to him," Layla said.
"Thanks for this. How often will you do this sort of thing?" Warren asked.
"Monthly works best; I can have it done by the 5th of each month after the banks and various institutions have sent their own reports in."
"That sounds great. Thank you," Layla said.
Ethan smiled broadly. "No problem."
Layla and Warren headed through the Hive to find where Adam had gone. As they passed the entertainment room, they heard Zach and Craig arguing about which projectors had the best quality. Wendy was Skyping Heidi in a room a few hives down, her hands working smoothly to translate her words. Donny was up in the forest, though he had promised to return in time for lunch.
"No, like this," Heidi said, repeating the ASL movement slowly for her.
"What are you planning on spending your money on, hippie?" Warren asked as they continued to look for Adam.
"I hadn't really thought about it; it's not a priority right now," Layla replied with a shrug. "What about you?"
"There's some new cookware I've been eyeing off; the pots and pans at home are old," he said. "Mum'll be suspicious if I go out and buy them without a reason or any supposed savings, so I'll have to think about that one."
"How about I get you a gift card for your birthday?" Layla suggested.
"That works, but it means I still have my money and you don't."
"You can buy me a gift card for my birthday then."
"Not the point, hippie," Warren said, shaking his head.
"Ah, there you are. Can we interrupt, Adam?" Layla asked, smiling when she saw him sitting at a desk, studying.
"Sure, I can use a break. What's up?"
"We'd like to talk to you about how you spent the money from Phillips."
Adam blinked and frowned. "We were allowed to spend it, right?"
"Oh, yes, definitely. It's your decision as to how and why you spend it, but Warren and I were a little concerned. We saw you spent it at the DMV, so we wanted to know if everything was all right?" Layla asked, her tone kind and non-judgemental.
"How'd you know I spent it there?"
"Ethan created a report so we could see all of Phillips' assets and what everyone was doing with the money," Layla said, showing him Ethan's report.
"You said you wanted to save it, so we're just asking, dude. You can tell us to fuck off," Warren added.
Adam felt embarrassment and shame building up in his body. "Fuck off," he said, his voice thick with emotion.
"All right. We'll be upstairs if you want to talk about it," Layla said easily, taking Warren's hand as they left to go to the kitchen.
Adam spat on Ethan's report, watching with vindictive pleasure as the paper was eaten up by his acid.
...
"Do you think Adam hates us now?" Layla asked with a sigh, leaning over to the window to pick a few lemons off the tree she'd grown outside.
"No idea; you'll have to ask Adam, not me," Warren said, kissing her cheek as he took the lemons from her hands. "I'll make lunch if you can get two zucchinis, an onion, and some garlic for me."
"What are you making?" she asked curiously, concentrating on creating the required vegetables in Eden's vegetable patch.
"It's a surprise," Warren replied, getting a pot out of the cupboard, putting the lemons on a chopping board and a zester from the drawer.
Curious, but willing to let Warren surprise her, Layla left the kitchen to go out and dig up the vegetables. By the time she returned, Adam was in the kitchen and Warren was lighting the stovetop to boil water and heat a frying pan with some oil covering the base.
"Are you upset with us, Adam?" Layla asked, setting the vegetables on the bench for Warren.
Adam licked his lips and shrugged. "Yeah, a little."
"Is it because we asked about the money?" Warren asked, washing the dirt off the vegetables.
"Yeah. You said we could spend it on whatever we wanted, then you asked me about what I spent it on. You didn't ask the others."
"We knew what they were buying already," Warren said, peeling and chopping the onion.
"Wendy sent me photos of the clothes she tried on in the dressing room, and we all knew about the projector. The last we heard from you was that you planned on saving the money, so we were surprised," Layla added.
"But, like we said: it's your money and you can do whatever you want with it," Warren said, crushing the garlic under the flat blade of his knife.
Layla and Adam both sat on the kitchen stools, watching Warren as he worked quickly and methodically. The water boiled, Warren adding a thick handful of dry spaghetti and stirring briefly to keep the strands separated. He grated both zucchini quickly, Layla taking a moment to appreciate her boyfriend's arms as he worked. Warren winked at her when he felt her desire spinning on his wrist.
"Don't worry, Adam; we won't ask again," he said, scooping the garlic and onion into the frying pan before sprinkling chilli flakes on top.
"I can never measure spaghetti properly; I always seems to make enough for ten people instead of one or two," Layla said, grinning.
"Spaghetti doubles in size, so you can measure out how much you'd normally eat, then half it. I know Frieda's got a set of kitchen scales," Warren added. "Otherwise, you can curve your pointer finger into your thumb, and that circle's about a serving," he said, demonstrating before moving back to the frying pan to stir the ingredients.
Adding the grated zucchini and lemon zest, Warren then halved the lemon and squeezed the juice into the pan as well. Testing the spaghetti, Warren drained the pot, stirred the ingredients in the frying pan once more, then added some salt and pepper before carefully tipping them into the pot, stirring it through the spaghetti.
"That smells amazing, Warren. I'll go get the others," Layla said, hopping off her stool and heading down into the Hive.
Adam was silent as he watched Warren serve up their lunch into seven bowls and open a drawer for cutlery. Rubbing his hands over his face, Adam sighed heavily. "My dad lost his job a few months ago. He's an architect, and one of his buildings collapsed after the Commander threw a car into it. He's been having a hard time getting anything permanent, my folks needed the money to pay the car registration, so I offered to help."
Warren nodded. "You didn't need to explain, Adam."
"Yeah, I know."
"Mind if I tell Layla?" Warren asked.
Adam shrugged. "Nah, go ahead. Just, later, when I'm not here? I don't want to be judged for it."
"Dude, no one's judging you. The Commander's fucked up so many things, I'm not surprised that he screwed up things for you too. But I'll tell Layla later," Warren promised.
"Thanks, man," Adam said, relieved at having someone to talk to about this. He grabbed the cutlery and his own bowl, taking it over to the dining table.
Donny came in from Eden, making sure to wipe the dirt off his shoes first. "Lunch smells good; what is it?" he asked, taking a bowl off the bench.
"Chilli, zucchini, and lemon pasta. Nothing major," Warren replied, taking three bowls to the table and returning for the last two.
"Free lunch, awesome!" Craig sang, sitting down next to Adam. He had a mouthful of spaghetti before the others had even sat down.
"Aren't you burning your mouth?" Wendy asked as she sat beside Donny.
Craig shook his head and grinned broadly as he swallowed. "Nah; I changed my mouth."
Wendy blinked, frowned, and then shook her head. "I don't want to know."
Craig snorted in amusement and took another bite. Ethan and Zach sat across from each other, Layla and Warren taking the seats at either end of the table.
"This is delicious, Warren. Can I get the recipe?" Layla asked, smiling at him.
"Sure."
"Me too," Zach said, swallowing fast and almost choking.
"You're going to choke to death one day," Wendy said, hitting his back to dislodge the food caught in his throat.
Zach coughed a few times, then shook his head and inhaled deeply when his throat was clear again. "Food won't betray me like that."
"Obviously," she said, rolling her eyes.
"I need you guys to help me," Warren said, twirling his spaghetti on his fork.
"What with?" Craig asked, frowning.
"I need to explain all of this to Mum. She overheard some things and kinda knows what's going on, but she wants a proper explanation," he replied.
The table fell to silence as they thought about the implications: Nina Peace, Baron Battle's ex-wife, had learnt that her son's views were more like Barron's than her own. It was every superhero parent's worst nightmare.
"Dude, how are you still alive? Or, y'know, not in Maxville Super Penitentiary?" Adam asked incredulously.
Warren shrugged. "I think Frieda helped her through it. Well, that, and my mother's super-amazing," he said with a grin when Zach snorted in amusement.
"If my folks found out, I might as well start digging my own grave," Craig said.
"What are you planning on doing when they do find out? This won't stay a secret forever," Wendy said, frowning at him.
"I'm burning that bridge when I get to it," he replied.
"We should focus on Warren's problem first," Layla said. "But we might find a solution for your parents as well, Craig," she added with a smile.
"All right. After lunch though. Can I go for seconds, dude?" Craig asked, trying to look over Warren's shoulder to the pot sitting on the kitchen bench.
"Go for it," Warren said with a nod, relief starting to untangle the knot in his stomach.
Warren just hoped that they'd all be able to come up with something that could convince his mother that he really wasn't like his father.
...
End of the fifty-sixth chapter.
Thanks for reading!
