fandomenforcer: Allen Evans is the son of Ebon, whose real name is Ivan Evans. If I ever write a sequel to Healing Earth, I'll explain how that happened.
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It was a warm, sunny afternoon in Dakota as Francis and Katrina ate lunch at Burger Fool. The two sat across from each other at a table by the window. They were chatting, joking, smiling, and laughing as they ate their meals.
The couple had been dating for several months and they both couldn't be happier. They were currently on a date, and though it wasn't the most expensive date neither cared. Katrina was not a materialistic, demanding, or spoiled girl by any means and was always fine with wherever they went on their dates. Francis didn't care one way or the other where they went or what they did as long as Katrina enjoyed herself. The two were just happy being in the others presence.
When they were almost finished their meals, Francis, still grinning, stood from the table. Katrina glanced up at him questioningly, pausing in her chewing.
"I'm going to the bathroom." he told her, "I have something to show you when I get back."
She watched him for a moment as he walked away before turning her eyes to the window. Her expression was one of contentment as she gazed outside, a red and blue butterfly fluttering passed the window.
"So, you're Hotstreak's new girlfriend. You don't seem so special to me."
Katrina, curious but calm, turned her head to the owner of the female voice. There, standing a few inches from the table, was a girl about her age chewing bubble gum with her mouth open, something Katrina found rather obnoxious.
The girl was lightly tanned with long, golden blond hair tied back in a ponytail. Dark brown eyes were narrowed at Katrina, hot pink lips curled in a nasty sneer on her rather beautiful face. She was thin, with curves that most girls would kill for.
She wore a pink tank top that, in Katrina's opinion, was too small for her as her rather large bust looked like it would spill out. A black mini skirt that also looked to small dropped to just above mid thigh. She wore black high heel boots that laced up in the front and reached a few inches above her ankles.
Katrina stared into the her eyes, completely unaffected by her attempt to intimidate her. The healer paused, unsure of what to make of the girl.
"I am his girlfriend." she finally answered, "And not to be rude, but I don't particularly care about what you think of me."
She chuckled, as though she was amused by Katrina's response. "Is that so?" she asked, almost mockingly, "My name is Amber. I'm Hotstreak's ex-girlfriend."
"One of his ex-girlfriends." she corrected mentally. In all honesty, Katrina wasn't surprised. Francis had had many girlfriends before her and he had been up front with her about it when they started dating.
"You're... Katarina, right?"
The healer narrowed her eyes, getting the feeling that Amber had gotten her name wrong on purpose. "Katrina, actually."
"Yeah, whatever." She sat on the edge of the table, crossing one leg over the other and looking all together pompous. "Has he told you about me?"
"No." she replied immediately. Francis never talked about any of his ex-girlfriends.
Amber's face dropped before she smiled coyly. "Really?" she pressed, feigning innocence, "He didn't tell you how he spent the most time with me? He didn't tell you how after he broke up with a girl he'd come back to me?" She paused, taking a moment to enjoy the anger that was slowly brewing in Katrina's blue eyes.
Amber then leaned in close to her ear, "Did he tell you about all the times I slept with him? How I made him feel all better?"
Katrina flushed angrily as the blond moved away, much to Amber's delight.
"What do you want?" Katrina demanded icily, "Or are you just here to make a nuisance of yourself?"
"I want Hotstreak back."
"Hotstreak." Katrina absently noted, "Not Francis."
Francis only let the people he liked and trusted to call him by his actual name. So far that was only her and Officer Gore.
"Francis decided that he wanted to date me, so I'm afraid you're out of luck."
Amber smirked, blowing a bubble and popping it. "Yeah, but for how long?" she inquired, "In case you haven't noticed, you're not exactly his type."
"What we have is real." Katrina states with a piercing glare, her temper rising.
"Sure." she mocked, "Until he gets you in bed and tosses you aside. That's what he really wants from you."
A loud "smack" resounded through the restaurant, drawing the attention of both the staff and the other customers to the table. Katrina was on her feet, fury burning brightly in her blue irises, her hand still raised in the air. Amber just gawked at her, stunned, a red mark developing on her cheek.
"The fact that you even suggested that proves that you don't know Francis at all." she said, her words dripping with acid, "The reason that I'm dating him and you're not is because you never even bothered to learn anything about him."
Just as Katrina began walking away from the table, as she was too angry to stay and knew it, Francis returned. He took one good look at the scene and immediately got a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach as he caught sight of Amber.
He knew that in the past he had dates some pretty bad girls, but Amber was, by far, the worst. The blond loved causing trouble and judging by the expression on Katrina's face, she already had.
Francis went to Katrina as she made her way to the exit, causing her to bump into him. "Babe..."
Katrina looked at him, just looked at him, and he fell silent. The look in her eyes told him that she was angry and hurt and wouldn't speak to him. Katrina didn't trust herself to speak when she was as angry as she was, fearing that she'd only say something that would hurt them both.
She lingered for a few seconds, trying to calm herself down in what she knew was a futile attempt. When she didn't succeed, she simply brushed past Francis and left.
The pyro watched his girlfriend retreat with guilt and sadness in his eyes, mentally kicking himself for not being there when she really needed him.
"Oh, Hotstreak!"
Francis almost cringed upon hearing Amber's voice.
Amber bounded up to him, paying the fact that he wasn't looking at her no mind, "Oh, Hotstreak, it's been so long! I'm so happy to see you again! Why don't you ditch that nasty girl and come back to me? We'll have fun just like we used to!"
In Amber's deluded little mind, she had envisioned Hotstreak coming to his senses, dumping his girlfriend, and come crawling back to her.
What she hadn't expected was for the bang baby to turn to her with rage and disgust etched into his features. He then, in a tone that would make Ebon piss himself, demanded, "What did you do?"
.:Line Break:.
Though her anger had diminished by the time she was safely in her bedroom, Katrina still found herself reflecting on Amber's words.
Katrina knew that Francis was a very attractive guy. He was handsome and sweet in his own way. He was muscular and strong. All things that most girls loved. Knowing this, it came as no surprise to her that Francis had had so many girlfriends.
After they had started dating, they had even run into a few of them. Some were nasty to Katrina and wanted Francis back, to which he replied that there was no way in hell he'd even consider dating them again. Others congratulated them and praised Katrina on her ability to make Francis go straight. The personalities of the girls were vastly different, but they all had a few common features.
Katrina wasn't blind nor was she stupid, she had noticed Francis' "type", as Amber put it. The physical features of the girls were always the same. Curvy, busty, blond, and beautiful. Though she hadn't let it show, the pattern bothered Katrina considerably.
Katrina, self-consciously, glanced at the full length mirror that sat in her bedroom. Her curves were subtle, her bust size was smaller than average, and her hair was brown. As for looks, Katrina never felt that her appearance was anything to brag about. She had never seen herself as pretty, but she never thought of herself as ugly either. She supposed that she was somewhere in between. A face that blended in with the crowd.
Sighing at the depressing turn her thoughts had taken, Katrina turned from the mirror and flopped face first on her bed. Pulling the covers over her head, she rolled over to lay on her side. She closed her eyes and tried to will her thoughts to go away.
All of a sudden, Katrina heard a "thump" on her window, causing her to jump. She then heard the window slide open, followed by the male voice that caused her to relax.
"You know, for a girl who likes gardening so much, you really spend a lot of time in your room."
Katrina smiled wryly as she heard Francis close the window. "I always felt safe in my room, under the covers." she mumbled, feeling the bed dip beside her, "I know it's stupid. It's not like they can protect me from anything. I just... feel safe."
She felt his hand on her head, the warmth from his skin seeping through the blanket. "... She doesn't mean anything to me, you know." he said quietly, trying to reassure her, "She never really cared about me and I told her off after you left. She won't be bothering us again."
Katrina nodded absently and, though he couldn't see her face, he could sense that something was still bothering her.
"What did she say to you?"
For a while, she was silent, fidgeting under the blankets. "She said... that I wasn't your type."
"That's stupid." he scoffed, "I don't have a type."
"Oh?" Katrina shot up, blankets falling off, startling her boyfriend with the sudden movement. "Don't you? Haven't you noticed the pattern?"
The questioning look she received told her that he was truly clueless. She took it as a sign to continue.
"They're all blond with nice curves and large..." Katrina, flustered, awkwardly gestured to her chest. Francis bit back a laugh. "And they're all really beautiful." she finished, her voice softer than usual, "They... I look nothing like them..."
"You don't think you're beautiful?" he asked incredulously.
She stared down at her hands and shrugged, "I don't exactly stand out in a crowd."
"Really?" he chuckled, amused, "Do you remember how we met?"
Katrina nodded, tilting her head in confusion. It was a stupid question, they had met less than a year ago.
"What happened?"
"You threw Richie against a locker." she deadpanned.
"Yeah, okay. After that." he said, rolling his eyes, "After your sister threw her book and Foley ran away."
"You were looking through the crowd for the person who threw the book."
"And who did I pull out of the crowd?" he asked with a growing smirk.
"... Me."
He nodded, grinning, "I don't know if you realized it, but Frieda had been standing pretty close to you at the time. Do you know why I chose you?"
She shook her head, feeling shy all of a sudden.
"It's 'cause I thought you were beautiful."
Embarrassed, she blushed deeply. Francis laughed at her reaction good-naturedly, giving her a chaste kiss on the lips. Then, he pulled a folded up piece of paper out of his pocket and silently handed it to her.
"What is this?" she asked.
"Just read it."
Katrina stared, then unfolded the paper. "Dear Mr. Stone," she began reading aloud, "as your doctor it is my pleasure to inform you that the results on your tests came back negative. You have no sexually transmitted diseases..." She stopped, rereading the words before gaping at Francis.
She knew that he had slept with many girls. She had once, a few months ago, expressed her concern that he should probably get tested in case he managed to get something. At the time, he had only grunted in acknowledgement. She didn't think that he had actually been listening.
"You... actually did this?"
He nodded, grin gone. "I did it to prove to you that I'm serious about this, about us."
It struck her, Amber was wrong. True, Katrina had known she was wrong, but Francis just proved it. She was more than just another conquest to him. She mattered.
Katrina threw her arms around Francis' neck, grinning widely. As her boyfriend wrapped his arms around her, she thought about how lucky she was to have Francis in her life. And in the back of her mind, she almost felt sorry for Amber. Almost.
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I always imagined that Francis would have a lot of ex-girlfriends, so that's where this idea came from. Please let me know what you think.
