DISCLAIMER: I own nothing.
... Sighing, Amber bent down to pick up her clipboard. Regaining her composure, she turned around to face Jason, her ex of 6 months.
"What are you doing here?" she hissed, glaring at the semi-gorgeous blonde man in front of her "I told you it's over. I don't want to see you around here anymore"
"Why do you have to bust my balls like that?" he demanded, his cerulean eyes flashing angrily with a slight glimmer of hurt "It's a free country. I can come and go as I please"
"If I didn't know any better, I think you've been stalking me" she hissed "Don't think I didn't see you drive by my house last night. Or following me at the mall yesterday afternoon"
"You're my girl" he said menacingly, grabbing her arm "It's my business to know what you are doing and who you're seeing"
"You are a psycho" she hissed, wrenching her arm from his grasp "Like I said earlier, it's over...I don't want you to come near me ever again"
"We'll see about that" Jason growled, gritting his teeth as he lunged at her...
... Sylar walked into the store, eagerly anticipating his rendezvous with Amber. As he smoothed his midnight hair back, he chuckled to himself, thinking that Amber was becoming quite the obsession with him.
While she was slaving away at work, he managed to find two people on his list and stole their powers...a pretty little stay-at-home mom in Memphis who could communicate with machines and a hapless lad in Austin who could turn his skin into an impenetrable shield of titanium. If only Nathan Petrelli and his team of grunts could see how stronger he was now.
As he entered the store, his chuckles and smirk came to an abrupt stop when he spotted her. A younger man who looked like he had more biceps than brains seemed to be harassing her. Sylar hissed, his eyes narrowing.
"Nobody can go near her" he hissed to himself, approaching them stealthily like a tiger on the prowl "She is my toy"
As he passed a couple of aisles, he heard the argument escalate. The Neanderthal had the nerve to grab her arm and terrorize her...the display made him sick to his stomach, something he rarely felt towards people.
"Well well" he drawled, standing behind Amber "What have we here?"
"Sylar" Amber exclaimed, grateful for the intrusion.
"Who is this wimp?" the blond hulk demanded, tightening his grip on her arm, causing her to drop her clipboard. Sylar's eyes widened in anger as his fingers itched to throw the jerk across the room. Being territorial was his nature, especially when desired powers were in the mix.
"I'm her boyfriend" Sylar hissed, hoping Amber wasn't dumb enough to contradict him "You have no business touching or even hurting her now. She is mine"
With that, he fixed the boy with a dark glare, causing him to relinquish his grip on her arm.
"N..no trouble, man" the boy stammered, backing away "I was..just leaving...Amber, this isn't over"
He fixed her with an icy stare before hastily leaving the store...
Amber stood there, rubbing her arm while sighing with relief. She thanked her lucky stars that Sylar had come in at the right time. He turned to her, concern in his fathomless eyes.
"Are you alright?" he asked, his hand on her shoulder "I hope he didn't hurt you"
"I'm fine" she said, bending down to pick up the clipboard "I'm grateful for your intrusion"
"It's no problem" he replied, cupping her chin with his hand "I'm glad I came here at the right time"
With that, he flashed her a devastating smile, causing her to blush and look away.
"So what brings you here?" she mumbled, resuming her cycle count "I thought you were just pulling my leg when you said you'd like to visit"
"Amber" he cajoled her, pretending to be hurt "What would make you think I'd be so insincere?"
She turned and stuck her tongue out at him before glancing at her watch. It was time for Jarett to go home.
"My other associate is leaving for the night" she murmured before walking to the cash register desk. "If you want to hang around, you need to behave yourself"
"Who, me?" he asked, teasing her "I'll be your bodyguard tonight"
Rolling her eyes, she went to relieve the young boy behind the counter...
... Sylar watched Amber work with a sense of amusement. The store was suffering from a lack of customers at that hour, so he decided to amuse himself while he waited for Amber to finish her shift. While she was engrossed in a sales report, he used his powers to make the pens on the counter float in the air.
"I saw that", she mumbled, looking up sharply at him before laughing at the sheepish look on his face.
"I couldn't help myself" he said, hanging his head like a little boy "As much as I enjoy looking at you, I need to keep myself occupied"
"Okay then" she relented "If you're going to use your powers, how about you put away the returned movies?"
"Done" he replied, flashing his trademark smirk whilst waving his fingers. In an instant, all of the returned movies were put away in their proper places.
"Gee" she joked, putting the finished paperwork away "Maybe you should work here"
"Maybe" he said cryptically, as she closed the cash registers so that she could count them "Shall I lock the door?"
"Please" she said, taking the cash trays into the office "I'll be just a few minutes"
Using his powers, Sylar locked the doors and shut off the televisions in the store as well as the open sign. After that, he perched himself on the counter, waiting patiently for Amber to finish her counts.
Not even 5 minutes later, she emerged from the office with her belongings.
"Stay still" she instructed him "I have to set the alarm"
He dutifully remained still as she punched in the alarm code. As it was armed, he hopped off the counter and encircled his arms around her.
"Wanna see something cool?" he murmured, smiling mischievously.
Before Amber could protest, she found herself outside with him, the doors securely locked as the alarm armed the store.
"How did you do that?" she asked, in disbelief as he let go of her.
"I have many talents" he said, smirking at her. She sighed, rolling her eyes...
... 'Just when I think I have him figured out, he surprises me' Amber thought, holding back her laughter 'Gee, maybe he is meant to be my boyfriend'
Sylar moved closer to her, running his fingers through her hair. She closed her eyes as his lips met hers in a soft kiss. Before she could wrap her arms around him, she heard a grunt. Her eyes flew open as she saw Sylar fall to the ground, unconscious.
"Sylar" she gasped, bending down to check on him. Before she could get closer, she was grabbed from behind.
"Hello babes" Jason's menacing voice greeted her from behind. He turned her around roughly so she could face him.
"Jason, no" she said before he gave her a backhanded slap to the face. He grabbed her by the hair, pulling hard.
"Do you think you can make a fool out of me?" he snarled, his spittle landing on her face "You're mine, not the property of this pathetic excuse for a man"
"I hate you" she yelled, tears of fear streaming down her cheeks "You're a monster, Jason."
"SHUT UP" he snarled, hitting her again. Amber cried out, holding her bruised cheek.
"Sylar" she sobbed, looking at the spot where he fell. Much to her chagrin, he wasn't there.
Suddenly, she felt Jason rip away from her with tremendous force and she fell to the ground in shock.
Sylar stood there, using his powers to pin Jason to the wall, preparing to cut Jason's head off in his usual manner.
"Sylar" Amber called out, slowly standing up. She caught his attention briefly, lowering his guard for the moment.
Soon, the echo of a gunshot filled the air. Sylar slumped to the ground, bleeding as Amber screamed.
Jason stood behind him, pointing the gun at his head.
"Jason...NO" Amber screamed, causing Jason to aim the gun at her.
"Sorry, babes" he said, smiling cruelly "If I can't have you, nobody else should"
Amber stood there, not knowing what to do. Her anger rose, consuming her with hatred. She felt her power manifest in a different way that she hadn't felt before...
... Sylar slowly edged up, watching the bullet fall out of the wound in his shoulder. He glared at Jason, livid at the fact that the boy had the audacity to shoot him. A low growl escaped his throat as he summoned the electical charge he acquired from Elle, creating a massive ball of energy. Before he could hurl it at the distracted boy, a flash of orange caught his eye and the ground began to shake.
Stunned, he lost his concentration, looking in the direction of the abnormal glow to see it was coming from Amber. Her eyes glowed a fiery orange as she summoned a massive ball of energy resembling a solar flare. Soon, she yelled out a war cry as she hurled the solar flare at Jason, who had no time to react before being consumed by her attack. He cried out helplessly, dropping the gun to shield his eyes.
Amber fell to the ground, barely conscious as Jason was burned to a crisp. Amazed by her prowess, Sylar rushed up to her fallen form, cradling her body.
"Wh...what happened?" she asked weakly, a small rivulet of blood trickling out of her nose.
"Your power came out in its full entirety" Sylar replied, still amazed by her. She nodded weakly, falling into unconsciousness. He picked her up, using his ability to unlock and open her car. He gently put her in the passenger seat, as well as her belongings before getting into the driver's side. Holding the steering wheel, he used his teleportation ability to make the car appear on Amber's driveway.
He sat there momentarily, looking at her. Sure, he was able to live as a murderous monster...but, he was not used to people saving his life, especially if it wasn't in danger. A long dormant emotion stirred within him as he sat there.
'Well, well' he thought, a small smile creeping across his face 'What have we here, Sylar? Could it be that she is more useful than anticipated?'
A small part of him reacted to his manipulative thought...almost like his conscience.
'She's special' his conscience-like inner voice said 'Her benefit might not be the one you're expecting. Do not string her along'
Before the rest of his thoughts conflicted with the last one, he got out of the car and immediately went to the passenger side to pick up Amber's unconscious body. Carrying her and using his telekinesis to close and lock the car, he focused on the inside of her bedroom and teleported them inside...