DISCLAIMER: I own nothing!
"What do you mean?" Amber asked, sad to see his eyes full of such pain "What happened to you?"
"It was about a year and a half ago" he said, turning away from her "My adopted mother tried to kill me when she saw my power. She called me a monster. She was all I had after my biological father murdered my real mother and sold me to my uncle. She was the only one in the world who loved me. It hurt me to hear her throwing that word around at me."
"I'm so sorry, Sylar" she said, moving closer to reach out to touch him. "I didn't know"
He turned around, the pain in his eyes replaced by fathomless darkness. He allowed her to touch him, seemingly feeling comfortable with her hands cradling his face.
"Please, Amber" he said simply, sighing "My real name is Gabriel...Gabriel Gray...I adopted the nickname Sylar from the watch I always wear."
"Gabriel is a nice name" Amber said, blushing "It suits you"
He glowered momentarily at her.
"I didn't mean to insult you, Gabriel" she apologized, forcing him to look into her eyes "It's just that I've always liked that name...even if it's shortened to Gabri"
His ears perked up to her mention of 'Gabri'.
"I rather like that" he murmured, looking at her with a tender expression. "It doesn't make me feel like such a monster"
"Oh I'm so glad" Amber said, smiling for the first time that day "I'll call you Gabri from now on"
Sylar flashed a devastating smile before leaning down to kiss her...
... Noah Bennett cursed, looking at the photos of the recent murder scenes in Memphis and Austin. The style of execution bore Sylar's unique signature, making matters worse.
"Why can't I get the edge on that elusive bastard?" He hissed, throwing a paperweight against the wall of his study in his Costa Verde residence. For nearly two years, Sylar was the proverbial thorn in Noah's side, practically taunting him with all of the murders popping up all over the place.
"Dad?" a familiar voice called from behind him. Noah turned around to see his daughter Claire standing in the doorway, looking concerned.
"Hi, Claire Bear" he sighed, sinking into his chair "How was your day?"
Claire groaned, recalling working at the comic book store. She tossed her long blonde hair behind her shoulder in frustration, sitting on the edge of the desk.
"I don't know why I decided to take this job" she whined, her green eyes full of annoyance "Every single nerd that comes into the store has hit on me at least ten times since I began working there. Maybe this was a bad idea"
"Now, now" Noah chided her, giving her a look "It's just a bunch of boys who would rather spend their free time ogling Wonder Woman's outfit than getting to know real girls like you. I feel better knowing they're the ones after you instead of bastards like Sylar"
"Too true" Claire sighed, smiling at her adopted father "How's the pursuit going?"
"Don't remind me" Noah groaned, rolling his blue eyes while causing Claire to laugh at him. He realized how he just whined like her and laughed along with her before becoming serious.
"More murders, eh?" Claire said, understanding why Noah was so stressed "I don't even know what powers he has now. I prefer not to think of that monster, but I wish there was something I could do to help"
"You're helping a lot by not getting involved" Noah replied seriously, closing the file filled with the pictures from Memphis and Austin "I would rather see you grow up than be in grave danger all the time, Claire Bear"
With that, he reached out and hugged her, making the 18 year old feel more secure...but, as he embraced her, there was worry and fear in his eyes...
... "What would you like for breakfast, Gabri?" Amber asked, opening her refrigerator "I can make you pancakes or even waffles for that matter"
Sylar smiled, feeling more human than he had in the past few years. It was refreshing for him. Amber had called in to work, telling her employer what had happened the night before. He graciously gave her the rest of the week off to recuperate from her ordeal.
"Waffles sounds great" he replied, staring out into her living room at the two pianos. Amber took the ingredients out of the refrigerator and set them on the table.
"What are you looking at?" she asked curiously, going into the cupboard to take out the waffle iron and a mixing bowl.
"I was wondering why you have two pianos in the living room" Sylar replied, turning to face her "Who played the piano in your house?"
Amber's raging blush gave her away. Sylar smiled mischievously, advancing on her.
"How about you play for me while I make the waffles?" he suggested, smirking at her while she swallowed hard. "I'd love to hear it"
"I'm not that good...honestly" she blathered on "I screw up every time I play in front of people"
He pretended to pout, making her laugh.
"Alright!" she exclaimed, rolling her dark eyes "I don't think I'll ever be able to say no to that face...knock yourself out.
With that, she went into the other room.
As he prepared the mix for the waffles, she began to play 'Moonlight Sonata' by Beethoven, one of his favourite songs. At first, he thought someone had put a CD on, but he concentrated harder, hearing the pedals groan as she pressed down on them.
Smiling to himself, he finished mixing the batter and poured it into the waiting waffle iron. He used his telekinesis to heat the machine perfectly while he went into the living room to watch her play. He stood next to the piano, his eyes closed in a private thought when he heard her swear and play a wrong key. His eyes flew open to see her standing behind the piano bench, glaring at him.
"Gabri" she whined, making a face "You made me screw up"
"You were playing beautifully" he replied, moving towards her "It's one of my favourite pieces by Beethoven"
"Mine as well" she said, blushing as he took her hands and danced with her in a fast waltz around the room before letting her go to check on the waffles.
Moments later, he presented her with a fresh batch of impeccable waffles before joining her at the table. He watched her as she took the first bite.
"Wow, these are great" she said, after swallowing "You're a man of many talents for sure, Gabri"
He chuckled, flashing her another irresistible smile.
"I guess I will always surprise you" he said, his dark eyes sparkling mysteriously.