A/N: Hey guys! Finally had time to type up another chapter! Theres like three notebooks then the rest is in email form sooooooooooooooo that will be a easier to edit and upload. What's sad for me though is right now we are... 4 years from the point you are reading now and I want to share it with you now AND I CAN'T! TT^TT Ahh well, guess you guys will have to wait. Anyways ENJOY!

Chapter 3: Seriously?!

Ah, the back alleys of the big city. Perfect running ground for homeless and mugger alike. But Zane was neither. At the moment he was the victim of his own subconscious desire for being a vigilante. Or he might just be looking for something to beat up to distract from his daily migraine.

Despite the smoking, the rockstar was pretty fast. His "other talents" allowed him to use sound waves to host his footsteps from the impact of stepping. When fast enough, Zane had the potential to not even touch the ground. Judging by the words echoing to his ears, Zane knew it was some hack-job mugging. But the victim was overpowered, probably more from shock.

The red-haired rockstar rounded a corner and let out a sharp "Hey," a sound that made the windows rattle. The scruffy mugger, a thirty-something year old had teenage girl pinned to the wall. Not much of a threat, looking as though he had a broke bottle or something as a weapon, but Zane couldn't care less. Opression…control…holding hostage life in exchange for profit… none of it laid right with him.

The mugger slurred a warning but Zane didn't care as she started towards the predator.

Rhyan continued her night, only obtaining meager tips from the A-List celebrities that pulled in hundreds to thousands an hour.

While cleaning a spill at the bar, Cami skipped through, bumping her hip against Rhyan's/ Ryan smiled as the bar began to slow down, very rare for such a large party.

"Sooooooo…." Cami sang as she dropped some empty glasses into the dish bin, "Who was that guy?" Rhyan raised an eyebrow, not understanding, "The guy you went off with on your break.

Ryan bit the corner of her lip. She didn't know that Cami had seen the encounter. Rhyan continued cleaning, "Zane Cooper…"

Cami froze, causing Rhyan to look up at her, "Zane Cooper?" Rhyan nodded slowly, "The Zane Cooper?" Rhyan rolled her eyes as she lifted the dish bin and walked back into the kitchen.

"Why did you go out back with him?" Rhyan could hear Cami's voice getting higher with excitement for the rockstar began to show. Rhyan shrugged as she emptied the bin into the sink, "What…?" Cami moved closer to Rhyan, lowering her voice as she looked over her shoulder, "What did you guys do back here?"

Rhyan threw the last dish into the sink and whipped around at Cami, "Seriously?! Cami we smoked a butt, then he went out the back door. He was trying to get away from some fangirls or something and there weren't anymore V.I.P. rooms, ok?" Rhyan turned and stormed back out front leaving Cami stunned in the kitchen.

Ok, maybe Rhyan overreacted a bit, but she couldn't afford to have anyone so close to her, in any way. She feared being pulled into the fray of the mutant war that went unnoticed by so many. And the fact that she couldn't have anyone get close to her made her… Bitter.

Rhyan continued her routine of closing down the bar, dividing up tips, and flipping chairs. Then collecting her belongings she began the trek home.

Zane handled the situations easier. Mugger down and a crying girl clinging to his chest with a splitting headache. Better than a split face. Sure… he was a mutant. But to this victim, he was a savior. All it took was a snap o this fingers, a bit of mental preparation, and a harnessed sound wave to know the guy flat on his ass. Humans really did have weak ears.

"Ok, ok…" He did his best to pry the girl loose when sirens pictured up. Th girl crumbled, hopefully she was too hysterical to recognize her hero. Zane took the opportunity to slip away through the maze of alleys back to where his limo was probably still waiting, thinking he was still partying. This led him right back to a familiar face.

Rhyan walked down the alley behind the bar, throwing the trash into the dumpster on her way out. It was the same alley Zane had disappeared down hours ago. What was it about this guy. He was… different. He intrigued her in in a way many hadn't. Most times she would encounter someone, perhaps share a simple conversation, and by the end of the day, the person was forgotten. But Zane Cooper had remained on her mind the rest of the night, a constant pondering as she closed down the club.

'Trying a little hard don't ya think?'

Rhyan thought about his words. There wasn't any way he could know who she was. She had taken too many measures to be sure she was truly disguised, even her movements were well planned to hide her true identity. He must have been talking about her job, and her horrible flirting techniques.

Rhyan rolled her eyes at herself as she slipped off her black stilettos. Dress code required at least a two inch heel, but Rhyan as so short she normally wore four or five inch. It was alway a constant joke from customers if she could even see over the counter. The joke got old quick.

Something in the air changed. It may have been a smell on the wind or the slightest of sounds, but Rhyan sensed someone behind, and quickly closing in. She could feel them lift their hand to grab her shoulder. Turning quickly, she brought her elbow up. Her arm collided with the side of the unknown assailant's face. In her next move, she dropped, swinging her leg, sweeping them off their feet and onto their front. It wasn't until she pulled their arm behind their back, pushing her knee between their shoulder blades that she saw the burgundy hair of the rock star who'd given her a cigarette not too long ago.

Speak of the devil…

"Why are you following me? What do you know about me?" She growled in a deathly whisper.

Zane would have to admit he was surprised. He hadn't sparred in quite a while. His glasses shot off his face and the pain in his jaw was sudden and throbbing. The ground was grimy and wet upon having his face shoved into it. He could only hope it was just a puddle.

Her knee in his back pressed on his lungs and heart, no doubt she would feel the tremors emit from them as soon as he is surprise turned to anger. Zane propped himself up with his left arm. He turned his colorless eyes on her with a furrowed brow, "Seriously?!"

He let out an irritated breath, the ground shaking very slightly. It was more noticeable by the rattling dumpster as the lid slammed as it came loose from it's prop.

Rhyan felt the tremors beneath her. She didn't flinch or loose focus when the dumpster slammed shut, the noise echoing off the concrete walls. She repositioned her knee, pressing him flat against the alley again.

She knew it. She fucking knew it. There was something up with him and a reason why he was here, "Don't fucking toy with me." She pressed harder into his back watching his fingers flex in pain, "What do you want with me?!"

She pulled his arm higher at such an awkward angle that he groaned, "What are you?"

"No different than you… In a manner of speaking." Zane gritted his teeth, this chick was heavier than she looked. Stronger too, "You want to back off? I don't want anything from you." In truth, Zane was kind of in the mood to ask questions only from past phases of paranoia.

Finally, the weight on his back was enough. His fingers, flexed up in agony, flattened down suddenly and a massive invisible eruption came from the impact. Concrete cracked like an anvil cracked into it from ten stories up. The ground sunk under Zane but the sonic force cast the Rhyan back, at least off him long enough to roll to the side and jump up. Ok, s he had moves but they probably didn't hold a candle to the bartender. This time it was a more noticeable display of power.

"We don't have to keep going… unless you want to draw more attention. I'm very good at it…" His hand was up in front of him as a motion of calm truce but Zane was ready for a fight if she was.

Rhyan looked at his hand, then back up at his face. She raised and eyebrow, her knees bent, a stance ready for anything he was ready to throw her way. She flexed her fingers a small flame appearing and dancing between her fingers.

"You try my patience, rock star… If you want nothing to do with me, why were you waiting for me?"

Zane's eyes didn't fall to the flame, but he knew it was there. Sighing he lowered his hand, "Forget it. I wasn't waiting for you. I'm just parked over here."He might have fanned the flame with his remark but his patience was wearing thin as well. He paid no attention to Rhyan's strength and flames. He sighed again as he turned again and started walking off to the side toward the street.

"You try so damn hard to fit in, don't you…? Why bother? In the end people only care if you're useful to them. With power like that, someone will come after you…. and if you're going over something like this? Your showmanship needs work."

It wasn't until he said it that Rhyan realized her pyrokienetics had made an appearance. Her emotions played a huge role in her powers, anger being the most prevalent. Rhyan did not take her eyes of off Zane as he turned from her and made his way back to the main street.

Rhyan turned her stance, her eyes narrowing. The way he just began to walk away, she had moved back to the defensive, "Can you blame me for being defensive?" He stopped, turning back to her, "Even you are hiding… In plain sight." Rhyan stood up straight, crossing her arms over her chest, the move intended to display strength, but instead exuded vulnerability as she glanced away, "Horrible things happen to us everyday. A few months ago I read about a girl who died because her brother was a mutant, and she couldn't get the treatment she needed because their first concern was confirming if she was one or not as well."

A pain struck Zane deep in his chest when she brought up the story. His gaze dropped out of instant from regret and he turned back to the street, "That shit happens all the time… Get used to it or go back to your fantasy where everything's ok if no one knows."

Zane stopped after a few steps, another recollections taking hold. Slipping his hands in his pockets and pulled out what looked like a badge. Tossing it over it turned out to be a V.I.P. backstage pass to his shows, "But if you ever want someone to bitch about harsh reality, just follow the tour. Hiding in plain sight is easier than it looks.

Fantasy? Rhyan narrowed her eyes at the comment as she watched the pass come from his fingers and land on the ground before her. Her eyes flicked up to as Zane continued walking rounding the corner and then disappearing from view. She stared at the pass, pursing her lips before ambling over and lifting it off the dirty ground.

A/N: Well I hope you enjoyed that. Comments are rewarded with backstage passes to Zane's Concert!