Note: I just wanna say that just because my character's a black belt and a gymnast doesn't mean that she's invincible. There will be times where she will get her ass handed to her. On that note, here's Chapter 9!

Chapter 9

Within 15 minutes or so, I was patrolling the city. Part of me was starting to regret going on patrol tonight in the first place because I just broke up with Chris but hey, a great man once said, "With great power, comes great responsibility." Great, now I was stealing quotes from Spiderman.

As I walked past an alleyway, I heard a loud scream coming from it. I decided to check it out so sprinted down there and saw 3 big guys robbing a woman in her late twenties. She was cowering on the ground as all three of them crowded around her, "Oh boys!" they all turned around and looked at me, "Is that any way to treat a lady?" I put on a maniacal grin and lunged at them.

I told the girl to call 911 as I gave one of the guys an axe kick to the throat. I uppercutted another guy in the jaw but unfortunately, the third guy decided to take advantage of the fact that my back was turned. I felt my feet leave the ground as this guy picked me up and threw me across the alley like a fucking rag doll!

I screamed in agony as I landed hard on my knee, I tried to get up so I could kick this guy's ass but that was easier said than done. As I laid there clutching my knee, I felt a sudden pain in my shoulder. To my horror, I had just been stabbed in the shoulder by the guy I axe kicked.

"Sweetheart, we're gonna show you what happens when you don't stay out of grown folks business." One of them said and that's pretty much when they gave me the beating of my life. I was getting punched in the face, kicked in the chest, kicked in the stomach, and at one point one of them even grabbed a lead pipe and struck my injured knee with it. I let out a blood curdling scream and I continued to scream but they didn't stop. I stopped them from getting what they wanted and now they wanted me to pay for it.

Just then, I heard the sounds of sirens approaching and that's when the three of them decided to flee. I slowly got up and managed to flee the scene before the police arrived. Once I was around the corner and out of sight, I slid down against a wall. The knife was still in my shoulder so I gripped the handle of it and slowly pulled it out, letting out a piercing scream in the process.

Blood was now gushing from my shoulder as I tossed the knife aside. I quickly put my hand on it and applied pressure. As I laid there helpless and left for dead, I started to think about all the people I'd never see again if this was really it for me.

I spat out blood and then heard the sound of an engine revving. Next thing I knew, Red Mist was trying to help me up, "I don't need your help! I'm just peachy fucking keen!" I spat as I tried to pull myself up.

"Right, which is why you're lying on the ground like a fucking corpse," he crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, "Look I know you're proud and all but just forget about your pride for once and let me help you. I've got a first aid kit in the Mist Mobile so come on. Unless, you wanna stay here and bleed to death."

"Look, I said I'm fine so just leave me the fuck alone!" I yelled as I attempted to walk but that didn't go so well, "FUCK!" I screamed as I fell to the ground clutching my knee. He sighed and helped me up, "Fine, let's go.." I mumbled and we walked back to his car.

He got out a pretty big first aid kit along with some alcohol. I leaned against the trunk of his car and kept my hand on my shoulder. I saw the bottle of alcohol and immediately knew what it was for. He gave me an apologetic look, "This is gonna suck..." he told me as he put some alcohol on a cotton ball and applied it to my wound.

I hissed in pain and gritted my teeth together. Within the next few minutes, he patched up my shoulder, cleaned my bloody lip, and slid on a knee brace. Then, he got back in the car and I climbed in the passenger's seat. After a minute of awkward silence I cleared my throat. "So um, thanks for saving my life, again…." I muttered.

"Anytime, I can drive you home if you want?"

"Yeah, I think the bus station would be better.."

He shrugged, "Suit yourself." He started to rev up the engine again. Just when he was about ready to drive off, I leaned across the seat and kissed him on the lips. When I pulled away, I could see a blush creeping across his cheeks and believe me, he wasn't the only one who was blushing.

He put the car in drive and sped off down the alleyway. 'Did you really just do that?' That stupid voice in my head yelled, 'You just got out a relationship with a guy you still love and now you're kissing a superhero you barely know?!' 'What the hell were you thinking Angelina?!'

I just ignored it and looked out the window. Within 10 minutes, we arrived at the bus station. I got out of the car and began to walk over to a bench that was nearby. Then I stopped and looked at Red Mist one last time, "See you around, Red." I grinned.

He gave me a nod and smirked a bit, "If you need me, you know how to find me..." He then sped off and I sat down on the bench. Once the bus arrived, I straightened my wig and joined the other people getting on the bus.

When I got home, I climbed in through the window, grabbed some PJs, and went into the bathroom. I took off my mask and wig and stared at myself in the mirror, I looked like hell. There was a big bruise right underneath my eye and my lip was still swollen and bloody. I took off my costume and saw that I also had bruises and cuts on my stomach, chest, and legs.

The bruise on my eye was nothing makeup couldn't cover up. I could easily cover the other bruises as well but I was gonna have a hell of a time explaining my fucked up lip and knee brace to my parents. Sighing, I put on my pajamas, grabbed my costume, and headed back to my room. I threw my costume in the box and slid it back into my closet before climbing into my bed. Before I fell asleep I began to wonder, was being a superhero really worth it? Was risking my life 24/7 in general worth it?