Chapter 10: Thankful

Arc 1: Out of Shadows

*Disclaimer: I don't own any characters or anything Marvel-related, all I own are my OCs.

November 2009 - New York City

Thanksgiving. A holiday that was prominent in various countries and celebrated on various dates. The holiday began as a day in which people would give their thanks for the blessing of the harvest and the preceding year. In America, the holiday is typically celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. And although Thanksgiving has its historical roots in religion and various cultural traditions, it's widely been celebrated as a secular holiday. Most Americans used the holiday as an excuse to just come together as a family and eat foods that they normally wouldn't eat and just appreciate the times together.

Coincidentally, the Harvey family used Thanksgiving as just that. An excuse to sit around loved ones and feast. Thanksgiving was always a big deal in the Harvey family for as long as Cedric could remember. And if you didn't believe him, the fact that the two Harvey sisters were setting their differences aside and working together on cooking the food this year should suffice as evidence.

The two women were in the kitchen at the moment preparing some of the last minute dishes that they needed to prepare while Kimberly's son, Cedric was in his bathroom taking a shower.

The hot crisp water felt soothing as it hit his clear skin. The feeling of the water on his skin was enough to make his mind drift off and away from the problems that were on his mind.

To put it simply, he felt guilty. It had been about a week since his run-in with Adam Pierce. He didn't control the narrative as he should have. He didn't anticipate for things to go wrong. Simply put, he didn't try hard enough or plan the attack out. He was supposed to save people not kill people and he failed at that causing Adam to lose his life.

Cedric was so deep in thought that he didn't hear the click of the door opening and closing. It was Mikayla sneaking in to grab something.

"Wow and I thought I took long showers," Mikayla spoke making Cedric break his focus on his thoughts and lightly pull back the curtain to see Mikayla wearing one of his button-up shirts. His eyes trailed up and down her body taking note of her toned, firm legs.

"What are you doing in here?! You have your own bathroom."

"I came in here to grab an extra set of towels for my bathroom. Relax, it's not like I came in here to join you in the shower," she said as a mischievous smirk snaked its way onto her face as she turned her head to look at him, "unless you want me to?"

She watched in amusement looking on as Cedric looked on, perplexed by her offer. She giggled as he looked down, shaking his head.

"As much as I would like that, I have to decline at the moment," He said offering a smile as a response to her joke.

"Well, offer's still on the table," she joked as she grabbed hold of her towels and walked out of the bathroom leaving Cedric standing there in the shower to let out a deep sigh of relief.

Mikayla walked out of his room with a smile on her face. She knew she was in his head and she loved it. She liked the fact that she had rented space inside of his head. It showed that she was on his mind often.

Mikayla bumped into Cedric's mother Kimberly who was walking into his room with a black garment bag. Mikayla paused in shock and fear as Kimberly looked at her with a confused frown, looking her up and down taking note of her attire or lack thereof.

"It's not-"

"You don't have to explain, I didn't see anything," Kimberly said as she just offered Mikayla a reassuring smile and walked around her, to place the garment bag on the bed. Mikayla let out a sigh of relief and walk away.

Cedric walked into the kitchen with a white henley sweater and blue jeans with a pair of wheat timbs on his feet. It was a sight to behold in the Harvey family household. The two sisters had a feast prepared sitting out on the kitchen island with foil wrapped around it to keep the heat and moisture inside until it was time to eat. But luckily, Cedric could see through things except for lead due to the fact that lead blocks X-Ray vision.

He surveyed the kitchen island seeing the pans of mac and cheese, collard greens, candied yams, ham, turkey, dressing, and a sweet potato pie.

"And I got your favorite in the oven," Kimberly said as a huge smile perked up on Cedric's face making him turn towards the oven and see through the door on the oven to see his mom's famous banana pudding cookies on the rack.

"Holy shit," He said right before his aunt walked by smacking him on the back of the head making his mother chuckle as she shook her head.

"Thank you," Kimberly said looking toward Vanessa, getting a chuckle from her younger sister and a hug. Kimberly then turned her head and looked at her son before she spoke, "We're good the only thing we need is cranberry sauce. You mind running to the store to grab some?"

Cedric looked around looking for Paul but didn't see him making him frown as he turned back to face his mother.

"Why can't you just send Paul?" Cedric asked.

"Because I asked you to do it and Paul went to go get his daughter in Princeton, New Jersey. They're on their way back now, he should be back in an hour," Kimberly said firmly as she looked at her young son.

"Yes, ma'am. I will go to the store and get some cranberry sauce. Anything else?"

"No, we should have enough. How many of your friends are coming?"

"Geoff's coming, Kalani and her boyfriend-"

"Wait, a minute, are we talking about your best friend, Kalani?" Vanessa asked with a concerned look on her face.

"Yes, ma'am. Is that a problem?" He asked with a frown on his face.

"No, I love that girl. I'm just surprised-" Vanessa paused momentarily to walk around the corner and make sure that Mikayla wasn't around before she spoke, "I'm surprised you haven't told that girl how you really feel. And I'm surprised you're okay with her bringing her boyfriend here."

Cedric took a deep breath and looked down at his feet, folding his defined arms before raising his head once more to take a look at his aunt and his mother. He never told anyone about how he felt about Kalani but apparently, everybody knew about it already. Now the question he had to ask himself was: was it really that obvious? And if so, how could she not see?

"I love her. I really do and I would love to tell her how I feel but I don't know if she feels the same way and I can't risk it. What if she doesn't feel the same way? If she doesn't, there's a small chance that I could lose her, and I can't lose her. Not again at least. And besides, she's happy, I can tell."

"But are you happy?" Vanessa asked, making Cedric take a deep breath.

"I am for now. I have a great career, I live in an amazing city, I can finally use my abilities to help people, and I have someone that I'm interested in," He said with a small smile. He was telling the truth half-heartedly and his mother could tell. She knew her son. She knew that he loved Kala and she had seen him be in love with this girl before he even knew the true meaning of love. He could lie to many people but his mother wasn't one of them.

"Just make sure that Mikayla doesn't get hurt in the process of you figuring out your love life," Kimberly said as her sister nodded.

"Hell hath no fury on a woman scorned," Vanessa said as she folded her arms looking at her nephew. Cedric rolled his eyes and shook his head before speaking.

"I'm gonna go ahead and roll out, you guys need anything else?" He asked getting a "no" from his mother and his aunt.

"Alright I'll be back in a little bit," He said before he bolted out in a blur as a gust of wind hit the women in the kitchen.

Miles Maverick sat at his desk in his home with a wooden box lined with a protective seal that he designed himself with an alloy of primarily lead and some other materials. He was staring inside the box looking on with a frown on his face. Inside the box was a chunk of a purple gem that was seemingly glowing. Miles' found the gem a few years ago deep within the Australian soil.

From what he's studied, the gem possesses foreign, high-powered energy. The type of energy however was unknown. Everything that was discovered about the gem had been discovered by Miles himself and he hasn't shared any of his research with anyone else only for the simple fact that he doesn't trust people particularly well and that he doesn't want to share his power with anyone.

He always carried a piece himself, keeping it concealed in a box of his own in his office as well with him at all times. Keeping it close to himself just always made him feel better and safer. He didn't know if this gem had any effects on humans but he didn't care. He had found an abundance of the gem a few weeks ago and had a plan to use it to power something. To power someone.

Miles' thoughts were cut off when his phone in his office started to ring making him look up from the box to the phone. He picked up the phone and put it up to his ear to answer.

"Hello?" He asked before he heard a rather familiar voice on the other line.

"Hey, Miles. This is Cedric. Man, I just wanted to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving."

"I wish I could say it was but I appreciate the thought. It's a lonely time this year around. My sister went to England with a few of her friends yesterday."

"Oh well in that case why don't you join me and my family for Thanksgiving."

"Ah man, I can't intrude on your dinner."

"Nonsense man, one thing about the Harvey family is that we always have a spot open at our table for family and friends."

"I'll think about it."

"Okay, promise me you'll do that, please man."

"Alright, I promise man."

"I'll email you the address. Just call me and let me know if you're coming."

"Alright."

"Later man," And with that, the phone was hung up. Miles went back to sulking away in his sorrows looking back down at the box that held the powerful gem.

People weren't usually nice to Miles unless they wanted something. No one was genuinely nice to him except for his sister and Cedric. No one had invited him to be a part of their family for the holidays.

This gave Miles something else to think about.

Cedric currently stood in the loft that he would soon live in after the holidays were over. It was a nice 1502-square-foot loft.

When you first walk into the loft, you step into a short hallway with a coat closet to the right, a few steps. Next to the coat closet is a half-bathroom. Next to that was a door that led to the in-unit washer and dryer of the home. When you turn the corner of the hallway, you're greeted with a huge window-like wall with a clear sliding door that leads to the balcony of the apartment. You turn your head to the left and there is the kitchen that has been renovated with marble countertops, a stainless steel fridge, and black wooden cabinets above and below the countertops. The kitchen had an island in the center of the kitchen.

There was a huge spacious opening in the loft with enough room for a living room set up and a possible dining room set-up. There were a set of spiral stairs that led to the bedroom area of the loft. The bedroom space was large enough for a king-size bed to fit with the addition of a few pieces of furniture. There was a door leading to the bathroom with a walk-in shower with a white seashell mosaic-like tile for the walls. Next to the shower were a few shelves that could be used for towels. The other door in the room leads to the walk-in closet. Underneath the bedroom-like space was enough space to store a mini-office where he could work from home.

It was a nice place a sure hell of a lot nicer than the apartment he had when he went to MIT in Boston. Cedric was super excited about moving in this place at the beginning of the new decade. He wanted to wait till after the holidays to move in, this would give his aunt enough time to process that she would have to prepare to live alone again.

She wasn't kicking him out or anything. She told him that she wanted him to stay as long as he felt he needed to. She didn't say anything but she enjoyed him being there since it gave her someone to actually spend time with in her home. As far as Cedric knew she wasn't seeing anyone yet. He didn't want her to be lonely but he also needed his space to grow.

Cedric took a deep breath as he looked around the loft with a smile on his face before he turned around and started to make his way out of the loft. He had already been out of the house for too long, it was time for him to return home before somebody started asking questions.

After spending nearly an hour outside of the house, the superpowered son of Kimberly Harvey had returned home gripping a brown paper bag. He placed his key into the keyhole and turned the key before pushing the door open. Almost as soon as the door opened the fumes of the food could be smelt making him smile. He walked through the door and almost immediately was engulfed in the fumes of the food.

Cedric walked through the doorway and closed the door behind himself. He heard the sounds of laughter coming from the kitchen making him start to walk to the kitchen.

He waltzed into the kitchen seeing Paul, his mother, his aunt, and an unfamiliar girl standing next to Paul. Cedric looked the girl up and down, taking note of her features. She had clear, honey brown skin with long brown curly hair. Even at the first glance, he could definitely tell that she was Paul's daughter.

"Oh hey, Ced, I would like for you to meet my daughter, Regina," Paul said as he introduced Cedric to his daughter.

"Regina, this is Cedric," Paul said to Regina as the two shook hands with one another.

"So you're the guy that my dad keeps talking about. Not gonna lie, I wasn't expecting you to be a little bit taller," She said as she looked up at him. He didn't know exactly how tall she was but based on the way she had to look up, he guessed that she was probably 5'4 or 5'5. Cedric chuckled as he looked down at her.

"Well, I'm sorry to disappoint," he joked as he placed the item his mother sent him to go retrieve on the counter. Cedric turned his head as he heard the steps of someone walking into the kitchen. He looked on with a smile as Mikayla walked into the room clad in a pair of black jeans with a white crop top that left her belly exposed. She turned her head looking at him with a smile.

"And Regina, this is Mikayla," Paul introduced as Mikayla walked towards Regina giving her a handshake. Cedric was about to say something when he heard a knock at the door making him shut his mouth and start to walk towards the door. He twisted the doorknob before pulling the handle to reveal his best friend, Geoff, holding a bottle of wine in his hands.

"Hey man!" Cedric greeted as he pulled Geoff into a "bro" hug getting a smile from the young man that he grew up with. This was the first time in a long time that the two best friends would get to spend Thanksgiving together so they were determined to make it a special one.

"I hope your mom and your aunt like Chardonnay," Geoff said as the two gentlemen pulled away. Geoff walked into the home as Cedric closed the door behind them.

"Man, they'll just about drink anything. Everybody's in the kitchen so let's join them, I'm pretty sure my mom and aunt are excited to see you," Cedric said as the two started to walk into the kitchen.

"Hey everybody," Geoff greeted as he walked into the kitchen seeing everyone huddled around the kitchen island. Cedric looked on with a smile seeing the interaction between his family drawing a huge smile as he looked over at his family. This was a smile of pure joy seeing the people that he loved just being around each other for the holidays. These were the moments that you loved, these were the moments that you needed.

It's been almost an hour since everyone has gotten in, the family was waiting till about 7:30 to start eating the delicious dinner that they prepared. With the time being 6:25, that gave everyone roughly an hour and an extra 5 minutes to get here.

Seemingly everyone was all splattered out in the penthouse. Kimberly, Paul, and Regina were sitting in the living room talking with drinks in their hands. Vanessa and Mikayla were in the same room with drinks also in their hands while the two best friends, Cedric and Geoff were standing on the balcony with beers in their grasps.

Geoff couldn't help but stare and watch as his best friend look distracted as he stared at the young and beautiful, Mikayla. Geoff simply snapped his fingers in his face taking his attention away.

"Should we address the elephant in the room now?" Geoff said making Cedric roll his eyes before looking at him.

"And what is this elephant that we should be addressing?"

"Your feelings for Mikayla. And your feelings for Kala. I find it kinda funny how you magically caught feelings for two girls with the same name," Geoff joked making Cedric look at him with a glare.

"My feelings for Kala have never changed you know that but I can't get involved with her. And you know why."

"So then allow me to ask this, what's stopping you with Mikayla?"

"I don't know to be honest with you. I have no idea."

"Did you two ever try to go on that date again?"

"No, we haven't gotten around to it yet."

"What are you waiting on? Nothing is holding you back man."

"There is."

"What?"

"The cape. I fear that me being a hero can't get her hurt. What if someone finds out who I am? What if someon finds out about the people that I love? What if I have to choose between her and a plane full of people? Those are the things that are holding me back."

"Sometimes you have to-" Geoff was saying but the loud sounds of laughter and cheerfulness could be heard from the balcony cutting both men off from their conversation and making them walk inside.

They walked inside the penthouse to Kalani standing there in a pair of blue jeans with a simple white blouse with brown leather knee-high boots and a matching brown leather jacket. Next to her was a caucasian gentleman standing at 5'11 with a rather slender build. He had on black jeans with brown Chelsea boots with a white v-neck with a brown jacket on top of it.

Cedric watched from a distance seeing Kala hug his mother and his aunt with a smile.

"Is that white boy her boyfriend?" Geoff leaned over to ask Cedric in his ear.

"I think it is," Cedric replied as he walked over to the two people who just walked in.

"Hey Kala, I'm glad to see you," Cedric said as Kala pulled him into a hug with a smile as his mother and his aunt walked back to the living room to continue their conversation.

"Me too, it's been a while since I was able to enjoy Thanksgiving with my best friend," She said the two pulled apart. Hearing that last part was kinda like a knife being stabbed into the heart of Cedric repeatedly.

"Cedric, I would like for you to meet my boyfriend, Joey. Joey, this is my best friend, Cedric," Kala introduced the two gentlemen as Joey offered out a handshake as a mutual sign of respect. Cedric shook his hand adding a bit of extra strength to give it a firm shake.

"Wow, that is a good grip. I would not want to pick a fight with you." Joey joked as he pulled his hand back while everyone chuckled even Ced who gave off a fake chuckle while Geoff walked over.

"Hello Joey, my name is Geoff," Geoff said as he introduced himself giving Joey a firm handshake just not as firm as Cedric did before.

"Well, Geoff, Cedric, it's nice to meet you both. I've heard a lot about you two, especially you," Joey stated as he looked at Cedric for that last part. Cedric frowned up trying to figure out what he meant by that last part but was cut off when Mikayla walked over to him with a beer in hand. She placed a gentle hand on his forearm making that frown disappear.

"Kalani, this is Mikayla," Cedric introduced Mikayla to Kala earning a furrowed brow from Kala but that look disappeared when the two ladies look and each other and exchanged a friendly hug. Cedric never ever called Kala by her government name unless he was mad at her. It was a bit of a character change for Cedric to do so and thus earning that look from Kala.

"I hear you know him better than he knows himself," Mikayla commented, changing her gaze from Kala to Cedric with a smile.

"I wouldn't say that but I do know him very well. I have some stories about the trouble he caused in high school," Kala said as she looked at Cedric who looked at her with an amused smile on his face.

"Oooh, I can't wait. Why don't I fix you a drink and you can tell me some of these stories?" Mikayla offered as Kala simply smiled and nodded. Mikayla reached over and grabbed Kala by the wrist and started to pull her away. Mikayla peeked over her shoulder and mouthed the words, "you are so busted", making Cedric roll his eyes and shake his head.

"Well, looks like you're stuck with us," Geoff said as he patted Joey on the shoulder and spoke once again, "We're gonna go out to the balcony, drink a few beers and talk, care to join us?"

"I don't see why not, let's go," Joey said as he followed Geoff off to the balcony. Cedric just stood there momentarily, taking a deep breath before taking a sip of his beer and following his best friend out to the balcony.

It's been a little bit since Kala and her boyfriend, Joey arrived at the dinner. Since Kala arrived Cedric truly hadn't been able to take his eyes off of her. Seeing both Kala and Mikayla in the same room in a way was playing tricks with his mind. And the fact that he had the ability to hear a hell of a lot more than the average human was also playing tricks with him. He could hear everything that Kala was telling Mikayla and vice versa.

And no matter how much he wanted to tune Joey out, he couldn't because of his damn hearing. Joey was in the middle of telling a story that didn't really intrigue Cedric much but Geoff appeared interested. The only thing that Cedric wanted was for this story to be over.

"Hey guys, we're about to sit down for dinner. Care to join us?" Cedric's mother Kimberly said as she peeked her head out of the door to tell the guys. And just like that Cedric's wishes were answered.

"Oh hell yea, wait till you taste Aunt Vanessa's Mac and Cheese, I'm telling you man it will change your life," Geoff said as he happily walked inside to go take his seat. Cedric was about to go inside but Joey grabbed his wrist making him turn his head to look at the boyfriend of one of his best friends.

"Hey before we go inside, I just wanted to ask you something about Kala," Joey said as Cedric looked at him with folded arms.

"Kala and I have been dating for the past 9 months and it seems like I can't get a read on her. Like I try to find out more information about her but I can't. And it seems like she's not ready to open to me, I was wondering could you maybe talk to her for me or try to help me figure out a way to approach her?" Cedric could tell from the sound of desperation in Joey's voice that it was genuine and as much as Cedric didn't want to help, he had to. This guy made Kala happy and at the end of the day, that was all he ever cared about.

"I think you should talk to her. Have that conversation with her, it'll show that you trust her and it's been my experience that at the end of the day, trust is all she wants. If I talk to her, it'll show you don't trust her and that's the last thing that you want. So just talk to her man."

"Thanks man, you know I was kinda nervous about meeting you tonight. From what she told me, you're the best friend that she has ever had. She knows you better than anyone else and I'm sure you know her better than I ever could. I was worried that you might've had feelings for her or something and the history you two share, intimated me at first but now I realise that's not the case. I'm glad she has you as a friend," Joey said as he patted Cedric on the shoulder and walked inside, leaving Cedric standing there on the balcony with a frown on his face.

"I could fly him up to space and no one would even know about it," Cedric whispered to himself before he took a deep breath and walked inside to join his family and friends. He made his way through the kitchen to the dining room.

Everyone was starting to sit at a long table in the dining room area of the penthouse, Cedric looked and saw where everyone was sitting seeing that there was an open spot left between Geoff and Mikayla.

Cedric was about to take a seat when he heard the doorbell ring making him frown. He walked out of the dining room and made his way to the foyer before opening the door. A smile sneaked its way onto his face as he saw his friend, the billionaire Miles Maverick at his door holding what looked to be a very expensive bottle of wine.

"I hope it's not too late to take you up on that offer," Miles said with a smile as he looked Cedric in the eyes.

"Nah man, come on in," Cedric replied as he welcomed Miles inside the home. Miles walked in as Kimberly and Vanessa walked around the corner coming to the foyer.

"Mom, Auntie, this is Miles Maverick. Miles, this is my mother, Kimberly," Cedric introduced his mother who shook hands with the billionaire, "And this is my aunt Vanessa," Vanessa followed suit also shaking hands with the billionaire.

"You guys have a lovely home. My mother always told me never to come to someone else's home for the first time empty-handed, so I brought you a bottle of wine. I hope that it suffices," Miles said as he handed the bottle of wine to Cedric's mother. Cedric's mother took the wine with a smile, reading the label with joy.

"And it does, thank you. Why don't you take your coat off and come join us, we're just about to dig in," Kimberly said as she handed the bottle to Vanessa who started to look at the label sharing the same smile as her sister.

"That sounds lovely," Miles replied as he discarded his black suede-like dress coat and handed it off to Cedric who stood there with open arms. He reached into the closet, taking out a coat hanger as he watched Miles disappear with his mother.

"What kind of wine is that?" Cedric asked as he placed Miles' coat on the hanger.

"It's a 1949 Domaine Leroy Musigny Grand Cru. This is an $11,000 bottle, I can't wait to open it," Vanessa said walking away smiling like a kid in a candy shop.

Cedric stood back just looking on with a smirk as he hung the coat up into the walk-in coat closet in the foyer. He let out a sigh in relief before he walked on to join the rest of his family and his friends in the dining room.

Everyone was sitting at the table enjoying a nice family dinner. There was a lot of smiling, laughter, and positive energy going around the room. Mikayla and Cedric were on their side of the table playing footsies with one another under the table unbeknownst to the rest of the members at this dinner.

"So Kala what brings you to New York?" Vanessa asked as she raised a fork up to her lips taking a bite of her food.

"I was chasing a story, chasing The Blur or The Phantom, whatever you wanna call him," Kala said getting an eye roll from Joey.

"I'm guessing you don't like The Blur?" Cedric asked as he raised his fork, taking a bite of his food as he looked at Joey with a furrowed brow.

"The crime in this city has gotten out of hand. The Monarchy has been running rampant over the city and their war on the streets has cost a lot of lives. And this Blur isn't making the situation any better. The only thing he's doing is making things worse. So no, I don't like the Blur" Joey said as he took a sip from the glass of water while Kala and Kimberly looked at him with a frown.

"If anything, I would say he's making it better. Look at the work he's done helping people in this city, when he's needed he shows up," Kala said defending the caped hero and making Cedric smile.

"Yeah, that's true. I remember seeing the Blur saving me from my apartment fire a few weeks ago. If he didn't show up, I might not be here right now," Mikayla said earning a gentle hand squeeze from Cedric who turned his head to look at her.

"And I'm glad he did so," He said with a smile getting a grin from her.

"If he's a hero, then why hide in the shadows? Why hide if you're trying to do good? He's no hero, he's a menace," Joey said making Cedric turn back to look at him with a frown on his face. Geoff could tell that everything Joey was saying was starting to get to him.

"What makes him a menace in your view?"

"He acts as if the law just doesn't apply to him. Doing whatever he wants, whenever he wants with no regard for the authority or the rules that apply. He acts like he's judge, jury, and executioner and-"

"Last time I checked he doesn't kill," Cedric said, speaking up for himself. One thing he didn't tolerate was false accusations regarding murder on his name or at least, his alias.

"Well it still doesn't change the fact that he's not working with the authorities but rather it seems that he's working on his own accord. A man of his power should be controlled, limited to act only when we need him," Joey proposed getting a scoff from just about everyone at the table except for Cedric, Geoff, and Miles.

"And who determines that?" Cedric asked as he folded his arms and looked directly at Joey.

"Government officials. Maybe a council designed to make these decisions," Joey suggested making Cedric nod his head listening to the ideas made by his best friend's boyfriend.

"And what happens if there's someone that needs to be saved and they tell him he can't go, does he just sit back and watch that person die or watch that person suffer all because the government said he couldn't act?"

"We don't always need him. We really don't need The Blur at all," That last line said by Joey really struck like a knife being driven into the chest of Cedric.

"What do you think Miles? You've been very quiet," Joey said putting MIles on the spot. Miles looked down at his plate looking as if he were deep in thought before he looked up at the people sitting around him.

"Do you guys know the oldest lie in America? It's that power can be innocent. One thing about power is that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. If this being is as powerful as he claims then he simply cannot be as good as he claims, and if he is as good as he claims then he cannot be as powerful as he claims."

"See someone gets it," Joey said agreeing with Miles, earning an eye roll from Kala, Mikayla, and just about everyone else at the table. Geoff didn't say anything but looked over at his best friend who looked to be distraught almost as if he were taking their quotes to heart. Kimberly glanced over at her son seeing the emotional toll that this was starting to take on him.

"How about we change the subject? Let's talk about some of the technological advancements that Maverick Industries," Kimberly said as Miles began talking about some of the stuff going on with his company.

The rest of the dinner went smoothly for everyone except Cedric who couldn't shake the things that were said about his other side.

It was now nearly 2 hours removed from the family dinner. And everyone was starting to say their goodbyes now. Geoff had left a little bit earlier, something about a late-night skinny dip with a friend of his. That was something that Cedric was definitely gonna have to investigate the next time he saw him. Paul had taken his daughter off to her hotel about an hour ago, she said that would be back in the morning for a family breakfast before she was off to the airport to go back home to Jersey.

Right now, Kala and Joey were getting ready to say goodbye. It was nice having Kala with his family on the holidays, it reminded Cedric of old times before they were adults and before Joey.

"I want to say thank you for allowing us to come into your home, we had a really nice time," Kala said as she put on her same jacket from earlier.

"Yeah, the food was great. You guys were great," Joey said adding on to Kala's appreciation to Vanessa and Kimberly.

"Kala, you know this is your home away from home, you're welcome anytime," Vanessa said as she pulled Kala into a hug. Seeing the two hug made Cedric smile as he looked on from afar.

"Thank you Vanessa and thank you, Kimberly," Kala said as she pulled away from Vanessa's grasp to give Kimberly a tight hug.

"Be good, Kala. And make sure you take care of my boy," Kimberly whispered in Kala's ear getting a smile from Kala who looked up to lock eyes with the young man who brought this whole thing together.

"I will just make sure you keep in contact with me. I don't wanna have to fly to Chicago just to hear from you," Kala said earning a chuckle from Kimberly as the two pulled away. Kala walked towards Cedric looking at him with a smile.

"Now, I know where you live and I know where you work? If I don't hear from you in the next few days, I will hunt you down," Kala joked making Cedric chuckle as he pulled her into a tight embrace. He could stay hugging her forever but he knew he couldn't. At least, not yet.

Kala pulled away and stood on her tiptoes giving Cedric a kiss on the cheek. Cedric's eyes trailed up to see Joey looking at him with eyes full of worry and intimidation. Joey claimed that he wasn't intimated by Cedric and Kala's relationship but his eyes weren't able to lie like his mouth could.

Joey just gave Cedric a goodbye wave and proceeded to walk out of the door following Kala.

"Bye guys, have a good night!" Kala said as she walked out of the door.

"Alright, y'all be safe!" Kimberly replied as she watched Kala and Joey walk down the hallway going off to enjoy their night alone. Miles seemingly was following suit and leaving like everyone else. He had grabbed his coat from the coat closet and put the long coat over his body.

"Again, I must say thank you for inviting me in your home for this lovely holiday," Miles said as he looked at Vanessa who just offered him a friendly smile.

"You're welcome," Vanessa replied.

"You're a friend of my son, so you're a friend of ours. Take care of him, Miles," Kimberly said as she gave Miles a very firm handshake.

"I will try my best ma'am," Miles replied before he started to walk towards his friend and the man who invited him to this function in the first place. Miles stuck out his hand looking for a handshake which Cedric took.

"Thank you for inviting me. If it weren't for you I would've just been sitting alone just drinking my sorrows away but you welcomed me in to enjoy a night with your family. Your friendship gives me hope. It makes me believe that I am a good man. Our friendship is going to be the stuff of legends, one day. I'm thankful to have you in my life. Good night my friend, " Miles said as he shook Cedric's hand and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Good night, Miles," Cedric said to his friend who simply gave him a head nod before walking out of the door.

And with that everyone had left the home except for the actual residents that lived in the home. It was nice to hear the home being quiet. Ever since the early morning, the home had been up and running and was quite noisy. But now everything was quiet for the most part.

"So now that everyone's gone, how about we-" Kimberly was saying but was cut off when Cedric's phone went off making them all turn to look at him. He pulled out his phone and saw that it was a text from Geoff's connect, Emmett.

"I have to go guys. I have to pick up something," Cedric said as he walked towards the coat closet, reaching inside to grab a jacket. He walked toward his aunt and his mother and gave them both a kiss on the cheek before he proceeded to walk out of the home to go retrieve the communicators.

It had taken Cedric a few minutes but he had made it to the destination that Emmett asked to meet at. He had really made it there in a minute but he had to play it off as if it took longer to play onto the idea that he was normal and average. Emmett was still under the impression that he was simply designing some communication devices for Cedric's friend, The Blur. He hadn't put two and two together and figured out that Cedric was The Blur and he was actually hoping that he never did.

The destination was outside of a bodega on the corner of 88th Avenue in Queens. Emmett was already at the bodega and stood outside dressed in a black puffer jacket with a beanie, holding a briefcase, the same briefcase that was given to him a while ago.

"You wanted to see me?" Cedric asked as he walked up to Emmett outside of the bodega.

"Yeah, I finished those for your friend. Tell him, I only made about 5 of them at the moment and if he needs any more help or anything else worked on just let me know," Emmett said as he handed the case off to Cedric while Cedric handed some cash to him.

"Trust me, I think he'll be in contact," Cedric replied.

"Oh and don't think I forgot about your date with my sis," Emmett said as he started to walk away from the business transaction while Cedric stood there shaking his head. As Emmett walked away, the alien-human hybrid took a chance and briefly opened the briefcase taking a look at the communicators looking at it with a huge smile on his face.

These communicators solved the biggest questions he had in his mind: how could the people he loved get in contact with him if they needed him. And now he had only one thought on his mind now: time to go be the hero he knew he was.

A/N: Phew, finally I got this chapter done. It has taken me a very long time to finish this chapter but finally, I have finished it. There really isn't any action going on in this chapter but rather some fluff to kinda build the plot and introduce some characters to the story. In the next chapter business should be picking up a little bit and there will be some more plot building and character building as well.

Joey Adams - Jensen Ackles

Celestine Rae - Regina Hondo