She pushed him away. Roughly.

Hawks was caught off guard at the sudden action, his eyes widening in surprise. He stumbled backward but caught his footing, hands wide open and in mid-air.

Carissa nearly collapsed at the kiss but was able to catch herself. Shock and anger mixed together, a strong breath of force rising in her body before having pushed away. She stood there, stunned and angry, her eyebrows furrowing at the clueless man. "What the hell?!"

The winged man looked downright confused. Getting over his shock, he stood straight and raised his eyebrow. "Well, that was unexpected." He said, not bothering hiding his surprise.

"Why did you do that?!" Carissa demanded to know. If her face could get any redder…

Hawks just smiled casually. "I have a problem holding back sometimes." He answered. "And you're a really pretty bird. I couldn't resist."

This only fueled her anger. "Are you insane?!" Carissa asked. She'd heard about people surprise-attacking others with kisses, but never thought too much of it. Nothing like that ever happened to her before. Back then she might've been bewildered and even flattered, but these days, she would most definitely be upset.

"I can be." Hawks replied, smirking.

Carissa gritted her teeth at him, her lithe hands clenching into tight fists. Tears were on the brink of forming, redness now showing in her eyes. What the hell was wrong with him?! That was it. "Stay away from me!" She demanded, her voice almost cracking.

Now Hawks looked completely unfazed, as if she wasn't angry at all. "Mmm." He hummed, putting a hand on his hip. "That won't be so easy. When it comes to you, at least."

Carissa scowled, sharply turning and leaving through the closest mall entrance where her coworkers left. What little people were around watched in shock. A few even pulled their phones and started recording, even when Carissa left out the door.

The poor woman headed for her car. Tears were now forming, threatening to spill from her eyes.

That was her first kiss. The feeling of his lips on hers lingered. They were so warm and soft.

Carissa sniffled. She felt so violated. No way could she forget that if she tried.

She found her car and practically zoomed out of the parking lot.

Hawks flew out of the mall's exit and landed on its roof. It didn't take long for him to spot Carissa's car leaving the premises. His smile stayed on his face until her car was out of sight. It slowly dropped, his own bushy eyebrows slowly furrowing at where the car was last seen. He frowned, wondering what he was doing wrong.

Hawks was becoming more agitated than confused. He was a great charmer. Nearly everyone fell for his looks and 'kind' personality. He didn't even need to try. Sure the hero was carefree and sometimes rash, but no one really cared much for that when his enticing levels were high. Carissa was a different story. She wasn't so easily convincible. Nothing he'd done around her worked. It couldn't be an environment thing. Other women around here became so attracted to him. So what was it about her that made her so distant? Was she like that around everyone? The lady didn't appear to have friends. She was always alone when going out, aside from her father. Did she not have time to make friends with all that work Mr. Baxter was putting on her? Did she ever have any boyfriends?

Something streaked through Hawks's body. It was hot and hurt like fire. Endeavor's fire, maybe and ironically.

His frown deepened, staring in the direction of Carissa's home. Boyfriends… He thought. His nice teeth gritted behind his lips.


Carissa's day out had been spoiled, to say the least. After getting home, she threw herself onto the couch and hugged a pillow against her chest. Her lips pressed against the pillow, as if trying to rid herself of the memory of being kissed. No way would it work, though. Who in their right mind would forget their first kiss? She whimpered, remembering the way he held her. Having trapped her against him with one arm while holding her chin with his other hand.

…Was this Hawks's normal behavior?

Did he behave this way around other girls?

She didn't really know too much about Hawks except that he was the number two hero of Japan, ranked for his speed and 'doing things his own way' as they say it. He was popular among his country, though Carissa was sure not everyone was a fan of his.

Shouldn't he have returned to his country by now? With so much regarding the League of Villains and so many other criminals in Japan, he had to be needed there, right?

Carissa thought back on everything he said, and realized it was only Hawks himself who told her he would be in Seattle for a little while longer.

…Was he actually supposed to be here? Should she call his agency and ask? No, they won't give out that information. Plus they might inform Hawks that she called and he will probably confront her about it. An excuse to get close to her.

Aside from the two investigations, Hawks approached her three times in such a short timespan. All three times Carissa indicated she didn't want to be near him and he wouldn't take the hint. Now he kissed her.

Carissa hugged the pillow closer to herself, her eyes darting in all directions of the floor for a moment.

If she didn't know any better, she'd say she was being stalked.

"Thought you could get away from me, little bird?"

Carissa stifled a yelp through the pillow, remembering the nightmare she experienced last night. She shook her head and hummed in disapproval. "No, no, no. That's not what's happening here." She denied. You can't come to that conclusion with such little evidence…right?

For some reason Carissa glanced at the window. It was no longer sunny, unfortunately. Just another bleak, late afternoon. The atmosphere already looked like it was nearly nighttime. She stayed frozen, as if waiting for something, or someone to appear. She went into a trance, staring at the fence in front of the trees of her neighbor's backyard across the narrow street. Ending the drifting of her mind, Carissa had a, "Fuck it" moment got off the couch. She turned on her television and skimmed through the available movies she had on the device, deciding to leave behind today and have a movie night. After finding a movie she hadn't seen in a while, Carissa put the curtains over all her living room windows and went into the kitchen to prep snacks. Carissa relaxed on the couch while watching the movie, enjoying herself.

It was late by the time the movie ended. Carissa turned off the T.V. and left her mess on the tray table, deciding to take care of it tomorrow. She tiredly undressed, leaving herself in a tank top and underwear before collapsing onto her bed. Feeling cold, she snaked under her thick bedsheets and nuzzled into her pillow, finally falling asleep.

It was quiet in the home. Only the occasional machinery noises like the humming of the fridge or the blowing of the air conditioning could be heard. However, an unusual rustling noise interrupted the silence. A red object swished out of a thin space within some furniture and floated over to the front door. It unlocked the door, the moonlight shining on it as the door opened, revealing that it was a red feather.

Hawks stepped into the dark house, scanning his surroundings while sending out feathers to check for any other signs of life besides Carissa. The home looked bigger on the inside, though not by much. It gave off an older smell, indicating it was an older house. Some of the furniture was old and matched the interior, but some things such as the couch were new.

During the day, Hawks held this almost majestic appearance. Like an angel visiting earth to help bring an end to evil. Except he was here every day doing that. He was loved by so many, who considered it a breath of fresh air seeing him in the light. Viewing the handsome hero brought others peace, knowing he was there to protect them. However, right now was different. He was mostly standing in darkness, the only lights able to brighten him being tiny buttons or dot-sized lights on devices such as the dvd player or air purifiers. He was like the shadow of a fallen angel, only his golden eyes glowing. They narrowly searched the whole house, looking for any signs of a significant other living here. Some framed photos were sitting on a sideboard against the wall. Most showed Carissa and an older man with silver hair. Her father, probably. There also a few of a woman who looked a lot like Carissa. The same type of strawberry-blonde hair, baby-blue eyes and a nice face. Hawks assumed right away it was her mom, but noticed there were no photos taken of both her and Carissa together.

Cling! "Oops."

Hawks sharply turned his head toward the hallway next to him, having heard Carissa say something. Through his feathers he heard rustling bedsheets, but then silence. Just her casual breathing. Having found nothing saying Carissa had a boyfriend, the birdman squinted his eyes at the hallway suspiciously. He found himself quietly walking in that direction, curious to confirm there was no one else but also wanting to see something…

Carissa shuffled under her bedsheets, having randomly woken up sometime in the night. A large yawn demanded activation and Carissa opened her mouth, stretching her limbs out. Her right hand struck the lamp on accident as a result.

"Oops." Carissa automatically muttered, checking to make sure she didn't knock it over. Knowing it was still standing there in one piece, she rested her head back on her pillow and attempted to fall asleep.

Some time passed and Carissa couldn't return to slumber. As the minutes ticked by, all of the drowsiness melted away. Frowning, she questioned why this was. Her heart rate went up, too. After several other minutes of trying to sleep to no avail, Carissa felt a new and unpleasant feeling wash over her. A familiar feeling, something she usually felt when being stuck on that office building. The feeling of being watched.

Her eyes opened, seeing only the wall and window a few feet away. She slowly rolled over, not blinking once as she landed on her back while searching around the room. Something stood at the left corner of her bed. A very large, familiar figure. The moonlight and old street light outside shined through the partially opened blinds into the room, revealing Hawks in this striped appearance.

Carissa gasped in horror and was immediately against the headboard, covering most of her body with the blanket as if to shield herself. "Hawks?!"

Hawks looked unfazed, only smiling in response. "Evening, honey bird."

Getting over some of her shock, the woman glared furiously at the intruder. "What the hell?! Get out!" Carissa demanded, the hairs on the back of her neck standing up.

"Hey, hey." Hawks said gently, raising his hands up to indicate he meant no harm. "Calm down. Everything's fine."

"It's NOT fine!" Carissa nearly screeched. "Why're you in my house?!"

Hawks's smile slightly dropped. He glanced at the window, fully taking in how late it was.

That was actually a good question. He unlawfully entered a home without a warrant in the middle of the night. Something he never did unless instructed by the commission to do so. Frowning in confusion, Hawks brought his gloved hand to his face. His fingertips grazed his forehead and barely combed his wild hair. What's wrong with me? He thought.

Carissa quickly grabbed her phone while Hawks was distracted, turning the screen on. "Get out or I'll call the cops!" She threatened, the phone screen lighting her face.

Hawks glanced at Carissa, taking in her demeanor. The way she glared and sat there with the device, looking all angry and confident. Something washed over him, and he just wanted to laugh. Instead, he removed his hand and put it on his hip. He gave her this smile, trying to show he found her threat to be quite foolish. "Really?"

"Yes, really!" Carissa said, becoming more annoyed at how he wasn't taking it seriously. "Get out!"

"You're gonna call the cops?"

"YES!"

Hawks smirked, tilting his head. "You're gonna call the cops…on the number two hero of Japan?"

Carissa opened her mouth to speak but halted, thinking about what he said. Her angry expression dropped the more she thought about it.

Hawks found satisfaction in Carissa's realization. "Yeah. When they get here, whose word do you think they'll believe, hmm?" He asked. He started stepping around the bed, his hand grazing across the comforter. "Some random civilian's? Or a famous pro hero's?"

She could understand where he was getting at. Carissa wasn't looking as Hawks got closer until he was in her line of vision. She glanced up at him, now seeing the winged man nearly right next to her. His composure became that of arrogance.

Hawks took a seat on the bed, his gaze never leaving the woman. "Besides, even if they would believe you…" He said, contemplating if he should remove the phone from her hold. He chose against it, wanting to see her face. "…I could easily destroy your phone before you could even dial them."

Carissa became fearful again, trying to back into the headboard more. He was right. There was a good chance authority even in here would believe his word over hers. "W-Why are you in my house?" She stuttered when repeating the question. A man breaking into a woman's home in the middle of the night was never a good sign.

"I just wanted to see ya." Hawks answered. "I missed ya."

His gloved hand lifted from the bed and headed to cup her chin. He found himself urging to come closer.

He wanted to touch her.

To hold her.

To…

Carissa saw his oncoming glove. Remembering the kiss, she reacted by harshly pushing his wrist to the side. The force of it surprised Hawks, who noticeably blinked at his hand as if to check if it were injured. "Don't touch me!" She snapped, glaring at him.

However, her glare gradually melted away. Hawks looked back at her, his own glare coming into view. Carissa's eyes slightly widened, backing even more into the headboard at the face he was giving her. His face scrunched up, showing this anger toward her for pushing him away. His eyes narrowed, those pupils turning into slits.

…He looked scary when he was mad.

And he was right there in front of her. The only lighting in the room besides the outside lights was the phone screen. In the back of her mind, Carissa wondered what would happen if she turned it off.

"You're testing my patience, birdie." Hawks spoke, his tone dangerously low.

Carissa barely raised an eyebrow. What're you talking about? She thought. However, deep down she knew what he meant. Him talking to her, following her around, having kissed her earlier today and now broke into her home? No way she couldn't know by now what he was referring to.

He was attracted to her. He wanted her to return the affection and she wouldn't.

Hawks's eyes pointed downward. Carissa looked down as well. Some of her long hair strands were flowing over the comforter she had against her chest and knees. The top two-thirds of her hair was straight, but the remaining one-third immediately changed into these beautiful, loose ringlet curls. A trait her mom possessed when she was alive. Despite being a loner, Carissa had gotten quite a few comments on it.

The man's expression softened a little, his gloved hand taking some of the strands into his fingers, examining them. His thumb grazed over the hair before playfully swirling his fingers around and making the curls coil around them. To Carissa's surprise, he brought his face down and closed his eyes, inhaling the smell of the strands. She watched him, wondering if he could smell the ocean-aroma shampoo she used this morning. The man hummed in satisfaction, smiling while pulling away. That seemed to calm him down. His face relaxed and he opened his eyes, the orbs normal again.

Suddenly he dropped the strands and reached over, grabbing her hand as well. His grip hurt as Carissa tried to pull away, bringing it to his face. Keeping a firm hold, Hawks bent down again and pressed his lips against her fingers, just below the knuckles. Carissa blushed, gritting her teeth at the sensation. The flesh tingled and became cold at the hint of saliva left there. He finally let go and the hand immediately retreated behind Carissa's knees. She left the phone next to her for light. As if she were afraid what Hawks would do if the light were to turn off. Almost like a child fearing of 'the monster under the bed' scenarios, only the monster was no longer in hiding.

Hawks just continued to smile at her. He wasn't moving at all, like how he acted after 'consoling' her the morning of Mr. Baxter's murder investigation. It was unnerving.

Finally he slipped off the bed and backed off, going for the bedroom door. His golden gaze never left her, still smiling. "Good night, honey bird." He said, and finally disappeared behind the bedroom wall.

Carissa sat there frozen, waiting to hear anything that'll indicate he was gone. Her heart was beating so fast. She heard a few little noises around her living room, and eventually what sounded like her front door opening and shutting. Her eyes trailed to the window, still afraid of moving. Something told her he wasn't done yet.

Her heart jumped into her throat when she saw Hawks come to her window, his shadow casually coming by. Carissa could see him peering in, watching her through the blinds. She just stared back, her baby-blue eyes wide. He watched her intently for a few minutes, then stepped away from the window. Carissa partially saw his wings come to life and disappear from view.

She had difficulty moving from the fear, but soon got up and ran into the living room. First she made sure the door and all the windows were locked tight, then checked to see if anything was moved or taken. Everything looked to be in place. When the adrenaline died down, Carissa found herself sitting on the couch.

Her mind was racing. She didn't know what to think. What the actual hell was going on with that hero? He broke into her home just to see her? What if she hadn't woken up when she did?

Carissa huddled into the couch, afraid of returning to sleep. Her eyes locked onto the door until she passed out.