It hadn't been too hard convincing her boss to let her stay home after the explosion. He'd always been pretty understanding, and had even offered to schedule someone else in her place for the following day. Particularly when he found out just how close she'd been to the site of the bombing. She appreciated his sentiment, but Jane honestly couldn't afford to stay away from work too long. The threat of an empty bank account could be quite the motivator.
She'd taken the opportunity to rest on the couch and figure out what had happened after returning home. Most of the ringing in her ears had gone away, but it was still somewhat of a chore to focus on any one thing for too long. More than once, she had to blink away some of the rising dizziness.
All of the news stations had been reporting about the explosion, but there weren't any concrete details yet. Jane was shocked to see footage of the store-front in question, recognizing the street and surrounding shops, but the sheer ruin that everything inside had become was astounding. Blackened walls and a litter of glass shards covering the area inside and out. They'd interviewed several nearby witnesses, as well as one lucky employee who'd been in a back room and was spared injury from the blast.
3 dead, and 4 more seriously injured. Jane was lucky to be left out of either morbid statistic.
No one had claimed the crime, but the investigators were leaning more towards the idea that this was simply a random villain causing mayhem. A one-off, terrible crime. That almost seemed worse. She'd almost died because someone had a passing fancy to cause destruction. What a fucking joke. Talk about a meaningless death.
She hadn't seen Present Mic in any of the broadcasts that had eyes on the location. Several other heroes were there and assisting with the clean-up. Perhaps he'd needed to go back to the school for his teaching job. It made sense, since it was a weekday, and the school year was in full swing.
Asuka had been curious why she was home early after getting off from the office. That curiosity led to a long and exhausting conversation that night over a splurge of take out and ice cream. According to her roommate, nearly dying warranted dipping into their special occasion fund. Jane couldn't agree more, stuffing her face with her favorite sesame chicken. She hadn't even got to really eat her sandwich from lunch, the hunger of which hadn't caught up with her until that night.
Of course, any mention of Present Mic was omitted from her recap to Asuka, to spare her another 2-hour gossip fest that Jane did not have the energy for. Besides, if her suspicion about his intentions proved to be true, then it would save her the awkward walk-back later on. Better to keep it all under wraps until it proved to be something substantial.
She'd been on the verge of sleep, burrowed under her bed's covers, when the buzz of her phone on the nightstand snapped her back into alertness. She fumbled for the device in the darkness, struggling to unplug it from the charger in order to bring it to her face.
Haven't heard from you. Figured I'd check in. All good?
Jane let out an amused huff, sleepily texting the blonde what she hoped was a sensible message. Her thumbs felt slow and several times she had to backspace because she'd hit the wrong letter on her phone's keyboard.
I'm ok. Dizziness is mostly gone. Just tired, now.
Sleep it up, then! Lots of rest and recovery. And let me know when you're feeling up to another lunch. Today didn't count.
Jane spared a slanted smile, then fumbled out another text.
Thanks, by the way. I could have died if you weren't there.
It was just a little glass...but I'm glad you're ok.
Somehow, Jane managed to stay upright and awake during the entirety of her shift the following day. Chidori had asked countless questions, many of which she really didn't have the energy to answer, but other than that small hurdle, it had gone well. Still, by the end of the day she was tired and, most importantly, hungry.
So it was with uncanny precognition that she got a text right as she got off of work, half past 10 in the evening.
Hungry? ;)
Starving, actually. How'd you know?
I, too, get the midnight munchies. Figured we could meet up and talk?
Sure.
She wrote back, against her better judgement to instead go home and sleep. She did have a shift tomorrow morning, but the thought of seeing the loud hero was more tempting than the warmth of her bed's comforter. And that was saying something.
Thanks to her trusty GPS, Jane followed the short walk to the address that Mic had texted her, happening upon a small plaza further into the city. The area was lit up with lamp posts, and a few food trucks were parked alongside the road. The hero in question was stood leaning against one of the trimmed trees, staring down at his phone until she got close enough to alert his peripheral vision.
"Jane! Yo." He said, flashing her a smile and a peace sign. Hair down and glasses on, she appreciated the sight. "I'm glad you're ok."
"Yeah, well...me too." Was her responding sigh, feeling under-dressed compared to him, even though it wasn't like she could have changed clothes before meeting him here. Plus, she was willing to bet the outfit he currently wore was his version of 'comfy casual.'
"Long day at work?" He guessed, falling in step beside her as they walked towards the food trucks.
"Yeah, and super eager for something to eat." She replied, eyes flicking across the four trucks that represented their options. "I'm honestly craving some of those street tacos."
"A good choice." Was his appraising response, steering them towards the left-most truck. "I've heard their carnitas are to die for."
"Mic, I almost did die yesterday."
"Uh, wrong analogy!" He was quick to cover, but she only chuckled.
This late at night, it wasn't really that busy, but the food trucks still drew in a number of passersby. Several stopped Present Mic and asked for autographs, and of course being the famous person he was, obliged those who asked. Jane stood off to the side, waiting patiently for the fans to field away. Before the crowds grew to be too much to handle, he ordered their food and whisked her away further into the gardened plaza.
A few minutes later, with Mexican food in hand, they sat at a small table in beside a little fountain. Due to the late hour, the waterworks weren't running, but the stillness of the water was a calming sight in of itself. It was quiet.
"I'm fairly certain this place isn't rigged to blow, so we should be safe." The blonde joked with a grin, unwrapping his carnita from it's foil covering, and Jane rolled her eyes.
"Cross our fingers..." She muttered, taking a few bites of her taco. They settled into a short silence as they ate their food, too focused on eating to speak much. But the longer she sat there, the more she thought of the previous day's events. "Hey, Mic?"
"Yeah?" He responded, swallowing the last of his bite.
"Yesterday...when that bomb went off..." She paused, trying to word it the way she wanted to. "It was like I couldn't move. Everything was so loud but it was like I couldn't hear anything at the same time. And there was just this...this huge feeling of panic in my chest, you know? Afterwards, I couldn't believe that I didn't move at all. I thought I was so stupid for not getting out of there."
He gave a shrug, accompanied by an appeasing smile. "What happened yesterday most people will never experience. You're one of the unfortunate few who had to go through it, but don't beat yourself up over it. Adrenaline and your 'fight-or-flight' response kicks in fast. It can make you do some crazy things.
"Lots of people think they would be able to jump into action to save the day, or instinctively get to safety, then find out that their legs don't work in the moment." He continued. "We don't know until we really experience it, I guess."
It was flooring, the way he spoke about it all nonchalantly. Did he not realize how dangerous yesterday had been? Was he just so used to being in the middle of chaos that it didn't faze him anymore? How would a person even desensitize to that?
"How?" She asked with a mixture of awe and disbelief. "How do you go out there and face those situations every single day? Anything could go wrong and you could get hurt or killed. How do you keep your cool, and do what you do?"
Mic's eyebrows rose just a smidge, and he leaned back in his chair, as if not having anticipated the question.
"Well..." He started, smoothing his hair back with one hand, "I guess my desire to help people outweighs my instinct for self-preservation. I don't know. I've never really thought about it before."
Jane looked down at her tacos, her lack of understanding clearly showing through, as Mic felt the need to elaborate.
"I've always known I wanted to be a hero, Jane. I didn't choose this on a whim." He could see she was paying attention closely. "I can remember my mom always sewing me capes and masks as a little kid because I wanted to design my own costume. Trust me when I say, she went through a lot of fabric."
She gave a small smile, and he matched it, shaking his head with a laugh when he recalled another memory. "I remember thinking I could do anything a hero could, then getting myself stuck up in a tree after climbing to the top. The fire department had to get me out after a few hours." He shrugged. "So, I really don't know what else to say, other than I always wanted this."
"Must have been nice, knowing what you wanted to do all your life..." Was her quiet response.
"It isn't easy getting to where I am." He said, a brow quirked. "If every little kid who dreamed of being a hero got his wish, there'd be a whole lot of chaos, if you ask me. Heroes, left and right. More than we'd know what to do with. I know how lucky I am to be doing this job. And I don't forget that."
His admission made her quiet. Jane realized that Mic was no doubt a lot smarter than she gave him credit for. Granted, his radio host persona didn't give off the most intelligent of vibes, but the man under the headphones very much did. Clearly she was still holding onto some assumptions about him that were unfair.
"What about you?" He asked suddenly, and she looked at him. "Are you where you always wanted to be?"
"Pff, no." She said with a shake of her head. "Living in Japan, working in a convenience store of all places? No way. I thought...maybe I'd...hell, I don't know what I expected. I never knew what I wanted to be, or what I wanted to do. But I can tell you it's not where I'm at now."
"Why not do something else, then?" He suggested.
Jane sighed. "I don't like change. If I stay at my current job long enough, maybe my boss will give me a raise or two. He appreciates me, so it's a possibility. Plus, I'm pretty strapped for cash right now. It's not like I can go anywhere I want when I can't afford to even break my apartment's lease."
He made to open his mouth and speak, but she glared at him when he smiled helpfully. "If you offer me money, I will kick you in the chest."
"Alright, alright..." He said with a grin, holding up his hands in surrender. They drifted into another silence, each of them finishing off the rest of their food.
"What are you doing in Japan?" He eventually followed up curiously, head cocking to the side as he looked at her. "You're clearly from America-"
Jane frowned. "'Clearly?' What's that supposed to mean?"
"I mean...the attitude, the English, and the accent?" He gestured to her as example. "Come on, it's pretty obvious."
"It's not nice to assume things."
"That aside," he went on, smiling in apology, "you're a long way from home. What could make someone like you, who doesn't like change and is strapped for cash, move all the way out here?"
The brunette looked to the side, thinking about what she wanted to say. Mic didn't press her, but waited until she figured out her words. He had a feeling it had something to do with the mystery of her terrible music taste. Just a hunch, though.
"Grief." She finally said. "And a whole lot of desperation."
She could feel him staring at her from across the little table, but her gaze trailed upwards to the sky. It was dark, barely a star in sight from all the light pollution. A warm breeze blew, rustling the nearby trees and shrubbery.
Jane felt a sudden...discomfort being in this place. Like she wasn't meant to be here. There was no other way to explain it. What had once felt like a cozy and hidden-away place, now seemed cold and unwelcoming. It was getting late anyway, so she probably needed to get back home before too long. Still, part of her was reluctant to say goodbye quite so soon.
Around the edge of a tall office building was the moon, bright and shining above them. The little she could see was beautiful.
"I've always loved the moon." She said out of the blue, honestly unsure why she felt the need to mention it. She saw the blonde look up to see what she was staring at. "In America, we didn't live in the big city. Just a little town in the northeast, lots of forests and lakes." She said, propping her chin on her hand and closing her eyes. "We liked to sit out on our front porch and watch the sky. It was always peaceful.
"Here, though...there's too many buildings in the way. You can never get a good view." Jane shrugged dismissively.
"Hmm..." He hummed a moment later, thinking for awhile before smiling and finally looking back at her. "Let me take you somewhere."
"I didn't even know there was a place like this around..." Jane muttered.
"Really? And you've lived here how long?"
"A couple years...I never have time to get out much. Too busy working." She shrugged, stepping out of the cab that Mic had paid for to take them here. The ground beneath her feet quickly changed to sand as she walked closer to the shoreline.
Mic moved to match pace beside her, hands in his pockets. "It's not exactly a secret spot-lots of people come to the beach here all the time-but, I figured this would give you the best view of the sky."
"It certainly does..." She murmured to herself, staring up at the bright, full moon in the sky.
With no buildings around to block the view, it was as close to home as she could get around here. Minus the intense light pollution, of course. But it was nearly like the skies of Connecticut she remembered. Same big ball of pale light in the sky, same vast emptiness surrounding it. Same feeling of being a tiny speck in the universe.
Something in her chest swelled, and Jane shifted on her feet, trying her best to not make it obvious that she was on the verge of crying. That wouldn't do, to break down like a baby in front of a celebrity. But the onslaught of memories began to rise, and she finally closed her eyes in an attempt to forget it all, just for a moment.
"You ok?" She heard Mic ask from beside her. Her eyes opened to see him looking at her with concern, and she gave a huffed breath as response.
"Yeah...just fine."
"We can leave if you-"
"No, I want to stay a bit longer." She said, unwilling to let go of the moment quite so soon. Now that she'd found this place, Jane wanted to soak it in as much as possible. Her work uniform be damned, the brunette sat on the bank of sand and enjoyed the view some more.
Mic lowered himself into the sand next to her. He was uncharacteristically silent, staring out over the water further beyond them. The sound of the waves was distant, but still recognizable above the whoosh of the wind. Her exhaustion, which had been kept at bay since meeting up with her famous companion, slowly began seeping back into her body. Eyes drooping, Jane shook her head to try staying awake. Just a bit longer.
She smiled a little, then. "It's been so long since I've really just...sat down and relaxed. I forgot it could be this nice."
"Sounds like someone's overworking themselves."
"I need the money." Jane replied with a shrug. "Nothing I can do about it."
A sigh escaped him, but he didn't say anything further. Maybe he wanted to say something but felt like he shouldn't. Either way, she wanted him to keep talking to help her stay awake.
"What do you do to relax, Mic?" Her head shifted to look at him, and he met her gaze. "A man with three jobs telling me I'm overworked...funny. You must have a way to get rid of the tension."
"Yeah, I uh..." He chuckled a little, scratching the back of his neck. "I don't know if I want to say."
Jane grinned. "What? Is it something bad?"
"No, nothing like that."
"Then what's the harm in telling?"
"Putting the pressure on, I see." He said in amusement. "It's something only my close friends know about."
The brunette gave an exaggerated pout. "So...I'm not your friend? Is that what you're saying?"
Mic gave a groan. "You know what I mean."
"Sorry..." She grinned. "If you don't want to tell me, that's fine. I haven't told you my reasons for liking music, so it's only fair."
She went back to looking at the beautiful surroundings, taking in the moment, when he cleared his throat. "I don't mind telling you. Not sure why, you've just got that trustworthy personality, I guess." He said with a wink, and she rolled her eyes. "I would just appreciate if you didn't go spreading it around. Ok?"
"Promise.
"The school year's up and running right now, so I don't have much time for it these days, but...I like to play the guitar." He said, then smiled when she snorted. "What?"
"Besides being totally stereotypical...that's not bad at all. Here I thought you did cocaine, or something."
"No way!" He grimaced at the thought. "I may be a rockstar of sorts, but I don't live the life of one."
She chuckled a little. "Your whole life revolves around music, doesn't it?"
"I enjoy it a lot. It's one of my favorite things. Why shouldn't it?" He said, cocking a brow.
Jane really didn't have an answer to that one. "I guess there's merit in that."
"They say if you love your job, you never work a day in your life." He said with a laugh. "I love all three of my jobs, and I still have to force myself out of bed sometimes. But it does help to feel like I'm doing something worthwhile everyday."
"So, you go home and do more of what you do at work? I don't see how that's relaxing." She pointed out, and he shook his head, giving her a small smile.
"I commit myself to being available to others all day long. At school, I teach the students. On patrol, I protect civilians. At the radio station, I entertain them. The guitar is something I do just for myself, though." He said with a faraway expression. "It's not like it's some secret I'm trying to keep, but it's one thing I can do for me that I don't have to share with anyone else."
"Oh." She said, not having expected such a deep answer. He made the guitar sound so much more than what it was. Plus, she felt a bit like an ass for treating it so lightly. How the tables have turned, she thought, recalling the first time they met. "That makes sense."
"Mmm."
Another silence lingered. Jane wondered to herself what the hell she was doing out here in the middle of the night with a man she couldn't be sure wasn't stringing her along. In moments like this, it was easy to forget that the guy was a celebrity. But surely...if he really didn't care in the long run, he wouldn't be wasting his time sitting here on the beach with her? Would he be that committed if none of this meant anything?
She hated overthinking all of this.
"You should show me another song."
Her request caught him by surprise. He looked at her as if she'd just admitted she was a mermaid and came from the sea. "You're serious?"
"Yeah." She shrugged, watching him pull out his phone and a pair of headphones. "Something you feels fits the moment."
"Off the top of my head, I can't really think of a song about the moon." He admitted with a smile.
Jane shook her head. "Forget about the lyrics and the meanings. I don't care about that stuff. Just pick a song that you'd listen choose. Something that feels right for right here, and right now." She gestured to the sand between them, hoping he'd get her meaning.
Mic stared at her expression for a moment, before looking back at his phone in thought. With a few taps of his fingers, he plugged the headphones into his device and offered her one. She took it, and he finally smiled. "I think I'm starting to understand you a little more, Jane."
She returned the gesture, and he pressed the play button after putting in his own earbud. The song began, and she closed her eyes to listen.
ns 15.158.61.8da2
