At noon, the sun hanging in the center of the sky, we ate in the shelter of a modest café. It was a modest meal, nothing spectacular. At least it was somewhat healthy.

            She was sitting up straight near the window, back to the sun, casting a shadow over the table. She's tall, and intimidating, in her graceful way. I feel like I'm always in her shadow.

            That's when I made a move. It was foolish of me. I mean, she's ten years older than me and I'm still a senior in high school. My hand, brushing the hair out of her face, was caught in her titanic grip. She knew.

            "Ricky, what are you doing?"

            "You just... look prettier when your hair isn't in your face," I answered.

            "Are you hitting on me? Rick, I don't date sidekicks. As a rule. I'm flattered, but... no. Just, no."

            My face fell, and I looked down at my salad, idly forking the side of a crouton.

            I had forgotten. The press had forgotten too. They used to be The Daring Duo that saved the town again and again. And then he died. And she was alone, saving the city again and again. Alone. Had they had a thing for each other?

            I don't know how I forgot. Because I know the fans haven't forgotten. That's why I never get the girl. They always remember him. He was stronger. More handsome. He was her equal. And I'm just... a sidekick.

            That's when our belts vibrated, and she pulled out a twenty, placing it on the table for the waitress. We grabbed our wind-breakers and ran off to find a dark alley.

            The city was in trouble. The city needed us.

RATE THIS BRANCH!

Click to View Author Guidance

Dear Co-Writers, Once you have added a chapter, consider this story as much yours as it is mine. Feel free to suggest content for the Author Guidance below. Nothing here is written entirely in stone, except what is recapitulation of already written chapters. However, that doesn't mean that you're welcome to write something that completely foils a collaboratively agreed upon story arc. Cheers, Dys ================================ After chapter 2, let's start to indicate the narrator of each chapter even if they're a new character, okay? That should stop potential confusion. ie Narrator: Rick or Narrator: Lucy except maybe we could include last names and aliases once they're included. Such as... Narrator: Bruce "Batman" Wayne Not that we'd ever turn this into a Batman fan-fic.

updated Jan 9 '09 by Dysphemism