43It was a hot and sweltering summer Friday night in Jump City. The local "young and pretty" things were all out for a night on the town. Some had dates while others were on the prowl for a quick hook up. The tension in the air was palpable as young men were psyching up their "game" and the young women primped themselves and strategized their plans for the evening. One thing was certain; no one wanted to end up alone that night.
Muscle cars cruised up and down Martin Luther King Boulevard, with muscular young men behind the wheel, who were on the prowl for someone to pick up. The traffic slowed to a crawl in front of Jump's newest dance club, a former warehouse that was now known as "The Titan".
The music inside the building was loud and it reverberated all the way outside. A young woman approached the club's entrance and paused, deliberating whether or not to enter. She could feel the beat of the music through the soles of her shoes. She was dressed in a pair of skin tight jeans and a violet T-shirt that highlighted her shapely chest.
She checked the time and stared at the entrance again. After hesitating she approached the entrance, which had a long line which was corralled by several velvet ropes which formed several switchbacks. She stopped when she saw that there were at least a hundred people waiting to enter. She was about to turn and leave when the bouncer recognized her and gestured for her to approach. Several people in the line vocally complained when the bouncer let the young woman enter ahead of them, but he paid no heed to their griping.
The interior of the club was like so many others. It was mostly dark, with flashing, colored disco lighting and the ubiquitous rhythmic and pounding music. People were dancing and she stopped, looking around as if she had lost something.
A muscle bound man in his early twenties saw her from afar and he sauntered over to her. He was over six feet tall and his arms were covered in tattoos and he walked towards her with a confident and cocky gait. She only noticed him just as he approached her. He smiled at her and from his posture she might have thought he owned the place.
"I haven't seen you here before? Are you new here in town?"
"I don't usually come to places like this."
"I can tell." He replied with a smirk. "You're too classy to come to a place like this."
"You have no idea of how right you are."
His smirk widened into a grin. "It's a good thing I found you first."
She eyed him warily. "I came here to meet someone."
"I think you just did. I'm Derek, and you're …?"
"You mean you don't recognize me?"
"I recognize a goddess when I see one."
"What I meant to say is that I'm meeting my date here."
"I think he stood you up, though I don't know why he would. I think it's fate that we ran into each other."
"I don't believe in fate. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to find my date in this jungle."
"What's the rush? … let him find you. You still haven't told me your name … and I like your chakra stone. Are you into meditation?"
She noticed another young man weaving through the crowd, waving at her.
"If you'll excuse me, I found my date."
Derek turned and saw what appeared to be a Goth boy approaching.
"You're kidding? He's your date? The emo dude?"
"Yes, now if you'll excuse me." She pushed past him.
He grabbed her arm. "You still haven't told me your name."
With a pincer like grip she removed his hand from her arm, and he winced in pain. A small shriek escaped his lips when he saw four crimson red eyes glaring at him.
"My name is Raven and if you don't leave me alone I will teach you the true meaning of pain." She replied in a guttural voice that made his skin crawl.
Derek massaged his bruised hand as he slowly backed away. "You're one of the Titans."
Raven ignored him and approached her date, who she met years before on the night the Titans went out clubbing with Blackfire.
"Hey Raven … I see you met Derek."
"Yes I did … Dylan, why did you choose this club for our date?"
"Anonymity … no one will recognize you here, not when you're dressed in your civvies, which look pretty good."
"Thanks … Starfire picked this ensemble for me."
He nodded towards a table in a far corner of the room. "Can I get you anything?"
"Some mineral water would be nice, thank you."
Raven sat down and Dylan quickly returned with two bottles of Perrier.
"So, I guess I'm your rebound date, huh?"
She bit her lower lip before replying. "Sorry, I uh, didn't know who else to call. Does everyone know?"
He smiled. "Hey, no apologies needed. What guy wouldn't be excited by a random call from a hot super hero?"
"I know, I never called you since …"
"The day those weird alien octopus robots attacked the club … hey, at least you kept my number."
"I know, I never gave you mine … sorry."
"It's OK … the last time we talked we discussed how pointless everything was."
"And show tunes." She added.
"You remember."
"Hard not to, especially since I don't watch TV and don't know any show tunes."
"That was over four years ago … I won't lie, I was surprised when I heard your voice on the phone."
She bit her lower lip. "I'm sorry, Dylan … I know it's not fair to you."
"I don't mind … anything to keep you away from Derek."
"You know him?"
"His dad owns this club … and half the car dealerships in Jump … he's still rubbing his hand. You're even stronger than I remember."
Raven looked apprehensively over her shoulder and saw Derek massaging his hand while griping to the bartender.
"Azar, I overdid it. He's just a civilian."
"It's OK, he had it coming. He thinks he can do anything he wants because he's rich." He chuckled. "Just remind me to never make you angry, you're way more bad ass than you look."
"Now I know why he thinks he's so special … Dylan, I really am sorry … I just … I know I dumped him but … this isn't a real date."
"It's OK Raven, it's not the first time I've been put into the friend zone. And I figured you needed to talk to someone who doesn't wear a cape or have superpowers. I'm actually flattered that you called me."
"I'm sorry … some date I am."
He smiled. "It's OK, I have a girlfriend."
"You do?"
"Yeah … we're pretty serious actually."
"Does she know that you're here?"
He nodded. "Yeah, she knows."
Raven sighed. "Wow, she must really trust you."
"She does."
Raven looked around the club. "I don't understand these places. So many people, so many emotions, so much lust."
"Well, you're different."
"Tell me about it."
He took her hand and squeezed it. "Wanna tell me what happened?"
"It was stupid."
"How stupid?"
"Colossally stupid. An old girlfriend from his past emerged and I got jealous."
"Was it the rock girl?"
She shook her head. "No, it wasn't Terra. This girl is actually nice. What threw me off is that he never told me about her before."
"Wow, a secret flame."
She shook her head. "Not really, more like preteen puppy love. It couldn't have been more innocent."
"So what happened?"
"What do you think?" She snorted. "I went all psycho bitch girlfriend from hell on him."
"Was he pissed?"
"He was … he said the he couldn't believe that I didn't trust him. It all went downhill from there, fast. We had a huge fight and … I don't even remember what led to it … I dumped him."
"How did he handle that?"
"Not well … he was devastated. I can't believe I was so stupid. Jill caught him before he hit the floor."
"Jill's his old girlfriend?"
She nodded. "They already started going out on dates … she's smooth. She has him eating out of her hand."
"That's not good … Raven … forgive me for asking … how intimate were you with him?"
She pursed her lips before answering. "I've been sleeping with him for two years."
"Was he your first?"
"My one and only."
He nodded. "You have a special bond with him."
"That's one way of putting it. I feel as if I gave part of myself to him and now I'm …"
She paused as she stifled a sob.
"You've got dumpers remorse."
"I … I was so jealous. Jill is so pretty and I'm … a witch."
He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Raven, if I wasn't spoken for, I would be all over you. You aren't a witch, you're a hot babe. Derek wanted you … trust me, you've got the goods."
"It doesn't matter … I blew it … he's gone."
"Is he?"
"He's with her."
"So? He was yours first. How serious are they? Are they sleeping together?"
She shook her head. "No, I know that they aren't, at least not yet."
Dylan patted her hand. "I think you need to go back to that big T you live in."
"What do I tell him?" Her voice warbled.
"Tell him what you told me. Tell him you're sorry and that you love him."
"Will it really be that easy?" She asked.
"I don't know. But what I do know is that unless you try you won't get him back."
She looked away from him.
"I'm scared … what if he says no."
"You won't be any worse off than you are now. Go, Raven, it'll turn out OK, you'll see."
They both stood up. "Thank you, Dylan. I know I haven't been much of a friend, but …"
"Don't worry … I'm actually kind of touched that you called me … even if you did friend zone me." He winked.
They shared a hug and she pecked him on the cheek before disappearing into one of her portals. The Goth boy smiled and crossed his arms. "Sometimes I can't believe how nice I am."
-( - )-
It was late in the Tower when a black hemisphere rose from the hallway floor and melted away, revealing Raven's civilian clad form. She sighed as she stared at his door, which had the words "Beast Boy" stenciled on them. Prior to their break up they spent most nights in her room and she was hoping that he was in his room tonight … alone. She reached out with her empathic senses and detected his aura and no one else's.
She heaved a sigh of relief and approached the door, raising her hand to knock. She stopped herself, unsure if she could do it. Apprehension and insecurity flowed through her. What if he rejected her? After what she had done to him could she blame him if he told her to get lost? Remembering Dylan's words, that there was nothing left for her to lose, she phased through the door.
His room, while not tidy, was no longer the pigsty of his teen years. She glided over to his bunk beds, where she found him sleeping on the lower bunk. He continued to levitate as she watched him sleep. She wanted to throw herself on him, to tell him she was sorry, but something held her back. He suddenly stirred and rolled over in the bed, and she flinched, not knowing whether to flee or stay put. Blinking, he opened his eyes, which he sleepily rubbed.
"Raven?"
"Yeah, it's me … Gar, uh … hi?"
He sat up in his bed. "Hi."
Raven's lower lip began to quiver. She suddenly dropped to her knees and knelt next to his bed.
"I can't tell you how stupid I was and how sorry I am." She warbled.
He didn't reply immediately but instead stared into her indigo eyes, which were reflecting the moonlight coming in through the window.
"Rave, how about we forget this ever happened?"
"Really?"
He smiled. "Yeah … really."
She nodded. "OK … that sounds good to me."
He reached under his covers and after twisting around for a moment he pulled his boxers out from under the covers and tossed them aside. He then pulled the bedcovers aside.
"Hop in."
Raven quickly stripped down to her birthday suit and climbed into the narrow bunk. She curled up to him, pressing her gray flesh against his green body, feeling the warmth she had so cavalierly thrown away and missed so much. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.
"You know that I love you, right?"
"I know." He replied.
"I'm such an idiot; I don't know why you put up with me." She whispered into his ear.
He kissed her back and smiled at her.
"You didn't think I was really gonna let you get away, did you?"
"You weren't?"
"Of course not, and do you know why?"
She shook her head. "Tell me, why do you put up with a jealous idiot like me?"
He kissed her again.
"Because you're my idiot."
THE END
