the 7th sense | mark lee

chapter four

Navy lied when she told Willow she'd be out of town for the weekend.

But how else could she hide the fact that her vigilante identity had to meet the Hero Commission and couldn't go out partying with her closest friend instead?

And so, there she was, in her casual clothes, as if she didn't just talk to the Hero Commission who gave her an offer of becoming a hero, that she declined, again.

The meeting was held ever so often, and the outcome would always be the same. Nix would refuse the title of number two hero because then she would have to change her ways of work, and that was unacceptable in her eyes.

"What do I even have at home?" Navy asked herself as she roamed the shelves of the convenience store. She ended up buying a few packs of instant ramen and a pack of noodles as well as some soup packs and a pack of mushrooms.

Her weekend was uneventful, except for the few bad guys she had caught, but that became a part of her daily routine and didn't give her the adrenaline rush it used to when she started.

"Sometimes I wish I never became a vigilante," the girl admitted to herself as she stared up at the sky. The One World Trade Center rooftop was quiet, the April breeze moving her hair every few seconds. It had been a while since she took her hood off while being out as Nix, and Navy enjoyed the feeling.

It made her feel free for some reason, even though the mask and her combat uniform kept her from letting her guard down.

"It would've been much easier, right?" a voice asked, making Nix quickly pull her hood up and get up with a fight stance.

"You should stop sneaking up on me," Nix scoffed and sat down, "I might accidentally kill you one day."

"Well, you're probably the only person I'd let that close," the voice became louder as the figure closed up their proximity, "But let's be honest, you're still not skilled enough."

"Funny you say that, Spiderman, since you were the one who was pinned against the wall longer than me just a few days ago." Nix scoffed at the man's childish remarks.

"I let my guard down." the man admitted, but she could see right through his black spider mask.

"I'd say that if I were in you, too." Nix chuckled.

"Any bad guys tonight?" Spiderman asked as he laid down on his back next to her, leaving only a few inches between them as he started playing with the tip of her mask, but she shook his hand off after a while.

"No, it's been quite peaceful lately." Nix said as she looked over the rooftops, "I must say, you are holding up well."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Spiderman asked looking up at her.

"The number one spot, it didn't have much effect on you," Nix noted, taking Spiderman by surprise. How did she get that information from just looking at him for a few minutes every night? "You didn't change, which is good. But I don't think you're going to be able to hold it in much longer."

"Hold what in?" he had a slight idea of what Nix was pointing out, but he could never be too sure when it came to the masked vigilante, that was somehow able to catch his attention without even trying.

A lot of female heroes and fans alike tried getting his attention, but none of them could ever compare to Nix. He didn't even know what she looked like behind that black mask, but her eyes were enough for him to have all his attention set on her and her only.

"Something's bothering you, I can see it in your eyes. You seem sad, maybe conflicted at times, as if you want to make a choice when you don't have a second option to choose from," Nix started before she looked straight into his chocolate brown orbs, "You seem like someone has told you to do something you think wouldn't benefit anything, but rather bring harm, and you have to obey."

"How did you kn-"

"How did I know? I can look into your eyes and read you like an open book, Spidey," the vigilante closed her eyes, and Spiderman knew she was smiling under that mask. He wanted to take it off and see what her smile looked like, "You don't have to tell me anything. But if you need a person to rant your heart out to or a shoulder to cry everything out on, I'll always be here."

"Thank you." his voice cracked, and he hoped that Nix didn't hear it, but by her action of stroking his cheek, he knew she heard it.

"I have to go," Nix said and stood up, but Spiderman didn't move an inch.

"Where?" he questioned.

"The two of us are the most skilled in saving lives, we can't both be caught slacking around and doing nothing together," Nix chuckled but placed her hand on the hero's chest when he went to stand up, "Go home and rest, I've got you covered for tonight," Nix ordered, leaving no room for arguing.

"Goodnight Nix," Spiderman called out, Nix throwing a peace sign in the air as a sort of goodbye before teleporting away.

Spiderman sighed a while after she left. He didn't know why, but a gut feeling told him that it'd be much harder to leave New York than he originally thought.

"Nix, what are you doing to me?"