Tommy's Ultra-Important Keychain

Chapter 31: Hiding in plain sight

Purpled stepped away to prepare a second cup. "Do you know anyone else with your name in the shop?"

Tommy grumbled under his breath, but lifted the cup to his mouth nevertheless. He took one sip and nearly dropped it.

Somehow, some way, Purpled had exactly replicated his standard coffee order.

How was that possible? Weeks had gone by since they'd visited the shop together, and a drink order was such a trivial piece of information to hold onto. It wasn't necessarily complex, but there wasn't a single detail out of place. Purpled had used the same milk, the same amount of sugar, and had even added slightly more cinnamon, because Tommy had made a brief comment about doubling up the next time he was in.

Sure enough, with his second sip, there wasn't a doubt in his mind. He glanced up at Purpled, who was pouring a foul amount of French vanilla into his drink. His disgust at the action was overshadowed by the way his heart warmed at the gesture in his hands. He cleared his throat, "You remembered my order."

Purpled froze, back towards Tommy.

"Uh," the ex-hero murmured. "Yeah."

He turned, drink in hand and expression sour. Tommy panicked inwardly. He wasn't entirely certain of what he'd done to cause the mood to dampen, but he needed to fix it.

He was about to apologize when Purpled blurted, "We did a lot of memory exercises at the agency."

Tommy stopped.

"Especially the people who worked closely with that item," he finished. "So, it wasn't hard to remember."

Tommy felt Ace's key hanging from around his neck, and knew instantly Purpled's vague comment was in reference to it. Tommy exhaled, "I see."

Purpled put a lid on his drink and stepped out from behind the counter, still somber. The two of them approached an isolated booth seat, away from the other patrons. It was past the time for any sort of rush, so the ex-hero was clearly not worrying about customers walking in. Tommy wrinkled his nose as Purpled sipped from his abhorrently sweet drink.

"I was worried about you," Purpled said without warning. Tommy frowned, tilting his head. "I saw the news."

Oh.

He had been wondering about that.

There was something satisfying in hearing that Purpled had been watching from afar. It felt like proof that their friendship wasn't completely shattered. Tommy couldn't help the way his mouth twitched upwards, even when Purpled hung his head, gripping his cup like it wasn't steaming hot.

"I can't help but blame myself," Purpled admitted. "Ace wouldn't have targeted you if I hadn't tried to become your friend. I thought you were seriously injured."

"You were that hung up on it?" Tommy huffed. He leaned back in his seat, puffing his chest to seem bigger. "You don't need to be concerned! I'm really strong, so there's no way I would actually let Ace get a leg up on me."

Tommy tried not to think about how powerless he had felt in front of Ace in the basement of the hero agency. He could still remember, clear as day, how his legs shook and his body screamed. It was a mercy that he couldn't recall much from there to the villain hospital, because he was certain that time was paved with pain.

"Hah," Purpled scoffed half-heartedly. "That's probably true. Dude is a mess right now, so he's a shell of himself."

"Shell or not," Tommy went on. "I took Speedrunner in a fight the other day, so I think I could take him."

Purpled's eyes softened, and Tommy hesitated. For some reason, he got the feeling he was incorrect about something. "Speedrunner and Ace shouldn't be compared," the ex-hero stated. "No hero can be perfectly moral, but there is a fine line between those too."