Seek {Superhero AU} - Ending 1

3: I Do It My Way

STEP THREE: APPEASE THE MOTHER

I tell my mother not to bother me because I'm working on homework. I keep my bedroom door closed, and I leave through the window.

STEP FOUR: COMMUTE

I fly to the house. I always bring a coffee for the commute if I have time to drink it. God knows I'll need it to deal with Sunburst again.

STEP FIVE: BREAK IN

This step often depends on the house. Some houses have so much security that it's a battle just to get through the front gate; other houses don't even lock their front door.

I try not to break windows because I currently have a 0% success rate of identifying who kidnapped Hazel. I am uncomfortably aware that there is a very significant chance that Rick Rowling is entirely innocent, and I am on a wild goose chase trying to find Hazel in his house. That's why I never break anything, at least not purposefully.

But the day that I really do find Hazel in one of these houses, I'm going to wreak havoc upon the kidnapper's life and make them regret being born.

Rick Rowling's home security sits at "just a regular person" on the scale of "is paranoid that their house will be attacked by the U.S. military" and "has never even heard of locking the door in his entire life." He doesn't have a fancy gate or anything to keep me out, but he does keep the doors and windows locked.

The family upstairs is gone today, too. There's a staircase on the side of the house that leads up to their front door on the second floor. I scan the windows of the second floor just to double check that I don't see movement—the only thing more embarrassing than not doing your research is not double checking that the house is as empty as it's supposed to be before breaking in. There's no one up there; I'm good to go.

I don't care about Rowling's locks. He keeps the spare key inside a giant pot of peonies on the porch. I have to dig around for it; it's actually hidden pretty well. Had I not stalked him for two weeks and seen him use it once, I would have to pick the lock instead of walking right in.

But as it is, I pull the key from the dirt and brush it off.

"Hey!" called an all-too-familiar voice. "Stop!"

"Did you really think that would work?" I ask as I stride to the front door and unlock it. Sunburst is gasping for air and hunched over with his hands on his knees. He normally takes public transport and then sprints the rest of the way to me, so by the time he gets here, he needs a moment to catch his breath.

"No," admits Sunny—that's what I call him when he's being too ridiculous to warrant an actual superhero name. "It was for dramatic effect."

I roll my eyes and push open the front door. Hands at the ready to call upon the shadows if I need to, I take a few steps into the living room. The house is relatively neat; to my right, the living room is carpeted and comfortable. The couch has a permanent crease from somebody sitting in one spot for a large portion of each day, every day. There's a red armchair and a short wooden coffee table between them.

STEP SIX: LEAVE NO STONE UNTURNED

I wander the living room just in case there's a secret bookcase door leading to a secret basement or something. I mean, fuck if I know what criminals do with their houses.

I mean...

Well, you know what I mean.

I flick on the lights. That might notify the neighbors that there's someone at this house who's not supposed to be here. Let's see how friendly Rowling is with his neighbors—and how observant those neighbors are. If he didn't tell them he was leaving, or if they don't piece together that no one is supposed to be home, I can enjoy the lights being on without facing any consequences for it.