Summary: Season 5 Episode 1. Conversations between the episode.
Henry looked on in astonishment as Charlotte used different combos that pulverised his character. He was playing the game well at first, but just as he was about to finish her, his best friend suddenly decided to show off and defeat him. Jasper and Ray's words were lost in his ears as he tried to somehow fight back.
He didn't think that Charlotte could best him. He thought it was an easy match against her, but he was proven wrong. Just like every other time.
"I'm running! I'm running!" Henry shouted, seeing his character lose health. He tried shuffling backwards but it was no use. Charlotte just kept coming at him.
"Run away, Henry!"
"Finish her!"
Ray and Jasper's shouts molded together. Repeating encouraging words to the blonde as he scurried his character away. With one final kick, Charlotte eliminated Henry and closed the game. She turned to her friend, smiling triumphantly with her hands on her hips.
"I was just about to beat you..." Henry said.
Charlotte shrugged and replied, "Well, sometime the cat likes to play with the mouse before she kills it."
"Yeah, well, sometimes the cat hurts the mouse's feelings," he shot back lamely. Charlotte shook her head while smiling softly at him. Henry found himself staring at her, feeling something in him stir at the sight of it.
Woah
He was pulled back to reality when Ray shooed him. Shaking his head, he went and sat down next to Jasper on the steps, trying to decipher what the heck he just felt and what made him think that all of the sudden about his best friend.
-----
Charlotte ran out to fetch her "mooshun" capture suit. Schowz brought both Henry and Ray back after receiving their distress call that they were in the sewers. She was about to give them an earful but they disconnected the call before she could utter a word out.
When they arrived, she felt satisfied that she lectured and sassed them at the same time, and they could not do anything because they were paralysed in duffel bags. Henry was the first to listen to her and Ray begrudgingly followed.
Coming back with the suits, Charlotte handed them to Schowz before making her way to the two superheroes. She stood over them with her arms crossed and a face that said 'I told you so'.
"Don't you have somewhere else to be?" Ray grumbled and childishly looked away.
"Don't you?"
Ray glared at her, his head turning to his partner who he found laughing. "You're in the same state as me, genius."
Henry stopped and cleared his throat.
"None of this would've happened if you guys just listened to me," Charlotte said.
"Ughhhhh, we already listened your lectureeeee," Ray whined causing the curly head girl to roll her eyes.
"Did you really?" She questioned with a pointed look.
"I did, Char," Henry spoke, his voice growing softer. "And I'm sorry I didn't listen to you. We just took out bad guys easily the last few weeks and we overestimated ourselves. We're sorry."
"Speak for yourself," Ray mumbled, but the blonde heard it clearly and gave him a look.
"Look," Charlotte sighed, her arms flopping at her sides. "I only lecture you guys because I don't want either of you to get hurt, especially you," she pointed at Henry. "I know you have hypermotility but that doesn't mean you're indestructible. That's Ray. Henry, you have to remember that. You have to remember that we could lose you." That I could lose you.
When Henry didn't meet her eyes, she turned to her boss. "And you," she pointed. "You might be indestructible but you're not immune to pain. You have to be more careful in these situations, even more so that you have a sidekick who is just as cocky as you right now."
Henry and Ray both didn't make any eye contact with her. Charlotte thought that her words had gotten through to them until Ray turned to Henry and said, "We're being lectured again."
"I know right?" Henry laughed with his boss, causing Charlotte to roll her eyes and placed her hands on her hips. Seeing the look, Henry quickly quieted down and cleared his throat. "Sorry. Char, don't worry. We'll be more careful next time."
She raised her eyebrows.
"I promise."
The firmness in his voice made Charlotte feel secure. She hadn't realised that while she was lecturing them, she was actually letting out some of the fears she's been having. For nearly 4 years of the crime fighting job she had no one to confide to, so it felt like a weight was lifted off her chest. She got to express what she was feeling without them knowing it. She didn't know what she would do if they were seriously injured, she hoped she wouldn't have to find out. Especially if it was her best friend.
"Alright, Charlotte, help me get those two up," Schowz came jogging over to where the duffel bags filled with idiots were.
"Rather not," Charlotte said.
"What?" Schowz look at her. "Why?"
"They're dirty and they stink."
"Hey!" Ray and Henry complained simultaneously.
"It's not like we can move our body so we can go take a shower, Charlotte," Ray continued.
"You can move your mouths."
"So?" Henry asked.
Charlotte rolled her eyes and groaned. "So, you guys can chew some gum and get cleaned faster than taking a shower."
The two heroes looked at one another as realisation dawned on them and they started muttering words of agreement.
"Char, I need you to reach into my pocket, grab my tube and pop a gum in my mouth," Henry instructed.
"But, I do-"
"Char, just do it."
Charlotte stuck her tongue at to him. She took a deep breath in, holding it, before making her way to Henry.
-----
After Henry and Ray popped their gums, Schowz did his best lifting Ray up by himself while Jasper and Charlotte helped their blonde friend. He may not be able to move his body, but he could still feel things. Like how Charlotte's touch sent a spark from where her hand rested on his arm. He couldn't deny the feeling in his chest that came with it.
He couldn't comprehend his feelings lately. Whenever he was with her, he felt things that he shouldn't feel, thought of a future that he never saw before. He had never thought of that about her before. It confused and scared him. Charlotte was his best friend for who knows how long. If he felt things that meant something else, he was risking his friendship that he didn't want to ruin. That would mean losing her.
The three of them made Henry and Ray stand in the middle of the Man Cave. Schowz installed the new suits on them, with a lot of difficulty and complaints, and explained how it worked with Charlotte and Jasper's suits. He didn't bother going into details saying that Charlotte would be the only one smart enough to understand. She gave Henry a wink at that and the butterflies in his stomach got out of the cage. He hoped that the mask covered his blush.
"If this works," Schowz started from where he sat at the control panel. "You two can control Captain Man and Kid Danger just like you controlled the Bear and Hair in the video game."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Henry agreed, liking the plan and his cockiness coming back. "And then they can send us to go find Barge and make him throw in the towel."
"Oooo, that's good," Ray grinned approvingly. "Remember that when we get there."
Schowz turned their suits on and activated the link between them. Henry felt a tingling sensation in him and saw his hand move involuntarily. He looked at Charlotte, whose actions he copied, and watched the amazed look on her face. For some reason, he couldn't look away. The excitement she had was so endearing that he found himself wanting to savour it.
"This is so cool!" Charlotte raised her other hand and watched as Henry's followed. Henry couldn't stop smiling at her, he was just glad that she was so fixated in controlling his body that she didn't see him staring at her.
He heard Ray disagreeing with Jasper about being 'one and the same', but he was busy focusing on Charlotte as she took a few steps forward.
"Is this a bad time to say I have to pee?" He asked with smirk looking at his best friend.
Normally Charlotte would give him a weird look for saying stuff like that, but she was too obsessed with watching their feet move in sync that she just replied, "It's a very bad time."
"Then I will not say it," Her giggle was something that Henry smiled widely at.
"Hey, watch this," Charlotte made Henry grab Schowz's tool box and they went back to where they were originally standing. "Wait. These battle suits make you super strong right?" She asked their crazy inventor.
"Yeah!"
Charlotte gave Henry a mischievous grin, moving her hand on the bottom of the box.
"What are you doing?" He asked as his actions copied hers.
Charlotte ignored him and tossed the box into the air and punched it, sending it flying across the cave and straight into the wall.
"Woah!" Jasper exclaimed.
"That was awesome!" Henry chuckled turning back to Charlotte. She squealed and started jumping and down while clapping her hands excitedly. He would've found it cute if he wasn't forced to do the same. Who was he kidding? The look on her face was enough for him to suck it up if it made her happy.
"Look at me! I'm a superhero!" Jasper gazed at his suited hands. "Taste my fists and smell my kicks!" He did a few punches and kicks in the air that Ray had to follow.
"You're not a superhero," he said.
"Raise your hand if you think Jasper is a superhero," Henry chuckled when Jasper raised his own hand making Ray's do the same.
"Jasper please put my hand down," he demanded as calmly as he could.
"Okay," Jasper singsonged and raised his other hand. Ray glared at him.
"Dang it!" The hero exclaimed, trying so hard not to strangle the boy, not that he could anyway. He looked over to his sidekick. "I want to swap."
"Nuh-uh dude," Henry said. "Charlotte stays with me."
Butterflies got loose in her stomach. The way he said it made Charlotte smile at the back of his head.
"I'll give you a raise!"
"Nope."
"A vacation."
"Nah."
"A paid vacation."
"Hmmm, let me - No."
"Oh come on!"
-----
Captain Man and Kid Danger had defeated the crazy lunatic that took orders from a towel. Ray was relieved that the effects of the flabber gas wore off and he was no longer in Jasper's control.
They were back in the ManCave assorting all through the stolen towels to give back to the citizens of Swellview. Henry, Jasper and Charlotte were at the couch dividing the towels evenly for Piper while Ray and Schowz were on the other side. A lot of bickering came from the two as they argued about either sorting them by colour or by size.
"We are separating them by colour!" Ray exclaimed, his hands opening and closing as if he was restraining himself from strangling Schowz.
"Why are not separating them by schize?" The scientist questioned.
"Because colour is easier, and much more pretty to look at, then sorting them by 'schize'!" Ray snatched the red towel that the shorter man was holding and dumped it on his red pile.
"Guys, it really doesn't matter," Henry spoke from where he was on the couch.
Ray glared at him. "What, you're an expert on towels now?"
"I'm just saying-"
"Lalalalalalala," Ray covered his ears like a child.
"Aaand, he just did that," Henry shook his head at his manchild boss and went back to his own sorting.
"Alright," Ray grabbed a bunch of his towels and made his way to the elevator. "Schowz and I will bring these towels to one side of Swellview while you guys do the other," Schowz hurriedly took hold of as much towel as he could before running up to Ray who was already inside the elevator.
"Which side?" Charlotte asked.
"The side where I don't have to listen to another Charlotte lecture," Charlotte rolled her eyes when the elevator doors closed.
"It was really awesome today!" Jasper exclaimed to his friends excitedly. "We got to fight bad guys and I controlled Captain Man!"
Henry laughed. "Yeah, dude. It was really funny to see him do that weird dance."
"Hey, did you see how I picked up the gas can up and sprayed it all over Barge's face?" Jasper's thrill was easily matched with Henry's hype.
"Yeahhhh, that was mind blowing," The blonde reached over to give his best friend a boyish high five and fistbump. Charlotte shook her head with a smile at their antics.
"Technically, you sprayed it all over Ray first," she chimed in.
"But I still got Barge in the end. That makes me a superhero!" Jasper threw both his fists up making his two friends laugh.
"Char, did most of the fighting there, so I think she's the real superhero today," Henry gave her a proud smile that caused a warm feeling in Charlotte's chest. His brown eyes shone with pride as he gazed at her and she couldn't look away. A small smile formed on her own lips as brown eyes met brown eyes. A moment passed with them just staring at each other, completely forgetting everything else.
"Ugh! Guys stop gazing at each other," Jasper interrupted them. His voice broke them out of their trance and they looked equally awkward.
"We weren't gazing," Charlotte's words fell deaf in her own ears, feeling warmth spread in her cheeks.
"Mmm-hmm, sure," Jasper sent a knowing look Henry's way, who deliberately avoided eye contact with him. "Well, I'm gonna take these towels and head up to Junk 'n Stuff and start closing up," he didn't wait for a reply as he took his pile of towels and headed out.
For the first time in their lives, an awkward silence fell upon Henry and Charlotte. Neither knew what to say after their friend's assumptions, which were accurately right. Charlotte was confused. She'd been feeling weird things towards Henry today and it bothered her. Never had she ever felt those things about him before. It was uncharted waters and she was not ready to dive in.
"So," Henry started, his hands fiddling with a towel. "How was fighting as Kid Danger?"
"Didn't meet my expectations," she laughed at his incredulous face. "I'm kidding. But, it's definitely something I can do without."
"What does that mean?" He asked.
"It means that I don't want to experience what you go through when you fight criminals," Charlotte took the abandoned towel in his hands and folded it to put in her pile. "I worry enough just watching you from the screens, but actually seeing what you see and doing stuff that you do... I just can't. I mean, I understand now what you have to go through as a sidekick, but if I do that again I'd be worrying my head off. I was the one controlling you, if I messed up you would get hurt. I couldn't think straight knowing that your life was literally in my hands. I'd never forgive myself if I was responsible for yo-"
"Hey," Henry gently caught her off, taking her tiny hand in his. She didn't even notice that she started to ramble until he stopped her. "What you did today was incredible. Because of you we stopped Barge and got the towels back. Because of you Ray and I stopped another criminal. Because of you I came back safe and sound without a scratch on me. I'm okay," before he could stop himself, his hand came up to cup her face making her look at him. "I had the best video game fighter in the entire world to control me, I was in good hands. There was never a doubt in my mind that you couldn't win. I was confident, because Charlotte Page was by my side."
Charlotte's vision blurred. She couldn't help the tears that fell at his words. Her heart warmed listening to him. A shaky smile appeared on her face as he gently wiped her tears away and pulled her into a hug.
Henry held her tightly. His chest squeezing hearing her sobs. He never knew that she felt this way. It never occurred to him what she was going through when he went out on missions. If the roles were reversed, he knew he would be losing his mind. He'd be pacing around the ManCave, or biting his nails, or doing something stupid until he saw her come back safely.
"Thanks, Hen," Charlotte mumbled against his chest.
"Of course, Char," Instinctively, Henry placed a kiss on the crown of her head. The move caused them both to pause before letting go of each other, their eyes meeting. After about a moment of them gazing again, Charlotte turned away and gathered her towels.
"We should head up to check on Jasper," she said, looking anywhere but him.
"Yeah," Henry nodded and grabbed his own towel and the two walked over to the elevator, feeling things they knew they'd be confused about the next day.