TWENTY-FOUR; EMO BITCH ENERGY
Sabrina groaned a little as she woke, feeling absolutely shattered with an intense craving for chocolate. She lifted her hand to her forehead and felt the heat exuding from her skin. Pushing herself onto her elbows, she looked around and saw that she was in her living room. She sighed softly, awkwardly resting against the cushions of her couch.
She didn't remember getting back to her apartment, so she assumed Diego must have dropped her off. Curling up on the warm fabric, she pulled the blanket close to her body and closed her eyes once more, trying to adjust before she got to her feet. It was short-lived, though, as her phone began to ring. Jumping up in surprise, Sabrina groaned and wrapped the blanket around her, shuffling to the wall to pick up the device. Her voice was thick and groggy by the time she reached it. "Hello?"
"Hey, Brie. It's Detective Patch," Eudora's soft voice bled into Sabrina's ears. "Sorry to bother you, I know you don't work Thursdays. It's just, I have Diego Hargreeves here, and you're his emergency contact."
"Has something happened?" Sabrina asked, her eyebrows furrowing a little, though at the same time she held back a yawn. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, everything's fine," Eudora responded. "He got a bit too nosy last night and we had to take him in. Would you be able to pick him up?"
Sabrina glanced at the clock on her oven and saw that it was quarter to ten in the morning. She scratched the back of her head and exhaled through her nose. "Yeah, sure. I'll be there in fifteen."
★☆
Sabrina rocked up to the police station looking like she had been dragged out of a hedge backwards, but she didn't care. She felt like she was hungover, and she knew why. She shouldn't have used her powers on herself again, especially for such a long time. She struggled to find her way back out of the holes she would dig, which meant she could struggle to differentiate reality from her fiction.
"Morning, kid," Sisco watched as she walked past his desk, a paper cup of black coffee in her right hand and her car keys in the left. He turned around in his chair and looked up at her, his expression concerned. "You look like shit."
"Thanks, Sisco," she forced a smile, her eyes not really focusing on anything. "I, uh, had a rough night last night."
"You wanna talk about it?" he asked carefully, raising his eyebrows a little. She shook her head without hesitation. "Are you sure?"
"Yeah, it's all good," she waved him off, before continuing her path to Eudora's desk. Once she was seen approaching, the detective unlocked Diego's handcuffs and allowed him to stand. The man shook the numbness from his hands and sighed dramatically, as if he'd just been freed from a life sentence. Sabrina didn't have the energy to make a scene, so she stopped once she was beside him. "Sorry about this, Eudora."
"Oh, so she can call you Eudora but I can't?" Diego scoffed, and the two women glared at him.
"She's a colleague and a friend," Eudora nodded in Sabrina's direction, before looking back at the tall man. "You're a self-righteous asshole who thinks he has the right to access crime scenes, even after being kicked out of the academy."
Diego rolled his eyes and Sabrina tucked her keys in her jacket pocket before running her fingers through her hair. "Alright, let's go, Diego. We'll pick up your car later."
Shutting his mouth upon realising neither woman was going to accept his smart comments, Diego nodded and marched out of the station with Sabrina trailing behind him. Once they were outside, he stopped and turned to her. "You alright?"
Sabrina shrugged, finishing her coffee and tossing it in the trash can outside the building. Diego sighed and reached for her shoulder. Sabrina couldn't bring herself to look at him, so she stared at the ground. "Sorry. About yesterday."
"Don't worry about it," Diego brushed it off, pulling her in for a hug. "A lot of shit went down and you had to watch it all. I'm sorry, too. I just...I lose my temper around Luther. Now that he's back, it's like everything I worked for was for nothing."
"That's not true," Sabrina mumbled into his shoulder. "You save people whenever you get the chance. You look out for the people who can't fight for themselves. Just cause your dad thought he was more valuable, doesn't mean that you aren't just as important."
Diego held her a little tighter.
★☆
"You know, it's not very badass that you prefer sparkling water over still," Sabrina teased as she handed Diego a bottle once she returned to the car. He rolled his eyes and stuck his tounge out as he twisted the top off, releasing a sharp fizz of air. Sabrina sipped on her energy drink and leaned back in the driver's seat, allowing a silence to fall as they remained parked in the lot outside a convenience store. "Deep down, you're still a rich boy."
"Whatever," Diego scoffed, shaking his head despite the small smile on his face. He turned his head and rested his eyes on the side of her face, watching as she stared out her window and into the underdeveloped town they had found themselves in. They had been driving only an hour since leaving the station, as Sabrina decided she didn't want to go home just yet. She was still tired, but the driving allowed her to settle back into reality and focus on what she was doing. Diego didn't mind, he was happy to spend time with her.
Neither said anything for a while, until Sabrina inhaled sharply and placed her empty bottle in the door of her car. "I have something to tell you."
Diego paused. "What?"
Sabrina swallowed, before turning her body and reaching into the backseat, pulling out a tote bag. She hesitated as she reached inside, pulling out a fancy notebook. Diego tensed a little once he saw the golden lettering of R.H. Sabrina couldn't bring herself to look at him. "Listen, Diego."
"Where the hell did you get that?" he muttered, his voice sharp. Sabrina's grip around the book was so tight her knuckles were beginning to change colour. "Brie-"
"Your dad gave it to me after he fixed me up the second time," she whispered, feeling the pent up guilt washing over her. "He wanted to call me Number Eight but I wouldn't let him. He told me he was gonna die soon, but he wouldn't tell me how or why, only that I had to keep it a secret. He gave me the book and said that he had been attempting to figure out ways I can harness my abilities and gain more control. I've been meaning to tell you, but I had no idea what you would do."
Diego seemed to struggle to find the words to say in response. He tightened his lips, before taking the book from her and flicking through the pages. He stopped on one and began to read. "'Eight has the power to influence the dreams of others rather than only being capable of producing their idea of bad or good. With the right amount of training she will be able to affect more than one enemy at once with the same vision. Though it may take many months or even years, I predict she can properly materialise the dreams of others so that they have a lasting physical impact.' Jesus, Brie. Why didn't you say something?"
"You hated him," she responded softly, shrugging her shoulders a little. "How do you think you would've acted if I came up to you and shoved a notebook of him wanted to experiment on me in your face?"
Diego looked over at her. Her voice was dripping in shame, and seeing that they had known each other for several months now, he knew how she felt emotions. She went through her feelings like an open book and never hid anything. That was how he knew she was being genuine. She wasn't a liar, she couldn't be even if she tried. And she had tried. It had clearly failed.
"Look, I shouldn't have kept it from you, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep it or not," she said, scratching her upper arm. Diego noticed this as an anxious tick of hers so he reached over and grabbed her hand, interlacing it with his own. Sabrina found comfort in this and her shoulders relaxed a little. "I think the fact that there was a possibility that I could be doing more made me wonder whether or not I was really happy with where my powers are at now. I could be doing so much more."
"You don't have to feel like you need to do more," he assured her. "These people aren't entitled to someone to save them all the time. But, if it really means that much to you, I can help you with your training. Dad might have been a son of a bitch, but he knew what to do when it came to harnessing our abilities."
Sabrina squeezed his hand and shuffled a little so that she could rest his head on his shoulder. He held her close and smiled as she slowly began to fall asleep in his arms. He pressed his lips against the side of her head then turned to look out the window, the small part of him still aware of any dangers that may be present.
★☆