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"Lunch is ready!" Oliver called to the members of the Elite Force from the kitchen.
"I'll grab the plates," Chase offered as he entered.
"Oh, just like you grabbed the heart of the girl I love?" Oliver retaliated in a sour manner.
Alex grimaced slightly as she walked over. "Ouch. That's harsh, tone it down. You really need to move past that, pal."
Chase pursed his lips. "Still not over me getting Skylar her powers back, huh?" Alex couldn't tell if the bionic boy felt awkward about the situation or not.
"Nope." Oliver told him. "And you'll notice your tomato slice is very thin."
Bree raised an eyebrow, mockingly saying, "Wow, you showed him."
Alex chuckled, lightly shaking her head.
Oliver nodded, supposedly not reading Bree's sarcasm. "Yeah, I also skimped on his lettuce."
"Oh no, stop the madness." Bree proceeded to layer on her sarcasm and she walked over to the island counter, saying, "I will get the plates." However, when the bionic girl opened the cupboard, their plates fell out in multiple miniature pieces. "Why are they all broken? What happened?"
Oliver seemed hesitant before explaining, "Well, I was doing the dishes, and I accidentally broke them with my super strength."
Skylar tilted her head curiously at him, "That still doesn't answer why you put them back in the cabinet."
"Because now we have service for 36 tiny people." The boy smiled as he picked up a piece.
"Hey guys." Kaz greeted them upon walking down the stairs.
"Hey, Kaz, I didn't smell you come in. Did you shower?" Bree said.
"Yeah, I had to." Kaz shrugged. "My younger brother Kyle's coming to visit..."
"Had to? For a visitor?" Alex voiced her skepticism.
Kaz pursed his lips, continuing, "And the pen I was chewing on exploded all over my face."
"Okay, yeah, that makes more sense," Alex mumbled.
"I didn't know you had a little brother." Chase said.
Alex nodded along, showing her emphasis, "Yeah, same. How come you've never mentioned him?" She took a bite of her sandwich.
Kaz shrugged. It was almost as if he too didn't know he had a brother. "Yeah, well, growing up, Kyle and I never really bonded, but now that he's older and I moved away, I think he misses me. This is our chance to finally become best buds." The doorbell chimed. "That's him." He went and opened the penthouse door to reveal a younger kid sporting a messier look with the same dark hair as Kaz. "Kyle!"
"The bionic people!" Kyle beamed and he tossed his backpack to Kaz, ignoring him where he stood and dashing across the room to the rest of the group.
Kaz turned, as if mechanically. "Wow, if I didn't know any better, I'd think you're more excited to see them than me."
"I am." The kid told him with no regard to his feelings.
"Yikes." Alex raised her eyebrows. "He tossed you aside like moldy bread. Does this mean you two are best buds already?" She mocked the older boy, a sly smirk resting on her lips.
Kyle stopped and studied Alex, who was snickering quietly under her breath at her own joke. He looked over at Kaz and gestured to Alex. "Hey, Is this her? That girl you fantasize over?"
Bree paused, "Say what?" She registered Alex's eyes widen and her eyebrows knit together in confusion. But the bionic couldn't help but want to chuckle.
"Hey, heh heh, I have no idea what you're talking about." Kaz laughed nervously, gesturing for Kyle to stay quiet. "He doesn't know what he's saying."
"Are you Alex?" The young kid asked while he pointed directly at her.
Alex raised an eyebrow. The superhero glanced at Kaz momentarily and when he didn't catch her gaze, tried on a small and rather awkward smile in greeting. "Yeah, I'm her."
Kyle studied her once again and shrugged slightly, "Yeah, so I was right, okay. Dude, she's way prettier than you always described. I doubt those doodles in those diaries you had did any justice."
"I- Oh, shut up." Kaz said quickly to keep his brother from spilling any more of his secrets. "And those weren't diaries," he grumbled under his breath.
Alex twiddled with her fingers as she felt a rose tint flush her cheeks. Not wanting anyone to see, she took a large sip from her drink.
"What brings you here, Kyle?" Chase asked, politely changing the topic at the sight of Alex's sudden shyness and embarrassment.
Kyle shrugged rather incoherently. "Pretty much when my mom told me that Kaz was an intern with the bionic people, I just had to come see for myself."
"Okay, well, now you saw 'em so, what do you say you and I get outta here and take our chances eating some street meat." Kaz clapped his hands together in anticipation.
"Kaz, do you mind? The grown-ups are talking." Kyle hushed him and whipped around. "I can't believe I'm sitting next to the Chase Davenport. You're my favorite bionic hero."
Chase grinned, "I get that all the time."
"Really? 'Cause I've never heard that." Skylar remarked skeptically, leaning over the couch.
Alex could barely contain her laughter. "No seriously. Never. Not one single time." She held up a finger to add a sense of emphasis.
"Wow." Oliver laughed, "She does not like you."
Chase glanced at Alex, who quirked an eyebrow at Oliver's comment. Neither of the two knew if his comment was referring to Skylar or Alex.
"Okay, Kyle," Bree said while she came down the steps, "your room's all set."
"Thanks. Wait 'til my friends hear that Bionic Bree made my bed." Kyle ran upstairs.
Bree tilted her head. "Or more accurately, Bionic Bree threw your backpack into an empty room." But Kyle didn't hear her correct him; he had already raced up to where he would be staying.
"Great, " Kaz threw his hands in the air. "So this entire time, I thought he was excited to come see me, but really, he was using me to get to you guys."
Chase chuckled. "Yeah, how about that? Come on, can you blame him? Who would want to hang out with the intern?"
"That's totally not what I thought you were gonna say, but yeah I totally agree." Alex turned her attention back to Kaz, "I wouldn't hang out with you pretending to be a lame intern either."
"Why did you tell him that anyway?" Oliver asked.
"I was trying to come up with a cover story. It was either that or chauffeur. I didn't think I could pull off the hat." He paused. "Why am I even lyin' to him? I'm just gonna tell him that I'm a superhero."
Skylar stood abruptly, ready to stop him. "You can't. The superhero code says that no hero can reveal his or her true identity—"
Alex cut her off, stating the code that was ingrained into her from birth, "—thus exposing all heroes' existence to the general public. Yada, yada, yada. The whole shebang." She waved uninterestedly.
"Yeah, but can't I make an exception for my brother?" Kaz reasoned.
Alex shook her head while Skylar answered, "No. People fear the unknown. If they find out that we have powers, they could turn against us."
"She's right," Oliver said, "But just to be clear, there is no code that says superheroes can't date each other."
"I'll add it in," Skylar rolled her eyes.
Alex laughed, "Good idea."
Kaz studied Alex before continuing his argument, and gestured to Chase and Bree, "Okay, yeah, but what about these two? The whole world knows they're bionic, and they're pretty much celebrities.
"Yeah, now. When we were first outed, everybody freaked. And the only reason they came around is because of my likable charm and charisma." Bree stated.
Chase chuckled, "Yeah, neither of which exist." He teased.
Alex smiled mockingly. "Oh boohoo, it's not like you're the one with those qualities either, is it?"
Chase narrowed his eyes at Alex before choosing to promptly ignore her. "We were able to explain our abilities with science. Unlike fire, ice, portals, and ET over here. Please don't zap me." He shied away from an intimidating Skylar.
"I'll take a zap. Or anything at this point." Oliver said.
Alex then turned to Oliver, a tad shocked and worried, "Sorry, huh? Are you okay, dude?" There was a pause. "Actually, I'm not so sure I want an answer to that."
"Kyle is my only younger brother. He won't tell anybody that I have superpowers. I promise." Kaz explained to the Elite Force.
Skylar shook her head sympathetically. She was from a planet where superpowers were the norm so it was hard to relate. But she had to make sure the boy understood the risks. "Sorry, Kaz. No."
"Kaz, you do not have to be a superhero to bond with your little brother. Just spend some time with him." The bionic girl remarked.
"Yeah, she's right," Oliver said to his best friend.
Alex shrugged, mumbling a bit under her breath, "Meh."
Kyle came back down the stairs looking unimpressed. "Well Bree, I can see making beds is not one of your bionic abilities."
"He's so cute." Bree chuckled ironically. She leaned over to Kaz, her smile instantly dropped. "How long is he staying?"
Kaz ignored her and then turned to Kyle. "Hey, how about I give you the grand tour, huh?"
"Okay. Can Chase come?" Kyler perked.
"Oh no, I'm sure he's got plans."
"Nope! I never do!" Chase said a bit too enthusiastically.
Alex cocked her head, "That— mmokay."
✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼
Down in Mission Command, Chase, Alex, Kaz and Kyle exited the Hyperlift.
"Consider yourself lucky Kyle. You're the first outsider ever to see the heart of our bionic operation." Chase patted the kid's shoulder.
Kyle was amazed. "Cool."
Alex glimpsed around and shrugged again. "Meh."
"Uh yeah, but you know, unfortunately you'll have no pictures of your historic visit because Chase made this a camera free zone. That's right, Chase. Not me." Kaz paused. "Just to be clear it was the bionic guy."
"He gets it." Alex told him, placing her hand on his shoulder with a pat. "Chill."
"But, instead of a picture of Mission Command, how would you like a signed 8 by 10 of me. It's super glossy so my bionic smile really pops." He held up self-portrait and gave it to Kyle.
The kid stared at it in awe. "It totally does."
"I know." Chase grinned.
Alex leaned over Kyle's shoulder, expecting to look at it and proceed to mock the bionic but she stopped short and peeked at the photo again. "What? Wait, it actually does. What the heck?" She narrowed her eyes at the photo in a sense of disbelief.
Kaz pulled Chase aside, hissing, "What are you doing?"
"It's no biggie, I have like five hundred of 'em." Chase waved it off and held out a picture. "You guys want one?"
Kaz shook his head quickly, "No. I'm trying to look cool in front of my brother and you keep one-uping me."
"Oh. I'm- I'm sorry. I didn't mean to," Chase remarked. Alex didn't like the look of a faint smile tugging at the edges of his mouth. "I mean, I can't help it if he thinks I'm awesome. I am the smartest man in the world, and I can generate a force-field, and I happen to be having a very good hair day."
The darker haired boy sighed, "Look, it's bad enough I can't show Kyle any of my superpowers. Can you just back off a bit?"
Chase nodded while he backed up. "Absolutely. I'll give you two some time alone. So you can talk about me!" He paused, his glee dropping upon noticing Alex's glare. "I'm sorry, um, just keep him in here and out of all the unauthorized areas."
"Okay."
Chase seemed to accept the superhero's answer and went back up the Hyperlift.
Alex paused, hesitating to leave. She turned back around and gently grabbed Kaz's arm to gain his attention before he returned to his younger brother. She stared into his expectant eyes and tried to piece together a cohesive sentence. They were closer than they ever have been and the details popped out to her, as if fighting for her gaze.
From their close proximity in where they stood, Alex noticed the way the harsh lights of the underground Mission Control shone washed Kaz in a pale light. His brown eyes seemed hazel, seeping darker in color near its core. Soft freckles danced along the bridge of his nose, seeking no other place to be scattered upon. There was the faintest sign of a dimple on his left cheek, making her wonder if it would ever fully appear amidst a wide grin.
But his voice is what centered her. "What's up?" Kaz questioned. It caused her to focus.
"Kaz, I just.. promise me you'll be yourself. It's your brother, you shouldn't have to prove anything to Kyle. Anyone who cares about you should love you the way you are because that is enough." There was a slight pause when the girl pursed her lips. "Promise me you'll keep in mind that you don't have to pretend to be someone different and change your best qualities in order to feel a bond with Kyle."
Kaz blinked. "Okay, yeah, sure."
Her voice softened, "Kaz, promise."
"Yeah, I promise." He seemed startled by her unusual shift of mockery to sincerity. But it didn't seem to affect him much further as he refocused on his little brother, clapping his hands together and smirking rather mischievously. "Hey! I got some stuff in mind for you."
Alex watched over her shoulder before leaving in the Hyperlift, until it's metal doors closed shut as it transferred her upstairs were her only line of vision.
Meanwhile, Kaz walked over to his little brother. "So. Ready for the rest of the tour?"
Kyle turned around, noticing the absence of the others. He focused on one of them: "Where'd Chase go?"
"Oh," Kaz said, "you mean the guy who seems awesome at first, but then you get to know him and you realize he's a not-awesome fun-killer?"
Yeah, I get what you mean," Kyle nodded. "His powers are cool, but he's kinda uptight. He's got all these rules." He waved his hands in a matter of disgust.
"Yes. Yes, he does, and you know what else?"
"That the Alex girl is much cooler?" Kyle said.
Kaz couldn't help but smile. "Well, yes. Yes she is. But that's not what I was gonna say." He dismissed the comment, proceeding to continue on to his original statement, "Chase thinks that you shouldn't go in the unauthorized areas, because they're too dangerous."
"Too dangerous?" Kyle scoffed. "Hello, I skateboard off people's houses."
"I know!" Kaz proclaimed. "But you're in luck because I, have access to every room in this place."
Kyle's eyes widened but he was still skeptical to believe him. "You do?"
Kaz leaned closer to his brother, as if to make it seem he was going to whisper an important secret to him. "Yeah, see, I didn't want to tell you at first, but the truth is... I'm actually not just an intern here, I'm runnin' this operation."
Kyle snorted in disbelief, "Yeah right. You?"
The older boy stood up a little bit straighter, hiding a png of hurt. "Yes. Me. I'm going to prove it to you right now by showing you the top secret weapons room, which is right through here." He pointed towards one side of the room and pressed one of the many buttons.
However, a door opened in the opposite direction of where he was pointing.
"Ah." Kaz pivoted to point the right way. "Which is right through there."
The two siblings dashed towards it, with their excitement and mischief running high.
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hi! i'm so sorry this chapter took me so long. i've been super busy and have constant switches of interest.
but i'm gonna figure out a schedule of updates in order to center my focus.
anyways, i'm always thankful for the support!
stay positive and stay hydrated,
al