Bored at night later that week, I opened my apartment door to go get the mail, when in walked a feathery hero just as I held the door open.
"Um, excuse me...?"
"You're not the only one who knows how to turn up information," Hawks said as he walked right in and sat down on my couch, making himself at home. The nerve of this guy. "So have you been thinking about me? Dreaming about me? Come on, you can tell me everything."
"First – hello. Second - No. What are you doing here?"
"Aw, not at all? How could you forget me and these wings?"
"Why are you here? Did you find my address in my purse?"
"Can't friends just visit each other?"
Hawks's phone rang, and he held up his hand as he answered and walked into the other room. Seriously? He barges in but then has to take a call? When he came back, his expression had changed. "I hate to cut our conversation short," he said, "but you're coming with me." Hawks picked up my phone and bag, stuffing them in his jacket.
"Like hell I am," I said moving away from him. "And give that back."
"Sorry, boss's orders." Before I could answer, he grabbed me around the waist and hoisted me onto his back, carrying me out of my apartment. No time to argue as I clutched his body as he lifted us in the air with his wings. He is so fast, I thought, as the wind cut across my cheeks. We zoomed left and right, finally landing on the balcony of a high rise building downtown.
He opened the balcony door to a one room studio, very simply furnished. There was a small kitchenette, a bed, and a couch in front of a tv. No photos, no memorabilia. The lack of any personal touches made me think of my own apartment.
Something about this apartment seemed off. "You're the number two hero but you live in a studio apartment. What gives?" I asked.
"Maybe I don't need a flashy penthouse."
"Uh huh," I said, not believing a word of it. "Or maybe you have more than one of these studio apartments around town...with a girl in each one?"
He laughed. "Now you're thinking like a spy. It's late and we're here for the night. You take the bed, I'll sleep on the couch."
"I'll make room for you in the bed if you tell me what the hell is going on."
He seemed to be considering it. "So that's how you normally get your information?" he asked.
My eyes got wide. "Rude."
He smirked but then his smile faded and he looked at me with serious eyes.
"Y/n... Endeavor was attacked."
"What!"
"He's fine. It happened tonight. He has some burns, but overall is fine. He wasn't sure why he was targeted or who is behind it, so he asked me to make sure his... assets... are taken care of and safe."
"I need to text Shoto, where's my phone?" I asked.
"He's safe. UA already knows and has the dorms on lock down. Look, it's crazy late and we both need to go to sleep."
"Hawks."
"Yes?"
"Where's my phone?"
"I can't let you have it right now. I'm sorry. Truly."
"And if I just walked out right now?"
"I can't let you do that."
"So. I'm your hostage."
"No, you're my cute little bird in a very nice and protective cage for the time being. In the morning we'll sort it all out and once we know more, we'll go from there."
What choice did I have? There was really nothing left to do at this moment.
I laid down on the bed and closed my eyes, listening to the low tones of the television Hawks was watching from the couch. So someone had attacked Endeavor. I wondered how they did it, and why. Surely the number one hero had some enemies, that goes without saying. And he didn't exactly have the most charismatic personality, so the list of suspects was probably fairly long. As I drifted off to sleep, I pictured Endeavor fighting shadows of people, saving bystanders but putting himself in harms way. I felt nervous – was I nervous because he was paying all of my bills, or was it something else?
I woke up at some point and realized I had one leg and one arm draped over Hawks. So he had slept in the bed after all. I didn't want to move and wake him up, because then he would see how I had been laying on him. But being this close, I could smell him, and hear his breathing in his sleep. I knew I should move, but he was so warm. And seeing him shirtless next to me...
Fuck it.