Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Jacob has been dating Piper for six months. Despite her being a senior and him a sophomore, she’s younger than him. They started talking at a halloween party, and went out for coffee a week later. She was a force to be reckoned with. She runs a very successful online business with her associate Amy, and already has offers to buy out her business.

Looking at them from the outside, people are often surprised they’re together. Piper is a well put together business woman, graduating from college at nineteen. She is forward and blunt, never letting her thoughts be hidden. Jacob is quiet, artsy, and never quite in style. Though Piper has overhauled his wardrobe since they got together.

Despite their differences, they compliment each other. Piper has encouraged Jacob to come out of his shell, to be more sure of himself and his art. He has helped her to slow down, to see the beauty in the little things. They both love to sit together not needing words. She’ll work on her laptop, and he will paint while enjoying each other’s company.

When he gets engrossed in a project, she’ll grab food, and help with little things around his apartment. When she has a bad day, she’ll talk for hours, and he’ll just listen, glad she trusts him.

They’ve been dating for six months, and Jacob knows he loves Piper Hart. She graduates tomorrow, and after, they’re going to spend a week at her parents house in a town called Swellview. Her business is based in Florida, so she has already renewed her apartment lease. But, she wanted to visit her hometown, and invited him to come.

He’s excited and nervous, both because this will be their first vacation together, and it will be the first time he’ll meet her parents. They haven’t visited since he and Piper started dating, so her graduation will be his chance to get to know them before staying in their house for a week.

Her parents have called a few times, so he’s technically met them over the phone. She’s met his own parents who visited during Christmas, and who love her. He knows she also has a brother, but he doesn’t live in her hometown, and Jacob’s never seen him call. The few times she’s talked about him, it’s fondly, but Jacob’s not sure they’re close.

He’s mostly taken over for her graduation party. Piper is finishing up her final project and making sure all the details for their trip are finalized, while he is coordinating people, and decorations, in between his own finals.

Most of the guest list has RSVP’d except for Piper’s brother. When Jacob asked about it, Piper said to plan as though he is coming, even though he didn’t RSVP. Jacob was a little surprised, but didn’t think too much about it. It was just one extra place setting.

Such a momentous occasion called for a special dinner. Graduation was the following evening and her parents get in during a few hours before the ceremony. He had saved over the semester to take her out to a nice steak house. She was in a beautiful dress, he had never seen before, her makeup done perfectly. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her the entire night.

When they get back to her apartment building he walks her to the door. As they climb the stairs, he notices two men and a woman loitering outside Piper’s door. He’s normally not confrontational. He likes staying in his own lane, but he also doesn’t like the fact there are three strangers standing in front of his girlfriend's apartment. He steps in front of her, lowering his voice trying to sound more intimidating.

“Can we help you?” He puts as much ‘back off’ into his tone as he can, but they just look amused.

“We’re good,” The man has short curly brown hair, and is wearing a blue jacket. He sounds dismissive, barely glancing at Jacob. Before Jacob can say anything else, he feels Piper lay a hand on his arm moving to stand beside him, then before he can stop her, she’s rushing past him.

“Henry,” Her voice echoes loudly off the concrete walls, as she barrels into the man in the blue jacket. The man’s two companions smile softly at the scene. It takes Jacob a second to place the name. Piper’s brother. He lets out a sigh of relief moving closer to the group. Piper is still clinging to her brother, and he has her enveloped in a hug. Jacob barely hears Piper say, “I’ve missed you.” and doesn’t quite catch the murmured reply.

Turning to Henry’s two companions, Jacob goes to introduce himself, but the woman beats him to it.

“I’m Charlotte, and that’s Jasper.” Jasper smiles and waves, but Jacob feels a little intimidated by the man. “Nice to meet you.” Charlotte is analyzing him, and Jacob can’t help but take a step back.

“I’m Jacob.” Jacob hesitates for a moment, “Piper’s boyfriend.”

Despite having never met these people, Jacob feels stupid for clarifying, like they already know everything about him. Which is ridiculous. “Nice to meet you too.” He belatedly tacks on. Luckily, he’s saved from anymore embarrassment by Piper pulling away from her brother and grabbing her key. She squeezes his hand as she brushes by to open the door. Then he is left face to face with her brother. He sticks out his hand, and Jacob matches it with his own.

“Henry, I’ve heard a lot about you.” Henry introduces himself. Jacob’s hand is squeezed just a little too tight. He clears his throat.

“Nice to meet you too.” The door to the apartment unlocks, and Piper calls out.

“Stop trying to kill my boyfriend, and let’s get inside. It’s too hot to be standing out here all night.” Henry lets go of his hand and heads into the apartment.

“I’m not trying to kill him.” Something about Henry’s tone makes Jacob unsure if that was supposed to be a reassuring or terrifying statement. A hand on his shoulder has Jacob jumping.

“Don’t worry about Hen, he’s just protective of Piper.” Jasper’s voice is the kindest out of the three so far, and he guides Jacob into the apartment, as though he’s the one who has been there a million times.

As he walks into the apartment he realizes that he recognizes the names Charlotte and Jasper, because they are on the guest list for Piper’s graduation party.

“I’m going to change. I’ll be right back,” Piper disappears to her bedroom. The three have made themselves at home, having grabbed drinks from the fridge and moving the coffee table to make more room in the living room.

Jasper pulls up a chair from the dining table, while Henry and Charlotte sit on the couch together. Charlotte is looking down at her phone, while Henry has put his feet on the coffee table and looks like he’s about to fall asleep.

Jacob feels awkward just standing there, so he perches on the edge of the loveseat. Jasper smiles at him, and is about to say something, when Piper reemerges.

“You are so annoying. Get your dirty feet off of my coffee table.” Piper remerges and despite only being in a t-shirt and shorts still looks gorgeous. As she comes into their little circle of people she kicks Henry’s feet off the coffee table jolting him forward.

“Haven’t you missed me?” Henry is smirking, and all Piper does is roll her eyes in response. She sits down on the loveseat and Jacob lowers himself onto the seat proper. Ignoring her brother, Piper turns to Charlotte.

“Congratulations by the way. Loved the photos you posted.” Charlotte smiles, ignoring Henry who is making faces at Jasper, like he can’t believe they’re ignoring him.

“Thank you. Sorry I didn’t send an invitation. It was a small affair. Because I’m starting a research fellowship in the summer, it doesn’t really feel like I’m done.” It clicks as Charlotte is talking that she just graduated.

“What school did you go to?”

“Harvard. Technically I still go there. My fellowship starts in two weeks. I’m just going back to Swellview to keep these two out of trouble,” Charlotte gestures to Henry and Jasper. Jacob is impressed and a little in awe.

“That’s awesome. What is your fellowship about?” Jacob’s words cause Henry to start poking Charlotte.

“Yeah, what’s your fellowship about?” Henry is grinning, and Charlotte glares at him as she answers.

“The relationship between crime and superheroes. I wrote a paper about the subject and it caught the eyes of the department head.” Jacob’s a little taken aback. He knew superheroes existed, but they have always felt so distant.

“Have you gotten to meet a superhero?” Something about that question causes laughter to go through the group.

Jasper is actually the one to answer. “Swellview has its own Superheroes. The main one was Captain Man.”

“Really?” Jacob turns towards Jasper, his eyes wide. The idea that it's possible he could meet a real superhero when he visits in a few days hitting him. Jasper tilts his head in confusion.

“Yeah, Piper never told you about it?” Jacob turns to Piper who is holding her hand to block her face.

“Why would she?” She seems embarrassed and he is sure she has a good reason.

Henry speaks up, “She was president of the Captain Man fan club for years. Earned her place by beating up a criminal with a movie accessory.” Piper sinks lower in her seat. Jacob wants to ask her if she’s okay, but doesn’t get a chance as Charlotte starts speaking again.

“Captain Man had to lift her off of the criminal to get her to stop.

“She ran the Man Fans until she left for college.” Henry says, seeming to love the fact he was embarrassing his little sister.

“But to answer your question, yes. I met Captain Man a few times while he was crime fighting, and at a few of the community events he came to.”

“Wow, it’s so cool you’ve met a superhero,” Jacob’s eyes are definitely wide. Charlotte doesn’t look like she agrees, but nods anyway.

“By the way, Ray is coming to your graduation tomorrow.” Henry says, and Jacob is a little thrown by the topic change, but Piper sits up, and no one else questions it, so he stays silent.

“Why?” If Jacob didn’t know Piper, he would think she sounded offended. Meanwhile, he is trying to figure out if this Ray is on the guest list.

“I mentioned this is where I was coming after Charlotte’s graduation, and he wanted to join.”

“I didn’t invite him”

“When has that ever stopped him,” Jacob can not remember a Ray on the guest list. He is mentally rearranging the seating chart.

“Where is he then? Why didn’t he come with you?” Henry ducks his head and looks like he’s thinking about what to say. Charlotte ends up answering.

“He got himself thrown in jail. He should be out in a few hours, but it means he won’t get here till the morning.” It feels really strange to Jacob how casually they’re talking about this. Sure, he knows Piper graduated high school so early, because she got into some law trouble, but he’s fairly certain she hasn’t been arrested since moving to Florida.

“Do I want to know what he did?” Piper sounds more amused than worried.

“Picked a fight with some creep at the bar we were at.” Henry is the one to answer.

“I’m surprised you're not with him.” Piper has relaxed into the couch, and Jacob is a little surprised by the comment. He would not guess Henry as the one to get into a fight. With his plaid shirt, and jeans, he looks more like a camping enthusiast rather than the bar fight type.

“You can thank me for that.” Jasper raises his hand. “I had to remind him that if he got thrown in jail, he could miss your graduation.” Piper nods her head in appreciation before turning back to Henry.

“You better keep Ray in line.” Piper sounds resigned to the situation. Jacob feels a little worried. He really doesn’t want anyone ruining Piper’s graduation. “On better thought, Charlotte,” Piper looks at Charlotte. “Keep them in line.” Henry looks offended, and he hears Jasper chuckle.

“You know they don’t listen to me.” Charlotte shoots a look at Henry, that Henry just makes a face at. He hears Jasper chuckling next to him.

“If you two cause any trouble, I’m kicking you out.” Piper has her dangerous voice out.

Henry puts his hand over his heart and raises his hand. “I swear to be on my best behavior during your graduation and party.”

Jacob does not feel reassured, but it seems to satisfy Piper. They lapse into silence, and Piper only breaks it after yawning.

“I’m assuming you're crashing here?” Piper is already standing up, going to the closet in her bathroom to grab an air mattress. Jasper is moving the coffee table against the far wall, and starts to push the couch with Henry and Charlotte on it.

“Yeah, we missed our hotel check-in because someone wanted Nacho Ball.” Charlotte gets up as she speaks, moving towards where Piper went, but Henry doesn’t move.

“I was starving to death. I didn’t think it would make us that late.”

“I told you we were going to miss check-in if we stopped.” Charlotte crosses her arms staring down at Henry over the back of the couch, now that Jasper has finished moving it.

Henry is now fully laying on the couch with his eyes closed, not even opening them as he responds, “Worth it,” Jacob starts putting the pillowcases on the pillows while Piper blows up the air mattress. It doesn’t take long to get everyone settled. Henry on the couch, Charlotte on the air mattress, and Jasper taking the floor. Jacob offers to let him stay at his apartment, but the man declines. They all head down to the parking lot, so the three can grab their bags from the car. While they’re doing that, Piper walks him to his car.

“I’ll see you in the morning?” He nods, and she leans up to give him a kiss. It’s quick, but he still hears a noise of disgust coming from Henry. Jacob blushes glancing over to see Henry making a horrified ace, and Charlotte telling him to knock it off. Piper ignores the commentary. “You have everything for tomorrow?” He nods, smiling.

“I have everything together. We’ll all meet at the house I rented from Air Be Our Guest before heading over to the Civic Center for the ceremony. After, I’ll go, let the caterer’s in, and we’ll have dinner and your party.” He smiles, as she pulls out her phone, he’s sure, so she can look at the checklist.

“You have the decorations, and the cake, how about the extra plates and napkins?”

“Yes, and I’m picking up the cake on my way to the house when I go to set up.”

“Okay, well make sure you mark everything off on the spreadsheet, so I can see it got done.” He smiles as Piper slips into work mode.

“I will. Enjoy your time with your brother. I’ll be here early tomorrow, and you can go through all of the bags before I take them over.” He keeps his voice calm and confident. She nods, looking satisfied. Taking a deep breath she lets it out.

“Thank you for taking care of this.”

“Of course. See you in the morning.” He gives her one more kiss, before heading to his own apartment.

Chapter Text

Jacob’s roommate is asleep when he gets back to his apartment, and is still asleep by the time he loads the car and heads out in the morning. He goes through the provided spreadsheet to make sure he has everything, and will check all the items off as he unloads them.

He grabs coffee for Piper and tea for himself. He feels bad for not getting something for everyone else, but he is broke, and doesn’t know what they like. When he gets to the apartment, he is surprised everyone is already up and moving, despite the early hour. Henry has an energy drink in his hand, and Charlotte and Jasper have to-go coffee cups in their hands, so he doesn’t feel bad about not bringing them anything.

In response to receiving her coffee, Piper gives him a kiss on the cheek, her hair partially curled. She’ll leave in an hour and a half for a breakfast meeting with a few fellow graduates, then she has lunch with the young entrepreneurs club she was a part of. From there she’ll go straight to the ceremony hall. It shows how distracted she is, that she doesn’t ask if he grabbed everything this morning.

Henry is looking over Charlotte’s shoulder as she works on her laptop, while Jasper is scrolling on his phone on the couch. Jacob is tempted to follow Piper to the bathroom while she works on getting ready, but looking at her brother, he does not feel confident in that plan. Before he moves farther into the apartment Henry starts talking to him.

“Piper mentioned you're going to set up the Air Be Our Guest. Do you mind leaving a little earlier, to pick up Ray? Charlotte wants to spend this morning working on her project, and can’t drive me to the airport.” Henry looks a lot more awake, and a lot less intimidating now. Jacob hesitates in answering, trying to work out in his head if it’s possible.

“I can pick up the cake, if that will make things easier?” Charlotte offers, not looking up from her screen.” The cake place is a local bakery that is Piper’s favorite and tastes amazing, however, they are not known for being punctual.

“I think that will work. If you can get the cake, that should give us extra time, and an extra pair of hands to set up the decorations.” Jacob thinks it will be far faster to have three people setting up, instead of just him.

“Well,” The well is stretched out by Henry. “I will help you set up.”

“Charlotte and I will help once we get there.” Jasper says. Jacob doesn’t understand why they’re clarifying.

“When do we need to leave?” he asks.

“In about an hour. Ray will text me when he lands.” Henry goes back to looking over Charlotte’s shoulder. Jacob nods, before heading to the bathroom where Piper is.

“Do you want me to put your bags for the trip in my car?” Jacob asks. Piper has started on her makeup. She looks at him through the mirror, and shakes her head before frowning in thought.

“You can take the red suitcase, but I still need to put all of this,” she waves at all of the makeup and hair products on her counter “in the purple suitcase. You’re going with Henry to the airport?” She turns to face him, pausing in her process.

“Yeah, who is Ray? I’ve never heard you talk about him?” He lowers his voice a little bit, not wanting to sound rude for not knowing.

“Henry’s old boss.” Piper looks like she’s going to say more, but stops it there. It leaves him with more questions. “Do you have everything for the party?”

“Charlotte offered to pick up the cake, but other than that yes. Anything else you need my help with?”

“Our flight check-in happens right after the ceremony. I asked Charlotte to do it, but if you will double check sometime this evening that it happened, that would be great.” Piper says.

Jacob nods, before saying. “Consider it done.” Then he leans against the doorway taking Piper in. She puts her makeup on with the same kind of precision he’s seen during her business meetings. He is so proud and happy for her that he can’t help but stare. She glances at him amused, but doesn’t say anything. He smiles, before pushing off the doorframe and heading to her bedroom to grab the red suitcase.

He places the suitcase by the door, to take downstairs when they leave, before sitting down on the loveseat across from Jasper. Finally, he can enjoy his now, lukewarm tea. He doesn’t get to enjoy it for long, before Henry gets a look of exasperation and is standing.

“We need to stop and grab food before we pick Ray up.” Henry starts putting his shoes on and heading to the door. Jacob looks at the time, and sees it is thirty minutes earlier than they originally needed to leave. He wants to complain. He is glad that Piper’s brother is in town, but nothing has gone according to plan since he’s gotten here. Still, Piper seems to be okay with it, and while it’s not part of the plan, it is not actively ruining the plan or schedule, so he just stands up resigned to the plan change.

“Let’s go.” He grabs the suitcase and starts to head down the first flight of stairs. Piper is also not a light packer, and lives on the third floor of the apartment complex. He knows he's not exactly a strong guy. He spends his free time drawing and slowly walking around the local park.

After the first flight he’s not surprised when Henry ask, “Want me to grab that?” Jacob expects there to be amusement or condescension in the tone. Instead, the offer sounds genuine. He is already huffing, and will not have time for another shower, so he nods.

“Yeah, thanks.” Jacob lets Henry grab the suitcase, then watches as he easily lifts it and starts heading down the stairs.

“Don’t worry about it dude,” And Henry is right. He does have it. He’s not a particularly big guy, but he carries the suitcase down two flights of stairs, and doesn’t even break a sweat despite the Florida humidity. Jacob opens the trunk of the car, and rearranges a few of the bags to fit Pipers next to his and not have everything in the trunk go all over the place while he’s driving. Once the bag is successfully packed, Jacob heads to the driver's seat.

“Where do you want to get breakfast?” Jacob starts the car and pulls out of the parking lot, going slowly and giving Henry time to think.

“Wherever you recommend man. I know zero restaurants around here.” Jacob’s diet consists of fast food, and ramen. He feels highly unqualified to be giving food recommendations. Still, he racks his brain trying to remember the name of the breakfast burrito place that he was told about ages ago and has visited exactly one time after getting home far too early in the morning from a party.

“How about Burros? They have breakfast burritos and were recommended on the college tour.” Jacob glances over and sees Henry nod.

“Sounds good. As long as it’s something before we get to the airport.” Jacob nods, pulling up Burros on his phone and setting the directions. It's a short drive, but this is his first time alone with Henry. It was a lot easier when there were no people, but now they’re sitting in awkward silence. Jacob hadn’t turned on the radio, and now he's wracking his brain trying to think of what to say.

“How was the flight here?” Henry looks up from his phone making a hmm noise. “Your flight, how was it?” It takes him a second to answer, and Jacob feels like it’s because Henry hates him.

“It was fine. I don’t envy Jasper for his twenty hour flight. Seeing Charlotte, Jasper, and Ray really brought me back to when I lived in Swellview.” Henry sounds a little distracted. It does make Jacob realize he doesn’t know where Henry lives, or why Jasper had a twenty hour flight.

“Where are you living now?” Jacob really hopes his question isn’t stupid, and that Piper hasn’t told him, and he completely forgot.

“I live in Newtown, moved last month actually. Jasper is still in Dystopia. Definitely, miss having him nearby. Though I don’t miss fighting with a landlord to get a maintenance request filled.” Henry has set his phone down as he talks, now looking at the passing buildings. Jacob is still caught up on the Dystopia part. Dystopia is one of those cities that he’s heard of, in that people always reference it when talking about crime statistics globally. He doesn’t know much other than the fact that Piper visited over spring break, and everyone wished him well when he mentioned it, as though she wasn't going to come back.

“I don’t think Piper has told me the story. How’d you and Jasper end up living in Dystopia?” Jacob is looking at the road, so he doesn’t see Henry’s reaction, but he hears as the man adjusts in his seat.

“Mostly it was because of Charlotte. She spent a year doing charity work in the city, before leaving for Harvard. Jasper and I went with her, and decided to stay. It was good for a while, but I realized it was time to move on, hence my move to Newtown.” As Henry talks they pull into Burros. Jacob can better understand how someone moves to Dystopia, though he can’t help but think of what Henry’s parents thought. He’s sure they’re happy he’s in Newtown. Though, he is not about to broach that topic.

Henry says he’ll be quick, and runs in to grab the breakfast burrito. Jacob stays in the car, and checks over the spreadsheet again, just to make sure he’s not forgetting anything. Henry is in there long enough that Jacob rolls down the windows and turns off the car. When the man finally emerges it is with a large bag of burritos, and has taken enough time that they have no extra time in getting to the airport. Henry hands him a burrito, and Jacob realizes why Burros was a recommendation, now that he is sober enough to actually appreciate the burrito.

They pull into the drive through, and Henry helps him spot Ray. The man is Henry’s height, muscular, with floppy brown hair. All he has is a duffle, so while Henry gets out, Jacob elects to stay in the car. They both slide into the backseat, and Jacob pulls up the directions to the Air Be My Guest, while a crosswalk guard whistles at him to keep moving. Jacob briefly glanced through the rearview mirror at talking excitedly to Henry before driving off.

Whatever Jacob was expecting when meeting Ray, nothing could have prepared him for the man. It was like he was on a sugar high set loose in a candy store. Between him and Henry they eat all of the burritos. They talk for most of the journey, and they speak so quickly and over each other so much that Jacob feels like they’re talking in another language. He makes out enough to know that Ray is married maybe? Has, he thinks, four kids? Five? that Henry’s close to, and possibly lives in Swellview. The problem is the drive to the house is a lot longer than the initial drive, so all too soon the attention is drawn to him.

“Who’s the chauffeur?” Ray asks, and Jacob is about to speak up, but Henry beats him to it.

“Piper’s boyfriend Jacob.”

“Paper has a boyfriend?” Ray sounds so incredulous, that Jacob feels offended for Piper.

“Her name is Piper.” He says and catches Ray waving a hand.

“That’s what I said.” It is not, and he’s about to say something, but Henry speaks over him.

“How did you enjoy your night in jail?” And with that question they’re off again. Jacob doesn’t think he likes Ray. He feels bad for even thinking it, but the man seems dismissive and rubs Jacob the wrong way.

When they get to the house, Ray ends up taking a nap in one of the rooms. Henry is incredibly helpful, and by the time he needs to leave to pick up Mr. and Mrs. Hart, Charlotte and Jasper have shown up, and help finish decorating. The cake turns out perfect, and he calls to confirm the pizzas will be ready when they leave the ceremony. Piper texts him that her brunch went well, so Jacob feels confident the day is going to turn out all right.

The Harts seem nice, though it does not take long for Jacob to see why Piper is not particularly close with them. As he drives them to the ceremony, they spend most of their time telling Jacob about their adventures. When Jacob mentions Piper, Mr. Hart starts talking about how he graduated from juliard.com. All of their comments about Piper feel backhanded or surface level.

They arrive right as the doors open, and easily find seats, Jacob choosing to sit with Piper's parents over the designated student seating. Mr. Hart wanders off immediately and Jacob decides it is not his job to find the man. Henry and his group arrive right after the ceremony starts. Jacob has Piper's nice camera and takes as many pictures as he can for her. Mr. Hart still hasn’t come back when Piper walks across the stage. There is a small commotion somewhere next to him. He sees Henry and Ray talking in hushed tones before they get up and leave for the rest of the ceremony. Mr. Hart does reappear complaining to Mrs. Hart that he missed Piper before she shushes him.

Chapter Text

Getting out of the stadium takes forever. Bodies are pressed on all sides, as everyone wants to see their loved one. When they do make it outside, Charlotte and Jasper disappear, only to reappear a few minutes later with Piper, Henry, and Ray. Piper has a massive bouquet of a variety of flowers, Henry and Ray have ice cream, and Charlotte and Jasper are walking like they’re on a mission. Piper hands off her bouquet to Jasper before running to them. She jumps into his arms and gives him a huge kiss. He hears noises of disgust before someone tells them to knock it off.

Piper pulls away, but he doesn’t let her go quite yet looking down on her huge smile.

“Congratulations.” He says, leaning down to kiss her cheek. He lets her go, and she turns to hug her parents. It's not long before friends are coming up, and taking pictures with her on their phones, leaving Jacob with their group, definitely the odd one out.

“Kris, so good to see you again.” Ray has a smile on his face, and Kris smiles back leaning in and putting a hand on Ray's chest. Jacob watches trying his best to hide his expression.

“Ray, always a pleasure.” Before their conversation can go any further, Mr. Hart is stepping forward.

“Ray, glad to see you’re okay,” Then Jacob taps his nose, as though there’s some secret. Ray looks exasperated. Henry is pinching his nose.

Ray starts to speak, but Henry speaks louder. “Hey mom, dad, good to see you.” They only then seem to notice him, and smile.

“We’re proud of you too Henry.” Mrs. Hart says.

“That's not-” Henry cuts himself off, instead focusing on Ray. “Come on, Piper wants a picture of all of us.” Henry pulls Ray away from his parents to join Charlotte and Jasper.

The whole interaction rubs Jacob the wrong way. Nothing overtly wrong, but still off. As he continues to take pictures, his mind lingers on the vastly different reactions between Ray greeting Henry versus his parents. He starts to think everything is a little more complicated than he first thought, and that his first impression of Ray may have been too harsh.

He continues to take pictures of everyone, making sure Piper gets all of the pictures she wants. At some point Ray ends up on the ground, and Piper decides she wants pictures with everyone who used to work together before they end up covered in grass. Then they get a few pictures of just the two of them, with lots of shouting when they do one of them kissing.

Jacob is not sure how it happened, but he and Henry are alone, again. He was leaving early to pick up the pizza, and somehow Henry was the one to join him. Ray almost came, but ended up going with Charlotte and Jasper instead. Though, Jacob wishes there was another person. Not that he didn’t like Henry, but he wasn’t a conversationalist, and having another person would have made it less awkward.

He and Henry navigate around the lingering families. The crowd has thinned significantly. Though that leaves the parking lot packed with cars trying to get out. Jacob decides to ask a question he’s been dying to know since meeting Ray.

“How long have you and Ray been friends?” He asks. The man is twice their age, and while Piper said he was their old boss, that felt too simple an explanation.

“Hmm?” Henry seems to refocus on the situation, looking up from his phone.

“How long have you and Ray been friends?” He asks, repeating himself.

“I don’t know, a while.” Henry shrugs, but leaves it there, so Jacob tries again.

“Piper mentioned he was your old boss?” Jacob treads lightly, not wanting to stumble into a minefield, but Henry doesn’t seem hesitant to answer, just distracted.

“Yeah, I used to work at his store, Junk N’ Stuff, for six years. Charlotte and Jasper worked there too, though I worked there the longest.” Jacob thinks to Henry’s parents. Their almost distracted greeting of Henry. Piper rarely talks about them, and has never worried about him meeting them. He can’t help but wonder if that is why Henry is close with his boss from high School. Because Jacob had a high school job at a small store, and he was never as close with them as Henry and Ray are.

“He’s an interesting guy,” Is what Jacob settles on.

“You can definitely say that.” Henry smiles, seeming lost in thought again. Jacob tries to think about what else to say, but before he can Henry is speaking again, “How did you and Piper meet?”

“Piper didn’t tell you?” Jacob is surprised. Henry is watching him, and makes a more or less gesture with his hand.

“Piper has a way of spinning things, so I figured I should also get the story from you,” Henry shrugs.

“It makes her very good at running a business.” Jacob has always been amazed at how Piper is so good at talking to people, and at marketing her products to people. They arrive at the car, and Jacob unlocks it, and they get in before he tells the story.

“We met at a Halloween party. She was surrounded by people,” Jacob studiously does not mention what she was wearing, “I was there because one of my friends dragged me out, and would not let me leave before well into the morning, so I was hiding outside.” It had been sprinkling most of the evening, so most people were inside. “She stepped outside for some air, and asked what I was doing. I told her hiding then asked her the same. We started talking, and by the time she was ready to head back inside it had been over an hour. I invited her to coffee, then dinner, then a picnic. I kept expecting her to break it off. She was in senior courses, and super popular. No one in my life has described me as popular, but she didn’t. And I’m super lucky for that.” He can feel a giddy smile on his face. The same one he gets anytime he talks about Piper. Henry is quiet when he finishes, and Jacob looks over to see Henry watching him. He starts fiddling with the steering wheel, feeling self conscious. They are at the last light before the pizza place when Henry speaks.

“Today is the happiest I have ever seen Piper. I see the way she looks at you, and she loves you.” Jacob’s heart soars at the words. Sure they’ve said it, but her brother acknowledging it, feels significant, “Despite living in another state, and the fact I will never say it to her face, I love her.” Henry sounds very serious. “You seem like a good guy, and like you care for her, but,” Jacob gulps, “If you ever hurt her,” There’s a parking spot for pick up near the front. Jacob focused on that, “I will break every bone in your body, and you will drink out of a straw for months.” There is a casualness in the way he says it that sends goosebumps down Jacob’s arms.

“Yes sir,” Jacob’s face heats up, because Henry is not much older than him, but he felt like he was in high school and picking up his first girlfriend for a dance again. Henry makes a disgusted face at the honorific, and it eases some of the tension.

“Dude, I’m just messing with you. You seem like a good guy. And Piper can beat you up on her own.” Henry chuckles and gets out of the car. Jacob’s chuckle is far more nervous. He does not feel like Henry’s threat was a joke

Henry grabs the pizzas while Jacob confirms and signs for the order. They load them in the back seat, Jacob thankful they were ready on time. The rest of the drive Jacob is quiet. Henry doesn’t seem to notice, talking about the best restaurants in Swellview and how much he misses Nachoball. It doesn’t take too long before they make it to the house. Jacob letting out an internal sigh of relief, thankful that the drive is over.

Jasper comes out and helps with the Pizzas, and everyone cheers when they enter. Piper directs Jasper where to put them, then directs everyone else on the available food items. Jacob is lucky that while Piper likes being the life of the party, she respects the fact he does not. Instead, he helps coordinate, prepares the toast, and keeps her parents occupied. That ends up being his hardest job, because Piper’s mom keeps interrupting conversations Piper’s having, and her dad keeps touching everything and making awkward comments about graduating from juliard.com.

Piper eventually pulls herself away after the toast, saying she’s going to change into something more comfortable. She grabs his arm as she passes, pulling him into the room with her. He sits on the bed, as she starts changing.

“Thank you for watching my parents, but you don’t have to. Just ignore my dad, everyone else does. I know Henry is hiding outside, so you can go hang out with them if you’d prefer. This night turned out perfect.” Piper gives him a kiss on the cheek. She has changed into a sweatshirt, and decorative jeans, and still looks stunning.

“Your brother is scary.” Jacob means for it to come off as a joke, but there’s too much seriousness in his voice.

“What did he do?” Piper crosses her arms, looking amused and vaguely exasperated.

“Nothing,” It comes out a little too rushed. Piper rolls her eyes.

“Oh my god, he gave you the shovel talk didn’t he?” Jacob doesn’t say anything, but that confirms it anyways. “He did not need to do that. I swear, he has become so much more protective since Missy.” She is talking to herself more than him. He stands and she leans into him. “If you do anything, I can more than take care of myself.” There is no hesitation in her tone, and he chuckles.

“He said the same thing.” He pulls her into a hug, and feels her shoulders shake in laughter.

“Okay,” Piper pulls away as she speaks, going over to the makeup laid across the dresser where a mirror sits above it. “I am officially giving you the rest of the night off. If something needs to be done, have Jasper or Charlotte do it.” She touches up her lipstick, and blush.

“Not Henry?” Henry helped a lot with set up. Piper stares at him through the mirror.

“No,” She says flatly. Then she heads out of the room, him following, shortly after.

Outside, now that the sun has gone down, there is a nice breeze and the weather is pleasant. Sure enough Henry and his friends are outside at the edge of the yard, outside of any potential interaction range if someone were to come outside.

“I’m just saying we’ve been together for a month, and with Henry gone it would be nice,” Jasper is obviously in the middle of a conversation.

“It’s too soon dude, I’m telling you,” Henry says.

“I agree with Henry. We all know you’re certain she’s the one, but a month is not that long. Wait a little longer. It’ll be worth it, we promise.” Charlotte sounds far more compassionate than Henry.

“I don’t promise anything.” Ray turns to pout and catches sight as Jacob approaches.

“Hey, Piper mentioned you would be out here.”

“Jacob, how’s the party going inside?” Charlotte asks.

“Good, I was told to take the rest of the night off though.” Jacob says, only for both Henry and Ray to look at each other and chuckle.

“Well, we can help with anything that needs to be done.” Charlotte says and Jasper nods in agreement, though Ray just makes a face, and Henry is staring at his phone distractedly. Charlotte puts a hand over his phone, but doesn’t take it.

“It’s going to be fine. Go inside, celebrate with Piper, or talk to your parents. If anything happens she’ll call.” Charlotte’s voice is reassuring, and Jasper just nods in agreement.

“You realize the only time I talk to my parents is because of Piper right?” Henry has a joking smile, but his tone is strained and he keeps glancing at his phone. Ray puts a hand on Henry’s shoulder.

“Remember the first time I went on vacation after hiring you?” Ray’s words cause Henry’s smile to become a little lighter.

“Yeah, I had everything handled, and you came back taking over solving problems that were already dealt with.” Henry rolls his eyes in amusement but sighs. “I get it.” Jacob does not get it, but he just stands there pretending like he understands.

“So Jacob, how are classes going for you?” Jasper directs the conversation in Jacob’s direction, and he talks about some of the projects he’s worked on. Jasper is good at asking the right questions to keep the conversation going, and Charlotte is good at keeping Henry, but mostly Ray, pretending like they’re engaging.

True to her word, every time Jacob tries to help clean up, Piper finds a reason to pull him into a conversation. Charlotte and Jasper do most of the cleaning up with Piper’s mom and a few of Piper’s friends pitching in. Henry stays outside on the phone pacing a hole into the grass, and Ray occasionally laughs, only for Henry to turn and glare. Mrs. Hart tries to get Henry to help, but all she gets is that he would in a few minutes. He does not come in until after the last person has left and he looks restless.

It’s not long after that they separate into their rooms. Once he and Piper are in their room getting ready for bed, he decides to ask.

“Was today good?” Piper’s answering grin was enough of an answer. She works on rubbing in the last of her face lotion, as she gets into bed.

“It was perfect. I actually can’t believe everything turned out as well as it did.” She gives him a kiss. They settle in, his arms wrapped around her.

Chapter Text

Jacob sets his alarm early, to make breakfast for everyone, because they won’t have a lot of time. Piper grumbles, but after a few reassuring words, sleeps a little longer. Jacob feels groggy, but knows once he gets some coffee it will be better. He pours himself a cup with a little cream, and it’s not until he takes his first sip, that he realizes the coffee was already made. Glancing into the living room, he realizes it’s because Henry is there watching a muted news channel, with his own coffee in hand. Jacob is becoming convinced that Henry doesn’t sleep, because he definitely heard them moving around and talking when he and Piper went to bed.

“Thanks for the coffee,” Jacob keeps his voice low. Henry looks over his shoulder and smiles.

“No problem. Early riser?” Henry matches his tone. Jacob almost laughs at the question.

“Definitely not, but I wanted to make sure everyone had breakfast before we had to head out.” Jacob starts back into the kitchen, knowing if he didn’t get started soon, he would fall asleep, and not get everything done in time.

“I can help. What do you need?” Henry follows him into the kitchen.

“Can you dice these?” Jacob hands over the vegetables he got for the eggs.

“Sure,” Henry searches the cabinets for a cutting board and knife and gets started. They work in silence as Henry chops vegetables, and Jacob prepares the pancake batter. It’s not until Henry is sauteing the vegetables, and Jacob has finished a solid stack of pancakes that Henry speaks.

“What made you get a degree in art?”

Jacob glances over, and hides his amusement. “My degree is actually in Psychology. Painting is just a hobby. I actually want to specialize in creative arts therapy.”

Henry pauses, before he speaks again.

“I have a friend who uses art to express her emotions.” Henry’s tone is casual, but Jacob has the distinct impression that this conversation has become tense.

“I use art the same way, especially when I was younger. It’s what made me want to help other people through the same method. Words were hard when I was young, but painting always helped me express what I was feeling.” He pauses, trying to figure out what is causing the tension in Henry.

“That’s cool,” Henry doesn’t say anything else, so Jacob decides to ask.

“What do you enjoy doing for fun?” He wants to ease some of the tension.

“Not much, for now it’s mostly work. New city means I’m still getting a feel for everything, so it’s been long hours, most days.” Henry pauses as though waiting for Jacob to berate him.

“What prompted the move to Newtown, I’m not sure I’ve ever heard of that town before.” Jacob keeps his tone intentionally light. Henry seems to relax a little.

“Again work. I was specifically requested, and while I wasn’t planning on moving out of Dystopia, I realized it was time.” Before Henry or Jacob can say anything else, more footsteps join them. Mr. and Mrs. Hart appear in the kitchen doorway.

“Hey, breakfast smells great.” Mrs. Hart says, while Mr. Hart grabs a pancake and takes a bite.

“A little dry, but I’m sure you don’t make many pancakes in Newtown.” Mr. Hart doesn’t wait for a response, before grabbing a cup of coffee and heading outside.

“This weather has been terrible for my hair. I can’t wait to be back in Swellview.” Mrs. Hart says, as she grabs her own pancakes, though she gets a plate and some syrup. Henry just gives him a look of exasperation.

“How was your latest trip mom?” Henry asks. Mrs. Hart launches into a story that lasts until Charlotte and Jasper are awake. Charlotte claims the last cup, forcing them to make a new pot for the late risers. Henry is the first to get another cup from the new pot. After Mrs. Hart heads back to her room to pack, Charlotte looks at Henry’s coffee.

“Did you get any sleep last night?” She sounds skeptical and a little worried.

“I got a full five hours.” Henry sounds smug, and Jacob is a little concerned that Henry thinks five hours is a lot.

“Good thing you can sleep on the plane. I made sure our tickets lined up with Piper’s.” Charlotte takes a sip of her coffee as though expecting Henry to complain. He grumbles, but at Charlotte’s raised eyebrow he sighs.

“Thanks Charlotte, I’m so glad all of our tickets line up so we can spend several hours on a plane together.” He sounds so sarcastic, but Charlotte looks satisfied. It’s not long before Jacob switches to cooking some bacon, then breakfast is ready and he goes to wake up Piper, while Henry goes to wake up Ray.

The rest of the morning is chaotic. Everyone grabs breakfast, Jasper ends up on cleaning duty, and then it’s a rush to get everything packed and loaded into the cars. They drop off Piper’s car on the way to the airport, along with a few decorations that weren’t trash. With their whole group, by the time bags are checked, and they make it through security. Where Jasper is stopped, for a metal plate in his head, taken into another room, and then upgraded to first class. They barely make it to the gate on time.

Jacob really wants to ask what the upgrade was about, but doesn’t get the chance as they’re boarding the plane. Jacob watches a movie with Piper, and after it ends, he decides to read up on Swellview. Charlotte and Henry are in the adjacent aisle, which Jacob is impressed by. Henry watches movies the whole flight, and Charlotte works on her tablet the entire time.

On their descent, Jacob opens the window to look out over Swellview. One of the first things he notices is a giant circular building on top of a mount. The second thing he notices is the Swellview sign. He thinks the building is the superhero base, the Man’s Nest. He now knows, this Swellview sign is a new one after the old one was destroyed in the blimp explosion that killed Kid Danger.

Once they de-board, Henry, Charlotte and Ray head to Ray's car, as Charlotte is staying with her parents, and Henry wants to drop his bags off, wherever he’s staying, before they go out for dinner. Jasper however is joining them in Piper’s parents car, because he is apparently staying in Henry’s old room while in town. Jacob decides not to ask.

The city gives off small town vibes, despite having its own airport, and lots of businesses. Jacob isn’t from the big city, but he lived not far outside of one, yet this place feels like it’s in the middle of nowhere. When they arrive at the Hart’s house, Jacob’s first thought is that it’s a nice house. It’s not until they’re inside that Piper’s parents speak. Well they talked the whole trip, but it was the first time they spoke to the group.

“Jasper, what are you doing here?” They sound resigned and annoyed. Jasper however doesn’t look phased.

“I’m staying here this week.” Piper’s mom drops her bags at the bottom of the stairs, while Mr. Hart frowns.

“There’s not enough room.” Even if all of their group was here, Jacob isn’t sure he would believe that statement. He’s shared an apartment the size of the living room with more people than were currently in the house.

“Henry said I could stay in his old room. I know it’s renovated, but Piper told me there’s still a bed in there.” Jasper looks more amused than offended at their reactions.

“And Henry needs it,” Mr. Hart puts his hands on his hips. Jacob wishes he was anywhere else, but a glance at Piper tells him she's not worried.

“He’s not staying here, Dad,” She speaks up, grabbing her backpack and suitcases. Jasper grabs both of her suitcases from her, and starts taking it upstairs. Jasper himself only having a backpack.

“Well where is he staying?” Mr. Hart throws his hands up, but doesn’t receive a response. Piper is already halfway up the stairs. Jacob would answer, but he can only guess where Henry is staying this week. Jacob trails last, lugging his own suitcase up the stairs. Jasper leading the way to Piper’s room. It looks like a traditional guest room, but Jacob can definitely see how this was Piper’s room. Paint being a rosy cream, some Captain Man and Kid Danger memorabilia, the fairy lights that decorate the walls, all feel like Piper.

He drops them off, saying he’ll see them at dinner, before leaving the room. Piper is already unpacking and Jacob feels awkward standing in his girlfriend's childhood bedroom. He sets his suitcase next to the bed, opening it to find a fresh pair of clothes.

“Where are we going to dinner tonight?” Jacob asks, already feeling a little hungry. They’ll leave for dinner in about an hour, and after hearing Henry talk about all of the good food in Swellview, he is ready to eat.

“I was thinking, Omar’s pizza. I know Charlotte wants to come, but she may end up spending the evening with her parents. Henry will most likely show up late, or dip early, so it will only for sure be you, me, and Jasper.” She is putting clothes into the dresser and setting her makeup on top.

“Ray is not joining us?” The whole group seemed pretty close, so Jacob is a little surprised that he wouldn’t be there.

“I have no clue. Probably not, after spending the last few days together, Henry probably wants his space, and I doubt Ray would come without him.”

“I thought Henry was staying with Ray this week.” Jacob figured with Jasper being here, and knowing he wasn’t staying with Charlotte, Ray was the logical choice. Piper just laughs.

“No one, besides Ray, wants that. No, Henry is working this week, so he’s staying with some friends.”

“He mentioned he worked a lot, especially since moving.” Jacob doesn’t understand how anyone can work so much, and not hate their job. Piper just shoots him an amused look.

“Henry has always been a bit of a workaholic. It took me a while to understand, but I think I get it now. Plus, he definitely gets his work ethic from Ray, and Ray is a believer in no days off.” There is some kind of emotion in Piper’s voice, but Jacob is far too stuck on the last part of the sentence.

“Ray, the Ray I met, doesn’t believe in days off?” He knows he sounds incredulous. But, with the man’s demeanor and hawaiian shirts, it’s hard for Jacob to picture.

“I know, it’s hard to imagine. But before he retired, he was always working. I think he just learned how to have fun, despite working rather than waiting for a day off to do it.” Piper pauses in her unpacking for a second, as though thinking about something. Jacob looks around the room, a little interested in what Piper was like as a kid. There is a collage of pictures of her and her friends on one wall. A poster of Captain Man and Kid Danger next to it. A picture of her, Henry, Ray, Charlotte, and Jasper sits on the one bookshelf in the room. The background is blurred out so all that’s visible are reds and grays. A little Kid Danger action figure sits next to the photo, alongside an empty gum tube. When he looks back at Piper, she has gone back to unpacking, whatever her thought was, never voiced.

“So, you’re a huge superhero fan? How did I not find this out until now?” His tone is teasing and he has a smile, and he moves to sit across from her. She glares at him.

“I would not say I am a superhero fan. I liked Captain Man and Kid Danger when I was younger. I became president of the Man Fans, and stayed that way until Captain Man retired a few years ago. Outside of those two, I don’t know much about superheroes.” While her tone starts out hard, it softens towards the end. Jacob suddenly remembers that Kid Danger died. She could have met him.

“Did you know them well?” He keeps his tone open, letting her say as little or as much as she wants.

“Not as well as I would have liked.” She puts the last of her items away before standing. “Come on, I want to grab some snacks from the store, and I can show you a little bit of Swellview.”

The store is a gas station down the street, but Piper tells him all about the neighbors and their drama. Despite living in Florida, she somehow knows exactly what is going on. Jacob is a little terrified of her. Dinner comes by and Piper drives him and Jasper to Omar’s. This time Jacob gets to see a little more of Swellview, including the junior high where they all went to school.

Charlotte does meet them there, but only long enough to eat a slice of pizza and confirm plans for the week. After she heads out, to spend the rest of the evening with her parents. Henry wanders in not long after looking out of breath, and part of his sleeve is slightly singed. He smiles as he slides into the booth next to Jasper, grabbing a piece of pizza.

“I wish Omar’s was in Newtown. They have the best ‘roni pizza.” His mouth is still slightly full. Before anyone can say anything else he swallows his pizza and speaks again, “I think there is a crime wave in Swellview this week, so be aware. Do you have the number for Danger Force?” Henry is so casual about it, that Jacob feels like he’s joking.

“Of course I do.” Piper scoffs. Henry looks at him.

“Do you?” He looks like he already knew the answer.

“I have the number for the police?” Jacob’s statement turns into a question. Chuckles go up around the table.

“Where’s your phone? I can put the hotline in your contacts.” Jacob opens his contacts and hands the phone to Henry, feeling very confused.

“The police will either not answer or tell you to call the Danger Force hotline. So, it’s better just to call them directly, if a villain shows up.” Jasper answers his confusion.

“Really?” Jacob gapes. Sure, he’s never lived in a town with superheros, but surely that can’t be the case.

“Yeah, the police are notorious in Swellview for being unreliable.” Piper confirms.

“Okay, so I’m assuming the Danger Force are superheros?” As Jacob asks, Henry hands him back his phone.

“Yes, they were trained by Captain Man before he retired. Now they are the heroes of Swellview.” Henry informs.

“So anyone can just call them?” Jacob feels like he was just given a secret power. Henry gets a look of distaste on his face.

“I wouldn’t recommend it, it’s not a great idea to get on a superhero's bad side,” Jasper says. “I almost got arrested for a crime I didn’t commit, because I had called the line too many times.”

“Umm,” Jacob wasn’t sure what to say to that. Henry rolls his eyes.

“Just don’t call for false emergencies and you’ll be fine. I doubt you will have to call them at all.” Henry reassures. Jacob is still caught up on the fact that there is a number anyone can call, and talk to superheroes. During the rest of dinner they tell Henry about what’s planned for the week. Jacob can’t help but glance at his phone throughout the evening, still in disbelief.

Chapter Text

Henry leaves after dinner, but he, Piper, and Jasper go to explore the town. As they walk Piper and Jasper talk about some of their adventures. He notices how Piper teases Jasper, and the man would just roll his eyes, before bringing up an embarrassing story about Piper. Which only gives Piper an excuse to bring up Jasper’s embarrassing stories. It keeps escalating until they have to call a truce. Piper is always so confident and so put together, that it’s kind of nice to know she has embarrassing stories too.

He doesn’t think it is intentional, but they stop walking and stare at an abandoned junk store.

“This is where Henry, Charlotte, and I worked in high school.” Jasper says. Jacob can’t tell if it’s supposed to be a good thing or a bad thing.

“I’m surprised it’s still here.” Piper moves closer to glance through the windows.

“Do you really think Ray would ever let go of this place?” Jasper also moves closer and Jacob follows. It’s too dark to see anything inside.

“No, but I figured he would do something with it. It’s so sad just sitting here.” She moves to the door testing it. It’s locked, but then she turns to Jasper. “Can I borrow your lock picking set?”

“You have a lock picking set?” Jacob asks. Piper starts reaching for Jasper’s pockets, as Jasper moves out of the way.

“I don’t have it right now. I am on vacation.” Jasper directs the statement at Jacob, but Piper doesn’t look deterred. She does pause looking at Jasper with disbelief.

“Really?” She drawls, not believing it at all. Jacob watches amused as Jasper mutters something under his breath before reaching inside his jacket and pulling out a small lock picking set. Piper grins, snatching it from him.

“See, I knew it.” She starts working on the lock, causing Jacob to look around certain they are going to get in trouble.

“That one’s not mine. I stole it from Henry. I left mine in Dystopia. Because, again, I am on vacation.” Jasper crosses his arms looking at Piper’s back chiding. “Also, I am fairly certain the reason nothing has happened here is because it is likely to become a sinkhole at any second.” Piper turns to give Jasper a look, before going back to work.

“It’s been five years. If it hasn’t collapsed yet, walking around a little isn’t going to do anything.” Piper says. Jasper shrugs looking at Jacob. They sit in silence before Jacob speaks.

“So, trespass often?” Jacob asks. It’s stupid, and he regrets the words immediately, but Jasper laughs. Even Piper snorts.

“I feel like you should keep plausible deniability.” Jasper says before looking at Piper. “You're rusty, do you need me to do it?”

Piper looks back glaring, her hands briefly fiddling before the lock clicks. “It was warped, dimwit,” She pulls open the door and Jacob follows.

For most of the store being burnt, there’s a lot of stuff in Junk-N-Stuff. Some kind of head is on the wall, and there is debris all over the floor. He makes out nuts and bolts, golf clubs, at least one sword, and plenty of other things that are just burnt enough to where he can not make them out. There are giant holes in the floor that look far deeper than they should be.

Piper walks through the store without hesitation easily dodging around them, moving debris and looking around. Even Jasper pokes at a few spots, and stands behind the remains of a counter.

“This seems like it was a cool place to work for a high school job. What happened to it?” Jacob tries to stay away from the holes as he looks around, not venturing too far into the building. Piper disappears into the back room.

“A fire,” Jasper places a hand on the counter. “I remember my first day. I was so excited.”

Jacob smiles. He remembers being so excited for his first paycheck. Then spending it all almost immediately. “First jobs are definitely interesting. It’s nice you were able to work with Henry and Charlotte.”

“It’s nice having the gang back together again.” Jasper sighs.

Piper reappears, and is about to say something, when four colorful people appear out of nowhere. The girl in gray almost falls into a hole, but is steadied, by the one in blue, and the one in yellow. They stare at each.

“Oh hi. We didn’t realize it was you.” The gray one says with a smile.

“Thought we needed to punch some bad guys.” The girl in red says.

“Danger Force good to see you. I didn’t realize this place still had any security, or I would have texted Ray before coming in.” Jasper moves out from behind the counter. Jacob is just staring wide eyed at the superheroes in front of him. The yellow one starts looking around poking stuff.

“Who is that?” The girl in gray asks, pointing at him. Piper is the one to speak.

“That’s my boyfriend, Jacob. Jacob, that is Shoutout, Volt, Awol, and Brainstorm.” She points at each in turn, helping put names to colors.

“Piper, you’re captain of the ManFans right?” Shoutout asks.

“Was, I have passed on the title.” Piper moves to stand next to Jacob.

“Sorry to bother you. We were walking around town, and wanted to see the old place.” Jasper smiles. Danger Force nods, and Jacob says they almost look awkward.

“Not a problem, just try not to trespass. Or let us know first.” Shoutout says

“Will do,” Piper has amusement in her voice. The group disappears again.

“Why don’t we head back to the house and watch a movie?” Jasper asks. Jacob feels rooted to the spot.

“Those were actual superheroes. A team of superheroes knows my name. That is so strange.” Jacob marvels. Jasper claps him on the shoulder, and Piper leans against his arm.

“You’re adorable. Yeah, let's go get the car and head out.” Piper guides him out of the store, and laughs at his reaction as they walk back to the car. Jacob, very dignified, responds by sticking out his tongue at her. She giggles, and he gives her a quick kiss.

Chapter Text

It’s Jacob's first full day in Swellview, but already the town is giving him weird vibes. He knows it’s not just him, because Henry and even Piper have commented a few times on how the town is not the brightest. Already, several people have come up to Piper or Jasper and said some strange, or offensive things. They never take offense, but after the first time, they had to explain that it was just a Swellview thing. Jacob is really glad this isn’t where he grew up.

He decides to stop worrying and follow the lead of the Swellview natives, since he’s on vacation. So, when a large man approaches Henry while they’re out grabbing snacks, Jacob just keeps browsing the isles.

“Sup Prudence,” Jacob glances over to see Henry roll his eyes at the man, and put his hands on his hips.

“What do you want Mitch?” Henry’s tone is annoyed.

“Just to tell you I graduated highschool and am now the richest man in Swellview. Bet you never thought I’d graduate before you,” Mitch gets in Henry’s face, and throws his hands up in a stereotypical tough guy posture.

“Good for you, I guess,” The sarcasm practically drips from Henry’s words.

“You gonna go cry about being a failure now?” The man taunts. Jacob starts looking around for someone to intervene, but everyone is conveniently keeping their eyes diverted.

“I really don’t care, Mitch.” Henry sounds unimpressed and continues shopping. Mitch, not liking this, grabs Henry’s shirt. Jacob steps up, but Henry just shakes his head. “Let me go, Mitch.” Henry’s tone is calm, completely unaffected. Jacob is pulling out his phone, not sure whether to call the police or video the interaction.

“Or what?” Mitch growls. Jacob’s view is mostly blocked by Mitch’s body, so he doesn’t see exactly what happens, but Mitch is suddenly stumbling back barely staying on his feet and Henry is brushing off his shirt.

“I’m not some little kid you can just bully anymore.” Jacob stares wide eyed between the two as Mitch starts to move closer to Henry again. People have started gathering, several with their phones out videoing. Mitch approaches, and Jacob thinks there’s going to be a fight, especially when Mitch places his hand on Henry’s shoulder.

“Come on, I’m just messing around. Some harmless joking.” Mitch jostles Henry’s shoulder hard, but Henry doesn’t react.

“Whatever man, I’m gonna go now,” Henry turns back to looking at the different kinds of chips. Before he can get far, Danger Force is appearing, and Jacob stumbles back. Volt has popcorn and they look around assessing the scene before landing on Henry and Mitch.

“Henry?” Awol exclaims. Jacob feels shellshocked.

“Hey guys, what are you doing here?” Henry just smiles at the superheroes. Mitch starts putting candy in his pockets.

“We heard there was a fight,” Shoutout says as all four move closer to Henry.

“Yeah, we came to watch,” Volt smiles, grabbing a handful of popcorn.

“No,” Shoutout places her hands up placatingly. “We came to stop the fight.”

“We definitely came to watch,” Brainstorm says, it’s the first thing Jacob has heard him say.

“There wasn’t a fight. There wasn’t even an argument.” Henry says. “Mitch just was being Mitch.” Mitch looks up at his name being said.

“Hey Shoutout.” He smiles at the heroes. Jacob looks around the store, and while everyone watches no one seems particularly surprised.

“Mitch, are you staying out of trouble?” Shoutout, asks, sounding like a disappointed mother.

“Of course,” Mitch sticks another handful of snacks into his pockets. Shoutout rolls her eyes before turning back to Henry, who is conversing rapidly with the other three. Jacob barely understands that they’re trying to get him to go somewhere. He hesitantly walks towards the group.

“How do you know Danger Force?” His voice goes a little high at the end, because this is the second time he has met them and he has only been in Swellview for twenty-four hours. Suddenly, all four Danger Force members start on an explanation, but before they actually say anything, they start correcting what the others are saying, creating a jumble of voices. Finally, Henry’s voice raises above them all.

“We’ve run into each other a few times,” Henry moves on as though that doesn’t raise more questions. Which, now that he thinks about their interaction last night, they seem to know Jasper too. Everyone else in the store has already moved on, even Mitch seems casual with Danger Force. Maybe it is a Swellview thing? “I’m gonna go now. Unless there’s something else?” Henry says watching the heroes. They all look at each other, shrugging before they teleport out of there. Mitch shakes his head bumping into Jacob’s shoulder.

“It’s been two years, and I still can’t believe Captain Man retired. Crazy right?” Before Jacob can answer, Mitch is out of the aisle and leaving the store, pockets full of stolen goods. Jacob rushes over to Henry’s side, who has decided on several kinds of Frittles, and is now moving onto the candy.

“That is so cool, you know Danger Force. Is that because Piper was captain of the Man Fans? I wish I could have gotten to meet Captain Man, he seems super cool.” Henry just chuckles, and Jacob tries to reign in his excitement.

“Yeah, I guess. Danger Force is cool, definitely stepping up to keep Swellview safe.” Jacob feels like that’s an understatement, but he’s never lived in a town where there were superheroes, so what does he know? Henry is quiet as they check out, and Jacob keeps replaying his interactions with Danger Force in his head. This is normally something he would talk with Piper about, but she seems so casual about it. They all are. That is what’s throwing Jacob for a loop the most. No one, including the people in the store, seem all that surprised by the heroes just showing up.

“Look, about earlier,” Henry starts. Jacob breathes out a sigh of relief.

“It’s crazy right?” Jacob says, “That interactions with superheroes are so common here?” It turns into a question at the look of confusion on Henry’s face.

“Right, that,” Henry says, gripping the grocery bags tighter. Jacob realizes that is not what Henry was referring to. He thinks back to the interaction trying to think of what Henry would be talking about. Then he realizes it.

“You didn’t graduate highschool.” He does his best to keep his tone neutral. He does not know any of the reasons behind why, and doesn’t need to know. But Henry was obviously prepared to talk about it. “Look man, life happens, you don’t have to explain it.”

“Huh,” Henry’s tongue pokes the inside of his cheek, as he thinks.

“What?” Jacob asks.

“Normally, when people find out, especially knowing my sister started college at fourteen, and one of my best friends goes to Harvard, they wonder what happened to me.” Henry lets out a self deprecating laugh.

“You seem to have a job you like, and are good at. That should be more important than your level of education.” It’s not a sentiment he grew up with, but wishes he had. He went to college, because it was what he was supposed to do next. He never liked school, but he was never given another option. Psychology just happened to be a good fit for him.

“I guess,” Henry didn’t sound convinced. Jacob couldn’t blame him. He couldn’t imagine facing judgment and degrading comments every time someone found out.

“Have you ever thought of getting your GED?” Jacob asks. Henry looks at him with caution, so Jacob clarifies. “If not that’s fine, but you don’t sound fine with not completing high school.

Henry doesn’t say anything, and Jacob is worried he overstepped. He really didn’t mean to come off as psychoanalyzing, or like he was trying to fix anything. That wasn’t his intention, and just as he’s about to apologize, Henry speaks. “In Dystopia, it isn’t unusual for someone to not have formal education. But since moving to Newtown, the thought has crossed my mind. I’m trying to set a better example for the girl I’m watching out for, so maybe I should.”

Jacob doesn’t know what to say. Henry seems done with the conversation, but as they walk, the silence is starting to get awkward.

“Okay, but can we talk about how everyone seems to be on a first name basis with the local superheroes? Jasper, you, Piper, that asshole at the store. Is it a small town superhero thing?” Jacob is sure he sounds as incredulous as he feels. Henry just laughs.

“I heard you ran into Danger Force last night as well. No, normally there is a lot more photo taking and autographs, Swellview has just gotten a little too used to superheroes over the years.” Henry just shrugs. And before Jacob can ask anymore questions, Piper is meeting them in the driveway.

“Finally, we’ve been waiting ages. We’ve got the movie pulled up already. So, hurry up.” She takes a bag from Jacob as they pick up the pace.

“Sorry, Jacob just got to have his second meeting with Danger Force.” Henry shoots him a wink as Piper turns to look at him then to glare at Henry.

“What did you do?” She crosses her arms staring her brother down.

“Nothing. Just ran into Mitch.” Henry puts his hands up in a show of innocence.

“Bilsky? Isn’t he a billionaire now?”

“Yeah, and he wanted to rub it in my face.” Henry puts his hands down as they head inside.

“So you did do something.” Piper’s tone is accusatory. Henry rolls his eyes and his head to add drama.

“I thought we were going to watch a movie?”

“You didn’t answer my question.” They head through the front door, Jacob spotting Charlotte at the counter with her laptop and Jasper on the couch.

“I didn’t do anything. Right Jacob?” Henry turns to him.

“Uh, no?” It came out as a question, so Jacob continues, “No, you didn’t,” He says far more sure. Piper looks at her phone before turning it to face Henry. It’s a video of him pushing Mitch back. There’s this weird green glare that flashes across the screen making it hard to see what Henry does. It somehow still looks cool.

“You didn’t do anything.” Piper is not impressed. Henry however is undeterred. He just shrugs, moving to join Jasper on the couch. Piper rolls her eyes before walking over to Jacob and placing a kiss on his cheek before pulling him over to the couch.

Ray joins them towards the end of the movie. Jacob wasn’t expecting him, though no else appeared to either. They’re planning for the following day trying to decide what to do when he arrives.

“Who knows, maybe Danger Force will show up again. That way Jacob will have a three day streak,” Piper jokes. Jacob just looks down in embarrassment.

“You guys ran into Danger Force?” Ray asks.

“Yeah, he ran into them again while he and Henry were at the store.” Jasper answers.

“Getting to know the local heroes. That’s good.” Ray hums. Looking at Jacob more intently.

“Not intentionally, though it has been cool.” Cool was not a sufficient word to describe the experience. “It was my first, and second, time meeting superheroes. Though I suppose it’s old news to you.” Jacob tests, trying to see what other experiences they’ve had with the local heroes over the years. It gets a chuckle from everyone.

“The experience is grossly over hyped,” Charlotte says, shrugging her shoulders at the offended looks everyone gives her.

“Take that back,” Henry leans over to poke Charlotte in the arm. “Superheroes are cool. Haven’t you seen what the internet says?”

Charlotte just scrunches her nose and slaps Henry’s hand away. Though, if Charlotte is doing a research project on superheroes she would know.

“Since you all have so much experience with superheroes, who's your favorite?” As soon as the question leaves Jacob’s mouth he knows something is up.

Charlotte, Piper, and Jasper grimace and Henry is quick to answer. “I definitely think Danger Force are the second best heroes Swellview has seen.”

“Behind Captain Man,” Ray says smiling.

“I was actually thinking of Kid Danger,” Henry grins mischievously, Jacob, watching the argument with amusement.

“Captain Man is the greatest hero Swellview ever had. He protected this town for twen-fifteen, fifteen years. Because he was young.” Ray’s voice raises in pitch.

“Yeah, young enough to retire,” Henry teases.

“You have no room to talk. Captain Man was great. Kid Danger was-” Ray barely pauses before continuing, “was just a sidekick.” Everyone in the room loudly gasps.

“Well, at least he got a statue.” Ray's mouth opens in protest at Henry’s words, trying and failing to respond. Jacob hears Jasper make an ‘ooh’ sound. “Yeah, I went there,”

“You know that’s a touchy subject.” Their argument descends into unintelligible ramblings. Jacob turns to Piper who is watching the two in amusement.

“Who is your favorite superhero?” Jacob asks, keeping his voice low with a little teasing in his tone.

“Yeah, I’m not answering that. It’s a trick question.” It was not the answer he was expecting.

“How is it a trick question?” Ray and Henry are still going strong.

“Hey, Charlotte,” Piper gets Charlotte’s attention. “Who’s your favorite superhero?” Charlotte scoffs at the question.

“I’m not answering that.”

“Jasper?” Piper calls. He was leaning over the couch.

“I like Kid Danger and Captain Man equally.” At Jasper’s comment both Henry and Ray pause in their bickering to turn and look at them.

“You have to pick one,” They say in unison, Jasper just shakes his head and they go back to bickering over who is better. Though it quickly turns into wrestling. Piper turns back to them completely ignoring the two.

“I should have warned you not to say anything. They always do this.” She looks up and the wrestling is getting more intense. She reaches behind her, and somehow produces a bright yellow plastic children’s bat. The two immediately cease.

“No need for that,” Henry says, straightening his clothes, despite Ray having him in a headlock. Henry is able to hit him in the back of the head hard enough to be released. Piper stands up.

“Are you two going to stop, and sit down like normal people?” She knocks the bat against her hand. Jacob doesn’t think she’s serious, but looking at the faces of Ray and Henry, he becomes less sure.

“She’s still bossy,” Ray mumbles, causing Henry to chuckle. Piper wacks him with the bat. It makes a loud THWACK and Ray dramatically throws himself behind Henry, placing him between Piper and himself.
“I’m okay,” It’s said just loud enough to be heard, but without conviction.

“What was that?” Piper looks menacing with the plastic bat.

“We’ll stop.” Ray grumbles, Piper turns her glare to Henry. Henry looks between her and the bat, over to Charlotte, Jasper, and himself, putting his hands in his pockets and shrugging.

“We’ll stop.” It’s barely less grumbly than Ray. Piper nods her head in satisfaction before sitting down setting the bat beside her. Ray and Henry start grumbling, but Piper starts to grab the bat and they shut up.

Chapter Text

That evening, Jacob decides he needs to do a little more research into the superheroes of Swellview. It feels like every time the superheroes come up in conversation, some tangent throws the discussion into chaos.

He starts with searching their names and tons of articles and videos come up. Captain Man and Kid Danger are far more popular than he originally thought, and Captain Man appears to be known in several different countries. He doesn’t know how he’s never heard of them. Captain Man became a superhero in the turn of the century, and about fifteen years later Kid Danger showed up on the scene. He skims a few news articles, not realizing how much discussion went into Kid Danger being a sidekick. Seeing a picture from the first year Jacob understands. The kid was small, and does not look old enough to have been fighting crime.

He finds an interesting article about labor laws and if being a sidekick fits into them, because apparently Kid Danger was paid. Jacob wonders where that job application was when he was in high school. He has a brief idea of looking through Craigslist and finding a job for Captain Man’s sidekick, before laughing to himself at the idea, and continuing his search.

Most of the articles are about events the duo attended and criminals they took down. Seeing the aftermath of some of those villain attacks Jacob suddenly loses all desire to be a superhero. And Kid Danger was doing it without superpowers. The final article he looks at is about Kid Danger’s death. There are numerous about how much he will be missed, asking what Captain Man will do next, and a few talking about the service where they unveiled a statue of Kid Danger. Jacob read a little about the statue under Sights to See in Swellview, on the plane ride over.

When Jacob asks to see the statue of Kid Danger the next day, he isn’t expecting it to be such a somber affair. It is a popular tourist attraction, but no one had talked about taking him. He doesn’t want to ask Piper, especially now that he knows she was the president of the Man Fans, at the same time Kid Danger was fighting crime. Instead he asks Jasper. He is the most laid back of the group, so Jacob figures he will say whether it is worth seeing.

Jasper is hanging out in the living room, watching some new tv show when Jacob sits on the couch. Piper has a business call, and it is still too early to grab dinner, so Jacob doesn’t have anything else to do.

“Hey, I was looking up places to visit in Swellview, and the number one recommendation is the statue of Kid Danger. Piper hasn’t brought it up, and I’m not sure if she knew him, but I was hoping to see it?” Jacob’s statement turns into a question towards the end. Jasper looks over at him but doesn’t look bothered and Jacob feels relief.

“I don’t think she would mind taking you, I know she’s been back a few times since. I can also take you if she can’t.” Jasper’s tone is casual, and Jacob breathes a sigh of relief that they just forgot to ask if he wanted to go. Then he thinks about what Jasper said.

“What do you mean since? Since what?” He briefly wonders if Jasper meant since the statue went up, but something about his tone didn’t suggest that.

“Since the funeral,” Jasper says. Jacob feels thrown. Sure he knew the statue was because Kid Danger had died, but the information didn’t click. The statue was talked about as a tourist attraction. It never crossed his mind that the service mentioned was his funeral, or that Piper knew him well enough to be there. Jacob suddenly feels horrible.

“Is it okay if we go?” Jacob realizes he wasn’t thinking of Kid Danger as a real breathing human being, rather as a legend. Jasper looks confused at the question.

“Why wouldn’t it be? I’ll even ask Charlotte to join us. Actually, let me text Henry. If he goes we can make a whole thing of it.” Jasper pulls out his phone already sending out text messages.

“Okay,” Jacob hesitantly nods. As though he was summoned by their thoughts, Henry walks through the door with a few bags of groceries.

“Hey, Ray is busy and the kids are out, so I texted Piper. You didn’t have any plans, so I figured I’d cook my Chili Balls for dinner.” Henry moves through the living room into the kitchen as he starts unloading the groceries. Jasper stands moving to the counter, though Jacob stays back listening in, but not wanting to intrude.

“Sounds good. Make them spicy,” Jasper says as he takes a seat at the counter. “Let’s go see the Kid Danger statue,”

“Hmm?” Henry hums, and Jacob pretends to be watching the TV.

“Let’s go see the Kid Danger statue,” Jasper repeats in the same tone.

“I don’t know dude, Chili Balls,” Jacob glances over, but can’t see Henry anymore.

“It wouldn’t be right now, and Charlotte said she’s going.”

“I’ve already seen it, why would I go again?” A can is placed against the counter and it makes a loud Clunk. Jasper takes a little longer before answering.

“You can’t avoid it forever.”

“I’m not avoiding it.” Henry snaps. Jacob tries to disappear into the couch. Henry’s voice is calmer when he says, “I’m not avoiding it.”

“Then let’s go, all of us. And if you never want to go again, I won’t ask.” Jasper proposes his voice softer. Henry makes a loud annoyed groan.

“Fine.” Jasper, satisfied with Henry’s answer, returns to his spot on the couch.

Once Piper gets off her call, and Charlotte joins them, plans are made. They’ll drive over to Mount Swellview in the morning and on their way back will grab lunch. Henry’s Chili Balls are amazing, though very spicy. Jacob drinks a lot of water, and gets heckled a little by Piper’s parents. They watch a scary movie, Henry annoyingly unaffected, and they all jeer at him as he and Charlotte head out. Despite the pleasant evening, Jacob can feel the tension rolling off of Henry the entire night.

They all load into the car, with Piper driving. He gets the passenger seat, with the three friends in the back. Henry is still tense, but it doesn’t take long before the three are joking in the back seat as they loudly sing along to Piper’s road trip playlist. It’s a two hour drive to the statue, and the last thirty minutes have Jasper complaining about needing to stretch his legs.

The first thing he notices when he gets out of the car is the view. He caught glimpses between the trees during the drive, but now they’re high enough that he is able to overlook the entire town of Swellview. There’s a nice breeze and the sun is out. It’s absolutely beautiful. He wishes he had some sketching materials with him. Turning, he goes to mention the view to Piper, but he notices how quiet it’s gotten.

The statue is still hidden by bushes and trees, but he can see Henry further up the path, and he’s stopped. Piper, Jasper, and Charlotte are hanging back. Jacob doesn’t know what is happening, but he hangs back by the car a little longer. Henry takes slow steps disappearing behind the bushes.

Piper comes over, wrapping her arm around his. and leads him down the path. It leads to another clearing, where the Kid Danger statue is. Technically, there’s two Kid Danger statues giving each other a high five. In front of the statue are dozens of fresh flowers, and cards. They take up the entire podium, despite the five years since the sidekick's death. Jacob also notices their group is not the only one up here. There are four people around his age, and Ray, standing in front of the statue. It’s only once they get closer that Jacob realizes Henry is kneeling in front of the statue reading one of the cards.

Piper leads him to a picnic table before reaching into her purse and pulling out his travel pencil case and sketch book. He smiles grateful, only pulling his eyes away from the strange scene in front of him out of politeness. Jacob starts drawing the statue, and Piper goes to stand by her brother. His eyes keep getting drawn to Henry, who has picked up another card, and another. All his friends, standing around almost creating a barrier between him and the rest of the world.

Jacob stares at his drawing. He drew the statues, but they weren’t complete, so he adds Henry. Staring at it, causes a deep sadness inside of Jacob. Henry is standing now, but he hasn’t moved from his spot in front of the statue. He is leaning against Ray, the man’s arm wrapped around his shoulders.

Sure Piper was president of the Man Fans, but obviously Henry was the one that was close to Kid Danger. It feels so obvious in retrospect. Piper’s connection, his move to Dystopia, his connection with the current heroes of Swellview. Henry obviously knew who Kid Danger was behind the mask, and lost someone incredibly close to him.

Chapter Text

Henry disappears with Ray before they make it off the mountain. Jacob doesn’t know where they go, and doesn’t ask. Instead, the rest of them load into the car and head down the mountain. By the time they make it back to Swellview, it’s already dinner time. Piper says she is going to head back, and Jacob offers to go with her, but she tells him to stay and enjoy the evening.

He protests. The reason he is in Swellview is for Piper, but then he looks at her, when she asks him to stay again. She still looks beautiful, but he can see the agitation and tension in the way she holds her purse, and how distracted she is, already looking out the door. So, he kisses her and says he’ll text her when they head back. Her responding smile is small, but genuine. As he turns to face Jasper and Charlotte they are staring at him.

“I definitely thought she was going to bite your head off.” Jasper jokes.

“What are you talking about?” He looks at them confused. Charlotte answers.

“She let you talk back and then she let you kiss her. I’ve never seen her so…” Charlotte trails off, at a loss for words.

“I feel mildly concerned about your assumptions,” Jacob is only half joking. He knows Piper has anger issues, but she’s worked really hard on moving past it. Normally, when she gets worked up, it’s because she feels like she isn’t being heard.

“It’s a good thing. Now, come on, I’m starving,” Jasper leads them into Nacho Ball, the close one, and Jacob is left to follow or be left behind. He has come to appreciate Swellview restaurants. The food is both cheap and good.

“Okay, Jasper, I know you’ve been waiting to talk about it. How is your girlfriend?” Charlotte asks once they get their food. Jasper lights up. His smile is so big, and he softens in a way Jacob hasn’t seen.

“She’s good. It’s been busy without Henry, but we’ve gone out to dinner a few times. Last week, she and her team took down DeadMoth.”

“Without help?”

“No. The department is definitely making improvements in taking down criminals.” Jasper looks proud. Charlotte turns to explain.

“When we first moved to Dystopia, the police were incredibly corrupt. It’s only been in the last year that real change in the department has happened. Normally, they will only do a takedown if it will bring good press, which in the last year has only happened when they do a takedown with a superhero.” Charlotte explains. Jacob nods following along.

“So how did you and this detective meet?”

“Through work. She was impressed by my mad skills, and decided to let me take her on a date.” Jasper slides his hand over his hair, while Charlotte snorts.

“I was told Piper asked her how much she liked you, and told her to and I quote, ‘Not be a bitch, if she wanted to date you’ so I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Charlotte elbows Jasper, while Jasper looks disgruntled.

“Piper mentioned she did some matchmaking when she was in Dystopia.” Jacob says. Jasper's brows furrow as he frowns.

“I had everything under control before she got there. I’m sure she played up her part, to make herself sound like the hero.” Jasper laughs. Before either of them can say anything, Jasper continues turning to Charlotte, “Are you going to come visit Dystopia? Maybe you could talk to the local superhero, to give you an excuse?”

Charlotte chuckles as she answers, “We’ll see. There’s plenty of heroes here. Why would I travel halfway around the world?”

“Haha. If you won’t come visit me, then who are you going to interview for your paper?” Jasper asks. Charlotte and Jasper make good company, as Charlotte talks about which supers she wants to interview, and her hopes to work with the Hero League. Several hours pass, before they start to head back.

It’s late and they're passing through the park, still laughing as Jasper shares stories of when they lived in Swellview. Suddenly, they are surrounded, as a man dressed in purple emerges from the shadows.

“Stay where you are, while I call Danger Force.” The man says. Jacob freezes his brain not processing what is happening.

“Minyak, why are you still doing this?” Charlotte asks, identifying the man. Jacob glances at her, only to see Jasper lifting something to his head. Jacob can’t see much in the dimly lit park.

“I will be respected in this town. You are the perfect hostages to get Danger Force to take me seriously,” Minyak declares, waving the weapon in his hand around. Jacob sees something wrap around Jasper's head before a force knocks him to the ground.

“Stay down,” Charlotte hisses, partially on top of Jacob. Despite Charlotte's warning, Jacob lifts his head enough to see what’s going on. He can make out several bodies on the ground, and what looks like someone fighting Minyak. It’s over quickly, as Minyak lands on the ground from a flying kick. As the figure approaches Jacob recognizes Jasper.

“¿Están bien?” Jasper asks. Jacob doesn’t understand, but takes the offered hand. Charlotte stands up.

“We’re good.” Charlotte says, not sounding disturbed at all.

“Speak for yourself.” Jacob snaps, backing away. He was taken hostage, and before he could process what happened, suddenly he was free, and Jasper could fight. His chest is heaving. “What just happened?”

The blindfold wrapped around Jasper’s head comes off. Charlotte holds her hands up in a peaceful gesture, speaking gently, “Everything’s okay. That was a Swellview villain, but Jasper was here, so we’re okay.”

Jacob shakes his head. “How was he able to do that?” Then he addresses the question to Jasper, “How were you able to do that?”

At the question Jasper looks confused. “What do you mean? It’s my job.” When Jacob still looks confused Jasper continues. “I learned to fight while I sleep,”

“And speak Spanish,” Charlotte chimes in.

“And speak Spanish. I’m a superhero in Dystopia. Did you not know?” Jasper now looks confused, and Jacob turns trying to process that information, only to see the five bodies of Minyaks henchmen on the ground.

“I did not,” Jacob wheezes, trying to get air into his lunges. “How would I know that?”

“My face is all over the place if you google Dystopia and superheroes. Plus, I thought Piper would have mentioned it.” Jasper sounds apologetic, and when Jacob turns to look, the man looks sheepish. Jacob closes his eyes, taking a few deep breaths trying to get a coherent thought out of his racing mind. He isn’t sure what to do with himself right now. Charlotte attempts to help him, but Jacob holds up his hands.

“I just need a minute.” He’s breathing heavily, his gaze bouncing between the henchmen on the ground, to Jasper, to Charlotte. They’re looking at him in concern. Which is fair. He was not prepared to be in a life or death situation today. He closes his eyes taking in a few deep breaths. There’s a sudden commotion and more voices. Jacob takes one last deep breath, feeling a little more able to handle the situation. When he opens his eyes Danger Force is standing there, tying up the bad guys.

“You didn’t save any for us,” Volt growls, her hands sparking.

“Better be faster next time,” Jasper taunts.

“There will be plenty of bad guys later,” Brainstorm says, jumping between the two, though only Volt looks ready to fight. Charlotte is still looking at him with worry, as ShoutOut approaches him like a scared animal.

“Are you okay?” She gives him a hesitant smile, and he nods, still feeling a little shaky.

“I just need a minute,” He feels like a broken record and he’s starting to feel a little ridiculous. He wants to freak out in a good way, instead of feeling like he’s still in danger.

“It was meant to happen dude. Don’t stress. Everything will fall into place like it’s supposed to,” Awol pats his shoulder, and Jacob jumps not realizing he was so close. Looking over, the boy looks just as calm as his words would suggest. “Breathe in thinking of all your stress and anxieties,” He continues, before waiting for Jacob to follow. Jacob does for lack of anything better to do, “Then breathe out, releasing all of it from your mind and body.” Awol’s hands move away from his body signaling the release of breath.

“Stop trying to restart your cult.” Volt calls.

“Stop calling it a cult,” Awol complains, his voice cracking as he says it. It causes Jacob to chuckle, and he does feel better.

“The police are on their way, so you guys probably want to clear out. We’ll take care of these guys,” ShoutOut says. Charlotte and Jasper nod, and herd Jacob out of the clearing, as they start to hear the sirens.

It’s not long before they’re arriving at the Hart residence. Piper is in the dining room on the phone with her business partner Ami, but starts wrapping it up when she sees them. Mr. Hart is in the living room watching the news. The incident in the park is on, praising Danger Force for the take down. Jacob glances over seeing Jasper unbothered. Instead, he walks into the kitchen getting something to drink.

Jacob isn’t sure what he should be doing. He wants to sit near Piper, but he also doesn’t want to disturb her. Instead, it leaves him standing in the middle of the living room, trying to make a decision. Charlotte passes him, also heading to the kitchen, and he follows her with a lack of anything else to do.

He sits at the counter facing the kitchen, and Jasper comes over handing Jacob a colorful soda. Jacob is just waiting, as Piper sounds like she’s wrapping up her meeting. The tv is muted, but Jacob’s eyes keep drifting to it. The story has moved on, and without sound Jacob has no idea what the story has moved on to. Jasper finishes his soda, before Piper finishes her meeting. Jacobs has barely been touched and the condensation is pooling on the counter.

Piper closes her laptop and turns to them. “What did you do to my boyfriend?”

Jacob looks up and sees her glaring at Jasper who holds up his hands in surrender. “It is not my fault Dr. Minyak attacked.” Her eyes widen, and she makes her way over to Jacob as Jasper continues, “We’re all okay,”

Piper has put her hands on Jacobs arms, but turns to glare at Jasper again. “Of course you are. Charlotte was with you,”

Charlotte chuckles, and Jasper shrugs in agreement. “There were a lot of unexpected surprises tonight.” Charlotte says. Jacob can’t help but glance at Piper’s dad, though he doesn’t appear to be paying attention.

“Jasper has some interesting skills,” Jacob says. He watches Piper as she rolls her eyes.

“He thinks he’s all the stuff, since he became The Hero of Dystopia. It’s not that serious, I promise,” Piper is incredibly nonchalant about the whole thing, though he still sees the worry. By the way she is gently rubbing his arm, he knows it’s not about Jasper.

Jacob feels ridiculous for freaking out about this, and he doesn’t like that. He pulls away from Piper, needing to pace, needing room to breathe and think. He doesn’t miss the look of hurt on her face. “I know it’s not a big deal to you, but meeting five superheroes and having my life put in danger is a pretty big deal.” He runs his hands through his hair in frustration. Piper is staring at him, and he wants to brush it off. Act like it’s no big deal, but he can’t.

“Everyone out,” She says. No one moves and she shouts, “Everyone out.” Jasper is immediately heading towards the stairs, and even her Dad doesn’t do much other than glance in their direction before leaving. Charlotte hesitates, starting to move, but not leaving.

“We all freaked out at first. It’s just easy to forget that.” She says before heading out the front door. Jacob’s not sure if it was addressed to him or Piper.

“Babe-”

“Piper,” And she stops talking because he used her name, and he never uses her name. Not when addressing her like this. “It’s not about Jasper skills, or it is, but it’s not,” He closes his eyes trying to figure out the words.

“What then?” And she sounds so unsure when she asks. Jacob hates that this is what is happening, but it helps him find the words.

“When I found out about the Man Fans, I thought you didn’t tell me because you were embarrassed. That you got a picture with Captain Man, and ran the fan page. That you didn’t want to talk about it, because of what happened to Kid Danger. But then we get here.” He looks at her, trying to send her his feelings through his eyes, even though he still needs to say it. “You know Danger Force, which maybe can make sense as a Man Fan. Even when we visited the Statue, obviously something was up, but if you can’t tell me that’s fine, but Jasper wasn’t a secret and you still didn’t tell me.” Jacob’s throat closes up at the end, and Piper looks like she is on the verge of tears. It takes her a while to respond.

“I know the identities of Captain Man and Kid Danger.” She states, and it’s barely above a whisper. Jacob moves closer, because he suspected, but for it to be confirmed with Piper on the verge of tears leaves him feeling sick. “I know the identities of the Danger Force, and I can’t tell you.” She looks at him imploringly, and he gently holds her.

“I would never ask you to. It’s just, since arriving in Swellview I have felt blindsided at every turn.”

“It’s a lot, and I wasn’t trying to keep it from you.” He tries to interrupt to reassure her, but she keeps going, “Some of the scariest moments of my life have come with that secret, and when I moved, I reinvented myself. Superheroes weren’t as common or popular, and Captain Man wasn’t making headlines every week anymore. And it’s so hard to balance the line of what I can talk about and what I can’t, so I just stopped.” She sounds frustrated and angry.

“So you didn’t mention Jasper because it was adjacent?” He guesses. She gives him a knowing smirk.

“Yeah, and because I forget he’s a superhero.” It’s teasing and easy to hear the fondness in her tone. “I’ve only visited Dystopia twice, so I’ve only seen Jasper in action like, twice.”

“How do you forget someone is a superhero?” It feels inconceivable to imagine. Piper shrugs.

“Once you get to know behind the mask, some of the novelty wears off.” She says it as a joke, but her eyes go distant obviously thinking about something else. Jacob stays silent waiting for her to continue. It takes a little bit, and it becomes clear that she can’t find the words to express whatever she is feeling.

“That’s not all is it?” Jacob prompts. She shakes her head and leans her head against his chest. He wraps his arms around her, starting to understand why she never mentioned any of this.

“It’s so scary, but you can’t be scared, because it’s not your life in danger.” Her voice is choked up and muffled against his shirt. “So you pretend to be fine, as you question whether someone you care about will walk away alive.”

Jacob hugs Piper closer to his chest. And she is so silent as she leans into him, his shirt only slightly damp. When she finally pulls away, it’s only far enough to look up at him. He stares into her blue eyes, only slightly red, and her makeup somehow still perfect. He leans down to kiss her, lingering as he rests his forehead against hers.

“I’m sorry for freaking out on you,” He waits a breath as she closes her eyes.

“I’m sorry for not warning you,” She breathes out. They stand there together for a moment longer, before Jacob breaks the tension.

“Are there any other major surprises I should be prepared for?” He jokes, but then he sees Piper seriously thinking. He’s tempted to bring up Kid Danger and what happened at the statue earlier that day, but then she speaks.

“Henry and Charlotte used to work with Jasper as superheroes before they left Dystopia.”

Jacob is stunned for only a moment, before nodding his head. “That makes sense,”

They seem close, and Henry obviously knows Danger Force which would make sense if Jasper is connected with them. They must have known Kid Danger through Piper knowing Captain Man and his identity. Though he wonders what leads to someone becoming a superhero.

“I’m really glad you came this week. I know Swellview and my family can be a lot,”

“Piper Hart, if I couldn’t handle a lot I wouldn’t have started dating you,” He teases, as she smirks.

“Damn right,” Then she reaches up to kiss him. Her hands are in his hair and he’s gripping her waist.

“Hey Piper, Have you seen-Ew,” Henry’s disgusted voice cuts in. Jacob pulls away as Piper rolls her eyes looking over at Henry, though not pulling away. He is standing by the door with a look of pure horror on his face.

“What do you want?” She snaps.

“Now, brain bleach. Disgusting,” He is pretending to wretch as he rubs his eyes.

“You're a child.”

“No, I just don’t want to see my baby sister making out with someone.”

“What do you want?” She drags out the question throwing her head back in annoyance. Jacob has to tighten his grip to prevent her from falling.

“Is the extra shovel still in the garage?” He asks. Now, Piper does pull away, turning to look at her brother suspiciously.

“Why do you need a shovel?” She crosses her arms staring her brother down.

“Is it still in the garage or not?” Henry approaches them in the kitchen.

“I’m not telling you until you tell me why you need it,” Piper says. Henry makes a sound of annoyance, and the front door opens as Ray joins them.

“Henry, what is taking so long. Get the shovels so we can get going. I refuse to be beaten by a bunch of kids.” Ray calls.

“Now I really want to know.” Piper declares.

“Piper,” Henry says

“Piper,” Piper mocks. Jacob chuckles at the offended look on Henry’s face.

“This is taking too long,” Ray whines, then disappears towards the garage.

“Come on, just tell me. I’m your sweet little sister, who you're so proud of, and definitely want to tell.” Piper turns up the charm. Before Henry can say anything, a young girl appears in the door. Someone Jacob does not recognize.

“Boss, we’ve got to get moving or they’ll beat us to the first clue.” She says moving further into the house looking around. Then her eyes land on them and they widen. “Piper, nice to meet you, I mean we’ve technically met, but now I get to officially meet you, and I’m glad you're not a vampire.” Missy rambles. Henry gets a fond smile on his face.

“Nice to meet you too,” Piper says, “What do you need shovels for?”

“Oh, we need to dig up a grave, but Chapa stole the other shovels, so now we need more.” Missy looks delighted at the thought, and Henry pinches the bridge of his nose.

“Context Missy,” Henry says.

“Right, sorry boss, we’re doing a treasure hunt.” Missy clarifies.

“Okay, good to know, because I definitely thought you were just digging up a grave to dig up a grave.” Piper says. Henry looks offended.

“We would not just randomly dig up a grave.” Henry says, and Piper does not look convinced. Ray runs into the room with two shovels and some rope.

“Got it let’s go,” He calls, and Missy and Henry are running out of the house behind Ray chanting ‘Treasure Hunt’. Piper looks fond and amused.

“Do I want to know?” Jacob asks.
“I don’t think I would have an answer.” Piper says. As Jasper comes down the stairs.

“Was that Henry I heard?” He asks, looking around for the man.

“Yeah, he, Ray, and Missy are doing some kind of treasure hunt or something that involves digging up a grave.” Piper explains. Jasper just raises an eyebrow.

“And they didn’t invite me?” Jasper sounds a little disappointed.

“I don’t think they’re aware of anything outside of their competition,” Piper says. Jasper shrugs in agreement.

“I’ll see if I can catch up with them in the cemetery,” And then Jasper is off.

“You don’t want to join the fun?” Jacob teases. Piper gives him a look.

“I have a feeling we’ll join whether we want to or not.” Then she reaches up and kisses him.

Sure enough, they’re woken up by a call at a time no one should be awake. He can’t hear the other side, but it has Piper sighing.

“It’s the middle of the night. What do you want?” She growls. Whatever the other side says has her sighing.

“You owe me so much for this,” She starts to get up, grabbing her keys. Then she leans over and kisses him.

“Come on, let’s go join the fun.” Jacob blinks blearily, confused.

“What’s happening?” He asks.

“They got themselves trapped in a storage container and needed rescuing.” Piper says. Jacob still feels confused.

“Who?”

“Henry and his entourage,” And everything clicks into place. He looks at the clock, and realizes it’s been seven hours since they showed up for this treasure hunt.

“How is it still going?” He questions, as he gets up. Piper doesn’t answer.

It doesn’t take them long to get ready, but they’re not rushing either. The storage container is on the edge of town and when they get there, it’s welded shut. Piper sighs, and then pulls a portable saw out of the back of her car. Jacob can only stare, caught between thinking how hot and how scary she looks.

When the group is finally free, they start running with a quick thanks. Jacob and Piper return home and to bed.

Chapter Text

It’s a quiet morning. Jacob enjoys his breakfast, and coffee while Piper is checking updates on her phone, and making sure the promo posts for her new product went out okay. Suddenly she’s looking up and speaking to him.

“We should go out to Shimmers tonight. It will be a lot less busy than on the weekend, but it’s run by Frankini so I think you’ll like it.” Piper looks at him pleading.

“Frankini? I didn’t realize he was from Swellview.” He also thought there was some kind of scandal surrounding him, but he may be getting his influencers mixed up. Piper has him updated on the biggest names and drama, but Frankini was big when he was in Junior High.

“Yeah, the nightclub got renovated, and has great reviews,” She shows him pictures, and it looks way different from the few nightclubs he’s visited. “You can also say you’ve been to his nightclub, which is pretty cool,”

He smiles at her nodding. “Sure, why not. Will it just be us?” He kind of hopes not. He’s not a big nightclub person, and when Piper inevitably has a crowd surrounding her, he doesn’t want to be left by himself at the table.

“I’ll invite Henry, and his friends.” That way you have some company at the table,” She leans over and kisses him,

“You know me so well,” He says. She grins at him. It makes him think, “Did Henry text you who won the treasure hunt? Because I feel like we should get something honorary for helping in the middle of the night.”

Piper lets out a huff of laughter as she looks at her phone. “No, he didn’t text me. Haven’t heard from him since he called this morning.” She gets up with her plate, still talking, “He’ll show up sooner or later.”

“Should we check on them?” He glances at the time, “It’s been eight hours, since last time he called and that was from a storage container,” He feels like a treasure hunt should be over by now.

“He’s barely been gone.” She says, putting her plate in the sink.

“I would worry if you woke me up in the middle of the night and then I didn’t hear from you for eight hours,” He sits forward, his brow creased in concern.

She grins at him. “It’s why I love you,” He smiles at her words, but it doesn’t erase his concern. Seeing this she continues. “Look, if I haven’t heard anything by tomorrow I’ll text him, but we used to disappear for a few days all the time. He’s an adult, you don’t have to be worried.”

“I hope you know how concerning that is,” He always feels slightly concerned when Piper talks about what she did before college, “But, as long as you don’t think it’s connected to the supervillain from last night,”

“It’s not that,” Piper sounds amused at the thought, “More than likely they got sidetracked, or passed out when they finished, and will show up when they get bored or wake up.”

“Okay, good to hear.” He realizes that it was worrying him more than he thought. The idea of a supervillain trying to get revenge on Jasper because of last night.

“I’m going to get ready. I don’t have any meetings today, so I figured we could hang out around town. Maybe catch a movie this afternoon?” She says. He nods, and she heads up the stairs.

It’s almost lunch time when the group stumbles in. Henry and Ray’s shirts are torn to shreds, all of them have some kind of soot or ash covering them. Jasper is cradling his arm, and glaring at Henry and Ray.

“I am never doing that again,” He says, stalking up the stairs and away from the two.

“You asked to join us, not the other way around,” Ray calls. Jasper flips him off in response. Henry stumbles over putting a piece of bread in the toaster, then looking like he’s gonna fall asleep as he watches it.

“Did Missy abandon you guys?” Piper questions. It takes Henry a moment to respond.

“No, I dropped her off a few hours ago. They had school.” Henry says, yawning in the middle of his sentence.

“Then why are you getting back now?”

“Why do you think,” Henry groans.

“What did Ray do?” She asks looking over at Ray who is laying face down on the couch.

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Henry goes back to staring at the toaster. Piper gives Jacob an amused look.

“Did you at least finish the treasure hunt?”

“No,” Henry’s tone is flat and he glares at Piper. Ray lets out a loud groan from his place on the couch, and mutters something Jacob can’t hear.

Despite how they showed up, after a few cups of coffee were served Ray and Henry were ready to go for the day. Jasper slept for a few hours, while the rest of them went out for lunch. It was a nice afternoon, after how heavy yesterday had been. Through the afternoon, Jacob found out Ray used to be a headmaster of a school, which is where he met the other kids from the treasure hunt. Missy is someone Henry has taken under his wing, when he moved to Newtown.

“We’re going out to Shimmers, so you better be ready to go in an hour.” Piper conveniently did not mention shimmers until they got back to the house. Henry blows out a breath.

“That’s not a good idea.” He calls. Piper reappears at the top of the stairs.

“I know it’s owned by Frankini, but it’s still the best nightclub in Swellview.” It is listed in Top Ten Places to Visit in Swellview.

“If I go with you guys, there’s a chance it could cause issues.” Henry looks chagrined at the statement. Piper narrows her eyes at him, and even Jasper turns to stare at Henry.

“Are you banned from Shimmers?” Piper sounds incredulous.

“No,” Henry immediately answers, before pausing, “Well, I don’t know. He might have, but I am sure he won’t be happy if he sees me.”

Piper rolls her eyes. “How long ago was this?”

“Three years ago. But I don’t think-”

“You’re being dramatic.” Piper cuts Henry off. “He is rarely at Shimmers, and it will be fine.”

Henry does not look convinced, but Piper has already disappeared again to finish getting ready. Henry just breathes out a breath before joining him and Jasper on the couch.

“Everything’s going to be fine Hen, don’t worry,” Jasper says.

Their whole group is sitting in a side room at the club. Jacob thought it looked cool, based on the brief glance he caught before being ushered into the room and being told to wait. Charlotte looks annoyed, Jasper is doing something on his phone and Henry looks bored. Piper sits beside him, fuming. When the security guard had stopped Henry, she looked ready to start a fight which is why their whole group is in this room instead of just Henry.. Jacob is still confused as to why they are in this room instead of just banned from the club. Then Frankini walks through the door.

“Ugh, you,” Frankini says as he rolls his eyes.

“Hey,” Henry says, smiling and nodding his head.

“Come to break more of my furniture?” He complains.

“Umm, the chair I came tied to was not one of yours,” Henry clarifies. Jacob is watching the interaction in fascination.

“You still crashed my party. Why do you think I would let you into my club after that?”

“That’s a really good question,” Henry says, giving Piper a ‘I told you so’ look. “Because we’re paying customers?” It’s more of a question than a statement.

“And who is the rest of your group?” He asks, raising a judgmental eyebrow. “Babysitting again?”

“No, that was a one time thing.” Henry gives Frankini a smile, leaning back in his chair.

“I can see why,” Frankini scoffs.

“Hey, it was going fine until there was a bug, and when I returned he was gone. I only came after everyone was tied to chairs.” Jacob thinks Henry is explaining, but it sounds more like gibberish.

“That doesn’t explain who these people are,” Frankini gestures to their group.

“Piper Heart, and I have over one hundred thousand followers on Envygram, so I promise to promote your nightclub while we’re here,” Piper chimes in, pulling out her phone to show Frankini.

“I have a million,” Frankini dismisses.

“Sure, but good publicity is always important, and I can connect with the college crowd.”

Frankini starts to look convinced, hesitating.

“Look man, we’re just here to have a good time.” Henry adds, “And your club is the best place to do it in Swellview.” Frankini hesitates looking at their group.

“I suppose those Danger Force kids did help me get out of The Cell,” Frankini sighs. “Fine, but if anything happens, you are banned from all of my establishments for life,”

“Sure man,” Henry stands, straightening out his shirt. Then as his back is turned to Frankini, he gestures for all of them to leave.

The club isn’t overwhelmingly busy, and while the music is loud, they’re still able to have a conversation. Jasper is immediately recognized by a few guys and leaves their group to talk with a few people he knew from High School. They pass a large dance floor and stage on their way to find somewhere to sit dodging through a few people having conversations on the edge of the dance floor. It’s not until they have claimed a booth in the club that their group rounds on Henry. Charlotte is the first.

“What did you do?” Charlotte asks, giving Henry a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah, what happened three years ago?” Piper asks, also starring Henry down. Henry pokes his tongue on the inside of his cheek as he chooses his words.

“Danger Force wanted to go to the Supies, because they had been nominated for best sidekicks,”

“But the Bro Toads have won for the last several years,” Piper says, sounding confused.

“Yeah, well they wanted to go, so they asked me to babysit Captain Man.” Jacob looks around expecting that to be the part that everyone would be surprised at. Instead, he sees they’re all waiting for Henry to continue, “He got out, went to the Villies, we fought bad guys, Danger Force lost the award, and Captain Man has been banned from the Supies ever since.” Henry shrugs, like babysitting superheroes is an everyday occurrence.

“That still doesn’t explain why you were tied to a chair,” Charlotte says.

“And what are the Villies?” Piper adds on. Jacob would also like to know the answer to both of those questions.

“The Villies are the villain version of the Supies. When I went to tell Danger Force, I ran into Major Babe, she didn’t believe I was a superhero, and tied me to a chair.” Henry lists off. Charlotte does not look surprised, though Jacob sees Piper is amused and a little surprised.

“That still doesn’t explain how you ended up at the Villies,” Piper says.

“Miles,” Henry says. Jacob freezes trying not to be seen. It appears to work, because Piper just shrugs.

“Well, I’m going to get something to drink. Come on Charlotte,” Piper grabs Charlotte's arm and starts dragging her towards the bar. Just like Piper predicted, it leaves him and Henry at the table. Henry is scanning the dance floor, content in the silence, and Jacob sits there awkwardly hoping Henry doesn’t figure out that he just revealed the identity of AWOL. He would never tell anyone. He loves Piper way too much and it would be betraying her. And he doesn’t want to cause any issues by knowing. It hits him like a ton of bricks just how much she trusts him, to even tell him she knows their identities. How dangerous that could be if anyone found out.

He keeps his eyes on the dance floor, but Henry dropped the name so casually. Jacob wonders if Henry even realized how easy it was to put two and two together. He was talking about Danger Force, about Captain Man. And Danger Force has a member that can teleport. But something else is nagging at Jacob about the situation. He just can’t figure out what.

Piper stands across the room at the bar. He catches glimpses of her between the people, and decides he’s okay leaving this mystery unsolved for her.

“Missy seems sweet,” Jacob says, wanting to stay as far away from the superhero side of everything as he can.

“She’s a good kid. Incredibly smart and determined,” Henry gets a fond smile on his face as he talks about her. “She’s taking trig in eighth grade. And when she sets her mind on something, nothing will stop her,” Before Henry can continue, the girls return with drinks. Colored soda for him and Piper, for now, and some glowing blue drink for Henry and Charlotte.

Then Piper is dragging him over to dance, and Jacob would despise it, if it were anyone other than Piper. They dance, Jacob only knowing what to do, from the other times Piper took him out. He makes it through three dances before he heads back to the table. Piper drags Charlotte onto the dance floor, and Jasper appears from the crowd to help. Henry barely dodges getting dragged onto the dance floor, instead smirking at Charlotte’s misfortune.

Jacob drinks almost half of one of the drinks on the table that he’s not entirely sure is his. Henry is reclined in the booth, the girls’ purses next to him.

“Not much of a dancer?” Jacob asks once he’s not breathing so hard. Another sip of his drink, and this time he knows it’s not his, because he can taste the alcohol.

“I went to highschool with most of the people out there, so no,” Henry chuckles. Jacob looks at the dance floor, where Charlotte is hugging someone she knows, and Jasper is laughing with some guys.

“Piper and my roommates are the only reason I’ve even stepped foot in a nightclub,” Shimmers is a lot cleaner and nicer than any of the one’s he’s visited. Glancing at Henry, he looks amused.

“Yeah, she’s always enjoyed parties and clubs. She was sneaking into clubs at nine. Bought a library card from some girl, so she could fake being eleven.” Henry shakes his head with a resigned smile.

“You don’t sound worried,” Jacob is a little surprised at the age, but Piper has never shied from using her fake ID for getting into exclusive parties, or getting drinks for herself.

“We have an agreement. As long as she doesn’t break it, then worrying doesn’t do either of us any good.” A few things click into place for Jacob about Piper’s unspoken rules when they go out. Jacob nods.

“I’ve noticed she is pretty strict about some things. It makes me prefer going with her, than with other people.” She doesn’t go out often. With classes, her business, and graduation, there hasn’t been time. But when they do go out, she never drinks anything if she’s driving, and she always makes sure Ami or Tiffany are with them, and that one of them is sober.

“So, not much of a party guy? Isn’t that where you met Piper?” Henry questions, taking a sip of his drink and looking at him.

“Yeah, and she found me outside hiding.” Jacob says laughing. “It’s not all bad. Piper loves it, and I’ve started to see the appeal. I won’t go without her, but it’s fun when we’re together.” Jacob smiles towards the dance floor, catching Piper’s eye as she grins at him, before shimmying a little. “If we weren’t in Swellview would you be out there?”

Henry doesn’t answer immediately, instead taking another sip of his drink. “Probably. I spent quite a bit of time partying while living in Dystopia,”

“No good clubs in Newtown?” Jacob asks.

“No time,” Henry says, before changing the subject. “Now that you’ve seen Swellview, how does your hometown compare?”

“Far fewer superheroes,” Henry laughs. Jacob launches into telling him about his family, and how stressed his mom was when he left for college.

Piper comes over a few songs later dragging him onto the dance floor, and Charlotte gets Henry out of the booth. Jacob is meeting some of Piper’s old friends, when Piper says they’re doing a party at her house on Friday. The end of the night finds them all piling into Piper’s car, Piper at the wheel, their designated driver.

Jacob joins her in the front seat, while Henry, Charlotte and Jasper load into the back. They are all talking loud, their voices carrying, and Piper eventually turns on some music that they belt their lungs out to.

They all end up sleeping at the house, even Henry and Charlotte. The day starts off relaxed. Mr. And Mrs. Hart have already left by the time they get up. Henry and Piper make a coffee run, and Jacob falls partially back asleep while scrolling on his phone until their return. Piper is grinning like a cat that got the Canary when she walks through the door with the coffee. Henry looks at Piper with a smaller heartfelt smile.

“Let me talk with Ray and the kids, and we’ll head over later.” He says, grabbing his coffee and pulling out his phone.

“Do we have something planned for today?” Jacob grabs his latte turning to look at Piper. He swears her eyes twinkle.

“Yeah, but it's a surprise. I know you’ll love it,” She kisses him on the cheek.

“It's for me?” His eyebrows raise. She just grins in response.

“It's for all of us, but yes it is something special for you,” she turns, grabbing the bagels and toaster. Now his interest has peaked.

“Was this already planned?” If it was he can't believe he never picked up on it.

“No, this week turned out a little different than I was expecting. Wasn't sure if Henry would even agree, but he did and he's the only one with the ability to convince Ray.”

Now Jacob is really interested, because he can't imagine what they could be doing that would need the agreement of those two. “I can't wait,” he says. She just gives him another grin.

Henry is outside on the phone for a while. Jacob catches glimpses of him through the glass, before he moves back out of sight, phone still in hand. Charlotte and Jasper both make it downstairs claiming their coffee and getting settled with breakfast, though it is closer to lunch with the time, before Henry comes back in. He claps his hands drawing all of their attention.

“It took some convincing, but Ray agreed. So, we can head over there this afternoon. Missy has been begging to visit, so I’m going to pick her up after school, and we’ll meet you over there.”

“What is happening?” Charlotte asks, looking between Henry and Piper. Piper waves her hand. Henry is the one to come over and whisper in Charlotte’s ear. Her eyes widen comically, and she whirls around to be fully facing both Hart siblings. “Really? Just like that?” Henry shrugs, and Piper still has a grin on her face.

“Piper asked, and I really couldn’t think of a reason why not. I had to check with Ray first, but I got him to agree, and the kids said they didn’t care,” Henry crosses his arms as though daring Charlotte to disagree.

“What is happening?” Jasper asks, watching everyone with an eyebrow raised. Piper being closer is the one to whisper in his ear. Jasper agrees, and Charlotte, seeing his easy agreement, sighs before nodding her head.

Then she turns to Piper. “You like him that much?”

Piper nods, looking deadly serious, before all eyes land on him. He isn’t sure what to do with the sudden spotlight. Though, the way Piper looks at him, has him smiling at her, expectant for whatever this surprise is. He lifts his hands and jokes, “Are you about to tell me you're actually mafia?” Their chuckles are not reassuring. Jacob already knows about the superhero stuff, so he really does not know what this afternoon could bring.

Jasper clasps a hand on his shoulder. “No, just welcoming you to the group,”

Before Jacob can respond, Henry is speaking again. “I am going to head out so I have plenty of time. I’ll see you guys in a few hours.” Henry heads out the door.

“I’m going to get ready. We should head out in about an hour and a half.” Piper says, grabbing her coffee and heading to the stairs.

“In that case,” Charlotte says, finishing off her coffee, and throwing it in the trash, “I am going to head back to my house, and will meet you guys then,” She heads out the door leaving Jacob and Jasper sitting at the table.

“Do I need to dress up?” Jacob asks, looking down at his t-shirt and jeans.

“No,” Jasper snorts. “You’re fine,” He starts looking at something on his phone leaving Jacob to find something to do before they leave.

They all load into the car, Piper getting the music going. Over the past few days he's become far more familiar with Swellview, so he recognizes they're heading in the same direction as the statue. Though he can't imagine they're heading there again. They take a turn off that leads them to a different part of the mountain, and they climb.

It's a peaceful drive, and a beautiful view. He is fairly certain they're heading to the group's hangout spot from school. He feels honored that they would share it with him. Figuring out the surprise, he intentionally doesn't look ahead, not wanting to spoil anything.

He didn't have to worry. When they pull up to the parking lot, he sees the edges of a building but can't make out what it is. It does have a beautiful view over the horizon. He can't see Swellview from where they are, but it still amazes him just how far he can see.

“Come on, everyone is already there,” Piper says, holding his arm. It's a bit of a hike before he can make out the building, and while he realizes it is huge, it’s not until they approach the glass windows, and sees who is inside, that he realizes exactly where he is.

He stops in his tracks, staring at the Man's Nest.

Chapter Text

Jacob sees the grays and reds through the windows of the door. The only reason he recognizes it is from pictures he saw on the plane. Piper tugs on his hand guiding him forward. As they get closer, he sees the suits of Danger Force through the window, then he sees another super and his eyes wide and he gasps.

“Is that-?” He doesn't finish the sentence, scared that it'll turn out to be an illusion. She just smiles at him, Jasper and Charlotte already opening the door. Jacob practically stumbles forward, because next to Danger Force is Captain Man. “I thought he retired,” Jacob hisses to Piper, not wanting to be overheard.

“Sure, but he still has the suit.” Before they can talk anymore, they’re at the door, and Jacob is able to see Henry and Missy talking and sitting around a circular table next to the heroes.

“Sup losers,” Volt says, turning around from her place on the edge of the booth. Pretty much everyone starts to rise from the table.

Brainstorm smiles and approaches them. “You're the boyfriend.” He puts out his hand to shake, “I’m Miles.” Jacob shakes his hand feeling like he's being messed with.

“I’m Miles,” Awol shouts, raising his hands. Jacob nods his head already knowing that

Brainstorms eyes widen as he pushes the hair out of his face. “Right, who am I again?”

ShoutOut rolls her eyes and approaches with a bright smile. “Bose, why don’t you show Missy the sushi bar?”

He grins gesturing to Missy. “You’re going to love it. They have amazing sushi.” He starts to head to a door off to the side. She glances at Henry, but he just makes a shoo gesture.

“I’m Mika, that’s my brother Miles,” She points at Awol who nods at them, “And Chapa,” Volt’s hand alights with electricity.

“You tell anyone our identities, I’ll fry you.”

Jacob takes a step backwards. Piper tightens her grip on his hand.

“He’s not going to tell anyone,” She says. The two stare at each other for a long moment, before the tension breaks as someone appears in a tube.

“Hey, it’s me Schwoz from work,” The man says with an accent Jacob can not identify.

“What’s up Schwoz?” Captain Man says, from where he had been standing back watching all of this.

“I went ahead and did all of the maintenance checks. I will start the upgrades now.” He then pulls something out of his pockets. “Here is your gum refill.”

Danger Force grabs a metal container, and puts a piece of gum in their mouth.

“What are they doing?” He means for the question to be directed at Piper, but Danger Force answers.

“We’re going to blow a bubble,” Miles says.

“You’re going to blow a bubble?”

“We’re going to blow your mind,” Chapa smirks, before all three blow a bubble. A light covers their bodies, and reveals the three kids. Jacob knows he’s gaping, everything happening far too fast for his brain to process.

Suddenly Missy comes back through the door they left through. Bose trails behind her. “Did I miss it?” She pants staring around and seeing Danger Force in normal clothes.

“No, you didn’t miss anything,” Henry says, walking over and plucking a piece of sushi off of the plate Missy is holding. Missy swats his hand away. Then Henry shoots a pointed gaze at Captain Man. Jacob’s eyes follow, and he realizes everyone is now staring.

Captain Man’s face scrunches up. “Do I have to?” He whines. Jacob feels a little taken aback by the reaction. Looking around all he sees is everyone rolling their eyes. Captain Man continues, walking closer to Jacob. “They showed their powers. I think that’s enough. We’re good. Enjoy the Man’s Nest.” Captain Man says, putting a hand on Jacobs shoulder before attempting to walk to the platform where Schwoz appeared from. Charlotte and Jasper each grab an arm and drag him back towards Henry.

“No dude. You already agreed.” Henry says, and the conversation devolves into Henry and Ray talking over each other. Piper leans into his arm.

“How are you?” She asks her voice low.

“What exactly is this?” He turns where they’re holding each other. She looks away, her hair hiding her face.

“The other night got me thinking,” She says, and he has to think to figure out what she’s talking about.

“It’s over-” He starts, before she keeps talking.

“Yes, but I don’t want to keep secrets from you. And really Captain Man is retired and Kid Danger is technically dead, so, I asked if I could tell you their secret identities. I wasn’t expecting Danger Force, but they said they didn’t care. Then it turned into a whole thing because apparently Missy has been dying to see the Man’s Nest, since the Man Cave got destroyed.” Before she could keep going, or Jacob could register her words, Captain Man was pulling away, raising his voice.

“Fine, fine, fine, fine,” He grumbles, turning away from their group. Then he’s smirking at Henry, “Too bad we don’t have one of your old costumes,”

Henry stares unimpressed. “I’m good,” His tone is flat.

“What was wrong with your old costume? I thought it looked cool,” Missy says a small frown on her face.

“It was fine.” He says, then turns to Ray, “Stop distracting.”

“Fine,” He grabs his own piece of gum, “Fine,” He says again a little more forcefully. Jacob’s brain processes that he is about to find out Captain Man’s identity right before the man blows the bubble. It feels strange to be finding this out, when a week ago, he barely knew who Captain Man was. The light finishes to reveal Ray. Jacob is left dumbfounded. Then Piper’s words from the early register.

“Kid Danger isn’t dead?” He chokes out. “Technically, you said technically dead,”

“That’s what I said,” Missy exclaims. Jacobs' gaze is drawn to her. “We were all so devastated, and he had to go and lie,” She sounds so offended.

“We’ve been over this, I didn’t lie,” Henry pinches the bridge of his nose.

“And I had to find out by trying to bring him back to life,” She finishes ignoring Henry’s interruption. There are several noises of surprise from Danger Force.

“You’re Kid Danger?” It comes out as more of a question, but everyone is too caught up in their conversation to hear.

“Yeah, I started questioning several aspects of my life after I found out,” Piper says, shuddering, and leading him to the circular couch. “He tried to deny it, then tried to claim no one knew, only to have Charlotte, Jasper, and Schwoz walk in. I’m so glad the memory wiper got destroyed. Makes everything way less dramatic.” They sit down as all of the superheroes continue talking over each other.

“Yeah, I got Henry fired when I found out.” Charlotte says, joining them on the couch.

“You can fire a sidekick?” He guesses it is possible, but the idea feels strange.

Charlotte chuckles. “It was a job. It was also in the first few weeks. Before Ray and Henry really got to know each other. I helped them find a villain. It’s how I started working with the team. They take secret identities very seriously.” She gives him a look. He just feels confused.

“Then why are they willing to tell me now?” If they’re such a big deal, he doesn’t understand.

“Because Piper asked. She has never asked to share the secret with anyone before.” Charlotte shrugs.

“Henry did say you are never allowed to break up with me,” Piper scoffs, rolling her eyes. Jacob just gives her a peck.

“Never.” He looks around at the superheroes dressed in normal clothes. “So who is Missy?” There are only four people on Danger Force.

“Henry’s sidekick,” Charlotte says. “She’s only been doing this for a little over a month, so Henry’s been going back and forth between Newtown and Swellview, so she’s not tempted to patrol by herself.”

“Huh,” Jacob can’t find any more words. Though his gaze drifts over to Missy. She stands next to Henry talking with Mika and Bose, Henry next to her talking to Ray and Schwoz. She’s so small in comparison with the other heroes.

“Missy,” Piper calls. Missy looks over at them. “Jacob’s curious how you became a sidekick,” Missy smiles sheepishly as she comes over. “Well-” She launches into the story of how she accidentally kidnapped Henry, their escape her fanfictions, and finally Henry agreeing to leave Dystopia to fight crime with her. Everyone gathers around to hear the story, apparently only hearing bits and pieces. Henry interjects occasionally to clarify, but lets Missy tell the story.

The day feels like a dream. He gets a tour of the Man’s Nest, hears a few superhero stories, a few embarrassing stories. Seeing Captain Man getting teased is an out of body experience. He ends up on Captain Man’s good side, just by virtue of being unwilling to pick on the indestructible ex-superhero.

Dinner is surprisingly normal. Danger Force is called out on an emergency, and Charlotte had disappeared with Schwoz several hours ago and they had yet to reappear. Piper is leaning against him on her phone, occasionally stealing bacon bits that fall onto his plate. Missy is telling Ray all about being Henry's sidekick in between bites of pizza.

“I'm surprised they didn't show you the video,” Jasper jokes, pointing a slice of pizza at Jacob.

“What video?” Piper asks.

“The ‘don’t tell anyone the secret’ video. It has a talking watermelon,” Jasper's eyes narrow looking between Piper and Henry who hasn't looked up from his phone.

“I didn't see the video. There's a video?” She raises an eyebrow at her brother.

“A lot happened when you found out. Plus, you wouldn't have listened to a video anyways.” Henry says, looking up and raising an eyebrow. She shrugs in agreement.

“What happened when you found out?” Jacob looks down at Piper, who looks up at him with a smirk.

“I accidentally erased Ray’s memories. We fixed it obviously, but it caused a bit of drama.” She shrugs, but Jacob catches Henry’s look of exasperation.

“Did anyone find out on purpose?” Jacob asks, looking around the table.

“Ray told me about Captain Man when he hired me, other than that,” Henry trails off thinking.

“Mom and dad,” Piper says. Henry snaps his fingers.

“Right, I did tell them.” His tongue pokes the inside of his cheek, “I always forget about that,”

“They let you be a sidekick after finding out?” Jacob is surprised. Obviously, the answer is yes, but it’s still hard to believe any parents would willingly let their kid fight crime.

“They didn’t believe me at first, but once I could prove it, they didn’t have a problem with it.” Henry sits back as he speaks, throwing an arm over the back of the couch.

“Please, Kid Danger was an icon, they liked knowing their son was famous,” Piper says. Henry rolls his eyes.

“How did you survive the blimp crash? Were you actually on the blimp?” At Jacob’s questions, the atmosphere changes. Missy and Ray still aren’t paying attention, but he feels Piper tense. He remembers visiting the statue, and Henry reading all of those cards. All of those cards were written to him. He winces. “You don’t have to answer that,”

“The same radioactive cannon they gave Danger Force their powers, gave me powers.” Henry grins. Jacob feels his eyes widen.

“Wow,” he says. Henry’s grin grows, and Piper groans, hitting Jacob’s stomach.

“Do not inflate his ego. It is already big enough.”

“You’re just jealous,” Henry taunts. Piper doesn’t respond.

“What is your power?” Jacob asks.

“A forcefield,” Then he pauses for dramatic effect. “And I can fly,” He sounds so smug about it, that Jacob understands what Piper meant.

Still, “Flying is cool,”

Piper and Jasper groan. “Right,” Henry says, gesturing a hand at him.

“It’s cool, until he can talk about nothing else for a month straight,” Piper says, throwing her head back onto Jacob’s shoulder.

“I can admit it’s pretty cool, not as cool as being indestructible,” Ray joins in the conversation, and Henry looks at him.

“I distinctly remember it was my ability that got us out from under the mountain the other day. The cave in you caused,” Henry crosses his arms expectantly.

“You-we said we weren’t going to talk about that,” Ray sputters.

“What cave-in?” Piper asks, looking between Ray and Henry.

“They caused a cave-in on the treasure hunt in the diamond mine,” Missy says.

Henry looks at her in betrayal. “How do you know about that?”

“Schwoz told me. He had a camera in the tv Ray shot. Said you argued for three hours before finally coming up with a plan to get out,” She smiles sweetly.

“I need to keep you away from Schwoz, he’s a bad influence on you,” Henry’s eyes narrow.

“You were the one to introduce us.” Missy grins from ear to ear. Jacob watches as Henry’s gaze softens. Then he glances at his phone. “In that case, come on. Let’s go pull him and Charlotte from the depths of their genius and get them to eat something.” Henry climbs out of the couch. Missy follows. They fall into silence, as Jacob finishes his pizza. Ray suddenly jumps up from the table.

“This is boooring,” He drags out the word boring. “Normally, people have a ton of questions. Don’t you have a ton of questions?” Ray looks at Jacob.

“You don’t have to answer that,” Piper says.

“I actually have a lot of-” Before he can finish the tube is coming up, and he has lost all of Ray’s attention. He glances over surprised to see Danger Force. They were laughing, before they saw the pizza. Jacob didn’t have a chance to react. They were there, then all of the pizza was gone. Jacob stared in awe.

“You were supposed to leave some for Charlotte,” Jasper complains.

“You snooze, you lose,” Chapa says around a bite. Jasper looks like he’s going to say something, but Piper leans over and just shakes her head. Jasper closes his mouth.

“So, what did everyone do, if Kid Danger was the only sidekick. Did you and Henry switch off?” He asks Jasper.

Piper starts laughing so hard she curls in on herself. Jasper is biting down a smile. Jacob smiles despite missing the joke. He looks at Piper, and she tries to pull herself together to explain, but then starts laughing again. There are tears in her eyes. Jacob shoots Jasper a pleading look.

“While I wanted to be a superhero. I was never Kid Danger,” He pauses, and looks off to the distance, “Well, I pretended to be Kid Danger to impress a girl, but then I got kidnapped. It was before I knew Henry was Kid Danger.” Piper is still giggling, it sounds like she’s trying to say something, but can’t get it out. “Henry is and will always be the only Kid Danger.”

“Yeah, Ray was a mess when he moved to Dystopia. We had to create a Henry Jar, so he would stop talking about Henry so much,” Miles says coming up to them.

“A Henry Jar?” Piper asks. Still, giggling, but able to talk now.

“Like a swear jar, but for every time he talked about Henry. We made bank.” Miles moves to sit on the back of the couch. “So why are we talking about Henry?” He leans forwards putting his fingers together in front of his mouth. Piper starts giggling again.

“I was asking what everyone did, if they weren’t all fighting crime.” Jacob says.

“He thought Jasper and Henry were both Kid Danger,” Piper barely gets out.

“Actually, I took care of the counter and watched the store. Charlotte helped research and find criminals. Piper found things to do, though she was never officially hired.” Jasper gets the conversation back on track.

“Actually I was, only to move to FSU a few weeks later.” She sits up, wiping the tears from her eyes. “I got two paychecks, and a laser,” She smirks. Jasper leans over.

“You stole a laser,” He hisses. She winks.

“It’s so not fair that you got paid.” Miles complains.

“Don’t you have the whole Swellview superhero budget now?” Piper asks.

“Mika is in charge of all of it, and uses it responsibly,” Miles rolls his eyes.

“So, what do superheroes do when they’re not out fighting crime?” Jacob asks.

Miles grins. “So many things,” He starts talking about how their first time out as superheroes, protecting Swellview after Ray retired, their parents finding out. Jacob smiles and realizes the life of a superhero is never boring. Jasper and Piper occasionally jump in with a story from when they were in the Man Cave.

Chapter Text

It’s starting to get dark when they head out. Jacob isn't sure how they're all going to fit in the car on the way back. Ray heads down the tubes, but Piper's car is on top of the mountain. Jasper and Charlotte head there, but Piper holds his arm as Henry and Missy walk ahead of them.

He's confused, but watches as they step onto a rock.

“I’m going to drop Missy off. I should be back tomorrow. You leave Sunday right?” Henry asks.

“Yeah, tomorrow, I’m hosting a graduation party. Jana Tetrazzini is in town, and I need to rub my success in her face.

“Okay, you do that.” He salutes them, grabbing Missy’s hand, before jumping off the rock, and launching into the sky, a trail of green following after them.

“Oh,” Is all Jacob can get out.

“Yeah, he is a bit of a show off,” Piper says, as they start walking back to the car. Before they reach the car, Jacob pauses. Piper turns to face him.

“Thank you. I know that it’s a big deal when they reveal their secret.” He leans down to kiss her.

She pulls away. “I love you too,” Then she’s kissing him. He could not imagine having a better girlfriend.

The car horn interrupts them. They pull apart, and Jacob glances at the car.

“I’m hungry, let’s go,” Charlotte calls, sticking her head out of the window, before honking the horn again.

“Yeah, you can kiss later,” Jasper says, leaning over Charlotte.

“Get off of me,” Charlotte says, pushing Jasper back into the car.

They head back to the car, not wanting to deal with a hangry Charlotte. As they start down the mountain the energy is high. Charlotte and Jasper are talking about Dystopia and Charlotte visiting Henry in Newtown. Piper reaches over grabbing his hand.

“What are you thinking?” Her voice is low, not drawing the attention of Charlotte and Jasper.

“How much I love you. And how amazing you are to share this with me,” He smiles at her, and she rolls her eyes but is smiling too.

“You can't tell anyone,” she bites her lip.

“I know. And I would never betray your trust like that.” He brings her hand up to his lips kissing it. “It will be strange when we head back to Florida in a few days, and everything will be so normal.” He doesn’t know how she’s done it all these years. Her life feels entrenched in superheroes, and she never talks about it.

“It loses its charm rather quickly,” It’s said under her breath, and he’s not sure he was supposed to hear it. Charlotte and Jasper are still talking in the back about her visiting Dystopia soon. “It will be easier than you think. You’ll get back into the routine of everything, and barely think of all the superhero stuff.” Piper says, this time directing it at him. There’s obviously more to that statement, but he doesn’t push.

“Yeah,” They lapse into silence. Jacob lets the conversation in the back seat wash over him. They’re almost into Swellview proper when Jasper lets out a curse.

“A lab was just broken into. Some experimental weapons were stolen.” He explains. Jacob looks back, to see Jasper typing frantically on his phone. “I should have known it’s been too quiet.” Jasper set’s his phone down, leaning back in the seat.

“Does that mean?” Charlotte asks.

“Yeah, I’ll have to cut my vacation short. It was nice while it lasted.” Jasper lets out a disappointed sigh.

“Do you need me to drive you straight to the airport?” Piper says, and the car speeds up just a little.

“I need to grab my stuff from your house first. I’ll text Henry to meet us there,”

“It’s too bad you have to go. It’s been nice getting to know you,” Jacob says, glancing back to Jasper.

“Yeah first vacation in five years, and I have to cut it short,” Jasper doesn’t sound terribly surprised or disappointed by this development.

“I’m impressed you made it a full week. Ten days was stretching it,” Piper adds.

“You did better than Henry. I’m surprised he made it to both graduations. I definitely thought he was going to bolt after Piper’s name was called.” Charlotte jokes.

“He does have a new sidekick, who tries to sneak out on patrols when he turns his back.” Jasper defends.

“Please, that’s just an excuse.” Jacob hears Piper’s bitterness in that statement.

“He’s too much like Ray. I remember when Ray left Henry in charge of Swellview for the first time, only to cancel his vacation. Henry was so annoyed.” Charlotte helps ease the tension of Piper’s statement.

“Really?” Piper sounds disbelieving.

“Yeah, Ray always wanted to be close by in those first two years.”

Jacob looks at Piper and makes out her furrowed eyebrows. She doesn’t say anything, so Jacob asks, “But it didn’t stay that way?”

“No, once he gained his superpowers, Ray started letting him take the lead more,” Charlotte explains.

“His force field?” Jacob thought he didn’t get his superpowers, until his last night as Kid Danger.

“No his hyper-motility,” Jasper says.

“I thought that was a disease,” He definitely remembers hearing about that somewhere. It causes everyone to chuckle. Jacob looks to Piper for an explanation.

“I thought so too, but it’s a superpower. He had really fast reflexes,” She explains, smiling at him.

“So superheroes are bad at taking days off?” Jacob asks, redirecting the conversation.

“So bad,” Charlotte and Piper say at the same time.

“Charlotte, are you okay with Burger Castle? We’ll pass it on the way to the house,” Piper asks.

“That works. I’ll eat anything at this point.”

The conversation continues on superheroes' bad habits. Charlotte and Jasper share how close Piper came to finding out a few times. Piper joking about how weird she thought Henry was, with all of his excuses. Jacob mostly stays quiet enjoying the superhero gossip. Charlotte gets her food, and Henry is at the house, by the time they return.

They all head to the airport, the atmosphere subdued. When they arrive, they all get out to say goodbye. Jasper grabs his suitcase from the back.

“You got this?” Henry asks, closing the trunk.

“Yeah, I got this.” Jasper smiles.

“I’m only a phone call away,” Henry says.

“I know, though I heard Captain Man is getting a little bored,” Jasper chuckles.

“Don’t encourage him,” Henry rolls his eyes. They hug, then Jasper hugs Charlotte.

“Congratulations, and don’t be afraid to visit. I’ve heard the local superhero is willing to do an interview for your paper,” They laugh, and then Piper is hugging him.

“Take more vacations.” She snaps, but Jacob can hear the emotion in her voice.

“Will do,” Jasper says, and gives a lazy salute as he heads into the airport. They all load into the car, security already whistling at them to get a move on.

Chapter Text

The house feels oddly empty without Jasper. Jacob had gotten used to finding him on the couch or in the kitchen when coming down. It helps that they spend most of the morning preparing for Piper’s second graduation party. It still feels strange without him.

Despite Piper’s claims that it’s just a few old friends, the house transforms. He doesn’t even know how it happened. She sent him to the store for a few things, and when he returned the house was party ready, minus the cake and balloons he picked up.

Henry arrives with several boxes of pizza and an excuse on why he can’t attend. Piper however, refuses to hear it, and soon he and Henry are in the kitchen setting out all of the food. Piper occasionally gets onto Henry for where he’s placing the food, but otherwise, continues coordinating the final details of everything. Jacob is impressed how quickly she pulled all of this together.

Henry escapes upstairs shortly after the party starts with Charlotte. The superhero is unwilling to brave his little sister's friends. Jacob is not surprised. They had stuck together in the kitchen, and every time someone approached Henry, it was to question what he’s doing with his life then talk about how amazing their lives are. Jacob wishes he would have accepted the chance to escape, because now all of those people redirect their attention to him. A few people ask if he’s okay, and at his confusion just laugh. He feels unsettled.

Eventually, he makes it upstairs looking for somewhere to hide. He checks the room Jasper had stayed in to see the window open and figures Henry and Charlotte made their escape. He heads to Piper’s bedroom to hide instead.

He’s surprised at how quickly Piper finds him. She comes bearing a piece of cake and a colorful soda. He smiles accepting both. She sits next to him as he eats the cake.

“If you want to head out, you can. I know Henry snuck out the window as soon as I turned my back. I can have them come pick you up,” Jacob is tempted, but ultimately shakes his head.

“It’s not that,” He frowns, taking a bite of cake, giving himself time to think.

“Then what is it?” Piper sounds genuinely curious. Jacob sighs, deciding honesty is the best policy.

“They’re just so mean. About you and Henry. It feels more like a chance to one up each other rather than a celebration,” Jacob knows these are Piper’s friends and feels bad for saying it, but he also doesn’t want to be around people like that.

“You're right.” Jacob glances over to see Piper looking at him, “I mean that’s really why I threw this party. To show off my business, my success, my wonderful boyfriend,” She smiles leaning over to kiss him on the jaw, then keeps talking before he can respond. “It was my childhood to be better than my friends. Makes me a good business woman, but not such a great person,” Piper leans back on her hands looking deep in thought.

“That’s not what I meant,” He corrects, looking at her with worry. “I love you, and I was not implying-”

“I know. I’ve changed,” She cuts him off. “But I was that person, and I’m trying not to be anymore. It only gets me in trouble.” He looks at her in confusion, she smiles nudging his knee with hers, “I’ve always been amazing, doesn’t mean I’ve always made the best decisions.” He sets the empty plate, and soda on the floor before leaning back so they’re both laying on the bed facing each other.

“I can understand why you would want to show off your amazing life, and your incredibly hot boyfriend,” He leans forward kissing her. It lasts for a few seconds before she pulls away giggling.

“My life is pretty amazing.” She gives him another peck, “I just wanted to show Swellview that. When I left, I was determined never to look back. After everything, I think we all were. Sure, I visited for holidays, but I was in college and all my friends were in high school. Their weekends and responsibilities were so different. I couldn’t relate to their worries anymore. It took all the joy out of hanging out.” She shrugs like it doesn’t bother her, but he takes her hand knowingly.

“You were building a life outside of Swellview, when all they knew was Swellview,” He says. She nods in agreement, but he knows there is something else. He thinks through the last week and realizes, “You experienced something that changed your life, and could talk about it with no one.”

“What?” She asks. He bites the inside of his cheek, not wanting to psychoanalyze his girlfriend.

“Kid Danger dying. Being part of a superhero team. I’m sure that changed your priorities.” He settles on. She stares at him so intently, before she buries her head in his chest. He holds her as she lays there completely still.

“After I found out, Captain Man was busy with something, so I tried to be a superhero,” Her forehead still rests on his chest, and he has to lean in to hear her. “I thought it would be easy. The whole thing felt like a game. Everyone was always joking. Henry and Ray were always so nonchalant about answering calls. So, I put together a costume and followed Kid Danger around for a few hours trying to be a superhero. I was terrible at it. Decided after that night, the streets weren’t for me,” She lets out a wet chuckle.

“Seeing crime up close can be scary,” He says, not wanting to think of what superheroes have to see on a daily basis. Piper shakes her head, before looking at him.

“No, I stopped, because he threatened to ban me from the Man Cave if I kept trying.” She sounds exasperated, gaining a small smile before frowning again, “That was the first night that I realized Henry and Ray made it look easy, because they were so good at their job. So, a few months later when Kid Danger drove the blimp into Mount Swellview, those hours where we thought he was dead,” She pauses as her voice chokes up, before taking a breath. He holds her a little tighter, “that was when the danger became real. Because they were so good at their job, I never realized what could happen. Not until I had to face my brother’s death, and suddenly everything I thought was important changed.” She looks at him then, and he sees the tears in her eyes.

He pulls her into a hug, kissing her forehead. There’s nothing he can say to that, nothing that would be sufficient. So he just holds her. He can’t even say that Henry is safe, because Jacob has no idea if that is true. He only joined this world yesterday.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to blubber like this,” She says, wiping her eyes. He shakes his head.

“Never apologize for crying.” He says.

“I normally don’t freak out about this. I think this week is getting to me. I’m ready to go home,” She brushes off as she starts to get up. He holds her a little tighter whining.

“Don’t get up yet. A few more minutes.” She rolls her eyes but lays back down as he holds her. He doesn’t mention the sniffle as they cuddle for a few more minutes.

Piper sighs. “I need to fix my makeup and go back downstairs. I am the host after all.” He reluctantly lets her go, before standing up as well.

“Let’s do this then,” He says, stretching and grabbing his plate and soda.

“I won’t make you come with me. I’m fine if you hide up here,” She says, looking in her vanity mirror. Her makeup only needs a few touch ups.

“And miss a chance to brag about how amazing my girlfriend is,” He smirks at her through the mirror. She smiles back.

“Well I can’t deprive you of your chance to do that,” She applies some more lip gloss, before she turns and grabs his hand as they rejoin everyone. Nobody noticed their disappearance, and the party's still going strong when they return downstairs.

Spending the evening getting to talk about how amazing Piper is ends up being a lot of fun. Piper doesn't really leave his side for the rest of the evening, and she fends off the backhanded compliments with the skill of a PR agent. He gets to stand there and smile, throwing in comments of Piper’s business, or how great her graduation was. While he never wants to do this again, he could definitely see the appeal of spending a night bragging. It’s almost morning by the time the party finally ends cups and plates and trash littering the floor. Jacob starts to clean up, but Piper tells him not to worry about it, as they head to bed.

When Jacob wakes up, Piper is already downstairs. There are people moving around the house picking up trash and wiping down tables. The party is mostly cleaned, and Piper is in the dining room with her laptop on and headphones in. Not wanting to get in anyone’s way he joins her at the table stealing a sip of her coffee. She looks up and smiles, but stays focused on her meeting.

Their plane leaves tomorrow afternoon, and despite it only being a week, it feels strange to be leaving. He would mention extending their stay a little longer, but Piper already said she was ready to go back, and his summer classes start in a few days. He looks around the house knowing he’ll visit again. It’s far too soon in their relationship to propose, but he knows she is the one.

He sets an alarm to remind him to check into their flights and almost finishes off Pipers coffee while waiting. After Piper gets off her call, she looks at her almost empty coffee cup glaring at Jacob. “Why?” She huffs looking down at her cup in disappointment, “You don’t even like coffee, why would you drink mine?” She downs the last sip. Dramatically leaning into him.

“I needed something,” The people cleaning were still in the kitchen, and he’s not sure there was anything other than soda and cake.

“Come on then, let’s get you something to eat. And I need another coffee,” She pays the cleaners before they head out to grab breakfast. Piper orders extra food and coffee, and sure enough when they return, Henry and Charlotte are at the dining room deep in conversation.

“I’m just saying. You should do it in Newtown. It’s a lot easier to see and prove how superheroes affect crime, because we’ve only been doing it for a few months, so you can see how crime changes over the course of the next few years in real time.” Henry continues as he walks over to grab the food from them.

“Yes, but I know you. I also know that I would inevitably become involved in helping you fight crime. My research would be biased. It’s the same reason I’m not doing it in Swellview or Dystopia.” Charlotte sounds like she has said this a few times now.

“But Metroburg? You know the Hero League are stuck up and overbearing. Why would you want to do your paper over them?” Henry complains, as he pulls a bagel out of the bag and takes a bite.

“They have the world’s most elite superhero force, and have been training superheroes for generations. They are also the largest hero organization that have ever existed. If I ignored them, my professors would think I was crazy and ill informed.” Charlotte explains spreading butter and jam on her own bagel. Jacob sets the coffee on the table grabbing his tea out of the carrier.

“That’s stupid,” Henry complains.

“Hmm?” Charlotte responds.

“That’s stupid,” Henry repeats, “You should be able to choose how to research your project.”

“I can. But unless I want to share my experience working for superheroes, I need to start with the Hero League.” Charlotte takes a drink of coffee, staring at Henry as though daring him to argue. He just frowns.

“You're going to Metroburg? For how long?” Piper asks, sitting down next to Charlotte.

“I don’t know yet. I reached out to the Hero League hoping to get some analytics on how they assign heroes to cities, and crime rates in those cities. Based on their response, I will either stay there for a few months combing through the data, or I will just visit, to interview different people for first hand accounts of superheroes and their effects on the city.” Charlotte explains.

“Why don’t you do Danger Force? It’s your hometown, and I think they are part of the Hero League. Plus, you never worked directly with them,” Piper gestures all around them. Henry looks hopeful at the suggestion, poking Charlotte’s arm.

“They’re part of the Hero’s Guild. But the Hero League is on another level of operations, they have been doing this for decades, and many of their superheroes are legacies. They are the only superhero organization to have real sway on the world stage.”

Jacob watches as Henry rolls his eyes, “They’re a bunch of control freaks,” The whole table turns to look at him.

“And why would you say that?” Charlotte raises an eyebrow in question. Henry starts fidgeting, taking another bite of his bagel. He speaks, but it’s unintelligible. When he goes to stand while shrugging, Charlotte grabs his arm preventing him from leaving the table. Henry looks up, breathing out in exasperation.

“Fine,” he frowns. “They approached us in Dystopia.”

“Wait what?” Charlotte and Piper exclaim. Both lean forward.

“Yeah. It was the first time the papers called us superheroes. Right before the Bizwatch sponsorship. They asked if we would like to work with the Hero League.”

“I’m guessing you declined?” Charlotte says.

“Actually, Jasper convinced me to hear them out. So, I did.” Henry shrugs, “We asked what it would take, and they had this whole list of things we would have to do.”

“Right,” Charlotte draws out the word.

“It wasn’t just that, they wanted us to take a bunch of tests, and then wanted to take us out of Dystopia to watch some little town with almost no crime. Then, they wanted us to choose a superhero to shadow for two years, and after that they would maybe assign us to protect Dystopia.”

“But you were already protecting Dystopia,” Piper says. Henry gestures at her in agreement.

“They wanted to make you guys sidekicks,” Charlotte’s tone drops, realizing the central issue.

“Basically yes. They didn’t call it that, because we would’ve had our own city, but it was so we could see real crime,” The quotation marks around “real crime” are almost visible with the way Henry says it.

“Why would they want to take you out of Dystopia?” Jacob asks, trying to follow the superhero politics of it all.

“Dystopia’s government has been anti superhero since superheroes have existed. Any previous attempts for superheroes to exist, have had every criminal and cop sent after them.”

“We learned that the hard way.” Henry looks at Charlotte smiling.

“Then how did you become a hero in Dystopia if superheroes weren’t allowed?” Jacob asks.

“We didn’t wear masks. So instead of superheroes, it was just another street fight. Didn’t stop us from pissing off every person with power in the city, but didn’t get us immediately kicked out either.”

Jacob nods, as though he understands. He’s not sure he fully gets it, but he trusts they know way more than him. “Sounds dangerous.” Is all he says. Henry just shrugs.

“So what are you spending your final day doing?” Charlotte asks changing the subject.

“I have a reservation at Sotto Voce for this evening. Didn’t have anything planned for this afternoon though.” Piper says. Jacob looks down completely forgetting that they had a date night planned. He was understandably a little distracted.

“Do you want to head to Swellview Lake for a few hours? The water will be a little chilly, but the beach is beautiful this time of year,” Charlotte recommends. Henry sits up at the idea grinning.

“We can make s’mores.” Henry says, before turning to Piper, “Do mom and dad still have their badminton set?”

“I’m sure they do. I would check the attic. I think mom hid it up there,” Henry nods, but doesn’t move, grabbing another bagel.

“We used to camp by Lake Swellview when we were kids. If you drive a few hours there is a nice camping spot. We can head to the local beach access though. It's a lot closer, but maybe we can all go camping one day like old times,” Charlotte gets a soft smile on her face as she reminisces.

“Maybe you will, but I prefer running water and air-conditioning,” Piper scoffs.

“I’ve never been camping before. I already have to deal with bugs and uncomfortable heat in Florida. Willingly putting myself though that,” Jacob makes a face. Henry and Charlotte just laugh.

The rest of the morning is calm. They finish breakfast, Henry sharing stories of Missy’s first patrols, before gathering everything before heading to the beach. They make it in the early afternoon. The water is still too cold for swimming, but it doesn’t stop them from having a blast. They play beach volleyball, make s'mores and hotdogs for a late lunch, and enjoy the sun.

They’re relaxing around the campfire when Henry grins looking at Jacob.

“Want to do something cool?” He asks. Jacob looks around not sure what he’s agreeing to. Piper and Charlotte are no help, only looking at each other and chuckling.

“Sure?” He is not at all sure, but Henry is grabbing his arm, and leading him away from their set up. There’s no one else other than a few boats off in the distance. Jacob’s mind is racing wondering if Henry is actually going to wipe his mind. But, Charlotte said it was destroyed. Is Henry going to kill him? Piper wouldn’t like that.

“I’m not going to tell anyone,” Jacob blurts. Henry looks over at him amused. Henry lets the silence stretch, as he had stopped walking, forcing Jacob to stop. Jacob is trying to figure out what to say, when Henry laughs clapping him on the shoulder.

“Dude, I know,” Jacob lets out a relieved sigh as Henry keeps talking, “I figured since it’s your last full day you would want to go for a flight?” Henry starts walking down the beach. They’re not too far from the girls.

“Yeah,” Jacob nods his head in excitement, not thinking about what he is agreeing too. Henry leads him a little further to a picnic table.

If Jacob had thought about what he was agreeing to, he would not have agreed. He has never liked theme parks, and barely likes planes. So, they only spend a few seconds in the air, before the realization that only a green shield is preventing him from plummeting to his death. His stomach swoops, and while the view is amazing, he desperately wishes his feet were on solid ground. Henry laughs at something, and Jacob suspects he screamed and did not realize it.

As they circle around Swellview, and Jacob realizes he isn’t going to die, he doesn’t hate it as much. He is able to appreciate the view, and the realization of how cool it is to fly. That doesn’t change how grateful he feels when they land. He stumbles, but Henry’s arm keeps him from falling. Jacob is breathing like he ran a marathon.

“Fun right?” Henry asks. Jacob closes his eyes, trying to tell his body he’s on solid ground again.

“Better than a roller coaster,” He says through clenched teeth. But starting to feel a little more steady.

“That’s not saying much,” Jacob looks up to see Piper approaching them. “He despises roller coasters.” She grabs his arm, patting it.

“Really?” Henry sounds offended.

“Sorry,” Jacob feels bad. He doesn’t regret doing it, but he never wants to do it again.

“Not everyone thinks flying is the coolest thing in the world,” Piper says. As Jacob feels more steady.

“Except that it is,” Henry retorts. Piper rolls her eyes, and Henry comes over grabbing her. She twists, but he just holds on. “I’ll show you how cool it is,” And they take off into the air. Jacob watches them go, thinking he hears a brief shriek from Piper.

“Do you feel okay?” Charlotte asks, handing him a water bottle. He takes it, grateful.

“Yeah,” He takes a long sip, his eyes following the green streak across the sky.

“Henry has been trying to get Piper to admit she loves flying.” Charlotte says, answering his unasked question.

“Does she?”

“Oh yeah, she just won’t tell Henry. He’s been insufferable since figuring it out,” Charlotte rolls her eyes.

“Flying is cool,” Jacob starts making their way back to the campfire.

“Not you too,” Charlotte complains.

“Don’t get me wrong, I never want to do it again, but it is cool,” Jacob can feel the adrenaline.

“His ego is going to be so big,” Charlotte sighs, sitting down on her chair.

It’s not long before Piper and Henry join them, Henry needling Piper into admitting that flying is cool, and Piper staunchly refusing. It takes Charlotte cutting in to finally end the discussion.

Charlotte and Henry decide to stay, while he and Piper head back to get ready. While Piper gets ready, Jacob sneaks out to the local bodega. He had planned to just get a flower, but the florist helped him pick out a beautiful bouquet saying the flowers in it represented beauty, strength and love. When Piper emerges, Jacob is waiting and at the bottom of the stairs, bouquet in hand.

She smiles softly, as she takes the flowers and smells them. “You’ve been talking to my brother,” She says, reaching up to place a kiss on his cheek.

“What do you mean?” He follows her into the kitchen as she pulls out a vase. She looks over her shoulder at him curiously.

“Henry loves flowers and their meanings,” She pauses looking at him.

“He does?” Henry did not strike him as someone who would be into flowers. Piper snorts.

“Yeah. When he got back from flower camp, he was spouting random facts and making flower crowns for weeks. That is until my parents finally put a stop to it,” She puts the flowers in the vase, before placing them on the table, standing back to admire them.

“No, the florist at the bodega helped me,” He says, admiring Piper. She’s in a beautiful short pink dress, with her hair done in an intricate up do. He can make out three different kinds of braids, two curly pieces framing her face, and no sign of what could possibly be holding it all in place.

“I love them,” She says leaning into him. They stand there for a moment, before she pulls away still holding onto his hand. “Come on, we don’t want to lose our reservation,” She leads him out to the car. Her hand stays in his through the drive.

Sotto Voce is nice, and an obviously popular date spot for Swellview. They’re not the only couple, and the couples' ages range from teenagers to senior citizens. The conversation is light, talking about everything and nothing. Her business, his art, their classes and the professors. Once they're finished, he goes to order dessert, but she stops him, saying she knows a spot, so he pays and they head out. He expects her to lead him to the car, instead they walk on the sidewalk. The street lamps give an ethereal feel to the night. The moon shines bright and there’s a slight chill to the night, signaling it’s not quite summer yet. Piper ends up with his jacket leaning into his side, laughing at something he said. It’s quiet and late enough that there aren’t many cars.

When she leads him into a frozen yogurt shop, the place is empty. As they order there is an unhurried air to the making. They decide to take their froyo to go, continuing in an aimless walk down Mainstreet. It’s late enough that most stores are closed, and the ones that are open have started cleaning up. Time comes to a standstill as they walk. Like it will go on forever and he will never be tired.

They lapse into a comfortable silence, and when Piper’s feet start to hurt, they head back to the car. Even then, it’s a long time before they pull out of the parking lot, speaking in low tones. When they do head back, it’s in a gentle quiet that feels too precious to break with menial words. It is the perfect bookend to a wonderful week.

Chapter Text

Piper stretches, grabbing her phone, and trying not to disturb Jacob, still sleeping next to her. She scrolls through messages from Ami confirming how a few meetings went and the possibility of getting some of their beauty products into stores. She responds to a few comments on their different business accounts, and asks Henry if he can pick up coffee for them.

As she gets ready her gaze drifts to Jacob. She had been so worried about this week, sure that once he met everyone he would be scared off. Instead, he impressed her brother and his friends, her parents liked him, and now he knows about everything. It’s been so long since she’s had to deal with any superhero stuff so directly, and she’s never had to actively keep it from someone other than her parents, and even that was different. She didn’t even realize she was keeping it from Jacob until the night he was attacked.

That night she thought he was going to leave her. Sure, she’s seen him stressed during finals, but she was always the explosive one. She was always the one to get riled up, and it shook her seeing him like that. Shook her in a way that made her realize just how integral he had become to her life.

Then Henry agreed that he could know. She had come fully prepared to argue her case, and he folded far easier than she thought he would. She knew he liked Jacob when he offered to convince Ray. He had always been so reluctant to help her with relationships in the past, so his willingness meant a lot to her.

Henry was downstairs on the couch when she came down. She let out a frustrated huff, seeing his phone on the counter.

“I don’t know how you ignore your phone so easily.” She says, letting her annoyance show. Henry just looks at her.

“Good morning, how was your evening? Man, it really sucks this is our last day before I have to leave,” Henry says. She rolls her eyes, grabbing his phone and chunking it at him.

“Go get coffee, then maybe I can stand your presence,” She says, moving over to grab her purse from the dining room table.

“Grouchy,” he mutters. For both their health, she pretends she didn’t hear it. “Do you want your regular,” he asks. She nods, grabbing her card out of her wallet.

“Here, and don’t forget the extra shot. I know you think I don’t notice, but I do,” She bites. He raises his eyebrows at her looking at the card.

“I can pay,” He sounds petulant. It’s her turn to raise her eyebrows.

“I know you're broke. Take the card and go get me my coffee,” She pushes the card into his hand, and brushes past him into the kitchen.

“I am not broke,” He whines, but is grabbing his wallet, and keys.

“You will be if you keep talking instead of getting coffee.”

“Whatever. Charlotte and I will be back soon,” He heads to the door. She lets herself smile, as she puts a bagel in the toaster.

“Love you,” She calls out.

“Yeah, yeah, love you too or whatever,” He closes the door behind him. She makes a pot of coffee, knowing it will be a while before Henry gets back, and she wants to get through a few emails while the house is quiet.

She’s already responded to all of her emails, and started packing by the time Henry gets back. Jacob is still lounging in the bed scrolling on his phone as she puts a few more items in her suitcase. She intentionally did not buy anything during this trip, yet she barely gets the zipper to close. Jacob just laughs at her misfortune, before she sweet talks him into helping.

There’s a somber atmosphere over the afternoon, with goodbyes looming. She is ready to be back in Florida, back to her friends and her apartment. That doesn’t mean she wants to say goodbye. It’s easier because Henry isn’t halfway across the world, so she can visit, but it’s been nice having everyone together again. Nice that it’s a celebration instead of a funeral this time.

They say bye to her parents before Charlotte drives them to the airport. She’s spending a few more days in Swellview. Piper heard her and Henry talking about a short visit to Newtown, so she can see the new base. Schwoz has been texting Charlotte updates on their crime fighting endeavors.

Missy has been good for Henry. She has seen a new side to her brother. Despite all his fame in Dystopia, she thinks this new role fits him far better.

Henry unloads her bags, before wrapping her in a bone crushing hug. She hugs him back just as tightly.

“I’m going to miss you,” He says, and she just holds on tighter before pulling away. She is not going to cry.

“Good, I’m worth missing,” The words don’t come quite as strong as she wanted. Henry gives her a pity chuckle.

“Call if you need anything, and I’ll come visit,” He sounds serious, but she rolls her eyes.

“I know the life of crime fighting. I’ll come visit you. That way it will actually happen,” Henry shakes his head, raising an eyebrow. “That is not true,”

“How many times did you visit Newtown this week?” She crosses her arms. He mumbles.

“See,” She says in her knowing tone.

“Shut up,” He pulls her into another hug. She doesn’t let it last too long, because she really does not want to cry. Instead, she turns to hug Charlotte.

“Congratulations,” Charlotte says.

“Congratulations to yourself.” She says, pulling away and smiling. “It’s pretty great we got to graduate high school and college together,”

“Yeah, but we are not doing a double wedding,” Charlotte pulls away from the hug, and is grinning.

“We’ll see. I think I know a guy who you would really like,” Piper suggests. Charlotte shakes her head, not even responding.

“It was nice to meet you Jacob,” Henry shakes Jacob’s hand firmly, and Piper is sure, a tad too tightly.

“It was nice meeting you. And you Charlotte,” Jacob says smiling at Charlotte.

“You too,” Charlotte gives Piper one last hug whispering, “You two are really good together. I’m happy for you,” Piper pulls away, grinning. They say their final goodbyes as Piper and Jacob make their way into the airport. Piper gives one last glance over her shoulder.

As they’re sitting at the gate about to board their flight, Piper turns to Jacob. “Can you see why I waited so long to introduce you?” She asks, leaning against him.

“Yeah,” He laughs leaning down to kiss the top of her head, “But I think it went better than either of us were expecting,”

Piper hums in agreement. She had been so worried about this week, but she is going back to Florida with a sense of closure that leaves her excited for what is coming next.

Now Boarding