[center][b]Eric Dean[/center][/b]

Eric Dean sat worriedly in a plush, overstuffed recliner next to the bed of his best friend Scott. After Scott had collapsed just inside the apartment the night before, he hadn’t made a sound. Eric had struggled to get him from the living room into his bed, and hadn’t left his friend’s side since. 
As he looked down at his friend, he realized just how far in over his head he really was. He had never seen anything that could hurt Scott, let alone tear him to shreds like this. Through the night, there were several times that Eric wasn’t even sure if Scott was going to survive, and as the sun rose he gave a silent prayer of thanks that his friend had made it through the night. 

While he sat at his friend’s bedside, his mind swirled. He feared that Scott wouldn’t wake up, or that if he did he would be different somehow. He didn’t know what to expect, because he had never found himself in this situation before, in fact, before the previous night, he never would have imagined a scenario where this would be possible. The longer Scott slept, the more Eric feared that he may never wake. 

That thought scared him. Scott was his best friend, and he didn’t know what he would do if he suddenly wasn’t there anymore. He didn’t know who he would talk to if Scott were suddenly gone. He and Scott shared a special bond, and had from the time they could barely walk. They had grown up a mile away from each other, and they had always been the best of friends. From the time they were children, they had confided in one another, and when one of them got into trouble, the other always covered for him. They were more than friends, they were more like brothers. 

Eric wanted to know where Scott had been in the week and a half that he’d been gone. He wanted to know what Scott had learned while he was away, and he also wanted to know what exactly had caused him so much harm. 

However, there was much that Eric wanted to tell Scott as well. He wanted to tell Scott about the girl that he had met that day in the alley, the one who had been so beaten and bruised. He didn’t know what it was about her, but he had felt a strange connection to her from that very first moment. Though she certainly had her quirks, he was beginning to really like her. 

However, he wasn’t stupid. 

He knew that there was something different about her. The strange coloration of her eyes, the way that she could out eat several NFL linemen at the same time, just the way that she carried herself in general…He had deep suspicions that she was more than she claimed to be. He firmly believed that she was a meta-human, and at the rate that they seemed to be coming out of the woodwork, it shouldn’t be too much of a surprise. 

He wanted to tell him about how things were a bit odd at first, but as the days went on they began talking more and building more of a bond. He had tried flirting with her, and at first she had brushed him off, however, after a few times he finally wore her down and she gave in to his advances.

[i]Not sure what her powers are, if she actually has any…but what ever they are, resisting the ol’ Dean Charm isn’t one of them.[/i] he jokingly thought to himself as his mind began to drift to the other night when they…

Suddenly there came a persistent banging at the front door of the apartment, the sudden explosion of sound nearly startled him out of the chair that he had been lounging in. He was unsure who would be banging on Scott’s door at this time, so he quickly made his way to the apartment door and opened it. To his surprise, he found himself looking into the face of the very woman he had just been thinking of. He didn’t know what to say to her to explain Scott’s current condition or why he hadn’t called to give her an update on what was going on.

“Uh…hey.” He uttered as he smiled sheepishly at her.