[right][h2]Creep[/h2]Sheila Hopkins [i]Streets of Denver[/i][/right][hr] … Swarm had followed her. She didn’t know his intentions, but surely, it was no good. Perhaps he had intended on attacking her after they came to a less public street. Fortunately, Creep had the tools to vanish forever, without which she was unsure what she would have done. Thunderbolt appeared… what had he been intending? To protect his investment? It must have been because of seeing Swarm following Creep that he came along. She hadn’t heard their conversation, and said conversation ended the moment they came past the corner. … Okay, then. Sheila simply resolved to keep this event in mind, and then keep going. At the very least, Swarm did not have a power that could see her. Despite being invisible, Creep took a monstrous detour through town just in case someone unseen still followed her. There was only one place she could safely store the vials, and that was by the house she now lived. Sneaking in without alerting Viola, she hid them behind a couple books in the bookshelf. They’d be safe enough there for the moment, Viola never looked through these books. Sheila never informed Viola that she had come home, simply departing again. Her sister was way too busy with her current video-game to notice, headphones on and all that. With that, Creep departed through the streets of Denver once again. On her walk, she had a lot to think about, besides watching for potential followers. She had isolated a group of people as the only ones she could imagine giving these two vials to; her own friends from her former life. She’d actually drag two of them into this hellish life? Could she do that to them? … If they wanted it, she decided. She would give them a refusable offer. If they wanted it, she could give it to them. She really needed allies, after all, and this was perhaps her one chance to earn one that was more than just temporary. Actual allies, who she was willing to put in danger, unlike Viola. … She grit her teeth, thinking of them one at a time. Briefly appearing within her mind, there was the boy that had once been her boyfriend. It had been only for a very short period of time, they never really did anything other than go on numerous dates. … Was he an option? Sheila thought back to her experiences with him… [@Old Amsterdam] [hider=Flashback, the Boy who Loved]‘I’ve fallen in love with you! Please, go out with me!’ So the boy had called to Sheila, at a time when she was still yellow blonde and didn’t have any powers, right after school. She had staggered, eyes wide looking at him. He held forward two tickets to a local, rather fancy restaurant. Assumingly, it was to show how serious he was that he had already bought them. It wasn’t that Sheila didn’t know who he was. A classmate, not a particularly close classmate but a classmate all the same. She didn’t think that much of him, certainly wasn’t attracted to him, but he wasn’t a bad kind of person. Yet, here she was, feeling her heart all aflutter because [i]someone had actually asked her out![/i] [color=8ce6fa]‘S-sure! I’m…’[/color] Sheila gave him a smile, feeling the joy of an innocent young romantic. [color=8ce6fa]‘I’m willing to give you a chance,’[/color] she said. Hey, springtime of youth and all, right? She was willing to give it a shot. Seeing his face brighten up and that he then started jumping in celebration right after, she felt she had done a good deed. If nothing else, it would be a good memory. [hr] They became boyfriend and girlfriend, and they told all their friends. They were congratulated, and all was nice for a bit. Viola teased about them doing all the things they obviously hadn’t done yet. For a time, it was nice. Sheila got to experience the excitement of having a boyfriend without actually having to put in the effort of finding a boy she liked and confessing, which suited her introverted self nicely. He seemed more than happy to shower her with gifts and attention, call her a lot and taking her on an excessive amount of dates… … It was too much. Sometimes, she just wanted to hang out with her normal friends. Sometimes, she just wanted to relax in the quiet solitude of her home, reading, watching TV, any number of activities. He kept calling her, and far too often he had bought tickets for both of them without asking her because he wanted to surprise her. He showered her with gifts, to the degree Sheila started wondering how much money he really had. Her parents liked him fine, but over time, the flutter in her heart died down, and it became… troublesome. Sheila became deeply aware she wasn’t attracted to him. His friends had been telling her how he spent less and less time with them to focus on her, how he was disregarding parts of his life entirely so he could devote himself to her… it felt wrong. He was nice, and it was very annoying to her that she couldn’t reward him being nice. She didn’t want to seem ungrateful to all his gifts and affection, but eventually she had to put her foot down. She had to explain she wasn’t comfortable with all of it. He was understanding, and kept his distance. Except, now she already associated him with the creepiness of his amount of affection. She felt guilty, him giving her so much when she couldn’t return the affection. There was a balance, she wanted to reward him for being nice but at the same time, doing so would be at the expense of her own happiness. She realized he wasn't the kind to usually attract girls and Sheila didn’t particularly want to become one of “those girls” that ignored nice men but went for the more exciting bad ones or so, but ultimately she realized she couldn’t be happy with him. This was no basis for a healthy relationship. As such, she felt forced to call him, telling him she was coming over to his house. This had been the first time she called him and not the other way around. [hr] [color=8ce6fa]‘I’m sorry. The truth is, I’m not attracted to you. I gave you a shot, and I am happy that I did. I want to make it clear I am really, really thankful for all that you’ve given me, but in the end… I don’t feel like you’re the one for me. I’m sorry.’[/color] So she told him, feeling guilty but nonetheless determined to say her mind. They couldn’t be in a relationship she was unhappy with. ‘W-was it something I did? Anything I said? I can change for you. Just let me know, and I’ll-’ She held up a hand for him to stop. The bargaining reminded her of why she was doing this. [color=8ce6fa]‘No. I don’t want you to be anyone but who you are. Trust me, you’re [i]great[/i], but you’re wasted on someone who doesn’t appreciate you fully. On me.’[/color] ‘I don’t feel so. I couldn’t be this invested in anyone but you. You’re the only one I feel this way towards.’ That stung. She was going to be breaking his heart. She was [i]already[/i] breaking his heart. The guilt within her was palpable. But ultimately… ‘If you let me, I’ll-’ [color=8ce6fa]‘[i]Stop[/i],’[/color] she told him, her voice forceful, showing her first hint of annoyance. He stiffened, despite already having quieted. [color=8ce6fa]‘I… don’t love you. There’s our fundamental problem. I won’t stick to a relationship in which I’m not happy.’[/color] He got quiet. He had no rebuttal to that. That… might have come out harsher than she intended, but it got the point across. [color=8ce6fa]‘I’m sorry. I’m really, [i]really[/i] sorry. F-fortunately, we’re still young. I hope you find someone better suited for you, who rewards the effort you put in, because I cannot,’[/color] she said, for some reason feeling a couple of tears from the guilt and sadness she was causing him. She stood up from the chair, legs shaking a little as she stepped away from him. [color=8ce6fa]‘Thank you for everything. When we meet next, we’ll be normal classmates again. … Friends, if you so desire. I’m sorry.’[/color] So she said, without him returning any words, as she walked away. She put on her shoes and her jacket, for this was during the winter months, and didn’t say another word to him as she walked out. On the streets, she felt sorry and guilty for the heartbreak she had caused him… but also relieved, she had gotten it out, she was now free. Suppose that last part proved that what she had done was right for her. [hr] Two months later, Sheila vanished from school, from their lives, her house suddenly standing empty. This was due to her trigger-event and the events after, her father having sold her out to villains for his own skin and so on after she had confronted the villains he was helping. Her trigger event had been seven or eight months ago, she hadn’t entirely kept track of dates since. Sheila really hoped that her disappearance hadn’t impacted the boy too harshly. It was out of her hands, and it had been the same for everyone. Now that she was intending to go back and share the vials with people she trusted from her previous life… … No. She couldn’t go to him. The reason was simple; if she did, it was possible he’d throw away his life, drink the vial, all because he wanted to be with her. They’d be back in that unhealthy relationship all over again. Sheila would feel the guilt for having strung him along when she knew for a fact she didn’t love him, but at the same time he’d be fighting, abandoning all he had and risking his life, all for her. She couldn’t subject him to that, and more importantly, she couldn’t subject [i]herself[/i] to that. That had to be her absolutely last option, if she really and truly became that desperate…[/hider] She shook her head, discarding the line of thoughts and kept going. She headed towards the Rocker’s current base of operations, intent on seeing how they were currently doing. Depending on what condition she found them in, she had to prepare herself for what was to come. Creep would have to announce herself as their new leader, and with that… she’d just have to see how it’d go. She briefly thought of Visage, but Visage was her junior in the group, but perhaps it wouldn’t appear so for the Rockers. It was too early to tell. For now, she simply had to head to them, and see how the place looked. Creep went to the hideout and headed in, still invisible as she scanned the current situation. To ensure she wasn’t taken by surprise by anything.