#jace series | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

blorbingqls · 7 months

Text

"We accept the love we think we deserve" - seeing this quote in terms of love and control as subjects in Only Friends

With @tomatoland 's brilliant post on TopMew on the above quote here , i think that with 7 eps in, we have understood that love and control are very well linked with ephemerality as a subject.

As i have previously linked epheremality with control here, i would like to talk about how love also makes us lose control with the impermanence of life. This is a long overdue post for 4 eps now.

linking the ephemerality squad here so that you can also share your opinions on this @waitmyturtles @lurkingshan @slayerkitty @respectthepetty @ranchthoughts (anyone else i am missing, pls tag, i really appreciate it)

TopMew

As Tomato (@tomatoland i hope you're okay with that nickname; i really tried to find a name on your blog for you) has referred in their post, Mew left his bubble of insecurities and got his heart broken. Completely legible and correct on his point. Top really loves Mew but now Mew has no reason to believe him anymore. With the play in their power dynamics, both of them loved each other and lost control of the way they wanted the relationship. Yes, if Top and Mew has stuck to their original plans - just reaching to the point of ideality and sex, then, this relationship should have ended after they got their goals. I dont think that sex was a goal for Mew as much as it was for Top, but, we can say it was in the secondary.

But as they fell in love, they, especially Top understood how the love he received from Mew is so much more than he thought he deserves (taking into account his trauma and past experiences). So , even though Mew is projecting his hurt by doing things that literally are asshole-ish as fuck on his accord, Top is willing to let go all of that since even he knows he is in the wrong this time and he is willing to lose all control he has on his life - of fame, money and insecurities in order to have Mew back. Top is willing to be as obsessive as Mew said he would be in a relationship in order to get and accept the love he think he deserves from Mew, even if it won't be good.

But, I also feel, the concept of love as explored in the series so far, not just runs along with TopMew because of the books, but also with all the remaining couples in the show. I won't discuss P'Yo and her partner, CheumApril in this segment, because I want more angles on this from the coming episodes in order to validate my point. But, I'll discuss this point with our other views on the couples: RayMew, TopBoston, SandRay, and BostonNick.

RayMew

Now, RayMew is a pairing that is being enforced on the viewers for the past 3 episodes now and the last episode shows a pretty good view of how as characters, Mew and Ray view each other.

For Ray, his love is unconditional for Mew because it correlates with that fact that Mew was the only reason who made him stay in this world - who made him believe that he deserves the love from his friends, the love which he didn't get from his parents or any potential partners. But potential partners were never in the scene because Mew was Ray's emergency contact. Their relationship runs deep and however much you may think, even if Ray thinks Mew's love for him could be more as a friend, he also believes that because as he is so damn shitty and a fucking burden to society, he can't ask for more from Mew for the sake of their friendship and his esteem. He keeps entertaining the idea of them as partners several times, but, until ep 7, Mew has never entertained the idea that his love for Ray will be any worthy of more than a friend. Because, Mew wants to continue making the boundary and keep the control, according to me.

Now, as Mew has entertained the idea, i am interested how it pans out in the next episode (not very promising tho). just linking this out here because its so fucking interesting.

TopBoston

We will mainly take here Boston's viewpoint since Top gave up on this since the very beginning and became firm with it post ep 3. He gives no flying fucks about the possiblity of it. Top considers Boston to be a one night stand and a one night stand only.

Boston, as has mentioned so many times, considers Top to be top tier; the person who gives him something as close to love because as an Machiavellian prince (refer here) Boston considers Top to be the only worthy competitor in his reign. And he really doesn't care if he hurt others feeling. Mind you, Boston has been the most truthful to himself, maybe not to others. And as a prince, his love speaks volume through keeping them in their reign because ultimately Boston wants power and control in his arena. That's the fucking politics of it. And Top is the only worthy contender who can damage his reign. Hence, he wants the top tier power as much as possible, and only Top can give him that. Him fucking off to America, that can easily happen through Top, because he is a very well known hotel chain owner/manager. So, Boston wants his loves, because he very well thinks he deserves it and he accepts it as much as he can. But, he also knows that for him, he can't make this love into a weakness, because that will be out of his control.

Boston however, as Mew so incredibly pointed out, is gullible. Ray couldn't see through him, but, MEW FUCKING DID. That is why even though Boston didn't consider Mew as his competitor, he was fucking jealous of him because Mew got Top and was chosen over eventually by Top. Mew has the power that Boston didn't think he had, till now. And tbh, Mew is now winning the game, despite his insecurities with his relationship with Top.

THE WAR HAS BEGUN, MY FRIENDS.

SandRay

God, I have so many feeling for these babies. Where to start? Okay so, you know in second episode, Sand built that boundary with Ray regarding friends with benefits? Well, it has backfired on him. COMPLETELY.

As ep 8 preview says, I love how Sand realised the fact that they were never friends to begin with, for even to have made that boundary to make sense. Sand is a pathetic little man, as so many of you have pointed out, but, why is he the way he is?

His incredible nature to be so caring of others around him has made him feel like its his responsibility to take care of everything. His mother, his business, his money and job, his style and even his fucking roommate. Now, Sand is so emotionally attached to this damsel in distress, pathetic burden to society (affectionate) Ray, that even before they became friends, he made Ray his responsibility. Sand has no right to ask for love from Ray, because they are not friends, lest friends with benefits to ask for any care towards himself. But he selfishly asks, for the first time.

Because, as a person who keeps on taking care of others endlessly, it is harder for them to ask for the care and love they expect and deserve from whom they love while keeping their self esteem intact. And for Ray to completely shut him down at that time, and him still following Ray while he was drunk, makes him so much real because you feel responsible for that person. You are their emergency staff, even if they don't consider you to be.

While Ray comes from another perspective itself. He initially wanted to know Sand more as a person, because he is a person who wanted to explore the life beyond what has been given to him. He is a spoilt brat, and when he realised that he can't buy Sand's love, he explored it with him.

But because I think Ray believes that Sand will always be for him, even when he does asshole-ish behaviour (because thats where everyone leaves) he has taken Sand for granted. The backup option. Anything goes wrong with his ideal relationship, he can always go running back to Sand, because Sand has become his addiction.

Apart from drugs and alcohol, Mew and Sand are the only people he can keep coming back to. For Mew, it is only at a cost. At some conditions, only for something personal. While maybe Ray wants explore that possibility with Sand, but he is afraid. He is afraid that Sand will go away. just as Mew did. A person who can only consider him a friend and nothing more. Even if he wants to explore that possibility with both of them, loving them at the same time, he can't make people his priority, because he doesn't know how to do that. Nor does he think he's worthy of it. So, he accepts whatever he thinks he deserves off Sand's love and care.

I am interested to see how it pans out for these idiots once his relationship with Mew falls out. I am concerned for Ray so much. Give him access to therapy and rehab soon pls. Sand and Ray's father I think are going in that direction, with this speculation by @prapaiwife.

BostonNick

Now, our final pair has been the most interesting couple in this show so far. Why do I say that?

Well, for Nick, Boston is one of the top-tier gays. As pointed out by Boston, he likes bad guys. And lets be honest, Boston, most dishonest, cunning bastard out there. So, Nick believes that he will be that gay who lands the top tier dick and fix this problem. Right?

Wrong. Nick very well knows this won't happen. Still he keeps hoping for more as Boston doesn't know how to not be a hypocrite as a prince. He keeps giving some here and there false hope through his actions, not words which makes Nick believe he's special, but he's not. He takes whatever love he thinks Boston gives him, despite him not being his number one, despite Boston cheats on him over and over again. He just wants whatever of love as actions that Boston can give to him because that proves wrong all of his low self esteem. So he accepts whatever he thinks he deserves because he can't ask for more in a bed friend relationship. With Boston's guard so up and his will to leave the country, Nick knows he can't do anything but try to make him stay. Even if that's a 99% chance of not happening. He tries because he doesn't want Boston to hate him. He only wants him to love him. Because for him, thats enough.

The sadness keeps on piling up for these outsider, hard working roommates, doesn't it?

While, for Boston, he is nothing but a rebound from the angst of not getting Top. He wants a serious relationship, and maybe, he does look for it in Nick, maybe not, but he doesn't love Nick. He doesn't love Top either. For Boston, Nick is a toy he wanted to play with.

Because he cares about his reign, his reputation. And, Nick realised that. Hence, Mew contacted him and Nick gave that information to Mew. They will bring Boston down together because Nick somewhere believes he can get him back.

But Nick babygirl, he doesn't love you bub. He doesn't. And, it hurts so much. Because Boston keeps on taking from you, whatever he deserves. And that is your care for him, for granted. He is a leech bub. He is.

Now, how does it all link to ephemerality and control?

Well, love itself is impermanent. It doesn't stay.

The world knows this and still we chase it. And at an age as our characters, we chase love and freedom like anything. In order to gain control. We take up jobs, more courses to learn, experiment with love and relationships, with people because the time is ticking and people say now is the age. We break hearts and get it broken.

As P'Jojo says "This show is Hurt People Hurt People", tell me who hasn't been hurt by love, by control and by living at its time? And also by missing out each of these experiences because you were lonely with your own life and burdens?

We accept the hate and love the life gives us, because this is what we think we deserve out of this. And tbh, these feelings, are never permanent. They keep changing with time, and that's the only thing thats permanent.

Change is the only thing that remains permanent.

78 notes · View notes

queen-of-writing-bad-things · 3 months

Text

Henry Danger Reader Insert | Captain Man x Reader: SEASON 1

Episode 3: Mo' Danger, Mo' Problems

Reporting to his job, Henry walked into the elevator and hit the down button. Even though he braced himself, the sensation of falling down the shaft in the broken machine still made him scream all the way to the bottom. The elevator door opened, letting the pyjama-clad boy step out.

"He's got to fix that elevator." He groaned and huffed to (y/n), as he walked into the Man Cave.

"Where's Ray? He triple-beeped me." Henry asked the sleepy-looking woman, who like him was wearing pyjamas.

"Honestly? I don't know. Jerk woke me up and just said to give you this and to tell you to put it on your wrist." (y/n) held out a watch for him and rubbing her tired eyes.

"Sure, what else would I put it on?"He joked, fastening the strap, as (y/n) chuckled at him.

"Flip the cover." She said as she sat down with her arms on the back of the couch. She let her head flop down as she looked at Henry.

"Hiya Henry!" Ray said excitedly in hologram form. 'So that was his plan.' (y/n) grumbled in her mind.

"Oh!" Henry looked at the little Ray in shock at the sudden appearance of his boss.

"Ray?" He said to make sure it was him.

"Yep. I'm hovering over your wrist in hologram form!" He said waving his hands in a silly manner. Henry wanted to see how his new gadget worked, so he poked Ray in his eye, causing him to clutch it in fake pain.

"You poked my eye out!" He screamed, making (y/n) roll her eyes.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Henry thought he had injured his boss and put a hand over his racing heart.

"I'm just kidding. You can't hurt a hologram or a Captain Man!" Ray reassured him, doing a little dance.

"This is so cool." Henry geeked out at the thought of having hologram tech.

"It would be even cooler if I hadn't been woken up." (y/n) mumbled, her words slurred from her face being smushed into her arms.

"It's like we're in the same room." Henry carried on complimenting the watch.

"We are." The holo-Ray turned around and walked off, causing the image to fizzle out. Henry looked confused and waved his hand over his wrist to see where the man had gone.

"Where'd you..." Henry started, but Ray had crept past (y/n) and patted him on the shoulder, scaring the wits out of the boy.

"Peek-a-boo," Ray said, as Henry screamed. The young woman at the couch wasn't happy from the noise and looked up at the males who were keeping her awake.

"Couldn't this have waited until morning, doofus?" She glared.

"Aww, she's always grumpy when she's tired." Ray fawned over her despite the killer look she was giving him, before turning back to his sidekick.

"Now, take off your old wristband." He instructed.

"Okay, why am I--" Henry started, but Ray was too impatient for questions.

"From now on I'm going to contact you on your new whiz watch."

"So what do I do with the old one?" Henry questioned, holding the old gadget in his hand.

"Toss it up in the air," Ray replied nonchalantly.

"Why?"

"It's about to self-destruct." He told the teen, who promptly threw it to the ground with wide eyes. The bracelet started beeping, but there was a delay between the beeps and the explosion.

"Hmm- that's weird. It was supposed to--" They were caught off guard by the wristband imploding, making them jump into each other's arms and (y/n) to awake from her dozing with a start.

She looked up and saw the two hugging each other in fear, but they soon found it awkward, so they parted, clearing their throats and avoiding eye contact.

"I see you're wearing pyjama pants," Ray mentioned, trying to diffuse the awkwardness.

"Yeah, it's almost midnight. I was studying for this huge test I have tomorrow." Henry explained.

"And I was asleep, but you came into my room and jumped on my bed." The girl had walked over to Ray and was pointing an accusing finger in his face. He just smiled at her and pulled her into a warm hug.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry." He said, his body heat making her sleepy again, so she stayed silent and just let herself doze off against his chest.

"What subject?" Ray asked over her head, trying to ignore the sweet smell of her shampoo. The vibrations from his chest made her face feel funny.

"Puerto Rican history." Henry overlooked their cuteness and didn't mention the embrace, because he knew Ray would kill him.

"Ahh, Puerto Rico, Land of..." The superhero began, but he trailed off when he realised he didn't know a lot about the country.

"Puerto Ricans?" Kid Danger filled in for him.

"Right." He admitted defeat, but the emergency alarm went off, which made (y/n) jump in his arms. With a whiny moan, she stepped out of his warmth and trudged over to the supercomputer with them, opening the camera link to the store above.

"What's up, Gooch?" She slurred with her elbows on the control panel and her face in her hands.

"There's a robbery in progress." He instantly reported.

"Where?" Ray interrogated.

"At the 24-hour antique bottle shop."

"Glass from The Past?" Henry asked, knowing where the store was in downtown Swellview.

"Affirmative," Gooch said.

"On it." Ray said, as his best friend slowly pressed the off button, cutting the video call.

"Right here to Glass from The Past, ETA is like, 15 minutes I think." She said quietly, rubbing her face so she could wake up and notify the owner about Captain Man's arrival.

"Shall we?" Ray showed his gum tube to Henry, who shared his look of determination.

"Let's blow some bubbles and fight some crime," Henry said, putting the gumball in his mouth. They chewed and stepped away from the computer, so they could transform properly into their Captain Man and Kid Danger costumes.

"Let's hit it, Kid Danger." Captain Man said to the boy on his right.

"Fist." Henry and Ray fist-bumped each other, both running on adrenaline.

"Get some sleep." Ray said to (y/n), who was wearily looking on from the computer chair. She waved at the two, as they ran to the tubes and slapped their belt buckles.

"So whipped." Henry chuckled, once his tube was down and only Ray could hear him.

"Up the tube," Ray said in a slightly stern voice, looking at Henry with his serious face, but the boy cheekily grinned back, as they were sucked up.

"Aw, my boot!" Henry couldn't believe his shoe had fallen off, all the way down at the other end of the tube.

"Ha! Serves you right! Just yell, 'Up the boot!'" Ray bit his tongue, amused that karma had paid Henry back for all his teasing. With Henry gaining his boot back, the two made their way to the store, ready to kick some criminal butt.

~(y/n)'s PoV~

I hadn't felt that tired in a while, but working for Captain Man meant that every couple of weeks brought a few sleepless nights. The last robbery at Swellview Bank had only been a few days before, and Ray didn't come back 'til 3AM. Like me, he was exhausted from fighting The Toddler and the rookie criminals at the bank. Still, he was lucky that he now had Henry to help him. I made him some hot cocoa and we both fell asleep for 14 hours, waking up the next day to another emergency call.

I blushed when I remembered how Ray's arms were around my waist from him spooning me in our sleep. He groaned as he got up, and I quickly had to answer Gooch's call before he saw my red face.

'No, no no, focus on the task at hand.' I scolded myself.

'Just call the store owner and tell him Captain Man is on his way. No distractions.' I took in a deep breath and dialled the number on the supercomputer.

"H--Hello?" The man on the other end of the line shakily said.

"Hello sir, Captain Man will be with you in a few minutes, please remain calm," I said softly, not wanting the man to freak out and do something that meant the robber would hurt him.

"Please! I need him here now! I'm being robbed!" I sighed, feeling too tired to deal with this, but I carried on, knowing my colleagues would be there soon.

"Sir, please stay calm. Captain Man and Kid Danger will be with you shortly." I tried to keep the man quiet, knowing the criminal was close by, possibly even in the same room as him.

"Put that phone down, come on bro, open up that cash register." I heard the thug shouting and slamming on the counter. 'Sweet cheese, come on Ray.' I prayed that things wouldn't get ugly.

"I'm going as fast as I can, boss!" I made out the owner trying to tell him, but it seemed the robber wasn't a patient man.

"Give me that pretty lavender bottle, 'cause it matches my motorcycle helmet." My eyebrows furrowed when I heard the strange request, deducing that this was another nutjob, bad guy.

I continued the listen to the poor owner follow the demands of the robber, hearing the rustle of paper and his compliant answers.

"Excuse me." I let out a sigh of relief when I heard Ray's familiar Captain Man voice through the speaker. The owner's delighted words reassured me that he now had the proper help and that the criminal was about to face justice.

I pressed the end button on the panel, glad that my job was done. I slowly got up from my chair and stretched my tired muscles. Feeling the sleepiness creep up on me, I decided to take Ray's advice and slowly lumbered up to the sprocket and off to bed.

~Glass From The Past, 3rd Person PoV~

"What the--" The robber looked over to see Captain Man had just entered the store, much to the happiness and delight of the owner he was threatening.

"I hope you're planning to pay for that lavender bottle," Ray told the criminal, but he knew the real answer.

"And I hope that, too!" Henry added in, as he shot through the door and stood next to the older man. The store owner was so relieved to have the duo in his store to protect him and his property.

Ray walked forward, in time with the goon, and stood in front of him in a standoff. The two glared at each other.

"I ain't afraid of you." The thug said in a tough voice, raising the metal bar in his hand and whacking it on Ray's head. Keeping cool, Ray swallowed down the yelp that threatened to escape and coolly looked back to the criminal.

"Try again. Keep your left arm straight." He said, his eyes squinting in a challenge to the large man. Not backing down, the man hit him again with more force, the pain making him grunt this time.

"Strike three." He growled huskily, having had enough with the criminal, but Henry butted into his imposing façade.

"That was only two." He pointed out.

"Okay, don't correct me in front of the criminals." Ray chastised him, not wanting to look dumb. Henry backed off, so Ray could stop the man on his next swing. Grabbing the arm with the metal pipe in, Ray knocked it back into the man's face, making him scream in pain. Stepping back, Ray then kicked him into a display of antique bottles, which horrified the cashier.

"You really wanna fight us? Ray asked, not caring about the broken vases. The man looked between the large, muscly superhero and his smaller, scrawny sidekick.

"Can I just fight the kid?" He asked looking at Captain Man, which offended Henry, who thought he could take on any bad guy, even if they were three times his size.

"No, you can't just fight--" Ray started.

"Sure he can. Come on, tough guy." Henry challenged, getting into a fighting stance and rocking back and forth on his toes.

"Okay." That was all the criminal said, as he just put his purple helmet over Kid Danger's face and grabbed his pipe.

"Oh, this smells so bad!" Henry complained, trying to get the helmet off so he could see. Ray stood there, unimpressed and agitated, but he didn't want Henry to be hit by the metal pipe, so he grabbed two antique golf clubs from the shop wall. The man at the cash register protested at him, not wanting any more damage done to his shop.

"Kid Danger, catch this golf club!" He shouted, throwing one at Henry, but due to his inability to see, it just hit him in the face. The criminal charged forward, the metal pipe in the air, trying to hit Captain Man, who was narrowly dodging his blows.

"You're not helping me!" The owner shouted at them, as more and more antiques were destroyed. The battle resulted in nearly all the bottles on display being smashed, either from Ray and the thug missing each other with their weapons, or Henry blindly swinging his golf club around.

"Captain Man, where are you?" Henry yelled, not know what was happening.

"Follow the sound of my voice!" he told the teen, and they started to play Marco Polo in an attempt to find each other.

"Marco!"

"Polo!" They continued to smash up everything in the shop.

"Could you superheroes please just leave?!" The cashier pleaded, his whole livelihood turning to nothing on the floor, as Ray roundhouse kicked the criminal into a shelving unit. Finally being near Henry, he avoided the boy's wild swings and brought him under control, removing the helmet.

"Where is he?" said Henry, ready to keep fighting, but the bad guy was on the ground, writhing in pain.

"Did I get him?" He looked up at his boss.

"Yeah, you got him," Ray said, mostly to keep him happy.

"My whole store is destroyed!" The owner sounded distraught as he looked over the damage.

"No need to thank us." Ray smiled at him.

"Thank you?" The man replied rhetorically.

"You're welcome." Ray didn't understand that the man was upset.

"Let's go, Kid Danger." He said to Henry, ready to go back to the Man Cave and relax.

"NO! Nobody leaves until you boys clean up all of this broken glass." The owner insisted, making the superheroes turn around with surprised eyes.

"Alright." Captain Man conceded.

"But I've got to get up at 7AM tomorrow for my test at school." Henry reminded him, not liking the idea of staying up all night to clean up. His test was too important.

"This will only take us like, five hours. I'll get you a broom." Ray tried to sound positive, but it was futile. He walked to the back of the store, as Henry staggered back to the wall, already exhausted from the notion of hours more work. He slumped to the floor in defeat.

~Five hours later, Ray's PoV~

I let out a long groan as the tube dropped me back down into the Man Cave. Cleaning up at the robbed store had left me feeling drained, and I was glad to be back home. Removing my mask and rubbing my eyes, I decided it was best to forget grabbing something to eat and to just go to bed since I didn't know when the next emergency would come in.

Going through the sprocket, I walked down the corridor towards my bedroom. I slowed down as I passed by (y/n)'s room and remembered how tired she was. Without a second thought, my hand pressed the button to open the door and I poked my head in to check on her. I saw her tucked up in bed, sleeping soundly, making me release a breathy smile.

'Too cute.' I thought to myself, noticing how her chest was rising and falling in a steady rhythm. My face flushed when I realised I was staring, and I quickly retreated from her room, closing the door behind me. I walked quickly down the hall to my room and I could feel my ears burning.

'Just friends, nothing more. She's outta your league.' I said the mantra in my mind, thinking that she could never be mine. Finally, I got to my room and started to remove the super suit. I dumped it into my laundry basket, knowing that (y/n) would clean it as soon as she woke up like she always did.

Pulling on some pyjama bottoms, I made my way over to my bed and flopped down onto it, pulling the blankets over me. Sleep rapidly brought me under, and I gently drifted off to dreams of a girl with (y/c/h) hair and (y/c/e) eyes.

~Swellview High, 3rd Person PoV~

"Henry?"

"Henry." Called Miss Shapen, Henry's history teacher. She looked down at the boy, who had fallen asleep in class from fighting crime all night. Deciding that no student was going to sleep in her class, the teacher put her finger into her mouth and then into Henry's ear, giving him a wet willy. He jerked awake from the feeling and looked up to see the woman sneering down at him.

"HENRY!"

"Whoa, whoa, what happened?" He blinked through the sleep and looked around the class.

"Did you just give me a wet willy?" Henry asked in disgust.

"Mm-hmm. It was real wet." Charlotte mentioned from behind him.

"You slept through your entire test." Miss Shapen scolded him.

"I did?" Henry couldn't believe he had missed his test, as he'd not written a single thing down.

"You all see this boy? This is what happens when you stay up all night on Twitflash and Twiddlegram." The teacher said to the class, pointing at Henry.

"Excuse me, Miss Shapen?" Jasper requested from his seat near the back of the classroom.

"What?"

"Can I have a wet willy?" His question thoroughly confused her, and everyone else listening, but it was Jasper, so they all ignored how weird it was.

~Henry's house, later that night~

Henry had run upstairs to his bedroom, after getting a triple beep from Ray on his watch. He'd had to make an excuse to his family about being too tired to eat his 'chilli balls'. Locking the door, he flicked the watch open.

"Henry, why aren't you on your way here?" Holo-Ray said, confused as to why his young sidekick was still at his house.

"Because I got in trouble for sleeping in class today and I had to make chilli balls," Henry explained.

"Did he say 'chilli balls'?" He could hear (y/n) wondering in the background.

"It was my night." he replied, trying to convince them that he had been forced to make dinner for his family.

"Kid, there's been an escape from Swellview Prison. I need you." Captain Man urged him, knowing that there were dangerous criminals on the loose.

"Alright, I'll be there in 10 minutes." Henry sighed, he was way too tired to fight some bad guys, and he still needed to study for his big make-up test on Friday.

"Good, run like a bunny," Ray said, which made his best friend.

"When have you ever said that before?" She giggled, but the hologram shut off before Henry could see them argue. Closing his whiz watch, he walked to his bed and tried to clamber over it, so he could reach his gum tub on the nightstand.

"Okay, just gotta get my special gum." He said to himself, leaning across the pillows. However, the feeling of the soft mattress and fluffy pillows caused his tiredness to creep upon him. His gum tube was in hand, but the lull of the sleep he so desperately craved made him drift off, mumbling something about bunnies.

~90 minutes later~

Henry's watch was beeping like crazy, but the teen couldn't hear it from his deep sleep. He also didn't hear Captain Man climbing up to his window, even though he was banging on the glass and angrily calling his name.

"Henry, open up!" Seeing that his attempts were useless, Ray was too impatient to wait for Henry to wake up and decided to use his laser remote to shoot open the lock on the window. Sliding it open with a grunt, he rolled in and saw Henry still asleep. Feeling extremely irritated that his sidekick hadn't noticed his presence, he shut off the beeping watch from his remote control and wafted his scent over to the boy. The foul smell made the boy wake up with a scowl on his face.

"Ugh, what is that smell?" Henry asked, still not noticing Ray.

"I'm that smell!" Ray yelled at him indignantly.

"Wh-- Captain Man, what are you doing here?" He asked, shocked to see the superhero in his room.

"What are you doing here?" Ray shot back rhetorically.

"Huh?"

"I called you 90 minutes ago and I told you we had an emergency!" Ray squeaked out, the anger making his voice go high-pitched.

"R--right, I guess I fell asleep," Henry replied in a small voice.

"I guess I fell asleep" Ray mocked him in a whiny voice. Henry stepped forward and sniffed his super suit more closely, his nose wrinkling at how bad the stench was.

"Ugh, why do you stink?" His grimaced.

"I stink because I just spent the last hour chasing three criminals through the Swellview Sewer. You know what's down in the Swellview Sewer?" Ray shot back, emphasising how he had to do it alone.

"Poop?" Henry guessed in a tentative voice.

"POOP!" Ray confirmed with a shout. Suddenly, there was a bang on the door and Henry realised that Piper was trying to get in.

"Oh, my sister." He said, trying to shove Ray to the window. Piper would implode if she saw Captain Man in his room.

"We have a lot to talk about." Ray tried to say, but for a small kid, Henry was surprisingly strong and kept pushing him backwards. Not wanting to be pushed around by a child, Ray let up the ledge in Henry's room and dived out of the window onto the ground below.

"I'm okay." He shouted back up. Henry knew he wasn't hurt and went to unlock the door so he could let his sister in.

"Who were you talking to in here?" She quizzed him as soon as the door was open.

"Nobody." Henry scoffed.

"MOM!" Piper yelled in her shrill voice, wanting to get Henry in trouble.

"What is it, sweetie?" Mrs Hart appeared.

"Henry was talking to someone in his room and now he says nobody's in here." The 9-year-old snitched.

"Well, I'm sure if Henry said nobody was in here, then-- Ugh! What is that smell?" Mrs Hart's rational thinking was cut off when Ray's poop smell hit her nose.

"Uh, it's Piper. She hasn't had a bath in a week!" Henry lied, knowing it would kill two birds with one stone; it would explain the smell and get rid of his annoying sister.

"That's a lie!" Piper protested, but Mrs Hart pulled her away anyway. Hearing Piper's shrieks down the hall, Henry slammed the door shut and locked it again, glad to finally be alone. But the hand tapping on his shoulder said otherwise.

"Don't sneak up on me like that." He said to his boss.

"You disappointed me tonight," Ray said in a voice that all grownups have.

"I'm disappointing everybody. People should just call me 'Kid Disappointment." Henry whined, feeling depressed because nothing was going right for him.

"All right, well, just tell me what the problem is," Ray stated, looking up at Henry, who was now sitting on his couch by the window.

"Time, school, working for you, my family. It's just--it's a lot to handle." He admitted, which made Ray think for a moment.

"Well, giving advice is (y/n)'s strong point, but I do know a guy that could get rid of your family." He said, semi-joking.

"What?" Henry looked at him with a shocked expression.

"Kidding! I joke... I do know a guy." Ray smiled and pointed at the boy.

"Oh! I think I can fix your problem." He said suddenly, clapping his hands together.

"Really?" Henry was sceptical, but he kept listening.

"Meet me at headquarters tomorrow." Captain man said excitedly.

"I'm there." Henry agreed, but Ray got distracted by a photo on his table.

"Hey! Who's this?" He said flirtatiously.

"My mom," Henry said in disgust.

"Niiiiice. She, uh, she still married to your dad?" He said smirking, but Henry wasn't having any of it.

"Yes. Dude, don't you like (y/n)?" He said in exasperation.

"Just friends. Does she ever seem bored or lonely to y--?" Ray tried to say, but Henry felt too tired to deal with him.

"Go home, Ray." The superhero moved towards the window, the photo still in his hand.

"The picture, Ray." He took the photo back, as the superhero climbed out of his window, down the tree and subsequently, went home.

~The Man Cave, 1 hour later~

Ray shot down the tube and as he stepped out, still covered in poop, he noticed that (y/n) was sat at the computer. She was eating popcorn and laughing along to a cheesy romcom.

"Hey." She greeted him in a happy voice, but then the smell wafted to her side of the Man Cave.

"Oh my God, what is that?" She looked at him in repulsion and walked over to him so she could identify the smell. Stepping closer, she took a sniff of his suit but immediately stepped back, as Henry did earlier. Her hands snapped over her nose, trying to block out the offending odour.

"God, you smell like sh---" Her voice was muffled by her hands.

"Yes, I know. I had to climb through Swellview sewer. Alone." He said, yanking his mask off in irritation.

"Alone? Where was Henry?" Normally, (y/n) would've given him a hug, or put a comforting hand on his arm, but there was no way she was going to be near the superhero in his current state.

"Asleep! The kid fell asleep in his room and never turned up!" Ray recalled, his voice going high again.

"He did spend all of last night cleaning up with you, and he has to go to school." The young woman reasoned, knowing the superhero life was tough, especially for a young boy.

"He really let me down tonight," Ray muttered, walking to the couch to sit down, but (y/n) hastily shooed him away.

"Don't touch anything! Get that suit off and go get cleaned up!" She scolded him, pointing to where the showers were.

"Oh, and don't give Henry a hard time. All teenagers have a lot going on, and he's now a superhero. You should understand how hard that is." Her voice was soft, but the look in her eyes left no room for an argument, so Ray just whined and went up to the sprocket.

"He's coming over tomorrow, I've got a plan." Ray said, walking down the corridor, leaving the girl alone.

'Not another plan.' (y/n) rolled her eyes, wondering what tomorrow would bring.

~The next day~

(y/n) stood with a brain scanner in her hand, and she was busy using it on Henry's head, who was looking uncomfortable with the situation.

"Um, what's that thing doing?" He asked her, not knowing what was going on.

"Scanning your brain," she said, smiling so it sounded like a good thing.

"Oh, cool." The boy replied, seemingly impressed.

"Take a deep breath for me." The young woman instructed, switching sides so she could scan the other part of his head.

"Now go, oodle, oodle, oodle." She said, just wanting to see if Henry would do it.

"Oodle, oodle, oodle." Henry mimicked the noises she made, which resulted in (y/n) giggling.

"You're off-key. It's oodle, oodle, oodle, oodle." They started to do it at the same time, laughing alone with each other.

"Why are we doing this?" Henry asked.

"Relax, kid," Ray said, coming out of the door near the auto-snacker.

"I can't. I got a huge makeup test tomorrow and I gotta study, and (y/n)'s making me go oodle, oodle, oodle." Henry explained, feeling agitated from the weird stuff he had to do and from the stress of his upcoming test.

"You're still not doing it right." She said in a flat tone.

"I don't care! I don't have time to relax!" Henry shouted back.

"Exactly! Your only problem is a lack of time." Ray said mysteriously, making Henry look to the left in thought.

"Imagine if you could do all you studying for school in only 30 seconds." (y/n) proposed.

"How can I learn anything in 30 seconds?" Henry wondered, not understanding the correlation.

"With this. The cerebral data transducer, or as we call it, the H.R.Z" Ray lifted up a technical-looking helmet that was connected to a long wire.

"This device can transfer knowledge from a data source directly into your brain, at 90 million digibles per second." The young woman explained the science, briefly looking up from the controls.

"Why am I locked in a chair?" Henry queried.

"Do you wanna get a good grade on your Puerto Rican math test?" Ray asked him.

"History." His sidekick corrected.

"Same thing." Ray's short answer made his best friend laugh.

"Right, let's do this thing." (y/n) said, and Ray placed the helmet on Henry's head, making it flash and beep.

"Now, I'll just set the computer to acquire all the world's historical knowledge on Puerto Rico," Ray said, reaching past (y/n) who was fixing the cable

"Woah, intense. But, uh, will this hurt?" Henry asked, his heart thumping loudly in his ears.

"Yeah, a lot." There's no point in lying to him.' The girl thought, as she turned up the power with Ray. They each ran over to the controls, and both pulled down a lever, starting the extremely painful process.

"Wait, so, how will I know--?" Henry started, but the rush of information flooding into his mind made him cry out in agony. The two grown-ups with him could only look on and hope it would work.

"Just enjoy it!" The superhero tried to encourage, but Henry couldn't hear him over his screaming.

"Does that look enjoyable to you?" (y/n) looked at him with lifted eyebrows. Henry was kicking his legs out and his knuckles were clenched white on the armrests, making Ray and (y/n) grimace at the sight of him. However, Ray being childish, made a begrudging (y/n) take a picture of him smiling and giving a thumbs-up next to Henry and the machine.

They brought the power back down as the process was complete, and the 13-year-old slumped back down into the chair, the pain slowly releasing from his body. Each taking a side of the H.R.Z, (y/n) and Ray unscrewed the locks and took it off him, noticing how traumatised he looked.

"Well?" Ray looked down at him.

"That hurt badddd." Henry clarified, the fear still evident in his eyes.

"Sorry about that, but now, tell me everything you know about Puerto Rico." (y/n) smiled at him from the other side of the chair.

"I don't know anything about-- Puerto Rico is a series of islands with a landmass of 3,500 square miles and a population of 3.6 million people. Its glorious beaches and lush rainforests make it the perfect setting for a wedding, bar mitzvah, or growing bananas." Henry recited the information, making the two friends behind him nod at each other, pleased with their success.

"Whoaaaa. I know Puerto Rico." Henry looked at both of them in awe.

"Yeah, you do." (y/n) nodded with him.

"You see? You can learn anything you need to know for school in a matter of seconds." Ray said, putting the H.R.Z back.

"Yeah. Wait, do you think that's cheating?" Henry asked them in an unsure voice.

"Eh... no, not really."

"It's a grey area. No one will ever know." They reassured him.

"I guess. Anyway, I really doing this appreciate you for me." Henry tried to speak, but all his words came out in the wrong order.

"Oh sweet cheese, the side effects." (y/n) facepalmed.

"What side effects?" Henry looked petrified.

"Y'see, after you use the H.R.Z, when you talk, you might mix up your words for a few days," Ray said, looking sheepish.

"Well, you could have before that you told me." Henry jumbled out, not really making much sense.

"Look at it this way, now, you're gonna do well on your test." (y/n) said to cheer him up. Henry perked up a bit, but then let out a loud, girly shriek. He looked a Ray in fright, as (y/n) grinned at the outburst.

"Why did I just--" he began.

"Another side effect." The woman said tentatively.

"Sometimes you'll scream like--" Henry cut him off with another screech.

"--a girl." Ray finished.

"Just for a few days, no biggie." (y/n) was also trying to convince herself that everything would be okay.

"Oh, so I'm a girl like a days for a few screams. Wait." The word mixing was back. And then, Henry released another ear-shattering shout.

"You guys wanna get lunch?" Ray said to distract them all from Henry's problem.

"Yeah." (y/n) quickly agreed, walking over to the snack machine with Ray, who wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"What?" Henry just looked at them, as they walked away from his issues.

~Henry's school~

Henry was concentrating on the history lecture Miss Shapen was giving, ensuring he wrote down everything she said. He had just finished his sentence, when the bell rang, symbolising the end of the lesson.

"Okay, everyone, get out." Miss Shapen didn't have much love for her students.

"Henry, may I see you?" She called out to the boy, who was hoping he hadn't done something wrong.

"Yeah sure. What's up?" He slung his backpack over his shoulder and went over to her desk. Charlotte decided to wait for him at the door. His teacher looked at him with a proud smile.

"Your grade." She said, passing him his test.

"100, I makeup test on my got?" Henry said, all in the wrong order.

"I mean, I got 100 on my makeup test?" Henry quickly corrected himself, before Miss Shapen was too weirded out.

"You answered every question perfectly." She complimented him.

"Awesome." Henry smiled before he let out one of his girl screams.

"That was inappropriate." Miss Shapen and Charlotte stared at him with a concerned face.

"I just got excited." Henry tried to explain.

"I'm proud of you Henry, I'd give you a hug if it wouldn't get me fired." His teacher gave him a rare compliment.

"Thanks."

"Have a good weekend." That was all Miss Shapen said.

"Too you." Henry shook his head at his incorrect words but resumed walking to Charlotte by the door, who congratulated him on his result.

"Where were you yesterday? You weren't in class." Dang, Charlotte was too smart for her own good.

"I go to had somewhere." He lied, confusing his friend.

"One more time?" She requested,

"I had... to go somewhere. Nailed it!" Henry spoke slowly, so he could speak correctly. He was glad he managed to say something right until he shrieked. Again. Charlotte jumped back from him.

"You later see." He quickly left the classroom, not wanting to do anything else odd, leaving Charlotte utterly confused as he let out more screams in the hall.

20 notes · View notes