childhood friends to enemies to lovers with powers sprinkled in//oxo//closed

Everything within a mile radius of the bank was dead silent. Getting in through the entrance will be a pain noting how there's two men with guns there and news reporters hidden somewhere in the distance. Atticus patted the side of his mask while creeping over to the side. There stood two black vans with the back doors open. No one else is there, they all must be inside. Ambulance and police sirens were blaring giving him the perfect opportunity to flip the vans over having the sound drowned out. A bag of zip-ties fell out after tossing the second van over. He picked it up shoving it into his trench coat.

He jumped through a broken window rolling to hide behind a column. A child was hiding behind another one across from him having his little jade colored eyes stare up. One of the criminals stood there looking menacingly. Atticus got up sprinting behind the criminal slamming him down to the ground. Taking the gun, he shot another robber in the foot and a third in the knee. Catching the others' attentions, he chucked the gun in the leader's face. There had to twelve of them in total, wasn't long till each one of them was on the marble floor with their hands zip-tied behind their backs.

Atticus stood there in the middle looking up at the security camera. Using his two arms, he crossed the left over the right making the sign for protect. He dragged each robber outside forcing them to kneel in front of everyone. One of them mumbled some curses asking who the hell he was. Quietly, Atticus whispered,"Adonais." Next he headed back in to make sure the boy was okay. The little child was sitting at the side of his mother who was unconscious. He picked up the mother leading the boy outside over to an ambulance. After that, he disappeared out of everyone's sight.

At home, all the feelings from before came back. The yawning and the warmth in his face returned as he flopped onto the sofa. Atticus still felt terrible for having to leave Silas like that. His stomach felt like butterflies were flying around thinking about his friend. Staring at his phone, he wondered if Silas would call him soon; he could only hope.

An hour had passed since the bank heist, the news finally had something else besides the Swinging Serial Killer to talk about. Sooner or later they should find out it is Phantom who is behind it. Out of all the many questions Atticus has, he wondered who is behind Phantom. Those bank robbers do not even match up to the level of vileness the villain possesses. Weird how the people found Adonais faster than Phantom. Users on Super Watch usually have a lot more information on villains than superheroes when it comes to first impressions.

Seeing himself on the television gave him a numb feeling. He did not really want to be recognized, hell, he has only been doing this for a year. A good amount of heroes do not get the media's attention till they're not rookies. It just felt weird seeing himself on the news watching him kick those guys' asses. In a way, it was like he was watching Adonais fight, not Atticus.

Atticus sighed as he got up from the sofa making his way to the kitchen. He hadn't eaten at all today and it's almost noon. There was a box of mini pizza bagels in the freezer, he'll just have that then some of that cereal from the grocery store. He put a tray of them in the oven then stared at his phone again. Something did not feel right again; he did not have a chest pain like when there's an actual stress call, it was completely different from that. Is Silas okay?

As he waited for the pizza bagels to be ready, he wandered around the apartment trying to shake the odd feeling off. It had enough room for him, his stepdad, and mom. The place gets very warm when you're walking in circles wearing a heavy black sweater. Oven timer lit up showing that there was only four minutes left.

Atticus walked out his room in a white tank top when he heard a knock at the door. It wasn't Silas, he's sure he didn't bring up that he moved to another apartment on the east side since they last met. Three minutes left on the timer. Exhaling, he ambled over only to see that no one was there; till something was tugging on his pants. It was only just Addy.

Addy, Adeline, is the daughter of Miss Hepburn, who happens to be Atticus's next door neighbor. Her mom works in emergency medicine so he is always stuck with the little one. He's been babysitting her since she could walk. She is a good kid for being five years old, always talking about heroes seemingly knowing more about them than he does.

"Your mom's on call?", he asked. Atticus stuck his head out to take a look around. On the side there was a small window to look out of. Faint sounds of cars and ambulances could be heard in the background.

The little stared down at the floor as she nodded. Her blond curls hid her sad face. "Something about bad guys.", she faltered. Must be the injuries from the bank heist. Thankfully there were no reported fatalities on site.

Timer dinged in the background saying there's a few seconds left till the food was done. Addy glanced up holding her arms out. Smiling, Atticus picked her up while covering her head. Sadly he's accidentally bumped her head against the top of the door more than once. He closed the door then the timer went off; so did his phone. Silas. Atticus turned off the timer and oven, then picked up his phone. The smile on his face grew wider realizing it was who he's expected. Addy wiggled out of his grasp rushing over to the sofa.

"Hey Silas!", he hummed,"What's going on? I'm sorry about leaving you so suddenly back there. You okay?"

Right, his mom. Earlier he got a text from her saying they were fine and hid in the classroom. It wasn't a call from her that made his phone set off in the cafe though. Atticus got a message from her while he was fighting the robbers; he only saw it when coming home. "She's fine, thanks. They put a lock-down order cause the university is close to that bank on the news; it got lifted just awhile ago."

Atticus took out the tray of pizza bagels setting them down at the table. He held the phone between his right ear and shoulder while going about. Addy was talking to herself making commentary on whatever was on the television. The metal cling sound from the tray made her jump over the sofa resulting in a large thud. With his opposite hand, he took the phone away from his ear to make a shush sound before putting it back in its previous place. She giggled while waddling over to grab paper plates.

Silas's voice sounded a little stuffy even though it was cheery. Did he catch a cold on the way home? Weather outside did start to get a bit chillier, but he ruled that out. Atticus figured they could talk about that later. "Wanna hang out sometime soon again?", he asked. He reached over stealing a pizza bagel from Addy's plate. She shouted,"No!" then proceeded to steal one from his.

Atticus beamed hearing Silas say yes. He already was planning what they could. Where could they go next? The park? Sounds like a good place to meet up around the afternoon or so. Just as long as Silas is okay with walking or hanging out by the swings. He'll have to check with him on it though. Not to mention hopefully there won't be a lot of emergencies, surprises, and murders. Thinking about the murders can make his blood boil at any second.

"No no no, you're perfectly fine. I thought it was my day off but my neighbor is on call so I have to watch Addy till she comes back. Silas, you're good.", he assured,"Please don't worry, I love talking to you; I missed our talks so much. I feel very lucky to be able to call you." The little girl shot a glance at him when hearing her name. He just waved his hand motioning her to go do something else. She went into a room only to come back with a box of crayons and papers. The rest of the pizza bagels were gone, damn it.

Addy stood beside him trying to get the phone from out of his hand. Probably to just say hi or tell Silas something incredibly weird Atticus has done in the past. Atticus patted her head then went over to the sofa again. "Did you eat yet?"

It does not sound like Silas is doing good at all. Atticus might not know what the situation is, but he can find a way to cheer his friend up. He already passed asking questions about the rapid eye blinking and the stuffiness. Ignoring whatever elephant is in the room is not a good thing. To him, a friend should never do that. "Come over, I'll make you something. Do you still like macaroni and cheese or is there anything you want?" Pushing out questions made him feel weary; wasn't any help that his heart felt like it was struggling to stay a float.

He looked over at Addy who stared back at him with a puzzled look. Atticus was not worried about having Silas and Addy here at the same time; that would mean two of his favorite people are with him at the same time. Well, one of them being a troublemaker too. "Is it the cute one?", she whispered.

The what now? Pressing the phone harder against his ear, Atticus tried to covered his mouth while his eyes looked like they were about to pop out. His entire face turned a bright red in seconds. Where did she get that from? Oh he better have not heard that over the phone.

Atticus still had a dumbfounded look as he hummed in response. In the past, he would bring up Silas only talking about memories here and there, but never does he recall calling him cute. Not that he's saying that Silas isn't cute. Of course he is! His friend is so adorable that he just wants to hug him. Strings inside his brain began to get all knotted up trying to figure out how to play it cool.

Biting his bottom lip, he didn't say anything for a few moments. Him and his family moved over here four years ago, but sometimes he struggles with remembering where they live. "Actually I live relatively close to Duke Street; just go up three blocks, turn right, and it's the white building. Third floor, apartment seven.", he clarified. Sitting up, he looked over to Addy for conformation. She nodded while holding up a drawing of a purple cat wearing a superhero cape. Atticus beamed giving a thumbs up.

Macaroni and cheese, easy. The only kind they have here is the boxed one where the noodles are shaped as cartoon characters. Those do not take forever to make like the homemade ones parents would make for school events. Atticus could probably come up with other things to eat, it's still lunchtime.

"Great! I'll you soon, bye!", he beamed then hung up. A couple of minutes, that could mean anything really. Silas was always great at showing up to things quickly, it was fascinating how he could slip in and out of places without anyone noticing. Even for Atticus it would take him awhile to notice though he feels bad about that.

With no time to waste, Atticus got up from the sofa getting ready. Aside from all the crayons lying around, the place looked clean. He didn't worry much about anything else preparing food. Once he got the noodles in the pot, he sat over at the table.

Addy was sitting in the chair to the right. Her eyes were focused on the paper as she scribbled with a black crayon. Anytime Atticus tried to add something to the drawing, she would use her little hand to push his away. You'd think she was at a job trying to finish up some last minute business. Setting the crayon down, she hopped down from her seat putting the drawing up on the fridge. Then she poked Atticus in the knee before holding out her hand,"Come with me."

Not sure where this was going, he decided to follow after her into his room. She pointed at the closet and so he opened it. "What are we doing?", he asked,"Hide and seek?"

"No, we are going to make you look fabulous.", Addy affirmed as she began to search for something that was appealing to her.

"I thought I already was.", he said despite only wearing a tank top and some casual dress pants.

"Yeah, but this is the cute one we're talking about.", she pointed out,"You can't hug anyone looking like that."

After two minutes of throwing random shirts and such onto the bed, the five year old held up a flannel, a red cape, and some sunglasses. Whatever Addy says when it comes to fashion, is fashion. Atticus walked back to the kitchen wearing all those things, only keeping the sunglasses on the top of his head. Addy went back to coloring, giving a thumbs up of approval.

Atticus sat plates and utensils down since the food was not completely ready yet. Along with the mac and cheese, he prepared fish sticks and salad just in case. Next, he moved all the crayon stuff to the right side. The tub of crayons sat next to the chair. Now everything was ready, he hoped that it was good enough. It was hard for him to tell whether or not he should've done more.

Buzzing came from the door then the lock system played a short tune. Silas must be here already! He leaned over from the fridge shutting it carefully. Addy rushed over wearing one of Atticus's long sleeve Nova University shirts over her clothes; it was so large it look like a dress. "DO YOU COME IN PEACE?", she shouted in question.

He shook his head as he laughed at her question. Gently, he picked her up again. Both of them look through the small peep hole. Yeah sure is Silas alright, thankfully he didn't appeared to be sick or stuffy. On the other hand, Atticus assumed that his friend still needs to be cheered up.

Using his free hand, he fluffed up his hair trying to make it look less chaotic than it already does. He took a step back while opening the door. "I know it was out of the blue, but I'm happy you're here.", Atticus exulted.

The apartment wasn't far from anything, downtown to the waterfront; it was still close to where Silas's parents live. Atticus did not really like moving here after his mom remarried. That was when he would still get nightmares about the car crash. His powers did not fit well with him then too. Now everything is settled into place, his life before feels as if it happened centuries ago. To a certain degree, it's more spacious. He nodded whispering a thank you while closing the door behind him.

Atticus glanced down at Addy who was laying her head against him. She did not look up, her silver eyes only stared ahead at Silas with a small grin. The kid is an angel, at least to him, yet tends to act like a little devil at times. He knew just what to say. "The absolute worst, don't fall for her tricks. She's pure evil.", he quavered while tensing his shoulders.

Addy frowned at his response shaking her head in disagreement. "I'm Adeline, but everyone calls me Addy.", she stated,"And I'm not evil, thank you very much." He chuckled when she made a face at him before she pulled down the sunglasses.

So far so good! He hoped that they would get along. Noticing the volume on the television, Atticus placed Addy down. News was not on anymore, just those talk shows usually having commentary on the current events. He didn't pay much attention to it. "Should I start getting stuff ready?", he asked turning back to Silas.

Biting his bottom lip, he tried to think of something. Atticus was perfectly fine with Silas just getting comfortable while he got everything; it was not much trouble for him. He might not have super speed, but he is pretty good at moving around swiftly. Silas is the guest after all! Though, it was super kind of him to ask. "If it's not too much, could you turn off the burner and get some glasses? I was thinking of lemonade or water, you can pick whatever though; hopefully it's in the fridge."

He shuffled over to the bathroom to pick up the stepping stool for Addy. Washing hands before having those pizza bagels totally left his mind; oh well. Atticus past by the refrigerator seeing the drawing managed to caught his attention. The picture looked pretty good, but it didn't sit right with him. Phantom? In attempt of not making a big deal, he took it down, folded it, then placed the paper in his pocket. He'll have to ask her about the picture later; let the spirits know, he'll kill that son of a bitch if it's the last thing he does.

"Addy, come wash your hands. I'll put your hair up with a tie.", he said as he turned around with a beam. She replied with a smile of her own. She used too much soap only to see all the mini bubbles fly as the sink faucet was turned on. Giggling to herself, she washed her hands while Atticus used a green hair tie to put her hair up in a simple ponytail. He washed his afterwards then went to get some napkins.

Right as Addy went to sit down, Atticus turned facing the sink. His fingers curled into his palms as he started taking deep breaths. This should not be happening now in front of Silas and Addy. Out of everything he can do, hiding how he feels is not one of them. It was only just a drawing, just a random scribble that the kid made up with her imagination. Hell of an imagination to be making a picture of a villain barely anyone knows yet out of the blue. Worst thing to happen is if she draws Adonais next.

Turning right back around, Atticus plastered on his vivid face expression from before. To make it more convincing he kept the grin wider. Sooner or later the happiness will overturn the worry and anger built up inside of him. He went back to putting food on everyone's plate making sure that there was enough on Silas and Addy's. Pulling Addy's seat back, she gave a nod then sat down. When Atticus went to sit down in his, she made noise clearing her throat.

"What?", he whispered. He was almost half way close to sitting down. The hesitation left him in a weird position before standing up.

"Go do his.", she mouthed. Tucking a curl back behind her ear, she pointed at Silas.

Atticus couldn't help but exhale deeply as he went to do so. His cheeks flushed pink again. Bringing the seat back, he motioned for Silas to come over. "Thanks for helping.", he cooed,"Come on, you look like you need some food in your system."

The black pupils in his eyes dilated in an instant as Silas glanced at him. His lips trembled lightly trying to formulate words. For the first time in his life, he is having trouble saying something as simple as "No problem". Atticus lost complete control over his reactions; as if someone was using a remote control on him. Forcefully, he bowed his head then went to sit down. Geez, what's going on with me?

Addy just moved her head side to side as she grinned back. Though she couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at Atticus malfunctioning like a robot. Never in her memory does she recall that ever happening. Shrugging, she began to eat her food trying to avoid the tomatoes that she was given. "Hey Silas, I'm really good at arm wrestling.", she stated as she picked up more mac and cheese with her fork,"Like really really really super good, better than Atticus. Are you good?"

Keeping his gaze averted from the two, he covered his face with his hand as he chuckled. Thank God the conversation is being turned somewhere. He was not sure where it was going after that brain freeze. "She's not lying, Addy really is a champ at it.", Atticus agreed.

Atticus raised his eyebrows shooting a look at Addy. "Do you really want to bring Silas into this?", he mouthed. She nodded before rolling back the long sleeves to flex her arms. Every time he watches over her, she challenges him to arm wrestling. He always fakes it even in front of other people. She always proposes something the loser has to do too. Push-ups, wacky outfit, or whatever she thinks is silly. "I don't know, Addy takes arm wrestling very seriously.", he warned,"She comes up with the most terrible penalties too."

"Push-ups aren't bad! You do them all the time!", she tried to defend herself then smirked,"What are you scared?"

His lips pursed suppressing any laughter. He glimpsed over at Silas giving him a smile. Atticus placed his fork down then softly slammed his hand against the table. "Okay, you're on. Only after we're finished eating though; and no cheating.", he emphasized.

"No cheating!", she repeated giving a thumbs up.

He nudged Silas a little giving him a wink. "I can guarantee you two, I won't.", he promised. He'll do everything in his power to not break the table while "losing" and still give a perfect match.

Charlie, it had been while since he's thought of him. Thinking about Charlie must be very hard for Silas even to this day. The days after his younger brother passed were nothing but gloomy and bleak. It was when Silas started to become more quiet. Just remembering it made him feel wistful to this day; the feeling was already heavy in him. Atticus can recall the times they would arm wrestle with Silas's younger brother. The pure joy they all had on their faces… Him and Addy have a lot in common, now that he thinks about it. Both of them just have this bright aura that can make anyone stop and smile.

Atticus wrapped his arm around Silas giving him a side-hug. He didn't want to say anything in front of Addy despite the kid being distracted with her flexing and trying to finish her food. Once their arm wrestling game ends, it's probably nap time for her anyways. This time, he is not going to pass the opportunity of talking about what's going on. For him it is hard to read Silas, he is always good at hiding things, but this time, it seems that hiding isn't the best thing. "I think that sounds like a wonderful idea.", he smiled,"What do you think Addy?"

"I think we should do three rounds!", she replied,"Then loser has to do a match with the announcer."