Semi Open//Running is the best medicine

[crotcharrow]

Characters: Tommy Shepherd, Kal-El, Molly Hayes, Natasha Romanoff and Rikki Barnes
Date: After this thread, backdated before the satellite event
Location: Turtles Edge, Metal Sector, Rikki's apartment
Situation: Tommy's trying to deal with the fact he might be a dad, and Molly needs to have a talk about the birds and the bees. And then Rikki comes back to talk to Tommy. It's like straight up teenage drama in here.
Warnings/Rating: Talk of potential pregnancy and explanations of sex through use of handpuppets. And most likely swearing.


[Tommy needed time to clear his head. And whilst running around the shell wasn't probably the best idea, he'd done it anyway, taking a bag of snacks with him. He hadn't known how long he was going to be, and he couldn't get rid of the pit in his stomach that was laced with guilt. Steve had already spoken to Rikki and to him in the least threatening way he could have mustered. Tommy wasn't sure if that made it ten times worse or better. Talking to Steve, about the possibility of there actually being a child had just soured his stomach and sent his head reeling. Why hadn't he just stopped and gone to get a condom? It had been his responsibility as much as hers. And he should be taking the full blame for this.

He knew if Steph was still here she would be pummelling him right about now. As would Brandon. God, he missed them both so much. He would have gone to them with this, gone to them for help even though they both would have smacked him sideways and called him an idiot. But he was stuck wandering the shell on his own, trying to make sense of it all.

He literally can't believe how stupid he'd been. It would have taken him seconds to go back and get a condom, but he'd been too wrapped up, and too convinced that it wouldn't happen to them that he'd not bothered. He was an idiot.

When Tommy reached the edge of the shell he skidded to a halt to watch the waves lap at the edge, flopping down so he can catch his breath and look out over the vast ocean to try and clear his head and figure out what the hell he was going to do.]

Comments

[andaway]

God, no.

[Said in a joking way but seriously. No. Being a dad freaks him out.] But I care about you, and I will be by your side.

[crotcharrow]

[He tugs away softly, quite obviously having calmed down a lot. He runs a hand through his hair and gives a short frown, before looking up at Kal. He doesn't know how he got this--would you call him a friend?--and he doesn't even know a lot about him.]

Y'know, I like, know nothing about you.

[andaway]

[He opens up his arms, a smile on his face. He's glad to have a way to keep Tommy's mind away from the whole... mess.]

Well, what do you want to know? Ask away.

[crotcharrow]

Do you even have a secret identity or are you just... Super. All the time.

[God that sounded so gay.] 'Cause that's gotta be exhausting.

[andaway]

[A grin] So 'what do I do when I'm not saving the world'? I'd tell you if I could, but secret identities are a big thing in my world. I've kept mine safe ever since I went public, decades ago.

But I promise you if you ever find out and simply come to me and ask if I'm said person, I'll be honest.

[crotcharrow]

[Tommy frowns.] Yeah, they were big in mine too. But, it's not like we're on our world right now, right?

[He's not trying to pry it out of him, but. Tommy just feels like he knows nothing about this guy. And he seems to know a lot about him. Or cares enough to find out more. There's a brief pause.]

Decades... How old are you?

[andaway]

I still have people to protect. [A hint, if a subtle one.]

I'm older than 30, younger than 40. [Barely since he's almost 40, but still.] I look younger because of my aliens genes.

[crotcharrow]

So what, your nemesis is here or something?

[Not a hint caught.]

Oh, so not a mutant?

[andaway]

[He smiles as he shakes his head.] No, not a mutant. I'm an alien, a Kryptonian to be precise.

From Krypton.

[crotcharrow]

[He eyes him.]

So why the... humanish look? You guys shapeshifters? My friend Teddy is half skrull and half kree and he can shift.

[andaway]

[Well that's the most sensitive question he's been asked after someone found out he was an alien. You get brownie points Tommy.]

No, this is my real look. We don't know why out species evolved so similarly but there are only a couple key differences that we've found.

My powers being obviously one of them.

[crotcharrow]

[Pls, Kal. Tommy knows too many aliens to be phased by it.]

See, in my world, your powers would just mean you're a mutant. Aliens kinda look. Y'know. [He shrugs.] Alien.

This one girl I know, Karolina? She's pretty normal looking, but when she takes off this special metal bracelet that blocks her powers she's like a rainbow lava lamp.

[andaway]

[Kal frowns] But I'm no mutant, I wasn't human to begin with. I was born on Krypton, so I'm an alien.

I only came to Earth later on, it was mere luck my parents found a planet with inhabitants that looked enough like me.

[crotcharrow]

Oh, no I meant. A human shaped person with superpowers. People just assume you're a mutant until proved alien.

[He runs a hand through his hair.]

Huh. What're the chances of that?

[andaway]

Higher than one would think actually, this shape is useful in the long run. It makes sense than evolution lead us this way, even in different planets.

I've met humanoids from other planets as well.

[crotcharrow]

Weird. Thinking about that stuff--like, aliens and parallel universes and stuff--kinda makes my head hurt. Even after being to a few.