Between working at X-Gene Persuasions, the greenhouse at the Mansion, and the Haven, Derek rarely had time for himself anymore. With the possibility of school starting in the fall, Derek schedule will almost be completely full with little time to just relax and be on his own. Now don't get the cinnamon roll wrong, he loved hanging out with Xavia, Allegra, and Arty, but sometimes he just wanted to be alone.

So in honor of his free time, Derek decided that he wanted to business, commercial part of town. There he would be able to window shop to his heart's content and check out the passing studs that caught his eye. Wearing a pair of jeans and a V-neck green t-shirt, he made the decision that he would buy some more clothes and at the very least accessories to go with his outfit. Perhaps some more wrist bands or a new watch.

Don needed some money. He was tired of having to sleep on flea infested mattresses in abandoned homes. With enough money he might be able to buy a fake ID so he could actually rent somwhere. So he decided to go to the commercial district where everyone was too busy looking at fancy clothes to notice a missing wallet.

He saw a young man walking down the street and knew this was an opportunity. The guy was probably early 20's and looked to be moderatly well off. As he was looking into the various windows of stores Don walked up behind him and carefully stuck his hand into the man's pocket.

Derek was about to start walking again when he felt someone's hand in his pocket. He quickly turned around and grabbed the hand . "What are you..."He was about to yell at the guy when he realized that it was only a teenager. Derek studied the guy's face closely, his nostrils flaring a bit. This kid looked a little rough like he'd been living on the streets or somewhere.

"...If you need money, ask, don't go stealing' from people." Derek let go to get out his wallet. He was certainly too nice in some people's opinion, but in Derek's mind it's easier to catch flies with honey and not vinegar. "...what do you need it for anyways? Drugs?"

Don definitely wasn't ready when the guy turned around and grabbed his hand. He tightly closed his eyes as he was expecting to get decked for trying to steal from him. But after a few seconds of nothing happening he opened his eyes only to see the man just staring at him.

And then he actually let go of Don and started going for his wallet! Don wasn't used to this, most of the time when people caught him they'd go straight for their phone to call the cops. "A home," if this was a normal conversation that's all he would have said. Actually maybe not even that much, but Don felt pulled to this stranger for some reason, like he could trust him. "I've been living anywhere I could fit, and I'm just tired of it all."

Derek stopped in his tracks. He was homeless and had to steal in order to feed himself. The mutant's eyes softened and decided against giving the kid money. "Let me buy you lunch, then we can see about you havin' a place to stay. How does that sound?"Derek didn't know what the teenager hold been through, but he was determined to hear what he had to say.

"...Com'on, kid." He jerked his head over his shoulders, "let's get some warm food in your belly, huh?" He smiled a bit and turned around as he began walking again.

Don didn't know how to react. Why was he being so nice, was this some sort of weird ploy? Even if it was lunch sounded amazing, he hadn't eaten all day. He nodded his head "Great."

The smile the man gave, even if it was brief, made him feel all warm inside. Maybe he was just being nice after all. Do people like that really exist? When the man started walking away Don followed him, mouth almost watering at the thought of warm food.

After a couple of minutes, Derek came to a Chinese restaurant that he and one of his best friends, Xavia, loved and entered in. He kept the door open for the teenager before he headed to the hostess stand. They were seated at a booth and given menus.

"So, let's start with your name and how old you are, fhen we can work from there." Derek placed his hands on the table and gave him a soft smile to the boy. Their waitress came over and asked what they wanted to drink.

"Water for me."

The restaurant looked interesting compared to what he had recently been eating which mostly consisted of cold canned food and junk food. And the man even held the door open for him. Okay, that coupled with the accent... this guy couldn't be from New York.

There was that smile again. "Al..alright, my name is Don, I mean.. it's Donahue but... just call me Don." God! Why was he so nervous, these were simple questions! "And I'm..." he debated on telling him a fake age but realized that it would probably make things worse. "17."

He turned to look at the waitress. "Oh. Um, water too. I guess."

The waitress went to fill their drink orders as Derek kept his eyes trained on Donahue. "Well, nice to meet you, I'm Derek Menes and I'm twenty years old." Derek felt that it was only far that he introduce himself right back to Don.

He paused when their waitress came back with drinks. She asked if they needed a few more minutes and Derek answered yes. With her gone for a few, he turned his attention to Don. "So, is there anything special about you or a reason why you're homeless?" He was attempting to ask him if he was a mutant without outright saying it.

20 hmm? Only 3 years older than himself. Yet he seemed so much more collected than Don could ever be. If he found someone trying to take his wallet his first reaction wouldn't be to give him money.

He gulped down a few sips of water before answering, "Yeah, um, I mean I have some things with my genetics and...  " He took a deep breath as he wasn't sure about his next words, "Screw it", he whispered to himself before speaking normally. "I'm a mutant." That seemed far easier than what he thought it'd be like.

Well, that was easier than expected. So he was a mutant. That would make things a lot easier and simpler for Derek. With a smile, Derek took a sip of his water. "I'm glad to hear it. I'm a mutant too and I want to help you. You shouldn't be sleepin' on the ground or be homeless." Derek knew that he wouldn't want that for himself. He smiled a bit more before turning his attention down to his menu.

"I'm thinkin' about getting the sweet and sour chicken with shrimp fried rice and maybe a spring roll. What about yourself? You can have anything on the menu." Derek wanted to make sure he was full and content before getting up from the table.

He was a mutant too? But he seemed so casual not like all the mutants on the news either causing chaos or scared for their lives. And he wanted to help him? Maybe today's not so bad. He allowed himself a small smile at Derek's words.

Oh right.. the menu. Don looked down on it before deciding. After eating such small portions for a few months it didn't take much to fill him up. But since he was offering he might eat a little past that. "I think I'll get orange chicken with steamed rice and some wantons and... " he scanned the menu a little more "kung pao beef," he looked up at Derek "I mean, if that's okay."

"Orange chicken sounds good. I tried makin' it at home, but it never turns out the way I want it to." That's one thing Derek hated about trying to mimic dishes was that they never got it to taste the same as the real thing in restaurant. Honestly, that's why he only cooked dishes that he knew he could prefect. "Sure, get what you want, I don't mind." Derek smiled and looked over the menu again before finalizing his meal.

When the waitress came over and retrieved their order, Derek turned back to Donahue. "So, what, ah, can you do?"

He thought back to all of his attempts at cooking over the years. "Yeah, well at least you haven't almost set fire to your house trying to cook before." He started to laugh at that.

Don paused for a second trying to think on how to word it. "I gain claws and my arms get hard, like leather, and more muscular but... I can't control it. It only happens whenever I'm really need it or when I'm really angry. And my instincts take over, it's more like it controls me."

"...That's true." He chuckled and studied his face from the opposite side of the table. What were the odds that Derek would run into a homeless mutant on his way to buy clothes. At that thought he had to chuckle to himself and shake his head.

Derek nodded his head as he listened to Don tell him about his mutation, "that's very interestin', Don," And he was sure that he could be a problem if it wasn't handle properly. He took a sip of his water and smiled warmly, "...There's this place called ' Sanctuary '. It's a homeless shelter for mutants. I think we can get you in. I can get you in. Do you have a phone?" Derek would make sure that Donahue was safe and sound before the day would end.