It had been over a week--a week and a half, to be exact, but who besides Jason was counting?--since that night he'd finally gotten the nerve to speak to Lee. She'd walked into his life, proving herself to quite possibly be the girl of his dreams, and then...she was gone in an instant. Part of him knew she would, but another held onto that shred of hope. But...she never called. 

And not only that, he hadn't even seen her since that night, though he figured maybe that was for the best. After all, though he told himself he could handle it if this turned out to be a one night tryst...he wasn't sure how true that was now. He couldn't think straight, and he often found himself thinking about her. Honestly...it was ruining him.

And so, he found himself back at his favorite bar, where he was a regular, despite this being where he first laid eyes on, developed a crush on, and later went home with her. He sat in his usual corner of the bar, already two beers deep and cracking open his third. Tomorrow was just going to be an off day, because tonight, he was going to see just how deep he could drown his troubles. On top of the normal issues he faced, this piled on top was just....well, the hangover tomorrow would be worth a few hours of peace tonight. Or at least, he hoped so, anyway.

This sort of thing wasn’t supposed to happen. That was the whole reason that Lee did the one night stands, so there were no feelings, no attachment. No pain when things ended, which they obviously would.

And yet, since the morning that she had left Jason’s apartment, Lee had found her mind wandering to him. Thinking about him. Far more often than it should have. Thoughts that were not helped by the fact that she had found Jason’s card, with a little note written on the back, in her jacket. And rather than simply tossing it out, Lee had tucked it into the drawer of her night stand. She tried to tell herself that it was a reminder to never stay for breakfast again, though she knew she had kept it because he had given it to her, to remember him.

But she hadn’t called him. She was already feeling much more than she should have been, there was no reason to make the situation worse by calling Jason.

At least she had had work to help keep her busy. She hadn’t been out at night other than work for a week and a half. But she now had a night off, and for her, spending the night at home wasn’t an option unless she wanted to be up and moving at 6 the next morning. Energy was not abundant in her apartment, after all.

So Lee had gotten ready, deciding to straighten her hair that night, Lee got ready. The dress she decided on was a little longer than her usual, but it was a fairly cold night out and those extra couple inches of fabric out help keep her warm while she walked.

Finally satisfied, boots and jacket on, Lee left her apartment and started walking. And without making a conscious decision about it, she ended up at the same bar she had met Jason at a week and a half earlier. Well, she hadn’t seen him before that night, and she was simply there to have a few drinks and get some energy. Surely it’d be an alright night.

So as she walked in, Lee made her way up to the bar, not slipping her jacket off until she managed to snag an empty bar stool. Draping her coat over the back, Lee sat down and waved over a bartender to order a beer.

Jason was engrossed in his beer when his nostrils instinctively flared a little, picking up a familiar distinctive scent of perfume, and an overtone of coffee. It was a scent he'd grown to know and look for, but now....he dreaded it. Looking up, he saw Lee walk in, and he promptly ordered two more beers.

His eyes occasionally darted to her, but he averted them; he didn't want to think about her, and now here she was. And it was driving him crazy as he tried to figure out what went wrong. Was it breakfast? Was it the note? Though it was merely a 'Thanks for the fun time, call me if you need anything--Jason ' but...he couldn't help but think he'd messed up. Though maybe it was like it always was. His mistake was that he fell for her. That he felt a click that likely was only real to him.

He turned up his half-empty beer bottle, figuring that since Lee was here, he was going to have to make it an early night. And maybe tomorrow, he'd have to hunt for a new bar to frequent.

Lee hadn’t been in the bar long, she’d only managed to drink a quarter of her first beer, when someone came up beside her. Lee closed her eyes and took another sip of her beer as she heard the man speak.

”Hey there, sweetie. Can I buy you a drink?”

Lee was not in the mood for this, she wasn’t planning, or even wanting, company of any sort tonight. She was simply out for the energy she needed to get, nothing more. Opening her eyes, Lee shook her head but kept her gaze on the bottle she held in her hand. ”No thanks. I’ve got one,” Lee replied simply, hoping the man would get the hint and leave.

Unfortunately, he didn’t seem to take the hint. ”Ah, I see you do. Then I hope you don’t mind me having a drink with you.”

Lee crossed her legs as she sat on the stool, using the movement to let her angle herself slightly away from the man. ”I would mind, actually.”

Her eyes never met his. Maybe that's what he was hoping for, but from the looks of it, she didn't even notice him. Then...some guy approached her, and he left both unopened beers on the table but placed enough money on the table to cover his full tab plus tip. He couldn't bare to watch this; couldn't stand to see her leaving with someone else.

It was then that he realized...if they were just going to be a one time thing, then...he couldn't be a part of her life. Nor her his. But as he reached the door, he turned to look one last time, as if to say goodbye, but he noticed something. The body language was off, and not only that, his keen hearing picked up pieces of the conversation. This guy was harassing her. Sure, she may not have wanted another night with him, but he wasn't going to let anyone give her crap, either. Nothing she did could deserve that.

Turning, he walked to the bar and tucked his glasses into his pocket before spinning the guy around and delivering an uncharacteristic punch to the stomach, grabbing him by the collar as adrenaline surged through his body. "I believe she said she wasn't interested. So back the **** off," he hissed.

Once this was settled, he had every intention of walking out of the door as well, never looking back.

This guy wasn’t taking the hint. Lee thought that she was being pretty clear about her intentions, not looking at him, not accepting his offers, but apparently it wasn’t enough. A frown on her face now, Lee was about to straight up tell him to leave.

And then she heard another voice, a surprisingly familiar voice behind her. Turning on her chair, sure enough Lee saw Jason standing there. Right after having punched the guy that hadn’t been taking a hint in the stomach.

Lee’s eyes widened in surprise. Not that she had really needed the help, though there was no way Jason would have known that, she had not even imagined this.

”Jason,” Lee said, though she had to swallow before she was able to say more. It really shouldn’t be this hard to simply talk to him. ”I think he might have gotten the point now.”

Jason stood there in shock for a moment at what he'd done, letting go of the guy's collar as Lee spoke. Her voice was...different, but then again, this was a different situation. "Yeah...well, I'm glad you're okay, anyway," he murmured, his own voice also a bit off. But she was okay, and the guy hopefully got the hint. With the jerk slumped on the ground now, Jason stepped over him, making his way abruptly out of the bar.

He hated it. He wanted more than anything to hold her in his arms and tell her it was okay, but...she never called. Never contacted him, which told him she didn't want what he did. And he was okay with that, but...he had to leave. Sighing, he made his way out of the bar, and turned into an alley, taking somewhat of an odd way home tonight. But maybe a change of scenery would be what he needed.

As she spoke, Lee watched Jason let go of the other man's collar, and the guy collapsed to the ground. Not unconscious, merely having trouble catching his breath. And then Jason was speaking, though it sounded weird to Lee, not at all how he had sounded the night they had spent together.

She nodded. She was alright, well, at least she was alright in terms of what the guy had put her through.

But before she was able to form the words to say anything, Jason had already turned, turn just as he had that other night. Only this time she didn't have the words to stop him. So instead Lee had to watch as he walked through the bar. And it into the night.

There was a frown on Lee's face as she sat there for a few moments. And then she was moving, sliding of the bar stool, grabbing her jacket off the back of the stool as she followed Jason. She didn't know why, she didn't even think to actually put her jacket on before she stepped out into the cold air.

Shivering, Lee looked around just in time to see Jason turn into an alleyway a little down the street. So Lee followed, only slowing down as she stepped into the alley herself. ”Jason?”]/color]

He had his hands stuffed in his jacket pockets as he walked, his head low. He knew he'd done the right thing by stepping in for her, but...just being in the same area as her hurt for some reason. Mentally, he was kicking himself for getting too attached, and he was weighing the odds of just going to another bar, getting black-out drunk, and waking up in an alley tomorrow. It wouldn't make him feel better, but it'd at least give him something better to do that just go home and sulk while getting black out drunk.

He sighed, but before he reached the end of the alley, he heard her voice, very clearly due to his keen sense of hearing. It was her voice; and it was his name it spoke. Though it wasn't spoken like she'd usually said it, she still followed him. But he didn't want to turn around. He reminded himself if he was to be okay with them being a one-time-deal...he couldn't turn around.

But he turned around and not only that, he walked back to her, looking her in the eyes, that usual twinkle nowhere to be found. "Hey, Lee..." he said; this was somewhat awkward...

Lee didn't know why she had followed Jason out of the bar, why she had followed him into the alley. And though it was dark and she could barely see him, Lee knew that he was up ahead, she could feel the energy.

Which helped since he didn't answer her right away. Not that she could blame him. Lee was sure he had been hoping she would call, he had given her his card. So out had to be weird. It was weird for her, too.

As she saw Jason finally approaching her, Lee shivered, not consciously realizing that she was still holding her jacket instead of wasting it. But what was she supposed to say now?

Why had she stayed for breakfast? Why had he stepped in with that guy in the bar? Why head he punched him? Why had she followed him out?

”Why?” she asked, though she wasn't sure which question she was asking. Possibly all of them.

He looked at her as his heart caught in his chest, almost feeling as if it was about to rip in two. As his eyes met hers, he didn't see her as she was now; his mind kept seeing her as she was the first time she walked into the bar, that smile she'd sported when he finally did talk to her. Saw her wearing his shirt as he cooked her breakfast. He couldn't say he didn't expect it to end this way, but he was hoping against it. But now they were in an alley, together, and he was confused.

"Why what?" he asked, taking a deep breath.

"Hey! You think you're funny, don't you?" The voice cut through the air as the guy approached from the other end of the alley. He must have walked around to head him off. He was approaching with a broken bottle in his hand, so Jason knew this wasn't about to be pretty.

He sighed, deciding if he was coming out of this with minimal damage, he couldn't fight head on. Not like this. So, he took a few steps forward, cracking his neck a little before steadying his breath and tucking his glasses into his pocket. Then, in the blink of an eye, there was a German Shepherd standing where Jason had been. His ears were pricked back and his teeth were bared as a growl escaped his throat. Every muscle in his canine body tensed as his tail stiffened, and the guy nearly tripped over himself getting out of there. Then, Jason was standing there again, putting his glasses back on and wiping a bead of sweat from his brow. This time, he didn't turn back to Lee. Now, he was sure this was over.

Why? If she knew why, Lee would have been able to ask a better, more detailed question. Hell, she might not have needed to ask the question at all, or felt the need to follow Jason from the bar.

But before she was able to even attempt to say anything, Lee heard another voice, the voice of the man who hadn't taken the give that she wasn't interested.

Eyes darting over, Lee took a half step back in shock. He was holding a broken bottle in his hand. This was not good, not good at all. Lee hadn't been in the bar for nearly long enough to deal with something like this .

But then she saw Jason stepping forward, toward the man. Taking his glasses off and tucking then in a pocket. Lee's first thought was wondering what he was doing, but then she remembered that he had used to be a cop. Why did she remember that?

And suddenly, where Jason had been standing there was now a German Shepherd. Lee barely registered as the other man ran away, her eyes were focused on the dog. The dog that stood where Jason had stood only moments earlier.

Jason was a mutant. Her mind went back to that night a week and a half ago. He'd quit as a cop because of a mutant controversy that stained his reputation. He helped mutants hide and integrate into society.

He'd all but told her that he was a mutant. And she hadn't even guessed.

Just as suddenly as the dog had appeared, Jason was standing in front of her once again. But he didn't turn to look at her, he simply stayed facing the direction the other man had run as he put his glasses back on.

As she stood there shivering, looking at Jason's back, Lee swallowed. She could just walk away. With how mutants were treated he'd likely believe that was why she left. It would be understandable. Wrong, on a number of counts, but understandable.

Instead, Lee slowly walked toward Jason. ”We should get out of here,” she whispered. ”Don't want him deciding to come back with friends and finding you here.”

He stood there a moment, his hearing tuned to her footsteps. But...they sounded like they were coming closer instead of farther away. Maybe now that she knew one of his bigger secrets, she was just going to put him out of his misery. ...But she didn't. Instead, she spoke. We? Did she really say we?

"Honestly, I was under the impression there was no 'we,'" he murmured sadly, but turned to look at her, then smiled softly as he closed the distance a little, gently pulling her jacket so it at least draped over her shoulders. "Ya know...these tend to work better when you put 'em on," he said with a chuckle before turning to walk again.

Only this time, he walked slower, just seeing if she would follow. He hoped she would, but on the other hand, he felt that may have just been wishful thinking.

He didn't think there was a 'we'. Well, of course he didn't, she hadn't done anything, at all, to indicate she wanted there to be a ‘we’. ”Doesn't mean I want you to get your ass beat by a bunch of bigots because you tried to protect me,” Lee said, her voice still a whisper as she watched Jason turn and walk toward her.

Then she felt him pulling on something she was holding before he wrapped it around her shoulders. Oh, her coat. That would explain why she was so cold. ”I was a little distracted by everything else that was happening,” Lee pointed out softly, then have Jason a slight smile. ”But thanks.”

Then he was walking again. Pushing her arms into the jacket and zipping it up, Lee followed after Jason. ”Though it seems we were both keeping a secret…”

"Comes with the territory," he said with a slight shrug as he continued walking. "Tonight's been a lot to take in. In more ways than one, he murmured softly. His head was still mildly spinning, and she was still going with him.

Secrets? She only knew the one. His past was a secret. His kindled feelings for her were definitely a secret. What was he going to do: tell her he fell for her after one encounter and the time he'd spent watching from afar that his powers probably made closer to stalking than a crush? Yeah that would go over well...

"Maybe so. I'm glad I could help you. But...I think I'ma find a new bar to frequent...if you want to come with me tonight, that's great. You're more than welcome. But..." he sighed. "I'm realizing if I'm to be okay with this being just a one--maybe two-time thing...then I can't see you. I mean...I thought I could handle it, but I couldn't bare seeing you leave with someone else. That's why I was on my way out. Before it turned, that is." He sighed again, not making eye contact.