The rooftop was quiet, and there was no one there other than the two of them. It was that time in the afternoon, leading up to sunset, when even the business of the city fell away, and the world seemed to calm down. Sveta breathed deeply. It was an illusion, in more ways than one; the city was just as busy as ever (going in to rush hour, no less), and things did not cease to be messed up. But it was a nice place to take a break.

>>“It’s quiet; simpler up here. I don’t have to think about things as much.”

Sveta moved to sit next to Matt on the couch, looking out over the roof. It was comfortable; the couch, the rooftop, the moment. She glanced over at Matt as he rested the guitar against the back of the couch.

"Did you bring Chris up here too?"

The cushions relented against his weight as he leaned back against the couch, watching as Svetlana took a seat next to him. This was his own place, but he didn’t mind sharing it with her so much. She was a kindred spirit who seemed like she could also use a place to escape every once and awhile. Every once and awhile when the world became too much or just wouldn’t stop for a second. It was somewhere that could become a refuge if let be, or it could just be a nice view for a time. That was fine, too.

"Did you bring Chris up here too?"

Matt grinned to keep himself from laughing. He couldn’t imagine Chris in a space like that, honestly. He could, however, picture her making a mess of it, bringing girls up there and making the place her own. She was a great person, and he did enjoy spending time with her, but Chris was on a level that was not the same as his. She was off in her own place when he was dealing with his feelings. Who else had he met ever that could empathize as much as Svetlana? He couldn't think of a single face.

“No, I didn’t bring Chris up here,” he said with a hint of a chuckle in his voice. Chris, who was more like his younger sister than anything else, did not belong up there. “No, just you.” That was the truth. He might've brought his sister up there, but the time never seemed to fit; she was a busy person. Everyone else... well, it just wasn't a place for them. He was sharing something personal with her.

Sveta wondered if Matt brought his guests up there on the roof very often. It was a neat place, but also felt... too quiet for entertainment. A little too personal, like glancing into his mind when he was looking for a moment on peace. Which made Sveta wonder, why was she up here now? Maybe she was overthinking it. Or maybe Matt just thought that she would like it too, since she was on a very similar quest for peace and quiet. He was not wrong.

>>“No, I didn’t bring Chris up here. No, just you.”

Sveta smiled softly. She couldn't imagine the other woman up here either. It also made her feel special, in a way, to be invited. She needed to think on that. They sat in silence for a bit, before she spoke.

"I should probably tell you the truth about my powers." It was time; she had already gotten more into his trust, and his personal space, than she had planned. "I wasn't... entirely honest about what I can do."

He had needed to clarify that bringing people up to the rooftop wasn’t something that he normally did. It was a spot that he didn’t often like to share with the rest of the world, since it was an escape, not somewhere that he wanted to be crowded by people who didn’t understand the significance. Sure, it was a shared location, but he did feel a bit of ownership over it. Maybe that had come with the territory of having most other things in his life be in a constant state of change.

Still, he didn’t know what Svetlana’s intentions were behind the question. Was she wondering if this was his usual move if he wanted to get in someone’s pants? While, yes, she was gorgeous and he liked her, he hadn’t brought her up there for that intention. He’d brought her up there because he wanted to share something that he thought she’d enjoy.

That seemed to make her smile a little. He watched her out of the corner of his eye, looking how her face seemed to brighten at the realization that she had been invited there specially. His own face mirrored her a little, the corners of his mouth turning up a little as he looked down at his hands, which were clasped in his lap. He shifted just a little in his seat, crossing his arms instead as he turned to her.

There was something that she hadn’t told him about her powers. He looked at her quizzically, his brow furrowing as he studied her. He had been under the impression that they’d gotten so personal with each other that there was little else to tell, but there was a chance that she just hadn’t felt comfortable enough to explain it at the time. What else would there be to tell, though? Would it have any effect on him? That seemed impossible, but the way that she was posing it made it seem like there was something worse that she hadn’t told him.

“Alright, shoot,” he prompted, lifting his chin just a little toward her in time with the sentence. What could she say that could make him change his opinion of her at this point? She’d already heard the worst from him and taken that in stride.

>>“Alright, shoot.”

She owed him this much. Somewhere deep down Sveta knew that she was being sentimental, and possibly making a mistake that could put her in danger. But she also did not want to spend the rest of her life seeing an enemy in everyone. The only person she could trust was herself, and from what she had seen so far, Matt was okay. And before this whole private roof and music thing got any further, she owed him an explanation. She hoped that after all the personal things they shared, maybe she could trust him with this too.
He was willing to give it a shot, anyway.

"I'm not really human caffeine." she admitted, staring down at her hands, fidgeting with the gloves "... not only that, anyway. I have an aura that energizes people... that's true. But what it really is... I can boost mutant powers." she paused glancing up "A lot. Even just by touching someone with gloves on. Skin to skin, I can make a mutant very powerful. And kissing is worse than that." she paused again "I can activate dormant powers with a kiss. Or boost one out of control. I have... people have died before, because of that." She could not bring herself to say any more than that. Not for now.

"I guess what I am saying is... I am one of the most powerful mutants in the city. But only when others are around. And because of that, everybody wants me on their side. Nicely, or by force." she sighed "Dat's why I keep getting kidnapped."

As far as confessions went, this was almost a complete one. She glanced up again, to see how Matt was taking the news so far.

The way that Svetlana had described her powers suggested that she just gave people a boost for a while, like coffee. Matt couldn’t feel it, obviously, but he had assumed that it was something like just… a good feeling? He supposed that he hadn’t put much actual thought into what it would be like. He’d sort of taken the fact that he wouldn’t be able to experience it at face value. That was that.

Except, that wasn’t that at all. There was more that she hadn’t told him, either from fear or shame about what had happened. Matt took in a deep breath as he listened to her describe the way that she could intensify powers and activate them without meaning to. His elbow rested on the back of the couch and his hand was used to rest his chin as he looked at her. There was no judgement in his features, just a little bit of sadness.

He knew what guilt felt like. The way that she was unable to finish her sentence reminded him of some of the body language of his friend. Taking the life of another person was an act that changed you forever, and having it be an accident could alter a person completely. Was it her fault if it was just a part of her, though? Hardly, Matt figured, though that was unlikely to matter.

So, she didn’t touch people. She didn’t spend time around people. What else could she do, if everyone was trying to ruin her life all the time? Matt nodded slowly, his eyes heavy with understanding. He almost reached out to grab her hand, but he thought better of it. He hadn’t paid much attention to the fact that she didn’t like to touch people before, but now he was acutely aware of it. Had it bothered her when he’d taken her hand before? He hadn’t even thought about that very much.

Now he felt bad about teasing her about the kidnappings, too. God, he just felt bad in general, messing with the woman’s trust when she was so clearly lacking in it. “So that’s why you wear the gloves,” he said dumbly. He didn’t want to patronize her, but he felt like he needed to say something. Something to show that while the idea was a lot, he wasn’t about to judge. He didn’t have the ground for that.

Matt listened in silence as she explained how her powers worked. Sveta was keeping an eye on his reactions; she was not sure if he would show confusion, or shock, or pity, or a mixture of all of them. He didn't say anything for a long time, but he listened, in a way that made her feel like he was actually following what she was trying to say. She paused, in the end, giving him time to process. Or say something.

>>“So that’s why you wear the gloves,”

She nodded, glancing down at her hands again. He had been focusing on the gloves from the first time they met. He already knew back then that she was not telling the whole truth.

"I thought I owed you an explanation" she said finally "It would not have been fair... otherwise. I tend to be dangerous to be around. It's better now, with my job... I have people I can trust, they look out for me." Haven really was all that the name implied "But also..." she glanced at Matt again "It would not have been fair to you. I can't touch people without bracing for the worst. Even if they say they are human. So adapteds... are the only ones I can be comfortable around." she shook her head, realizing that she was probably confessing too much "That's not why I'm here. I don't want you to think that. But also, I thought you should know."

It wasn’t fair of him to pity. He had spent years trying to tell people that he didn’t want their pity and he definitely didn’t want them to give him the look that he was probably giving her in that moment. She couldn’t control the fact that she had abilities as much as she could control her eye colour. She had done her best to control their effect on others, but there was only so much that she could do, it sounded like. Even when she was wearing gloves, she still had an aura and the ability to boost powers that couldn’t be turned off.

She didn’t owe him anything, really, but there seemed to be an understanding between the two of them. There was nothing that was off the table as far as honesty went, and Matt had displayed this with his own admissions of truth earlier, so she must’ve felt like it was necessary. Part of him wondered whether he would have told her that it wasn’t if she had given him the choice. He did want to know, all things considered.

Dangerous to be around. That was how she described herself. He’d been around dangerous people before, but he could see why she might say that. Constantly being kidnapped and under the watchful eye of anyone who wanted to use her abilities. No wonder she was a little paranoid; he would be, too. Thankfully, she was in a good place for the time being. She had people watching out for her. Matt nearly opened his mouth to say that she was safe as long as she was with him, but he said nothing. They had just met, and as much as he liked her, he couldn’t go making promises like that.

The real kicker, though, was that she really couldn’t touch anyone. Not even humans. According to Svetlana, the only people that she was really safe around were adapteds. Matt rolled in his lips and nodded slightly, seeing the implications of that immediately. What a strange turn of events - she only wanted him for his body. She quickly added that she didn’t want him to think that, but it was a little difficult not to have his mind go there. He liked her, but was she only putting up with him for the feeling of not having her powers on? He’d teased her about it back at the bar, but what if that was the truth after all?

“I get it,” he said simply, scratching the bridge of his nose as his eyebrows raised. Did he actually get it? Mostly. Probably. He hoped that she was telling the truth there. “Thank you for telling me. Trusting me.”

Sveta was very much aware that her confession was probably ruining something that had not even started yet. She felt comfortable around Matt, and she was beginning to consider him a friend. It would not have been true to say that she was staying around him for the aura; not after that first evening when they shared (most of) their secrets. If it only had been the aura, she would have jumped him by now, like she did with Booker. But it also would not have been fair to not tell him what kind of effect adapteds had on her. So, in the interest of fairness, she told him all of it. If it was enough to make him decide that he wanted to walk away, she was just going to have to deal with that.

She could see in his face that he was hesitant. Maybe he didn't know what to say. The whole thing was a lot.

>>“I get it. Thank you for telling me. Trusting me.”

"It's strange isn't it." she chuckled a little "I don't usually trust people this much. It must have been the music," she added, nodding at the guitar. He trusted her with something too.

It might’ve been a little strange to learn Svetlana’s real connection to adapteds, but he still understood why she hadn’t told him. She had a lot to lose by making wrong moves, so anything that she told people would be a risk. Just because he didn’t have powers didn’t necessarily mean that he wasn’t also potentially dangerous. He wasn’t, of course, but he’d proven that to her. They’d been vulnerable with one another and that allowed them both to show the merits of it.

There was still a nagging voice in the back of his mind going off about how she was only there because he turned her powers off, but he pushed it aside for the time being. She had been honest about everything else, so there was no reason why she wouldn’t be honest now. He just wished that he could believe that completely. Would there always be that feeling when he was around her? Feeling like she was only there for an escape or because she could safely hold his hand without having to worry about blowing up the city? Svetlana didn’t seem like that kind of person, and he felt like they were closer than that by now, but he couldn’t help but think about it.

Svetlana was chuckling as she started talking again, and Matt couldn’t help but give her a small smile. Must’ve been the music. He reached over and grabbed his guitar from where he had leaned it against the couch and slung it back over his chest. He grinned at her as he began to strum a chord or two quietly, playing the strings in simple arpeggios.

“Are you sure it’s not the broody musician look?” he asked teasingly, the mood lighter than it had been before. He was trying to get the doubts out of his mind, and it was working for the most part. “I’ve heard that that’s really popular these days.” It had worked for him in high school, anyway.

Matt seemed a little relieved when she mentioned the music, and he picked up the guitar again. Sveta wondered if he felt disappointed to learn that his aura was attractive to her. She certainly knew first hand what it was like to be wanted by other people solely for her powers, or for her looks. She did not want Matt to think that, but she was also not sure how to convince him otherwise. Or whether she even wanted to convince him...

>>“Are you sure it’s not the broody musician look? I’ve heard that that’s really popular these days.”

"Oh, you are rocking the look" she grinned, settling back to allow him to play "But if it had been just that, I would have made a move on you back at the bar." It was true. It was a lot easier to have a one night stand with someone before you found out all their painful secrets. Sveta leaned back looking at Matt, waiting for him to say something, or rather, play something...

The “broody musician” thing was something that he was more than adept at pulling out of his hat. He had been playing the guitar since he was little, and singing along came naturally with that. Plus, he could smoulder like no one else; it was one of his special talents.

As such, it made good fodder to tease her with as well as himself. She had claimed that it was just the music, and was sticking to that. Otherwise, she would have made a move on him back at the bar. He chuckled and leaned his head back slightly, tapping his hands on the top of his guitar. Wouldn’t that have been a change of events? “It wasn’t that easy, was it?” he pointed out soberly. If they had just had a one night stand rather than actually speaking, then there would have been a specific change of pace. What would he even know about his abilities if that had been the case? Would he want to know? They were likely much better off in this scenario.

Plus, he liked getting to know Svetlana.

“Instead we got each other’s baggage,” he continued, more to himself than to her. “I think I like it that way around. It’s been good getting to know you, Svetlana.” No more explanation was needed.

She seemed to be waiting for him to do something, and he was still holding his guitar, so he went back to strumming a few chords. A brief flash of eye contact, and he decided to play another song. A bar or two in, he began to add in lyrics. This one was less of a question, and more of a feeling. He felt like the air was right for another song, and he didn’t want to leave empty space for things to be awkward or strange again.

Was there an alternate universe out there somewhere, getting ready to invade New York City, where another Sveta and another Matt met under different circumstances, and had an awesome one night stand with no strings attached?
Probably.

>> “It wasn’t that easy, was it?”

Sveta smirked and shook her head. Things about her were of many kinds, but never easy. She was a little relieved that he took up the banter, though. If she had shot a chance at anything else with her confession, at least she had a friend she could talk to without watching her words. She was more than content with that.

>>“Instead we got each other’s baggage. I think I like it that way around. It’s been good getting to know you, Svetlana.”

Sveta had different kinds of smiles. She smirked sarcastically a lot, and grinned when she was exchanging banter; sometimes she smiled twisting her lips in a bitter way, and many times she had a soft smile while she was musing about unlikely things. But it was very rare for her to smile with no cynicism or bitterness in the background - the kind of smile one had when paid a unexpected compliment that really touched them. Sveta was not often taken by surprise like that. But she did smile at what Matt said. "You too."

He started playing another song. It started softly at first, and she felt her muscles relaxing again with the music. It was nice to just listen. And of course Matt couldn't keep from singing along with the chords. It was a strange song, not something one would hear often otherwise, but it seemed to fit the rooftop and the sunset, and the quiet between them. Sveta only half listened to the words, but they lulled her into curling up on the couch and closing her eyes. She did not want to stare at Matt while he played, but she did want to take in all the music. And the lyrics. He really did have a nice voice... and he put something else into the music too.
Sveta decided that she really liked this song.