It was the most important day of the year, or it might as well have been. Nate had been with Quin for quite a few months now, which was a feat for him. She made him happy and she made him want to be better, and now it was her birthday. His birthday was never very important to him, but he wanted to get this day right for Quin.

He asked her what she wanted to do for her birthday, and getting a decision out of her was like pulling teeth. Eventually, she suggested Coney Island. Nate originally dumbly replied, "Like the hot dogs?" For how well versed he kept himself with everything, he did not realize what was actually part of Coney Island. Upon explanation (and teasing,) he realized it was something like a carnival, which he was more than happy to go to with her.

They were approaching their destination on a December day that was warmer than he expected; still chilly, but not the biting winds from the week leading up to her birthday. He asked the birthday girl whose hand he was holding, "So have you been here before?"

Sure it was December, but that didn’t mean that Coney Island was a bad place to go for a birthday celebration. There were still so many things to do. The Cyclone was always fun, who didn’t like a historic, bumpy ride on what was still one of the best roller coasters in the country? If it was chilly on the way down the hills, well that was what jackets and boyfriends were for. There were also the bumper cars, the aquarium, the boardwalk, an ice skating rink, the “freak” show, the wonder wheel, and about every kind of food a person could imagine.

As they walked, and held hands, Nate asked Quin if she’d been to the island before. ”Yup.” she admitted. ”I even did patrol here for a while when I was just on the beat.” There was more crime in the area than people wanted, or wanted to admit. It had been an interesting six months, and Quin had learned more about being a cop late at night out here than anywhere else. Things were improving though, and it was chilly enough out that more than likely they wouldn’t be bothered.

”What about you? Is it your first time?”

He wondered how much crime Quin would have run into on Coney Island; he knew very little about the place, but judging by what he knew of carnivals, he could imagine its share of pickpockets or fights. Nate had been known in the past to incite either for profit or distraction. People were too careless with their belongings in the attention-span reducing environment of a carnival.

"This is my first time, yeah. I didn't even know Coney Island was a real place til you told me." He put his arm around the redhead's waist, both as a show of affection and an attempt to share a little warmth. "That means yer takin the lead for today's shenanigans, birthday girl."

Judging by the lights and festivities ahead, he assumed they were there. He was actually excited; this was like the typical high school date idea he missed out on due to his unusual upbringing, so he felt like a lovestruck teenager. "What should we do first, darlin?"

Quin couldn’t help but be surprised by the fact that Nate had never been heard of Coney Island. Sure, he was from the south, but she was from the Midwest, and she’d heard of the place even before she’d moved to New York. Surely everyone had heard of the famous roller coaster, and the hot dogs...and and stuff.

But apparently not. She was going to have to take the lead on her birthday.

Quin shrugged when he asked what they should do first and looked back and forth. ”Well, I definitely want to ride the wonder wheel at some point. It’s one of those hokey couple things that you just kind of have to do when you’re here. But for now we could probably hit up the midway, waste some money on rigged games, and get some cotton candy. What do you say?”

The wonder wheel sounded like a great cliche romantic moment, which was useful; it could be a fun opportunity to give her a gift in an equally cliche romantic way. Yeah, I think we can save the wheel for later." He reached into his pocket to check on the gift for what must have been the twentieth time.

Nate was surprised by how many attractions there seemed to be. It might have been chilly, but that was not going to stop him from enjoying some rides. "I say fantastic. Though you can get some cotton candy; I'm getting one of those hot dogs." Nate had a refined pallet, enjoyed high-class meals and was a self-taught skilled cook, but there was a weakness shared by all men for hot dogs. (This rule also applied to bacon.)

Trying not to sound like the excitable child he was, he asked, "Should we find a ride? I mean, it could get kinda cold, but I'll just keep you warm!" Translation: Can we go on the big rides? Please? I'll be a good boyfriend! Can we can we can we?

From his reaction, Quin could tell that Nate wanted two things: Hot dogs, and thrill rides. How much more all-American could a guy get? She had to laugh a little at the thinly veiled excitement he exhibit, but smiled anyway. After all, he’d said he’d keep her warm.

”Well, it’s not a big place...but there’s bumper cars, a haunted house ride, one of those hydraulic things that shoots you into the air, and a spinning ride besides the wheel.”

Truth be told, Quin didn’t know if any of the rides qualified as ‘thrill rides’, not compared with the amusement parks she’d visited as a kid around Chicago, but the rides were still cute and fun. Especially on a date.

”You pick though. I’d hate to pick something that’s going to make you puke.”

Everything sounded quaint and fun, like a small town fair in the midst of a big city. He weighed the options she mentioned, by both fun and cuteness factor. He considered bumper cars, but decided not to lead with an activity where he slams his girlfriend with a vehicle. "How about starting out with the haunted house? Who doesn't love cheesy ghosts?"

He laughed at her concern. "Don't worry bout me, I've got a stomach strong enough to handle carnival food; I can handle rides." He pulled her close and walked toward what he assumed would be a haunted house. "So what sort of rides are your favorite?" He was not sure if he pegged Quin as a roller coaster girl or an "easy but fun rides" type.

Even if she hadn’t hinted at it verbally, Quin had kind of been hoping that Nate would want to go for the haunted house ride. It was no tunnel of love, but it was pretty much the next best thing. Haunted houses were a good opportunity for an adrenaline rush...and an even better opportunity to cling to a big strong boyfriend for help.

She grinned. It was a great idea.

Apparently she didn’t have to worry about his stomach either. This was good, because Quin loved the real thrill rides, and the food.

”Good.” she said. ”but I’d have held your hair for you.”

The rest was pretty much decided. ”The haunted house it is.” Quin announced.

”And I like them all. Sideways, spinning, upside down. The faster, higher, scarier, the better.”

So Quin was not the type to shy away from an intimidating ride. To be fair, this was a woman who chose a career path where she pursues dangerous mutants regularly, so she had not given him reason to think she would not be the first one on a death-defying roller coaster. "Really? If that's the case, we might have to take a trip to Cedar Point together for a ride or two." The amusement park had always been his favorite. It had not one, but several of America's tallest, fastest, fall-to-your-doomiest roller coasters. She might have even gone there before; it was in Ohio, so it would have been a five hour ride or so from Chicago.

They made it to the haunted house and waited for a short time for a park worker to signal them toward a car that had come to its complete stop. It was a slow day at the park, probably thanks to the time of the year, so the waits were going to be mercifully short.

The couple shuffled into the car and awaited their departure. Nate was curious what type of place the Haunted House would be; it could be worth a couple of startled reactions and jump-out-of-your-seat moments, or it could be campy. The car began to move and he rested his hand on Quin's knee.

Yes. The haunted house had been the right choice, they hadn’t even had to wait very long. It was chilly in the car, so as soon as they were situated, Quin shuffled closer to Nate with every intention of stealing all his body heat.

The car started moving, and he put his hand on her knee. What better way to ride?

Quin had ridden the ride before, but never with a boyfriend, and never with every intention of jumping at the scary parts. Sure, it was a little campy, but there were still a few spots where the strategically placed air cannons, and things that quickly emerged from dark corners made a person jump. She was ready, and she was planning to jump at all the right times.

She wondered if Nate would do the same.

The scene was eerie and dark, with all the set pieces you could expect: tombstones, creepy paintings, blood and fog. He reminded himself not to be a spoiled sport and act like he was better than the tricks of a haunted house. Manually, Nate forced down the voice in his head that would analyze the setting and where things would pop out of.

Quin was sticking close to him, which was great for him. He tightened his grip on her, looking around, but trying not to focus on processing what he was seeing. The feeling of his hand on her knee got his mind to wandering about her and his gift, hoping she would--

AURGH!

It was a guttural scream accompanying some sort of demon or monster dropping from the ceiling above them without warning. Nate's lack of focus betrayed him and he was totally caught off guard by the beast, jumping in his seat and squeezing Quin's knee more tightly.

Man. Either Nate had never been in a haunted house before, or he really hadn’t been paying attention to what was going on. When the monster popped out from the ceiling and yelled, Nate jumped about a mile out of his seat.

Quin laughed, she couldn’t help herself.

”Little distracted there?” she asked, grinning at her boyfriend in the darkness, and not at all paying attention to the fact that they were approaching the first compressed air gun.

It went off with a whomph sound, and Quin squealed, jerking away from the source of her fright and ending up half in Nate’s lap.

Whoops.

Nate would have rolled his eyes at his snarky girlfriend teasing him, but he barely had time. A conveniently timed blast of air caught Quin by surprised, who was far too occupied poking fun at her boyfriend to be ready for it. She ended up bouncing up into his lap out of shock. He laughed and rested his forehead on her shoulder. "What was that? I couldn't hear ya over all that bravery, detective."

The ride was full of frights to keep them on edge, but Nate wanted to have his own fun. He rested an arm behind Quin, not touching her, attempting to go unnoticed. He was attentive, waiting for something, anything good to jump out at them.

A scattered collection of fake bats flew by, and there it was: a spooky specter appeared instantly on her side of the car. He was already on edge, so he naturally jumped, but his reaction led him to place his hidden hand suddenly on her shoulder in an attempt to scare her. What boyfriend did not like to startle his girlfriend on a haunted ride?

Quin knew that in order to dish out the teases, one needed to be able to take them too. Finding herself in Nate’s lap was less than punishment though, so she just laughed as he put his head on her shoulder and snuggled in for the rest of the ride.

The fake bats had always been a nice touch, and as they approached a ghost that Quin was ready for, she again reveled in the way Nate jumped. At least they were having fun.

A hand suddenly grabbed her shoulder and Quin squeaked again before she realized that it was simply Nate, trying to scare her again.

”Ha ha. Very funny.” she said with the tiniest of pouts. ”Fortunately, the ride is almost over.”

It was childish, but Nate laughed as his girlfriend pouted. She was so damn cute when she pouted. "Oh, you know I'm just teasing. Besides, I like this ride." He wrapped his arm back around her, pulling her close as she should be in a ride like this.

She was right though; the ride was just about finished. There were a few smaller scares, leading to the last smokey room, with what seemed like a gargoyle that came out of nowhere. He jumped in surprise, but when he was able to look it over, he started chuckling; after meeting a walking, talking gargoyle girl, the idea seemed silly.

They reached the end of the ride and Nate helped Quin out of the car like a gentleman. "That last thing totally reminded me of one of the students I saw at Xavier School." He had visited her there just a few days beforehand, now that he thought about it.

They made it outside and he looked around at the attractions. "Alright, I picked Haunted House, so it's your turn to pick, birthday girl."