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“Alright! Cole style!” the raspy voice exclaimed before kicking Le Frog in the stomach.
The kick sent the villain flying backwards with a thump as his back collided against the concrete wall of a store. As the red-head superhero punched the air, Le Frog took his chance to slip away into a nearby alley.
“Okay, Le- Wait. Dakota, where did he go?”
Just before he turned a corner and left ear distance of the four teen heroes, Le Frog heard D.C say, “Fuck!”
Once he felt far enough away, Le Frog slumped against a brick wall as he caught his breath. The kick was strong, as usual, and knocked the wind out of him. He barely had enough in him to even get away. There was a tear in the green morph suit he wore - that stupid purple-haired brat and his knife. Blood stained the fabric a dark, murky colour and trickled down. Thankfully, it wasn’t that deep, even though it did sting.
Despite the pounding of his head and the ache of his back (boy, was that one gonna bruise), Le Frog pulled himself up from the ground. He couldn’t let himself stay vulnerable in the streets of Rockfall, especially when those fledgling heroes could be after him.
Just as quickly as he had gotten up, his legs gave way beneath him, and he fell back to the ground. As he waited for the impact, it never came. Instead, he felt arms wrap around him and struggle to keep him upright. With this stranger’s help, Le Frog slowly got to his feet once more. He had no clue who would help him, but he certainly never expected the familiar face in front of him.
“Pe… Percy?” Le Frog was at a loss for words as he gazed at the face of his old lover: Pencil Man, who he knew as Percy Neilson.
“You’re hurt,” Pencil Man - Percy - said, eyebrows furrowed and a worried expression cursing his handsome face. Le Frog had to resist the urge to smooth out the creases.
The former superhero was dressed like an ordinary man. He wore a white collared shirt, a yellow sweater vest over top and tartan plaid pants. His brown hair was just as messy as it always was, and round glasses sat on his face, balanced on his button nose.
He looked around quickly like he was making sure no one was watching even though they stood in an alley. “Come with me, Alex. I can patch you up,”
“I- What?” Le Frog stood dumbfounded, having lost the ability to form a simple sentence around Percy.
“Stop gaping, or you’ll swallow a fly,” said the brunet with a small smile.
“What- What are you doing here? And why are you helping me?”
Percy rolled his eyes fondly. “That stupid accent,” he mumbled. “You’re not sneaky, you know. I could hear you panting, so I came to see what was happening. Didn’t expect to see you, but it’s a pleasant surprise. Now, do you want help or not? Idiot,”
Le Frog paused. “Zhat… Zhat would be nice,”
---
With Percy’s help, Alexander got out of the Toyota and limped inside the surprisingly ordinary suburban home. Of course, it had been ages since Le Frog and Pencil Man last met - the latter seemingly retiring from the hero business. Pencil Man was now just Percy, a normal-looking nerdy middle-aged man; that was clear from looking around.
While he grabbed the first aid kit from the bathroom, Percy left Alexander in the living room, where there was a chance to look around while holding a towel against his wound. Everything was so normal; there were no signs that the former hero Pencil Man lived here, no signs that this was still the same man Le Frog once knew.
The main thing that caught his eye, surprised him more than the stark normality, was the photos around the room. Frame pictures lined the fireplace’s mantel and stood in front of books on shelves. One even sat on the coffee table in front of Alexander. Each photo was from a different moment, a remaining memory of the past. Every snapshot had the same reappearing cast: Percy himself, two young girls varying in ages, and a woman who looked to be around the same age as himself.
The one on the coffee table had this woman in it, and Alexander found himself studying it as he tried to work out who she was. Of course, it was clear. She looked nothing like Percy, unlikely to be a relative and the children who stood between the two adults. A perfect mix of them. While he was out being Le Frog, committing petty crimes and fighting children, Pencil Man had started his own family.
“I’ve got the- Oh,” As he reentered the room, Percy saw the green-clad man looking at the photograph.
Alexander looked up at him. “I apologize for snooping, old friend,” For some odd reason, there was a knot forming inside his stomach; he couldn’t possibly be upset that, just like him, Pencil Man had moved on and lived his life, even being happily married. He blamed D.C for kicking him; that must be it.
Percy shook his head and continued to walk over to Le Frog, sitting next to him on the sofa. “No, it’s fine. I left it out there, so it’s not snooping,”
“Iz… Iz zhat your wife?”
The other man frowned as he looked at the photo, then sighed. “Was,”
“What?” Alexander asked stupidly.
“She was my wife. Not anymore, we- we got divorced.” An uncomfortable silence fell over them before Percy coughed and began speaking again. “Ah, sorry, I- Would it be okay to ask you to take off your suit so I can bandage your wound? You could borrow some of my clothes if you want!”
His flustered composure reminded Alexander of when they were younger, and he smiled fondly while a pink blush lighting stained his cheeks. “Of coairse,”
Percy stood up quickly. “Alright! Um, come with me. I’ll get some clothes for you, and you can change in my room,” He speed walked to the bedroom with Alexander following. Quickly, eager to leave the awkward situation, he grabbed a t-shirt and sweatpants for Le Frog. “These- These will probably fit you. Leave the shirt off, for now, so I can tend to your wound, but- Just come back to the living room once you've changed,” explained Percy before rushing out the room.
Once he'd returned to the living room, he sat on the couch and put his head in his hands. He was a mess. Why had he helped this villain? He knew why but acknowledging that was not very high on his bucket list. Le Frog had turned Percy Nielson, now an ordinary suburban dad, into a flustered mess. He thought he'd be the confident one, in control of the situation while he bandaged up his ex-lover. Turns out, it was just extremely awkward for both parties.
All this fuss was just taking more time before he could treat Alexander. At this rate, the cut could already be infected, and it'd be his fault (even though there probably wasn't anyone else who would help).
Percy looked up at the sound of footsteps only to quickly look away. He coughed, clearing his throat, and said, "Sit down,"
He put gloves on and pointedly focused only on the other man's arm with the gash, absolutely nothing else, as he cleaned the wound promptly. Ignoring his burning cheeks, he meticulously wrapped the gauze roll over the dressing he’d placed. Once finished, Percy secured the bandages with tape.
“There we go,” he said as he finished.
“You are very good at this,” Alexander observed. The entire time he had been watching Percy work masterfully.
With a little chuckle, he replied: “I used to be a hero, and I got hurt a lot. Of course, I’m good at it,” Percy’s eyes drifted over to the table, and he picked up the photograph. “Plus, these little rascals used to get hurt all the time; thankfully, never this bad. Who did this?”
“Eh, it waz one of zhe Prime Defendaires,” said Alexander off-handedly. “What are zheir names? If you do not mind me asking,”
“Huh?” Percy’s eyes widened a little, surprised this old friend was asking about his new life. “Oh, that’s Selena, and that’s Vinnie,” He smiled as he pointed at each daughter. “They’re the lights of my life,”
“Vinnie has your eyes,”
Percy looked up and found himself face to face with Alexander. He silently gasped at the closeness between them that he couldn’t ignore anymore. “Yeah,” said Percy breathily as he looked at the supposed villain, and before he could think any better of it, he put down the picture and their lips met for the first time in almost twenty years.
Almost immediately, Alexander returned the kiss. It sent them back in time to when it was Pencil Man versus Le Frog and the rebellious thrill that came from their secret relationship. It ended too soon, and they were back in the harsh reality.
“I-I’m sorry,” Percy said immediately, standing up from the couch. “Uh, you- you should go,”
Alexander was frozen for a moment, taken aback almost before nodding. “Oui, oui, I should,”
“Put the, um, shirt on. You can keep it, and the pants. Or you can throw them out! That’s okay too!” Percy hid his red face in his hands as he walked a few steps away.
Slipping the shirt on as he did, Alexander got up and headed for the door before hearing Percy say something.
“Wait! Stay there for a second,” He rushed to another room and returned with a pen. After writing something on the other’s hand, the brunet opened the door. “Okay, bye now!”
As soon as Alexnder exited, confused, Percy shut the door and slid down against it like he was a lovesick teenager again. While he did that, Alexander looked down at his hand; Percy had written his number.