"We're not playing today?" Alex asked, noticing how Diana seemed to be getting ready to leave.
They hadn't played together in some time. Lately, Diana had been doing some solo playing. But today, for some reason, she didn't seem to be in the mood, which confused him.
"Yeah, I just stopped home to do some stuff. I'll be away for some time," Diana said.
Alex was speechless. This was sudden. He was sure someone in her position couldn't just disappear for some time. She had a job.
"It won't be for long—at most a week. But I have things in place to make sure everything keeps running without me. Still, I need you to call me if anything goes wrong… and remember, you've got a target on your head. If you do anything that puts you at risk, I'm cutting your pay," Diana said seriously.
Alex was left speechless.
"Fine… is everything alright?" he asked with a sigh, already sensing that something was off.
Diana glanced at him, her expression unreadable—almost distant. She looked like she wanted to say something, but in the end, she just shook her head and returned to gathering a few things.
But just as she was about to leave, she stopped.
And then, she looked back—locking eyes with Alex, unmoving.
"Don't let me hear you've been having Rachel over…" she said, her tone firm.
She didn't need to say more—Alex understood exactly what she meant.
"Yes, boss," Alex replied, rolling his eyes slightly.
The idea hadn't even crossed his mind. At least, not until she brought it up… And now she had him thinking about doing something like that.
"Good. You can order takeout whenever you're hungry. Avoid going outside as much as you can… I'm sure DoorDash can deliver just about anything you want. Order all you want, and I'll repay whatever you spend.
Make sure you take a shower every day—I've noticed how you tend to skip them until you remember you're living with someone. Don't wear the same thing two days in a row. I know you well enough to know you're fully capable of doing that.
Take out the trash…"
Diana went on and on, listing off instruction after instruction while Alex stood there helplessly nodding along. He couldn't argue—she was his boss, after all.
"That should be everything… no guests. I don't care who. I don't want anyone over. Lock the doors before going to sleep, and if anything weird happens, call 911.
Make sure your phone's charged at all times—so you can reach me, or the police, if you need to. Alright?" she said firmly.
The more she spoke, the more things came to mind—each one adding to the growing list of concerns she had to get off her chest.
Alex was forced to stand there for thirty straight minutes, doing nothing but nodding his head with a helpless expression. He didn't get a break, not even a moment to breathe. Just when he thought it was finally over, Diana would bring up something new, extending the list further and making him feel like crying.
"Alright… this is goodbye," she said with a sigh, her voice slightly tired.
She couldn't remember the last time she had spoken so much in one sitting.
"Yeah, goodbye." Alex gave a quick nod, clearly wanting this to be over, and walked to the door to close it.
Diana stepped outside, a slight frown forming on her face. It felt like he was rushing her out—but before she could dwell on it, her attention shifted to the car that pulled up in front of the house.
"That a friend?" Alex asked, noticing the driver—a dark-skinned girl wearing an eye-catching necklace behind the wheel.
"Yes… Be careful. And again, no leaving the house. Take this as your PTO—you're getting paid for doing nothing while I'm away," she said firmly.
Alex's eyes widened at that, but he quickly nodded, more serious than before. Now more than ever, he was determined to stay home and do absolutely nothing.
Seeing that, Diana gave a final nod. She knew that once she brought up paid time off, Alex would listen. She just hoped he didn't go the entire week without showering.
With a sigh, she turned and left.
As soon as the door closed, Alex jumped in excitement and dashed over to the computer, already preparing for a full week of nonstop gaming and anime.
But first—he had to order something to eat. It would suck to get hungry halfway through and have to wait a whole hour for food to show up.
"I saw his pictures, but he looks far more handsome in person," the dark-skinned girl said to Diana as they drove off.
"He is 17 years old," Diana replied with a frown, casting a sharp look at her companion—Mari, better known by her superhero name, Vixen.
"What? He looks like he's going through his midlife crisis!" Mari said in shock.
Diana sighed as that was true. Alex looked far too mature for someone his age. She had seen the older pictures—before the sudden growth spurt. It all started once he began going to the gym.
"I have to talk to Raven…" Diana said quietly.
She wasn't sure if it was safe to leave Alex alone. Maybe she should ask Raven to check in on him from time to time. But that raised another problem—if Raven came over too often, there was a chance they'd end up doing something… in her house.
Maybe the best option was to only allow them to meet when Raven was with others. That felt safer.
***
"Your human DNA seems to also be dying," Captain Atom said while staring at the screen in front of him.
He wasn't alone.
The Justice League had gathered the best of the best to investigate what had happened to Diana—and, by extension, Raven.
Dr. Fate. Batman. Even Kryptonian technology from Superman's home world had been brought in, all for one purpose:
To uncover what Alex's powers were doing to Diana, Sarah, and the others.
"Would I turn out like my father?" Raven asked, her voice low, fear clear in her eyes.
"No. This has no mental side effects," Dr. Fate said calmly. "You'll retain all the benefits of being a demon, while also keeping the advantages of being human."
Raven gave a small nod, letting out a quiet sigh of relief.
"His powers killed my tech…" Superman said with a complex look, briefly glancing toward his cousin, Supergirl.
They had tried using Kryptonian technology to analyze what was happening to Raven's DNA—but the device suddenly died without warning.
Dr. Fate had to act fast, destroying the tech before anyone could study it further. Because what they had unknowingly created was something dangerous—a cursed item that revealed Alex's power in action.
A device that would kill anyone who looked at it
This brought up a new problem when dealing with Alex—they couldn't record him using his powers. Even replaying a recording of it could kill them. Just watching a recording of Alex activating his power carried the same deadly effect.
It was yet another reason to make sure Alex never used his abilities.
Sighing, Raven turned and left, returning to Titans Tower.
She entered her room, which was shrouded in deep shadows with only a few dim lights glowing faintly in the corners. Sitting down on her bed, she let her thoughts drift.
Her mind circled back to Alex—specifically, his dislike of heroes.
She let out a soft sigh before standing up again. She had made her decision.
She was going to see Alex.
She wanted to tell him the whole truth about who she really was.
She arrived at his door in no time and knocked.
After a short pause, the door opened—and there stood Alex, shirtless and wearing shorts that could easily be mistaken for boxers. He froze when he saw Rachel standing there.
"Oh… my eyes are up here," Alex said somewhat awkwardly, catching the way her gaze had drifted.
Rachel, embarrassed, snapped back to reality, quickly looking away.
"Come in. I'll go put on some clothing," Alex said awkwardly, stepping aside.
He wasn't sure if he should be letting her in. This wasn't his home, and technically, he didn't have permission to have guests over. But leaving her standing outside felt rude, so he said nothing more.
As Alex headed off to change, Rachel stepped into the house, the door closing softly behind her.
Her eyes drifted—unintentionally at first—but she couldn't help herself.
Alex's ass.
She swore she wasn't normally like this, but damn… he had a well-toned ass.
"So, what's up?" Alex asked as he returned, now wearing a shirt and a pair of simple shorts.
"I… I came to talk about our relationship," Rachel said, her voice a little hesitant. "We just met not too long ago, and I thought we should try to get to know each other a bit more."
Alex gave a small nod of understanding.
"Sure, let's talk. You want to start with favorite colors or something?" Alex asked with a light smile.
Rachel shook her head.
After taking a quiet moment to steel herself, she spoke.
"I want to know more about your view on the supernatural world… I don't know if this can work between us if you're against it," she said lightly.
Alex, though a bit confused by why she saw that as such a deal breaker, simply waved her words off.
"You worry too much. Just because we're dating doesn't mean we have to agree on everything. We can always disagree—it's how we handle it that's important," Alex said.
Rachel nodded in agreement.
"But let's talk it out," Alex continued. "I don't like the supernatural because I want to live a simple, carefree life. And to me, simple means staying away from that world. I don't really hate it… I just don't want to be part of it."
Rachel nodded again, quietly taking it in.
So they talked—a conversation that stretched on for hours.
It began with Alex gently asking Rachel to drop the whole supernatural worry for now, wanting to move past it. From there, the focus shifted, and he encouraged her to speak, giving her the space to tell him everything about herself.
He was honestly surprised to learn that she didn't play video games at all, and above everything else, she loved reading.
Curious, he asked her what kind of books she liked, and she gave him a solid list.
She liked reading—gothic and dark fiction, poetry, philosophy, metaphysics, and classic literature. With all of that in mind, Alex quickly figured out the kind of games she would probably enjoy.
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice was his first pick. Then Silent Hills, and a few others that matched her taste.
He showed each of them to Rachel, walking her through the themes and stories. Even though it was clear she didn't have much interest in playing, Alex could tell—if she just gave them a chance, she'd end up enjoying them.
So, Rachel began playing Hellblade, with Alex sitting close by to cheer her on.
And, of course, she ended up enjoying the game. The further she got, the more invested she became, drawn into the world and its haunting atmosphere. She found herself relating to the main character and the story—more deeply than she expected.