One thing I hadn’t known about myself until that evening was how basic of a cook I was. After an hour trying to think of all the recipes I knew how to make, I decided they were all too plain for what I wanted. Cooking for just myself, or myself and Leo on rare occasion, was no trouble and I was a near-expert at easy recipes with only a handful of ingredients, especially ones that I could keep on hand in the pantry with as few fresh ingredients as possible.


    Eventually, I turned to the internet to find something a bit more sophisticated than my usual fare and decided on something that had fresh basil, garlic, and tomatoes. The steps seemed simple enough for my general experience and sounded pretty tasty. And if the whole thing burned to a crisp in the oven while it baked, I’d just splurge and order us a pizza instead. At least the wine I’d selected when I’d stopped at the store wouldn’t go to waste either way.


    Without a dinner table to sit at, I set the placemats and cutlery on the breakfast bar that faced the rest of the kitchen. Conversation would be a bit awkward sitting in a line while we ate, but I hoped that some small talk would help ease us into what I wanted to discuss.


    The smell of baking cheesy pasta permeated the air by the time Leo arrived home. He paused in the doorway for a moment, surprised, before cautiously closing the door behind him.


    “What are you doing?”


    I scoffed. “Dinner. Obviously.”


    “Yes, I can smell that. But…why?”


    I turned back to the sink and continued scrubbing the pot I’d used to boil the noodles in. Some of them had gotten stuck to the bottom when Lucie tore through the kitchen like the devil had lit her tail on fire. I’d chased after her, making sure she was just being her usual dramatic self and not hurt. In the time it took, some had burned and cemented itself to the bottom. Thankfully, I’d made too much pasta for the dish. How did anyone measure it correctly, anyways? I could never get it right.


    “What, I can’t try a new hobby?” That wasn’t the truth, though if it turned out halfway decent I might seriously consider it. In reality, sometimes I just liked to keep Leo on his toes. It was annoying how smart he was; he shouldn’t know everything. And being unpredictable was one small way I could ensure he stayed humble. Ish.


    “Of course you can. Just…surprised, is all.”


    “Good. Then you’ll really be surprised tonight.”


    Leo deposited his work bag on the fake wood plank floor near his hallway and came over to inspect what I had in the oven.


    “That doesn’t sound menacing, at all,” he said flippantly, peering in through the oven window. The lid prevented him from seeing anything.


    “Why would it?” I raised my eyebrows and gave him an overly innocent expression. “I am not menacing, or conniving, or sneaky, ever.”


    He chuckled, “You’re so full of shit.”


    “Mmm,” I hummed, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.


    The doorbell rang, a sound I’d only heard a handful of times, typically on my way out as some of Leo’s friends were on their way in, a slow four note chime.


    Leo turned to look at me, a questioning look on his face. I shrugged one shoulder and turned back to my scrubbing.


    It was a bit of a gamble, I admitted, having Leo answer the door to someone he most certainly was not expecting, and having Alex be greeted by someone other than myself.


    It was almost comical, the look on Alex’s face when Leo greeted him. Leo turned to me, with a solid what the fuck expression. I just grinned at them.


    “Dinner will be ready soon. Make yourself at home, Alex. Bathroom’s through there.” I nodded my head vaguely toward the first door down Leo’s hallway. “Or, you can go snoop through my room.” I gestured in the opposite direction.


    Alex stood there, weighing his options before opting to come sit at the placemat nearest to where I scrubbed the stubborn pot. It also put him closest to the floor-to-ceiling wall of windows that overlooked part of the city and the bay beyond. I’d opened the blinds for the first time since moving in, letting the fading sun wash the gleaming white countertops in soft, muted oranges and yellows. It almost looked homey. Only the lack of personal decoration or memorabilia kept it feeling not-quite-cozy.


    “So,” he started. And stopped.


    “So,” I parroted. “I hope you’re up for a bit of an adventure.”


    I glanced at Leo as I said that, trying to gauge his reaction to this. He didn’t respond, only watched our interaction as he slowly made his way towards the living room. That was a good sign.


    “What type of an adventure?”


    “A culinary one.”


    “Color me intrigued.”


    Leo snorted where he stood awkwardly hovering near the couch, not willing to join Alex at a bar stool but unwilling to leave us alone. He was interested, or at least curious as to why Alex was here. Good.


    Admitting defeat and hoping the dishwasher would take care of the rest, I rinsed out the pot and loaded it along with the rest of the utensils and cutting board I used. I poured myself a glass of the wine I’d bought, offering some to both Alex and Leo, who refused. More for me, then.


    “I’m not the greatest cook,” I admitted. I took a sip of my wine, enjoying the delicate fruity notes. “I don’t even know if I’d call myself good. But the recipe seemed easy enough, so I figured I’d try it out tonight on two unsuspecting men who wouldn’t dare hurt my feelings by telling me it’s garbage.”


    Alex’s laugh burst out of him, a quick, sharp sound. “I wouldn’t ever call my girlfriend a bad cook. Creative, maybe. Or experimental if it was really bad.”


    Ah, there it was. The first subtle dig. I’d thought it would be Leo to give the first snide remark, but Alex’s comment hit home. Leo flinched in my periphery, looking between the back of Alex’s head and my face. He knew Alex and I had been seeing each other casually, but he seemed taken aback that we were now in a committed relationship.


    “Smart man,” I answered lightly. I wanted to lean over the counter and give him a kiss for his amusing comment, but I didn’t want to push Leo too far. He didn’t seem to like Alex. I was determined to change his mind, and rubbing his face in it by making out with Alex was probably not the way to go about it. Unless Leo liked that sort of thing, in which case maybe I—


    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    No. Stop. Bad, Callie.


    Checking on dinner gave me a minute to compose myself and wrestle the intrusive thoughts back where they belonged. Thankfully, the dish was finished, the cheese on top gooey and slightly browning. I carefully placed the casserole dish on top of the pot holders I’d put out and gathered plates from the cabinet. I took another swig before plating the pasta quickly. I aimed for a small pile that I could top with a sprig of basil, but the cheesy noodles slipped and slid into a flat circle instead. It didn’t look great, but at least it smelled decent. I put the basil on top anyways.


    “Bon appetite,” I announced, placing full plates down for Alex and Leo before returning for my own.


    It was a slightly awkward meal. I brought up a handful of different topics to try to start a conversation. Nothing stuck. Eventually I just let them finish their meal in awkward silence while I considered how I wanted to bring up what they were really here for. Alex would go along with it, or at least would entertain the idea. But Leo…he was going to be the difficult party here.


    Leo insisted on cleaning up the dishes. Alex and I retreated to the couch, and I tucked my feet up under me as I rested my forearms on the back of the couch, staring out the window at the street and building lights beginning to become visible as the sun continued to set.


    “This is going well,” Alex whispered. I turned and scrunched my nose at him.


    “I think he’s suspicious,” I said. “It’s got him on edge.”


    “You didn’t tell him anything?”


    I shook my head. “He got home right before you got here anyways. And had I texted him, chances were he’d make up an excuse not to be here.” I sighed, staring back out the window without really seeing. “Keeping things so secret is not the way to figure all this out. We need to share the information we have.”


    “I don’t disagree.”


    Leo finished with the dishes at that moment and called over to me, “I’ll leave you two to your own devices, then. Alex, it was nice—”


    “Come here,” I interrupted, turning back around to sit on the couch properly. “I actually want to talk to you.”


    Leo hesitated. “Oh-kay.”


    “Sit,” I commanded. I pointed to the spot next to me. “Please,” I tacked on, a bit more gently. Leo did as I asked, perching at the edge of the couch like he wanted to be ready to vanish at the drop of a hat.


    “We all have LaShoul’s,” I began, the somewhat rehearsed bullet points I’d thought of coming to mind. “And there are plenty of other people in the world with it. It’s a rarer disease, but not so unheard of anymore. And I think that what both companies are doing is great in their own way to try to help people like us.”


    I paused, trying to decide the best way to bring it up. Rip the bandage off quickly? Slowly ease into it?


    While I contemplated, Leo said, “I feel like there’s a but coming.”


    I nodded. Ripping it was. “But the companies should be working together. And they’re not, unless you’ve been keeping that a secret.” I directed that last at both of them. Neither said anything, so I continued, “I’m not so naive to think I can convince you to convince your CEO’s to collaborate together. But I think we’ve got some good things going on here that could help. Even starting with just us, I think we can figure out some things together and bring it to both companies to try to make things better for people.”


    The silence was deafening. I wanted to give them time to process what I’d said and see the wisdom in it, but I was itching to get started with it.


    “So. Who wants to share first?” I prompted.


    <hr>


    I stared them down. Unsuccessfully. For ten minutes, neither of them had offered to share and I was getting frustrated with the stubbornness and idiocy of their little game of refusal.


    “Cards on the table. Now. Either you both share, or I’ll share for both of you. And trust me, it’ll be a lot clearer coming from the both of you.” I pointed to each man sitting on the couch accusingly. “Don’t be a whiny baby. None of this my company this or my company that bullshit, either. It’s not helping any of us. We need to collaborate. It’s not a dick-measuring competition.”


    That statement got their attention.


    I sat down on the coffee table gingerly, being sure my emotions were in check lest I accidentally smash it with my ass powers. I stared at them both with equal disdain.


    Leo was the first to break the silence. “No.”


    I sighed, disappointed but not really surprised. “Why not.” It wasn’t a question, but a demand.


    Leo crossed leaned back into the couch and spread his arms along the back, the very picture of male arrogance. Fine, then. I turned to Alex.


    “So, something that we’ve noticed is a spike in radiation, specifically—”


    I barely saw him move. One moment, Leo was lounging in a pseudo-relaxed position, and the next he had a hand clamped over my mouth to staunch my words. I bit him. He relented, shaking his hand out and having the audacity to look appalled.


    “What the fuck?”


    I crossed my arms. “Didn’t I just say that if no one talked, I would?”


    “You can’t.”


    “Oh, really? What are you, the free speech police?”


    “That’s intellectual property of—”


    “And who all knows about this ‘intellectual property’ besides the two of us?” Leo didn’t answer. “So, if it only belongs to you and I, and the company doesn’t know about it, it’s not their intellectual property, is it?”


    “That’s not how that—”


    I waved a hand in dismissal and was surprised when he quieted. I didn’t think that would work. Nice.


    “Alex, would you like to be the bigger person here?” I offered.


    “Why not? I’m happy to share my so-called secrets with you if it might help.” Alex cut Leo a look that I was grateful he missed. Or ignored. Or would get retaliation for later.


    Alex began by standing up and subsequently turned and lifted the couch with Leo still on it. Leo gripped the armrest in a chokehold as Alex casually transferred the couch to his other hand before settling it back down. “I’ve been able to do things like that for two years, now. In that time, my LaShoul’s episodes have vanished as long as I don’t suppress my ability and use it regularly.”


    “Two years? And your company hasn’t shared this with anyone because…?” Leo’s question was accusatory, but a fair one that I’d wondered myself.


    Alex shrugged. “It’s…complicated.”


    “Then un-complicate it.” There was no room for arguing or a non-answer. Alex’s refusal to answer would end the conversation right now.


    Alex sighed, settling down into the couch again in a much more casual pose. I took that as his agreement to share what he knew, and I relaxed marginally.


    “Unfortunately, my control over it is not as common as you probably think. It’s a fine balance; use it too little, and the LaShoul’s comes back stronger than ever. Most of those people end up dead. On the flip side, if it’s used too much, then you burn out. And people end up dead that way, too.”


    “So, you’re saying you’re special,” Leo deadpanned, definitely focusing on the wrong thing here.


    “You can say that. I wish I knew exactly what I was doing, but it’s all been my instinct. I just go with it. And maybe others were overthinking it too much, worried about using their ability just the right amount.”


    “So, the reason this isn’t public…?” I really wanted to know the answer; it had the potential to save so many lives.


    “I’m not part of the decision-making process,” Alex emphasized. “So if you don’t like the answer, don’t shoot the messenger. But the biggest reason is we don’t want a bunch of others with LaShoul’s trying to force the ability. It has to happen naturally, or it backfires. I think the study that was done found that over ninety percent of people who forced it were consumed by it.”


    That…was a fair reason. As long as it was true. But something was a bit off with his answer, whether Alex knew it or not. I filed that away for later investigation.


    “I’m sure there’s other reasons, too, but that’s the biggest, the one that we’re told. Helps keep our mouths shut. But, since Callie here has her own ability, and Leo, I assume you do, too, it’s not a concern.”


    “Who’s ‘we’?” Leo asked.


    “There’s a group of us. We keep an eye out for others who may have accessed their abilities, and make sure they’re okay. We try not to intervene with their whole origin story, as we like to joke. But once they get to a point, we’ll invite them to meet with us, explain what’s going on with them and what’s at stake, ask if they’d like to join us, those sorts of things.”


    A thought occurred to me, and it was out of my mouth before I considered the wisdom of it. “Is that what you did with me?”


    “No, but yes. It’s not why I first asked you out. But I had a suspicion, which is why I suggested you apply to work for the same company that I do.”


    I nodded in understanding, though I vowed to talk to him about that more later, in private.


    Leo suddenly blew out a long breath and said, “Fine, fine. I’ll share what I know, too. Just give me a minute. We’ll want a visual aid for this.”