Nightwing: Heartache

Part 9: Lunch with Gar

June 16th, 9:00am
Hollywood

"This year alone, 16,000 teens have gone missing by the hands of meta-teen traffickers. If you see something, scream something." Gar looked straight into the camera, his tone somber but still compassionate. His message was succinct but poignant, telling the important information without fear mongering. Willa had to admit, the kid was great on camera.

The director yelled cut and Courtney Whitmore thanked Gar for his time. Gar jogged over to Willa, beaming. "You did great!" Willa said when he got closer, hugging him quickly.

"Thanks Willa," Gar said, "You didn't have to be here, but I'm glad."

If Willa was honest, she was glad to get out of the house. And it was nice to feel like she had a friend, even a new one. "Of course. Plus, I had to tell you about my morning." Gar raised an eyebrow while Willa grabbed her jacket and they started walking out of the sound stage together. "I've been on the phone with Ryder Woods," Willa explained, "he's super pissed."

"Why?" Gar asked. They were waiting on a car to drive them down a few blocks to get some coffee.

Willa tried not to laugh, "he's pissed because of the rumors that you're starring in Shadowblaster instead of him. He's even more pissed that people love the idea."

Gar laughed as he opened the door for Willa then climbed in behind her. Willa raised an eyebrow, nodding in approval at his manners. Gar shrugged, "you really think I could be around M'gann and Dick that long and not have good manners?" He froze after he said it, looking at Willa nervously but Willa hid the pang in her chest with a laugh, clipping her seatbelt. "That would be some pretty meta casting," Gar said, reverting back to their previous conversation.

"Oh yeah, and only extremely inappropriate." The photos of Willa and Gar from the Space Trek premiere had blown up, their genuine smiles and hugs splashed on every gossip sight. People thought it was a confirmation Garfield Logan would star in the superhero movie. Which would have been kind of cool if they wanted a younger angle. Willa definitely wouldn't be the love interest to a fifteen year old though, but sometimes the internet forgot these things. "Ryder's freaking out about what the reaction will be to his announcement."

Ryder Woods was the Hollywood package right now: young, pretty, fit, and had a string of successful movies behind him. He was properly famous and had the ego to prove it.

They got to the coffee shop and went inside. Gar didn't even try to hide, his green skin was too much of a marker, and Willa rarely tried to hide. It might be selfish, but she enjoyed the attention. It took some therapy and time to get used to liking attention again, to not feeling guilty about it, but she was at peace with it. She liked making people happy. And, honestly, she loved being the center of attention.

As soon as they walked in, heads turned. They grabbed a small table in the back then waited in line to order.

"Oh my gosh, are you Garfield Logan?!" A tween girl asked, practically bouncing with excitement.

Garfield was more than gracious and Willa offered to take their picture. It was the cue the other people in the shop needed, and a second line formed, waiting for Gar and Willa to say hello and take selfies.

Willa leaned into the man next in line, smiling for his camera. She faltered for a second when he gripped her waist just a little too tight. She shifted away but he held her fast, snapping another picture. "Shame you're not a meta-human," he said, too close to her face.

She pushed away, "excuse me?"

"I've got a thing for meta-girls," he smiled, hand sliding from her upper arm to her wrist. Willa jerked at the touch but the man held on fast, just grinning at her. "With the company you keep, it might be helpful to get tested for the meta-gene."

She fought the rise of panic, opening her mouth to tell him off or maybe punch him in the face, she didn't know, but Gar was beside her, then in front of her, forcing the man to let her go.

"I think you'd better leave," Gar said, arms crossed. The sight would be laughable, a skinny fifteen year old threatening a grown man, if Garfield wasn't a fifteen year old that could transform into a gorilla or a lion in a second.

The rest of the conversation in the shop had died down, all eyes fixed on this display. The man frowned, despising being on the losing end of this fight, but at least he knew not to face off against Beast Boy. He cast one more glare at Willa, likely blaming her for making a scene, then turned to go.

Willa saw the hesitation, the clenched fist, all the markers before another man and his bruised ego tried to salvage the situation by insulting her. "Don't even think about, creep," she snapped, looking at all the phones pointed at them, documenting everything. "Go throw a tantrum somewhere else." The finally unclenched his fist and stormed out.

Willa turned to the barista, apologized for the mess, then grabbed her and Gar's drinks.