Adopted by the Devil - Matt Murdock (BOOK ONE)

Chapter 17

Jasper walked out of city hall, Mel walking at his side. "I hope you come back," she broke the silence. "You seem cool when you're not beating people up," she teased. Jasper furrowed his brows, turning to her.

"What?" he asked. She chuckled, scrunching her nose.

"I go to your school dingus, I'm not surprised you don't recognize me," she explained. "I used to be part of the cool kid group then shit happened and I went underground. Journalism and activism mostly" she stated. Jasper looked at her and fully connected the dots.

"Melissa. You used to go by that," he muttered. She nodded and shrugged.

"Still do, sometimes but honestly, Mel is more comfortable" Mel smiled. A car pulled up and she turned her head. "My dad's here, I'll see you around?" she asked as she started walking off. Jasper cracked a small smile.

"Maybe! I mean, I hope I actually get the guts to come back!" he called after her. She laughed, turning her head towards him as she opened up the passenger side door.

"You already got 'em!" she called back before getting in and driving off. Jasper exhaled and found himself, truly smiling.

"Got a new friend?" Jasper turned around and smiled a bit more before walking over to Matt. He sat on a bench and chuckled a bit.

"Were you sitting there the whole time?" Jasper asked, sitting down beside him. Matt chuckled a bit, unfolding his cane and placing the tip against the concrete.

"Why stand when there's a perfectly good bench? Who's the girl?" he asked, raising a brow. "She's quite, outspoken" he commented. Jasper snorted a bit, pulling his backpack straps fully over his shoulders.

"You mean loud?" he asked. Matt smiled and broke a slight chuckle, the corners of his mouth creasing.

"Yes, I heard you two quite clearly," Matt stated as he got up. "Wanna go for a walk? Talk a bit before I get you home?" he asked. Jasper nodded, getting up and taking Matt's arm gently as they started walking.

"I'd like that," he said gently.

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Jasper snacked on a vanilla ice cream cone, Matt having a similar one in his hand. "I never did this stuff as a kid," he stated. Matt turned his head towards him, listening as he took a bite. "I mean I did, when I was 5 like right after Lizzie was born but then these disappeared." he huffed. "World turned to shit," he muttered.

"I know how that feels," Matt stated. "My dad and I were on our own till he died when I was a little younger than your sister," he stated. Jasper hummed and nodded, catching drips of ice cream before they rolled down the side of his cone.

"What happened to you after he died?" he asked cautiously as he wiped the corners of his mouth with his sleeve.

"Got taken in by an orphanage run by the church," Matt explained. "No other family for me to live with," he stated. "Now looking at it, we've got a lot in common" he commented. Jasper smiled a bit more.

"Yeah, we do, except your dad wasn't a dick. I hope." Jasper stated. Matt chuckled slightly and nodded.

"He wasn't," he stated. Jasper sighed and leaned back into the bench as he finished up his cone, crunching the cone in his mouth. "If you don't mind me asking, what happened to your mother?" Matt asked, trying not to pry too much. Jasper shifted, wiping his mouth on his sleeve.

"I don't know and honestly I don't care," he lied, his teeth grinding slightly together. "She left us when I was like, eight? And hasn't been seen since," he stated. In reality, he wanted answers. Why she left and never look back? He sighed and got up. "Should we head back?" he asked, grabbing his bag. Matt sighed and nodded.

"If that's what you'd like," he stated as he got up, taking his cane and resting it against the ground. "What would you do if she came back into your life?" Matt asked, Jasper, hooking his arm with his as they started walking. He shrugged, kicking a small rock with his foot.

"I don't know," he muttered. "If she showed up I'd be surprised definitely." He stated, leading them out of the park and back towards Caroline's house.

From a distance, a woman in a large-brimmed hat watched them from the cover of round sunglasses, covering her eyes from the sun even with the hat casting shade on her face. She leaned against her car and sighed, pulling her cell phone out and dialing a number. She waited a few moments before the line at the other end picked up. "Hello officer, can you patch me through to Harrison Cole?" she asked. "He's my ex-husband and we have something to discuss," she stated as she watched her son and the blind stranger turn the corner and disappear.