Wide Open Spaces (A Kobra Kid x Original Character Story)

Amara

Queenie walked down the hallway way, trying to find the cot room again so she could fall asleep but it seemed that she couldn't find it. She was quite delirious at the time so it wasn't uncalled for that she didn't remember but it seemed like this room didn't exist anymore. As if it had detached itself from the motel and walked away. 

In desperation, she decided to try and find someone she knew pretty well to show her. She knew that Disco and Baby were in the little shack to the side of the motel and she didn't really want to go outside right now so she didn't go after them. 

She had only met Ghoul once and it also seemed that with all that happened this evening, it wouldn't be the best idea to barge in his room and ask him for help so she moved on from the first door in the hall. She saw the door Arthur's private studio but she saw him go outside earlier so there would be no use going in there. 

She saw Jet and Sunshine's room but she decided that she'd caused Jet and Sunshine enough trouble for one day so she didn't want to bother them anymore than she had to so she went to the last door in the hall. 

Kobra Kid's room was the farthest down the hallway because he liked his privacy the most out of the Killjoys. Queenie had already seen his room but she wouldn't mind looking in again and fully admiring all of his things. 

When she was in there last, she noticed that he liked a lot of the same things as her. Rancid, The Smiths, Star Wars and Old Horror Movies were just some of the wide variety of things they had in common. 

She knocked on the door, her main goal was to have him help her find the cot room but she wouldn't be mad if she got a little side tracked with the taller man. Although he wasn't that much taller than Queenie, he still was quite tall a guy.

The door opened and Kobra leaned against the door frame and rolled his eyes, expecting Party to be there with some new problem. "What is it now?" 

Queenie was a little shocked to see Kobra be this nonchalant because she had only known him as the reserved boy who was a smart ass sometimes. Kobra actually looked at who was in the doorway and instantly adjusted his posture and looked her straight in her eyes. 

"Oh, it's you," Kobra said and rubbed the back of his neck with his now sweaty palm. If he said one thing too much, he might blow his cover. 

"Yeah, it's me," Queenie responded and gave an uncomfortable smile. She stuck her hands in her back pockets in habit. They stood looking at each other for about five seconds and the awkward eye contact ensued.

"Oh, um, sorry about that, I thought you were Party. Would you like to come in?" Kobra tripped over his words, in normal Kobra fashion, and gestured oddly for her to walk into his room. Being back in this room gave Queenie mixed feelings because of the fact that it was nice the last time but it lead to something very horrible happening. 

"I would love to," Queenie said, trying to use her own confidence to make up for his lack there of . She smiled and walked in and Kobra closed the door behind her. 

"So, um, what's up?" Kobra cursed himself inside his head because of the stupid addition to the conversation. He could swear he heard Sunshine curse him as well from the very back of him mind. 

"Nothing much, I was just wandering around the motel and I stumbled upon your room," Queenie said and looked around at all the pictures again. "I was kind of wondering what a guy like you would have for a room."

"What do you mean by that?" Kobra replied, playing along as if he was totally calm about this girl being in his room when a girl he was somewhat interested in hadn't been in his room in years. 

"I just meant that you seem like an interesting person and, usually, interesting people have interesting rooms," Queenie said and sat on his bed, laying back to look up at the completely decorated ceiling. 

"Oh, okay," Kobra responded and went to sit on the bed next to Queenie. Right as he sat down Queenie sat up rigidly and closed her eyes.  "Are you okay?" 

Kobra stood up as fast as he sat down and went to reach out to her. She shook her head and tried to calm herself down. She breathed in deep and exhaled deeper. 

"I-I'm fine, I just get a little skittish sometimes," She had a quick flash of that moment in her head and then calmed herself down successfully. 

"Oh, well, I'm sorry if I triggered anything."

"You're fine."

"Well, was there any other reason that you wanted to come in here, perhaps to talk?" Kobra asked and sat criss crossed on the ground beside the bed, knowing better than to sit on the bed and try and get close to her again. 

"I would love to talk but I really came in here to ask where I could sleep tonight, because I couldn't seem to find the cot room," Queenie said yawning half way through the sentence. 

"Oh, about that. Dr. D locks the cot room at eight every night and none of us have the key because he says 'we use the cot room for emergencies'," Kobra told Queenie who suddenly seemed really disappointed. "But, if you really like my room so much, you could sleep here."

"Really, you'd let me sleep here?" Queenie seemed delightedly shocked that Kobra performed and act that seemed very normal for Kobra. "That would be amazing. Oh, I just realized I never caught your name."

"Oh, I'm Kobra Kid, but people call me Kobra," Kobra responded to Queenie's not question question. Queenie smiled as if to say, you didn't really answer my question.

"Kobra seems like a superhero name. I can't call you that. What's your real name?" Queenie asked, really hoping she hadn't just overstepped a boundary. She knew that a lot of rebels didn't like to share their actual names. In fact, she never even knew Valentine's real name.

"My-my name's Michael but everyone who knows me calls me Mikey," That was the first time in a year that he had spoken his real name. It felt weird. It felt like it wasn't his anymore. Like the name had been dropped off and a hermit crab had picked it up and claimed it as his shell. No longer Michael Way, but Kobra Kid.

"Nice to meet you Mikey, I'm Queenie but you already knew that, thank you for letting me sleep in your room tonight," Queenie shook Mikey's hand and Mikey looked at her and made a face. 

"Queenie isn't your real name is it?" Mikey asked and tilted his head to the side like a confused dog. She became red at the mention. 

"No, it's not, I used to go by Vega but I don't feel like a Vega anymore," Queenie responded, her hands becoming clammy due to the immense secret telling that was occurring.

"Well, you don't seem like a Queenie either, if you are going to call me Mikey I'm gonna have to have a name only I call you," Mikey said and looked around the room for a hint at what to call her. She sat, a blushing mess for no reason. 

"I did have a name before, before any of this happened, I haven't used it in a while but I feel like it might need to come into use again," Queenie said, cutting off Mikey's search, around the room before he called her Poison Ivy from the Cramps.

"And that name was?" 

"Amara."

Mikey knew the name Amara. 

From eight years ago.