Frequency

Mornings

What's funny about this whole situation is that Caterina was never really a morning person. She was told as a child that mornings meant smiles and laughter but as she aged that lovely, innocent light grew into a dark cloud. Mornings for Caterina were complicated; that's the wrong song, she had to break routine, she didn't get enough sleep, etc. They were also annoying because of the hour she had to wake. The commute from home to work wasn't painfully long. It was actually quite short to her, but she is the paranoid type. Never wanting to be late or even right on time, she woke up earlier than needed. But that's just who she was. Until those mornings were met with ruby jewels.

Working at a bookstore was always a blessing for you. Throughout grade school and even now, you loved being insignificant when it came to a room full of books. It's where you lost yourself and felt new again. Your friends never really got to see this side of you because when you went out with them, it was about the music or the politics of this and that. But the main topic was always heroes. At the turning point of the century, being a superhero was no longer an intangible dream. If anything it was quite simple: attend an elite hero school and become one. Yes, it took hard work and all that fun stuff but with a quirk, you could easily become a hero.

And maybe that's why you settled so hard all those years ago. You came from a line of voice quirks that, all of sudden, were no longer mentioned. And by the time it got to you, it was a sliver of silver that marked where your blood came from. By the time the gift reached you it was nonexistent. This never really bothered you because it's not the world you grew up around. Instead, you grew up around the performing arts, always having the opportunity to become someone else.

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"Back at it again! Have you anything new?" The greeting came from a strong but gentle voice every evening for as long as you could remember. Eijiro Kirishima, quirk: Hardening. He always came into the small bookstore on Friday to see if anything he ordered came in or just to browse in general. The time always varied. Sometimes it was in the morning and most of the time it was in the evening on his way home. He had told you that since his only actual full day off was Friday he would keep his promise to go somewhere new. But that all ended when he stumbled upon this little shop in a cave in the wall.

The day you two met was bizarre but in a good way. He had been coming in for years now and the receptionist before you sort of left without saying anything, so when he did his usual "Go beyond" greeting he was met with confused, dark brown eyes.

"Oh. Hi. I'm sorry, I thought you were-" but he was caught off guard by a sudden jump and enthusiastic 'Plus Ultra', that was even better than before. You both laughed, your cheeks becoming red from embarrassment. He stuck out his hand and from that day on, the two of you were the best of friends.

"Morning Shima - Shima. Last time I checked, we got a few new books in the mystery section and we restocked on your favorites. I already bought a few bundles of cinnamon gum so have fun cleaning us out again for no apparent reason." You responded with a soft giggle. You noticed that he always purchased some type of hot or spicy candy, but was never caught actually eating it. So you finally got the guts to ask him and his answer was shocking.

"Cat, really? Did I-"

"No. You literally always come and buy some on Friday's and never eat it. At least you don't eat them in front of me and that's fine. But you never smell like the candies either when you do walk in chewing or something. Your breath is always minty smelling or sweet and it's been a question I've been wanting to ask but didn't want to pry because-" at that moment he cut you off with a hearty laugh and palm to the forehead. His hands were rough, but like his smile, was gentle and understanding.

"OKAY. I GET IT. YOU CAN SLOW DOWN NOW. IT'S OKAY. You can literally ask me anything. I'd like to assume that we're friends, maybe even close friends, so don't worry about prying or anything. Curiosity is okay. YOU'RE OKAY," he said as he slowly removed his hand from your warm forehead. You let out a sigh and nodded. He then continued.