(sorry its so long XD)
He always comes in here right about now... You think, taking a sip of your iced macchiato. Tall, soy milk, and two quirts of caramel, just the way you liked it. It was seven in the evening, and if you were going to last the night, you needed your caffeine fix. Every day, around this time, a young man, his skin's color akin to the coffee you held in your hand and starkly contrasting his white-blonde hair, came in and ordered the same thing - a hibiscus boba tea with coconut milk. You'd seen him here every night this past week, and then after ordering, he always took a sip to test the balance of the ingredients before offering a quiet nod to the barista (her name was Chelsea; he apparently only trusted her to make his drink properly) and then exiting and disappearing into the nightlife of the city. Sure enough, true to his pattern, you hear the bell over the door jingle and discreetly glance up to see him walk in. His expression lax and unreadable, he was wearing a white beanie with two little ears sticking out the sides. On any other person, it would have looked childish, but on him, combined with the tinkling dog tags around his neck and the Russian tattoo poking out under the sleeve of his white t-shirt, it actually looked pretty cool. Chelsea had spotted him too and immediately set about brewing his tea. She knew the drill. The man walked up to the counter and didn't bother putting in his order. He just leaned up against the edge and watched Chelsea patiently. You sip your macchiato again when he pauses to glance around the room. Without breaking tradition, he paid the barista - in cash with exact change, as he had seemingly memorized the total - and took his sip. There's the nod. Then, without any actual word being spoken, he left. You follow him with your eyes first, then rise out of your booth, shoulder your backpack, and exit in his wake. You pull down the snapback on your head over your eyes and drain the last of your coffee as you head down the street, tossing the empty plastic cup in a nearby garbage can. The man was about fifteen feet in front of you. It was drizzling a little, so you hunch your shoulders against the icy breeze, stuff your hands in the pockets of your jeans, and keep the bill of your hat over your eyes to keep them clear of rainwater. You could just see the heels of his white Timberland boots. It was enough. You trailed behind him, silent as can be, taking every turn immediately after his. A left. A right. Two more rights. Left again. You could do this all night; in fact, you would, if you had to. This was your chance, after all, to prove yourself again to Barry. Perhaps even your only chance. You'd seen Barry mad; the leader of the Techie Gang was ruthless. You'd already disappointed him once. You'd hate to see what it was like being on the business end of his laser robots'... um... lasers. This... finally locating the home of Barry's arch-nemesis, this man known only as "Ice Bear"... this would be your revival story. You paused, realizing that, while caught up in your own train of thought, Ice Bear was no longer in front of you. Or, at least, you could no longer see his shoes. You lift your head a bit so you can see better from under your snapback. "Wait- where'd he..." You mumbled absently to yourself as you glance around in confusion. He was nowhere to be seen. In fact, the street you had entered was entirely empty. It looked deserted. The only signs of life were the flickering streetlight overhead and a cat yowling in the distance. You bite your lip. You can't have lost him. This... this was your last chance. Suddenly, a force from the darkness behind you wrapped itself around your face and dragged you out of the undecided streetlamp's glow. It happened so quickly that you hardly had time to respond, let alone fight off the hand that was now muffling your startled cry. Not freeing you, the very man you thought you'd been following appeared in front of you, keeping you pressed up against the wall. You would have been terrified if it weren't for his serene, inquisitive gaze. He looked more curious than angry. "You were following Ice Bear?" He asked, in a cool voice. There was almost no inflection in his delivery. You swallow, staring up at him. He was a good foot and a half taller, making you feel like a Christmas elf, and at this proximity, you could see now that he had penetrating blue eyes the color of boiled water, and a small pink scar on the left side of his jaw, crawling about an inch up his cheek. Despite the discomfort of the situation, you found yourself wondering how he'd gotten it. You then remembered what you were doing, and instantly threw your hands up to try and pry him away from you. However, his reflexes were faster. Only one hand was necessary to keep your wrists bound. He presses your hands to your chest. He wasn't squeezing, but his grip was sturdy. There was no wriggling out of it. "Ice Bear asked you a question." You were still struggling, but it soon proved to be no use, and he apparently had no intention of hurting you. He just wanted answers. You could understand that, at least. When you stopped wriggling, he spoke again. "If Ice Bear releases you, you have to promise not to scream." This sentence sounded horrifying, but something about his tone was weirdly soothing to you. Like nothing could shake his voice, and nothing could shake his resolve. You felt like you couldn't be any safer anywhere than right here, under his eyes. You did nothing for a few seconds, before slowly nodding. True to his word, he removed his hand, and you could speak again. "I wasn't following you," you tried, but knew that you were a much better tracker than liar. However, he didn't seem perturbed by your clear lack of honesty, and he reached up. For a moment, you thought he was going to hit you. It just... felt like the reaction you expected from a man who had earned such a horrible reputation amongst the Techie Gang members. But, instead, he simply grabbed the bill of your snapback and lifted it a bit before spinning it around, so your face was clearly visible. He took you in silently for a second before saying, "Ice Bear doesn't believe you." You remained silent, knowing you couldn't get away with lying again. "...You're familiar. You go to the cafe." You blink in surprise. He'd noticed you, too? "Um...-" "Have you been following Ice Bear since Monday?" "...no...?" "Do you work for Barry?" "...um... n-no..." Ice Bear stares at you. Then, his sharp eyes crinkle almost imperceptibly at the corners, hinting at what may have been a laugh, if he hadn't been so stoic. "You are a terrible liar. You can tell Barry that Ice Bear is done bothering with him. Ice Bear doesn't need his drama. Ice Bear has enough drama." And with that, he lets go of your wrists. You are confused. He's just letting you go, just like that. Barry made him out to be some sort of supervillain or something. He called him merciless. There had to be a catch, right? Without your snapback in place to keep it out of your eyes, you run your fingers through your hair and say, "You're letting me leave? Just like that? You're not angry that I followed you?" Ice Bear tilts his head to the right. The effect was knee-weakening. A quiet, smart guy like him? Of course he caught you. He was clearly extremely perceptive. You try to shake those thoughts off; you couldn't let yourself get swept up in the dizziness that an attractive man often brings you. Head still cocked to the side, he says, "Ice Bear thought you said you weren't following." With that, he turned around and started to stroll away. You almost let him go before you yelled, "Wait!" He paused. The cat from earlier let out an irritated screech and knocked over a trash bin lid somewhere. You reach up and take off your snapback, ruffling your hair to get it back into its natural shape, "I was just, uh, wondering... is... Ice Bear your actual name?" He didn't move or react for good five seconds before turning fully away and disappearing down the road.
