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8:29 PM
November 8th, 20XX
Toby's apartment

While the end of his shift was a relief, it was also a scary amount of time to himself. Toby was left with only his thoughts, which were usually composed solely of his nemesis. Staring out of the window in his apartment, the moon was already easily visible, he wondered if Rebound was like him. A normal guy, who did normal everyday things when they weren't trying to kill each other. He'd never admit it, but he had held back more than once, and almost wanted him to crash through his roof during the quiet empty times he was alone. Maybe it was to punch the stupid grin off his face and laugh, but it felt more complicated than boredom for sure.

Oftentimes they got quite close while fighting, and it made Toby turn red with... embarrassment? He wasn't too sure what it was anymore, but he wouldn't be caught dead like that with anyone else. Fighting each other didn't feel all that necessary anymore most of the time, the public however, loved it. Toby found himself of all people longing to spar Rebound, needed or not. The deeper he thought about, the more he came to the conclusion that it wasn't battling in general, but instead specifically fighting his nemesis. Maybe his face really was that punchable.

Though, he dare not dwell on endless thoughts too long, he had work tomorrow again. At the very least it was Friday. He pulled the covers over himself and turned away from the door, yet the more he tried to ignore his mind, the louder it became. At last he fell asleep, his last thought of the day being not of victory, but of a tie.

7:12 AM

November 9th, 20XX

Toby's eyes stirred open and he wrestled his covers away. Checking the clock on his wall, he saw that he had a couple hours before work at eleven. No one would notice if he was gone for a bit...

He quickly grabbed his suit from under his bed and shoved it in his bag, sprinting out the door and through the apartment's halls. He could only hope he'd have plans to foil today, and not just anyone's, Rebound's.

Dashing on the sidewalk, weaving through his fellow pedestrians, he could only hope he was doing the right thing. Was it selfish to run off chasing a fight? Was it selfish to fight his nemises for a rush of adrenaline? He was evil, there was a reason to fight, but was that reason enough? He had adoring fans who loved him for saving their lives, and they loved watching Rebound lose time after time. He could only hope he could give them what they wanted. Yet, their desires may never match his own. They didn't know who he was. They never would.

Sifting through his satchel, he looked for his plans; neatly folded into a triangle, not a square. That's how he folded everything. The strange part however, was that he found a small square paper folded in his bag. The edges were still crisp, so it was new, but he hadn't ever remembered putting it in there. Pulling it out, he turn it over in his fingers, examining it. Toby unfolded the paper, and on it was a phone number. Below it? A message that read 'New work number, find employees?'

Toby stood at a stand still, in the middle of the sidewalk, processing. Where could this have come from? Had he written it and forgotten? No, it wasn't his handwriting. Then who's was it, if not his? Who could have possibly slipped him a piece of paper without him knowing? Who could've got that close? And then it clicked, this could only be the devious work of his nemises! Of course! But that arose the question, why? Why would he be given such a cryptic note? Was it perhaps, a riddle? Or was it a trap... No... it was a riddle... He was definitely over thinking it. It was surely much simpler. Rebound had made a... work number? Did he have a normal job or was this his job? Robbery and ransom was certainly no steady pay, but it was a pay nonetheless. The employees must refer to henchmen of a sort, naturally. But there was only one true way to know; call him!

Toby sighed and braced himself to confront Rebound. He slid his phone from his bag; where the note had recently been, and dialed the number. Riiinngg. Rinnnggg. "H-hello? Ah...! This is Rebound, you're calling because of the posters, right?" An answer. And a really quick one too. He sounded-- nervous? Toby put on his best impression of the more confident version himself, "No, no posters." He started walking again, towards his base. "Flint?!" Rebound gasped, pausing for a brief moment and muttering incomprehensibly to himself, "...how did you get this number?" Toby bit his bottom lip, clicked his tongue, and stayed silent. And then he hung up. Abruptly. No goodbyes.

He picked up pace, now running. It'd be better to meet in person, that way they just be normal, talk to each other directly. Though he couldn't possibly be normal with him. He wasn't too far from his base now, and had decided it was best to make it a permanent one. Above ground. Until then he would be stuck with the ruins of his old one. Luckily it was just across the road now.
Toby had built his latest hideout in a vacant lot near the beach, but still on grass. Had he done this legally? No, but it was for the greater good! He climbed into a dry bush that tried to cover the hatch leading underground to the metal box he occasionally called home. Gently climbing down the ladder, he exhaled lightly through clenched teeth. It would be nice to finally get a real base. Soon, he thought to himself, soon. He slipped into his suit, and called the number again. "This is Rebound, you're calling because of the posters--" Rebound, mid sentence, was cut off abruptly by Flint's rushed tone, "We can talk if you meet me in my base." Rebound was silent for just a second, less time than before, "...You got it, sparks!" As he hung up again, the nickname he received years ago, sparks, echoed in his mind. He couldn't deny it tripped him up, tangling his brain into a knot. It got him worse back when they were twenty-ish, newly nemises, he hated it back then. Now...? It wasn't so bad.

With a small thud of the trapdoor opening, Rebound slid down the ladder, as if he did so daily. At this point, that wasn't too inaccurate, it felt daily. "That was quick." Flint hesitated at the end of his sentence, he wanted to give him a nickname too, but none ever came to mind. "I'm never too far from you." Rebound answered, toying briefly with one of the orange, explosion shaped decorations Flint wore on the sides of his mask. Intending to bring up the note, Flint grabbed his wrist to grab his attention, which only derailed the conversation farther.

Rebound's face turned red in an instant, as he ducked away from view. The hell? Flint thought, his expression purely bewildered, "...Are you okay?" Rebound didn't seem pained at all, his wrist still held by Flint in his left hand, but he refused to look his way. "Uhm-- well. You're hot." he muttered, barely audible, stumbling through his words, "Well-- I mean-- I mean temperature." Flint scrunched his face, trying to understand how a reaction like that could come from him grabbing his wrist. Did his skin really produce that much heat? Still, Rebound hadn't tried to escape, but his hand was now evenly spaced between them both at chest level. It made sense for him not to be bothered by pain, as long as Rebound thought he was invincible, he would be, as per his powers. But Flint had never quite considered that the temperature would affect him, as Flint wasn't bothered easily by it any more. Rebound looked back at him partially, eyes shifting in consideration. Suddenly he grabbed Flint's left wrist with his other hand, creating a stack of sorts, in retaliation. It was clear he struggled to keep his composure as he looked Flint in the eyes and, voice cracks and all, told him, "Please stop grilling my wrist." Flint laughed, genuinely, at the request and promptly released his grasp. Rebound's wry smile grew slightly, also letting go. He laughed a little too, mostly at the way he had said it. Calming himself down, Flint decided that now was the best time to bring up the note. "By the way, why did you give me this?" He asked, drawing the folded note from his bag and spreading it out so that it could be read. Rebound's eyes widened, "Oh! There it is! I broke in here yesterday to see if I dropped it, but it looks like you took it with you," he grabbed the note gently, "I think it was in my hand when I gave you back the figure, so it wasn't your fault, but you did take it subconsciously." Flint raised an eyebrow, "That's... Irregular." Pocketing the paper, Rebound replied with a scoff like laugh, "Everything we do is at least a little irregular."

"Fair enough, I suppose." Flint accepted, eyeing how many star shaped accessories adorned his nemesis's suit. When he brought them up however, it spiraled into a long conversation between them. "Oh, I got the idea from an old villain..." Rebound said, as he went on and on about it as Flint listened. This wasn't what Toby had planned to do, but seeing as he was him, Flint thought this was equally interesting. Rebound apologized for wrecking the base so badly, admitting that the hole in the roof was unnecessary, but insistant that his enterence was at the very least dramatic. After a while it evolved into them complaining about the price of fireproof fabric (in which they both had to buy every now and then, for larger repairs to their suits). And Flint confessed that he didn't make much from hero work, so he had a regular job, which prompted Rebound to tell him that he no longer worked a normal job, and instead "did villainy" full time. They laughed at the strangest things as their conversation dragged on and on, when suddenly, Flint's alarm for work went off, his phone in his bag. Scrambling to his feet, he said goodbye to Rebound and shooed him out. "Cya!" The villain called out behind him. When he was finally gone, Flint rushed to change into a work uniform, now just Toby. When he left out the side door, leading outside onto the rocky beach, which was shadowed by the cliff where they rest of the city sat, Toby was a lot more careful. He didn't intend to crack his head open on the sharp large rocks that made up the "beach", but at that moment, his slipped. Instinctively he caught himself, using fire to propel slightly upwards and lessen the blow.

The beach was empty, but still, Toby really hoped no one saw. No body could know who he was. If anyone found out, he'd have a lot more problems than just Rebound. There could be someone else who wasn't as gracious. Someone... deadlier.

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