It took a minute for CC to figure out what the annoying noise was that had dragged him from sleep. It was his phone. He peeled one eye open and blinked. THe room was dark as it should be. He'd hung a double layer of hefty trash bags in front of the windows with duct tape when he got his first night shift. The apartment he shared with his mother was great... but the west facing wall of his bedroom with its large windows let in way too much light for him to sleep during the day. Eventually, he just left the plastic curtains up because there wasn't any point in switching them every time he had a day shift. Not like the sunlight was doing him any good. The phone glowed on the cheap walmart minidesk where his laptop was set up next to a bulging bookcase. CC glared at it. He checked his alarm clock. "Three hours?" Who the hell would be calling him after only three hours of sleep?" Who'd be calling you, period? When the only answer he could come up with was Mom, he shot out of bed like a bolt of lightening and darted across the room. Mom knew he was asleep, if she was calling from work it had to be an emergency. "Mom?""CC?""Mat?" He jolted into full wakefulness. "How did you get this number?""Your boss. The one with green hair? She gave it to me when I told her why I wanted it.""That's against the rules!" CC sputtered, "We're not allowed to give out personal information."Mat was quiet for a minute. "Please don't be mad at her or file a grievance. It was my fault."Mathias Giraud wanted his number badly enough to get it from his boss. He'd turned that brilliant, white toothed smile on Deana and... she'd caved, just like CC was about to. "Why?""Um... I really need you to do me a favor."Rubbing at his sleep gritty eyes, CC shook his head. Long hair clung to his neck and temples in sweaty streaks. "I'm not the brightest bulb on the market, Mat. But I'm not normally this dim either. What do you need?""Would you please reconsider going to see the Avengers with me tonight?""I..." His glance flashed guiltily to a framed poster of Robert Downey Jr. dressed as Ironman. That lie was going to kill him if he let remain between them. "I'm not good company for you Mat.""It's you, or I'm forced to take my nephews by myself."Oh. "Oh, I get it." It did make more sense that way. "You need an adult friend to help you babysit. That I can do." Not that he had much experience as a sitter, either, but his best friend Travis did have a kid, and his wife Bonnie had allowed CC to hold the baby once. He forced a little chuckle. "I was afraid for a minute there that you were asking me on a date." His fingers tingled; his stomach fluttered in a very unmanly fashion. Plop. Plop. Plop. Rolling his eyes at the unwelcome, uncontrolled response, CC chewed on his lips and waited. The sweet powdery scent grew stronger, he breathed purposely through his lips. Mat's soft laughter spurred very unfriendly thoughts. CC's blood pressure rose, his heart rate increased. God why did everything about Mathias Giraud have to be so damned sexy? Why couldn't he be just another dumb, bully of a jock like his cousin Thorn? "Well, does that mean yes?" Mat interrupted his ruminations."I might have to work." He offered lamely. Argh. That's the best you got? nice, quick thinking genius. Easy to see why you missed Top Ten in your graduating class by a mile."Deana said you're off. I asked her." What was it like to be that confident? To have that kind of self knowledge and ... fuck just plain out there balls? CC would never know. He was tired. That's all there could be to it. Because other than that lame attempt, he couldn't think of a single other reason to say no. And his body was giving him all kinds of reasons to say yes. Even though getting laid was out of the question, being with Mat would give him jerk-off fodder for a week. "Yeah. I can do it. I'll meet you at the cinema at eight.""Five." Mat corrected him. "The boys have an early bedtime."Great. Going out with Mat GIraud, and he'd be home before the sun finished setting. "You're cutting into my beauty sleep there, Giraud, but I think I can make it.""Terrific. I'll see you then. And CC?" "Yeah?" He stared at his bed, wondering if he'd be able to get any sleep at all now. "This is a date. We just happen to be burdened with two eight year old chaperones."The line went dead, just like that, with CC staring at his tangled spiderman bed sheets and the indent in his pillow that fit his head..."A date?" He asked Ironman, but Robert Downey Jr. only smirked, that wicked twinkle in his eye chiding CC for his denseness. Ironman. Now there was a hero. Science, intellect, saving the world and making a fortune at the same time. Not a useless talent like ... marshmallows.