Bdubs woke up and took a deep breath. He was far too comfortable in his bed, wrapped up in blankets and Doc's arms to want to get up. But, if he wanted to pull off his job, he needed to sooner rather than later. Conveniently, as he decided to sit up, arms held him tighter, preventing him from moving at all.

"Stay in bed longer," Doc groggily urged.

He laughed. "Not like I could move anyway, Mr. Super Strength," he teased, pressing his face right beneath his collarbone.

Doc was clearly pleased with himself as he hummed. And Bdubs didn't mind the excuse to stay in bed longer. Even after a year of living together, he was still yet to grow used to the comfort and safety of each morning. The early sunlight pouring in from the window to the right of the bed trapped him under such an inviting warmth that he'd be willing to stay there all day.

He gave up on all plans to finish his job sooner rather than later and quietly lay with his boyfriend until the hero's alarm went off. In response to the annoying sound, Doc mumbled complaints of incomplete words. Bdubs laughed and peppered his jaw with kisses. "C'mon, I'll get up with you," he encouraged.

"I'd quit my job if I didn't like it so much," Doc muttered as he slowly let go of him and sat up.

Bdubs followed him up, reaching over to fix his bed hair. "What do you want for breakfast?"

His boyfriend gently took his wrist. "No, what do you want? You've been making breakfast for me nearly all week. Let me do it too!" He insisted.

"Fine, fine. Waffles with slices of banana and strawberry then."

-

"There you are, ma'am," Dynamight cheerfully declared, handing over the zombie her purse and car keys. After some random guy on the street robbed her and stole her car, the hero had simply picked the convertible up and shook him out.

She shook his hand. "Oh, thank you! And thank you for not damaging my car!"

He laughed. "Of course! I know insurance can be a pain." As he waved goodbye and headed off, the police radio clipped to his belt caught his attention.

"...reports of some stolen diadems by Angel. He was last seen around the rooftops of fourth and Knights Crossing..."

Oh, Bdubs, whatever am I going to do with you? He fondly thought before breaking into a run.

Just as he found a building with a fire escape staircase to take him up to the roof, a police car stopped near him. "Hey, Dynamight! Wait a second!"

So he did and found a cop offering a pair of handcuffs. "These are new and stronger than the ones we used last time we got Angel in our custody. We were told to give you a pair if any of us ever ran into you. So here, go get him!" With a light laugh, he shrugged and accepted the gift.

"I'll try my best!" He agreed, stowing them in his utility belt.

As he ascended to the top of the buildings, he didn't think much of them. Sure they were brighter, shiner, and heavier, even if he wanted to apprehend the villain, he knew it'd be a difficult feat.

The last time Bdubs was apprehended by authorities, he broke out within a matter of minutes and never made it to the station.

"Oh sweet Angel, where are you," he quietly sang to himself as he approached the aforementioned area. Closing his organic eye, he scanned the horizon all around him, until he spotted the familiar white outfit.

With a small explosion to boost him, he hopped across buildings until he caught up. He shot a warning explosion nearby, causing the villain to land and hastily turn around. Despite no longer being affiliated with Warlock, he still kept the same costume; a long-sleeve white crop with a red cape hanging off his right shoulder. The left half of his pants was a red skirt and the right half was a white legging. His brunette hair was pulled back into a ponytail and he had a red mask tied around his head. When he wasn't in 'villain mode' the mask was used as a bandana to keep his hair out of his face.

Then again, he always wore the same costume too, so who was he to judge? The one long sleeve of his black top with a dark blue triangle on the bottom covered his bionic arm. Although the black pants used to be connected, getting into the costume used to be such a hassle.

Angel extended a dagger, his other hand holding the handle of a big black box. "We have got to stop bumping into each other like this," he brightly teased, angling his blade.

"You really have someone who's going to pay full price for all of those? What kind of billionaire are you working for," he scoffed, nodding towards the case.

The villain shrugged, tilting his head. "One person, multiple people, you my lovely hero, will never need to know. And yes, full price and then some for shipping." When he slashed at the air, bubbles exploded from his knuckles but it could have just as well come from the blade's tip. They were quick to swarm Dynamight, who crossed his arms over his face to shield himself as they began to sting his skin.

He hid his stupid grin behind his arms. Although he knew Bdubs didn't like fighting, no matter how he behaved, Doc did. He thought it was fun, and he knew neither would ever hurt the other too badly. When he first realized his feelings, he initially couldn't bring himself to fight him. He didn't want to, but he quickly grew to find it fun with all the flirting between their battles.

So with sparks bursting from his palms, he blasted Angel back, the kickback pushing him away too. Sucking in a breath, the villain left the case on the ground and unsheathed his second dagger. As he darted towards the hero, Doc met him halfway, deflecting his blows until he could grab his arm and throw him over his shoulder.

The moment Angel hit the ground, Dynamight bolted towards the case, but before he could grab it, a bubble he didn't notice was on his cape grew until it encapsulated him. He was dragged through the air, back to where the villain had gotten up. "Are you getting sloppy?" He taunted with an exaggerated gasp.

"Maybe, or maybe I just need a little pick me up to rejuvenate me," he teased as the bubble was lowered to the ground.

Huffing with a smile, Bdubs rolled his eyes. "Yeah you wish, pretty boy." Still, he popped the bubble and stood over the kneeling hybrid. He cupped his face and looked around. Once sure no one was looking, he brushed their lips together.

"Thank you," Doc hummed against his lips. His hand trailed down his side to leg not covered by the half-skirt. With a sudden yank, he pulled Bdubs down onto his back. But the hands that were holding his cheeks slid down to his neck and pulled him down. Angel rolled them over so he had the hero pinned and held the blade against his neck.

"So? Rejuvenated enough? Or am I about to walk away with my prize?"

He sighed. "I'd like to take some - preferably all - back to where they belong," he admitted. "I'm not giving up so easily." Doc knew that it was thanks to the constant high-level thefts Bdubs pulled off that they could live in a place so nice. He knew it was wrong but he tried to atone by working even harder to try and stop Bdubs.

Turning his palm face up, he created a smokey explosion to make Angel recoil and cover his face, opening an opportunity to knock him off and get back up, his hood falling off in the process. Once again Angel tried to follow and once again he deflected his attempts at striking him. Still, the villain managed to effectively strike his bionic arm, but the attacks never cut deep enough to do serious damage. But then he misjudged where his arm was heading and a dagger cut deep into the mechanical side of his chest and was dragged down.

Dynamight harshly pushed him just below the collarbone as he staggered backward. "Ah- shit-"

"Are you okay?!" Angel's taunting demeanor quickly melted into concern, but he kept his distance. "I'm sorry Do- Dynamight, I'm so sorry!" He hastily apologized while the hero braced himself and ripped out the dagger.

"I'm fine, don't apologize," he assured him before tossing the weapon aside and charging after him.

With his remaining dagger, Angel held it up ready to strike but he seized his wrist and spun him around, catching the other and pinning them behind his back. Remembering the new handcuffs he had, he pulled them out. "Not to worry, I'll just bring you down to the station," he light-heartedly teased, knowing fully well Bdubs could break out in a heartbeat.

Yet the moment the cuffs were on his wrists, his boyfriend suddenly cried out in agony and stumbled down to his knees. "It- it burns!" He wailed.

"Wait, what?!" He dropped to help take them off but Bdubs was in pure defense mode and not listening. He surrounded himself with a flurry of small bubbles as he fell on his side, leaving Doc momentarily disoriented. "No, please, let me help!"

Waving off the bubbles he found Bdubs' hands and forced the cuffs open and harshly threw them across the rooftop. Bringing his arms to his chest, Angel's crying softened as he curled in on himself.

Doc gently brushed the hair out of his face as he bent over to press soft kisses to his temple and whispered apologies. In only a few minutes his boyfriend was slowly sitting up and the hybrid slipped a thumb under the mask to wipe his cheeks. "I should've realized they were iron. I don't know how the police found out but- I'm so sorry. I'm so so sorry."

Sniffling, Bdubs nodded and leaned against his chest. "I'm done for today," he muttered. "You know I can't stand fighting you anyway."

Tightly hugging him, he kept his lips pressed against his temple. "I know, I know. You used a lot of energy too, you need to get home and sleep." He lifted an arm and gently kissed his wrist.

"But I have a job to finish," Bdubs sighed, standing up and brushing his fingers through Doc's hair.

He slowly stood up. "Either make it quick and be home within the hour or just do it tomorrow."

Pursing his lips, Bdubs helped him put his hood back on. "I'll be home before you know it," he promised.

-

The couple's habit, whenever someone got hurt, was to sit on the floor of the bathroom connected to the master bedroom. They would quietly sit across from each other or on the edge of the tub and take turns fixing each other up.

So when Bdubs got home, he found Doc waiting for him on the bathroom floor as per usual.

He sat down and watched his face as he carefully checked his arms and began treating the burn marks on his wrists. Just by his expression, he could tell the hybrid was scolding himself and beating himself up for letting it happen.

"Stop blaming yourself. It's okay, I'm completely fine now," he softly insisted.

The hero deeply sighed. "No, it's my fault. I shouldn't have taken them, I shouldn't have used them." Scooching closer, Bdubs pressed his lips against his forehead and stayed there until Doc squeezed his hand.

"Don't worry about it anymore, please," he urged. "Now let me see the damage I did." He helped Doc take off his shirt, where thankfully, the only seriously damaged panel was one that they had a replacement ready for. Taking the small screwdriver, Bdubs carefully removed the panel and delicately detached the touch sensors before reconnecting the new one.

Although he was silent, he knew it hurt the hybrid, and every sharp breath he took made him temporarily freeze in worry. "Almost done," he muttered as he screwed it back into place. His hand slid down his bionic chest. "Any other one here I should take care of?"

"Nah." Doc shook his head. "They're still durable enough."

So he switched to his arm where he began tending to the small nicks and cuts. While he worked, a hand brushed through his hair. "It's getting longer," his boyfriend murmured. "Are you going to cut it soon?" When he shook his head, he heard a smile in Doc's voice. "That makes me happy, truth be told. I like your hair a little shaggy." Bdubs laughed and a kiss was placed on the side of his head.

Although he kept a smile on his face as he finished taking care of Doc, he was lost in thought.

How did the cops know that iron cuffs would be so effective on him? The only people who knew his weakness were Doc, Scar, and his mom. One of them was dead, another deeply devoted to him. So what incentive would Scar have to reveal his secret?

And he couldn't help but worry if he was willing to give up that information, what else would he spill to the world?

-

I know this was a long time in the making, but truth be told I rewrote a part of the plot just so I could include songs from Midnights, the latest Taylor album. Honestly, I think those extra additions helped round out the story! So excited to finally get the ball rolling on this sequel as it's like two/three-ish years in the making!!