During the first few minutes of lunch, Selina genuinely forgot about it. She took out her ham sandwich from her bag, a little smile making its way to her face when she heard Freddy's familiar uneven steps.

      "Lina," he started, flopping down beside her and tossing his crutch haphazardly against the table, "pinch me because I need to make sure I'm not dreaming."

      The thief, being the little shit she was, didn't hesitate to reach out and pinch his arm.

      He immediately yelped and pulled away. "Ow, shit! I said pinch, not rip my skin off!" He tried to sound angry but the smile failed to leave his face, making her giggle.

      "Yeah, well, you didn't specify. So that's on you." She smiled innocently as he stuck his tongue out at her.

      They both chuckled for a moment before Freddy nudged her with his crutch. "Seriously though, check this out!"

      When he took out the very letter she slipped inside his locker earlier, it took everything in Selina to not choke on her sandwich and panic.

      "You're dripping like a saturated sunrise, you're spilling like an overflowing sink. You're ripped at every edge...but you're a masterpiece. Signed by a secret admirer." Freddy recited the poem to her just as Billy sat down beside him, the disabled boy's cheeks pink as he read it. "Since when do I have a secret admirer?!"

      "Since now." Billy retorted, a mischievous smile on his face as he nudged Freddy's shoulder. "Have any idea who it could be?" The question was directed to the superhero fan, but the amateur thief was giving Selina a knowing look, making her squirm and look away from him.

      Freddy shook his head, his chocolate brown eyes still trained on the letter. "No idea. I mean...it can't be true. Someone's probably pranking me or some shit. There's no way someone thinks of me like that."

      That made Selina's heart clench, tearing a small piece of her sandwich and throwing it at him, trying not to laugh when it got lodged in his hair.

      "Hey!" He yelled, quickly removing it.

      "Don't be ridiculous, Freds." She said seriously. "You're great. I'm sure whoever it is really means it." She made sure not to say too much, not wanting the attention to be drawn to her.

      The thief didn't notice Freddy's lingering glance at her as she started eating. She didn't notice how he hoped that it was her who wrote it before settling with the fact that she didn't.

      For the first time, lunch with Freddy and Billy was quiet. Normally the ravenette would be rambling about whatever comic book he read and the other two would join in. But Freddy hardly spoke, his eyes stuck on the letter, most likely memorizing every word like he did with his comics, the pink blush never leaving his cheeks. He was so pretty when he was blushing, Selina had to remind herself to stop staring and focus on devouring her sandwich.

      It seemed that the thief couldn't escape that damn letter. Because when during dinner, when Rosa asked them how was their day, Billy, the flying motherfucker that he was, didn't hesitate to mention that Freddy had a secret admirer.

      God, it was bad enough that Mary knew she was the secret admirer, but to have Billy suspect it too?

      She was going to end herself if anyone else found out.

      The paranoia was eating away inside her, desperately ignoring the knowing glances from Billy and Mary, shoveling food in her mouth and remaining silent. She normally didn't talk much during dinner, so that hopefully didn't raise any red flags.

      "Why did I listen to you?!" Selina demanded, barging into the shared bedroom as she confronted Mary.

      The older girl merely lifted her head from her book, raising an eyebrow. "I didn't hold a gun against your head and demanded you to write a very romantic poem to Freddy. I suggested it and I'm honestly surprised you followed through."

      The thief groaned loudly and threw herself face down on the bed, making Mary chuckle. "Oh c'mon, don't be so upset about it. Freddy liked it, didn't he?"

      She paused before lifting her head slightly to look at her. "He kept reading it all throughout lunch. And he was blushing. And smiling."

      "See! He liked it!"

      "The poem, Virgin Mary. Not me."

      Mary stared at her, unamused. "How original. And seriously? He does like you!"

      "As a friend!" She snapped, raising a hand up in exasperation.

      "Friends don't look at other friends like they created the stars." She crossed her arms over her chest.

      She narrowed her green eyes slightly. "He does not look at me like that."

      Mary rolled her eyes, sighing. "Think whatever you want. I'm just telling you the truth. I expect ten bucks when you finally realize I'm right."

      The short girl snorted. "You're on, Bromfield."

      It took another week for Selina to finally pick up a pen and write another poem for Freddy.

      She seriously wasn't going to. She didn't want to slip up and give any hints as to who was writing these letters. But she was prompted by the kindness she still wasn't used to, the kindness he displayed to her two days before.

      Selina had been hunched over her desk, rereading the same math problem over and over again with a hand in her curls and tugging it in a pitiful attempt to keep her composure. She hadn't even heard Freddy calling her until he was suddenly beside her.

      "Lina, dinner's re—are you okay?" He asked her but she didn't look up, keeping her eyes on her homework.

      "I'm fine." She said through her clenched teeth, tugging on her hair again, a bit harder this time, and suddenly there was a gentle hand on her wrist.

      "Don't do that, Selina," he said softly, gently pulling her hand away from her wild curls, "you have really pretty hair and it'd be a shame if it fell out."

      A little giggle escaped her lips, some of the tension leaving her before Freddy sat down on a chair beside her. "You okay?"

      "I'm fine." She stated, trying to ignore how her stomach felt like it was going to lurch when he kept his hand on her wrist.

      Freddy shot her an unbelieving look. "I literally came in here to see you trying to pull your hair out. I don't think that's fine." He looked over at her math homework, the stupid assignment that seemed to stare tauntingly at them. "Do you need help?"

      The shorter girl, not wanting to verbally admit that yes, she was pathetic and stupid and her dyslexia was kicking in and making it much harder to understand the problem, just nodded silently instead.

      And without needing to be asked twice, the ravenette scooted closer and began explaining it to her. He didn't talk to her like she was dumb, but was patient with her and good god, her shriveled up black heart nearly bursted when he smiled at her proudly for finally getting the problem right.

      "See? Not so bad! You just gotta look at it from a different perspective!" Freddy told her, still giving her a grin that was so infectious that it had her smiling too.

      Selina leaned back in her chair, chuckling under her breath. "Easy for you to say. You're going places. Probably will be a comic book artist, coming up with amazing ideas for superheroes. And I'll...be in prison. Or dead by a gutter. Both are very accurate."

      His expression turned serious. "Don't say that. Because I'll be by your side every step of the way. No matter what. Besides, I'll need an assistant to give me ideas for characters for my comics!"

      She raised an eyebrow. "Me? I would've figured you'd chose Billy to be your assistant."

      "Yeah, well, I choose you. You could help me create awesome anti-heroes!"

      "Only because I understand them. I am a perfect neutral." The thief shrugged.

      "More like a chaotic neutral." The superhero fan retorted under his breath, making her nudge her elbow to his shoulder as they both started laughing.

      "Thanks, Freds...you're the best." She said truthfully, not missing the way his cheeks turned a soft shade of pink. So cute.

      He nodded, standing up as he leans against his crutch. "Anytime. I'm here whenever you need me." Freddy told her truthfully. "Dinner's ready, by the way. If you wanna come down."

      She ran a hand through her curls, this time not pulling them. "Yeah, I'll be there soon."

      He gave her a smile, hobbling closer to her door before pausing and turning to look at her. "Selina...you have more power and talent than you know." That was all he said, enough to make her mind whirl and her insides to burn before he left her room.

      And that's where Selina sat now, one leg crossed over the other as she plotted her next poem. Damn, she felt so cheesy but...he deserved to know that there was someone out there who cared about him. Who admired him. So she would anonymously do just that.

      The curly-haired girl sighed under her breath, letting a little smile take over her face as she began writing.

I'm trying not to let it show. That I don't wanna let this go.

      She was only halfway before a sudden bundle of energy bursted into the room. "Cat!"

      Selina squeaked in surprise, quickly throwing a textbook over the letter. "Darla! What are you doin' here?"

      The little girl approached her, a plastic tiara on the top of her head. "Cat, it's your turn to have a tea party with me! Remember?"

      Aw shit. Right. It was her time to get tortured and lose a sliver of the will to live while simultaneously enjoying herself.

      Life with the Vasquez's were weird.

      "Alright, I promise I'll be right over. Give me five minutes, I have to finish...reading this chapter real quick." The brunette lied with ease, giving her a smile before poking the younger girl's sides and giggling when Darla squealed.

      Finally, the little girl left her alone. Well, not before giving her her signature 'Darla Hugs' that surprisingly nearly strangled the thief. For a seven-year-old, she was strong!

      She let out a sigh of relief, trying to ignore the cynical part of her brain that was cursing her for being so soft. Selina just needed to remind herself that it wasn't weak to be soft. That it was okay because these people cared about her. Freddy cared and knew how to put those thoughts at ease.

      Finally, she finished writing her poem.

Cause I clutched your arms like stairway railings. & you clutched my brain & eased my ailing.

      Feeling nearly satisfied with her letter, the need being fully complete once she double checked with Mary that everything was grammatically correct, she felt a sense of relaxation to once again write her feelings out.

      Maybe she should do this more often, not just for secret admirer letters.

      The next day seemed to go by so soon. Selina did what she did the first time, leaving class a few minutes before lunch and slipping the letter into his locker after checking that the hallways were empty. She was chewing her bottom lip in anticipation, hoping to whatever was out there that the disabled boy would like this letter still.

      The catlike teenager didn't need to wait long to find out. Once again, at lunch, it was all he was talking about. Rereading the letter with the biggest smile she had ever seen on him and once again ignoring the knowing glances Billy kept shooting at her. She was still quiet, not saying too much to draw attention but felt her heart flutter from how happy he seemed.

      She knew that this was supposed to be a one-time thing. She didn't want anyone to find out that it was her writing them.

      But how could Selina ever refuse seeing Freddy's face light up after each letter, knowing that there was someone out there who saw him as a masterpiece?