My Boyfriend is a Superhero: Chapter 1
Sebastian Yun? Asking ME Out?
At the edge of a long desk in Kent University’s Rowe Library sits a freshman, staring through his color-coded biology notes and into the infinity of his feelings. Music blasts through his headphones, rising and falling with his focus as he adjusts his position — for the wooden chair he sits on, like most chairs in college, does not offer the greatest back support.
Next to him sits his roommate, Teo. They read through their notes from the same class, and fuss with their dark, curly hair, already impeccably styled. They then glance at the boy when he shifts. They watch him twist the chain of his necklace between his fingers, bounce his leg, and eventually set his green highlighter down.
“Tariq?” they say.
He does not respond when they speak his name. Their next resort is to tap on his shoulder. He startles. Lifts one side of his headphones. Looks at Teo with wide eyes. “Wuh? Huh?”
“You looked like you were spacing out.” They tap Tariq’s notes with their pencil. “We’ve got the exam in three days! Study up, pretty boy.”
Tariq pushes his hair out of his face, the shock of blond having fallen over the frame of his glasses, and picks up his highlighter. “Don’t remind me.”
“Hey, an exam’s a chance to show off, you know! Be excited!”
Tariq’s eye twitches. “Show off what?”
“How much you know! How smart you are.” Teo elbows him.
He looks back down at his notes. “Show off the 2.5 GPA I’m destined for?”
They huff. “Fine. That’s a mood.”
Tariq runs his highlighter over a bullet point about cells, humming in perfect rhythm with the song in his ears, a piano ballad in his carefully-tuned study playlist. He sinks himself into the ocean of biology, reluctantly, with music wrapped around him as a life jacket. Though bothered at first by the extra noise, Teo taps their foot to his humming.
His thoughts, once in perfect order, cannot remain so forever. His heart cannot beat perfectly. A loud crash tears his focus in half, and the screams of his fellow students across the library rip those halves to shreds.
A supervillain whips by at the speed of wind, throwing him and Teo and many others out of their chairs. Tariq scrambles underneath a table, his back crying out in pain from the fall, his heart racing in his throat. Teo grabs his wrist to ground him, and their eyes travel from the new hole in the wall, dangerously close to them, to the villain, who has parked himself at the center of the room.
His floor-length black coat flies behind him, a mask distorting his voice. “No one move! I’m taking you all hostage!”
Though most students choose to stay silent, a few protest. One groans and starts gathering her scattered papers. “Seriously? A college library?”
“Silence!” The villain points at her.
“No, I mean, of all the places to choose. Not a bank? Like this isn’t unheard of, but there’s literally a bank two blocks away.”
Another student pipes up from the other side of the library. “Some of us have exams, my guy.”
And another. “I have a paper due at midnight!”
“Silence! All of you!” The villain claps his hands together, and a powerful breeze rips through the library once more. “The next person to speak gets thrown out of the building.”
“Ooh, can I sue you then? Pay my tuition!”
He points in the direction of that voice, and a student screams, pushed through the hole in the wall by the wind. No one hears the sound of them hitting the pavement, though.
Teo squeezes Tariq’s wrist. “A hero! It’s a hero! I bet it’s—”
The air outside, traveling through the hole and onto Tariq’s skin, tumbles several degrees. A man floats through it and into the library, holding the student who fell through. His shirt plunges down his chest in a v-neck, blue gradient sleeves giving way to cuffs with sequins, a scarf flowing behind him; his black hair, falling down the sides of his face in waves, sparkles, the ice shards scattered in it reflecting the harsh lights of the ceiling; the corner of his lip curves into a smirk, and he sets the student gently on the floor before bowing. His voice, raspy and high-pitched and perfectly rhythmic, fills the whole library. “Windbreaker! Pleasure to see you again.”
Students in the library scream once more— not out of fear. The student this man saved starts jumping up and down in excitement. Teo can hardly contain themself. They grab Tariq’s shoulders and shake him out of his anxious, bisexual daze. “Ice Vortex! It’s Ice Vortex! It’s Ice Vortex!”
Tariq checks his own pulse reflexively. It cannot keep steady. “Who?”
“You don’t know?”
Teo and Tariq both look back up at the man, supposedly Ice Vortex, who cocks his head and adjusts his eyepatch. “Got anything to say for yourself? You at least gonna monologue or something before I kick your ass?”
The villain known as Windbreaker scoffs. “I’ve grown stronger since last we met, Yun. I will not allow you to best me again!”
“Mm… poetic! I like it.” Ice Vortex takes a deep breath, then clenches his fist, quickly encasing Windbreaker in a cage of ice. “But your tragic backstory’s not a good reason to take a bunch of hostages, bitch boy. Do better. Go to therapy or something.”
Windbreaker grabs one of the bars. “I’ll kill you before I go to therapy.”
“I’d like to see you try.” He sighs. “I didn’t even need to call my team for backup. Come on.” He directs the cage with his finger, picking it up and then throwing it forcefully out of the hole.
The students erupt in cheers, and a few voices are loud enough to be heard over the rest.
“Oh my god! Can I get your autograph?”
“Save me next! Carry me! Please!”
“Can I interview you for my journalism class?”
This is the last Tariq hears before putting his headphones back on, too overwhelmed by the noise.
Ice Vortex waves his hands as a crowd gathers around him, saying something Tariq cannot make out, before he glances down under the table. For a fleeting moment, just short enough to not bring him pain, Tariq meets his eye. Like his hair, it sparkles under the lights, a cold blue with flecks of white. Ice Vortex cracks a soft smile before turning away, and Tariq’s heart keels over in his chest.
He is left staring, his cheeks tinged red, his breath slow and deep, at the spot this man once filled.
Seconds pass, and he sinks into the ocean again, this time with no life vest. Teo pulls him out of it by the arm, and he takes his headphones off, the library having quieted down.
“Holy shit! Holy shit!” Teo covers their mouth with both hands. “Tariq! We just saw Ice Vortex! We just saw a member of the New Guardians!”
Tariq does not emote, except for a raised eyebrow. “I don’t know who that is.”
“Tariq! You! Drive! Me! Crazy!” Teo grabs his shoulders and shakes him again. “How do you not know that! Are you even from Denver! Have you been living under a rock!”
“I guess I have.” He pulls away from Teo and stands up too quickly, gasping in pain from his back.
“You’re insane!” Teo buries their face in their hands and screams. “I’m fangirling so hard, you have no idea, and you don’t even know who this guy is?”
Tariq blushes slightly and rubs his lower back, his mind someplace else. “I’m going back to the dorm.”
“Ah, shit, your back.” Teo frowns and emerges from under the table. “We should catch the shuttle. Wouldn’t surprise me if they evacuated the library now anyway.”
“Mm hm.”
“But once we’re there I’m talking your goddamn ear off about Ice Vortex. I can’t believe we actually got to see him! And you don’t even know who he is! You’re crazy!” Teo gathers their belongings from across the floor. “I’ll carry your things.”
“Thanks.” Tariq lets out a sigh, tinged with dreaminess, and slowly walks out of the library, Teo following close behind.
Rather than listen to Teo’s ramblings, Tariq simply naps off the back pain— promising his roommate he will listen tomorrow— and awakens for his dinner shift at Dairy Queen. He enters a trance there, taking orders with a forced smile, sustained by the same 15 songs on repeat that his coworkers dislike way more than he does. His break does start eventually, though, and he collapses onto a chair, throws his pullover across its back, and devours the sandwich he brought with him. He bounces his leg, gazes off into space, entirely escaping the lines and sounds for a few minutes—
Until a familiar, raspy, high-pitched voice breaks him out of his daze, accompanied by a drop in temperature. “Hey.”
Tariq glances up at the voice’s source, too taken aback to respond immediately. He wears the same eyepatch, and his hair still falls softly around his face, but he has changed into a long-sleeved crop top. “Oh! Ice…” Tariq puts his fist to his mouth and looks down at the table, struggling to remember.
“Vortex.” Ice Vortex pulls out the chair across from him. “Do you mind?”
Tariq’s heart pounds in his throat. “I don’t mind.”
“You can call me Sebastian, by the way.” He sits down, leaning back, legs crossed. “You know it’s kinda awkward getting called your work name all the time by random strangers?”
Tariq picks at dead skin on his lip. “I don’t know much about superheroes. I’m sorry.”
“Oh, no biggie. Just for future reference.” He stares off toward the other side of the Dairy Queen as giggles fill the air. Tariq tenses up and searches for the source: a table with five chairs, one empty and four full, watching the two of them. Sebastian snaps his fingers. “Shush! What if he’s got social anxiety or something? Quit your giggling.”
A woman with her brown hair pulled back into a ponytail speaks up. “We’re not giggling at you, random Dairy Queen worker! We’re giggling at Sebby!”
“Oh my god. Don’t call me that in public.” Sebastian pulls down his bottom eyelid.
Tariq again places his fist against his mouth, at a loss for words. “What?”
“Sorry.” Sebastian flips off the group, then turns back to Tariq. “I just came over here to say you’re cute.”
He repeats, “What?”
“You’re cute! I saw you in that library earlier and I thought you were cute. Glad I ran into you again here. I love your hair. The little blond part is stylish as hell.” Sebastian smiles.
“What?”
He chuckles. “I’m sorry, are you hard of hearing?”
“No.” Tariq sets his hands flat on the table. “I’m just confused.”
“Confused?” Sebastian softens his expression. “Why?”
“I’m not cute.” He brings a hand up to hold the charm of his necklace. “My roommate told me you’re a famous superhero. You’re handsome. You’re strong. You’re charming. I’m… just some guy.”
Sebastian’s brow furrows. “What’s your name?”
“Tariq.”
“What are you studying? I’m assuming you’re a Kent student.”
He swallows. “The plan is biology. Pre-med.”
“Oh god.” Sebastian lets out a short laugh. “You must be wicked smart.”
“Not really.”
“Hmph.” After a brief pause, Sebastian slides his hand across the table, settling it close to Tariq’s. “You ever been on a date?”
Tariq eyes his hand, a blush overtaking his face. His head spins, and his heart skips a beat. “No.”
“You wanna try?”
“What?”
Sebastian chuckles again, then stands up so smoothly that he avoids making his chair creak. He pulls a sticky note and a pen from his pocket, scribbles down his phone number, and sets it on the table. “Think on it a little.”
Tariq reads the sticky note. Runs his thumb underneath the phone number. He sets his hand on his chest, then on his lower back, and then sets his eyes on Sebastian. “Are you pranking me?”
Sebastian frowns softly. “No? I’d never do that.” He taps the sticky note, then turns to head back toward the group from earlier. They start giggling again, and Tariq picks up the sticky note, admiring the crispness and clarity of his handwriting. The impending doom of his break being over soon dissipates, and though the air around him remains chilled, Tariq fills from head to toe with warmth.
Teo’s freshly-microwaved ramen tumbles to the floor. “You what?”
“I got asked out on a date by Sebastian Yun.” Tariq cracks a small smile and sheds his pullover, throwing it to his desk chair.
“You’re killing me. You’re killing me! You’re joking!”
“I’m not.” He turns his heating pad on high and climbs into bed, not bothering to change out of his jeans. “I thought it was a joke too.”
Teo buries their face in their hands and screams for several seconds.
“I’m sorry he’s dating me and not you?”
“No, it’s not that! My gender’s too girl and he’s too gay.” Teo rips off paper towels to clean the ramen off the floor. “I’m just, you know, screaming.”
“Oh.”
“I mean— I just— you didn’t even know who he was a few hours ago.”
“I know it’s not tomorrow yet,” Tariq responds, fidgeting with the bi flag above his bed, “but could you tell me about him?”
“Tell you about him! Yes! Of course!”
“I just don’t want to mess this date up.” He lets out an uncommanded nervous laugh. “It’s the first one I’ve been asked on for real.”
Teo stands, carries the ramen-soaked paper towels over to the trash can. “You’re not messing it up. No way. I’ll get you looking fresh.”
“Huh?”
They smirk. “The right outfit, the right perfume, everything. For that matter, you need a new wardrobe, pretty boy. It’s all sweatshirts and jeans in there. And you need a little confidence. And— hold on. Hold on.” They rub their hands together. “You’re going on an actual social outing? Like going out and talking to other people on purpose! And it only took you, what, a month and a half of college?”
Tariq’s eye twitches. “Just tell me about him for now, please.”
Most famously, the hero known as Ice Vortex saved the world in April from the clutches of an evil corporation, aided by his team, the New Guardians. His heroic performance in the mission against Red Ink Corp put him in the spotlight. He even lost his eye in a dramatic attempt to save his teammate, Copycat. Self-sacrificing tendencies dto wonders to endear the world’s many superhero fans. As do eyepatches.
Before that, he had a long career as a hero, starting in 9th grade at the Denver Academy of Superheroes. So many heroes begin their journeys as young as 14, and Sebastian was no exception— but hey, at least there are no middle schools for that kind of training, right?
Even for someone attending the prestigious high school, Sebastian was an excellent student, performing well in simulations, in real-life missions, and in the popularity department as well, rumor has it. Now, at 19, he is still quite popular with superhero fans across the world. He is an edgy bad boy, apparently. Prone to recklessness, and protective of his friends, and flirtatious in a gay way. The inherent appeal of a guy like that is too much to bear! But only for some people. Everyone has their own tastes, of course. His teammates are popular, too. There are four of them, each with their own life stories— too many for Tariq to keep track of, although Teo tells all.
How does Tariq not know about any of this despite living in an international superhero hotspot? Has he been living under a rock? Well, the only superhero merchandise he owns are songs about them, appreciated more for their sound than for their lyrics. In this case, he has much to learn, and must somehow fit both superhero history and Intro to Biology into his brain. Wish him luck.
Thank you for reading! The next chapter will come out on Sunday, July 10th.
banger first chapter! can't wait to see more :D
10/10 gay