Chapter Text
August 28, 2008 - Earth-840 - Central City, California
2 Years before the Fantastic Incident
In a field of uncertainty, Johnny can be sure of one thing: Sue is going to kill him when he gets home. And by all right, he probably deserves it.
But first, Johnny needs coffee. Shaken espresso with three extra shots and vanilla syrup. Just the 10 PM pick-me-up he needs to drag himself onto the bus back to the apartment where the fratricide will inevitably transpire.
“We close in 30 minutes,” the barista says the moment Johnny opens the door.
“I know.” Johnny steps up to the counter, checking his wallet to make sure he has enough cash before making his order. His credit cards are all maxed out. “I’ll be quick.”
The Rose Café on 7th Street is the only decent source of caffeine open at this hour, and Johnny is pretty sure he’s been their last customer most evenings. He tries to tip well to make up for it, or however much he can afford, which today is only 25 cents. He gives the barista an apologetic smile as he drops the quarter into the tip jar. She scowls back at him, and he retreats to the side to wait for his drink.
It's started to rain outside again. The weather in Central City has been dreary lately, alternating between fog and rain with the occasional hailstorm in between as a special treat. Make that Reason #47 – yes, he’s been keeping count – of why Johnny hates it here and wants to move back to New York ASAP. Not that the list matters. He could write an entire manifesto but that wouldn’t change the fact that Sue’s new job is here while Johnny is chronically unemployed wherever he goes.
By the time his drink is ready, the rain has gone from a drizzle to a downpour. Johnny sits down with his cup at one of the tables by the window, much to the barista’s annoyance. He knows he only has 25 minutes or so before they chase him out, but if he can spare himself 25 minutes of getting drenched in the cold, it’s worth the awkward encounter.
Besides, he isn’t even the last customer today. There’s another man sitting on the other side of the café, hunched over a notebook and scribbling away on the page. Maybe he’s just desperate for a distraction from a terrible day at work and the impending argument with his sister, but Johnny can’t help but watch. He wonders what the stranger is writing. It must be interesting based on how engrossed the man seems to be in his work.
Suddenly, the man gets up from his seat, and Johnny knows he’s been caught looking. He turns away, feigning interest in the ice in his cup. The stranger pauses. At least Johnny isn’t the only one who’s been staring now.
The stranger is dressed in a neat white shirt with several pens in the pockets of his suit pants. He looks to be in his forties by Johnny’s best estimate. The grey hair gives it away, but otherwise, he’s kept himself in good shape. Very good shape, actually.
The stranger steps closer and confirms Johnny’s suspicion. Even with his senses muted by layers of suppressants and scent control, Johnny could sniff out an alpha in a busy crosswalk on Times Square and catch their attention before the light turns red. It’s a special skill of his, one that has earned him a free rooftop lobster dinner, the worst heartbreak since high school prom, and a week-long course of antibiotics, all within the last eight months.
Usually, Johnny saves these kinds of encounters for bars on a Saturday night when he’s dolled up and not stuck in his baggy cashier uniform. Today is only Wednesday, but considering he’s been fired, it might as well be Saturday.
Then the alpha walks past him, and Johnny is left staring at an empty table. He turns around to glare at the man. Did he really just pass by without even saying ‘hello’? Not that that’s unusual for people around here. Central City isn’t exactly the sort of quaint small town where people can go around greeting strangers without getting wary looks. Still, Johnny is offended.
“Sir, we close in fifteen minutes,” says the barista.
“I apologize. I promise I’ll be out of your hair soon.” The alpha glances at Johnny who immediately looks down at the floor. “I’ll have a lemon bar to go, please, and one more macchiato for the road.”
The barista sighs but swipes the man’s credit card. Her spirits lift, however, upon seeing the twenty-dollar bill placed in the tip jar. The man’s order is prepared twice as quickly as Johnny’s. The alpha gathers the cup and the box with the lemon bar, passing by Johnny’s table again on the way to his seat. Once again, he doesn’t say anything.
Johnny glances at his watch. It’s 10:54 PM, and he still has to wait for the bus. It’s storming outside. He has three missed calls from Sue. And worst of all, he’s all out of shaken espresso without enough cash to buy another one.
Well, if things can’t get any worse, he might as well take his chances.
He saunters over to the alpha’s table, holding his cup of ice like a prop in some pathetic high school theater production.
“Will it bother you if I sit here? You can tell me if it does.”
The alpha looks surprised by the question. He stares up at Johnny and adjusts his glasses.
“No… no it wouldn’t,” the alpha says tentatively. “I’m about to head out, but I think they’re about to close…”
“In 6 minutes, I know.” Johnny sits down, nonetheless. He glances at the numbers scrawled in the notebook. “You’re doing proofs?”
“I… yes. Yes, I am.” The alpha furrows his brow, as if trying to gather his thoughts. “It’s for a personal project I’m working on, but I won’t bore you with it.”
“I figured you look a little old to be working on math homework,” Johnny replies and immediately cringes at his own words. The sentence sounded much smoother in his head. “Not that you look old. At least, not too old for me.”
“Ah.”
Johnny half expects the alpha to get up and run out of the café after this interaction. However, the man stays put.
“You’re not a college student, are you?” the alpha asks.
“Nah,” Johnny says. “I’m almost twenty-four. And in case you haven’t noticed, we’re a bit far out from the omega college.”
And I dropped out anyway at nineteen. Long story there. More than anyone needs or cares to know.
“I see. Well, I’m forty-three.” The alpha pauses. “I’m Reed, by the way. Reed Richards. I should have probably led with that.”
Reed extends his hand. Johnny regards it quizzically but accepts the gesture. He’s never started a one-night stand with a handshake, but then again, he’s also not accustomed to picking up socially awkward mathematicians from coffee shops. Well, there’s a first time for everything.
“I’m Johnny.”
Johnny decides against revealing his last name. Sue has lectured him about that. Of course, Sue has also lectured him about chatting up strange men and sleeping with alphas he just met. And once again, Johnny knows she’s right. The city is a dangerous place for a young omega, even with his suppressants and contraceptives preventing a lasting mark. He’s heard of an omega about his age getting snatched from the streets not far from his apartment. He knows he should be more careful, and yet, he continues to gamble. He’s too deep in the habit now to stop.
“If you give me a minute, I think I could wrap that up for you.” Johnny lands his index finger on the last line of Reed’s notes. “If you’d like me too.”
“Well, you’re welcome to try.” Reed chuckles. “You must be the first man I’ve met who enjoys doing mathematical proofs.”
“I don’t enjoy them necessarily,” Johnny says. “But I don’t like seeing things left unfinished.”
The monstrous stack of laundry in Johnny’s closet argues against this statement, but Reed doesn’t need to know that. They’re not going back to Johnny’s house anyway. Sue would chase Reed out with a frying pan. And even if not for his sister, Johnny doesn’t like taking people back home. He prefers waking up in a new bed, cloaked by a new scent. It makes him feel like he’s made a change, even if it’s not real and the scent will be gone when he showers.
“We should probably find another place to continue this discussion,” Reed glances behind them at the disgruntled barista. “I think they want us out.”
“I think I could figure this out in less than five…” Johnny checks his watch. “Four minutes, but I agree. They definitely want us out, and I’d like a change of scenery too.”
Reed tucks his notebook away neatly into a leather messenger bag. Inside, Johnny catches a glimpse of a stack of papers. Ungraded exams, by the looks of it.
“Are you a professor?” Johnny asks.
“Well, yes, though nowadays I don’t teach full time,” Reed says. “I prefer to conduct my research independently, but I’ve been a visiting professor at a number of universities. I just finished leading an elective course at Berkeley. But I don’t think I’ll stay on for next year. I have… other projects on the agenda.”
“What was the course?”
“The Mathematical Principles of Our Dimension and the Next: Physics Beyond the Standard Model.” Reed laughs and shakes his head. “I know, it sounds corny. But I figured it would catch the students’ interest.”
“Huh, if they’d had courses like that back when I was in college, I might’ve actually attended lectures.”
Johnny follows Reed out of the café, standing with him beneath the awning. The rain has only gotten heavier.
“Do you have an umbrella?” Reed asks, unfurling his own.
Johnny shakes his head. Reed gestures for him to step closer, and Johnny happily obliges.
“It’s getting late,” Reed says. “Is someone picking you up from here?”
“I was planning on taking the bus.” Johnny puts on his most innocent face. “But I’d much rather you take me home.”
Reed’s eyes widen.
“Are you sure that would be alright?” he asks.
“I wouldn’t have suggested it if it wasn’t.” Johnny flashes a smile, but even as he does so, his confidence begins to falter. “Unless you don’t want to…”
“No, no. It’s fine by me.” Reed repositions the umbrella to shelter them both. “My car is right down this way.”
It’s fine by you? Just fine? Johnny doesn’t know what to make of that wording. Reed is certainly eccentric. Most of the other alphas would be dragging him to bed by now. Johnny is curious where this will end. He’s had his fair share of encounters with unusual characters. If previous experience is any indication, he’s either in for a very good night or something painfully disappointing.
Or he’s going to end up getting murdered and thrown in a ditch. Sue is always warning him of that possibility.
Unsurprisingly, Reed’s car is practically brand new and probably costs ten times Johnny and Sue’s yearly rent. The interior boasts a console spreading across the entire dashboard. Reed must have gotten it personally customized. It takes all of Johnny’s self-control not to play with the many buttons. He’s relishing the comfort of the heated seats when Reed interjects:
“So, what’s your address?”
Johnny stares blankly at him.
“What do you mean what’s my address?” he asks.
“You said you wanted me to drive you home,” Reed says, looking baffled.
It takes Johnny a moment to realize the misunderstanding. Interdimensional astrophysics professor or not, Reed is proving to be very dense at navigating a hookup.
“I said I would like you to take me home.” Johnny explains. Reed still appears confused. “As in, you can take me back to your place for the night… and maybe a bit of the morning if we really hit it off. I’ve got good stamina and nowhere better to be.”
“You want me to take you back to my house for sex?”
Johnny has to physically restrain himself from rolling his eyes.
“Yes, Reed,” Johnny says. “Did you really not understand that until now? I wasn’t exactly being coy about it.”
“I understood you were flirting,” Reed speaks slowly, as if explaining a complex equation. “But I didn’t expect you would want to move forward so soon.”
Johnny sighs. The cozy feeling from the heated seat is quickly wearing off.
“If you’re not into me, I can still walk back in time for the bus,” he says. “Or I can call my sister to pick me up. Just… just forget about this. It was a dumb move on my part anyway.”
“No, no, that isn’t what I meant, Johnny.” Reed pauses, gathering his thoughts. “I just feel it wouldn’t be right for us to rush when we’ve only just met.”
“Why? Do you want to get to know me better first?” Johnny scoffs. “Figure out my favorite color and all my hopes and dreams before you fuck me?”
“Well, yes, I would. Though I would phrase it differently.” Reed frowns. “Why is that so hard to believe?”
Johnny tries not to dwell on that question too deeply. The burst of energy from the shaken espresso is already declining. He’s too tired to explain why he isn’t the sort of guy people want to get to know.
He learned quickly after his presentation that there are two types of omegas. Those who end up getting mated and settled with a single-family home and three trust fund babies. Then there are those whose best chance at romance is a weeklong fling with an alpha who will hopefully remember their name at the end of it. Society thrives on binaries, and Johnny knows what side he’s fallen on.
“If that’s what you want, I guess we can give it a try.” Johnny shrugs. “I just don’t want to waste your time. You seem like a busy man.”
“I am,” Reed replies. “And I wouldn’t waste my time with any of this if I didn’t think you were worthwhile.”
“What do you want to do?” Johnny scoffs. “Mate me?”
“Maybe someday, but not tonight.”
Johnny laughs, wondering what he’s gotten himself into. It’s almost midnight. He’s already missed the bus. And here he is now in the car with a strange alpha who’s either a lunatic or a genius. What a night.
“Do you still feel comfortable letting me drive you home?” Reed asks.
“I’d appreciate it,” Johnny says. “I live in Center Garden Court. It’s just off of 14th Street. The roads around the apartment complex are a bit narrow so you can just drop me off at the end of the block.”
Reed presses a button on the console. An electronic chime rings in the car.
“Fantasticar, take us to Center Garden Court off of 14th Street.”
The car makes a second chiming noise in acknowledgment. A screen at the center of the dashboard lights up, displaying a map of Center City with directions. Slowly, the car shifts into drive and turns smoothly out of the parking lot.
“You named your car, ‘Fantasticar’?” Johnny sniggers.
“It’s a working name until I can think of something better,” Reed says sheepishly.
“Nah, it’s good. I like it. Fantasticar.” Johnny drawls out the name and sniggers. He watches the screen on the console plot out their route. “Is the car driving itself?”
“Not entirely. It’s a work-in-progress automated system, but I still drive the car myself for safety reasons. Don’t worry. I wouldn’t force you to be a guinea pig.” Reed makes the turn onto the main road. “Speaking of safety, you really should be more careful getting into the car with people. Especially unfamiliar alphas.”
“You’ve got to realize how ironic it is for you to say that.” Johnny yawns. “And by that merit, you should be more careful about who you let into your car.”
“I know. But I still feel I ought to say it.”
As if on cue, Johnny’s phone begins to vibrate. Another call from Sue. Johnny waits for it to go to voicemail before sending a text:
“Be home soon. Sorry. Bad connection”
He switches the phone to “do not disturb” and tucks it away in his pocket. The car pulls onto 14th Street. He can see the Center Garden Court apartment complex looming up ahead. Despite the name, there is no garden to be seen. Only two lone trees by the entrance and a flower bed overrun by weeds and discarded beer bottles.
“You can drop me here,” Johnny tells Reed. The car pulls to a steady halt. “Hey. I uh… I really appreciate the ride.”
“I’ll wait to see you get inside.” Reed opens the glove compartment and takes out a business card. “Here’s my number, by the way.”
“Isn’t this your phone for work?” Johnny looks down at the business card. “Do I need to start calling you, Dr. Richards, now?”
“It’s my phone for work and important matters,” Reed says. “I would love to take you to dinner someday.”
“Now, who’s moving fast?” Johnny smirks. “I’d like that though. When are you free? My schedule’s pretty much a blank slate for the next week at least.”
“How about Saturday at 6 PM, then? Tell me what food you like, and I’ll find a good place. I’ll pay.”
Johnny stares at Reed, wondering if this is a joke. It isn’t.
“It’s been a while since I had a good steak.” Johnny hesitates. He doesn’t want to seem too demanding. “But I’m fine with anything, really. Whichever place you think is good, I’m sure I can find something to order.”
“I have just the place in mind,” Reed replies with a broad smile. “Citadel Grille. I’ll make the reservation for a table for two and pick you up at 5:45.”
“I’d like that very much.” After eating half of a day-old salami sandwich for dinner, Johnny is already salivating at the thought of a juicy medium-rare piece of steak. And the way the alpha is looking at him stirs up other places besides his stomach. “Thanks for the ride again, Dr. Richards.”
Johnny opens the car door, squinting out at the rain.
“Here, take the umbrella… and take this too. You look like you could use something sweet.” Reed passes him the umbrella and the pastry box from the café. “And please, call me Reed. Let me know when you’re home safely.”
Even with the umbrella, Johnny’s shoes are still flooded after navigating the path up to the apartment. The lobby lights flicker on when he steps inside. The air is stale with old cigarette smoke mixed with traces of a marijuana joint. The elevator is out of order. By the time he’s finished walking up seven flights of stairs in soggy sneakers, Johnny wants nothing better than to crash in bed.
But of course, Susan Storm has other plans for tonight.
“I was about to call the police!” Sue is waiting for him in the entryway of their apartment, arms crossed, looking like she’s going to tell him he’s grounded for a month. “Why were you dodging my calls?”
“I was busy.” Johnny shakes off the umbrella in the hall before stepping inside. “You know I always make it home fine. I’m not thirteen anymore.”
“You know exactly why I worry.” Sue frowns at the umbrella. “Where did you get the new umbrella from?”
“A well-meaning stranger,” Johnny replies.
“And who gave you that?”
Johnny realizes that he’s still holding the pastry box. He holds it out to Sue as an attempted peace offering.
“Want a lemon bar, Sue?”
Sue merely glares at him. Johnny pushes past her to sit down at the kitchen counter.
“Wash your hands first,” Sue orders. “I can’t believe you’re doing things like this on a Wednesday night now. You have work tomorrow…”
“Actually, I don’t,” Johnny says dryly. “Surprise.”
“Oh my god, Johnny. It’s been less than two months into this job, and you got yourself fired already? How did this happen?!”
Johnny takes the opportunity to start stuffing the lemon bar into his mouth to preclude having to answer any questions for the time being. Unfortunately, this does not deter Sue’s interrogation:
“Did you show up late again?”
Johnny shakes his head, “no”.
“Did you get in a fight with the manager again?”
Johnny tries unsuccessfully to chew and defend himself at the same time.
“I can’t understand a word you’re saying.” Sue gives a deep sigh. “Johnny, do I really need to tell you not to talk with your mouth full? I swear, you’re like a toddler sometimes.”
“I said they were being really rude to me!” Johnny says. “Sue, you should have heard it. If you’d been there, you would know that it wasn’t my fault. People just can’t handle an omega with opinions!”
“You have a temper, Johnny. We both know that. I know, you’ve had a couple managers who were sexist jerks and they can all go to hell, but besides that, you can be pretty abrasive.” Sue runs a hand through her hair. “I don’t know what’s going on with you, but you need to figure yourself out. This is the fifth job you’ve been through this year. We’re barely able to pay to live here, and I’m still trying to pay off my student loan. You’re twenty-three, Johnny. I can’t be the only one supporting the two of us. You need to get it together!”
“I know, I know, I’m sorry, okay?”
One look from Sue is enough to make Johnny change his tone.
“I really am sorry,” he says, giving her a pleading look.
“Stop looking at me like a sad puppy, god…” Sue clutches her forehead as if nursing a headache. “This is serious, okay? You’re turning twenty-four in two months. Come November, I can’t have you under my health insurance anymore. You know how expensive your cycle control is out-of-pocket.”
“I know.” Johnny winces. “I’ll start looking for something tomorrow. I promise I’ll have something by the end of next week. Even if it’s just waiting tables again. That can at least cover the cost of the suppressants out-of-pocket.”
Sue sits down beside him at the kitchen counter. Johnny remembers them talking like this on many school nights after the teacher called Sue to complain about “behavioral issues”, which Johnny soon learned was another way of saying “Your brother’s a spoiled brat, and if you don’t get him under control, we’re going to expel him”.
“You need suppressants and contraceptives, at the very least, Johnny. I know how you are. I’ve read about the failure rate for suppressants alone.” Sue shakes her head. “The last thing we need is you getting pregnant by some deadbeat alpha. And I don’t want you taking some cheap generic version of the suppressants either. Remember how sick that one pill made you back in high school?”
“I’ll work two jobs then.” Johnny doesn’t know how he’ll achieve this suggestion, but he needs to at least try. “I’ll find something in the daytime with better pay and make some extra waiting tables in the evenings. Then at least my meds will be taken care of come November, and you can focus on the rent and your loan.”
“We both know you hate waiting tables, Johnny,” says Sue. “You’re bored with those sorts of jobs. I know it just burns you out, and I hate seeing it.”
“A paycheck’s a paycheck.” Johnny pops the remainder of the lemon bar into his mouth. “You just said we need the money.”
“And I also just said not to talk with your mouth full,” Sue reminds him again. “What I’m saying is that while you need a job in the interim – waiting tables or another cashier job – I think you should try to reapply to college in the meantime… don’t give me that look, Jonathan. I’m serious.”
“Do you even hear yourself?” Johnny rolls his eyes. “You just said we can barely pay the for rent and my meds and you want me to go take out another loan to go back to college?”
“It wouldn’t have to happen immediately. Maybe once I pay off my loan and hopefully get a better position at the lab… where do you think you’re going?”
“To bed.” Johnny stretches pointedly. He rinses the lemon bar crumbs off his hands and shakes off the water as he trudges off to his bedroom. “I’m too tired to argue about this now, Sue. We both know we can’t afford to have me go back to school. We could barely afford it the first time I tried.”
Why do you think I dropped out, Sue?
They’ve never discussed the subject openly, and Johnny prefers that they don’t. It’s better to have Sue think that he dropped out by his own accord due to a mere lack of motivation. Better than giving her something else to regret.
“We can talk more about it tomorrow then,” says Sue. “How did you get home anyway? I saw the bus arrive and when you didn’t get off, I got worried.”
“I had someone drive me home,” Johnny answers as vaguely as possible.
“Someone you know?”
“Well, we know each other now.”
“Another alpha?”
Johnny doesn’t answer.
“Johnny, I keep telling you not to get in the car with alphas you don’t know,” Sue groans. “How many times do I have to say it?”
“Yeah, I know.” Johnny cracks a smile. “You’d like this guy, I think. He actually said the same thing to me after I got into the car.”
“I’m serious, Johnny. It scares me just thinking about it.” Sue closes her eyes. “You’re all I have left. If anything happened to you…”
“Nothing’s going to happen to me, Sue,” Johnny groans. “I’ll be fine. I can take care of myself.”
“And I just hate seeing all these gross old men using you.” Sue makes a face. “Please tell me you’re not dating another one double your age.”
“Well, he’s not quite double my age, and for the record, he looks very good for forty-three.”
“Forty-three?!”
Johnny stops at the doorway of his bedroom and turns to face his sister.
“Listen, Sue,” he says. “It’s not that big of a deal. I don’t think anything is going to come of it. We’re getting dinner on Saturday. I haven’t had a decent steak since we were kids, and I’m not passing up the chance for a free one with attractive company. I’ll have all my meds so nothing permanent happens. And who knows? Maybe this will go somewhere, and I’ll be nicely mated and out of your hair for good. Isn’t that what you want?”
“I never said that, Johnny…”
“Good night, Sue.” Johnny waves lazily to his sister before closing the door.
Alone at last, he throws himself onto his bed. He lies on his back, playing with Reed’s business card.
Reed Richards, Ph.D. – Founder and Director of Richards Aerospace Engineering
He pulls out his phone and searches Reed’s name on the internet. For all he knows, the man could be a fraud. Immediately, he is bombarded by a slew of articles concerning the illustrious Reed Richards. If the internet is to be believed, the name “Dr. Richards” is an understatement. The man has numerous Ph.D.’s, purportedly earning his first two by the age of twenty. He’s worth eight billion dollars at least, with several pages citing larger sums.
Johnny puts down his phone, feeling embarrassed. He thinks of throwing away the card. Reed humored him tonight, but there’s no way this is going to last. And for some reason, Johnny now finds that thought upsetting.
Stop taking it so seriously.
Johnny takes out the card again and dials the number. So, what if it isn’t going to last? He went into this looking for a one-night stand. If he can get a few nice dinners out of this fling with Reed, he’ll already get more than what he initially bargained for.
He keeps the text simple:
“Hey. It’s Johnny. Got home safe. Thx for the ride”
He lays down and is just about to close his eyes when the phone vibrates. The screen lights up with a full paragraph of text:
“Hello, Johnny! It was very nice meeting you this evening. I am glad you are home safe and out of the rain. I have already made the reservation for Saturday. I look forward to seeing you again. – Reed.”
Johnny chuckles at the message. Naturally, Reed composes text messages like emails. His age is showing in more ways than his greying hair.
Johnny keeps his own reply much shorter:
“Great! Night, Dr. Richards”
A moment later, Reed replies:
“Good night, Johnny. And please, it’s just Reed.”
Tickled by this conversation, Johnny shuts off his phone and lies back on his pillow with a smile. Saturday dinner with Reed is a promise. He tries not to think much further than that.