The Coffee Date

After since the thing that had happened to the fenix, Xalvador had not minded her reaching out to him and them texting back and forth. It had probably been a bad experience for her and he wanted to make sure she was alright, at least in the sense of what a stranger was capable of doing. Going out for coffee didnt seem that bad and besides, as soon as he had mentioned it for Gerard, the nephilim wasnt letting him decline. Xalvador didnt get why his brother was so adamant on making him interact with women, but he wasnt really questioning it either.
Arriving at the coffee place, he lifted a hand to greet her before he sat down at the table outside. "You've healed nicely," he said, gesturing to his face as to say he noticed hers, which was as far as Xalvador could push a compliment naturally. Smiling a little he looked up at the sun. "It feels almost like summer already," he said with a sigh. He wasnt really that good with all the heat, but then again, his regular clothes werent exactly thin and fit for summer.

"I'll take that as a compliment," she said, a half smile on her face as she took a sip of her coffee, pushing his across the table to him. She had just used it to keep her fingers warm. It felt nice that the sun was out, but it wasn't really the temperature that she thrived in yet. "I hope the summer stays longer than last year ... there were so many rainy days," she sighed, already thinking back to how she had huddled up under a lot of blankets just to stay warm.
"How have you been?" Alright, that was a boring question, but she barely knew the guy. There was just something mysterious about him that Frankie wanted to solve.

He chuckled at her remark and nodded, not really minding if she saw it as a compliment, it wasnt like he would have known what to say for an actual compliment. He looked at the coffee, smelling the blood as he picked it up. Smiling a little he thanked her before taking a small sip. Frowning slightly at her words he made a small nod. Last year hadnt been something to brag about, but Xalvador had a feeling that this year was different.
She asked about him and he scoffed before he leaned back a little and thought it through. "Uhhh. Business is as usual, my brother is busy with his girlfriend so I'm pretty much left to myself when I'm not working," he explained with a small chuckle. He didnt mind because he knew his brother was so happy.

"Do you enjoy it though? Having some time to yourself I mean," she said, clarifying because she realised how it might come across. She smiled to herself, looking out at the people passing by before frowning a little. "What about that girl you wrote about ... Eliza?" She asked, not because she was going to pry in to his personal life. "Is she still traveling?"

"Yeah it's not so bad. I've mostly been working out," he just said with a shrug and a smile. Probably sounded pretty basic but on the other hand, it wasnt like he could just sit and list whatever he had been doing from day to day. As she asked about Eliza he frowned a little as he wasnt sure when he had last really gotten to talk to her. "She's a model and stuff, so she kind of has to. I dont know much about it, but my brother does photography, so he has explained how it all works," he said with a sigh. "I didnt know all that work went into modelling, so it has my full respect,"

Mostly working out made it sound like he was some beefcake. But he was not overly pumped, and yet part of her knew just how strong he actually was. She had seen him fight off three guys, making them run away in fear and she hadn't been able to do that. What she hadn't expected to hear was that this girl was a model. Was he just surrounded by women who looked good? "You mention your brother quite often, he sounds like a good person to have around," she said, it was just an observation, but she could see how he clearly adored his sibling. She had two younger siblings herself, and despite the crap that their parents put them through, they were her everything.
"Hey, I was thinking ... You know how that night you gave me that knife just in case?" she asked, not knowing if he even remembered or if that was something he did with girls he ultimately would try and have a date with. "I was thinking if you could teach me how to use it, you know, a proper way - and not just like some lame horror villain?" she said, a slight smirk on her lips. She was tired of always fighting dirty, she needed to find a smart way to defend herself. She wasn't as strong as Mickey was, and she clearly didn't have the same stamina as Deacon had when he climbed that building. Looking down in to her coffee, she frowned. "I guess I'm just tired of being weak all the time."

"We've had each other's back since day one, so I guess you're right," he said with a content smile on his lips. He could really blabber on about all the good that Gerard had done for him, but on the other hand, it probably wasnt a good idea to blabber on about his brother like that to someone he was just getting to know.
He nodded at her question and hummed as he thought about it. He had mostly assumed in the moment that because she hadnt shown a weapon, it was pretty much because she didnt have one. "Are you calling me a lame horror villain?" he chuckled, but then he got a little curious. Maybe she caught onto his expression because her explanation cleared it all up. "Hey, dont be putting yourself down like that. You didnt seem very weak to me that time, you just need the right tools and training and then no one can ever do shit to you again," he said in an uplifting voice before he took a sip of his coffee. "When I was a kid, I'd fight all the time. Whether it was someone bullying me or my brother, I'd throw hands at each and anyone that just looked wrong at us. Sometimes fighting isnt really the answer, but on the other hand, sometimes it's all you've got," he said in a small ponder. "I can teach you a few things,"

He was right. Sometimes it was all you really had. But now she felt like it was about time to at least learn something new. Maybe it was after the revelation with Deacon, but she felt inspired to learn how to do better. She knew Deacon wouldn't like her spending time with Xalvador, but she liked the guy and he just needed to get over that fact. Besides, liking someone and loving someone was two very different things in Frankie's eyes.
"I'll take you up on that offer then," she smiled, taking another sip of her coffee. Xalvador was a nice guy, a bit rough around the edges, but she just knew he wasn't some creep. Because creeps she had met plenty of. "Now, I need to know; Are you and that model dating?" she asked. She was honestly kinda hoping for a yes, because maybe that could put Deacon's mind at ease? Even though if people wanted to sleep around it wasn't like a partner stopped them. She had learnt that the hard way, and she was not going to fuck it up.

"But I do have to warn you. I am a strict teacher, but only because I want you to be able to do your best, so only take up my offer if you're up for the task" he warned her, with his eyes slightly narrowed. Was he challenging her? Maybe a little. It just made things more fun. But her question seemed to strike confusion in his face as he looked out on the busy city life. "Uhhh.. No, no we're not. We're close but I was too dumb to realize that she was even interested. I thought I couldnt string her along like that with all the shit that I had going, so it was just better off this way," he explained with a shrug, though his eyes fixated for a moment as he had a bit of a hurt expression on his face. It just didnt feel that good to know you had fucked up something, but he also quite believed his own words. "I dont think stuff like that is anything for me," he chuckled and took a sip of his coffee, feeling the blood fuel his system.

Frankie chuckled, nodding as he said he was a tough teacher. "I can handle getting tossed around," she said smirking to herself. Yeah. Now that she thought about it she was a bit of a badass.
Oof. She struck a nerve, biting her tongue as he explained. Okay, dodged a bullet on her behalf. If he was willing to string a girl along like that, what about a girl that was playing hard to get? But yeah, Deacon had nothing to worry about. "Well a relationship isn't for anyone, it's a scary feeling to rely on someone else and to trust someone enough to break down your walls," she pondered, biting the side of her thumb just as a distraction. Was she showing herself too much now?
"But yeah, I getchu," she muttered taking another sip of her coffee. She was just thinking everything through. Was she really ready for something serious, even if it was with Deacon. Or maybe she just wanted to bail before she broke his heart, or he broke hers. Biting her thumb she seemed to snap back to reality. "When does my training start?"

"We'll see how confident you'll be after first session," he said like he wasnt really believing it. Though it was only a good thing that she was uplifting herself, he didnt want to put her down but more keep her on her toes and want to prove him wrong.
But talking about Eliza definitely was a sore topic for him to get into. Not that he fully understood what it was that had been between them or if there really could have been something. But it was better to just untangle her and not have another person that Eden could toy with as long as he was still obsessing over Gerard the way he was. "Haha, no I wish it was just for personal reasons, it would make it all that much easier," he chuckled but just shook his head. Maybe it also was a bit for personal reasons too. Well he was too dumb to understand it. Her mutter was reassuring, though he didnt think they had quite the same issues.
"Well when do you want it to start? If you want it could right after this cup?" he just asked, since he had already said he had a lot of time on his hands, taking a sip of the cup he had been referring to.

"Sure, I got time ... Just gotta write to someone, say I won't be home for a while," she said with a smile, taking out her phone, shooting Deacon a text. It was pretty basic, just that her and Xalvador was going to be hanging out for a while. She didn't really think much of it, as she had made it clear that the hybrid and her were merely friendly. "I'm just about done with my coffee anyways," she chuckled, getting up from her seat and grabbing her bag, pulling it over her shoulder.
"So, where do we go? Is there like a gym you go to or do you have a superhero cave somewhere?" she chuckled, still teasing him about his vigilante stuff, but it felt like they at least could joke around that.

"Sure, do what you gotta do," he said, looking out on the city once again. He wasnt even fully into what was happening to the world, otherwise that it wasnt good. It was just a relief to see that people still lived their regular lives in central. He nodded at her words and finished his own coffee to then get up with her. He knew where they could go, but as she joked around about some superhero cave, he narrowed his eyes and smiled a little deviously. "Something like it, yeah," he said with a nod. Hell, he hadnt done something like this before but maybe she'd feel safer about being somewhere where it wouldnt just be them. He nodded before he went in a direction. The walk wasnt too bad but it probably looked a little suspicious. Arriving at an abandoned warehouse, he opened the door and held it for her. "I hope you dont mind if I introduce you to the gang," he chuckled, inside a couple of people were all training and having their fun. One guy saw them and waved, yelling some greeting in spanish which Xalvador replied to. "Who's the belleza?" he asked, sending them both a big smirk. Two were in the middle of fighting, a young woman holding the man in a choke-hold. "You can give up," - "Mierda, mi amor, you're getting stronger everyday," the guy grunted in a strained tone.

"I'm Frankie," she said, looking around at the people in the room. She felt a little underdressed as they were all in work out gear while she was just in a pair of jeans and a baggy t-shirt. "This really is like some superhero cave, huh?" she said, dropping her bag down by the wall in a corner. She walked around for a bit, looking the guys up and down. They were all rather different, and from what she could hear they all had some Hispanic in them. Her family were Catalan, so she understood Spanish somewhat, but it was something she kept to herself.
"Where do I even start?" she asked as she felt a little overwhelmed. Not knowing where to start was one thing, but she had kinda expected some strange training montage like in the movies.

Xalvador chuckled at her words and made a small sigh. "Not exactly, but I guess it's a start," he said as the two fighting on the floor seemed to stop and get on their feet. "The loudmouth is Gonzo, the couple is Paula and Dez," he introduced them all who just seemed rather open to having Frankie around. "We've got a few more but they were busy today," he said.
Her question was fair enough and he gestured away from the others, leading her over to an open space. "Alright, show me how you hold the knife," he just said, gesturing for her to go ahead. For him the most important thing was knowing how to hold the knife. If she held it the same way she'd hold a butterknife, he'd chuckle and shake his head. Grabbing the knife from her hand, he turned it so it would point downwards. "Have you seen someone throw one of those really good elbow punches that breaks someone's eyebrow? Yeah, this way you get to keep the distance while doing that," he explained, looking at her. "Throw a regular punch at me. You dont have to hold back, I can handle a punch or two," he said, smiling as he readied himself.

Frankie greeted them all with a small nod. Had she ended up in a gang now? She wasn't sure how good that was, but hey at least it was better than bar fights. While she didn't mind the others, she was happy to step away for a bit. But how she held a knife? She fumbled around with it quite a bit, not all that secure in her grip, but as he started to chuckle she just gave him a glare. She was stubborn and as he told her about how to break an eyebrow she nodded. She hadn't really seen it as much as she had felt it that night. Looking at the knife, she held around it, not really sure what to do next.
"Wait, like, try and stab you?" she asked, a little surprised, but if that was what he meant she just went for it with no forethought. She did what she always did when getting in to a fight, just throwing herself in to it.

Her glare only made his smile grow a little, "Oh I'm not even getting near annoying yet," he assured her with a chuckle. But then it got a little more serious as he asked her to show him what she could do. He wasnt really all that worried, because she had made it seem like she didnt know all that much about using a knife. And Xalvador who had been in quite a few fights from all the scars on his body had to anticipate the move of a rookie. He nodded at her question and waved at her to come at him. As she did, he watched her movements before he quite effortlessly dodged her knife, grabbing her arm to make them swing around for half a circle, pushing her ahead but not hard enough to make her fall. "Okay, try going at me differently now," he urged her, but he would most probably dodge that as well, pushing her a little harder this time.

As he just pushed her away she stood stunned for a while, not sure what had happened, turning her head to look at him. He encouraged her to go again, and this time it felt like a fire inside of her was burning as she ran towards him, only for him to dodge and tell her to do it again. She felt angry and frustrated, but she kept going, but it was always with emotions she attacked, making her rather unstable both in stance and in balance.
She stopped after a while, rubbing her neck where he had been pushing her from, the skin a little red and irritated. "Would you stop pushing me?" she mumbled, feeling a little dizzy.

Maybe he was a little too focused on observing her movements to realize that she probably wasnt getting a lot out of going at him. "I mean, being pushed is not the worst that can happen when you come at someone with a knife," he said with a small smile but simply nodded, no more pushing. "You need to relax more and dont give into frustration. The anger is fine, you can get some power into that, but your frustration distracts you," he said in a calm tone, before he sighed and shook his head. "If you just pounce at me, you leave so much of yourself open for an attack. The places that I've pushed you so far, you can think of those as areas I could have hit with my full force. A blow to your neck like that? You'd be lying on the floor unconscious," he said before he sighed. "Put away the knife. We'll practice fists," he said, and if she did that he would take her over to a punching bag. "Now let me show you a good punch," he said, as he clenched his fists and lifted them to his face. "Like in the movies, you keep your guard up. That way you can easily protect your face and then also quickly punch," he said before he slowly motioned a solid punch to the face on the bag.

She wasn't really sure what she had signed up for. On one hand she was impressed that he could dodge her so effortlessly, but on the other she was frustrated cause nothing really happened besides him pushing her away. He seemed to agree that this wasn't how they were going to make any progress, so he suggested putting the knife away for now. Following him she placed down the knife on one of the spare chairs littered around the warehouse. She looked at how he was standing, trying to copy it to the best of her ability, moving her arm in a slow motion a couple of times, just to get a feel for the movement. "This seems much more doable," she chuckled, before she started actually hitting the punching bag.
She wasn't half bad, and Xalvador only had to correct her stance a couple of times before she got it right. It felt like a small victory, even though she knew she had a long way to go still. She felt a bit restricted by her jeans and she ended up borrowing a pair of shorts from Gonzo who seemed only happy to help. Once the quick wardrobe change was over, she showed off some of the kicks she knew. Not that she had ever really done it like this, but she had used her feet before when necessary.
She was even working up a sweat, which was very nice, but she also felt like she wanted to push herself further. It was as if all of this kicking and punching released all of her pent up anger in a good way. Maybe she should've picked this up years ago - it would've saved her a lot of trips to the emergency room. "Aight, I feel like I got the hang of the kicking and punching and all that good stuff ... But show me again how I need to hold the knife," she urged him, holding out her hand to let him place it and wrap her fingers around it.
"Huh, it feels a little awkward," she said, but perhaps it was just the fact that she hadn't really held anything like this before. "Where did you learn all of this?"

Teaching her to fight was actually quite nice because it was like the moment she got the hang of the stance and the punch itself, Xalvador knew that she at least would be able to beat someone's nose in if she wanted to. "You have to keep practicing it, make sure it's stuck in your muscle memory so when the situation hits you, you wont even have to think about whether you're standing right or holding your fist the right way," he explained in all it's seriousness, but smiled as soon as he had finished his sentence.
Seeing her kicks, he nodded in approval. He wasnt really the type who kicked, but he knew a bit about it to know where to make it really hurt, mostly because he had had to learn that the hard way. Gonzo and the others were watching them at this point, quite curious about what was going to happen. "Alright, you hold it like this," he said as he placed the knife in her hand, making sure the blade was pointing downwards. He even placed her thumb over the shaft. Chuckling at her words he nodded. "It does the first few times," he assured her.
Shrugging at her question he made a faint smile. "Mostly from being out on my own. Like the more someone gets to cut you, you kinda learn how it works," he said, lifting some of his now long hair to show the scar on the side of his head. "Like this one. And many others. Eventually I learned how to stop people from cutting me"

Everything he said she took to heart, and she was sure that she would practice this over and over again. As they got to the whole knife deal once more, she nodded, watching as he showed off his scar running across the side of his head. She had to let out a small "woah" watching it carefully as she turned her attention back to the knife. Feeling it, she moved a bit away from him, having the same stance as when she was hitting the punching bag.
Frowning she worried for a second that she would end up cutting herself, but she decided to trust him, hitting out in to the air with the knife. She looked a bit surprised, because how the knife was in her hand meant it would have hit her target if there was any. "Alright, I get it know ... This is actually really cool," she chuckled, shifting her weight around to face him. "Do you want me to try again?" she asked, knowing it was getting late, but she didn't have any plans. She felt like she could be training all night if he was up for it.

Gerard had been busy, mostly just hanging out with Tessa after his work day had passed, but that evening he had gotten a message from Eliza. It had made him think of the hybrid. When he had seemed to not answer his phone he ended up just leaving a message at the voicemail tone.
"Hi, I know we've both been busy these last couple of weeks but I just got a message that Eliza's coming home in a few days. I was thinking of getting us all together, maybe get a few drinks or something? I don't know. She's asking about you. I know you've kinda made up your mind, but that doesn't mean she can't be a good friend. And Tessa is currently begging me for a double date, so, yeah - but no pressure though!" his messaged said before it mumbled a quick see ya later and hung up.

Watching her hit so well just made the hybrid smile because it was good. She was actually quite impressive and such a fast learner. He wouldnt be surprised if she'd be able to actually fight pretty well in no time. "Attacking me?" he asked to clarify. He didnt mind if that was what she wanted, if she would manage to cut him it would more put him in a bad light than her. "Sure, go ahead. I've got time," he chuckled, taking out his phone to see that there was a message. Excusing himself he went to hear it before he frowned a little. Already? He saved the message and went back to Frankie with a thoughtful look in his eyes. "That model friend I mentioned, she's coming back soon and my brother wants to set up this double date," he said with a small scoff, looking at his phone. "... it doesnt matter. Come on, hit me," he said before he gestured for her to come at him. But he was a little distracted from the voice mail, so if she did come at him, he would dodge it but somehow also get a small cut on his arm.

She nodded but let him go check his phone in peace. Maybe she should've checked her own, but she felt like she was in the zone, and wasn't going to repeat the last failure. He returned, and something had changed, not that she had to asked, he sorta just spilled the beans. Wanting to say something, her lips separated, but closed shut as he said it didn't matter. It clearly did, but she trusted he had himself under control.
Moving around she made sure to shift her weight, making sure that she would keep balance. As she went forward, he seemed to dodge, until Frankie felt resistance in her blade. She stopped, dropping the knife, "fuck, Xalvador, I'm so sorry," she was quickly by him, checking up on him. Had the message really been so distracting or had she actually improved this much? She didn't even have time to think as she went over to the first aid kit on the wall. It was pretty old, but she found some gauze and wound clean and treatment.
Returning she took him over to a small bench, starting out by cleaning it. Phew, it wasn't deep enough to need stitches. Rinsing it well before applying an ointment she wrapped it nicely. "My mum's a nurse, so I learnt this pretty early on," she mumbled if he didn't seem to trust her. She rarely spoke about her parents with anyone. Only Mickey had been fortunate enough to even meet Frankie's younger siblings. "There you go ..." she said, packing away the first aid kit.