(Invincible) Invincible Bond: Chapter 8 - First Date

Chapter 8 - First Date

Summary: Mark and Eve have their first date—though, as usual, Mark has a hard time sticking to a schedule.

Okay, so mad scientist is a real thing, who knew. Mark and Eve just came back from their mission against Doc Seismic. A mad scientist with extreme ideological beliefs that wanted to blow up Mount Rushmore.

He and Eve got there just in time and managed to stop him from causing too much damage, even managed to save a family that was touring around the area they fought at.

Still, Mark felt a little down. He could have made sure Seismic would have caused less damage if Mark was faster, like he knew he should be.

He heard a sigh from next to him and turned his body midair to look at Eve who was using her own powers to fly back home. She was looking at him with a look that Mark became too familiar with. She shook her head and said gently, "You still thinking about your speed."

That wasn't a question. Mark mentioned it to her after they finished dealing with Seismic, not wanting to hide anything from his girlfriend.

"Mark." Her voice was so soft it was like music to his ears. "Me and Cecil already told you that you have nothing to be ashamed of. You only have had your powers for a few weeks; no one can expect to fully control their powers in such a short time. It took me years with mine."

Mark sighed himself and looked back forward toward the horizon as he said, "I know, but what if next time my powers won't be enough, what if next time your life is on the line."

Mark felt someone bumping into him and looked back at Eve, who was smirking at him and said, "Your powers will get stronger, and I can hold my own in case you didn't notice."

Mark chuckled at how true that statement was. In much better mood thanks to Eve, both of them landed inside his room.

The moment they replaced their superhero costumes with their casual wear, Eve said something that surprised Mark, "Hey, how about we go on our first date this Sunday?"

Though surprised, Mark was quick to respond, "Yeah, totally. I would love it." He began looking for other ways to say yes when her giggle cut him off.

Embarrassed, Mark could only laugh nervously. He then thought about something that caused his cheeks to heat slightly, and he rubbed the back of his neck as he said slowly, "Well, actually I have no idea what we should do on a date; never been in this situation before."

Eve smiled and walked closer to him so she could pat his cheek carefully and say with a slightly condescending tone, "That's adorable." Probably seeing the look on his face, Eve dropped the act but kept the smile as she said, "Don't worry about it, I will handle it. Just remember to keep your Sunday afternoon free."

Mark wanted to tease her back a little, so he tried to mock salute her and say sharply, "Yes ma'am."

Eve rolled her eyes and left his room, probably toward her own.

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Mark just landed on top of the Everest mountain! That is a pretty cool thing to say... even though he can't tell anyone about it.

The frown at the thought turned into a smile as he remembered one person he will be sure to tell about it as soon as he gets back home... Eve. Dating someone who is a superhero herself is the best!

Especially the fact they can share things like that without worry about identities and so on. There was something so freeing about it.

Mark smiled up at his dad and said, "I feel like I got faster."

Omni-Man, his dad, turned to him with a smile and said in a proud voice, "I'm glad to see you are taking your training seriously now."

Mark looked away from his father and back toward the snowy horizon as he voiced his fears, "You won't be there always. For one reason or another, and I can't put Eve's life at risk to save mine again like in the alien invasion. If it wasn't for you, me and her would be dead now."

Mark clenched his fists and declared, "I can't let it happen. I have to train until I can safely say I am as powerful as you, if not more."

Mark felt a heavy hand on his shoulder and followed the arm to look up at his dad's smiling face. "You will get stronger, son. So strong there will be none on this planet that will be able to match you."

Mark felt both warmth at the idea of being able to protect those he loves from any threat and at the same time, the way his dad said it made him feel cold, for some reason Mark couldn't put his finger on yet.

Still, he pushed that aside and smiled at his dad saying lightly, "Well, there is always Eve. She'll probably kick my ass no matter how stronger I become."

A few different emotions passed through Nolan's eyes before he settled on smiling again and said in a half-joking manner, "Maybe you are right. Just another reason to keep her at our side no matter what comes in the future."

Mark pumped his fist between them and said, "Exactly what I was planning on doing. Eve is too important to me to ever let go without a fight." Then Mark's smile froze, and he said in a panic, "Holy shit! I forgot we have a date in like an hour."

Nolan chuckled and said, "Well, how about killing two birds with one stone. We race home; the last one has to take out the trash for a month."

Mark didn't even hesitate. He shouted, "Deal," and immediately took off, leaving his dad standing on the mountain. A little dirty trick, Mark knew, but when you race against Omni-Man, every advantage has to be exploited for the mere chance of victory, and Mark had hoped it would be enough.

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"Oh man," Mark said as they walked into the house. Apparently the answer was no; it wasn't enough to beat Omni-Man. At least he was closer this time than ever before.

"Don't feel bad, son, you still have a lot of room to grow," his dad tried to encourage him.

But if anything, it had the opposite effect on Mark, and he grumbled, "Geez, thanks dad, I feel so much better."

Nolan just laughed at the sarcasm in his voice. His mom probably heard his last comment as when they entered the kitchen, she had a glass of wine with a raised eyebrow and asked lightly, "What got Mark so upset this time?"

His dad went straight to the fridge while answering Debbie, "Oh, he just lost a race and has to take the trash out for a month, so he is grumbling."

"Oh, a race, you say." His mom took another sip of her wine with a clearly amused look on her face.

Nolan, now leaning on his wife's chair with a bottle of some drink himself, smiled and said in a teasing manner, "Apparently all it takes to get our son to move his ass is a date."

His mom looked pleasantly surprised, "You and Eve are going on a date, huh?"

Mark rolled his eyes and tried to hold back his sarcasm as he replied, "She is my girlfriend, Mom."

The older woman giggled and retorted with, "No need for the attitude, Mark, I'm happy for you."

Mark felt a little bad, so he shot his mom a sincere smile back. His dad, though, had to break the moment after he finished gulping down his drink, "Ask him where they are going."

Mark glared at his dad, and even before his mom could ask, he defended himself, "Eve and I are just going out."

Both his parents repeated the word as one, "Out," before his mom said sarcastically, "The place all girls want to be at."

Before Mark could retort, a voice from the top of the stairs said with a voice full of amusement, "It's okay, Debbie, I was the one that planned the date, so Mark has no idea where we are going."

Mark's breath hitched when he saw Eve entering the kitchen herself. She was wearing a beautiful black dress that reached just under her knees; the sleeves looked thick and loose, while the rest of the dress hugged the figure of the redhead in a delicious way.

Speaking of her hair, it was all ironed down and brushed back so it covered the back of her dress with a red curtain.

But the thing Mark found most captivating was her large smile and bright eyes. She raised an eyebrow, her smile still in place as she asked, "How was the training, Invincible?"

She said his hero name in a teasing manner, but Mark ignored it and replied with a smile, "Pretty good. Flew to the top of Everest with Dad."

Both of Eve's eyebrows shot up and she said with an equally surprised voice, "Didn't expect that, but cool way to spend your time."

Mark chuckled in agreement before his blood froze at Eve's next words, "Now I understand how important training is, but we did make plans for today that you are already about to be late to."

Her smile might have still been in place, but Mark was smart enough to notice the warning in her voice, and after saying, "Shit. You're right. Be right back," he began floating toward the upper floor when a hand on his chest stopped him in his tracks.

Mark looked at Eve with a confused look, and she rolled her eyes. "I have reservations, and you are late as is, so just let me do this..." She snapped her finger, and Mark was engulfed in pink light. When it faded, his hero costume had turned into a black buttoned-up shirt and jeans. Eve smiled in satisfaction and said proudly, "That. Now we are good to go."

Not sure what else to do, Mark took Eve's hand and began heading toward the door.

Just before they left the house, he heard his mom saying, "Well, that sure as hell is a handy trick."

He even managed to hear his father's response of "Yes." But this word came out of his Dad's mouth in a tone that made Mark uncomfortable again, and he was still not sure why.

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Mark looked around the fancy restaurant; if he's honest, it's a little too bright for him, and he could only understand about three of the dishes offered in the menu.

He was focusing on his surroundings so much, he was startled when he heard Eve's amused voice, "It's just a restaurant, Mark; you are not in the White House, so calm down."

Mark chuckled and said a little awkwardly, "Sorry. I'm a little nervous; I've never been in a place like this before. Have you?"

Eve smiled and shook her head, speaking in a casual voice, "Neither my parents nor Rex could afford this kind of thing, so it's my first time too."

Mark raised an eyebrow at her, "So can I ask why you chose this place?"

Eve's smile turned wistful, "I wanted our first date to be special."

Mark felt his heart warming at her words, and he reached out his hand to grab hers and said with the softest voice he could, "It is. Because it's you I'm here with. It's already the best possible place in the world."

Eve smiled brightly back at him.

Mark then cleared his throat awkwardly before managing to gather enough courage to say, "I... Ummm... I... I wanted to say it earlier, but you look very pretty tonight."

Mark immediately felt like asking his dad for another punch. Very pretty?! What the hell was coming out of his mouth?!

Eve, finding his reaction to his own words amusing, giggled before replying with a smirk, "You look very handsome yourself there, Grayson."

Mark decided to tease her back a little, "Why thank you, all of the credit should go to my amazing girlfriend."

His plan backfired, however, when her smirk grew a little and she responded smoothly with, "You do look like the kind to forget your own head if it wasn't attached to your body."

Mark sighed, expecting a comment like that; he was quick to respond, "I'm sorry, Eve, you are right, I should handle all of it better... I..."

Mark stopped when Eve grabbed his hands and gave him a soft smile before saying gently, "Hey, you are still new to it. It takes some time to get used to balancing everything around you. I'm here to help you; after all, when it comes to our other business, I'm your senior."

Mark felt himself relaxing at her comforting words, and before he could even stop himself, not that he ever would, he said, "You are the best."

Eve smiled proudly and said, "I know." Then she took on a thoughtful expression and thought out loud, "Maybe I should join your trainings. I would be able to help you, and I'm sure Omni-Man can teach me a thing or two."

Mark smiled a little nervously, but even that soon disappeared as the two stopped talking about their hero lives and settled into their date.