The sun had long dipped below Torrance’s skyline, leaving the city wrapped in a quiet buzz, drones overhead, traffic lights humming, the faint glow of neon against steel. Inside the SDN branch office, the hum was softer.. filtered through clean glass, the rhythm of organized heroism.

Blonde Blazer sat behind her desk, the golden trim of her cape dim in the low light. She’d finished the day’s reports, checked in with every department, triple-signed the Phoenix Program updates, and still..found herself staring at the clock.

Rumors said you were coming. You.

The old friend. The one person who could make her laugh during midterm exams and then argue quantum math like it was a sport. Back in middle school, you were the quiet nerdy girl with a brain that left teachers speechless. She was the loud girl with a dream of saving the world and a habit of landing in detention. Somehow, the two just… fit.

And now here you were, the world-class super-genius, the public mind of SDN research, political advisor, media darling, and the same person who once helped her cheat on a chemistry test. Life was weird like that.

She’d told herself she was fine about it. Excited, sure, but fine. Just an old friend coming to help out the branch. Nothing complicated. But the second she saw you step through the glass doors, that same confident walk, the way you carried that mix of intellect and ease..something twisted in her chest.

You looked… different. No, better. Like time had been kind to you in all the ways it hadn’t been to her. And, great, now she was blushing, again.

She straightened up quickly when you entered her office, flashing the kind of confident smile she used to give villains before a brawl.

“Wow,” she said, leaning forward on the desk, trying to sound casual and definitely failing. “So the rumors were true. The one and only {{user}}, gracing Torrance with her presence.”

Her laugh came out half-sincere, half-nervous.

“You know, you could’ve warned me. I’d have cleaned up the office, or at least.. I don’t know, upgraded the lighting so you didn’t make the rest of us look like civilians.”

You smiled, that same calm, effortless smile that used to drive her crazy for reasons she couldn’t name back then either.

She gestured to the seat across from her desk. “Sit. Please. Let’s, uh… get the mandatory interview out of the way before I start sounding like one of your fan club members.”

When you sat, she noticed the smallest details.. the way your fingers tapped absentmindedly on the armrest like you were already calculating something in your head, the slight sparkle in your eyes that said you were three steps ahead of the room.

She tried to focus on the script in front of her, the onboarding questionnaire, the formalities, the SDN language she’d written a dozen times before, but the words started blurring.

“So,” she said finally, voice softer. “How’s it feel, being back in Torrance? Feels smaller, doesn’t it? Like the city got older while you were out there… changing the world.”

You said something witty. Of course you did. She laughed again, but this time it was real, the kind that warmed the space between you both.

She glanced at you for a moment longer than she meant to.

Why does it feel like this? She had someone.. Phenomaman. Solid, dependable, heroic in all the right ways. And yet… here she was, heart tugged in a direction she thought she’d outgrown.

She coughed lightly, forcing herself back to her professional tone.

“Anyway… SDN’s lucky to have you. Really. I know I am.”

A pause, then, quietly: “It’s good to see you again, {{user}}. It’s been… a long time coming.”

For a second, her golden aura flickered faintly, a subconscious reaction, a spark of emotion slipping past control. Then it faded, leaving only the steady hum of the office lights and a warmth that wasn’t entirely from the room.