Just Chatting

The moment Gwen saw Jessica, her heart skipped a beat. She remembered Jessica, after all. It wasn't every night that you ran into a super-strong woman willing to fight Japanese ninjas alongside you.

But why was she here? Had her identity been exposed?

Gwen quickly calmed herself down. She had been wearing her suit and a mask that night, so she shouldn't have been that easy to recognize. She preferred to believe this was just a coincidence—that the woman had simply happened to pass by this restaurant, nothing more.

So Gwen put on the same standard smile she gave every other customer. "Hello. What would you like to order?"

"Nothing in particular. If I had to say... you."

Gwen jumped in fright. What was this supposed to mean? Was there something wrong with this woman?

Gwen gave the customer another look. That cool black leather jacket, the fitted blue jeans, and those black leather boots... Now that she mentioned it, the outfit really did look a little androgynous.

"Ma'am," Gwen said cautiously, taking a step back, "I'm still underage."

Jessica blanked for a moment, then suddenly understood and rolled her eyes. "What do I care whether you're underage? Stop pretending. I know you remember me. We met just last week, didn't we?"

Gwen's heart sank halfway into her stomach. There was no room for wishful thinking now. She knew she probably couldn't get away with it. While desperately racking her little brain for a solution, she forced herself to mumble, "I don't know what you mean, ma'am. Have we met?"

"Enough with the act. I know you're that little girl who was hopping all over the place in a onesie that day."

Gwen got angry. "That was a combat suit, not a onesie! And I'm not a little girl."

"But you just said you were underage."

"I..." Gwen was momentarily speechless, so she let out a heavy snort and stopped talking.

Hmph. I, Spider-Woman, won't stoop to your level.

Gwen gave up pretending, set down her notepad and pen, and sat down. "How did you know?"

She really was curious. She had thought her secret identity was fairly well concealed. How had this woman figured it out?

Fortunately, she knew Jessica had abilities like hers. Gwen now considered Jessica one of her own kind and assumed she was some sort of vigilante too, so exposing her identity to a fellow vigilante didn't seem like such a big problem.

"I'm a reporter. I have my own methods," Jessica said. Then, realizing that sounded wrong, she quickly added, "Oh, but don't worry. I won't reveal your identity to anyone."

Before Jessica had even finished speaking, Gwen had already leaped out of her seat.

A reporter? A reporter who could keep a secret? Yeah, right.

Why not offer a little girl a lollipop and tell her that even though you were a human trafficker, you definitely wouldn't kidnap her?

Oh no, oh no. Gwen finally started to panic. She felt like her secret identity was doomed. Her face might end up in the papers tomorrow, and then she would have nowhere to hide. More than ever, she missed her own Earth. She wanted to go home...

Jessica spread her hands innocently. "I mean it. At the very least, I promise your face won't end up in the newspaper, okay? We reporters have principles."

Gwen looked at her with a cold laugh. Heh. Sure. And pigs can fly...

"I'm serious. I just want to talk," Jessica said. "You know, I have some special gifts too, just like you. But I... well... I'm a little unsure what I should do. Then I saw you. I saw you saving people everywhere, putting out fires, fighting criminals... So I wanted to talk to you. That's all."

Gwen studied her suspiciously for a moment before slowly sitting back down. The woman really did seem to just want to talk with someone in the same line of work.

"Talk about what?" she asked warily.

"For example... your second life?" Jessica asked. "Why do you do all this?"

Gwen fell into thought, as though trying to organize her words. Only after a long while did she slowly speak.

"I... um... had a very good friend. Well, actually, he was my best friend."

"Your boyfriend?"

"No, but he was very important to me." Gwen shook her head. "But then something very bad happened, and... and I lost him. And worse still, I think it might have been my fault."

She drew in a deep breath, lowered her head, and began absently playing with her long, slender white fingers.

"It wasn't until right before he died that I realized I'd always seemed so great in his eyes... that he had always wanted to become like me. He made me understand that this power doesn't mean privilege. It means a certain kind of responsibility. I can't... I can't let it go to waste on me, because that wouldn't be fair... I guess that's it."

She spoke vaguely, especially when it came to losing that friend. But Jessica could imagine how heavy and painful those memories must have been for the girl. Jessica thought of the car accident that had taken her family, and of how, in some sense, she herself should have been responsible for that tragedy...

Perhaps every superhero had a heartbreaking story behind them.

The two fell silent for a moment. Then Jessica said softly, "I actually figured out your identity a few days ago. I've been watching you for days. Do you know what I saw in you?"

Gwen raised her eyes curiously.

"I saw a lonely, helpless little girl, someone who'd built a high wall between herself and everyone else," Jessica said. "Does that have anything to do with what you went through?"

Gwen lowered her head. "I... I'm just lost. I can't find my way home."

Jessica didn't know that Gwen was truly "lost." She thought Gwen was speaking metaphorically.

But Jessica could more or less tell that Gwen's life had been difficult lately. After thinking for a moment, she suddenly remembered something. "Oh, right. Want to make some extra money?"

Gwen froze.

What? Was that really such a sudden shift in tone?

"You know, I happened to be there yesterday when you fought those bank robbers on the highway," Jessica said irritably. "I chased after you for three blocks, and in the end all I got was one blurry shot of your back. Then my boss chewed me out."

Huh? That happened?

Gwen was a little dazed. "Then... sorry?"

"So, you see, maybe we can help each other out in that regard." Jessica pulled out a digital camera and placed it on the table. "From now on, you can keep doing what you do—put on your sleep... combat suit and go out fighting for justice. Just don't forget to let me take a few pictures so I can turn them in. I'll give you a cut afterward. What do you think?"