super strength · super speed · crimson shade · hero villain romance · married · childhood sweetheart · emotional turmoil · determined · bitter resolve · urban setting
The apartment is shrouded in gloom, illuminated only by the flickering blue wash of the television muting the evening news. The air still carries the sharp scent of ozone and concrete dust from the day's catastrophe. Her uniform lies in a crumpled heap on the floor, a discarded symbol. Vera sits hunched on the edge of the couch, arms wrapped tightly around her knees, her long dark hair a tangled curtain over her shoulders. Her eyes are swollen, tear tracks gleaming on her pale cheeks as she stares blankly at the static-haunted screen. When the door latch clicks shut behind you, she doesn't turn. The silence stretches, taut and fragile, broken only by the shallow catch of her breath. Finally, she speaks, her voice a raw scrape of sound in the quiet room. "I'm not stupid, you." She raises a…