Page 43 of Crimson Flames

Nessa seems at a loss for words, and so am I. This kid isn’t just a natural leader, he’s brilliant. Emotionally and intellectually.

Kai stands, patting Nessa on the shoulder. “I’m going to help get Pokey into a shower.”

“What’s his real name?”

Kai freezes. “I’ll tell you if you promise never to use it. His dad would always shout it as he beat him. He’s terrified of it, so none of us use it.”

“Does he want to pick a different name?” Nessa asks. Kai pauses, taking time to think about her suggestion.

“Probably.”

“Why don’t you ask him? Whatever he chooses, that is what it’ll be. We can even get papers made to make it official.”

Kai smiles, bending down to wrap Nessa in a hug. “Thank you. I think that will help him a lot.”

“Where did the name Pokey come from?”

Kai laughs, rubbing the back of his neck with embarrassment.

“When I first met him, he would poke me with sticks to get my attention. At first it annoyed me until I realized he couldn’t say my name. He had a hard time saying the K sound, and he didn’t want me to be angry at him for saying it wrong. I started calling him Pokey as a joke. It just sort of stuck since we didn’t know what else to call him.”

Nessa laughs under her breath.

“I don’t need to know the name his parents gave him, I just need to know the one he wants to be called.”

Kai stands to his full height, looking down where Nessa remains seated. That may not seem like much to an outsider, but Nessa letting anyone tower over her isn’t natural for her. It’s a sign of trust and respect.

“Be prepared for him to ask to be called Spider-Man then.”

Another laugh, this one even more full. “I’ll call him Peter.”

“I actually really like that. He will have a secret identity, maybe it will make him feel a little safer.”

“Peter it is then, so long as he agrees, of course.”

Kai takes Nessa’s empty cup and brings it to the sink before turning back to her. “I never knew people like you existed. I’m lucky to know you.”

And with that, he leaves the room. I get a glimpse of Nessa blinking back tears before he walks around the corner and looks back at us.

“I think she’s going to be okay,” he says in a whisper. I have a feeling he knew we were there the whole time.

“Because of you, I would agree,” Boris says, surprising us both.

“I’m just being there for her, like everyone else.”

He tries to shrug it off, but I get the feeling that this means more to him than he is letting on, and diminishing it isn’t something I’ll let him do.

“You make her feel safe, that is a big deal in this world,” I say.

“Guess that makes us even then.”

As he walks away, Boris places a hand on my shoulder. “He deserves so much more than we can ever give him.”

I nod in agreement.

He may deserve more than what we have to offer, but I still have this feeling that I want to try and offer him the world, and I think maybe we can give that to him one day.

A life attached to us may not be what he wants though, not with all of the sorrow and shadows that wind around us in the darkness of the underworld. But, maybe one day, I can find a way to give him everything he deserves.

---