Complicated Ch. 01: The Start of it All

I used to not care much for fairytales. After finding out that the ones you read to kids were watered down, I wasn't a fan. There was no such thing as a knight in shining armor or Prince Charming. You had to settle for whatever was presented to you.

It was what I thought for years until I met my Prince Charming. Before, I always assumed that I would be someone's baby momma and not someone's wife. But it happened and with our careers on the go, I was truly happy. The news of my pregnancy overwhelmed me and soon, we were a complete family, triplets and all!

Things started to go downhill a few years after meeting Tabitha Lyght. I found her in an alleyway in Memphis and took her in, regardless of the risk she posed. Years later, she was a prominent member of the Justice League... and my best friend.

There were tons of perks being the best friend of a super heroine, one was meeting the others, including the founding seven. After time, I proved to be a valuable asset and was given a communicator of my own. I could teleport to Watchtower or Metro Tower as often as I wanted, particularly when Tabitha was named Monitor of Metro Tower. What I didn't know was that there was bad to go along with the good.

If a super villain wanted something, they would go through great lengths to get it. That often included terrorizing a superhero's family if they knew said superhero's alias. Even if they didn't, most could put two and two together every now and then: the villains portrayed on television were nothing compared to the real-life ones.

As much as I loved Tabs' actual family, it amazed me that they were never targets. It was my family who were. Even from the very beginning, we were targeted: her former friend came all the way to Memphis and ended up killing my colleague and attacking me to get to her. Throughout the years, my children were kidnapped, my husband beaten several times and let's not start on just the regular threats! It was after the last kidnapping of the children (this time for a ridiculous ransom) that my husband had enough and decided it was time to leave.

I would've went with them, I should've. But I saw no good in that. Tabs hadn't lived with us in a long time but yet the villains knew how to track us down. Moving wouldn't resolve any of that. I came to the conclusion that it really wasn't them they wanted but me. My family wasn't safe so long as they were around me... and I had ties to my best friend.

It wasn't supposed to feel like a true separation. It was a temporary setback in our normal lives. After the villainy died down, things would get back to normal and my family would return. The problem was that I still stayed connected with Tabs. I mean, why would I cut ties with her? She was my best friend and the closest thing to a sister that I ever wanted. To be honest, we were always saved by someone from the Justice League, if not Tabitha herself.

I know: it didn't make it right. And, as I thought, the villains targeted me to the point where the League decided that I needed bodyguards every now and then. And by the League decided, I really meant Tabs talked them into it. She didn't have to argue much. Backing her was Martian Manhunter, one of the League's founding members, Monitor of Watchtower and her steady boyfriend. If anyone was in disagreement, they were reluctant to say it aloud!

What bothered me was that this was done without little say so from myself. Tabs meant well, I was certain. It was just the idea of having superhero babysitters made me feel like a fool. And the schedule was weird. The relief came in the middle of the day, basically after I got home from school. In the morning, they were there to make sure I got to school safely and stayed out of sight. My only relief was possibly on my drive back home but then I would have enough time to kick my shoes off until that knock happened, signaling the "changing of the guards".

I got somewhat acquainted with a few but nothing to where I considered any of them a true friend. Most of the time at night, they would keep watch outside the house, leaving me to my thoughts alone. I took that time to beat myself up with my thoughts, regretting my decision to stay. I missed my family. I missed normalcy. They would call every now and then and I could tell the separation was killing them, especially my husband. We were growing apart and I hated it.

I trained myself to go through the emotions after a while. The days started to blend into one another, with the exception of the weekends. I stopped inviting whoever my bodyguard was inside and just let them do their job. It hadn't dawned on me that whoever the relief would be was late until the knock on my door scared me. Whoever it was, was lucky: I made my way downstairs only to find a snack for movie-watching.

I expected anyone else but who looked down at me with a small smile on his face: Martian Manhunter.

"J-J'onn! What are you doing here?" I asked but it only made him tilt his head at me.

"Reporting for duty?" although he still smiled, he had a curious look on him. I smirked and let out a small laugh. I had no idea how long he been on Earth but one thing was for sure: we rubbed off on him.

"Seriously? You?"

"If you have a problem with me, I can assign someone else-"

"O-Oh. No. I don't have a problem with you. It's just... isn't this beneath you?"

"You are Tabitha's best friend, which makes you a dear friend of mine. Your safety is our number one priority so guarding you is definitely not beneath me."

"I guess I imagined that none of the founding seven would do this."

"The only reason would be because we are the ones mainly on missions."

"Oh..." I trailed off and was stuck by the door frame. The Martian was massive: as he stood there, I couldn't see past him to the street! His blue cape wavered slightly in the wind and my train of thought returned to me. "Do you want to... come in?"

"I wouldn't mind, thank you." He nodded and I moved out the way to let him inside. I watched as he made his way down the short hallway and lingered at the coat closet, removing his cape.

I didn't know why but my mind told me to stay put. My eyes widened as the cape left his shoulders: he was an anatomy student's dream come true. No, I lied. While his muscles were very defined, he was actually a single horny woman's dream come true: tall, muscular and downright sexy! There he stood in the middle of my hallway, wearing nothing but those red straps, blue briefs and boots. Gah, he did that on purpose: there was no need for him to remove that cape! I thought about what he said earlier and the horny teenage boy in me appeared. This job may not be beneath you but damn... can I be...?

I shook those thoughts out my head and approached him, grabbing the cape out of his hands. No, bad Jamila: that's Tabs' boyfriend. J'onn gave me a warm smile.

"Thank you." He nodded and I gave him a shrug as I made an attempt to fold the damn thing.

"No problem." I mumbled, not looking at him. What the hell does he do with this thing when he ain't wearing it? "Um, J'onn... why the hell is this cape so huge?"

"I am a large Martian..." he answered, almost in a question. I willed myself not to glance straight at his crotch, where my pervy mind immediately thought of as soon as the words left his mouth. Instead, I looked up at him and narrowed my eyes as his red ones gleamed.

"That you are..." I smirked, realizing that he was being a smart ass. He hung around that girl way too much; that would be something Tabs would say. I decided to just hang the cape in the closet after fumbling to fold it.

"I'm sorry. I sensed that you're nervous around me and was trying to lighten the mood." He said, his deep and sultry voice thundering through the tiny hallway. Nervous? Not really. Turned on by his voice alone? Fuck, yeah. If anyone had dry panties around him, it was a miracle!

"I'm not nervous. Just not used to... entertaining you without Tabs here. Speaking of, where is she?"

"She's on a mission." He said and I widened my eyes at him.

"You let her go on a mission?" I was honestly shocked but J'onn narrowed his eyes at me.

"Hmm. The one thing the two of you have in common: that sardonic mouth..." he gave me a sly smile and my cheeks ached. Was it my imagination or was he actually eyeing my mouth...? I rolled my eyes and laughed.

"You're on a roll tonight, being a smart ass! You don't let her out of your sight and you know it. How long has she been a League member, now?" I gave him a look and he nodded.

"I am slowly trying not to be so protective of her," He said in an apologetic tone and it warmed me. Looks were deceiving, especially if you were a Martian. J'onn wasn't menacing at all, in fact, he was really attractive. But, some people didn't know any better. He was still perceived as menacing and hateful even though he was the total opposite. J'onn J'onzz was the most loving and caring person I knew, and that was saying a lot since I didn't know him all that much. "If it would make you feel better, we could go about as if she was here."

"Not gonna be the same. You do realize this is the most you've spoken to me, right?" I smiled and the look on his face told me he didn't realize it until that moment. "Oh, wait. You're on duty, so-"

"I would much rather act normal around you than play the role of bodyguard. I feel that would put you more at ease."

"I'd actually... appreciate that. Thanks. You know, I always thought that you guys were superheroes twenty-four seven. It never dawned on me that you would enjoy... normal things."

"Yes, we all do. But, I do get that a lot, being a Martian. It makes me wonder what humans believe we did on Mars."

"Unfortunately, there wasn't much for us to imagine until someone like you came along."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Someone who can tell us all about life on Mars."

"Perhaps one day, I will enlighten you."

"I'd like that." I gave him a warm smile and he returned it.

"For right now, maybe I can join you in whatever you were doing?"

"Oh. Yeah, I was about to watch a movie upstairs. Came down here for a snack."

"I enjoy watching movies. Being with your friend, it seems to be a given to do so."

"Yeah, she's a movie buff!"

"That she is. Do you mind if I snacked with you?"

"Oh, not at all. In fact, I insist!"

"Do you have any Oreos?"

"Oreos?" I gave him a look. Not that Oreos in themselves were odd but it was an odd request from a Martian.

"Yes."

"Um, I think I have some in the pantry..." before I could make a step towards the kitchen, he was already in there, rummaging through my pantry. "Yes, while you're in there, grab some chips?" I asked sarcastically.

"You only have one package..."

"Of chips?"

"No, of Oreos. I suppose they will have to do. What did you want to snack on?"

"Whoa, wait. You're gonna eat the whole damn package of cookies?" my eyes widened as I went into the kitchen. J'onn had the package in one hand, a glass of milk in the other and a cookie halfway in his mouth. I didn't know why but it made my heart melt. The look on his face was like a child with their favorite thing in the world.

"You need more milk as well..."