Hey guys! Yes, yes, I'm still alive! Hard to believe, I know.

Anyways, this idea popped into my head and I felt really bad for not updating SGH in so long, so I wrote it and now I'm posting it. To my SGH readers, I'm taking a break from writing SGH right now, but I will definitely be continuing it soon. The next few chapters are already in the works, but I'm not sure about when they'll be posted. Seeing as fanfiction is my hobby as opposed to my job, I really don't think I need to explain my reasons as to why I haven't updated in so long. I've been very busy, and these past few months have been riddled with quite a few emotional breaking points. Quite frankly, that's all I am willing to say about it, so please don't ask me to explain further.

So anyway, about this story. I've had so many ideas for one-shots that I figured I'd just put them all into one giant story, each chapter being a Jinx/KF one-shot. Some will be more funny and light-hearted, some might make you want to cry, andsome (like this one, I think) will make you wish that all guys were this sweet. :-) This is only the first of what will probably be quite a few one-shots that will make up the entire fic. The one-shots will be added as quickly as they're written, and as they're only one-shots, they're both easier and harder to write (so the updates will come faster).

Reviews are always appreciated:-) Y'all know how I love my reviews. They keep me (and my split personality) happy. So make sure you review with lots of constructive crits and what you did/didn't like about the story, and how I can improve. Thanks, lovees!

Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans, or the song "Chasing Cars". Chasing Cars belongs on the soundtrack of my life, however, and Teen Titans BELONGS ON THE TELEVISION, WHERE IT WOULD BE HAD IT NOT BEEN CANCELLED. (sorry, im still a little bitter at CN for cancelling it. stupid wankers...) lol. Now read!

(A/N) oh, and another note, sorry that I can only include some of the great lyrics of the song...im already on probation for having put lyrics to a fic i wrote earlier (that was immediately deleted). so im not going to risk expulsion from the site by doing it again, so I would suggest downloading "Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol and listening as you read. :-)

If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

-Chasing Cars, Snow Patrol

Highway 223

Jump City

Jinx

"Dammit," I curse as I allow myself to collapse onto a heavily-graffitied metal bench on the side of the road. It's just me. Me, Jinx, out of costume and out of sight. Who would ever think to look for an ex-super-villainess hitchhiking her way out of the city in a pair of jeans and a baseball cap?

Well, maybe a few people would, but not the Hive Five. Which is good, because they're the only ones who I care about. And no, not like that. I mean, I care enough about avoiding trouble with them to sneak out of the house.

…Well, it wasn't exactly sneaking, I was kind of obvious about it. Let's have a flashback:

"I'm getting out," I inform the wall, talking to no one in particular. I hear a grunt come from the newly-constructed fort of sofa-cushions, and for a brief moment, See-More pokes his head out, his hands clutching his video game controller. We stare at each other, reveling in non-verbal communication. Then he nods his head and hides his face, turning back to the game, and I leave.

Loudly. Taking heavy steps and slamming the door. No one says anything, as they are all deeply engaged in the game, until Gizmo squeaks, "Stop making so much noise, Butt-Nugget, I'm trying to concentrate here!"

So I roll my eyes and take off.

Which may have been the stupidest, most idiotic idea I've ever had. No, really. This is even worse than sticking your fingers in a light socket, or giving your cat a bath. For me, this is even more shameful than re-gifting. Not that quitting Lowlifes, United was a bad idea in itself. Why is leaving so demeaning?

Because it was Kid Flash's idea, which implies that I'm taking his advice.

So how did I end up here, at a deserted bus stop, on the side of a highway that cuts through the hills surrounding Jump City?

Thanks a lot, Kid Flash. Thank you so very much.

I mean, seriously. I'll admit it, I took his advice. I quit the Hive Five; I packed up and left my life as a villainess; I took the road less traveled, so now where the hell am I?

I'm in the middle of Interstate 223, that's where. Alone, with only a backpack that has a credit card and a sketchbook and a dying plant in it. It's 3 a.m., in the middle of summer. The stars seem brighter tonight, because they don't have to compete with the bright city lights out in the middle of nowhere. They're telling me that something good will happen, that something will come to help me. I want to believe it, but I abandoned hope at the trailer-contained burger joint about 12 miles behind me.

I'm on my own now, with no one to look out for me but myself. And I'm fine with that; I can take care of myself. I've held my own with the best of villains. I know that eventually, I'll be ok.

…But that's the problem with "eventually". It's eventually; it's later; it's a long shot; it's not in the foreseeable future. In the meantime, I'll have to make do with camping out on the side of a deserted highway.

Hive Five HQ

Jump City

Kid Flash

"Hey, what happened here?" I ask myself as I walk around Jinx's badly-lit, punk-rock-postered room.

Which is totally trashed. The drawers have all been pulled out of their chest, dirty socks are strewn everywhere, and the shadow of something that looks suspiciously like a giant earwig is lurking ominously in the corner.

If you just painted the walls red, this would totally look like my room.

Looking around, I can see that Jinx is gone. I have no idea where, but she's definitely no longer here. All of her costumes are gone from her closet, and empty box is lying on the floor. From what I can tell, it's full of—OH NO! AHH CAN'T SAY IT! EVIL WORD! MUST-NOT-SAY----(tampons). EWWWWWW!

So after GOING BACK IN TIME AND SKIPPING TWO SECONDS INTO THE FUTURE TO AVOID THE T-WORD INCIDENT, I resume my search-and-rescue mission, hoping to salvage some clue of her current whereabouts from this mess. I scan again and see nothing—nothing—nothing—bingo!

I don't get why they call Batman the World's Greatest Detective when I clearly am. Who else could discover that Jinx is sick of living her life as if she had nothing better to do, so she took off and has no idea where she's going? Her hastily-scribbled note on a piece of paper left lying on her abandoned pillow tells it all.

"Guys,

I'm sick of living my life as if I have nothing better to do. So I'm taking off, but I have no idea where. Don't bother looking for me. I left you a couple bucks on the counter. Use it to buy yourself a pie, or an original idea, or something.

-Jinx"

I know, I know. Mad skills, right?

…Which leads me to my next dilemma. Now that I know where Jinx isn't, where can I find her?

After a moment of thought, I vibrate my molecules through her door and speed my way out of the Hive Five HQ (but not before thoroughly TPing the front of the HQ…now that Jinx is gone, I don't have to worry about offending anyone), before turning Jump City upside looking for her.

And as I run around searching, I can't help but smile. I haven't lost my touch. I laid out the crumbs, and Jinx followed my lead. Now it's up to me to make the next move.

…If I can find her, that is.

Jinx

So I can't sleep.

Typical. I haven't been able to sleep for the past week and a half, ever since I let him-since I let Kid Flash-escape. I'm having a crisis of conscience, but I don't know what about. Do I feel guilty for not turning him over to Madame Rouge…

...or for missing my chance to thank him?

"Dammit," I curse again. I've never had a troubled conscience before. Hell, I probably never had a conscience in the first place! Until now, at least. Feeling guilty often calls for a conflict of interest in my line of work.

I give up; I can't sleep. And this metal bench is extremely uncomfortable. So, I proceed to fulfill the second most idiotic idea I may have ever had.

Wiping my eyes on my sleeve, I pick up my backpack and check both ways before collapsing smack in the middle of the road, propping my head up against my backpack and staring at stars that can't offer me any comfort. In the middle of the road.

Dumb, I know.

It's a good thing that no one ever actually uses this road to get in or out of Jump City. It was the only real way to, until they opened a more accessible, less twisty and well-paved road leading to and from the city near the freeway. Ever since, no one uses this road. It's also notorious for gravity-inflicted rock slides every now and then, but as I'm feeling kind of worthless right now, I'll take my chances.

And as I lay here in the middle of the road, I can't help but wonder…how did I end up here?

I could blame it on my stupid teammates, or on Madame Rouge, or even on those annoyingly noble Teen Titans—but I know that it's really all Kid Flash's fault.

Stupid, stupid Kid Flash. Out of all the girls in this cruel world, why did he have to pick on me? I've seen the way people look at him-he's a hero, sure, but that's not why they love him.

He's a nauseatingly polite, infuriatingly confident…decent guy.

I could blame the red hair. People love red hair—astrologists claim that red-headed people are very passionate and courageous—but then I would just be kidding myself. People love Kid Flash simply because he's Kid Flash. He's nothing more or less, and I hate him for it.

Decent guys with red hair and Teen Titans communicators are a rarity these days. A limited-edition model that only increases in popularity after its initial debut.

But what most people don't know about Kid Flash is that he's not as great as they think. I mean, he's a stalker, which is a federal offense! Following people obsessively and handing them dead plants at every turn is not only ILLEGAL, it's annoying.

And also, he made fun of my drawings. That's my private property! Kid Flash broke into my Headquarters (…which he is probably licensed by law to do, considering that it's the HQ of the Hive Five, but my room?), found my room, trashed it, and made fun of my drawings! He probably doesn't even know why I draw unicorns, so what right does he have to make fun of them? I draw them because I like to. If for no other reason, they bring me comfort—a reminder that no matter what, if nothing else, I will always have my drawing. I need my unicorns-they're all I have left.

And what's more, Kid Flash is cocky! He's stupid and cocky, that's what he is. He thinks that just because he can get away with wearing skin-hugging spandex, girls everywhere will fall at his feet. If I knew where he lived, I would use my hex energy to break all of his mirrors. He would probably have a heart attack if he saw that his "perfect reflection" was ruined by 7 years of bad luck.

Kid Flash is also impulsive-only an idiot (much like my former teammates) could have been fooled by Madame Rouge's flawed impression of me. Well, it was pretty good I guess, but for the love of God! He's a trained hero! He's supposed to be able to pick out the imposters from the genuine article, it's his job! Anyone who really knew me would know that I'm not stupid enough to go around picking fights with those darn do-gooders.

And also—and also...

...he's, um….

…….he also tracked me down and is standing above me.

Dammit.

Kid Flash

"Nice night. Hey, Jinxy. Miss me?" I greet her, looking down at her as she gapes back up at me from her spot on the road. I'll admit, I'm really glad to see her, and I show her by holding out a fresh red rose to her. She looks at it for a moment, but finally chooses to ignore it. I tuck it away for safe-keeping; I know she might want it later.

"Shove off," she groans at me, turning over and burying her face into her backpack, which I assume she's using as a pillow.

But apparently she doesn't feel the same way.

"But I'm not done annoying you yet," I tell her wisely, kneeling down and prodding her gently in the shoulder. "Hey—are you okay?"

Jinx can take care of herself, I know, but for the split second that I saw her it looked like her eyes were red and puffy.

She grunts and covers her ears with her hands. "This. Is. Not. Happening!" she says, making it sound as if I interrupted some important thinking time. "It's only a dream. It's only a dream. Kid Flash isn't really here—" she mumbles to herself. Rolling over, but still obscuring her face, she even reaches out her hand and touches my arm, as if hoping to prove that I'm not really there. When her small hand hits the Kevlar bi-weave that is laced into my suit, she lets out an audible groan.

I chuckle a little in spite of myself. "Yeah, it's really nice to see you again, too," I laugh. I think that maybe I enjoy tormenting her too much—but you should see her when she's blushing, it's so cute…

…Wow. How girly did that just sound? Eww.

As soon as the words leave my mouth, Jinx (with her face still in her backpack) balls her hand into a fist and tries to punch me. Had I let her connect, it would have hit me squarely in the jaw. But I'm too quick for her, so instead I catch her wrist.

"You know, you can't ignore me all night long," I tell her as she struggles to get me to loosen my grip.

"I can try," she says, finally looking up at me.

Her eyes are bright pink and shining up at me, although they're currently fixed in a death glare that I can't help but laugh at. Her equally pink hair is hidden under a black "Star City Speedsters" baseball cap (that team was actually named after me, as a testament to my greatness, coincidentally), and she's wearing a simple grey t-shirt and a pair of jeans that look old and worn. The kind of dramatic change of wardrobe hits me over the head. What happened to her normal costume?

"Doesn't mean you'll succeed," I tell her unwittingly, still smiling like a dufus as she looks on the verge of burning a hole through my head. Her eyes glow pink momentarily, and a small shock runs through my body from my hand, where I'm holding onto her wrist. I let go immediately and she snatches back her wrist and grabs her backpack, standing up. "Ow! What was that for?"

She looks at me pointedly for a moment before saying, "For being an arrogant, impulsive, manipulative, snooping, stalking, red-headed, polite idiot!"

"I'm sorry?" I say sheepishly, feeling stupid for politely apologizing for being polite.

We'll do it all
Everything
On our own

Jinx groans again and holds a hand up to her face. "Argh! Don't you get it? That's just it! Stop apologizing! You're being polite again!"

Again, I can't help but wonder if she's losing her marbles. "So I'm not allowed to say 'sorry' or otherwise defend myself in any way?" I ask, matching her pace easily as she turns on her foot and tries to walk away.

"No," she says huffily, walking off into the night, continuing her quest to reach…the middle of nowhere, from what I can tell. These roads haven't been used by anybody in a looong time.

We don't need
anything
Or anyone

"Why?" I ask her politely (even though she just told me not to).

"Because it makes it hard for me to hate you for being an arrogant, impulsive, manipulative, snooping, stalking, red-headed polite idiot!"

"I'm flattered," I respond wildly. "I didn't know it required such an effort to hate me."

"Don't be flattered, it's not a good thing," she shoots back. "It's a free country, I should be allowed to hate anyone I want without any hassles. You're violating my right as an American citizen for the pursuit of happiness! You're trying to ruin it for me! No! No! That's another reason I have to hate you."

If I lay here,
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

I stop for a moment before collecting myself and moving forward, having let Jinx take a few steps' lead on me. This is kind of amusing. But seriously, I need to know what's going on. I've never seen anyone so intent on hating me…Well, besides the rest of the Hive Five, of course.

So I put my hand on Jinx's shoulder. As soon as I do, her head hangs and she stops walking. I maneuver my hand to force Jinx to face me, but she just won't look up at me.

"Jinx, what's the matter? Why are you doing this?" I ask her seriously, trying to get her to look me in the eye.

"Because I can't lose my momentum. I took a step forward, on your advice, and look where it got me! I quit the Hive Five. I packed up all my stuff and took off, all on your advice. And I've gotten nowhere. I have no life, no family, and nowhere to go. No one will accept a jinx. You ruined everything for me," she says, still refusing to look at me. "But now you're here again, and you're making it so damn hard for me to hate you!"

I…wasn't expecting that. Which is saying a lot, because I'm always on top of my game. I am with any other girl I come across…but Jinx isn't any other girl. She's different. She's special. Maybe that's why I feel like an idiot.

"Jinx…" I say softly, feeling guilty for making her feel like she can't hate me if she wants to.

"What?"

And, being the arrogant, impulsive, manipulative, snooping, stalking, red-headed, polite idiot that I am, I instead bring the hand I have planted on her shoulder up to her cheek and kiss her.

It's a very gentle kiss, and it slowly deepens. And although she is surprised at first—even putting her hand to my shoulder and giving a half-hearted push against it, she doesn't try to stop it. I instead move the hand on her cheek to the base of her head, and wrap my other arm around her tiny waist.

I may be able to run at the speed of sound, but I am flying right now.

Finally, I force myself to pull away, and she looks at me, her eyebrows furled, looking surprised and confused and heartbroken all at the same time.

I can only look at her. I'm glued to the ground, and I want to fly again.

After a few moments of breathless silence, the stars twinkling even brighter above us as we face each other in the middle of a deserted highway tucked away into the hills, she casts her gaze downwards and whispers, "Wh…why did you do that?"

I place my hand under her chin and tilt her head up to face me.

"To give you another reason to hate me," I say as gently as I can, smiling a little as she shakes her head a little.

"You really suck, did you know that?" she says breathlessly, her voice not as harsh as it could be. I let out a small chuckle.

"Yeah, I know," I tell her, still smiling. She smiles back at me before poking me in the side.

"Ow! What was that for?" I ask her, rubbing the spot on my shoulder where she poked me.

"That was for screwing up my life," she says, her voice a little hostile. She pokes me again, this time allowing some hex energy to pass into my shoulder, making me shudder a little.

Before I can ask, she says, "And that was for making fun of my drawings."

I rub my shoulder again, taking a step back. As she gets a malicious glint in her eyes, I back off a little, saying, "Jinx? Uh, Jinx, I know you're angry, but—"

And then, totally unexpected, I'm flying again.

When we break apart, I ask her, "What was that for? Not that I mind, or anything…"

Her voice hardening again for dramatic affect, she says, "That was for blowing my list of reasons to hate you to bits."

When she sees the look of dawning comprehension on my face, she smiles. "So, I've never been to Africa," she says conversationally, and I immediately get the hint.

"Hop on, and hold tight," I tell her as she walks around behind me, mounts piggy-back style and wraps her arms tightly around my neck. She rests her chin on my shoulder and kisses my cheek before saying, "Let's go!"

…And so we're off, Jinx and Kid Flash, the new Dynamic Duo, taking the world by storm! First stop, Africa; next stop, the stars.

…If I lay here,
If I just lay here,
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

So, what did you think? I initially envisioned it to come out differently, but I am actually pretty happy with it. But my opinion doesn't really matter, yours does. So? Reviews? To make me happy? PLEEEEEEEEEASE? Plus, if you want more KF/Jinx cuteness in the form of one-shots, you will review so that I will update! "cause I'm eeeeeeeeeeevil MWAHAHAHAHAHA! lol.

alright lovees, until the next chappie!

XOXO,

Cara the SuperDuperHulaHooper