#margot dobin

[anthropolowhat]

half day

Jack Stupdendous, Fort Wayne's resident superhero, flew in his fifth-story open office window, trying his best to be quiet. He was just getting into work around one in the afternoon, and he was sure to get an earful from his assistant Margot. He faintly remembered that she had set up an important meeting that morning, but he had been comfortable in bed with his latest fling, the weathergirl Candice Cane, and figured he'd take a half-day.

He shouted out a hello, but heard no response from Margot.

Jack frowned, Margot should be around. She was so dependable it bordered on obsessive. Jack counted on that to keep him out of trouble.

Jack walked through his office into the main area, and saw Margot sitting at her desk. She had her headphones on, staring blankly at the screen. Jack saw the glow of the computer screen reflected in the tears on her cheeks.

"Woah," Jack said. "You okay?"

Margot, started by Jack's presence, flailed wildly for a minute. She tried to stand up, but was quickly brought back down by her headphones. She pulled them off quickly, trying to wipe away the tears on her face.

"Oh Jack," she said. "Sorry, didn't see you there."

Jack nodded. "Oh, no worries. I just wanted to say I'm sorry about being late." He winced, waiting for the inevitable lecture.

Much to his surprise, Margot sat back down in her chair and sighed. "It's okay," she said. "It happens. Wasn't that big of a deal anyways. We can rescheudle the meeting with the developers for another day."

Jack looked at his normally domineering assistant and felt unsure as of what to do. He stood there in front of her desk. Margot sat back down and stared at the screen in a weak attempt to get some work done.

Jack hesitated for another moment, then took a step forward. He sat on the edge of the desk and crossed his arms.

"What's going on?" Jack said. "You're upset."

"It's nothing," Margot said. "Really, it's nothing."

"Well, if this is nothing, we're both in trouble," Jack said, attempting a joke. Margot glared at him through the tears.

Jack smiled, glad to see a bit of Margot's fire return. In the next moment, he had an idea.

"Hey," he said. "Come on, we're going to go somewhere."

Margot protested, shaking her head. "But what about the presentation for Friday? We've gotta go over the talking points."

"Tomorrow," Jack said, "come on, let's go."

"Fine, fine," Margot said, "but only because I can't concentrate."

Jack grinned. "Awesome," he said. "You're gonna like this, I promise."

They made their way to the first floor and stepped out into the parking lot.

"Am I driving, or are you?" Margot said.

"Neither," Jack said, picking her up and shooting up into the sky. Margot was too shocked to even scream.

The landed a few minutes later, on top of the Lincoln Tower. Jack set Margot down as gently as possible, but she still stumbled, sputtering at her boss.

"What was that?" she said.

"It was faster than a car, wasn't it?" Jack said, laughing. "Besides, we saved on gas and everything."

Margot huffed, and then turned to survey the city. "Wow," she said. "I've never seen it like this."

"Yeah," Jack said. Jumping up to a higher ledge, he pulled down a folding chair and a red cooler. "Provisions," he said. He opened the folding chair and motioned for Margot to sit. Opening the cooler, he pulled out two cans of beer.

"Not the coolest," he said. "But they'll do in a pinch."

Margot smiled and took the beer from Jack. She sat in the chair, and Jack sat on the ledge, perched precariously high. 

"Be careful," she said. Jack looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

For the next few minutes, neither of them said anything. It was early afternoon, and the city continued its weekday business below them.

"I never bring people up here," Jack said, more to himself than Margot, "but it's really my favorite place to just sit and think."

"Yeah," Margot said. "I can see why."

Jack smiled and pulled out two more cans.

"It's just that--well, my boyfriend," Margot said suddenly. "We broke up. He said he couldn't see it working out, because when he gets out of graduate school, he's going to have to focus on his career." Margot took in a sharp breath. She hadn't meant to tell Jack what had happened.

Jack nodded. "Sounds like an asshole," Jack said.

"No," Margot said, "I mean, not really. He's just trying to do what's best for both of us, and if he can't be there--" Margot trailed off, and the tears overwhelmed her again. She covered her face with her hands.

Jack jumped down off the ledge and kneeled down next to where Margot sat. "Hey," he said. Margot kept her hands over her face.

"Hey," Jack said again. "I hate to break it to you, but you don't disappear when you do that."

"Well, I wish I could," Margot said, her voice muffled. 

Jack huffed. "Come on," he said. "It's gonna be okay. It really is. You'll get through this. He's a dick, I'm sorry but that whole graduate school bullcrap just no excuse. Now, can you please just stop with the hands?"

After a moment, Margot complied, sniffling as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hands. She looked at Jack with red eyes and wet eyelashes and managed a half-smile.

Jack smiled back. He felt something in the bottom of his chest, something sturdy and warm, something that felt like a foundation. Though it was a new feeling, Jack found that he didn't mind it. 

"Alright, you ready?" Jack said.

Margot looked in the empty cooler. "Well, we're outta beer. Maybe we can make a supply run and come back, just for a little bit?"

Jack grinned, his brilliant smile stretching from ear to ear. That new feeling in his chest set tight, as if it had a place there. "Alright," he said. "You ready?"

He didn't wait for an answer, and in the next moment, they were off in the sky again.

[anthropolowhat]

Space and Time

Margot couldn't sleep, so she pulled up Facebook on her phone. She, like so many people of her generation, couldn't stand feeling alone. The most recent update was from Maggie Jones, a friend from college who had recently gotten married. She'd changed her status to 'just married,' and all of her friends (Margot included) had posted their approval. Margot wasn't close enough to Maggie to garner an invite to the wedding, so out of curiosity Margot looked through the posted pictures. She wondered at how much everyone she knew had changed in such a short time. After a few more idle clicks, Margot scrolled down further through more updates of her friends. There were pictures of babies, and more weddings. Road trips and vacations and everything, really. Margot put the phone down and sighed. Something was bothering her, but she couldn't put a word to it. Margot felt herself falling further out of step with her friends. She was unmarried and in a dead-end job. Things had been better with the Captain recently, but it didn't make her long-term prospects any better. She could feel the panic press against her temples. She closed her eyes and took another deep breath. Life was leaving her behind, and there was nothing she could do about it. Margot couldn't see a way out. She didn't get that way often, but when she did, nothing could bring her back until it was over. If she had known what would happen next, maybe she wouldn't have worried so much. 

[anthropolowhat]

Disaster

It was a terrible fire.

It wasn't clear how it started, whether from crossed wires or carelessness, but by the time the Captain arrived he as barely able to get all the residents out before the whole damn building collapsed in on itself. 

He stood on the edge of the scene, still smoking from his last dive into the flames. He'd left a dinner with Candice Cane to come to the rescue. He'd gotten a frantic text message from his assistant Margot, who'd been manning the scanners in case something happened while he was out wooing his date. 

It hadn't been an easy rescue, and the Captain couldn't be sure that he'd saved everyone. The flames had become too much, even for him. What's worse, he'd been temporarily trapped under a falling beam for several minutes before he was able to wrench himself from where he was pinned under the flames. 

He stood there, bloodied and burnt, staring at the smoking remains of what so many people used to call home. 

Margot arrived a few moments later, tires screeching as her ancient Honda lurched to a halt. She jumped out of the car and ran over to the Captain, who remained motionless. 

"Hey!" Margot yelled as she ran over. "You okay?" 

The Captain didn't move. 

"Hey," Margot said a bit more quietly when her boss didn't respond. "Hey, Jack. Earth to Jack, you did it. You saved everybody!" 

Jack frowned and shook his head. Seeing his reaction, Margot felt her heart drop. She knew something was wrong. 

"Jack," she said. "You're gonna make the papers for this. You did a great job!" 

After what seemed like a lifetime, the Captain turned to look at his assistant. He tried to find the words to say how he felt. 

He wanted to say that he was scared out his mind, trapped under that beam. He wanted to tell Margot that he was terrified that he was going to forget somebody in the building, that they would die because he wasn't fast enough, or strong enough. He wanted to tell her that was completely mortified that now, he knew for a fact that he wasn't nearly as strong as he was before that fight with the robot a few months ago. 

But Jack couldn't speak. He just looked at Margot, and shook his head again. His eyes stung as he held back tears. 

Margot, who didn't know what else to do, pulled the much taller superhero into a hug. 

Jack fell into Margot's embrace, and hot tears fell on his cheeks. 

Neither person said anything for a moment, and all sight, all sound was diminished. 

When Margot pulled back from the embrace, she didn't say anything. Instead, she put on a mock stern face and shook her head. 

"Look at this," she said, pointing at the black soot that now covered her clothes. "You've ruined my favorite shirt." 

"That shirt is horrible," the Captain mumbled. It was the first thing he'd spoken since Margot had arrived at the scene. "Always hated that shirt." 

Margot laughed, and the Captain smiled. He wiped his sooty face with the back of his hand, and together they headed towards Margot's car. 

"I'm putting down a damn towel," she said. 

The Captain laughed, and Margot wondered whether there could be anything more wonderful than that sound. 

[anthropolowhat]

Tanlines in the spring

It was a small thing, really, but Jack noticed it when Margot took off her thick glasses to rub her eyes. A bright white line ran across Margot's nose, pale and prominent against the reddish tint of the rest of her face. In the next moment, Jack forgot what they were arguing about. Whatever had sparked the debate was something trivial anyway, just a squabble over whether Jack would agree to have lunch with the Rotary Club or not, when he really just wanted to bring flowers to the pretty weather girl who'd proven his most recent distraction. "You get some sun this weekend?" Jack said, trying to hold back a smile. "Yeah," Margot said, cleaning her glasses on the corner of her shirt and frowning. "Planted some trees for Earth Day. Why?" Margot looked at him with unfocused eyes, holding up her newly-cleaned glasses for inspection. Jack shook his head. "You know, you actually have very pretty eyes," he said, speaking before he had a chance to think. He looked down, abashed, but Margot didn't notice. She put back on her glasses and rolled her eyes. "You're an asshole, you know that?" Margot said. Jack felt something burn in his chest. He was embarrassed, and it was a new feeling to the young superhero, usually so sure in all his conquests. Candice would never have reacted like that when given a complement. Jack glared at his assistant. "I was trying to be nice," he said. "Whatever," Margot said. She went back to lecturing Jack about the merits of being nice to the Rotary Club, and how that could lead to a sponsorship that could make him some money. Jack looked at Margot, but he wasn't listening. He tried to pay attention but inside he was laughing, amused by the strange angry girl with the bright stripe painted across her nose, trying her best not to be flustered by the praise.

[anthropolowhat]

Thursday

Jack dragged himself into the office around eleven, still hungover and exhausted from another incredible night with Candice Cane, Fort Wayne's newest weathergirl. "Hey," Jack said as he struggled past Margot's desk. "Good lord, you look rough," Margot replied. Jack flopped on the sofa opposite Margot and groaned. He closed his eyes and sighed. "She's amazing," Jack said. "I mean, she's incredible. I cannot even begin to explain--" "--I don't think I want you to explain," Margot said. "Actually, please don't explain." Jack opened one eye and shot Margot an annoyed look. "You know what I mean," he said. "like, listen.  She's smart, and funny, and--" "--again," Margot interrupted, "please, spare me the details." The Captain sat up and smirked. "What, are you jealous?" he said. "You mad somebody else gets a piece of the great Captain Stupendous?" "As a matter of fact, I have my own special someone," Margot said, snapping back at the Captain. "Really," the Captain said, scoffing, "well, why haven't I heard this before?" Margot looked at the Captain, then down at her desk. For a minute she didn't say anything. She frowned, and when she spoke, she was much quieter than before. "Because you never ask," she said. "I don't think you've ever asked about my life, or what's going on in it." Jack looked down at his hands. He felt something burning in his chest. Though he didn't realize it at the time, his conscience had finally caught up with him after a twenty-seven year chase. For the first in his life, Jack felt embarrassed. He was stuck there, immobilized by the stinging sensation that shame brings with it, hot and cold and all-consuming. He was at a loss for words, and his pounding headache and tired body didn't help the situation. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Jack swung his legs off the couch and leaned forward over his knees. Margot looked up from her computer. Jack took in a breath. He stared down at his hands, and didn't look up when he spoke. "It's just that, I don't have alot of friends here," Jack said. "I mean, I have people back home. But nobody really out here. So you're the only person I really can tell about these things. You're really the only person I can tell about anything, really. My parents didn't even come visit when I was in the hospital after the robot attack." Margot didn't speak, but frowned slightly as her boss continued. "I really am just excited," Jack said, "that's all. But I mean yeah, I should be asking you about your life too, I mean, that's what a good boss would do, I think." He nodded as he spoke, as if to convince himself. Margot laughed, and the bright sound chased all the tension from the room. Jack looked up, hope written across his face. When he saw his assistant laughing, the burning in his chest evaporated. "Lunch?" the Captain said. Margot smiled. "Sure," she said. "We don't have to go to the ribbon cutting ceremony at the new Wal-Mart until two." Jack groaned, and Margot laughed again. In the back of Jack's mind, a small voice wondered whether anything could be better than when he made Margot laugh. He shook his head, trying to clear his mind of the errant thought, and held the door for his assistant as they headed to the car.

[anthropolowhat]

Attention span (the Captain and Margot)

"Oh crap," the Captain said, straightening his tie. "There she is." "What, who?" Margot asked noncommittally. She looked around for a moment, then returned to the important task of pouring herself another glass of wine. The pair stood near the beverage table at the charity benefit where the Captain was a featured guest. They were at the Embassy, raising money for some cause that Margot had explained in great detail to the Captain. Stupendous did his best to listen, but his attention was elsewhere. He knew that Candice Cane would be there. Candice, bubbly and blonde, was the cute new weather girl that the NBC affiliate had hired to replace the previous weatherman who had jumped ship for Indianapolis. "Candice Cane," Stupendous said, swatting lightly at his assistant's shoulder. "I showed you her picture on Facebook!" "Oh jeez," Margot said. She was fairly tipsy. Trying to corral the Captain the entire evening was exhausting, and Margot was near the end of her rope. "I'm going to go say hello," the Captain said. "I'm going to walk right up and say hello and see if she wants a drink." "Well," Margot said, swirling the rapidly disappearing wine in her glass, "you'd better hurry up, because this stuff is going fast." The Captain looked at Margot for a moment. The briefest flash of concern crossed his face. "You okay?" he asked. Margot sighed, hanging her head for a moment. "Actually, no," she said. "I'm pretty stressed recently. My folks back home are struggling, and I'm trying to figure out how I can help them--" Just then, the Captain felt a light tap on his shoulder. He turned to see Candice standing behind him. "I didn't mean to interrupt," she said, radiant in a silver ball gown and flanked by other members of the news crew. "But I just wanted to say hello." "Oh!" the Captain said, "no, you weren't interrupting anything. I was just talking some shop with my assistant Margot." Margot smiled and shook the weathergirl's hand. If she was the slightest bit more sober, would have realized just how firmly she shook the other girl's hand. "Pleasure," Margot said, flashing a fake smile and feeling the bottom fall out of the floor. "Right, I'll just let you two catch up. I've got to check something on the schedule for tomorrow." Margot bowed out of the circle and turned on her heel. She walked out the front door of the theatre and headed towards Henry's.

[anthropolowhat]

in the parking lot

They only kept the Captain for another few days, making absolutely sure that Fort Wayne's only superhero was back in good shape. On Wednesday afternoon, he was set to be discharged. "I'm not going in that," the Captain said, glaring at the wheelchair Margot had pushed into the room. "I'm perfectly fine. I can manage on my own." Margot frowned and shook the handles on the offending object. "Well, the doctor said you're not fully back to your old self, so I don't want you getting hurt." "I'm walking out of here," the Captain said. "I'm not going to argue about it either, it's happening." "Fine," Margot said with a huff. "Fine, whatever. Get yourself dressed. I'll be back, I'm just going to get a coffee from the cafeteria. And hey--make sure to put on that coat I brought you. It's freezing outside." When she returned, the Captain was ready to go. He'd packed the small bag of items Margot had brought him from his apartment and slung it over his shoulder. He fussed a bit about the color of the jacket and scarf that Margot had picked out, but wore the outerwear anyway. "Let's get the hell out of here," he said. Margot smiled and opened the door, and the Captain followed her. The pair eventually made it out of the labyrinthine hospital and to the final set of double doors separating the hospital from the outside world. As they approached, Margot took in a breath. "Okay, get ready," she said. "Dude," the Captain said, "what is your big deal? It can't be that cold." Margot looked at the Captain askance, and stepped forward to activate the automatic doors. When they walked outside, Margot squeaked with displeasure at the frigid temperatures. The Captain, on the other hand, was so happy to be free of his hospital bed that he couldn't have cared less about the weather. "My car should be around here somewhere," Margot said, peering at the parking lot and frowning. "It's over there," the Captain said lazily, gesturing at a far corner of the lot. "How did you--oh, yeah of course," Margot said, crossing her arms. "I hate that you have supervision." The Captain shrugged, wincing slightly. He still felt uneasy and sore. Having been injured for the first time in his life, he found himself terrified that he wouldn't ever be restored to the man he was before he fought Rufus' first robot. Margot started to tell the Captain about his various social obligations coming up later that week, but the Captain wasn't listening. He was lost in thought, wondering why his parents didn't come to visit when he was injured. He wondered if they were ashamed of him. He wondered if this pain in his neck and shoulders would ever go away, or if he'd get his superstrength back. He hadn't told Margot, but he'd been secretly testing out all of his powers when she fell asleep in the chair each evening in his room. The Captain had lost his superstrength. He'd snuck down to the cafeteria and tried to lift the slushie machine, but to no avail. Most of his other powers were still intact, but without his strength, he felt like nothing. There was only one power that he wasn't able to test while he was cooped up in that hospital room, and it was his favorite power of all. For one week of his life--the first week in his entire existence--Stupendous didn't know whether he was still able to fly. As Margot had continued her laundry list of the Captain's obligations, the Captain started to concentrate. It had never taken any thought to lift off the ground before, but now he suddenly found himself in need of focus. He took in a deep breath. Mid-lecture, Margot checked the calendar on her phone. "Wait," she said. "That's not the right date. The Mayor's gala isn't until next month, so we can move up the photo-op with the firemen until--" She trailed off when she realized that the superhero wasn't standing behind her. She looked around frantically, and then felt a tap on the top of her head. "Hey," the Captain said, grinning broadly. "Hey, look at me." Margot glared. "You haven't heard a damn thing I've said this whole time, have you?" The Captain laughed. "Nope!" he shouted. In the next moment, he shot straight up in the sky. Margot continued to march to her car, grumbling and cursing her employer. When she finally reached her car, she saw the Captain standing on the ground next to it. He was shivering, holding his arms across his body, trying to keep in some warmth. His lips were blue. "I told you," Margot said without sympathy, unlocking the car, "I told you it was freezing today." 

[anthropolowhat]

When he woke up

Everything hurt. Since the Captain had so rarely felt pain, he was in agony. The Captain woke up with a start, sucking in a sharp breath and wincing as his broken ribs bent with the new pressure. He opened his eyes and realized he was in a hospital room. He looked over and saw that he was hooked up to a heart monitor. He could hear the steady beep of the machine, and it gave him some comfort. He heard a sigh, and realized that his secretary had fallen asleep in the chair next to his bed. Jesus, the Captain thought to himself. That young woman was not a pretty sleeper. He balled up a tissue and tried to toss it into her mouth, wide open and snoring. The tissue landed perfectly, and Margot woke up with a shriek. "God!" she screamed. "I was just in the middle of a dream." The Captain wheezed a laugh, and then winced again. "Hey," Margot said, leaning closer in her chair. "I'm so glad you're back." The Captain frowned. "How long have I been here?" he asked. "Not too long," Margot said quickly, "not too long. Just about two days--" "--what?" the Captain said. "And I've been out this whole time?" "Well, it's just that you lost alot of blood," Margot said, trying to reassure the Captain. "And so, you know, it just took some time for you to recover." "That's not possible," Stupendous said. He felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. "We've called your parents, they said they'd be out here as soon as they can," Margot added. Stupendous snorted. "Both my parents can teleport. If they wanted to be here, they'd be here already." Margot was quiet for a minute. She pressed her lips into a line and looked down. "I'm sorry, Jack," she said, addressing her boss by first name. The Captain sighed. "I just don't understand how I could get this messed up. I mean, I'm a superhero. I've never even had a papercut before!" "Jack," Margot said, using his first name again, "I talked to some of the officers there at the scene. That robot would've killed a normal person in a matter of minutes, and you beat it back with just your bare hands." Jack looked at his hands, now covered in thick gauze. "Some good it did me," he said. "You protected the city," Margot said. "You did a good thing. The papers ran a front-page headline about it the next day, and I'm sure as soon as you're up for it, we'll get a press conference together." The Captain rolled over in his bed, facing away from his secretary. "I don't want to talk to anybody. I could have done better. I was just out of practice. I was still kind of drunk, anyways, and if it wasn't dark, then I bet I could've finished that piece of junk off in five minutes flat--" "Jack," Margot said. She stood up and walked over to the bed. She put her hand on his shoulder, and with gentle pressure coaxed the Captain to lay flat again. "Was this your first real fight?" she asked quietly. The Captain looked in her eyes, noting for the first time that they were grey. He held her gaze or a minute, then looked away, his face marked with a pain that had nothing to do with his injuries. "Yeah," he said. "Yeah, that was the first time." Margot nodded. She turned back around to the chair and picked up her purse. The Captain saw what she was doing and frowned. "Hey," he said, "where are you going?" "I figured you'd want to have some alone time, or sleep," Margot said, suddenly shy. Stupendous shook his head. "Could you stay," he said quietly. "I know that chair isn't really comfy, but--" "--it's good enough for me," Margot said. She smiled. "Yeah, okay. I mean, Jeopardy is nearly on." "Aw, jeez," the Captain said. "Couldn't we watch something more interesting than that? They've got cable here, you know!" They both laughed, and the tension was broken. Margot settled down in the chair, and the Captain picked up the phone to order some food to be brought up to his hospital room.