Alberto Reyes - Blog Posts

𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤 - 𝐣𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬 | 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟏𝟏

zara tlatilpa goes mama bear mode, but jaime figures that it's for the best.

masterlist | previous , next !

– pairings: jaime reyes x oc

– warning: fluff, canon divergent, blue beetle movie spoilers

– author’s note: honestly, mama bear zara has my heart <3 disclaimer: i’m not of Hispanic or Aztec descent and used a translator for certain terms, so do correct me if im wrong!

translations: muy bien entonces, criatura terca - alright then, strange creature mijo, ¿a dónde vas? - darling, where are you going? èl se fue a verla de nuevo, ¡le gusta! - he's going to see her again, he likes her! No es nada, nana - it's nothing, nana ¡deberías llevarla a una cita y mostrarle el amuleto de Reyes! - you should take her on a date and show her the Reyes charm! ¿Lo entiendes? - do you understand? y recuerda, compórtate bien - and remember, behave yourself ¡sin travesuras! - no shenanigans! todavía soy demasiado joven para ser abuela - i'm too young to be a grandmother ese es un buen chico - that's a good kid

A thump rang throughout his chest as Jaime did a double take at the message, his face heating up.

“Hey, Khaji, just to make sure, I’m not seeing things, right?” He muttered, pushing the hair out of his squinted eyes, re-reading the message repeatedly.

“Jaime, your vision is excellent. Alejandra has invited you to her place since her pet wants to meet you.”

“Why do you call her Alejandra? I’m pretty sure she’d be okay with you using her nickname,” Jaime shrugged, pushing himself out of bed as he suddenly felt conscious of what he was wearing.

“If her name is Alejandra, I shall address her as so, I have no emotional attachment to her,” Khaji-Da responded plainly, Jaime rolling his eyes.

“Could you at least try? It’s so weird not hearing her being called by her nickname.”

“Not likely.”

“Muy bien entonces, criatura terca,” Jaime muttered under his breath, pocketing his phone as he pushed his room door open, now wearing a baggy set of jeans, his navy blue shirt beneath a light blue and white, short-sleeved flannel.

“Jaime,” Bianca Reyes beamed, looking up from the paper in her hands as she spotted her son emerge from his room, glad to see him going places instead of being cooped up in his little room, despite him only coming out for breakfast this morning.

Noticing her son dressed up to go out, her brow furrowed, placing her pen down for the shortest moment as Jaime hummed back at her, leaning his weight against the back of a nearby chair.

“Mijo, ¿a dónde vas? I thought you didn’t have anything planned?” She tilted her head to look up at her son, Jaime walking closer to her to place a little peck on the top of his mother’s head.

“I won’t be far, Mamá. I’m heading over to Drea’s, she’s invited me over.”

“Él se fue a verla de nuevo, ¡le gusta!” Nana called out from the living room’s couch, Jaime’s eyes rolling lightheartedly.

“No es nada, Nana,” Jaime sighed with a smile, used to the teasing. “She’s just a good friend, I guess.”

“She’s got a point, Cabrón,” Rudy smirked, the front door of the single-storey house thudding closed behind him.

“You have been hanging around her quite a bit. ¡Deberías llevarla a una cita y mostrarle el amuleto de Reyes!”

Hearing that caused Jaime to flush a bright red, Rudy letting out a boisterous laugh at his nephew’s reaction, walking over to the young man and landing a heavy back slap on Jaime, the young Mexican hero wincing slightly.

“Okay, okay,” Bianca sighed with a smile. “Let’s leave him be, go on your little hang out. Dinner’s at six-thirty, no negotiations. ¿Lo entiendes?” 

“Sí, Mamá,” He sighed, letting his mother affectionately pat his cheek.

She smiled up at him softly, before her forefinger and thumb pinched Jaime’s cheek tugging gently as her son complained at the discomfort despite being twenty-two.

“Y recuerda, compórtate bien. ¡Sin travesuras! Todavía soy demasiado joven para ser abuela,” She lectured, Jaime’s hand wrapped around hers to try and pull her hand away, the rest of the Mexican family laughing at their antics.

With a final tug, Bianca released her son’s cheek, Jaime sighing as he put on his sneakers, and walked right out of the door with a warm smile, realising that he could never find it in himself to dislike their affectionate teasing.

Sauntering over to his neighbour’s house, he glanced behind him, feeling eyes trained on the back of his head. Turning the slightest, Jaime noticed the way the curtains of his kitchen’s windows shifted ever so slightly, and a chuckle escaped his lips, realising his family’s gaze wouldn’t leave him anytime soon.

Finally, his feet halted, realising that he stood in front of his neighbour’s lawn, and for some reason, he suddenly felt nervous. Shoving his hands back into his pockets, his fingers fiddled with the threads. A new nervous habit, he noted, taking in a final deep breath as he marched on to her front door.

Deep in his mind he could hear Rudy’s slight sigh of disappointment, muttering something along the lines of, “Ay, ay, ay…"

Now face-to-face with the mahogany door of the Tlatilpas, Jaime lifted his fist, knuckles hovering over the dark wood before leaning his head back, mustering up all of his courage to knock on the door. 

The knocks echoed throughout the area, and for a brief moment, everything stilled. And then the door jolted open, revealing a woman who towered over him behind a patterned, iron grill gate.

Her short, dyed hair was parted at the right of her scalp, a tattoo visible on her upper right arm – it’s pattern almost resembling one of Drea’s golden arm cuffs of her hero costume. 

The red spaghetti top she wore exposed her lean physique and a baggy pair of white shorts wrapped around her hips, but her muscles were still visible as she tilted her head, and Jaime just felt the slightest bit intimidated. 

That was until she let out a large smile, hands rushing to unlock the extra form of protection before finally opening it successfully. She tugged at the gate - with an almost unnecessary amount of force, Jaime might add - before opening her arms wide.

“And you must be Jaime Reyes! Milagro’s brother, right?” She asked eagerly, her voice rich and warm. Jaime could suddenly tell which parent Drea got her constant stream of energy from.

“Sí, Mrs Tlatilpa,” He smiled nervously, eyes snapping open as she pulled him into a deep, bear hug. 

“Ah, I have so much to thank you and your sister for! My little Spark doesn’t make friends easily, and it’s so good to hear that she trusts you both with her life! It’s so nice seeing her happy again.”

“O-Oh?” Jaime wheezed slightly with a wince before being released from her constrictive grip. “I, uh, I’m honoured, Ma’am.”

“Please, Tiá Zara would do just fine,” She beamed. “I’ll go call Drea, you go make yourself comfortable!”

She scooted slightly, letting Jaime through, and he could hear the thud of iron from behind him as she locked the gate again, but as he glanced around, Jaime looked in awe at the cosy little living room around him.

Pictures of the family of three were present on almost every wall, a few black and white pictures framed up alongside them, but not as meticulously kept, as dust gathered on the glass frame protecting the almost faded image.

The green of the potted plants stood out against the vermilion-painted walls, a comfy-looking beige couch resting against the wall as a plush and fuzzy persian carpet rested underneath the glass and teak-framed coffee-table, the television across it reflecting his image in the darkness. A pile of hard-cover books rested above it, for anyone who was interested to take a peak.

Walking around the room, Jaime took a little peak at everything, though his intuitive eye lingered longer on any image he assumed was Drea’s a little longer than expected. A smile was soon plastered on his face at the sight of an energetic little girl standing on a chair, her wide smile missing two-front teeth as a large cake was placed before her.

Her dark brown strands were barely tamed, giving the young girl a wild look, but the tiny crown that sat on her head and her upright posture made her almost seem regal at a glance.

Quickly, he pulled his phone out, snapping a shot of the image before his phone disappeared into the darkness of his pocket. Once in a while, a few embarrassing photos would be nice as ‘blackmail’.

“I see you found her fifth birthday picture,” Zara grinned, watching Jaime with crossed arms. “Yeah, that one was too cute not to hang up. She still insists I take it down, but we both know that it’s never going to happen.”

Zara then approached the younger male, seating herself on the coach as Jaime turned to look at more of the pictures. He brushed over the faded family photos, almost recognising one of the younger girls as Aunt Anika before moving onto the next one, deciding not to pry.

“Jaime, I’d like a word with you,” Zara began, her warm tone turning strict and reserved. “It’s regarding Drea.”

Instantly, he turned around, a furrow in his brow. He watched as the older woman stood up on her feet, walking closer to the male as her hands heavily landed on his shoulders.

“Now, I know that my daughter has trusted you with information that wasn’t your right to know, but she trusted it with you anyways. And she’s had a tough time finding the people to choose to be her friends, you’re lucky to be one of them,” She spoke, looking Jaime dead in the eye.

“However, though I may like you for keeping silent so far, if a word ever slips past your lips, and it ever puts her at risk? I can’t guarantee that you will be friends for much longer,” The look in her eyes turned almost sad, almost guilty for threatening her daughter’s friendships.

“You must understand, I do this because I love her, and I won’t stand idly aside if anything bad ever happens to her. Do you get me?”

He watched as she practically begged him with her eyes, his throat going dry as he nodded, knowing that if his own family’s safety was compromised, he’d do anything to make sure they’d be safe. And with the look Drea’s mother gave him, he felt the urge to protect Drea with the same amount of care too. 

‘I do, Tiá, more than you know,” A determined look rested on his face as Zara let out a smile of relief, her hand patting his shoulders in a proud manner.

“Ese es un buen chico.”

And so she turned around, ready to continue with whatever she was doing before he had arrived, her fingers lightly brushing on the walls before she came to a halt, turning her head to face Jaime one last time before she took her leave.

“Oh, and one last piece of advice, from one hero to another, maybe find a better spot to transform behind the garbage skips. It’s more visible than you think.”

And so she left, Jaime’s jaw slacking before he shook his head, hand darting to scratch the scalp of his head in embarrassment at the advice. Part of him wanted to beg Zara not to tell anyone, to keep his secret to herself, but realising that there was no malice in her tone, just the pure willingness to help the boy, he relaxed.

But only the slightest.

However, a smile broke out on his face once more as he spotted a familiar friend come into view, rushing after a little brown blur of fur.

“Oh, hey, Jaime!”

gif by @rob-pattinson

taglist: @mooncleaver @hoshi4k @mymanjaimereyes @asvterias @tinkerbelle05 @littlekidsteve @allthingsvicf

< comment/dm me if you’d like to be on the taglist! >

𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤 - 𝐣𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬 | 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟏𝟎

emotions and texting shenanigans, jaime wasn't ready for that emotional rollercoaster.

masterlist | previous , next !

– pairings: jaime reyes x oc

– warning: fluff, canon divergent, blue beetle movie spoilers

– author’s note: it felt so weird writing out casual texts and comments on insta, lol. disclaimer: i’m not of Hispanic or Aztec descent and used a translator for certain terms, so do correct me if im wrong!

translations: eres tan estúpido - you're so stupid

The day suddenly felt so slow. Lying on his bed, Jaime muttered in annoyance, his phone in his hand as the sunlight shone into his face through the thin material of his curtains. He lay flat on his back, the hand with the phone in hand resting on his stomach as his other arm supported his neck against his pillow.

Staring at the ceiling emptily, he glanced to his right and his eyes landed on his open laptop, the male huffing with a grumble as he rolled onto his side, back facing the computer.

Turning his phone on, Jaime’s fingers automatically clicked on the little Instagram icon, waiting for a brief second before images appeared on his feed. There he lay in silence, thumb scrolling mindlessly up and down, occasionally laughing silently at a meme post or two.

Then his eyes widened the slightest, spotting a fairly new username from his following that appeared on his notification bar, alerting him of their newest post.

alejan-drea✰ (@dreas.world) posted a new image! 2 mins ago…

Curious to see what she was up to, he clicked on the notification and the app took him to a new page, her latest post appearing within the second. Unconsciously, a soft smile rested on his features, his deep brown eyes meeting the light brown of hers in her image.

In her arms was the stray he’d seen the past few days, and recalling what Milli told him, his neighbour adopted the little dog, taking the utmost care of it and getting the pet the immunity jabs and medicines required for its safety. 

Instead of her usual attire of jeans and her off-shoulder shirt, she wore a slightly baggy tee, tucked into black, ripped-denim shorts. Her usually messy dark waves still had the one to two stray braids, but were all together bunched up in a messy ponytail.

The morning’s light reflected off of her tan skin, giving her a soft look as her dog – Sparky, he faintly recalled from his sister – excitedly licked her cheek. Drea’s smile reflected the same glow of joy, even though she was being licked rather viciously. 

Swiping left, Jaime spotted the caption as a video began to play, seeing the dog wiggle impatiently in her arms, tail wagging at a ferocious speed as the onslaught of licks hadn’t stopped once.

dreas.world out bathing the baby, got a saliva shower instead ://

Despite the ridiculous angle, and the 0.5x zoom of the photo taken, he considered this post one of her better ones, ultimately deciding himself that the setting suited her better, bringing out her best features. He double-tapped her post, a little red heart popping up before vanishing almost immediately. 

His thumbs hovered over the comment section, and spotting Milagro’s comment, he rolled his eyes to himself.

mili_reyes_best gurl, go bathe. please. dreas.world @mili_reyes_best not until hes squeaky clean 🙃

Jaime scoffed, his thumbs hovering over the comment bar. Half-tempted to reply to the conversation, he decided against it, leaving the two to their shenanigans. However, he did end up posting his own comment, his finger quickly tapping the little paper plane icon.

officially._jaime literally the cutest being to exist 🤟

As soon as the text of his comment turned opaque, slight regret washed over him as he re-read his remark, a blush flushing over his cheeks as soon as he realised the two ways his comment could be taken, eyes widening in panic.

“Shit–” He hissed softly, rushing to tap the three dots that would allow him to delete his comment.

Before he could click it, the notification bar popped up again, this time, announcing his neighbour’s response to the comment.

dreas.world @officially._jaime you wont believe how happy sparky was after i told him that 

Letting out a deep sigh, the smile slowly returned, and he clicked on the little bar again, instantly thinking of a reply.

officially._jaime @dreas.world bring him over sometime, we’ll absolutely spoil him 😈

With that, he clicked on Drea’s profile, eyeing the little ‘message’ button beneath her little mutual follow list. 

“What the heck,” He muttered, finding himself with a private conversation set up between them, ignoring the fact that even though he already did have her number, he was simply too lazy to open up his messages. 

Besides, she was already online on Insta, the little green dot by her name told him so.

Nerves built up in his stomach, and if he was being honest, his hands fiddled with the cover of his phone nervously. What would he even say? What was there to talk about at all? They’ve shared all their secrets, everything, to each other and that was that.

“But we’re friends,” His mind argued. “Think! Think of something friends would talk about!”

Without thinking twice, his hands moved on their own, and he found himself sending the message once more without even realising what he’d done.

so hows the weather today??

Silence filled his mind, his stare going blank as he let out a loud groan of annoyance, hands darting up to pull at the roots of his hair as the phone landed unceremoniously on his bed.

“¡Jaime, eres tan estúpido!” He hissed at himself, dragging his hands over his face. “No, no. Just… just leave it. Let’s just die of shame.”

Ignoring the hums of protest regarding his perfect health condition from Khaji-Da, Jaime sat upright, staring down disdainfully at the text he sent his friend. Who the hell started a conversation like that? 

Just then, the little ‘ding’ of his phone went off, and his eyes widened, spotting a text in reply.

is bearable lol. arent we in the same neighbourhood lmao

With that, he was back on his phone in an instant, relief flooding over him as he revelled at the fact that he did not, in fact, present himself as socially awkward. At least not online.

i mean yea, but u never know 🤷‍♂️

He watched nervously as the three little dots appeared at the bottom of his screen, dancing up and down tauntingly, and what was a few seconds, felt like almost fifteen minutes.

bro just say u wanna come over lmao, sparky wants to meet u anyways

gif by @rob-pattinson

taglist: @mooncleaver @hoshi4k @mymanjaimereyes @asvterias @tinkerbelle05 @littlekidsteve @allthingsvicf

< comment/dm me if you’d like to be on the taglist! >

𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤 - 𝐣𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬 | 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟗

never in his life did jaime think that the first person he'd really open up to would be his neighbour, but hey, new friendships are formed.

masterlist | previous , next !

– pairings: jaime reyes x oc

– warning: fluff, canon divergent, blue beetle movie spoilers

– author’s note: i wont lie this chapter was one of the more fun ones to write and i was excited :> disclaimer: i’m not of Hispanic or Aztec descent and used a translator for certain terms, so do correct me if im wrong!

translations: dios mío - my god ni siquiera me hagas empezar - don't even get me started

Time always passed faster than you ever thought it would, seconds turning into minutes, and minutes turning into hours within the blink of an eye.

The warm and radiant sun had begun to set, lowering itself closer towards the ocean as all the land beneath it was filled with a golden glow. 

Unaware of this change sat two young adults within an abandoned building, light filling in the lonesome domain, keeping the duo company regardless of the lack of electricity that passed through.

Only Jaime’s voice filled the air as the young woman across him listened intently, hanging onto every word, feeling a fraction of almost every emotion he went gone through, from the sheer panic of the scarab lurching onto his face to the excruciating pain of the scarab’s limbs digging into the bone of his spine, bonding with its host for life.

Pity and heartbreak filled her heart as the man across from her struggled to get through one of the toughest parts of his journey, and the most painful of it all.

The loss of a loved one wasn’t an easy part to handle. He wished for everything to bring him back.

Silently, she pieced the pieces together, her hand hesitantly, but gently reassuringly placed over his own, reminding him that he could keep to himself if he wasn’t ready to share. 

And he truly wasn’t ready yet.

Swallowing down his grief, he continued his tale, opening himself up to her about how he learned to protect those he loved, how he learned to handle this kind of responsibility, and how he barely escaped death with a different — but the good kind of different — approach on this strange, but exciting, new chapter in his life.

It was all so tough, but he had others he could rely on; his familia, Rudy, Nana, his Mamá, even Milagro. And perhaps Jenny, although currently, he was having a little trouble communicating with the latest name on the list after her rejection.

But he faced it all, and even though he still grieved the loss of his father, he came out a stronger person, heck maybe an even more loving person, and nothing was stopping him from keeping the people he loved safe — his home — safe. After all, home is where the heart is.

So here he was, spilling his guts out to a woman he first called a stranger, a threat. But now, things changed, and she started to change into his neighbour, maybe even a friend.

“And after everything her aunt did, she still volunteered to make our neighbourhood better. She helped rebuild our house, gave Rudy a new ride, which he’s practically attached to but won’t admit out loud, and was there for us in our toughest times,” He bobbed his head up and down in thought, Drea humming as her cheek rested in her hands, elbow placed on the armrest while she crossed her legs.

A cheeky smile grew on her face, eyes turning playful at the sight of Jaime’s dazed eyes.

“Jenny, hm? Sounds like quite the keeper,” She chimed, tilting her head playfully.

“Dios mío, ni siquiera me hagas empezar,” He muttered with a dreamy smile growing on his face. “Everything about her, it’s just so… perfect! She’s extremely intelligent, kind and caring, and so, so beautiful. What else do I even have to say?”

Chuckling, Drea leaned back in her chair, suggestively raising an eyebrow.

“Ever tried telling her that? Maybe it will sweep her off her feet, who knows?”

And just like that, Jaime’s smile fell, eyes downcast as he shoved his hands in the pockets of his sweatpants, picking at loose threads from within. He let out a sad sigh, head leaning back as he stared at the vine-filled ceiling.

“Funny thing, it didn’t work. After everything, I thought maybe she felt the same way, but it was probably the adrenaline getting to me…”

“Jaime, I’m sorry,” Drea began, glancing at the Mexican across her in concern. “I didn’t mean to pry–“

“It’s fine, Drea, really,” He replied smoothly, tilting his head to face her. “I’ve been thinking about it for a while anyways, and it’s probably better to let it all out, y’know?”

Slowly, Drea’s look of concern faded, a calm one replacing as she felt mutual about his feelings. She leaned her head back, staring at the little orbs of light that complimented the green of the vines that clung to the cement.

“Yeah, I get that.”

The two shared a look, gentle smiles all around as Jaime let out another sigh, this time, or relief, his eyes glancing back at the ceiling. Slowly, he let the thoughts flood through, one by one pushing them aside as he realised that all of his thoughts were just… thoughts. It’s all they would ever be.

“You know, if you ever want to talk, I’m always free to help out,” Drea began gently, Jaime, suddenly feeling grateful to have a friend around.

“Thanks,” He replied, the fiddling in his pockets slowing. “I’ve got your back too, if you ever need help. So is my family.”

A soft and appreciative look appeared on the woman’s face as she hummed, “I know.”

A comfortable silence grew between them, the two friends basking in the calm, enjoying each other’s company. Until a low rumbling noise was heard, and Jaime’s eyes snapped open.

When did he last eat again?

As his stomach rumbled again, Jaime pulled his phone out in embarrassment, swiftly checking the time. 

6:30 pm.

Huh… he didn’t recall time passing by so quickly.

“It’s about time we head back anyways,” The woman across him stood up, Jaime doing the same as he hurriedly shoved his phone back into his pocket.

“Yeah, it’s for the best,” He let out a breathy chuckle, hands in his pockets once more.

As he took his next step, Jaime hadn’t realised that his left foot was trapped beneath a loose vine, his weight shifting as he tried to lift his leg. 

“Jaime, watch where you’re–“

His eyes widened at his sudden error, hands darting out of his pockets to help him regain his balance, but the ground seemed closer by the second, and he braced himself for impact.

But he never felt himself land on the solid concrete.

Instead, he felt a slight jerk that pulled him away from the ground as strong arms darted to catch his frame, a hand clasping the cloth of his hoodie, another around his waist as his arms flailed to his sides. 

“–Going…”

Blinking up at her, Jaime felt his face flush at the proximity between them, light brown, almost amber, pools of concern staring at him as he felt himself getting lost within them.

Who knew that her eyes were so pretty? Did her hair always look this soft? Wow, under this light she looked so peaceful, so calm, and so beautiful—

“You alright?” She whispered, and the gentleness of her voice almost sent another wave of heat to his cheeks.

Being so lost in the moment, Jaime swore he was hallucinating the moment he felt a warm, soothing glow surround them. And he was certain his mind was messing with him the moment he thought he saw pink briefly dust her cheeks.

“Y-Yeah, yeah, I’m all good,” He muttered quickly, pulling his feet from beneath him as he regained his balance. 

It was then that he realised their slight height difference, his heart pounding at the thought of being able to encompass her completely if they ever decided to hug. Or cuddle. Or kiss—

No! Jaime, you’re friends. You’re just hungry, and you’re thinking these thoughts because you’re lonely and you were rejected, that’s all. Don’t mess it up.

“The vines here are a little pesky now and then, but hey, a little pruning might be needed,” She giggled, and Jaime fought his thoughts once more, almost hissing out loud for them to shut up.

“Jaime, you’re staring, again. You need to answer Alejandra or she will think that you are weird.”

“Yeah,” Jaime blurted out, silently thanking Khaji for the reminder. “Uh, yeah we definitely gotta cut those. Anyway, shall we? I think I’ve left my Mamá for too long and any longer, she might file a missing person’s report. Again.”

“Again?” She narrowed her eyes with a sly grin. “That must’ve been fun.”

“Eh, not so fun when you’ve been considered missing after crashing through your childhood home and flying all over the city without a clue on how to control it,” He joked back, her elbow nudging his ribs as they shared a laugh.

Right as he saw her smile, he felt himself go soft as he saw how radiant she was when she was truly happy, and his stomach rumbled once more, breaking the moment between them.

“Alright, c’mon big guy, let’s get you home with some food,” She chuckled, snapping her fingers as the citlaltontli hovered back in her hands.

The little glowing beads lost their radiance, their surroundings fading into the shadows as Drea grabbed Jaime’s wrist gently, pulling the male towards the large double doors of the building.

“Using up this much energy for light has worked up my appetite too.”

He chuckled, eyes glued onto their conjoining point, swallowing the lump in his throat as he felt how soft her tan hands were.

“Yeah, food,” He chimed. “Wanna join us for dinner?”

“Only if you don’t almost expose me before your family.”

There was something about the playful glint in her eye that made him want to know her more, to know more about her childhood, her hopes, her dreams. Everything.

“Deal.”

Yeah, he was just hungry.

gif by @rob-pattinson

taglist: @mooncleaver @hoshi4k @mymanjaimereyes @asvterias @tinkerbelle05 @littlekidsteve @allthingsvicf

< comment/dm me if you’d like to be on the taglist! >

𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤 - 𝐣𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬 | 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟖

things go better than expected, and jaime has so much more to learn about drea than he realised

masterlist | previous , next !

– pairings: jaime reyes x oc

– warning: fluff, canon divergent, blue beetle movie spoilers

– author’s note: DREA LORE!! was extremely excited to write this chapter hhehe! disclaimer: i’m not of Hispanic or Aztec descent and used a translator for certain terms, so do correct me if im wrong!

“Ever heard of the galaxy, Cemanahuatlchan?” 

Jaime frowned in confusion, briefly about to open his mouth to ask what Drea meant as Khaji-Da’s voice filled the silence of his thoughts.

“Cemanahuatlchan, also known as ‘Home Universe’ among Alejandra’s people. A neighbouring galaxy of the Milky Way. It consists of approximately the same number of Milky Way planets, eight hundred billion, and more.”

“Actually, I guess I do now?” Jaime smiled unsurely, Drea giggling softly in reply.

“Let me guess, the scarab told you about it, huh?” She queried, Jaime, nodding his head side to side, his smile growing wider guiltily.

“No matter, I’ll tell you more anyway.”

Lifting her left wrist, the half-human tapped on the thin material of one of the matching bracelets on her wrist, the other accessory’s counterpart on her right wrist. As soon as she lifted her finger, a hologram appeared, displaying a map of the galaxy the two young adults were discussing.

With her eyes locked on a singular speck, Drea pinched her fingers, the image enlarging to display a planet, its exterior pattern reminiscent of Jupiter’s. The slight difference was the three bright rings that surrounded it.

“That’s my Mama’s home planet. To her, it’s known as Chantlemauatl, Home Flame,” She hummed, Jaime, watching in awe. 

With another quick tap to her bracelet, the hologram shifted into one of the natives of the planet, feathers adorning their headpieces, gold placed around their necks and arms, and vibrant paint swiped across their faces, more specifically, their eyes.

“But to those who are outsiders and know of its existence, it’s known as Tletlalia. Our culture, our language, it’s reminiscent of your ancient Aztec culture, I think. Even though our home planet birthed my people, the people of Chantlemauatl, the Comonqui, adapted to survive the conditions of our home.

“Our powers evolved as the climates of our planet began to change, and it would turn cooler by the year. It isn’t freezing, but it constantly rains, so to keep ourselves warm, our powers started to change to suit our needs, to benefit my people’s survival.

“Eventually, fire-related powers were one of the most useful powers we grew to have. More accurately, it’s the power of the majority of the population. Occasionally, there are a few variants to the main power, fire creation. Like mine, I have fire creation and fire manipulation. Somewhere in my ancestry, there was a variation, and it caused my mother and I to have both abilities.”

“Cool,” Jaime muttered, a small grin on his face. “What about that material you had? The one you used to fight with against Phantom?”

“Oh, it’s known as tecpatl. It’s a material that’s similar to your obsidian, except that it only hardens to that quality when in contact with flames, usually the flames of the Comonqui,” She grinned, pulling the said feather from her purse. “When not in contact, it’s just like feathers. The floating orbs, however, are called citlaltontli, small stars in English.”

“Are they made of a different material then?”

“Yeah, but they work just like tecpatl, only reacting to Comonqui flames,” She nodded eagerly. “My mother only brought a large pouch full of sand with her when she left home because it only takes a pinch of Tletlalia’s earth and a distinct type of flame to create any of these materials. I’m still learning the ropes to make it.

“In our culture, when a Comonqui is of age to be independent, they can either find their place in society or venture for new places to call home. My Mama, even though she was happy living on Tletlalia, she felt like she was missing something. So she left to find something new, and came to Earth.”

“And then, I’m assuming she met a guy, and then had you?” Jaime questioned while Drea tapped her bracelet a third time, the hologram disappearing.

“What? No, my Mama never had a lover on Earth before she met Amma,” She responded with a look of disbelief.

“Then how?”

“It’s a long, long story,” Drea sighed. “On our home planet, each person’s flame consists of a small trace of their DNA, it’s just a feature of our evolution. It makes it really convenient if there’s ever a crime committed because all it takes is a little DNA scan equivalent. But it’s also how reproduction works, especially with homosexual couples. 

“Usually, for them, there’s a different and distinct kind of flame they both produce which fuses their DNA, but I’m not sure with the whole… er… process of it,” She flushed red, Jaime’s cheeks blooming into a similar shade of dark crimson.

“R-RIGHT, right,” He muttered, ignoring the way his voice cracked slightly. “Wait, isn’t your other mom human?”

“She is, therefore she can’t produce the flame. But my Mama did actually bargain with Bruce Wayne to help fuse their DNA and create me,” Drea casually leaned back in her chair.

“Hold up, your mothers know Bruce Wayne? As in, the Bruce Wayne?” He questioned with widened eyes, his disbelief growing into a smile.

“Yeah,” She shrugged. “They’re a mutual friend of Uncle Cl– I mean, Superman.”

“You know Superman too?!” His jaw dropped, and the female across from him laughed in amusement. 

“I mean, it’s a small pool of humanoid extraterrestrials. Superman just had a little diplomatic convo with my mom, and they hit it off. He actually helped us find our home here,” She pulled her phone out, showing the young Mexican man a selfie of her, her mother and the man in the iconic blue, red and yellow suit.

Jaime’s chestnut eyes widened in excitement, and he took Drea’s phone from her hand gently as she giggled at his enthusiasm. As soon as his eyes were off the image, his eyes locked onto hers, a wide grin still plastered across his face.

“Any chance you could introduce us?” He grinned, Drea’s own smile growing from his good mood.

“Slim chance, but I could definitely give it a shot,” She winked, taking her phone back from him as Jaime’s cheeks warmed slightly, taken aback that she had it in her to wink at him so casually.

She didn’t mean it in that way. Right? Right… 

Before he could let other thoughts plague his head, he let the one thought that preoccupied his mind the whole time finally escape his lips.

“Hey, Drea?” He asked softly, watching the way she turned to face his direction in response.

“Why are you telling me all of this?”

He watched the way she swallowed the lump in her throat, the way her hands darted to keep her phone in her purse, and the way one of her hands instantly rushed to rest at the back of her neck once it was done with handling her device. 

Briefly, for just a short moment, Jaime saw a flash of fear and pain gloss over her light brown eyes, and he was struck with that sense of familiarity.

“Ah, uhm,” She began breathily, nervously fiddling with a few strands of hair, the other hand shoved into her jeans pocket. “Believe it or not, I uh… I don’t trust people easily, even if Milagro has become one of my best friends. It’s been… a long time since I’ve really told anyone who I am or where I’ve come from. And those didn’t… it didn’t go so well.”

She fiddled with her fingers, a soft yet sad smile growing at the memory of Bianca Reyes insisting on calling her ‘Tiá Bianca’, heartwarming in a bittersweet way.

“Your family though, you made me feel welcome. You all have no malicious intent, not a bad bone in any of you. You all made me want to trust you… And I mean, even though we had a rough start, you knew my secret, and I trust that you haven’t told anyone so… why not know each other a bit more before any more assumptions cause more problems?”

A teasing smile replaced her nervous grin, but the lingering emotions remained. Letting out a small, calming smile, Jaime nodded back, chuckling lightly at the joke.

“Yeah, yeah,” He huffed. “I’ve already apologised for it. How’d you know I had the scarab though?”

“I mean, it’s an alien species. And when you’re alien yourself, you get a rough idea of what’s out there. Just because we’re similar to the Aztecs doesn’t mean that we progress at the same speed as them,” She chuckled. “We do have technology there. And it’s pretty advanced, I gotta say.”

“Been there before?”

“Nah, but from the stories I heard from my mom? It sounds a little bit like paradise,” She sighed, twirling a strand of her hair around her finger. “She knows about the scarab too, by the way. She just didn’t tell me.”

“You told your mom about the scarab and I?” He frowned, a pang of betrayal shooting through him.

Instantly, Drea’s eyes widened, her hands pulling away from her hair as she waved them, her head shaking from side to side.

“What? No! Never! We made a promise, and I intend to keep it!” She reassured him, Jaime slinking back into the chair. “I just found a few of her old diaries in the attic. I rummaged through after we met. Found a whole bunch of diagrams and entries of the scarab and assumed that she knows of its existence and the extent of its powers.”

“Oh… oh, that kinda makes sense,” Jaime nodded, placing his cheek to rest on his palm, elbow hitched onto the arm of the chair. “Anything info about it that’s related to your history?”

“Oh, loads, but… maybe for another day,” She muttered tiredly. “Maybe when I actually have pictures of them. Forgot to take them when I was in the attic. Was too dark anyways.”

She then turned to face Jaime, eyes glimmering with curiosity and wonder as a small smile returned to her face. The young man across from her almost thought her expression to be cute before brushing the thought aside as nonsense.

“What about you though?” She questioned. “How’d you become the Blue Beetle?”

“Ah… uhm, I guess it’s your turn to buckle up,” He let out an airy laugh, head falling against the back of the chair. 

“And I mean really, listen well, ‘cause it was… a really rough ride.”

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𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤 - 𝐣𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬 | 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟕

things go better than expected, and jaime has so much more to learn about drea than he realised

masterlist | previous , next !

– pairings: jaime reyes x oc

– warning: fluff, canon divergent, blue beetle movie spoilers

– author’s note: more filler chapter because well... i decided so :) disclaimer: i’m not of Hispanic descent and i have don’t know casual terms spoken, so do correct me if im wrong!

Despite the rough start to the morning, the atmosphere around the two was pleasant while they walked under the sunshine, the wind conveniently breezing through the neighbourhood as it kept them cool on their stroll.

Unfortunately, the silence between them was still present, Jaime still feeling a little on edge. He wondered as to why Drea still wanted to speak to him even after their rough start, and he wondered if she barely considered him friends. 

As they walked under the shade of the trees that lined the walkway, he peaked to his left, finding Drea walking alongside him calmly, hands clutched around her purse strap.

“What’d you wanna talk about?” Jaime shrugged, Drea, turning left on the street as he followed behind her.

“I mean, I’d like to talk about it more when we get there, but it’s more just to, I dunno… get to know each other better. Especially since we both aren’t, uhm, completely human.”

Oh.

“Wouldn’t texting have been better than?” He questioned, watching as his neighbour walked off of the trail, curiosity piquing in him.

“I guess,” She turned around while walking, seeing him follow behind. “I mean, I just thought maybe it’d be better to talk face to face, avoid complications.”

With that, she turned left once more, disappearing around the corner. Quickly, the Mexican male hurried his footsteps to not lose sight of the woman, but once he turned the corner, he noticed that together they’d walked quite the distance from the neighbourhood he grew up in.

“What the…” He flinched at the sudden brightness of the sun, the view of an all-too-familiar abandoned office building not too far from him.

“Remember, Mijo,” His father’s warm voice flooded into his mind along with a long-lost memory, the elder warning Jaime’s six-year-old self. 

He still felt the way his father gently gripped his upper arm along with the reason his six-year-old form ended up in the building. 

He recalled the kids he saw as friends jeering him, calling him a coward for responding in hesitance to the dare they gave him.

He recalled the fear he felt as he tripped and fell somewhere deep within the building, his bleeding knee stinging with furious pain as he cried for help, the pain worsening with each step he took. 

He recalled the panic that welled in his throat when he lost his way out, the darkness surrounding him as the sun sunk lower and lower into the horizon, the sealed windows preventing any good light from entering the building.

“It’s extremely dangerous in here. Don’t you ever go near there again, especially when Mama and I aren’t with you.”

Well, fate had a funny way of making fun of him. 

“Take in a deep breath, Jaime,” Khaji-Da started. “Your heart rate is increasing by 0.2%.”

With a frown present on his tanned skin, Jaime jogged after his neighbour, Drea already far ahead of him as her hands were placed on the handles of the door’s entrance.

“Hey, uh, Drea,” He called out, staring down at the younger of the two as he held the door open, walking in after her, but stopping once he was two steps in.

“Why exactly are we here?”

Glancing back at him, Jaime continued to hold the front door behind him, letting the sun’s light from behind him into the building, that being their only source of light other than the streaks that crept in through the cracks between the boarded-up windows.

“To talk, don’t worry,” She smiled reassuringly, lifting her hand up to her face, a handful of beads resting on her palm before her face. 

Jaime watched as she took a deep breath, puffing air onto the beads as they started to glow, a light growing within them. 

Within minutes, the dim glow of the orb sparked into a flare so bright that the duo had to briefly shield their eyes, the beads floating higher and higher into the air, through the holes in the ceiling, revealing more of their surroundings.

“Woah,” Jaime muttered in awe, eyes widened as the once-dark structure was filled with so much light, he would’ve thought that electricity continued to flow within the establishment.

“What are those?” He asked with a curious smile. “That was pretty cool.”

“Only pretty cool?” She chuckled. “It’s one of my best tricks. Besides, don’t you have a scarab that told you everything about me?”

“You mean, you know about the scarab?”

“How else would you be ‘the Blue Beetle’?” She shrugged, the two standing face-to-face. “And how else would you deem me a threat?”

“Right…” Jaime winced. “I’m still really, really sorry about that–”

“No harm, no foul,” She chimed with a calm smile, hopping up the rickety stairs that lead up to the second floor.

Pulling out another bead from her bag, Jaime walked closer to her. And as soon as he was an arm’s length away, she flicked the little orb in his direction.

Quickly, his hands darted to catch the item, palms cupping around the tiny object as he carefully pried his appendages apart, almost as if scared that the orb would burst into light, blinding him.

“It won’t bite,” She joked. “They’re just little beads.”

“But what about–” He juts his thumb out in the direction behind him, Drea catching his drift while he slunk up the stairs behind her.

“Oh, they only react if I ignite my powers on them,” She held her hand out, the male behind her placing the bead back into her palm.

“What are they made of?”

“Just a little element from my Mama’s home planet,” She started, spotting a vine-covered chair.

Instantly, she plucked the plant off the seat, placing it on the ground before pulling another plant-encased chair.

“Speaking of which, I was hoping that maybe you’d want to know more about us. Well, more specifically, my alien mom and I… right?”

Jaime dug his thumb into his palm, seeing the woman across him finally clear the two seats of any dust and dirt, placing them across each other while gesturing for him to sit on one of the chairs as she, herself, sat down in the other.

“I mean, that’s the reason you were prying about me previously, isn’t it?”

Instantly, Jaime felt a small lump of guilt in his throat, recalling his reason and internally blaming Khaji for creating such a messy situation for them both.

“Yeah, totally,” He hummed, sitting in the seat across from his neighbour.

“Great! Then we can start talking,” She grinned. “You might want to take some notes down though, there’s a lot to cover.”

Oh boy.

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