He turned on the little light over his head and took the comic book from the glove compartment. She probably wouldn't like him being here, sitting in a car in front of the club like a spy, waiting for her to come out. He imagined what it'd look like, a lone man in a car looking at the entrance of a club, trying to look casual and harmless.

The bouncer seemed to have noticed him already and peeked through the window every now and then to see if he was still there. It was better not to gaze back. In the end she would have to appear and he could just as well kill time reading.

Soon he forgot about the outside world as he paged through the black and white sheets. His heroes were flying to save the world from extraterrestrial villains, meanwhile growing ever stronger. They rode dragons and walked upon the clouds, raced spaceships over unknown planets and fought epic battles.

Now he chuckled, then he bit his lip. It was one of the joys of being all alone. He could immerse into the story and let his emotions go free.

The door opened and he looked up. Two girls left. Short skirts, high heeled boots and tiny handbags... He saw the bouncer look at him suspiciously, shook his head and looked at the comic again.

The hero had just crashed the door of the villain's main base and was ready to save the damsel in distress, but he did not know where he had hidden her. Meanwhile the villain was about to open the gate to another dimension and flood the world with demons...

A few more people left, both men and women. He picked up his phone and dialled her number. She didn't answer.

The hero had just knocked down three cyborgs and was heading for the dungeon where the princess was locked up. Yet did he know about the powers of the guardian? He was level fifteen at least and held the Globe of Lightning...

There was a knock on his window and he looked up. The make-up was smeared over her face and he could see where the drops had cut their trace over her cheeks.

He gestured to the other door and opened it while she staggered around the bonnet.

What was next? He tucked the comic away and looked at her. What should he say?

' Enjoyed yourself?'

' How was the party?'

' What happened?'

' I told you so.'

She sat down at the passenger seat and seemed small and vulnerable in her evening gown. Her shoulders were narrow and her arms thin even compared to those of the princess in his book. With her bangles and earrings she seemed a sad little princess.

She just looked ahead into the darkness and a tear drew another bluish black track through the rouge. What should he do? Just hit the accelerator and get away from here?

" I hate him...", she muttered.

" Uhuh."

" You were so right."

" Hm."

However much he liked her to admit being wrong, it did not make him any happier this time.

" I thought he was different."

The words seemed to come slowly, with long pauses and snivelling between them, yet he felt he had to let her finish.

" I saw them kissing. Him and May. You were so right. He'd never have a girl like me..."

He thought of a quote he read somewhere, but it seemed wiser just to listen.

" And she smirked at me over his shoulder. I felt so ashamed. And Lin refused to say anything about it. I thought she was my friend, but she just seemed too busy with her boyfriend."

She looked at him as if she expected him to say something wise, but it seemed that however hard he searched, he could not find any words.

" I have been so stupid", she said and touched his hand which was already on the gear-lever. It felt cold and she trembled a little. He thought it was uncomfortable to be touched by her in this way.

" You want a tissue?"

She nodded and he took a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket. It wasn't used, but didn't look too clean either. Yet he had little else to offer her.

" Thank you."

Then she suddenly pressed her head against his shoulder. She was sobbing uncontrollably and he felt how his shirt was getting wetter and wetter. He hesitated, but there seemed no other option than to put his arm around her.

Being a gallant knight seemed different from what he had expected.