Chapter 51
That date would mark the beginning of something Theo would later call my Hot Rom-Com Summer. I would just call it the happiest months of my entire life because as far as my life goes it was without question truly the happiest I have ever been. Like ever.
The next morning life just seemed brighter, lighter, and just… good.
Everything just sort of fell into place, even my hair decided to cooperate without much fuss. The sun was shining and it didn’t annoy me as much as it usually did. It was going to be a great day so I pulled on a pale yellow pleated chiffon skirt, a white lace trimmed camisole that matched with a pair of strappy heeled sandals.
Walking out of my apartment that morning felt like I had walked into a Disney movie. The elevator doors opened for me seconds after I pressed the button. The subway doors opened right in front of me, Even the rats on the subway and streets had the common decency to hide in the gutters.
It was almost as if I had walked into a Disney movie. The sun was shining, birds were chirping, typically mean New Yorkers said good morning as you passed by them, an old man actually tipped his hat to me. Who besides Steve does that?
It was to the point that I was actually looking forward to my meeting with the accountants down in finance to see where we were with the expenses for the gala and all the extra events.
“Good Morning Miss Marin.” Jarvis greeted me.
“Good Morning Jarvis, Any fires?” I asked.
“Literal or metaphorical?” Jarvis retorted.
“Uh, not sure I want to answer that.” I said. “Do Bruce and Tony need anything?”
“Dr. Banner is currently working on a project in a controlled environment and sir is currently asleep.” Jarvis said.
“Tony’s asleep?” I asked.
“Yes miss.” Jarvis said.
“How long has he been asleep?” I pressed.
“Almost 8 hours.” Jarvis said.
“A full nights rest and not from a crash. That’s great.” I said. “Let him sleep he doesn’t have any big meetings today.”
“Of course miss.” Jarvis said opening the elevator doors to the common room. I had just enough time to make myself a brown sugar shaken espresso before my meeting. The morning flew by and before I knew it, it was time for lunch.
There weren’t any meetings scheduled for the rest of the day so instead of ordering out for lunch I decided to take advantage of the underused kitchen in the common room. Groceries for the week had just been delivered so I had a lot to work with. I started a citrus marinade for the chicken before gathering all the ingredients for a Greek salad. The fresh kale was calling to me so I decided to throw some in for the base.
I was massaging the kale when Tony walked into the kitchen.
“Wow.” Tony said.
“Morning sleepyhead.” I said. “Or I guess I should say afternoon.”
“So not breakfast?” He asked with a grin.
“Greek salad.” I corrected before turning around and starting the coffee maker. I had already prepped the beans and pressed the grounds into the portafilter so with one button the espresso slowly started to drip into the cup.
“I could get used to this.” Tony said.
“I’m sure you’re already used to me making sure you’re caffeinated every morning.” I said.
“Yeah but I meant the part where you’re here, in the kitchen cooking…” Tony said.
“Uh…” I said not sure quite how to react to his not-so-secret Stepford wife fantasy.
“That came out wrong.” Tony said noticing how he’d stopped me in my tracks.
“Maybe…” I said. “Your next words determine whether this is a beige flag or a red flag.”
“I just meant waking up, and you being here, being the first person I see after I wake up just glowing… have I mentioned how happy I am to see you yet?” Tony said slowly coming closer.
“I think it was implied.” I said as he slowly and gently put his hands on my waist giving me a chance to step away if I wanted to. It wasn't until I put an arm around his shoulders and ran my fingers through his hair to try and straighten out his bed head that he pulled me closer.
“Well?” He asked.
“Nice save.” I said. “Were you up late?”
“Not at all, just slept really well.” Tony answered. “Did I miss anything?”
“Nope, it’s a quiet day. A good day to sleep in.” I said.
“If it’s such a quiet day, why don’t we call it an early day?” Tony said.
“Quiet doesn’t mean we’re not busy today.” I countered. “Finance wants to close out the fiscal year on time and you still need to finalize and approve the R&D and special projects budget. It’s been on your desk since before DC.”
“Has it?” Tony said playing coy.
“It’s the giant white binder that with R&D budget in big bold letters on all sides.” I specified.
“Whatever’s in it, it’s approved.” He said.
“You haven’t even looked at it.” I said.
“Whatever isn’t covered by SI is on me.” Tony said nonchalantly.
“I’m sure Pepper’s going to love hearing that during your next briefing.” I retorted, “Which is on Monday and it’s going to be a long one.”
“She can fill me in then.” Tony said smiling at me.
“What’s that look for?” I asked.
“What look?” He said.
“You know the look.” I said.
“I just remembered I forgot to do something.” Tony said.
“There wasn't anything on the calendar.” I said.
“It’s not on the calendar.” He said leaning down to give me a peck on the cheek.
“Oh that.” I said smiling.
“Yeah,” He said kissing me. “Sure we can’t call it an early day and go do something fun?”
“Super sure, but we might be able to squeeze in a minute or two of us just doing some more of this.” I said giving him another kiss.
“I’ll never say no to that.” Tony said kissing me.
Yeah, that was never going to get old. We were so busy enjoying the moment that neither of us noticed the beam of light crashing onto the balcony or the literal god running into the building about to walk into one of the biggest surprises of his 1500-year lifetime.
“Friends I have… Ah!” Thor shouted dropping Mjolnir.
“Ah… hi buddy,” Tony said as we awkwardly stopped kissing and I was blushing.
“Hi…” Thor said.
“Hey you….” I said feeling a bit embarrassed not sure why or if should be feeling embarrassed. Also this brought up a really interesting point, how was this going to work with six of them and one of me if we got more involved?
“My lady…” Thor said looking back and forth between me and Tony.
“You’re here!” I said kind of wanting to go hug him but not sure if Thor was in shock.
“And so are you.” He said taking a step closer but looking unsure.
“Can I?” I started asking putting my arms out for a hug. That was all Thor needed to leap forward and pick me up off my feet into a tight hug. He really did give the best hugs ever.
“You have returned!” Thor said.
“Shouldn’t I be saying that to you?” I retorted. “How was London?”
“It was better than the last time I was there.” He said.
“So no dark elves or universe jumping girls falling from the sky?” I asked.
“None of that.” Thor said. “Stark.”
“Pointbreak.” Tony said.
“You look… well.” Thor said oddly.
“So do you.” Tony said before the room went quiet.
“Well you’re just in time for lunch.” I said. “Take a seat. Hope you’re in the mood for a salad.”
“You’re cooking?” Thor said surprised.
“Yeah.” I said smiling as I finished putting everything together.
“She cooks?” Thor whispered to Tony.
“Oh you’ve missed a couple of things.” Tony said taking a seat to continue sipping his espresso.
“How’s Jane? Has she started working on her book yet?” I asked.
“Jane is rather busy traveling to give lectures…” Thor started as he caught us up on everything that had happened while he was away. I did not miss the pointed looks Tony kept giving me probably wondering when I was going fill in Thor on everything he had missed.
Finally he finished his brunch and tried to excuse himself.
“Tony wait…” I said grabbing the salad I had set aside for Bruce and caught up with him by the elevator.
“Don’t forget Bruce’s salad.” I said loud enough for Thor to hear before I whispered. “What are you doing? Get back in there.”
“I think you and Thor still have some catching up to do.” He whispered as he took the salad.
“Are you sure because maybe some support before I give him some earth shattering news would be helpful.” I whispered.
“It’s pointbreak, the guy worships the ground you walk on, he’s probably going to spend the next three hours just gazing into your eyes, you’ll be fine.” Tony said.
“Why do I get the feeling you’re trying to run away from him?” I said.
“No reason he just walked into the kitchen as we were making out…” Tony started.
“We weren’t making out.” I said.
“We were…” He said.
“Yeah but we weren’t full on…” I said.
“But it was good…”He said.
“It was great.” I confirmed taking his hand trying to pull him back in but instead he gave me a quick kiss slipping the salad bowl out of my hands and taking a step back.
“I’ll take this down to Bruce.” Tony said loud enough for Thor to hear.
“Tony.” I said.
“Dinner later? I can cook.” He offered.
“No you can’t.” I corrected.
“You’re going to get back at me later for this aren’t you?” He said.
“And it won’t be for just 12% of it.” I answered as the elevator doors closed.
Okay I could do this, how hard would be to tell Thor that his dad killed me once? I mean I die a lot, one out of… I don’t know how many, at this point it was a blip.
“Is he alright?” Thor asked.
“Yeah, he’s a bit late for a meeting.” I said as I started cleaning up the kitchen. “I’m sure you’re tired from your trip.”
“Hardly.” Thor said. “The bifrost makes travel effortless.”
“I guess that why traffic isn’t an issue on Asgard.” I said. I could not be more awkward if I was actually trying to be.
“Hanna.” Thor said taking my hand. “I must apologize for being gone as long as I have. When I saw what occurred with SHIELD, I should have been there.”
“The situation was handled and it was a really crazy 3 days.” I said trying to reassure him. “A lot happened and if things hadn’t gone the way they did having you, Tony and Bruce away from DC as a second line of defense was the best option.”
“It is my duty as your soulmate to protect you.” He said.
“And it’s my duty as your soulmate to tell you when you’re being way too hard on yourself.” I said. “If you haven’t noticed I have a habit of attracting trouble and it always works out in the end. You can’t be everywhere and that’s probably why there’s six of you.”
“You seem… different.” Thor said.
“I had a really long cathartic year that helped put some things in perspective.” I said.
“A year?” Thor said.
“You might want to get comfortable, this is a very long story.” I answered.
So I told him everything. Minus a few things I casually omitted, things I will take to the grave (as many times as that happens) and telling him that his dad came to Earth just to kill me. I was dropping a lot on him; I would save that for later.
“That is a very long year.” Thor said.
“That ended with Hydra trying to take over the world.” I concluded. “But here we are.”
“Aye.” He said. “So what happens now?”
“Now, after a huge apology for being the world’s biggest pain in the ass, I ask if you’re willing to give me another chance to figure out how to do the soulmate thing the right way?” I asked.
Thor chuckled.
“When my mother first met my father, she threw him into a lake.” Thor said.
“Frigga threw Odin into a lake?” I asked.
“She did.” He said.
“I’m sure it was well deserved.” I said. What I would give for a chance to throw that jerk over a cliff to see how he liked it.
“In comparison I would say that we are doing far better than they did in the beginning.” Thor said.
“Minus all the dying.” I said.
“I’m fairly sure there was a lot of dying… there was a war…” Thor started before he realized what he had said but I just laughed. “not all those who wander are lost.”
“Have you been reading the Hobbit?” I asked.
“Lady Darcy was watching the movies.” Thor said taking my hand. “On Asgard when one meets their soulmate they would typically court to get to know each other better.”
“We are overdue for a beer pong rematch.” I reminded him.
“You are a mighty opponent my lady.” Thor said. “I believe I can find a barrel of that ale you seemed rather fond of.”
“This weekend?” I asked. “I’ve got a long week ahead of me.”
“It shall give me plenty of time to practice.” He answered.
“It’s a date then.” I answered.
A While Later…
I walked into the lab and Bruce was finally out of the sterile room, though by marks of his face left by the goggles he had just come out and judging by the tired eyes and messy hair, he had probably pulled an all nighter
“Wow.” I said to Bruce.
“Hi.” He said shyly.
“Rough day?” I asked as he tried to suppress a yawn.
“Long day.” Bruce said smiling shyly.
“Tea or coffee?” I asked.
“Neither, thank you.” He said. “The salad was really good.”
“The trick is seasoning and lightly baking the chickpeas to get them a bit crunchy.” I said combing my fingers through Bruce’s hair to try to straighten his hair a bit. “Thor’s back.”
“Tony mentioned it. How’d he take the news?” Bruce asked.
“We are going to start courting each other starting this weekend with a beer pong rematch.” I said.
“And the other news?” He asked.
“I’m still working up to that.” I admitted.
“Hanna.” Bruce groaned.
“I dropped a lot on him and it’s kind of hard to tell him when other than Odin throwing me off a cliff everything else is a blur.” I said.
“He needs to know.” Bruce said.
“And he will when the time is right.” I said. “And hopefully after I figure out the best way to break the news to him. In the meantime, they just opened up this new Indian-Mexican fusion restaurant in my neighborhood.”
“Indian Mexican fusion?” He asked skeptically.
“Imagine chicken tikka masala tacos.” I said. “They have plenty of vegetarian options.”
“Sounds… interesting but maybe a raincheck. It’s been a long day.” Bruce said.
“Of course, it’s not like Mexia’s going anywhere.” I answered.
“Mexia?” Bruce asked confused.
“Mexico, India, Mexia. It’s the name of the restaurant.” I explained picking up his plate. “Get some sleep, you look like a mad scientist and I can only handle one of you at a time.”
“You still need to tell Thor.” Bruce retorted.
“I’m working on it.” I answered as I grabbed my things. “I am calling it a day. Call me if you need me or if Tony starts talking about building another AI to protect the world.”
“Okay. Good night.” Bruce said.
“Night.” I said grabbing my bag and jacket. It was still early and unlike the common room kitchen, I had not done a grocery run in a while. At the very least I needed some milk and cereal for breakfast and dinner. It was a guilty pleasure that I had no intention to ever give up.
Normally I would be weary of walking home alone after dark but as long as I didn’t do something stupid like walk through an alley or walk down a street without any streetlights on I should be fine.
Inside the store I got the essentials to get through the week, a couple of cravings and that was it. No line, no mess, no fuss… just a quick errand.
Despite that once I was out of the store, I couldn’t shake this strange uneasy feeling. Like chills running down my spine and hairs raised on the back of my neck almost as if… someone was watching me. I looked around but there was no one around, no one suspicious anyway.
Either way I kept my phone in my hand ready to call for help if needed and made my way back to my apartment. I was having a really good week and had no intention of dying anytime soon.
The second I walked through the door of my apartment I let out a breath of relief.
Today marked two days since I last died. Never thought I’d consider that a major accomplishment. I locked the door to not push my luck before going to the kitchen to put away my groceries.
“I think you forgot the vegetables.” Someone said.
“Ah!” I screamed before I turned around to see Natasha lounging on my couch.
“Surprise.” She deadpanned.
“In my universe, when people don’t want to knock they at least text.” I said.
“I ditched my phone.” Natasha answered.
“That explains it.” I said.
“You’re back.” She said.
“So are you, and Thor.” I said. “How was Russia?”
“How’d you know I was in Russia?” Natasha asked and I just have her a look.
“You hungry?” I asked.
“I could eat.” Natasha answered.
“I hope you like cereal because that’s what we’re having.” I said taking out two bowls and two bowls before walking over to the sofa. Natasha had grabbed the milk and bag with the cereal as we planted ourselves on the couch.
“Peanut butter captain crunch or honey bunches of oats?” Natasha asked.
“Crunchatize me Captain.” I answered taking the box. I poured in the milk before sprinkling the cereal into the bowl.
“That would have been funny if Steve was here.” Natasha said.
“How’s Bucky Hunt 2014 going?” I asked.
“Last I heard from him he was somewhere in Canada.” She said.
“Canada?” I said not expecting that.
“Makes sense, he’s on the run and doesn’t want to be found.” Natasha said.
“What about you? Are you still in hiding?” I asked.
“I’m… unemployed.” She answered with a shrug.
“Tony’s always hiring.” I hinted. “You’re extremely qualified and I’m sure you’ll nail the polygraph.”
“That’s the easy part.” Natasha said with a smirk. “The background check might be an issue.”
“Stark Industries is an Equal Opportunity Employer, at least that’s what the poster in HR says and you have an in with the boss.” I said.
“Technically I had an in with him before you did.” Natasha said making me snort.
“I walked into that one.” I said. “So what now? Are you going to keep chasing leads on Bucky with Steve?”
“No.” Natasha said. “He spent 70 years being a spy ghost story. We’re not going to find him until he wants to be found but you know Steve.”
“Stubborn and relentless?” I answered. “Can you blame him? He’s the man out of his own time. Peggy isn’t really Peggy anymore. The commandos are all gone. Bucky’s the only person left that knew him before he became Captain America.”
“Yelena.” Natasha said in understanding.
“Do you…” I started.
“No.” She said. “But if it were Yelena, I’d go after her.”
“Then why don’t you?” I asked.
“I’m not ready.” Natasha answered. “Right now there’s a chance she’s happy, that she got out, got adopted, had the childhood I never had. It’s a small chance but it’s still a chance. I have enough red on my ledger. She can’t be one more name on that list.”
“I lost five years with Jamie and Theo because I wanted to think that he was happy and living the life I couldn’t give him. For a kid, five years is a lifetime. That’s time I’m never going to get back with him. Don’t make the same mistake I did, don’t wait too long.” I said we finished our cereal in silence.
It wasn't until I got up to clear our plates that Natasha broke the silence.
“I still owe you coffee.” Natasha said.
“You do.” I said. “I should warn you I’m a bit of a coffee snob.”
“A bit?” She retorted.
“If a latte doesn’t have foam then it’s not a latte.” I said.
“There’s a good one not too far from here.” Natasha said. “Think we can stop by tomorrow before you go in for work?”
“I don’t think the boss would mind if I’m a bit late.” I answered making her smile.