A BROWN PAPER BAG
OLIVIA STRIDES INTO THE LAB CARRYING A PAPER BAG AND THREE DISPOSABLE CUPS. All three are emblazoned with the familiar logo of Starbucks. Tony and Bruce look over from their work, the latter offering her a slightly awkward smile.
“Hey,” Bruce greets as Tony puts down his tools.
“Did you bring food?” he questions instead of a greeting. Despite asking, he’s already walking over. She holds out his coffee for him with a slightly amused smile.
“Sorry, my cheese danishes are Banners-only, so unless you’re planning to marry my brother,” she shrugs mischievously. He takes his coffee as she passes him, moving towards Bruce.
“I could get adopted,” he suggests, taking a sip of his coffee. “Mm, this is good; did you ask Pepper for my preferences?” Olivia smirks as she sits down in a swivel chair next to Bruce, putting his coffee in front of him.
“Actually, she was the one that told me to pick it up for you while I was out; otherwise you’d be coffee-less,” she replies, picking up a wrapped cheese danish. “Catch.” He puts his hands up just in time to do exactly that.
“Thought you said they were Banner-only,” he reminds her, smirking. She shrugs, taking a sip of her coffee.
“I also said I was going to Dunkin Donuts for a change,” she fires back. “I like to kid myself like that sometimes.” Tony chuckles, and Olivia turns her attention to eating her danish. Bruce notices her relax a little as she sits there.
“How was your morning?” he asks his sister. She glances at him, offering up a half-smile for asking.
“It was fine,” she sighs. “Landlord called; apartment should be ready to move back in one more week. I finished up with one of my clients; decided to take the rest of the week off.” Bruce blinks.
“Can you… do that?” he wonders hesitantly, a little confused. “Just… decide to take the week off, I mean.” She raises her eyebrows, amused.
“You’re right,” she replies sarcastically, “let me just ask my boss.” She spins the chair a whole 360 degrees, back around to face him again. “Good news; I said yes.”
Tony snickers on the other side of the room while Bruce rubs the back of his neck, embarrassed.
“Got me there,” he acquiesces. She smiles, turning her attention back to her cheese danish. A brief pause passes as Bruce alternates between working and eating his danish.
“Hey Bruce,” Olivia pipes up suddenly, tone defeated. “Can I get your opinion on something?”
Oh fuck it’s happening.
Bruce has heard tales of this. He’s read about it in the occasional book, even. He never expected to experience it himself, though; especially not so soon.
His younger sister… is asking for advice from her older brother. Is this a sign? A gift, a curse? What if he gives really bad advice and she blames him for the terrible outcome? What if he gives really good advice and she refuses to listen?
“Uh, sure,” he agrees hesitantly, as if the billion questions and concerns floating around in his mind don’t exist. “What’s up?”
“What do you do if somebody acts like they want nothing to do with you, but keep going out of their way to see you?” she inquires, turning her eyes towards him expectantly. He cringes; oh, it’s interpersonal advice. He was afraid of that.
“Oh— oh, hoo,” he chuckles, nervously. “I-I don’t think I’m… qualified to give this kind of advice? I mean, I’m not that kind of doctor— um— God. Okay, well, I guess it depends. Do you, uh… like… this person?”
Olivia considers that, and eventually shrugs. “I guess? I mean, he’s pretty cool when he’s not being an ass. When he is, though, he’s… pretty unbearable.” Bruce glances at Tony for help, but the man only raises his hands as if to say ‘nothing I can do’.
There’s definitely something he can do, but from the shit-eating grin on Tony’s face, Bruce would guess he just likes to be as unhelpful as possible.
“Well… I suppose you should… confront him?” Bruce advises, though it comes out sounding like a question rather than an answer. He cringes slightly as he says it. “I mean, what— how is he being an ass?” Olivia shrugs.
“Just, sometimes I catch him talking about me like I’m stupid or petty,” she replies idly. “Low-grade annoyances, really, but I have too much self-respect to just ignore it.”
Tony takes this moment to cut in, despite his refusal to intervene literally 10 seconds ago.
“Punch him in the face,” he suggests with a shrug, his tone glib as ever. “If he doesn’t respect you after that, it’s a lost cause.” Bruce shoots Tony a short look, but acts fast.
“No. Don’t— don’t do that, let’s not punch anybody,” he interjects. “There are better ways to handle the situation—,” Tony cuts him off.
“He’s right, you know; threaten him instead. Less evidence,” he shrugs, clearly enjoying himself in this new avenue, which is somehow even less helpful than pure silence.
“No,” Bruce cuts in, pointing warningly at Tony before he turns back to Olivia. “No,” he repeats. “That is— that’s still bad. You know what? Let’s just assume that anything Tony says is bad advice.” Olivia laughs.
“I was already assuming that,” she assures her brother. Tony looks up.
“Rude,” he comments, in a tone that suggests he really, truly doesn’t care all that much. “I let you into my home, tolerate your caffeine addiction, and this is the thanks I get? I’m hurt, Starbucks. Really, I am.” She snorts.
“And yet I’m not the one going on 3am coffee runs,” she reminds him, with an amused smile. “I’m pretty sure your caffeine addiction is worse than mine.” He opens his mouth to say something, then closes it again.
“Touché,” he allows, pointing the end of his pen at her as though to concede a point. She grins back, not minding that the conversation peters out from here.
She’ll just figure out Loki on her own.