Tumgik
#she won't feel good about turning against Tony since she'd have to up and disappear to help
ironxkid · 3 years
Text
((I really wanna,,, do an au where Carter actually goes with Steve to help break out his team from the RAFT 👀
2 notes · View notes
prncssparklwt · 4 years
Text
BACK TO LIFE | Z.M.
by: PRNCSSPARKLWT
THIS STORY IS COMPLETE FICTION. ZAYN MALIK AND NIALL HORAN HAVE NO RELATION TO THIS STORY. THEIR NAMES AND LOOKS ARE USED FOR THE SOLE PURPOSE OF MY STORY TELLING. I DO NOT HAVE ANY CONNECTIONS TO EITHER OF THEM. I RESPECT THEM AS ARTISTS AND AS INDIVIDUALS. THIS FANFIC INVOLVES UNDERAGE DRINKING, DRUG USE, VULGAR LANGUAGE, AND YES, SEX. IN NO WAY SHAPE OR FORM AM I TRYING TO PORTRAY ZAYN AND NIALL PERSONALLY AS THE CHARACTERS IN THIS FANFIC. ONCE AGAIN, THIS STORY IS COMPLETE FICTION. IT WAS MADE UP BY ME AND NOT TO BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY AT ALL. THANK YOU, I TAKE FEEDBACK AND KINDLY STATED CRITICISM. ENJOY, BACK TO LIFE.
Tumblr media
PILLOWTALK
The sun is starting to rise and the sheets are already starting to feel cold against her bare legs. The alarm clock flashes the time and maybe she's surprised that he's still here, the weight of his arm heavy and real against the bottom of her back. His hand is pressed up by the swell of her hip, she feels his nose resting at the top of her head. Moments like these remind her that time she shares with him are like sunsets, they start off so beautiful and vibrant, yet end in darkness.
She should probably get up and make it seem as though she doesn't even care that he's still in her bed as if he actually wants to sleep beside her. She should push his arm off and act as though he isn't important even when the slightest contact from him lights her up like matches long forgotten at the start of the summer. Zayn always had the power to make her feel like she was worth watching when she'd walk in the room. His eyes would always cast themselves up and down the length of her body and she wouldn't feel self conscious, she'd feel fucking august with the energy that would fill her.
"Adelina," his soft voice that raises goosebumps along her neck disrupts the silence. She knows if she answers her voice will go against her and whimper his name like it does on nights like last night. The arm that took homage on her hip snakes up her side and settles to curve at her stomach, the skin covered in delicate hair, his fingers press into the pudge and a giggle escapes Adelina's lips. "There we go, I can feel your thoughts in the air."
At least I know you can feel, she wants to say but bites her tongue. All she does is wiggle and suck in her stomach to escape the prodding fingers. Zayn takes the hint and lifts his hand away for it to change its path up to her neck, her throat being stretched when his hand angles her chin up. Her black hair cascades against the pillows as he slowly turns her towards him. His golden eyes like flickers of flame are soft. The pink of his tongue glistens in the disrupting sunlight as he licks his bottom lip. Adelina knows she should hate the man that makes her a stranger in her own bed, but that's just it, in her bed, he's in her bed. His hand loosens at her throat and the brown of Adelina's eyes grow a shade darker as his face leans closer to connect their lips. As their lips find refuge and his hands find their way to parts of her that they know so intimately, she is reminded that this is not her forever. This is his goodbye.
So she lets him and his tongue make her pliant just as the sun is kissing the sky hello and darkness that settled in her room says farewell. She tries to imagine a world where this is hers and for her to keep, a world where Zayn does not leave so he can hide just as the moon does in daylight. A life where he is hers and she doesn't have to wonder if tonight she'll see him as he knocks on her window or if she'll get to see him at the skatepark where it seems he's actually a real person.
Zayn leads his mouth down to her neck and along her collarbone, he kisses over the marks he's left just under where the collar of her shirts will end. Zayn believes she is his in all aspects physical but as he lifts himself up to start getting dressed, Adelina struggles to accept the fact that she is his, in all ways physical, mentally, and emotionally.
He picks up his sweater to pull up over his head and Adelina watches his tattoos disappear as they get covered by pale yellow. His hair is messy and stuck up in all the wrong places and Adelina lets out a small huff of a laugh and Zayn turns to her from where he's standing at the foot of her bed.
"What's so funny?" He asks and places a knee on the bed, the light purple duvet dips underneath his weight.
"Your hair is messy." Adelina comments as she pulls the duvet up to her nose to hide her smile and he mocks a frown to run his fingers through his hair.
"And yours is any better?" He laughs and Adelina's eyes go wide and her hands shoot up to smooth out the baby hairs that have decided to stand up from her scalp like stubborn weeds. "You don't look any different, really." Zayn smiles as he leans closer to her, his legs between hers over the duvet, hips pressing down on hers.
"Zayn Javaad finally being seen not looking perfect? The horror, the rarity I am witnessing is aston-" Adelina gets cut off by his lips on her neck that makes her laugh because his stubble has begun to tickle her. He pulls away from her neck and looks down at her, their eyes meeting.
"You need to get ready before your dad comes to wake you up and sees a tattooed muslim in your bed." He tells her and she rolls her eyes. Her dad would not be up for about two more hours, Zayn knew this, but she feels it's just a ploy for him so he can leave. I should be used to him leaving, Adelina thinks.
"I think he'll be more disappointed to see his son's best friend in his daughter's bed." When the words leave her lips, she can feel him detach physically and mentally. Her brother Yousef has been friends with Zayn since they could both barely crawl, their mothers were close friends when they attended university and stayed in close contact. Zayn was even more around when their mother got sick, him and his mother were over a lot to help Adelina's father take care of them. He eventually became like a brother to them and a son to their father. Zayn looked up to their father a lot for guidance as his father had left them about seven years ago. Adelina knows she's struck a nerve, she reaches up to place a hand at his jawline, her thumb rubbing along his cheekbone. "I didn't mean to upset you, it was just a joke."
"One that holds truth, if your dad ever found out about us, if Yousef ever found out." Zayn shakes his head and gets up completely and Adelina wishes her mouth waited for her mind to decide on something before saying it. The warmth Zayn's body supplied is gone and she sits up and the duvet pools around her, her chest is slightly exposed and she ignores the glance Zayn gives her.
"They won't ever know, we've been smart about this. Besides, Yousef doesn't even care about what I do." She says and she knows it's a partial lie. Her brother does care about the things she does, especially if it means it puts him in higher graces with their Baba. Yousef always wants to be the favorite, and he kind of is. She tells this lie though in hopes it'll stop Zayn's thoughts of stopping what they have, she might not be able to have him completely, but she's not going to give up what she does get.
"He might not care when it comes to you but he's always on my ass." Zayn exhales and he's slipping on his skidded up white vans. "Constantly reminding me that I need to get a job, making sure I worked out, did I eat, were my final grades at the university good enough." He finishes up his rambling by standing up and finally turning towards her again.
"It's like he's your boyfriend." Adelina widens her eyes in case of Zayn's reaction and all he does is glare at her and she laughs with her head thrown back. "I'm just saying, oh my god, what if he's gay? Has Yousef said anything to you?" She suddenly questions and thinks about how good her brother dresses and now she's thinking about the time he literally got voted the prettiest his senior year in high school.
"Adelina, he's not gay!" Zayn remarks and throws something soft at her face. It's an old shirt of his, she wears it to sleep sometimes, like last night. Though he peeled it off of her before she actually got to sleep in it.
"It's a possibility." She starts to put the shirt on.
"I think I would know if my best friend is gay." Zayn explains as Adelina gets up and pulls the shirt down over her butt. "That's not even the point here, the point is, I should not be sleeping with my best friend's little sister in the first place."
"But you are, we both agreed to it, there's nothing wrong with liking our privacy in what we do when we're alone." Truth is, Adelina doesn't know how she would react if her family found out about them. Everyone is so sure Zayn is going to marry a beautiful muslim girl and have a few kids while he sells his art and his wife becomes an actress. He may be laid back and talks gently, but he's still gorgeous and pretty people marry pretty people. They see the three of them as a trio of siblings since their mom passed and they all ended up growing together. Adelina has pictures of all of them in kiddie pools and them eating mud pies.
"I know," He says quietly. Zayn walks over to Adelina's bedroom window and pulls the soft white curtains away to slide open the glass. "I'll see you at Toni's later." Is all he says as he leaves out the window to walk home, about two blocks from Adelina's.
Adelina just smiles because the words that want to come out of her mouth are, stay, please stay. When he doesn't turn back as he walks towards the front of her house she knows to just shut her window. He doesn't ever look back, no smile to say goodbye or a wave to acknowledge her one more time. When the glow of his yellow sweater disappears she turns away from the window and looks at her room. The bed has indents from where their bodies found solace within each other, her covers thrown around. She notices his beanie on her beige carpet by the side he slept on and how there's one of his rings on the bedside desk. It's the ring he usually leaves here so he has some excuse to be in her bedroom again, she always tells him he doesn't have to have a reason to come back, he can just show up. He would just shrug and she wishes she could understand his logic about any of this because he never wants to express how he feels about anything unless he accidentally lets it slip out.
"Lina!" The sound of Yousef's voice is heard from outside her door. She doesn't get to answer before he's already rattling her door knob, as if she'd have it unlocked while Zayn is over. "Why is the door locked? You know Baba doesn't like when we do that."
She quickly yanks up a pair of grey sweats from the floor and pulls Zayn's shirt away from her chest so her breasts aren't as noticeable. She yanks open the door. "I was about to change for the day, which is why it was locked. You didn't even wait for an answer or even knock before coming in. What if I had been naked?" Adelina says annoyed and Yousef rolls his eyes.
"Baba isn't up yet and it's our turn to make breakfast." Is all he says.
When the sun is finally setting and Adelina has showered, she stands in her room and watches herself in the mirror. Her olive toned thighs touch, meshing together, her stomach has a pudge that she tends to hide with high waisted jeans, her breasts are C cups that she has a hard time fitting into the cute tops she likes, and her arms are not as toned as she'd want them. Yet she finds beauty in all of this, her long wavy black hair and thick browed big brown eyes, prominent cheekbones, even the slight chubbiness under her chin all look beautiful to her. Her Baba always tells her she is. She also knows Zayn wouldn't even waste his time on her if she wasn't. It's not like she's ugly and he's using her, she gets the same attention he does in the end. They both get the same ending.
She's wearing dark high waisted bell bottoms, black long sleeve tucked in, she's left her hair down in waves, and she's put on eyeliner along with some highlighter. She's also sprayed on her best perfume for tonight because she'll be around a lot of people.
"Alright, we have to be home before midnight, unless I say I'm spending the night at Zayn's and you're staying with Emelia next door." Yousef says as he walks in dressed in a white t-shirt, black jeans, his black hair styled up out of his face. He plops down on her bed. Emelia is Zayn's neighbor and also Adelina's best friend since freshman year, if Yousef stays out, Adelina can as well. Which bothers her because Yousef's been able to go out on his own since he was sixteen and she's eighteen while he's now twenty-one. She still needs Yousef's supervision usually if they're "going out" with friends when in reality they're actually going to a party.
"I can stay at Emelia's, she'll be at the party anyways." Adelina reaches for her jean jacket that's about a size too big but she likes that it hangs off her shoulders sometimes. Yousef gets up and waits for her to slip on her red vans. He leaves the room expecting her to follow but Adelina reaches down to her bedside table and grabs Zayn's ring and beanie. He can find a better excuse to see her.
Their father is sat at the kitchen table, auto body magazines splayed all around him, he owns one of the best mechanic shops in town. His hair is peppered black and silver, his eyes are piercing green like Yousef's. His tan face, also much like Yousef's, is adorned with a dark beard, he smiles at the both of them. "You both look great." Their father says and brings his mug to his mouth.
"Thank you Baba," Yousef smiles back. "We've decided to stay at Zayn and Emelia's tonight, if that's okay." Their father contemplates this but he agrees that it's okay, they go to him and Adelina kisses her father on the cheek and Yousef does the same. He bids them goodbye as they walk out the door with their overnight bags slung on their shoulders.
"He's so quick to agree with the things you decide." Adelina comments as Yousef starts the car.
"He trusts me." Yousef says and Adelina rolls her eyes and glances at the sky. The sky is starting to get dark even when it's already after eight in the afternoon. Summer days always seem longer.
"Baba can trust me if you're implying he doesn't." Adelina remarks and she turns her gaze to Yousef, he turns the blinker on to turn the street.
"Not saying he doesn't, Lina. It's because I'm older so he's positive that I have better judgement." Her brother tries to give her a small smile but she's already looking away again.
"It's because you're a boy, Yousef, not because you're older." The pettiness is thick in her tone and she knows it's the truth. Baba trusts Yousef more because he doesn't think Adelina can make decisions or think clearly on her own if she doesn't have a male input.
"Well if that's the case, I'm sorry, I don't think he does it intentionally. It's how he was raised too." That's the only explanation her brother can give her and for now she takes it. They've arrived at Toni's.
Toni graduated a year before she did, his parents also own a batting cage facility since his dad had the chance to go pro but had an injury in college. Since then Toni's dad invested in batting cages and coaching a little league and the high school's baseball team. It also serves as a great place to have parties when his father is out of town for sponsorship conventions. The building is lower than the streets, as it was built into a dip for the batting cages to have more height than length. The netting can be seen from the parking lot, where other cars have already parked to start the night. Yousef parks towards the entrance so they can make a quick leave if they need to. Adelina isn't the type to get black out drunk or insanely high at these sorts of things, but Yousef, he'd enjoy forgetting his name for the night.
When they finally make it to where a crowd has been formed and there's people handing out red cups by the kegs, Yousef is quick to leave her side. Adelina doesn't care if her brother drinks, he's of age, and she could care less that she definitely sees two girls who obviously are barely becoming juniors passing a blunt with a group. It's high school, the world would be lying if it said teenagers don't drink and smoke. Adelina barely did the summer before her senior year once she started hanging out with Zayn and Yousef more. They brought her to parties that graduated seniors were throwing and now she was out even more because she's eighteen, Zayn is twenty, and Yousef is twenty-one. Baba was okay with this because he didn't know they were actually parties, and he trusted Yousef and Zayn. The sleepover at Emelia's while Yousef at Zayn's was their go to plan these past months.
"Lina!" Adelina turns towards the voice and it's Emelia in high waisted shorts, a bright red bralette, and a vintage looking jacket on. Her short brown hair is curled and her pale skin glows under the batting cages' lights. "Please tell me you're spending the night so I have someone to make sure I don't drown in the toilet as I vomit all my mistakes from tonight." She comes up and throws an arm around Adelina's shoulders.
"I am at your service." Adelina smiles and Emelia cups her mouth and woo's into the air twice. "I'm guessing your parents aren't home?"
"Nope, my dads are at their three day anniversary spa with Ronnie and Kenny." She shakes her head and makes a funny face. "You think they didn't take me because they're all gonna have some sort of orgy?"
"Ugh, Lia!" Adelina shouts and they both start laughing. "I wouldn't put it past them actually... remember what we found in their closet?"
Emelia's face contorts into exaggerated horror. "Oh god, the fluffy handcuffs and endless amounts of rope, why did they need so much?"
"Your dads will never cease to amaze me at how different they are compared to all of our parents." Emelia just shrugs at Adelina and pulls her closer.
Her voice settles into a whisper. "So am I going to be sleeping alone while you and Zayn get it on in my guest bedroom?" Adelina's mouth drops and she playfully pushes Emelia at the shoulder.
"That was one time!" She laughs. "Besides, Yousef is staying at Zayn's so I hardly doubt he can make it over to yours unnoticed." Adelina doesn't tell her that he already left her bed this morning and she doesn't know if she can handle him leaving her in a bed they both don't know. Or worse, him leaving her and then going to hang out with her brother as if nothing happened.
"Bummer, I was so excited to hear the noises through my wall." Emelia fains a sad face and Adelina just rolls her eyes at her best friend.
The night continues with Adelina sipping two cups of beer and watching Emelia go through three and a few shots after she's played a game of beer pong as Yousef's partner. They won but Emelia still blames Yousef for her missed shots and blames Adelina for not being her partner. Yousef acts offended.
When Zayn finally arrives he's with two other guys who don't look at all happy to be there. Adelina watches him walk through the people who are dancing and trying not to spill their drinks more than they have already. His hair is gently pressed down and falling over his forehead, he wears a white long sleeve with the sleeves rolled up and tight black skinny jeans. He looks so soft, Adelina thinks. But the guys he's arrived with look rough, anyone paying them attention could tell they're not people you want to mess up with. Why is Zayn around those sorts of people? Adelina questions.
"You look really nice tonight." Her thoughts are cut off by a boy to her right, he's leaning against the table she's been sitting on waiting for Emelia to come back with another drink. The boy is Niall, she graduated with him and he looks at her with a soft smile. He's being genuine.
"Well thank you, Niall, how have you been?" She asks him and he decides to pull himself up on the table and sit beside her. Adelina doesn't mind.
"Good, getting ready for college. Where's Emelia?" He says and his gaze flickers around the lot to look for her erratic fireball of a best friend.
"She went to get more drinks for us, why what's up?" Adelina knows what's up. Niall and Emelia have been talking since the school year ended, they both really like each other.
"I just got here and haven't seen her." He laughs and that's when she comes walking from the keg. "Ah, there she is."
"There she is." Adelina nods.
"Here I am!" Emelia shouts.
Niall gets up to help her with the cups she's holding as she has a can of something else held to her side using her arm. By the looks of it, it's some sort of fizzy alcoholic drink. Emelia ends up taking her cup back from Niall and handing him the fizzy canned drink and he smiles appreciatively at her.
"He has to be home tonight, he can't be drinking beer, they'll smell it on his breath." Emelia says and tries not to make eye contact with Niall. Who's smiling at her all big and his blue eyes are wrinkling at the sides. Adelina tries not to be jealous over seeing others have what she wishes she did, especially Emelia and Niall. They're her friends and she should be happy for them, she is, but she can't stop the sour taste in her mouth when Niall's arms wrap around Emelia's waist while they all laugh and Zayn is only about twenty feet away drinking with her brother. They could be this, Adelina thinks, they could be in each other's arms and she could laugh with her head settling back on his shoulder. He could hide his smiles in her neck, his hands playing with her belt loops, her hands caressing his hands under hers. It's hard trying to ignore what you so desperately want when you're given more behind closed doors for the wrong reasons.
The thing about Zayn, it's easy to tell when he wants Adelina. His eyes will flicker to her while he laughs softly at something her brother says to him. He'll hold himself up straighter and push his shoulders back to make a show of himself because he knows she's watching. God, is she always watching. Adelina wants to make herself seem uninterested because even if he displays himself as someone who could care less about who's watching him, he does like knowing Adelina has eyes on him. So she turns towards Emelia and Niall as they let her into the conversation. Adelina sips her cup, maybe she should stop, but as she brings it down there's already a hand on her cup. Her eyes trail from her cup to the hand that's over hers. The rings click in recognition first and then it's the tattoos, to the long arm and lean torso.
"Zayn." Adelina looks up at him and he gives her a delicate smile.
"We're going to dance!" Emelia suddenly announces and drags Niall with her and Adelina laughs at her best friend's antics again. She looks back up at Zayn.
"Dance with me," Adelina smiles and Zayn's mouth opens to protest but she speaks again. "Yousef is occupied and he won't care anyway."
"Yeah okay," Zayn rolls his eyes and that's when he sees Yousef lead a girl away from the crowd and is starting to make his way to the sheds where they keep all the bats and helmets. "People will talk to him about what they saw."
Adelina shakes her head and laughs. "You act like we haven't danced before in front of him."
Zayn gives her a look.
"Okay yes, that's at family parties where we're trying to avoid our parents setting us up with their friends' kids but seriously, everyone is dancing." Adelina throws her arm out to reference the crowd and Zayn follows where her hand points. Adelina blames the alcohol in her system for acting this way, she wants to dance and Zayn is near her, so why not dance with him.
"I don't think it's a good idea." Zayn says and Adelina just huffs while she stands up from the table and straightens her jean jacket out and fixes the waist of her jeans. She throws her hair behind her back and stares at Zayn's expressionless face.
"'Kay well I'm gonna dance then." And maybe this is all a plan to see if Zayn cares about what she does.
"Adelina," His voice dissipates as she makes her way to the crowd of people that are all dancing next to the make-shift DJ set Toni had set up. There's a few LED lights flashing into the crowd of people and the music is echoing around the lot but no one cares as the alcohol is settling in their bones.
Adelina pushes herself to the middle of the crowd where strangers have decided to dance cohesively together. She sees Emelia and Niall's faces through the other bodies and she can tell if Niall didn't need to be home tonight, she would have needed to stay in the guest room anyways. When the music blocks out everything she can hear and she feels the beat in her chest. The colors of the lights flicker when she closes her eyes and she's moving her hips to the sound of the song. Hands find her waist and she doesn't push them off but she turns towards the body that owns the hands. She's met with a tall guy with quiffed up blond hair and he smells nice, Adelina doesn't actually mind her dance partner. There's no harm with dancing with someone, besides, Zayn didn't want to dance with her.
LIKE I WOULD
When another song is about to start she feels another pair of hands on her waist that pull her back and she almost stumbles if it wasn't for the steady hold of the new set of hands. She's about to voice her surprise when lips press up against her ear. "Dancing like that and thinking I wouldn't come here was really bold of you."
The guy she was dancing with quickly found comfort in another part of the crowd and she wants to roll her eyes because come on, Zayn isn't that intimidating. Nonetheless Adelina lets his hands snake their way to the front of her body and settle at the top of her thighs. His front is pressed to her back and her mind takes her back to the moments they're in this same position but their skin is touching and his breath is ragged in her ear.
"Thought you cared if Yousef saw us." Adelina tilts her neck to the left and lets Zayn's face rest on her shoulder. He bites his lip in thought and shakes his head after the thought has passed over his mind.
"He was occupied." Is all he says as the song reaches its chorus and he pulls her closer and she lets her hips press back into his. They're covered by the crowd and everyone around them aren't familiar faces and if they don't know them then Yousef won't. Zayn's hands have tightened their grasp and she takes it as a good time to turn towards him. Their fronts are now close and her arms have woven themselves around his neck and he settles at the bottom of her back to pull her even closer. They can't ever be close enough, Adelina thinks. His eyes are hooded and their noses are pressed together gently and meet in a eskimo kiss as their bodies move. She can't help but glance down to his lips and he wets them with his tongue. Her mouth parts as one of her arms slide from his neck and settle on his bicep. Adelina's jean jacket hangs slightly off her shoulder and exposes the skin where her neck and shoulder meet. Zayn brings his face from hers down to her neck and presses his lips there. She lets her head fall back. If anyone looked at them, they would see two bodies pressed tightly together, arms wrapped so desperately, faces hidden from the shadows the lights create. They probably look like lovers. Adelina's mind tells her and she agrees. They're never this close in public, never the way they are in her bed, late at night, catching their breath. She wants to remember this moment, keep it locked away in the center of her chest, the moment Zayn felt like he didn't need to hide her. She's in his arms and there are other people here to witness this too, the thing she wants all the time, in the refuge of her own room and in the presence of a million eyes. She wants this, she wants him, she wants everything she wishes they could be.
Zayn gets pulled from her and her heart drops for a second. Expecting Yousef to be there angry eyed and hurt, but it's the guys Zayn arrived with. Zayn looks to Adelina and then to them, his expression hard to read. Who the hell are they? Adelina wonders. She opens her mouth to speak but they whisper something to Zayn and he quickly follows them as they walk away. Zayn leaves Adelina without a word as the music suddenly gets louder and all she can feel is the ghost of his lips he's left on her neck. The ghost he always leaves.
26 notes · View notes
prxttypxrker · 4 years
Text
our endgame [T.S]
Tumblr media
fandom: Marvel
pairing: Tony Stark x OC (father-daughter)
word count: 2,607
summary: after five years of pent up guilt and and helping each other cope with the loss of those who didn’t survive the snap, the two girls find themselves in a sudden situation they hoped for, but never really believed would come to play
tag list: @nerdypisces160
A/N: I don’t want to put too much happening in these chapters because I don’t want this to be or feel rushed so they will be relatively short. Also, the events will not 100% be based on endgame because this fic idea is actually based off of an rp I had with a very good friend on discord that I felt would be amazing as an actual story. So as future reference for everyone that reads this—NOT 100% BASED ON ENDGAME. THERE WILL BE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MOVIE EVENTS AND FIC EVENTS
pre endgame
two
She was exhausted, that much could be said. Day in and day out for the last half decade, her friend would visit just to find that she wasn't in the house, but out in the backyard exerting too much energy. It was only a miracle that those who were left never saw her doing what she did every morning, afternoon and night. The activity was so prolonged Tala was sure her best friend got little to no sleep. That day they both discovered the other was still on Earth, she'd seen the never-ending result of visiting Tony Stark and the toll it had. The search for how to get their friends and family back never left either of their minds, but at the same time it was too difficult to figure out on their own. Even if they discovered a way to save everybody, it was two against the universe—an odd that was never going to be in their favor.
Tala marched through the tall grass that led to the fenced in yard, immediately coming to view with the many targets and practice dummies. Any size, shape and form of a sword—all covered in either a dark glow or blue sparks—laid in a pile against one side of the fence. She bent over and tried to pick one up, only to have black electricity nearly shock her if she hadn't moved back in time. She sighed and stood up, facing her friend. “Kirsy.” There wasn't a response as the brunette continued to make various hand movements to strike the objects in front of her. “Kirsy. Mind taking a break for a bit?”
Said girl let out a rough breath, the light and dark fading away from everything they engulfed as she set her arms down by her sides. She straightened up and turned to face the only person she'd really had any form of contact with since then. “If I take a break then however much time I spend on it is less time to get stronger.”
Tala rolled her eyes, walking toward a bench covered by the shade of the trees from next door. She patted the spot beside her, waiting until the slightly older of the two gave in and sat in the empty space. “You've been doing this almost every day for five years. You can't stay cooped up in this townhouse blasting everything in the backyard and then replacing them for the next day. You've used it up too much.”
Kirsy chuckled humorlessly, making her friend frown. “I'm not like you, Tala. I can't live knowing that all of them just... aren't.”
“What's the point of surviving being wiped away if you won't do just that? You've been working your ass off non-stop for months on end. You're definitely stronger, so now you just need to take a real break.”
“But Peter and the others-”
“They can wait until we have an actual plan. We can't go who the hell knows where with powers blazing.”
Silence. It filled the open air and hung in the small atmosphere of the pair's own little hero club. Kirsy knew she was right—it was obvious. All that time spent draining herself and her powers each night was starting to take a physical and mental toll on her. What the founder of Stark Industries said himself rang in her head every second of each moment she was still breathing, and instead of using it to rationalize she used it as a fuel to keep going. To her, each and every minute she spent doing anything but training was a pointless minute that everyone who didn’t make it were trapped somewhere. There was really nothing that interested her after the events of the Snap. Whatever career she wanted to get a jump on during high school was long forgotten. Any goals written on her bucket list had no reason in being done anymore. She didn’t even feel like learning anything, but the impeccable loss of half of the universe was something that also kept her needing as much knowledge as possible. It didn’t really feel like there was much of a purpose for the pair of young adults, or at least not for her. It still didn’t feel right to try and have a good life while so many people were gone.
As the girls sat in this familiar and comfortable quiet, a somber look settled on Kirsy’s face.
Flashes of her encounter with Tony slowly transitioned into a recurring dream she’d been having at least once a week for the past few years. A dream that plagued her mind from day to night, never ceasing to rewind and play all over again whenever she stopped to take a breath or get those minimal hours of sleep. It wasn’t that he was in the wrong. She learned soon after she left his home that day that he wasn’t. It was the fact that he was right. If the people who protected Earth for years weren’t able to get everyone back—if the iron legend himself was trapped in a limited oxygenic ship for days and nearly died—then there was nothing he could’ve done for her. Even if she showed him what she could do and he said yes, the others were still living their own lives as best they could during this time of loss, grief and moving forward. It was obvious there was no plan of action or hints to lead them somewhere, but she didn’t want to stop trying. No matter how much Tala scolded her or how weak she became in other aspects while she became stronger within her powers, it just didn’t matter if they couldn’t be brought back. And she had to do it. She had to get everyone back home.
Kirsy cleared her throat, gaining the other girl's attention. “I guess you might be right.” Tala raised an eyebrow, not saying anything in order to let her friend continue speaking. “I need to let myself relax. It’s been five years and there have been no signs of...”
She trailed off at the sight of a shining object in the sky. It wasn’t easy to make out what it was, but it was easy to see that it seemed to be hurtling toward them at a speed no human or all heroes could ever muster. Tala followed her friend’s gaze and her eyes widened. “What is that?”
“I don’t know..” A flash of colors made it familiar to her, though no chance could be taken. She didn’t know who or what was left behind after the Snap, and she wasn’t going to take any risks or chances even after all this time since then. “Do you remember how to shape your shield?”
Tala scoffed, “I may not have run myself ragged but I know how to use my powers.” Without explanation, she closed her eyes and took a breath, the brown of her irises now a purple hue. Purple light engulfed her hands and she began to make a shape with her hands, drawing together a force field that would only grow around the back yard and themselves, leaving an open circle at the top. Once the almost transparent shield was up, electricity surged and sparked at Kirsy’s fingertips. She brought them closer together and tied the live wires, creating an arrow that she was able to shoot into the sky. There was a slight pull when the arrow attached itself, and a jolt went off in her system, and she held onto the rope it created before pulling it down to the ground. In mere seconds the object landed with a loud thud, crashing into some of the targets that were still up. The two let the products of their abilities disappear, both pairs of hands still glowing with the colors of their magistry as they approached the formerly unidentified object. As the smoke from the crash began to clear up there was the familial shine of red and gold. When a cough resonated from within the metal shell, their eyes widened.
All that could be said then was, “Oh, shit.”
“What did we do?!”
“We?! I’m not the one with the shock-y hands!” Tala exclaimed, quickly going to remove the dirt and target dummy remains from atop the man in the suit.
two and a half hours later
“I am so sorry, Mr. Stark. If I knew it was you I definitely wouldn’t have done that.”
“That’s the sixth apology you’ve given me in the past two hours.” Tony told her, a ghost of a smile on his face. “I suspect you don’t usually go around hurtling flying people towards you with electricity coming out of your hands.” The man stated, an ironic tone lying underneath his words.
“Nope—just you.” Tala replied with a grin, not at all letting herself fan girl over the super genius and instead choosing to joke around.
Kirsy glanced between her friend and former chance of saving her other friends. It was weird watching this unfold before her. Approaching him that long ago was completely different than him flying toward her only to end up getting some circuits messed up by two young adults. This time wasn’t a search and beg mission. This time he came to her, and nothing in her occupied space of mind could muster up a reason.
“Mr. Stark..” she started, gaining the attention once more, “why are you here?” She looked up at him. “I mean I came to you five years ago asking for information, which I got, and help that you said you couldn’t give me. We haven’t been in contact since then.”
Tony gazed at her, setting down the coffee the girls made because they felt bad about the incident. He could see the desperation, as well as the fact she practically reeked of it the moment he was fully aware of his surroundings again. He had no clue how strong or weak she was when they had their first encounter, but it sounded like she didn’t let up since then. The force she had in those few seconds of her and her friend defending themselves was something he never thought he would come across; at least not in the form of a 20 year old short circuiting his most recently upgraded iron armor with electric currents that shot out from her fingers. And the other girl? That shield she conjured was definitely something he had never seen before.
After the sneak attack he received earlier that day, he took time to think back to when Kirsy marched herself into his life that day, only to drag herself back out when he couldn’t help her. He was racked with guilt every day since seeing the look on her face when she left, and when the others approached him that morning reconciling with her was one of the first things on his mind.
He cleared his throat noticing the gap of silence between the three of them, and set down the mug in his hand. He leaned back against the chair, shoving his hands in the pockets of the hoodie he wore underneath the suit. “Some... friends came to me today. Asked for some assistance in creating a sequence that would allow us to go back and get the stones.” The girls’ eyes widened, but neither moved to interrupt the stay-at-home scientist. “I didn’t want to help them at first. I was able to build a life past what happened; I couldn’t jeopardize that again. But memories made me figure that I at least had to try. I did it, and I know I told you I couldn’t help,” He kept a steady look on Kirsy, watching the realization form an expression on her face, “but now I can.”
“So you’re asking for our help?” Tala raised an eyebrow, the anticipation eating away at her on the inside while hope and suspicion shared the stage on the outside.
Tony cast his orbs her way as he stood from his spot, now looking down at the two girls. “I guess I am. So what do you say, kid—you ready to go save your friend?”
“And the universe.”
“Yeah, that too.”
The pair of best friends shared a glance of what could only be a flurry of excitement, anxiety, hope and the readiness that was questions seconds ago. She couldn’t believe this was actually happening to them. She spent half a decade wallowing in self pity and staring at photographs pinned against her wall and mirror, missing those she lost more and more every day. Her dad, her aunt and cousin, her friends, her coworkers, her crush. Everyone but Tala was out of her life for good. Well, she thought it was for good. And even though that seemed to be the case a shred of her never lost sight of the theory on what happened and the possibility that she could have done something back then if given the chance she lost months ago. Now that chance was standing in her half dining room, staring down at her and her lifelong friend and not only offering help her way but also asking for her help in return. It felt like her daydream was coming to life and her nightmares could finally cease to exist, and it was already starting to feel like a weight being lifted off of her shoulders.
With a grin in place of the earlier neutral formation, Kirsy nodded her head firmly. “We’re ready, sir.”
A ghost of a smile twitched at the ends of the man’s lips. “Good, then let’s go.”
Tala’s head snapped toward his figure when he started to walk to the front of the complex. “Wait wait wait. We’re leaving now?”
He turned to look at her with a shrug, raising a brow at her question. “Does that sound like a smart question to you?” The Filipino narrowed her eyes at him. “Look—I have a super soldier, an expert assassin, a thunder god, a green giant with glasses, a girl with proton blasts for hands, and a blue space cyborg sitting around in my old tower. Do you think I want to go waltzing in there without an entourage?”
Tala rolled her eyes and a chuckle resonated from the Dominican girl’s throat. The bickering pair looked over to see her already grabbing keys from a side table by the front door. “As dumbstruck as I am right now, I’m not wasting time in taking this opportunity. So let’s get in the car and go.” No one protested while she marched her way out the door, not bothering to lock the door when everyone was outside because how many people were even left in this city for her to lock her house for safety.
A double beep sounded from the vehicle and she opened the driver door. Tony groaned when he realized he would be sitting in the backseat like the third person of any group hangout, but also not complaining to being able to have a driver for the day like he used to. As he was about to let himself into the car Kirsy announced his name and he shot her a questioning glance. “I may not be making you fly to your old house, but if you call me your entourage one more time I’m going to shock you on purpose this time.”
“Testy.” He muttered, giving her a sarcastic look before getting in. Yet he couldn’t help but still see a part of him in her, and his motive of having her on the team for this grew a bit more.
14 notes · View notes