Fantastic Five || Johnny Storm

Chapter 10

Reed had discovered that the synthetic suit they'd worn in space was exposed to the storm too and as such could become invisible, burn without burning or stretch to any shape.

Since Veronica's power didn't affect her physically, it wasn't necessary for her or Ben to wear the suits. And after a very interesting walk on the streets for Sue, they were quarantined to the penthouse as Reed built his machine. It was quite ingenious actually. If he could recreate the solar storm but reverse the wave signal, it would reverse the effects on them.

So as Reed was building that, everyone else was training their powers. Reed was right, the more Veronica practiced the less tired she was. She had found that the heavier the object, the more energy it would take to lift it and that would tire her. So far she'd practiced to the point where she could lift something equivalent to the weight of a full 18-wheeler truck for a few hours before growing tired.

But as this was happening, something strange was also happening.

Veronica found herself spending more and more time with Johnny.

At first, it was just fleeting meetings at mealtimes or during a break at training. But now they were spending almost every spare second with each other, either have an intense conversation, a playful argument about something they happened to disagree on, or full-fledged movie nights with popcorn, drinks and snacks. The others noticed but didn't dare say anything, because if Veronica wasn't complaining about spending time with Johnny they'd let them spend as much time together as possible if it meant Johnny wasn't playing a prank on someone, namely Ben.

Dozens of people were helping Reed build his machine as Veronica sat on the sofa, waiting for Johnny who was using his fire power to pop microwave popcorn rather than use a microwave.

She couldn't help but listen to the news report about how the biggest shareholder partner to her brother's company was planning a take over after they pulled out as partners. Veronica hadn't spoken to her brother in a couple of months and he hadn't contacted nor come looking for her. It was the longest they'd ever gone without speaking.

She was still thinking about Victor when Johnny came over and changed the channel to a motorcycle stunt competition as he said, "He is your brother, you can talk to him you know?"

"No. Every chance I gave him to speak he never once apologised, he was more interested in making me understand why he did what he did. And he hasn't called, so he clearly doesn't want to talk. And neither do I."

She looked down to where she was playing with her fingers as Johnny looked from the TV to Veronica.

"Do you wanna go out?" he asked, taking his friend by surprise.

"What?"

"Do you wanna go out with me?" Johnny repeated and Veronica was still confused.

"Like on a date?"

"Next time. This time I gotta get out of here before I lose my mind and you look like you could use a good distraction. So what do you say?"

"To this time or next time?" she asked with an inquisitive brow and Johnny sighed as he smiled.

"Both."

"Yes."