『ᴀʀᴄʜᴀɴɢᴇʟ || ᴀ ᴍᴀʀᴠᴇʟ ꜰᴀɴꜰɪᴄᴛɪᴏɴ

Ch. 34: Party

I stood in front of the large stand up mirror, my hands folded comfortably together as silence wafted throughout the room. Steph was sitting on the bed in the room, already wearing her dress. It was sleeveless and a very light yellow.

Her hands sat on her lap, fingers curling over a large, blue-filled syringe. She exhaled loudly, getting to her feet as she walked closer to me, "Nicole, listen-"

"I don't want it," I hissed, shutting my eyes from the view of her approaching in the mirror. I shook my head, "Get that blasted thing away from me."

"Nicole, for god's sake, I don't even know if it would work! It's just a theory!"

"I theory that I don't want to test!" I snapped, turning to look at her, fury blazing in my eyes, "I get it Steph, you worry about me. I worry about you too, but tampering with things HYDRA made isn't going to make things better for us!"

"What if I'm not there?" She cried, launching herself at me. I dodged to the side, turning my head away as she gathered her balance, "What if I'm not there and you're not able to flee? You cut corners close back in Scarborough at his old base."

I glared at the syringe, shaking my head, "And you think tampering with something only they understood would make it better?"

I didn't fully disagree with her. I couldn't- not after what I saw. The desperate look in her eyes as she clung to my body. It made me sick, even though it wasn't real.

But it felt real.

"I didn't want these powers myself Steph. Why would I want to make portals?" I quietly asked, lifting my gaze up to meet hers. She bit her lip, shutting her glossy brown eyes. I took a step back, "Come on, we don't need another portal maker."

"I- just... please let me do this. We don't even know if it would work... but if it can and we don't take the chance and something..."

I sighed, shaking my head slowly, "I don't like this. Not one bit and you know this. But if it calms you down and makes you less apprehensive, then I'll ask Bruce to do it for you."

She opened her eyes, a smile spreading across her face as she wiped at the tears, chuckling quietly, "I look like a girl that got stood up on a date, don't I?"

I laughed, shaking my head as I stepped towards her, bringing my arms around her sides and holding her gently, "A beautiful stood up girl. Go and fix your make-up and I'll meet you after, okay?"

Steph nodded, stepping back from me and setting the syringe down on the table. She grabbed a small rag and covered it, glancing at me before walking out of the room and towards her own.

My arms hugged my sides, my eyes focusing on the covered syringe. My mind went back to the papers and files he had about what he was planning to do with me. I shook my head, sighing quietly.

My eyes shifted to the two dresses hanging on a chair. One was a long and frilly blue dress that Steph hand-picked for me. It was a thoughtful gesture, but it wasn't for me. 

The other one, however, was picked by Natasha. Steph, Natasha and I all went out together a few days after Tony announced a celebrational party, since we secured the sceptor. I nodded happily as I picked up the dress, admiring it.