he's my hero → t . stark ( ON HOLD )

Chapter 4

 Zoza emerged from her room the next morning, the plate in her small hands. She carried it into the kitchen, where Steve was. He was talking with Bruce, so she thought that she would be able to slip past without being noticed. She still had the spilled food from last night to clean up, which was sure to have stained the carpet by now. As she walked past Steve, she felt his hand on her shoulder. It was warm, and slightly comforting, and she froze, her shoulders tensing.

"Hey you." Steve said softly, smiling at her.

"Uh, hey Uncle Steve, Uncle Bruce." Zoza mumbled, turning to face them. They both wore kind faces, and she felt her body relax a bit. 

"You look upset. What's bothering you?" Bruce asked softly, setting the cup he was holding onto the table. She shook her head, and Steve crouched down to her height.

"You know you can tell us anything. We won't tell the others, unless it's something serious that needs to be discussed." he said softly, and Zoza nodded, sighing softly.

"I'm just a little homesick, that's all. Oh, and I spilled my food last night before promptly falling asleep directly after." she said, smiling a bit after her second statement. Steve chuckled, taking the plate from her gently. Bruce took it from Steve, and he brought it to the sink. She sighed, and Steve picked her up. For a teenage girl, she was extremely small. She was 4'9", and she was sure she wasn't growing anymore. 

"You want some breakfast?" Steve asked, and Zoza bit her lip. 

"Uh, sure. What is there?" she asked.

"The usual. Cereal, toast, I could make pancakes..." 

"Steve Rogers' famous pancakes?" Blossom giggled, entering the room and kissing his cheek. Steve smiled and wrapped his arm around Blossom's waist, pulling her back as she tried to walk away. 

"I was asking Zoza." he chuckled, hiding his face in her hair. Zoza looked up at them and giggled softly, surprising everyone, including herself.

"Oh, sorry. You guys are just cute together." she apologized, and Steve let go of Blossom.

"Don't apologize. But, you should laugh more often." Steve smiled at her, and she smiled back shyly. 

"So, pancakes then?" he asked her, and she nodded, smiling a bit and looking away. Blossom slid into the seat next to her and pulled out her phone, checking her mail.

"Nice pick sweetie. Stevie makes the best pancakes. Isn't that right Stevie?" Blossom chuckled, setting her phone down and looking over at him.

"So I've been told." Steve chuckled, pulling somethings out. Zoza swung her feet slowly, making sure she didn't hit Blossom in the shin. Pepper came into the kitchen next, followed by Tony.

"...All I was trying to do was welcome her." Tony whispered, and Pepper turned on him.

"Maybe next time, you take it slow!" she whispered harshly, and Zoza turned away from them. She felt a hand on her shoulder, and when she turned it was Bruce, smiling gently.

"Come on, let's go do something before breakfast." he said softly, helping her down from the chair. He took her from the kitchen, and they walked to her room, where the stains from last night's dinner were visible. 

"Sorry about the mess. I kinda passed out last night, so I couldn't clean up." she apologized, but he waved it off.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure we can clean it up later. I just wanted to talk with you, get to know you." Bruce smiled at her, and she giggled again. 

"So, tell me about yourself." Bruce said softly, taking her hand in his.

"Well, my name is Zoza Matilda Potts. My gran named me, since the Zoza Corsica is a place in France, where she's from. I have no idea who my dad is, and I didn't have many friends. I spent time with my babysitter and my mom, spending every other weekend with my gran and gramps. I like to write, and I like acting, which is funny, since I have stage fright." Zoza smiled softly, looking down at her hands. 

"Hey, that's pretty cool. I'm a scientist, and a doctor." Bruce told her, and she looked up at him.

"So, with that kind of combination, you could find cures for sicknesses you deal with, couldn't you?" she asked.

"I've been trying to." he said softly, and they heard a knock on the door. Zoza looked to the door, and Blossom was in the doorway.

"Hey you two, breakfast is ready. Zoza, sweetie, you're gonna love it." Blossom smiled, and Bruce stood. He held out his hand for her, and she took it, hopping down from her bed. They walked back to the kitchen, and again, Steve walked over and helped her into a chair.

"I hate being small. I can't reach stuff on the top shelf, I need help getting to high places, and it just sucks." Zoza sighed, smiling at Steve when he set a plate in front of her with two pancakes with syrup on top.

"Do you like anything else on top of your pancakes?" he asked.

"Are there any blueberries or bananas?" Zoza asked softly.

"I think we have some bananas. Hold on a sec..." Steve walked over to the fridge, opened it, and nodded.

"Yup, we have a few. Want one to slice up?"

"Yes please, Uncle Steve."

"Uncle Steve? Heh, I like the sound of that."

Zoza blushed lightly as Steve brought over a banana and a knife, setting to down in front of her. She smiled at him shyly, and Blossom chuckled. 

"Hey kiddo, your Aunt Pepper and I are gonna take you shopping after breakfast, okay? According to her, you don't have a few things." Blossom told her before eating a few pieces of her pancake.

"Alright. Thank you Aunt Blossom." Zoza nodded, peeling and slicing her banana carefully. She began to eat, and Pepper entered the room again, Tony trailing after her. Zoza kept her gaze on her breakfast, and Pepper nudged Tony slightly.

"Erm, Zoza? I'm sorry about last night." Tony said, rubbing his arm awkwardly.

"S'ok Uncle Tony." she said softly around a mouthful of pancake. Tony nodded and left to go to his lab, and Pepper sighed.

"Zoza, Blossom and I are going to take you shopping in a little bit, okay?" Pepper said, accepting a plate from Steve.

"I know, Aunt Blossom already told me. Thank you, again." Zoza smiled a bit, finishing her breakfast.

"Still hungry?" Steve asked, and she shook her head.

"No thank you. I'm just going to go get ready. The shower is just like any other shower, right? Turn the knob and the water shoots out?" Zoza asked, a smile on her face.

"Be careful, it can be like a bomb blast in there." Bruce chuckled, and she laughed. A real laugh, and it sounded like wind chimes twinkling. It made everyone smile, and she brought her plate to the sink. 

"Aunt Blossom was right, these are really good." Zoza said softly, and Steve smiled. Zoza left the room quickly, and made it back to her room. She shut the door, and she locked it.

"Um, JARVIS?" Zoza asked softly.

"Yes Ms. Zoza?" JARVIS's AI voice rang out.

"Would it be too much to ask if I asked you to play some of my music?" she asked.

"Not at all, Ms. Zoza." JARVIS said again, and she nodded.

"Thank you." she said softly, and music started to play.