Is Love Forever? [1]

"What the-"

Hope woke up the next morning around 11:30. She felt as if she had just woken up from a dream. A dream in which Scott had proposed to her and she had yes. She looked down at her hand and smiled. It wasn't a dream. She played with her ring, rotating it around her finger. She couldn't believe that Scott had proposed. They were going to get married, and she couldn't say she wasn't excited. Then she remembered that she and Scott were hosting the "Victory over Thanos Lunch." She got changed and went downstairs. She found Scott in the kitchen making breakfast. "Good morning." She said, hugging him from behind. He stopped what he was doing, and turned to face her. "Good morning to you too." He said before giving her a small kiss. "So, what are you making?" She asked. "Pancakes! I'd thought I'd make your favorite today." He answered. After the pancakes were done, they sat down to eat. Hope talked mostly about Cassie, and how she would react to the engagement. Scott kept telling her that Cassie loved her and that she would be happy for them. But she wasn't so sure. She decided to change the subject. "So, what time is everyone coming?" She asked, bringing her plate up to the sink. "I think Tony said around 1:00. He said it had to be early because Bruce needed to put back the stones today." He answered. "That's in a little over an hour! Why didn't you wake me up earlier?" She asked. "I woke up early and started cleaning. I know we don't have the time to make food for everybody, so I ordered pizza. It should be here in forty-five minutes. And as for not waking you, you seemed really tired and after last night, I thought you could use some extra sleep." He said smiling. "How did I get so lucky?" Hope thought. "Really? You did all that?" She asked, impressed. "You don't have to act so surprised!" He said, faking hurt. "Okay, sorry, sorry. But did you buy the drinks?" She asked. "I knew I forgot something... But I can go to the store now." He offered. "No, it's okay, I'll go. You've already done a lot." She said, grabbing her jacket. "What should I get?" She asked. "Clint's coming with his wife and three kids. Tony's coming with Pepper and Morgan. Thor, Nebula, Rocket, Rhoedy, Steve, and Bruce are all coming. And Cassie's coming too." He listed. "So five kids and twelve adults. Got it." She said, grabbed her wallet, and left. While she was gone, Scott cleaned up and set the table. He even set up a kid's table. By the time Hope came back, the house was almost completely ready. They just needed the drinks. She bought a two-liter bottle of Sprite and Coke, and some juice boxes for the younger kids. It was about 12:50 when the doorbell rang. Scott opened the door to find Cassie smiling up at him. "Daddy!" She yelled hugging him. "Hey Peanut! Are you excited?" He asked, walking her in. "Yes! I get to meet the Avengers!" She squealed. Scott smiled, just being thankful that his daughter was back. "Hey, Cassie!" Hope greeted, giving the little girl a hug. She had already put her engagement ring in her pocket so that Cassie wouldn't see it. "And don't worry, there will be other kids here." She assured the ten-year-old. "Yay! Are they superheroes too?" She asked, wide-eyed. "No, but they are the children of superheroes," Hope said. "Superheroes can have kids?" Cassie asked. "Of course! Your dad's a superhero and he has you." Hope answered. "I never thought about it that way..." Cassie said softly, her mind blown. Hope laughed lightly and then she went to go help Scott in the kitchen. The doorbell rang again. "Cassie, could you get that?" Scott asked from the other room. "Sure." She replied, walking to the door. She opened it and saw a man with a weird beard, a woman with red hair, and a little girl who couldn't have been more than four years old. "Hey, is your dad home?" The man asked. "Yes, and goodbye." She said quickly and then closed the door and locked it. "Daddy, there's a guy at the door, and I don't know who he is." She said to her father, who had just walked up to her. Scott looked through the peephole and saw Tony, Pepper, and Morgan. He opened the door and Tony said, "Smart kid you got there. She knows to never open the door to strangers." "Sorry, I didn't tell her what time you guys were coming. Come in." Scott said, opening the door wider. The Stark family came in and introduced themselves to Cassie. Pepper loved her immediately, and even though she was much younger, Morgan liked Cassie as well. A few minutes later, the Bartons came. Then Rocket, Nebula, and Thor. And then lastly, Rhoedy and Steve. Bruce texted saying that he would come later, but he had something to do first. The pizza had already come and was being served to the guests. Morgan and Nathaniel had one slice of pizza and a juice box. Lila and Cassie had two slices of pizza and a cup of Sprite. Cooper had one slice of pizza and a cup of Coke. Cassie and Lila seemed to get along very well, even if Lila was four years older than her. The lunch went well. They all talked about adjusting to life after the Blip, Scott, Clint, and Tony talked about dad stuff, it was good. They had finished their food and went to another room to talk. He was about to talk to Tony when Scott noticed Hope giving him a look that said, "We have to do it now." He took a deep breath and walked up to the front of the room at the same time she did. "We are so happy that we were able to host this lunch, but we do have an announcement to make. As of last night, Hope and I are engaged!" He said, hiding his nervousness successfully. The first one to speak up was Cassie. "Yes! I knew it!" She squealed and ran up to hug them. Then the whole room erupted into congratulations. They were bombarded with questions like, "When did this happen?" or "You guys are together?" In the back of the room, Hope noticed Tony holding his hand out towards Clint, with a smug expression on his face. Clint groaned and pulled out a $20 bill and shoved it into Tony's hand. "Were they betting on us?" Hope asked herself. Steve came up to them and said, "I'm so happy for you two!" "Good to know that Steve and I didn't screw things up too much." They all went silent, turning to the familiar voice. "What? You've never seen a ghost before?" She stood there in the doorframe next to Bruce.

 It was none other than Natasha Romanoff. 

"What the-"

                                                                Author's Note

Four words.

I     TOLD    YOU    SO