The Forgotten -Marvel 2-

Chapter 43

Maybe, Lydia thinks for a moment, this is exactly how life is supposed to be. For all the pain and suffering she encountered over her life, she thinks maybe it's all worth it. It's worth it to be standing here now.

Another week had gone by without incident. Life felt entirely and completely normal. It was so perfect. Lydia never wanted things to change.

"There are way too many ice cream flavors," Ned spoke as they walked out of the small shop. "How am I supposed to choose?"

Lydia licked her ice cream cone. "I guess you just have to try them all."

"I guess." MJ and Lydia shared a look before laughing. "What?"

The white-haired girl stepped toward him. "You're a gem, Ned." He blushed, shaking his head.

"How's your ice cream, Lydia?"

"Great. Yours?"

"Apple pie was a good idea."

Lydia hummed, standing on the sidewalk's edge as people passed her. She licked her banana chocolate ice cream cone, eyes flickering around. Nobody thought twice about her presence. Nobody knew who she was. Lydia wondered what they would do if they did. If they knew what she once was, what she could have been.

To them, she was a regular teenager, eating ice cream with her two best friends. There was nothing special about her other than her unnaturally white hair, but most people assumed it was colored that way purposely. The red beanie she wore hid her roots, which were also white, but nobody had to know that. Her hair was in two loose braids, strands falling out. MJ wore a matching grey beanie.

Lydia rubbed her hands on her high wasted jeans after finishing her ice cream. "So," she began. "Where to next?"

"Well, we're having dinner with my Lola at six. That gives us a few hours. Can we stop by the library? I need to grab that book for our report."

MJ slapped her hands together, pointing at Ned. "That's right. Yeah, we need that. Does that sound good to you, Lydia?"

She smiled at them. "Yeah, sounds great."  She was just happy to be here with them. It didn't matter what they did.

Before any of them had a chance to move, something changed. Lydia wasn't sure how to explain it, but she felt it.

Something was wrong.

The screaming was first. It was faint but gradually got louder. Then, the ground shook from the force of something unknown. People began racing past them, all running away from something. "Uh oh," Ned muttered. "That can't be good."

"What do we do?"

Lydia pushed past the people running. She stepped onto the main street, eyes finding the source of everyone's terror. There was a giant creature terrorizing the city down the road. It looked like an octopus but had a massive eyeball in the center of its body. "Holy shit."

"Lydia," MJ grabbed her arm. After everything they had experienced together, nothing could prepare them for a giant eyeball creature wreaking havoc.

Lydia was frozen for a moment, mind-racing as she tried to figure out what to do. Charging headfirst into battle was risky. She couldn't hide her identity. Anyone could see her. But at the same time, the creature was flinging cars all over the place. Someone could get hurt. "Get to safety," she said, tone direct. "Go, now." There was no room for debate. MJ and Ned needed to go somewhere safe.

"But what about you?" MJ didn't want to leave her. Lydia had superpowers, but they always stuck together. They were a team. "We can-"

"MJ," Lydia grabbed her hand, squeezing gently. "Go. Tell Happy what's going on. I'll come find you guys soon. Promise, okay?" Her eyes searched MJ's in an attempt to convey her sincerity. "We're having dinner with Ned's Lola, can't miss that, right?"