The Girl With Amethyst Eyes

Part 9

The grocery store is filled with people  as Mister Stark, Nat, and I shop.

We receive a few stares here and there but Mister Stark and Nat and don't pay no attention.

"Are you up for some spaghetti tonight?" Nat fixes her jacket.
I nod, "Sounds good."
Nat grabs a few cans of pasta sauce and bags of spaghetti noodles.

"Thor needs his poptarts." I grab Thor's favorite poptarts and two more boxes for everyone else.

"We got more fruit and we got veggies still," Nat checks off items off the grocery list as we walk through the store.

I look to my left. Oh my gosh!! There is an entire shelf of adorable stuffed animal things.
I can't help but to stop and pick up the one that looks like a tabby cat. I read the tag "Squishmallows," That's what these are.
I place the Squishmallow down and continue to walk with Nat and Mister Stark.

"Do we have everything?" Mister Stark looks back at me as he questions Nat.
"Yeah," She responds as she continues to walk to the register.
Mister Stark pushes the buggy along.

"How was training?" Mister Stark says to make small talk.
"Good, I'm a little tired but I should be fine." The truth is I didn't get much sleep last night thinking about what Loki told me.

Thanks
For what
For Giving me hope

"You can take a nap on the way back to the tower if you want,"
I nod slowly grateful he put a blanket that he had claimed was for Ella in the vehicle.

As we check out of the line I hear people talk in hushed voices.
"Is that Tony Stark's charity case."
"She looks like a ghost."
"I heard she witnessed a brutal murder."
"I heard she might have been a part of it."

I dig my short nails deep into my palms as I grit my teeth before pulling my hood up over my head.

"Are you okay kid?" I faintly hear Mister Starks voice over all the noise.

My head feels light as I feel him slowly pull me into an embrace. I find myself laying my ear against his arch reactor.

"It's okay kiddo. We got you." He places his hand on the top of my head and he looks toward the people that were talking. "You better have good lawers." He says without a hint of emotion.

"Oh my gosh. We're so sorry." I don't hear the rest of thier apologizes until Mister Stark speaks. "Those words mean nothing." he guides me out of the store while Nat takes the buggy out.

I sit in the back of the vehicle and wrap the blanket tightly around me. I close my eyes to keep away the tears I've been holding back all the time.

It wasn't my fault pops and Lisa were killed. It isn't my fault they are gone. I'm not a charity case. I didn't pull the trigger.

Gentle hands pull my own hands down from my hair. "It's okay. Just try to breathe okay." Nat directs me to breathe with her until I'm able to calm down.

"I'm going to prove them wrong." My voice is thick but I don't care.

"Who?" Nat begins to read my facial expressions when I don't answer. "Everyone."