UNKNOWN GUEST

#60 Her Plus One

James' POV-

The next afternoon, I found myself back at the Tower, visiting Uncle Clint. I walked into his room, where he was still laid up in bed, but in surprisingly good spirits.

As soon as I sat down, he started in on me again. "Come on. Seriously? You're not gonna come back here?"

I shook my head firmly. "This is the Avengers' Tower, Uncle. And I'm not one, so I can't live here."

Uncle Clint rolled his eyes dramatically. "Stark won't mind. He's even invited you to this party."

I frowned, curiosity piqued. "Party? What party?"

Clint smirked, as if I should've known. "He's celebrating the success of finding the scepter. Tony Stark found another reason to throw a party."

Dr. Cho walked over with a knowing nod. "Hmm, tomorrow evening. You're coming, right?"

I sighed, trying to play it cool with a shrug. "Well, I'd be considered shameless if I showed up uninvited."

She rolled her eyes at my attempt to be nonchalant. "Stark said I could invite you, so you can be my plus one?"

I tried to hide the smile tugging at the corners of my mouth. "Your plus one? Well, I'll think about it."

Uncle Clint, never one to let anything slide, smirked at me. "You want to come, huh?"

Just then, I caught sight of Dad and Mom walking down the hallway outside. Dad turned to Mom, handing her a file. "Romanoff. This is the file you asked for."

Mom took it with a nod. "Thanks." Then they parted ways, heading in opposite directions. I watched them go, a strange feeling gnawing at me.

I turned back to Uncle Clint, confused. "What's going on here?"

He looked just as puzzled. "What do you mean?"

I sighed, trying to make sense of it. "You never noticed? Since when did Natasha—Nat—turn into Romanoff?"

Uncle Clint seemed to finally catch on, his eyebrows shooting up. "Oh. I never noticed."

Dr. Cho, clearly out of the loop, looked between us. "What? Is there something going on between them?" She nodded toward the hallway where we saw Mom handing a mug of coffee to Bruce Banner, and they were smiling at each other in a way that definitely wasn't just friendly.

Uncle Clint and I exchanged a look, our jaws practically hitting the floor. I shook my head, trying to process what I was seeing. "Is the whole 'calming down the Hulk' thing turning into something else?"

Clint was still in disbelief, shaking his head slowly. "I would never have guessed."

Running a hand through my hair, I let out a long sigh and stood up. Glancing at Dr. Cho, I smiled, trying to push everything else to the back of my mind. "I'll see you tomorrow."

She nodded with a smile, but my smile faded as Uncle Clint gave me a knowing look, his smirk even more pronounced. I quickly avoided his eyes and headed out, trying to ignore the heat rising in my cheeks.

It's party time, and let me tell you, the Avengers Tower is buzzing tonight. I heard Uncle Tony is inviting some guests, so naturally, I'm a little on edge—I've never been to a gathering this big. Standing in the ground floor hallway, I glanced around, trying to spot any familiar faces. The place was packed, but all I saw were strangers, adding to the awkwardness.

Just as I was starting to feel completely out of place, I heard a voice call out, "Hello there, Roberts." I turned around, and let's just say I was starstruck. Dr. Cho was standing there, looking like a completely different person from the one I was used to seeing in scrubs. She was dressed in a maroon dress that ended just above her knees, catching the light in a way that made it almost shimmer. Her usual updo was nowhere to be seen—tonight, her hair cascaded down to the left side, soft and elegant.