Love Without End

Chapter Nineteen

"Why don't you want to be saved?" I demanded, letting myself into the lab, not even looking to see if Bruce was there.
"Excuse me?" Tony asked.
"Why do you resist assistance? Why do you resist everybody who tries to love you?"
"Amelia--"
"Don't Amelia me. Answer."
"I know you love me. You know I love you. What are you talking about?"
"You said it yourself, Tony. You're a scientist. So use your superior intelligence for something useful."
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying that if you don't believe in God, all of what you do is for naught."
"For naught? What are you on?"
I threw my arms around him. "I love you, Tony. I really do."
"I know that."
"When we first met, you went through all this trouble to get me to go out with you, and you were perfectly fine with it when I finally agreed. Then I told you I loved you and you didn't talk to me for a week. You avoided me for a week, Tony, because I loved you. Do you know how much that stressed me out? Then you read the Bible, and you read how much God loves you, and you absolutely refuse it. What are you scared of, Tony?" I pushed him away from me, leaving him confounded.
"I--"
"You don't have to answer that. I know you believe everything in that Book, or you wouldn't have wasted your time reading it. Why are you willing to risk your eternity? Why don't you want to be loved?"
"Calm down, would you?" He said.
The door opened. "Hey, Tony--" Bruce said.
"Get out!" I said.
The door closed quite quickly.
"Amelia, chill."
"I want you to be okay. How are you okay going to Hell?"
"Last Sunday, I took Imani to church while you were asleep."
"You... You took Imani to church?"
"Yes, I did. I took him because I wanted to go, not because you wanted me to."
Grinning, I jumped into his arms. "I love you." I hugged him tightly.
"You too." His hugs were the best, they really were. "Now will you get off my case?"
"Gladly." I let him go. "Okay, you can get back to work now. Where'd you put my Bible, by the way?"
"Oh, so you haven't been using it?" He crossed his arms like an angry parent.
"I've been using the one on my phone."
"Hey, speaking of your Bible... Some of the things--"
"Don't bring that up, please."
"I just want to be sure you're okay. Some of the things you underlined were..."
"I'm good."
"You have a lot in Job underlined..."
"I've had it since I was fifteen. Not all of it was done recently."
"That doesn't mean you don't still mean it."
"I'm fine, Tony." I smiled. "You should go find Bruce."
"Yeah, okay."
That's why I don't like people reading my Bible.

"Mr. Stark?" JARVIS said.
"Yeah?" Tony looked up from the screen, for no real reason.
"Mr. Banner--"
"Right. Can you have Amy go in there?"
"Yes sir."

"Mrs. Stark?" JARVIS said, and my heart leapt.
"Yeah?" I said as Imani looked around for the source of the voice.
"Could you go hug Mr. Banner? Mr. Stark says you give good hugs."
I smiled, a bit confused. "Of course, yeah."
"Bruceeeee." I said, traipsing into the room. He was sitting at a table in a rolling chair, in front of a computer. I pulled the chair out and spun him around.
He looked up, more irritated now than he had been before. "I'm kind of busy." He said clearly.
"Take a break." I perched on his knee, my arm around his neck. "Whatcha working on?"
He said something, but I had no idea what he meant, so I filed it away with a lot of other things he and Tony have said. "Nice. You seem stressed."
"That would be because I am."
"Don't be. You'll figure it out."
"Sometimes I think you have too much faith."
"I have a lot of faith. I'm willing to share."
He laughed. "Yeah, I've heard. What were you screaming at Tony about?"
"His feelings."
"What's new?"
"Hey, Bruce?"
"Yeah?"
"Can I talk to you?"
"You will even if I say no, so sure."
"Why don't you think you deserve to be saved?"
"Because I don't."
"Why don't you think you deserve to be loved?"
"Because I don't."
"But you do."
"It's nice someone thinks that."
"You deserve the very best."
"I have you, don't I?" He raised his eyebrows.
"Very sweet. Irrelevant, but sweet. Why don't you value yourself?"
"I'm a monster. May I get back to work? Please?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because you're not a monster."
"Okay. You should probably get off me."
"Agreeing just to get me off your case has never worked before. Why do you keep trying?"
"Worth a shot."
"I love you, Bruce."
"I'm not worth loving. You should probably get off me."
"You are worth loving. I wouldn't love you if you weren't."
"Very sweet. Irrelevant, but sweet." He said.
I narrowed my eyes.
He laughed. "Look, Amy. I love you too, but I've got work to do. I need to go find Tony--"
"Right here." Tony said from the doorway. "I must admit, I am kind of curious of as to what you're doing." He walked down the stairs. He didn't seem angry or upset, but he didn't seem particularly pleased with our position.
Bruce stood, and I almost fell to the floor. "Chill." I said.
"Find something?" Tony leaned over the table, looking at the computer.
"Not much." Bruce joined him, and they started murmuring about what was there. I decided to leave.
"Mommyyy." Imani smiled as I walked into the room. Wanda was entertaining him by shifting various things in the room. I considered that highly dangerous, as she didn't seem to be able to control her powers too well, but didn't say anything.
"Hey." I smiled, ruffling his hair.
"Imani! I got you a present!" Steve called.
Imani shot me a grin and ran towards the voice.
"Steve, you're spoiling him!" I called, but smiled. Wanda and I followed after Imani.
"You wanna see it?" Steve said.
"Yeah!" Imani grinned up at him.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah!"
"You don't sound sure."
"I am!"
"Are you sure?"
"I sure, I sure!"
Steve handed him a box. A remote control car. "Open?" Imani handed it back.
Steve opened it for him and handed it back. "Go ask Daddy for batteries and we'll drive it."
So he went to ask Daddy for batteries, and, naturally, Tony gave him some. And, naturally, the car made noises as it was driven wildly across the room.
He drove it all day.
All. Day.
"Why would you do this to us?" Tony inquired as Imani ran it into his toe.
"Look, he loves it." Steve replied.
I smiled and shook my head.
"Atasha!" Imani shrieked some time after dinner, making us all turn towards the door. "Look what Uncle Steve gotted me!"
"Got, sweetie, not gotted." I said. "Look what Uncle Steve got you."
"Yes, Mommy." He said. "But look, Atasha! Look!"
"I see!" Natasha sat down on the floor with him. "That's pretty cool."
"You wanna drive?" He held out the controler to her.
"Do I want to?" She grinned. "How sweet. I'd love to. Who d'you wanna run over first?"
"Mommy." He said without question, and everybody laughed.