on thin ice [karen/frank - marvel]

ten: five tequila shots and a beer

Frank hadn't had a good sleep in so long.

Days afterward, he was still thinking about the ice rink. He didn't think it would have that much of an impact on him, but it did. It was so odd. He thought it would be like every single other date he's been on but- she let go of herself so much, it was like he was on a date with a different person. Her exterior and interior were just so contrasting that he found it balanced perfectly. He admired it.

He turned up at work earlier than usual and found Scott sleeping in the locker room. Frank watched him for a second, noticing the was wearing a black hawks jersey and a beanie. It wasn't normal for Scott and for some reason made him look homeless there and then. He then dumped his bag down next to Scott, loud enough to wake him. Purely because Frank didn't believe in a soft awakening.

Scott jumped quickly, banging his head against the lockers and yelling loudly. "Jesus!"

"Don't use Christ's name like that, Scott" Frank said, suppressing the smirk into the back of his locker as he placed his bag inside and began changing. "You'll catch herpes or something off that floor. Don't you have a bed to go home to?"

"What time is it?" Scott grumbled quietly, rubbing his head before standing and sitting on the bench behind Frank. As he pulled his shirt over his head, Frank smoothed over the stitches Karen had used to fix him up. He didn't even feel a knife go in, let alone the bleeding or pain in where he was stabbed. Now he had a permanent reminder. It wasn't the first time.

"7:45" Frank replied, "In the evening"

Scott frowned, "Don't fuck me over"

Frank just laughed, placing a new shirt over his head and pulling it down to his waistline. He then turned to Scott with a smile on his face. Scott frowned, rolling his eyes as he leaned back against the lockers, pulling his knees toward his chest. "Of course it's morning"

"Why are you doing that with your face?" Scott asked, pointing toward Frank.

"What?" Frank replied, a small frown appearing on his face for the slightest of seconds.

"Smiling. You never smile at me. You probably wouldn't smile at me if you'd just won the lottery or if your own damn child had just been born" Scott replied, folding his arms. Realising it was an awkward position, he let his legs stretch outward on the bench so he could fold his arms properly. It just about pushed Frank's bag off the end of the bench, causing him to groan at Scott.

"Why were you sleeping in the locker room?" Frank asked, the smile gone off his face. He had to keep it at bay, it was only one date. It could mean nothing. She might not even want to go on another. Sure, Frank would be disappointed but he had to respect her. He kept his eyes on Scott, noting the fact he had turned incredibly awkward and fidgety at Frank's question.

"My lady kicked me out for the night," Scott replied, looking away from Frank and down toward his hands. He started twiddling his thumbs and Frank knew that was his mechanism of avoiding things. He did it in interrogation. Almost always. "It's a long story that you probably don't care about"

Frank nodded, grabbing his boots and picking his bag up from the floor where Scott had kicked it off. "You're right!"

Frank began to walk off, Scott still sitting down on the bench in his pathetic outfit. Who supports the black hawks? He then turned back around, heading back over and sitting next to Scott on the bench. He dumped his boots down loudly, his bag landing next to them as he clasped his hands together.

"What happened?" Frank asked, looking at Scott stare at the floor.

Scott shrugged, Frank noticing that his whole body had sagged. Getting a closer look at him, his eyes were dark and bowl-like which was slightly worrying to him. Frank frowned, eyes widening a little. "She's cheating on me, Frank"