on thin ice [karen/frank - marvel]

forty six: the sardarovs

Gabriela offered to go with him when Scott called. She said she'd bring Jamie with her so that Jesse would have someone to play with whilst they talked. Frank didn't really know the bond between the two of them other than the fact that since Jamie had been sticking up for him, they hadn't really left each other's sides.

The three of them pulled up toward a relatively small house that looked like it was built in the eighteen hundreds. It was sturdy though, the material displaying age but as they got closer the fit seemed better. Frank was off crutches now and his walk was becoming stronger. He was constantly moving his arms about as his mind was fixated on the fact his spine was moving out of place. It wasn't, but he didn't know how to tell his demons that.

Scott's house was definitely not what Frank was expecting, but it was cleaner than it looked on the outside. Cleaner than Frank ever imagined, really. After three months of living with him, Scott had turned Frank's apartment into an even bigger shit tip than the place already was. "Looks like Johnny picked the right place" Frank said, looking around. Half of it wasn't decorated still and Frank knew that Scott would take weeks to finish it. He might not even get round to doing that.

Scott nodded, shoving his hands in his pockets. Frank took a look at him; he was tired. His eyes were heavy and he wasn't speaking much which were blaring sirens in his books. Scott was different because of this, because of what he went through and Frank now realised that he'd become so invested in their partnership that he'd noticed. Not only that, Scott had noticed the same for him. Weeks, months ago. But Frank just shrugged it off. Now, he understood.

"Are you okay?" Frank asked, noticing how silent he was. He looked toward Gabriela before Scott smiled at him. He could tell that she was weary of him too, a small frown on her face. Scott was slow with replies, the house looking pretty much like a bomb site and Frank definitely knew something was up because he wasn't saying half as much as he usually would.

"Fine. Really" Scott finally answered. "You guys want anything to drink?"

"Tired" Frank said, "You're tired"

Scott laughed, nodding as he scratched his chin. "You noticed"

"It's hard to miss" Frank replied, folding his arms. "How is it going?"

Scott nodded, widening his eyes in an attempt to keep them open. He leaned against the wall, folding his arms as he spoke. "Great. All settled in with Jesse. My divorce was finalised last week, after weeks and weeks of waiting. Elise's mailman boy toy was busted for drugs and I feel great about that. My mother actually called me the other day. She somehow found out we'd split and congratulated me on 'finally getting my life together'"

Frank managed a laugh, "Seems like you're not one for moping around"

"Nope" Scott said. "You guys made me see what was really important. Family. I am having a wheelchair ramp installed next week and Mason is moving in with me. That's everything on my radar from now on, fixing it up with my folks and Clara and Helena. Mason says he'll help me and as long as I don't pick up anyone like Elise again I should be okay"

"For real?" Frank asked, his brows raised.

Scott nodded. "As for Mason himself... I've been too distanced for too long. I should have been taking care of him since the accident happened. Seeing the way you cared for Frank after his surgery really made me realise. You really gave me a wake-up call, Gabby. And all that stuff you said on Thanksgiving sort of topped it off. I need to stop intruding on your lives and fix my own"

He looked toward Gabriela as he spoke and she just smiled, shaking her head. Frank looked between them, a little panicked at the looks they were exchanging. The more they talked about it the more he realised just how much he missed and how little he truly knew about what went down on Thanksgiving. He quickly changed the subject so they would both come off it. "So the courts gave you custody?"