Invisible To You (A Bruce Banner Love Story)

Chapter Twenty Three - Revelations

        "Hello Sweetheart."

        Everything inside of me freezes. Bryant gets a wide, sadistic smile at my reaction. He's standing with his back to the windows that look out over the city, holding a knife to Em's throat. The rest of the avengers were standing in the middle of the room, and Lil was quietly crying into a shaking Bruce. I didn't need to read his mind to know that he was struggling to keep control of the Hulk.

        The girls weren't even here when I left. Why were they in this situation? They should be at home. They would have been away from Bryant. Em looked terrified, her eyes wide. But she wasn't crying. I could tell she was trying to stay strong.

        "Bryant." I say, as calmly as I possibly could, my voice shaking a little anyway. I step towards the huddled group of heroes.

        "Ah... don't do that." He says after a take a step. I instantly stop in my tracks, knowing full well what he was capable of. Killing Em wouldn't phase him. I see his fingers tighten on the knife. "We wouldn't want little Em to get hurt, now would we?"

        "No." I say, looking at him. I try to sallow, but I feel like my throat is being cut off. "I would rather she didn't." Bryant suddenly turns his attention from me.

        "Mr Stark, I would not call your suit if I were you. That we be very... damaging to this pretty young girl's throat." I glance beside me to see Tony slowly putting his arms down.

       "Let her go." I say, my voice coming out stronger than I felt. Bryant raises an eyebrow, taunting me, as if asking if I really thought that would work.

       "Sure." Bryant says sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "I'll just let go of the one thing keeping me safe right now. I'd rather your friends not beat me to pulp, thank you very much sweetheart." A disgusted shiver went through me as he called me that again. Sweetheart. He had made up the pet name a while ago. I used to think it was cute. Now, all it did was fill me with repulsion.

       "What do you want?" Tony asks, speaking out from beside me. Bryant rolls his eyes.

       "Nothing you could give me, Stark." Bryant says, turning to me. "I don't want anything from any of you. Except you sweetheart." He says turning back to me.

       "No." Bruce growls. Bryant looks at him in surprise, raising an eyebrow.

       "Down big green." He says, looking between Bruce and I. "Is there....?" He uses his head to nod at the two of us. "There is something going on between you two, isn't there? Oh... That's rich. I'll have to kill him next." He murmurs the last sentence under his breath, but I caught it.

       "You won't touch him." I say, "you won't touch him, you won't touch the team, you won't touch Lil, and you will let go of Em." He looks at me in surprise when he hears the commanding tone in my voice.

       "Make me." He says simply, tightening his grip on Em's shoulder.

       That is when it all falls into place. Bryant knew he couldn't hurt me permanently. Not unless he killed one of them, or worse. Made me reveal myself to them. That's exactly what he was planning to do.

       "I mean," he starts, adjusting his grip. "Those two little assassins are weapon less, and while they could take me down without, I could slit this pale throat before they would be able too. Big, green, and mean there knows that if he bulked out on me now, he'd hurt the little girls. Star spangled tights over there doesn't have his precious shield on, and billionaire shmillionaire next to you can't call his tin foil suit in time. The only one that can stop me is you, sweetheart." He says with a chuckle.

       I take a deep breath and step forward, trying to figure out a way to get Em away from Bryant without showing.

      "Ah ah ah. You know exactly what I mean." He says. I let out a hurt sigh, and glance at the team and Tony.  "Tick tock tick tock." Bryant says, starting to press the knife into Em's skin.

       "I'm so sorry." I say quietly, before turning back to Bryant, and willing myself to disappear.

       While they didn't speak out, the shock on their faces was enough. Guilt coursed through me as I walked around the room to come up on the opposite side of Bryant. I quickly reappear and he smiles at me. Before he can slide the knife across Em's neck, I get into his head and make him fling it across the room. I make his other hand let go of her.

       I get out of his head and lift him up into the air, holding him halfway between the floor and the ceiling. "I told you before. Stay away from me, and stay away from my family and friends." I say angrily, glaring at him. Even when I could kill him with a thought, he still managed to smirk.

       "Well sweetheart-"

       "Oh shut up!" I yell, slamming him against the ceiling. I let him float to the ground, unconscious. I feel slightly satisfied, seeing him hurt and knowing I caused it, instead of the other way around. Then I turn around.

       The expressions I see cut me to the core. Disbelief. Anger. Hurt. Fear..... And a smile? I see a flash of the tiniest smile on Bruce's face before it goes back to emotionless. I must've imagined it. No one in their right mind would smile at me after what just happened.

       "I-I... I just..." I feel like there is a stone in my throat, keeping me from speaking. I see a terrified Em clinging to Tony, and Lil is only looking at me with complete and utter disbelief. I take a step forward, but stop instantly when Em buries her face into Tony's shoulder.

       She's scared of me.

       I take a step back. This is it. This is why I didn't want anyone to know. Everyone was going to hate me. Did hate me now.

       I turned and sprinted for the stairs, knowing that, as I left the tower this time, no one would be coming after me.

       And I wouldn't be coming back.