Hurt // Marvel [2]

4

I can practically feel the phone sitting at the bottom of my bag vibrating. It's turned off, of course, but at this point, someone has noticed I'm gone, which means someone is trying to call me. I ignore the urge to turn it on as I hand the airport staff my boarding ticket.

"Enjoy your trip." I nod my head as a silent thank you before running my hand through my pony tail. I adjust the baseball hat on my head. As stereotypical as it is for a superhuman in disguise to be wearing a baseball hat, I could not come up with a better idea.

I walk down the aisle of the plane before coming to my seat. I throw my bag into the overhead compartment before sitting in the aisle seat next to a little boy. I glance down at the Captain America figurine in his hand and can't help but smile. It's not often that I get to see the actual effect we have on peoples lives. Not on a personal level. I watch as the kid uses Steve's doll to knock over the "evil" dolls on the other side of the tray table. This kid has dreams of being just like Captain America when he's older. He wants to save the world and do good, and I couldn't think of a more fitting idol for that than Steve.

I watch as other's finish boarding the plane when I feel a tap on my forearm. I turn my head and see the young boy staring at me.

"You're Remedium." He whispers it, like a secret. "But you're in disguise, so I'll stay quiet."

"I'm on a very secret mission." I state and watch as his smile grows. "I'm helping Captain America."

"Can I tell you a secret?" I nod my head, urging him to go on. "I'm going to be just like him when I'm older. Want to see why?" I nod my head again. I watch as a pulls a bag of three cookies out of his bag and crushes all three of them in his hand.

"That's some real super strength you've got. Have you met any scientists recently?"

"No. I was just born with my power."

"That makes you even cooler than Captain America then. We can make you an even cooler shield. I'll tell Iron Man to get working." His face lights up.

"You know Iron Man?" I can't help but laugh.

"I do. We've fought together before."

"I wish I knew Iron Man." His mom shushes him as the flight attendant begins her speech on the safety features of the plane, but the boy just continues playing with his figurine.

>.<

I wave goodbye to the boy as I walk away from the gate. I walk outside into the warm weather and begin to feel overwhelmed.

Here I am, alone, with only one suitcase and enough money to last maybe a few months. I have no place to stay and I'm in a crowded city in a country I've never been to before. I take a deep breath before heading to the right down the street.

I look around at the signs, most of which I'm unable to understand, trying to find some sort of hotel or apartment building.

"Excuse me?" I try to get people's attention. "Do you speak English?" I continue walking as I get ignored.

"Excuse me?" I say it to the air, in hopes that someone will understand, but I get no response. I continue walking down the streets, glancing into windows and doors of buildings.

"You look lost." A woman who looks around my age speaks to me with an accent. "Can I help you?"

"Yeah, actually." I give her a friendly smile. "I'm looking for a place to stay."

"If you go down this street and to the right, there's a cheap but clean hotel at the first corner you'll come to. They'll house you for awhile, and they all speak English."

"Thank you so much."

"Of course." The woman smiles at me once more before going down the street the way I came. I adjust the backpack on my shoulders before going in the direction she pointed me in.

It'll give me somewhere to stay for a week or so, I think to myself. Enough time to find a more permanent place.

I'm not planning to stay in this city long. Maybe just a month or so, then I'm hoping to go somewhere else. Staying in one place for too long could possibly get me caught. I'm just hoping I've covered my tracks enough so far.

I find the building the woman had sent me to right as I turned onto the street. I open the red door and a bell rings above my head, alerting the employees of my presence.

"Hello." I say to a teenage boy as he walks out from the back.

"How can I help you today?"

"I just need a single room for a week." I stand at the desk awkwardly, unaware of specifically what to say. The boy nods his head before telling me the price. I dig through my backpack before coming across my wallet and pull out the cash I need. I watch as the boy counts it and puts it into the register.

"A cleaning service will come every two days to clean the room. There's also a machine over there to exchange money, and we serve some breakfast from six to ten." I nod my head as a thank you as I take the key he had placed on the counter. "Can I actually get your name, Miss?"

"Yeah." I hesitate. "Lillian Maximoff." I take my own middle name with Pietro's surname without a second thought.

"Alright, Ms. Maximoff." I smile once more at him. "Welcome to Bucharest."