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[22] Sharing the News

I woke up the next morning on my old bed. I sat up in a daze and started recalling last night's events. Just the thought of me not having my parents anymore brought tears to my eyes once again. I stood up and stretched before wandering into my father's room. I went to what I guessed was my mother's side of the room when she stayed here, and opened her wardrobe. I needed to borrow her clothes, and thankfully, she left a bit of clothing behind. There was a bit to choose from, so I reached in a grabbed a nice black dress. Under her side of the bed, she had a very organized shoe collection, so I pulled out a pair of black heels. I grabbed a towel from the hall closet before I walked to the bathroom, praying that the shower still worked. I turned the knob, and bless the shower gods, it still worked. I stripped down, set my clothes on the counter, and stepped into the shower.

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I stepped out of the shower, feeling a bit better about the events from last night. I dried off, and I used a light flame to dry my hair. I wrapped the towel around my body and quickly ran off to the room with the dress and shoes in my hands. I shut and locked the bedroom door, and I dressed quickly. As I finished putting the shoes on, I heard the front door opening, closing, and footsteps coming up the stairs. I started brushing my hair out, and by the time I finished, there was a knock at the door. I rushed over and opened the door to see and confused Bruce, standing in the doorway.

"There you are. When you didn't come back to the Tower, I was worried. Marie and Steve were as well. And Fury never sent word that something had happened, so Pepper suggested I wait until morning to come and check here." Bruce said in a worried tone. I smiled, the fact that he cared and was so worried made me feel rather happy. I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him passionately, hoping to make his worry fade away. I felt his hands on my sides, slowly guiding me backwards into the room. I gasped as the backs of my legs made contact with the bed, and Bruce pushed us both down. He pulled away from me and smirked down at me, making me blush.

"I'm so glad nothing bad happened to you." Bruce whispered, getting up a bit.

"I'm a big girl. I can handle myself, but it looks like you can't." I teased, sitting up a bit. Bruce backed up a bit, and I kicked of the heels.

"You know, Marie won't be here until later. I could let loose right now." He seemed to growl.

"Ah ah ah. Be a good Brucey now. While I do care if Marie will be here now or later, you need to behave." I giggled. He sighed and bent down again, but this time, he kissed my neck gently. I pushed him off gently and looked at him, hoping to bring the mood to serious.

"I wanna tell you what Fury told me last night." I said softly, and Bruce stood up straight. He sat next to me and wrapped his arm around my shoulders. Before I started talking, Bruce lay down on the bed, pulling me with him. My head was on his chest, and his hand was on my back, slowly rubbing up and down. I kept my eyes on his face as I told him word for word what Nick told me. When I finished, Bruce hugged me tightly and kissed the top of my head. I snuggled into his arms, trying hard not to burst into tears again. I sat up a bit and smoothed out my mother's dress, and Bruce sat up as well. I inched off of the bed and sighed.

"So, Marie's coming soon. Are we moving in here slowly?" I asked.

"That was the plan I was going to let you in on. But yes, and I also came by to start cleaning up the rooms." Bruce said, standing up.

'Ah, gotcha. So, shall we start?" I asked.

"You sure you wanna help?" He asked, looking at me. I rolled my eyes and sighed.

"Bruce, I am perfectly capable of helping you clean. I'm just in a dress, which I can change out of. It's not like I'm eight months pregnant." I teased. Bruce blushed a bit, and I made him leave the room so I could change. I could hear him walking to my old room, and I threw my mother's wardrobe doors open. I pulled out a girl cut blue tee-shirt and faded denim shorts. I stripped off the dress and hanged into the simpler outfit, and opened the door again. I walked back to my old room and saw Bruce rooting through my old stuffed animals. I leaned against the door frame, watching him in silence. He was careful with them, and he placed them in a pile on the bed. 

"Knock knock." I said, lightly hitting my knuckles against the wooden door frame. Bruce turned to face me, and I walked into the room, the carpet soft on my bare feet.

"Whatcha doing?" I asked nodding my head to the stuffed animal pile.

"I'm just looking through your stuffed animals." He said with a smile.

"Duh, Captain Obvious. But, I think we should let Marie go through them." I said, taking a plush giraffe from his hand and setting it down. He kissed my cheek before nodding.

"Alright, sounds like a plan. What should I do instead?" He asked, setting his arm around my waist.

"Um, you can go scope out the kitchen for anything that may need replacing." I said. Bruce nodded, kissing me quickly, and he left. I dropped to my knees and started lookng through the plushies. I remembered how and where I got them, and the thoughts made me smile. I won a lot of them at carnivals, but the majority of them came as gifts. I put them all into the pile again and stood slowly. I was excited to have Marie stay in my room, but I was kinda sad to let it go. I picked up the photo from earlier and made sure to bring it back to my new room. It would be strange, sleeping in my parent's room, but I had to get used to it somehow. I put the picture in the room and went downstairs to check on Bruce. As I crossed the hall, there was a knock on the door, and Bruce stepped out of the kitchen, drying his hands.

"Why are you..." I started.

"I was washing some of the dishes, and my hands were wet." He chuckled.

"Ah, okay. I'll get the door." I said with a smile. I strode over to the door, opened it, and was sent to the ground. Marie had jumped on me with such force, it made me laugh. Tony, Steve, and Pepper laughed from the doorway, and Bruce let them in.

"What a cute little place." Pepper said. 

"Thank you. Agent Coulson had a good eye." Bruce chuckled again. Marie was still hugging me, and she refused to let go.

"Mommy! Mommy! You're okay!" She laughed. I stood up, still hugging her, and I spun her around.

"Of course I'm okay sweetheart. Now, would you like to see your new room?" I asked. She jumped off of me and grabbed my hand.

"Yes please mommy!" She giggled. And as Bruce led the others into the kitchen, I picked Marie up again, and I carried her up to my old room.