Gwendolyn Porter (Avengers Fanfiction)

Chapter Ten: Ache

Light streams in through the drapes. Somehow there's a perfectly fitted gap between my thick black curtains. Just enough to blind me and wake me up earlier than I was planning to.

I yawn and stretch my back. It cracks a couple times and I let out a relieved breath.

I get up and go through all the boring things I have to do before returning to my bed to watch TV and Netflix all morning.

After I put my lunch dish in the sink, to save for washing later, I get a call. I look at the name and mumble under my breath.

"What do you want, Peter?" I ask as I pick up the phone.

"It's about April," he says, his voice sounding tense and anxious, "she's ignoring my calls and I can't find her anywhere."

"Maybe she finally got wise and moved on."

He doesn't reply and I hear his breathing become uneven.

I let out a sigh. "Alright, I'll see what I can do. Wait, Peter, what day is it?" I ask, remembering something and suddenly getting urgent.

"September 3rd," he replies, "why?"

My heart stops. "I know why she's ignoring you, but you won't have much success through the phone."

"What? Gwen, what's wrong? What's going on? Is she okay?" He asks frantically.

"I'll have her explain later," I say, hanging up and putting on my shoes.

I know exactly where she is, and I know exactly why she's there.

I run up to the gate, my heart racing. The cold air burns the back of my throat and my breath comes out in small puffs.

How could I not be there for her? As much as I hate it when she ditches me she's still my best friend and I love her. I can't believe I didn't check. I can't believe I almost went on with my life with her here.

My eyes scope out the vast area. My heart still racing, sank to the bottom of my stomach. There's no one else here. The grass is green and bright, some of the trees are beginning to lose their leaves, dotting the green grass with brown, orange, and yellow. The dead stone contrasts heartbreakingly against the life around it.

That's when I see her.

Her blonde hair is blowing in the chilled breeze and her back is turned to me. She clings to her black jacket as if it's the only warmth she has.

My heart sinks further.

My approach is not nearly as quiet as I would like, the leaves cracking beneath my feet.

I keep my eyes trained on her face as I walk to her side. I stop beside her. Tears flow down her red cheeks and her eyes are puffy and pink. Her lip quivers. All she does is stare at the headstone, or more likely, the names on it. The sounds of her sobs get lost in the brisk, fall wind.

I take my eyes off her and look at it too.

It's a joint gravestone, it has their last name in big words above everything else. Addison. "Beloved scientists, beloved family," it reads. Alice M. and Oliver L. those were their names. Underneath are their birthdays, Alice's was August 2nd 1966, Oliver's was January 23rd 1965. Below it all... is the death date. September 3rd, 2013.

I remember them, Alice was beautiful, blonde just like April. She was kind and generous, she made the home warmer just by her presence. Oliver was tall, strict, but just as kind, funny too. He had this science humor that I never understood, but April and  Alice always did. I can see a lot of him in April. His blue eyes and freckles, puffy curls. His wit and reoccurring need for answers. The drive to search and dig until he found them.