invisiblestcrms

[invisiblestcrms]

Sue paused, turning to look at the masked man. "I'm almost afraid to ask this," she started. In her head, she reminded herself that if he got too weird, if deep-fried ecstasy was some sort of...slang -- she could always blast him into next week. Still, she knew better than to judge based on first looks. "But are you okay?"

"You know, life can be a real kick in the spandex-covered ass sometimes," the masked mercenary mumbled to no one in particular, his tone surprisingly introspective. "There I was, expecting the comforting embrace of deep-fried ecstasy, and what do I find? An empty shelf, a void where my happiness used to be. It's like a metaphor for my entire existence—always craving something just out of reach."

[invisiblestcrms]

"Well good. Because I love you too," Sue said, picking up the flower now and holding to her nose. She surveyed the offerings with a raised brow. "Well, sad to say, none of that surprises me. Like, not even a little bit. And it'd be a real shame for all this chocolate to just go to waste, right?" She popped a chocolate too, and settled back in the couch. "On second thought, that's not exactly the sort of fantasy I had in mind," she joked, snorting. "Although, depends on the powerpoint."

"Hm? Oh, honey, no. That's just because I love you. And that -- " she nodded to the chocolate in question, "is everything leftover from some wedding taste testing that my brother declared stupid. I stepped in, only to witness yours having a meltdown because he didn't want to lose an ab." Wanda raised a hand in defense. "His words, not mine. So now it's here." She smirked and grabbed one for herself, sitting beside her. "Probably. Of course, he might also decide to give me a Powerpoint lecture on the origins of the holiday."

[invisiblestcrms]

Sue continued to wave her in, no sensitive experiments currently running. "I'm going over data. You're rescuing me, please." She motioned to an extra chair -- an amenity she hadn't had until recently. But Johnny and Riri were both starting to keep her company during her hours here, and it was... Well, a lot better than California had felt. Even if it was freezing here. "And baby girl, I could never laugh at you. Unless milk comes out your nose, then I can't keep any promises," she said, shaking her head. "Sit and spill, tell me what's going on."

Riri knocked on Sue's door a few times before she just walked in despite the fact that she wanted to. When she gave her green light to go inside, Riri stepped in and then stopped before she got too close. "...I really need your opinion but I really need you to not laugh at me when I tell you about what."

@invisiblestcrms

[invisiblestcrms]

@wmximcffs

“That better not be a pity rose. Pity chocolate I’ll take, but that’s it.“ Sue didn't even look up from the report she was reading. "I am fine, I am not missing a certain college boyfriend at all, but who says no to chocolate?" She smirked, and set the report down. "Are you making plans with a certain special someone this year? C'mon give me all the details and let me live vicariously through you."

[invisiblestcrms]

Johnny and Sue weren't twins, but once upon a time she had felt as close as that. She knew the feeling Wanda described, that sort of unexplainable knowledge that was just -- a part of them, so it was a part of you. "That makes a lot of sense," she said, nodding along. "Both Pietro being super-duper repressed and them being each other's person," she teased lightly. She felt the warmth and was grateful for it, resting her head on Wanda's arm for a moment. "Yes please. Apart from this excursion, I feel like I haven't seen the outside of my room or my lab in like a week."

Wanda snorted. "No, it's not a weird question. Like, I don't know. He's my twin. He have that weird twin thing, I guess. I don't think I knew it was Johnny specifically. I knew he attached himself onto him more than I've ever seen him attach himself to, outside of me. It wasn't really something Pietro could have outwardly expressed back home," she explained, shaking her head. "So I sort of knew something was there, but I didn't know what, I guess." She shrugged. "I don't think it's a gender or preference thing, though. I think it's just a this is my person situation. They both needed each other to heal." Wanda waved her hand, subtly warming the air around them. "So, you busy tonight? You can come crash at my place."

[invisiblestcrms]

@j-stcrm sent 🤗for my muse to comfort yours

"Hey, Jellybean hey." Sue smiled and tried to keep her voice calm, casual. Like they weren't sitting in a med wing, again. With all the beeps and the too-clean smell of antiseptic already stinging her nose. She moved to stand next to Johnny, took his chin gently in her hand. "What'd ya do to yourself this time, huh?" she asked, one hand on her hip. "Reminds me of when we were little, and you'd go running off outside. Ten minutes later, you come back in crying because you skinned your knee," she teased gently. "Pietro will be here as soon as he can. He's still in the air right now, I made sure to ask before I got here."

[invisiblestcrms]

"Really? Did he tell you, or did you just know? Is that a weird thing to ask?" Sue had never been one to stifle her curiosity, but she knew it could lead easily into unintentional over-prying. Especially when she felt as good as today. "I never would've guessed, but I was so far away. And Pietro was so angry, that's -- I mean, no offense, but that's all I could see for a while. I was kinda worried for Johnny when they got close, but..." She smiled, shaking her head. "No one's protective like your brother. And no one can use it as much as mine," she joked. She steered them towards her street, the slushy snow crunching and slipping under their feet. "I didn't have any idea about Johnny. I never even thought he'd want something like this. Well, I knew he wanted it, but I didn't know if he'd let himself have it, ya know? So they're good for each other, in a lot of ways."

Wanda followed Sue out, smiling when she slid her arm around hers. "Honestly, I wasn't that surprised. About Pietro, at least." He was her twin, after all. There was a connection there that even magic couldn't replicate. "Your brother was the surprising one," she teased with a smile, shaking her head. "They're sweet. He's good for him."

[invisiblestcrms]

@wmximcffs

"Honestly, I can't believe this whole thing didn't occur to any of us sooner," Sue laughed, arm in arm with Wanda as they walked away from their brothers' apartment. They had just completed their mission to put the little bandanas on the pups, and it was so cute, so very like her real Jellybean brother. It left her feeling a little giddy. "Johnny and Pietro, I mean. They're kinda perfect for each other, it's -- It's really nice to see them both so happy. And in hindsight, it's like super obvious."

[invisiblestcrms]

"I don't know if that's the kind of thing you want to be good at, Jell-bell," she suggested softly. But it was the last unsolicited bit of advice she would give, she made herself swear to that silently. At his request, she stood up from the chair, gathered her bag, and then returned back to reach for his hand again. "Yeah, obviously. You're my brother, that's what big sisters are for. Under one condition," she said, holding up a finger. "We make a pillow fort in the living room and watch really great movies."

Johnny let Sue take his hand, but he didn't look at her until she brushed his hair from his face. "I know," he said quietly. But Johnny just didn't want to know. Because if he went and got tested and he did have it, it would open a thousand other doors he didn't want to go through. Johnny took a deep breath and leaned forward to rest his head against her shoulder. "I'm just really good at ignoring it or pretending it's not there until I have to deal with it." Johnny fell silent for a moment, his fingers finally wrapping firmly around his sister's. "Pietro's gone for the night on a mission. He probably won't be back until tomorrow." He lifted his head to look at her again. "Can you stay over?"

[invisiblestcrms]

He didn't elaborate and didn't need to. Sue went into mom-mode, and knew she shouldn't, knew that he'd protest, but she did it anyway. She set down her pencil and set aside her clipboard, walking over to the small fridge and pulling out a bottle of water. She set it down in front of him, and took the seat next to him instead of across. "Jellybean," she whispered, reaching for one of his hands. She pushed the curls back from his eyes, concern painted across her face. "You went through something terrible. We all did. Remember when I made you go talk to someone after the crash? That wasn't because of mom. That was because you went through a trauma. It's bound to come up once in a while." She paused a second. "I know you don't want to know about the genetic markers, but if you got tested you at least wouldn't have to worry. But I don't think that's what this is, sweetheart. This is just good old-fashioned life coming to kick you in the butt." She set a hand on the side of his face. "But no one kicks life's butt like you, jellybean. You're okay. Just take a big breath for me."

Johnny was watching his sister, thoughts somewhere else. He hadn't realized he'd zoned out until he heard Sue's nickname for him. He tore his eyes away from the experiment, brow furrowed for a moment as he processed the question. Johnny shrugged, reaching up to unzip the top of his uniform, as if that would help him feel like he could breathe better, and slumped back into the seat a little. "The flight back was hard," he eventually said, knowing he wouldn't to elaborate. After a moment, he raised his gaze back up to meet his sister's. "I just like -- I don't know." Johnny let out a breath and ran a hand through his now curling hair, before dropping it back to his lap. "I start spiraling when I do that because I think it's a Mom thing."

[invisiblestcrms]

"Please, it's totally understandable," Sue said, waving away the apology. She laughed brightly, shaking her head. "Johnny's the same way, believe me. And we do this because you love him and you want everyone to know. But this is exactly why my finger has no ring on it," she joked, picking up one of the papers. "Here, if you go with the baby's breath filler on the flowers, then you don't have to worry about them looking too bare and they're always available. One headache done," she said, smirking at him and passing over the order sheet. "I still can't believe he did that," she said softly, her expression fading just a little. "But he's happy, and that's what matters, right?"

Tony looked up at the sound of her voice and snorted at her response. "I'm sorry. If it makes you feel any better, I'm pretty sure Peter has found a way to actively tune me out while staring me dead in the eye while looking at me." He smirked, eyes falling to the stack she'd just straightened. "God. Everything? Like, why do we even do this? I don't need a party to tell everyone I love him. It's all a headache." He reached over to close his laptop. "I'm starting to see why your brother eloped."

[invisiblestcrms]

Sue was used to working late. Especially now that only her pet rats, Gemini and Cosmo, were waiting for her back home. She had always enjoyed it, the peace of it. The quiet of the room long after most others had gone home. But it was Stark Industries, so someone was usually in another part of the lab, working on another passion project. So when she heard footsteps, she didn't immediately think they were headed her way. She kept her focus on the experiment in front of her, until she realized she recognized those footsteps. Would know them anywhere. She smiled when Johnny kissed her head, but the expression quickly turned into concern when he sat down. That's when she got a good look at him. "What happened?" He was still in his uniform, his movements stiff -- but a quick scan told her it wasn't injury, nothing worse than soreness probably. It was something deeper. Darker than that. "Jellybean, you doing okay?"

After the team debriefed, Johnny made his way down to the lab. He didn't bother changing out of his fire-resistant Avenger uniform and almost robotically walked to the elevator. He knew he'd either find Bruce or his sister down there and didn't mind that it was the latter. "Hi," he said quietly, so he wouldn't startle her, as he walked up behind her. Johnny kissed the side of her head and took the seat across from her lab table. "You're here late." ; @invisiblestcrms

[invisiblestcrms]

@j-stcrm

Coney Island - Taylor Swift

Buy this design here Instagram

[invisiblestcrms]

Sue spun around in her chair, gave a small smile to the intern who had brought the mail, which unfortunately came with more wedding magazines. "I think that might be a little drastic," she noted, striding over to his office. "Sorry to eavesdrop, but your despair is getting a little loud," she joked. She took the mail, magazines and all, and stepped inside, shutting the door behind her. "I don't have a press conference or an alien army, but if you want a friend to vent to, I can probably swing that one." She smiled at him gently, straightened the pile of wedding-things. "Caterers or flowers? Which ones the bigger headache this time?"

"I can't touch any of that at the moment.," Tony gestured vaguely to the stack of wedding-related things on his desk. "Like I'd literally rather face a world-ending alien army or do a press conference right now."

[invisiblestcrms]

There were a thousand qualifying questions on the tip of her tongue. What does okay even mean? she wondered. But she held back, knowing it was the tangle of her own nerves that wanted to ask, and that tangling up Johnny's by making him answer wouldn't help. He was okay, and she had to trust that when he wasn't, he'd find her. Or... someone else. Her eyes slid over to Pietro, and she smiled gently, coming back to Johnny. "I'm glad you found someone." Not someone perfect or who expected Johnny to be -- but the someone he needed, maybe. There was an honesty, an openness to him now that had always been there, but used to be so guarded. She felt her stomach curl in worry at the thought of the unknown, like it always did when she thought about this. Her eyes darted towards the kitchen where their mother was, and then back to him. She sighed as he kissed her head, and touched the back of his head while he did. "I'm always gonna worry, sorry about that one," she said, but she was smirking and her tone was light. "But I will keep my worrying to myself, and remember that you're all grown up." She reached up, touched his cheek. "I'm really proud of the life you built for yourself. Doing it your own way. I always knew you would."

"I'm starting to wonder if it was like...the first word he learned in English, so he has a weird ass attachment to it," Johnny snorted, before his attention fell back to his sister. "I know," he said in a softer tone of voice, knowing that maternal streak in Sue would never go away where he was concerned. "But I'm okay. I really am." He ran a hand through his blond hair, resting it back on her leg when he dropped it. "I mean, I wasn't. But he helped." He nodded over to Pietro, because even before they were together, he and Peter had always been at his side, making sure he was okay. "I just -- " He met his sister's gaze again. "I don't want to know if I'm like Mom. I don't want to go looking for something that might not be there. I"m happy now and I want to stay that way." He looked at her for a moment longer, before he leaned over to kiss the side of her head. "You did your job and I'm okay because of you. You don't have to worry about me anymore."

[invisiblestcrms]

"You better. I'm gonna quiz you on your self-esteem every day," Sue teased gently. But she did make a mental note to give a little more attention to this girl who had caught her eye. She knew how lonely it could be in the lab, even one like this with so many people coming in and out -- a sea of activity, whirlwind of discovery, but it was easy to get lost in the chaos. To feel forgotten amidst all the other things going on. Sue smiled as Riri set the tester next to her helmet, came over to stand next to her and admire the display. "I'm not going anywhere anytime soon," she promised with a nod. She wrapped an arm around Riri's shoulders and squeezed tight, pressing their cheeks together. "I'm really glad we met too, ya know. You're stuck with me now, no matter where I end up, don't worry about that. You're the little sister I never had."

Riri sniffled because she really was just overwhelmed with happiness in that moment. It was such a simple gift but it was so well thought out that she was honored. She scrunched her nose before she nodded, "I'll do my best to remember that." She looked around the lab before making sure to walk to her little corner and put it right next to her iron suit helmet which matched the colors of it now. "You're entirely right but I'm glad my original one broke. Otherwise, I wouldn't have met you. Please tell me you're here to stay?"

[invisiblestcrms]

At first, Sue thought she had made a massive miscalculation, hugely overstepping. She saw the way Riri's bit her lip and the way it was threatening to tremble, but then the girl threw her arms around her in a hug. Sue responded immediately, wrapping her own arms tightly around Riri. "Oh, you're so welcome. So so welcome!" She gushed, laughing as they broke apart. She put a hand over her mouth when she saw Riri wipe away the tear, reaching out to cup the other girl's face with both hands for a moment. "You're amazing," she said sincerely. "Don't you ever doubt that, okay?" She smiled brightly and let go, stepping back to admire the friability tester. "I had a little help from some of the equipment here," she explained, gesturing around the lab. "I've always thought a lady needs her own tools in the lab. Just something no one can take away from you, ya know?"

Riri had been a very dark place as of lately and she hadn't been doing a great job at reaching out to people. Maybe it was fear. Everyone had so much going on and she didn't really think it was fair to add more on. She had just engulfed herself in work which is what she did best. Meeting Sue was a blessing. Riri took the box from her and looked it over a moment as her smile softened. She set it down on the table to unwrap and then her eyes widened. Riri picked up the friability tester and she noticed her colors. She bit down on her bottom lip to keep it from trembling and nodded as she set it down and then just walked up to her and hugged her. "I love it! It looks amazing!" She pulled back to pick it up again, "Annnd no one will get it confused for their own. Thank you, Sue. You didn't tell me you were a skilled painter too." She teased with a smile but Riri quickly brought a hand up to wipe away the tear that had slipped.