#adoring mad scientist x darling he brought back to life who wants nothing to do with him

[hawnks]

Continuation of this

Pietro clutches at her skirts, but reels back obediently when she smacks his desperate hands.

“Please, my sweet,” he begs, trailing after her, resisting the urge to grab her again. “Please talk to me. Tell me what you’re thinking.”

Kelsi doesn’t deign to look at him, simply storms through the estate — a historic castle that had been rather beautiful before her death — hunting down any scrap of her old life.

Her satchel and carpetbag are still in the downstairs closet, exactly where she left them. Even the contents is untouched, a few crumpled receipts and an expired granola bar buried inside.

She grabs both, and the big, red rain coat. Pietro always used to hide candies in the pockets; she stops herself for checking for one.

When she emerges from the closet, he’s directly behind her, so close she can see the tears budding in his eyes, not yet fallen. She doesn’t soothe him—she won’t.

The kitchen is dilapidated. She can’t find anything edible, only food so spoiled it can hardly be considered food at all, and a staggering amount of coffee grounds. Maybe he’d been surviving on caffeine alone, these past years.

“Please,” he tries again. “Kelsi, please?”

“You know my thoughts, Doctor.” She pushes past him, up the stairs to the second floor. The boards creak miserably under her weight, untreated, in poor condition. “I am very, very, very upset with you.”

Despite the derelict condition of the rest of the castle, her room could almost be considered clean. There’s a fine layer of dust on most of the surfaces, but it’s clear that the bedding has been washed somewhat recently, the curtains beaten to get rid of the worst of the residue buildup.

Her wardrobes contents is different, although not how she would expect. New clothes, garments shes never seen before, are hung amidst the rest. They’re soft to the touch, don’t show the signs of deterioration and rigidity that come with neglect.

Pietro had regularly washed each each of them by hand, ironing them carefully before returning them to their rightful place. He wasn’t sure why. During the first few months, he thought she should be comfortable, when she returns. Soon enough he hardly thought at all. It was more of a ritual, a lower-brain habit, to tend to her things, to hunt for any remnants of her scent among the items, to imagine her, vital and alive in these spaces.

She understands this, somehow, without a word. Another exhibit of the madness that consumed him in her absence. Grimacing, she starts shoving fistfuls of fabric into her bag, indiscriminately.

At the bottom, tucked away in the corner, is a pair of boots. Pretty, but functional, fine, embroidered details and treated leather.

The night before she died, she’d complained about her feet aching. They’d surveyed the entire surrounding woods, an arduous endeavor that left her exhausted, sore. He’d gifted her a warm balm, of his own recipe. Awkward as he placed it into her hands; he’d wanted to rub it into her tender muscles himself, she could see the desire in him. But it was a line neither of them had ever broached, a delicate, tremulous thing.

He’d pulled her out of deadly mires. She’d plucked poison barbs from his skin. They’d both risked their lives and reputations for each other, again and again. They knew one another better than anyone. At times it seemed like they could read each other down to the flickering soul.

And yet, there was another distance impossible to broach. Not due to lack of courage, but careful sensibility. It required investigation, a steady hand. Whatever it was between them, it often felt as fragile as spiders silk.

Now it was snapped, forever.

Kelsi shoves into the boots, swallowing down her distaste. It was this, or go barefoot on her journey. She snaps her bags closed. She’s ready to be gone.

Pietro stands in doorway, preventing this.

His head is bowed, fearful of her gaze, but even hunched his height is imposing. She always thought of his as a sproutish man, lean and lanky, but facing him now she’s not sure she could beat him, physically.

“Can you please—“ he bites his lip. “Can’t you be very, very, very upset with me here? Where you’re safe? Where I can see you?”

Kelsi just breathes for a moment. She’s so incensed her rage has surpassed physical revile; she’s only focused on undoing what’s been done, now. “No,” she tells him.

She takes a step forward. And another. They’re toe to toe, and she can almost feel his heart beating, a rabbit-quick pulse. His cheeks flush.

He presses himself into the doorframe, letting her pass. Yielding.

He falls in stride behind her. “Dearest, please. Things are not as you remember them.”

“I know,” she snaps. “You did that.”

His fingers brush her sleeve, cautious but beseeching. “Where are you going?”

“To get them out. I will extract them. Somehow.”

It takes a moment for her to realize Pietro is no longer right behind her. He’s paused in the center of the lobby, staring at her. His expression is hard to decipher, agony and confusion and something without a name.

“You can’t,” he says. She can barely hear it.

“I’m certain I’ll find a way. If there’s any trace of them left in me, I will pluck it out.”

“You can’t,” he says again, louder. “You’ll die.”

She shakes her head. “I already did.”

The great door was never her first choice for access. It’s twice her size, and so heavy she has to throw her entire weight against the wood to budge it. Pietro is saying something to her, but she can’t make it out, too focused on escaping his madness to try.

Finally, the door rocks open.

On the other side is a giant, bloodwasp.

The creatures, roughly the size of a toddler and infinitely more dangerous, had all but vanished from the estate and its surroundings after Pietro’s carnivorous plants took root. Kelsi hadn’t seen one for years after she moved in.

She’s certainly not prepared to deal with one, now.

In her shock she doesn’t hear the click of the bullet in the chamber, but the sound of it firing her knocks her to the ground.

The wasp falls too, dead, a perfect shot through the eye.

Pietro rushes to the door, shutting it quickly. Beyond him, Kelsi spots the thrumming bodies of at least three more wasps. Who knows what their numbers are, how many lurk outside.

Pietro sinks to his knees at her side, bundling her up with an arm around her shoulders, a look of ardent concern on his face. In his other hand, the revolver is still steaming.

“I meant to tell you that the roads are no longer safe,” he says, “but you wouldn’t listen. Now, let’s talk about this like civilized adults.”

But he makes no move to release her. Simply holds her there, against his chest, reveling in skin that’s warm again.

Weakly, Kelsi asks, “Dr. Pragma, where did a scholar learn to shoot like that?”

[mixed-imagination]

Something Borrowed (Pt. 1) - Steve Rogers x Reader (NEW version)

IMPORTANT UPDATE: I’ve decided to rewrite my series “Something Borrowed.” For a thorough explanation click HERE. I hope you enjoy!

Summary: You and Steve keep missing each other. When will it be your time?

Warnings: heartbreak lol

Word Count: 2.8+

Notes: My inspiration for this came from the movie Something Borrowed.

Song of the chapter: nagashi by Idealism

The night of the proposal was all a blur. When Steve got on one knee you couldn’t breathe; you couldn’t move.

Your eyes widened and your lips parted at the sight before you.  You were in such a shock that you couldn’t even tell if your heart had stopped or if it was pounding 150 beats per minute.   

How did this happen? How had you been so oblivious? You couldn’t wrap your head around it.

“I’m not going to lie. I’m actually kinda excited for tonight’s charity event,” Nat said as she stared into the mirror brushing blush on her cheeks.

“Really?” Wanda raised a brow, looking over her shoulder as she adjusted her earrings, “This is a first.”

Nat shrugged.

“It must be the dress.”

Nat’s eyes roll in response. She was wearing a long, black, off-shoulder gown that hugged her curves beautifully.

“What do you think, Y/N?” Wanda turns to you.

You plopped down on the edge of Nat’s bed, shuffling in your dress uncomfortably, “Um, I don’t know. Are you doing anything with Steve tonight?”

Wanda glanced at you, and you silently prayed she didn’t notice your hesitation when you mentioned Steve’s name. You knew she had never read your mind since she promised not to out of respect for your privacy, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t oblivious to your signs. Wanda somehow always knew when there was something up with you.

“One year anniversary today, right?” your heart cringed.

Nat nodded, smiling slightly, “Actually yes. I’ve never celebrated these types of things before---”

“You’ve never been in a relationship this long before!” Wanda laughs.

“Shut up.”

“So what’s happening Nat?” you asked curiously.

“I’m not sure. You know how old-school the big fossil is,” she chuckled, “He said it’s a surprise.”

“Think he’s gonna propose?” Wanda teased and nudged Nat’s arm.

“Wanda! It’s only been a year!”

She winked, “Who knows?”

“Ha! Imagine?” you all laughed.

“Yes!”

That shrill shriek that had resonated throughout the room was what made you snap out of your reverie.  You looked to the floor and slowly walked back through the applauding crowd, occasionally bumping into someone. You continued to step until you were sure you saw the backs of everybody. However, your back hit a hard being, and you knew it was someone you were familiar with.

You whipped your body around and your dress followed.

“Hello, missy. Where are you running off to?” he gave a crooked smile.

Normally, you would have wiped off that lopsided grin with a snide remark, but you were still at a loss for words; all you could mutter out was a nervous laugh and jumble of stuttered syllables.

“Ha! Tony!” your fake smile wavered, “Hey! Um, uh, I-I- what. T-Tony...” you kept darting your eyes to different objects around him in order to keep your tears at bay.

As soon as you spoke, Tony immediately knew something was wrong and took your hand to guide you away from the crowd. He led you onto the balcony and closed the doors behind him.  

You could feel your anxiety building; your breath gradually increased its pace.

“Hey, hey, hey Y/N, what’s wrong?” Tony placed his hands on both of your shoulders, which immediately made you lock into his eyes. “Are you okay? You should be happy, Cap’s getting married,” he gave a reassuring smile. However, as his eyes searched yours, you felt your eyebrows furrow and your cheeks tighten, and before you even realized it, you were crouching on the floor, finally shattering.

You cried loudly into your hands.  You didn’t realize how much you were hurting until this very moment. Before, you had been bottling up your feelings. Now, you were exploding with pain that demanded to be felt.

Tony crouched down to you and rubbed your back knowingly.  He sighed, “You’re in love with Steve, aren’t you?” You cried harder.

He had no idea.

When you first “met” Steve Rogers, he was frozen.  Being a scientist for SHIELD allowed you to examine him.  When you actually met him, at first it was awkward to see the defrosted Captain America, but eventually, you both got to know each other, becoming very close friends.

There was an obvious connection between you two, but you never really thought about it.  It wasn’t until he finally asked out a SHIELD agent named Sharon (after stupidly encouraging him) that you started realizing how you felt.

You had fallen for his oozing charm, his admirable generosity, and even his frustrating carelessness whenever he tried to be selfless. You loved when he smelt like shaving cream in the morning and whenever he threw his head back when he laughed.  You had grown strong feelings for him, and you didn’t like it.

During his relationship with Sharon, Steve fell head over heels for her, but she dumped him, and you picked up the pieces. You mended Steve’s broken heart and helped him move on, never revealing your feelings to him or to anyone.

Once you felt Steve was healed enough from his heartbreak, you planned on telling him, but somehow, unexpectedly, he fell for your best friend, Natasha.

You cried for what seemed like a long time but what was actually 10 minutes. Tony remained crouching next to you, rubbing your back and respectfully staying quiet.  Occasionally, you would hyperventilate, and he would shush you softly and tell you that everything was going to be okay.  Once your cries softened and turned into sniffles, Tony took your wrists and gently brought you back up to stand.  He didn’t want to take your hands because he knew that you wouldn’t want to reveal your tear-streaked face.

“Common darling, we don’t want to ruin your beautiful gown. You look like Jessica Rabbit in that red dress,” he smiled reassuringly.

The Avengers were holding a charity ball in the Stark tower to raise money for the countries where they’ve caused damage while on missions.  Like everyone else, you were wearing a gown; it was Natasha’s.  She had forced you to wear it in hopes of catching someone’s eye. How ironic.

Although it hurt to support your best friends’ relationship and you would never get in the way of their happiness, you couldn’t help but secretly fantasize Steve seeing you in your beautiful, red gown and falling for you.

But clearly, reality struck when Steve proposed to Nat out of nowhere.  It broke your heart but made you so angry.  You were mad at him. Why didn’t he tell you, the one he told everything to? But then again, you didn’t have the right to be mad when you failed to tell the two of your closest friends how you felt. You were mad at yourself. You knew you put yourself in this position.

You remembered what he said just a few days before~

“You think Sharon’s going to be at the ball?” Steve stared at the TV.

You raised a brow and chuckled, sitting next to him on the couch, “Umm, she most likely will. Scared to bump into her?”

He sighed and put his arm around you, “No, I have no reason to be. But Nat? She’s a different story.”  

You laugh and stuff your mouth with chips, “What do you mean?”

“If Nat spots her, well...” he cocked his head to the side.

“Wow, I’ve never known Nat to be the jealous type.”

“Um, well she isn’t, but she is.  She tries to be bigger by masking it, but even the world’s greatest spy can be prone to jealousy, Y/N.”

You smiled at the thought of Nat being jealous. She always had a tough exterior, but you knew she was secretly a romantic, yearning for a normal life. You were happy she was able to be vulnerable with not only you and Wanda but also with Steve.

“Also, it’s our one year anniversary that night.”

A pang of pain temporarily washed over you, “Oh yea? Any plans?”

It was always a bittersweet feeling.

Steve grinned, “Nothing special. Small surprise.”

You then remembered what he said 20 minutes before the party... and how you didn’t notice the signs~

You stepped out of the elevator and into Bucky’s complex.  You caught Steve fixated on his reflection in the window.  He was frantically touching up his tie, his gelled hair, or his suit.

“Aw, hey, handsome,” you smiled at how adorable Steve was, “Excited?”

He saw your figure in the window and turned to you.  He gave you a wide grin, looking at your appearance, “Y/N!”

“How do I look?” you picked up your gown and did a 360 turn.

He took in your appearance as you twirled once.  He gave you a toothy grin and stepped towards you, “What can I say, Y/N?”

“You like it?” you smiled.

A step closer.

“How could I not?”

Another step closer.

Your smile vanished as you noticed Steve’s face was now a couple of inches away from yours.  You could feel his breath, and it made you shiver internally. “You look absolutely gorgeous, Y/N. You always do.”

For a split second your eyes shifted away from his as your cheeks began to heat up.  Your smile returned as you looked back up at him.  You decided to be brave and stepped closer to him, reaching up to adjust his bow-tie, “You don’t look too bad yourself, Cap.”

To your disappointment, he turned away suddenly and looked back into the window. “Are you sure?” he ran his fingers through his hair.

You stepped away.

You noticed something was troubling him, “You okay, Steve?”

He glanced at you with a tight smile and turned back to his reflection, “Yea, yea. I’m fine. I just want tonight to be perfect.”

You raised a brow and chuckled, “It’s just a charity ball, Stevie.”

“Heh,” he finally turns to you and reaches out to brush a piece of hair behind your ear.

“There he goes again,” you thought, “making me fall harder with every little thing he does.”  

“I know, Y/N... just worried about the charity speech I have to make.”

Of course, you believed him... but little did you know…

“Hey, hey. Earth to Y/N?” Tony snapped his fingers, literally pulling you out of your daydream.  You had been staring off into space.

“You okay?”

Your eyes darted towards him as he put his hand on your shoulder. Your breathing became slow but deep. Your brain was trying to recollect itself, while you did what you did best: numb the pain.

“I don’t know.”

���You think you can hold up for the rest of the party?”

“I don’t--- I don’t know.” His questions were building up your anxiety again.

Tony let out a huff of air and looked around, “Okay, well, I’m sure that means no.” He raised his other hand up to his ear pressed into an earpiece you didn’t notice before, “F.R.I.D.A.Y prepare the elevator and make sure Y/N gets up to her room all right.”

He turned back to you and put both hands on your cheeks, rubbing your tears away, “It’ll be okay, Y/N, we’re going to get you to your room, and I’ll tell the girls to go find you.”

“No!” you exclaimed and turned your head at the sound of cheers and wine glasses clinking. Steve was holding up a glass, arm wrapped around Natasha’s waist.  He had been finishing up a toast. “Cheers!” He leaned down and kissed her.

Before you knew it, tears cascaded down to your red lips and you hiccuped, “Natasha can’t know.” You turned back to Tony, whose face looked at yours with sympathy.  There was no way Nat can find out about your feelings for Steve.  You already felt crushed with rejection and guilt over loving your best friend’s boyfriend.  If Nat found out, not only would you ruin the friendship, but you would break her heart.

Tony’s eyes searched yours, and his face told you his heart was hurting at the sight of you. He understood.

He pulled you in by your shoulders and tightly wrapped his arms around you, stroking your hair, “Oh, boy.”

The elevator ride was dreadfully quiet, but only because there was some unvocalized, mutual understanding between you and Tony.  He didn’t want to say anything stupid that made you feel worse, and you appreciated that. You had become so fragile to him that he just held you until your cries died down.

You had been clinging onto Tony for what seemed like a long time.  Your fingers dug into his suit jacket as if you were holding onto dear life... or really what you were holding onto was the last piece of hope you had of Steve ever loving you back.

The doors opened, and F.R.I.D.A.Y spoke, “Have a good night, Miss Y/N. I hope you feel better.” You sniffled out a chuckle, “Thanks Friday.”

“Oh my god, Y/N.” You whipped your head around to see Wanda getting up from your couch, “What happened? Tony said it was an emergency.”

Your bottom lip parted from your top lip slightly. You just stared up at her, not knowing what to say, “Why don’t you take a look for yourself?”

She approached you with her eyebrows furrowed as she examined your state, “Y/N, did someone hurt you?” She glared at Tony for an explanation, but he shrugged and zipped his lips.

Wanda searched your eyes but failed to find a hint of doubt in them. She was always adamant about not reading the minds of her peers, and she knew you knew that. Something serious must’ve happened.

You held your breath, swallowing down the ache that was building up in your chest. “Wanda,” you whispered, “Please.”

She sighed and hesitantly brought her palms up to your face. She wiped the drying tears with her thumbs and pushed stray hairs behind your ears. With one hand she twiddled her fingers and a red fluorescence manifested into your mind. You closed your eyes, watching your memories of Steve replay in your mind.

Suddenly, her eyes shot open in realization, revealing her bright red irises. She stared at you with disbelief, and her face contorted as she felt all the different emotions of your past memories with Steve.

“Y/N...” she removed her hand, “Why didn’t you tell me?..or Nat?”

You were trying to be numb, trying to bury the feelings, but looking at Wanda’s helpless face was about to send you over the edge. Your eyes began to sting, as your tears threatened to fall. You tried to ignore them by darting your gaze to the floor or different objects around your living room. But you failed. And she knew.

“Wanda,” you gave up.

You quickly embraced her and cried into her strawberry blonde hair.  This moment was different from when you cried with Tony.  This time, you yelled and thrashed about. Your voice was rash and you could barely breathe.  Once you saw Wanda’s face, the agonizing burn hit you so hard like a slap to the face.

Steve doesn’t love you, and he never will.  Steve is too good. He’s way too good for you.  You’re not worthy. He deserves and desires someone better, someone more like him, and that someone is your best friend, Natasha.

“I love him!” you howled. “I’m so sorry Wanda.”

“He doesn’t love me.”

“I’m a bad friend.”

“What’s wrong with me?”

This is what felt to get your heart broken. If you had just spoken up, maybe you wouldn’t be in this position.

The flashes of “what if’s” and the “imagine” scenarios were overbearing.  What if it was you instead? What if he proposed to you?  You imagined your life with him.  You saw yourself waking up to a sleepy, beautiful man, who radiated at the sight of you in your pajamas.  You imagined the first time intertwining your fingers through his, looking up into his eyes and wondering, “Where the hell have you been all my life?”

But you will never have that, and you will never have him.

Steve will never hold you, kiss you, or touch you.

He belongs to Natasha now.

HELLO! <3

I came up with what I think is a better outline for my “Something Borrowed” series. It’s more well-planned out than it was originally, and I really want to see it through. There will only be a few changes, regarding character relationships. I’ve decided to take out Sharon because I want to stay true to the MC Universe timeline and I just couldn’t see how her character would work with my plot — ya get me? lol idk how to properly explain this.

I’m sorry if this upsets you…. just think of it as a revision early in the story. everything is still basically the same.

Therefore, for those who are curious to see how the original few chapters were or loved the original plot for “Something Borrowed” I will keep it up as: “Something Borrowed - Steve Rogers x Reader (original version)”

thanks for those who stayed with the original version <3 hope you love the new, revised version.

PART TWO