Hey guys! So I'm basically rewriting a lot of chapters just to make them better, in case anyone has forgotten. Also, I'm splitting apart the chapters so that's why I've just suddenly bombarded you all with chapters.
Anyways, for any new people this is rated M for later chapters…Like MA, dudes, so watch out. Though you wouldn't be here if you didn't want some of that, eh? Okay I'll stop now.
Once again, this chapter is just sort of introducing my OC. There will be some holes, but they'll be brought forth later on in the story. Fair warning, I write really long chapters, especially now since I'm adding a whole bunch of stuff and I don't feel like reposting this story. It might be a little slow to start, OK really slow, but please bear with me. I'm doing my best people! A good story takes time! And I'm really trying to make a good story! Anyways, I hope that you guys don't get bored; I'm just trying to help you guys get to know my OC and all that jazz. I might be over explaining myself, but I'm just really nervous about this rewrite T-T. This is my first fanfic so it's my baby.
….
"Well, this sucks," I sighed as I stared up at the screen in front of the large movie theater, "The movie doesn't start for another two hours. Should we just watch something else?"
"No way, Sara!" Breanne, a good friend of mine, piped up. She was a short, petite, pixy haired blond who had the kind of angelic face that made you want to hug her all the time, not that I ever hugged anyone much, "You wanted to watch this one for your birthday!"
"Really, it's okay. There's always something new Pixar is going to come up with," I said as I stared up into the screen, wondering what other Hollywood film would catch my interest.
"We could always do something else in the meantime." Rebecca, one of my other friends suggested. Rebecca was a pretty, mermaid haired Korean that had the sort of calming voice that always soothed me.
"Like what?" Jen, yet another friend, softly asked, her luscious brunette hair dancing in the small breeze that blew down the street. She was the wittiest of us all, though she was soft spoken, and she always surprised me with her sharp comments that came out of the blue, something I had begun to miss recently.
I turned back to face my friends clearly. Rebecca was staring at her nails, as if she saw some flaw in her perfectly manicured hands, "Well," she said looking up and smiling at me, "It's San Francisco; you act like there aren't a million things to do here."
I smiled, rolling my eyes.
"There's nothing I want to do besides veg' out in front of a large screen," I said as I looked up into the sky.
"Oh, Sara, don't say that," Breanne insisted as she walked up and hugged my arm. I felt my body tense up at her touch. It's ok, it's not skin I thought to myself as I smiled tightly down towards her innocent face, "Come on, be happy. We're all together. We never hang out anymore."
"We hang out," I grumbled, slowly detaching myself from her and almost patting her head, but then decided against it.
"But not like we used to," Jen's soft voice drifted out, "Not since…" her voice trailed off, swallowing the apprehension that had risen over the topic.
"Let's just…go look at a thrift store or something." I said, rubbing the back of my neck and smiling, hoping my eyes didn't show the morbid feelings I suddenly felt lurking in the back of my mind. I looked to Jen, feeling my eyebrows knit together in a pleading look as she sighed and looked at Rebecca, who pushed her hair back and smiled at me.
"Yeah, let's go do that," Rebecca said, walking over to me and wrapping her arm around my shoulder. I felt myself tense up again as I slowly moved away from her touch.
Chill out, dude, I told myself, you can do this.
….
After finally deciding on which store to walk around in, we got out the car and stepped onto the steep concrete, walking into one of my favorite spots. It had everything from books, to clothes, to antiques, and even toys. When we walked in, we all immediately turned to different directions. Breanne went to look at the vintage dresses, Rebecca bee lined for the shoes, while Jen followed me to the book section.
"How have you been?" her soft spoken voice said from behind me as I let my fingers trail the spines of all the books in front of me.
"Okay," I said with a shrug. I continued to touch the spines of the books, letting fate tell me which one to pick up
"You sure?" she asked as she stood next to me. I nodded as my answer, "If you say so."
She smiled warmly at me.
"I'm glad you came, I wasn't sure if you would say yes or not when I called you yesterday."
"Well, it's not like I had much of a choice when you called and told me we were going to hang out instead of asking." I reminded, though I turned to give her a small smile of reassurance.
"Well, it's not like you gave me a choice!" Jen sniggered, and then her face suddenly turned serious, "especially since you haven't been returning my calls lately."
I tried to keep my face still as I clenched and unclenched my jaw in nervousness, "Yeah, sorry. I…well, you know, I've just been busy," I continued to let my hands move along the books to give me something to do.
"You can talk to us, you don't have to hide," she said as she placed her hand over mine. I felt myself tense up again as I tried to move away. I glanced over to Jen who was staring at me, her head cocked to the side in confusion, "Why don't you like to touch people anymore? Does it have to do with-"
"There you guys are!" Breanne's cheerful voice called out.
I let out a breath I didn't even realize I was holding as I watched her bound towards us. I glanced over at Jen whose lips were pressed into a line.
"Sara, guess what I found!" Breanne squealed as she handed me a faded card.
I held it gently and I heard myself involuntarily take in a sharp breath when I saw that it was a vintage Captain America card.
"Wow…how could they have one here?" I breathed as I looked at Captain America standing over a defeated Hitler. I didn't have this one yet and I could feel myself beginning to smile.
"Oh, wow, you still like Captain America?" Rebecca called as she approached, holding several luminescent pumps in her hands.
"He's a legend!" I said defensively as I hold the card closer to my chest.
"And extremely good looking," Jen cooed softly, giving me a nudge. I glanced back at her, she was smiling but I could see that it didn't reach her eyes. When we made eye contact she shook her head ever so slightly and sighed. Please don't push it, Jen. I tried to telepathically tell her.
"Wouldn't it be cool if you could meet him?" Breanne asked as she looked at the card over my shoulder.
"I'll never get to meet him. Not in a million years…" I sighed as I walk over to the counter.
"Who cares about that geezer," Rebecca said as she placed her shoes in a basket, "It's all about Iron Man, if you ask me."
"He's not old! Not really anyways…" I exclaimed as I reached for my wallet, "The reports say he was frozen in ice and is rehabilitating to fit into our time."
"Yeah, because he's old," she scoffed. I turned to glare at her, but found that I couldn't with the warm smile she was giving me. I slowly smiled back at her.
"He's not old. Well, technically yeah, but he still looks like he's in his early twenties," I said as I turn to pay for the book and card, "And besides, he looks younger than Iron Man."
"But Tony Stark is an amazingly cool billionaire." Rebecca said as we walked out, "I must have watched his confession to being Iron Man at least twenty times."
"I think I might have to agree with Rebecca. Although he can be a tad arrogant, the guy has style," Jen mused softly to the side of me.
"Yeah, Captain America is cool, but Iron Man's suit is even cooler. I remember when I saw him flying on the news!" Breanne piped up, moving her arms out like she was ready to fly away.
I sighed and shook my head.
"Captain America is the first hero. So he'll always be first in my heart no matter what kind of new hero shows up," I said as I pull out the card and touched it lovingly.
"How sweet," Rebecca cooed, making me roll my eyes and laugh.
"When did you start liking Captain America, anyways?" Breanne asked curiously.
"Since I was eight. I was in our attic and I found my dad's stash of all these antique comics. After I read them, I became obsessed. I found out everything I could about him," I said, smiling at the memory of dusty afternoons spent reading about Captain America's crusades.
"You were pretty obsessed with collecting those cards for awhile. Didn't Todd buy you a couple online?" Rebecca asked as we walked to the car.
At the sound of that name, I felt my hands quiver and I tried to breathe deeply. I could feel several emotions erupt in me and I tried to focus on not letting myself lose control. Not after I worked so hard for so long to control myself.
"Oh… I'm sorry… I didn't mean to bring up old baggage," Rebecca said softly, her usually bright face turning into one of guilt.
"I…I," I started to say as I tried to breathe; hoping nobody was noticing how much I was trying to not freak out.
"What a beautiful group of ladies!" a foreign, female voice boomed from beside us.
We all jumped at the sound and turned to see a woman dressed in many colorful robes. She was a big woman who wore a turban with feathers and chains hanging off of it.
"Do you want me to tell your fortune? I'll give you a group discount."
"Uh, well-" Jen started to say, as she walked towards her car.
"What kind of fortune?" Rebecca cut in eagerly.
I pressed my palm against my forehead, hearing Jen sigh beside me. Rebecca was a nut for anything about zodiac signs or fortunetelling. Too many sleepovers were spent with her Ouija board trying to contact Elvis or Princess Diana.
"Whatever you like, child," She said, walking over to us and placing a hand on her shoulder, "You know much about this, yes?"
I watched Rebecca's eyes widen in excitement, letting me know we were going to be here for a while.
"Yeah! I do!" she exclaimed.
"Which kind do you prefer?" She asked, pulling Rebecca towards what could only be her store.
It was a very small store, something you might not notice if you weren't paying attention. But if you were, you would have a hard time looking away. The sign was a glimpse into the galaxy, planets and stars surrounding an eye. Inside the pupil of the eye read 'Madam Taika, fortune teller and whisperer of the spirits'.
The rest of us shared a glance before following them inside her small shop.
"I can't believe this," Jen muttered, the door chiming as we walked in.
"Don't worry, we'll be in and…out," I slowly said as I looked around.
Inside it was dark, yet warm and was cramped with so many objects, it made me wonder how the foreign woman even fit it all in here. There were crystals, candles, numerous books and other objects I couldn't even name. The only light in the shop came from the windows and a few lit candles.
"Come, children. Sit down with me," the woman said from the furthest corner. After maneuvering around several piles of antiques and books, we finally made it to the table.
"Who would like to go first?"
"Oh! Me, please," Rebecca said, leaning forward with enthusiasm, "Can you do a tarot reading?"
The woman smiled kindly at Rebecca. Then suddenly she sniffed the air and stared off into space, "The runes are calling to me, dear. I must see what they have to say. Perhaps, after, I can do your tarot reading?"
"Oh! Can we, please, see it, then? I've never seen anyone use runes before," Rebecca asked excitedly.
I glanced over at Jen who rolled her eyes and formed her hand into a gun, miming her suicide. I held back laughter as I looked back to the woman who stood up and walked towards the back of the room. I looked to Breanne at my other side who was trying to scoot away from some odd looking straw dolls.
"Seriously, Rebecca, how long are we going to stay?" Jen huffed after the woman walked into the next room, leaning back into her chair while crossing her arms.
"Yeah, the movie is going to start in forty-five minutes," Breanne piped up and looked around, apprehension showing on her face, "And it's scary in here!"
"Come on, guys. Just a little longer," Rebecca begged as the woman walked back with a small pouch.
"This has never happened so strongly before," the woman said with wonder…and I was hoping I was mistaken when I thought I heard a little bit of fear in her voice. No one else seemed to have heard it from the looks on their faces.
The women shook the bag rhythmically before dumping the contents on the table. Breanne let out a yelp when we all saw that they bones etched with odd symbols. One sharp edge bone slid towards me, its sharp side pointing in my direction. I leaned back into my seat to get as far away from the weird looking runes as possible.
The woman gasped, pressing her hands to her chest as she examined them closely, "You've lost someone, haven't you, my dear?" the women asked as she looked over one of the particular runes.
Rebecca leaned over closer, "Yes, I lost my grandpa when-"
"Not you," the woman said, cutting her off. She looked up and stared into my eyes, "You. The runes are whispering to me about you…interesting….Are you Hispanic?"
I stared at her for a moment, wondering if I should just leave. I looked over to the side of me to see Jen staring at me curiously. Finally I just shrugged, "Yeah, Mexican to be specific."
"Such beautiful brown eyes and full lips. Movie stars have to pay for lips like yours," the woman says as she looks over the runes, "You've lost a loved one…two…both male. One is your father, yes?"
The woman's words were making my heart thump in my ears. I looked around at my friends before I slowly nodded.
"And the other…was a boyfriend?"
I felt myself tense up before I gave a swift nod, wondering if I should just leave. Something about the setting made me want to run.
"The runes…they wish to warn you….There is great danger in your future…you won't know who to trust…but you must stay strong...stronger than you've ever had to be," she said as she continued to look over the runes.
"What? No. No, you must be reading them wrong! How could I be in danger when all I do is stay at home?" I asked across the table, staring at the bones. I began to lean over the runes myself, as if I could somehow make sense of the squiggly symbols over the white bones.
"You will be in danger….but….you will also be in love," the woman said looking over one particular rune. I felt my eyebrows furrow as I tried to concentrate and control my emotions, "Your family…you must keep them safe….oh," the woman said pulling away and moving her hand to hover over the sharp edged one pointing at me.
"What?" I asked in panic, "What about keeping them safe?"
"Your gift. Many will come for your gift and try to use it for destruction... But there will also be some who will need your help. You must keep yourself safe until you are compl-complete? What could that mean?" the woman muttered as she continued to look over the runes. "…What are you?" she asked, looking up at me curiously. I stood up abruptly and backed away, my chair sliding back and hitting a shelf full of candles.
"Sara?" Breanne said, reaching for me. I jerked away and walked out the store, not even stopping when I knocked over a tower of books.
It doesn't mean anything, I thought to myself as I walked over to Jen's car.
"Sara!" Jen's voice called as she walked over to me, "What happened? You don't actually believe that old bitch, do you? Come on, she used chicken bones for Christ's sake!" She stood before me, her face turning into one of concern. She probably noticed how pale I must have looked. "You, okay?"
I didn't know what to say. I knew that I wanted to say I was fine, even though I wasn't. I looked at the ground and back up again. How could I explain what I was feeling to my friends? They didn't know anything, and involving them would only make it worse.
"Yeah. Of course I'm fine. She was just creepy with her KFC bones," I joke as I watch Breanne and Rebecca come out the store.
Jen slowly smiled at me, "Yeah, she probably ate them right before we came here," she said.
"What the hell happened?" Rebecca asked as she neared us.
"Are you ok?" Breanne asked.
"Nothing… I'm fine. Let's just go watch the movie," I said as I slowly pat Breanne on the head.
…
"Thanks for today," I tried to say with as much enthusiasm as I could, after we settled back into our seats in the car. "It was fun."
I was completely tired, even though we had only watched a movie. All I could think about was that damn fortune. There's no way that shit was real…right?
"No problem," Jen assured, bringing me back to reality, as she started the ignition, "It's not every day you turn nineteen."
"We've missed you. It hasn't been the same since you started homeschooling," Breanne sighed from the back seat.
"You never even told us what college you're going to," Rebecca pointed out.
"That's because I'm not going to college. I'm taking a few years off, you know, finding myself and all that jazz," I shrugged, sinking into my seat.
"Well, there's nothing wrong with that," Jen said, looking into her rearview mirror as we drove up the freeway, "Do you have any idea what you want to be? When we were little you wanted your own restaurant."
"That was when I was younger. I think…I want to do something with alternative energy. The world needs to find more ways to be green, you know?" I said as I look at the buildings fly by.
"I think that's really cool," Breanne said, leaning forward so that she was in the middle.
"Yeah, Tony Stark is working on alternative energy," Rebecca said, poking her head over my shoulder, "Stark tower-"
"Is running completely on its own generated energy. It's the beacon for our futures energy," I finished, turning around, "I've been reading up on it."
"And you say you like Captain America more," Rebecca teased, "Hey! If you really get involved with alternative energy, you have to work for Stark Industries and become best friends with Tony Stark and introduce us all!"
I laughed, "I don't think it works that way." I wrapped my arm around the headrest so that I could face them clearly, "And I prefer Captain America because he's awesome in his own way. Come on, you have to admit he has his own charm to!"
Everyone smiled, agreeing if only to please me. The conversations ranged from light, to feather light as we slowly made our way home.
…
"So should we just bake brownies and cookies like we used to when we were little?" I asked as we walked up the path to my house.
"We could," Rebecca said, wrapping her arms around my shoulders and giving me a gentle squeeze before releasing me, "But we have something else in mind." She gave me a mischievous smile as we neared my door. I looked to Jen and Breanne who held suspiciously blank faces.
"What's going on?" I asked as I open the door
"Happy birthday!" a crowd of people cheered from inside. I jumped back and looked from my friends to the crowd and back again.
"Whoa, I…whoa," I said as I looked around in astonishment.
"Happy birthday, mija." My mom said warmly, making her way through the crowd, "We thought this year we'd do something special for you…after everything…you deserve it."
She walked up to me and hugged me. I almost tensed up before I hugged her back tightly. When she pulled away she looked at me pleadingly.
"You like it, don't you Sarita?" my mom asked, using my childhood nick name, making it impossible for me to do anything but smile.
"It's amazing, mom, thank you," I say, pulling away gently.
"Hey, birthday girl!" a very familiar voice said from the other room.
I smiled as I turned to see my oldest sister standing there. She looked just like our mom, with her tanned skin, brown almond shaped eyes, and angular features, only she had full lips like me.
"Hey, Maria," I said, letting her walk forward and hug me. I looked over at my friends only to see Jen staring at me intently. I quickly looked away as I pulled away from the hug and smiled at my sister.
"Let's get this party started! We've all been waiting to eat!" She shouted as she led everyone to our backyard. I watched everyone walk out of the room, although Jen kept glancing at me questioningly.
"Hope you don't mind the party. It was mom's idea if you're mad," a voice whispered in my ear. I jumped as I turned to see my other older sister, Laura leaning up on her tip toes looking at me with concern. She also looked like my mother, if not more so, since she looked like a miniature version of her.
I smiled down as I patted her head, gently pushing her long black hair out of the way, "It's fine, I don't mind," I whispered back.
"But I know you don't like being around a lot of people anymore," She whispered again, biting her lip in nervousness as she looked around.
I smiled at her worrisome self and leaned down to kiss her forehead, "I'll be fine. As long as I don't touch too many people I'll feel better about it all."
"You've done so good all these years, Sara. You don't have to be scared to be around people," Laura said holding my hand earnestly, "See? You're doing good with us."
"That's different…and I don't want to touch anyone else," I said softly, staring at our fingers as they fiddle around each other.
"Sara," Laura began to say.
"Hey! What's taking you guys? The party's starting without you!" Rebecca called as she walks towards us. When she was next to us she grabbed my upper arm and pulled me with her, "Josh Parker is here and he can't wait to see you!"
I felt myself tense up again, realizing how sore and tired I'm going to be by the end of the day. Once we were outside, I pulled away from Rebecca's grip, "I don't know…"
"Nope!" Rebecca said turning to point her finger at me, "He's hot and nice, and," her voice turned soft as she lowered her hand and pushed her hair back, "I mean…it's been three years…you deserve to find someone."
I stared at the ground, biting my bottom lip, "It's not that easy," I said, "And I don't want to meet anyone."
"But" Rebecca started to say, "Sara, I mean, I know it must be hard for you, but you should try-"
"Rebecca, please. I don't want to meet anyone. I'm not going to find anyone to like or love," I interrupted. I could feel my heart racing, along with my jaw clenching and unclenching at the thought of having my friends or family set me up with eligible bachelors for the rest of my life.
Rebecca sighed in exasperation, "Sara, come on-"
"I said I don't want to meet anyone!" I shouted, "God, can you stop trying to tell people what to do all the time? You're so selfish!" I walked away; ignoring the confused looks I was getting as I walked out the front door and sat on our front steps.
The door opened behind me. I pressed my hands against my face, not wanting to talk to anyone.
"Mija, what's wrong?" my mom's concerned voice came from beside me. I could hear her settling down next to me. When I didn't say anything she wrapped her arm around my shoulders and pulled me close. I allowed her to hold me, letting my weight lean on her. When I didn't say anything, she began to pet my head gently, "Baby? What happened?"
"I can't be around people, I don't know how to anymore," my muffled voice called out through my hands.
"Oh, baby, you can," she said soothingly.
"No I can't, mom," I said moving my hands to look at her, "I just can't."
My mom held my face in her hands, "Baby, you can do anything you want to do. I know it's been really hard for you, for so long and maybe the party was a bit much-"
"A bit?" I rose a brow at her.
"Ok, a little too much, but you have to stop hiding. Please, baby?" my mom pleaded, "For me?"
"Mom, you don't understand-" I huffed.
"I do understand," My mom shook me slightly by the shoulders, "I understand what it's like to lose someone you love. Even more than you do," she said solemnly. I lowered my eyes, feeling guilt and sorrow rake my stomach as I thought of my father, a man I never even met. My mother did know my pain. She knew it too well, "That's why I can tell you that you can be around people, and you can be so much more if you only try."
"I think my situation is a little different from yours, Mom," I mumbled, pulling away as my eyebrows furrowed. My knees pulled up, my arms wrapping around them as I held myself tightly.
My mom was quiet for a few moments. She never liked to talk about what really happened. She refused it usually, this time no different. After some time, I was sure she was going to leave when she held me again, and stroked my hair as she whispered thickly, "I love you. Essentially, we have felt the same pain, my poor baby. Things have happened that I would give anything to prevent from happening to you. But you are stronger than this, Sara. You've always been strong and I need you to be strong again. Not just for your friends or your sisters or even me. You need to be strong for yourself. Please, Sara, don't hide from yourself anymore."
I could feel the hot sting of tears behind my eyes, though I didn't let them fall.
After a few moments I sighed and I pulled away, "It's not like I want to be this way. I miss wanting to go out with all my friends and having fun. I miss my old life. But give me some time, mom, jeez. Doing this was just too much for me… But fine… I'll go through with tonight, but don't do something like this again." I glanced at her, wondering how I could possibly be strong when I felt so weak.
My mom's face brightened as she kissed my forehead, "Good. Oh, and make up with Rebecca. You know, she was the one that called me and suggested the whole party. In her own way, this is her trying to help. You do know that, right, mija?"
I sighed, "Yeah, I know, and I will. I already feel really bad," I sighed, stretching my legs in front of me.
"Good girl," my mom whispered, patting my head and standing up, "I gotta go check on everybody."
I breathed deeply, composing myself, before I stood up and slowly followed my mom inside. I walked into the living room, feeling a little nervous when I saw Rebecca, with Jen and Breanne at her side consoling her. When they noticed me, they stared at me quietly. Thankfully, Rebecca wasn't crying. After taking another breath I walked up to them.
"Rebecca, I'm sorry," I immediately said as I reach them, fiddling around with my fingers.
"I was just trying to help," Rebecca replied, touching the tip of her hair.
"I know, and I'm sorry," I said softly.
"It's okay. I know you're going through a tough time. We're just trying to help you move on," Rebecca said standing up. Jen slowly stood up beside her, "it's just been such a long time and you've changed so much."
"I know," I said softly again.
"We miss you," Breanne said softly from the couch.
"I know," I sighed, pressing my palm against my forehead.
"And we're trying to understand," Jen said softly.
"And I appreciate it," I said gazing at them pleadingly, "I really do. I just need to take things slow. I'm sorry."
We all shared a sigh and Jen walked up to me, "Okay," she said, "We understand."
"Thanks," I said, smiling softly.
"Okay!" Breanne bursts out, jumping to her feet, "Let's go celebrate your birthday!"
…
"Open some more presents!" my uncle called. Only my mom's side of the family came to my birthday. As far as I knew, my dad didn't have any family.
My uncle walked forward, handing me a thick envelope. He ruffled my hair, making me grimace and smooth it down again when he walked away laughing. I opened the envelope and felt my jaw drop when I saw several bills inside. I looked up openmouthed, making everyone laugh.
"Looks like we're going shopping again!" Rebecca shouted, running over to me with more gifts in her hands.
As Rebecca handed me the gifts, I smiled, nodded and awed at all the gifts everyone gave me, everything from clothes to homemade items.
"Let's move on to cake," Jen called out, giving me a smile as she settled a large fudgy cake on the table. I breathed a sigh of relief, glad that the day was almost over.
"Are you having fun?" my mother asked me as I started to help her get plates for the cake while my sisters brought out the karaoke machine.
"I guess," I sighed tiredly. I glanced at her, noticing the worried look on her face and smiled reassuringly. "Ok, some of it was fun. Thanks for making me do this."
My mom smiled and hugged me. Suddenly we heard the doorbell ring. I checked the time and thought it was kind of late for somebody to be showing up, "Did you invite anyone else?" I asked. My mom shook her head as she headed to answer it, while the doorbell rang again.
"I'll get it!" Laura sang out. She opened the door before my mom could and jumped back; revealing an intimidating man with an eye-patch standing there.
"Whoa," I heard someone from the living room comment.
"I am sorry to intrude," the fierce man said politely, yet still somehow sounding harsh, "But I need to speak to Sara Perez"
"And who are you?" my mother said, walking over and pulling Lara behind her. I stayed where I was, quietly watching from a distance.
"You can call me Director Fury. Now may I please speak with her?" he said. He looked across the room, his gaze settling down on mine, sending a shiver down my spine.
"What do you need her for? Take your friends to the backyard," my mother called out to me. I looked to Jen and Rebecca who were standing next to each other and nodded for them to go. They glanced at each other as they started to usher everyone out of the room, but I didn't follow, I wanted to see what was going on.
"It is very urgent that whatever is said between us is confidential," Director Fury said, peering at me again.
"Are you aware that I am her mother?" my mom demanded with her hands on her hips.
"Anything you have to say to her you can say in front of us," Maria hissed, walking up to the door, and blocking the man's vision of me. I could feel my heart start to swell at my family's protectiveness. Even after everything, they still protected me.
"I'm afraid that is out of the question. This is serious official business. It is of great importance that Ms. Perez at least listens to what I have to say alone," Director Fury proclaimed.
"What's this about?" I asked, walking up to the man. As I walked up, I looked up at his face, staring into his good eye and trying not to think about blinking.
"The world is in danger, and we need your help." Director Fury said, his voice coming out stern as he stood up straighter, pulling his hands behind his back.
I felt like I had been shocked when I heard the words come out of the one eyed man's mouth. I could feel my hands start to sweat, my pulse quickening as I remembered the fortune the woman told me earlier that day.
"Excuse me?" was all I could think to say.
"We know about your…gift. And we need you as a part of our team." Director Fury said, glancing at my family, "This is a conversation that should be just between you and I."
"No." My mother said reaching for the door, "My daughter is not going to do anything, especially since you refuse to even let us know what's going on. Now if you'll excuse us, you're interrupting our party."
She started to close the door, but Fury held it open easily.
"Mrs. Perez, this is for the safety of the world. I understand, given your family's situation that you might be…reluctant to let your daughter help, but we need her."
"No," I whispered, making everyone turn their gazes at me, "I…I don't want anything to do with whatever your planning on doing. Now please go away."
"Ms. Perez, please listen to me!" He said. "I assure you that what we're doing is for the good of everyone, please believe me. How about I return tomorrow to discuss this on a more decent hour and your family can be present while we discuss it? Here, please look this over to find out more about why we want you to be a part of our organization. Have a nice night ladies."
He handed me a tablet, frowning slightly. I looked at my mom who was staring angrily at Director Fury. He let go of the door and nodded at us before walking down the path to a sleek black car. I glanced at Maria who looked lost in thought as she wrapped her arms around my shoulder. Laura looked around me to glance at the high tech tablet I held in my hands.
"Throw that away," my mom snapped angrily as she closed the door. She started to walk away when she glanced back to see that my sisters and I hadn't moved, "What did I say? Throw it away!"
"Well, aren't you a little curious to find out what this is about?" Laura asked holding the tablet in her hand, "I wonder how you turn it on?"
"No, because I'm not letting Sara go anywhere. Who knows what can happen to her! No. I don't like this at all," my mom said pacing around the living room. I didn't say anything while I thought over the fortune.
Your gift. Many will come for your gift and try to use it to destruction. But there will also be some who will need your help.
So which one was at my doorstep? I thought to myself.
"But… I mean, what if there is some sort of danger out there that Sara can help with?" Laura said. I was shocked at her words, but I also thought over them. What if she was right?
"Maybe I can just look at it. And if I don't like it then when he comes back tomorrow I can just tell him no," I shrugged as I grabbed the tablet back from Laura.
"We have guests!" my mom said, ignoring what I said as she left the room. "Throw that away and come to the backyard."
"Let me see that," Maria said yanking the tablet out of my hand.
"Hey!" I whined reaching for it, "That's for me!"
"Do you think it will explode after we look at it?" She asked turning it over to examine it.
"How should I know?" I said irritably as I tried to reach for it, though Maria held it out of reach, "Can I have it back, please?"
"Okay…but let's just try to enjoy your party, for now," Maria said giving it back to me.
I held the tablet in my hands and glanced back up at my sisters. Whatever this was, it would have to wait until we were completely alone.
"Yeah…yeah ok," I said as I walked with them to the backyard.
…
"Thanks for having us!" Breanne squeaked as they walked out the door.
"Thank you for coming, mija," my mom smiled as she ushered my friends out, "Sorry you can't stay."
"It's okay," Jen assured, though she kept glancing at me, "It's a school night after all."
"Yeah," Rebecca yawned, "but we'll visit again."
I walked them to the car, feeling tired, not to mention anxious to get to my room where my sisters were no doubt looking over the tablet without me. As Rebecca and Breanne crawled into the car, Jen pulled me aside, "What's going on?" she asked.
"Nothing," I said without looking at her.
"Bullshit," she said, "I've been pretty patient with you, but you're keeping secrets, Sara. Come on, you can tell me. I'll understand… Does it have to do with that weird eye patch dude?"
"I can't tell you anything," I said looking up at her, "I can't tell you what's going on. You have to listen to me, my life is really complicated and I can't involve you or anyone else, ok?"
"You don't trust me?" She responded angrily.
"No! I do, but I can't tell you about this. I'm sorry," I said defensively, but looked away guiltily.
"You know what? I have been trying to be understanding and nice but I can't continue to do this if you're just going to keep having secrets about your life from me." Jen said. I looked up at her, feeling my chest tighten as she stared at me with a wounded expression, "You were my best friend before Todd died and now you won't even text me back anymore."
"Jen-" I began to say.
"No. Call me when you don't want to keep secrets anymore," she said bitterly as she walked into her car and started the ignition.
"Jen!" I called into the window.
"What happened?-Why are you guys fighting?" Rebecca's and Breanne's muffled voices called from the car. I watched Breanne's confused expression before Jen pulled out of my driveway.
"Jen I'm sorry!" I shout out, feeling my eyes well up with hot tears.
Why does it have to be this way? I thought as I wiped my eyes.
…
"Hey, what happened?" Laura said jumping off the bed when I walked in.
"Jen's mad because I won't tell her I'm a freak and I might have to save the world," I said glumly as I walked over to my bed where Maria was laid out. She was concentrating on the tablet as she kept trying to figure out how it worked. When I sat down next to her she looked up and pat me soothingly on the knee.
"You're not a freak, Sara," Laura said sympathetically as she checked outside to see if our mom's door was closed.
"Yeah, its worse. You're Mexican." Maria said with a laugh, but I didn't laugh back because the ghost of Jen's hurt expression was floating in my mind.
"Says you," I said monotonously.
"Sar-" Laura began to say her forehead wrinkling in apprehension.
"It's fine. I don't want to talk about it anymore," I sighed, waving off whatever consolation she was about to give.
"Don't worry. She'll get over it," Maria said, laying the tablet down and rested her head on her hands to look up at me.
"I don't think she will," I grumbled rubbing my forehead, feeling a headache coming on.
"Maybe one day you won't have to hide anymore," Laura said as she sat down on the bed with us.
"Yeah, and I'll be living happily ever after with Captain America," I scoffed.
"Come on, Sara. Your power is kinda cool," Maria said sitting up.
"No its not," I protested weakly, feeling my brows furrowing. My sisters sighed in unison as Maria handed me the tablet.
"Here, you try. I can't get it to work," Maria said as she lay down on her back.
I stared at the black screen, feeling my chest tighten as I thought about what I was getting myself into. I breathed deeply through my nose and exhaled out of my mouth, trying to think about this calmly. One side of me just wanted to throw it away like my mom had commanded, but the other side was filled with a curiosity that made my hands tightly hold onto the edges of the tablet. Did I want to know? So many questions were burning inside of me.
"How do they even know about me?" I whispered as I stare into the black screen.
"Maybe they've known since the beginning but didn't want to bother you," Laura suggested as she lay down beside Maria.
"Maybe," I mumble as I swiped my hands across the tablet, making a white light come from the screen.
"How'd you do that?" Maria asked sitting up to look over my shoulder, Laura mimicking her movements.
"I don't know, I just touched it," I said as we watched the screen show me several files at once.
"Click on this one," Laura said pointing to one that said Objective. I did as she asked and a screen popped out like a hologram, making us all jump back as we saw the eye patch man staring at us.
"Whoa, 3D," Maria said looking at it in wonder.
"Ms. Perez, if you're watching this then that means you are at least considering to work with us. Long story short, we need your help. I'm sure you have many questions and I will do my best to answer them here. We've known about you from the beginning.-"
"See?" Laura whispered.
"Shh!" Maria said.
"We've done our best to keep you a secret from other organizations, considering the circumstances of your situation." I felt myself tense up again and glanced at my sisters. Maria rubbed my back soothingly as we continued to watch the hologram, "But considering Earth's circumstances, we can't afford to keep you a secret anymore since you could be a great asset to our team. As I've told you before, the world is in danger and we desperately need your help."
"Ok, dude get to the point," Maria huffed.
"Shh!" I hush.
"We need you as part of the Avenger Initiative." Fury's voice called out.
"What?" I said when suddenly more screens popped out showing several videos at once. I dropped it and cried out in surprise and we all stared at the screens quietly. "No way."
"The Avengers Initiative, or Avengers for short, is a group of spectacular people who can come to the world's aide when everything else has failed." He said as we watched all the screens showing up at once. My eyes were glued for some time at a giant green man wreaking havoc on a city.
"Holy shit, look there's Captain America!" Maria said nudging me and pointing to one of the screens. My eyes widened at the live footage of him leading an army to fight against the Nazi.
"What the fuck?" I whispered as I looked across at all the screens and saw a familiar golden and red figure.
"Iron Man is a part of this to?" Laura wondered aloud.
"Shh" I hushed, "He's still talking."
"It would be your job to work in conjunction with this group to find the Tesseract." He said as the video clip screens became smaller and a large blue cube came out.
"A what?" Maria said.
"A lesser act," Laura supplied.
I sighed, "No it's a-"
"The Tesseract is an extremely powerful energy source. It was originally in custody of S.H.I.E.L.D.s headquarters, but was stolen recently. In the wrong hands, this cube could destroy the world. That's why we need you to help us find the Tesseract to eliminate this possible threat. With the help of your powers, we could find the Tesseract faster and save Billions of lives. For more information on who you will be working with and what S.H.I.E.L.D is, click through the files. I hope that you will consider working with us. Have a good day" Director Fury's figure vanished, leaving us with several files blinking out at us.
We were quiet for a few silent moments before Maria let out a long, low whistle, "Wow. Guess you're going to save the world, huh?"
"Wait." Laura said, "Should she really be going?"
Her brow was furrowed, etching lines across her forehead, again. I sat quietly as I watched my sisters talk.
"You were the one that said that if the world needed her she should help," Maria retorted.
"Yeah, but this actually looks dangerous. Like end of the world dangerous," Laura said.
"Which is exactly why she needs to go! She could find the cube faster than anyone," Maria said.
"But at what cost?" Laura said.
"Look, this isn't your decision, or mom's or even mine's. It's Sara's. So what are you going to do?" Maria asked turning her gaze to me.
I didn't say anything for a long time, unsure what I was feeling at the moment. I felt so many things at once, I couldn't even think what I wanted to say to my sisters. So I said the first thing that came to mind.
"This is weird."
"More like insane, but that makes it cool, I think." Maria said ruffling my hair, "Do you even want to go, though?"
"I…I don't know. I kind of just want to stay home and not think about this." I said rubbing my forehead.
"We have to think about it. He's coming back tomorrow," Laura said grimly.
"It's my birthday! I don't have to," I said turning away from them.
"Ok, Sara, please be serious," Maria said, moving my shoulders so I would turn back to them, "If he's telling the truth-"
"Which we're not even sure he is," I huffed.
"If he's telling the truth," Maria reiterated, ignoring me, "Then the world really is in danger, and your one of the only people who can stop it."
"No pressure," Laura joked.
"I can barely control my powers, how the hell am I supposed to even help them?" I said irritably.
"Ok, you actually can control them. Remember those trips the three of us took to the red woods just so you could practice?" Laura asked.
"And you can sense where this tessercrack or whatever is if you tried. It's made of energy!" Maria said.
"Ok, first off, I almost burned down like ten trees when I was practicing, and second, I've never actually looked for something using my powers!" I said shaking my head.
"Not true. You found my phone once remember?" Maria said.
"That was a phone, this is a freaking dangerous cube of energy," I say in exasperation.
"Which could actually make it easier," Laura said.
"Guys!" I say shaking my head, "I don't want to do it, okay?"
"Why not?" Maria asked.
"Because I'm scared, alright? I'm scared of what could happen, I'm scared of the world ending, I'm scared that I'll mess up, I'm scared of myself! Happy now?" I stood up and walked over to the window to stare at the black sky. I watched the reflection of my sisters standing up and walking over to me.
"You don't have to be scared anymore," Laura soothed, wrapping her small frame around my waist, "You have so much control over yourself."
"We believe in you," Maria whispered wrapping her arms around my shoulders. I began to feel my eyes well up in tears, "Do you want us to go with you?"
"No, it's too dangerous," I sniffed thickly.
"We don't care," Laura said softly.
"I care. If I'm going, I'm going by myself," I said wiping away the tears that fell down my chin.
"So you're going?" Maria asked.
"Maybe. I'm not sure. Do you think I can just go home right after we find the Tesserat or whatever it's called?" I asked.
"You can ask him tomorrow," Maria said.
"If you go, he better let you call us," Laura said holding me tighter.
"I don't even know if I want to go," I sighed.
"But you'll get to meet Captain America and Tony Stark" Maria said.
"And save the world…" Laura supplied.
"And show off your powers…" Maria continued.
"Which could give you more confidence…" Laura said.
"Which could help make you want to get out of the house more…" Maria pointed out.
"Which, in turn could help you have a happier life…" Laura suggested.
"Which also means-"
"OK!" I laughed pushing them away from me in exasperation, "I get it! I'll go. Mom's going to hate it, but I'll go."
"Since when do we do what mom says," Maria pointed out, raising a brow.
….
"I don't know why he's even coming," My mom mumbled grudgingly as she laid some snacks out on the coffee table, along with some refreshments.
"If you're so unhappy about it then why are you making our home so welcoming?" I said as I leaned against the doorframe.
"I don't want him to have anything bad to say about me!" My mom huffed as she fluffed and straightened all of our throw pillows. I sighed, Typical Mom.
"Fine," I sighed audibly as I pulled out my iPod.
"Vacuum the rug before he gets here," my mom ordered, stopping me from beginning to play a game as she walked out the living room, probably to inspect the bathroom.
"We don't even know when he's coming!" I called.
"Do it, Sara!" My mom called back, making me sigh as I pulled the vacuum from the closet in the hall and did as she asked. When I was done I heard the doorbell ring and quickly put the vacuum cleaner away, peering into the peephole to see that it was indeed Director Fury in all of his eye patch glory. I sighed as I saw my mom walk briskly towards me.
"Is it him?" she asked. I nodded as my answer, "Well why didn't you answer the door!?"
She walked over to the door and opened it.
"Hello, Mr. Fury. Please, come in."
"Thank you, Mrs. Perez. I didn't get a chance to say it yesterday, but you have a beautiful home," he said as he walked in.
"Oh, you're too kind," Mom said as she led him to the living room. I rolled my eyes at how overly nice she was even though she didn't like him. I turned to see my sisters walking down the steps, staring at me worriedly.
"You ready?" Maria asked.
I shrugged, "I guess," I sighed.
"Girls, come in," my mom called from the living room.
I inwardly groaned and considered just running out of the house and living in the Red Woods with Caesar and all the other escaped Apes and helping them rule the world. Or I can just go to the living room, I think to myself. I glanced at my sisters who nodded at me.
"Don't worry, if he doesn't agree to your terms than you can just tell him no," Laura reminded soothingly.
"And then if he keeps bugging you, I'll take care of him," Maria encouraged as they led me to the living room.
Director Fury just didn't fit into my mom's plush and floral living room, but I made no comment as I sat down on the couch next to my mom, Laura sitting down next to me while Maria leaned against the armrest.
"Now that you're here, Sara," Fury said setting down one of my mom's teacups daintily, if that was even possible, "I'm sure you've looked through the tablet."
"Goodness, no," My mom answered for me, making me roll my eyes again, "I'm afraid we haven't since we have no interest in working with-"
"Yeah, I saw it," I said interrupting my mom and ignoring the look she was giving me, "And I have a lot of questions."
"I figured as much," Director Fury said with a nod.
"Sara, what are you doing?" A tense edge was coming to mom's voice as she tried to keep the forced smile on her face.
I looked at my mom and glanced down; it made me feel guilty knowing what I was about to do, but I knew that it had to be done this way - otherwise my mother would never let me hear the end of it.
I sighed as I looked up at my mom again, "It's ok, mom. I got this."
"Sara," Mom said in a warning voice.
"Come on, Mom. This is more important than any of us," Maria said exasperated.
"No, she's not going. How will I know if she's safe or not?" My mom demanded angrily.
"We can allow your daughter to contact you whenever she feels the need to," Fury supplied as he sat quietly watching us bicker amongst ourselves.
"What if I want to talk to my daughter?" my mom questioned, turning her irritation to Director Fury.
"Your daughter doesn't have cell phone?" Fury asked raising his eyebrow.
"I do," I answered, bringing my phone up as evidence.
"Then I see no problem," Fury said leaning back into his seat.
"Well, I still don't like it. Can't I go with her?" My mom asked stubbornly.
"No." Fury and I answered in unison. My mother and Fury looked at me in united confusion, "I don't want you to go, mom. What if it's dangerous? I can't put you at risk."
"And I don't want you at risk at all!" my mom responds angrily.
"Mom" I groaned.
"It's best you don't know your daughter's location, Mrs. Perez. In case someone were to use you to get to her," Fury said.
"Hold on…" I said leaning forward, "You guys aren't going to make sure my family is safe at all times?"
"If you were to help us, then we can ensure, to the best of our abilities that your family would be safe against any threat," Fury said as he picked up his teacup and took a sip.
"Do you think anyone will do that?" I asked, an edge of worry coming to my tone.
"It's possible if you find the Tesseract." Fury said.
"And how is that supposed to make me want to help you guys? If I find the Tesseract, my family could be put at risk," I said angrily grabbing a cookie and biting into it to have something to do with my hands.
"If we don't find the Tesseract, the whole world could be at risk, which includes your family last time I checked" Fury retorted, taking another sip from his cup.
"Wait, what is a Tesseract and what are you going to be doing?" My mom asked barging into the conversation, making Laura and Maria sigh.
"Mom, the less you know the better. Otherwise, we'd be here all night," Maria said grabbing a cookie and nibbling on it.
"It's a cube made of energy, and basically they want me to help them find it," I explained to my mom.
"You can do that?" she asks incredulously.
"Yup," I nod as I try to avoid her look.
"I…I didn't know" she says softly.
"Yeah," I shrugged, unsure what else to say, "Well, you don't like to know a lot of thing when it comes to my powers."
"Sara…" Mom began to say.
"Look, mom, I don't want to get into this right now. We have more important things to discuss than your overwhelming need to be ignorant about the on goings of my powers" I snapped, "It's obvious how this is going to end. I have to go."
"No you don't," My mom said angrily.
"Yes I do!" I said heatedly, feeling irritated at the situation, "Can't you see I'm doing it to protect you guys? If the world ends or whatever happens, then that means you guys will be put in danger as well!"
"Sara!" Mom cried out.
"It doesn't matter what you say. I'm legally an adult. I don't need your permission." I cut over her. My mom stared at me with narrowed eyes that gradually turned to hurt.
"Fine," she said softly.
I sigh before turning back to Fury who quietly let us have our conversation, "I still have a few more conditions and questions," I said as I take another bite of the cookie in my hand.
"I figured," he said as he took another sip.
"How long will I be gone?" I asked.
"That depends on how fast you can help us locate the Tesseract" He answers.
"Can I go home after I'm done locating the Tesseract?" I asked.
"If it's safe for you to do so, then by all means, you'll be free to go" He said.
"So, you're not going to keep me and use my powers for anything other than locating the Tesseract?" I asked narrowing my eyes.
"Of course not" Fury promised, smiling at me.
"No experiments whatsoever?" I asked suspiciously.
"Wouldn't dream of it" Fury said.
"How do I know?" I demanded.
"You'll just have to trust me?" He answered.
I was quiet for a few moments. I glance at my sisters who were looking at me encouragingly. I turned my gaze to my mom who refused to look me in the eyes. I sighed.
"Ok… I'll join the Avengers Initiative. But I have one last question" I said.
"And that would be…?"
"When do I get to meet Captain America?"
…
Weeeell, that's all folks! First chapter is done! Is it a success? I damn well hope so! I really, really, really, really hope it's better than the original. I mean, I think it is. If you have any suggestions, let a homie know. (PFFT, I really just wrote that.) But seriously, let me know what you guys think, is this better than the old one? Fair warning: next chapter is kinda short compared to this one! Sorry had to be done. Once again, thanks for reading!
Until next time,
Cozy
