Layla wasn't sure what had happened. The atmosphere around her and Thanos had changed to chilly degrees. He had seemingly been avoiding her all Thursday night, and Friday morning. She usually woke up before him on weekdays, but on Friday, he was already tinkering in her basement before she even had breakfast ready. When she asked him what he would like, he just grunted.
She tried to start a conversation with him more than a few times before she had to leave for the final school day of the week. He was pretty unresponsive, so she was forced to leave the house in defeat.
Still, it wasn't all bad that day; after the incident with Thanos, Mr. Haynes hadn't bothered her at all, only speaking to her when she had a telephone call or something. Even then, he usually avoided eye contact. She actually felt a bit guilty about that, but she would look weak if she tried to apologize.
Class was a bit difficult when Layla realized that she was having trouble concentrating. She was too busy wondering what she had done to upset her purple housemate.
I don't remember anything in particular. Was it because I told him not to kill Haynes? He couldn't have hated Haynes that much, could he? I hope not, because that isn't an issue I'm willing to bend on.
"Teacher? Are you OK?" Layla's head jolted up from where it had been resting on her arms when one of her female students piped up. All the kids were staring at her, some of them trying to hide giggles. Well, she supposed she did look silly.
"Sorry, my head must have flown to the clouds for a few seconds," Layla said, glad to see the kids light up again. It wouldn't do to daydream in class, especially since a few of the kids still had to learn to separate "their" from "they're". Teaching the children was a hard job, but someone had to do it.
Thank goodness Mr. Haynes has been off my back lately, or I would have been in hot water with him for my performance today, Layla thought to herself as the kids began to line up to hand her their papers. When I get home, I should just ask Thanos what I did. No, he'd probably lie to me. I'll just have to make it up to him. Being with someone who doesn't speak to you is the same as being alone…
When one of her students got upset, talking it out with them and letting them vent usually helped. With Thanos, she wasn't so naïve as to think that would work. Unlike the children, he wasn't very vocal about what he was feeling. In that respect, he was pretty similar to most human men…
Before heading home, she made a quick detour at the supermarket. Jogging inside, she was blasted by the cool air of an air conditioner. Wondering why the heck a store would blast the AC in the autumn, Layla rushed towards the baking section.
Thanos was on the couch in the living room, thumbing through some reading material he had borrowed from Layla's bookshelf. It was biographical book about, of course, a famous literary writer. Thanos didn't care to learn more about any humans, but it was one of the few books in the house that held any interest for him. Looking up at the clock, he noticed that Layla was a bit late.
Just as the thought crossed his mind, he heard the keys rattle at the front door, before a gust of wind rushed in, followed by a familiar, bundled up female. She was holding a plastic bag in one hand. Closing the door behind her with one foot, Layla lowered her scarf.
"Man, it's getting colder, and it's not even October yet!" She laughed, taking off her green hat to hang on the wooden appliance near the door. Rubbing her arms up and down, she looked at Thanos. "You don't even look cold at all. How do you do it?"
Thanos put down his book, almost grateful for a break from it. "Layla, I can survive in the cold of space. A bit of Earth weather hardly means anything to me." Layla smiled and rolled her eyes, a response he didn't expect.
"You know, that kind of makes me jealous. But at least I got you to actually say more than two words," Layla commented victoriously. Thanos shook his head, and went back to reading. Mentally, he wasn't so calm.
Try as I might to drive her away, it seems all too easy for her to reel me back in. Does she not realize that attachment could be hazardous for her?
Thanos felt a strange sensation in his chest, an unfamiliar one, and he didn't like it. But it seemed to get worse when he tried to ignore the cheerful woman.
Layla headed to the kitchen, putting the plastic bag inside one of the upper cabinets. She wasn't tall enough, so she had to kneel on the counter just to reach. Thanos caught himself watching her.
"What is in the bag?" he inquired, to get any other thoughts out of his now treacherous brain. Sliding off the smooth counter, she waved a finger at him.
"Nope, not telling. It's a surprise for tomorrow." If she thought that she could goad Thanos into continuously badgering for more info, she was mistaken. He grabbed his book, and headed to his room, not in the mood to work in his lab.
The next morning, the first thing Thanos noticed as he awoke was that the usual breakfast aroma was different, but he couldn't quite place why. Getting up from his bed, which was constantly rubbing in the fact that he never got around to making it larger, he heard the patter of footsteps approaching his door.
Before he could gather his bearings, Layla rushed in, wearing a white cloth over her normal attire. She was holding a spatula in one hand, the end of it drenched in a black-coating.
"Hey, Thanos, I – Oh my god!" The last part was shrieked as she hurriedly turned around and closed the door behind her. Thanos sat back down on the edge of the bed, wondering what could have bewitched her, before remembering that he was stark naked.
Oh yes, human "deceny". I forgot many of them were shy around nudity. I will have to keep that in mind.
With that said, he could feel his own face mildly heating up. Being naked around people had never even mattered to him before, and yet here he was, feeling flustered. What had she done to him?
From behind the closed door, Layla had been apologizing non-stop for what felt like whole minutes, and swearing that she hadn't seen anything, before telling him, "When you're dressed, come downstairs, OK? I have a surprise for you!"
Pulling on a yellow sweater over his head, Thanos hoped it was a good one; he detested surprises.
Downstairs in the kitchen, Layla was putting the finishing touches, trying to stop blushing. How stupid could she be?
I should have knocked first. That's one of the first thing every parent teaches you! Luckily, I didn't see anything…or at least, I don't think I did. But his body…
Wow, he was buff. More so than any body-builder she had ever seen. No wonder he was so strong. He looked like he could kill her by hugging her.
Layla clapped her hands over both her cheeks. Her mind was going to some dirty places, and she had to stop this. He was a guest and maybe (hopefully) a friend. She couldn't wreck that.
She felt herself blushing again when she heard Thanos enter the kitchen, now fully dressed. He didn't say anything, so she didn't either, for fear of accidentally causing things to get even more tense.
He peered over her shoulder at what she was doing, which was putting a frying pan on the stove. She knew he must have noticed the pancake batter was darker than usual. She decided to save him the trouble of asking.
"Have you ever tried chocolate pancakes?" she asked. Thanks took one last look, before sitting down at his usual seat, stretching.
"Hmm. No. As a matter of fact, I have never indulged in chocolate. Ah, that must be what you purchased last night." She studied his face, but he didn't seem to be teasing. Then again, she was never good at reading him. She absently brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Then you are in for a treat. Many people would say chocolate is some of the best food there is, if you asked around. My mom used to make these for me on special occasions, but this will be my first time making some." She grew nostalgic, remembering how her mom made a whole plateful when she graduated from elementary school.
"What occasion is this, then?" Layla was glad he asked.
Sitting down as the table next to him, she replied, "It's been a week since you crashed into my very boring life, and made it a lot more bearable." She began to self-consciously play with her hair, twirling it around her fingers.
"I've been worried that maybe I hadn't been showing my appreciation, or that I'd been unintentionally rude to you. So…thank you. Thank you for making my life that much more interesting. I'm not sure when you have to leave, but I want the rest of your time here to be fun. I want you to leave with good memories, I guess." She was blushing now, she knew it, but she forced herself to look into his eyes, so that he would know she meant it. She only hoped his response wasn't too harsh.
Thanos wasn't sure how to respond to her heartfelt statement. She had taken his earlier silence the wrong way, assuming that he had been offended in some way. He would have to set that straight.
"Let me make this clear: if you feel that you have somehow caused me any inconvenience, that isn't true in the slightest," Thanos began. "It had nothing to do with the way you have treated me, which I might add, was almost too kind, considering who I am."
"Then why..?" Layla started, confused.
"I'd rather not say," Thanos quickly interjected, not wanting to bring up the fact that he was starting to suspect that he harbored less than innocent feelings for her. But he wasn't convinced; it was possible that it was a reaction to being with someone after years of being in solitude, or the fact that she was the first person to be show him kindness.
"I honestly don't even understand why you would miss me if I left. I've done terrible things in my time; I even tried to kill you! Why would you want me to stay?" Thanos crossed his arms, waiting for her reply.
"Because I don't want to be alone anymore. The last few years have been some of the loneliest in my life. I honestly value your friendship. If you left, I certainly wouldn't be happy," Layla responded quietly, her eyes begging him for…something. It was a look that he wouldn't be surprised to discover resided in his own eyes.
He held her gaze, until his senses picked up the fact that something was burning. Layla noticed too, eyes widening as she got up and dashed to the stove, turning one of the dials.
"Oh no," she moaned, looking down at the pan. Thanos didn't need to look to tell that it had cooked for longer than intended.
"Sorry, I forgot to set an alarm," Layla said, mock slapping herself on the forehead. "Looks like my first time cooking chocolate pancakes is a bust, huh?" She laughed at herself, but it was all too easy to see it was a front.
"Oh well, don't worry, I'll make something else, just as – huh?" Thanos cut her off by taking the pan from her, and dumping the black contents on his plate. Jamming a fork in the substance, he put it in his mouth and swallowed.
"Wait, what are you doing? That's burned. It's not healthy!" Layla warned, her maternal instincts kicking in.
"Hmph. I'll be fine. I doubt eating this will get me sick. And eat it, I will." Eating this would be his penance, he decided. Perhaps he had been too hasty when he had decided to leave, avoiding all contact with Layla. Would the vast emptiness of space be preferable to this?
No, Thanos realized. It wouldn't.
Layla watched as he forced the whole thing down. There was no way that tasted good, confirmed when he winced after eating the last bite. He huffed, lying back in his chair, before quickly thinking better of it and standing up.
"Thank you for the meal. I hope that can make up for the horrible way I have been treating you." He seemed to be forcing the words out; he obviously wasn't the kind of guy who said words like that often. Layla shook her head.
"No, no. I was never mad. I thought you were upset with me the whole time!" and she laughed, because the whole situation was absurd. A few moments later, Thanos joined in. It was the first time he had laughed, not a bitter or creepy laugh, but a seemingly genuine laugh.
Thanos sobered up, coughing into a fist. "I don't know what you do to me sometimes," he admitted, his bass voice slightly deeper than usual, out of embarrassment.
"So…still friends?" Layla asked, holding her hand out. Thanos reached out, hesitated for a moment, and grabbed hers.
"Yes, that would be fine. I accept your companionship." They shook on it.
That night, they finally watched a movie together, some lame comedy film. Thanos watched the whole thing with a bewildered look on his face. Layla giggled as she stared at him, hands wrapped around her legs, not even bothering to listen to the film. He actually looked cute when he was confused.
"Not a single action in this…movie has made any sense," he complained at one point.
"Trust me, that's how comedy films work." Layla wasn't a fan of slapstick humor herself, but it was worth it to see the alien's reactions.
Truth be told, she had been disappointed when he had responded positively to her "friends" comment. She was starting to wonder if she wanted more than that, or if she was miss-placing her feelings of friendship.
"I'll bite: what does this one do?" Captain America was referring to the latest armor that Stark was currently building. Stark pulled up the mask that protected his face from the heat.
"This, my friend, is the strongest armor yet, designed to face off against any alien opponent. When we find this guy (if we find him), no matter how strong he is, this armor will be able to handle it! Even if it turns out to be Thanos himself, I'll have a trick up my metallic sleeve".
Captain America looked impressed, and a bit skeptical. Tony couldn't blame him; he tended to exaggerate juuuust a bit when it came to his inventions.
Putting an arm around Steve's shoulder, Stark led him out of the lab. "We should go have some shawarma and relax a bit. When I get back, I'll put the finishing touches on my new baby," he said excitedly, leaving his latest creation on a metal table, shining in the light-bulb filled room.
Author's Notes:
So, I have mixed feelings on this chapter. I dunno, something about the pacing irks me.
But for some reason, I enjoy having the characters get stuck in the "friendzone". I'm mean. ;)