Part Two, Chapter Three
The gym had become a bit of a sanctuary for Alice, after she met the team. Like the warehouse where she used to practice wielding her powers, it became like a safehouse, for her. The team rarely stopped by to disturb her, unless it was an emergency. The only person who never seemed to take 'no' for an answer was Johnny, and he would often try to intervene with her workouts.
She suspected he only stopped to see her when she was in nothing more than a sports bra and shorts. She regretted asking the one time he had interrupted her, when he leaned against the wall with his arms crossed and his blue eyes glowing with their usual mischief.
"I'm just enjoying the show," he had quipped in a joking manner, though she knew for a fact that he was being serious.
His response was enough for her to falter mid-step. She had already prepared a laundry list of insults for responses when he closed the distance between them. When it came to having his way, Johnny always seemed to find one. Alice had frozen on the spot, feeling her heart race a little faster than usual when his warm hands reached her bare arms.
"You have a beautiful complexion, Frost," he added with another ear-shitting grin.
While his smile charmed its way into the hearts of many women, Alice just found it all the more annoying when she realized what he was trying to do. He tried more than enough times to flirt with her when Reed and Sue weren't looking. She learned how to push away whatever attempts he made at worming his way into her heart. Even so, Johnny was persistent, and he refused to give up when it came to getting his way.
"Nice try, Torch," she retorted, wrenching herself free from his grip. "One, I hate that nickname, and two, I don't have any interests in a narcissistic jerk."
Her words seemed to have no effect on him. If anything, he took it as a challenge. He'd dubbed that nickname ever since, using it as an opportunity to annoy the crap out of her. Alice almost wished she could punch that grin off his stupid face, and make a run for it. There was nothing on this planet that would change her mind about Johnny Storm.
Alice shook her head at the thought, finally pulling off her gloves as her mind wandered back to the present. She knew that she was losing control of her powers more frequently. She knew the fluctuations could only mean that things were about to go from bad to worse. When Reed mentioned that her powers were evolving in the same way theirs had, the thought terrified her. She was already dangerous enough without her powers getting stronger with each passing day.
Chips of ice were already forming along the tips of her fingers. A shudder ran through Alice as she tried brushing the ice off, knowing her efforts were in vein. What scared her the most was that these powers were getting worse.
She had begged Reed to build a safe room for her where she could isolate herself from the rest of the world. Where she wouldn't have to worry about hurting anyone. She didn't care if she had to spend the rest of her life there alone. If it meant keeping everyone else safe, that was what mattered to her the most.
"What is wrong with me?" she whispered.
Her back sagged against the wall as she dropped to the floor, trying to steady her shaky breathing. She never felt more terrified than at that moment. She tried to focus on anything but her powers as she put the glove back on.
"Hey, are you alright?" Alice was shaken from her thoughts at the sound of Sue's voice. She looked up in time to see the blond looking at her in alarm. Sue carefully slid down against the wall beside her so that they were within eye-level, and sensed that not everything was alright, "Do you wanna talk about it?"
"I don't think this is something I should be talking about," she shook her head, not missing the look Sue gave her.
She flinched when Sue took hold of her hand and squeezed it gently. Human contact was rare for her. People were so afraid of touching her because her skin was icy cold. Sue, Ben and Johnny were the rare exceptions to that rule.
"Sweetie, you know if there's anything bothering you, that you can share it with me, right?" Sue reminded her.
Alice let out a sigh of frustration as she looked at anything but Sue. She rarely opened up to anyone. Part of it was purely out of habit, while another part of her was afraid of how people would react if she told them at all. Living with her father had built up a wall that she used as self-defense from people who tried figuring her out. Sue of all people knew that, and she did what she could to make Alice feel more comfortable around people.
"I'm afraid," she finally admitted, earning a look of surprise from Sue, "I'm so afraid, of losing control. My powers keep fluctuating, and Reed thinks it has something to do with how I got my powers in the first place. What if I accidentally hurt someone, because of that?"
"Alice," Sue began, unsure of where to even start with something like this, "No one would ever blame you if anything like this happened. Reed's going to find a way to help; I know he can."
She chewed the bottom of her lip, wondering if that was even possible, at this point. Reed had already been busy enough with the wedding and everything else, that he didn't have time to focus on her. Besides, she didn't want to make his life anymore difficult than it already was.
"I don't want to be a burden," she muttered.
Sue was ready to say something else, when they both heard the security system give them an alert, "Miss Storm, I believe the army is here to pay Doctor Richards a visit," the computerized voice of Roberto warned them.
A sense of relief swept through Alice at the sudden change in subject. The last thing she wanted was to add to Sue's list of growing concerns. Both she and Reed had enough to worry about as it was to focus their attention on someone like her. If there was one thing she had learned about her living with her parents, it was that she couldn't be a distraction. And she had been nothing more than a distraction from day one to the team.
Multiple black cars were parked outside the Baxter building when Alice and Sue made their way down the elevator and to the lobby. She couldn't shake off the sense that the army was here for more than just a regular visit. Recent news regarding the anomalies across the world had left everyone shaken, and, something needed to be done about them.
The soldier – who Alice quickly realized was actually a general, had taken off his hat in a formal greeting when he faltered. The woman standing in front of him was actually a hologram. Roberto was a security program Reed had designed after realizing something was needed to warn him when they had visitors. He spent so many hours in the lab that it was necessary.
"How can we help you?" Alice greeted the general warily.
She didn't miss the look he was giving her. She could already feel him trying to pick her apart, scrutinizing her very appearance. Not for the first time, a shiver of unease swept through Alice as she finally broke eye contact and looked down at the floor to avoid that piercing glare.
"We're here to see Doctor Richards," the general replied in a formal, curt tone.
"I'm sorry, but, he isn't here," Sue apologized after furrowing her brows together. Alice winced at the mention of Reed, knowing that he would be out for most of the night with Ben and Johnny. She'd promised him that she wouldn't tell Sue, but, it seemed as if life was going to throw a monkey-wrench in his plan, "Is there anything we can help you with?" she asked, repeating what Alice had asked.
"Yes. You can take me to see Doctor Richards," the general insisted.
She only glared at the general, suddenly aware that this was serious business he had to attend with. The one thing she hated about the army was their constant need to interfere with everything. That, and her own father had threatened to call in the army on a daily basis when she was younger. She would never forget the threats he constantly used to keep her in line.
"Okay," Sue replied, keeping on a straight face.
…
The party was in full swing when they headed towards the building. Unfortunately, Alice was forced to give away the location. She had overheard Johnny telling Reed and Ben where it was. The vehicles were following them at a close distance until they arrived. People stood outside, either drinking, laughing, kissing, or doing all of the above. Alice rolled her eyes at the sight as she climbed out of the car.
"Sounds like things are getting a little wild in there," she muttered under her breath.
Sue just smirked at her before heading inside, then narrowing her eyes at what they saw next.
Reed was stretching out his arms and legs. Johnny and Ben watched from the bar until noticing the new arrivals. Alice felt her heart race as she noticed the soldier was glaring at them. He pushed his way through the gathering crowd and stood beside Sue, whose expression was difficult to read at this point.
"There he is," the soldier said.
"Yes," Sue answered. "Unfortunately." He laughed and continued dancing with the girls, oblivious to the fact that Sue was watching. Alice tried not to smirk as she wondered what Sue would do next. He was completely oblivious to the fact that they were watching them. "For him."
Reed finally took notice of them, and his face fell.
"Shall we?" Alice asked, gesturing for them to lead the way. "You go on ahead, I'll get the others," she added to Sue. She walked over to where Ben and Johnny were sitting. Their backs were turned on her, and Alice rolled her eyes once again. "You can stop hiding now," she snapped, pulling Johnny out of his seat before glancing at Ben. He just looked at her apologetically. "Come on, General Hagar wants to speak with us somewhere private."
"In private? As in, just the two of us?" Johnny asked, blue eyes brimming with laughter as Alice rolled her eyes in disgust and shoved past him.
With the music blasting in the background, and everything else, Alice struggled to keep her emotions in check. She knew this would be an awful place to lose control. Especially when she saw so many people in one room together, who were probably drunk out of their minds to notice anything out of the ordinary.
She was just thankful no one took an interest in her. Of course, few people would take interest in someone with so little self-esteem to begin with. That was what had led to the many questions regarding Johnny's persistence in asking her out.
"How does Reed know the General?" Sue asked as they headed for the kitchen.
"A few years back, the guy was trying to push a missile defense system. Reed testified that the technology didn't work," Ben explained in a whisper.
"I'm only here, Richards, because I'm here under orders from the Joint Chief's of Staff," General Hagar said. "Personally, I don't agree with sharing sensitive information with a civilian scientist, especially one who enjoys the public spotlight so much."
Alice watched in annoyance as Johnny got comfortable and leaned into the counter, resting his chin on his hands. She hadn't missed the wink he gave the woman who was assisting the general, that evening. Or, the fact that the woman hadn't returned the gesture.
"Always a pleasure to see you too, General," Reed said with a chuckle. "What can I do for you?"
"As you may know, there have been recent unusual occurrences all over the world. Officially, we've downplayed their significance to the public, but, we're concerned that these anomalies might pose a credible threat to our national security."
She narrowed her eyes thoughtfully, suddenly aware that these same people probably considered her a national threat. If she was being honest with herself, she wouldn't blame them for thinking that way. She knew for a fact that if anything went wrong with her powers, she would want someone to put a stop to it, and her, if necessary.
"These were taken by one of our spy satellites three days ago," Hagar continued as Reed pulled up the file he spoke of.
Alice looked at the four pictures thoughtfully. They showed what looked almost like a silver object flying through the air. The odd thing about the picture was that the object seemed to pulsate with its own energy, telling her that whoever was behind said picture had some form of intelligence.
"What is it?" Sue asked.
"We were hoping Doctor Richards could tell us."
"I'm afraid I've never seen anything like this," Reed admitted.
He handed the pictures over to Ben, who studied them carefully.
"Well, I would say that it's a meteor, but the trail's all wrong. This thing's giving off its own energy," he explained.
"Take a look at this," Hagar said after being informed of what it probably wasn't.
"These have been appearing in remote areas throughout the world since the events started," the woman explained as Reed studied the craters they were showing, "Field estimates its diameter to be two hundred meters."
"If we're going to find out what this is all about, we need a way to locate and intercept the object," Hagar explained.
The woman made the mistake of looking over at Johnny. Alice tried not to glare when she noticed that Johnny was giving her the infamous smirk that made any woman's heart melt. By now she had grown used to the effects of his charm. And it looked as though the woman could care less one way or the other.
"It'd be possible to build a sensor, tie it to the Baxter building satellite grid," Reed told them. Alice didn't miss the way Sue's face fell. "And we can pinpoint the exact location of the object."
"Good, so then you'll build a sensor for us, we'll tie that to the—"
"I'm afraid I can't," Reed cut him off.
All eyes were on Reed as Hagar looked at him in disbelief. He rarely turned down the opportunity for a science project. Especially one on this scale. Though, when Alice saw the look written across Sue's face, she understood where Reed was getting at.
"What?"
He stepped back and wrapped his arm around Sue.
"You see, I'm getting married this Saturday. I just don't have a time."
"Richards, your country needs your help," Hagar insisted.
Alice didn't miss the tension passing between the two. Hagar didn't like the situation anymore than Reed did. What bothered her more than anything, though, was how he seemed to be using the country's need as a way to gain Reed's support. There were people who were just as qualified as Reed to build the machine in question.
"Look, why don't you call Professor Jeff Wagner?" Reed suggested. "He's the head of the physics department at Brown. I'm sure he can help you."
Hagar made a motion for the soldiers to clean up their stuff.
"I expected more, Richards, even from you," he said in an accusing tone.
The woman shot one look at Johnny, but of course he rose an eyebrow and flashed her that ear-shitting grin again. It wasn't as if Alice had ever cared in the first place, but, she felt slightly triumphant that one other woman had ignored Johnny's presence most of the time.
The car drove away as Hagar and the other soldier got into it. Alice stood next to the woman soldier, who she later learned was Frankie. An uncomfortable silence fell upon them as Alice watched the car that slowly approached them. And of course, Johnny chose that moment to stand next to Frankie's other side.
"John Storm. Fantastic Five Inc," he introduced himself and offered a hand for a formal greeting. Frankie blew him off, much to Alice's surprise. "You ever done any professional modeling?"
"Not interested," Frankie suddenly snapped.
She didn't even pass him a second glance. The whole thing would have been hilarious, if Alice hadn't realized what Johnny was doing in front of her. She was more than annoyed when he tried pulling off moves on her, then moved on to the next woman as if she didn't matter, anymore.
"Cause you've got an amazing complexion."
"Not interested."
Her statement was final as her ride pulled up. Alice watched on in amusement as she completely blew Johnny off in his attempts at flirting with her. The look on his face was priceless. Alice almost wished she could have high-fived the woman.
"Wow, and you—" Johnny paused as he scratched his neck, confused by Frankie's reaction. "—just walked away. I was definitely still talking."
"Well, I can't say that I'm not enjoying the fact that another woman just blew off your affection, Torch," Alice muttered under her breath, earning a look from Johnny.
"How would you know what 'affection' is?" he scoffed, crossing his arms as she narrowed her eyes. "You're about as cold as it gets."
"Do you even listen to yourself?" she snapped, suddenly wishing a hole would open up and swallow her. Those type of comments were the reason why she refused to open up around him. If he continued seeing her as nothing more than a symbol, then there wasn't any point in letting him in. "You're so full of arrogance that you can't even understand why she brushed you off."
For once, Johnny didn't know what to say when she said that. She let out a huff of frustration and stormed off, leaving him there to figure out what she meant by that.