The characters (except Anna), the setting, etc. etc., aren't mine etc. etc. Please don't sue the lowly writer.
Johnny's portrayal in this chapter inspired in part by the antics of my older sister.
"Good morning, all!" Johnny called out cheerily as he strode into the kitchen where Reed, Sue, and Ben were having breakfast. Naturally, the "Human Torch" was shirtless.
Ben rolled his eyes.
"Johnny, we all know you're beautiful, now can you please put on a shirt?" Sue implored.
"No shirt can contain me!" he bellowed in a low, macho voice, but he still listened to his older sister and pulled on a white T-shirt.
"Yeah, you're one to talk," Ben muttered.
Johnny smirked and crossed to the counter to make himself a cup of coffee.
Reed leaned closer to his fiancée flirtatiously and murmured, "Now maybe I should make an entrance like that one of these days."
"Don't even think about it," she growled.
Looking mildly hurt and smiling sheepishly, he went back to his fruit salad while Ben and Johnny exchanged covert and smug glances.
This friendly banter amongst the tightly-knit group was quickly quelled, however, by yet another entrance.
Anna walked slowly in, the new headband on her head and the fingers of her right hand fluttering at her temple. The mood in the room changed as if dumped into a pail of ice water. All knew what the new contraption was; even though he was the leader, Reed would not have taken such an action without first seeking the consent of the rest of the Fantastic Four.
She suddenly raised her gaze from the floor and looked at each of them in turn. "Um…good morning."
Everyone with the exception of Reed avoided her eyes. "Good morning, Anna!" he said in greeting, mustering up as much cheer as he could. The rest of the group quietly echoed his niceties.
Twitching her mouth in Reed's direction in what he assumed was an attempt at a smile, she crossed slowly to the chair left empty by Johnny.
The silence was stifling. Reed put on the largest and warmest smile that he could manage, then asked, "I trust you slept well?"
"As well as itwas possible to, yes," she answered, fixing him with her intense and unwavering stare.
Sue became much more intent on her scrambled eggs.
The silence stretched on, and Reed felt like he was tumbling into it as inevitably and crushingly as if it were a black hole. Not that he'd know, since, as he pointed out to himself, science had not yet even proven their existence beyond a reasonable doubt.
"Doesn't that doodad bother you any?" Ben questioned, looking up from his sausage and bacon. Reed glared at him, and he shrugged.
"Not really Ben, no," she answered slowly, looking back and forth between them, "but it does take some getting used to."
Johnny longed to break the tension, and bring back the cheerful and sarcastic sparring partner and psychic friend that he knew. "Erm….Anna, where did you put the sugar? I'm not really in the mood for black coffee this morning."
She opened her mouth to respond, but answer seemed to become lodged in her throat. "I…don't remember…" she said quietly.
Reed lowered his eyes, sparing her the embarrassment of suffering their scrutiny. The others followed his lead.
Silence prevailed.
Sue took shifting the focus from Anna into her own hands. "I think it wouldn't hurt all of us to find out what's going on in the rest of the world." She left the table in search of the remote.
Anna buried her face in her hands, while Reed looked on. He struggled to fight back the remorse building up within.
"…while yesterday afternoon, the elderly man in the park that many of us know for his odd chess habits of hurling metal chess pieces at passersby was apprehended yesterday after he reportedly assaulted a bald man in a wheelchair. He was taken to the local precinct while, police say, shouting things such as 'I told you that you could never trust them, Charles,' and 'See what they've done to us now?'" The female reporter smiled sympathetically then turned to her male colleague. "Poor, poor man, but at least he is now in a position to receive help, right, Don?"
Obviously, Sue had managed to dig the television remote out from Johnny's hiding place between the cushions of the couch.
"That's right, Diana. In other news, police are currently in the middle of a hold-up with the robbers of Lowe's Jewelry on Fifth Avenue."
The Fantastic Four looked at the television.
Diana took over. "And you can get the full story, right after these messages."
"Dammit! What kind of crappy station is this?" Sue muttered as she fumbled the remote trying to find a new station.
More glances were exchanged.
Finally, "That's right, Bob. Local police find themselves out-manned and out-gunned in this shootout."
The screen changed from the pretty blonde to a helicopter shot of an apparent standoff.
The male anchor took over. "Due to the understandable reluctance to avoid loss of life, an end to this shootout is not in sight."
"Looks like a job for…the Human Torch!" Johnny announced as he strode out of the kitchen.
"Don't you mean the Fantastic Four?" Sue demanded as he passed.
"Yeah, them too."
"I'm guessing it's time for you guys to get into your bad 80's rock band suits again," Ben grumbled. "I guess I'd better find something to do to get ready.' He heavily lifted himself out of his seat and left the table.
Reed looked at the only other person left at the table. "I think you'd better stay here," he said gently.
She looked up at him slowly with a lethargic look in her eye that disquieted him. "In this apartment resides the Fantastic Four, plus one," she told him with a prophetic air, "and once again, wisely or no, the plus one stays behind."