TW for minor swearing, mentions of abuse, bullying
Ever since her run-in with Raina at Skye's tutoring session, Bobbi had been waiting for the other shoe to drop. She had filled her friends in on the encounter at lunch the next day, and was met with varying degrees of confusion.
"What is her problem?" Clint wanted to know. "That's the second time she's messed with the kid, isn't it Nat?"
"Yeah, she was super nosy that first day I met Skye, too. Do you know what they were talking about?" Natasha asked.
Bobbi shook her head sadly. "No. By the time I got there it was pretty clear that Skye was doing her best to shut down whatever conversation had been going on, but Raina wasn't letting it go. I tried to ask Skye about it, but she kept avoiding the question. Raina said something about Skye wanting answers, and Skye said they talked about her name, but I don't see how those things are connected. All I know is, whatever Raina said really upset Skye, even if she was pretending like it didn't. And now Raina has my number because I interrupted their little chat before she could get her hooks into Skye."
"I should have been there," Natasha muttered darkly. "If I had been there, Raina wouldn't have been paired with Skye and none of it would've happened."
"It was your day off," Mack said gently. "You weren't supposed to be there."
"You can't control the rest of the world, Nat," Clint murmured.
"No one blames you," Bobbi assured her. "The only person I blame is Raina. She should know better than to go messing with kids' heads like that."
"Maybe so, but that's clearly not stopping her," scowled Hunter. "You don't have any idea what kind of answers Skye might be looking for? You don't want Raina filling her head if there's something she's trying to find."
"Her parents," Bobbi said softly after a minute. "She's been looking for her parents. But how would Raina know anything about Skye's parents that Skye or May hasn't been able to find out already themselves?"
"She's full of it," Clint scoffed. "She doesn't know a damn thing; she just gets her kicks in toying with people. I guess since most people here have wised up to her tricks, she's moved on to middle schoolers now."
"I wouldn't be so sure," Mack cautioned. "You know she always manages to find out stuff that nobody else knows. I'm not saying Skye should listen to her, but we can't rule out the possibility that there is something Raina has that she can dangle over her. And you have to be careful too, Bobbi," Mack added, after a beat. Careful. Careful. "If Raina's mad at you for interrupting her time with Skye, she'll look for whatever she can find on you. You should probably lay low for a while."
"Bobbi's fine." Hunter waved his hand in a lazy shooing motion. "She's not scared of the nosy flower queen, are you, Bob? Besides, it's not like you have some big secret that you're trying to hide." He grinned, and Bobbi's stomach twisted. Secret. Secret. Secret. She hadn't told Hunter the truth about foster care yet. She hadn't told any of the boys. She wanted to, and she meant to, but there just hadn't been a right time yet. As well as things had gone with Natasha, Bobbi still didn't know how to start the conversation with the guys. There was no easy segue from homework or soccer scores into "hey, just so you know, I've been lying to you for almost two months and I'm living in foster care after being pounded within an inch of my life by my own father." Natasha's eyes cut over to Bobbi, filling her up with silent assurance.
True to her word, Natasha hadn't said anything to the others, nor had she pressured Bobbi into coming clean. Still, they both knew it had to happen eventually, and maybe now was as good an opportunity as Bobbi was going to get. Bobbi had no idea how Raina would be able to discover all of the things that she was keeping hidden, but if Raina was as good at gleaning information as her reputation suggested, Bobbi didn't particularly want to wait around and see what she could dig up. She especially didn't want her friends to hear the truth from Raina instead of from her – somehow Bobbi knew that would be ten times worse than just admitting the truth herself.
"There's something–" Bobbi started to say. Her voice wasn't working, and no one heard her speak. Just as she cleared her throat to try again, Hunter spoke instead.
"Anyway, Raina's going to have bigger things to pay attention to soon," he said mischievously. "Her and Ward and all his neanderthal friends." Whatever big retaliation he and Mack and Clint had been planning against Ward for the net-cutting debacle, this was the week they were going to put it into action. All three had been suspiciously tight-lipped about the plan, but every time one of them brought it up, the other two got a gleam in their eye that told Bobbi that Ward wasn't going to be a happy camper.
"You're seriously not going to tell us what you've got planned?" Natasha asked, not for the first time. "Don't you think you ought to run the idea past us? You don't want to do something so outrageously stupid that it gets you pulverized by Ward."
"Or expelled from school," Bobbi added.
"You worry too much," Clint chuckled. "We're going to be fine. We can handle Ward."
"And we're not planning anything that's expulsion-worthy," Mack promised.
"Look," Clint said, taking note of the unamused expression on Natasha's face. "If we don't tell you what we're doing, then you have plausible deniability if it goes south. We don't plan on getting caught, and like Mack said, it's not enough to get us expelled, but this way, you can be kept out of it."
"How very noble of you," Natasha said drily, with a roll of her eyes. Sarcasm. "You seem to forget who masterminded the great hamster liberation plot of 7th grade. I would think you'd want someone of my skills working on this with you."
"I'll admit, the hamster thing was one of your finest achievements," Clint grinned, "but this thing with Ward is personal. It's a matter of pride."
"Do you know how many times the football team has been given money for new uniforms in the last ten years?" Mack asked. "Three. Meanwhile the soccer team still wears jerseys from a decade ago, and we had to agree to raise the money ourselves to get new ones this year. We almost had enough until we had to spend it on repairing the nets that Ward and his goons trashed."
"Plus they got rid of our grass to make way for turf, because apparently American football can't possibly be played on anything but the finest plastic," Hunter glowered. "Never mind the damage it does to the other sports teams' knees and elbows."
"Okay, point taken," Natasha said, holding her hands up in surrender. "You guys worry about Ward and your manly turf wars, and Bobbi and I will focus on handling the Raina situation, then. I have to channel my scheme-making energy somewhere."
"Deal," said Clint. "I, for one, can't wait to see what you come up with."
"That makes two of us," Natasha said with a grimace.
The bell rang then, and they all began to clear up their lunch trash. Before they went their separate ways, Hunter craned his neck back towards where Bobbi and Natasha were standing.
"You didn't hear this from me," he told them, "but I'd stay away from the football game this Friday. And really just away from the American football team in general this weekend. I mean, I know that's a good general policy to have, seeing as they're all a bunch of smelly doorknobs to begin with, but if you're smart…"
"No football this weekend," Bobbi said, nodding slowly.
"Plausible deniability," murmured Natasha. She and Bobbi started making their way down the hall to French, an uneasiness still hanging thickly around them like a heavy yoke of nerves around their necks. "Why do I get the feeling we're all in for one hell of a storm?"
The weekend passed quietly, which was almost more unsettling to Bobbi than just receiving news of some huge prank war blowout that had gone down at the football game on Friday. Monday, too, came and went without a word about the boys' weekend activities, although she and Natasha had tried to ask. So far all they'd managed to get from any of them was a coy smile from Hunter and the cryptic comment that "laundry doesn't get back until Tuesday."
Raina had been similarly silent, which was grating on Bobbi's nerves nearly as much as the football feud. Bobbi hated the stupid mind games people tried to play with you, the toying around with your feelings, the drawn out anticipation intended to make you lose your cool, the frustrating cat-and-mouse of it all. She'd rather just have it out with somebody once and for all. It was unpleasant in the moment, but whatever fallout came from a confrontation was usually an easier pill to swallow than the constant waiting and watching to see who would crack first. At his angriest, her father had been terrifying, but the shouting, fist-swinging, plate-throwing anger was at least something she could anticipate and ride out until it had subsided. It was always so much worse when his anger was stewing, building up and simmering beneath the surface, with no indication of when it was going to boil over. Bobbi couldn't prepare for that kind of anger, and she could never be sure what was going to trigger it. She hated the waiting and the not knowing of it all.
"Maybe she's forgotten about it," Mack suggested kindly, when Bobbi had tried to express some of her Raina anxiety to him in homeroom on Tuesday morning.
"Do you really believe that?" Bobbi asked, raising her eyebrow in what she considered to be a decent impression of May.
"Not really," confessed Mack. He rubbed he back of his neck sheepishly. "I was just trying to give you a 'glass half full' kind of opinion."
"That's only nice when the glass actually is half full," Bobbi said flatly. "Otherwise it's just wishful thinking and willful ignorance."
"Fair point," Mack conceded. "But hey, here's an actual bright side you can look on – laundry comes back today."
"You're still not going to tell us what that means?"
"You'll see soon enough," smiled Mack. "I bet by the time we get to the soccer game tonight, it'll all be crystal clear."
The girls' soccer team had their final home game of the season that night, and everyone was planning to go. If the girls won tonight, they'd have an undefeated regular season, and would lock up top seeding in the state tournament.
"You're still coming, right?" Mack asked. "Hunter would blow a gasket if you weren't coming."
"Him and everybody else," Bobbi pointed out.
"Sure," said Mack. "Everybody else, too."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing," Mack said quickly. "Seriously, though, you're coming?"
"Of course." Bobbi smiled. "It's all anybody's been talking about. I even think Phil and May are coming with Skye and Jemma."
"Oh, that'll make Turbo's day," chuckled Mack. "You know, the last time he played video games with us, Jemma and Skye were all he could talk about. They're doing some research project or something? I don't know, I didn't catch all of it, but he was excited. Got him distracted enough that I was able to take out his left sentry tower before he knew what hit him."
"Is it really fair of you to clobber a little kid at video games all the time?" Bobbi teased.
"It's not like he's six," Mack laughed. "Besides, we're very evenly matched. I have to take advantage of his distractions if I want an edge. Also I have it on good authority that you smoked Skye at Uno not that long ago."
"She's still mad about that?" Bobbi shook her head in amused disbelief.
"You're a wild-card hoarder, from what I hear," needled Mack. "Not the most sporting way to play."
"It is if you want to stand a chance at winning in that house," Bobbi defended. "May's scary good at games, and I'm pretty sure Jemma counts cards. Not on purpose, but I'm almost positive she keeps track subconsciously."
"Remind me never to come over for game night." Mack was laughing now, and Bobbi couldn't help but crack a smile of her own.
"You have no idea."
"If they win tonight, they'll get a first-round bye—"
"Hunter, we're trying to watch the movie."
"—which is huge, because it means they'll have extra time to prep for Whitefish Bay, who's probably going to demolish Oostburg in the first round—"
"Hunter, shut up, will you?"
"Of course, there's always the possibility of a Mishicot rematch later on in the tournament. If they lose tonight, they might have to face Mishicot right away—"
"Hunter!" Mack wheeled around in his desk to shoot daggers at Hunter, who hadn't stopped talking since Phil had started up The Bride of Frankenstein (in honor of the upcoming holiday, according to Phil). "Put a sock in it. I'm not letting you make me miss Karloff."
"What?"
"Boris Karloff," Elena explained. "He's the monster."
"And a cinematic treasure," Mack grumbled.
"Definitely a better monster than Lugosi," Elena nodded.
"Whoever had the idea to get Dracula to play Frankenstein's monster had less sense than the original Victor Frankenstein," grinned Mack.
"Okay, now who's talking through the movie?" Hunter quipped. "Get a room, you two."
Mack went scarlet and shoved Hunter playfully, but both remained quiet for the rest of the movie. Elena looked a little bashful at the comment, but she held her composure far better than Mack did.
"You'd think these guys would learn their lesson," Natasha said under her breath, inclining her head towards the projector screen. On it, Dr. Frankenstein was agreeing to work with another mad scientist to make a second creature.
"I think it's very thoughtful of them," Clint said cheekily. "The poor monster deserves to have a friend, don't you think?"
"He wouldn't need one if Frankenstein had done his job right and actually raised his monster-son, instead of throwing him to the wolves and angry mobs."
"But this way he'll get his bride and they can be monsters together!" Clint wagged his eyebrows and slung an arm around Natasha's shoulders, pulling her close and making kissy faces. "Isn't it just romantic?"
"You're an idiot," Natasha smirked, wriggling free of Clint's grasp. Her eyes were soft as she teased him, though, and Bobbi could tell that Natasha didn't really think that about him at all.
"Maybe so, but you're the one who still hangs out with me," he teased back.
"Hey! Peanut gallery! There's a movie going on, if you don't mind," called one of the boys in the club that Bobbi still couldn't tell apart. Eric, maybe, or Billy. There were four of them who all looked alike, plus their sister, and Bobbi had yet to keep straight which one was which. They all took their movie watching very seriously, though.
They passed the rest of the lunch period in relative quiet after the dressing down from whichever Koenig brother it was, and Phil stopped the movie about five minutes before the bell.
"To be continued," he told them. He was trying to make his voice sound spooky, like it belonged in the monster movie, but it came out sounding more like Kermit the frog, which cracked everybody up.
"Okay, so I don't have a career as a voice actor ahead of me," he chuckled. "At least I've still got my day job. Can I get two of you to stay behind and put my classroom back in order for me?"
Eager to flex her newly braced knee, Bobbi volunteered quickly, and was joined not long after by Elena.
"I think it's my turn," she said. "We used to have a sign-up sheet for set up and tear down, but that only lasted a week or two. Still, I try to follow the schedule."
"Much appreciated, girls," smiled Phil. "I have to run and copy off a worksheet for my next class, but I'll be right back." He slipped into the hallway along with most of the other club members. Natasha had asked if Bobbi wanted her to wait so they could go to French together, but Bobbi waved her on. Mack too had lingered, but Hunter dragged him unceremoniously out of the room, begging to see his notes for geometry one last time before their upcoming quiz.
"You know a lot about movies," Bobbi said, once the room had emptied. She wasn't sure if she was supposed to make small talk in this situation, but she thought it might be the polite thing to do. She liked Elena, but they had never really had much of a conversation between just the two of the, outside of a few post-game recaps.
"I like movies," Elena smiled. "My dad learned a lot of his English watching old movies on TV when he immigrated here from Colombia, and he met my mom at an old film festival a couple of towns over, so he's always made sure I had a good movie education. And my cousin Joey and I used to have movie nights on the nights our parents were working late. We'd build forts in the living room and watch as many scary movies as we could before we scared ourselves so bad we couldn't go to sleep." She was moving around the room much quicker than Bobbi, sometimes pushing two desks at once. It didn't escape Bobbi's notice, however, that the younger girl was still treading tenderly on her left ankle.
"Your ankle okay?"
"Hmm?" Elena arranged her face into a perfect picture of confused innocence. If Bobbi hadn't just been watching the way Elena was walking, she might have been fooled into believing that Elena genuinely had no idea what Bobbi was talking about.
"Your ankle. You're still favoring it. You got cleated weeks ago. I thought it would have healed up by now."
"Oh, that. It's fine," Elena said casually, with a wave of her hand. "Just tweaked it again in practice the other day. I'm trying to go easy on it so I can go full speed tonight."
"Have you had somebody look at it? A doctor or the trainer or somebody? Leg injuries are no joke." Bobbi indicated her own knee to illustrate the point, but Elena seemed unfazed.
"It's not a big deal. I'll bounce back, I always do." Seeing the concerned look on Bobbi's face, Elena surrendered slightly. "If it's still bothering me after I get us into the playoffs tonight, I'll let the trainer take a look. We win tonight and we'll have a bye, so I'll have time to rest it."
"It's your ankle," Bobbi conceded. "I just don't want to see you get hurt. The team needs you, and you're good enough to play into college if you don't put yourself out of commission while you're still a freshman."
"You think so?"
"Sure," Bobbi nodded. "You're easily the best player out there on the field, no matter who you're playing."
"Not Kara Palamas?" Elena asked the question like it was a joke, but her eyes betrayed her. Her eyes were deeply serious.
"Kara's good," Bobbi shrugged. "She's older, so she has a few years of training on you, but you're faster, and you have way better vision. You can read plays. Kara can't. She just laser focuses on the goal."
"Not a bad trait in a striker," Elena smiled.
"No," Bobbi agreed. "Just not ideal if you're looking for a complete player. Which you are."
"Thanks." Elena looked almost more bashful than when Hunter had acted like she and Mack were flirting.
"You excited for tonight?" Bobbi asked, after the silence had lingered a bit too long over the pair of them.
"I think so. Roncalli shouldn't be too hard, especially compared to Mishicot, but they're one of the better teams in our league. We can't get complacent." Bobbi nodded thoughtfully, and they were quiet once more, until Elena spoke again in a hesitant voice. Her eyes were darting across the floor, and her mouth was twisted up slightly at the corners. Nervous face, maybe. Or unsure.
"Can I ask you a question? About your knee?"
"I guess." The back of Bobbi's neck grew warm and something tightened in her chest. It was probably a completely innocent question, but that didn't stop Bobbi's old defensive hackles raising up like they always did whenever someone asked about her injuries.
"Has it been hard? Rehabbing it and everything? Do you think you'll be able to play like you used to?"
"Oh." That hadn't been the question Bobbi was expecting. She thought for a minute before answering. "It's been… actually, yeah, it's been tough. Getting used to walking with crutches was hard, and then getting used to walking without them is hard, too. And now that I'm walking again, I want to be able to do stuff like I used to, but I can't. Not yet, at least. I think the only reason I'm forcing myself not to go too fast is that I know the best chance I have of playing again is to do this the right way. But the waiting…"
"Sucks," Elena supplied, with a small smile. Bobbi nodded, and returned it.
"Totally." Bobbi shoved the last desk into place and Elena held out her hand for a high five.
"We make a good team," she grinned, as Bobbi reached over and obliged the high five invitation. The sharp contact of palm against palm felt good to Bobbi, almost electric. For a fleeting moment, Bobbi could picture herself side by side with Elena on the soccer field, doing the exact same thing after a snappy play.
"You know what I miss the most?" Bobbi asked suddenly. Elena raised her eyebrows and turned her full attention on Bobbi. Her face held an unspoken inquiry, prompting Bobbi to continue. "Running. Hunter thinks I'm… well, he uses the word 'mental–'" The corners of Bobbi's mouth twitched into a smile as she heard Hunter's indignation echoing in her mind. "He doesn't get it. But I miss being able to just… go anytime I feel like it."
"I don't know what I would do if I couldn't run," Elena said, shaking her head. "Nothing feels as good. You just fly, you know? You're free, and you're going fast, and it feels like nothing can stop you as long as your legs keep moving."
"Exactly." Bobbi had suspected that if anyone would understand her longing to start running again, it would be Elena. It was why she had brought the subject up in the first place. "I haven't been able to run in almost two months and I feel like I just have all this energy pent up inside of me."
"Well, as soon as you're cleared to run again, let me know," Elena smiled. "I'm always looking for a conditioning partner in the off-season. We can burn off that extra energy together."
"It's a deal," Bobbi agreed, gathering up her things and making her way towards the door. "Good luck tonight. We'll see you after the game."
While not quite as electric as the atmosphere before the Mishicot game had been, there was a definite buzzing in the air before the start of the game that night. Hunter, Mack, and Fitz had picked up Bobbi like they usually did, and Fitz was elated to learn that Skye and Jemma would be meeting them at the game later. He talked the whole drive to the stadium, rattling off stats about the Roncalli High offense and interspersing his soccer analysis with little tidbits about what he, Jemma, and Skye had been up to at school that week.
Hunter was pretending to be exasperated with Fitz, but Bobbi could tell he was just as excited for the game as Fitz was. The corners of his mouth wouldn't stay put – twitching and dancing upward anytime the subject of the game came up – and his posture was more alert than it usually was. Not just an eager, excited face, but an eager, excited Hunter.
Their enthusiasm was infectious, and Bobbi couldn't help but share in the wild speculating about strategies and starting lineups. Still, there was something gnawing away at a tiny part of her stomach. A kind of foreboding feeling warning her that she shouldn't let her guard down tonight. There was no real reason for the feeling to be scratching away at her like it was, but Bobbi couldn't shake it or talk herself out of it. It was the kind of feeling she hadn't really felt since leaving her dad, and there was something deeply unsettling about its return that Bobbi couldn't quite name.
They got to the stadium without any trouble, though, and wasted no time in heading over to the bleachers, where Natasha and Clint were waiting for them. A third person, a boy with a round face and close-cropped brown hair who Bobbi didn't recognize, was sitting with them. He must have been someone the others knew, however, because both Mack and Hunter's face split into grins at the sight of him.
"Well, look what the cat dragged in," Hunter crowed as they approached. He slapped the boy on the shoulder, and the boy smiled back, clapping Hunter on the arm.
"You're looking miserable, Hunter," he ribbed back. He turned to Mack and his smile widened. "Hey, Mack. Good to see you."
Mack wrapped the boy up in a bear hug. "It's good to see you, too, man. It's been way too long. How are you? How's your new school?"
"It's good. We have to wear uniforms, and the khakis aren't really my style, but classes are good. I've got some friends there, guys from the football team, you know. They have a really strict policy about bullying and harassment and stuff, so that hasn't been a problem at all."
"That's really awesome to hear, man," Mack said seriously. "I'm sorry for how things went down here, but it sounds like the new school is working out."
"It is," the boy smiled. He noticed Bobbi, then, and gave her a small wave. "Hi, I'm Joey. Sorry, I should have introduced myself sooner."
"No, it's okay," Bobbi assured him. "I'm Bobbi. I'm new this year."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Elena's cousin, by the way. Used to go here."
"Until a bunch of small-minded numbskulls decided to ruin your life," Natasha grumbled through gritted teeth.
"They're morons," the boy, Joey, shrugged. "I mean, yeah, they made my life basically hell all last year, but I've come a long way since then. Plus, I get to start at Safety and Wide Receiver now." He laughed, and everyone else smiled weakly.
"I was on the football team here last year," he explained, for Bobbi's benefit. "I didn't get much playing time to begin with, since I was about six inches shorter and 30 pounds lighter than I am now, and Christian and Brock and Carl and all those guys were favorites of Coach Garett. Now I'm bigger and stronger and on a team that actually gives people playing time."
"And your teammates, they're good guys?" Clint asked. "They're not primordial ooze monsters like Ward and company?"
"No, they're good. I'm actually not the only gay guy on the team, and everybody's real chill about it all. Our coaches make sure we're being respectful and everything. Like I said, the school takes bullying really seriously."
"Wow, that must be a nice change of pace," Hunter said drily.
"I heard about what's going on between the soccer team and the football team," said Joey. "Elena keeps me posted. I'm sorry they wrecked your guys' nets. That was a low blow."
"Well, no one was surprised that Ward started taking cheap shots," Mack grimaced.
"We're getting him back," said Hunter slyly. "Laundry came back today."
"I'm really sick of that stupid code you guys keep using." Natasha rolled her eyes. "I wish you'd just tell us what you did. It's over now, it's not like we'd get caught up in anything."
"But it'll be so much more fun for you to just see it for yourself," chuckled Clint. "I want to watch a pure, unspoiled reaction from you. It's going to be gold."
"You suck," Natasha smirked. "And I'm pretty sure this is the only time you've kept spoilers to yourself. I'm still not over you wrecking the ending to Sixth Sense."
"That movie's like twenty years old," Clint protested. "How was I supposed to know you didn't already know the twist to one of the most referenced movie twists of all time?"
"I grew up in war-torn Russia, for one," teased Natasha. "Not a lot of time for movie theaters."
"I'm just saying, it's like not knowing that Darth Vader is Luke's—"
"Hey man, spoilers!" Joey cried, clapping his hands over his ears. Clint's jaw dropped.
"Dude, come on. Star Wars?"
"I'm just messing with you." Joey dropped his hands and elbowed Clint with a grin. "I know Vader is Luke's secret evil twin." Everyone else cracked up, besides Clint, who scowled.
"Ha ha," Clint said flatly. "You guys are so funny. Let's all make fun of Clint, just because he expects people to have a little awareness of art and culture." Sarcasm.
Something tugged lightly on the sleeve of Bobbi's jacket, and she looked around to see Fitz peering up at her.
"Are they going to be here soon?" he asked pitifully. Bobbi felt bad that she had basically forgotten Fitz was still sitting with them. She arranged her face into a sympathetic smile.
"They were almost ready to leave when you picked me up," she said. "Skye was having trouble finding her left shoe, and they still had to wash the supper dishes, but I think they were close. They should be here any minute."
"Okay." Fitz seemed satisfied with the answer, and went back to watching the warmups on the field. Bobbi copied him, taking in the girls below. She spotted Elena first, her long hair tied back into a braid down her back. The braid swung back and forth as Elena jogged in place, stretching and flexing her legs and blowing on her hands to keep them warm in the chilly end-of-October air. Kara Palamas too seemed focused, hopping up and down in place and drawing her knees up as high as she could. She had a steely look on her face, and Bobbi could tell that Kara wanted to win the game badly. Some of the other Manitowoc players, like Piper from AV club and the red-haired defender Alisha, seemed a little more relaxed, laughing and talking as they stretched together.
On the other side of the field, the Roncalli players looked to be fairly run-of-the-mill for high school soccer. They had a few standouts that Fitz pointed out to her, and Bobbi got the sense that, while not a pushover team, this was going to be Manitowoc's game to lose.
"Ah shit," came Hunter's hushed voice, dragging Bobbi's attention back to the people around her instead of down on the field. She glanced at him and saw his eyes locked on something over near the stadium's entry gate. "Ward's here. And he brought friends."
"Who?" Clint asked, craning his neck to see what Hunter was looking at.
"Rumlow. Creel. Maybe Kebo, it's hard to see," Hunter informed them. "And Raina. Guess she decided to tag along, too." The blood in Bobbi's veins turned to ice and her throat went tight. She inclined her head slightly, trying to get a good look without being too obvious that she wanted nothing more than to whirl around and stare. Hunter was right. Christian Ward had just entered the stadium with three other boys in tow, all of whom looked unhappy to be there, plus Raina lingering just behind them.
"He doesn't look all that mad at the moment," Mack pointed out, squinting in the direction of Ward and his friends. "Maybe they haven't checked the laundry yet."
"I guess he's just here to submit his name for boyfriend of the year award," Natasha said coldly. "So sweet of him to come and support Kara in her final regular season game."
"He wouldn't have dragged the others here if that's all he was doing," Hunter warned. "No, he's up to something."
"I think Mack's right, though," Clint chimed in. "He'd be ready to pop his own head off if he'd checked the laundry. He might be scheming, but he hasn't found the laundry."
"They'll probably check it at halftime," said Hunter. "He's done it before. That's what we were planning on. Fitz!" Hunter said suddenly, turning to look at the younger boy. "You can run off when your friends get here, mate, and I want you to check in, but keep your distance during halftime. You hear me?"
"What's going to happen?" Fitz's eyebrows were scrunched together and his mouth was pulled down. Confused face.
"I don't know, but if Ward's checking the laundry at halftime like I think he will, then it won't be much after that that he'll be looking for us. I don't want you any where near me when that happens."
"Are you going to be okay? Should I tell someone—"
"No," Hunter said quickly. "We'll be fine. No need to get adults involved. I just want to make sure you're safe. Aunt Linda would kill me if I let something happen to you."
"Aunt Alva would kill me if I let something happen to you," Fitz countered. He tried to make his expression just as tough and serious as Hunter's.
"No, she wouldn't," Hunter scoffed. He smiled a little bit, though. "She adores you. Besides, I'm the older one. I'm responsible for you, not the other way around. If I get smeared across the pavement, that's my own fault."
"You shouldn't talk like that," Bobbi said quietly. "Whatever Ward might do to you, his actions are his fault. Not yours. Someone pulling pranks on you is no excuse for hurting another person."
"Aw, Bob, I didn't know you cared so much," Hunter grinned. He wedged his head onto her shoulder and looked up at her with pretend doe eyes. He batted his lashes a few times in what Bobbi could tell was mock sincerity. "All this time I thought you were indifferent on the prank war."
"I am," Bobbi said quickly. Her cheeks felt warm. "I mean, I'm on your side, obviously. I'm not neutral, and I get why you're doing it, but also I think you should be careful. I don't want you getting… I mean, I just…" She was spluttered, tripping over her words. Hunter's hair was tickling her neck and she could smell something soapy and leathery, maybe his shampoo. She eased away from him, sliding his head off her shoulder. "Just, like… don't die out there or something. I don't want to have to explain to your mom why we had to take you to the ER."
"I'll be on my best behavior," Hunter promised. He held up a hand like he was being sworn into office. "Scout's honor."
Mack snorted beside them. "You were never a boy scout."
Welcome back! I actually have three chapters for you all this time, and they're all Bobbi-centric... I feel like it's been a while since we've heard form her :) Thanks for being here and thanks for reading :)