This was a hard chapter to write (long too). It was a struggle to keep a consistent pace and tone especially having to delve deep into these character's personalities. Still, I think you all will like it. Lots of Peter and Wanda in this chapter.
The brunette let the hot water run down her body as she relaxed her sore muscles. Wanda had been training with the other Avengers all day. The last two hours had caused her great pain as she had been getting her ass handed to her in hand-to-hand combat with Black Widow. The Scarlet Witch didn't understand why she had to learn physical martial arts when all she had to do is wave her hands and summon a blast strong enough to eviscerate most human enemies.
"Sometimes you just have to take enemies out the old-fashioned way," was Captain America's reply to that question.
She continued washing the rest of her body with a simple bar of Dove soap. Her back, her front, her legs and arms, and lastly – her hair. Wanda poured some shampoo in her hand and began to message her strands until bubbles covered her mane in a thick layer of foam. She ran her fingers diligently through the tangled strands. "Hmm?" She had noticed that for the past few months some of her dark brown locks have begun to develop a lighter color. Wanda didn't particularly mind the highlights, but the change did cause her to wonder how far the bleaching would go. "I hope it doesn't go white" she talked to herself. She thought the silver-hair color worked for her brother but not her. She had deduced it was probably the unexpected consequence of the Hydra experimentation finally showing. 'If it does go white, I can always die it brown' she thought.
After a cold rinse and some conditioning, she got out of the shower and wrapped herself in a towel.
The Scarlet Witch wasn't sure what to dress in. The woman didn't want to dress too elegant since it wasn't her style and she knew that the occasion didn't require anything too fancy. After a while of putting cloths on and off, she got fed up with trying to match colors or attempt to show off too much skin. Instead, Wanda picked out a random red hoodie over a black one-piece dress, basically her usual style. Plain and simple she thought. Looking in the mirror she played with her hair, unaware whether it looked better split directly in the middle or off to the side as she found a lot of girls do. Finally, she settled with tying her hair back with a rubber band. 'Pietro always said I looked neater with a ponytail' she smiled at the old memory of her twin brother giving her dating advice when they were merely teenagers.
"Wanda, I am not sure what to tell you…"
The sudden voice caused her to jolt slightly and turn around, a flicker of annoying in her eyes as she peered at the android.
Vision was in the room, wearing a normal long sleeve shirt and pants. The first few times Wanda had seen the humanoid dress up, it made her laugh as it was such an unusual sight. However, the novelty had quickly warned off. "Vis, didn't I tell you about personal boundaries."
"Oh, yes. But I assumed it was okay now since I heard the water turn off and…" The clothed android could see Wanda close her eyes in irritation, taking in slow breaths to calm her violent imagination of ripping the robot in half. He didn't need any more signaling to realize he had made a mistake. "I am terribly sorry, should I go back out?" He pointed at the door.
"Knock, next time." Wanda opened her eyes and began to breath regularly again. "So...?"
"Well as you know I am still learning …" He pulled out several bottles of perfume from his pockets. "I just can't tell you which one smells the best. They all have such interesting fragrances."
Wanda had asked the android to be a personal examiner for her new collection of perfume she had bought for tonight's occasion. She thought it would be an interesting experience for the android to test out his human senses on perfume. "Come on Vis, nothing stood out?"
"I like this strawberry one. Though, I think you would say it isn't as exotic as…" He held out another bottle, "Hermes Un Jardin Sur Le Nil."
"I am beginning to think I should have just asked Nat, no offense." Wanda got out of her seat and retrieved the bottles from Vision.
"None taken, out of all the people in this facility she is usually the one that smells the best… Of course, you smell amazing too." The android added at the last moment.
"Nice save." Wanda could tell that Vision didn't want to offender based on the slight edginess of his voice. "Nat does have a lot of different perfumes that she uses when going on those types of mission." She referred to the master assassin's occasional solo trips where she would pretend to be a casual one-night encounter to get the drop on her targets.
"Oh yes, she has the most interesting of fragrances. Though Captain Rogers isn't bad either." The android added.
The Scarlet Witch laughed at the last part. She couldn't agree more; Steve does have a good lavender cologne smell. "Vis, it's nice that you have taken a hobby in smelling people but don't tell anybody that. It makes them uncomfortable."
"I don't do it to make people uncomfortable, it's just something I have picked up on." The android explains.
"Right. We'll I guess it is strawberry then." She sprayed a little bit of the sent on her wrist and gave it a sniff. "Not exotic, but not bad either."
The android took a few steps forwards and sat on the edge of her bed. "So, will we be meeting Mr. Parker soon?" Vision asked. Wanda couldn't tell if he was just curious as usual or if there was some hidden intent behind his words.
"Maybe." She left it at that.
Wanda got back into her seat and proceed to apply eyeliner. She hadn't talked much about her personal affairs to the team, mainly due to her reclusive shyness. The Scarlet Witch wouldn't mind answering questions about her infatuation towards Peter, but she didn't go out of her way to discuss about him either. The team has been interested in her abrupt decision to go volunteering at F.E.A.S.T., at first- she said it was way to meet people and not feel stuck. Though mostly the truth, when Happy noticed the Scarlet Witch eating ice-cream with a boy wearing plaid, the cat came out of the bag really quick. She wouldn't be surprised if Steve and Natasha had already run a hundred background checks on the poor young man.
XXXX
Wanda sat in the driver seat of a 1969 blue Camaro parked in a semi-cluttered parking area. Surprisingly, Tony said she could barrow it since he still felt a little guilty for lying to her about being able to convince Steve to give her a week off. It wasn't like she was going to use the free days in any productive manner; however, the gesture was nice. The vehicle smelled new, leathery almost like unboxing a pair of new shoes. In fact, the car was barely used. Obviously, the cheapest car in his collection but she didn't care
The radio was turned on, just loud enough to drown out the nighttime traffic. It was playing a song she had never heard. The Sokovian began to tap her right foot, the tune was catchy but nothing too invoking. She scanned the area, nothing but cars, people, and in front of her stood a large pavilion center.
Wanda pulled out her phone and unlocked the screen, checking the address. "This is the right place." She muttered. The woman had arrived ten minutes early, sitting in the car she mentally prepare herself. She didn't want to get worked up, but it's been a while since she had gone on a date with someone. Sighing, she leaned back into her chair and pressed the handle to lower the seat into a more comfortable position.
Wanda had been volunteering at F.E.A.S.T. for two weeks now, usually on the weekend. There hasn't been any terrorist or Hydra attacks for several weeks now and she wanted it to stay like that for a little longer. During weekdays she would either be training to control her powers, practicing her English, or studying any useful material needed for Avenger missions. To be honest, getting to know the people at F.E.A.S.T provided a much-needed break from the facility. Helping people didn't need to be about fighting bad guys but aiding people when they are at their most vulnerable. Getting the people at the shelter get back on their feet was rewarding. Whether it was helping the jobless create resumes or playing board games with the homeless children, befriending the people almost became a natural skill for her. They viewed Wanda as if she was a normal person, a young lady that wanted to contribute to the community. It was a good change of atmosphere compared to her new home with the Avengers.
Peter and Wanda had been texting back and forth for the past couple of days. The Scarlet Witch had been dropping hints about her interest in the young man. A bread crumb trail of playful light body contact from their past interactions or subtitle but subjective texts. At one point she pondered whether Peter was just dense or playing a game of cat and mouse with her. It was Peter who finally initiate contact after missing Wanda during her previous weekend shift. It was small talk, questions such as: "How was your day? Do anything fun? Make any more friends?"
Wanda had occasionally used her mind reading powers to take little peeks into the head of the young man. She knew he liked her, but Peter held some reservations due to a busy life. The hazy visions that she could piece together seemed to be that he was conflicted over a previous relationship, his duties at work, and lot about the welfare of New York City and its populace. The man's schedule seemed to always be full, the Scarlet Witch was surprised that he had any time for himself.
Wanda did eventually get tired of Peter's lack of directness, so she just asked plain and simple if he wanted to go out on a date. The witch knew he would agree, but she couldn't tell if it was because he was honestly interested or because he felt like he had a responsibility to try and make everyone happy. She hoped it wasn't the latter.
Which brings Wanda back to her current situation. Her phone vibrated with a notification from Peter: Almost there. Sorry, will be a little late.
XXXX
Peter finally arrived at the address that Wanda had sent him. He was busy stopping a jewelry store mugging several miles back and it cut into his lead time by a few minutes. The owner was a J. Jonah Jameson fan, and he wanted to give the friendly neighborhood wall-crawler a taste of his mind.
"I didn't even break the window." He sighed, a little annoyed the owner was ungrateful for his actions. It's been a while since Peter met a person who believed his old Daily Bugle boss' conspiracy theories about his alter ego.
Peter found a place on top of the building to quickly get dressed back in his civilian clothes. He decided to wear a shirt that wasn't plaid but just a simple grey. "Just stay as good old Peter Parker for the night" he encouraged himself.
Peter wanted to make a connection with Wanda but in the back of his mind, any romantic relationship he had ever been in always ended in disaster. He was either too protective which costed him his relationship with MJ or not exciting enough which ultimately ended his affair with Felicia Hardy or Black Cat. Over the past few months he had been trying to rekindle the spark he and MJ shared, and it seemed to be working.
MJ and Peter were now back to a regular talking basis, she clearly stilled had feeling for him in that kind of way due to how she tried to kiss him a few days back. And Peter still has a yearning to be with her. However, after the Martin Li and Doc Ock incidents he began revaluating his personal life.
Peter was worried that if he got back with Mary Jane, he would become the same helicopter boyfriend she loathed, especially now that Otto Octavious knows about his secret identity. The young man feared that his ex would be even more in danger if the information slipped out to his old enemies. He wanted nothing more than for MJ to be safe but that was easier said than done as the red-hair woman was constantly finding leads that brought her into the frontlines of his superhero business. This put Peter in a predicament since he was teetering into a new relationship Wanda.
Peter liked Wanda, he didn't know if it was just curiosity or a crush. She was blunt, a little stubborn, and mysterious in a reserved way. A recipe that that kept Peter intrigued. It could be said that ever since their small dinner at Eddie's Pizza, the Sokovian had been on his mind for weeks. He was taken back when the girl gave him a goodbye kiss on the cheek at the end of the day. She left so suddenly that he wasn't able to obtain any contact information from her. He wondered what could have been between them if he had just had the courage to ask for her a number.
Then one day, Wanda unexpectedly shows up volunteering at F.E.A.S.T. Peter knew he just had to give it a shot. Ultimately, he was glad she was the one to ask him on a date since he's been fighting with himself over what to do. He hadn't actually asked a girl out of the blue before since his previous relationships where due to the intensity of the moment or a natural development that fell into place.
Peter wanted to see if there was something more than friendship between them. If there was nothing, then no harm would be done. She would be spared the knowledge of his double life and the baggage that came with it and Peter would have lived on knowing he didn't miss the opportunity to make a genuine connection.
XXXX
Peter jogged to the location as he entered the wrong side of the large building. Stopping only occasionally to make sure he didn't button his shirt wrong, had his fly open, or messy hair.
King's BiBimBap, a nice little Korean food place located in the west wing of the food center inside the Pavilion. Stepping into the destination, Peter skimmed the tables which were almost all occupied. Quickly, he found the Sokovian sitting in the mid-left lane of five equally set rows of tables. Her back was facing Peter as she was paying attention to the TV hanging on the wall, passing the time.
Peter pulled out his phone and did a quick check, 8:07 PM. Seven minutes pass the original set time, not too terrible considering he is constantly a good half an hour late on most occasions. "Deep breaths Pete, she's still there so that's a good sign." He whispered to himself.
The man made his way to the woman, purposefully creating a little noise with his steps so he wouldn't spook her again like he did at F.E.A.S.T. Wanda noticed the tapping and turned her head around to find the dork apologetically looking at her as he inched closer. "I am so, so sorry."
"Do you always show up late?" She said playfully, Wanda wasn't mad since Peter gave her fair warning about his punctuality, or lack thereof.
"You might not like that answer." Peter expressed the phrase in a funny way, but really meant it.
Wanda exaggeratingly huffed, she was a punctual person and people being late was a pet peeve of hers that really got under her skin. "Are you going to try and make an excuse?"
"Ah, I got into a fist fight?" He sarcastically told the truth.
Wanda arched her eyebrow at his statement. "That's a pretty bad excuse." She chuckled and handed him a spare menu that the previous waiter had left.
"Sorry, and Thanks." He took the laminated paper and made a quick glance. "Have you ordered yet?"
"I found something but... was just waiting." She answered.
Pretending to hide his shame by covering his face with menu, Peter sank into the chair. "Sorry again."
The Scarlet Witch let out a soft laugh and then gave the man a small kick to the leg, which caused Peter to straighten backup.
"Sorry."
"Do girls ever tell you that you say sorry a lot?" Wanda said with a lighthearted intent as she rested her head on her palm.
"Ah, yes actually." He shook his head just thinking about at all the times he had apologized to MJ for missing plans they had together. He faked a cough, "You look great tonight. Especially with the-" he made a gesture at her new hairdo which he was blanking on the right description choice.
"Ponytail?" She mused in a playful manner.
"Yeah-"
Wanda frowned. "You don't think I look good with my hair down?"
Peter was caught off guard. Realizing he must have just sounded superficial. "No, I mean you always look amazing, I just mean tonight… you are particularly, stunning." His words kept tumbling over each other as he tried to find a good comeback.
Wanda let out a chuckle and twirled her tied hair with a finger. "I am just teasing. You look great tonight too. Thanks."
"Yeah, thanks… haha" Peter breathed normally again. "Um, so what are you getting?"
"I have never tried beef bu-l-gog-i?" She attempted to pronounce the word.
Peter scratch his chin, he looked like he was going to try and correct her, but the words were not coming out the right way in his brain. "I am not going to even attempt to say that."
Wanda smirked, it felt like a small victory on her end, 'finally, something he doesn't know.' "What about you? Anything you haven't tried?"
"I haven't eaten uhhh… Naaa-eeen-gym-on?" He masterfully butchered the pronunciation.
The Scarlet Witch couldn't help but burst out laughing. Even though she had never heard of such a thing or how to properly say the word, but just the way the man sitting in front of her mouthed it was enough to know he was not saying it right. "You're just as bad as me!"
They snickered in unison.
"Good evening, what can I get you two?" The waiter came by.
"Ah, yeah. How do you say this?" Peter pointed at the name of the noodles.
"Naengmyeon." Waiter said while writing down the order.
"And she wanted this?" Peter pointed at Wanda's order.
"Bulgogi." The waiter said.
"Yeah, these two please. Thanks."
"I'll be back shortly." The man took the menus off their hands and left.
Peter smiled at Wanda. "You did way better than me pronouncing that."
"Not bad." Wanda nodded, happy that she was getting better at putting English syllables together. "You like Korean food? I probably should have asked that before this."
"No, I mean yes, we'll I am more of a Chinese takeout person but any food in general is good. You?" Peter stumbled.
"This will be the second time I'll be having Korean food in my life." Wanda answered.
"No? Second?! Like only two times… ever?"
Wanda waved two fingers in the air. "Two, ever. The first time I tried this thing called Kimchi. It was alright."
"Classic. Is that why you wanted to come here?" He poured some tea into his cup. "Want some?"
"Yes, thanks." She handed him her empty cup. "Just felt like it, no reason. I wanted to try something different."
"Interesting, you're not secretly a K-Pop fanatic, are you? I mean that's totally fine if you are, those bands are all the rage nowadays." Peter returned her cup. "Be careful, it's hot."
"Thanks." She took the tea. "No, I don't know much about K-pop." She was kind of curious now.
"Once you hear it, you can't unhear it. Super catchy stuff." Peter warned.
"I'll keep that in mind." Wanda made a mental note to herself: show Steve. "So, is that the kind of music you like?"
Peter laughs indifferently, "I wouldn't say that. I don't have a music preference; I just like to listen to whatever's playing."
"You sound like a very indecisive person." Wanda took a sip of her tea.
"I have a lot of things going on in my mind, sometimes it's hard to make the right decisions." He thought about all the things in his life that he was currently juggling. Every time something was going right in his personal life, Spider-Man paid the price and vice versa. It was a compromise that wasn't easy to balance. "What about you? You have a music preference?"
"I like rock. Heavy metal." She answered.
Peter was never a prejudice person. Therefore, he never took Wanda for that type of girl, but then again, she did have a light-goth thing going on. Something that made her different from the other girls he's been with. "Cool. Is there any particular reason?"
It wasn't hard to answer; Pietro and Wanda had a habit of sneaking into raves and local concerts to watch upcoming artists preform their newest hits when they were young. However, it was still a little too personal to get into. "Me and my brother liked to go to random concerts when we were young, most of the time it was that kind of music. It grows on you after a while."
Peter arched his eyebrow; Wanda hadn't mentioned her family much to him before, foster or blood. Her telling him she has a brother grabbed his attention. He didn't want to come off as insensitive or prying, so he formulated a soft question to ease into the subject. "So, what did you like doing as a child?"
Wanda could tell by Peter's sudden shift in body moment that he was interested in hearing more about her background. She hadn't really talked with anybody about her past extensively, the braver part of her consciousness decided to let some details slip, maybe in return he'll tell her some stories of his past too. "I didn't do much things for fun. My family was poor, we lived near the coast of Sokovia. My brother and I didn't do much besides go to school and then come home to help our parents with work…"
Abruptly, she was interrupted by the waiter who returned with their dishes. It gave Wanda a good second to rearticulate her thoughts as she didn't know how to continue with her story.
"So, what did your parent's do?" Peter wondered, as there weren't many occupations that came into his mind where children would help their parents do work.
"It was a restaurant business. We served a mixture of Slavic foods from the region." She smiled, remembering the taste of her parent's homemade meals.
"Ah, you probably helped with the cooking and stuff, right?" Peter guessed, there were several family owned eateries that he had previously worked for which had the same kind of culture.
"Yes, sort of like that." She agreed. "We'll basically that's what I did growing up." She cut the details short.
Peter could tell she didn't want to go in depth. "I see, so you must be a pretty good cook."
Wanda laughed and nodded her head. "You can say that."
"I am not bad either." Peter remarked.
"Oh yea?"
"Um-hm."
"Maybe next time we should just have a cooking contest instead of going out." Wanda offered.
"Sure, then I'll get to show you how professional-amateur cooking taste like."
Wanda laughed at his oxymoron. "That doesn't even make sense."
"Trust me, it will."
XXXX
The two finished their dinner and walked over to the parking lot.
"Nice car." Peter gawked at the blue Camaro.
"I am not really a car person, but it does look nice." Wanda walked over to the diver side and rested her arms on the surface.
Peter went to the passenger side and did the same. "Your foster parents must trust you a lot to let your barrow this."
"I think me scratching it would be the least of his worries." Wanda snickered at the thought.
"I would be worried, it'll probably cost me five years of rent to afford this." He drummed his fingers on the surface.
The two looked at each other for a few second, judging each other's next moves. Unsure of what to say next. He wanted to just keep conversing with Wanda, it was nice to have someone to talk with in which the conversations didn't always end up circling back to his Spider-Man activities. Peter didn't want to leave just yet, of course he had other plans for the night mainly neighborhood patrol. However, that was the superhero inside of him talking, not his actual desire.
Wanda didn't want to return to the facility. There wasn't a curfew per say, the worst thing that could happen is a group of carious superheroes pestering her all day about the events that transpired. That was something she was willing to deal with if it meant that she could have fun and forget that she wasn't some enhanced monster a lot of people see her as.
"Well…" Peter fiddled with his fingers. "I guess, I'll see you later?" He wasn't sure how to continue.
The Scarlet Witch masked her disappointment, she wanted him to ask her to stay a little longer, do something spontaneous, or at the very least give her a long hug. She was afraid that maybe he just wasn't as interested in her as she believed. "Of course." She waved.
The man smiled and removed his hands from the car. "Get home safely." He tuned around ready to head off.
Wanda tapped her right foot, she wanted to say something but didn't know how to articulate her words. Her chest beating faster than usual, unsure if what she was about to say would come off as pathetic. "Wait- I don't want to go back yet."
Peter paused, not sure what she was insinuating. Obviously, there were multiple ways a young adult male could interpret the phrase, but for Peter, he wanted to make sure she was living in a secure environment. He turned around to see Wanda still gazing at him with her lonely but hopefully eyes. The young returned to his original position besides the car and rested his body over the window. "Is something wrong?"
The Scarlet Witch relaxed her chin on her arms. "You know, I should be grateful that I have a place to live after everything that has happened. But sometimes… I just want to disappear. I don't mind being hungry or homeless so long as I am free to do whatever I want. You ever get that feeling?"
Peter rested his chin on the surface of his hands. "I do- it would be great to just relax and do nothing for once."
"So, what's stopping you?" She wondered.
Peter produced a weak smile, "sometimes you don't get a choice."
"Maybe…" She wrinkled her nose at the thought, "got plans tonight?"
"I got some." He nodded apologetically; his mind still set on doing Spider-Man things, however his will to act on it was mixed at the moment.
"Cancel it." She stated bluntly. "Do nothing with me for a little bit."
XXXX
Central Park, 10:32 PM.
Peter and Wanda sat together on a bench.
"You ever wonder what all those people are thinking?" Wanda asked Peter, aware that she could just use her powers and pluck the answer out from their brains. Nevertheless, she was interested in what the man next to her thought.
"Hmmm." He pressed his back into the bench rest. "Not really, there are just too many possibilities."
"How about them over there?" She points her head at the direction of an elderly couple.
"Sightseeing?" Peter logically guessed from the way they were pointing at several building from a distance.
"Anything else?" She asked.
"They wanted to take a long stroll?" Peter shrugged.
"You have no imagination." Wanda criticized.
"Hey, I take offense to that, I am a very creative person. I am just not nosey." 'When I don't have to be' he mentally corrected himself.
The Scarlet Witch secretly uses her powers to read the couple's minds. "I think they are remembering where he first purposed to her."
"Oh, that's a good one." Peter nodded. "You know I read this article on why some people stay together longer than others. Well it's a psychology thing. Basically, there are two types of love: passionate and companionate. Passionate, well… that's what you would think it is. It's that intense feeling people have when they get together. Companionate or compassionate is built of mutual respect, trust, and all the other things you would expect an old couple like them to have." Peter finished his monologue.
Wanda gave him an odd look. "Why were you reading this?"
"Oh, I was just carious." He broke his gaze. 'It wasn't like I ran across the topic when Googling how to get back with an ex.'
"Ok, let's try something else instead." The Scarlet Witch decided to ask a little more personal question. "Are you nervous around girls?"
"Me, pifff, of course I am –" He admitted.
She chuckled almost thinking he was going to say no. "Why are you nervous?"
"I am just not used to the whole going out thing, I wasn't really the looker growing up. Girls rarely talked to me." He tried to word his answer so that it didn't highlight his negative attributes.
"Why? I think you look fine." She slid a little closer, pretending to need a better look.
"Ah, well." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet to take out a photo of him at a middle school science fair. The preteen was sandwiched between his Aunt and Uncle. Peter handed Wanda the picture.
The Scarlet Witch took the picture and examined the image. "That's you?" She squealed in delight.
"It's not that bad." He sighed, hanging his head in embarrassment.
"No, I think it's adorable." She ingrained the image of the young preteen wearing thick glasses and a lab coat with his Aunt and Uncle into her mind. 'This is a great photo.' Wanda handed the picture back to him which he delicately put back into a cover flap of his wallet.
"So, do you wear contacts?" She questioned after realizing he doesn't wear glasses now.
"Oh, no. I just woke up one day and I could see perfectly clear. Better actually."
"No way." She called him out.
"I am serious." He came in a little closer and peeled open his eyelids. "Nothing."
The only light shining was a from a streetlamp a few yards away, so it made small objects hard to see. Wanda moved her head closer to his, only inches way from his face. She could feel the heat radiating off his skin, his irregular breathing in her ears as he realized just how intimately close, they were. The Scarlet Witch reached out… and tried to poke his eyeball.
"Ah! Don't touch it." He instinctively moved her hand away.
"Sorry, I just couldn't help it." She laughed.
XXXX
The Rapture: Irish Pub, 12:07 AM
Peter took a sip out of his glass of apple juice.
Wanda drank a little more of her Imperial Russian Stout. "Are you sure you don't want any?" She referred to the beer in her hand.
"No, I am good. I don't drink." The man answered.
"You are making me feel really self-conscious right now." Wanda felt awkward being the only one consuming alcohol.
He would have loved to tell her that it took a lot of alcohol before he could get drunk. In his mind there was no point in drinking any beer since he would only feel the buzz for a few minutes before he sobers up. Another affect of the spider bite. Likewise, he just didn't care for drinking since it was a bad habit.
"Why do people drink, you ever wonder that?" Wanda asked, knowing Peter would probably give her an interesting answer.
"Well…"
'Here we go' She rested elbow on the table and relaxed her chin on her knuckles.
"…it depends. Studies show that it's usually because of two reasons. Dealing with stress or to be more sociable. See, alcohol triggers dopamine in the brain and that pretty much means it makes you feel happier. Correspondingly, this makes people more sociable and friendly."
She smirked at the response. "Where did you get that from?"
"Scientific America. It's a great magazine."
Wanda took a moment to reflect. "Do you want to guess why I drink?" She gave him a sly glance before tensely drawing circles on the table with her finger.
Peter raised an eyebrow, unsure how to answer. "Is this a trick question?"
"I don't know, is it?" She moved the bottle to her lips and titled the liquid into her mouth.
Peter flushed as an uncontrollable indecent thought ran cross his mind. Breaking eye contact he took a second to think, forming something that would not sound pretentious but sensible. "Maybe a little bit of both?" He made a lenient shrug. "I get it. It's hard living in a totally different country with totally different people. Hard to make friends and stuff… I think." He took another sip of his juice. Returning his eyes on Wanda, trying to read her response.
The Scarlet Witch liked the answer. It was a nice way of summing up her situation. "Am I that easy to read?"
"No, I was actually trying pretty hard." Peter chuckled.
Wanda finished her bottle and began fiddling with the label sticker. "Do you want to play game?"
…
"Three vodkas and whiskeys." The waitress put the individual shots down onto the table where Peter and Wanda sat. Three for him and three for her.
"I don't know about this." Peter questioned, "I told you I am not really a drinker."
"Don't worry, that's why I only asked for three." Wanda dismissed his worries. The woman didn't drink often, but she could handle a few good shots. Getting drunk was rare as she was a responsible person, and partly because of family genes.
"Only three, right…" This concerned the young man even more.
"Come on, within the hour it will be out of your system." She encouraged.
"It's pretty late already? And you have to drive." He continued.
"Don't worry about that. Now, let play." She rubbed her hands together deviously.
"I don't think we should." Peter protested again.
"Okay, how about this." She grabbed one of glasses from his end and moved it to hers.
"I don't think that helps."
"I trust you won't try to do anything with me." She joked.
"Can't we do this with apple juice?" Peter asked.
Wanda got tired of his antics and took a shot without warning. She felt the sting of the alcohol run down her throat; it made her wince but quickly the pain disappeared.
Peter wiped the shocked look off his face and quickly grabbed the rest of her shots and moved it over to his side. He wanted to prevent her from continuing as he calculated in his head that she weighed at maximum 130 pounds and that if Wanda took another shot, there would be enough alcohol in her system to make her drunk.
The Sokovian crossed her arms displeased.
"I don't know about your schools. But we learned something called peer pressure. And you are using that on me right now." He quipped.
"Just this once. Okayyy? If you feel like you can't handle it, we'll leave." She promised.
'Spider-metabolism please do your thing.' He wrapped his fingers around a shot glass and brought it to his lips. He began letting the liquid slide into his mouth, the first millisecond wasn't too bad but suddenly a sharp stinging sensation engulfed his tongue followed by a burn in the back of his mouth.
Cough* Cough*
Some of the whisky fell down his chin as he finished the rest. "Gross!"
Wanda clapped mockingly. "Do you want to continue?"
"Nope, we are going." He stood up and grabbed her hand. Wanda didn't protest as she let him drag her out of the bar.
XXXX
1:04 AM
The two held hands while walking through a random street full of trinket stores.
"You know they costed five dollars apiece?" She muttered, Wanda's slightly drunk slur and accent made her sound pissed instead of regretful.
"Can we not think about that for a moment." He groaned. 'Man, that could have gone to rent or paid a week's worth of super cheap fast food.'
Wanda stopped in the middle of the road and let go of his hand.
"What is it?" He was slightly concerned. Thinking that maybe she needs to throw up.
The Witch made a circle gesture with her finger. "Turn around."
"Okay…" He stiffly made small steps until he rotated 180 degrees.
"Now down a little." She requests.
Peter questioned why he was doing this, but slowly squatted.
"Great." Wanda got onto his back and crossed her arms around his chest.
Peter realized what she wanted to do and instantly braced himself as the woman made a small jump and crossed her legs around his lower abdomen. He subconsciously reached out his arms to get a better hold of her. His ears heated bright red realizing that his hands were making contact with her thighs. The only thing between them was a thin layer of stockings. He gulped some air and breathed 'think about dirty laundry, and smelly sewers Pete.' He chanted in his head.
"Pretty romantic." Her exotic accent purred in his ears. He felt a wave of goosebumps crawl down from his neck as her warm breath hit the side of his face. The gentle touches of strawberry perfume dancing around his nose.
"I think this would be something the main characters of a film would do on a third or fourth date." He replied.
She dug her chin comfortably into the right side of his collar. Letting her cheek rub against his. She could feel Peter's skin flush with warm blood from the intimate contact, which made her happy. "American movies are so predictable, the two people meet, fall in love, get into an argument, break up, then get back together again. No originality."
"I think everybody likes the idea of a happy ending. The drama." Thoughts of MJ trying to kiss him return as he continued walking.
"You know what would be realistic?"
"Uh, they never speak together again?" Was his uncontrolled response due to the many negative feelings invading his head.
"Yes." She responded.
"…Gosh, such a Debbie Downer. They may just end up staying friends." He muttered.
She shook her head at his naivety. "You know I am right."
They continued down the road for a few more minutes.
"So…" She tried to come up with the next question. "Do you have any siblings?"
"Not that I know of."
"Where are your parent's?" She continued.
He stopped, Peter didn't want to directly say that they were dead. Instead he gave more of a passive response. "I don't know actually…"
The two or three second pause felt like minutes for Wanda as she realized how insensitive that was. Wanda frowned. Peter had told her about his aunt who used to help run F.E.A.S.T. but tragically got sick an passed away. However, she didn't know much besides that. "So, you were raised by your uncle and aunt then?" The woman recalled the picture he had shown her earlier.
"Yep, the best two people in the world." He nodded.
The Scarlet Witch could tell he was hiding a lot of grief inside his happy exterior. It made her ponder about her relationships. Thinking of family just made her sick, having her mom and dad stolen from her and then her brother. And now, the Avengers were all trying their best to be her friends, but she only repaid them with a hard attitude. While this whole time, Peter was probably just alone as she was, but still had the courage to look at the world in a positive way.
"I am sorry." She whispered.
"It's alright." He continued to walk.
… Six more blocks down …
"Pete?"
"Yea?"
"Are you tired?"
"Uh, yeah." He pretended to be losing strength, realizing he had probably walked a quarter mile with her on his back, and a regular guy would be exhausted by now.
"You don't seem like it." She stated. "I can't feel you sweating."
"Uh, I am very cold-blooded."
She scoffed. "I am going to get off now."
"Oh, okay." He slowly let go of her legs.
"Ahhh-" Peter stretched, and sat down near a curb, feigning tiredness.
Wanda sat down besides him pulled her hood over her head; it was getting pretty chilly outside.
"So, what do you want to do now?" He asked.
The Scarlet Witch gave it a few seconds to think of an answer. "Well… you can take me back to your place." She plainly spoke.
Peter eyes nearly popped out of his sockets. Nervously, he began shaking his legs. "Oh- Uhhhh, I don't think that would be a good idea. It's pretty messy. I just moved in and everything."
"I am tired, I don't want to drive." She whined.
"We'll you know, I think it's going to get kind of awkward. It's really small." He scratched his head, trying to find other excuses. "I can call a cab?" Peter ran his fingers through his hair. Not comfortable with the idea of bringing Wanda to his place because he had all his Spider-Man stuff lying around and he felt like things may just be moving too fast between them. Not to mention that he was still having conflicting emotions between him and MJ.
"ви сте као дјевица." She rolled her eyes.
Peter arched his eyebrows, unfamiliar with Sokovian. "What does that even mean?"
"You are a smart guy, figure it out. Come on." She pouted. "It's late."
The young man sighed.
XXXX
Peter's rundown apartment, 2:08 AM.
The building complex was not in a bad neighborhood, but it looked like it just barely meets city regulations. Probably, the only thing he could afford at the moment.
Wanda stood outside in the hall, she leanded against the wall and crossed her arms. Peter had told her to wait just a minute as he puts some things away. 'Confidential' stuff as he calls it. It's been almost five minutes now and the noises of things in the room being shifted around finally stopped.
The door opened with an annoying creak.
"I need to get those hinges changed." Peter shook his head. "Um, you can come in now…" He motions towards the room with both thumbs.
Wanda pushed herself off the wall and walked past Peter. "Thanks."
It wasn't much of a sight. There are two windows adjacent to the door. There were a ton of papers thrown together in several boxes thrown under a desk with trinkets and other devices scattered on the surface. 'Must have been what he was moving around' she thought. Some space and science related posters hung up on the wall, and a few boards that were flipped backwards to hide its contents. The wall paint was a dirty lime color with some stains. A stove, sink, and refrigerator in the front, a bed next to the entrance, and a small bathroom to the right.
"Not the coziest place I am afraid." He closed the door behind him, Peter tried his best to remain calm and not let his voice crack.
Wanda made a few glances and took off her shoes, setting them besides the door. Then the woman stepped deeper into the little open space. "It reminds me of my old home. A little smaller though." She smiled.
Peter gave her a small smirk in return, "Ah, can I get you anything to drink? I got water… and water is it actually." He palmed his face in embarrassment.
"Yes please, uh, can I use your-?" She pointed at the restroom.
"Oh, yeah, yeah, go ahead." He unstiffened his body posture and went over to his counter to find a clean glass.
…
Peter was anxious. He didn't know what would happen next, obviously he was going to offer her his bed and sleep on the floor, but what if they go further? He exhaled and scolded himself for thinking about that "don't get too ahead of yourself Pete."
The young man pulled out a chair from under his desk and sat down. Drawing out his phone, he checks his crime alarm. Throughout the past few hours he had been getting random notifications. Peter had managed to steal a few quick glances when Wanda was occupied. Luckily for him, it was job related. The silence of the evening was irritating him to no end. He has been telling himself to take a few patrol nights off to relax but it never happened as he was constantly worried about people that may need his help. The only crime that had been reported was a shoplift that the police seemed to have taken care of it. He put his phone down and ran his hands through his hair, "thankfully no one got hurt."
…
She can't just offer self on a silver platter Wanda thought, there wouldn't be any built up in the eventual "fun" she was aiming for. The Thought of being intimate excited her, she craved the feel of being touch by the opposite sex, it's been too many years since a man had shown her their lustful intentions. Of course, the thought of Peter doing such things was far fetched on a first date, the man didn't even try to give her kiss. For now, she was content with the idea of just being near him. Peter had been such a gentleman towards her, and she yearned for the feeling of being normal again.
Wanda untied her hair and looked at herself in the mirror. She usually didn't feel too nervous going into a boy's apartment. She had done it a few times in the past. Likewise, after fighting Ultron and going on several dangerous missions with the Avengers, this seemed to be trivial. Not exactly the scariest thing in the world. However, the uneasy feelings she thought were suppressed, began to creep in.
"I should have drunk more." She told her reflection.
…
Wanda finished her glass of water in one go. Peter's watchful eyes got on her nerves. The Scarlet Witch sat on his bed while he moved a small table out of the way to make a little space on the wooden ground. They were both tired and need to get some rest.
"So… you can take the bed, I got the floor." Peter offered.
Wanda wanted to protest and suggest they both just sleep on the bed. However, she crossed that option out as she couldn't ever see him agreeing to that. "Okay." She muttered.
There was some awkward silence between the two as they settled into their places for the night. Peter finished using the restroom and closed the lights, leaving the small living space in a state of quietness. All that could be heard was some light nighttime traffic, and the breathing from the young man and woman.
Wanda laid still in the bed; the sheets pulled up just to cover her feet. It wasn't particularly cold as she kept her hoody on. The atmosphere felt immensely awkward, similar to two friends having a sleepover, though filled with sexual tension.
"Pete?" She whispered.
"Yes?" He replied.
She turned over to her side and looked down to find the man staring back at her. "Thanks for tonight… we should do it again sometimes."
He smiles back, which caused her to feel a tingly wave of warm emotions travel up to her head.
"Any time Wanda."
The Scarlet Witch's heart beat fast as she returned to her original position looking endlessly into the plain celling. She played with her hair a little, trying to think of what to do.
"Peter?"
"Um-hm."
She again turned to her side to look at him. Wanda motioned for him to come a little closer with a wave of her hand. The young man gave her a perplexed look and supported his upper body with both hands, shortening the distance between them. "Something wrong?"
She moved a few strands of loose hair that fell across her face behind her ear and bit her lower lip. Wanda then reached her hand to touch his face. Peter was surprised by the movement, but didn't pull back, instead letting her soft hand roam the surface of his cheek. The woman moved a little closer to him as she closed her eyes. Peter's heart beats rapidly as he stayed still, frozen by her sweet kiss. It was a small love tap on his mouth. He closed his eyes, giving into her strawberry sent and earnest action, returning the small caress for a brief second before they separated.
"Good night." She whispered into his ear which sent a chill down his spine. She looked into his eyes once more before turning around and going back to bed, leaving the nerd pining.
…
Peter laid on the ground with a thick jacket as a blanket and a backpack as a pillow. The ground wasn't particularly comfortable, but at least it was warm because the person living below him had a heater. He watched the ceiling with a blank stare. The man could hear Wanda's soft snoozing above him. Usually, a bit of white noise helped him with his sleep, but not today. After their soft kiss, he couldn't help but feel like someone gave him a shot of adrenaline. Moreover, the girl occasionally talked in her dream state, murmuring a name: Pietro. Peter didn't dare wake her up and he definitely didn't want to ask any questions that may cause her to grieve.
'I don't think I will be able to sleep tonight.' He checked his phone, 3:32 AM. He huffed in annoyance with his inability to pass out. Peter scooted closer to the wall so he could press his back against it. He opened his laptop with a cracked screen and put on some earbuds. "Might as well get some extra work done."
…
Hope you guys dig this chapter. Next update, I am thinking of something fun in celebration of Spider-Man Far From Home coming out Fourth of July weekend, but who knows. Rating change in the future - probably. Anyways, thanks for reading and I'd appreciate some feedback.
