Chapter Fifty Three
"And you're sure you have everything you need?" Tony's voice sounded on the other end of the phone while Ada had set it on the sofa beside her suitcase. After a hasty decision to join Darcy and Jane during their stay in London for a week, she was beginning to regret telling Tony about it. He was acting like an overprotective father again, calling her every other hour to make sure everything was going well. Before she'd boarded the plane, Tony had been there, and he'd even called when the plane landed. "Last thing I need is to hear that something went wrong while you're in London on your own."
"Dad, would you relax?" she stopped him before he could keep asking a million questions, "I'm already at the apartment, and I've got all my luggage. If I need anything, I'll use the credit card you gave me. Alright? You can call tomorrow when I've finished settling in."
She could practically hear the exasperation in his voice when he let out a sigh. She knew he cared about her wellbeing. Ada was grateful that he cared so much about her. There was a point in their lives when it seemed as if he never gave a damn. There were times when Ada missed those moments when she had the freedom to do whatever she wanted without him questioning her. Now, she was desperate to get away from whatever questioning he had for her motives.
"Fine," he grumbled. "Just promise me you won't do anything crazy while you're there."
Ada glanced up from her phone to see Darcy sitting at the table smothering a fit of laughter. The brunette had been watching for most of the time while struggling not to laugh. She was already getting a kick out of Ada's stay at their apartment.
"Yeah, I promise," she rolled her eyes and hung up before he could make any other complaints.
"God, I'm glad you finally showed up when you did," she gasped out after catching her breath.
Well, I'm glad someone's getting enjoyment out of this. Ada couldn't help but shake her head at the thought.
She'd jumped at the chance to visit London when Darcy offered it. She only hoped it would take her mind off of the one problem that kept rushing back. Thinking about Steve and how she would handle the situation with him wasn't helping matters. Fury wanted them to work together during missions. If they started seeing each other as more than friends, she wasn't sure how that would play out.
"Thanks again for offering me a place to stay."
She began sorting through the week's worth of clothing she'd taken with her. She was only staying for a week – the last thing she wanted was to overstay her welcome. Darcy had been kind enough to invite her in the first place. If she didn't get along with Jane, then at least she wouldn't give Jane further reason to feel annoyed towards Darcy's actions.
"Considering you're willing to take the couch, I figured that's the least I could do," Darcy replied with a shrug. "So, what exactly is going on with you and Captain America?"
Ada let out a sigh and looked down at the floor guiltily. She wished there was a better way to explain the situation. Instead, she was stuck feeling hopelessly lost and confused. Love was complicated. That was the first thing Natasha told her during their training sessions, and the first thing she learned after her fallout with Emmett.
"It's complicated," she explained warily. She set aside a pair of jeans and pulled out a t-shirt. London was infamous for being cold and rainy, so she'd taken a couple of sweaters with her. Luckily, Darcy found a place where she could put her clothing while she stayed at their apartment. "He's sweet and caring, but… the boss wants us to work together on missions."
More importantly, Director Fury had asked if she would be willing to move in across from each other in Washington D.C. Ada hadn't jumped at the opportunity. At least, not until she had an idea of what they would be doing together. Missions were one thing, but he'd already pushed the limits by asking her to show him how modern technology worked.
Darcy hummed in understanding as she reached for a glass of water, handing one over so that she could join her on the couch. It may not have been much, but it was certainly better than nothing. She'd taken the couch when she was staying with Banner during their time together, so she wasn't a stranger to sleeping in uncomfortable places.
"That does sound complicated," she said thoughtfully. "I mean, not as complicated as Jane dating Thor, but… you know keeping your feelings bottled up isn't going to help, right?"
She eyed Ada curiously when she paused in unpacking. The thought never occurred to her. Truthfully, she wasn't even sure how to express her feelings. She didn't want to hurt Steve, and she certainly didn't want to make things worse between them. The worst thing he could do was turn her down. That alone was what terrified her the most.
She knew Steve wasn't the kind of person who would try to hurt someone on purpose. But, that didn't stop Ada from thinking the worst-case scenario would happen. Fear of rejection was what left her from admitting the truth in the first place. That among various other reasons.
"I've never thought of it like that," she admitted guiltily.
"Look, I'm no expert when it comes to dating, but I do know that if your powers are based off of emotions and how strongly you feel, they could backfire on you," Darcy pointed out.
She was one of the few people who appreciated the powers Ada had. While Darcy was the kind of person who would take full advantage of powers like hers, she didn't. Instead, she made Ada feel at home and at ease talking with her. Though, that didn't stop the heat from rising to her cheeks at the thought of her abilities.
Is it possible that my powers could spiral out of control? she wondered.
She'd lost control before, and the thought terrified her that she could hurt innocent people along the way. Ada's fists clenched as she tried pushing the thoughts away. She couldn't let that happen. Not when there was so much to lose.
"What the hell is this?" Both of them looked up at the sound of Jane's voice. Ada suddenly found herself sinking deeper into the couch when she noticed the scowl written across her face. "Darcy, you know how I feel about bringing random visitors to our apartment!"
"Yeah, well, it got pretty boring here after you started moaning about Thor not showing up," Darcy retorted without missing a beat. "I invited Ada as a friend."
"Who also happens to work for SHIELD," Jane argued.
Her eyes narrowed as she looked at Ada suspiciously. She'd never gotten quite over the fact that Ada worked for SHIELD. Not that Ada couldn't necessarily blame Jane for her lack of trust.
"The good news is, the boss doesn't even know I'm here," Ada reassured her with a shrug. Though, she doubted that would help alleviate the tension between them. She knew it would take more than quitting SHIELD to gain Jane's trust. "I'm here solely for a vacation."
"From what?"
Ada chewed the bottom of her lip once more. The flicker of doubt returned at full-force, this time stronger than before. She was beginning to wonder if there was a single person who trusted her because of SHIELD. Even Tony would sometimes get suspicious of her activity, though he never questioned her like Jane did.
"She's doing some soul searching," Darcy explained for her. "Apparently, she has a massive crush on Captain America."
"I do not!" she snapped almost immediately.
Darcy's eyes danced with laughter as she backed down. Though, Jane's face softened as realization dawned on her. She had a hard enough time admitting that she had feelings for Steve. The last thing she wanted or needed was other people guessing the same thing. Maybe Jane did understand what she was going through, at the moment.
"Alright, fine… you can stay here, but only if you promise to leave SHIELD out," she sighed after finally giving in.
Ada let out a sigh of her own. Her shoulders dropped in relief when Jane left it at that. She knew she could have easily found a hotel to stay at, but crashing at a friend's place was the best option she could look for.
"Thank you," she whispered when she finished putting away the last contents of her clothing.
"I uh, hate to ask one favor, but, do you know what happened to Thor after that battle in Manhattan?" Jane suddenly asked.
That was enough for Ada to flinch visibly. She had been hoping to avoid that question all-together. Thor left to make sure that Loki faced justice for what he did. Yet, he also left because it was necessary. She could still remember him explaining that Odin hadn't been happy when he left in the first place. After all, Earth should have been capable of fixing its own problems.
"He talked about you a lot," she replied after remembering what Coulson had said about Jane missing Thor greatly. Darcy's complaints about Jane moping around had only confirmed what he said. She knew SHIELD was keeping an eye on them, though she planned on leaving that out. "He wished he could visit, but duty called on Asgard."
Jane hung her head at the mention of Asgard. It couldn't have been easy, falling for someone who wasn't from this world. Ada was suddenly reminded of her own heritage when she thought about it. A small part of her wondered if things would be different had her people not been hunted down. Life worked in mysterious ways. Ada had a feeling that Jane would see Thor again.
"I hate not knowing what's happened to him," she murmured when she finally took a seat. "He promised that he would return, and he hasn't kept that promise."
Some promises can't be kept, a small voice pointed out in the back of her head.
"Jane, I don't think Thor planned on breaking his promise," she tried pointing out. She hadn't missed the scowl written across Darcy's face at the mention of Thor. It was obvious that she'd gotten tired of hearing Jane talk about him. Though, she couldn't necessarily blame her. "Some things just came up that were out of his control."
"I know," Jane muttered, though she didn't look happy upon reaching that conclusion. "I just wish things could be different."
You and me both, Ada thought bitterly.
Part of her understood what Jane was going through. To know that the man she loved had been on Earth and ignored her completely must have hurt. But, it wasn't as if Thor had a choice. Loki had attacked Earth, and they needed to work together to stop him.
The rest of that evening was spent in strangely comfortable silence. Ada had offered to help make dinner since there wasn't much in the refrigerator. It was the least she could do for Jane letting her stay. Though technically, it had been Darcy's idea to invite her.
Dinner consisted mostly of small talk about what Jane had been up to since they parted ways, along with Darcy. She had apparently been doing more research on finding ways to reach out to Thor. While most of that research had reached a dead end, she had instruments that picked up energy readings throughout the city.
"The sad thing is, none of those devices worked until we left the city," Darcy muttered halfway into the conversation. "They wouldn't even work around Stonehenge, and you'd think that's where they'd work."
Ada studied the device that she mentioned thoughtfully. It looked like something out of a science fiction film. What had once been a toaster now had a sleek looking energy reader attached to it. Though, what really caught Ada's attention was the fact that Jane put it together with mostly rubber bands and what looked like tape.
"That's because Stonehenge is just a myth," Jane pointed out.
"You say aliens didn't build it, even though people like Thor exist along with Asgard," Darcy grumbled.
"Technically, aliens exist too," Ada reminded them with a pointed look.
She was always the first to remind those who knew of her heritage that her people didn't come from Earth. There were so many times when she wished she knew where the Aliquid came from. Something told her Nadia had been keeping that information secret for a reason.
"Exactly!" Darcy snapped her fingers together as if to prove her point.
Jane only rolled her eyes at the pair, though even she was struggling not to laugh when they started arguing among themselves. Even she couldn't deny that it was good to have some kind of break in their normal routine. Ada hadn't missed how quickly Jane's attitude changed the moment she and Darcy began arguing with each other.
"Thanks again for making dinner; it's nice not ordering out for a change," she admitted after they'd finished cleaning everything.
Darcy had retreated to the bedroom to grab extra sheets Ada could sleep on since the couch wasn't covered. While she wasn't opposed to the idea, Darcy insisted it was the least they could offer.
"It's no problem, really," Ada reassured her with a small smile, "Honestly, I'm glad that you agreed to let me stay… I think a vacation is just what the doctor ordered."
In more ways than one, she added silently.
"I've got the bed sheets!" Darcy exclaimed upon returning from the room. "Hopefully they'll be warm enough."
She didn't bother pointing out that she wasn't concerned about staying warm. Instead of arguing, Ada set up the couch so that she had a place to sleep while Jane and Darcy took the beds. While it wasn't the most ideal sleeping condition, it was better than sleeping on the floor. And for the first time in weeks, she finally got a full night's sleep.
AN: SPOILER ALERT FOR RAGNAROK! Am I the only one who was super annoyed with the way they handled Thor and Jane with Ragnarok? While I was never fond of her character, they could have at least had a more viable excuse for not including her and the others in the movie. END SPOILER ALERT!
Yeah... that's the only rant I have for that movie, other than how much I loved it, and the Black Panther :) At any rate, hopefully this chapter wasn't too boring. We're finally transitioning into Thor: Dark World, which means updates may be a little slower. I had a hard time trying to fit Ada into this movie, but hopefully I will give it some justice. Huge thanks to Heh309 for reviewing! They do encourage me to write more, and inspire me to find more ideas for the story :)
Heh309 - Thank you! I'm honestly surprised you were able to read through the whole thing; there are still quite a few mistakes I made along the way, though I plan on fixing them in the near future. I am grateful that you're enjoying it so far; hopefully you'll enjoy this chapter as well :)