Chapter Seventeen - The Closing

The party was small for Johnny, but he got by because of the girls he had invited. I didn't even want to go, but the fact that it was also a secret engagement party meant I was required. I had been the one to suggest Reed propose with a metal "gasket". So there I was, standing at the bar on a boat, watching the Human Torch flirt with a bunch of girls, Reed and Ben talk, and Alicia, Ben's blind girlfriend, and Sue get drinks together.

I had learned the rest of the story of the night of the battle in chunks from the Four, but finally pieced together the entire story. I also managed to rope Leonard into getting rid of Victor-the-statue, with the help of Jess, who was also sick of the sewer rat. With Victor being shipped back to Latvia, the Industry was being repossessed, but most of the employees were seeking work elsewhere. Me? I was unemployed, but I was fine with it. I had also begun to move out of the Baxter Building (after convincing Reed and Sue that I was fine with living under my own roof and away from the chaos they lived in) and back into my apartment.

I was ready to find myself, for once.

Tessa was gone, and not even Daddy Marshall, her father, knew where she had gone. I wasn't worried - the psycho could handle herself, and she obviously had some powerful allies. Jess was gone too, but had promised to return. My old life was gone and my new life was just beginning.

But for the moment, I was stuck on the boat with some enticing alcohol nearby. I had quit drinking after the battle, probably because of the amount of puking that went on when we returned to the building to recover, and now I was desperately trying to stay sober. I almost gave in when I spotted some expensive brandy being passed around, but then I saw Reed lead his soon-to-be fiancé out to the empty deck. So I snatched a water bottle out of some poor man's hand and pushed through the crowd. Somebody had to keep an eye on things.

I leaned against the railing, watching as Reed got it right for once, and shook my head. Johnny spotted me and wiggled his eyebrows, and I rolled my eyes at him. He drew a heart in the air, then pointed at me. I flipped him the bird, and he put a hand to his chest, maiming hurt. As he and Ben interacted, I turned to look over the water. For a second, I thought I saw something blue flashing underneath, but then the Storm boy shouted, "Clear the way, wide load coming through!"

I looked behind me to see him fleeing the Thing, who was a second away from punching him off the boat. He flamed up, flying into the air, and left a blazing four in the sky as people cheered and drunkenly laughed. The rock monster grumbled, the torch flew around the ship a few times, then landed in front of me. Several people clapped, and I reached out and flicked his arm, giving him a quick shock.

As everyone laughed, I found myself smiling.

Okay, okay, I know, I'm a terrible person. You have my permission to throw me off something tall.

I've just been procrastinating. A lot. Sorry. *winces*

But I'm done now ~