Alrighty! I just came from editing the last chapter so let's get started with our intersession period! For those of you who don't know, intersession is a small period before summer vacation (it's technically still summer).

Intersession: Dr. Banner

Science and Technology's Committee Board Room - 9:48 AM

Daniel's leg is shaking as he waits impatiently. He almost sweats out of his suit jacket as he leans forwards. God, he hopes he wasn't as fidgety and hot in there, in front of people with his future in their hands. Hunched over, he removes his glasses and rests his forehead in his hand. His parents told him that this is the most unnerving part of the Ph.D. process and they're right. Of course, they are. They're the smartest people they know and have been through this a few times. A piece of work that he's spent endless nights researching and perfecting.

He thinks his defence went well. He laid out all his points, argued against their counters, and delivered arguments to prove his thesis. The human body can train itself to adapt to foreign bodies up to where it's dependant on substances containing said foreign bodies. He doesn't remember the clicking moment when that became his thesis. Sometimes, he thinks he based it off himself but those thoughts made him nervous.

Daniel checks the time on his phone. How long has he been waiting? Has it been an hour? It felt like that. Maybe they rejected his thesis, found it ridiculous. Maybe they forgot he was waiting out here. Should he knock? Are they still deliberating?

The door from the room he was in opens and he almost throws up, but he quickly smiles and stands up. Peeking inside the room, Daniel has flashbacks to where he was moments ago. He was standing at the end of that table in front of the wall that's composed of windows. On each side of the table, members of the board sat straight. They all had a copy of his paper in front of them with annotations in the margins. Each of them had something to say and a debate to spark.

It was the longest and most stressful moment of his life … and now he barely remembers it. This is it. This is the moment where his life could drastically change.

"We're ready to share our results, Dr. Banner."

-o-

Edison Residence - 11:42 AM

Daniel closes his dorm's door by leaning against it. Once it clicks shut, he removes the tie from his neck and hangs it on his bedframe. His body is numb, moving as if it's on autopilot. Walk in, get changed, finish packing, and head home. But he's not the same person he was when he first left home. He isn't even the same person as when he left the dorm earlier today.

He has a Ph.D. He's Dr. Banner. Dr. Banner. That will take some time to get used to.

Life really does change after a year. But, wow, he loves it.

-o-

[18:19 PM]

Group Chat - Project: New Generation
Members: Daniel, Merida, Britney, Apollo, James, Angela, Xavier, Emily

Merida: I heard a little rumour around campus. Someone in this group chat, not James, is a doctor.

[moments later]

Angela: WAIT, REALLY!? DANIEL!

Daniel: Yes, it's true. I got it.

Xavier: Congratulations!

James: Told you that you were prepared.

Emily: Babe, I'm so proud of you.

Merida: I'm not calling you Dr. Banner.

Emily: I will *winking face*

Merida: Okay, no. SAVE THAT FOR YOUR BEDROOMS!

Xavier: You do know you're technically the first doctor in Sci-Tech's freshman year. You did get the first time slot for the dissertation defence, didn't you?

Daniel: … you're right.

-o-

Days Later - Banner Household - 11:29 AM

Daniel drives through his neighbourhood and he didn't expect all the construction. Peering over the steering wheel as he slows his driving, he notices that they're replacing the sidewalks. That's nice. His only issue with gentrification is that it added another thirty minutes to get to his house since he had to take a detour and obey all the slow down signs.

When he finally pulls up to his driveway, Daniel sighs relieved as he turns off the engine. He steps out of his car and the wind hits him differently. He isn't the same boy who left home last summer.

Daniel opens the trunk to take out his bags, rolling them by his side as he walks up to his house. He isn't sure why but he feels like crying. He's home now. Why would he be emotional? He visited on holidays and whenever he needed a weekend away from campus, but it's different to be coming home with everything from his dorm. It isn't until now that he realizes he finished a full year at the Academy.

Everything's different now.

Daniel's about to knock on the door but stops when he remembers that he has a key. He's no stranger here. Daniel opens the door with his key, calling out for his parents when he enters. They come running to greet him as he brings his bag inside.

They smother him with congratulations on his Ph.D. and completing first year. They want to know college stories, how the defence went, his plans for the summer. They want to know everything and he wants the same for them. Daniel wants to know what they've been doing. They're his parents and, although he hasn't needed them as much the older he got; at least he was there. Now, he hasn't been at home.

"So, what's with the construction outside?" Daniel asks firsts as he heads over to the kitchen to grab a bite. It was a long drive.

"It's insane," Bruce says. "They just showed up out of nowhere with nothing except a week's notice, but nobody's complaining since property value increases with neighbourhood improvement."

Daniel slowly nods. Since when did his parents become real estate experts? "Don't tell me you're thinking of moving."

"Never," Betty responds. "So, tell us, what do you have planned for this summer?"

Daniel shrugs. Last summer, he worked on his dissertation. Now that it's completed, what is he going to do now? He has many months of free time to use before going back to school.

-o-

After Daniel settled, Emily came over. She's been here for a few weeks now, waiting for the rest of them to get home from school. She showed up at the door looking different from the paparazzi pictures when she was abroad. In those photos, she made herself presentable (although he would argue that she didn't even try to look that beautiful). Today, she's natural and at his height because she's not wearing heels. He's seen her like this many times but it's different now.

Everything's different now.

"So, Dr. Banner," Emily starts. A smile grows when she gets to his name.

Daniel blushes a little. Despite being engaged to this girl and knowing her for as long as he could remember, she still gives him a gooey puppy love feeling. It's not been weird seeing her as much this year but being with her again makes it feel as if no time has passed. Yet neither of them could deny that almost an entire year went by.

"You don't have to call me that," Daniel responds. "Upper year professors won't even call us that."

Emily laughs a little, wearing a childlike grin. "I'm not your future prof. I'm your future wife or your future Mrs. Dr. Banner. No, wait, future Mrs. Dr. Stark-Banner."

Daniel pauses, thinking that over. "I don't know if it works like that."

"I can make anything work, especially since my dad's getting on my case about becoming a Ph.D. student." She lights up as if remembering something and grabs his arm. "That reminds me. I got you something."

"Emily, you didn't have to get me anything abroad."

"Well, I did but I'm talking about something domestically." She starts leading him out of his house. "Follow me."

They leave his room and head outside. Amid the sound of construction sounds from the neighbourhood, Emily walks into the garage from the side door. Daniel closes the door behind them to block out the noise. He's already wondering why they're here so his guesses on a gift are nonexistent.

"This better not be for my Ph.D.," Daniel says. He's had enough praise about it to last him a lifetime.

"Take it, Dr. Banner," Emily says.

She stops walking and stands to the side, opening her arms to showcase a chunk of sidewalk; an entire and perfectly shaped square unit. It was likely rinsed off but other imperfections like cracks remain. The edges were smoothed out but, other than those fix-ups, it was still a piece of the sidewalk. The best part is that she didn't even try to cover it up with a sheet for a dramatic reveal. It was hidden in plain sight.

Daniel would've never guessed this but he can see Emily bouncing on her toes in excitement. He wants an explanation but she looks like she wants him to try and piece it together.

"You stole a piece of the sidewalk from the construction debris?" Daniel asks.

"I didn't steal it," Emily responds, still feeling perky. "I harvested it."

That didn't answer his question but created more. " … why?"

Emily steps towards the block. "Okay, you might not recognize it but it's from a few feet by your place."

More questions.

Emily still smiles. "I even had to do the math but, as always, my calculations were perfect since I remember the day perfectly."

"What day?" He asks.

"The day you proposed."

Daniel stops himself from talking as he thinks back to that moment. It was almost a year ago. It was after his graduation which, arguably, he would love to forget. Daniel gave her a ring as a gift. He wanted her to accept it since he didn't want her to miss him as much. Looking back, that was the weirdest way to word his declaration. Daniel handed her the box and that's when she knew it was a proposal.

God, he was a nervous wreck. How did she ever say yes? Emily asked questions, making it look like she was the one proposing to him. Shit, he's still in SHIELD's debt. Oh, well. Then Emily got him to calm down, continued to wonder if this was a proposal. He finally confessed that it was before getting on one knee. Emily Maria Stark, will you come back one day and marry me?

"Wow," is all Daniel can say.

Emily nods, smiling as brightly as ever. "Wow, indeed."

Daniel leans over to look at the piece of sidewalk. Did he really get down on one knee there? Emily could've picked any square and he would've believed her, but she would never do that.

"So you got the whole construction process started just to get this square," Daniel says. There's no way it happened on its own and Emily just happened to be in town.

Emily grins, nodding. "I signed a cheque and the crew came the next day."

"I love you so much, future Mrs. Dr. Stark-Banner."

"I love you too, present Dr. Banner."

Each main character in this story will get their own intersession chapter.

That little Dr. Banner snippet at the beginning was inspired by an Instagram post I saw a while back.

I will include the proposal chapter below because it's one of my favourite chapters and when I was looking it up to reference, it was the first one to pop up. (Beautiful coincidence, if you ask me.)

Emily's Counterpart - Chapter 291: The Stark-Banner Proposal