“sorry,” you apologize because you feel rude if you don’t, and of the things you care about it that’s pretty high on the list. bruce is good to you, and you’d like to give that back. so you shrug off that little suit jacket and sink your hands into the pockets of your jeans. the arc’s warm-bright from under your black tee, and since the poisoning started, you’ve taken to things with sleeves. you can at least conceal it, even if everyone knows. (nat’s forbidden you from getting in the suit. she insists she’ll always know and you totally believe her, she’s terrifying.)
“--i didn’t mean to drop in on you. i can’t believe i fucking lingered at a mall until it closed. i don’t even remember it. or i half do. god knows,” god knows. you don’t. and god doesn’t, because you’re pretty sure they don’t exist. though you assume god’s preferred pronoun and gender identity would be unspeakable by the human voice and unhearable by human ears. but, you digress. “the good doctor said i shouldn’t be alone when i called her.” therapy tires you out. you cross your arms and the arc pangs and that stings but you’ll live. “and before one of you called me because, i don’t know, there was a disturbance in the force or something, or before rogers got to me first--” fuckforbid, “--i thought i’d come see you?”
it sounds like a question. like do you want me here? like i don’t want me anywhere.
“might even be up for a sleepover as long as you can agree to a shit ton of bill nye the science guy.” aka the only television you’ve ever liked.