Aftermath → one week after the snap / 13k words / Mature
Valkyrie entered the compound and found a large staircase straight away, with smooth rails and minimalist wooden planks. As she ascended, she realized she could hear a hushed conversation somewhere above. Was she imagining it, or did she recognize his voice?
Like a manifested answer to her question, Bruce was standing there, on the platform just near the stairs on the third level, in the midst of a conversation with another man. They turned at once as she came into sight, the second man giving her a confused glance-over and Bruce looking . . . frozen? She laughed to see the way he stared at her, eyes shocked and unblinking.
“Well, aren’t you happy to see me?”
At that, he rushed forward and threw his arms around her. She laughed again and returned the embrace.
“Oh my god,” he breathed, looking her in the eyes. “I thought I was hallucinating. You’re . . . you’re alright.”
Val nodded. “I’m glad you’re still here, too.”
He turned then, gesturing toward the confused man beside them. “This is Jim. He’s a friend . . . an Avenger. Jim, this is . . well, I’m actually not sure what your real name—”
“Call me Val,” she cut in.
“We met, uh, on another planet?” Bruce mumbled.
Jim’s eyebrows shot up. “Seems like you have some catching up to do. Nice to meet you, Val.”
He nodded and turned to go. Val had Bruce’s full attention again.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” he said, glancing toward the windows. “Where’s Thor?”
“He’s still outside, on a walk with Lady Sif; she’s Asgardian. They’re old friends.”
He nodded, slipping his hands into his pockets. “Well, that’s great. It’s great that you’re both here. Thor hasn’t been handling this well. I mean, no one has, but he really blames himself, you know? He needs to talk to, well, someone other than a human.”
Val blinked, giving him a look. She couldn’t have misread him the last time they saw each other. So, either he had changed his mind about her, or he was a complete idiot.
“Bruce, you don’t really think I came here just to see Thor, do you?”
His face was frozen again. “I . . . um . . . you?”
“You do remember saying goodbye to me?”
“Yes! Of course, I remember. I thought . . . I thought I’d never see you again.”
“No! No, that’s not what I mean. I mean, oh god. I meant everything I said, Val. I didn’t expect you to feel anything similar for me. I just wanted you to know.”
“But now I’ve come all the way across the galaxy to find you . . .”
He nodded, color rushing to his cheeks.
“Oh. I’m sorry,” he said, his voice and eyes earnest. “I’m not good at. This. Do you want to just? Start over? Could we?”
She smiled. “Let’s do that.”
