The Scarlet Apprentice 2: The Multiverse Between Us

Dramatic Irony

"I'm not sitting next to you anymore," Bucky whined while Sam laughed.

The man's deep laugh was audible through the halls, which is what drew y/n out of bed and to the kitchen in the first place. Eager to know what elaborate prank Sam had pulled, she made her way down the hallway and into the kitchen, where all eyes turned on her instantly.

Stephen clenched his jaw the moment y/n entered the room. All he wanted to do was tell everyone her secret so that they could all collectively stop her from doing it, but he promised he wouldn't. So, while everyone smiled at the sight of her, he couldn't bring himself to look in her direction.

With the creased shirt still draped over her body, y/n wrapped both of her arms around Wanda's face and buried her face in her hair. Wanda chuckled, trying not to touch y/n's face with her soapy hands from the dishwashing she was doing.

"You woke up in a good mood," Wanda noticed, giggling every time y/n kissed her neck and jaw.

"I love you so much," y/n reminded her, kissing her more every time Wanda giggled.

"I'd say the smell of breakfast finally drew you out of bed," she guessed.

"Actually it was Sam's laugh. I assumed he did something to Bucky, so I wanted to see what it was."

"He put salt in his orange juice when he wasn't looking," Shang explained to her before Sam could.

"Oh, that's a good one," y/n smiled before turning Wanda's head gently to face her, where she then placed a kiss on her lips.

While most people in the room smiled at how to the two girls were back together and happy again, Stephen looked away because he knew exactly why y/n was acting so affectionate. Bucky, through his smile, caught a glimpse of Strange's reaction, which caused him to furrow his brows. He wondered why he could look so sad - so scared, when something so good was happening.

"I'm great you guys are happy, but you know I can't stand PDA," Wong called over to them.

"You jealous, Wong?" Y/n smirked, pulling away from Wanda to go sit at the table, "I can give you a hug too, if that's what you really want."

"No," he quickly said, even though he wouldn't mind a hug.

When she sensed that he was lying, she smiled to herself as she took a seat beside Sam and opposite Bucky and Shang. The smile remained until she looked at Sam and saw the way that he was looking at her.

"What?" She asked.

"You're offering hugs? When did you get so friendly?" He sarcastically asked.

"I've always been friendly," she lied, "but you're not getting any friendliness from me now you've said that."

"Wha-" he squealed, "I never said I didn't like this side of you, I just meant that it's rare!"

A soft chuckle escaped y/n as she picked at the selection of fruits on the table, but her expression softened when she then saw how Bucky was looking at her. His eyes were so focused, so intense yet so gentle.

"You okay, Buck?" She asked, her brows furrowing in concern.

Instead of answering her question, he shot back with a question of his own, "are you?"

Startled by his worry, she paused, "yeah, I'm-... I'm okay."

After clearing her throat, she looked away to distract herself, but she could feel Bucky's eyes still lingering on her. It didn't even require her powers to know that he didn't believe her. His stare was evidence enough that he knew something was going on, and it didn't take long for him to start spiralling.

"Any plans for today?" Sam asked the group when the uncomfortable silence became too much.

"The theatre downtown is rerunning Kingsman: The Secret Service, so Katy and I are gonna go watch it in a few hours," Shang announced, "...if anyone wants to join us."

"You are?" Y/n's eyes lit up momentarily, "where is she?"

"Oh, she's still asleep," he nodded, "yeah, she won't be up for hours, I'll drag her out when the movie starts. Do you wanna join us?"

Although she would've loved to watch a movie that she knew would make her happier, she declined, "uh no, thank you, Shang. But I think I'm just gonna stay in the library for today. I've got a lot of books to catch up on."

Hearing y/n turn down an opportunity that he thought she'd leap at caused Bucky to suspiciously turn his attention to her again, even though he'd only just taken it off of her. The moment y/n felt Bucky's eyes land on her again, she pushed herself out of the chair and stood to her feet, which caught peoples attention.

"I'm actually gonna go there now," she told them.

And that's exactly what she did. No one saw much of her after breakfast, not even Wanda. Because whenever Wanda ventured to the library in hopes of finding y/n there, y/n always hid. She couldn't bare to face anyone as she counted down the days until her death. It could've been the next day, the next week, or even the next month. Whenever it was, she knew she'd have to force herself to go through with it.

In the library, alone, in the darkness of the evening, y/n continued to bury her head in the same book she'd been stuck with all day. Her eyes would scan the words of a page, but she'd always have to reread it when she realised that she didn't absorb any of the information she'd just read. In the few seconds it took for her to turn the page, she overthought. In those few moments of emptiness, where she had no distraction, that's when her mind ran wild.

However, when the moon began to rise and become noticeable even through the closed curtains, the library door opened before y/n could hide. Although, she didn't try to hide when she saw that it was Wong who entered the room.

"Hey, Wong," she smiled, "you alright?"

"Dinner is ready," he told her.

Y/n gently shook her head, "I'm not hungry. I'll have something later, I-,"

"Just come for dinner," he looked at her, his eyes seeming sad, "please."

She stood for a moment, wondering why he wanted her to come to dinner so badly, but she eventually nodded, "okay."