Thor: Ragnarok - The Avengers: Infinity War - The Avengers: Endgame
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Tony stark gave his life so we could make something of ours.
*EDITING SPRING OF 2023*
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Walking through the shady streets of New York after dark could be a daunting experience for anyone unfamiliar with the city. Hell, even its lifelong inhabitants trembled at the idea of making their way out of their cozy apartments after sundown. Crime rates were high, between the street corner gangs and the homeless out for blood in exchange for money and food, lingering on the streets beyond midnight sounded like a death sentence to anyone with even the slightest bit of common sense.
I, however, didn't exactly have a choice. With far fewer people out during the night, my chances of getting caught by police were far slimmer, not to mention stealing was one hell of a lot easier if you could do it without exposing yourself to broad daylight. I pretty much knew where to go to avoid the CCTV cameras scattered throughout most parts of the city, even though their black and white images were often too grainy to make out any distinct features anyway. Still, I couldn't afford to take any risks. I never quite found out who those people were that ripped me from my home, but I didn't care to either.
I ignored catcalls and whistles coming from across the street and trudged on through a thick layer of crispy snow, my feet and hands frozen to the bone from the cold. My face burned in the wind, cheeks, and nose a bright shade of red even from behind the thick scarf that covered the lower half of my face. I was only fifteen at the time but knew how to rob people blind without them noticing a thing. I didn't like it, but if I wanted to survive the winter, I had no choice. Sleeping on the streets in several feet of snow was not an option. I couldn't afford to deal with frostbite and all the nastiness that followed.
Turning a deserted corner, I managed to shove my shaky hands further into my coat pockets. I stole the garment nearly three weeks ago from a department store, and it was the smartest thing I had ever done. Walked it right out of Macy's; nobody even noticed me. I think part of why it was so easy for me to get away with everything was because I didn't look like a typical homeless person. I tried my best to keep up with my appearance for that exact reason. I took showers in 24/7 gyms whenever I could and brushed my teeth twice a day. I stole nice clothes from rich ladies and expensive stores, and I'd been grabbing books wherever I could find them in order to keep up with my language skills. Keeping up the pretense that I was a middle school student simply shopping and strolling around was imperative if I hoped to stay under the radar.
Most nights I slept outside, hiding from the cops in blacked-out alleyways with one eye open, but when the temperatures dropped below 32 degrees, I didn't have much of a choice.
So, instead of living like the homeless person I'd become since that hellish day three years ago, I decided to steal money from two rich women in their late fifties in the financial district and made my way to a cheap motel for the next few nights. The bag of groceries I'd purchased with the rest of the money hung from my left arm, dangling back and forth and slamming into my thigh with each step I took. I'd only been in the city for a year and a half, but I already knew it like the back of my hand. I knew exactly where to go and which places to avoid.
