❝Whatever happens, just know that I never stopped trying.❞
. . .in which she must do whatever she can to protect the world and what's left of the ones she loves.
[BOOK THREE]
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★ ★ ★
22 DAYS AFTER DECIMATION
JUNE 22, 2021
★ ★ ★
It'd been 22 days since Marlena watched the love of her life and her only cousin disappear into oblivion.
It'd been 21 days since Marlena came home to a devastatingly empty home.
It'd been 20 days since Marlena completely broke down after one last phone call with the hospital revealed her fun-loving stepfather had disappeared while conducting a surgical procedure.
It'd been 16 days since Marlena bid her goodbyes to her fallen family.
They were gone. Marlena's entire family had disappeared at the hand of Thanos, and she was absolutely broken. Her biggest fear had become a reality, and there was nothing in the world that could've prepared her for the intense pain she felt because of it. She didn't understand half of what was going on, but she wasn't the only one. The surviving Avengers shared a mutual pain over the loss of not only their own family, but the families across the globe—the universe even. They shared their pain simply over losing, because in losing they believed they failed those they were supposed to protect.
A dry eye hadn't been seen in the weeks since Thanos arrived. Despite an attempt at privacy, every team member had been seen by another hiding away so no one else could see their tears. Silence filled majority of the Avengers Compound. It didn't feel like home anymore, and it wasn't because majority of those present spent years forced from returning. The Avengers were no longer whole, which meant the home they shared with one another wasn't either.
Marlena stood in the bathroom of her bedroom. Her palms rested on the sink, and she stared at the reflection in the mirror. Her skin was flushed, and the whites of her dull hazel eyes held a slight red tint. With the amount she'd cried over the last few weeks, she figured her eyes would stay red and swollen, void of any emotion. It would only make sense to her. She'd never cried so much in her 26 years of life, and she was one person she knew cried a lot. She was genuinely surprised she still had tears left to cry.
A soft sigh escaped Marlena and she flipped on the cold water. She ignored the crisp temperature and ran her wet hands over her bare face. Her eyes were dry, and her skin felt terrible beneath her dried tears. Marlena knew washing her face was useless, as she would catch herself in tears again within the next few hours, but she figured remaining semi-presentable until that happened would make her feel better about herself.
Only it didn't.
"Your hair's straight," a familiar voice sounded from behind Marlena.
Marlena looked in the mirror to see a bare-faced Steve standing behind her. He was leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed and his blue eyes on nothing else but her. He hated seeing her in such a state, but the feeling was mutual. Marlena hadn't seen Steve so down in the years she'd known him, and she could see it just as much as she could feel it. It only added on to the pain associated with the loss of her family.
