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JUNO LOOKED AT her phone for what felt like the thousandth time again. She expected Steven to either text her or call her, but no, she received nothing. Steven Grant might've been the worst communicator in human history. He could be dead for all Juno knew!
Steven and Juno's friendship was unique. It always felt like they were on the edge of being more than just friends, but neither Steven nor Juno had the courage to say anything. They didn't want to ruin what they had. So, both chose to suffer in silence while wanting more.
The bus came to a sudden halt, and Juno huffed, looking around uncomfortably at the people that she was unfortunately surrounded by. You would think that since she was a Master of the Mystic Arts, she could just teleport to and from the sanctum, but that was a lot of work. Not to mention, she did that once, but he grew suspicious because he knew firsthand how lazy Juno was and knew she would never walk anywhere she went, unless it was too expensive to take a cab or the bus.
"Juno!" The familiar voice of Steven called out. "I'm so sorry, I didn't text you, I was going to but then I just- I um... Yeah, now that I think about it, I don't have a good excuse. I just forgot."
Juno smiled, the dimple on her left cheek now prominent. "Steven, you don't have to apologize, because at this point, it's my fault for thinking that you'd actually let me know if you're going to be late."
The man gasped mockingly, placing a hand on his chest. "You wound me, Juno, you really do." Juno couldn't help but laugh. "So, is today finally the day you'll tell me where you work?"
"Is today finally the day you'll let me see your apartment?" Juno asked.
"Well played, Juno Barlowe, well played," Steven tsked. "But alas, no, it is not."
"Hm, then I guess I won't be telling you where I work anytime soon."
"Will you at least give me a hint?"
"Steven..."
"Oh, please, my dearest Juno, owner of my heart," Steven pretended to plead, even making the effort to clasp his hands together. "Please give me a hint as to where you work."
Juno glared at him, but sighed, not willing to stand the look in his eyes when he stared at her. "Fine. At my job, I wear a cloak."
Steven gasped. "I got it! You are a magician. Can you teach me how to cut someone in half? I never understood how you guys are able to do that. Is that how you have such a good memory? Also, do you know Harry Potter? I really wanna meet him and steal his wand."
"Steven, I've told you millions of times: Just because I am able to quote The Parent Trap in its entirety, doesn't mean that I am a magician."
"I still don't understand how you do it, Juno! I am in awe of you."
Juno's cheeks bloomed red, but before she could respond, she noted the bags under Steven's eyes and frowned. Without thinking, she reached up and grabbed his face between her hands, ignoring the confused noises from Steven, and examined his tiredness up close.
"You haven't been sleeping again, have you?" murmured Juno, watching as Steven's eyes flickered up to meet her own, but not knowing how her touch made him feel like a schoolgirl. "You don't have to go through this alone, you know. I'm here for you, Steven."
"I know, Juno," he managed to croak out. Steven wished that he could beg for her help. He wished that each night he laid in bed, unable to sleep, unwilling to sleep, that she would be there with him, humming some Beatles song that he didn't yet know the words yet, and holding him so tight that he forgot all the worries that plagued him throughout the day. "I know."
Still lost in each others' eyes, the two barely noticed that the bus had stopped and reached Juno's stop. They only eventually dropped each others' gazes when the voice over the speakers announced that they had arrived at Juno's stop.
"I'll call you when I get home, okay?" Juno said, still holding Steven gently.
Steven nodded. "Okay." He wished she didn't have to go. He wished that they could stay in that bus forever, just the two of them in that moment. "Be safe."
"You too."
Steven watched as she walked away. He watched as she walked away from him, and all the things he longed to tell her.
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The London Sanctum wasn't all that exciting. Juno was the only one that practiced there. Since Thanos' attack, most of those who devoted their lives to the arts had left, not wanting to risk their lives to practice magic.
The Sanctum was empty most of the time, allowing Juno to practice her magic alone. She was free to use any spell she wanted since there was no one there. Well, there was no one there most of the time...
Occasionally, Juno would find one of her fellow Master of the Mystic Arts keeping her company (even though she didn't want his company.) Yes, Juno Barlowe was the unwilling companion of Dr. Stephen Strange.
He'd visit the London Sanctum on occasion when he was bored (which was always), or when he just had nothing better to do (which was also always.) Stephen enjoyed bothering Juno because he knew that she actually didn't mind his company, but she'd never admit that she liked having him around as someone to talk to. However, if she didn't want him there, he would leave promptly, not wanting to invade her space.
Stephen wasn't surprised to find Juno humming Twist And Shout to herself while sitting in a worn down armchair and letting a magic broom dust the place.
"I hear they invented this thing," Strange began, startling Juno. "It's called a vacuum, and you don't have to enchant it to clean. Instead, you just plug it in and move it around."
"If you want to clean this building all by yourself, please, be my guest," Juno offered, wanting to go back to reading, but not being able to when he plucked the book right out of her hand, flopped onto a nearby chair, and began reading it himself. "That's really childish of you, Stephen."
"Why are you reading this? It's so boring."
"Maybe you don't like to be prepared, I do. I don't want another person coming here and attacking the Sanctum while I stand by and watch."
Stephen put the book down. "You know Sol Rama's death wasn't your fault, Juno."
Juno swallowed. "I know it wasn't. But still, I have to be prepared."
"You are prepared."
"No I'm not, Stephen-" In an instant, the book she had previously been reading flew at her face, and Juno was just in time to create a forcefield and block it from hitting her in the face. She breathed heavily before looking over at the smug face of Stephen. "What is wrong with you? You could've killed me, you daft moron!"
"I couldn't have killed you. Besides, if I had, I would've been able to meet Steven."
Juno almost exploded. "For the love of God, Stephen, there is nothing going on between me and Steven."
"I've never heard anyone speak about someone the way you speak about him, Juno."
"I-I speak about him the same way I speak about everyone," sputtered Juno.
"You speak about him as if he hung the stars."
"I do not."
"Yes, you do."
"I do not!"
"You do not."
"I do- Damnit, Stephen, I don't like Steven! He's just-" Juno sighed. "He's just a friend to me, that's what I am to him, and that's all I'll ever be. And I'm okay with just being his friend. I'd rather be his friend then not have him be in my life at all."
"One day you're going to realize the magnitude of your feelings for him, and I'm going to be there to say, 'I told you so.'"
"That's something you usually say, no matter the situation."
"You're not wrong, Juno."
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Juno was late leaving the Sanctum, mostly because Stephen and her sparred a few times and lost track of time. She quickly got dressed out of her training gear and headed home, all the while thinking about her previous conversation with Stephen about Steven.
When the brunette reached her apartment, the first thing she did was text Steven she had gotten home safe. She then proceeded to toss her purse onto the dining room table and grabbed a bottle of water before sinking into the couch. Juno grabbed the remote and clicked the TV on. Just as she was about to select a movie to watch, her phone rang. Juno outstretched her hand, allowing her phone to fly into her hand. She gazed at the screen and giggled at the sight of the profile picture she had set for Steven. It was a candid photo of him that Juno had taken while they were watching Avatar: The Last Airbender together. Steven was too busy fanboying over Sokka to notice his picture was being taken.
"Hey, Steven," Juno greeted, putting the phone up to her ear and balancing it on her shoulder.
"Juno!" Steven yelled. "Are we still on for dinner Friday?"
Juno laughed. "Steven, love, we've been having dinner every Friday together for the past few years. Of course we're still on for dinner."
"Oh, cool, great, that's good. I was thinking we could try that steak place that you've always wanted to go to."
"That sounds great, Steven." Her heart warmed.
"How has your day been?"
"Alright, I guess. My co-worker was bothering me the entire day, so I got almost nothing done. Other than that, can't complain. How was your day?"
"Better now that I'm talking to you."
Juno giggled, her nose scrunching. "Steven, I'm being serious. How was your day?"
"I am being serious, Juno. It was a pretty boring day. I went to work, I got denied the tour guide position again, and I had a burrito. But now that I'm hearing your voice, this is a great day," explained Steven. "What did you have for dinner?"
"I haven't had anything yet. I think I'll either look for something in my fridge or order out. I don't feel like cooking," Juno answered.
"I can come over and make something if you want-"
"Steven, the last time you tried to make me something, you almost set my flat on fire."
"Wow," he muttered. "You almost set a kitchen on fire one time, and you're not allowed to cook for the rest of your life? Is this what my life has become?"
"Yes, it is. The firemen told you that you are prohibited from cooking."
"They were being serious?" Steven cried.
"Yes!" Juno responded. "Of course they were."
"Damn. All I wanted to make was some pancakes."
"Your pancakes aren't even that good."
A dramatic gasp came from the other side of the phone. "I'm hanging up before you insult me even more. Bye, Juno."
"I'll see you tomorrow, Steven."
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allie speaks!
A summary of Yesterday:
Juno: H-
Steven:
NO BUT FR THEY'RE SO CUTE AND I'M SO EXCITED TO WRITE THEIR RELATIONSHIP <3333
also i'll write the prologue later because i hate writing those :////