_ _ _
In the Edison house, Kimberly leans against the door frame of Tesla's bedroom. Her arms are folded over her chest. "You're leaving again," she states. She watches as Tesla grabs her bag from her room. Tesla nods, heading down the hallway with her bag over her shoulder. Kimberly turns her head, following Tesla with her eyes. "For how long?"
"I'm not sure. A while."
"Hitler again?" jokes Kimberly.
Tesla glances at her best friend over her shoulder. "Let's call it that, yeah."
Recognizing the humorless tone of Tesla's voice, Kimberly falters for a moment, stopping in the hallway. Tesla moves into the kitchen, and Kimberly hurries in after her, a bit panicked. "Tessie, you can't possibly be going on another trip. How are you paying for this?"
"I'm not," she explains, giving her friend a smile.
"Last time you went to Slovakia you came back changed."
Tesla nods, grabbing her ID, Passport, and wallet off the kitchen table. She puts them all in her bag, then turns to her best friend, knowing that if she doesn't give her some attention she'll start to worry more. Tesla places her hands on Kim's shoulders, staring her straight in the eye. "I'll be fine this time. I know it. I wasn't sure what to expect last time—"
"With Hitler?"
Hoping that Tesla's smile will ease Kimberly's anxiety about the trip, she smiles brightly and rolls her eyes slightly. "Yes, exactly."
"But you're going alone."
A frown appears on Tesla's face for a brief moment at the mention of her doing this trop on her own. "It's better this way. Bruce doesn't really want to talk to me unless he has to, and Stephen is too busy making things up to avoid me." Tesla shrugs, pain flashing in her eyes. She doesn't hide it though, knowing Kimberly will already see it. "What can I do? I thought I could have one or the other, but I ended up hurting all three of us. And Betty..." Tesla frowns, lowering her head. She removes her hands from Kimberly's arms, turning to grab her things again. "Time to go."
Grabbing Tesla's carry-on bag, Kimberly exhales deeply. "You should talk to them before you go...at least one of them."
"I won't have time, Kimmy."
Kimberly doesn't say anything, just gives her a disappointed look. Tesla narrows her eyes. "Fine. I'll go see Stephen at the restaurant, but if I'm late—" she warns.
Kimberly smiles, handing Tesla her bag. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Go on. I'll be waiting for the story afterward."
Today at The Nook, Stephen is working. Tesla knows this before she walks in. He changed his availability so that the two of them wouldn't work together after the kiss. He didn't ever say this to her, but Tesla knows him too well. Their co-worker Lacy gives Tesla a small smile when she passes by. It isn't too busy, and Stephen is at the bar. He doesn't notice the new person that has come into the building.
Setting her bags on the seat next to her, Tesla sits down at the bar with a sigh. Stephen wipes down the spot in front of her and places a drink coaster. He hasn't looked at her yet. "What can I get you?" he wonders.
"I'll take water. I have a long flight ahead of me."
Stephen finally stares at her. He sighs, but doesn't show any other expressions on his face. He turns away to get her the water.
"Aren't you gonna ask me where I'm going?" she questions. "Might get a good tip outta me if you're friendly," she teases, trying to get him to shoot a quip back at her. He doesn't bite, just passes her the glass of water. Tesla holds the glass in her hand. "Stephen."
"Lacy, here are the drinks for table twelve," he mumbles.
Lacy sways over, grabbing the two beers on her tray. Lacy gives Stephen a pointed look and Tesla one that she reads as pitiful, but Lacy tries to make it look like understanding. She turns away without a word and goes to the two men at table twelve with their drinks.
"Stevie," Tesla tries again.
Stephen peers at her, a little annoyed. "Don't."
He has a right to be annoyed, Tesla knows this, but he also chose not to speak to Tesla. Tesla closes her mouth for a second, and leans back. "Look, I'm sorry. I'm—I didn't...I..." She stops herself, knowing she can only make things worse with the way she's speaking.
The young pre-med student shakes his head. "I'm not mad at you, Tesla. And I'm not looking for an apology, but I can't be around you. I don't think you understand just how hard it is to see someone you like, like someone else."
Tesla sighs, looking down at her glass of water. She raises her eyebrows at Stephen. "Yeah, I do." Stephen gives a sympathetic smile. "I guess...I thought," she wraps her hands tighter around the cool glass, trying to get herself to focus on the words she wants to say. "I thought that—I knew I liked you," she admits. "But there were moments where I realized I felt closer to you as family then I did as a significant other."
Stephen swallows hard; he isn't the patient type with women, especially not with someone a bit younger than him. From the second he saw Tesla, however, he knew she was different than most. Stephen will bet anyone his life that she's important in his future. He has a feeling about her; a feeling he can't describe. Stephen is a practical, scientific kind of guy, and so is Tesla; they're similar in that sense. He's drawn to her because of that. How can two completely scientifically opinionated people be drawn together by something that he knows he can't explain with science? He will admit that there are a few times where Stephen takes advantage of the fact that Tesla feels more comfortable around him than most other guys. Until, of course, Bruce came along.
Stephen can't help it. Tesla is one of a kind; like a puzzle. One moment he figures out a piece of her and places it within the entire makeup of her being; the next moment he's struggling to figure out what to do next when she's around and where to put things. This young aspiring doctor never imagined settling down with anyone or having kids. He feels if he wants to be a successful doctor, he can't have time for family life. With Tesla those feelings changed; now he can see that future: a family—but only with her. He knows that she doesn't see it like he does. The growing emotional turmoil he has to suffer through every time he pictures himself not with her is unimaginable, but he will not let anyone else see it. He will not allow himself to show people his thoughts or feelings about her. He will not allow people to see through his stoic stature. No one can know that Tesla Edison is Stephen Strange's weakness.
"I can't give you false hope, or expect you to move on," she starts again, "but maybe someday..."
Looking away so she can't see him lie, he says, "It's all right, Doc. I'm not the hopeless romantic type."
Tesla stares at him. She hums once. As the two of them sit in a small moment of silence, the door to the restaurant opens. The two of them glance over out of habit. Tesla's eyes widen and her words get caught in her throat. She gulps down her water in fear she'll end up spitting it out.
"Uh," Bruce clears his throat, looking down. "Hi."
"Bruce," she says, the inability to not call out his name every time she sees him is something she doesn't think she can ever overcome. She gives him a worried smile.
"What are you doing here, Banner?" wonders Stephen. He does not want to sound harsh, but he can't help it.
Bruce glances over at Stephen, his eyes getting a shade darker. He clasps his hands together nervously. "Kimberly called me. She told me that you were leaving...I just wanted to say something before you go."
Tesla gives Bruce a grateful look. She nods slightly. "I'll meet you outside, if that's okay? I want to talk to Stevie."
Glancing at Stephen again, Bruce tilts his head in a nod toward Tesla, but his eyes still pull toward Stephen. He wants to gauge his expression, but the older man just stares, unwilling to show any emotion to someone he doesn't particularly enjoy having around. He unclasps his hands and walks toward the exit. Once Tesla hears the bell toll again and Stephen looks away from the door, she speaks, "I never wanted to—"
"I know. And you didn't," he lies.
Tesla frowns, tilting her head. "Don't lie to me, please," she mumbles. She stares up at Stephen sadly. "Will things be okay between us?"
Stephen's blue eyes widen only the tiniest possible way. He stares at Tesla, and she can feel the sadness coming off of him instead of seeing it. "I want them to, do you?"
"Of course."
Someone walks past them, and Stephen relaxes a bit. He looks up and sees Bruce waiting outside, twisting his hands together and pacing. Stephen's wall is back up and he gestures to the young man waiting for the girl he cares about. "Go talk to him."
Tesla sighs, clearing her throat. "Thank you." She gives Stephen a soft smile. "Stevie—"
"Go," he orders playfully. "I have to get to work."
Tesla slides out of her seat, reaching for her bags. She taps the table once. She heads for the front door, but not before giving Stephen one last look over her shoulder. He has his back turned. Tesla sighs heavily and tucks a fly-away strand of hair behind her ear. She pushes the door open; as she leaves Stephen throws another glance at her over his shoulder, but she doesn't turn around. They miss each other.
Bruce leans away from the glass; his hands are stuffed in the pocket of his jeans. Tesla gives him a relaxing smile, but when he doesn't return it, her heart starts to beat a little faster. "Sorry if I interrupted anything...I seem to be prone to doing that," he begins, awkwardly waving his hand in gesture. He scratches the back of his neck. "It was bad timing the first time. I don't want to keep getting in between the two of you."
Listening to Bruce, Tesla stares with her mouth open wide. She shakes her head violently. "No, I—we..." Tesla catches herself and pauses to collect her thoughts. "Stephen and I...there's nothing going on between us."
Bruce narrows his eyes a bit. "So you just kiss all of your friends?"
"No. It was just...a moment," she explains, not sure what her answer really means to her. She looks down. "Can we walk? I've got a plane to catch." Bruce nods, but stays silent. "For a second, you sounded upset," she says. Before Bruce can respond, Tesla adds, "How are things with you and Betty?"
"Huh?" he questions, confusion spreading across his features. His eyes widen a bit. "Oh, uh..." Bruce blinks heavily and clears his throat. "She—she knows that I don't feel that way about her."
Tesla looks away quickly. "Oh."
The two of them take a few paces in silence. Bruce opens his mouth, trying to figure out what to say next. "Are you...are you going back to Slovakia?"
"Yes," she admits. "Nick wants me to start another mission."
"Has he told you anything about it?"
Tesla shakes her head. "No, but he wanted me to send all the boxes over. I did that last week. He wrote me a letter saying that they all made it safely."
"What does he want with the boxes?" wonders Bruce. Tesla shrugs slightly. "Are you going to finish your father's research?"
"I would hope so, but I don't think you can ever really get your hopes up in a situation like this one," she replies, brushing her hair away from her face. There's another long row of silence. Tesla stares up at Bruce. She can feel his longing to come with her, and she knows he can feel it from her too. "Would you like to come with me, Bruce?"
Bruce's face flushes a bit. He looks away, across the street at the people around them. He hunches his shoulders for a moment. "Oh, I—I don't know if I can—"
"Nick already bought two plane tickets. He didn't know..." she says, a tiny smile playing on her lips. "It would be a waste if you didn't use it."
"Well," he begins, smiling back softly. "In that case. I'd be happy to."
She reaches over and gives his hand a gentle squeeze. Her smile grows. "It wouldn't've been the same without you, big guy," she teases.