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After Johnny had ate something Sue had led the way downstairs for a surprise visit to see Heather. She looks a little more polished than when she'd stepped into Joon's room, opting to tug her dark locks into a tight, very wavy, ponytail rather than trying to tame them further. Otherwise, she looks mostly herself. Her peasant blouse and black slacks make her casual but still put together.
A glance is given towards her brother as she raps on the door lightly. <So I didn't tell you but Heather has this visitor… I think I like him.> Sue already looks like the cat that caught the canary as her eyebrows lift matter-of-factly. The emphasis on the word him is telling, even if Heather denies it, Sue has ideas.
In her hand she holds a large bottle of cabernet sauvignon to share. Because clearly Sue didn't surprise Reed enough last night.
*
Some food, a shower, an actual comb through his hair — Johnny knows better than to leave home looking less than presentable, even if he's rarely more dressed-up than the jeans and t-shirt he has on now. Still. An effort has been made. It's Heather.
Hands clasped behind his back, Johnny waits next to Sue when she knocks on the door, glancing askance at her as he bounces on his toes. And up go his eyebrows. <'Him'? Ohhhhh. So this is reconnaisance,> he muses in a low voice, nodding slowly as he looks to the door again. <Roger that.>
*
Fortunately for everyone, Heather is wearing pants tonight. Well, not pants, but a wrap dress — something that comes down to her knees. Only David seems doomed to suffer through seeing her in her pyjamas. She's cleaned the place up a little — not because she's done with the files but because she's deep in a flurry of cooking. Cupcakes, for starters, cooling in rows on a rack on the table. Also two casserole dishes — Chicken a la King and a lasagna are cooking in the oven. She's going to be busy and someone needs to be eating. She's on to pie now, at least the crust part.
The knock on the door summons her — dusting her floury hands off on the pink apron with the strawberries. There's a pause, then the locks are pulled back and Heather opens the door.
"Sue! I wasn't…" Heather takes in Johnny. "…and your brother? Come on in, is everything all right?" She steps back to let them through.
*
The smell of food causes Sue's eyebrows to lift as the door opens. <She's cooking! A lot!> As if this is somehow evidence of something. Her throat clears, "Hello Heather! Oh nothing so — " her cheeks flush lightly and her chin drops. "Well, more than you'd think. But."
She lifts the hand not holding the wine bottle as if brushing away any concerns. Her expression subdues, "It's been a few days. I came to chat. And Joon came because," her head tilts, "he's had too much time in the land of no news," or gossip as the case may be, "without me." She leans towards her brother to link arms with him conspiratorially.
She steps through the door and her eyes glance around the room as her head tilts.
*
When Heather's eyes move to him, Johnny straightens up a little and flashes his brightest smile — which is replaced by a vaguely puzzled look. Why does his presence imply problems. Hmp. Without looking, his arm is offered just in time for Sue to hook hers through it, and he raises his eyebrows as if terribly satisfied.
"Besides, we're friends," Johnny adds as he follows Sue inside. "And neighbors. I am told that this is a thing that is supposed to happen sometimes," he says wisely. "Which makes the fact that Steve Rogers moved in very exciting. When are we bringing him wine, nunim?"
*
"Oh, Mr. Rogers — right," Heather noted this in passing but seems otherwise indifferent. "Well, make yourselves at home. I'm glad you came by, since I'm chained to the stove tonight. Don't mind the mess." There is no mess. Just some cooking going on with a remarkable lack of mess.
Heather patters back to the kitchen, barefoot again. The floor is warm enough, not like back home. "I need to roll this crust before it warms too much or it'll be tough. There's wine glasses over the bar, help yourself."
*
"I'm fairly certain Steve Rogers can't get intoxicated," Sue returns to Johnny with a vague shrug. "I suspect this means wine is wasted on him. But," she taps her chin with her finger, "we will bring him something else. I will cook him something," it might be wise to talk her out of this fact; Sue is, and will always be a terrible cook with a few rare exceptions.
She strolls over to the bar and retrieves wine glasses. The bottle is passed to Johnny to open. Oh yes, there will be drinking. Sue will not be denied. "Anyways," her eyes drift around the apartment. "I think you are cooking a feast. Expecting company?"
*
Johnny could try to talk his sister out of cooking for Captain America. Or he could see what happens if he doesn't. That sounds much more fun.
"Do you want a hand in there, or have you got it?" Johnny asks Heather as he accepts the bottle from Sue, and while she gets the glasses wrangled, he worries about getting it open. Ah. Good. He waits for the glasses to be set down before he pours.
*
"I've got a lot of work to do over the next few days and I want to make sure David eats even though I'm busy." Heather casts Johnny a grateful smile. "Oh, I'm fine, I can make pie in my sleep. Actually." She stops and tilts her head, thinking. "I may have done more than once."
"Only a little for me, please," she says when Sue goes to pour. "I'm a little impatient when I get tipsy."
*
The glasses are set carefully on the bar and Sue adjusts them several times to ensure they are in a nice even row before stepping back to let Johnny pour. "Oh, I take it David is settling in well?" There's a pause. "I have to apologize for what happened before. With the teens in the lobby." Her lips purse lightly. "I should've let security deal with them. Or their mothers."
*
Only a little? Well… okay. Johnny does not ignore the request, though he does aim a very exaggerated pout in Heather's direction as he sets the bottle down again. At mention of teens in the lobby, he gives Sue a curious look and lifts his eyebrows. He missed this one, apparently.
*
"Oh, if I were deterred by smart-mouth young men I wouldn't have made it out of puberty." Heather laughs as she picks up her rolling pin and starts in on the pie crusts. She's pretty handy with that thing, good job she didn't brain anyone with it the other night. "I raised a younger sister and six younger brothers and, believe me, their backtalk was far worse."
Heather pauses, then looks up to give Sue a grateful smile. "Still. It is a little untoward, having a man here, Not everyone would allow it. I appreciate the understanding. David and I were colleagues years ago. We were all friends, he and my husband and I. I couldn't just let him stay in a hotel right now."
*
A slight smirk draws over Sue's features, "I live with three men, only one of which is a blood relative, and another of which — " her smile tugs shyly as she takes the glass and swirls her wine around in a nice tight motion. She stifles a riffle through a splay of fingers as she admits, "I kissed Reed." Pause. "And I don't mean in a chaste peck on the cheek way. I mean…" her eyebrows lift. "I'm pretty sure it unsettled him." She lifts a hand, "So. I wouldn't be concerned about being untoward."
*
Where most little brothers might be plugging their ears and humming loudly right about now, Johnny just barks a laugh at his sister, grinning wickedly as he carries his own glass over to the table so he can sit down. "Of course it unsettled him. You didn't even say 'hello' first," he teases, rolling his eyes and murmuring a quiet <this punk> under his breath before having a sip of his drink.
*
"Oh, well. Maybe he's just not used to so much good luck at once." Heather winks at Sue. "Most men are unsettled by anything that they didn't think of first. No offense meant," she says to Johnny. "But it's often the case that the older a man gets, the more he becomes convinced anything he didn't think of himself must be impossible — maybe even disastrous." She's been dealing with politicians for over a decade. "So it's good to get that sort of thing in while he's still flexible." Pause. "So to speak."
*
A smirk tugs at Sue's lips. "I had polished off," she glances at the bottle of wine, "at a bar by myself. And I had a glass of whiskey purchased by a very large Russian man who gave me some advice. Honestly? It just seemed like a really good idea at the time." Her lips purse lightly. "So. I walked in invisible. Became visible. Kissed Reed. And then went to bed." She chuckles into her wine and then takes a long sip of the cab. Perfection.
A glance is cast around the apartment, "I suspect nothing that untoward happens here…'
"
*
Johnny hums around his drink when 'no offense meant' is aimed his way, swallowing before he holds up a hand and beams towards Heather. "None taken. There's a reason I don't date men," he says in a far-too-serious tone, casting a sneaky glance his sister's way for her reaction as he brings his glass back up. Sssssssip.
*
Heather can't help but laugh at that bit of cheekiness. "Wise choice. Men will leave their socks on the floor and break your heart. And, no, Sue. Nothing untoward happening here." Heather takes a sip of wine, then sets about swiftly — almost magically — transferring rolled pie crusts into the waiting dishes. Perfect, both of them.
"That's really not on anyone's mind. David and I are just friends. Though. Friends are hard to come by so there's nothing "just" about it. Besides." Heather takes another sip of wine before detailing the edges of each pie crust with her fingertips. The scallopped edges are neat and even. "I think one happy marriage is all one should ask for in life. No need to be greedy about it."
*
"Is that the reason you don't date men?" Sue returns to Johnny. "I'll remember that, baby brother." A nearly feline expression crosses her features at the thought of David and Heather as just friends, and her eyebrows lift. Of course, she feels it necessary to observe: "Reed and I have been just friends for years. And now? I don't know." There's another tug of her lips, this one a little less sure than before. "You have no idea how unsettling that is for me. But when one thing spiralled out," her research being used for weapon X, "I think…" her voice fades and she just sips her wine.
*
"Who said anything about marriage?" It may occur to Johnny in a moment that the question is one likely to get him smacked, but it's out before he can think any better of it. And now he's committed. "Besides, you deserve to be happy, Heather. Not just the one time," he says wisely, waggling a finger at her that then waggles towards Sue. "Same goes for you. Reed's not an idiot, nunim, you'll be fine." He pauses briefly before he looks down at his glass. "It'll be weird for a while," he admits, nodding from side to side as he considers it. "But Ben and I will get over it."
*
Heather's expression is priceless. Men dating men — fine. Not getting married to one's partner, well. A bridge too far for her, personally. "I'm afraid I'm too old-fashioned for that," she says, after washing the sour lemon expression away a with a drink of wine. Yes, now she remembers why people drink. Children. "I rather liked being married. Not that it's for everyone."
She opens the oven enough to check the dishes baking. They'll be done in time to put in the pies. "And your little team will be fine. Relationships changing can put things off-kilter but it's just the four of you and no one's heart is getting broken." Yet, at least, knock on wood. "It all balances out after a while. The new normal settles in." She speaks from experience.
*
Johnny's observation about Reed causes a rather cheeky smile to draw over Sue's features, although it's not entirely clear why. "No, Reed is definitely not an idiot." She takes another long sip of her wine. "Thank you, Heather. I appreciate it." With a twist of her lips she stares at her glass. "And as for you," she steals a look at Johnny, "abeonim and eomeonim are rolling over in their graves at that comment." Her lips purse lightly, "You probably can't remember, but at such a comment, they'd suggest that I didn't raise you to respect family. Or perhaps they'd suggest Aunt Margay didn't. Either way, somehow that blame would ricochet to me."
*
At least Johnny gets his eyes closed before he rolls them, not has he had enough to drink to argue with his sister on this point. Oh, he thinks a few comments, but he doesn't actually voice them. He just sighs and drops his chin into his hand. "Sorry, Seo." He even manages to sound sincerely contrite.
*
Heather chuckles softly. Boys. She puts the bowl of apples down and gets out a paring knife from a knife block — under the sink. "My parents wouldn't feel much differently, either. Every generation has to do its own thing, find its own way, though." She begins peeling an apple rapidly — the skin spirals off in a long, red ribbon and then she's slicing the pale flesh into the unbaked pie crust. It's very fast, apple after apple, interspersed with sprinkles of sugar and cinnamon, dabs of butter, a dusting of starch. "My parents still haven't forgiven me for not having at least six babies by now. Six would be lazy of me."
*
Sue hums quietly. "My aunt has been pressuring me to meet a nice Korean boy and get married," her eyes flit towards Johnny at that. "I've already failed by being an unmarried near-doctor." She lifts a single finger, "That's how the blame would come to me: I'm a bad example." She arches an eyebrow, "And do not fret, dear brother, I don't think a pair must be wed. So if you should change your mind and date a man, but cannot marry, I will still visit you and your mister in whatever home you choose."
*
"That's sweet, Sue. Thank you. I'm sure he'll love you," Johnny says easily, leaving his chin in his hand as his eyes flick between the two women. Well… they've mostly settled on Heather now, with an expression of very mild horror. "Aish. Six? But you're so -" Oh, there are so many choices Johnny could make here that might get him into trouble. "- busy. You like your work too much to worry about that." He is, in his own way, a rather progressive young man.
*
"I've been busy. And not having children just means you usually have your hands full of the larger type of baby." Heather gives Sue a knowing look. "The kind that wears a tie." She drinks the rest of her wine — where did it go? She wasn't paying attention. That's okay, the timer buzzes and she has to whisk the meals out of the oven and then get back to finishing the pies.
"You know, I don't think Johnny has contributed any information about his own love life this evening," Heather muses. "Fair's fair, young man. You know your sister's business and mine, such as it is. What about you?" She gives Johnny a wink. "Surely you must be fending admirers off with a stick. Hasn't even one caught your eye?"
*
Sue blows Johnny a kiss. "Of course he will! I'm so lovable! And I will be the one who shows him all of your baby photos in an album." Heather's glass is magically refilled as she disappears to the oven. Sue perches on a stool again and offers a sidelong stare to Johnny. "Yes, let's hear about whether an admirer has caught your eye…"
*
The wink from Heather earns narrowed eyes from Johnny. He sees what she's doing here. <This punk,> he mutters again, but there's no venom behind the words. Just quiet amusement.
When Johnny rolls his eyes this time, he doesn't bother trying to hide it. "No, Sue, noone has caught my eye," he dutifully recites, straightening up in his chair and setting his glass aside. "Honestly."
*
"No one." Heather gives Sue a 'shocked' look. "That won't do at all, a young man like yourself having no interests." Heather deftly rolls out the last of the pie crust to cut lattice strips for the pies. "I wonder if Sue and I shouldn't help you out. Surely she knows what you're looking for. Too bad you're not just a little older. I know a devastatingly attractive French Canadian…"
*
"Well, if Johnny likes, I met a very handsome, very large Russian man the other day.," Sue sips her wine again. "Of course, he did mention he had a rather loyal girlfriend. Katya. Sounded lovely." Where she met him she leaves up to Johnny's imagination. Her eyebrows draw together lightly, "We were just discussing his potential to date men."
She sips the wine. "Sincerely though, the only other woman I've recently spent time with was Trish Walker when she came here to — " Sue squints. "I'm sketchy on the details, but I believe she was calling out for Fire Boy. SO." She shrugs.
*
"She was drunk," Johnny says to Sue, leaning back in his seat and covering his face with his hands. "And she was drunk for reasons that, in my mind, make hitting on her kinda inappropriate." A pause. "…besides, Trish is sweet, but… almost too sweet." He makes a bit of a face. "That sounds bad, doesn't it."
Ugh. Johnny drops his hands and sits back up to peer towards Heather, his brow furrowed. "Am I not allowed to enjoy society's double-standard and just be single?"
*
"Absolutely not!" Heather takes another drink of wine. Time to put the pies in the oven and wait for things to cook or cool respectively. "You may struggle and rail against interference, that's fair enough, but I do believe a tithe of being quizzed and-or gently mocked is part of the deal if you fail to find a mate? Really, Johnny. No one at all? Tsk."
*
"Never, dear brother," Sue agrees with Heather. "As I said, Aunt Margay wants me wed to a nice Korean boy. What should happen once she realizes what a hopeless endeavour that is? Where do you think her attention will go?" The words are punctuated with a one shouldered shrug.
*
Johnny turns to look towards his sister again and, slowly, his lips curve into a very wide smile.
"You're more optimistic about how things will settle out with Reed than I thought," he notes lightly. "Good! You should be." Johnny reaches back for his drink again, waggling a finger between Sue and Heather. "If Heather won't let me take her out somewhere nice, then I guess you'll just have to find me a nice Korean girl who doesn't mind a husband who catches fire on a regular basis."
*
"Reed is too smart to let a man like your sister get away." Heather picks up her wine glass and — how did it get almost empty…now it's empty — again? Sue is magic. "Are you asking me out, Johnny Storm?" Heather offers her wine glass to Sue. "I suppose you should decide where you're taking me, then." She is obviously not expecting Johnny to be serious about that. It's funny, though.
*
Even before he speaks, Johnny's smile unsettles Sue, and she knows all too well that this is only going to be a problem for her. Her eyebrows draw together and her mouth gapes open at the thought. <AISH!> the scold is loud. "That is not what I was saying and you know it. No, just that I — " she emits a soft sigh and trips over what exactly she was trying to say. "I'm not going to be marrying a nice Korean boy any time soon. They don't seem to like me very much. And no one wants a wife who can turn invisible to surprise them." There's a rather pregnant pause and she does add, "Reed and I are — " and she finally settles on " — going to have to work it out."
A pointed look is given towards Heather. "Don't encourage him. He's already incorrigible." She sips her wine and then dutifully refills heather's glass. "And you should take Heather somewhere nice. I would suggest dinner and dancing." There. A plan.
*
"Of course I'm asking you out, Heather MacNeil. Have you seen you?" Johnny asks with a teasing quirk of an eyebrow, just straight up ignoring the scolding from his sister. When Sue makes her suggestion, he nods once, gesturing vaguely with one hand. "Dinner and dancing it shall be. No strings," he promises, sketching a cross over his heart with two fingers. "Just a fun night out between friends unless you tell me otherwise." He beams cheerfully. "Fair?"
*
"Fair enough." That's the wine talking but Heather will stick to it when her head clears. "I'll try not to step on your toes."
*