P E O N Y

It was black, but was there really such a thing as black? When someone looks at something, there is always light. If there wasn't, how would someone even see "black"? Really, the insides of an eyelid were red.

Elena opened her eyes, letting the light seep in. She blinked. Why her first thought awakening was about the philosophy of black, she did not know. Groaning, she rubbed her wrist and shook her head. The thought faded away though as her eyes adjusted to the light.

Now, it was white. White ceilings, white walls, white floors, even white blankets. Up, down, left, right, it was all white. Out of the corner of her eye, a blur of pink caught her attention. She turned, squinting to see the hazy silhouette of flowers.

That was when the scent hit her. It was like breathing in the ocean air on a tropical beach. She shifted her body against the fresh, light sheets. They were soft like a mother's touch, weightless like feathers. The pillows were clouds that had just finished crying. Listening to her breathing patterns, Elena let her eyes flutter shut. She felt as if she was floating in the wonders of space, exploring the universe without a weight on her shoulders. At the same time, she was sinking. She was dragged down into quicksand. Drowning.

Her eyes flashed open, and Elena propped herself on her elbow. Scrunching her nose, a wave of memories crashed down on her. She wanted food, someone had followed her, attacked her, someone else—Steve—saved her, a needle had been put inside her, and she could see. She rubbed her eyes, blinking. Turning her hands over, she looked down at herself. Was all this real?

Flinging the blankets away, she sat up as she swung her legs to the floor. Her bare feet touched the cold tile ground. Leaning forward, she touched her thigh. A hole had ripped in her jeans, and the red mark the syringe left was already beginning to fade. Elena bit down on her lip, squinting. Whatever the syringe held cured her. Sighing, Elena frowned. She would have liked to know its contents.

Then, the door slid open. Elena jumped out of bed. She ignored the ache in her leg, resisting the urge to bend down to massage it. The blurry outline of a man froze in his tracks, and Elena squinted to see him yank out earbuds. She wrinkled her nose at the faint beat of rock music.

"Oho!" He laughed, making a finger gun. "She's awake. Good morning, Dumpling!"

Elena blinked. "Morning?" she echoed. "It's morning? How long have I been out?"

The man shrugged. "You sleep kinda early, you know? I don't think I've ever met anyone that hits the sack at seven. Oh wait..." He trailed off as Steve decided to pop in.

"What?" Steve asked, knitting his brows together.

"Nothing," the man said, a wide grin plastered on his face. "Just wishing our guest a good morning."

Elena narrowed her eyes. The man's voice was somehow familiar, but she didn't recall ever meeting. And Steve—his face was familiar too. But how? For the past years, she had nothing but herself and the cells. Elena frowned. Her head pounded at everything that was going on, a headache throbbing in the background of her thoughts.

"Tony," Steve sighed. Elena glanced up at the name. "I know that face. You're up to something."

"Do you need to get your vision checked? Gracious, you really are getting old."

"You're Tony Stark," Elena blurted before Steve could open his mouth. Rubbing her wrist, Elena gulped. She remembered now. She had seen the hundreds of articles concerning Tony Stark and the Avengers. She turned to face Steve. "And you're Steve Rogers."

"And you are Elena Fan." Tony smiled. His teeth seemed to shine like cartoon drawings, and Elena stiffened at her name.

"How did you know that?"

"Oh, Dumpling, don't you remember? It's only been four years." Tony did a quick search on his phone. "I'm sure you've read the articles." 

"Don't call me that."

He didn't seem to hear her, rambling on. "Experiment gone wrong. All killed but one. Doctor gone mad."

Elena sucked in a breath, clenching her fists together. She glared daggers at Tony. Gritting her teeth, it took all her energy to turn away. Elena cursed under her breath, focusing on the flowers. They were pink lilies, she realized as she stared at the dappled pink and red patterns. She pressed her fingers to her temples, her headache only growing at Tony's babble.

"Stop that," Steve said.

"You know it isn't often you bring the ladies home. This needs—"

"Tony."

"Alright, alright." He raised his hands in mock surrender. "Whatever. I'll be outside. Gotta beat Clint to the coffee anyways."

Elena didn't relax until she was sure he was gone. Slouching down, she quietly sighed. Her fists slowly uncoiled, and her shoulders dropped. She bit down on her lip.

"Do you like the flowers?"

"They smell."

Steve went silent. After a few moments, he spoke again. "Is that bad?"

"Depends." Elena paused. "Hospitals usually don't allow highly fragranced flowers. It can cause problems."

"Oh."

They elapsed into silence. Usually, it would have been perfectly fine with Elena, but she was in unfamiliar territory with unfamiliar people. She scratched her head and gulped. "So," she started, "why did you bring me here?"

"I'm sorry?"

"This is Avengers Tower, right? You brought me here instead of a hospital." Elena looked up. "Why? I don't know you, and you definitely don't know me."

"I guess it was just the first place that came to mind," he answered. "Why? Do you want me to take you there now?"

"No!" Elena blurted. She felt herself redden. "Sorry, no. I'm good. In fact, I'd like to go home."

Steve frowned. "Are you sure?" he asked. "Maybe we can help you."

"What help do I need?"

Hesitating, Steve realized what he had said. He reached up to rub his neck. "Well," he said. "Tony was right about you being in the news. You practically blew up."

Elena glared at him.

"You kept trying to convince people you could see the individual cells of all living things," he continued. "No one believed you. But I—we, the Avengers, we understand what that's like."

Elena crossed her arms, gaze darkening. Her head spun. Why was it that after she was free from her curse people started to want to help? "Home," she said.

"Take Bruce for an example, he—"

"Please, Steve."

Steve stopped. He smiled softly at her. "Alright. But—"

Elena's stomach growled.

"Breakfast first?"

Elena rubbed her wrist. She sighed. "Fine." 

...

After much struggle, I have finally figured out how to do Tony, lol. He just has to be overly dramatic and obnoxious and we good. Only took me several drafts of my previous Marvel work that we shall not name and a couple of rewrites for this chapter. 

This has to be a record for me, posting three chapters in three days(granted i did write the previous two chapters a few days ago). And that was me jinxing this story. Thanks y'all. See you in a few months. 

Or hopefully very soon.