It's been a week since Charlie had went into Y/n's closet and went through most of the boxes inside. She discovered the rope and hooks, the books, the pictures, and the camera. She had become more concerned with her best friend's well-being since then and would barely leave him alone unless it was certain circumstances, like school and whatnot.

However, Y/n has recovered enough to be able to attend school again which Charlie was exhilarated about. She was finally able to keep an eye on her friend at all times now. And he came back at a good time, too, because it was only a few days later when he and Charlie's English class went on a field trip to a college for a couple of plays.

In the bus, the English class was loading up and picking seats. Y/n, of course, sat with Charlie. When everyone was on the bus, the English teacher whose name everyone could never pronounce stood up and started laying down some rules. They were the usual field trip rules: don't leave the group without permission, don't do anything to get yourself in trouble, etc, etc. There were also rules for when they watched the plays, like to be quiet and don't be on your phones as to not disturb the play and the actors.

Finally, the bus took off as it drove its hour-long drive to the college. During the drive, people talked with each other and played on their phones. Y/n and Charlie sat in silence as the Human looked out the window. The Demon princess looked at her friend in concern. Ever since Charlie found the boxes in her friend's closet, she had been ever more concerned for him. She wanted to confront him about it, but she doesn't know how. So for now, she was going to talk about something else.

"So, uh, Y/n?" Charlie called to her friend who was looking out the window. She got no response. "Y/n? Earth to Y/n."

She waved her hand in front of the biker's face, snapping him out of his trance. He turns to Charlie with a confused hum.

"You okay?" she asks. "You seem a bit of it."

"I'm fine, Charlie. Nothing much," Y/n yawns. "Just a bit tired. Haven't been getting a whole lot of sleep these past few nights."

"Really?" Charlie asks. "You alright?"

"I'm fine. Nothing's wrong," Y/n responds and rubs his left eye. "Just... a bit hard to sleep right now. I'll be fine in the next few days."

"It you say so," Charlie says. "Do you wanna... take a nap here? You can rest on my shoulder if you want."

Charlie's face flushed slightly redder than most of the time, and Y/n's cheeks get sprinkled red as well. However, he takes the offer with a nod and leans on Charlie's shoulder. He smiles at her, though, thanking her before closing his eyes for a nap. Charlie couldn't help but smile at the sight, and before she knew it Y/n was asleep.

"How do you fall asleep so easily?" she asks Y/n in a whisper.

She gets no answer, however, as Y/n was knocked out. She only got soft snores from him. She giggled a bit before she looked around. When Charlie was sure no one was looking at her, she turned back to Y/n and brushed back some hair from his forehead. She then leaned down and planted a soft kiss on his head. Y/n smiles softly at this, and Charlie couldn't help but smile a little wider. She probably couldn't deny it much longer. She had indeed fallen for Y/n after all of their time together.

Now all she wanted to know was exactly how Y/n felt about her. But what she didn't know was that Y/n was also falling for her.

Timeskip...

After the hour-long drive, the Midtown High school bus arrived at the college where they would be watching the play. So staying together and following the other schools that were attending the play, the Midtown English class made their way into the main auditorium. It was already packed full of other English classes from other schools, but Midtown was still able to find a place to sit together.

The plays soon started, after a brief explanation of course as to why they were delayed. Then the schools sat and watched as the college students performed for them. Y/n recognized many of the plays since most were based from books he has read, such as The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, The Raven, and The Telltale Heart. There were some he did not recognize, though, but he did enjoy them. Charlie seemed to enjoy them as well, which made Y/n smile. He liked seeing Charlie happy.

The plays came and went with each one being applauded by the audience. Then came one play Y/n didn't know he didn't want to see. It was based on the events of the Chitari Invasion of 2012 when the Avengers first formed. It gave Y/n flashbacks to things he didn't want to remember. The aliens, the death, the destruction, the screams... They all began to replay in his mind.

(Kinda like in Hawkeye where Clint was watching a play/musical of the 2012 invasion. At least, I hope that's correct)

"Y/N, RUN!"

"NO, PLEASE!"

"We have to go, kid!"

"GRANDMA! GRANDPA!"

Their screams... the blaster fire... It all replayed in his head. It was as clear as if it had happened yesterday. And what made it worse was that the Chitari costumes didn't look like the Chitari. They looked like something else... something that reminded Y/n of the Demons he saw in Hell. The Demons that kidnapped Charlie. He got flashes of Valentino's smiling face as he felt his fists pound on Y/n's skin, bloodying his flesh and bruising him.

Charlie immediately sensed and felt the rising sense of dread, panic, and fear in Y/n. However, what caught her attention was the sudden grip she felt on her arm. She turned to see her best friend gripping a tight hold on her arm, as if she'd vanish into thin air. His breaths were heavy and panicked, and his eyes were darting every which way.

'Y/n, calm down. Calm down,' Charlie telepathically spoke to Y/n. 'Everything's fine. Calm down.'

'Nothing is fine... nothing is fine...' Y/n responded. 'I need air...'

'Okay, I'll get you some air,' Charlie told her friend.

She then turned to her teacher who had noticed Y/n's panicked state. She looked at her with pleading eyes and then motioned to Y/n. The teacher sighed and nodded, making Charlie smile and nod in response. She then stands up, taking the (H/C)-haired boy with her as the silently walk out of the auditorium.

They make it outside the school and Y/n immediately leans against the wall before sliding down. He sits down on the ground as he takes in deep breaths, and Charlie watches him from the side. She feels her friend's emotions calm down slightly, but she knew they wouldn't go away. So she knelt down next to Y/n and placed a hand on his shoulder. He tenses up, but he realizes that it was just Charlie and eases up.

"You okay?" Charlie asks her friend.

"Y-yeah..." Y/n nods before shaking his head. "No... No, I'm not fine."

"What happened?" Charlie asked.

"That play... the Avengers play they're doing... it just brought out some memories," Y/n answered. "Bad, bad memories..."

"What memories?"

Charlie didn't need to ask. She already knew. She had connected the dots a while ago after she rummaged through Y/n's closet. His grandparents had died during the Chitari Invasion, but she didn't know the full story. Just bits and pieces. Of course, she wasn't going to tell Y/n that just yet.

Y/n let out a breath. He knew this question would come up eventually. He knew he couldn't run away from what had happened back then. He would have to confront it eventually. He just wish he wouldn't have to tell Charlie. He didn't want pity, but it looks like he'll have to.

"I was there when it happened. The invasion. I was there with my grandparents, Howard and Pearl L/n," Y/n explained. "It was so sudden. No one knew what was going on. All the death... the screams... I thought I'd never have to relive that again. But that play..."

"It made you remember, didn't it?" Charlie guessed.

"Yeah. It was terrible," Y/n nodded. "We were running away to a place we thought we could be safe. They were grabbed, a cop dragged me away to safety... They died in front of my eyes, Charlie. I watched those aliens kill my grandparents like they were fucking animals!"

Charlie stayed quiet as her friend spoke. But she couldn't help but tear up at Y/n's voice. It sounded so broken and hurt. It sounded angry and resentful, too.

"Then came in the great, almighty Iron Man! Swoosh! Pew, pew! Those Chitari were gone just as fast as my grandparents," Y/n let out a shaky breath and turned to Charlie. "They raised me, Charlie. They were more my parents than my own mom and dad! They taught me to sing, to play music, to tell stories, to fix things... they taught me what it was like to be strong and brave. Then they were gone in the blink of an eye... and my entire heart went with them. I felt dead. Numb. I couldn't even bare to look anywhere but at the floor at their funeral."

Charlie didn't say anything as she let Y/n vent. He then closed his eyes as he took in a breath, trying not to cry. He promised he wouldn't ever since...

"And then I got you. You brought something to my life I haven't felt since the attack. I was happy again, because of you," Y/n smiled at Charlie, but it soon fell. "Then you were taken right in front of me. And when I couldn't find you I felt as numb and powerless as I did back then. I felt like I failed you..."

Okay, time for her to speak up now.

"Y/n, you never failed me. Those bastards just got the better of you, that's all," Charlie told her friend. "You could never fail me because you're my closest friend and you could never make me mad at you or disappointed."

She cupped Y/n's face in her hands and made her look at her directly in the eyes.

"You're one of the strongest, greatest people I know, and I've met a lot of people in Hell," Charlie smiles. "You always get back up, no matter who shoots at you or stabs you. No matter who attacks you, you fight back like nothing held you down. You'll never be able to fail me, Y/n. That's a guarantee."

Y/n looked at Charlie in awe. He's never heard those words spoken to him in a long while, and he started to tear up. However, he only began to laugh as he realized something.

"What's so funny?"

"Heheheh," Y/n laughed. "I never thought I'd ever hear you swear. You called those Demons bastards for Christ's sake."

He began to laugh louder, and Charlie slowly joined him. They laughed together for a few minutes before Charlie sat down besides Y/n and leaned on the wall. She sighed and looked over at Y/n who had a closed-eye smile.

"So you wanna go back in?" she asks.

"Nah. I want to stay out here," Y/n responds and turns to Charlie, "with you."

Charlie blushes as she was caught off-guard at this. But she slowly smiled as she nodded in acceptance.

"Alright," she says and leans on Y/n. "We'll stay out here."

Y/n smiles at this and rests his head on Charlie's shoulder. Charlie rests her head on his as they both look out on the field in the college, listening to the blowing wind and the sound of birds that passed by every-so-often. They enjoyed each other's presence in that moment as they held each other's hand. Charlie was having the most happy feeling she's ever experienced, and Y/n felt at peace which was a rare feeling for him. It felt like nothing could ruin this moment. Nothing at all.