Jamie Jonas Cortez glanced around at the carnage around him, which seemed to not exist just moments before. He had spent the past few years helping the avengers in any way he could, but nothing could have prepared him for something as terrible as this.
Wanda Maximoff and Pietro Maximoff were currently next to him, both trying their best to fend off the sentries that seemingly appeared all around them. He was trying his best to stay calm, but it was hard to cope with everything that was happening. Ultron seemed completely unstoppable, and he knew that the only person who had the ability to hurt him was Wanda, who had yet to unlock her full potential at this point.
Jamie had spoken to her a few times in the past, and had always felt somewhat of a fascination towards her. Although she was still very reserved towards him and the rest of the avengers, he could see from the look in her eyes how smart she really was, and how much she desperately wanted to befriend them. He also couldn’t help but notice how beautiful she really was. She had pale skin with a Polish accent, she was also athletically built like the rest of the women on the team. She had wonderful deep black eyes and her hair was completely mesmerizing- especially when it reflected the sunlight. Thor had teased him about her a couple of times, and he had always shooed him away. She was too deep in her own world for anything to happen between them, and Jamie had never even gone on a date before. He was too busy saving the world most days to have the time to seek out a relationship.
Anyways, it wasn’t the time to think about something like this. The twins were doing a good job preventing the sentries, but he knew they would have to escape soon with the rest of the civilians. Captain America seemed to be thinking along the same lines, because he cried out, “We gotta move out. Even I can tell the air is getting thin. You guys get to the boats, I'll sweep for stragglers, be right behind you.”
Clint shook his head and asked, “What about the core?” He was right. Someone had to stay with it.
Jame’s heart stopped in his tracks when he heard Wanda say, “I'll protect it. It's my job.” Steve, Barton and Natasha immediately took their leave, but Pietro and Jamie were both reluctant. “Get the people on the boats.” She said firmly.
Pietro shook his head adamantly and replied, “I'm not going to leave you here.”
“I can handle this.” She paused to blast off an approaching robot. “Come back for me when everyone else is off, not before.”
“Please, don’t do this Wanda.” Jamie said, and realized Pietro was staring at him, probably wondering why he even cared.
“You too, Jamie. Trust me. Both of you.” Pietro could only stare at her in response. “You understand?”
Pietro finally nodded and joked, “you know, I'm twelve minutes older than you.”
She chuckled in response and said, “Go.”
Pietro and Jamie nodded once at each other, glanced at Wanda one last time, and headed to separate directions, trying to save as many civilians as possible.
It felt like only a few seconds later when he heard it. The scream of absolute anguish that came with a wave of power. Wanda. There was something wrong with Wanda.
He had to use all his restraint to stop himself from going to her. As a superhero, the civilians were the most important. He knew he could take care of herself, but to hear her scream in that fashion… something was definitely wrong with Pietro.
He couldn’t help it, when he saw her run across the street, he had to follow her. Normally, his flying would’ve been faster than her abilities to glide, but she seemed to be on a mission, and was stalking towards something that could only be Ultron.
He saw Ultron laying there on top of a bus, completely ruined by the avengers. He almost looked sad as he regarded his former ally, who now seemed completely mad with hurt. “Wanda. If you stay here, you'll die.” He said.
“I just did.” She growled. “Do you know how it felt?” She used her power to rip Ultron's core out of his body. “It felt like that.” Ultron collapsed in an instant. Jamie felt a second of awe before he realized they had to go. Now.
The city had started to fall. Fast. And they were the last people left on top of it. He flew towards her and hugged her tight against his body, feeling her gasp and then let go of her stiffness. She knew she would be safe now, but would have to learn to live a life without her twin brother. He didn’t know if she would ever be okay. They flew together into the sky, and watched together as the city fell beneath them. He didn’t know what he could possibly say to make it okay, and so he let her lean her head against his shoulder, her black eyes completely empty. He had expected her to cry, but she was too strong for that. She had gotten the revenge she had wanted, and there was nothing more he could do other than be there for her.
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Months later, Jamie woke up in his bed in San Francisco, and let out a long breath. He looked to the left and smiled to himself when he saw Wanda laying next to him on her stomach, with some of their blanket coiled up around her. It was still shocking every single day to see this beautiful woman lying right next to him, waking up with him, like she belonged to him. And she did.
He could still remember when she joined the avengers and arrived in America confused and alone. She had no one left, and he was so, so scared she would implode and never be the same again. And so, he tried his hardest to be there for her, whenever she needed it. However she needed it. She spent hours upon hours after training alone in her room, watching sitcoms to pass the time. He had started to watch along with her every day, and every day that passed, she let him in closer and closer to her heart. He knew it would take a while, and had accepted that. She had lost every person dear to her, and would have a hard time accepting anyone else to love. He could still remember the words she had spoken to him that day, in the middle of a discussion about the episode they were currently watching. She had suddenly gone silent, and he had taken one look at her expression before asking her if there was anything he could do to help.
"The only thing that would bring me comfort is seeing him again. Sorry. I'm so tired. It's just like this wave washing over me, again and again. It knocks me down, and when I try to stand up, it just comes for me again. And I... It's just gonna drown me." She had said the words in such a melancholic fashion there was nothing he could do other than pull her towards him. Surprisingly, she let him. And so they became closer and closer, until the day he asked her to move into his apartment with him. He was so, so worried she would deny him. She looked hesitant at first, and he knew no one had asked her something this personal before. He feared it would always be like this in their relationship, him wanting to move further and further forwards, and her always be inhibited by her past hurt.
He snuck past her now, trying to be as quiet as possible. She had had sleepless nights for so many months that he knew she deserved as much rest her mind would give her. He headed to the kitchen and turned the coffee machine on before moving to the bathroom. They were staying in a San Francisco apartment together, and though it wasn’t too large, it felt like home for the both of them. He stared at himself in the bathroom mirror, and grumbled to himself about his appearance. His short curly hair was pressed down on the side he slept on. It took him a few brushes with a comb to properly even it out. He was 5”11 with light brown skin and an athletic body type, one he’d begin to grow ever since he started training with the avengers. He didn’t think much of his appearance, but based on Wanda’s compliment, she did find him attractive. Thor liked to tease him a lot about not being as beautiful as a God or as stunning as Captain America himself, but Jamie knew he was at least above average.
It didn’t matter, anyways. There was no way he would want anyone other than Wanda, he knew that deep in his soul. What he didn’t know was how much she really cared for him. He shook the thoughts out of his mind as he finished his shower and headed back into the kitchen. They didn’t have much in the fridge, so he grabbed some eggs and toast and decided to make something simple.
Wanda seemed to be able to sense that the coffee was done brewing, because he saw her emerge in her pyjamas from last night, a simple loose-fitting T-shirt on top of her panties. It was still surreal for him that he could be dating someone so beautiful. Her scarlet hair fell loosely around her body, and she rubbed her eyes as she looked up at him with her dark eyes. “When did you get up?” She asked sleepily.
He smiled and couldn’t help but move towards her, wrapping his body tight around her from behind. “Good morning, baby.”
“I’m usually the one that gets up before you.” She murmured as she kissed his neck.
“I know you’ve had a hard time sleeping so… I wanted to let you lay in as long as possible.” He explained. He didn’t want to talk about her brother, so he steered away from the conversation as quickly as he could. “Did you have a nice sleep?”
She nodded, and wrinkled her nose. “Are you making breakfast?”
He nodded and inclined his head towards the sizzling eggs on a pan.
“Is that it?” She grumbled.
He couldn’t help but laugh again. “Sorry, babe. We have nothing left in the fridge.”
“We haven’t gone for groceries in that long?” She asked.
“You know we’re both not very good at this.” He replied sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his neck. They were doing decently in pretending like this was a normal relationship in the middle of a normal apartment. But both had had so many years of being isolated from the world, being trained to be someone that protected normal civilians, that they had to train themselves to be civilians themselves. They were only a few months into it, and both still had a lot to learn. Like how often they should be going for groceries, and how to cook proper food. S.H.E.I.L.D was constantly paying them a decent pay cheque, because they were still on call for saving the world at all times, still willing to risk their lives, but they didn’t just want to rely on going to restaurants every night. Both have gone through so much of not being normal they were both trying their best to live as simply as possible.
He was about to tell her that they could just go out today to grab some groceries together when his cell phone buzzed on the table. They both stiffened at once. It continued to buzz, and they could only stare speechlessly at the phone.
Ever since Ultron, they had had a life of peace for a few months, but peace never lasted forever. They knew a day would come where they would have to risk their lives again, and with every phone call, they knew the time they had left together was ticking by. It was the life they had signed up for, but that didn’t make it any easier to endure.
He let her go and walked towards the table, making a move to grab his phone immediately. “Hello?”
“Hey, Jamie!” A woman said over the phone. He released a sigh of relief, knowing it wasn’t someone from S.H.E.I.L.D or any of the avengers. The voice did sound somewhat familiar
“Who is this?” He asked. He could see Wanda relax as well.
“It’s Heather!” She laughed over the phone, and he was finally able to place the voice with a face.
“Ah, sorry. We never talk on the phone, and you sound really different!”
“Who is it?” Asked Wanda.
“It’s Heather.” He replied. Before he could say any more, Wanda’s eyes lit up and she grabbed the phone from him in excitement.
“Heather! What’s up?” She said, and began to walk off.
He went back to cooking his eggs, though gave up when he realized they were crispy and darkened beyond eating. He would have to work on this ‘cooking’ thing more in the future. Wanda came back with a smile on her face.
“Yes?” He asked. “What did she want?”
“She asked if we wanted to have a board game night tonight, with Brain.”
“A board game night?” He asked inquisitively. He’d never done that before, though had always thought the idea sounded fun.
“Yeah! Isn’t that exciting?” She asked.
He had paused for a second to think. He had booked a special restaurant for them for dinner that night to tell her something important, and hadn’t bothered telling her to take the night off because they never really made plans anyways.
He shook his head. She was so excited about having close friends in their lives, and he could easily book a dinner reservation another night. “Sure, that sounds fun.” He wondered if she could tell he answered that a little less than his usual enthusiasm.
After showing her the burnt eggs, she left to change into a simple leather jacket and jeans. They left together and grabbed some breakfast on the way to the grocery store, both too deep in their own thoughts to make conversation. It didn’t bother him though. That was what he liked best about Wanda. He didn’t have to bother talking for them to feel comfortable around each other. They were both quiet people, and as long as she was around him, he knew that everything would be okay.
They had forgotten to bring the quarter again, and hoped that they wouldn’t be buying too much this time. Last time they had forgotten the quarter, Wanda had used her powers and he had used his super strength to carry all of the items, and they had created such a commotion with the screaming and photo taking that they had been kicked out of the store before they could buy any of the items. It was a funny story to tell the rest of the Avengers, though many of them had gone through the same things themselves while trying to adjust to normal life.
“So… what should we get?” Wanda asked, looking around at aisle after aisle of food.
“I have no idea.” He replied, shrugging.
“Oh, we should get a gift for Heather and Brian for the party tonight!” She announced, and they had spent the rest of the time grabbing a bottle of wine along with their individual favorite foods, hoping they could find recipes that worked for both of them.
He couldn’t help but touch her whenever he could. He wanted to savour his relationship with her as much as he could, and he felt drawn to her in a way he could never understand. She would lean into every single one of his touches, and smiled softly at him every time she saw him looking at her. It made him realize he couldn’t postpone his plans any longer, he had to tell her how he really felt.
They walked hand and hand back to the car, with Jamie carrying almost 10 plastic bags full of food in his other hand.
“What do you want to do the rest of the day?” He asked her, though he already knew the answer.
“The Dick Van Dyke Show.” She replied. They had watched the show hundreds of times before, and though he was indifferent about it in the beginning, he had begun to grow very fond of it the more they watched it. He knew it was because it was her favorite show to watch with her parents when she was a child, and it always made her feel safe and comforted. He would never say no to watching it over and over again, until the day she was finally accepting of her brother’s death, if that day could ever come.
And so, Scarlet Witch and Jaime Cortez spent another afternoon cuddled with each other on the couch, making instant noodles for lunch and having a bunch of junk food that never seemed to alter their bodies no matter what. After, when she had fallen asleep on him, he had petted her hair over and over, letting her fall into deep sleep as he watched her. At times, her power would appear at the tips of her fingers while she slept, and he liked to watch the strands of electricity travel across her, wondering what she was dreaming about.
It was time for them to go when she had finally woken up, and she had stared up at him in that drowsy but perfect look again, asking him what time it was. They had only time to wrap the bottle of wine nicely and for her to fix up her smudged makeup before they headed to Heather’s house.
Both Heather and Brian went to the same college as Jamie, which felt like years ago. They had kept in close contact over the years, even when Jamie disappeared off the face of the earth at times to save the world. The two had never judged him, or treated him any differently than anyone else. And so he trusted them with secrets about HYDRA and the avengers he probably shouldn’t have told anyone.
Wanda was hesitant at first when she met them. She didn’t have friends - none at all - and didn’t really know how to communicate with people that didn’t immediately try to befriend her first. Thankfully, Heather was just that type. She had given Wanda a huge hug, and then explained in detail the entire menu of starbucks and what her favorite drinks were. Jamie saw Wanda’s gentle smile and knew that Wanda felt right at home.
Brian had reminded Jamie of Thor as he teased him about how Wanda was way too good for him, and how he looked completely smitten. Jamie could only ignore the teasing and watch as Heather pulled Wanda to the front counter, asking Wanda to pick what drink she wanted.
Now, Wanda seemed even closer to his friends than he was. She was so integrated in his life that he wondered at times what could’ve happened to her if no one had been there for her like he had. The rest of the avengers were heroes, but they all had lives of their own, and didn’t seem like the type to welcome Wanda fully into their group after her initial involvement with their enemies. There will always be the core avengers, and everyone who was apart from that, including Jamie himself.
When they were done playing games and Heather was sufficiently drunk, Wanda and Jamie agreed to take their leave, though they made sure Brian would be there to take care of the aftermath of all the alcohol currently in Heather’s blood. Wanda was still smiling as they entered the car, talking about how Catan was a genius game, and how her brother would’ve loved playing it. Her smile faltered at once, and his heart shattered when he saw her face fall, something he had seen hundreds of times before.
He stopped the car at the side of the road, which was completely deserted at 1a.m. in the morning, and placed his hand gently on her cheek. “Wanda…” He said. There was nothing else he could say in moments like this.
She crawled out of the passenger seat and into his lap, and he held her close into his arms, wrapping her as tightly as possible. It was a few minutes later when her breathing finally slowed down, and she looked up at him, showing him she was finally okay to go again.
“I need to tell you something.” His words spilled out before he could stop himself. There was no need for fancy dinners or a huge announcement. He would do it in his way, the way that Wanda would’ve wanted.
She cocked her head inquisitively. “Yes?”
He shifted her slightly to take the box out of his pocket, which he had carried for almost a month now, waiting for the right moment. “Wanda… I… I knew you were the one for me from the moment I set my eyes on you, and I had never known if you felt the same. I can see a future with you, us living our normal lives together, fighting together, and traveling the world with friends together. I want to do that for the rest of our lives, and please, please tell me you feel the same.”
He gulped, and looked away. He could lose everything at this very moment. Without Wanda, he didn’t know what else he wanted in this world.
She was staring at him in absolute shock, like she had no idea this was coming at all. “Jaime…” She started, blinking her large black eyes at him. “I…”