010. family beats all

CHAPTER TEN, family beats all!

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"𝐆𝐔𝐘𝐒, 𝐈𝐓'𝐒 𝐆𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 bad out there." Ben said and picked up the remote controller that was on the table.

Lacie was curled up on the couch in front of the TV, staring at the blank screen for hours as the sunk deeper into the blanket wrapped around her. She didn't realise how long she was sitting there until she noticed she had watched Ben leave and return in the same outfit, and she had yet to move a muscle.

Ben pressed the remote and the TV switched on, "It seems to me that they have no plan for Galactus." The presenter said.

"We as a society have to reckon with the idea that the Fantastic Five could save us today, but they choose not to?" The remaining team members gathered around the TV and Johnny stood behind the couch, his arms resting either side of Lacie's shoulder as he leant forwards to listen closer.

"The idea is simple. Reed Richards and Sue Storm hand over their baby and we all live. Then, they cast Lacie March out of the team for indirectly being told that she is the weakest member--"

The TV smashed as Sue threw energy at the screen, glass shards falling onto the carpeted floor beneath it. Silence fell through the group as neither of them looked at each other. They had gone from the most loved people in New York to the least in less than 24 hours; and it seemed that Lacie was carrying the title of most hated.

Lacie took a deep breath and pushed the blanket off her, rushing to get some fresh air as the room seemed to be collapsing on her. She pushed open the glass doors and stood at the balcony's edge, her hands against the rails and hair blowing in the chill wind.

Johnny left her alone for a second and watched her rapid movements until Ben nudged him on the shoulder and nodded in Lacie's direction. Johnny took slow footsteps and shut the door behind him, letting their conversation be private despite feeling three pairs of eyes burning their back.

Johnny moved to stand next to Lacie, seeing the railing grow a sheet of ice where she had gripped it so hard, icicles teetering over the edge.

He didn't press a conversation starter, he just waited until Lacie felt it was right to start speaking and when she was ready to do so. His presence was enough to make her feel safe.

"I'm embarrassed more than anything." Lacie started, eyes locked on the people swarming the Baxter Building, holding up signs and shouting protests at the team cooped away.

Johnny leaned his elbow on the railing and turned his body to her, "Why's that?"

Lacie removed her hands and traced the icy remains, "I care about how I look, Johnny." She watched him peer down at the pack of people floors below, "I care about my reputation and how I'm perceived."

"And to see people down there shouting that I'm the weakest and that the name Fantastic Four flows better really, really sucks. That hurts the most for me." Lacie cleared her throat and blinked rapidly to rid her eyes of any tears forming.

Johnny rocked back and forth on his feet, "I could tell you that you shouldn't care what they say about you, but I can tell you already have."

Lacie turned to look at Johnny and chuckled slightly, "You know me too well." Johnny smiled weakly and placed his hand on top of Lacie's.

"Tell me, who are the most important people to you, Lace?" He asked. "You already know the answer to that, Johnny." Lacie tutted but Johnny ran his thumb over the back of her hand, adamant for a verbal answer.

"Just say it." His voice fell quieter. Lacie's lips twitched as she fought a soft smile, "It's you guys." She looked into the Baxter Building and saw the team flinch as Lacie caught them eavesdropping on the pair's conversation; Sue busied herself with the kitchen utensils and Reed thumped into Ben's chest as they went opposing directions.

"And being one of those people, do you wanna hear what I think about you?" Johnny pressed and he crossed his arms, biceps bulging in the burgundy shirt that fit him too well; it was almost as if he knew what he was doing.

Lacie's eyes accidentally flickered to his arms before returning to his face and nodding expectantly. Johnny licked his lips, the chill air drying them, "I think you're the strongest person I know."

Lacie opened her mouth to deny him but he continued, "No, I'm being serious." Lacie stayed quiet and smiled at him to resume, "If anyone else found out they were practically marked for death they would have run, backed out or done the job themselves to save their pride."

"But you," Johnny moved to cup Lacie's face in his hands, "You're here and you're protecting your world because you love what you do." Johnny felt Lacie smiled under his touch, dimple creases forming beneath the palm of his hand as her smile grew.

"And you're a good person, Lace." Her eyes softened and her stomach grew in knots, "You value other people over yourself and it kills me that you can't see how much we care for you."

"How much I care about you." Johnny finished and his hands drifted back to fiddle with the hair that was tucked behind her ears.

Lacie pressed her lips together but a smile creeped out, "How do you always know the right thing to say to me?" She leaned into his touch and fiddled with the hem of his shirt.

Johnny shrugged, "Perhaps I know you too well." He relayed her words from behind and her cheeks burned a crimson red.

Lacie's face turned into something more serious and she put her hands in Johnny's, pulling them away from her face and leaving them intertwined at their sides. "I need you to listen to me when I say this."

Johnny's eyes widened, "What?" Lacie sighed, "Please, just listen."

Johnny nodded quickly and furrowed his brows in concern, "Okay, okay." He stuttered out.

Lacie took a deep breath and looked him in the eye, "If I die--"

"No, Lace--" Johnny shook his head and looked at his feet, squeezing his eyes shut at the mere idea of it and how casual Lacie was to bring it up, especially around him.

"Johnny, please." It was Lacie's turn to cup Johnny's face, one of her hands brushing windswept hair off his forehead and thumb tracing the creases.

Johnny fell silent and his head leaned into her touch, quietly encouraging her to finish her proposition. "If I die," She felt him shake his head in her hands, "The possibility is there and we can't deny that, I know." Her voice softened as it felt like her touch was the only thing keeping Johnny upright.

"If I die protecting our world..." Lacie's knuckles brushed Johnny's cheek, "Protecting you..." His blue eyes locked onto her own, "Then I'll die happy."

Lacie's bottom lip wobbles slightly and Johnny turns his head in Lacie's hand, pressing soft kissing in the palm of her hand. His eyes were trained on her face and watched how it softened as his lips pressed against her palm, not standing another second without her in his arms.

Johnny pulled Lacie into a crushing hug, his hand tangling her hair and nuzzling his nose in the crook of her neck. Lacie sighed at the contact and scrunched up the fabric of his shirt under her hands, mumbling quiet apologies that fell deaf on Johnny's ears.

A soft knock on the glass made the pair part slightly but remained in each other's arms. They looked at Reed on the other side who gestured with his hand to come inside.

They both nodded and let go of each other, looking at each other one more time before walking into the Baxter Building, meeting the rest of the team sitting silently at the table.

Johnny and Lacie took their seats and looked between the Fantastic Five. "They're scared." Reed started and rubbed his forehead.

"Who isn't scared?" Johnny leant back in the chair and glanced at Lacie. "That..." He pointed to the crowd of people outside, "Is scary."

"Why? They can't hurt us." Ben said to Johnny. "They're scared because they hate us. They think they might die and they hate us for it. And they hate Franklin." Sue furrowed her brows at her husband's words, offended at the prospect of hundreds of people hating their newborn child.

Reed was about to open his mouth to suggest the public's opinions on Lacie but he made eye contact with Johnny before he could do so. Johnny simply furrowed his brows and shook his head, annoyed that Reed could even think of saying something like that.

Johnny slung his arm around the back of Lacie's chair and watched the fumbling Reed continue, "And they may be right because right now we don't have a working plan. The clock is ticking. And their plan looks good, it's mathematical, it's ethical. And it's..."

His voice trailed off as he avoided eye contact with Sue, "Available."

Sue tilted her head, "What are you saying?" Reed placed his hand on the table, "I'm not... saying... anything."

Sue scoffed and her argument was stalled as Franklin began crying on the monitor. Sue looked at Reed and shook her head before standing up and leaving the room.

Lacie huffed out a breath as silence followed Sue's departure and Reed's quick feet following her own. Ben tapped the table before standing up, "Seems like you two are the only functional relationship left in the Fantastic Five now."

Johnny and Lacie's faces blushed and they shook their heads, "No! We're not in--" "Not in a relationship." Johnny finished for her and widened his eyes at Ben who raised his hands in surrender, "Just saying."

Reed rushed back into the main room and waved them into the elevator, "Sue's outside, quick!" He called behind him and the three members hopped up and jogged downstairs.

They stopped at the entrance and saw Sue standing in the middle of the crowd, cradling Franklin as hundreds of eyes fell on them.

"I wanted to introduce you to someone. This is our son, Franklin, there's been a lot of talk about him. Most of you know me, you know my story." Sue's voice caused people to lower their signs and silence their jeers, "When Johnny and I were kids, our parents were in a car crash."

Lacie felt Johnny tense up beside her and without saying anything, she intertwined her hands with his and felt him squeeze her hand, signalling to her that he was alright.

"Our dad was driving and he lived... but our mother didn't. I know what it's like to be a part of a family that was torn apart. Our dad wasn't always a great father but he wanted to be. He did his best, he wanted us to be together because that's what family is." Sue said, laying her heart on the line.

"It's about fighting for something bigger than yourself. It's about connecting with something bigger than yourself." She rested her forehead against Franklin's and turned to the team hovering by the door.

Sue smiled at every one of them, eyes softening as her family stood by her side. "It's about having something bigger than yourself." A tear fell down her face and she took a deep breath, "And the five of us already do because we have you."

The crowd stayed silent, "You know, our mother always used to say, 'Suzie, for you I would move heaven and earth.' I would do that for you."

"I will not sacrifice my child for this world. But I will not sacrifice this world for my child. We will face this together. We will fight this together. And we will defeat this together. As a family."

The crowd started applauding and Sue wiped away her tears, coddling Franklin and turning back to face the four smiling faces at her. She walked towards them and they wrapped her in a hug immediately, Johnny not forgetting to tease his sister before Reed stopped them in their tracks.

"Archimedes." Reed stated, "The Law of Levers. We are going to move heaven and earth."

Lacie furrowed her brows and Reed noticed the four confused faces, "Well, just earth." He took a step towards them, "You solved it." Sue smiled at her husband, "I did?"

"Yes. We are going to move earth to a place that Galactus will never find us." Johnny looked at Lacie and Ben, slinging his arm over Lacie's shoulder and pulling her close.

Sue questioned Reed's idea, "Well, we already have the lever. The bridge." He shrugged. "The bridge is a prototype." Sue raised her eyebrows.

"You moved an apple across the room." Johnny reminded Reed. Lacie nudged Johnny, "It was an egg, Johnny. And you think you can do that with a planet?"

"Johnny was too distracted by Lacie." Reed pointed at the pair practically joint at the hip and ignored their protests, "We are out of options. We have to make it work, we will make it work."

The Fantastic Five departed and Lacie walked with Johnny, standing on her tiptoes and whispering in his ear, "I'd move heaven and earth for you."

Johnny gasped and wrapped his arms around her shoulder from behind, pulling her back flush against his chest, "I was gonna say that! You beat me to it!" Lacie laughed and walked with Johnny to the kitchen.

A couple of hours had passed and Lacie was deep in conversation with Johnny, sitting on the kitchen counter and Johnny stood between her legs, hands working to reach for utensils behind her.

Their privacy was broken as Ben trudged into the kitchen, "You know, Reed's called a curfew for the city?" The two looked at him, "No. Why?" Lacie asked and hopped off the counter, missing Johnny pouring himself a bowl of her cereal.

"Light off at 8pm, something about the lever." Ben shrugged and left the room as quick as he entered, picking up his razor and walking into the bathroom for a weekly trim.

Johnny hummed and appeared behind Lacie, "My room. Tonight." She raised her brows at him, "Gotta work on that translation."

Lacie nodded at him and moved past him, swiping up the cereal he had just stolen, "You forget this is mine?"

Johnny shook his head with a smirk on his face, "No, I just wanted to mess with you." Lacie chuckled and placed it back in the drawer, "It's like you're obsessed with me or something." She laughed to herself.

Johnny tutted and muttered to himself, "Wouldn't you like to know."

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authors note!

i'm back part 2 !!! this one kinda sucked but i was prepared for the next chapter that i'm about to throw at you... RIGHT NOW

all i'll say is...

me writing the next chapter:

OK BYE I WON'T HOLD U FOR LONG LOVE U XXX