Upon hearing that na, Dr. Beast furrowed his brow slightly, shook his head, and said, "That's not a good choice. I admit that Essex has so talent, but his lack of basic respect for life makes him a source of disaster."
"Besides, I don't think he would sincerely help Captain Arica. If he pulls sothing, we're in trouble."
"He really wouldn't earnestly help anyone in The Avengers, but we do have more than just The Avengers here," Shiller said with a smile.
Stark, who was working on the machine wiring, seed to catch Shiller's insinuation. He walked over, nudged Shiller with his elbow, and said, "Don't ss things up. If Essex is an evil scientist, Hydra won't fare any better with him either."
"We should listen to what normal scientists have to say first," Captain Arica said. "When will Connors and the others arrive?"
"Connors has a very important experint in his hands. It'll take at least 2 to 3 days to hand over. Dr. Pym had an experint accident a few months ago and is still not fully recovered. Doctor Doom said he has no research on the X-gene and to contact him if we need to use magic..." Peter put down the phone and said.
"So, it's not just Reed who is coming?" Stark said with a big roll of his eyes. "That guy is really annoying."
"Reed's personality is indeed sowhat odd, but his professional competence is beyond doubt," Steve said, patting Stark's shoulder. "Though I think he is far behind you in chanical engineering, his dical and biological knowledge is quite remarkable."
Stark's expression beca weird as well. Steve was complinting him, which should have made him happy, but the thought of having to deal with Reed Richards was disheartening.
The Avengers' prejudice against Reed wasn't influenced by Shiller, nor was it because he had actually caused any ss that was beyond fixing; rather, he was just incredibly difficult to get along with, with a temperant that was at the extre end of eccentricity.
Originally, everyone thought Strange was the synonym for quirky and reclusive, but there was soone even more extre. Even Peter, the most tolerant among them, sotis wanted to hit Reed, so one can imagine how nasty his temper was.
However, as Steve said, temperant aside, Reed's professional ability wasn't up for question. That he was willing to help this ti was unexpected to everyone; after all, the mbers of The Avengers didn't get along with him before and they weren't exactly friends. Given that scientists like him were busy all year round, the fact that he was making ti was a welco surprise.
Stark also knew that this ti they had to appreciate Reed's favor. The man was here to help, so even if he was frustratingly eloquent, you had to bear with it. The thought of possibly being driven up the wall by Reed to the point of smoking without being able to retort made Stark feel utterly hopeless.
What was equally surprising to everyone was that Reed didn't co alone; he was followed by a beautiful lady. Shiller recognized her—it was the Invisible Woman, Susan.
However, since in this universe the Fantastic Four had not been involved in cosmic work, she had not beco part of the Fantastic Four and was just a regular female scientist. Although she had been involved in the Solar System developnt plan, her academic standing was still quite far from Reed Richards.
So, it would be unlikely for them to et, and Shiller didn't know if they had known each other before. Could this be the reignition of an old fla?
Reed arrived and imdiately started making significant eye contact with Shiller. After observing the interaction between him and Susan, Shiller understood. This guy was so proactive because he was here to flirt.
It seed the two hadn't established a formal relationship yet, and Reed was still pursuing Susan. Susan's attitude towards him wasn't one of dislike; otherwise, she wouldn't have agreed to co on vacation with him. But she seed to have so reservations about Reed, which Shiller couldn't yet discern.
But it didn't matter, whether they ended up together or not, Franklin would still be born. Because in all universes, Franklin's binding was to mother Susan, and in the Pri Universe alone, his father was Mr. Fantastic, Reed.
In other words, as long as Susan chose to have a child, Franklin would inevitably be born, regardless of who the father was.
But Reed also had the advantage of proximity, which likely gave him the upper hand. Susan's presence here with him suggested there was hope. Shiller wasn't sure whether he wanted to facilitate their coming together; after all, he had reservations about Reed too. The guy's talents and abilities were indisputable, but his personality was just too strange.
Reed stepped forward, clearly wanting to show off his good people skills. Spotting his goal, Shiller walked up and hugged him first, then said, "How have you been, Dr. Richards? Any new breakthroughs in your research on Earth?"
"Oh, of course. I've had new thoughts on the Earth's shielding layer, part of the Magical Defense Network combined with Karmathagic Magic. The Mutants helped find an Earth-like planet for experintation. Magneto Erik just called to say that it's best to help Captain Arica, so here I am."
"Oh my God," Stark roared internally. "This guy is actually speaking human now. Is this the power of love?!"
Steve was also very pleased. With such a strong scientist's help, the child would certainly be safer. He went up to Reed, shook his hand, and said with a smile while glancing at Susan, "Everyone here should envy you for spending your vacation with such a beautiful and outstanding lady."
Reed's expression visibly brightened. He gripped Captain Arica's hand firmly and said, "I should thank you for giving this opportunity. But you're right, this will definitely be an unforgettable vacation."
Susan gathered her hair and walked up, hugging Captain Arica and said, "Captain, my brother and I are both your fans. You've got to sign sothing for , and if we could take a picture together, that would be even better..."
With that, you could see Reed's face, a face Strange would have to settle for second place in a facial length competition.
Steve, as cordial as ever, patted Susan's shoulder and said, "I thought I was long out of vogue, ma'am. Let introduce you. This is Sharon Carter, a Level 7 Agent with S.H.I.E.L.D., and my fiancée."
It seed the tension had taken over, triggering Carter's ergency bodily response. During this period, she surprisingly did not have such severe adverse reactions. At the mont, she stood up, feigned a burst of energy, and shook hands with Susan.
Soon, the ladies gathered together to discuss the baby in Carter's womb.
While looking at Susan, Steve nudged Reed with his elbow and said, "I think there's potential."
Stark, standing to Reed's right, shook his head and said, "I doubt it. She doesn't seem that into you."
Reed stretched out both hands, grabbed their arms, one on each side, and turned to walk back, saying as he went, "I won't hold the past against you, but this ti you guys really have to help ."
Just as Stark was about to quibble about what Reed ant by "past issues," Steve cleared his throat and said, "It's tough, really tough. Has she always been hot and cold with you? Sotis she responds to your advances, but other tis she acts as if she doesn't see them. Sotis she's warm; sotis she's cold..."
Stark imdiately added, "Sotis she seems to admire your talents and is drawn to your charm, but then she seems like she wants to escape far away. Sotis it looks like it's about to happen, but at other tis it feels hopeless."
Reed glanced left then right in surprise and then nodded vigorously, his face filled with 'can you two read minds or what?'
Stark scoffed inwardly. This is just normal during the ambiguous phase. Both sides are testing each other's feelings, unwilling to give their hearts away too easily. Observing Reed, who appeared decent enough, had surprisingly little romantic experience.
"From my experience, she is probably testing you," Steve said, posing thoughtfully and stroking his chin. "I guess you probably et most of her criteria for a lover, but there's a little bit that's still uncertain."
"Which part?" Reed asked eagerly.
"That's a long story," Steve sighed. "It's almost lunchti. Co with us to prepare the barbecue, and in the anti, tell us how you t her and what you've been up to recently."
Reed nodded and was led away by Steve and Stark.
Others left the room in twos and threes, Beast covered the machine with a cloth, and Shiller locked the door before leaving too.
The sun was still scorching today. Opening the door, the heat wave hit them in the face. Because of Carter's situation earlier, no one had much of an appetite, so they decided to have so snacks for lunch and hold a barbecue party at the beach in the evening.
Western eating habits don't emphasize lunch, and in Arica, breakfast isn't important either. If there's ti, an egg with toast is eaten; if not, milk is drunk. Lunch is even less fussed over, with many famous white als being eaten then.
So might think the infamous white food is unappetizing enough, but no matter how unappetizing, it's still food. Many Arican young people simply have a bag of chips or a small cup of yogurt for lunch. Treating oneself to a hot dog at a street stall is considered a luxury.
For Aricans, there is only one real al a day: dinner. Most major als are eaten during dinner, and Arican housewives can spend an entire day preparing for it.
Shiller still couldn't get used to this dining habit. At the clinic, he insisted on three als a day, which led Pikachu and Peter to develop the habit of eating properly.
Back in the Stone House living room, Stark casually pulled out a bag of corn chips from the bar's cupboard, then grabbed the coconut juice he hadn't finished earlier - this was probably his lunch.
Steve really didn't feel like eating, but to set an example for Carter, he still heated up the breakfast sandwich Shiller had made, cut an orange, and mixed two packets of energy drinks.
Erica had just put Little Jack down for his nap and had also taken a short nap herself. Waking up feeling a bit dizzy, she poured herself a glass of ice and crunched on it - that was her lunch.
Wanda was even more nonchalant: she followed Shiller around and waited for him to finish preparing the food, took a photo, posted it on social dia, and considered that her al.
Only Shiller and Peter busied themselves in the kitchen with genuine emotion.
Shiller wasn't very hungry either, so he sliced the chicken breast, marinated it with chili and lemon juice, then crushed chips to use as breading. He deep-fried chicken legs that had been marinated in xican flavors from the fridge, and made oyster sauce lettuce - with that, lunch was done.
Since it was only the two of them plus a mouse eating properly, they didn't bother setting the table and instead leaned against the bar to eat. As they did, Pikachu browsed his phone interface, checking to see if delivery was an option here.
Shiller took his phone back and said, "Don't even think about ordering cake. The nearest cake shop is probably 200 kiloters away."
Pikachu let out a mournful howl, "I haven't had dessert in so long!"
After a mont of thought, Shiller said, "There are so simple ingredients in the fridge; maybe later I can make you a pound cake."
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