Chapter Text
Asked by anon: Karen taking frank to her high school reunion
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“I can’t believe we’re doing this.”
Frank parks the car and gives Karen an amused smile. “You said you wanted to, remember?”
She grimaces, twisting her fingers in her lap nervously. “Yeah, but what if someone recognizes you, Frank? What if we walk into my high school reunion and someone says, hey, isn’t that Frank Castle? and someone else says, it totally is, we should call the cops, and then you get thrown in jail–”
He reaches out and grabs her hand gently, bringing it to his lips. They’d driven in from New York and her anxiety had only built throughout the trip.“It’s been two years, Karen. And if no one in New York has recognized me yet–”
“There was that one guy at the grocery store…”
“–then no one in Vermont will, either,” he finishes firmly.
Karen looks at him for a long moment, then sighs. “You’re right. I’m just…nervous. After my brother passed away, it was awful. People I didn’t even know walked up to me in the halls to apologize, people whispered behind my back when they thought I couldn’t hear it…” She looks at the building in front of them, then nods. “Okay, let’s do it.”
He gives her a hand reassuring squeeze, then offers her a wide, teasing smile. “It’ll be fine, yeah? And isn’t the point of these damn things to show off how well off you are anyways, oh big shot New York journalist?”
She gives him a look, but there’s amusement replacing her nervousness. “Yeah, and I think I did pretty well in the date department…” She leans forward to give him a soft kiss, smiling.
Frank curls a hand in her hair, humming approvingly, before he pulls away. “You’re putting it off. Come on, let’s go.”
Karen grumbles but concedes, stepping out of the vehicle. Frank offers his arm and they join the crowd of people filing their way into the high school auditorium, arm in arm. Them against the world, just like always.