Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

   Eve sighed as she walked down the stairs, on the table was a propped piece of paper. A note, she presumed, one that would tell her that her foster parents were going off on a work trip, and underneath would be a gray envelope with a couple hundred dollars in cash. These disappearances were often but it still hurt when they left without a word to her.

  She pushed the note to the side and opened the envelope, it was sealed with a cat sticker and the cursive handwriting on the back made it almost seem like her foster family had taken time to make sure it was nice for her. In reality, it was simply just an inconvenience that she was told to be thankful for. She ripped open the gray letter and peered inside at the crisp money. They always left her with enough to buy food and pay any incoming bills, but sometimes they forgot, and she went hungry for a few days.This time it was more than the usual 400. Confused, she picked up the note hoping for some lame explanation from her foster mom.

  Eve,

We are going on another trip, so we left you money. Don't starve. XOXO

-Cassie and Gabriel 

  The note held no such explanation and was quite brief. She set it down as she needed to get ready for school or she would be late for the bus and there was no one who could take her.

  She packed herself a lunch and shoved everything into her worn and tattered blue school bag. The ride to school was noisy and cold. The heater on her bus was broken so kids were huddled together in seats, chatting loudly. Eve sat alone; she wasn't someone who had a ton of friends and none of them rode the bus, leaving her shivering and alone. She peered out the foggy window at the passing trees; it was early fall, and the leaves were just turning.

  When the bus pulled into the parking lot, everyone stood, shoved, and pushed like there was a fire on the bus, when in reality everyone just wanted to escape the cold. Once inside, Eve headed for her first class, Latin. It wasn't a popular choice when it came to world languages but because the teacher had been kind to her, she had taken the class.

  “Salvete Discipuli!” Her teacher called as she and the few other students entered the room.

  “Salve magistra!” Everyone chorused back to her, and she clapped her hands.

  “Today we are going over basic translations so please take out your notebooks!” The class shuffled around, and Eve pulled out her red notebook. It was the one school provided and was almost filled with drawings. She started to copy down what was on the board and the class’s morning flow started.

  After Latin, Eve had Math. It was boring, and the teacher drawled on about the least important parts, causing the class to learn practically nothing. The few other periods before lunch flew by and Eve found herself walking into the crowded cafeteria. She sat alone at a table and pulled out her lunch. It was just a sandwich and some grapes.

  As the day dragged on, Eve grew sluggish, the few hours of sleep she managed to catch last night not lasting her as long as she would have liked.

  Finally, the last bell rang, and a mob of teens rushed out of the crowded building. In the bright afternoon lights, she squinted to find her ride in the lines of large yellow buses, All the same and the only difference, the little number on the side made it nearly impossible to find the individual one she needed. Spotting it almost by chance, she hustled over to it, climbing up the small staircase and waving to the driver. He was an older man, with dark skin and a filled grey beard. He motioned for her to sit down and she hurried along the small aisle, reaching a seat that was empty and she sat down. The bus ride was loud, warm and nothing like the peaceful morning ones; it was the afternoon and the other kids on the bus were awake and had drama from the day to share. She did not partake in the conversations and rather peered out the window. Her stop came and it was practically stepping into another world when she departed from the loud vehicle.

  Her neighborhood was quiet, and her house was empty and lonely. She fumbled with the key and headed in through the door. Eve flipped on the lights watching as the yellowish tones light up her foster home’s kitchen. She dropped her beat up bag on the hardwood and plopped her tired body into one of the stools next to the counter. She spent a large portion of time scrolling through social media, laughing at the memes and funny animals that consumed much of her for you page. As she scrolled her eyes caught sight of the newest post from MARVEL STUDIOS. She knew they had been working on the scripts and concepts for a new movie, but the updates had been scarce, and she hadn’t religiously followed them. The post consisted of a link and a small paragraph. The link supposedly led to the website where audition submissions were accepted. Eve figured that it might be fun to do, even if she had no former acting skills that weren’t from a play she had done in fourth grade. Following the link to its website, she quicky disregarded the tutorial and looked at the requirements. One part for lines, one for scenarios and one for tricks. 106 video clips in total. Her phone storage was going down in flames, but she filled out the online paperwork anyway. Once the forms were completed, she opened the camera link. Staring at herself on the phone’s screen, she hit record.

  “Video one out of one hundred six.” She started the speaking lines clips and emotions.

  “Video five out of one hundred six.”

  “Video thirteen out of one hundred six.”

  The speaking lines by far were the easiest, once she got to the scenarios she was at a loss for ideas, what would the reviewers want to see, everyday scenarios? fights? She had no clue. After doing a bit more research she found that they wanted anything. So, she decided that a bit of everything couldn’t hurt.

  “Video thirty out of one hundred six.” By the time she finished with the 16 videos she was exhausted, and she still had to find the energy to film the tricks. 60 videos worth of tricks.

  She pulled out some of her old gymnastics’ mats, they were green-blue in color and had spots where the foam inside had been worn down to paper thin sheets. It was lumpy and not as comfortable as it had been when she was smaller, and it was brand new.

  “Video forty-six out of one hundred six, Splits.” She dropped into a middle split without stretching first, and nearly shrieked in pain when her muscles strained, she held it in though and transitioned to a side split, vowing to stretch more in the future.

  “Video fifty-eight out of one hundred six, Handstands.” She propped herself onto her hands and kicked up into a handstand; the blood rushed to her head as she held herself upside down.

  “Video seventy-six out of one hundred six, flips.” Her voice was dying at this point, and she was sweating profusely. She demonstrated a series of flips before ending the video to take a much-needed water break.

  The cool water relieved her burning throat and she drooped with exhaustion. Only thirty more videos to go. The thought made her weariness double, and she wiped her brow with a kitchen towel. When she stumbled back up the stairs and into her room the sight of the blue mats had her dashing out of the hot room.

  “Only thirty more, only thirty more.” She could back out now but she knew she would regret it, even if this had been her idea of fun in the beginning, Eve knew that it was more than just something to occupy her time, deep down she wanted that role, she wanted to act and prove anyone who mistreated her wrong. She wasn’t going to back down again. Forcing herself back into the steamy room, she hit record once again.

   “Video seventy-seven out of one hundred six, Handsprings.” Her sore muscles screamed as she did the difficult moves, but even through the pain she kept going.

  “Video one hundred six out of one hundred six, front layout.” As she finished the agonizing tasks, she collapsed onto her bed, instantly falling asleep.

Chapter Text

   Over the course of the next two weeks, more important things came up and Eve’s silly audition was pushed almost out of her now overcrowded mind. 

   She once again sat on the couch scrolling through social media. It had become a sort of hobby, and a time filler. She had spent much more time on the apps than she used to. Eve glanced around the living room. It was late, around 6:30, and the sun was already setting. Her stomach grumbled and she stood; she had skipped dinner and chosen to clean some of her room instead.

  While cleaning, she had found a 20-dollar bill and the thought of food had been pushed from her mind as she flew down the stairs to add the small sum of money to her rapidly declining pile of cash. The bills hadn’t come in but the food in the house was scarce now and she had been rationing the money. As she shuffled into the kitchen, she pulled out a bowl and poured herself some off-brand cereal. After pouring some milk and cleaning up, she carried her food back to her phone. She unlocked the device and sat down. Eve shoveled a spoonful of cereal into her mouth and started to scroll through the endless void of the internet. 

   She was so absent in her scrolling that she almost missed the post that would nearly change her life.

   The post was large, and what caught her eye was the picture of her face dead smack in the center of the cast list for the new movie. Her eyes bugged out and her breath caught in her throat, and the cereal sloshed out of the bowl and spilt down her legs and onto the couch.

   “Gah!” Eve jumped up, and placed her phone on the coffee table and went to clean up the mess, scooping up the cereal that was left and soaking up the spilled milk with a towel. Her heart still beat loudly in her chest, but she felt slightly calmer while doing the new task. That was until a loud ring startled her. She dove for her phone, terrified of missing the call that told her this was all a mistake or that she was dreaming. 

  “Hello?”

  “Hello is this Eve Jonson?"

  “Yes, and this is?”

  “David Anderson, Marvel’s schedule coordinator for the new film Agent Six.”

   “O-oh! Uh...what do you need from me?” Eve’s Heart beat loudly in her chest.

   This was it.

   “I am here to start a film schedule with you. Normally this would go to your parents, but it says on your file that you are a foster kid.”

   “Y-yeah, I am...is that a problem?”

   “No, not at all. It’s just that you will be in charge of telling me as many conflicts as you know.”

   “I can do that.”

   “Amazing. Now, filming won’t start for a month or two, but there are a couple of events we need you to be at before then. “

  “O-ok, I have my calendar out.”

   “Alright, so the first event is in December on the 15th from 5pm to 10pm in New York City, on 5th Street.”

   "Okay, I have that... any others?"

    "Not that are solid plans, If you need transportation or a note for your school, let me know"

.  "Okie! Thank you!" Eve's face flushed at the embarrassing voice Crack.

  "Alright then, see you on film day!" The call shut off and Eve let out a long sigh, what was she going to do!?

  It took her 20 minutes to get up after that call and almost an hour to clean up the mess she had made. She dragged herself to her room and floped onto her bed, pulling her favorite plush (A green dinosaur) to her chest and drifting off.

  As she slept, her dreams shifted from strange green dogs, to something much... darker.

  'Just get in the truck girl! I don't got no time for fucking around!'

  'I DONT CARE ABOUT YOUR STUPID LITTLE BABY BROTHER! I DIDN'T SIGN UP FOR HIM!'

  'GIRL, DONT FIGHT ME IN THIS, We. Ain't. Taking. Him.'

   The harsh memories shifted

  'Eve, I want you to go over there ok?'

  'Turn around honey, and don't look back.'

   'mom?'

...................

She awoke with a gasp, the last memory was strange, her mother's voice was something she had never truly heard, other when she was a baby. Her mother had given her up after Eve's grandmother had called CPS on her. Something about drugs had always been what the foster lady had told her. 

  She brushed off the dream and stood to get dressed, hurrying to be ready for the school day.

Chapter Text

     For the rest of that week, she worried and stressed over that upcoming event, worrying anytime she had a moment to think. Though school still dragged on, other than the occasional whispering in the halls, no one seemed to realize who she was. As thankful as she could be for it, she almost wished someone would recognize her, congratulate her, or strike up a conversation. She was lonely, no one had spoken to her since that phone call, and she almost missed hearing her name read aloud. She would drag her feet in the hall and slump into a chair in her classes, not uttering a word. She still spoke though, at home when she was by herself, she would talk. It was a habit she had picked up throughout her years of silence and conversations directed anywhere but her.

    “I should go clean…yeah, I should.” Cleaning was a time filler, and it kept her mind off of what she had decided was her impending doom. Eve made her way to the bathroom and pushed open the door, it was a small dimly lit room with a bath-shower combo with white speckled tile. Eve didn’t have this bathroom to herself, it was also Cassie’s, and the woman’s stuff was everywhere. She shuffled into the small space and got to work picking up towels and laundry and stuffing them into a basket. After that, she wiped down the walls and sink before moving to the shower and tub. Eve unhooked the ugly rose patterned shower curtain and watched as it fell into the basket below, then she shoved the full container outside of the stuffed bathroom. She then returned to the shower, spraying it down and cleaning it up with the blue sponge that sat in the nearby closet.

   “Ok, that should do it.” Her voice cracked in the middle of her small statement. Her face flushed even though there wasn’t anyone else around to hear the embarrassing split. Without another word Eve cleaned up the remaining mess of supplies and walked out bumping into the laundry basket from before. Groaning at her forgetfulness, she carried the tub to the laundry room in the basement.

  Eve wasn’t the best at laundry, but over the years, she had seen enough of tutorials to know the basics: sort the lights, darks, and gentles out and then put a load in, dry it, repeat. Pouring the basket out, she pushed the pile into the ever-growing load of sheets.

  “Ill take care of it later” She should have taken care of it then, but her stomach grumbled, and she could feel it complaining about the lack of food she had consumed in the past week. Eve trudged up the stairs and out of the dark basement. The kitchen was almost empty, but Eve pulled out half an avocado and some grapes, settling on the fact that a visit to the store would be necessary. She ate the food as she gathered 70 dollars and her coat and shoes. It was quite foggy outside, and the snow mostly slush but it was better than the 12-degree walks to school. Eve locked the door and exited the house for the second time on that Tuesday. Once before for school. She headed for the street, walking in the slush on the side of the road, the cold seeping into her old sneakers.

  The store was only about half an hour away, but the cold and her lack of energy made her take nearly an hour. Once she reached the store’s large doors, she practically dove inside.

  The heaters in the store were on overdrive and the store was crowded. Eve wove around the families shopping for the holidays, couples and people standing around. She had no clue what she would buy, and she had no shopping list.

  Eve had bought food for herself before, she knew the basics for others, milk, eggs, meat, veggies, and fruit for her situation though, the basics wouldn’t due, microwave foods and canned goods could only get her so far nutritionally. She scanned for sales, ½ offs or any other way to save money. She ended up with a few microwave meals and some off-brand cereals, nothing too nice, but it only added up to $54 and she had enough to buy a bag of apples and a half gallon of milk.

  The line for check-out was short and soon she found herself staring into the face of the cashier. They had short hair and a lot of piercings, and their nametag read “Lily”.

  “Did you find everything ok today?” They started scanning the barcode and kept glancing at Eve.

  “Yeah, Can I have a bag please?” Lily nodded and shuffled under their stand for a moment. They started to load the food into the bag and rung everything up.

  “Your total is 68.99, will you be paying with cash or credit.” They rode an eyebrow at Eve and she quicky pulled the money out of her coat pocket.

  “Cash-that’s 70.” Lily quickly flipped through the bills and handed her a dollar and a penny.

  “Thank you!” She then picked up the bag and started for the exit of the store. The cold air hit her, and so did the realization that it was dark out, very dark. She knew she had been in there for a while but still she had expected to have some light left in the sky.

  “Shit” Eve would have to walk back in the cold, and the dark. She walked outside and flipped on her phone flashlight, it shone in the dark and she could see the ground better now.

  She had always been told at school to never walk alone, and definitely not at night. Eve had broken this rule before, but it had taken her almost an hour to get to the store, how was she supposed to make it back before something bad happened!? Her heartbeat fast in her chest as she walked and her pace was fast, the groceries swung in her and she clutched onto the money she had. The snow crunched beneath her feet, the cold reddened her nose and she shivered. Unease was twisting her stomach, resulting in her feeling nauseous. She prayed to whatever was out there that she wouldn’t get sick and trudged on.

  When she finally saw the house in her sight she ran to it, setting the groceries down and diving into her front door. The house was warm, at least compared to the freezing outdoors.

  Eve glanced at the microwave’s clock as she put away the food, it was nearly 10. She would have to get to sleep soon if she wanted even the chance at eight hours.

  Eve set everything away and walked up the stairs to her room, mentally making sure she had locked the door and had her keys and phone. She pushed her rooms door open and slipped into her nighttime routine, though she completed the steps faster than normal. Once she was all ready to sleep Eve crawled into her bed and let herself rest, sleep catching her within minutes.

  The next morning was a agonizing process of waking up, getting herself presentable and then dragging herself to school. The bus ride was almost nice, the heater had been repaired and everyone had spread out. She rested her head on her backpack, letting her eyes rest for the ride. When the bus ride ended and she climbed out into the morning chill she woke up knowing just how long her day would be.

  She reached first period and sat through it silently doing her work, second third period followed and the silence continued. When she was finally released to lunch, after an agonizing gym class and science, she moved to her table. Eve sat at a nearly empty table, filled with the few kids who had not been the day everyone had chosen, or kids who had no one, like her. She was going to get the hot lunch that day, two dollars tucked safely in her pocket, when Sevin approached the table. He fist-bumped his friend who sat across from Eve and turned to speak with him.

  “I’m gonna skip class next period.”

  “Woah man, be careful, don’t you have class with her?” The boys’ eyes flipped to Eve who stared back. 

  “You hear any of that?” She shook her head, Sevin was known for getting into fights.

  “I’m skipping class next period.”

  “DUDE!”

  “Why would you tell me?” she asked. Did he trust her?

  Sevin laughed for a moment before his face turned serious, it was probably meant to look threatening.

  “Because if your smart you won’t tell.” He gave one last look to her before walking off.

  The rest of lunch was filled with Eve doing her best to ignore the sinking feeling she had. Even if she didn’t tell, if he got caught, she was in for it. When the bell finally rang, she dragged her feet on the way to her next class, social studies.

  “Good Afternoon class!” The bubbly teacher called, she had way too much energy but she was kind.

  “Please pull out your books while I do attendance.” She read through the list calling out names.

  “Sevin Heshord?”

  “Sevin?”

  “Did anyone see Sevin in lunch?”

  The teacher called out once more and marked the boy absent. Eve sighed, at least she might make it.

  About halfway through the period the classroom phone rang.

  “Hi, Ms. Philipe”

  "Oh, he is here?”

  “Yes, yes” She set the phone down and went back to teaching, but Eve knew what the call had been about. She spent that period and the next two worrying and avoiding Sevin.

  When eighth period ended, she rushed outside, the likelihood of her making it to the bus before seven was low and she walked quickly, hoping that maybe she would beat him.

  She had almost made it to the bus, a few steps away from it, when she spotted him. He looked- happy? Well, he didn’t look like he was about to beat someone up. He stood in front of the bus and was clearly waiting for someone, hopefully not her. She walked up to the line and slowly climbed on, she had passed him, and he hadn’t spared her a glance.

  The bus was packed and Eve knew she wouldn’t have the chance to sit alone, so she sat in one of the empty seats, hoping that whoever came on was polite enough to swap to the inside, so she could get off without bothering them.

  When someone sat down in her seat next to her she knew who it was, Eve didn’t even have to look at him to know. She kept her gaze down and kept working on fixing her backpacks zipper.

  “I got caught.” His voice was not loud or accusing but she knew better then to let down her guard.

  “I know.”

  He wasn’t looking for an answer, and clearly he hadent wanted one.

  “You tell?” His voice was more accusing now and he had moved his bag so that she couldn’t move seats, Not that she would’ve. The bus was moving now, Eve just had to hope Sevin kept it to playground insults and silly threats until her stop came

  “No.” She kept her answers short ands direct, hoping that it would send the message.

  “I don’t believe you.” Of course he didn’t, he wanted someone to blame so he pinned it on the person who might have told.

  “I didn’t tell.” He seemed frustrated and when the bus stopped to let the first passenger off he grabbed her bag from her hands.

  “Hey!” He pushed it into the seat on the opposite side. The kid who was sitting there barley turned their head at the object. Sevin wouldn’t believe her as long as he felt he shouldn’t.

  “You’re a Snitch, a filthy foster kid.” He shoved her as innotcably as possible but she still collided with the wall of the bus.

  “I. Didn’t. tell. We got a call halfway through class from security. I didn’t say a word.”

  “And why should I believe you?”

  “Why would I tell on you if I knew this would be the result? Im not looking to get into fights or get bruised up because I tried to be the teachers hero.” He rolled his eyes, and seemed to be in thought.

  “If you didn’t tell, why would you avoid me?” Eve let out a small laugh, she cut it of quick but the damage had been done. She had accidentally made him look stupid.

  “And now your laughing? Do you want to get pummeled?”

  Pummeled, who in the world says pummeled anymore?

  “No, I didn’t actively avoid you, we just didn’t have classes together and were not friends so why would I run up to you in the halls?” She wanted to add more to the remark but after years of going from not-so-great house to not-so-great house, she had learned when to shut her mouth.

  “Whatever. I don’t believe you.” Eve let out a exasperated sigh.

  Of course he doesn’t. Even if he did he doesn’t want to be wrong.

  “Well I’m telling the truth.” Her statement was simple and shouldn’t have been a cause for a reaction but of course Sevin was offended. He, looking pissed off kicked her leg, hard enough to bruise.

  “My stops next. Your lucky.” He was still trying to sound intimidating but Eve wasn’t afraid, a few bruises were nothing to her. He climbed off the bus and Eve reclaimed her bag. She knew that Sevin definitely hated her now and that she probably would have many more “friendly chats” with him before the end of the school year.

  When the bus pulled infrount of her house (several stops later) she had come to terms with it. The walk up to her driveway was brisk and her house wasn’t much better. When she went to check the heat, it was off and the parental lock was on it.

  Its literally December, does she want to come home to a frozen corps?

  Eve pulled out her phone, clearly a text must have been sent as some sort of explanation for the sudden freezing house she would be stuck in. When her phone lit up no notifications showed and when she went into her texts the last one was from weeks ago. She only debated for a moment before texting Cassie.

----‐----------------------------

Why is the heat off?

I'm helping you save money Evelyn

Its the middle of December do you want me to freeze?

Don't be so dramatic, put on a sweater.

Im not being dramatic, it's 15° outside, please turn the heat back on.

  She regrated snapping at Cassie but the woman was crazy if she thought Eve would suck it up and freeze. She shivered in the cold and made her way to her room. It was colder upstairs then it was down, so she put on a sweater and some sweatpants, before resecuring her winter coat around herself.

  Eve remembered vividly a time when in a past home she had been kicked out for talking back, it had been freezing and she had ended up walking in her Pinkie pie pajamas to a neighbors and knocking on their door. They had taken her in and she had been seated on the couch a blanket around her shoulders and a stuffed dinosaur tucked in her hand. She had no clue how long she had been outside before making her way their but she guessed it was awhile because her feet had frostbite and she was sick for the next week.

  The memory was funny to her because back then she had been confused, why would they go to such lengths to make her miserable? Now she could see why.

  She tucked those memories away and walked downstairs, the cold bit at her face and she pleaded with whatever god was out there that Cassie would fix the heaters. Hoping her phone would distract her form the chill she picked it up, there weren’t any new messages from Cassie but rather one from David.

Chapter Text

Eve all too quickly became used to the permanent chill in her bones. The event was in less than three days and she still was unsure about many of the details, would she be meeting other actors? Was it an extension of her audition?

David had sent her the dress code and it seemed as though it was likely some kind of reunion.

'i don't belong there'

Eve dismissed the thought and went back to counting up the bills. It be came apparent that she was running out of money too fast.

'shit'

If she couldn't pay those bills she would have to call Cassie, or worse; call Gabe.

Gabe was a disgusting excuse for a man, he was the closest thing to a sex addict that eve had ever had to meet, when her foster parents were home they were packing to leave again or fucking.

She recounted the money, silently praying that she had an extra twenty. She could just barley pay this round, and it meant rationing a meer ten dollars for food.

Eve sighed and dropped the cash back onto the kitchen table.

'why is it always-'

She cut herself off as she realized something, she didn't have to pay the heating bill. That in itself have her nearly five hundred dollars.
She let out a small whoop of joy and sorted the other money out.

Chapter Text

The day of the event came in a flash, Eve had figured out what to wear, and had taken the painstaking time and effort to iron the dress. It was a dull blue, it went down to her lower thigh and had small lace detailing on the necklace and bottom, which was dyed to match the dress.

The dress didn't have sleeves, so Eve dug through the front closet until she found a jacket, probably one of Cassie's, it was sleek black and leather but wasn't flashy. 

Good enough.

She had called David yesterday, to explain that she would in fact need a ride to this event... As when she looked at the address, it was nearly 4 hours away. He had been super understanding and waved away her worries claiming that he would have it sorted out.

It was still a school day, and Eve had to get ready, despite her absolute lack of motivation to do so. She pushed herself into some easy to change casual clothes, and folded the dress into a bag she could shove into her locker when she got to school. 

The house around her was still chilly, but she had become quite used to it. Eve locked the door behind her and trudged her way through the snow, her converse and her nice shoes shoved in the same bag as her dress. 

The bus stop wasn't far from her house, only a few houses up the street, but the icey roads made her trip seem longer. By the time she made it up to the stop she could see the yellow outline of the bus. 

It stopped and the small kids climbed in before her, she greeted the driver before sitting in the middle of the bus, the back was where kids went to vape and talk politics and the front was where the sixth graders were seatbelted in, chatting away at the poor driver. 

The bus lurched into motion and Eve rested her head against the window, longing for her bed. 

The bus made the rest of its stops and started on the highway, where Eve could no longer ignore the rattling of her skull against the window. She sat up, today was the day she would be meeting her heros, both in their characters and as their actors. 

The thought should way more heavily on her, but her head was too clouded with the sleepy cotton to formulate worries. 

The bus pulled off the highway and turned onto the schools Street, Eve gathered her things, and prepared for the day. 

As the bus stopped and the doors opened, letting the chill of the outside in, she stood, the kids filed off and some ran towards the entrance, others hung back talking. 

Eve made her way into the school and through the halls to where her locker was. She twisted the lock until it opened and pushed the dress bag into her locker, with the jacket, only pausing to swap her boots out for her converse, (which were surprise surprise off brand) she put her boots on the lower shelf and slammed her locker door.

Her class was on the other side of the building, so she rushed through the halls.

She entered the class and sat at her desk, smiling at the teacher who wished her a good morning. 

School was boring and she was no longer tired, giving her head the perfect opportunity to start a train of horrible scenarios,

what if they think your ugly and swap you for a prettier girl

What if you mess up speaking so bad they think your dumb?

What if they think your a brat because you accidentally sound snooty?

What if they just hate you because?

What if- 

The final bell of the day cut through her spiral, she had to get to the bathroom to change before whoever David sent to pick her up got the idea that she wasn't punctual.

She quickly got her things and changed, fixing her hair in the mirror and making sure she still liked how the dress looked. 

Satisfied Eve rushed out of the school, backpack bouncing around. She had left her normal clothes in her locker, but she needed her bag.

There was only one car left by the time she made it out, a sleek black car which when she approached, rolled down the passenger side window to reveal none other than, 

Chris. Fucking. Evans.

She smiled as politely as she could as the car pulled closer. 

"Hey! Are you..." He glanced down at his phone, 

"Are you Evelyn Johnson? Or do you know where I can find her?" He beamed at her, and she had to fight back every fan instinct in her head. 

"Y-yeah, that's me. Sorry I took so long.." she was quick to apologize for the inconvenience, but he brushed it off unlocking the door so she could climb in.

"Don't worry about it! I got here late, cause you know the paparazzi has its ways of finding you wherever you go, I didn't want you to get freaked out."

His smile was contagious and she found herself smiling in return. 

"Thanks, um I didn't realize David was sending an actual... Actor to pick me up..."

He barked out a laugh,

"What you thought he was gonna send you with some stranger in an Uber? Oh wait, we are kind of strangers..." 

He paused held out a hand, which Eve took, and shook hers

"Chris Evans, nice to finally meet the star of our show!" 

She blushes from embarrassment and grinned

"Hi, I'm Evelyn, but um people call me Eve"

Nobody called her. Period. But that is what she preferred to be called so she went with it.

"Eve, nice!" 

He pulled away from the school as Eve buckled herself in.

"So Eve, since I get to drive you, I get to chat with you first."

Eve felt the anxiety she had managed to shove down bubble up again.

"Oh?"

He turned to grin at her as he drove,

"Yep!" 

Chris paused to think for a moment before continuing,

"So, main role huh? How are you feeling?"

The reminder of why she was their quickly returned.

"I- I'm shocked that they picked me, I mean I've never done serious acting before, but like I'm super excited to get to work with you and the rest of the cast!" 

She didn't mention the crushing anxiety she felt, or the fear of her foster parents finding out and using her fame to further themselves.

"Great! I think they made a good choice and we're all excited to work with you too! What about your folks, how do they feel?"

She froze up, but the lie slipped out easily,

"Oh their thrilled! I guess they really believe in me because they encouraged me to take the chance." 

Chris beamed at that,

"Good to hear!"

He pulled the car into a gas station, and turned to her.

"So kiddo, I have to fill up this tank, and I was thinking you could go grab snacks?" 

Eve nodded before she registered what he had said.

"Great!" 

He pulled out thirty dollars and handed it to her, before pulling down his baseball hat and putting a mask on. 

She climbed out and made her way inside, money still sitting in her hand awkwardly.

What was she supposed to buy him? She whipped out her phone making a quick Internet search and then making her way over to the candy isle.

Chapter Text

   Eve didn't take long in the store, she made her way through the shelves, picking up the promised candy, as well as a few things she hoped he would enjoy. She honestly had no clue how to shop for another person, much less a famous actor who would likely be relaying any "wrong moves" that she made to his cast mates, that thought of being judged poorly by someone she so truly looked  up too made her ponder simple decisions a bit more than she would have if it had been just Cassie or Gabe waiting in the car. 

  She wasn't sure how much of the money she should spend, sure the man was wealthy, he was famous actor after all, but she figured he wouldn't be too thrilled if she spent all of it, especially if he didn't end up liking what she picked out, and use absolutely was struggling with how much to get for herself. She didn't want to seem greedy or annoying. She finally settled, after an internal debate and a few quick calculations on how much she had already, to stick to a fifteen dollar budget. It was a simple limit, but it made her second guessing just a ounce better.

  She finished picking out the last of the goodies, and got in line to check out, A few of the smokers or tired moms in the line looked back, an eyebrow raising at the nice clothes, or possibly at her age, but Eve couldn't help but smile at them. Her life would be different after this movie. She knew it.

  When she got up to the the cashier, a tall black lady, who looked exhausted and not very interested in being there, she set the items down on the counter, and smiled politely, there was no reason to make the poor woman more annoyed, so she pulled out the cash and unfolded it almost immediately,  The lady rung up her groceries, put them in one of the plastic bags that had "thank you" plastered all down the plastic, and handed Eve her change, it totalled to just a little under fifteen dollars.

  She walked out of the store and scanned the parking lot, as well as around the gas station for the sleek black car, she figured he had finished filling up, and had probably parked somewhere off to the side. She spotted the car next to a few small trees, the oriental kind that didn't grow large. 

  Chris smiled as he saw her returning with the bag, unlocking the doors, and letting her climb into the passenger side. Eve fixed her skirt and pulled the bag into her lap, as soon as she was settled she pulled out the change and held it out for Chris to take. He grinned, the goofy grin she recognized from the behind the scenes clips of him messing around with his co-workers, it was comforting to know she could make him smile like that.

  "So, what to you gather for us? I'm not picky" he beamed. He tucked away the money as Eve placed the bag on the center console of the car, in between the two seats. Chris rustled though the plastic bag, grinning wildly when he caught sight of the jellybeans.

  "My favorite! You certainly know how to make a good impression!"

  Eve couldn't help but blush slightly, it wasn't often a person complimented her, much less the famous actor she looked up too, plus it wasn't A fake compliment, or one about how she looked, it was for something she had truly been proud of.

  Chris pulled out of the station and onto the highway, tapping one hand on the wheel in a rhythm, he used the other to open the bag of jellybeans, and set them in one of the cupholders to the right of him. Then as he popped a few into his mouth he glanced at her, she was looking out the front of the car, watching the traffic, unsure of what, if anything, to say. Luckily Chris started the conversation, with a question she could for once, almost answer honestly.

  "So, Eve, tell me about yourself, what does a young actress like you enjoy these days?"

  His tone was light, casual and sounded safe, so safe. She thought for a moment, but for once it seemed her brain was helping with the search.

  "I have a ton of school stuff, and I help out a lot around the house, but when I am free I love to draw, and I used to do gymnastics, I had to drop it a few years ago, but it was one of my favorite things to do, so I sometimes practice my stretches." 

  Chris nodded, wholeheartedly listening to her, when she finished he glanced over at her, she had that happy rose tone to her cheeks and the slightly defeated, tired look on her face had been lifted slightly. He made note of it, but the first meeting didn't seem appropriate to ask about it, so he made no comment, instead opting to stick to light topics.

  "So, obviously I have to ask, its like a right of passage at this point, who is your favorite Avenger?"

 That question was one she hadn't been expecting, at least not yet, Eve looked over to him baffled.

  "oh come on, we all have one, who is it for you? Who's the favorite of Miss Eve?"

  Eve thought on it for a moment, it could have been at test, but it seemed the longer she was in the car with the man, the less anxious she got, they were long since on the highway now, and Eve almost felt less anxious.

  "Well if we're talking about all avengers, Spider-Man has been one of my favorites since I was a kid, but if its just the original six,"

She paused for a moment,before speaking up with her answer, 

"My favorite has got to be Hawkeye. I love his character and how he was portrayed by Jeremy Renner. Its super cool,"

  She could talk for days about all and any of the avengers, but she kept it brief, since she still didn't really know Chris, even if it felt like she did.

  He nodded, listening intently, after she finished he took a moment, thinking. Eve sort of stared out the window, hoping her answer didn't seem forced or that she had picked the right one. It became clear to her then, that she truly didn't know the cast. Sure she had seen the bloopers and behind the scenes content of them, and she knew they supposedly got along, but she didn't know what drama was wrapped under the publics knowledge. She hoped her answer was still ok, and that Chris wouldn't make assumptions or final opinions on her yet. It came to be almost three minutes of silence, Chris quietly whistling and Eve staring out the window at the cars and street signs passing. She found herself strangely comfortable, maybe because of the fact that he seemed so sweet, or because how she knew him best was his acting, A hero. But she sat comfortable, worries still present, but not pressing against her as the had been.

  Chris broke the quiet peace in the car, turning his head ever so slightly towards Eve.

  "I just realized you've probably never actually met the others! This isn't A huge press filled event, but there might be people you don't recognize, so like I don't want you to get lost or overwhelmed, I'll probably hang by Sebastian and Anthony, they won't mind it if you stick around with us, but of course you can talk to anyone in there if you want."

  Eve paused, that was so sweet, she wanted to thank him and also kind of tell him everything she was going through, it was just a moment of that feeling though, she couldn't make a fool of herself just yet. So she smiled, beaming practically, 

  "Thank you!" 

  Chris just smiled, pulling off of the highway and into a city like area.

  "Of course! I wouldn't leave our star to fend for herself! Especially on her first day!"

  Every sentence he said was so light, and so encouraging his tone adding to it. Eve suddenly was quite aware that she was living peoples dreams, getting to meet her heros, and possibly even befriending some of them.

  They still had a bit to drive, at least based off the GPS, and Eve was pretty tired. She didn't want to make a fool out of herself, snoring or anything, but she fought to keep her eyes open, her late nights were really taking a toll on her. Chris was focused on the road, now that they were in the city, traffic was bad, and so conversation had died off, music from some radio station replacing it, Eve didn't mind. She picked at her gummy worms, nibbling here and there, but she was careful not to get anything on herself or the car. It was really nice, to for once not be in charge of getting herself from point a to point b, to have someone else be trusted to get her there.

  She occasionally glanced at Chris, his baseball cap still on his head, but his outfit was nice, A flannel and jeans, but dark enough so that they seemed professional, the flannel was over top of a sweater, both shades of gray and blue. Eve herself had managed to not mess up her dress, and she had her hoodie on over it, both as a precaution and for warmth.

  That calm feeling was back, and Eve couldn't keep her eyes open any longer, between the rhythm of the music, and the slow drift of the car, as well as her comfortable warmth, She drifted into a light sleep, head lulling to the side. She thought she heard someone turn the music down, and mutter something, but she was too deep in her sleep to debate it.

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  Eve woke as the car stopped, they were at the gate of a parking garage, Chris was leaning out the window to flash his I.D to the man. She blinked the sleep out of her eyes, careful not to smudge her makeup, and used the side mirror of the car to check her appearance. She looked fine, maybe a bit more tired than before, but she hadn't drooled or messed up her hair while she had been out. Chris started pulling into the garage as she stretched,

  "We're here, just got to park the car, and then its party time!"

  She found it so incredibly nice that he, maybe unintentionally had not acknowledged her falling asleep, she knew it was unprofessional, and he had probably judged her for it, but the fact that he dismissed it all together was something she appreciated greatly.

  "Awesome!" 

   Her tone was laced with sleep, but he didn't seem to mind. Once the car was parked, He pulled off his hat, and fixed his hair. Eve took it as her cue to unzip her hoodie, and put it with her school bag. Her dress had short sleeves, and wasn't too over the top (she didn't own anything That nice) and it flowed in a way she actually enjoyed. It wasn't like she hated all things feminine, it was just she never had the chance to wear that kind of stuff.

  They got out of the car, Eve stumbling a bit (quite embarrassingly) from the long period of sitting. Chris didn't seem to notice, or if he did, he didn't say anything. He gestured to the elevator doors and let Eve walk ahead of him.

  As they entered, he hit the ground floor, and let the elevator go. The silence wasn't awkward, but Chris broke it anyhow.

  "You ready?" 

  The nerves had returned to her now, and she paused. She wasn't ready, no. But it was now, or never.

  "Yeah!"

  The elevator dinged, coming to a stop at the bottom of the garage.

  "Its not a long walk, trust me."

He pointed to a building across the street, 

  "We're just in there."

  They walked across the street, and passed the few not so sneaky paparazzi photographers, Chris ignoring them all together, and Eve trying her best to mimic him. 

  At the door, A man in a security uniform checked Chris's I.D once again, though he laughed as he did, chuckling about how he could never mistake the Chris Evans, and let them through. Inside the building was very nice, Eve compared it to the nice hotels she knew from movies. There was a sign that said Marvel in big blocky font, and it pointed to a room off to the left, where Eve could here voices conversing. She debated bolting, but Chris grinned and ushered her to the door.

  Eve took a deep breath, and stepped in.

Chapter Text

   The room was large, lit with yellow tones lights and packed with people. Men and woman, all with faces Eve knew well chatted and laughed in groups among the crowd. They were dressed in all fashions of beautiful, from dresses to suits and back again. Even as the fan girl inside of her died a little bit, Eve remained silent as she followed Chris. 

He seemed right at home, waving and knocking fists with those he passed, or leaning down for a kiss on the cheek. Eve trailed behind him, like a lost dog. She had no place in this room, there were no corners of weird kids, or little old ladies to entertain. She had no easy exit from the large daunting task of socializing. 

  As cringe as it sounded to her, it was just reality. Eve wasn't a social light, she did better in small groups, not large ones. But all the faces that stopped to look at her as she passed smiled warmly, with a sense of safety Eve wasn't used to. 

Chris stopped at the opposite end of the room from where they had entered, tables lined the back wall, covered in various types of food and drinks, chairs surrounded coffee tables or bar counters, in a way that held an element of elegance as well as a cozy atmosphere. He turned back to Eve, she paused her own pace to return his look. 

  "So, there are a ton of people here. That being said, there's no one you need to avoid, and if anyone bothers you, tell me, we'll get it taken care of. If you want to stick by me by all means go ahead, but don't stop yourself from exploring and meeting as many people as you like."

  He gave her the basics, and offered her the respect and freedom to follow her own comfort zone. Eve both found this gesture incredibly kinds, but also difficult. The fan inside of her begged her body to drag around the room, to talk to everyone and Take the opportunity she had, but the other part of her was the self conscious second guessing type.

  Chris patiently waited for her answer, the look on his face one of genuine care.

  "I think I might just... Hang out with you for a bit.. if that's ok" 

  Her voice was practically silent compared to the noises that surrounded her, but he nodded, as though her had heard. 

  "Alright, obviously if you get bored you can change you mind."

  It was loud as the two wove their way through the crowd. Eve had known it would be a large event, hell, the casting for the movie was over 50 people. But she found herself baffled by the amount in whole. 

Chris seemed to beeline to one group of people. Eve squinted, making out the faces of two men and a woman.

They stood towards one of the walls, branches of other conversations seemed to start where they stood. Eve knew them as soon as she saw their faces. Those were the avengers. THE AVENGERS.

On any other day Eve would have started freaking out, smiling like an idiot and fumbling over her words, but she couldn't be that kid here. She had to make a good first impression.

  The group smiled wide as they spotted Chris and his tag along, greeting him with hugs and grins. They laughed and joked, messing with each other in sick a way if not for their looks, they could be mistaken as family.

  When Scarlett noticed Eve, who was politely off to the side, she turned to her immediately. The woman was gorgeous, wearing a pantsuit and gold jewelry. Scarlett didn't waste time with an awkward handshake or condescending smile, instead she crossed her arms and with a large grin on her face, brought Eve to the attention of the others. 

  "Chris! You didn't tell us you were bringing our star!" 

  They all laughed, and Chris had a proud look on his face. Eve, held one more of an awkward smile. 

  "Oh yeah! You'll love her, Eve, want to come say hi?" 

  He posed it as a question, as if the girl would ever say no. She walked forward, her brain was split between focusing on not falling, tripping or looking dumb, and preparing her greeting.

  "Hi, it's nice to meet you." 

  Her voice was a timid type of quiet, and it urked her. Why did it have to sound so unsure, childish and such. 

The group all smiled, most prominently were Scarlett and Mark. The man held out his hand, offering a handshake to her. Eve returned the gesture, trying not to hold to tight or wiggle. It was annoying, Eve was a well controlled, self conscious person, and she rarely had to stress like this, but when she did- every possibility becomes a new strand of anxiety. 

  "It's good to meet you too, Evelyn"

  The warm tone of those around her were both alien and familiar. She knew those tones, but not in a personal way. 

  Stepping back from the handshake, all eyes still on her, she analyzed the group, ok so it wasn't all the Avengers, Chris Hemsworth and Robert Downey Jr weren't there, but it was a decent chunk of the hero's she had grown up adoring. Jeremy stepped forward, his own hand extended for a shake. He had kind eyes and a plain dark suit, much like Mark's, but Black instead of gray.

  "Welcome to Marvel, the land of big fancy parties and long ass film sequences,"

   He chuckled as he said it, leading the others to do the same. Eve couldn't help but beam, it wasn't every day she felt this welcomed. It was a beautiful feeling.

  "Happy to be here, I'm so excited to work with you guys," Her voice was steady, calm with only the smallest hint of the giddiness that was inside of her.

They all nodded, smiling and agreeing with her, conversation broke out about the whereabouts of the two missing members of the main party, and with nothing to add, Eve let herself wander over to a woman, unpreoccupied by other conversation. She wore a long purple dress, velvet. It was stunning on her, and her dark skin complimented the color beautifully.

  "Hello," 

She smiled, holding out her hand for the woman to take. There was a lingering fear, a fear that the woman might scoff or walk away, but her eyes crinkled with a kind smile, and a soft handshake followed.

  "So your our star huh?"

 The laugh that came out of Eve, she could only describe as awkward. She really should fix that, but at a later time. 

  "Yeah I guess, pretty wild to me, but I am excited to start working with everyone."

  The woman nodded along with her, smile never wavering. 

  "Oh believe me, I understand the feeling,it just.. doesn't feel real until your behind the camera for the first time, I'm sure you'll love it!" 

Eve grinned, some of the nervous tension fading from her, and as the woman turned to converse with another who had approached, Eve didn't feel so awkward walking away to make conversation with others she saw. 

It was a chain reaction after that, hands shaken, greetings and kindness radiating from all, she spoke mostly to smaller actors that lingered in the area, those with background roles, they all were insanely supportive, complementing her achievement, and acknowledging how big this must feel for her. 

  Eve was truly enjoying herself. Occasionally she would bump shoulders with an actor she recognized, and had to school her face down from total fan girl, to cool collected child actor, but no one ever seemed to judge her.

  At one moment in the party she found herself hungry, she hadn't eaten much in the car, partially from the awkward feal, partially from her own minimized eating habits. But now, at the party, she found herself standing at the snack table, choosing between a pastry and fruit. 

  Everything looked so fancy, pastries stacked on those tiered plates, fruit arrangements with intricate patterns, it was all another level from any small time gathering Eve had ever attended. She settled on a pastry, because they were easier to get too, and there was one chocolate glazed croissant that was calling her. 

  She took a bite of the food, her back turned to most of the party, in favor of looking out the window. It was a floor to ceiling expanse of glass, and the city it looked out on was gorgeous, the sunsets colors bringing another element to its beauty. 

  "Enjoying the party?" 

  A thick British accent interrupted her peaceful view. Before Eve even turned she knew who was talking. Tom Hiddleston stood a few feet from him, holding his own plate of fruit and chips. He had a warm smile on his face, and his stance was almost hunkered down, defeating his height slightly, Eve assumed it was for her own comfort. 

  "Oh- Hello, yes It's really cool. I've never been to a gathering this big"

  He chuckled, looking out the window as well. 

  "It certainly is "cool" to have so many talented people in one space, I have to agree."

 He paused, glancing over to her from the window,

   "So is our star excited for her debut?"

  His to tone was both curious and kind, and Eve found herself not struggling to answer. 

  "Of course! This has been a dream of mine for years, until a few weeks ago I believed it would be unreachable. It's crazy how quickly things change."

  And for once, she didn't feel like a fraud.