Dr. Susan (Storm) Richards ∞ Invisible Woman (drsusanrichards) wrote in newalliance, @ 2012-11-15 23:27:00 |
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Entry tags: | human torch ii, invisible woman |
Who: Sue Richards and Johnny Storm
Where: Baxter Building
When: November 15. 2012
What: Johnny catches his sister on a trip down memory lane.
Rating: PG
As her pregnancy progressed and February got closer, Sue found herself spending more time on parenting sites and less time on actual ‘work’. At this point, she felt like they could use all the informed help they could get. 15 certainly weeks sounded like a long time, but it didn’t feel like it when she thought about everything that needed to get done. There were so many decisions to make and all of them felt so important because this was her child. It was overwhelming, sometimes.
But she was glad she’d decided to read a discussion group about baby books. It gave her the idea to go looking for her own -- and Johnny’s -- stashed away in the closet of the guest room in two giant Rubbermaid containers. Sue was secretly glad that she was the only one in the living areas at the time. No one to scold her for moving the boxes herself (even though she’d used her powers).
She deposited them by the couch. Almost to serve her right, Sue’s leg experienced a massive cramp, making her yelp. She gripped the arm of the couch, remembered to breathe, then sank down heavily, sighing with relief. She decided to cheat once again, using her powers to open the cupboard where she’d stored a heating pad and floating it over. She was exhausted.
She settled into a semi-comfortable position with her feet up, the heating pad wrapped around her calf. Despite Sue’s own exhaustion, the baby was feeling quite active inside the womb. She marveled at the outline of his tiny fist underneath her skin, placing her hand over her stomach.
“You’re a lot of work, you know,” Sue told her stomach, affectionately. “But you’re worth it.”
It was easy to find her baby book once she started looking through the box of her childhood things. She’d purposefully placed it at the top of the box when she’d packed it away, so that the book wouldn’t get damaged. She’d always taken great care with it, but it felt more precious to her now.
Sue leafed through the pages. There were plenty of pictures, and most of them were snapped on instant Polaroids. Her parents’ smiling faces were what Sue took from the photographs, the love and tenderness they’d shown in those moments. How happy they’d been. She paused every so often to reread anecdotes of her infancy or proudest moments, all recorded in her mother’s fine cursive.
‘My sweet Sue, you have changed my life forever, for the better. The first time I held you in my arms, I knew that I would do anything in the world for you. You are my heart. I love you more than I have ever loved anyone -- someday, I hope you will know what that feels like (though not for a very, very long time... I am going to cherish the fact that you are my baby girl for as long as I can.... ’
Sue sniffled, suddenly overcome with emotion and the urge to cry. It felt good to be reminded that her mother had loved her so much -- but it also felt like a double-edged sword because it reminded Sue of the fact that neither of her parents were here to share this with. That felt wrong.
Grabbing kleenex, Sue decided to set the baby book aside and go through the home videos, which she’d converted to DVD after their father died. It had been important to her -- it had also come in handy on occasion, when networks wanted to do a more in-depth interviews about the Fantastic Four and how they’ve gotten to where they are today.
She picked one labeled Johnny -- First Year and pressed play.