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asermann · 6 years

Text

One Week

For @lesbiansassemble ‘s writing challenge

Pairing: MJ/Shuri Characters: MJ, Shuri, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds, Tony Stark Words: 6355 Warnings: None Prompt: “Are you from around here?”

As MJ approached the laboratory, she heard a jumble of voices growing increasingly louder.

“Why stop there? Why not add some AI?” MJ instantly recognized the voice of Tony Stark. She had become a regular visitor of Stark tower now that Peter spent so much of his time here, but she had never seen the billionaire in person. Not that she was impressed.

“I understand your wish to use your own technology, however, I believe you are forgetting the purpose. We are building an outreach center specifically for young people after all. I don’t believe they will have much use of your AI. We should be focusing on more necessary software.” Although MJ didn’t recognize the slightly accented voice, she gathered that it belonged to a young woman.

“What, you don’t think these kids could use a helpful assistant? AI is useful to anyone, tell her, F.R.I.D.A.Y.”

“That’s right. Artificial intelligence such as myself has several useful household applications, including—”

“I’m not saying AI isn’t useful, I’m saying perhaps we should focus on more pressing matters,” the girl replied. MJ wondered who she was. Anyone who could sound so cool while matching Tony Stark’s knowledge of technology must be a remarkable person.

“Um, I know I’m not really part of this conversation—” That voice she recognized. MJ cringed a little then. She hoped Peter wouldn’t embarrass himself in front of Tony Stark and a stranger who was presumably also a genius. “—but if I were a kid—”

“You are a kid, but go on,” Stark added.

“—I would think having an AI assistant was pretty awesome.”

“See? That’s three against one.” Stark sounded a little smug.

“Did you read my report?” The girl didn’t wait for Stark to reply. “Then you must know the designs for the center are still in the initial stage. We have more important matters to attend to before we start working on details such as AI assistants.”

“See, that’s where I disagree. I think your designs are already pretty advanced. Hell, you mentioned tech light-years ahead of the stuff I’m working on now.” Peter made a noise, as if intending to interrupt. “Yeah, kid, I know light-years is a measurement of distance. Loosen up, it’s a figure of speech. Anyway, point is, I don’t wanna make any changes to your design. It’s great. I’ll help out with the details, AI assistants, that sort of thing. I mean, it’s your building. Or is it your brother’s? Doesn’t matter. I’m saying it’s gonna be great. I’m just worried we’re actually spoiling these kids.”

“Uh, Mr Stark?” Peter asked.

“What, kid? You know I was kidding, right? About the spoiling?”

“Yeah, it’s just that I have to go now. I’m supposed to meet my friend MJ.”

“Alright, you’re dismissed.”

The door to the lab had only been opened a crack before Peter quickly closed it again. “Hey MJ, didn’t see you there.”

“Yeah, I didn’t want to interrupt,” MJ said.

“Okay. Cool. I just have to change first. Um… hold on.” MJ could hear Peter moving around behind the door.

“Why can’t you just come out? And why do you need to change? You’re not, like, naked, are you?”

“What? No!” Peter said. Then he finally emerged from the lab. “I just have to… I’ll be back in a sec.” MJ just stared at Peter, who was walking quickly past her, pulling a too-big lab coat around him while wearing… red tights?

“I’ll just wait here,” MJ replied casually. Sure, Peter was acting weird, but she’d seen him act way weirder.

In his haste, Peter had left the door to the lab open. MJ peered inside. Despite the presence of fascinating, cutting edge technology—stuff MJ couldn’t even imagine the use for—her eyes fell immediately on the girl standing in the middle of the room. MJ quickly realized this must be the stranger connected to the accented voice. The stranger’s braided hair was twisted in an intricate bun, and she was wearing a white dress with tennis shoes. MJ couldn’t decide if she was a classy, professional young woman or a kid her own age. She definitely looked young. There was something about her smile and her way of speaking—not the words themselves, but the tone—that suggested she really was a teenager. MJ observed the strange girl with interest, trying to figure out who she might be.

The girl was standing over scattered papers, discussing something about computers with Tony Stark. The two of them spoke in low voices, although MJ probably could have understood what they were saying, had she been listening. MJ was, however, still staring at the girl, observing her movements and facial expressions, and letting her mind wander around the many possibilities of who this girl might be. Just then, the girl looked up. She smiled.

“You must be MJ,” she said kindly.

“Wait, you’re Michael Jackson?” Tony Stark briefly looked up from the documents spread out beneath him, seeming to assess MJ with one quick glance, before returning to his work.

“Yeah… I was just waiting for Peter. We’re supposed to work on this art project together.” MJ tried to sound casual, but standing here in a lab filled with robotics and geniuses she couldn’t help but feel dumb talking about some art project.

“That’s cool. Do you like art?” the girl asked, moving away from the table and walking toward MJ.

“I do, actually. I like to draw.”

“I wish I could draw, but the only thing I can draw is those dogs with the short noses.”

“You mean pugs?”

“Yes! They are so cute.” The girl spoke with eager enthusiasm, always smiling and waving her hands for emphasis. By now she was standing in front of MJ with her hand outstretched. “I’m Shuri.” MJ clasped her fingers around Shuri’s and shook.

“MJ.”

“So are you a Jackson fan or… No? Just curious,” Stark chimed in. Shuri rolled her eyes without turning around. She drew back her hand, and MJ couldn’t help but feel like Stark had ruined something. As his eyes darted between the two, maybe he got the same impression. “You know what,” he continued. “I think we’re done here for now. I’m gonna take a break, so you and Smooth Criminal over here can go watch cartoons, or smoke crack, or whatever kids are up to these days. See you tomorrow, princess,” he said, nodding at Shuri as he left the room.

“He’s…” MJ struggled to find the right word. “Eccentric.”

Shuri laughed. “Yes, he is.”

“Why exactly are you working with him?”

“Well, when he heard about my brother’s plans to set up an outreach center in California, he offered to help us set one up in New York.”

“So who’s your brother?”

“His name’s T’Challa. He’s…”

“... the king of Wakanda, the super high tech, super secret African utopia?”

“Yes.” MJ had trouble reading Shuri’s expression: something between amusement and pride.

“So you’re really a princess? And I thought Stark was just being a jerk.”

“No.” Shuri’s eyes fell on the documents still lying haphazardly on the table in the middle of the room. MJ thought she detected a passionate twinkle in the girl’s eye. The-girl-who-was-a-genius-and-a-teenager-and-also-a-princess. “In all seriousness, Stark is a good man. No one asked him to help with this project, but he offered anyway, out of the kindness of his heart I guess. And he’s spent a lot of time and resources on it… Still, I won’t correct you if you call him a jerk. Although I think he prefers ‘asshole’.”

MJ smiled at that. She regarded Shuri where she stood, one arm leaning against the wall and the other hanging easily by her side. MJ was just about say something clever in response to Shuri’s comment about Stark when Peter burst through the door.

“Hey, sorry for running out like that earlier. I just had to… change,” Peter apologized, trying to hide the fact that he was out of breath but not succeeding. “I just ran down like, ten flights of stairs.”

“There wasn’t an elevator?” MJ countered, clearly amused by the whole situation.

Peter seemed to consider this. “No, well yeah. But I…” He trailed off.

“Come on, nerd. We’re gonna have to hurry if we wanna hand in the project on time.”

“Right. The project. Yeah.” He seemed distracted.

“Is something wrong?”

“Yeah… I mean no! Nothing’s wrong, I was just thinking about the project and how we need to hurry up.”

“That’s what I said.”

Shuri, who had been following the exchange with raised eyebrows and that ever-present smile, decided to chime in. “Like I said before, I’m terrible at drawing, but if you need help with your project I’m sure there’s something I can do.”

“Really? Cause we do kinda need the help. Just as long as we’re not, you know, distracting you from your important work,” Peter said.

“Please. I’ve been working non-stop for the past week. I could really use a distraction. Besides, I’ve been so busy I haven’t even gotten to see New York.”

“I guess we can show you around after we’ve finished the project. If you want,” MJ said, a little too casually.

“That would be fantastic!”

✸✸✸

“This is taking forever,” Peter said, pouting and slumping against the couch.

“Come on. We have to keep going,” MJ replied. She reached for a tiny clay figurine and pushed it a millimeter towards another clay figurine. Then she reached for her phone, which was attached to a selfie stick, which was duct-taped to the couch in an attempt to keep it still. MJ took a picture. “There. See, we’re making progress.” She moved the clay another millimeter.

“I’m bored.”

“Seriously Peter? This whole thing is kinda your fault you know. The least you can do is help.”

“What? It wasn’t my idea to do a stop-motion video. That’s Ms. Shelley’s fault.”

“Yeah, well it’s your fault we’re so behind. If you weren't so busy with your internship all the time, maybe we wouldn’t have had to wait ‘til the last minute.”

“So you’re gonna blame me for everything?”

“You and Ned,” MJ muttered bitterly. “Where is Ned anyway? Isn’t he supposed to be here by now?”

“Yeah… He has been to your place before, right?” MJ shook her head in response. “Crap. I should go look for him. He’s probably lost.” Then Peter put on his jacket and left the apartment.

MJ turned to Shuri, who had been listening silently. Shuri looked tired, but peaceful. “Hey, does this look like a zombie to you?” she said, lifting the clay figure she had been working on to MJ’s gaze. It did look like a zombie, if you didn’t count the weird antlers sticking out of its head and the inexplicable purple patches in the otherwise green clay.

“It’s great,” MJ said with a smile, taking the clay figure carefully out of Shuri’s hand. She then proceeded to knock the ragtag team of Playdoh people, Barbie dolls and Transformers off the coffee table.

“Are you sure we don’t still need these?” Shuri said, picking up one of MJ’s near-lifelike recreations of Legolas from Lord of the Rings.

“Nope. We just have the last scene left. The one where the zombies take over the world.”

“What’s this story about again?”

“I really don’t know. It was all Peter’s and Ned’s idea. I’m starting to regret letting them do anything by themselves, ever.”

Shuri giggled. “But you enjoy it? Making art?”

“I wouldn’t call this art,” MJ answered, gesturing toward the crudely-made clay zombies strewn before them. It made Shuri laugh again, which made MJ smile. After that, neither of the two girls said anything for a while. “I mostly just draw people,” MJ offered suddenly.

“That’s cool. Maybe you could draw me,” Shuri said. Her eyes twinkled mischievously. Now it was MJ’s turn to laugh. “What? I’m serious! Draw me like one of your French girls.” MJ just shook her head at the cheesy reference to the world’s most overrated movie. However, she felt relieved that Shuri didn’t pursue that particular question. “Fine, I’ll just have to draw you something then,” she said instead. Shuri pulled a pen and a blank piece of paper toward her, and began to draw. MJ watched the princess where she sat on the floor, her legs folded beneath her. The businesslike impression MJ had gotten when meeting Shuri for the first time had now completely disappeared. She was still graceful, in her own way. MJ thought she was the only person who could pull off being elegant and playful at the same time.

“Finished,” Shuri said after a long but comfortable silence. When MJ looked up she realized how dark it had gotten. Dusk had come and gone, and the living room was now almost completely dark, save for the yellow light cast by a lamp in the corner. MJ shuffled closer to Shuri.

“It’s really cute,” MJ said softly. She looked over Shuri’s shoulder at the doodle. The bug-eyed pug on the paper seemed to stare at both of them at the same time. It was adorable.

Just then the front door flew open, followed by excited shrieks and laughter. Ned and Peter’s voices seemed impossibly loud in the calm, quiet apartment.

“So this is where you live! Hey, can I see your room? I asked Peter if you have any embarrassing baby pictures and he said no but I don’t buy it,” Ned declared as he dropped his backpack on the floor and shuffled through the hallway, stopping to scrutinize the framed photographs hanging on the wall. When he reached the living room, he stopped. He seemed to finally pick up on the rather tranquil atmosphere and lowered his voice. “Hi, I’m Ned,” he said, nodding at Shuri who was still seated on the floor.

“I’m Shuri. Nice to meet you.”

“Woah, did you guys make all this?” Ned asked as he sat down across from the two girls. He looked from the zombies on the coffee table, to the pile of toys on the floor, to the pug Shuri had drawn. MJ picked up the piece of paper and stashed it away on the couch behind her.

“Shuri and I did. Peter did not,” MJ said. Peter, who had sat down next to Ned, picked up on MJ’s lighthearted tone.

“Come on, I helped.” Both MJ and Shuri laughed. “I brought the dolls!”

“That you did,” MJ said while handing Barbie, Stacey and Ken back to Peter.

“So how much do we have left?” Ned asked.

“This is the last scene,” MJ replied.

“Wow. Sounds like you and Shuri were pretty productive.”

“Actually, MJ did most of the work,” Shuri chimed in.

“Come on, you helped a lot,” MJ countered.

“I just played with the clay. You did all the work.”

“You made all these zombies.”

“I hate to break it to you, but they’re not very good,” Shuri laughed and gestured at the so-ugly-they’re-cute zombies. “And,” she continued, “you made all the elves.” MJ smiled and turned to look at Shuri, who smiled back in response.

“Hey MJ, can I see your room now?” Ned said suddenly.

“Really? You just got here, and we have to finish—”

“I know, I know. Can’t you just show me really quick? I promise I’ll be cool after.”

MJ agreed, and led Ned to her bedroom. The room was small, simple and surprisingly neat. Ned went straight for the collection of old yearbooks in MJ’s bookshelf. As he was rifling through a book which contained a particularly embarrassing picture of MJ, Ned spoke casually. “So what’s up with you and Shuri?”

“What!” MJ sounded shocked. Ned looked up from the yearbook when he heard her harsh tone.

“You obviously like her.”

“No I don’t!” MJ didn’t like Shuri. She liked her as a friend. She thought she was nice and charming and funny. She liked that she was so chill but at the same time passionate about stuff. And she did think Shuri was really cute… Damn it, Ned.

From the look of his face, Ned seemed to have followed MJ’s thought process. He wiggled an eyebrow, then returned to rifling through the yearbook.

“Can you just, like, be cool?” MJ pleaded.

“I’m always cool. Unlike you in seventh grade.”

MJ grabbed the yearbook away from a giggling Ned. “I mean it.”

“I know, don’t worry. I have a plan.” Somehow this was worse.

“A plan? What does that even mean?”

“Don’t worry, I got you.” He was already on his way out the door.

“Ned,” MJ hissed.

“Trust me,” he replied, now in the hallway. MJ followed him.

“Hey guys, I’m really sorry, but I just found out that me and Peter have some super-secret science stuff to do. So we have to leave now,” Ned announced.

“Um, no we don’t.” Peter sounded alarmed. Ned shot him a look that seemed to say just go with it. “But what about the art project?” he asked, less tense and more confused.

“MJ and Shuri can finish it, right?” Ned replied.

“We’ve come this far without you, so yeah, I think we’ll manage.” MJ only pretended to be annoyed.

Ned quickly hustled Peter out of the apartment, to the tune of Peter’s confused mutterings and bitter protests. Once the door shut behind them, Shuri and MJ were left with that familiar, comfortable silence.

“So… That was weird,” Shuri said.

MJ barely got a chance to reply before her phone went off. She pried it off the selfie stick, only to find a text from Ned in the group chat.

Nerd #2: I think she bought it

MJ: Really Ned?? No one’s gonna believe you two have super secret science stuff to do

Nerd #2: Maybe we do

Nerd #1: No we don’t Ned!!!!!!

Nerd #2: Or do we?

After that, MJ’s phone was silent for a few seconds before receiving another text.

Nerd #1: Had to take Ned’s phone away bc he was being an idiot

Nerd #1: To be clear Ned and I do NOT have any super secret science stuff to do!!!!

Nerd #1: We just left so that you and Shuri could be alone together

Nerd #1: Have fun with your new girlfriend :)

Nerd #1: And pls don’t make me fail art

MJ was already stuffing her phone down the pocket of her jeans when she received Peter’s last text. She hated Peter for being so indiscreet, and she hated the way her face was growing hot.

“Don’t we still need your phone?” Shuri asked. She eyed MJ with curiosity, probably picking up on the other girl’s flustered manner but polite enough not to comment on it.

“Oh yeah, that’s right.” MJ fished the cell phone out of her pocket, and turned off the notifications before reattaching it to the improvised camera stand.

MJ began to move some of the clay figures around on the coffee table. Shuri shifted her legs and moved closer to MJ in order to do the same. They worked together to create a landscape fit for the final scene of their stop-motion film. Occasionally Shuri would ask MJ if a certain figure should go in a certain place. MJ would nod or shake her head. She wanted to speak more, to just have a regular conversation, but found that she no longer knew what to say. Eventually Shuri decided to break the tension.

“Your friends are nice.”

“I guess.”

“They’re still weird of course. But I think their hearts are in the right place.”

MJ nodded. Shuri was right of course.

In the end, the two girls winded up talking about completely different things. Shuri told MJ all about Wakanda. She described the Golden City and explained the events that had led to the creation of the Wakandan International Outreach Centre. MJ was delighted to see Shuri’s YouTube videos in which she pranked T’Challa. Shuri then got to hear all about MJ’s high school experience, which Shuri found surprisingly entertaining. When MJ told the story of her trip to Washington D.C., Shuri sounded more interested in the Decathlon than the explosion at the Monument. At one point, the two of them even ended up looking at MJ’s old yearbook pictures. Shuri laughed hysterically. Luckily, her laughter was pretty contagious.

✸✸✸

MJ woke up to a patch of sunlight on her face and a cold breeze in the air. She moved to close the open window, only to find her legs tangled in a blanket.

She recalled the night before, how she and Shuri had talked for hours before the Wakandan princess had been forced to leave. MJ wondered if Shuri’s agreement to be shown around New York had been serious, or simply uttered out of politeness. She hoped for the former.

When MJ turned on her phone she was overwhelmed by a cascade of texts. Several of them had been sent in the Decathlon group chat. Several more were from Peter and Ned. Most of their texts were about Shuri, which she tried to ignore, but two messages stood out among the others.

Nerd #1: I know you’re kinda ignoring me rn but I just wanted to make sure you sent the video to Ms Shelley

Nerd #1: You did send it right??

It was 11:54 AM, six minutes before the deadline, and MJ had not sent in the art project. She reached for her laptop and searched for the edited version of the stop-motion video. Just as MJ was emailing the video, her phone buzzed. A Facetime call from Nerd #2. MJ realized speaking to both Ned and Peter was unavoidable. She answered the call.

“Hi Ned.”

“Hi MJ!” Ned’s face was way too close to the camera. He looked up at the sound of a muffled voice and flipped the camera to not-very-unexpectedly reveal Peter, who was sitting on his bed surrounded by chemistry books. “Peter’s here, by the way.”

“Yeah, I got that. Are you guys ever not together? Can you even, like, function without each other?”

“Nope,” Ned and Peter said in unison.

“God, you really are losers.”

“Don’t forget that you’re a loser too, now that you’re friends with us,” Ned replied.

“Don’t remind me.”

“So how did my plan work out?”

“Ask her if she sent in the art project,” Peter interjected.

MJ couldn’t be sure because Ned’s face still covered most of the screen, but he seemed to pick an object up from the floor and throw it at Peter, who was presumably still attempting to study. The throwing of the object was followed by a subdued “Owch, why would you throw Barbie at me?”

“No one cares about the stupid art project, Peter! I wanna hear all about MJ’s date with Shuri. Was it magical? Did you stare into each other's’ eyes?”

“Gross.”

“Is that a no?” Peter had snatched the phone away from his friend, holding it at a distance in order to capture both of their faces. MJ rolled her eyes.

“Just tell us something,” Ned said, sounding impatient.

“It was fine. Nice. Whatever.” MJ turned the camera away from her face, hiding that smile that always showed up whenever she thought of Shuri.

“‘Fine nice whatever’ isn’t good enough. We need details! Like did you kiss?” Ned asked.

“No!”

“Are you in love with her?”

“What? No, I’m not in love with her, I just like her!”

“You are so in love with her,” Peter said while MJ rolled her eyes. “I mean I get it. If I was a lesbian I’d be in love with her too.”

“What?”

“Ignore him,” Ned intervened, retrieving his phone in the process. Peter’s face was barely visible behind his best friend’s head. “Are you gonna ask her out? Please tell me you’re gonna ask her out.”

“I mean it depends—”

“I’ll take that as a yes. By the way, Peter and I were just discussing the two of you and we think you’re really cute together.”

“Yeah, ‘cause you have lots of stuff in common and—”

MJ decided to cut Peter’s explanation short. “Yeah, that’s enough. Bye.”

A few seconds after she had ended the call, MJ received a text from Peter containing Shuri’s phone number.

✸✸✸

The coffee shop was crowded. So crowded that it was difficult to discern the line for ordering coffee from the line for retrieving coffee, and in between the lines was yet another group of people trying to navigate around all the other people. It was chaos. Shuri looked excited.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go to another place?” MJ asked.

“Is there another Starbucks close by?”

“No, I mean like another coffee shop.”

“But I love Starbucks.”

“Okay. What are you gonna get?”

“The pumpkin spice latte.”

“Really? It’s kind of a white girl drink.”

Shuri shrugged. “The white girls must like it for a reason. What are you getting?”

“A cappuccino.”

“But that’s so boring! Why don’t you get the unicorn drink?”

“The unicorn frappuccino?”

“Yes! I’ve seen them all over the internet.”

“Maybe like a year ago. I’m not even sure if they still make them.”

“They can probably make it if you ask.”

“It probably tastes disgusting.”

“That’s probably true.”

By now MJ and Shuri had reached the front of the line. MJ turned to Shuri and muttered “This is peer pressure” before ordering one unicorn frappuccino. The barista managed to maintain her smile, but MJ noticed that the curve of her lips went from easy-going to forced. As the two girls left the coffee shop, drinks in hand, Shuri began to laugh.

“Did you see the pain in her eyes?” MJ said. Shuri only nodded, speechless with laughter. “Now I can never go back there, thanks to you.”

“Was it worth it?”

MJ offered the drink to Shuri, who made a disgusted face as soon as it touched her lips. “It’s way too sweet.”

“I know. I can’t believe they sacrificed a unicorn to make this shit.”

“I’m sorry for forcing you to buy it. I just want to try all the Starbucks drinks before going back to Wakanda.”

“All of them? That’s impossible.”

“I’ve already had fourteen different kinds.”

“Fourteen? In the three days? That’s way too much caffeine.”

“I’ve barely slept, but I’m still sticking to my plan.”

“You know they have a secret menu, right?” Shuri’s eyes widened in surprise. Clearly she did not know. “You’ll have to stay here a long time of you want to try every drink at Starbucks.”

“I wish I could.”

“When do you have to leave?”

“In a week.”

“A week?!” MJ didn’t attempt to hide her disappointment. She had always known Shuri had come to New York in order to work on the Outreach Centre. But she had hoped her new friend would stay a little longer. Maybe it was better this way. Maybe it was better now that MJ wouldn’t have the time to fall for Shuri. Maybe…

Shuri reached to sweep a stray lock of hair behind MJ’s ear, letting her fingers brush softly against her temple.

… Maybe MJ had already fallen for Shuri, and one week was all the time she would be able to spend with this intelligent, beautiful, funny, ambitious, amazing girl. Maybe one week just had to be enough.

MJ and Shuri continued ambling along the street, not toward any specific destination. Pedestrians pushed past them while cars sped up and down the street, all moving much too fast for the girls who wanted time to stand still.

A cold gust of air swept dead leaves off the ground and traveled upward, sneaking its way inside hats and mittens, chilling ears and fingers. Shuri zipped up her bomber jacket. MJ realized she must not be used to the cold, having lived in Wakanda all her life. “Here,” she said, taking off her brown-and-yellow scarf and wrapping it around Shuri, who gave a thankful smile.

As the next gust of wind blew through the street, Shuri pulled the giant scarf closer to her chest and buried her nose under the swaths of excessive fabric.

“Better?” MJ asked.

Shuri nodded vigorously. “This is a great scarf.”

“Thanks. I had to knit it myself because I couldn’t find any scarves that hadn’t been manufactured by underpaid employees working under poor conditions.”

“I think it’s great that you care so much about human rights. Most people say they care, and say that people who don’t care are bad people. But when it comes down to it, most people only care about other people as long as it doesn’t inconvenience them.”

“Yeah. There are lots of vulnerable people in the world, but sometimes it seems like the people who can help them don’t give a shit.”

“For a long time Wakanda didn’t give a shit. We thought that interacting with the rest of the world would destroy the country, and said that the people who were suffering weren’t our problem. In the end my brother realized that helping others was more important than keeping our nation a secret. I think he made the right choice.”

“I think so too. Making advanced technology available to people from all backgrounds is gonna make a big difference.”

For a while the two of them continued walking down the busy street, until Shuri stopped abruptly. “Weren’t you supposed to be showing me around New York?” she asked.

“This is New York.”

“Yes, but this street is just like any other street in any other city! I want to see the real New York.”

“What, like the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building?”

Shuri seemed slightly frustrated. “Are you from around here?” she asked, ignoring MJ’s question.

“Yeah.”

“You’ve lived here your whole life?”

“Yes.”

“Then you must know the city better than anyone! I want to see everything from your perspective. Take me to your favorite spots.”

Finally MJ understood exactly what Shuri wanted to do. And she knew exactly where to take her. “Come on then,” MJ said with a mischievous grin, taking Shuri’s hand and leading her away.

✸✸✸

MJ didn’t let go of Shuri’s hand until they had reached their destination. “Is this the place?” the princess asked. MJ nodded and pushed open the door to reveal a dark, old-fashioned room filled with shelves of books. “Your favorite place in the city is a used bookstore?” Shuri sounded curious, as if keen to learn more about her new friend.

Still, MJ felt nervous. “I’ve never told anyone about this place. I usually come here when I want to be alone.”

Shuri looked up from the novel she had started leafing through. Something about her expression told MJ that Shuri understood the significance behind MJ’s words. That Shuri had been invited to a part of MJ’s life she had never shared before. That she had never wanted to share before.

The girls were alone in the store, apart from the owner: an elderly woman who shuffled between the counter and the back room. The owner of the store paid no attention to MJ and Shuri, in fact, she barely seemed aware of their presence. Neither MJ nor Shuri seemed aware of the old woman, or if they were, they quickly forgot about her. In this store it was easy to forget about the rest of the world. Any anxiety MJ had felt upon entering the store with Shuri had been left at the threshold. Inside, there were only stories. Shuri enjoyed reading the bad ones aloud. She would open a romance novel and the read the summary to MJ, who would try to keep a straight face and who almost always failed.

When the two of them finally left the store, laden with several books each—good ones—dusk had already settled. The sun had disappeared behind the tall buildings across the street, and left long shadows to form patterns on the ground.

“I really should get back to Stark’s,” Shuri said.

“Okay.” They decided to stay put and wait for a cab. As they were waiting for a car to arrive, MJ changed the topic. “When do you think the Outreach Centre will be finished?”

“According to Stark’s estimates, two years, although I think that’s optimistic.”

“And when it’s done, I bet you’ll need a bunch of people to work there…”

“Of course. We will need scientists and technicians to work as mentors and teach the kids about our technology. Why?”

“I’ve been thinking about… applying for a job. When the center’s done obviously.”

Shuri’s eyes widened, first in surprise, then in excitement. “That’s a great idea! It’s the perfect job for you! It’s perfect!” Shuri was practically beaming. MJ beamed too.

“I know it’s years away, but I’m already excited.” Shuri nodded in agreement. Then MJ noticed her smile falter. A second later Shuri was smiling as broadly as ever, but by then MJ had already picked up on the fluctuation in her demeanor. The short-lived moment of pure joy and exhilaration was replaced by lopsided smiles and bittersweet words.

“I can’t believe you’re leaving in a few days,” MJ said.

“Me neither,” Shuri said.

And then she just stood there, looking small. Looking sad and looking small. And maybe it was that Shuri looked like she was freezing in the autumn breeze, or that her wide smile had been replaced with an expression of melancholy hopelessness, or that she was still wearing the too-big yellow-and-brown scarf. For some reason MJ just felt like kissing Shuri. And she did. She placed one hand gently on Shuri’s cheek and the other at her neck and kissed her lips for just a few seconds before pulling away. She scanned Shuri’s face for a reaction. MJ felt her heart pound, her stomach clench, her fingers tense.

Shuri spoke so softly. “I was hoping you would do that.” That smile again.

Shuri kissed MJ ever so sweetly. She wrapped her arms around the other girl’s waist, buried her hand’s in her hair, leaned against her. Neither of them could stop smiling. After an attempt to return MJ’s scarf which turned into yet another kiss, the two of them somehow ended up tangled in the soft knitting.

When a cab approached, they were finally forced to break apart. MJ stood on the sidewalk and waved goodbye. She smiled that smile she hated. Bittersweet.

✸✸✸

“I’m gonna miss you, Shuri.”

“I will miss you too, MJ.”

“Will you come back soon?”

“Hopefully.”

“But not definitely?”

Shuri shook her head. “I have a lot of work to do, and I’m not sure if any of it will bring me back to New York.” MJ, although obviously disappointed, nodded in understanding. “You are of course welcome to visit me in Wakanda.”

MJ imagined being shown around the palace, walking through the forest, getting to see all that amazing technology with her own eyes. She imagined doing all those things with Shuri. “Yeah, I’d like that. Maybe in the summer.”

“I can’t wait.”

Shuri looked over MJ’s shoulder and giggled. When MJ turned around she saw Peter and Ned waving at them from the airport entrance.

“What are those idiots still doing here? I told them to wait in the car,” MJ said with a disapproving glance in her friends’ direction.

“You know,” Shuri said once MJ had turned back around to face her. “When I went back to Stark’s after we had gone to your bookstore, Peter was there and he told me you were in love with me.”

“Oh my God.”

“He was very excited when I told him—”

“Oh, I know. I only got, like, a thousand texts.”

Shuri giggled. “He’s not very good at keeping secrets.”

“He really isn’t. I’m surprised he hasn’t accidentally told someone that he’s Spider-Man yet.”

“You know that Peter is Spider-Man?”

“Of course. He’s terrible at keeping secrets and a terrible liar. He just doesn’t know I know.”

“Are you going to tell him?”

“I wanna mess with him a bit first.”

Shuri’s eyes lit up at the idea of MJ pranking Peter. “When you do, you must film it and show it to me. That reminds me…” She began rummaging through her backpack. A minute later Shuri had procured what looked like a beaded bracelet. She offered it to MJ, who turned it over in her hands, inspecting it.

“I’m guessing this isn’t just a bracelet.”

“These are Kimoyo Beads. They have many uses, but I thought we could use them to communicate when we’re not together. The beads display holograms, so we can see and talk to each other even when we’re far apart.”

“How do they work?”

Shuri grinned. “You’ll figure it out.”

And then there was nothing more to say. MJ wrapped her arms around Shuri and pulled her into an embrace. Shuri nestled her forehead under in the crook of MJ’s neck, surrounded by knitted scarves and locks of hair. When Shuri eventually broke the embrace, she did so hesitantly.

“I have to leave now,” Shuri said. MJ was still holding on to her shoulders.

“I know.”

“I’m gonna miss my flight.”

“So?”

“So? I’d be stuck here for another day.”

“Doesn’t sound so bad to me.”

Then Shuri held MJ’s face in her hands and kissed her softly, sweetly. “Good bye.”

“Bye.”

Shuri walked toward the security check, pulling her suitcase behind her. She turned around once, to wave and give MJ one last smile. Seconds later she had disappeared in the crowd of people milling around the airport.

The ride home started off in silence. Stark’s driver, Happy, seemed to have picked up on MJ’s somber mood. Even Ned and Peter were quiet. At least for a while.

“It sucks that Shuri had to leave,” Ned said suddenly.

“Yeah, it does.”

“But you’ll probably get to see her soon, right?” Peter sounded hopeful.

“Maybe,” MJ replied, stroking the Kimoyo Beads on her wrist.

“I know we’re not princesses or geniuses,” Peter said, while Ned pointed to himself and mouthed I am. “But we’re still your friends,” Peter continued, “you still have us.”

The corner of MJ’s mouth lifted ever so slightly. “I guess you’ll have to do.”

Notes: I had so much fun writing this! Btw this is the first and only fic I’ve ever written, although I think I want to write more, so if anyone reading this has any feedback or constructive criticism feel free let me know. Thanks for reading :)

#nessies10kchallenge #fanfiction #mj x shuri #spiderman homecoming #black panther #mcu

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