Chapter 86

Damian was up extra early that morning before gently shaking Carol awake.

"What's wrong?" Carol asked sleepily.

"Remember, we're going to see your family," Damian said quietly so as not to wake the others in bed.

"Hm, right," Carol said, slowly getting up before entering the bathroom.

Damian smiled slightly before following her.

The two quickly took a bath before going downstairs and having breakfast.

As they ate breakfast, Carol looked at Damian hesitantly, unsure of what to do.

Damian just looked at her sideways and didn't care. When she made up her mind, she would tell him.

"Honey, can I go first, and you come in about 20 minutes later? You can buy a cake so you don't come empty-handed," Carol said nervously.

"I don't know how they'll receive us after all this time. I wouldn't put up with them badmouthing you," Carol said, looking at Damian.

"Honey, let's do it your way," Damian said, smiling before kissing her on the cheek.

"Okay, remember not to get there too fast," Carol said before running off, pulling into the garage, and driving to the restaurant where she was going to meet her brother.

Damian just smiled slightly at her haste.

Carol was quite nervous about seeing her family.

The last time they had seen each other was when Carol left high school and said she wanted to join the Army.

One thing led to another, and they ended up arguing loudly, which led to Carol leaving home and joining the Army.

Her brother wasn't against her following her dreams, but he wasn't in favor of her going into the military either. 18-year-old Carol saw him as not being on her side either, so she stopped talking to him as well.

Her family did not have a phone at the time, so she had no place to call.

Sometimes Carol would write letters that she never sent, and as the months went by and she saw that her family never tried to contact her, Carol couldn't help but feel a little resentful.

Eventually, she became a pilot, met Maria, learned to live without them, and the rest is history.

More than a week ago, her brother had contacted her, and Carol had hesitantly opened the message before seeing the invitation to lunch at a restaurant in New York.

Carol regretted her decision to cut off communication with her family, but they had not tried to talk to her either, so she felt it was a 50-50 proposition.

When Carol arrived at the restaurant, before parking her car and going in, she took a quick look at all the people in the place before she noticed three individuals in particular.

She saw two older people in their 60s and a middle-aged man who looked to be in his late 40s.

The 60-year-old couple looked quite old. They had white hair, but you could still see some vigor in them.

Her brother also looked pretty good for his age.

But that didn't seem strange to her; her family is attractive. Otherwise, she would have suspected that she was adopted.

Carol approached them seemingly fearlessly, even though she felt a myriad of emotions inside.

Carol ungraciously pulled back her chair before sitting down and looking at her "family."

After Carol sat down, the four of them looked at each other uncomfortably, not knowing how to begin the conversation.

Carol's parents and brother were especially surprised to see Carol. She didn't look much different from the day she left for the army, and all three of their eyes couldn't help but burn a little at the thought of the past.

Finally, Carol's brother Steve, who felt he was the mediator, spoke.

"Carol...you look the same as the last time I saw you," Steve said, smiling somewhat awkwardly.

"You look very old," Carol said with a smile.

"Life does that. I'm already married and have kids," Steve said with a wry smile.

"Really? Tell me about it," Carol said a little more excitedly, already forgetting that she was nervous.

"I have a wife named Lisa. We have 2 children. My youngest daughter is 14, and my oldest son is 16," Steve said with a slight smile.

"But you better tell me about yourself. What happened? They told us you died," Steve said, looking sideways at his parents, who were also looking at Carol attentively.

When they were told of Carol's death, it was a great shock to the whole family, and they finally began to regret not supporting her, especially Joseph, Carol's father, someone totally old-fashioned, who quietly shed tears when he learned that his daughter had died.

When they began to see pictures of a woman with the same name as Carol, they couldn't help but doubt it, especially because she looked so young even though so many years had passed. Eventually, with some help, Steve was able to communicate with Carol, and it turned out that she was his sister.

"It's a long story," Carol said with a sigh.

"In short, I had an accident. I survived, but some people kidnapped me. Because of the accident, I lost my memory, and I didn't get it back until 5 years later," Carol said, summarizing.

"After that, you met your...husband?" Steve asked, not sure if they were married.

"Oh no, we were together before the accident," Carol said with a laugh.

Carol's father couldn't help but grimace when he heard the word 'husband.' No father is happy to see his daughter with a man who has several wives, especially when that man isn't even coming.

"He's not coming?" Steve asked.

"Oh, he'll be here soon. He went to buy a present," Carol said, smiling.

After this brief conversation, an awkward silence fell once again, and Carol's smile faded as she observed the situation.

Steve couldn't help but curse in his mind as he saw his parents remaining silent, unsure of what to say. He had no choice but to keep the conversation going.

"I saw Alice in the pictures. She's very cute," Steve said with a smile.

"She's really cute, although she's also a handful, running around with her sisters," Carol laughed as she remembered her little girl.

"Yeah... her sisters. How's your situation with them?" Steve asked with some hesitation, unsure if he was touching on a sensitive topic.

"Oh, we get along very well. We are a very happy family," Carol said with a smile.

Steve nodded thoughtfully, wondering if the typical fights between siblings depicted in stories occurred in their case.

"Does that guy treat you well?" Joseph, Carol's father, asked, speaking for the first time. His tone wasn't too friendly when referring to Damian.

Carol's expression couldn't help but show a hint of annoyance at the way her father was talking about Damian, but she held it back before looking at her father.

"He treats me very well. In fact, I would say too well, as he always indulges my irrational whims," Carol said, speaking a bit more seriously to her father.

Once again, awkward silence followed this brief discussion.

Steve was getting annoyed, so he ignored his parents' stares and let them talk as well.

Finally, Sarah, Carol's mother, looked hesitantly at her daughter before speaking.

"What do you do?" Sarah asked, trying to find a topic of conversation.

"I don't do anything. I take care of my daughters, play video games, or sometimes work out with Damian," Carol said, suddenly realizing that she was almost like a housewife, which was the reason she had fought with her parents. She tried to console herself by thinking that she was just a retired space hero.

"Daughter, tell me, are you happy with your life?" Sarah asked as she looked at Carol. She had always secretly wished her daughter could be free and do what she wanted, but she was limited to following her husband's wishes. Moreover, she didn't want Carol to fly planes, considering it a dangerous profession that could result in her daughter's death.

"Yes, I am very happy with my current life. I do not regret the decisions I made back then. If things had not turned out the way they did, maybe I would never have met Damian or had the family I have now," Carol said, clearly expressing her happiness.

"As long as you won't regret it, it's okay," Sarah said, smiling at the sight of her daughter's smile.

They had come to try to reconcile with their daughter. After all, they were getting older, and times had changed. They had always longed to see their daughter again, although they feared she would reject them. With the support of some friends they had made some time ago, they had mustered the courage to try and reconnect.

Especially after seeing her daughter and granddaughter constantly on the internet.

Just as Sarah was about to ask her daughter more about her life, she caught sight of a man approaching and was stunned when she looked at him.

...

While Carol was engrossed in conversation with her family, she had no idea that they were being watched through the restaurant's cameras.

Two HYDRA agents, posing as a couple, had gained the trust of Carol's family and advised them on repairing their relationship. They knew exactly which restaurant to meet at, so they had intercepted the cameras and discreetly placed advanced microphones beforehand, avoiding anything visible on the table to prevent Damian from becoming suspicious.

"Sir, Targets have arrived," the agent said over the phone, glancing at the screen.

"Is Damian there too?" Pierce asked on the other end of the line.

"No, sir. Only the woman," the agent replied.

"Well, continue," Pierce said before being interrupted by the agent.

"Sir, Damian is entering the restaurant," the agent quickly reported.

"I understand. Keep watching," Pierce said before hanging up.

In his office, Pierce couldn't help but smile. This file might come in handy in the future. Even if he couldn't directly threaten Damian, he could certainly use it to get his attention during critical moments.

Putting that aside, he couldn't help but frown when he saw the report on his desk. The research on the Tesseract hadn't yielded the results he had hoped for. They hadn't learned much about it, primarily discovering its ability to create portals.

At first, they had doubted the data, but Pierce knew that Damian had the Tesseract in his possession. Coupled with the fact that Damian never traveled by plane yet appeared in Madripoor seemingly out of thin air, they had concluded that it possessed such capabilities.

They could only wait and see if they could reach the same level of technology as Madripoor, although they didn't have a clear idea of what that level entailed either.

....

Damian waited for 15 minutes for Carol to disappear and reappear at a famous bakery.

After waiting for 5 minutes, he got his cake before rejoining Carol.

He observed the situation briefly before entering with a slight smile, holding the cake in one hand.

Damian approached the table where everyone was seated but slowed down when he realized it was a table for four.

Carol's mother noticed Damian approaching since she was the only one looking in that direction. She couldn't help but be surprised to see him and think that the pictures didn't do him justice; he really made people feel like they weren't the same species.

Seeing the almost stunned look on her mother's face, Carol couldn't help but laugh before turning around and standing up.

"Just in time," Carol said, smiling at Damian before kissing him on the lips and accepting the cake.

Carol took his hand and pulled him closer to the table, realizing there were no more seats.

Carol wanted to ask them to move to another larger table, but upon seeing the angry look on her father's face when he saw Damian, she couldn't help but feel angry herself. She motioned for Damian to sit down.

Damian obediently sat down with a slight smile when he saw Carol's angry look.

Carol then sat on Damian's lap, exchanging looks with her father. She definitely inherited her stubbornness from somewhere.

"Hi, nice to meet you. I'm Damian, Carol's husband," Damian said, introducing himself to everyone with a slight smile as he pulled Carol aside a little to talk.

"As far as I know, there was no wedding. Where is your marriage certificate?" Carol's father asked angrily.

"She should be asleep at home by now. She's a bit sleepy," Damian said calmly, smiling.

Carol couldn't help but laugh upon hearing Damian's response.

"It's the best marriage certificate I could ask for," Carol said, looking into her father's eyes.

Carol's father's face was truly interesting to watch.

Carol's mother continued to look at Damian with awe. Her son-in-law was really handsome.

"So, tell me, how old are you?" Sarah asked, looking at Damian.

"I'm four years younger than Carol," Damian said, smiling slightly.

"Why do you look so young?" Sarah asked hesitantly, inquiring about something Joseph and Steve wanted to ask as soon as they saw Carol.

The HYDRA spies were also listening, not wanting to miss a word.

Before Damian could respond, Carol pinched his leg and spoke up.

"It's just some skin treatments. It's not that impressive; it simply helps us maintain a youthful appearance," Carol said, smiling and downplaying it. She couldn't imagine what nonsense Damian would say if she let him answer.

"Hm, I see," Sarah nodded.

"What do you do, brother-in-law?" Damian asked with a slight smile.

"I'm the manager of a small supermarket," Steve replied, looking at Damian.

"That's nice," Damian said, nodding with a smile.

"You and your family are invited to Madripoor. A few days off will do everyone good," Damian said, smiling at him.

"Thanks, I'll definitely take you up on your offer some time," Steve said, nodding.

Damian engaged in conversation with Carol's family about various topics, including what Carol was like as a child.

He had never met the in-laws of any of his wives. Ironically, he couldn't escape this situation even after so many years with Carol.

Fortunately, his mother-in-law was on his side and avoided any awkward conversations with Joseph, who clearly didn't like Damian.

Although Damian didn't blame him entirely, he would probably want to kill someone who wanted to be with his daughter by having multiple wives.

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This happened between the time jump, don't worry, the next chapter will be Iron Man 1.