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*****
Inside the room, Hulk was holding a Coke in his left hand and a burger in his right. Any lingering unhappiness from the earlier battle had long since vanished, replaced by sheer culinary bliss.
"Aren't you stuffed?"
Feny watched Hulk bolt down food with a touch of concern. After all, Hulk had consumed a massive amount of fried chicken rolls right before their fight.
"Eat! Like it!"
Hulk replied, his mouth full of food. His mountain of abdominal muscles made it impossible to tell if he was actually getting full.
"Take it easy, don't overdo it."
The snacks Feny had bought were supposed to last for several days, but judging by Hulk's current pace, they'd be lucky if the stash survived the night. Feny wasn't worried about the money, but he was genuinely concerned about Hulk becoming overweight. Thinking about the robust physiques of the master sorcerers at Kamar-Taj, Feny gave Hulk's massive frame a worried glance.
By the time Hulk finished everything, it was nearly midnight, yet he showed no signs of reverting to Bruce Banner.
"Hulk, isn't Banner coming out?"
Feny looked at the energetic Hulk, feeling a bit of a headache. If Hulk didn't change back tonight, what was he supposed to do? Stay here and babysit a seven-foot green giant all night?
"Banner, sleeping!"
Hulk lay back on the sofa lazily. After consuming that much food, he finally looked a bit drowsy.
Feny sat nearby, deep in thought. He didn't feel comfortable leaving Hulk alone, and when Banner eventually did wake up, Feny would need to explain the situation and find a way to convince him to keep letting Hulk out for "training." He decided he couldn't go home tonight, but first, he had to notify Skye.
Stepping out into the yard, Feny dialed Skye's number.
"Hello?"
Skye's voice sounded exhausted. Despite Feny's constant warnings to keep her training moderate, she rarely listened.
"It's me, Feny!"
He made a frustrated face, unable to stop himself from lecturing her again. "Have you been overusing your powers again? If you keep this up, your body is going to break down!"
While the gear Tony Stark made helped mitigate the damage from her vibrations, it wasn't a perfect shield. Such frequent use was bound to lead to trouble eventually.
"I know, I know!"
Skye's reply was dismissive. She quickly changed the subject: "Where are you? Why aren't you back yet? It's late."
"I might not be coming home tonight."
"What?!"
Skye's tone shifted instantly. Her voice became hurried, almost sharp. "Where are you? Who are you with? Why aren't you coming back?"
Feny noticed the change in her tone, but assuming she was just worried about his safety, he tried to reassure her. "I'm fine. I have a friend who needs looking after, so I'm staying over."
"A friend?"
Skye's voice grew even more tense, tinged with a strange, unidentifiable emotion. "A classmate?"
Feny felt something was off, but he answered truthfully. "No, a new friend I just made. Why?"
"Feny..."
Skye's voice turned bizarrely hesitant, as if she were wrestling with a difficult decision. Finally, she blurted out, "You need to remember, you're still young. When it comes to things like... girlfriends... you need to be careful—"
"Wait!"
Feny cut her off, sounding utterly bewildered. "What are you talking about? This friend is a guy!"
"You like men?"
Skye's tone was filled with pure shock.
"You're the one who likes men!" Feny snapped back before realizing how stupid that sounded—Skye was a girl, so liking men was perfectly normal. But suggesting she liked women felt equally weird in this context.
"Where is your head at?!"
Realizing she thought he was sneaking off for a tryst with a girl, he groaned. "My friend has a medical condition, and someone needs to keep an eye on him." Then, remembering her comment about his age, he added, "Also, I'm not 'young'!"
On the other end of the line, Skye's face was beet red. She was profoundly grateful they were on a call and not face-to-face, or she would have looked for a hole in the ground to crawl into. And if the hole was too small? With her vibration powers, she could shake open a canyon.
"Cough... I see. Well, take care of your friend. I'm hanging up!"
Feeling thoroughly humiliated, Skye didn't dare stay on the line. She hung up abruptly, leaving Feny staring at his phone in disbelief. He shook his head; a certain thought crossed his mind, but he dismissed it as impossible.
Returning inside, he found Hulk intensely focused on the TV. Feny glanced at the screen—it was a cartoon. He didn't judge, sitting down beside Hulk to watch with him.
Hulk didn't turn back into Banner even as he fell asleep. Seeing this, Feny gave up on waiting. He curled up on another sofa and drifted off.
The next morning, Feny checked on Hulk immediately. The giant had somehow rolled off the sofa and was sprawled across the floor, snoring loudly with a puddle of drool by his head. Feny rubbed his temples. When Hulk wouldn't come out, he had wanted him out; now that Hulk was out, he had no idea how to handle it.
The world wasn't ready to accept the Hulk. If he just stood out on a street corner, it would be a global crisis. Feny knew he couldn't babysit him forever. He saw two options: either make the public accept Hulk, or find a way to have Banner and Hulk rotate appearances predictably.
Ideally, he wanted the permanent solution. But making people accept Hulk was a nightmare—Hulk was mentally a child, prone to extreme anger, and possessed god-like strength. Without a reliable companion, he'd just be a target for exploitation.
Feny went to wash up and bought some breakfast, still weighing the two options. Smelling the food, Hulk woke up. His eyes were small and dazed as he looked around, only fully snapping to reality when he saw Feny. He scrambled up from the floor, looking at the breakfast with pure anticipation.
---
Hulk stayed out much longer than Feny expected—a full three days. Feny stayed by his side the entire time, taking him to remote areas to "spar" during the day and returning to the villa to watch cartoons and sleep at night.
It wasn't until the evening of the third day, while they were watching animation, that Hulk suddenly spoke.
"Banner... wants... out."
He gave Feny and the TV a reluctant, lingering look. Then, his body began to curl and shrink, finally reverting to the form of Bruce Banner.
Looking at Banner, Feny felt a massive weight lift from his chest. He had genuinely worried Banner might never come back. If that had happened, he would have had to start a crash course in turning Hulk into a superhero like Tony Stark.
"You're finally awake!"
Feny watched as Banner opened his eyes with a look of total confusion. Feny's voice was thick with exhaustion.
(End of Chapter)