Chapter 26: Graduation Season
Leo was not in a hurry to leave Kamar-Taj.
He looked at Wanda. "Take care of yourself."
Wanda didn't respond. She didn't even know his full name.
Leo opened a portal and stepped through.
Behind him, Wanda turned to Ancient One.
"Is his only reason for helping me because he likes me?"
Ancient One considered her answer for exactly one second. "His reasons for helping you involve the world's safety. His personal interest in you is a separate matter."
"So both things are true."
"Yes."
Wanda's expression shifted slightly. "He's a playboy, isn't he."
Ancient One's face remained kind. "He has many women around him."
"Then I'm not interested." Wanda said it firmly. "I won't fall for someone like that."
Ancient One smiled gently and said nothing.
She had lived long enough to know exactly how those sentences usually ended.
"Come," she said. "I'll show you your room."
---
Leo came home to a quiet house.
Natasha had already left for her morning responsibilities. Pietro was somewhere nearby, presumably complaining about whatever Natasha had assigned him to do.
The villa was peaceful.
Leo showered, changed into a suit, and checked the time.
Christine's shift at the hospital would end in the afternoon. He had already looked into her schedule.
He took his car and drove into Manhattan.
---
The hospital was busy the way hospitals always were. Constant movement. People coming and going with various levels of urgency.
Leo found the surgery department without difficulty. Christine was still inside, assisting in a procedure. He found a chair outside the operating room and sat down with a book.
He waited.
When the surgery finished and Christine came out to rest, she nearly walked past him before realizing someone was sitting there specifically not doing anything urgent.
"Hello, Dr. Christine."
She stopped. "Hello. Do I know you?"
"Not yet. My name is Leo. I saw you once before and wanted to get to know you. I thought dinner might be a reasonable way to start."
Christine looked at him. She assessed the situation the way intelligent people do, quickly and quietly.
He was young. Well dressed without being showy about it. His posture was relaxed, not nervous. He had been sitting outside a surgery room waiting with a book, which was either very patient or very planned.
Probably both.
Beside her, a colleague leaned over and whispered something encouraging. Another one told Christine that if she wasn't interested, she should pass him along.
Christine's expression changed, just slightly. "I might have some things to finish before I can leave."
"I'll wait," Leo said. "Take your time. Patients come first."
That landed well. She went back to work.
---
Her shift ended in the late afternoon.
Christine came out in her regular clothes and found Leo exactly where she had left him, book in hand.
"You actually waited."
"I said I would."
She smiled a little. "Have you been here this whole time?"
"It's a good book."
They walked toward the exit together. Leo mentioned Madison Restaurant. Christine thought it sounded expensive and said so. Leo told her that if she had a better suggestion, the reservation could be cancelled.
She was about to respond when a voice cut in from behind them.
"Christine. Let's go eat."
Not a question. Not an invitation. A statement that assumed agreement.
Leo turned.
Stephen Strange was walking toward them in a fitted jacket, looking like a man who had never once considered that he might not get what he wanted. He moved directly toward Christine, eyes briefly touching Leo before dismissing him entirely.
He was tall. Sharp. Undeniably striking. And completely uninterested in the fact that Christine was already mid-conversation with someone.
"Strange," Christine said, her tone careful.
Strange had already turned his attention back to her, extending an arm slightly in the direction of the door.
Leo stepped calmly into his line of movement.
"Hello, Doctor Strange."
Strange paused and looked at him properly. The look was the one doctors sometimes give patients who are confused about something simple.
"Are you here for treatment?"
Leo exhaled internally. Tony was arrogant but at least funny. This was going to require patience.
"No. I'm here because Christine agreed to have dinner with me. I wanted to introduce myself to her colleague."
"She has plans," Strange said, as if Leo had missed that part of the conversation.
"She agreed to dinner before you arrived," Leo said pleasantly. "That was her choice. I think you should respect it."
"You're not her boyfriend."
"Neither are you."
Strange's jaw moved slightly.
Christine stepped forward. "He's right, Strange." Her voice was firm. "I already made plans. You can't decide that for me."
Strange looked at her. Something shifted in his expression that he covered almost immediately.
"I see."
"We'll catch up another time," Christine said, softer now. She knew him well enough to manage his reactions. "Goodnight."
She and Leo walked out together.
---
Leo's car was outside. Christine noticed it and said nothing, but her expression said she had recalibrated something.
"How should I address you properly?" she asked as they got in.
"Leo is fine. If you want something more formal, Mr. Leo, but I'm not very attached to titles."
"Leo." She tried it. "Strange just has a difficult personality. He doesn't mean to be rude."
"I know. Geniuses tend to assume the world operates according to their preferences." Leo pulled out into traffic. "Tonight doesn't need to involve him. We can talk about something more interesting."
Christine relaxed.
They were almost at the restaurant when headlights appeared behind them, consistent and close.
Strange had followed them.
---
At the front desk, Christine recognized Strange arriving right behind them. Her mood changed immediately.
"He followed us."
"Yes."
"I'm sorry, Leo. I think tonight isn't the right time. Can we reschedule?"
Leo considered. Rescheduling was unnecessary. Strange being here was actually useful.
"There's no need," he said quietly. "If he likes you, which I think he does, then tonight is a good time to make things clear. It's better than leaving it uncertain."
Christine stared at him. "You think Strange likes me?"
"He followed you from the hospital to a restaurant in another part of the city because you turned down his dinner invitation. What would you call it?"
Christine was quiet for a moment. Then she asked for cold water from a passing waiter.
She sat down. Thought. Then looked at Leo.
"Would you help me?"
"Help you how?"
"I want to make it clear to him. Gently. Without damaging our working relationship." She paused. "If I introduced you as someone I'm interested in getting to know, he might understand without it becoming an argument."
"So I'm the shield."
"If you don't mind."
"I don't mind," Leo said. "Though I'd rather be the reason, not the shield."
Christine looked at him. Color came into her face. "Let's see how tonight goes."
Strange arrived at their table a few minutes later. He had made a reservation immediately, of course. Leo watched him approach with the posture of a man who had decided to win whatever was happening.
He sat down.
"Christine. You mentioned you wanted my opinion on someone."
It was a graceful opening. Leo gave him credit for that.
Christine took a breath and made her move.
"Actually, Strange. I was hoping you could give me an honest assessment. I just met Leo, and I'd like to know what you think of him. You're a good judge of people."
Strange looked at Leo.
This was clearly an attempt to redirect his energy. But Strange, being Strange, took it at face value and treated it as a competition he intended to win.
He leaned forward slightly.
"You're still in school, I assume. What are you studying?"
"Computer engineering. Final year."
"Practical." Strange's tone was polite in the way that contained a blade. "Good employment prospects. Comfortable salary. Nothing particularly distinguished, but a solid choice for someone without more ambitious options."
Leo looked at him without expression. "I'm not especially motivated by salary."
"Most people say that. Then they get a mortgage."
"I own 10% of Stark Industries shares. I wait for dividends. The computer engineering program is just genuinely interesting to me."
Strange's expression didn't change, but his eyes moved.
"That's quite a claim."
"It is."
"Stark Industries has a market value around a trillion dollars. Shares like that aren't handed out casually, especially not to university students."
"Tony and I are close. I bought them."
"Right." Strange folded his hands. "I think you might be embellishing."
Leo looked at Christine.
Christine was watching both of them. She had not jumped to defend Leo, but she also hadn't agreed with Strange. She was letting it play out.
"If it matters," Leo said, "I can call him right now."
Strange smiled, confident. "Please do."
Leo called Tony.
The call connected immediately.
Tony appeared on screen eating pizza, wearing a casual shirt, looking extremely relaxed.
"Oh, look who finally called. After dragging a bunch of strange people through my house, you decide to check in."
"I'm at dinner. With Doctor Christine Palmer and Doctor Stephen Strange. Strange doubts you and I know each other."
Tony looked at the camera. Then he pulled up something on a second screen off to the side.
"Stephen Strange. Age thirty-four. Manhattan General Hospital. Top of his field, and enormous ego." Tony pointed at the camera.
"What! He said the Stark Industries shares were a lie."
"Correct."
"The shares are real. I offered them. Leo bought them. That's not complicated." Tony took a bite of pizza. "Also, Leo, if you're trying to impress a woman, I expect a real home-cooked meal in exchange for this call. Not delivered food. Actually cooked."
"Agreed."
"Good. Now stop bothering me." Tony ended the call.
The table was quiet.
Strange looked at where the screen had been. Then at Leo.
Leo picked up his glass.
Christine said, carefully, "Strange. I owe you an apology for how this evening unfolded. But I also think you understand what I'm trying to say."
Strange was silent for a long moment.
"I understand," he said finally. His voice was even. Whatever was happening underneath it, he kept completely still on the surface.
"Thank you," Christine said.
Strange looked at Leo once more. Something in that look was different now. Not hostile. More like someone making a note.
He excused himself shortly after.
---
Dinner, without Strange, was easy.
Christine was smart and direct and had opinions about things, which Leo liked. She asked him real questions. He gave real answers. She laughed twice at things that were actually funny and didn't pretend to laugh at things that weren't.
By the time they finished, the restaurant had thinned out.
Tony arrived right at the end, as promised, making an entrance the restaurant staff clearly recognized.
He sat down, ordered something quick, and pulled Leo aside for a private word.
"Pepper," Tony said, dropping the easy tone. "You're still together with her, right?"
"Yes."
"Then what is this?"
Leo put an arm over Tony's shoulder. "I'm not going to hurt Pepper. I mean that."
Tony frowned. "That's not an explanation."
"I know. But I'm telling you I care about her, and I'm not treating her as something temporary. I'll have an honest conversation with her when the time is right."
"She's been busy."
"I know. Racing trip in two weeks. You mentioned it."
Tony was quiet for a moment. "I invited her because she works too hard and never stops. She's going to burn herself out."
"Then I'll make sure she has a good time. I can keep her company."
Tony looked at him sideways. "You'd better not make things worse."
"Tony. You're a man who once built a weapon in a cave. Trust your own judgment when you decided to let me into your orbit."
Tony stared at him for two seconds. Then he picked up his fork. "That's a reasonable point. I hate that it's a reasonable point."
Leo went back to the table.
Christine thanked him for the evening, said goodnight to Tony, and accepted a ride home.
Leo dropped her at her building. She was reserved at the door, which was fine. They exchanged numbers. She smiled. He drove away.
---
He sat in the car for a moment before starting it.
Mary Jane's window. Gwen. Betty. Vanessa.
He thought about each of them and decided.
Vanessa.
She was more isolated than the others. She didn't know the full picture yet. The longer that gap stayed open, the more complicated it would become later.
He drove across the city.
Time moved.
Graduation came the way it always does, suddenly, after seeming far away for a long time.
The school was decorated. Families filled the seats in the outdoor ceremony area. A warm morning in June, clear sky, the kind of day that people remember as better than it probably was.
---