12498/The Breakup (pt 4)

The Breakup (pt 4)
Date of Scene:	19 August 2022
Location:	Avengers Mansion - Rooftop Pool
Synopsis:	Janet and Bruce catch up briefly about Janet's recent breakup.
Cast of Characters:	Bruce Banner, Janet van Dyne

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Bruce Banner has posed:
"Hey, Janet," Banner calls out, reaching to wrap his knuckles on the door to the rooftop area, "You out here?"

He cranes his neck, spotting the sunbathing Wasp and clearing his throat a little. He wears a white t-shirt with a faded, retro-looking advertisement for sunny Florida and a pair of teal shorts. It's not much of a surprise. Most of Bruce's wardrobe comes from goodwill, since he doesn't want to feel bad about shredding expensive clothing.

In one hand he holds a bouquet of flowers, which kind of dangles at his side where the stems are clenched in his hand.

"I - uh, I bought you some flowers. They're - hm - gladiolus murielae and ... tulipa gesneriana ... "

There's a pause, and the ultra-nerd backtracks.

"That's gladiolas. And tulips. The guy at the store said they're for ... sympathy. Y'know. Not like ... death but, you know ... "

Janet van Dyne has posed:
A hand lifts, waves vaguely from the little corner area separated from the pool proper. It's a small lounge space, with some quiet music playing, a few lounge chairs, and a mini buffet. Janet's personal assistant Claire is standing politely off to the side, and smiles greeting at Bruce before stepping aside so she's not intruding on the conversation.

Janet's sitting up when Bruce gets there, back to him and tying her white and red-striped bikini back up. Once she's presentable she turns and looks at Bruce and smiles from behind her sunglasses. It's not the most enthusiastic expression, but from the rumors going around, Janet's spent most of the last week an absolute wreck of booze and depression.

Her brows go up at the offering, and she looks at them almost warily for a moment. "They're for me?" She looks from them to Bruce, searching his face for some hidden motive. Seeing none, she blinks again and reaches for them.

Finger pause and she looks up at Bruce. "THey're not gonna mutate into Gamma Flowers, are they?" she asks-- but there's a playful smile there that even Bruce can't mistake.

Bruce Banner has posed:
"Gamma radiation doesn't work that way," Bruce says with an affable smile, before his brow furrows behind his glasses and he scratches his head with his free hand, "At least, it shouldn't ... maybe I oughta ... "

He shakes his head, circling back around to the conversation at hand. He hands the bouquet to Janet, or tries to, at least.

"I'm not gonna pretend I don't know what's going on. I don't know the details, but I just ... I wanted you to know I'm thinking about you, alright?"

Janet van Dyne has posed:
Janet's already in place to receive the flowers, and with a gracious smile for the scientist. "C'mon here, Bruce, sit," she offers, and pats the empty seat next to her. "Claire, could you--" she looks around, confused, then laughs. "I bet she's going downstairs to steal a vase from Tony," she tells Bruce.

The flowers are carefully set aside. Janet sits with her usual perfect posture, and is quiet for a moment. She rolls her silence between her palms until it works some words loose.

"I started a project. It was dangerous, not legal, and no one knew about it but me. Ste--" she inhales, steadying her breath. "You Know Who, he was doing some work unrelated to me, and stumbled onto my project. He got really mad, and told me that he was very hurt and felt like I had betrayed his trust by not asking him for help. We fought, we said some mean things and, he, uh, he said, 'we're done'."

"That's--" her hands spread, then drop between her thighs again. "That's the fast and clean version."

Bruce Banner has posed:
Bruce pauses for a moment before he takes a seat, keeping a respectable distance between himself and Janet. He nods as he listens to the story, wincing slightly as the details are unveiled. He wrings his hands in front of him, left foot bouncing at the heel over and over in the sort of nervous tick one sees in the socially lacking when they're out of their element. But, despite everything, he listens.

"If I'm gonna be honest, that doesn't - " he pauses, clears his throat, "That doesn't seem very ... cool? Guess it comes with the job, huh? The whole intractable front thing. You've always been your own person, Jan. It'd be silly if you regretted that, even if the end result is this, y'know?"

He waves a hand around at the Mansion in general.

"Thor was wondering if he gets two Christmases now."

Janet van Dyne has posed:
"We're-- no, honey, it's not like either of us are quitting the team," Janet says, and pats Bruce's hand reassuringly. She can't help but smile at it. Both Thor's uncertainty... or Bruce's 'asking for a friend'.

"We won't be stopping to chat but we can do our job. We're professionals. Hell, I still work with *Hank*, and he pisses me off on sight. But we're Avengers, you know? Dating within the team comes with risks, and I knew going in that if things went sideways, I'd have to cowgirl up and deal with them."

"....I'm not dealing with it *well*," she admits, "but.. y'know. Progress. Little steps."