Gabsxx

To say Johnny Storm missed you was an understatement..

Johnny thought about you nearly every single day.. and when he wasn’t Thinking about you? He was sleeping in because he was too afraid of confronting his own feelings. Johnny had been down in the dumps lately. It wasn’t entirely easy to avoid you.. I mean- you were also all over billboards and benches.. even cereal boxes had a small photo of you on the bottom of it surrounded by comic book spikes.

“SUB ZERO!”

It was that stupid catchphrase they had you saying in the cartoons and the end of interviews, even whilst trying to protect the city, citizens felt the need to ask you to say it for them. It was the equivalent to Ben Grimm’s “it’s clobbering time!” Only shorter, and more generic. It was like you were anywhere he was, and considering you two were polar opposites, (no pun intended,) the public ate it right up! All that people wanted to see was Frostbite and The Human Torch get back together. The split was pretty public, and everyone was distraught.

Nobody was more distraught than Johnny.

He had thought things were going good between the two of you, and he was content. All up until that fateful Tuesday, when you left him. Johnny, being Johnny, was confused. But the truth was, Johnny Storm was a flirt.. a well known flirt. He was adored by so many women (and possibly men..) and he liked to act on that attention. Some days, johnny would fly around and speak with fans.. now, that wasn’t what bothered you .. it was the fact that he would let these people flirt. And it wasn’t even just fans, even at events he would allow them to flirt with him right in front of you!

It was up until he allowed a kiss on the cheek that you needed to talk to him about it.. but then one kiss on the cheek turned to more, and you were sure there was at least one other woman in New York City that also shared the feeling that was Johnny Storm’s warmth in her bed. It happened one too many times and you were tired.. you didn’t like that he allowed this to happen. Especially in front of you.

It felt like he had been disrespecting you in a way. Taking you for granted just because he’s The Human Torch, and he could have anyone he wanted. But- Johnny never meant any harm. that charming persona? That was just him. And he figured he could fix things with you sooner than you may have thought. (If you did still think of him, that was..).

Flashback

You were sitting in one of the many lounge rooms in the Baxter building, half asleep and upset. Johnny was meant to be back from patrol an hour ago. He had promised to you that he would come back, you would watch tv, and then fall asleep together. It was perfect.. but- his tardiness just ruined it all. You didn’t even want to watch a movie with him anymore, if anything was even on air right now.. your head rest on the arm of the red couch, the soft fabric welcoming you in.

You felt you could fall asleep here..

That was until a familiar warmth entered the room through the open balcony door, smelling sort of like burned wood. “Missed me, sweet cheeks?” You could practically hear the silly grin on his face.

“I didn’t, leave me alone..” you gave a bit of snark back, nuzzling your face Into the soft fabric of the couch, seemingly getting ready to fall asleep on it.

His deep blue eyes scanned your figure which was now curled in fetal position on the lounge couch. He rest his hands on his hips and left out a soft, almost annoyed sigh, before he dropped his hands limply to his side, his hands smacking against the sides of his thighs as he did so.

“Look, I’m sorry, just— some things came up on patrol, and..”

“And you’re late again, after you promised—“ before you could even finish your sentence Johnny shushed you and came closer, trying to convince you he never meant to be late.

“I know I’m sorry.. please, believe me I tried to come back fast as I could, just.. something came up..”

“Who came up?” You lifted your head from the couch and looked at him with crossed arms. You still didn’t trust Johnny, not after that Four event where he had been hugging and buying drinks for some blonde lady who was clearly throwing herself at him. He was kind of making her think something could be at the end of the night.

“Honey pie.. come on.. you know I would never cheat you.” He always had the dumbest pet names reserved just for you.

“Do I? You seemed pretty cozy with that lady—“ and again, before you could even finish, johnny interrupted you with a rebuttal.

“I told you, nothing was going on. You’re the only woman for me, and I don’t need anyone else like I need you..” Johnny came up to your form on the couch, leaning down and gently pushing your hair to the side with his index and middle finger.

“Whatever..” you said, even though a soft smile came to your face at his gentleness with you. You leaned in and peppered soft kisses to his waiting lips. The kisses were soft and quick, carried out with a practiced ease that lit that familiar fire in your hearts. Maybe it was just his abilities, but you felt warmth spread throughout your chest, a cozy feeling.

Maybe you should stop worrying about other women.

Present day (five Months Later..)

Johnny was cooped up in his room in the baxter building literally every day. He had been listening to sad music nearly every day for the last five months. Johnny even made a playlist dedicated to his ‘one and only true love’. Which, in short, meant you. He hummed the lyrics of the first song before it even came on, already knowing how it goes from his months of playing it whenever he missed you.

It felt like floating in space without a suit or a helmet on, being without you.

He was now doodling on the calendar he had taken from your desk in Reed’s lab. Since you were living in the Baxter building ( even though you weren’t a member of the four.. ) , technically he could talk to you whenever. he just didn’t want to do it in person because he’d sob like a little boy.

So, he did what he thought would get your attention.

“Can we talk? I miss you.”

It was written in the best handwriting he could (because usually, his was very bad.) and he nearly crumbled it up out of fear that you would just throw it away once you saw it before he turned the next page of your calendar and saw the hearts on the bottoms of the page. Were you seeing someone else? Doodling hearts on your things was a telltale sign of a crush— so who were you crushing on?

Johnny was about to scribble on them when there was a knock at the door.

He straightened himself up, fixing his hair quickly even though it had always been perfect, and spritzing your favorite cologne of his on his neck and behind his ears (to which the tips of them had gotten red with anxiety.)

He opened the door.

“Hey, man. Herbie’s been sitting outside of your door for a while. ‘has something for you.”

It was Ben.

Herbie rolled in on his wheels without invitation, spinning around and resting at Johnny’s side. He gave a few impatient beeps, nudging Johnny’s thick thigh. “Alright, Herbert! I get it ..” Johnny warned, though it had no real bite. As he talked with Ben, he scratched Herbie’s head.

“Well.. just wanted to let you know so you didn’t keep him waiting. Team’s gonna be in the lounge.” Ben turned to leave until he heard the lyrics of the song.

“It’s still too new, I can’t believe I’m losing you.”

“Come on, kid, seriously?” Ben grimaced, even with his often neutral rocky face. It had been months, Johnny knew that. But there was no getting over you, Frostbite.

“It’s still fresh on my mind, Ben. I don’t need the whole.. lecture.” Johnny closed the door before Ben could even say anything. Ben caught a whiff of the cologne as the door closing blew air in his face. Johnny had thought it was you at his door, not Ben.

Herbie beeped at him for his attention, rolling behind him to push him away from the door and to a chair. Beep! Herbie must have woken up on the wrong side of the charging port today..

“What is it, Herbert?”

Herbie’s arm extended, and it was an envelope. It looked dusty and old. like it had been locked away for awhile.

“Look, herb- I’d appreciate it if you weren’t digging in the trash-“

Herbie beeped loudly, pushing the letter closer to Johnny.

“..fine.”

Johnny opened the envelope, and the thin, folded paper already revealed the smudged pen and top-to-bottom cursive writing. Writing that Johnny had memorized upon meeting you. It was your letter.

“I don’t wanna..”

He trailed off as curiosity got the best of him, his hands were already opening the letter despite his brain telling him not to invade your privacy like that.

“Johnny, did you ever love me?.. the way you push me away tells me otherwise. I know we’ve been fighting recently but that doesn’t mean you should be flirting with other people. It really makes it hard to be around you when paparazzi is snapping photos of you with other women. Like, The Gala, for instance. I dressed in my best dress, did my hair up real nice, and even did my makeup and yet you still took that time to ‘socialize’ with the other guests (which, from anyone else’s perspective looked like flirting) and barely even looked at me. How can you tell me that you love me behind closed doors and then in public treat me like some accessory that doesn’t have feelings too? You let these people touch you and send you letters all the time, and you look happy reading them. I hope I might just be overreacting and you aren’t sleeping with another woman.. I hope that I don’t come home after patrol excited to see you and you’re out doing—“

That was all. He couldn’t read more, it was all too scary to confront. He had ruined his relationship with his stupid charm. All of the attention got to his head, and he ruined the thing he had with the only woman he’s ever loved for a short lived moment of an inflated ego. His blue eyes, like the deepest depths of the sea, began to drip. He covered his face, not wanting Herbie to see (even though he was a robot, it was still too embarrassing.)

He dropped the paper, almost as if it had burned him. When it was the complete opposite. Despite himself, he felt cold without you— and that confused him. How was The Human Torch cold without you if your entire image was built off of the icy touch of your hands?

Frostbite. America’s sweetheart alongside The Invisible Woman. Everyone loved the two, but it wasn’t always like that. There were a few men here and there before the Excelsior telling you, and Sue Storm, that you would never make it as Scientists and Astronauts because ‘women are too sensitive for their own good.’ They didn’t think that you could spend a few minutes up in space let alone WHAY the Excelsior had accomplished despite its failure.

But now, you were loved from around the world. Everyone couldn’t get enough. And what intrigued them more than the fact that you could spawn ice from your hands? You weren’t in the Four. You were an ‘independent’ superhero. All that the public could talk about was when you were joining The Four (and making it ‘The Fantastic Five’? Yeah, right.)

But the four were your family, and after the Excelsior, they wanted to keep things that way. And so, now you were essentially living every Flaming Hearts Club member’s dream, you lived with Johnny storm. And he was madly in love with you.

Truth was, You were missing him too.

But Johnny was a dog, you couldn’t be missing him. After Johnny, love would be bleak and out of the picture for the rest of your life. There was no man you’d ever wanted quite as much as Johnny.

But, his comfort around other women made you remember why it was all over. You didn’t know if things would always be this way, and seeing him also sad made you think that maybe things could be mended.

Maybe you should try?

It was lunchtime, and an interviewer was coming into the Baxter building today to interview you. You were cleaning up your room, folding clothes and putting them away in drawers or hanging them up. You let your record spin lowly in the corner of the room, not bothering to turn it off despite the melancholic theme.

You were dressed in the ‘ice cream parlor plaids’ that a company had sent to you for you to wear to a Gala event (you never did). The blouse was a soft green color, and had a deeper, sage greenish belt. The skirt was plaid with white and pink accents, and you were wearing same-color green heels.

You waited a long while before Herbie informed you that the interviewer was in the building with a few beeps. You walked down the corridor past Johnny’s room, he was blasting music again. You didn’t stop to listen to it, though, you kept walking down the hall until you met the interviewer in the lounge. It was a man with dark brown hair and green eyes. He introduced himself and extended his long arm so you could shake his hand.

“No cameras?” You asked, shaking his waiting hand and looking past him to see if there were any camera crew.

“None, just you and me, Frostbite. Now— I have some questions I’d like to ask you. Mind if I have a seat?”

Wow, okay— that was quick. Maybe you could be done with this in the next hour or so and be able to sulk in your room. God, you missed Johnny and his stupid, stupid face. “Ask away.”

He nodded, flipping through his notebook and settling on a heavily marked page. You braced yourself for the questions as you sat down on the couch opposite to him.

“Well, to begin i think every gentleman should ask how your day has been. So, how has your day been?”

Already going down that path.. okay. You ran your hands over your leggings beneath your skirt, sitting tightly with your knees pressed together. “It’s been relatively good. Organizing records and whatnot.”

He nodded, tapping the pen against his lips as he looked at you. He didn’t write that down.

“And what’s the whole.. thing.. happening with Mr. Storm? Are you two still going steady?”

You looked down, staring at your shoes. Of course you’d have to answer this question again..

“Uh.. no. We split.” You reply, purposely vague so you could just skim past the question but he pushed further.

“So Mrs. Frostbite is on the market?” He asked, his pen now hovering over the paper as if he was waiting for you to say something so he could write it down. The fact made you chuckle a little bit.

“Something like that.” You look up at him again, trying to draw his expression. You couldn’t.

“Golly, I might have to scoop her up before it’s too late.” That made you laugh, not because it was funny, but because you wouldn’t let him. He laughed too, thinking the joke may have earned his some brownie points.

As you guys talked and the occasional chuckle was thrown out there, johnny emerged from the hallway with Herbie. He saw you and immediately darted away to someplace else. He walked into the kitchen and reached into the cabinet for the cereal, it was your box that he seemed to have liked, not that you were paying attention or anything.

“—and so they just stood there and screamed at you?” He chuckled, clearly not believing it.

“Yes! It was so—“ Johnny looked between the two of you, chewing his cereal loudly, and eating it straight out of the box. He knew you hated that. You cleared your throat and looked at the interviewer.

“Sorry..” the interviewer looked at you and reached over the table to touch your hand again. That touch nearly set johnny off. You could feel it when he walked past you because the air felt so hot, his hands were so hot they began to turn as red as a branding iron. You weren’t flirting with the interviewer, especially not with Johnny near. Did he really think that?

“You were saying?”

Once the interviewer left, you needed time to think.

What was on your mind? Well- thats a dumb question isn’t it?

Why was Johnny so upset when he left the room? Did he think that you were flirting with the interviewer? Because if so— that was totally not what was going on.

But then again, maybe it was.

You haven’t had a man that you actually enjoyed talking to flirt with you like that.. because he was. You don’t really wanna seem vain, but he totally was!

You just wanted Johnny to know that you loved him still, but it wasn’t easy. He made you look like a fool. A complete, and utter fool. The public even conspired that he was cheating on you during his patrol runs.

Which wouldn’t be too far fetched , I mean.. Johnny was always late to come back.

You drop the needle onto a new record as you sit and think. About Johnny, how nice he smelled when he walked by you in the living room.

You were so far gone over The Human Torch it was depressing.

You lay on your bed, starfish position. That dumb ‘F4’ bear lying next to you. It was a children’s toy, a little beige bear with a red sweater that read ‘J.STORM’ on the back of it. You’d cried into the bear many times before so the small jacket did have tear stains on it. Not that you minded, though.

You grabbed the bear and hugged onto it, listening to the soft music play in the background.

“I’m sorry.. so sorry. Please accept my apology.”

God, how did these artists always seem to project what you thought?.. you just wished you could say that to Johnny. Something like: “please take me back, I’m so sorry..” but why would you be the one to apologize.

He was the reason why you had split up.

So instead, you just lay, sulking in bed. You were enjoying the desperate and regretful silence until a familiar rhythmic knock hit the door. It was reed.

“We need you in the lab.”

You sighed into your pillow exaggeratedly before lifting your head up.

“Okay!! One moment!..” How much more of this could you take?

Being without Johnny was harder than you’d thought.

In the lab, Reed had you sitting by his desk, reading his equations back to him. The whole pregnancy thing had been weighing on him. He didn’t know you knew, but how could Sue hide her excitement?

He had you in his lab at all hours, always reading equations bsck to him or building engines for him. Engines for what? You wish you knew. It was all he ever had you doing. Tiny little engines or scanners.

Every. Single. Time.

He only ever gave you a grace period once. Reed, the usually unfeeling and very serious man, let you off lab work for a month when he heard about you and Johnny.

You appreciated it, it was really kind of him considering he only ever reserved that type of behavior for sue or the citizens of New York.

You heard the elevator doors hiss and closed your eyes, brows knit tight together.

It was Johnny. You knew it was.

You didn’t turn to look at him, but you could hear him touching something at your desk.

You turned around and he was holding your calendar, trying to put it back into the position it was before he caught your eyes.

He looked like a kid that got caught with his hand in a candy jar.

“Why are you touching my calendar?”

You said, not even meaning to— it just came out without your permission.

“I just wanted to know.. uh.. well- we have that photoshoot together on Sunday.”

He fumbled over his words, placing the calendar down in its respective place.

“Right. Sunday.” Reed said for you, waving Johnny off before he could touch anything else and distract his lab assistant. Johnny still looked at you when you turned away, you could see it in your peripheral vision.

Johnny wanted to say something to her, but he didn’t know if you would even want to speak to him.

So? He let it be. He let that unasked question linger in the air, and before you knew it, he left the room.

You needed to talk to Johnny but how could you? He was probably unbothered the entire five months you’d been broken up, probably over some other woman after patrol or having rebound sex in his bedroom in the Baxter building. The same bed that was yours a few months ago.

Your skin was burning with jealousy at the thought that another woman had gotten him, in the same bed you’d already tried everything in. It wasn’t fair.

Was he seeing someone else?

He couldn’t be. There was no way in hell.

Johnny was yours, not theirs.

They’d only ever seen the ‘Human Torch’ side of him, not the Johnny side.

Behind all the theatrics and fire, he was a really good guy.. but he was also cocky. Thats the reason why you thought he was cheating you the entire time. He could have any woman he wanted, and he knew it.

Your brain was cut off from the thoughts that plagued it when Reed snapped his fingers for the next equation.

Rain pattered on the glass windows of the Baxter building, and Johnny was up writing a letter. It was in the late evening, about eight o’ clock.

Johnny was still late on patrol, as always.

You dropped the needle on your record. Johnny was smart, he was the one who taught you how to mix all different types of songs into just one record (when you two were together, of course.)

And you did it on your own, to your surprise.

So now there it was, that familiar, melancholic record playing faintly over the sound of the rain.

You had been looping it the entire five months without Johnny. But he was doing it again, he was late at home again.

You just assumed some desperate fan had gotten him in the sheets. You always assumed that when Johnny was gone. Because when they would flirt with him, he would flirt right back.

“Whose heart are you breaking tonight?

Who’s kissin’ and holding you tight?

Who’s looking into your eyes and sighing helplessly?”

“Mine”, you thought. “He’s breaking My heart”.

You lay down in bed with a sigh, looking over to the tiny stuffed bear next to your pillow. It had beige fur and was wearing a red F4 jacket. The back of it read ‘J.STORM’ in bold white. It was a Valentine’s Day gift from him. A sort of joke because you gifted the same thing, only it read your name.

You let out a soft sigh and grabbed the bear, hugging it to your chest. It had comforted you since the split.

You nearly fell asleep til you noticed a bright flash of light zip past a building by your window.

You knew exactly who it was.

You jolted up, wrapping your baby-yellow robe around you and spritzing on some of your favorite perfume.

No matter what , you always made it your mission to smell nice or look nice for him even if you two were broken up.

You looked in the mirror one last time before speed-walking to the door, wanting to get there before Johnny landed on the balcony, his usual landing mark.

You hurried down the hall and into the kitchen. It didn’t take long before you heard a few whooshes and a hard stomp down onto the balcony floor.

Johnny landed safely, and he was coming inside.

You could see the bright fire dim to nothing but a few sparks in the reflection from the microwave oven in the dark room as he stepped inside, patting the sparks off of his broad shoulders.

God, did he look handsome..

Johnny had known it was you in the kitchen just from the sigh of the back of your head.

He knew you like the back of his hand, as much as he wished he could forget after the heartbreak.

You didn’t say anything yet but when you felt the heat standing at the entrance to the balcony cross over to your side of the room and stand beside you, you felt your heart pound, you prayed the memory of Johnny Storm, the world’s current most eligible bachelor would be forgotten by the next time you saw him, but not everything always works in your favor. That’s life.

Johnny swallowed, hard. He wanted to speak but it felt as if the words were being ripped right from his brain. Like the smell of your perfume that he adored so much erased all of his thoughts. He was in love, and that wouldn’t ever change.. but how could he know if you felt the same way if he couldn’t even get the words out to ask?

“How have you been?..” Johnny squeaked, his voice cracking slightly at the end of his sentence in a sort of boyish manner. He silently cursed himself, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Peachy.. you?”

Johnny needed you to look at him, needed you to see his hurt. He wanted you to know that he wasn’t the same immature, reckless man he was before. That he could please you, buy you flowers, and make you happy.

But he never said it. Not even once.

“Okay.. Reed’s been kicking my ass over the new suit designs.. doesn’t wanna do them.”

“Sounds like a Fantastic Four thing.. I wish I could help.”

You glanced over when you were sure that he wasn’t looking. You could see his melancholic expression from a mile away.. his brows knitted tight together, head looking down at the counter. Maybe he thought you didn’t want to help, that you didn’t want to be around him.

But before you could apologize and tell him you didn’t mean it like that, he turned to you and spoke, catching your eyes in the darkness of the kitchen.

“Why didn’t you join after the crash..?”

The question had plagued his mind since getting his powers.l your immediate refusal to join the team in becoming the squad of heroes they’re known for being today.

Truth was, you were scared.. and in those first months of isolating yourself from the group while grappling with the fact that you can literally shoot ice out of your body, the press and the public had already formed you into your own being, Your own brand. You were Frostbite, they were The Fantastic Four.

But there was once a time when you were the Saturn Five.”

“I don’t know, johnny—“

You almost didn’t catch what he said over your own words and the thoughts swirling in your head, but there they were, coming from his mouth.

“You’re so beautiful..”

You didn’t say anything afterward, just silent. Had he felt the same way since the split? Did he want you back?

“Sorry.. I don’t know what-“

You cut him off just like he had done you, shushing him gently.

“It’s okay.. thank you.”

Johnny’s eyes lit up with soft confusion and surprise. You, the light of his life, had finally cracked out of that stupid post-breakup shell of yours and spoke kindly to him. Not that you were rude or anything, but you just never spoke to him. Only when you needed to.

Which is why Johnny felt the next words were the most appropriate he could find for this moment.

“I still love you”

The words had you blinking, not knowing how to reply. You had been waiting for him to say those words to you for five months. Now counting the months, it felt sort of dramatic and childlike to make a playlist and pine over him in sad silence.

But now the words were out, the feelings were laid bare. They appeared to float in the air like a small insect dangling from a cocoon-like trap a spider had wrapped it in. All it could do was sit there and wait patiently til’ the spider made a reappearance and snatched it up.

You hadn’t ever, in a million years expected to be the spider.

You didn’t know how to respond, the silence dragging out as far as the eye could see.

Johnny didn’t get impatient or upset, just poured himself some tap water and sipped at it. He didn’t look like he was waiting for you to say anything back, and it messed with your brain.. it made you want to be irrational, to show him it wasn’t only him who was still in love.

You gently tapped his hand so he’d set the glass down, your pace unhurried and slow so as not to scare him away.

Once he did set the glass down and look at you again, you could see the redness in his eyes, the slight water to them as if he’d been silently crying by your side while you questioned how to respond to his statement and if he really meant it.

You brush away a stray tear with your index finger, the one that was closest to his eye. You inspect his face further, noticing the redness in his cheeks and lips.

Oh, those lips.

You looked back into his eyes, gently wrapping your arms around his neck to pull him into a hug.

He sobbed into the crook of your neck, wetting the skin that was there. His hands hesitantly came around to wrap around you, hugging back.

You wait until his sobs subside before you allow him to pull away, wiping his face off for him and smiling gently despite your brows still furrowed in concern.

You lean in closer, still gazing into his eyes.

You look at his lips once as if asking for permission snd he nods in encouragement.

Thats when you kissed him.

It wasn’t passionate or sexy. just a soft, gentle kiss.

A kiss that spoke more words than either of you could form when it came to one-another.

Once the two of you pulled away, you smiled again, but it was hardly there.. you could see the love in his eyes, how his pupils were blown out like they could completely engulf his irises.

“I still love you too.”

You said, hand caressing his blonde locks.

Johnny leaned into the touch of your fingers combing through his soft hair, moving as close as can be and seeking more.

Johnny invited you back to his bedroom, where he still kept your photos, framed and resting on his nightstand. It seems nothing has changed, and that offers you more comfort.

This room had been the both of yours for a while, until you eventually moved into your own room. He also had the merch-bear with your name on the little jacket.

He moved the blankets away from his tightly made bed and allowed you to slip in.

“Im going to go shower, I’ll be back soon..”

“Okay..” you said, under the covers already, getting ready for bed.

He walked over and pressed a gentle kiss to your forehead, just a little way’s from your eyelid, and then your lips.

You accepted, kissing back slowly until he stopped and whispered a goodnight against your chin.

You whispered it back, smiling as he pulled away completely, it took him a moment to leave your side, just so glad to have his love back.

It wasn’t long before you fell asleep, and by the time you nodded off, he was out of the shower, cuddled to your back in his bed.

You had Johnny back, and now you were never letting him go.

.

.

.

.

The end.. for now.

________________________ ________________________ ________________________ _______________________

Note: I really hope you enjoy this!, it should be completely finished unless I re open it to correct some things, but lmk if you want a Pt2 for this! (Alssoooooo I may start tagging folks if they want to be notified so theres that!)

IM SO SORRY..

Im workin on the rest of it, things have just been very hectic. Im helping my family move so I won’t be able to catch up on writing as much.

BUT DON’T FRET..

I’ll be able to finish the rest of PT. 1 when I’m not taping boxes together. I LOVE YA and thank you for liking and reblogging. ❤️