Past, Present, Future - Cable, Deadpool 2

13.

As quickly as a snap of one's fingers, he was suddenly back with the others at the start of the fight, when they had arrived via taxi at the orphanage to confront Russell.

"I've been meaning to ask you, what's with the bear?" Although he knew it was coming, Nathan still bit back his annoyance at Deadpool, remembering why he was back here.

"It's my daughter's, she calls it her good-luck charm. Her name is Hope." Taking the skee-ball token he had stolen from the other man during their first encounter, he slipped it into the pocket on the chest of Deadpool's uniform.

"Uhh, what are you doing?"

"I like that name," piped up Nina. "It sounds so happy and sunny."

"Let me guess which one of you picked it out," said Wade.

Fast forward and back in the burning auditorium. Right before the ceiling collapsed, he dove in and grabbed Nina, shoving her out of the way as the flaming wood fell with a crackling crash to the spot where she had just been standing.

"Oh! Thanks - that was lucky!" she cried after shaking off the initial shock of the fall.

"Now is not the time you two!" Their position - the way they had landed, lying down with him on top of her - earned them a smart comment from Wade.

Then fast forward to Wade diving in front of the bullet-

"No!" Nathan heard Nina scream.

This time there was no splatter of blood.

Everyone rushed to crowd around Wade. "Tell me they got that in slow motion."

"You sacrificed yourself for me," cried Russell.

"It would seem that I-" Confusion laced Wade's words as he felt around on his chest for a bullet hole, but instead found the coin.

"Huh, genuine high-grade lead." He looked up at Nathan from where he was sitting on the ground. "You time-sliding son of a bitch! You did this for me?"

Nathan gave a small smile and an amazed laugh fell from Nina's lips.

"Wait, now you can't go back, you used the last of your fuel - what about your girl, and Future-Shorty?"

"My family's safe. And I didn't do it for you." He glanced Nina's way. "Naw, I'm going to stick around here for a while, make sure the world doesn't shit itself into oblivion."

"Naw, you did it for me."

"No, I didn't."

"You did."

"I really didn't."

"I think you did."

"No, I'm positive I didn't."

"Let's flip a coin, okay?" Wade held up his life-saving skee-ball token. "Heads, you did it for me, tails, you did it for me-" He flipped it half-heartedly. "I'm not even gonna look cause you did it for me."

"Say it again," threatened Nathan, jaw tightening.

"He did it for me." Wade nodded to the others in affirmation.

"Jesus."

"We must get the collar off," Colossus reminded them.

"Yeah, but these collars don't just come off."

"Wade!" Russell cried, withdrawing a pen from his pocket. "I have an idea."

"Oh no, no, no, no." Wade shook his head vigorously. "I'd rather die of cancer. Oh God - they do say the pen is grosser than the sword," he said as Russell used the pen to hack into the collar.