Silence

Thirty

Two days later
I stopped into the Daily Bugle and went to Jameson's office. "Barton." He greeted and I offered a tight smile. "I'm dropping in to let you know I'm taking a week vacation." He looked up from his work and gave me a look. "For what?" I rose an eyebrow, confused as to why he should know. "My family have matters in San Francisco that need to be taken care of. Considering I can't really be left alone, I have to go." I shrugged and Jameson nodded, looking skeptical. "Alright. I expect you to work extra hard when you get back." I mockingly saluted him and left the office.

I pulled a backpack over my shoulder and grabbed my camera. "Ready to go?" Pietro asked, tying his shoes. I nodded and grabbed a picture of Dad and I. I looked at it before setting it on my bed. "Let's go." I followed Pietro out and to the plane hangar. I stepped onto the Quinjet and looked at my family. I want to San Francisco for one reason, I'm going to go to Wade. I'm going to look him in the face and tell him he doesn't own me. And maybe, just maybe I'll be okay afterwards. But I want to look at my family one last time before I confront the one person who has ruled my life for nearly seven months.

Getting to San Francisco should've been a six hour flight but was shortened to four hours due to the Quinjet. "Ready for landing." Dad called to the back and Sam made eye contact with me. He smiled, seeming proud of me. If he known what I would be doing, he wouldn't have brought me here. We landed with a slight jerk and I gathered my things. We all got off and I grinned at the sight of Scott. He climbed out of a van and jogged to us. "Welcome to San Fran! Okay so you're all gonna have to pile into the van." He turned to me and eyed me carefully. "Peter. I'm the kid that beat your ass in the fight." I held my hand out and he grinned, taking my hand. "Scott. Alright let's go!" He led us to the van and we climbed into the back.

When we got to Pym's house, it was nearly night time and I needed to get out. "Alright go to bed." Dad shoved me lightly and I rolled my eyes. I walked to my guest room and relished in the fact that I'd be sleeping alone for once. After this, I'm not sure they'd let me sleep alone ever again. I got to the room and locked the door. I quickly changed into sweatpants and a science shirt before grabbing my bag and climbing out of the window. I dropped down and landed on my feet. I slid out of the backyard and landed on the sidewalk of the busy city. "Karen?" I muttered, putting my hand to my left ear. "Hello Peter. What would you like me to do for you?" "Directions to Ice Box prison please." My watch blinked and a hologram of the directions projected from it. I ran in the direction of the prison, keeping my eyes on the sidewalk in front of me.

I arrived at the prison, having ran about four miles outside of the city. I walked up to the gate and the guard stopped me. "Are you here to see someone?" I nodded and he said something into the microphone. "ID." I quickly pulled out my New York driver's license and he eyed me up and down. "Okay who are you here for?" I took a deep breath in, "Wade Wilson." His eyebrows shot up slightly before generating badge and handing it to me. "The bag stays here." I nodded and pulled my backpack off my back. I handed it to him and he put inside his post. "When you come out, show me your badge and you'll get your bag back. Go ahead." He waved me forward and I walked through the prison gate and into the yard.

I was escorted to a room with tables and a few families. They were all eyeing me and I could tell they didn't like the air I gave off. I sat at a table and a few minutes later, Wade was escorted out in a power dampener and handcuffs. He sat down at my table, his head down. "Wilson." His head snapped up and he glared at me, though his eyes had longing in them. It made me disgusted. "Barton." I snorted and leaned back in the chair. "Last name basis. Cold." He gave me an unamused look and leaned into the table. I sat still, my face passive. "What are you doing here?" He finally asked and I smiled. "I want you to look at me in the face and say my full name." Something he never could do, he said it made me human. He immediately shook his head. "We've been over this Barton. You're not human. You don't deserve that." I laughed bitterly and rolled up my sleeves. "You think you are? Look at you, a mutant stuck in a prison designed to trump your kind. And where do I sit? On the outside. I came here for myself not you." I leaned into the table and stared into his eyes. "You don't own me. These seven months, you made my life a living hell and guess what, I don't fear you. You have no authority over me. And once I leave, you will be stuck here with no way to get out and no way to get to me. Isn't that your goal Wilson? Get out and get back to me?" I said it slowly and his face slowly drained. "Those markings, the ones you carved into my body and made me wear for months? I destroyed them." I showed him my arms and his eyes lit up in fury. "I no longer fear looking in the mirror. Because I destroyed your own way of keeping me coming back to you."

"See that's the thing Barton, you're here now. You're not here to show me that I'm not the big bad man under your bed, you're here to prove that you aren't weak." I laughed and sat up. "I already proved that I'm not weak. Since you've been locked up, I've saved so many lives. I've saved children from predators like you." He leaned into the chair. "I'm not a predator. I have a preferred type." I shook my head. "Your preferred type is children. And you're not the big bad man you think you are. You're a scared bitch with a haunted past and a dead fiance. Your mistakes and your failures made you envy me, don't think I didn't read your lips at that trial, because I did. I took you down and I'm the one still standing. You came into my city and tried to destroy everything I stood for. You took away Sage. My senior year of high school. My sleep, my emotions and my will to live. You made my family fear what would come when I snapped. But I'm not weak or pathetic or a freak. I'm the hero New York city needs. It keeps people like you off the streets and saves another person from falling to the hands of sick fucks." I stood up and looked at the guards. They stepped out of the room and he looked around.

I pushed my sleeves up and stepped around the table. "Spiderman hitting an innocent? Now that's a headline for you." He tried to stop me. "You're not innocent." I stepped in front of him and he looked up at me. I looked around the room and found everyone's eyes on me. "You want to know what people do to sick fucks that rape children?" I asked loudly. Wade gulped and I punched him, hard. I felt my knuckle split and I definitely cracked a bone in my hand. "They get what they deserve."