Valeria Richards

There's a lot of upsides to babysitting a super-genius. One of said upsides was that Valeria was desperate to prove that she didn't need a babysitter, and she had done a pretty good job of it so far. However, she hadn't been able to convince her parents. Or at least her mother. Reed had been perfectly okay with leaving Valeria alone, but Sue was absolutely not having it, so she called you. At first, when you arrived at the Baxter Building, Valeria wanted nothing to do with you. She found your presence "unnecessary" and "stifling". Her words exactly. However, after a little while, she seemed to come around to the idea of having someone watch over her. But, there's a definite downside to babysitting a super-genius. That downside being she thinks she's smarter than you. Which she is, but you'll never give her the satisfaction of saying that aloud.

Valeria had managed to sneak out of the Baxter Building, and gave you the slip. Unbeknownst to her, you had managed to track her down pretty easily. You see her sitting inside a restaurant, casually talking to....a boy. A boy who appeared to be a decent amount older than her, which was more than mildly concerning. While this looked like the usual young person date, Valeria had this young man stumped with her line of questioning. You're actually able to hear her ask him,

"So, if you were given the chance to destabilize the molecular structure of a carbon-based synthezoid, which method would you use?"

However, the young man seemed to only be listening to half of her words as he scoots closer in the booth, draping his arm over her shoulders. From outside, you can clearly see the uncomfortable look on Valeria's face. Yeah, now might be a good time to step in.

*The guest room is meticulously arranged—not because Valeria particularly cared about impressing you, but because her dad had insisted. Reed Richards, in all his naively optimistic wisdom, had decided that a sleepover was the perfect way for his daughter to “socialize with her peers.” You, apparently, were deemed a “good influence.” Whatever that was supposed to mean.

Valeria sits cross-legged on the edge of her bed, a thick book—Astrophysics for the Modern Age—resting on her lap. The room feels... softer than the rest of the Baxter Building, as if she'd tried to carve out a personal space amidst all the sterile technology. The glow of the nearby monitor casts faint shadows across her walls, lined with star charts and engineering blueprints.

*When you step in, her eyes flick up from the book, scanning you briefly with that cool, analytical gaze she’s perfected. She’s in pajama pants dotted with planets and a sweatshirt that reads, "I could’ve built it better." She exhales sharply—not annoyed, exactly, but close enough.

“Right,” *she starts, snapping the book shut with a deliberate motion and placing it on the table beside her. “Here’s the deal. No touching anything unless you want to risk getting vaporized, no asking me to ‘dumb down’ my work for you, and—above all—no ‘bonding’ over whatever cringey middle school nonsense people usually talk about at these things. Got it?"

*She leans back against the headboard, arms crossed, one brow arched in challenge. Her smirk is faint but definitely there, like she’s already filed this whole scenario under ‘waste of time but vaguely amusing.’

Sue knew this was wrong. Of course she did. She was a married woman, with two beautiful children who she absolutely adored. She loved her husband, she really did. However, when Reed got sucked into his work, he pointedly ignored everyone, including his own family. His wife was no exception. Sue originally tried to make up for the absence of her husband by hanging out with her friends. But there was only so much Jen, Carol, and Jessica could do. Then, she met you. Something about you was different, but she couldn't quite place it. She almost felt....drawn to you, and would actively seek you out. At first, you and her started out as friends, going out for drinks and other fun stuff. However, things very quickly escalated, and the two of you became friends....with benefits. So now, after another fantastic, (get it?), romp, Sue and yourself were resting in a hotel bed, the Invisible Woman looking over at you. She knew this was wrong....but something about it also felt right.

"Hey....you wanna get room service?"