Nadia spent most of her time at G.I.R.L. now. Each of the lab partners had their own room at Pym Labs, and Nadia preferred sleeping there. The lab sounded like possibility, even at night. The CPUs still hummed and the fans still ran and she could hear people coming and going in the halls. At the house, it was silent. It reminded Nadia of the things in her past she was trying so hard to leave behind.
Plus, when there were people around, she was less likely to accidentally hyperfocus on a task for nights on end. The lab kept her accountable, and it kept her safe. It reminded Nadia of what she wished the Siberian outpost of the Red Room could have been. It was her future.
“It was actually kind of…fun, packing this place up,” Janet admitted. “I have a lot of memories of this house. Usually I’m one hundred percent cool forgetting them,” she added with a hint of dryness in her voice. Nadia knew that Hank hadn’t always been a good partner, especially not with his mental illness left untreated. “But it’s nice to be reminded of the good times we had here, before we put it up on the market.”
“I also assisted with the packing!” called Jarvis from the kitchen.
“Thank you, all.” Nadia craned her head to give Jarvis a gratef
ul smile and saw that he was already busy over the stove. “This has been like a hanger over my head.”
“Hanging over your head,” Janet corrected. “We’re just happy you had the time to have dinner with us.”
“For real. Also, I’m happy to eat Jarvis’s cooking,” Bobbi added with a devious smile. “The guy’s a beast in there. I think he’s made, like, fourteen courses.”
“Only seven!” Jarvis called out.
“Only seven,” Bobbi corrected herself with mock seriousness. The three Super Heroines around the table burst out laughing.
“Seriously, I cannot thank you all enough,” Nadia said. She reached across the table and grabbed one of Bobbi’s hands and one of Janet’s. “Things really have been busy and I didn’t know when I would find the time. This is a really thoughtful gift.”
Bobbi squeezed Nadia’s hand. She looked over at Janet. “Well…it’s not the only thing we got you.”
Nadia pulled back her hands. “No,” she said, shaking her head. “You did too much.”
Janet reached under the table and pulled out a package wrapped in silver paper. It had a bow of rainbow-hued ribbons attached to the top. She slid it across the table toward Nadia.
“It’s kind of all one thing,” she explained.
Nadia gave her stepmom a stern look. “I hope it wasn’t too much trouble.”
Bobbi pushed her chair back and headed toward the kitchen. “You’re never trouble. Even when you get into trouble. Soda?”
Nadia shook her head silently, reaching for the box. The silver gleamed, light reflecting from the small chandelier hanging over the table. Nadia hoped to bring that chandelier into her room at the lab. It would be the perfect touch.
What could Janet have gotten her? Nadia already had everything she could possibly need. Too many roofs over her head; more friends than she’d had in her entire life; an amazing starshaya sestra* in Bobbi; the coolest stepmom on the planet; and one performatively curmudgeonly dedushka. She had gone from having absolutely nothing to having absolutely everything she could possibly want. She felt selfish accepting another gift from Janet. Nadia preferred giving gifts to getting them, every single time.
“Just open it,” urged Janet, waving off Nadia’s trepidation. “I know, I know, but I think you’ll like it. And then we can eat.”
“And then we can eat!” called Bobbi, from the kitchen. Nadia could tell her mouth was already full.
“Okay, okay,” Nadia gave in. She grabbed the gift and looked for the wrapping paper’s seam. She carefully unstuck the tape and unfolded the paper, careful not to rip or damage any of the beautiful silver stock.
Setting the paper aside, bow still attached, Nadia looked at the box beneath. The image on the front showed a sleek gold rectangle, no bigger than Nadia’s palm.
“‘VERA,’” she read off the packaging. “‘Virtual Executive Remote Assistant.’”
“Exactly!” Janet said, excited. “It just came out. I had to bribe Tony to get one at release. Totally worth it.”
Nadia turned the box over to read the ad copy on the back. “‘HoffTech’s VERA. Do less, experience more.’”
“It’s your own personal assistant in your pocket,” Janet explained in a rush of excitement. “HoffTech—they actually just moved into a Manhattan office—they’re doing the most interesting development in AI right now. VERA’s supposed to be completely life-changing—she’ll keep your life organized, get you on schedule, help you finish tasks…she even reminds me when to take my meds.” Janet looked at Nadia, her eyes shining. She was excited, but there was a touch of nervousness there, too. She didn’t want to suggest that Nadia couldn’t handle absolutely anything that came her way. But she wanted to help make whatever might come easier for Nadia.
“I thought it could be just what you need right now, since things are so hectic,” Janet said. “I mean, they’re good. I know you’re good. But you’re still just one person. And you could use an extra brain in your life, you know? To free up yours for the big stuff, the world-saving stuff.” She seemed like she really wanted Nadia to like her gift. Of course, Nadia liked most gifts, so she didn’t have a lot to be nervous about.
Popping open the box, Nadia pulled out the filler and let the rectangle slide into her hand. It was as shiny and gold as the chandelier over her head. The word VERA was stamped in one corner. Otherwise, it was completely featureless. If it really did everything Janet said it did, and still looked as clean as this, Nadia knew it was an engineering marvel.
“Janet,” Nadia said, tearing up. “It is really, very thoughtful. Thank you. I can’t wait to try it.”