New York’s deep winter arrived unexpectedly.
In January 2008, heavy snow fell for three days.
The entire city was wrapped in a blanket of white.
The sycamore branches at Midtown High School were covered in icicles, and the wind whipped snow against the classroom windows, making a faint, crisp sound.
The heater was on in the classroom, and the warm air was mixed with the smell of chalk dust and the sweet aroma of hot cocoa.
During lunch break, Gwen pushed a cup of hot cocoa toward Mio.
Her fingertips were red from the cold, and she was breathing out white mist: “Oh my god, it’s too cold outside.
I went to buy water just now and was almost unable to walk because of the wind.” Mio took the hot cocoa.
As her fingertips touched the warm paper cup, the warmth spread through them.
She curled her lips slightly at Gwen, took a thermos from her bag, and opened the lid.
Inside were freshly baked cranberry cookies that were still warm: “Just made them, try one.” “Wow!
Mio, you are a literal angel!” Gwen’s eyes lit up instantly.
She picked up a cookie and took a bite, her eyes widening.
“Delicious!
A hundred times better than what I bake!
Peter, hurry up and try one!” Peter, sitting opposite, leaned over quickly, picked up a cookie, and stuffed it into his mouth.
His eyes lit up too: “It’s really delicious!
Mio, you are amazing.
Good at studying, good at cooking, and you can even fix computers.
You’re simply all-around!” Mio smiled but didn’t respond, just lowered her head to take a sip of the hot cocoa.
Four months were enough to change many things.
She had become inseparable friends with Peter and Gwen.
On the day of the autumn carnival, they visited the entire campus together.
Peter held his camera and took many photos of her and Gwen.
Gwen dragged her to play all the small games at the stalls, winning a pile of useless plush toys, which she eventually stuffed into the hands of the kids downstairs in the apartment building.
She was no longer that aloof transfer student who walked alone.
She would patiently explain things when Gwen was stuck on a problem, quietly help Peter out when he was bullied by Flash, and during lunch breaks, she would bring her homemade bento and snacks to sit with them in the heated classroom, chatting about fun things at school and future college plans, just like any ordinary high schooler.
This sense of ordinary life had become her most stable anchor in this dangerous Marvel Universe.
Of course, beneath the calm surface, it was never truly peaceful.
Since that chance encounter with Natasha in Manhattan, she had clearly sensed that she was being targeted by S.H.I.E.L.D.
Agents disguised as passersby occasionally appeared near her apartment.
In the surveillance footage at the school entrance, there were always a few fixed lenses specifically aimed at her.
A few times, even when she was doing side jobs, she could sense a hint of threat, following at a distance, never showing its face, just like a patient hunter observing her every move from the shadows.
But they found nothing.
Mio had used her computing power to polish her background to perfection.
All identity information, entry and exit records, and bank statements were flawless.
She had cleaned up the records of her side jobs, and all traces of using her abilities were wiped away.
Even if S.H.I.E.L.D.
turned her background inside out, they could only find a “talented international student with excellent technical skills.” Beyond that, there was nothing unusual.
After all, in the face of absolute computing power, the S.H.I.E.L.D.
network system in 2008 was no different from an undefended backyard in her eyes.
And during these four months, she hadn’t been idle.