Bella was being extremely careful, double-checking everything, but she still didn't make it on the plane in time—because, naturally, the flight got delayed.
"Damn it." She slumped into the seat, completely speechless.
She didn't want to just sit around and wait, but since she was new here and didn't know the place, she had nowhere to go either.
After thinking about it for a while, she decided to check out the airport shops. Maybe buy a small gift for her biological dad she'd never even met.
Even though Forks was a town of just three thousand people—basically tiny by national standards—her dad, the town sheriff, was kind of a big deal in a small pond. With that position, he wasn't just some average guy.
Her predecessor didn't know how to take advantage of that, but she did. Worst case, building some connection wouldn't hurt.
"Fifty-one, hundred-five, hundred-six..." she counted the cash in her wallet.
It was March 2000. No mobile payment, and her predecessor didn't even have a credit card. Just cash in her wallet.
As she walked while counting, a girl with headphones in and head down came toward her from the opposite direction. Neither saw the other, and they were both walking fast. Bam—they crashed into each other without warning.
Thud! A muffled impact. Bella was taller, so her chin slammed straight into the girl's forehead.
"Ow!" Bella stumbled back two steps. Her chin went numb instantly, her head buzzing. She barely managed to steady herself against the wall to keep from falling.
The other girl didn't have it any better. She crouched on the ground in her light purple knit sweater, rubbing her forehead hard. It looked like that hit really hurt.
"Sorry, sorry."
"My bad, I'm sorry!"
They both apologized at the same time.
Bella truly hadn't been watching where she was going, and being in a foreign place, she didn't want any trouble. Her apology was sincere.
The girl had knocked Bella's wallet out of her hand. The wallet burst open, and all the small bills—tens, fives—scattered everywhere. Just looking at the number of bills, it looked like a lot of money. Now they were spread across the floor like confetti, making the girl feel even guiltier.
While both of them were apologizing, the girl's family quickly came over to help gather Bella's money.
A middle-aged man even asked if she needed to go to the hospital.
Unlike Bella, an only child, the girl was part of a classic American five-member family—a couple with two sons and a daughter. The girl who bumped into Bella was the daughter. The young man beside her looked like the older brother. Not far off, a boy with a toy box and a troublemaker look on his face was clearly the little brother.
But damn—this girl was seriously pretty.
Even Bella had to admit it.
Her eyes had a natural allure, features as delicate as a painting, lips slightly curled, her face full of youth, and her figure graceful. She didn't even look fully grown yet—probably a year or two younger than Bella.
Though she got hit pretty bad, the girl subtly rubbed her forehead and then looked up—only to be stunned by Bella's face too.
Smooth forehead, elegant brows, pale and soft skin like it was naturally moisturized.
Lips were plump and glossy, her teeth showing a hint of sparkle. No makeup at all, and her beauty was already at a level most people could never reach. Only the bit of gloom between her brows and her pale complexion gave her looks a slight flaw.
Natural beauties were rare. Two of them crashing face-to-face like this? Even rarer.
"Really, I'm so sorry."
"No, no, I should be the one saying sorry—I wasn't watching."
They'd just run into each other, no reason to exchange names or anything. Bella had a lot on her mind. She politely said goodbye to the family.
"There! I see them! Get them!"
A loud shout came from not far away. The family and Bella looked over at the same time—three men and one woman were charging at them from both ends of the hallway, all of them looking fierce as hell.
Bella noticed the family was frozen. Honestly, she was also confused. What the hell? Robbers? In broad daylight? In an airport?
The dad instinctively reached for his phone to call the cops, but the attackers were already there.
The leader, a black-haired man with a mean face, lunged at Bella, his giant hand reaching for her shoulder.
Wait—they're after me?
No way she was just gonna stand there and get caught. Ever since finding out she was in the Marvel universe, she'd been on high alert and always kept pepper spray on her.
She emptied half the can right into the guy's eyes, then followed up with a solid knee right where it hurt most.
She was tall, had long legs, and had been preparing this move for a while—steady, precise, ruthless, and with zero hesitation.
The guy never stood a chance. He went down like a sack of potatoes, tears streaming from the pain as he clutched his crotch and rolled on the floor.
Before Bella could say anything, another skinny guy rushed at her.
Without the element of surprise, Bella was just a regular person—no martial arts, no hidden powers, no secret training.
Luckily, the mom in the family looked like she actually knew how to fight.
She stepped in front of Bella, caught the guy's fist, turned her body, and nailed a textbook judo throw—bam, down he went.
In just a flash, the two men from the west side had been taken down.
Bella had already mentally prepared for how wild this Marvel world could be. Whether it was a robbery or aliens dropping in, nothing would really shock her anymore.
The family had mixed reactions.
The dad seemed hesitant, opened his mouth to say something, but stayed silent after seeing his wife handle it.
The girl Bella bumped into looked pumped—biting her lip, clearly itching to jump into the action.
The older brother looked like he was in shock. The little brother? Yeah, he was in shock.
There were six of them, including Bella, so they had the numbers. And this was an airport. People in the distance had already started pointing and whispering.
The last two attackers—a man and a woman—hesitated for a second.
The woman exchanged a glance with her partner, then used him as a distraction. She looped around behind and lunged at the little boy.
"I got it! Split up!"
She snatched the toy car from the boy's hands without even looking at it and bolted.
Bella: Σ(⊙▽⊙）!!
She was stunned.
You made all this noise just to rob a kid's toy car at an airport? What the hell, America?
And it wasn't just that—the guy she'd kicked was carrying a handgun under his coat.
Sure, America's not known for being safe, but it's not that bad. People don't just walk around armed to the teeth.
Something here was seriously wrong.
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