American Miscellany

When Alex returned to America, a whirlwind romance swept the nation, bringing tears to countless eyes. It was even more heart-wrenching than the love story of The Bridges of Madison County this summer.

"Ghost? What's this?" Audrey asked, the first thing she saw upon disembarking the ship was a huge poster on the pier. A man and a woman were embracing, the blurry image making it hard to see clearly, though she could vaguely make out that the woman was Vivien Leigh. "Is it Vivien Leigh's new movie?"

Alex heard her and looked over, surprised. "Ghost is already out?"

"Yeah, you're going to miss out on all the fun if you don't come back!" Just as she was expressing her surprise, someone rushed over and hugged Alex tightly, his face beaming.

Alex looked at Bucky's wide grin and chuckled, "Hey, Bucky, you've gotten bigger!" Turning to the side, he saw Steve standing there with a faint smile. Alex put an arm around Steve's shoulders, complaining, "Steve, you need to eat more, you're too skinny!"

At that moment, a crisp, girlish voice rang out, filled with excitement and slightly breathless.

"Brother!"

Alex released Steve and Bucky, turning to see Marilyn Monroe standing there in a pink princess dress, her bright eyes filled with glistening tears.

"Monroe, your brother missed you so much!" Alex scooped Monroe up in a hug, planting a loud kiss on her forehead.

Monroe's face flushed slightly as she hugged Alex's head and suddenly burst into tears, crying out in a hoarse voice, "Brother, please don't leave Monroe again, never ever."

While Alex was busy comforting Monroe, Audrey's face was tight with barely suppressed anger. Behind her, Ella's expression also changed. She realized that Alex wasn't quite as good as she had imagined.

Just then, another female voice spoke. A graceful woman wearing a veil walked over, her voice sweet but tinged with anger, "Oh, the great hero has finally deigned to return!"

Alex turned his head in confusion, wondering who this woman was and why she was so angry at him right off the bat.

"Vivien Leigh," Steve whispered, noticing the confusion on Alex's face. "She was very worried when you disappeared."

Alex gave an awkward smile and waved his hand. "Let's go to Chinatown! My treat, a big meal for everyone. How does that sound? My apologies to you all."

Amidst the cheers of the crowd, the group piled into cars and headed towards Chinatown.

After a hearty and satisfying meal, everyone declared that Alex was forgiven. Hearing this, Alex could only smile wryly. So, he was only worth a meal, huh?

After the meal, Alex found Vivien Leigh, with Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe in tow. It had to be said that the feelings between young girls were strange indeed. After spending a few hours together, the two girls had become good friends, holding hands wherever they went.

"Miss Leigh, how has Monroe been behaving lately?" Alex glanced at Monroe and turned to Vivien Leigh.

"Just call me Pussy," Vivien Leigh said, reaching out to stroke Monroe's head with a gentle smile. "Monroe has been excellent. She's already appeared in a movie, and the director praised her beauty!"

Monroe tilted her head, a look of smugness on her face, like a proud swan waiting for Alex's praise.

Alex gently patted Monroe's head, smiling slightly as he looked at Vivien Leigh with gratitude. "Then I must thank you for your excellent guidance, Pussy, and thank you for taking care of Monroe during this time."

Vivien Leigh smiled faintly, radiating a maternal glow. "It's what I should do. After all, I am Monroe's godmother."

Alex chuckled along, then pulled Audrey slightly forward from behind him, looking at Vivien Leigh with a hint of embarrassment. "Pussy, I have another favor to ask of you!" He pointed to Audrey and said, "This is my sister. She also loves movies and hopes..."

"You certainly have a lot of sisters!" Vivien Leigh rolled her beautiful eyes at Alex, then pulled Audrey to her side, looking her up and down, praising her with a "tsk, tsk." "Beautiful, elegant, a good prospect for making movies."

"So, you agree?" Alex was excited. With the development of the war, Alex would inevitably have to leave America. Entrusting Audrey to Vivien Leigh as well would put Alex's mind at ease.

Vivien Leigh snorted softly, saying in a strange tone, "I'm helping you take care of two sisters. What's in it for me?"

"Benefits?" Alex pondered for a moment, then looked up at Vivien Leigh and said, "I'll give you a few more stories, guaranteed to make you a huge star in Hollywood."

Vivien Leigh stared intently at Alex, and after a long silence, she finally spoke. "I don't like acting, and I don't want to be a star... Never mind, why am I telling you this?" Vivien Leigh reached out to wipe the corner of her eye, forcing a dry laugh. "I'll help you take care of these two sisters!"

Alex gave Vivien Leigh a strange look, but didn't ask any further questions. Everyone had their own secrets.

That night, Alex returned to his apartment. Taking advantage of the quiet night, he quietly used Teleportation to return to the original laboratory. But to Alex's disappointment, the laboratory seemed to have been abandoned. The equipment inside had been moved out, leaving nothing behind. Pushing open the door, the long, narrow passage was pitch black, with no guards. Walking out of the passage, Alex found himself in Berlin.

Alex searched all over Berlin but couldn't find Red Skull or Zola, let alone the legendary Hydra. Toby Manes's trail had completely gone cold, his fate unknown.

Unable to find any information, Alex had no choice but to return to America, preparing the good stories he wanted to give to Vivien Leigh while also busying himself with finding a place to live for Audrey and Ella. Audrey was different from Monroe. Monroe was alone and it didn't matter if she followed Vivien Leigh, but Audrey still had her mother. Even if she also lived with Vivien Leigh, a place to live had to be found for her mother.

In the blink of an eye, Alex had been back in New York for two days.

The stories he had written had already been given to Vivien Leigh, and a place to live for Audrey and her mother Ella had also been found, near Vivien Leigh's house, only a hundred meters away. During this time, Alex accompanied the women to see Ghost, and all the women cried their eyes out, keeping Alex busy trying to comfort them one after another.

With everything finally settled, Alex was just about to take a good rest when, unexpectedly, another wave arose, and a storm suddenly descended.