"It's not that." She knew what he did was dangerous. She knew he would always put his life on the line.

Her hand slipped out of his and went back to her lap. Her two hands curled together, fingers laced, as she squeezed them tightly. Her gaze was still on her hands as if looking down at them helped to center her.

"It's not that you put your life on the line. It's that you had to because of me. If you'd have die because of me, I'd -" Liz paused again, blinking hard. Her lips which had been in a thin, straight line turned downward now as she was losing a little more control.

"I'm just... I'm just pretending." Her voice was quieter, as if being louder was dangerous. "We're supposed to be a team... because we're together." Not because he was a superhero, but because they were dating. Being in a relationship was a two person adventure. "And I'm supposed to be there to protect you like you protect me and I - I can't do that. I can never do that, not really, and I've been lying to myself that I can. That I can be what you need me to be, but..."

Her body started to tremble a little. She was not going to cry. Her body heat suddenly seemed to rise and she felt a brief wave of nausea.