Secrets kept the world in business. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secrets helped the world remain in peace. S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't know about her secrets but she knew all of theirs. She made it her business to know. But her life's secret was nothing to mess with, even for S.H.I.E.L.D. She went by her alias, Lullaby, with them or anyone else she worked with. Her whole second life was so hidden, people wouldn't even associate one with the other if they saw her.

Though, that all changed once Wade Wilson, in all his boyish- charm and annoying personality traits, came into the mix. There was something about him that caught Lullaby by surprise. She saw what was underneath his mask, both literally and figuratively. On top of his amazing body, she saw that he was a sad man that would've done anything to not look like a human scrotum. His words, not hers.

Maybe that's what possessed her to kiss him the first night they met… and fuck him on the rooftop just moments before.

She ran quickly down the stairwell of the empty building. She double stepped the stairs, occasionally looking back checking to make sure Deadpool wasn't following her. After a few minutes, she was at the bottom of the stairwell. She caught her breath as she pulled her ponytail loose, letting her curls of gold fall over her shoulders. She entered the lobby, checking the stairs once again before pushing the glass door open slightly. She stepped out to hear a familiar voice shout, "Fucking shit!" over the rooftops. She giggled to herself as she walked toward the street.

A black town car with silver rims and a white-silver grill was parked in front of the building. A man came out holding a black garment bag with a black and gold shoebox. The man smiled at her and she returned the gesture. Even though his hands were full, Lullaby hugged him and they shared a kiss on the cheek.

"So how was it, Ms. Russo?" The man asked as he presented the items to her.

"It was eventful, Pierce," she said unzipping the garment bag and glancing inside. "And I told you that you didn't need to be so formal with me." She zipped the bag up again and took it in her arms along with the shoebox.

"Of course, ma'am," Pierce answered as he opened the back passenger door for her. She sighed and entered the town car. As soon as he closed the door, she began to take off her jewelry. A white and silver clutch purse rested on the black leather seat next to her. She took out her earrings and threw them next to the purse. The car started to drive away from the building as she did so.

The garment bag hung by a hook, blocking the tinted window on her side of the car from the outside. Lullaby unzipped her boots and threw them to the seat across from her. Pierce drove the car toward downtown Hollywood, not questioning her actions in the backseat. Street lamps lit the interior of the car every time they passed one. She opened the bag, exposing the contents inside.

Inside the bag was a long, white dress. It had a deep slit on the left side that started at the upper thigh. A sheer fabric fell from the dress, also on the left side, next to the slit. The dress had the left sleeve made from the same sheer material. The transparent fabric was covered in various diamonds of different shapes.

Lullaby smiled at the dress and started to strip off her catsuit. The outfit was discarded and she was left in her white strapless bra and matching thong. She took the dress out of the bag and held it in front of her. She slipped it over her head and adjusted it as best she could. Then she pulled out a pair of opened toed strappy silver stiletto heels from the shoebox. She slipped them on her pedicured feet; her French tipped toes peeking out of the front. She grabbed the clutch from the seat and opened it to take out some lipstick, and eyeliner pencil, mascara, light eyeshadow, and a compact. She set the items on her lap, then placed the small purse back on the leather seat.

Lullaby used the small compact mirror to apply her makeup. She put on the light eyeshadow, which made her deep blue eyes stand out against the powder. She rubbed a deep red glossy shade against her lips. She carefully drew on her topline and waterline as her car drove through a tunnel.

"Ten minutes, ma'am," Pierce called from the driver's seat.

"Thanks, hon," Lullaby answered as the touched up her mascara. She put the makeup back in her purse. She used the finishing powder in her compact to set her makeup. She checked her neck to see bite marks on the area between her neck and shoulder.

She groaned in frustration, "Goddammit, Wade." She quickly covered it up until it wasn't visible anymore. She sighed as she put the compact with the rest of her makeup. The car came to a stop in front of a Hollywood ballroom. Lullaby ran her hands through her hair, shaking her golden curls to loosen them and give them volume. She quickly slipped a ring on her left hand as Pierce opened the door and the gloved hand of another man was offered to her. She accepted it, grasping her purse in her other hand.

"On time and looking as lovely as ever, my dear," the owner of the hand said as he intertwined his arm with hers.

"Couldn't leave you waiting here all night and all alone now, could I?"

The man smiled at her as his eyes scanned her body up and down with want. She forced a smile back at him, trying to hold back the feeling of disgust. The man escorting her wore a black tuxedo suit with a white shirt, vest, and a silver cummerbund. He had a handsome face. He had dark, short hair, cropped on the sides and faded towards the back. His skin was fair and free of imperfections. A cleanly shaven, broad jawline was matched by equally broad shoulders, chest, and arms. He also wore a bow tie and white silk gloves all under a black cotton overcoat.

The seemingly handsome man led her into the ballroom. The large room was full of men and women dressed in classy tuxedoes and elegant gowns. The decorations were black and white matching most of the guest's outfits. A younger man came up to them at the door he offered to take the older man's coat and gloves. Once he was given them, he disappeared for a few seconds then returned. The man next to Lullaby reached into his tux jacket and pulled out two invitations. He gave them to the young man. The man read them, then smiled at the couple.

"Mr. and Mrs. Johnson. Such a pleasure to see you two again." He gestured for them to enter.

"It's Russo," Lullaby called out as she was being dragged toward the ballroom by Mr. Johnson.

He chuckled, "It's fine, honey. An honest mistake."

He wrapped his arm around her waist as they walked through the sea of people. Waiters carried trays of food and champagne were scattered amongst the glamorous people. A young waiter, no more than nineteen, passed her with a tray of champagne. Lullaby's nimble fingers swiped a full glass, then she winked at the teenager making his face turn red.

"Richard!" She heard the voice of an older man call from a few feet away. He was calling to the man whose arm was around Lullaby. Richard led her over to an older couple. The older man had fading brown hair with silver sides. Mild wrinkles around his eyes. He looked at least fifty years old. The woman on his arm looked around fifty also. Though she looked like she was desperately holding on to her youth. Her bleach blonde hair was permed in tight curls. And her face was forced from wrinkles. 'One too many facelifts.'

"Ah, Richard," the old man said, clapping him on the shoulder. "Didn't think you would make it. Who is this gorgeous specimen on your arm tonight?"

Richard chuckled, "Oh. James, this is my wife. Melody Johnson."

"Melody Russo," she corrected her husband as she reached not to shake James' hand.

James took her hand and laid a kiss on the back of it, then smiled at her. She flashed him a small fake smile as she retracted her hand, wiping it on the skirt of her dress.

"Melody was very persistent about keeping her name when we got married." His grip on her hip tightened, pulling her closer to his body. "I just couldn't tell her no."

Melody rolled her eyes and took a sip of her champagne. "A very lovely bride, Ricky. And Russo? Is that Italian?" James asked.

"Greek," Melody answered.

"Very exotic," the woman next to James chimed in.

"Oh, how rude of me," James exclaimed. "This is my wife, Catherine—"

"Catherine Worthington. President of the James Worthington foundation," the woman interruption. She shook hands with Melody and Richard kissed her hand.

"My better half," James said with a smile.

"And what is it you do?" Melody asked, trying to sound as polite as possible.

"I'm just a simple lawyer and philanthropist. Accounting and fraud cases mostly. But most of my time these days goes to charity work."

"And what is it that you do, dear?" Catherine asked Melody with a smile.

"Um… Online Journalism. Women's health blogs," she lied as she finished her champagne. Another waiter walked by and she casually, but swiftly, grabbed another glass, while placing the empty glass in its place.

Richard chuckled to his colleague. "She gets lonely when I'm away on business. Her work keeps her busy at the house."

The couple laughed as Melody rolled her eyes, which went unnoticed by the others.

"Well Melody," Catherine said. "I bet it is very lonely in that big house of yours. Have you two had any plans of children?"

Melody nearly choked on her drink, but she caught herself. She laughed nervously. Her husband answered for her.

"We're still young, Catherine. Maybe someday in the future. Right, hon?"

Melody gently pushed away from Richard.

"If you'll please excuse me. I think I need a stronger drink to get through this conversation," Melody excused herself quickly. As she left, she felt a squeeze on her ass from her husband. Her stomach churned in disgust. She ignored him and disappeared into the crowd. Her champagne still in her hand, she made her way to the other side of the ballroom. A slightly older man looked her up and down, smirking. She flashed him a charming smile and curved her body in a flirtatious way. She handed him the champagne glass and winked at him. Her hand lingered on his for a minute. Soon, his eyes glazed over, her hand slipped from his. She turned away and continued walking. The man blinked a few times, then turned back to the crowd, as if nothing had happened.

Melody reached the bar. Only a few people were there, mostly men that were alone. The bartender came up to her and smiled. "What can I get you, sweetheart?" His skin was tanned and he had short dark brown hair that had been shaved into some sort of tribal design. A five-o'clock shadow lined his jawline and the bottom of his cheeks. From what she could see he wore a tight black button down shirt with black dress pants. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and the top buttons of his shirt were undone.

"Double whiskey. Neat."

"Big drink for a beautiful woman," the bartender said grinning at her. "On the house. I never charge pretty girls."

Melody raised an eyebrow at him. He set a small, wide glass full of a dark golden brown liquid. She downed the whole glass in one large gulp. The warm, burn tingled against her throat. The man behind the bar chuckled at her antics and poured her a second drink.

"Rich ass of a husband?" he asked.

She drank half of her second drink. "Something like that."

Melody heard a series of beeps and vibrations coming from her clutch purse. She pulled her iPhone out and checked the screen. The contact name at the top of the screen read 'Douchepool' with a skull and poop emoji next to it. She quickly finished the rest of her drink and politely excused herself. Melody swiftly left the ballroom and found a semi-abandon hallway.

She swiped the screen to answer the call.

"Johnny's whore house. You got the dough, we got the hoe," she said as an opening line.

"Ah yes, I'd like to leave a review about one of your girls. She goes by the name Lullaby, but I think her name on file in your system is Melody."

Her breath caught in her throat and her eyes went wide. She stayed silent, not wanting to know he got to her.

"I'm smarter than you think, Mel-Mel."

She cringed at the new nickname he gave her. "How did you find out?"

"Read it in the paragraph before I called."

"Excuse me?"

"…. Hacked into the C.I.A. and S.H.I.E.L.D. database."

"Oh really? The two-bit mercenary, Wade Wilson did something that Ironman, or Professor Xavier, couldn't do?"

"You shouldn't underestimate me, babe. I'm full of surprises, too."

"What did you see?" Melody's voice sounded as if it was hiding behind anxiety.

"Don't worry, baby. Only the name. You look good, by the way."

She glanced around the hallway. She noticed a huge window overlooking the street and buildings across from the ballroom. She walked over to it and looked out.

"Where are you?" Melody asked keeping her voice steady.

"Nowhere important," Deadpool said nonchalantly. "White is an amazing color on you."

"What? Are you stalking me now? How long has it been since you've gotten laid?"

"As of now… an hour and a half."

She rolled her eyes at the obvious answer.

"So, who's the guy?"

"None of your concern," she said almost too quickly.

"Defensive now, are we?" Deadpool said with a chuckle.

"Why are you calling me?"

"Can't I just call to chat?" He asked with a shred of innocent in his voice.

Melody pinched the bridge of her nose. "You're making me regret giving you this number."

"Awe, come on baby. I'm just trying to protect you. So much innocence gets destroyed out in the big world," his voice got lower with each word. "I'd hate to see that happen to you."

She tried to contain a snorting laugh, but it broke through her in a side-splitting cackle. "Protect me? Which one of us got a fucking sword through the chest, pinning them to the roof of a building? Cause, if my memory fails me, it was you. I think I can handle myself out there, Wade."

"Who's the suit, Mel?" Deadpool asked, dodging her questions.

"You really won't let this go, will you?" She sighed.

"I don't like not knowing things," he said matter-of-factly.

She stayed silent. Deadpool must've gotten bored because he started humming early '90s pop/rap songs.

"His name's Richard. He's…. a friend."

She mentally scolded herself, but she didn't really care.

"A friend?"

"Yes, a friend. He was escorting me to this gala. Trust me, you show up to something like this alone. Some rich old bitch will try to set you up with her sixteen-year-old fuckboy grandson."

Deadpool clicked his teeth, "You didn't invite me? Why do you keep trying to hurt me, babe? It's like you're not putting any thought into our relationship."

"Didn't think this would've been your kind of party, Wade." Layers of sarcasm covered her voice. "Please, how can I make it up to you?"

"What time do you ditch the Stiff?"

"Around midnight."

"Midnight? The night's still so young. I'll pick you up at your place. Take you for a real night on the town. When's your curfew, sweetheart?"

"A curfew would imply that I sleep."

"So all-nighter? That's more my style. What do you say?"

Melody silently pondered the thought. "Tell me where you are, then I'll consider it."

"Does that mean yes?"

"….maybe…." Melody heard her name being called.

"Café balcony across the street."

Melody turned to look out the gigantic window. Her eyes scanned the balcony café that was halfway up the building across the street. They stopped when they saw the familiar shade of red sitting at a gray metal table.

Deadpool. His feet were propped up on the tabletop, a retro flip phone in his left hand up by his ear. He looked up at her and waved like a child.

"So we on for tonight?" He said through the phone, but not breaking eye contact with her.

"Melody?" A male voice called from the hallway.

Melody looked back quickly to catch a glance of Richard on the other end of the hall. She turned back to the window and kept her voice low. "…Fine. Pick me up at one."

She heard a quick, "See you then, Princess." before she hung up the phone. She turned back to head down the hall toward Richard.

"I've been looking for you everywhere," he said rushing up to her.

"Sorry. I needed some air," Melody said hastily leading him back to the ballroom and away from the window.

"They're about to start with the head speaker. I wanted you to see. It should be fascinating." He locked arms with her and they walked into the ballroom again.

'Why are we here again?' She asked herself. Melody glanced over her shoulder at the window, her phone still warm and resting in the palm of her hand. Part of her was sick of Wade. But another part wanted to stay in that hallway and call him back. She surrendered to her unwilling state of mind and continued into the gala with her husband.

She checked the time on her phone. 11:05 pm.

'Just fifty-five minutes.'

Melody sighed and disappeared into the crowd behind Richard.