New Year's Day

Chapter 4

March 10th, 2015

I was in the Quinjet helping Bruce go over all our supplies to ensure we were ready to leave for the mission. We weren't departing until 1:00, but we both knew that there was no such thing as being early or too prepared.

"So," Bruce said suddenly. I paused from where I was taking an inventory at the weapons station and turned around to face him. He was in the middle of the jet at the medical table going through one of the emergency medkits. "Are you nervous?"

"Not any more than usual," I replied. It was mostly true, we'd been doing missions similar to this for a few months now, but something about today felt eerily different. I brushed it off as extra nerves.

"How about you?" I asked him. "Think we'll need to call a Code Green?"

"Well," he winced. It was quick, and I caught it, but I pretended not to notice. "I always think we will. I rather expect it and not need it than not expect it and... you know," he concluded.

I nodded. Code Greens always took a toll on him, I knew that. Not only was it physically exhausting, but Bruce didn't trust himself. There had been so many close calls with civilians and even the team that he never wanted to become The Hulk unless it was undoubtedly necessary.

"You know we all have your back no matter what, right?" I asked him. "I know you don't always trust yourself, but you're a member of this team because we trust you."

"Thanks, Alex," he blushed. "Let's just pray this goes as simply as possible."

"Agreed," I smiled, turning back to my inventory log.

At around 12:30 we all made our way to the locker rooms to change into our gear, and by 12:45 we were all crammed onto the jet. The Quinjet was a decent size, but it was less than comfortable with all 9 Avengers on board. Before we left, we all went to our respective weapons areas within the plane to make sure all our individual supplies were there, and after a quick roll call, we were ready to go.

    Clint was flying as usual, and I found a seat in between Sam and Natasha.

    "Hey," Sam greeted me with a devilish grin.

    "Hey Falcon," I rolled my eyes but smiled. "How are you doing?"

    "Well considering the fact that I'm sitting next to you, I'd say I'm doing just fine."

    I laughed, "I'm honored. How does it feel to be in the presence of the strongest Avenger?" Tony heard me and glanced up, giving me an annoyed look which I returned by sticking my tongue out at him.

The rest of the flight was filled with mixed conversation, games, and eventually, sleeping. It was around 10:00 by the time we landed, and we ended up in a safe house just outside of Sokovia. The people who owned the house were nice enough, they were an older couple who had ties to SHIELD through some war and offered to stick around and help out the cause when SWORD came around. All things considered, the house was huge, but there weren't enough rooms for everyone to sleep alone, so Nat and I agreed to room together. We were all a bit restless when we arrived, however, so instead of going to bed immediately, we stayed downstairs. Sam, Clint, Bruce, and Thor hung out outside the house for a while and Nat, Tony, Steve, Bucky, and I stayed in the living room talking.

    Nat and I were sandwiched on a loveseat in the corner of the room and Tony, Bucky, and Steve were squashed on a couch perpendicular to us. I rested my head on Nat's shoulder and listened to the boys talk for a while; they were having some dull conversation about foreign cars that I had little interest in joining but paid attention to nonetheless.

    After a while they quieted down and Steve stood, stretching his arms above his head. His shirt rose up above his pants slightly to reveal a thin strip of toned skin, and I caught Nat staring a little longer than was probably necessary. I nudged her with my elbow and she turned to me with a smirk on her face.

    "We'll leave here at about 10:00 tomorrow morning. The flight to the base is only about a half-hour, so if all goes according to plan, we should be heading home in the afternoon," said Steve. "I'll go outside and tell the others, but you all should probably head upstairs and get some rest. You'll need it."

    We all rose and said our goodnights, and Nat and I made our way up the stairs to our room. I opened the door and stopped dead in my tracks. The bed was definitely too small for both of us to sleep comfortably, but seeing how we were still the smallest on the team, we'd still have to make due.

    "I hope you know I talk in my sleep," Nat said, moving past me and tossing her small bag onto the floor.

    "I kick," I retorted.

    "I was joking!"

    "Sure," I added sarcastically, "me too."

Nat rolled her eyes and opened her bag to grab an oversized t-shirt and small makeup bag with her toothbrush in it, making her way to the small bathroom in the hall that we'd all be sharing. After a few minutes, she returned to the room, and I left with my things to go to the bathroom myself. However, when I got there, it was occupied, with Bucky standing at the sink with the door open brushing his teeth.

He turned his head and smiled at me, "Hey, doll."

"Hey, Buck. How are you holding up?" I responded.

He spit out his toothpaste and turned on the tap, gathering a bit of water in his hand to clean his mouth off. "Honestly, I'm not sure. I want to get the scepter back, but there's no way it'll be that easy," he said somberly.

"I was thinking the same thing," I started, leaning in the doorway and watching him wash his face, "I can't shake the idea that something's going to go wrong."

He grabbed a towel to dry his face and turned around to face me, leaning back on the counter. "Well, I know I can always count on you, partner," he winked. "Guess I'll see you in the morning," he added and walked out of the bathroom, brushing his hand over my shoulder to get past.

I changed and brushed my teeth, then made my way back to the bedroom to find Nat already passed out in the middle of the bed with her arm hanging off the side of the mattress.

"You've got to be kidding me," I muttered under my breath with a laugh, walking over to push Nat to her side of the bed.

That night I laid awake for what felt like hours, unable to succumb to sleep with the insatiable feeling of anxiety slowly rippling through my body. When I finally did relax into a dream, I was met with terrifyingly realistic images of battle, destruction, and my worst fears come to life.

What the hell was I walking into?