My Angel - Sam Wilson

Part 1

New 2018

Sam only needed to take one look at Torres's state to know that they had a big problem on their hands.

The poor young man had stitches on the side of his head, mixed with dark bruising. This had been the Flag Smashers' doing.

"Yeah, it was pretty bad, happened so fast.  But I was helped out by someone who claims to be a friend of yours-" The video call screen turned and when another person entered the frame, Sam felt his breath catch in his throat.

"Hello Sam." She smiled and waved.

"Alex-" He couldn't believe it.  "Is that really you?"

She chuckled at his disbelief.  "Yes. Joaquin here was talking about a guy with wings and I wondered how many of those there were out there."

"True. What are  you doing in Switzerland?"

"Investigating the Flag Smashers myself. That's how I met Joaquin - though not before he got hurt, I'm afraid."

"Hey, it would've been a lot worse had you not jumped in," Torres assured her.

After that, Sam wasted no time in readying himself for a trip to Germany for his own investigation.

"Now Redwing tracked them to a building somewhere outside of Munich so that's where I'm going."

"Well I don't trust Redwing," said Bucky as he and Carina stopped Sam on the tarmac.

"You don't have to, but I'mma go see if he's right."

"I'm coming with you."

"No you're not."

"Play nice, boys," Carina called after them, and that was that: they were going together, whether they liked it or not.

Or not.

Ahead of Bucky who was still recovering from his jump from the jet, Sam engaged Redwing, sending the drone into a seemingly abandoned building.  He watched from the little screen on his wrist as Redwing closed in on a figure inside the otherwise abandoned building - at least this part of it. After all, this was where he had managed to track the Flag Smashers to. 

She turned around and smiled into the screen as the drone  hovered before her.  "Hello, Sam."

Now Sam jogged to catch up with Redwing.

And suddenly, there she was. Not through a screen, but before his eyes in real life. For the first time in seven years.

Of all the times he had imagined being reunited with her over the years, this turned out to be even better than anything he could have imagined. Despite the context of tracking a radical new group, it was perfect. 

"Hello, my angel."

It was then that he realized he hadn't said anything yet, shocked into silence by her presence here with him. "Alex," was all he managed to say. 

"I missed you - it was a long five years."

"I can imagine. God, I missed you, too.  You seem like you're doing well."

"Well, yeah. And yourself?"

"Yeah - resettling back into life hasn't been so smooth. And the family business is struggling."

"I'm sorry, I can't imagine-"

"Ah hem." Their moment - their reunion - was broken suddenly. They turned to see they were not alone. Bucky had caught up to them.