WinterWitch: Control

Chapter 25

James POV

My shoulder was being jabbed. That's how I awoke that morning.

Groaning, I opened one eye, noticing Wanda fast asleep with her arm drawn over my torso. I could easily slip away if I needed to.

My head slowly turned around to see Steve and Natalia hovering above me. Steve's eyebrows were raised, an 'I told you so' look on his face. Natalia just seemed amused by the whole situation, smirking at me as I lay there.

The redhead lying on me moaned as I tried to move away. Grimacing, I slipped my legs from the warmth of the bed and tried to move my top half away, carefully letting her lie on the mattress. I saw a small frown grow on her face and wanted nothing more than to reach out and smooth it away. I resisted since Steve and Natalia were standing right behind me. I didn't want them to make more fun out of me than they were already going to.

I turned to face them with a bored expression. Natalia pointed to the clothes I had taken off last night and I followed her orders, dressing quickly and following them out of the door so Wanda would not be disturbed.

Once the door was shut, I headed for Wanda's kitchen.

"What was-"

"Hang on," I interrupted Steve as I quickly filled a glass of water and headed back towards the bedroom. I placed the glass on her bedside, sparing a glance at her. Even though she was hungover with messy hair, she still looked beautiful somehow. I wanted to get back into bed with her, but I had the interview to get on with.

Stepping into the bathroom, I looked for some ibuprofen. After finding the medication, I placed it next to the water. I grabbed the set of post-it notes that were on her table and wrote 'Eat and drink this. I'll meet you on the jet to Wakanda. J x'

I placed the note with the two items, took one last look at her beautiful face and returned to the living room, carefully shutting the door behind me.

I slowly turned around. Steve and Natalia who both had their arms crossed. A few seconds of silence passed between us. I wondered what they were thinking. I was fed up of nothing happening and moved to the kitchen island to grab a piece of fruit when Natalia spoke.

"You love her, don't you." I immediately stopped. Was she jokin?

"What?" I'd thought about the concept the other day, but I didn't know what to think.

"She's right," Steve agreed. I turned to him, my frown deepening. Why was he on her side? "I'm not saying in what way, maybe you don't know yourself, but anyone paying attention can see how much you care for her."

I pushed passed them and grabbed an apple from Wanda's fruit basket. "This is a stupid conversation."

"It's nothing bad, James. If anything, it's probably good for you," Natalia argued. I rolled my eyes and turned to face them again.

"I don't. I can't."

"Why not?" Steve retorted, moving to stand next to me. He wasn't angry or trying to push a feeling on me, but it almost felt that way.

"Because I'm me, Steve," I told him simply. "HYDRA fucked up my brain, alright?!" I half-shouted, moving to look out of the window. All of this was so complicated. I knew I had a connection with her, but it might've just been her powers affecting my head and the fact I nearly spent every day with her. The thing was that I wanted to spend every day with her.

I sighed and shook my head, calming my mind for a moment. I knew I couldn't just keep these feelings bottled up. Honestly, Natalia and Steve were the best people to tell. They could keep a secret if their lives depended on it.