He brought me back to life; A Captain America romance; Book one.

Chapter 12; S.H.I.E.L.D

I wait nervously in the jet hanger, sitting on a desk and swinging my legs back and forth. The horror of the last 30 minutes replaying in my mind. I cannot believe I did that. That noise! I cringe. And poor Steve, his nose shattered, thanks to me. Although, as bad as I feel about busting him up, I have to admit, it feels pretty good to know that my weeks of training are paying off.

I hear Steve and Tony arguing in the corridor and jump down from the desk. They burst through the door, screaming at each other. "I don't give a damn what you say, Stark, this is not a good idea!" Steve shouts, his face red with anger. "Jesus, Rogers, do you always have to be such a bummer?" Tony quips, but reels it in when he notices Steve clenching his fists. "Besides, I told you, Fury knows an attack is the last thing these morons actually want. They're just measuring dicks." Tony says dismissively. "What's going on?" I ask confused. "Nothing." Steve replies, bluntly. "Not nothing," Tony Snaps. "Captain misery guts, here, doesn't want you to go to D.C. because he has a bad feeling, but I'm trying to tell him that everything's fine and that it'll be good for you to get out of the compound and meet some of the agents. You know, get you feeling more involved before the mission next week." Tony says, nudging me with his elbow. My stomach does a flip and I look at Steve, my eyes wide with panic. "Fine," Steve sighs. "Come on," he barks at me and walks up the jet ramp without looking my way. "Tony, what's going on, seriously?" I ask, unable to hide the concern in my voice. "Nothing. He's just being pissy. Those activist idiots that Fury's been consulting him about are worrying him, that's all." I look at him, sceptically. "Maybe I shouldn't go, Tony." I reply, worried. "It's fine! If they actually think they can even get close to S.H.I.E.L.D HQ to try cause some damage, then they're too stupid to succeed." He laughs. I shrug and turn to join Steve in the Jet. "Have fun being a pin cushion, Cap," Tony quips on his way out the door.

As I walk up the ramp, slowly, I suddenly can't help but think that's it's been not the complete nightmare, living with Tony, I thought it would be. Yeah, I don't actually see him that often because he's always working on something in his lair, but we haven't fought in a long time. It's nice.

I clear my throat as I step onto the jet and look at Steve. He's fiddling with the fuel gauge, ignoring me. Great. He's really pissed at me. I sigh and take a seat towards the back of the jet, hoping he'll call me back to sit beside him. He doesn't. The flight lasts less than an hour in the jet. We land and pull into the S.H.I.E.L.D hanger. I undo my belt and cautiously make my way over to him. He looks miserable and still hasn't looked at me at all. He pokes around at some buttons, procrastinating. I can't believe I've messed this up. Just when I was starting to feel like we were becoming close. I'm an idiot.

"Steve?" He finally turns to stare at me, swallowing hard. "Are we okay?" I feel my voice catching in my throat. He notices and his hard expression changes immediately. "We're fine," he smiles softly. I return his smile, tenderly. "I'm sorry, Ellie, I'm just tired, I guess," he admits, standing up and putting on his leather jacket and baseball cap. "I noticed." I pause. "That's the only reasonable explanation for me being able to kick your ass earlier, right? I mean, you could have destroyed me with one swing." I tease, trying to lighten the mood and hoping to get a smile out of him. Unfortunately, my comment has the opposite effect I wanted. He looks horrified. His hand is suddenly on my face, cupping my cheek. I gaze up at him, startled. "I would never, ever, do anything to hurt you, Ellie." My breathing is laboured, the vulnerability in him scaring me a little. "All I want for you is to finally feel safe," he whispers the last three words through clenched teeth. I'm speechless and confused. Why did he say "finally?" We lock eyes for a moment before I grab his hand and pull it from my cheek, clearing my throat. "Well, sorry I mangled your face." I say, shakily and turn to the door. He's beside me now, putting on sunglasses and smirking. "Come on," he huffs, let's get this over with."