🖤EMERGE🖤

Chapter 2

I swear, within seconds, I'm being dragged out of a deep sleep by Dad's voice booming through the fog of my dreams. "Wake up, sleepyhead!" he calls, his voice filled with the kind of energy that only comes from too much caffeine at 6 a.m. "We've got business to attend to, let's go!"

I bury my face deeper into my pillow, trying to block him out, but it's no use. He launches himself onto my bed, jumping up and down like a man possessed. The mattress bounces under his weight, and I feel the vibration in my bones.

"Come on! There's coffeeeee!" he singsongs in a way that's so damn obnoxious I want to throw something.

Groaning, I throw the pillow over my head, but it doesn't stop him. In one swift motion, he yanks the blanket off me, and the chill of the air hits my skin like a slap.

"Don't make me shout your nickname for all of New York to hear!"

That damn nickname. It's a good thing it's never stuck outside the family, or I'd be hearing it from every corner of the city.

I grab my pillow and hurl it at him with as much force as I can muster, feeling the frustration of the morning claw at my insides. It lands with a soft thud as I sit up, rubbing my face with my hands. "Seriously? Can't you be a normal dad? You know, the kind who says, 'Get your ass up or you're grounded?'"

I hear him laughing as I stand up, stumbling toward the bathroom.

"Drink some coffee and get dressed. We're going to be late," he calls from the kitchen.

I roll my eyes so hard it feels like they're going to get stuck in the back of my skull.

"Hey. Lose the attitude," he shoots back, but there's a hint of a grin in his voice.

I step into the kitchen and grab a mug from the counter, filling it with coffee, the smell instantly waking me up—though not quite enough to shake the lingering exhaustion in my bones. I lean against the counter, sipping it slowly, trying to wake up as the heat floods my body.

"Didn't sleep well," I mutter under my breath, but he's already heading toward the door, his voice filling the space again.

I head back to my room, pulling off the sweats and throwing on my mission gear underneath my regular clothes. The tight fit of the tactical outfit feels like a second skin. It's too much for the morning, but I have no choice.

"Let's go before I change my mind," I mutter, grabbing my jacket and walking out of the room.

Dad is kissing Pepper goodbye in the hallway, his demeanor far too casual for what we were about to face. I head out the door before I change my mind, the weight of the day already pressing down on me.

The drive to the base is silent, the tension thick in the air. When we get there, Dad's tone turns serious, his voice cutting through the low hum of the engine as he lays out the mission. "This target is extremely dangerous. He stole the Tesseract and kidnapped Dr. Erik Selvig and Agent Barton."

I try to focus on his words, but my mind can't seem to settle. The thought of someone having the Tesseract... the power, the danger... it makes my skin crawl.

Dad steps behind me, and I feel his presence at my back like a constant reminder that I can't drop my guard. "He's headed to Germany, why?" I ask, but my voice doesn't sound like me. It's sharp, too tense. I stop walking when I catch sight of Steve and Natasha sitting together.

I freeze, eyes narrowing. "Really? You assigned them too?" My voice is clipped, the annoyance crawling into my chest like an uncomfortable itch I can't scratch.

Dad keeps walking, though, like he didn't even hear me, and sits across from them, his expression unreadable. Natasha looks awkwardly over to Steve, but it's clear she's trying to play it cool. Dad intertwines his fingers together, smirking like this is all a game.