INFERNO │ Marvel

5.3 in pursuit

After a bite to eat, the pair had returned to Steve's apartment. She had wanted to fly, but he insisted, more ordered, that she ride on the back of his motorcycle and avoid causing any trouble with law enforcement. It wasn't like she hadn't done it before and gotten away with it. The man was just a buzz kill. And annoyingly responsible.

"That is so nice," Steve's neighbour said through her phone as she exited her apartment with a basket of laundry under her arm. She greeted the two as they passed. "Hi."

"Hey," Amelia whispered. Between the phone call and the way Steve was looking at the woman, it was rather awkward for her.

"I got to go, though. Okay. Bye," she said before hanging up and turning her attention fully to the pair. "My aunt, she's kind of an insomniac."

Amelia had nodded and made for Steve's own apartment, but he had stayed behind her, keeping eye contact with the literal girl next door. Talk about being a third wheel.

"Hey, if you want..." he started. "If you want, you're welcome to use my machine. Might be cheaper than the one in the basement."

"Yeah? What's it cost?"

"A cup of coffee?" he suggested. Amelia raised her eyebrow.

"Thank you, but I already have a load in downstairs," the woman replied. "And you really don't want my scrubs in your machine. I just finished a rotation in the infectious disease ward, so..."

"Well, I'll keep my distance."

"Hopefully, not too far. But... don't want to get your famous friend sick either," she said, gesturing to Amelia, recognition in her eyes. "And I think you left your stereo on."

"Right," Steve murmured as his neighbour walked away. "Thank you. Yeah."

"Was that really your attempt at flirting?" Amelia questioned as Steve moved to unlock his door. Of course, she didn't know that Steve hadn't actually left his stereo on.

"What? No," he denied. He pushed open the door to reveal the darkness of the apartment inside.

"I'm gonna have to tell Natasha about this," she chuckled while Steve moved into the room.

"Please don't," he pleaded, though his tone was not light or joking.

Amelia began to catch on and her nerves skyrocketed, reaching their peak as the man picked up his shield. She conjured a fiery dagger into her own hand. The flames provided a small amount of light that allowed them to see a shadowed figure sat in the corner of the room, none other than Nick Fury.

"I don't remember giving you a key," Steve pointed out as he leant against the wall. Nick grunted in pain when he sat up in the chair, making the both of them narrow their eyes at him.

"You really think I'd need one?" he asked. "I wasn't expecting you to have guests, either. My wife kicked me out."

"Didn't know you were married," Amelia chipped in, dissipating the dagger in her hands.

"A lot of things you don't know about me."

"We know, Nick," Steve mumbled. "That's the problem."

Steve moved to switch on the lamp by the chair, but Nick switched it right back off after the two caught sight of his bloodied face. At this point, Amelia's eyes were scanning the entire place, searching for potential threats. Nick held up his phone to them, the words 'EARS EVERYWHERE' written across the screen.

"I'm sorry to have to do this," he continued nonchalantly. Amelia resisted the urge to begin sweeping the room for hidden bugs. She had been here multiple times before and never noticed anything strange. "But I had no place else to crash."