Never Alone Again |N.R|

What have you got?

Tony almost jumped in surprise when I stormed into the lab, my face accurately conveying just how pissed I was at Natasha. "Got anything new?" I questioned, now pulling up a seat to sit across from him.

"It's a bit early don't you think kid." I didn't have time for the niceties.

"No, it's the perfect time. What do you have?" Tony quickly caught on to my mood, realising I wasn't here to make jokes.

"Alright. Well, I've got a few names. I don't know if any of them will mean anything to you."

"Okay perfect. Just read them out and I'll tell you to stop if any of them ring a bell."

"They're just surnames, but here goes. Ivanov, Golubev, Zaitsev, Angelou, Balakin, Dreykov-" It couldn't be.

"Wait what? Dreykov?"

"Yes, Dreykov. Why, do you recognise it?"

"General Dreykov. He's been there from the beginning, everyone says he's worse than Madame B. He must've been the person we were going to meet, her superior." I was thinking out loud now, all of the pieces fitting together as I continued to toy with all of the information. How couldn't I have guessed that it would be him?

"Progress. I'll keep digging on him and find out everything I can. We're getting there."

"Not soon enough. This needs to happen soon, I think people are getting suspicious."

"By people, do you mean Natasha?"

"Yeah, I suppose."

"Just carry on as you are kid. She'd never suspect this so long as neither of us let it slip. Can you handle that?"

"Of course I can. Just keep me updated, please."

"Sure thing" Tony replied as I slipped out of his lab, but now there was a look of triumph on my face. It wasn't all that obvious, but if you looked close enough you'd be able to see my mouth pulling up ever so slightly at the corners. Dreykov. My heart skipped a beat at the thought of bringing him down once and for all, for ending his reign and that of his organisation. But like Tony said, I need to keep this under wraps, so there was no room for celebration. I needed to keep this secret, and now with pushing Natasha away again, I had nobody to spill my feelings to either. The final breakthrough couldn't come soon enough.

I was sweaty after my training with Steve, but Natasha would likely be in our room waiting for me to return so showering there wasn't an option. Instead I walked straight past and pushed open the door to my old room. Tony had said I could keep some of my things in there, the things that Natasha didn't have room for when I moved in with her, so there were just a few boxes piled against the back wall. I'd kept some of my clothes in the wardrobe too. Just joggers, T-shirts, hoodies and some underwear. Almost like I knew I'd seek refuge in this room at some point in the future. I grabbed a change of clothes before heading into the bathroom, although I didn't bother with the joggers because I'd keep my leggings on. Needed to be dressed for the next training session that was in a couple of hours now.

I took my time under the warm water, closing my eyes and breathing deeply as it cascaded down my back. I would've fallen asleep if I wasn't standing up, although it wouldn't be the first time I'd fallen asleep stood up. I must've been in the shower for at least half an hour, losing track of time as I lazily washed myself and my hair. When I stepped out I quickly wrapped my shivering body up in a towel and stood in front of the fogged mirror. Slowly, the humidity in the room dissipated and I could see my reflection clearly. I looked awful, tired, worn out, disconnected but most surprising of all, I looked sad. Sadness wasn't often something I allowed myself to feel in its truest form, usually conveying it as anger. But I could see it so clearly in my eyes, in the tears that constantly threatened to fall despite me not knowing. Sadness because I'd lost Natasha again, she'd lost sight of who I was and what I needed, instead focusing on the vulnerable 'kid' that stood before her who couldn't possibly know what was good for her.