'𝐈 𝐖𝐈𝐒𝐇 𝐈 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐋𝐃 𝐁𝐄 𝐀 𝐁𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐌𝐄, 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐘𝐎𝐔.'
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Even if every memory from 1917 comes roaring back to you, being a former Hydra assassin means you can never get a break. Since Beverly is on a mission of redemption, she respo...
Silence is a tricky thing. You don't know if and when you should interrupt it, or what to say. The silence in the lab right now is painful, the tension could be cut with a knife. And I would love to be the one to do it. I can't bare it as we all watch Shuri begin to dissect the mind stone from Vision's head. He has his eyes closed as she does so, being insanely calm. I can imagine what it feels like.
The only sound stopping the silence is the clicking of the tools as they connect with the stone. We are all on the edge as she does her work. A few people have walked away from the bed and sat down, knowing that this is going to take a while. But, Wanda hasn't moved since it all started. I can see the evident nerves on the surface as Wanda watches Shuri work, so a while ago, I wrapped my arm around Wanda's, holding her hand.
No one has dared to say anything, to stop the flow of Shuri's work, but I just can't help it anymore. Since I had a second to finally look around the room since she began to work, I noticed the absence of other members of the group. My mind is too fast to catch up to my lips and stop myself from speaking.
"Where are Tony and Peter?" I ask.
A few people look up from the bed or the floor, but no one speaks. I'm not sure if it's because they don't want to distract Shuri, or if they don't want to answer me. From the looks on their faces, I can tell it was the second choice. They all look guiltily at me, not making eye contact. Just before I begin to crawl into the corner of the room and regret asking the question, Wanda looks up at me.
"We don't have any idea." She explains. "They were fighting some of Thanos' men and we don't know where they went."
My entire body stiffens at her words, and my lips part as my voice gets stuck in my throat. I've always been an overthinker, and in certain situations, it has helped me. When fighting, I always expect the worst, and end up combating it, realising that my anticipations were over my head. But, right now, my mind is my worst enemy. I can't help but stress over the absence of Tony and Peter. I can't lose anyone else. I can't lose a family member. Not again.
"Okay, look," Shuri sighs. "I have no idea how long this is going to take and all your eyes on me are stressing me out."
"We just need this done quickly." Steve mumbles.
"I know that, but I can't work with all of you in here."
"What are you asking us?" Bruce speaks up.
"I need you all to leave me to work," Shuri explains.
"What!" Wanda looks at her nervously.
"Don't worry, you can stay. I know you won't get in my way." Shuri smiles. "But, everyone else needs to leave."
No one argues against her as she glares at us, forcing us out of the room with her eyes. A few people mumble as they walk out of the room, obviously annoyed at her instructions. But, I understand why she is doing it. She has the pressure of needing everything to go right in order for us to be able to save the world. I know everyone else knows this too, but they are so nervous about the upcoming fight that they aren't thinking about what to do.
As we walk out of the room, I get a glimpse of Steve storming down the hallway in anger. I don't know why he is so angry, but I can't help my mind from wandering. I can't stop thinking that this is our last fight to save the world, and things might not go right. The odds aren't exactly in our favour. So, I pick up the pace, making it towards Steve. I grab his arm, making him stop his movements. He turns around, sees me holding him, and rips his arm from my hold.
"Can everyone give me a minute with Steve, please?" I ask.
Everyone looks nervous as they walk into a side room, side-eyeing us as they do. Bucky is hesitant before he walks behind them, nervously looking at Steve and me. I smile at him, reassuring him that everything will be fine. I don't want to start a fight. Steve doesn't look at me as I stand in front of him, clearly tense.
"Look, I know that you don't want to talk to me, let alone be in the same room as me, but I just have to say this." I stammer. "If Thanos is coming for us all, then we may not be able to say everything we need to each other."
"Okay?" He rolls his eyes.
"We should say whatever we need to say to each other, right now."
I wait for him to speak, but he isn't even looking at me. He refuses to speak, and I know that if I don't, he will leave. I take a chance, knowing that this may be the last time I can say what I truly need him to hear. I take a deep breath before looking him in the eyes, but his gaze is situated on the floor.
"I can't apologize in any different ways, but please know that with every fibre of my being, I am sorry. If I could take it all back, I would do it in a heartbeat. I can't even imagine what you feel like, but I can't keep living like this. I hate knowing that you hate me. It hurts, Steve."
"Look, I know you did what you had to, to survive," He sighs. "But, I just can't forgive you yet."
"I know, and I'm not asking you to. I just can't keep having you hate me. I just needed you to know how much I regret everything that I did. Take all the time that you need, Steve. I'm not going anywhere."
His eyes finally lift from the floor, and he looks at me. There is a ghost of a smile on his face, and that sight brings tears to my eyes. I finally have a sliver of hope that we can get back to the old us. It will obviously be different, but I will take anything at this point. I just need my brother back.
"After all of this is over, you could come with me to visit the cemetery. Shuri and T'Challa let me make one in the mountains." I smile.
His eyebrows raise at my words, but he quickly recovers. It is clear that he was shocked that I have made a grave for Peggy, but of course, I did. I loved her like she was family. She was just as much of my sister as Steve is my brother. She deserved the gravestone from me, and I will make sure that she lives through me in my legacy.
"Okay, that would be good." He agrees.
I smile at him, reaching my hand out. He hesitantly takes it, just before I regret my decision and retracts it. We walk through the hall and towards the door that the group went through a few minutes ago. Through the side window beside the door, I can see them all nervously sitting down on the couches, listening out for the shouting that was expected to come from Steve and me. I open the door, alerting everyone as we walk in. They smile, seeing that our hands are joined. Bucky especially is ecstatic, knowing that his two best friends are finally okay with each other.
