𝖑𝖊𝖌𝖆𝖈𝖎𝖊𝖘||𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖔𝖘

2.4

april 7 2007

It had been almost two months since she lived with Thomas Overton. Her life had changed, to say the least. Mornings that she used to spend training, she now spent on a small military base, undergoing experiments, psychological evaluations, and interviews with S.H.E.I.L.D along with the great General Ross.

Weekends were busy, spent cleaning Thomas's small house. The bathroom, living room, kitchen, and bedrooms, were all vacuumed, and scrubbed every Saturday and Sunday, without fall until every speck and spam of dirt was cleaned off of every single surface in their house.

Charlie was there sometimes, always loud, and mostly very annoying. He drank a lot of beer and put his feet up on the coffee table, to the annoyance of Thomas. Charlie and Nakia got into squabbles about almost everything. She hated how he never cleaned when he came over, she hated how he liked to watch true crime, and she hated how Charlie always asked where her real parents were. He always brought it up to Thomas when he came over, if someone had stepped up to report her as missing.

However, Charlie hated the little shit Thomas had invited into his home. And it wasn't because Nakia had attacked him the first time they met - it was the fact he thought she was a smartass. She bickered and complained and always vacuumed the carpet when Jerry Springer was on. It seemed like she didn't like Springer at all.

One of the first Saturdays she spent with the Overtons, while Thomas and Nakia were cleaning the kitchen Charlie cheerfully announced that Springer could help find Nakia's parents and get some child support.

Thomas had never seen the girl so upset. Families were a tricky subject for the young girl. She hated when anyone mentioned her father or her siblings. Nakia dropped her dishes and delivered a swift kick in Charlie's ribs bed she stormed off.

After forcing Charlie to apologize, he had gotten the two to at least respect each other, even though they mostly hated each other.

Now Thomas's older brother was on a business trip for the weekend which meant no Charlie, which meant no problems.

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At around three-thirty, Nakia was sweeping her room up. Thomas had left to get dinner, leaving her in the tiny house. As she swept she stumbled across her bag.

It was the very same bag that Nakia had left home with. She hadn't opened it since she packed her items in it months ago. She sighed as she pulled the bag closer to her and unzipped it.

Her walkman was the first thing she saw. She sighed as she slipped the headphones over her ears. She pressed play and the music began to play.

As the music enveloped her she laid on her bed and closed her eyes. She hugged her knees close as she couldn't take it anymore.

It was the first time in months that Nakia cried. No matter how hard he tried. And she tried. She tried so hard to forget.

Forget Luther and Allison and Vanya and Diego and Klaus and Five and Ben. She tried to drown out the trauma that Reginald caused her. But the more she tried to forget the more she remembered.

She began to sway her body as she cried. She had stopped wondering who to blame for her pain over time. The easiest answer would be her father. The man who made them who they were. He brought them on those dangerous missions. He pushed Number Five away. He showed them just how dangerous they were. Reginald made his children scared of themselves. How much lower could you get?

But then she had to think about her mother. The woman who gave her to the homicidal maniac. She had just given her up. It used to bother her as a child- why her mom was so quick to give up on her?

It was now dawning on her that she didn't have a chance in life. Neither did her siblings. They were all set up.

Like lambs to the slaughter.

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After an hour of laying on her bed, depression running through her veins, Nakia heard a doorbell ringing.

Rubbing her eyes she stood up and walked out of her room to the door. Thomas had warned her about the dangers of opening the door when he wasn't home. She jumped up and peeled through the door hole. She opened the door slowly.

"Phil," she smiled.

The man smiled down at her. "Hey, kid. Is Tip home?" Nakia shook her head.

"Do you want to come in and wait for him," she asked. "I'm sure he won't mind." Phil sighed and nodded, stepping in.

"How have you been," he asked, standing in the doorway. "Feels like we haven't spoken in a while." She shrugged.

"Did Thomas give that to you," Nakia raised an eyebrow. Phil pointed at her neck. "The walkman, was it a gift?"

"Oh, no," she spoke softly, "My brother gave it to me...a long time ago."

"Brother, huh," Phil said, walking to the kitchen. "You have siblings?" Nakia shrugged. "Not anymore, I messed it up."

Coulson took a seat at the island, motioning for Nakia to do the same.

"Messed it up how?"

"It's not important. But I left. And here I am."

"Yeah, here you are."

The two sat in silence for a while before Nakia blurted out, "Where's your family, Phil?"

The man smiled bitterly, "My parents passed when I was young. No siblings, though I always wanted a little brother."

"Dodged, a bullet," she muttered. "They turn on you as soon as you make a mistake. They pick at you're every move, never let anything go."

"Really," he asked. Nakia dropped her head in her hands.

"Hey, kid," Phil said. "It's okay. You're alright. You're safe here. With us." Nakia sniffed.

She didn't want to cry in front of Phil. The tears seemed to be streaming out.

"Hey," he whispered. "Have you ever heard of Captain America?" Nakia shook her head. "Well, he's really cool. Do you want me to tell you about him?"

Before Nakia could answer, the door opened.

"Why do people always feel the need to come over when I'm not home?" Thomas groaned.

"Hey man," Phil greeted.

"Hey," Thomas sighed. "Hey, kid." Nakia nodded.

"What's going on here," he said, walking to the kitchen.

"I was just about to Nakai here, about Captain America." The girl smiled.

"Well," Thomas chuckled. "Why don't you stay for dinner? We're having spaghetti and meatballs."

Phil looked at the young girl who grinned.

"You know what, I'd love to."

And as the three of them settled in for a long night, they had no idea the real dangers that were lurking outside waiting for them.