From Present to Past - The Tigris Series Book 3

Chapter Three

A/N - I'm baaaack~
- A

April 28th, 2015

I stayed standing in the same corner of the jet throughout the rest of the flight back to the compound, staring down at my feet with my arms crossed, lost in my thoughts.

A typical stance to find me in, according to Stark.

My anxiety was practically spiking from the mere thought of attending a party. Back in the day, before Hydra, the old me would be thrilled to attend and socialize with new groups of people; but, now, all I can think of are all of the horrid memories of the ones I've attended since then.

I had an undercover mission back in '57 that landed me in a more elegant event in France. All of the important officials attended them regularly for their more shady businesses with neighboring countries, disguising the get-togethers as what is understood today as more of a "welcome party," thrown together by the rich. My mission was to attend as one of Hydra's higher-ups' dates, accompanying him as he struck a deal with one of France's political leaders to ensure everything went according to plan. It didn't, of course.

Needless to say, a lot of people died that day over four million dollars.

The party I attended after that was in '74 in a club, deep in the heart of New Orleans. The mission was a simple assassination assignment: find the target and get rid of it, no witnesses. It was easy to find the man, and even easier to get him alone; but, much to my surprise, the man had an undocumented security team. The situation escalated, and to make a long story short, that building is no longer standing, to this day.

More and more stories filled my mind of each party I've been to, following those particularly bad two. I quickly realized that things always went south at every single party I've gone to, making my anxiety that much worse. Though this would be the only one I go to where I'm not on a mission, there's very little that leads me to believe that it'll be any different.

Especially if it's Stark that throws it.

"You okay?" Steve hushed voice cut through my thoughts, causing my gaze to shoot up to meet his.

"Yeah. Why?" I muttered, subconsciously hugging my arms slightly closer to my chest.

He let out a brief sigh, clearly disappointed with my effort to hide my clear distress. "You know, for someone who's supposed to be an expert at lying, you've been pretty terrible at it."

I rolled my eyes, looking away from him in slight annoyance. "Says the king of terrible liars, himself."

He huffed out a brief chuckle, glancing away from me only briefly before gazing down at me once again. "Look, I know you're nervous."

"The word nervous is an understatement." I cut him off, avoiding his gaze as I hugged my arms closer to my chest, eyeing the others in the jet as they conversed amongst themselves. "I'm terrified."

He sighed, and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Hey, if it really makes you that uncomfortable, then you don't have to come. I'm sure they'll understand."

I glanced up at him again, meeting his bright blue gaze with a slight frown. "They're counting on me to go."

"It's only because they want you to loosen up, a little. A lot of people throw parties like this to let off some stress and have a good time. I understand that it can be overwhelming, but I also think it could be really good for you if you give it a chance." he stated, keeping his hand on my shoulder.

I considered his words for a few moments, looking away from him again while I weighed my options. If things were to go well, it could be good for me. If it doesn't, the worst that could happen would be a continual streak of "parties gone wrong," with some damage to Stark's tower. I needed to remember that I'm not working on life or death terms anymore.