Sunflower

75

Silently I walked back to the kitchen, finding everyone still quiet and awkward. Steve immediately jumped up when noticing me, grabbing my attention.

Without a word I walked over to the coffee pot, picking it up and smelling it, just smelling decaf. With a groan I walked over to the sink, throwing it all out before throwing coffee in it and heating it up. In silence they all watched me get seven mugs out of the cupboard, placing them on the counter.

“Coffee, everyone?” I asked, not glancing at them.

“Yes please,” Carol said, before looking at the others.

Immediately they all agreed in, quietly, feeling quite awkward.

After the coffee had warmed up, I poured everyone some, added milk and sugar to these who wanted, and handed it out.

“We have two extra bedrooms, aside from mine. If you don’t mind, Carol and Nat can share a room, and you three can.” I looked at them all, hoping that they’d be fine with it all.

“I’ll take the couch,” Steve said, hiding behind his cup of coffee.

I smiled softly. “Please be as quiet as possible at nights. He has a hard time sleeping,” I gestured up, and they knew I meant Dean. “You’re rooms are on the right side up the staircase. Mine is on the end. Natasha’s is on the left side of the hall and James’ is on the right. The bathroom is next to my bedroom. If you turn left above the staircase there’s another bathroom, but it’s a child’s bathroom, so I don’t recommend. Steve, Emrys will help you with blankets. Don’t worry about him, he has his own bedroom in the garage. If you need me I’ll be in my lab.”

Without waiting for a response I walked off out of the kitchen and past the staircase, into my lab. I switched on the light, causing the LED’s to light up and the tube my suit was supposed to be in shine a light. I placed my coffee down on a desk before walking to the tube, placing the necklace around the body figure.

While softly placing my thumb on the back of the sunflower, causing the suit to form around the body figure. I looked as it formed again, seeing a lot of damage on it. The mask was missing, and the suit was dirty.

For hours I sat working on my mask again, which was quite easy if I had the original design with me, but I was too tired to search for it. I continued editing my mask, until I started working on the knives again.

I stood up, walking to a closet next to the door, where in I had a massive collection on knives I had made when I was pregnant with Dean. They were mostly from wood and stone, but they were sharper than anything a person could think of. All they needed was a glimpse of paint and some lint.

Closing the closet door, I was surprised by someone leaning against the doorframe.

Steve looked at me as his arms were folded. With no reaction I turned around with a bunch of knives in my hands. I walked to another closet, placing the knives down on a table in front of it. Slowly I unlocked the closet, showing a bunch of holders on a circular wheel.

“Can we talk?” Steve asked softly.

“You can, I’m listening,” I said, starting to place a knife in each little holder.

Steve sighed, pushing himself to a stand. “You’ve been awake all night. Don’t you want sit?” he asked, walking closer to stand next to me.

After getting no reaction from me, Steve sighed again.

“I didn’t know you were pregnant,” he said, making me look down. “Is he- is he mine?” Steve asked slowly, being careful to not set something off in my mind.

A sigh escaped my lips as I stopped what I was doing.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because,” I said, looking at him, making him notice my teary eyes. “Even if you guys didn’t sell me out, you failed to tell me that Tony and James and all the others were. You guys have betrayed me just as much as the others have. I couldn’t bare my child growing up with a father who betrayed his mother. I wanted to tell you that night, but then I ran into Baron, and he told me everything.”

I looked away, back to the closet, before placing the last few knives in with a rush. I shut the door with a bang, trying not to get mad.

“Amber,” Steve said, placing his hand on my arm.

I pulled away, taking a step back.

“We wanted to tell you; we really did. You were out on a run, and-”

“And you could have called me? Telling me to not come back because I wasn’t safe at the compound anymore? And what about Wanda? No. She had to hear it from a Hydra agent! And so did I.” I took a deep breath, turning my face away from Steve. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about him, but I wish I did. Maybe then you’d know I was at least alive.”

I walked back to my desk, pulling the bracelet back around my arm before waving it under through the screen, locking it onto the bracelet around my wrist.

“But now we know. And now, things can change?” he said, sounding a bit hopeful.
I sighed. “Steve, things have changed.”

In desperation Steve moved closer to me. “Amber, things can be different now. Yes it will take time, and things will change again. But things have to change again. Tony knows you’re alive and he won’t stop searching for you-”

I turned to face him, making him quiet. I dropped my arm in anger, causing the screen to disappear.

“You guys didn’t know whether I was alive or dead and yet you didn’t look for me.”  I curled my hand into a fist. “You all moved on with your lives while I was on the run! You even moved so far on with yours that you even got a new girlfriend while I was on the run, from you guys!”

I didn’t realize how loud I was until Steve focused on my eyes.