We Can't Go Back

He Wanted so Many Things with Her

Ten bullet wounds, extreme blood loss, a collapsed lung and a ruptured spleen. That's what the doctors told Steve but looking at her it seemed so much worse. She hadn't woken up in three weeks even though they all said she was stable. They transferred her to the avengers facility eventually because the press was swarming the hospital.

Everyone on the team stopped by to visit her and make sure Steve was taking care of himself. He had hardly moved from her bedside the whole time. Tony finally brought a cot in for him because he was killing his back sleeping in the chair. The only person who was in there almost as much as him was Pietro.

Steve knew the kid felt guilty even with his reassurances that he didn't blame him at all. If anything, he helped save Lizzie's life. Lizzie made her choice to save him and she probably would have done it again. Still, he knew that reason didn't always assuage the guilt.

Wanda had forced Pietro out of the room saying he smelled and needed a shower. He only agreed after making her promise that she would stay until he got back. As soon as he left, she settled in his abandoned chair. He could see the stress lining her face as she rested her hands on her temples.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

"Headache. I'm very sensitive to Pietro's emotions and his are very overwhelming. That's not to mention the feedback I'm getting from everyone else as well," she said.

It's why she liked being around Vision so much right now. He was the only one who didn't bombard her with mental backlash. She didn't blame anyone for their feelings but it was very hard to manage at times.

"Can you feel her emotions?" Steve questioned.

She hadn't thought about that. Lizzie wasn't projecting emotions but that didn't mean her head was empty. Maybe she could get an idea of how her cognition was. No one knew if she had any brain damage because she stopped breathing for a bit in transit.

"I don't want to sift through people's heads anymore without permission but given the circumstances... I just need your consent to enter her head," Wanda said.

Steve was quick to agree. He was willing to do anything and as much as he thought that Lizzie wouldn't like someone going into her head, he's sure she would see the necessity. Wanda walked to the bed and sat on the edge before putting her fingers to Lizzie's temple. She let the energy flow out of her fingers and closed her eyes.

She didn't find any stream of thought but she did see what looked like a memory. At least, she had to assume it was a memory because she saw a young boy who resembled Steve and another boy with brown hair and blue eyes.

The trio was standing outside what looked like an old movie theater. Lizzie had her hands on her hips as she stared down the two boys.

"It's two against one Ellie!" The brunette boy said.

"Yeah!" Steve replied.

She didn't seem to agree with that line of argument because her posture remained stiff.

"I've been looking forward to this movie since I read the book. I'm not missing it for some stupid monster movie!"

The boys seemed to be personally affronted by her statement.

"It's The Bride of Frankenstein! It's not stupid. Who even wants to watch Los Miserable anyways?" The brunette said.

"It's Les Misérables and I do. How about this? I'll flip you for it." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a coin.

"No! We never win coin tosses!" Steve said.

"What if we just abandon you and watch it by ourselves?" The other boy challenged.