Irreplaceable (Resiliance Book 3) (Avengers Fan-fic) [COMPLETED]

Chapter 23

Bruce

I stepped out of the room, closing the door behind me. Agent Ward had hit another agent too hard in training, and he had needed stitches. I sighed, as much as I trusted Phil Coulson, I had my doubts about his recent choices. They seemed like a more chaotic mix than the Avengers were.

I took off my glasses, giving them a quick clean. Then again, we managed to work, even after I tore through the helicarrier, and Thor fell to the earth with me.  Maybe they would work, with a little push towards each other.

Musical laughter rang through the hall, and I frowned, recognising the sound, but unable to place it. I knew the voice, but I hadn’t heard that laugh in a while.

I walked down the hall cautiously, before poking my head around the door, to see Sam sitting up, talking and laughing with Steve, who was perched on the edge of her bed. Her eyes shifted to mine, and I couldn’t help but noticed the tired, dark circles around her eyes, which sparkled nonetheless.

‘Bruce! Hi!’ she chirped, grinning at me. I smiled softly at her, and she held up what looked to be the back of a photo.

‘Do you want to see skinny, dorky, short Steve?’ she asked, trying to control her grin as Steve sighed, covering his eyes with his hand. She chuckled slightly, before turning the photo around, revealing the same picture that was in Steve’s file, of him on one of his first days in the original training camp for the Super-Soldier preparation and selection. A smile played at the corner of my mouth, seeing the familiar confused expression on his face, even before he changed as much as he did.

Steve stood, kissing Sam’s forehead as she giggled. She poked his stomach and shook her head, laughing slightly.

‘Skinny Steve…’ she mused. ‘Such a foreign concept.’ She said, before looking up, and meeting his eyes with a loving gaze.

‘I’ll be back in a little while, alright?’ he told her softly, and her face fell into a pout. He sighed, and kissed her cheek, before coming to my side.

‘I’m going to get Agent Ward to watch her. Will you stay with her while I fetch him?’ he asked me, worry shining in his eyes. I knew that he didn’t want to leave her, and I could understand why. But he was needed on the bridge, they needed his strategic expertise to plan their next attack. I sighed and nodded.

He smiled at me, and ran back over to Sam, giving her a quick kiss on the lips. He pulled away, only to be caught by Sam, grabbing onto his shirt. She looked up at him with a no-nonsense stare, and he froze on the spot.

‘Steve, if any of you think of planning anything, and not running it by me before you try to put it into action, I’ll make sure that there isn’t any SHIELD for you to come back to.’ She told him, completely seriously. I felt like I was intruding, but unable to move away. Sam locked Steve in place with a single stare, and I could barely see either of them move, until Steve’s shoulders slumped slightly.

‘I’ll make sure they run it by you first, ok?’ he offered quietly, and she nodded, before kissing him quickly.

‘Go get ‘em.’ She said quietly, before pushing the stunned Steve away gently. He walked past me, looking slightly confused, and lost, stopping only when Sam called out to him.

‘And don’t bother with Grant. I don’t need a babysitter.’ She called to him, before he left, chuckling. I shook my head at the two of them, walking forward, as Sam patted the bed, folding her legs up, and hugging them to her chest.

I sat down in front of her, and she let her knees fall, pulling her crossed ankles closer to her, before leaning forward, resting her elbows on her knees, and propping her chin up in her hands.