Artemis : The Seventh Avenger ➳ Steve Rogers [1]

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"Kill her." He whispered in my ear.

"No." I shook my head, "No, I can't."

In the chair across me sat a girl. She looked young, maybe a couple of years younger than I was at most.

Her eyes were wet with tears, filled a mixture of terror and pain. She stared at me, begging me with her eyes.

"Why not?" He asks, "You've killed before, haven't you? One more isn't going to make a difference."

"Please. Please don't make me do this." I pleaded, "I can't."

"Yes, you can." He prompted, "Just pull the trigger."

"Why?" I yelled in frustration, "Why do you want to make me do this?"

"To see how strong your mind is." He answers, "To see how much it can take before it snaps."

I shake my head, refusing to end an innocent girl's life.

"Do it!" He yells, "Do it or I'll make sure you suffer."

I fix him with a glare,"I won't. I refuse to give in to you, you sick bastard."

Not a second goes by without me hoping that this would end, even though a part of me knew that wasn't going to happen any time soon.

"Very well." He says, softly.

There was a moment of silence, before my body tenses up with pain. I could feel the electricity coursing through my veins, making me dig my nails into my palms until they bled.

The cried out, the unrelenting stabbing pain in my arms and chest getting worse by the minute until the world disappears and everything goes dark.

***

My heart was pounding against my chest so hard that for a moment, it felt as if it was going to explode out of my ribcage.

I start to come to, my eyes flickering open and I slowly take in my surroundings.

It's dark in here. The only source of light came from a wall lamp that mounted above a mirror and a sink in the corner of the room.

Panic takes over as my eyes landed on a drip stand just beside my bed. A bag of unknown fluid hung from it.

Dread fills my chest, as my eyes followed the tube connected to it down, to the needle in my arm.

The first thought that crosses my mind was that I was in that hellhole again. They finally got me.

I bolt upright, ripping off the bandage that held the needle in place.

"No, stop!" A pair of strong hand wraps around my wrist, stopping me from removing the needle.

"Let go of me!" I struggle against his grasp, trying to free myself.

I have to run. I've got to get out of here.

"Camille, it's me!" His hand gently moves up to cup my face.

My gaze meets his, it was only then that I realised that I wasn't in any danger, but my heart was still thumping out of my chest.

I let out a sigh, letting myself relax against him. "I'm sorry." 

I rest my forehead against his, closing my eyes and taking deep breaths to calm myself down.

"It's alright. You're safe." Steve reassures, gently stroking his fingers through my hair. "I'm not going to let anyone hurt you."

My hand finds his, still trembling as he takes it, interlacing our fingers together.

"I'm staying right here. I'm not going anywhere." I listen to his voice, which helps calm me down significantly.

I simply nod, not trusting myself to speak, afraid that I'll start crying as soon as I open my mouth.

He tucks a stray strand of hair behind my ear with his free hand as we stay like this in comfortable silence, just enjoying each other's presence.

I take a moment to recollect myself. When I'm done, I'm suddenly well aware of the proximity between me and Steve that makes my face burn with a brilliant flush.

I clear my throat, slipping my hand out of his. I immediately miss the feeling of his hand in mine and how the comfort it brought.

Steve shifts awkwardly in his chair, before he speaks again, "How are you feeling?"

"I feel fine." I shrug, "Everything feels normal."

He nods, "To be completely honest," He averts his gaze nervously, taking a sudden interest in the floor.

"I thought I was going to lose you." He says, "We are dealing with things that are out of this world and when I saw what the sceptre did to you, I didn't have a clue what was happening to you and I panicked."

"Well, you can't get rid of me that easily, Captain." I joked.

He laughs at that, before fixing me with a gaze, his pupils dilated as he studies my face like it was a piece of art.

"Steve." He says, "You let me call you Camille, it's only fair that call me Steve."

"I think I prefer 'Captain', Captain." I say, making him laugh again.

The sound is like music to my ears, deep and smooth like velvet.

"Now, that's not fair." His lips curl upwards as he leans forward in his seat.

I crinkle my nose playfully at him, "When is life ever fair, Captain?"

He hums thoughtfully at that.

"It's not." He replies, "But despite that, I'm beginning to think life's not all that bad."

My breath catches in my throat as his arm wraps around my waist, pulling me closer to him. Our faces were just inches apart now. I could just kiss him.

"There's something about you, Camille." He says, lips brushing against my lips ever so slightly. "What are you doing to me?"

He nudges his nose against mine, leaving me wanting more. I clutch the material of his shirt in my hands, pulling him closer to me with a burning desire to feel his lips on mine.

But just as our lips are about to meet, he pulls away, bringing a finger to his earpiece. He frowns, brows drawing closer together as he listened on.

My stomach drops, "What is it?" I ask.

His eyes meet mine once again, this time, they're filled with a mixture of anger and sadness.

"It's Coulson."