haven ; 𝐛. 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐬 , 𝟏

an unexpected friend

EPILOGUE—AN UNEXPECTED FRIEND
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SHE DIDN'T THINK it would be possible for her to roll her eyes one more time that day. If I had a nickel for every time I made a fool of myself... she thought sardonically, closing her apartment door behind her. Tossing her keys on the table, she ran a hand through her hair and sighed. 

"Who knew getting a chance to train for the CIA would be this hard," she mumbled to herself, feeling more than hearing her stomach grumble with hunger. She'd put off meals for the day, simply because she was so nervous about her evaluation with a real CIA agent. It probably wasn't healthy, and she definitely regretted it afterward, but at the time it didn't seem necessary to eat when she would probably throw it all up in training anyway. 

The kitchen was unusually plentiful, a perk of actually having a job as a normal, functioning twenty-four-year-old should. It had taken her a few years after her fall out with Earth's Mightiest Heroes to figure that part out. 

Huh. Haven't thought of them in forever, she noted swiftly, pouring a glass of milk for herself and reaching in the cabinet for some crackers. Wonder how those dipshits are doing. 

Getting the majority of her news from snotty news reporters was rather disappointing if she did say so herself. There were times that she missed being part of a team, having that sense of familiarity with such extraordinary people. But then again, there were parts of the team—people in the team—that she would rather keep out of touch with. 

Munching on crackers, she grabbed her glass of milk and was aiming for the couch to do some serious bingeing of That 70's Show when her phone vibrated on the counter, alerting her to a phone call. She back-tracked to the location and peered down at the bright screen, frowning at the strange number. "Probably the Republicans trying to convince me not to vote for Democrats," she rolled her eyes—again—and nearly turned the phone off, declining the call, when a spark of curiosity got the best of her.

"Who knows," she remarked to herself with a shrug, picking up the phone, "this could be fun." She tapped the green 'answer call' button and put the receiver to her ear. "Hey there, you've reached the Russian satellite on Mars, how can I be of—"

"Hey. It's me."

Her voice cracked at the deep voice. It had been six years since that voice had rumbled its way through her body for the last time. Six years since she'd seen him in person. "S-Steve?" She stammered.

"Uh, yeah." His voice was hushed. "Look, I don't have much time, you have to listen to every word I say." 

The young woman shook her head, unimpressed by the sense of urgency in his voice. "Absolutely not. I'm not getting dragged into your shenanigans again. There's a reason I left the super-secret boy band, Rogers."

A pause. Then, "I know. I'm sorry."

Though he couldn't see her, she shrugged anyway and popped another cracker into her mouth. "Whatever, I'm over it. I think. But how'd you get this number?"

Steve chuckled on the other line. "You didn't change it. So I just looked it up in the phone book."

She scoffed, nearly choking on the cracker. "The phone book? Goddamn, Stevie, you really haven't changed. Still an old man, I presume?"

"Very funny," he hissed, "but we don't have time to catch up. I'm about to be found and taken in. You have to help me. Sam's here, too."

She heard a distant, "Hey, kid!" in the background, causing her heart to warm with the memory of old friends. Then, of course, she scolded herself for feeling so fluttery inside. It was so unlike her.