The crisp, morning air of Siberia struck her like a slap to the face. It wasn't an unusual time for her to be awake since she had been training this early for the majority of her life.
Her muscles felt taught as she stretched them above her head. She was warming up her body while she waited for her sparring partner to arrive. She was always early to their workouts so she could prepare her body for the exertion it would endure.
As she bent down to stretch her legs, she felt the man's aura consume the air around her. Realigning her body as she stood up, she turned to face her male counterpart.
Jacqueline cracked her neck before speaking out to the man. "Are you ready to get your ass handed to you, darling?" She loved teasing the man and she was already a natural flirt.
The man rolled his eyes letting the faintest resemblance of a smile grace his features. "Thanks for the concern but I can tell you it's not needed." His icy eyes met her fiery brown ones as they locked onto their gaze for a few seconds too long.
Jacqueline pulled away letting the chilling air coat her like a blanket. She was completely unbothered by the cold, in fact, she actually welcomed its comforting embrace. It reminded her that after all she had done, she could still feel something, anything.
She glanced over at him once more to signal that she was ready to start. She planted her feet shoulder width apart as she brought her fists up to cover her face.
In return, he did the same. They circled around each other a few times before he threw the first punch. Jacqueline easily maneuvered around it, as she darted towards him, landing a heavy punch on his face.
"Mon chéri, you know it won't be that simple, don't you?" Jacqueline teased, making her thick accent even more noticeable. She brought her fists back up to her face as she knew he was going to get even with her.
"I was going easy on you, wouldn't want to ruin that pretty face of yours, now would we?" In moments like these the man was able to let his guard down. He could be more then just the 'winter soldier' around her.
He didn't remember the man he used to be but he somehow managed to be a faint resemblance of him when he was around her. He may not remember that man but he still lived within in him.
Jacqueline never knew him before Hydra, but when he was brought to the organization she was given his file to read. She was intrigued by him the very first time she laid eyes on him.
She knew he was different than the killers she grew up with. He hadn't been raised inside the organization like she had. That had been quite obvious.
When Zola first brought him in to give him his new arm, he was still the man he used to be. And Jacqueline saw that in him and she also saw them take it away.
She watched as they wiped his mind clean as if it were a dirty dinner plate. They stripped him for parts so they could remake him into the machine they needed him to be.
However, their technology was not obsolete. It would be successful in cleansing their minds after their missions but it could never really strip them of their identities, at least not fully.
Whether or not they realize it, the ghosts of who they used to be still haunt their minds. And they somehow managed to bring that out of each other without even noticing it.
It was the same cycle that repeated time and time again. They would train, do their mission and then have their minds wiped clean. Then they would find their way back to each other, day after day.
They naturally gravitated towards each other almost as if somewhere deep inside them they knew that they needed one another. It was basic instinct for them to find each other and immediately let down their walls, letting the other inside.
"Don't flatter yourself, you couldn't hurt me even if you wanted to." Jacqueline smirked as she brought her leg up to kick him. However, he managed to grab her ankle making her twist around before hitting the ground with a solid thud.
A groan mixed with a laugh left her lips as got up from the ground, brushing the grass off of her legs. He caught her by surprise and she wouldn't let that happen again.
"What was that Jac? Cause from where I'm standing that looked like it hurt a little." He let an amused expression cover his features as he watched her brush off the remnants of grass from her clothes.
He saw that she had a piece of it still in her hair so he moved forward and brought his hand up to remove it himself.
"Wow, quite the gentleman." She pulled her lips into a seemingly innocent smile as her eyes glimmered with a unique strand of cunning. Then, Jacqueline swiftly brought her knee up, connecting it with his abdomen.
"Now that looked like it hurt." Jacqueline watched in amusement as he tried his best not to double over in pain. He put on a good show but they both knew it did not feel great.
His eyes met hers as he knocked her feet from under her, making her hit the ground again once more. Except this time he followed and straddled her waist, pinning her hands to the ground.
"That wasn't very nice of you." He spoke, his voice coming to a little louder than a whisper. She rolled her eyes as she felt him watching her every move.
"I'm sorry but I don't understand what gave you the impression that I'm nice." Jacqueline's voice matched his as she felt the cold, wetness of the ground soak into her clothes.
A light smile greeted his face as he listened to her words. All while he simultaneously felt a wave of déjà vu hit him. He frequently got this feeling when he was around her, as if they had spent more time together than he thought.
"Well doesn't this feel familiar." He decided to voice his thoughts in the hopes that maybe she had been feeling the same thing. His face had been gradually lowering, getting closer and closer to hers as the seconds went on.
Jacqueline noticed this but also couldn't ignore his previous words. There had always been something about him that gave her a feeling of recognition. As if he had always been there for her. She just didn't have the memories to back it up.
His hands moved from her wrists to the ground next to her head as his exterior softened. She took note of this and used it to her advantage.
Jacqueline wrapped her leg around his waist and pushed her hands against his chest so she could flip him over. Now, she was the one straddling him as her face hovered over his.
Her face was so close to his that she could feel his breath on her lips. Her hands rested on his chest, as she felt the strong yet unusually quick pace of his heart. He didn't know that hers beat at an equally fast pace.
She felt an electric buzz intoxicate her skin at their close proximity and something told her that he had felt the same. His hands were placed securely on her hips, as if he thought if he were to let go that she would disappear into thin air.
"Quite familiar actually." Jacqueline's voice was barely even a whisper as she fought against the urge to place her lips against his. Using her hands that rested on his chest, she pushed herself up and off from on top of him.
She turned around to leave as she felt his hand wrap around her wrist. He was sat up on the ground when he spun her around and pulled her back to his lap.
"I think you forgot something." The warmth of his hand against her cheek and the chilling embrace of his metal arm around her waist were an addictive concoction.
Meeting the other half way, their lips collided with a passion that was envied by stars that had begun to collapse.
