The Only Hope | Captain America

Chapter Sixteen : Party Crasher

 Almost there.

 The elevator ride was fairly long for Erik but he didn't mind. What was important to him was seeing Grace again and taking her back. His plan might not go as smoothly as he planned, after seeing the two men with her. Things were never easy and Erik knew it well. He carefully planned his entrance, as the elevator continued to move up to the top floor. How would he enter? Would he just take Grace away by the arm and escape with her?

 As the elevator comes to a stop, it slides open. In front of him, was a crowded room filled with people slow dancing. The lights were dim and the majority of the crowd was busy dancing. It only made things harder for Erik, since Grace's hair was a dark brown color, easily shadowed by the dim lighting. He took a chance as he grabbed the gun by his belt, ready to pull the trigger to get everyone's attention.

 Bang! Bang!

 Screams were released as many bodies turned to face Erik. He let out a small smile as he noticed a familiar figure turn to face him. Her brown hair tied into a ponytail, the ends cascaded down her bare back. Her lips curled into a small smirk before she pushed the man he had seen earlier. Erik looked around the room, giving everyone strong glances before turning back to Grace. His mouth suddenly felt dry and he had forgotten on what to say. The butterflies he would always feel around Grace returned and fluttered harder against his stomach.

 "Well, well, Grace, what a pleasure to see you again." He cried out.

 "I didn't expect you to return, Erik." Grace responded sharply.

 "I've miss you." He took a quick glance at the crowd again, "You still look lovely as usual."

 "Turning on your Erik Charm?" She smirked.

 "You know me well."

 He took a few steps before her, while the crowd stepped away, circling the two. Grace remained still, defending the man next to her. Erik grabbed her arm and gripped it hard as he let his face come close to hers. Another voice called out from the crowd and rushed toward the two. It was the blonde he had saw earlier, and he looked much bigger in person.

 "Son, keep your hands off her." The blonde growled.

 Erik gave another smile, "She's mine."

 The blonde swung his arm toward Erik, almost missing Grace. Erik flies backwards, releasing his grip on Grace. The crowd starts to disband and many start to run toward the elevator. His head started to throb with pain as he got up to his feet. Grace and the blonde were still in the middle, helping out the brown haired man who was on the ground. This was his chance, to get back at the blonde.

 He grabbed the gun in his pocket while choosing his target. With another smile, he pulled the gun trigger, watching the bullet fly out to the blonde's arm. Just within seconds, the bullet hits the blonde. Grace looked over at Erik and gave him a small scowl before attending to the blonde. What's so special about him?

 Something in him, wanted to shoot at Grace, to catch her attention. To teach her a lesson on what could happen to her if she didn't return to him. Before he raised his gun toward her, he hears sirens in the background.

 Shoot.

 With that, Erik ran through the window, falling about ten stories down.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 The events that had happened today definitely shocked Grace. After the funeral, she had forgotten about the call her uncle had made. Telling her about how Erik was back in town, tracking her every move. Uncle Phil couldn't find an urgent flight to New York due to his work. She wanted to tell Phil about Steve and how he'd probably protect her, since he's Captain America. But, she didn't want Steve to be overprotective over her.

 There was one thing she didn't want her Uncle to know, Grace wanted to keep her love for Steve down low. Uncle Phil would panic and give her an hour lecture about dating someone involved with the SHIELD Facility. Grace couldn't help it; her feelings for Steve had grown tremendously. She knew Steve had feelings for Peggy still, and didn't want to interrupt that. Even though she was dead, Grace wanted to be respectful and let Steve adjust himself.

 Now, here she was, wiping away Steve's wound on his arm. Sean was by the corner, speaking to some Policemen about Erik. It was surprising to her, how Erik managed to find her. The thought gave her chills, knowing he was following her every move in New York. New York was supposed to be her get away, she wanted to start out fresh, remove the cold relationship with Erik. He was abusive after his removal from SHIELD and becoming a potential threat to the facility. Uncle Phil warned her, for her safety. Erik took it the wrong way and became furious with Grace, saying if she really loved him, she would put up with his new calling in life.

 He beat her, leaving bruises along her arms and legs. For now, her short sleeved dress revealed some purple bruises, people start to question on her wounds. Grace answered with a simple smile and the words, "I'm clumsy."

 Steve's wound didn't look bad; the blood had stopped flowing out. She wrapped a towel around his big arm, and watched as he remained calm throughout her treatment.

 "I heal faster than the average person." Steve commented.

 Grace nodded, as she continued to hold the towel. She wanted to thank Steve for saving her from Erik. Even though, she could handle the man herself, it was nice for Steve to stick up for her. With Steve around, she couldn't help but feel safe and comforted when she was by his side. Steve slowly turned, lightly grabbing the towel from Grace's hands. His eyes looked down at her bruises, making Grace a bit self-conscious about herself.

 "If you don't mind me asking, where did you get all those bruises?"

 "I-uhh. I'm very clumsy."

 He didn't seem to buy the lie as he continued to ask the question again. Sean comes back and joined the two. Sean also started to question about her bruises, making Grace even more nervous. She didn't like being put on the spot, especially bringing things from the past into the topic.

 "Is your arm okay?" Grace asked, wanting to change the discussion topic.

 No reply.

 "Sean, what did the police say about Erik?"

 "They, uh. Said they would handle it." Sean commented.

 "That's not going to work. Erik is a trained assassin. He's following my every move."

 "It was Erik, wasn't it?" Steve sharply asked.

 "What?" Both Sean and Grace called.

"The bruises, they're from Erik."

 Shoot.

 Grace rubbed her palms together as both men looked her straight in the eye. A few minutes passed by, Grace finally broke the silence. She told the men about how Erik and Grace had met, which was through Uncle Phil. And how, Erik was banned from SHIELD for his violated behavior. How Erik abused her the night before she came to New York. Why, she accepted the New York Times offer without hesitation and abandoned her California home. Her story was shared between the two men she had loved the most. Something, no one else knew about except Uncle Phil and Carly.

 The three remained silent for a while, trying to take in Grace's dark story. Sean interrupted the silence, and walked over to the bathroom, leaving Steve and Grace alone.

 "Why didn't you tell me?" Steve asked.

 "I-I... wasn't ready too." Grace paused for a moment, "I was scared."

 After the end of her comment, Steve's lips met hers. Gentle and kind, it sent a wave of reassurance over Grace. He kissed her without warning and it urged Grace to kiss him back. Their lips perfectly aligned with each other. The kiss was short, simple, everything Grace wanted it to be.

 "You still scared?"

 "Not anymore, with Captain America by my side."

A/N : Daawww'h they kissed ! * swoon * Okay , well I hate this chapter , ugh . But I hope you guys enjoyed this (: