The Ghost [Marvel | Steve Rogers]

Chapter 67

Wakanda

Spring 2016

As no one had told them they were to stay in the rooms provided, Nadine felt no compunctions against wandering the halls of the Mount Bashenga facility. She limited herself to the halls, both not wanting to strain their host's hospitality or break their trust by poking around where she wasn't wanted of course, but also because the goings on within the facility—though fascinating and informative she was sure—beyond how it pertained to her and her team were honestly of little interest to her in that moment. She simply couldn't muster the motivation to apply her skills to satisfy her long-ingrained need to learn as much as she could when faced with the unknown and the uncertain—both of which described their hosts and Wakanda as a whole to a 'T'.

While undoubtedly enlightening about their hosts as poking around would be, she had other things occupying her thoughts.

So she didn't. Nadine just wandered, her thoughts unsettled—if mercifully aimless and unfocused—enough that she knew she wasn't about to settle enough to even consider returning sleep again any time soon.

She wasn't sure why she wasn't used to it by now, really. In many ways, it had become unsettlingly normal on an almost regular basis since she'd found herself falling in with the Avengers over a year before. So much had happened since then. So much had happened just in the past couple days! That she was too restless to sleep probably shouldn't be a surprise, even considering her activities with Steve on top of the emotional and physical strain the last week had put her through.

Truthfully, part of her felt like she could easily sleep for a month...

And yet here she was. Wandering the facility, unable to settle her thoughts enough to fall back asleep.

Especially not given what specifically was occupying those thoughts in that moment.

Out beyond the research facility, the earliest tint of dawn was beginning to wake on the horizon, the stark darkness of the night sky beginning to fade into an ombre of soft yellows and pale, gentle blues.

Nadine wasn't sure just how long she'd been wandering anymore. When she'd carefully extricated herself from Steve's arms, it had still been dark—perhaps with the faintest lightening of the sky to the east.

Sleep had come quickly nestled comfortably beside him, but it hadn't stayed. All too soon consciousness began to return and eventually took hold, the drowsy fog clinging to her thoughts fading, taking with it any chance of falling back asleep.

And before long she'd needed to get up.

She'd been too warm, too restless.

Too awake.

She'd just needed to move.

It was how she found herself aimlessly wandering the facility, trying not to let her thoughts run away with her. Thankfully, it so far seemed to be working. Mostly. Her thoughts had so far remained nebulous and fluid, not lingering too long on any one thing. And she was alright with that.

She was still tired, even if her mind and body didn't seem interested in actually letting her sleep.

Still, they were tending toward heavier topics regardless; what to do next, where to go, anxieties about and for Nina and the Twins, her future with Steve, worry for Clint and his family...

...Barnes.

Her already sedate pace slowed further until she simply stopped.

Apparently her mindless wandering hadn't been quite so mindless after all.