An introverted waitress stumbles into Captain America during Loki's attack on New York. After taking a bullet for him, he lets her go, wondering. She's on the run, but he can't know that. When she meets the Avengers again, escape is all but impossib...
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AMERICA'S POV
I spend the next few hours running around the capital. Hours of running, running until each muscle aches. I need to stay in shape, just in case of the unlikely event that I ever get sent on a big mission. I just run and let my thoughts wander.
I don't know where Steve is. I don't know what it was in particular that affected him the most. Maybe it was his friend or the woman. Maybe it was all of it. I'm also worried that I did something wrong. He seemed more distant towards the end. I'm hoping he doesn't do anything rash, but I trust him.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I slow down as I pull it out.
Where are you? You're not in the apartment.
It's from Steve. At least he's worried about me. That's probably a good sign.
I'm out where we were running this morning. Want me to come home?
No, it's okay. I'll come to you.
For a second, I think he's done. Then he sends a second text.
We need to talk.
Butterflies fill my stomach. What's wrong? Is it something I did? He's going to break it off with me. I don't even know what I did wrong.
All I know is I'm going to be completely lost if he leaves me.
I absentmindedly twist the necklace he gave me as I wait. It takes him a few minutes, but I see his frame in the distance. I go to meet him, hoping to get it over with quickly.
"Hi," I say, avoiding his eyes.
"Hey," he replies. He seems unsure of where to start. I decide that I'm not going to push him to talk. He never pushed me, after all. "About earlier..."
"Yeah. About that..." I finally look up at him.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have ran off like that. I-"
"Steve, it's okay. Really. I know you needed space, and I was okay with giving it to you." I swallow my fear to try to push the conversation forward. "Whatever I did, I'm sorry, and if you don't want to do this anymore, I... I understand."
"What?" Understanding dawns in Steve's eyes as he realizes what I mean. He steps closer and pulls me into a tight hug. "America, I'm not going to leave you."
I look up at him. "You're not?" I whisper.
"No. I'd never. You didn't do anything wrong. You're the best thing in my life right now. I just-" He struggles with his words for a second. "That exhibit brought up a lot of memories for me. Good and bad."
"Tell me," I whispered. He hesitated. "Steve, trust goes both ways." He met my eyes. I trust you. You can trust me.
"Okay." We slowly start to walk towards the apartment. "I knew all of those people. Most of them survived the war, except, um, except Bucky. When I woke up after the ice, I thought they were all dead. So Fury recruited me to the Avengers, and I said yes, because I had no one left anyway. But I was wrong. Someone was left after all."
