Everly furrowed her eyebrows and lowered her book when she heard whimpering from a few rooms down. She turned and looked at the clock that read 3:05 a.m. Everyone had been asleep for a while now. The whimpering continued, and had grown into small shouts. She slipped out of bed, the cold wooden floor sending a chill creeping down her spine. She took the doorknob in her hand and slowly creaked the door open, beginning to pad down the hallway. The strange noises were loudest at the door to Pepper and Tony's room. She paused, debating whether or not she really wanted to go in there. She could find anything beyond that door. Leaning forward, she gently pressed an ear to the door and listened.
"Tony." Pepper whispered as another shout filled the room. Everly huffed, pushing the door open and rubbing her tired eyes.
"Everything okay in here?" Pepper glanced worriedly in her direction, but continued to shake Tony. Everly's heart skipped a beat as she stepped a bit further into the room. She squinted to see that his eyes were squeezed shut, his fingers wrapped in a death grip around the sheets. His body trembled from the horrors of yet another nightmare.
"Tony. Tony? To-" Pepper gasped as a metal suit lunged from the dark corner, latching onto her arm and pinning her against the bed. Everly's eyes widened as she rushed toward them, prying the metal hands from around Pepper's wrist. The helmet of the suit turned slowly to look at her, and threw a fist into her face. She stumbled backward and wiped the blood from beneath her nose. Tony jerked awake, leaping out of bed and holding his hands out to the suit.
"Power down!" The helmet immediately sagged, the glow fading from its eye slits and circular chest piece. Tony made a sweeping motion with his hands and the suit crumbled to pieces at Everly's feet. The trio's breathing filled the room and Pepper hurried to flick on the lights.
"I must have called it in my sleep." Tony said in a shaky voice, burying his face in his hands. "That's not supposed to happen." He slowly turned to look at a clearly rattled Pepper. "I'll recalibrate the sensors." He breathed. "Can we just... just let me..." Pepper soon rose from the bed, slipping a shirt over her tank top as she dragged a hand down her face. "Just let me catch my breath. Hey, don't- don't go. All right? Pepper-"
She started toward the door. "I'm going to sleep downstairs. Tinker with that." Everly flinched as the door slammed shut behind her. Tony hung his head and slammed a fist into the mattress. He ran a hand through his hair and look up at Everly, whose hands were perched on her hips as she huffed.
"Are you okay?" She sighed, sniffling away the feeling of a runny nose.
"I'm sorry." He said sadly, noticing that around her eye had already begun to darken.
She brushed off his apology. "You didn't answer my question."
His brown eyes met hers and he drew in a shaky breath. "I don't know."
~~~
Everly shifted uncomfortably in her seat as she took in the hospital room around her. Happy, Tony's head of security, laid in the bed across the expanse. He was covered in bandages and tubes. The steady beeping of the monitor beside him was beginning to give her a headache. She bounced her leg up and down nervously and fiddled with her fingers. Simply being in the room reminded her of when she first woke up, knowing nothing of her past. It was something she didn't like to think about. She could almost see the pain in Steve's eyes.
She hadn't gotten to talk much to Happy, though she knew he was quite close with Tony. What she did know, was that he didn't deserve to be a part of that bombing. Then again, who does? When she had first seen the reports on the news, she could hardly believe what she was seeing. Anyone close enough was immediately turned to ash, leaving behind nothing but a shadow on the wall. Her attention snapped to the door as it swung open, in walked a nurse. She walked around the bed, flicking a switch on one of the machines before reaching for the television remote.
YOU ARE READING
Everly || Steve Rogers
Fanfiction"Though I may cry a river, I will not drown in it." In which she needed a hero, so she became one. "She loved him too early, and he loved her too late." #1 in "thefirstavenger" as of 1/24/20 #1 in "buckybarnes" as of 5/4/20 #1 in "captainamericathef...
