Everly || Steve Rogers

34. Roller Skating Rookies

Words couldn't describe how happy Everly was to finally see her best friend again. She was beyond grateful that he opened up his home to her. It was as if they'd picked up right where they left off so many years ago. They watched movies, talked, and nearly burned the building to the ground in an attempt to make mac n cheese. She always felt guilty when each night, Steve insisted that he would take the couch so Everly could have his bed. She knew that she wouldn't be able to sleep either way, but he remained persistent.

Everly laid across the couch and closed her eyes, listening to the music of the credits rolling across the television. She hoped Steve would give in and take the bed if he believed her to be asleep on the couch. The music was quickly cut off and a few seconds later she heard his soft approaching footsteps. It took everything in her to keep from opening her eyes when a pair of arms slipped beneath her. The floorboards creaked beneath his feet as he carried her into the bedroom. He gently set her down atop the bed and a few seconds later a blanket fell over her. Soon enough, the footsteps retreated back into the living room. Everly waited a minute or two before her eyes flicked open and she glanced at the clock on the bedside table that read 10:57. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair as she stared up at the ceiling, her eyes gradually adjusting to the darkness.

"I'll never smile again..."

She furrowed her eyebrows at the faint music that drifted down the hallway. Pushing the blanket aside, she sat up straight and peeked at the alarm clock once again to see that the screen was blank as if it had been unplugged

"I'll never laugh again..."

Everly swung her legs over the side of the bed and and hesitated before stepping onto the cold floor. The concrete beneath her bare feet sent a chill up her spine and a frown spread over her face. Her breath hitched in her throat when she spun around to see that the room was entirely empty, filled only by the surrounding darkness. She jumped when a metal door slammed behind her, echoing in her ears.

"Steve?" She said quietly, squinting into the darkness. There was nothing but a horrifying silence that followed.

The familiar haunting melody filled the room, only confusing her further. She squealed as a man lunged from the dark corner, delivering a blow to her stomach. She shoved him and backed away, running into another man in the process. He kicked the back of her leg in, forcing her to a kneeling position. She made out the cocking of a gun and her eyes grew wide. She dropped to her belly as a bang echoed through the room.

Everly scrambled to her feet to find that the room was again empty. She looked down to see her fingers tightly wrapped around a pistol, her arms sprinkled with crimson specks. She took a shaky breath and popped the clip out to find that it was empty.

"Within my heart, I know I will never start to smile again, until I smile at you..."

The smallest of noises behind her made her blood run cold. Instinctively, her fingers curled into a fist and she spun around. Everly gasped as a metal hand latched onto her throat. Within an instant, the hand was gone along with the music. She took a few beep breaths and looked around to see that she was standing in the middle of Steve's bedroom. The gun was gone, the blood; gone. Her fear on the other hand, was entirely intact.

Slowly, Everly sunk back into the bed and leaned her head against the headboard behind her. The rest of the night, she didn't dare close her eyes, fearing what or who lurked in the darkness. 

The next day, they decided to go for a walk, each of them admitting to going stir crazy being cooped up inside Steve's apartment. Everly, for the first time, was really able to just... exist in this strange new world. Everything was bigger, brighter, and louder than what she remembered.