I FEEL YOU || Sᴛᴇᴠᴇ Rᴏɢᴇʀꜱ

thirty one

Moving On

Five years later

Yes, five years. The jump we did on Thanos was the last time all of us were together as a team.

I did, however, end up going outside to say goodbye to Tony and Pepper. He offered me a room at their place, said I was like a daughter to him. Apparently he was planning to buy a house in the woods, far from the urban noises, and focus on himself and his family. I was happy for him and I didn't want to be in his way. So I declined his offer.

Thor didn't say a word to anyone since we spoke at that hill. He just came back for his stuff and left. Our last interaction was a nod he sent my way when he was leaving. Like a goodbye, if you will, but between two broken people. I later heard from Rocket that he went to Norway where he settled with his fellow Asgardians in New Asgard. I was happy for him too, I hoped he could move on and continue to live his life.

Banner left that day too. Nobody knows where. I think he just closed himself in a lab somewhere again. Honestly, I just hope he's okay.

As for the rest of us, we continued to do the Avengers business. Soon after everybody who wanted to leave left five years ago, I realized I actually had nowhere to go. None of us who stayed really had a life besides the "hero" one.

Natasha stayed at the compound to monitor everything as me and the others traveled across the world and the universe helping the ones affected by the Snap.

Carol and Rocket where the ones flying to other planets while Rhodey, Okoye and I stayed on Earth. Rhodey was currently in South America, Okoye was in Africa as usual and I was traveling across Europe.

I made a quick stop to my home country, since I didn't remember where my hometown was exactly. It felt weird. It was for sure more urban than I remember, but I don't think that was what triggered all those emotions in me.

I felt so consumed by the past. Not just my past as a soldier, but the more recent things too. After five years. Five years and I still couldn't get through the day without thinking about the ones we've lost. Steve and Bucky are in my dreams every night. I dream about the past and about the future. About what we had, what I have and what we could've had if it wasn't for Thanos. I just can't get over the fact that my best friend, the one I've known since forever, and the first man I've ever loved are just gone. They disappeared in a blink of an eye. And I didn't even get to tell him I loved him.

It's true. I should've moved on by now. But I was scared to. I just didn't want to live in a world without them. I was scared that I would forget about them. And I loved them both too much to do that.

I just answered the last call for help, it was in Germany, and I was getting on my little plane. Like a private jet but make it tactical. You know what, actually, more like the old S.H.I.E.L.D. Quinjet.

"An, you in yet?" I heard Nat over the comms.

"Yeah, I just got in. What's up?" I answered as I sat down in the pilot seat, getting ready for liftoff.

"I just finished the meeting with others, why weren't you there?" she asked, sounding worried but mostly annoyed. Probably because I was regularly avoiding those meetings.

"I was busy." I answer shortly, but I already knew that wasn't enough for her "I was talking to the president of Germany. It couldn't really wait since people were starting to riot in almost every big city. They demanded answers and I guess the news lady wasn't doing it for them."

I heard her sigh "Did you at least deal with it the right way?"

"Yes, mom, I did." I said as I lifted the bird off of the ground "I told you already, I understand why mind-controlling people into believing me was a bad idea. It took away their freedom, I got it."

"Good." she said after a moment of silence "I can't have you making irrational calls like that one in Poland. I understand your pain, but it can't be the reason others suffer. I just need you to know-"

"That you're here for me. Yeah, got that too. Please, stop saying that. I'm fine." I said and put the jet in autopilot. The orange blinking on my hand got my attention. It was the bracelet Tony gave my back in the day when I used to have regular panic attacks. I figured out how to turn off the notifications it sent him before, so now I just used it to make sure I was grounded. Every time I got worked up, the green would become yellow, then orange and red meant panic. At that point my black power-cloud-things would start turning red and that meant no good. But I'm proud to say that that didn't happen in quite a while.

After a minute, Nat spoke up again "An, you still here?"

"Yeah, why?" I furrow my brows at her question. Something in her voice didn't seem right.

"Hurry back. I've got a situation."

"A situation?" I make sure I heard that right as I speed up "What kind of situation? Are you alright?"

"Yeah it's just that...Scott Lang is at the door." I could hear in her voice she didn't believe what she was saying either. He was on the dusted list. He was supposed to be dead.

"You're saying Ant-Man is at the compound?" I repeat after her.

"That's exactly what I'm saying."

...

A few hours had passed and I was at the Avengers facility. Or whatever you want to call it now.

I marched in the building and towards Natasha's office. I heard her and what I assumed was Lang talking. Very loudly.

"What are you guys yelling about?" I asked as soon as I stepped through the door.

"Oh, hi." Natasha sighed and walked over to hug me "And we're not." she looked me dead in the eye "He's the one yelling." she said, pointing at a quite shaken up Scott Lang.

"Okay?" I said, still not quite sure what was going on.

"Hi, you must be Anastasya." Scott said and shook my hand "I'm Scott Lang, Ant-Man." he said with a smile.

"Yeah, nice to meet you." I smiled awkwardly. Things were making less and less sense "How are you alive?" I got straight to the point.

"Well" he started "I wasn't even 'dusted' in the first place. I was stuck in this micro world that's like, not even visible with a microscope. It's called the Quantum Realm, Like a small little universe, you know, and-"

"Okay I'm gonna stop you right there, I don't need to know the science stuff behind it." I paused, somehow his explanation made things less understandable "You were stuck there for five years?"

"Yeah, but see, for me" he gestured to himself with a lot of excitement "it was only five hours. See I..."

"Is he on some drugs?" I quietly asked Natasha as Scott continued rambling about quantum physics.

"Well he is okay now, he was talking even faster and pacing around before you came. He even ate my sandwich." she sighed "It really hit him, coming back to the world drastically different than what it was before he left. He already told me all of this, he is talking about time travel."

I turned around to face her in disbelief "Time travel!?"

"Yes! Yes, time travel!" Scott exclaimed "Time works differently in the Quantum Realm. We just need to find a way to navigate it and then use it"

"Isn't that a bit crazy?" I asked, glancing back and fort between the two in front of me.

"We already established it isn't." Nat shrugged "C'mon, we've seen crazier."

"We could maybe use it to bring everyone back." Scott said carefully, obviously sounding crazy to himself too.

"Okay." I said "If there is even a small chance that could work, I'm in. When do we start?"