SOLDIER ─ marvel

XV. Innocence

Chapter Fifteen
Alex

Soroya is fast asleep as we enter into our last hour of the plane ride. She's been resting her head on my shoulder, her hands tucked into her chest. On the other side of me is Walker, who has been reading a magazine. Everett is a couple seats in front of us, out of sight from me.

I lean to the side and look at what's in the magazine Walker's perusing. He's reading a section about summer blockbuster movies and how they've changed over the decades.

"Blockbusters haven't been the same since the nineties," I comment, shaking my head. "All the action movies today are mindless, all the sci-fi movies are crap and don't get me started on fantasy."

Walker glances from the magazine to me. "I didn't peg you as a movie guru."

"Well from what I've seen, you just think my sister and I are mindless HYDRA mutts. There's more to us than that."

Walker sets the magazine down, an air of curiosity setting over him. "Alright, what's your favorite movie?"

"Ferris Bueller's Day Off, easily. I've seen it so many times I can quote every line of the movie."

"I'm not a big John Hughes fan, but Ferris wasn't bad. I'm more of a fantasy guy."

I shift in my seat to face him more. "Star Wars?"

"Only the originals."

"Obviously. Harry Potter?"

"Probably my favorite series of all time."

"It's Soroya's favorite, too," I say, gesturing to my sleeping sister. "When she's not watching movies made a century ago, she's watching Harry Potter."

Walker shakes his head, more to himself than to me. "I got into Harry Potter because of my older brother, he loved the books and insisted I get into them, too. I guess it just stuck..." He says trailing off, his eyes falling down to his hands resting on his lap.

I remember him saying he knows first hand what HYDRA is capable of. Maybe his brother was hurt or killed by HYDRA. I don't ask him if that's the case though, I know I'll just be shut down if I ask. Walker is the kind of guy that will only release information if he feels safe, and he never feels safe. He's a dick to everyone in order to keep himself safe, because the world has never tried to do so. He reminds me of me.

"I know how impactful a sibling can be," I tell him, glancing back at Soroya, who just brushed a strand of hair out of her face. "Soroya has been my best friend ever since we were children. Even after we didn't see each other for fourteen years, our bond never broke."

"You didn't see each other for fourteen years?"

I shake my head. "HYDRA kidnapped Soroya when she was twelve for an experiment, they took me and my parents soon after. We were all held in different HYDRA facilities after that."

Walker blinks a couple times my direction before glancing away, shifting in his seat uncomfortably. "I didn't know you were so young."

I chuckle darkly. "Instead of prom and football games, I got beatings by metal batons and shapeshifting powers."

Soroya stirs and pushes herself off of my shoulder, rubbing at her eyes. She peels them open and yawns, her eyes groggily looking up to me. "Are we there yet?"

I shake my head, wrapping my arm around her shoulders and rubbing her arm. "Not yet, we have like an hour left."

She sighs and rests her head on my chest, using her hands as a pillow. "Wake me when we get there."