Coffee, Courage and a Captain

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Morning Heartbreak

Charlotte sipped on her third cup of coffee since she had rolled out of bed at six that morning to get to the lab on time. 

Coffee was the only beverage that seemed to have any effect on Charlotte. Despite the large number gin and tonics that she had consumed the previous night, she felt no lasting effect from them. This was not surprising to her, but she knew that Steve's team were definitely nursing hangovers and Bucky would be feeling the aftereffects of his devastating loss of thirteen games of Snap to her.

She was currently watching Howard analysing the batteries as he tested their resistance, and recording any notes from a distance. Howard had cited that he didn't want Charlotte anywhere near them until they worked out why her eyes turned into headlights every time she touched them.

"Emission signature is unusual," he stated as he inspected the readings for the glowing blue energy. "Alpha and beta ray neutral, though I doubt Rogers picked up on that," he remarked with a smirk, Charlotte rolling her eyes as she wrote his notes down.

"Seems harmless enough. Hard to see what all the fuss is about."

He touched a piece of metal to the battery and the glass exploded outward, sending him flying backwards into the brick dividing wall by the entrance to the lab.

"Charlie, write that down," Howard gasped, his face covered in scratched from the glass. He reached his hand up and touched one of the bleeding cuts.

Charlotte rushed over to help him up, seeing the blood. Howard saw her eyes flash briefly as she offered him her handkerchief and helped him to his feet.

The glass crunched under their shoes as they walked over to the bench that had her notebooks spread out across it.

"I'll have somebody come down and clean it up," he said dismissively. "It's nearly eight, we should go and brief Phillips and get ready to show Rogers his new toys."

Charlotte glanced down at her empty coffee cup. "I need another coffee, but I'll join you to show off our new things."

Howard smirked. "You're really trying to avoid Phillips as much as you can, aren't you?"

"Do you think he realised that I was the one who gave him a pot plant for his birthday?"

Phillips had raged and nearly thrown the plant against the wall. The man claimed he hated birthdays and also plants. Charlotte was yet to discover why.

"Charlie, you are the only one in this entire facility who has a penchant for houseplants," Howard sighed. "The colonel may not be a genius, but even he wouldn't take too long to deduce it was you."

"Damn," Charlotte muttered. "It doesn't matter, I'm going to skip this one too. I'll meet you in the lab."

Howard smiled. "Just don't get distracted on the way. That means no talking to the MP's."

Charlotte pouted as she walked out of their lab and into the main technician area of the bunker. The coffee station was next to it- presumably the labs had been set out with the knowledge of how many all-nighters were pulled by members of the technological development teams.

She poured her coffee, and stood next to the coffee station, staring at the bustle of the bunker. There was an air of familiarity and comfort about it- Charlotte could almost pretend there wasn't a war, that she hadn't been catapulted back to this moment, that she belonged there- the longer she surveyed it.

"Hello stranger," Peggy said with a smile, placing her mug in the sink and cleaning it. "Do you want to explain why Howard Stark has just tasked the two agents I was working with to repair something you both exploded in our expensive lab, and why you have both chosen to track glass into the main development floor?" she asked dryly.