Project Alpha

Ch. 11 - Clean Up

The night passed by slower than I'd thought possible. The moon, which was only half full, traveled across the sky like a tortoise tripping over itself. But morning couldn't evade me, so the sun still rose high above the clouds.

I had already packed up my temporary campground, then headed into where I had seen flashing lights the night before. It must've been a city of some sorts, and only a mile or two away from where I slept.

My first priority was my clothes, because wearing all grey and having a metal arm wasn't suspicious in the slightest. The dried blood would also raise unwanted questions that I didn't have a reasonable lie for. Although, I was a pretty skilled at lying, the police would be there faster than I could get my story together. So for now, I slapped a ton of thick mud over my arm.

Even though I didn't have any money, I still walked into the mall through a back entrance. I intended to steal either money or basic necessities. I felt kind of bad, but you do what you have to do in order to survive.

A young teenage couple was standing in the corner behind the escalator. I made a disgusted face once I realized they were making out. Typical. Another thing I noticed when I got close enough to nick his wallet, was that it was the people from last night- Douglas and Gwen.

Checking the wallet, I discovered several crumpled dollar bills adding up to $35. Then, I went into a low level thrift shop to find something better. I was soon stopped by a clerk. Shit.

"Can I..." She trailed off, taking note of my ragged appearance and the mud I had tracked in, "Can I help you?"

She seemed pretty nice, but I didn't want her help. But then, she couldn't call the police if she was assisting me. "Yes please, ma'am."

"Okay! Well, my name is Katie. What are you looking for today?"

"Oh you know, the usual new clothes. Shirt, pants, and do you have shoes?" I made sure to look for available exits and see for others around me. Another woman and an older man.

"We do have shoes, over there on the left. Any preference for pants and shoes, like athletic, long, short-"

I quickly cut her off, "Long pants and shirt. Gloves, and work boots."

She appeared startled, but nodded and told me to pick out shoes while she recommended some stuff. "It'll be waiting in the dressing rooms."

I avoided the others customers and found a pair of hard leathered boots, perfect for hiding my stolen knife from Hydra. I also picked out a pair of sunglasses and long black gloves.

Soon sporting a white t-shirt and dark blue jeans and a navy jacket, I left the store and listened to the grumbling plea of my stomach. It had been several days since I had eaten; I was surprised I was still standing. My remaining money went to a McDonald's and a set of twenty chicken nuggets. (A/N: I really want McDonald's right now.)

I even spotted an obviously confused Douglas wandering around, probably searching for his lost item. Of course, I did the only reasonable thing and reverse pick pocketed him by depositing his wallet back into his back pocket. It was pretty funny.

I think I got the hell out just in time too, as some police men came in and headed towards the store I was in earlier. Were they even police? Or were they Hydra agents in disguise? Katie must've called somebody about me. I cursed myself for being so careless; she might've seen my arm.

My eyes adjusted to the sunlight when I finally got my first glimpse of it in the distance: Avengers Tower.

**This is short, I know. Next chapter might be the epilogue because I don't know if I want to keep this up.

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