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ONCE THE DEBRIS HAD SETTLED, ALEX OPENED HER EYES. From between the sizeable pieces of broken concrete and steel, she noted a flickering orange glow. No doubt a fire or two caused by the explosion. Steve pushed a few blocks out of the way and it became apparent that Nat must've been knocked unconscious at some point during the explosion. Without hesitation, Steve scooped her up.
"Can you walk?" he panted, face streaked with dirt and sweat. Rendered speechless, Alex nodded and forced herself to her feet. She followed after him as he stepped through the rubble and debris. As they made it to a clearing, Steve caught sight of a quinjet flying low to the ground and several sets of flashlights sweeping across the carnage.
"C'mon, I'm not hanging around to get caught." Together, they navigated their way through the burning remains of the bunker until they were safely back at the car.
"So, we're hightailing it to New York, right?" Alex questioned as they left the camp in the rearview mirror. Steve tightened his grip on the steering wheel and shook his head. Nat was safely strapped into the back seat and the car was uncomfortably quiet.
"No? What do you mean no? We could get help -"
"Alex, it's not the team's problem to deal with -"
"It wasn't mine either, but I guess I have a habit of getting into places I don't belong," she countered sharply and sat back in the passenger seat.
"You know I appreciate what you've done to help me. I couldn't have gotten this far without you, but sometimes the easiest route to take is the one with the lowest number of people involved," he attempted to appease her, voice now low and soft. Alex couldn't stay mad at him for something as stupid as semantics but turned back to face him again.
"So what's the plan? We're not safe in DC. If what just happened wasn't clue enough, we're basically fugitives now. Unless that happened to escape your memory over the past hour?"
"Trust me. I know a place. You should probably get some rest, it's going to be at least four hours back to DC." Alex took him up on that offer and settled into the seat. She removed her baseball cap and pulled her hood up.
-/-/-
The next time Alex opened her eyes, the sun was up and they were back in DC. But they weren't heading back to either of their apartments, which confused Alex as she watched Steve navigate the empty morning streets.
"Oh, good, you're awake."
"Yeah, where are we going?" she questioned through a stifled yawn. The young woman almost ten years his junior stretched out as best as she could in the limited space of the front seat. As they turned into a fairly urbanised street, Steve cleared his throat.
