Captain and His Soulmate

Part 11

*Steve's POV*

I was down in the gym again taking my anger out on the punching bag. I had made the decision that I was going to approach her and then those assholes had started to harass her. I couldn't stop myself from getting involved. No one talked to my soulmate like that. I slammed my fist into the bag in frustration because she had slipped out when I was dealing with them. I couldn't help thinking, if I hadn't gotten involved would she still be at the diner.

*Flashback*

After helping the owner get the scumbags out of the diner, Sam and I were walking back toward our table. I was scanning the people but I didn't see Y/N.

Sam slides into the seat across from me. "Dude, you've got to tell her. She looked terrified while you were going all angry Cap."

I rub the back of my neck trying to ease the tension. "That's the plan. She's probably in the back. When she comes out, I'll talk with her."

Sam gives me a nod, agreeing with my course of action. We had picked up our conversation with Jimmy when a waitress I hadn't seen before approached us with a coffee pot.

Rae smiles in greeting and holds up a coffee pot. "Hello! Can I top you guys off?"

Sam shoots me a concerned look "Where is Y/N?"

Rae's smile tightens slightly "Oh, she had to go. I'm taking the last couple minutes of her shift."

I feel like someone punched me in the gut and I clench my fists trying to keep calm, " She just left."

Rae's smile falls and she starts to look uncertain and a little worried. "Yea. She didn't tell me why but I think she talked to Ang before she left. But is there something I can help with? Was your order not right? I can get it fixed." Rae's rambling was cut off by Steve's phone ringing.

Sam touched her arm to get her attention while Steve answered. "No, we're all set. But could you have Ang come over, we just wanted to make sure Y/N was ok."

Rae's smile returned, "Oh, of course."

*Steve on the phone*

Nat's name flashes across the screen. "Yea." I snap.

Nat's voice fills the line. "What happened? She went out the back and took off. Clint's following her but he said that she's taking an obscure route, like she's trying to lose him."

I sigh, "Tell him to stop, I don't want her more spooked then she is. Meet us out front in a few. We'll head back home and get it sorted out."

Nat sounds uncertain, "Steve...are you sure?'

I pinch the bridge of my nose, "Yea. Meet us outside."

I can feel Sam watching me as I slam the phone down on the table. Jimmy's been watching the entire thing silently.

Jimmy sighs, shaking his head. "She ran, didn't she?"

I look down trying to rein in the hurt, it feels like my heart is ripping open. The one person on this earth that was made for me, my soulmate, ran from me. "Jimmy, what is she so scared of? What could make her literally run from her soulmate?" I hear my voice crack slightly. I can't comprehend what she's thinking but I want to know.

Jimmy runs his hand over the table. "She never told me. All I know is she's terrified of it. She moved here a few years ago. She's never told me a lot about her past but I know she doesn't have any family. She let slip once that her mother died."

The three of them were so deep in conversation they didn't see Angela approach. Overhearing the last of their conversation, she knew what they wanted to know. When she spoke all three of them turned toward her in surprise.

"Her mother didn't just die. She was murdered. Y/N saw the end of it. She tried to save her but couldn't. "

Angela's statement is heart-wrenching about Y/N but leaves me confused, "Why does that make her scared of soulmates?"

Angela bites her lip, I can tell she's trying to decide what to say. "Her mother's soulmate was the one to kill her."

It was so quiet at our table, you could have heard a pin drop after Angela dropped that on us. I didn't know how to react, how could that have happened. My stomach turned.

Sam lets out a low whistle. "Damn. So she watched her father kill her mother."

Angela shakes her head no and gets a sad look on her face. "No. Y/N's father is not her mother's soulmate. Look, I shouldn't have even told you that much. It's Y/N's story to tell and it's a shitty story. I'm not sure I even know half of it. She has every reason to be fearful of soulmates, her whole family is a bunch of...." She looks over at the front window and stops speaking. "Look, she's not coming back here, this was her last shift. I told her that she was wrong. That of all people she could trust you, I mean you're Captain American, but she's acting on pure fear right now. She's hoping that somehow the soulmate connection will dissolve or something, that's why she's been staying away."

I rub my hand through my hair in frustration, "She's so scared that my being here made her quit?"

Angela doesn't speak for a few seconds, trying to find the right words. "It's not because of you. It's because of her fear. She's not acting rationally."

Sam hands Angela a card. "If she comes back please call us. Steve..."

I nod, knowing that Nat and Clint are waiting for us. "Yea, we gotta go. Jimmy, I'm so sorry but we've got to go."

Jimmy nods, giving me a sad smile. "Not your fault. I...I know you were mostly coming to see her but I'm glad I got to see you."

His statement catches me off guard and I give him a confused look. "Jimmy, I-both Bucky and I, came here to see you too. I can't say that Y/N wasn't a big draw but I want to have at least a weekly meetup with you." I take Jimmy's phone and type my number into it and call myself waiting until the phone rings giving me his number. "I'll text or call you. Maybe we can have you come check out Avengers tower next week."

Jimmy gives me a bright smile, "I'd really like that."

Sam gets up to leave. "Jimmy, Angela, it was nice to meet you. I hope this isn't our last meeting."

We left quickly and walked out to find Nat and Clint milling around both looking frustrated.

Clint raises his eyebrow at us. "What the hell happened? She looked freaked. And I'm pretty sure she knew I was following her. She was taking some really weird alley's, she was trying to lose me."

Sam gives me a side eye. "Some guys were making inappropriate comments to Y/N and Steve went into full Cap mode. She freaked out and took off, but from speaking to Angela, one of the other waitresses, her fear has something to do with her family."

Nat stares at me, I can tell she's reading me. She gives a sigh before turning and starting to walk away, expecting us to keep up. "I don't like it because it's giving him what he wants, but I think it's time to let Tony do a deep dive. We don't even have an address to go to stake her out. Let's get all the info we can and find about her. I don't like that one of our soulmates being out there unprotected."

*End Flashback*

Something soft hits me in the back of the head pulling me back to the present. I whip around and see Nat standing a few feet away. I grab the towel she hit me with and wipe my face while I start to unwrap my hands. "What's up, Nat?"

"I know you don't want to but we have a mission. We've received intel that someone is experimenting on people and making enhanced individuals or they're already enhanced and being experimented on- that part isn't clear. Clint's checking the intel now. We need a full team on this. Some of the experiments went... bad and there are issues with the enhanced individuals."

I grunt, glad for the distraction because we've had no luck in finding Y/N. "Good, I could use a fight right now."