Hydra's Widow

Chapter Sixteen

"So?" asked Agent Coulson. 

"Yes," I answered. I saw Stark's and Coulson's face light up. 

"Welcome, P-h-e-o-n-i-x," Stark signed, dropping the screwdriver that he was holding. 

Heart rate faster than it was moments ago. The halls became tighter, the walls felt as if they would crush me at any moment. I kept sprinting down the long halls. The concrete walls made the air cold, although my body felt the heat of running. 

I could feel a male presence behind me, he's following. I ran faster, my breathing became shallow. I made a sharp turn, I pushed my body against the wall, trying to hide from the male that was following. I forced my breathing to slow. My heart was pounding out of my chest, it soon slowed. I moved my head slightly to see no one. 

I moved out of the corner to be faced with James. He grabbed me by the neck, pushing me against the wall in the narrow hallway.

I gasped awake, my body sitting upwards. Tears that I didn't know that was in my eyes fell down my cheeks. I wiped the tears away from my face. Although they kept falling, they didn't seem to slow. 

The image of James replayed in my head. I could almost feel his tight grasped on my neck, I could feel my back hitting the wall. Tears fell violently down my face. I pinched the skin between my thumb and my pointing finger, trying to prevent a panic-attack before it happened. My breathing quickened, I got out of bed and headed for the kitchen. 

The halls felt as though they went on forever. I finally made it; I get a cup and filled it with ice. I took an ice-cube and held it within my hands. I shivered at the coldness of the ice in my hands. My breathing slowed and the tears stopped after a few minutes of holding the ice. I sat on the couch curling my body in a soothing way. I buried my head on my knees. 

I stayed that way in the dark for who knows how long. I finally felt a tap on my shoulder. I pulled away from the person, swiftly moving off the couch. I couldn't see the person; all I could make out was the short hair from the shadow. The lights suddenly turned on. James stood in front of me. 

I wanted to back away after what had happened in my dream. He stepped towards me. 

"Nightmare?" he asked me. 

Should I be honest? Is it time to tell him? Can I finally find trust in him? 

I nodded, taking the gamble. He made slow movements towards me. I wanted to curl back up on the floor. I wanted to cry into his shoulder-What? No, no, no. 

He grazed my hand slightly with his flesh hand. He rubbed gentle circles on the back of my hand. Realizing we were still standing I walked over to the couch. I sat down as he sat beside me, I let my head rest on his shoulder. It was still a friendly gesture, nothing more, right? 

"Are we killers?" I asked James. 

He nodded slightly. "But we're better than that now." I nodded against his shoulder. 

"I want to be better, James," I paused in my signing. "I know I'm better now, but I want to have a clean slate," I said. 

"You have to wait for it," he signed carefully. "The moment will come where you make the decision to have that clean slate, Doll." 

"I'm hungry, food?" 

"You read my mind, leftovers?" he asked. I quickly nodded. 

He walked to the fridge, as he took two bowls of leftovers for us. I waited patiently for the dish of the best smelling food. The fresh scent of tomato sauce hit my nose. James came creeping into the room with the bowls of food. He handed me the bowl, I took the fork and started to take bites of the food. Wanda has to be the best cook in the compound. I looked over to see James' having the sauce all around his mouth. I chuckled. 

He sat down his food on the coffee table. "What?" he asked. I gestured around my mouth with my hand. I think he laughed. "You should look at yourself," he replied. 

I looked at the reflection in the television, I let a giggle out. "Fin, fine, you win Mr. Clean." He shook his head, taking his bowl back in his hand after he wiped the sauce off of his face with his sleeve. 

After finishing the meal, we decided to part ways to our bedrooms, to not draw suspicion that we may have been up all night. For the rest of the hours, we texted each other, to keep the boredom at bay. About five in the morning, we decide to stop and get dressed, since we have training at six.  Rogers made it hard to relax on a Sunday. 

A/N- 6k! I can't believe it. I check every single day! I want to thank each and every one of you. I started this book thinking I would never get many reads on it. I started my writing journey last year, I think. So, thank you all from the bottom of my heart.