Lost Soldiers (Avengers Fan Fiction #3)

Chapter 6

Day two of being here at Xavier's school and nothing. We had nothing to go off of. I was glad we could rest up and gain some strength before charging into the next battle, but it was a lot of stress.

I sprawled out on the guest bed and tried to relax. I needed to calm my nerves. Everything was happening too slow. We needed to get out there already. Who knows what havoc Loki was planning next? I groaned and stared at the pale ceiling. Stop worrying. I thought to myself. We'll get through this.

Steve knocked on the door before entering and shut it behind him. His hands played with the hem of his blue shirt until he calmed down and stopped. Steve never really liked arguing, so the make up conversation almost always became awkward. His lips tightened into a straight line and he almost sighed. He locked eyes with me as I sat up, allowing him to sit. Steve didn't tear his sad gaze away. "I'm sorry about yesterday."

Steve Rogers, everyone. He did nothing wrong, yet he still apologizes. I frowned and shook my head. "It's okay. It's not your fault. I'm the one that got out of hand."

"I understand where you're coming from. It's difficult to handle all of the emotions and stress." Steve's rubbed the back of his neck and raised his eyebrows. "I'm surprised Peter and Bruce are doing so well."

"Yeah, they have their own way of dealing with fear and guilt." I paused and thought for a moment. This could either lead to another argument, or a calm conversation. 50/50 odds doesn't sound too bad. "Did you really mean what you said yesterday?"

Steve frowned and he tore his gaze away from me. He focused on the desk in the corner of the room and the villains' files scattered about. His voice grew wary for a second until he cleared his throat, "That you would turn against us? That you're no better than the villains?" His expression fell and a grave replaced it. He blinked a few times before responding with the word that stabbed me right in the chest. "Yes."

I bit the inside of my cheek and nodded slowly. I knew anger and guilt was getting to me. How could it not? It wasn't just impacting me, though. It hurt the others. I took it out on them. I worried them. My heart sunk a bit and I kept a straight face. What I was about to ask next determined my next move. "Do you still trust me?"

Steve replied without a second thought, "Of course I trust you, Lilly." He shut his eyes tightly and exhaled loudly. "I trust you. How could I not? You mean so much to me. But..."

When he trailed off, it only made me more eager to hear the rest of it. I tried to help him finish his sentence, "Buuutttt....?"

His blue eyes opened and peered right into mine. He opened his mouth to say something, but stopped himself and took my hand in his. "Promise me you won't let your anger get the best of you. I know you, Lilly. You aren't like them. Everything is just happening so fast that you never got a second to yourself. Catch your breath."

"How can I catch my breath when..." I stopped myself and saw him lean his head forward like he was waiting for me to finish. I shook my head and squeezed his hand. "I promise. I won't turn on you guys or leave you behind. We're a team."

Steve's face soured. He sat up straighter and was reluctant to say anything. He finally came to a conclusion a minute later and declared, "I don't want to sound horrible, but I have to ask a question." I nodded and waited for him to ask. He glanced away and continued, "You can definitely catch your breath after this conversation, but I have to ask. Are the X-Men ready? We need to group together and come up with a plan."

"No..." I groaned and tapped my foot against the floor impatiently. "No one is ready. We're still running on fumes as is. I'm still waiting for the Professor to greenlight the plan first. Logan has started recruiting people already, but we need to know how many can go first. If this threat is as big as it is, we can only bring some of them. Once Loki finds out the X-Men are involved, they'll attack the school next. The children need to be defended too."