THE WINTER CHILDREN | What They Made Me | part 2

6. B.A.R.F.

We start to go around the building. I show Maisy, Grace, Owen and Henry around some of the places in here. We go to the other separate building with the helicopters and jets and stuff. It's really cool, especially because they'd never seen anything like it before. They keep pointing at stuff and asking about it. I tell them pretty much everything I know about the place. We go to the training rooms as well. They don't particularly like that though. They used to be forced to do a lot of work in places like that. Like I was when I was really small. I don't remember a lot of it though. Just flashes. Short moments or guys or just random places in there.

We run around and look at everything for a few hours. We came back for something to eat somewhere in between. We also found some guys that live and train here. Like Sam, with the wings. He's fun. He actually showed us some tricks flying around and we talked for a while. He has a lot of funny stories. We also spend some time with Clint and Nat when they where running around outside. They do that a lot. Well Nat does. Clint Just comes along sometimes. I run the last lap with them whenever I'm here, which is exhausting, but usually fun. So we did some of that, before going back to the lab. Dad told Friday to tell us to go there.

We get back to the lab, and finish some tests. Grace and Owen are going to do some more tests in the lab with doctor Cho while Maisy and Henry do some intelligence things dad made.

We are hanging around there a little, just talking a bit with everyone. Clint came in after a while as well, talking about some new thing they're practicing. He's not here that often anymore though, he says he's retired, but he's still here sometimes.

Maisy is kind of slumbered back in a seat in the corner. I sit down next to her. "How are you? Tired?" I ask. She nods back and fiddles with her hand a little. I frown slightly and squint a little. "Is that sign language?" I ask while thinking back to something I once knew.

I kind of mess with my fingers to ask 'how are you?' She smiles a little tiredly and reaches forwards.

"Hold on" I hear Clint behind me. I look over while he takes my hands to fix my fingers. I try again, making him smile and nod in approval.

"Yeah that's it!" He says excited. "Wait, try this!"  He says excitedly while sitting down with us. He makes some movements with his fingers, and Maisy starts giggling.

"What does it mean?" I ask. Clint smiles a little before doing it again. "I lost my sandwich." He says dryly.

"That's what you said?" I ask a little confused. Clint nods happily while looking behind him. "It's not a lie though." He says. I laugh a little when dad comes over.

"So, I heard... you don't hear that well..." he says, crouching down in front of Maisy.

She nods a little. "Well I'm pretty much just deaf." She says. Dad nods while reaching in his pocket.

"I think I have something for that." He says while opening the little box. He takes out a thing that looks pretty much like the coms we use on missions and stuff.

"This... this is a hearing aid. It won't fix it completely, but you will hear something. And combined with your lip reading, which is impressive by the way, you should be fine." Dad explains. She sits up slowly.

"Really?" She ask. "I could hear?"

Dad nods slowly, taking a little clip and attaching it to the hearing aid. "Come here" He says, motioning her to him. She slowly sits forwards, an excited grin on her face.

Dad carefully pulls her hair back and places the clip behind her ear, before putting the actual hearing aid in her ear.

"How's that?" He asks. She shoots back suddenly. She looks from him to me and Clint and back. I smile excitedly.