Avengers mate

Figuring things out

~Hey guys before the story begins there might be a trigger for people who have panic attacks or anything of the sort in this chapter so just tread carefully, and happy reading.~

I woke up to yelling later that day, which wasn't the most pleasant thing in the world to experience when you had just woken up.

"What do you mean powers?!" an unrecognizable voice yelled, drowning out the others and causing me to let out a squeal of fear in response. I'd never loved yelling, especially after living with the wreck that was my father, so when I was woken up by loud voices, my mind went straight back to that house, alone and defenceless against him.

I felt arms tighten around me, but they weren't the same ones that I had fallen asleep in. These arms were just as muscular, but smaller. I couldn't figure out who the arms belonged to, which just drove me more into a state of panic.

The voices continued yelling until I heard something like a stage whisper from a suspiciously familiar voice next to me. "Would you two shut up? You woke her up and are scaring her."

The silence eased my fears slightly, but I was still on alert. Hopefully, I could pretend that I fell back asleep and escape, somehow. However, that dream was ruined by an arm rubbing my back and a much quieter voice saying, "Angel, it's time to wake up."

I jump up taking everyone in the room by surprise and dive under the bed, not giving it a second thought, just thinking about getting away from the loud voices that resembled my father a bit too closely.

I faintly hear panicked and confused voices from around the bed, and before I knew it, there was a shift from the bed, and a familiar face looking at me upside down.

"A? What are you doing?" Peter, I think, says with confusing in his voice, but I can't speak, my breath stuck in my throat.

I'm shaking, my breathing becoming uneven as I start getting flashbacks of the times my father woke me up, wanting me to do some chore or another. If I didn't answer or get up right away, he'd throw things at me and yell at me louder. I remember the time that he had slapped me, and from that day on, I had made sure to be up before him. I could never sleep without locking the door and window, fearing that he would find someway to get in.

"Hey, hey Ava. It's okay, it's okay. Focus on me. Focus on my voice." I hear a much softer, gentler voice say, coming from the direction Peter was only moments ago. I try to open my eyes to see who it is, but my eyelids feel weighted down, and I can't get them to open. I feel a hand rest on mine, but I jerk back, whimpering out a small, "no," repeating it over and over again, wishing that the noises would quieten down, even if just a little.

"Ariel, it's alright. Open your eyes for me, please?" The second voice sounded so sad and lost, so I pry my eyes open, fighting against my instinct to just stay in the dark, to stay safe. I look towards the voice and make contact with soft, brown eyes. "Hey. There she is. Can you take slow, deep breaths with me?

I shakily nod, and he begins to exaggerate his breathing, slowing it down and counting to five with every breath he takes in. I try to copy him, but my breath is so fast and shaky that I can't get it to slow down enough for it to match his. The more I continue to try, the more frustrated I get, defeating all the progress I had just made with just me calming down enough to try.

It's not working, Tony," the person next to the brown eyes says, worried. I close my eyes again, unable to hold them open any longer with all the black dots that fill my vision. "No no no. Open your eyes, Ariel. Just take my hand. Just stay awake."

Then, I feel a hand rest on mine again, and this time, I don't flinch away. I turn my palm up and grip tightly onto the rough, callused hand. I don't want to open my eyes because I'm terrified that if I do, I'll see him there telling me that I'm the reason she's gone. Sobs start to shutter through my body, and I have no control over it. I didn't want this to happen! Not after I found them and everything seemed to finally fall into place, but here I am, having another panic attack.