Are You In or Are You Out?

Part 12

AN: all mistakes are my own

Chapter 12

Six hours after Ulton had attacked the Avengers the entire team was gone from the compound. It was quiet apart from the small amount of noise the usual workers made. They were few, Maria and her four hulking security boys, a lab team of six, two paramedic responders, a nurse and the old guy on front gate. She'd never seen him, but had heard Nat say he was sweet and talked about his wife a lot. There was other staff milling about today however, cleaning up from the party the night before, caterers taking stock of broken glasses and gossiping about what might have happened.

Emma watched from her mezzanine, listened to their idol chat about this and that. She tried to read, but gave up and seemed to have smoked a hundred cigarettes since they had left. She hadn't slept and didn't really want to, frightened somehow that they night return and she might miss it if she did. Although she knew that it was ridiculous.

Around lunchtime she found Maria in the main kitchen area heating up soup in the microwave. "Hey."

"Hi Emma, you holding up ok?"

She wasn't sure to be honest. "Yeah good. Any word?"

Maria shook her head. "No, you'll be the first to know I promise." Marie got her soup out of the microwave and started to pour it from the bowl it was in into a tall silver thermos flask. "Have you thought about training with the team?"

"What like be an Avenger?" She scoffed and hopped up onto the counter taking a dark plum from the fruit bowl turning it over in her hands, liking how it felt and smelt, but she knew she didn't like them.

"Tony told me about the previous times the 'inner' you has come out. It sounds very similar Bruce and he has learned some semblance of control over the years. There's nothing to say that you can't do the same thing." Maria licked a drop of soup off of her finger.

"I don't know. One day I'd like to do more, but right now the thought of leaving the bloody building makes me feel sick!" Emma chuckled and Maria smiled at her.

"Think about it." She turned to leave. "I'll be in the obs office if you need anything and I'll shout if I hear anything."

"Thanks." She was still sat on the counter holding the plum when her phone buzzed in her back pocket. She hopped of the counter and walked to go out the room as she got her phone out of her jeans, she then noticed she still had the plum. Shaking her head she walked back to the fruit bowl chuckling to herself. "I don't even like these!" She shoved it back in the bowl and opened her phone to the texts.

NatRom: Arrived safe. 👍🏻

Emma: ok.. Xx

She sighed and closed her phone, then yawned.

Walking slowly and lazily back to her room she felt her phone buzz again. She avoided the main areas where the caterers and other staff were and made it back to her own room. She flopped down on her bed and reached for her remote to the stereo system on her desk. Hitting play and laying down against the pillows to read her texts as London Grammer started to play gently in the background.

NatRom: I forgot that suit thing is on my bed. I got it out for you.

Emma dropped her phone on the covers and ran a few doors down the hall to Nat's room. She found the odd bodysuit on her bedclothes. She picked it up and frowned at the feel of the material. The feeling wasn't rough, it was actually quite soft, but felt off against her fingers. She kept running it through her fingers as she walked back to her room.