Falling for the Enemy || Captain America || Book 1

Chapter 3: Meeting Some Fantastic People

EDITED :)

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Steve's POV

          Thump.

          No, stronger.

          Thump.

          Why can't I stop thinking about our new target?

          Thump.

          She's volatile, self-obsessed and snarky. Doesn't play well with others.

          Thump.

          She's different. She doesn't kill SHIELD agents, not unless she has to. But she's an assassin, why care?

          Thump.

          No, stop. She's not just an assassin.

          Thump.

          She's the enemy.

          CRACK.

          The punching bag is ripped from its hook, spiralling towards the floor and crashing open, allowing the sand to pour freely from it like a dull beige tsunami. My breaths heave my chest up and down, uneven yet not entirely spent. Only a couple beads of sweat trickle gently down my face.

           "You do realise that abolishing punching bags all day doesn't help us find Lillian, as entertaining as it may prove to be."

           A smile cracks at my lips, identifying the voice immediately. "I know, but it helps get the adrenalin out of my body. If I didn't, then I think I may just spontaneously explode."

           Bruce Banner chuckles quietly. "Wouldn't want that now would we?"

          I begin to unwrap the protective layer of tape from my knuckles as Dr. Banner forwards in, shuffling around and fiddling with either the hem of his shirt, his glasses or his own fingers.

          He and I both know exactly why I'm here. It's what I do when I need time to think, which is what I need more than anything at the moment. It's something I commonly partook in when I first arrived in the 21st century, having to wrap my head around the fact of being almost 70 years in the ice and waking up in a world where there's no longer a war. A war we apparently won.

          Natasha Romanoff is not one who is prone to allowing emotions guide her. Sentiment and other controlling emotions are often pushed down, and she never hints towards them when on a mission or task. That's what makes her one of Fury's best agents, if not the best. So how does this Lillian Nightshade manage to coax Nat from her steel outer shell?

          No one else notices the small, practically entirely undetectable breaks in character Nat has when talking about Lillian Nightshade. No one but Clint and I. Clint because he's known her the longest and because of their... relationship, and me because of everything Natasha and I have gone through involving the invasion, but more effectively the entire Winter Soldier and HYDRA ordeal.

          This is why Lillian Nightshade intrigues me. Nat flinches at her name, not in fear, but in frustration and almost... hatred. How does a woman such as Nightshade, draw Natasha's emotions out the way she does? Especially when she seems to be someone who could in fact be reasoned with if spoken to correctly.

          Evidently Clint, Natasha nor Fury have spoken the right words yet.

          Yet at the same time how she works.... It's unorthodox and immoral. She kills people, all for a few pretty pennies. She toys with life as if it were some plaything that could easily be replaced. She doesn't follow orders, she goes by her own rules, and she doesn't seem to listen to anything anyone else has to say.