Demons ━ Bucky Barnes [1]

09 ━ PAST LIVES

  Andy gave the blond's arm a nudge, "You should head home and get some rest."

  Steve turned to look at her and his raised brow was enough to ask the question so that his mouth didn't have to; are you sure? Andy rolled her eyes, "I'll be fine. I want to see you clean and refreshed when I get back to the apartment." Her smile was a little more genuine now, and that seemed to be enough to finally convince him.

  Steve gave a reluctant nod as he got up from the bed. "Alright, I'll see you there," he told her, sparing one final glance at Fury before he made his exit. The Director's gaze followed him until he was gone.

  When Steve had disappeared behind the hospital room door, Nick turned back to face his agent. "Doctor's said you can be released within the next hour or so. How are you feeling?" He ventured closer, stopping at the edge of Andrea's bed.

  She gave a dry chuckle, closing her eyes as she fell against the bed. She didn't want Fury to see the red rims caused by her tears. It would have been a dead giveaway of how emotionally shaken she was by the whole ordeal.  Andy had to be strong enough to carry the weight of what she'd done for the rest of her life.

  Otherwise, she truly didn't deserve the second chance the world had given her.

  Andy hummed thoughtfully, "Well, after experiencing the most traumatic pain I've ever felt, I think I'm pretty damn okay." In spite of the reply, Andrea couldn't help but grimace at the memory of the splitting headache. She opened her eyes to stare up at the ceiling.

  Her words were met with silence and she knew that Fury was waiting. She had questions that she was dying to ask, and he wasn't leaving until she asked them. Swallowing her anxiety, Andy lifted herself from the bed, but she still couldn't bring herself to look at the Director.

  "Did you know?" It came out as a whisper. But, even as she cleared her throat, Andrea knew it was a poor excuse for her reluctance. She forced herself to continue, "Did you know about them and what they did to me?"

  "Yes, I did." Fury's voice betrayed no reaction and Andy felt her heart fall. She pressed her fingers to her lips. Her chest felt tight as she tried to figure out what to say, but were there any words that could save her?

  Andy didn't know the answer, but she hoped there was. How else could she prove herself to him? "I'm sorry," she choked out, "I swear, I didn't know." Andrea shut her eyes as the words began to fall from her lips.

  She felt pathetic for begging, but she was desperate for him to believe her. "I would never do anything to harm any of you." I've done enough of that already, she didn't say.

  Fury exhaled a long sigh, "You don't have to explain anything to me, Jones. I know." Andy lifted her head, eyes full of wary confusion. Though, before she could even ask, Nick answered. He lifted his hand and─ pinched between his fingers─ there was a hard-drive.

  Andrea recognized it immediately. The memories of her time with HYDRA were fresher than most, though that wasn't to say they were complete. Among them, the most vivid recollection was the destruction of the base she was kept at.

  Prior to burning it to the ground, Andy had collected any data she could before leaving. Fury must have found the hard-drive among her belongings when they found her. The knowledge that it had fallen into the right hands was an unspeakable relief.

  "Thank you, Nick." Andy looked up and met Fury's gaze with the last of her resolve, "I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't been there for me." She hoped that he could see the sincerity in her eyes. She hoped that the hard-drive was enough to prove to him that he could still trust her.