After being rescued by the Avengers, Lexi Ahren a.k.a Maze, an old friend of Natasha and an ex Red Room assassin, joins the team trying to bring down a terrorist organization called SAHARA. Struggling with her own issues, she falls for the handsome...
The next three weeks were quite calm. She got a lot closer to Bucky. He was always there for her and she tried her best to be there for him. There was casual flirting between them, but she wasn't ready to dive into anything serious. She liked him, but she wanted to deal with her issues before putting someone through that. She started getting flashbacks from the time she was tortured and was struggling to hide it from everyone. Wanda and Steve became close friends and she liked having people around, but they were also perceptive and hiding her struggles became harder and harder. She was getting physically better and healing fast. Soon enough, Bruce cleared her for physical training.
She put on a pair of yoga pants and a sports bra, plugged her earphones and went downstairs.
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The song Raise Hell from Dorothy was blasting in her ears and as she searched for a water bottle, she didn't hear Steve and Thor come in. She grabbed a bottle and turned to leave, but jumped at the sight of Thor, a few feets from her.
Lexi: God! You almost killed me...
Thor: I apologize, you seemed to not hear us.
Lexi: Yeah, sorry about that.
Steve: Going for a run?
Lexi: Hell yeah... Bruce told me I could.
Steve: Just, don't push too hard. Maybe someone should go with you?
Lexi: If you want to come run with me Captain, you can.
Steve laughs, amused.
Steve: I would, but I have a meeting to attend with Tony. Maybe Buck is available?
Lexi: I don't want to bother him. I heard him panting when I woke up to get some water last night. I think he had a rough one.
Steve: Yeah... ok. Let me call Tony and I'll reschedule my meeting.
Lexi: Steve, you don't have to do that. I'm telling you, I am fine.
Steve: I insist.
He grabs his phone and dials, but no response. A few seconds later, Tony enters the kitchen.
Tony: What's up Capsicle? You tried to call me?
Steve: Yeah, could we reschedule our meeting to later this afternoon? Lexi has been cleared for physical workout and is going on a run, but I don't want to let her go alone, just in case.
Tony turns to her and smiles.
Tony: Sure. Be careful.
Lexi rolls her eyes, sick of being told to be careful. She knows it's because they care, but it's not like she was made of glass.
Lexi: Of course Tony. Can we go now?
Steve chuckles before nodding. Lexi pats Thor's arm with a smile.
Lexi: See you later alligator!
Thor looks at Lexi, as she leaves, confused, then frowns at Tony.
Thor: Did she just call me an alligator?
Tony rolls his eyes, unimpressed and leaves the room without answering the god's question. Lexi and Steve go outside and start running around the compound and through the trails in the woods. Steve tries to keep a smooth pace for Lexi to follow. After 45 minutes, she stops, trying to catch her breath and drinking a sip of water.
Steve: You're doing very good for a girl who was just cleared!
Lexi: I've always liked running. It feels so good to be able to go back to my old routine. I have my first training with Nat tomorrow.
Steve: Be -
Lexi: Don't. I can't hear that sentence anymore.
Steve: Fine.
They stay silent for a few minutes before Steve sits on a tree stump.
Steve: I wanted to talk to you about something...
Lexi: That seems serious, should I be nervous?
Steve nervously laughs.
Steve: No, I just... I noticed that you spend a lot of time with Bucky and I just wanted to know if there was something going on between you two.
Lexi was surprised by Steve's question and thought for a second.
Lexi: Well... I don't know. I don't know if I can think about that right now.
Steve: What do you mean?
She sighs and sits on the ground, legs crossed.
Lexi: Before I can tell you, I need you to promise me to not tell anyone. Not a soul.
Steve: Ok, I promise.
She hesitates for a minute before taking a deep breath.
Lexi: I started to remember...
Steve closed his eyes for a moment, trying to find the right words.
Lexi: I started getting these flashbacks and these dreams. To be honest, I knew what happened, I was just hoping I could deny it forever... Anyway, I don't think I'm ready to get involved with anyone. Even if I like Bucky, I don't want to be a burden for him. He has enough with his own issues...
Steve gets closer to her and sits beside her, taking her by her shoulders, she leans on him, trying to hold back her tears.
Steve: Hey... you are not a burden to anyone. We're here for you and keeping all that bottled up isn't healthy.
Lexi: I need to figure things out by myself first. I have this anger inside of me, but no-one to blame. I still don't know who they were...
Steve looked shocked.
Steve: They...?
She closed her eyes, knowing she said too much. She knew everyone was aware of what happened to her, but no one had the details. They didn't know who, how, when or how many times it happened. She, herself, didn't know for sure.
Lexi: Yeah...
He held her close, squeezing her into his arms. After a few minutes, she got up and wiped her face, closing up again.
Lexi: Let's go. I want to run for a little while longer.
She took off before Steve could get up, but he caught up with her in no time. The rest of the run was silent and Lexi slightly regretted telling him. When she looked at him, the only thing she could see was pitty and it was killing her. She ran to the compound and before going inside, she turned to him.
Lexi: Thanks for coming with me. I'll see you later.
She is about to leave, but he grabs her hand and spins her around, hugging her. She freezes, but gives in and enjoys the embrace.
Steve: I want you to know that I'm here for you. Even if it's just as a distraction, to talk or whatever.
She finds the way he said it weird, but brushes it off. She pulls away and smiles up at him. He stares at her, waiting for a response.
