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...
Around 2h20AM, Lexi woke up from a nightmare. She gets out of bed, puts on a pajamas and goes to the kitchen to grab a glass of water when she hears the tv was still open.
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She goes to check who was still up and sees Steve peacefully asleep on the couch. She smiles and grabs the throw blanket. She covers him with it which wakes him up.
Steve: Lex?
Lexi: I'm sorry, I didn't want to wake you up.
Steve: It's fine, what are you doing up?
Lexi: I was thirsty.
He stares at her for a few seconds.
Steve: Another nightmare?
She nods, sitting next to him. She stares at the tv, sipping her glass of water when Steve yawns.
Lexi: You should go to bed.
Steve: I don't want to leave you alone.
Lexi: I'm fine.
Steve: No you're not. I can see it in your face. What was your nightmare about?
She hesitates, looking down at her glass.
Lexi: Same as always. It's always about them.
Steve puts his hand on her forearm and strokes her skin with his thumb.
Lexi: I just want these nightmares to go away. I want them to stop haunting me.
Steve: You have to give yourself time to heal.
Lexi: I feel broken. I try to hide it, but I feel so broken. I also feel so much anger towards myself... I don't remember everything yet. It's all foggy and I don't even know if I could recognize them if I'd see them in the streets...
He just wants to hug her tightly and tell her everything will be ok, but he doesn't.
Steve: Have you talked to Bucky about all of this?
Lexi: You're the only one who knows I remember. I think him and Nat suspect it, but I didn't tell anybody, but you.
Hearing her say that didn't help him move on at all. He liked being special to her.
Steve: Why me? Why choose to tell me?
Lexi: I don't know. I feel free to be weak in front of you. Plus, Bucky has been through so much worse, I feel like I-
Steve: Don't go there Lex. Pain isn't something you can compare. Everybody processes things differently. What you went through is horrible and I could kill the men who did that to you.
She looks at him, surprised by his last sentence.
Lexi: Thank you Steve. I don't know what I'd do without your help. I hope I can repay you someday.
Steve: I'm not expecting anything from you... You're my friend and I'll always be there for you.
His heart aches at his last words. He would like to be more than friends with her, but he knows it will never happen. She forces a smile and stands up.
Lexi: I'll try to go back to sleep. Thank you for the therapy session...
Steve: Anytime.
She leaves the living room and Steve sighs, rubbing his face. He turns off the tv and goes to bed. The next morning, Lexi wakes up shortly before her training session. She puts on her training outfit, grabs her duffle bag and heads down to the gym. Steve is already there punching the punching bag like his life depends on it. She frowns at how much anger emanates from him.
Lexi: Hey...
He briefly looks at her, panting.
Steve: Hi.
Lexi: You ok? You look furious.
Steve: I'm ok. Just letting off some steam.
Lexi: Are you sure?
Steve: Yeah...
She is unconvinced, but decides not to push him. She walks to the sparring mat and starts to stretch. After a few minutes Steve joins her.
Steve: Are you ready for some sparring?
Lexi: Yep.
She positions herself, ready for him to come at her. He tries a punch, but she dodges it. She strikes forward throwing hits, but Steve easily blocks her every move. She ducks as he throws a punch. When she stands up he grabs her and flips her on her back. He smirks. She uses her legs to straddle him and flips him on his back.
Lexi: Don't be too cocky.
She smiles and stands up, letting him get back on his feet. Steve swings towards her, but Lexi kicks his arm making him grunt. She successfully throws a bunch of punches, hitting him. Glaring, he blocks her next few blows. She throws a kick in the air and he grabs her leg with a smirk. He flips her on her back again, immobilizing her on the ground. They kept sparring for a while and after almost two hours, Steve once again picked her up as if she was weightless and slammed her down with a satisfied smirk.
Steve: You've had enough yet?
She tried to throw him off with her hips, but his weight didn't budge.
Steve: You're in quite the position.
He laughs as she keeps trying. She gives up and sighs with a vanquished smile.
Lexi: You got me.
He rolls off her and they both sit up.
Steve: Good job today, you had me a couple times.
Lexi: Yeah well, I am thinking I should train with you from now on. When I train with Nat, I know her too well and end up easily beating her. With you it's more of a challenge.
Steve: That can be arranged.
She smiles at him and stands up, walking over to the bench to take a sip of water.
Lexi: I'll go take a shower. I'll see you later?
Steve: Yep.
She grabs her bag and walks out of the gym. She goes up to her room, takes off her clothes and takes a quick shower. Afterwards, she wraps herself in her towel and goes to her dresser. She grabs an orange tank top, a white sweater vest and a pair of white jeans. She puts the outfit on the and takes a seat to her desk.
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She turns on her laptop and logs into S.H.I.E.L.D systems. She needed to start getting ready for her new position and she wanted to start by going over the SAHARA agents who were at the base during her rescue. She types the name of the base in Somalia and finds a large folder. She opens it and starts going over its content.
