Revenge Turned Sweet

Chapter 5: Enjoy your Ride, Buck

Down the many expensive-looking halls of the Avengers compound, up two floors in a luxurious glass-walled elevator, there are no words exchanged between Sam and me. The only sounds echoing off the walls are the sounds of my heels clicking against the tile. I can't lie; the further we get into the compound, the wider my eyes get. I've never seen such an extravagant building. New-age tech covers the walls around every corner. But, every time I hear another set of footsteps, my stomach drops, thinking it's James-um-Barnes.

Sam comes to a stop in front of a stained pine door. He clears his throat and gestures to the doorknob. "This can be your room until we... if you want to, we can find you an apartment, or you can live here."

I chew on my lip, never been shown this kind of generosity by anyone besides Austin. It's a strange feeling. A part of me feels selfish for accepting his offer and the other part of me wants to use whatever I was born with for some type of good. Although one thing is clear, Barnes is still on my list. "Do I need to pay rent or anything? Because I can! I just-I work in Queens..." I slap my palm against my forehead, the stupidity of my question settling in.

He chuckles as he takes a step back. "No, you don't need to pay rent. But you should get some sleep. We need you on a mission tomorrow first thing."

My brows pinch together. "We?"

Sam shifts uncomfortably on his feet, the first time I've seen him falter in his confident state. "You, me, and... Bucky," he mutters.

I grit my teeth together, knowing I can't argue, this is the deal I made with him. It's time for meto hold up my end. I swallow my stubborn nature and nod. "Okay, fine," I grit out.

"Can I trust you not to try anything?" He raises a brow at me.

"Yes," I say quietly as a sense of shame creeps over my shoulder.

He gives me a slight nod and starts walking back to the elevator. His heavy footsteps thud against the ground, and now I'm even more unsure if I made the right decision or not. "We're down on the second floor, and we'll have a suit ready for you in the morning!"

"A-a suit?" I call back to him, feeling all the color drain from my face at the mention of a 'suit.' I hear his laughter echo down the hallway before it disappears, leaving me in silence. I huff out a breath and shake my hands out at my sides. I push the door open, and my mouth practically falls agape at the room-more like apartment I'm supposed to be living in.

White walls surround the room, with a large window behind the queen-sized bed in the center of the room. A teal comforter covers the bed with throw pillows decorating it. Warm light floods the room from the two lamps on either side of the large bed. I wander around the large bedroom, finding a bathroom that's about the size of my old bedroom and an empty closet. I frown at the realization that none of my things are here.

Well, that can be fixed.

I squeeze my eyes shut and visualize the rickety walls of my apartment with the empty kitchen and twin mattress on the floor. The air shifts around me, and I open my eyes to see I'm back in Queens. I dash over to the makeshift closet which happens to be a rod I nailed into the wall. I used it to hang my less than formal clothes on. I throw them all into a large duffel bag I acquired when I moved into this apartment. I haul the load into the bathroom and toss my toiletries into the bag, anything I'll need. I stop next to the mattress and plop down onto it, making the floorboards creak. I reach under the worn pillow and pull the silver locket out from under it.

After the blip, I searched everywhere for this. Pawnshops, thrift stores, anywhere that someone could have sold my belongings to. And I finally found it. I gently open up the latch on the side of the locket and stare at the two pictures inside for a moment. Andrei and I are on the left with matching outfits that look horrendous on both of us. My mother and father are on the right, an old picture of them when they were just dating. Tears form in my eyes as I look over my mother's thick blonde hair, laid in waves around her shoulders.