~SHIELD HQ, 1900 hours~
Steve, Ava, Bucky, Peter, and Agent Connors were there.
Bucky nodded. "Why don't we meet, here again, at eighteen hundred hours tomorrow? We'll go over your assignment before you leave."
"We're leaving tomorrow?" Ava had barely had time to process what had happened, and she had agreed to jump immediately into another mission. "When the Queen of England requests, you do not make her wait."
"We'll be ready." Bucky nodded and walked across the room, opening the door for them. "Tomorrow. Eighteen hundred hours." Ava let Steve lead the way out of the office. She stared at his strong back as she followed him.
She had agreed to ride home to pick up some things. Just outside of the SHEILD building on the concrete steps, Steve tried clearing his throat quietly. He did it again as they walked side by side across the parking lot.
Ava stared straight ahead to where his car was parked, all the while trying to watch him from her peripheral vision. His awkwardness wasn't something she was accustomed to. He pulled out his car keys and pressed the button to unlock the doors.
Steve sat down in the car, while she leaned back against the seat and closed her eyes. Her brain was on overcharge, she was so full of a myriad of emotions, and she was shaking with it. The feeling was almost overwhelming, but there was a still, small, quiet voice in her mind telling her that she needed to look at Steve's face.
She barked a laugh, then coughed, trying to cover it. "I'm exhausted." Her laughter turned instantly into tears. She tried to smile and force them away, but inside the small confines of his car, it was just the two of them.
No accusing eyes, no sense of responsibility, and no wall of civility that needed to be upheld at all costs; just her and Steve- the only boy who had managed to steal her heart, who then had rudely handed it back to her. Jerkface...
I don't want to be here. I don't want to feel this. I don't want him to see me like this. He doesn't deserve to see me like this. Who am I kidding? He doesn't care. The thought brought a fresh supply of saltwater to her eyes. She buried her face in her hands. "I'll be f-fine. Can you jus' take me 'ome?" Her words came out muffled, but she refused to move, to let him see her face.
"You need to eat," Steve answered firmly. "I bet you've barely had anything all day."
"I'm not hungry." She tried to wipe the tears away without him noticing. He concentrated on the road. "Then I'm hungry. I'll be quick. Just let me hit a drive-through and grab a burger or something." A golden pair of arches lit up the sky on their right. He pulled in and drove up to the intercom where they were greeted by a very unexcited male voice. "What can I get you?"
Steve ordered for both of them. He said nothing as he drove the car forward to the pickup window. He collected their order and paid for it.
Ava held the warm bags on her lap and stared out the window into the darkened night. She wanted to be away from him as soon as possible, almost as much as she wished she could turn back time to when they had still been together. More than both those things, she wanted to gain back some control because she was feeling decidedly out of it.
"Are you feeling crazy? Like a bit of a rebel?"
"Wh-What do you mean?"
Ava giggled. She'd caught him off guard. Right then, that helped somehow. She pulled a fry out of the bag and popped it in her mouth. As she chewed it, savoring the salty flavor, she commanded, "Pull the car over."
Steve turned into an empty shop parking lot and idled the engine. He turned in his seat to face her fully. She tossed him his hamburger bag. "Let's eat in the car." She leaned back, set her feet on the dashboard, and dug into her combo for another fry. He caught the paper bag with one hand, still holding it in the air, staring rather pointedly at her feet. "What?"
