<<Pepper>>
Delilah falls asleep, and I give her a few minutes before having Bruce and Stephen look at her. I keep looking at her to make sure she's asleep, and I hope she won't wake up right now. She's so exhausted, she deserves to rest.
Stephen and Bruce make their way over to us, and start looking at her cuts. Some of them were so deep. I also couldn't help but notice the scars and old cuts that were also present.
They both bandage and stitch all the cuts before making their way out of the room.
"She should be okay," Bruce says. "The cuts that needed stitches should heal up nicely. She'll have scars, but..."
I nod.
"I know, I saw. I don't know what they're from, but I can take a guess. Right now, I can't focus on anything they did to her. I just need to focus on her."
They both nod and leave. I move a blanket on top of Delilah so she doesn't get cold, and start to watch some TV quietly.
***
<<Delilah>>
I can't move. Something is on top of me. It has to be a hundred degrees in here. I'm boiling. Something changes. Now I'm freezing. I just want to be comfortable. Why can't I do anything? What's stopping me? Why can't I hear anything? Why isn't anything happening? Where am I? What's happening?
Something brushes up against my face. Please don't hurt me. I haven't done anything. I don't know anything. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Please, no.
My eyes shoot open as I try to see what's going on. I can't see anyone or anything really, but I'm warm. I can't just lay here in my own sweat.
I feel a hand on my shoulder, and I try to roll away and get up. I fall out of the bed and onto the floor. Where am I? I back up as much as possible, trying to get away from whatever I was just next to. I curl up into a ball, hoping for everything to just go away.
Everything is spinning, and I can't make out anything else that is happening. I see some colors and movement, but nothing is clear, and I don't know why real and what isn't.
"-a. -ila. -elilah. Delilah, sweetheart?" A voice says. "Can you hear me?"
"I don't know anything, I swear. I don't have any information! Please, I don't know anything," I plead.
A hand reaches out and touches my leg. I immediately kick, hoping that whoever is there would just leave me alone.
"Delilah, it's Sam. You're safe. You're not there anymore. No one here is going to hurt you."
I open my eyes and look over at him. At least, I think I'm looking at him. Everything is so blurry, and I can't see where anyone is.
"Delilah, I'm going to reach my hand out and take your hand, okay? Is it okay if I do that?" Mr. Wilson asks.
I nod, still trying to search for anything that I could kind of make out. I feel Mr. Wilson's hand on mine, and I just follow it to him, hoping for some kind of comfort.
<<Sam>>
As soon as I make contact with Delilah, she rushes into me. I accept her small body and just hold her close, knowing that she is having a rough time right now.
I look over at Pepper, and she's looking at Delilah. Her eyes meet mine, and we just share a look of concern. Whatever they did to her has really effected her.
We just sit there and I feel her calming down. Her eyes are still closed, but her breathing has returned to normal. I rub her arm, hoping she'll open her eyes. Delilah just pushes herself closer to me.
"Hey kiddo," I say. "You're safe here. We're at the tower. No one is going to hurt you. I promise. You are doing great. I know you're scared. It's okay. You're going to be okay. Is there anything I can get for you?"
She shakes her head, keeping it in my side.
"Okay, is there anything you want to talk about right now?"
She shakes her head again.
"Is it okay if Pepper and I sit here with you until you're ready for something else?"
She nods, still not looking up.
"Okay, then that's what we'll do. Why don't we turn on a movie? Do you have a movie you want to watch?"
She doesn't move right away, so I look down at her. Her eyes are moving almost as is she is scanning the ground. I put my hand out, letting her decide what to do next. She paused and takes my hand, moving it out of her line of sight.
Her eyes stop scanning, but are still fixed on the ground. Eventually, she answers.
"Could we please watch Mulan again?" She asks in a small voice.
Pepper and I both nod, and she goes to turn on the tv. Delilah doesn't look up at us, but at the tv. I pick her up and take her back to her bed, and she doesn't seem to be upset with this. Pepper wraps a blanket around her, and we all just sit and watch the movie.
As we watch, Delilah nudges closer to me and further away from Pepper. This is completely opposite of what would've happened a few days ago before we were with HYDRA. I don't say anything because the main goal of right now is to keep Delilah feeling safe and as happy as possible.
When the movie finished, I look down at Delilah, who's attention is still on the screen.
"Hey, Delilah. What would you like to eat? We can have anything you'd like."
She doesn't look at either of us, but still responds.
"I'm not hungry," she says quietly.
"Kiddo, you haven't eaten for a few days, and you've been through a lot. Could you try to have something?" I ask.
"I'm not falling for it," she says. "I know I don't deserve it."
"Sweetheart, this isn't a trick," Pepper says. "We want to take care of you."
"I'm sorry. Please. I know you don't mean it. I won't ask, I promise. Please just let me go back to the cell."
Delilah is just looking at the bed, and I can see tears rolling down her cheeks as she tries to hold herself together.
<<Pepper>>
She would rather be in a cell than wherever she was with these people. She thinks we're tricking her.
"Delilah, you are at SI right now. You are safe. No one is going to hurt you," I say. "I am going to the kitchen to get some food, and I'll bring it back here. You can have whatever you want, okay? We've got you."
I look at Sam, and he nods at me. Delilah doesn't move, but I leave anyway. I go over to the pantry and grab a few things that are Delilah friendly, but I don't know what she likes. I take some sweet things and some savory things, hoping she'll eat something. I also grab some different things for her to drink.
I walk back into the room and put everything on the coffee table. I walk back over to the bed, and it doesn't seem like Delilah has moved at all.
"Here are a few things that I grabbed," I say. "Is there something you would like to eat or drink? If there is something else that you want, I can go back and get it."
I watch her head turn towards the table, and she looks up at me, making direct eye contact.
It almost seems like she's trying to read my mind, but not with her powers.
"Promise?" She asks.
I continue to look at her.
"Promise. What would you like?"
She looks at all of the food on the table, not really lingering on anything.
"May I please have the goldfish?" She asks.
I nod, and hand them to her. She takes the bag, but doesn't open them. Delilah just stares at it, not moving.
"Would you like some help opening them?" I ask.
She shakes her head and puts the goldfish next to her. Sam looks down at her, then up at me.
"Kiddo, would you like to be alone while you eat?" He asks.
She hesitates, then nods.
"Okay sweetheart. If you need anything else, feel free to ask. We'll be out in the living room," I say.
Sam and I leave, letting the door close behind us. I immediately turn to Sam, hoping for an explanation.
"Okay, I get that she's been through a lot, but I don't understand what just happened. Could you explain it please?" I ask.
"She has really bad food insecurities," Sam answers. "I've seen this in soldiers that have come back from being stranded without any supplies. When they've gone so long without knowing when their next meal is, the relationship they have with food becomes different. She doesn't trust us enough to know that we'll give her food on a regular basis. It takes a lot to break the cycle. I'm assuming that she also has a history with her abuser and food, so there's also that."
(A/N: I totally just made up the entire last paragraph, so if anything is incorrect, I apologize. Please do not take just what I say and assume it is true. Thank you loves.)
"How do we help her?"
"Honestly, what we've been doing. Constant reassurance, making food visible and saying that it's for her. Asking her what she wants, whether we get an answer or not, is also important. We'll need to get everyone on the same page with this. No one can get mad at her for not eating. We don't know how bad things were for her, and I don't think she's ready to tell us. It's obvious that she's had a regression in how much she trusts everyone, so we just need to be there for her."
I nod.
"Thank you Sam. Really. I don't know what would've happened if you weren't here."
"No problem Pepper. I've hurt the kid enough, and I feel horrible about it. Anyway I can help, I will. You guys didn't see her after they literally threw her back into the cell we were in. She was covered in blood, but she was terrified to look at anything other than the ground right in front of her. I tried to talk to her, and she immediately started apologizing and saying that she knew she wasn't good enough. She was saying that she knew it would be better if she just died. I hated seeing her like that. Out of all the tours I've done, I think that was one of the worst things I've ever seen."
This poor kid. She doesn't deserve anything that's happened to her.
<<Delilah>>
They leave so that I can eat, and it's a lot more helpful than they know. I still can't tell what's actually real and what isn't, but being alone gives me some sort of comfort. At least I know someone isn't right next to me that can hurt me.
I open the bag of goldfish as quietly as possible, and eat them. I feel a lot better having something in my stomach. I didn't realize how hungry I actually was until now. Mr. Wilson was right when he said that I haven't eaten since before being taken. I glance over at the table where Ms. Potts put the food, and I actually contemplate having something else. I don't know what everything on the table is, but I don't think any of it has nuts in it, especially if this is real. Ms. Potts was really concerned when I had my allergic reaction before, and I don't thinks he would put me in that situation again. At least I hope not.
I get out of the bed and get closer to the table, just looking. I don't want someone to be watching and come in here.
There seems to be some candy on the table as well, and I don't know what to do. I want to try some of it, but I also don't want to get in trouble.
I decide to take a piece of chocolate, mainly because it's small. I eat it, and it's really good. I've only ever had chocolate when a teacher has given it to me, which isn't often. I take another piece before thinking and eat it. As soon an I do, I drop the wrappers on the floor and back away from the table. What am I doing? Why would I ever think that I should be doing this? Just because no one is right next to me doesn't mean someone isn't watching. I quickly clean up after myself and leave everything else on the table.
I don't really know what to do now, so I decide to try and find someone, hoping that I'm not going to bother them. I start to walk around the halls, realizing that they all look exactly the same. I keep forgetting that. How anyone manages to find their way around this building is beyond me. I can barely navigate one floor let alone the whole building.
I hear some talking from an open door, and I try to peak in without being seen. I think Mr. Rodgers is in there with Mr. Barnes and Mr. Lang. Even though I try not to be seen, I fail.
"Delilah? Is that you?" Mr. Rodgers asks.
I step into the doorway, looking at the ground.
"I'm sorry," I say. "I-"
"Kiddo, you have nothing to be sorry for," Mr. Lang says. "We just didn't know if that was you. You did nothing wrong. Is there anything we can help you with?"
I shake my head.
"Would you like to come sit down?" Mr. Barnes asks.
I look up at the three of them, and slightly nod. I would love to, but I have a feeling my anxiety is going to do something I don't want it to do.
I walk over to them and take a seat in a chair. The room seems to be another mini living room. How many of these does this tower have? Mr. Rodgers just goes back to his conversation with Mr. Barnes and Mr. Lang, and I'm okay with that.
I don't really pay much attention to what they are saying, mainly because I don't know if it would be rude for me to insert myself into their conversation, so I just sit silently, and no one really says anything to me. It's oddly nice.
A/N: I am so sorry for not updating in such a long time. Believe me, I wish I had more time to work on this story, but I take what I can get, which isn't a lot. I hope you guys enjoyed as always, and if there are any comments you guys have that you think could better my writing, I would love to hear them. I am always looking for constructive criticism, and so long as it is phrased kindly, I will be open to seeing it. No hate or rudeness will be tolerated towards me or any other readers. Thank you, and I hope you all have a wonderful day.