Bruce's workplace in Tony's garage never fails to amuse me. Once Bruce has promised that he's going to stay in New York for a while, Tony cleared out a bedroom and part of his garage immediately. He was pretty desperate for a science buddy. Now, sitting on one of Bruce's work desk, I watch while a tube drips into a swirling flask.
"That's just one of my hobbies," Bruce explains once he's caught me watching. "I've too much time on my hand." Tony agrees with a murmur in the back, which earns a bemused smile from Steve.
Once everybody had checked on me, Matron and Pepper had to return to their work, which leaves only Steve, Bruce, me and Bucky- I mean, James, since I have decided I'm going to take my time and get to know him again.
Speaking of the devil, the man catches my attention when he cusses, pulling a magnet off his metal arm and flicks it back at Tony. "Cut it out," he growls and crosses his arms. A delinquent smirk tugs at Tony's face, and Steve frowns at the billionaire in disapproval.
I watch the three of them with a strange feeling nagging my chest. James, the mysterious one, looks annoyed but his shoulders are loose with ease around my friends. It's almost as if he belongs to this picture, like he's the least thing that is out of place. Yet I simply can't place him in my head.
As if he has heard my thought, the man himself turns and level gaze with me. Those blue eyes stare back, and a tinge of sorrow stirs before he masks it with a thick wall of nothingness. Flushing consciously, I look away and give Bruce my full attention instead.
For the last ten minutes, the scientist has been tinkering with a bizarre device. It's metallic surface is rounded and resemble an odd helmet. Bruce throws a quick glance at me and pushes his glasses further up the bridge of his nose clumsily. With an apologetic grin, he remarks, "Should be done in a moment. Hold on."
"What's that supposed to be?" I quiz, jumping onto my feet as I do so. Instead of answering me, Bruce peers at Tony, who glances away after stealing a look from James. Strange.
"It should jolt your memory, if Tony and I aren't exactly wrong."
I arch an eyebrow and nod skeptical. "That sounds convincing," James chimes in, voicing my exact thought. He takes another step closer, his eyes narrowing at the sight of the odd device in Bruce's hand. Tony's face stiffens at once. Noting the strange exchange, Steve nudges Tony with his shoulder at once.
"It's just an idea," Tony slurs his words. The billionaire turns on his heels and picks up a wrench hesitantly. He starts knocking it at the table absentmindedly before carrying on, "Frosty here probably won't like our plan."
For a moment, the air is thick with silence. I have no idea what Tony was talking about, but both Steve and James' face pale considerably while Bruce busies himself with his work. When I think no one is going to make a move, James pushes himself off the table that he's been leaning on and almost launches himself at Tony. "Goddamnit, Stark," the man hisses and grabs Tony by his shirt's collar. Steve attempts to interfere but the playboy throws up a hand hastily to stop the soldier. "If you dare to touch her, I swear-" James seems to be at loss of words, but he's a mad man for sure. Merely an inch apart, Tony braves a smug expression and glares back.
"What are you going to do then, big guy? Are you going to kill me off too? Like what you did to my parents?" Tony's harsh words seem to have cut all threads loose. The room is stone cold, and I feel like I a witnessing something that I shouldn't know of.
All colours seem to have drained off of Steve's face. Bruce is no longer working on his device. He watches the scene tentatively over his glasses. James, like an deflated balloon, is shove back by Tony. His metal arm whirs when he tightens both hands into fists. In this very instant, he's like a caged animal, and Tony's the winning predator within the fighting ring.
"That's right, Barnes. I'm just trying to help her. If Hydra can use the technique to wipe you, why can't we use the same method to wake her mind?" Tony spits and brushes his shirt smooth. On the other hand, Steve blinks and understands the situation for the first time.
"You can't be serious," he gapes. The soldier glances between the science brothers but none of them is showing any mercy. With a long sigh, Steve rubs his face in exhaustion."This isn't going to work, Tony."
"But it may," Bruce interrupts hurriedly. He looks around the men's faces before settling his soft gaze on me again. "Tony and I have gone through the plan and system numerous times. All the data adds up, all the statistics suggest that we have about 89 per cent of success."
I have never felt so confused in my life. Hydra is bad people, that I know. Tony was referring James to Frosty and I have no idea why. When the billionaire mentions his plan, James loses it, almost as if he's back in the training room again. The thought sends a shiver down my spine. Despite unknown to James' agitation, I ignore it and try to understand the meaning behind Bruce's words instead. "That's a high probability."
"She gets it!" Tony exclaims, earning a death glare from James.
"What's the other 11 per cent then?" Steve questions. He seems to be the most collected person in the room besides Bruce at the moment. The addressed scientist swallows quietly. His ginger gaze flies over to Tony for a heartbeat before settling back on me once more. Atlas, he places the device back onto his work desk. It lands with a dull cluck. We all stare at the still metallic helmet in silence, then Bruce speaks up.
"We may burn off her neuron bridges by accident, disconnecting her memories and such. We don't know what the exact damage will be, but she will definitely have memory loss due to the missing neuron connections." Inhaling lightly, Bruce flickers his careful gaze to James, whose chest is raising and falling rapidly because of his shallow breaths. "We will try our best to prevent that. But if the 89 per cent doesn't work, Lottie may be wiped."
Momentarily, James seems lost. His soft blues dart to me, then to Steve, and atlas, his metal arm creaks while he leaves the room. "Bucky," Steve whispers but he is halted back by Tony. Glaring down at the billionaire, Steve is surprised to see Tony motioning for me. The man nods towards the door, which James has exited through only a moment ago.
"Go," he says lightly.
Without a second thought, I head after James. The need to make sure he's okay burns in my stomach, twisting and picking at my gut even though I don't have a reason to be worried, or do I? I push all unsettling thoughts out of my head, including what Bruce has just brutally announced back in Tony's garage. Wiped, like a cloth and dirty patches on a table. Wiped, as easy as that and my whole life is gone.
Up in Tony's dimly lit living room, not a soul is heard. For a second, I consider checking the corridor and the guest rooms. Then, a cold draft brushes past my shoulders, guiding me to the ajar glass door that leads to Tony's balcony. Squinting slightly, I make out the tall frame lingering on the balcony. Biting the inside of my cheek, I step into the opening, and a night breeze smoother my face as the man turns to look at me.
"Lottie."
His eyes always glint mysteriously when he says my name. Yet again, my stomach churns whenever he smiles at me, or when I hear my name falling through his lips. It's a strange feeling, but I haven't decided if I love it or hate it yet.
"James," I say in return. He watches while I take careful steps towards him. His face is masked by the shadows but once I'm near enough, the stars in the sky seem to have light up his features, and I find myself meeting gaze with a tired man. "Are you alright?" I ask nervously, earning a reluctant chuckle from him.
"I'm fine, doll." He stops himself the moment we both hear the name that he's just called me. A serious blush creeps to my cheeks and I tear my eyes away from him painfully while James clears his throat. The city beneath us bustles with life. The endless stream of police siren and people's chatter calm me briefly. Taking a deep breath, I peek at James again.
Once he sees that I've caught him staring, he startles and a tired smile pulls at his lips, "thanks for coming to check on me."
"It's okay." I take a moment or two to allow James the space to collect himself. Leaning against the glass, James glances away from me and stares at the city under us as well. I take my window of opportunity to examine his profile, trying to tinker my memory as much as possible. There's something about this man that I can't quite put a finger on. "Are you angry at Stark?" I question as a mean for him to speak up, hoping that it will give me more clues about him.
James' jaw tightens at once, the muscles in his arm tenses, and suddenly, I see that if James is ever my enemy, I should be very, very scared indeed. "We have a bad history," James speaks through gritted teeth, "What they're trying to do to you is dangerous. Hydra wiped me once, and I didn't know who I was until you-"
James stops as if he's choked on his own words. His own form freezes like something has burnt his mind. "Me?" I push, picking up his word at once. I lean in eagerly, my stomach turning at our closeness while my mind is racing to put the pieces together. With difficulty, James peers down at me. He seems unsure if he should continue or stop before he triggers something unwanted in me.
"It's a long story, Lottie," Bucky speaks so softly I can barely hear him. "But it'll always be my favourite story."
Touching his arm lightly, I try a smile even though I feel like I'm on the verge of tipping and falling over. "Tell me. I've got the whole night." When he only smiles sadly at me, I push, "Please, James. I need to know."
All the uncertainties clear away in his blue eyes when he hears his name. With the ghost of a smile tugging at his lips, James takes hold of my hand before letting it go again.
"Sure, anything for you, doll."