A/N- This imagine is based on the song Home by Michael Buble. I really love it and hope you all enjoy it too.
Tony would hate you by now, you were sure of it. You had gone behind his back and broken his trust and now there was no chance of ever returning to him. Steve had told you as much. You were all fugitives now and if you even tried to contact him you, and all of your friends, would be caught.
You spent much of your time in bed. It wasn't like it was comfortable, the motel mattresses were lumpy and had these suspicious stains that left you feeling a little queasy if you thought about it for too long. Nonetheless, you spent far too much time huddled under the overly starched sheets.
Nat had tried to intervene on multiple occasions, attempting to lure you out with the promise that everything would be better soon. It didn't work and soon enough she gave up trying, opting to just sit silently beside you on the bed, flicking through the channels on the TV with little hope of finding anything even slightly entertaining. It was hard to say it, but you were grateful for the company when it lasted.
She was absolutely stunned when you crawled out of the bed one evening, dragging yourself towards the bathroom.
"Where are you going?"
You paused slightly, turning and giving her a small smile. "I think it's about time I showered," you told her softly, shrugging as you spoke.
The smile she gave you in response was so stunning that you almost burst into tears. It was hard to see how you had been affecting the team so negatively. Your depressive episode, which you had always been prone to, had knocked the air out of even the most determined of your friends, and you couldn't help but feel guilty.
"Good plan," she uttered, as though she was worried about startling you back into your blanket fortress.
You nodded as you headed into the bathroom, shutting the door behind you and twisting the lock as you released a deep breath. This would be the first time you had been properly alone since you had left the compound, and yet nothing felt different at all. You missed Tony, everyone knew it, and yet they were all walking on eggshells, as though even saying his name would be enough to send you over the edge.
The shower was grimy. A head covered in thick limescale which could barely hold itself up on the tiled wall. The bathtub wasn't much better, a line of greyish gunge circling the lip as though it had been full to the brim with dirty water for months at a time. You winced as you stepped in, your toes flinching back when they touched the cold porcelain.
If you had hoped for a hot shower to knock you out of your funk, you were soon to be sorely disappointed. The water chugged to life, jumping slightly as you turned it on fully. It was cold that you jumped, dodging out of its trajectory and hoping that you wouldn't slip in the tub. Of all the bad ways to die, you decided that this would be the worst. You held your hand under the inconsistent flow of icy water, waiting for it to warm up, but the temperature refused to change.
"Hey, Nat?" you called out, waiting silently for a reply.
The tinny sound stopped coming from the TV and a few footsteps came towards the bathroom. "Yeah?"
"Does the water ever get warmer than 0º?"
You heard her chuckle, just outside the door. "No, it did the first night but according to Steve none of the rooms are getting any hot water at the moment. He doesn't want to go down to the front desk and ask in case someone recognises him."
You felt yourself nod, before mentally scolding yourself for such a stupid gesture. "Thanks," you called back, listening as she shuffled back to the bed, the sound coming back out of the speakers of the TV. You supposed that you should be happy that you had a working television, at least that was something that would keep you entertained through your time here.
The water was still yet to warm and you finally gave up, shifting so that you were under the stream. You winced as it hit your skin, causing your entire body to tense. This 'trip' was becoming a living nightmare.
*Time Skip*
The shower, though freezing, had been enough to leave you feeling refreshed. Your clean, dripping-wet, hair was a problem though. The hairdryer, like many of the things in your room, was broken, letting out a strange rattling sound when you attempted to turn it on. You quickly gave up, attempting instead to towel dry your hair to the best of your ability and then tying it up into a tight bun.
When you made your way out of the bathroom you were surprised to see Steve sitting in the far corner, bundled into the tiny chair which had previously been home to the clothes Nat had managed to buy you both at a thrift store down the street.
"Hey," he started and you smiled at him, dumping your old clothes onto the bed.
You glanced at Nat for a moment, before returning your eyes to Steve. "I don't want kiddy gloves, Okay? I had a little hiccup mental health-wise, but I'm fine." They were both quiet for a moment and you had to hold back the temptation to roll your eyes at their strange behaviour. "What's going on?"
"Steve thinks that maybe you should go home." Your brows furrow as Nat speaks, leaving you staring at your friends in disbelief.
"You're kidding, right?" you paused for a moment, waiting for an answer. "You told me yourself that if I contact Tony it'll put us all in danger."
He nodded, getting to his feet. "We'll head off tonight, you won't even need to know where we're going. And then tomorrow, you can get into the rental car outside and you can drive home."
"They'll put me in prison."
Nat sniffled slightly, drawing your attention back to her. "Tony won't let that happen to you. We don't have a choice but you don't have to keep running." She was crying, your badass superhero/assassin/best friend had tears in her eyes, and all of a sudden your resolve fell away.
"Okay," you told them softly, reaching out to pull Nat into your arms and holding her as tightly as you could.
*Time Skip*
The barrel of the gun was so close to your face that it was almost touching your skin. If they pulled the trigger there was no way for you to survive. Your hands were already in the air above your head, your knees having hit the ground as soon as you had been given the order.
It had taken you only a few hours to drive back to the Avengers facility. You had been too scared to stop along the way and had driven non-stop until you reached the gate. That was where Steve's plan had gone awry. The guards had dragged you from the car, throwing you to the ground and yelling at you until you followed their instructions. Neither of them were recognisable, probably newly instated by the government, and they didn't know anything about you other than that there was a warrant out for your arrest.
"Call Stark down," one of the guards started, his gun pressing lightly against your forehead for a moment before pulling back slightly.
The other guard paused for a moment, crouching slightly to look at your face. "Not this one, Ross said she goes straight to him."
Suddenly, all sense of calm left you. You had only a second to make a judgement. Perhaps, in the future, you would decide that it was a mistake to grab the gun by its barrel and force it up into the guard's face, knocking him to the floor. But, in the moment, none of it mattered, all you had to do was create enough of a fuss that it would draw Tony out to see what was going on.
You grabbed for the gun on the floor, lifting it to aim at the other guards head as you pressed your knee down into the man on the ground, holding them both still. "Call Stark," you ordered, leaning your knee into the man's chest until he coughed and spluttered.
The other guard nodded, reaching for his walkie talkie and bringing it up to his mouth. "Mr Stark?"
"What is it?" The voice crackled back through the machine, and for a moment you felt as though you were going to cry. It had been over a month since you had last seen him and now he was so close that your mind went a little fuzzy with excitement.
"We've got a situation at the North gate. We could use your help."
"Roger that." The machine crackled for a second and then fell silent.
You gestured for the guard to come closer. "Give me the gun," you told him, holding out your free hand to him. He did as he was told, placing it into your hand with the look of a man who already knew that he was defeated. You pushed up to your feet, watching as he took a few paces backwards. You gestured to the guard on the ground to get up as you holstered the spare gun on your back. "Thank you both for your co-operation."
"Y/N?" Tony had gotten to you quicker than you had expected, leaving you to spin to face him. "What the fuck are you doing here?"
The smile fell from your lips as quickly as it had come and your jaw fell slack for a moment as he stalked forwards, gripping your arm in his hand and tugging you up the path towards the building.
"I thought you'd be happy to see me," you started softly, tripping over your own feet and stumbling slightly, only for him to catch you.
His frown didn't fade, but he glanced back at you, releasing a heavy sigh. "Of course, I'm happy to see you, but you shouldn't be here."
"But Steve said..."
"I don't give a shit what he said. If Ross knows you're here he'll tear this place apart looking for you."
You paused mid-step, pulling him to a stop with you. "Tony, I'm sorry." His arms were around you a moment later, his face burying itself into your hair as he held you close to his chest. "I fucked up and I didn't know what else to do."
He sighed, pulling back slightly to look at your face. "It's okay," he told you quietly, leaning forward and pressing a rough kiss to your lips, "-we'll fix this." He took a deep breath, his thumbs rubbing at the skin of your cheeks as he cupped your face. "God, I'm so glad you're home."
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