Ten years was how long it had been since she last saw him and since she had found out she was pregnant. It was ten years that day. She had to keep focused on the undercover op she and Steve were on together. She had to stay focused and not get lost in her memories no matter how good or painful they were. She played with the cross necklace he had given her right before he had said it would be best if they ended it. She shook herself out of the memories and sighed. She had to keep her head in the game.
"Hey you okay there Cassie?" he asks using the cover name for her.
"Yeah I'm fine Jake. Just got lost in some memories is all. I'm fine." She said leaning back in the booth. She had barely touched her meal. She wasn't very hungry at the moment.
~a van a few miles away ~
"Talk to me Christi. What's going on? I know what today is, if you can't focus, tell me now. We'll pull back." Shield Agent and Avenger, Virginia Coulson.
'Please? Sorry, I just can't focus at the moment.' She said softly. She was having a lot of trouble focusing at the moment and she knew that was dangerous. She just felt terrible about having to back out but she didn't want to put herself or Steve at risk.
Virginia turned her mike off and sighed. "Pull back." She said to her tech team in the room. They nodded and she turned on her mike. "Alright pull back. Christi, you and I have to talk."
'Yeah I know. I thought I could handle today but I guess not.' She sighed softly as she and Steve made it look like a legit reason for them to be leaving the café and headed out and over to his car. Once in the car she pulled her knees up to her chest. She had honestly thought she could handle today but she couldn't. Any other day she would've been perfectly fine and it would've gone smoothly but it just had to be today. She would've been able to flirt her ass off with Steve, for the op, and not even felt bad about it like she was cheating on /him/ even though she wasn't and because Steve had no interest in her that way as he was in a relationship with Bucky. But she just felt terrible all around today.
When they arrived at the safehouse Virginia gave a small smile to the Captain. "Buck's on a secure line for you. Something about a bet with Stark and the old amusement park Howard had." Steve rolled his eyes and mumbled about idiotic fools and went inside. Virginia pointedly ignored the pang of jealousy and turned to Christi.
"You know I have to report this to Hill and Fury. I can't cover this time up. The first two yes, a third I can't." Virginia said.
"I know. This is just frustrating. I don't know what to do. It's been ten years and I still get upset this day. Vee I don't know what to do. Cassie's wanting to meet him now. I'm so lost." She said.
Virginia signed and looked at her. "And its been almost two since my husband was killed. Its still hard but I don't let it stop me from my job." She said.
"I know. I'm sorry. I've been thinking about heading home to Georgia and going and seeing him and talk to him. I don't know." She said.
Virginia shrugged and said, "Whatever you thinks best. But you'll have to get permission from Hill. I can't sign off on anymore time. Especially since I have given Barton and Romanov an extra week." Virginia said.
Christi sighed and nodded. "I'm so sorry for today. I tried to keep it together but I just couldn't. I'm so sorry." She said weakly sighing.
"Don't apologize for your feelings. You're human. It happens."
"I just feel bad. I mean we worked our asses off to get this far now we need to regroup because of me."
"Well," Virginia said as she headed towards the house and continued, "What are you gonna do?"
"Get my head clear and regroup and figure out what to do." Christi said.
She headed inside the safe house and went into one of the rooms there and sighed lying down.
Steve made sure she was out of ear shot before he looked at Vee, "Brantley is putting on a contest to let a fan on stage with him to perform. The contest is submitting a video of yourself singing one of his songs and then saying why you want to do it and Brantley's manager Richie will pick the winner. So I say we put her into it, and put their story and hope and prays that she win. Hell if you watch the video for 'My Kinda Crazy' you'll see home videos of the two of them together throughout the video. He wrote that about her, along with More Than Miles and You Don't Know Her Like I Do. He says those songs are about her as she's on the one who got away from him. He's regretted it. This may be the only way to fix things and give her and Cassie what they both need." Steve said.
Virginia smiled at him and said, "You have a good heart, Steve. I'm all for it."
"She's like a sister to me, and she needs to be happy again. I don't think she's even been fully happy these last ten years, and besides, I bet if we all get into the video at the end explaining why she deserves this she'll get it right away." Steve said.
"Steve, don't think I'm being cold. But you and the Avengers do the video. I'm not going back to New York."
Steve took her hand and said, "I can't pretend to know how it feels to really lose someone. And though I only knew for a day, I know Phil wouldn't want to keep avoiding your home."
Virginia squeezed his hand. "Thanks, Steve. But...I'm not ready."
"Alright understandable, if you need anything just let me know. I'll always be here for you." Steve said.
Virginia squeezed his hand and then stood up and hugged him. Then she left the room.
Virginia leaned against the door to her office and sighed. She needed a change. She wasn't cut out to be a handler, but after Phil's death, it had been a godsend. But now, she missed the action of the field. "If I'd known how gorgeous and sexy you'd look in a suit I'd had you wear one long time ago." Virginia whirled around, Glock in her hand. Her supposedly dead husband, Agent Phil Coulson stood in front of her desk.
"You're dead."
"Rumor, only. Fury lied to you all. And ruined my collection. I'm not sure all of what happened, its fuzzy. But I do know it has something to do with being your husband and your elven gypsy blood." Virginia relaxed and put her Glock away and walked towards him.
"That explains Arwen's secret smile."
"Yep. Your family is huge by the way." Phil said.
"Don't I know it. So how come Fury kept me in the dark and you hidden away?"
"He's scared of you. Plain and simple and he used his last piece of leverage with me to keep from crashing into your office before now."
"Which was?" Virginia asked.
"My need to know the truth about what happened to our child."
"She was a still born. What more is there? And Steve's tracking down more, as is Christi."she asks.
Phil smirked at that. "Come on Vee. Stop thinking like an agent. Think like a mom. You damn well everything was perfectly healthy and fine. You never once believed it. You never grieved." Virginia had missed this. The fact he could read her so well.
"Neither did you." She said.
"Nope. And finally, Fury came clean. I'll let you kick his ass. She's 21 now. But alive. And needs us. But first. We need to get a team together. What do ya say?"
Virginia growled about Fury and then added, "I'm in."
"Good, I already have two people in mind for the team. Melinda May and Grant Ward." He said.
Virginia crinkled her nose. "Ward's bit of a hot head. And wound way too tight. And May will fight ya all the way but she will join up."
"Yeah but with you being on the team and around she'll join more easily and Ward he'll calm down with you around." Phil said grinning.
Virginia raised her eyebrow at that and walked to him until she was just a hand grab away. "Right. And the final person on this team. Our long lost daughter?" She said.
"Haven't figured it out yet but we will. And our two scientist's are from the academy, they're both at the top of their class. Jemma Simmions and Leo Fitz." Phil said pulling her into his arms and holding her close for the first time in two years.
Virginia wrapped her arms around him and closed her eyes. "Fitz and Simmons are brilliant. I worked with them. Fitz even came up with the concept for my new bow. And Clint's. And Simmons, well, she's a young woman in need of a night out with the girls."
"Yeah well when we get our baby girl back and once she's used to things you three can go for a girls night out." He said holding her close to him.
Virginia smiled at that. She'd get her brother and his new wife on it. They were off, and on their own time. No reports would be made and Hill and Fury wouldn't know til, it was too late.
~*~Few Weeks Later~*~
Steve, Bucky, and Clint had blindfolded Christi and were bringing her over to Madison Square Garden where Brantley was having his concert. His manager had recognized her right away and not to mention she was the best out of all the rest of the contestants even Brantley's parents and brothers thought so seeing the video. He needed them in on it so that if it blew up they were already aware of everything and understood why Christi never said anything. That was what they loved most about her that she had always supported Brantley in his music and did whatever she could to make sure he kept pushing toward it. So they understood why she didn't tell him when he left for Nashville to try and get signed. She didn't want to hold him back.
"Where are we going?" she asked for the tenth time in an hour.
"Just relax and trust us. This is for you and Cassie, well for the moment more you." Steve said as they got there and pulled off the blindfold and she saw his bus.
"No! Absolutely not! How the hell did we even get back here!? What's going on?" she demands turning to the three of them.
"You remember that contest he was putting on?" Clint asks.
"Yeah what about it?" she asks.
"We entered you and you won. You need this as does Cassie and so does he. His manager and family agree. He's still crazy about you and regrets that day. You're the girl he talks about in 'More Than Miles', 'You Don't Know Her Like I Do' and 'My Kinda Crazy'. Those are all you. Hell the music video for 'My Kinda Crazy' has the videos you took of you two together in it. He wants you back more than anything and had no clue on where to start looking for you. So trust us, and give this a chance." Bucky said.
"Really?" she asks about the songs and video.
"Really." Becky Gilbert, Brantley's mom, said from behind them and she turned and saw Becky and walked over to her and hugged her tightly.
She smiled and hugged her back. The few girls he did date after he didn't live up to Christi and he was always comparing them to her.
Before Christi had the chance to say anything Brantley came up and looked at her.
"Christi?" he asks stopping short seeing Christi standing there.