Darcy wasn't sure what to think about the man currently pressed against her back in the subway car. She was on her way to work, from her tiny apartment in Jersey to her job in Tony's labs at Stark Tower. Jane had finally been transferred there, after all the hullabaloo over the Ultron fiasco had died down. Both Tony and Thor had gotten an earful about it not happening sooner, to which Tony quietly mumbled something about them being off in London fighting evil overgrown Christmas elves. Darcy decided to keep the potential crazy at a minimum and found a relatively cheap apartment, far far away from the Tower and all of Tony's shenanigans.
At this point, Darcy was used to strange people on the subway. Heck, it was New York, so her expectations were pretty low. But this guy really took the cake. He was decked out in leather from head to toe. And his left arm and hand were in some sort of metal sleeve. Were those handguns? Was that even legal?! His long hair framed his face closely, to the point that Darcy couldn't really see his face with any of her furtive glances, as it kept his features mostly in shadow. He was giving her the creeps, but due to weapon laws, her taser was locked up in safekeeping at the Tower. Her best option was to gently edge her way away from the freaky-deaky man with the guns and leather.
But then the train made a sudden lurch, and she was nearly thrown into the people in front of her. Faster than she could even fathom, an arm snapped out to grab her by the waist and steady her. She jumped a bit and glanced back. It was Guns and Leather Guy. Her eyes widened slightly, and her heart rate picked up. He caught her eyeing him, and the corner of his mouth ticked up in a wicked grin that was gone almost before she could register it. She looked away quickly.
"Thanks," she mumbled quietly, not sure if he'd hear her over the metallic screech of the train. But she knew that he had, by the way his hand flexed minutely at her hip.
"My pleasure, doll," he murmured, his lips practically next to her ear. The timbre of his voice was lower than she was expecting, and the gravelly quality sent an involuntary shiver down her spine. She swallowed thickly at the intimacy of the situation. He must have felt her tense up, because he soon removed his arm from about her waist, although not as quickly as she would have liked, and she could still feel his bulk just there behind her.
Shortly after, she got off at Grand Central Terminal, and the man got lost in the crowd. Unaccountably, she had a strange cold feeling without him at her back, even in the press of people in the station. It wasn't until at least 15 minutes after she had arrived at Stark Tower and checked in for work that she noticed the very same man leaning against the wall and talking to Steve. She convinced herself that it was only her imagination that his eyes lit up when he caught sight of her. But there was no mistaking the rakish grin, which grew as she shouted across the busy lobby, making heads turn.
"Public transit with a shitload of guns? REALLY?!?!"