Chapter One: What the Water Gave Me
"'Cause they took your loved ones
But returned them in exchange for you
But would you have it any other way?
Would you have it any other way?
You could have it any other way'Cause she's a cruel mistress
And the bargain must be made
But oh, my love, don't forget me
When I let the water take me"
-"What the Water Gave Me" Florence and the Machine
Jamie never liked the cold, well at least not when it was below freezing. And the temperatures were beyond freezing here in the Arctic. Yet she was being force to be here, she was on a mission for S.H.I.E.L.D so she could only wrap her freezing arms around herself and continue on.
"Agent Barnes, You might want to come see what we found." The voice came of one of her fellow agents. She slowly walked over to the agent while trying to get feeling in her frozen legs, her damn under armor wasn't doing shit, when she got back she'd write them a nasty letter telling them they lied, she was still cold and pissed that she wasted over $80 on crap that didn't work.
"What is it? What did you fi-?" She paused as she saw what the agents were pointing out, she saw a metal shield, with red and white alternating rings around like a target and the center was blue with a white silvery star. The shield had scrapes in the paint as if it had deflected bullets. The shield she knew she had seen it before, but it was impossible that this shield in the ice was the same one. Deep down she knew it had to be she nearly let out a gasp when she saw that a man was frozen in ice holding that very shield. She quickly pulled out her iPhone signaling the men that she needed a moment.
"What? This better be good I was watching Dead Silence! I've been lazy and never watched it we've had it for a week from Netflix and I am just watching it now!" The voice on the other line snapped, she knew that her roommate was sitting on the couch with a half pint of rocky road ice cream it was Saturday.
"Mary Shaw kills everybody. Now I need a favor." She heard a frustrated scream and the sound of a spoon hitting the wall with a scream.
"Damn it BARNES! Why do you do that EVERY TIME?! But what's your favor you need? Now that I know how the movie ends you bitch." Jamie just laughed into the phone as she rubbed her eyes she was beyond cold and tired.
"That picture of my grandfather…Grandpa James in my room, can you send me a picture of it?" She couldn't help but fight back a laugh as she heard her best friend and roommate grumble as she got up from the nest she made on the couch. Within seconds her phone beeped signaling she received the picture.
"What you cold and need a picture of the ever so sexy Captain America to warm you up? I'd like that picture too you not have any WiFi out wherever you are to Google the guy?" Jamie ignored her friends comment and thanked her as she hung up the phone, looking at the picture she did gasp this time. It was him; Captain America was in the ice and didn't look as if he aged a single day after nearly 70 years.
"Agent Evans, call the Director and tell him we found something…big. And I'll make sure Coulson finds out now so he has time to tune down the fan boy in him." She said as she walked up to the frozen Captain. She wasn't going to lie he was handsome, for a man old enough to be her grandfather that is. So this was the man her father had been named after, her grandmother used to tell her father who told her stories about this man. How he was her biological grandfather's childhood friend. Not many actually knew that she was actually the granddaughter of James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes. Not many were bright enough to make that reference, hell she was even named after her grandfather. She traced her gloved finger over what would be the Captain's right cheek if he were not frozen in ice she would have caressed his cheek. After a moment she shook her head and quickly stood she was border line fan boy Coulson at that moment she thought with a laugh.
Jamie couldn't believe what the doctors were telling her, Captain America…no Steve Rogers was alive.
"What's the ETA on de-frosting the Captain?" She asked one of the scientists who was continuously checking the machine in charge of gauging his vitals.
"We've made good time considering how much ice there was. I'm making an educated guess and saying another couple of hours or so." She simply nodded as she stood next to the Captain's head. She saw some of his ice-covered blonde locks had stuck to his forehead and brushed them away, in a way her mother used to when she was sick as a child. In an instant his arm broke through the ice and grabbed her arm for a man who was frozen as long as him his reflexes were terrifyingly quick.
"SHIT!" She hissed as he grabbed her arm in a near bruising grip, in fact she was pretty sure it would bruise. His wild blue eyes looked into hers.
"It's alright Captain, you're gonna be fine. Just relax everything is alright I promise…" She said in a voice she was hoping sounded soothing, it was kind of hard being soothing when you were a mix between panicking after being caught off guard and admiration for the fact that her childhood hero was in front of her alive.
"Peggy…Stork….Club….going ….to…be…late…." She couldn't help but tilt her head in confusion but before she could ask what he meant he slipped back into unconsciousness. She looked over to the doctors who were just as shocked and confused as her before they quickly went back to work. Jamie could only imagine what emotional anguish the man must have been going through and what he'd be going through when they broke the news to him.
A week had gone by since they had found and defrosted Captain Steve Rogers, in the meantime Jamie was given the orders to keep an eye on him, and when he woke up to eventually re-assimilate him into modern society.
"Agent Hemsworth, text me if he wakes up I'm starving and need some caffeine and for the love of god do NOT touch my laptop!" She snapped, she couldn't help it she was attempting to cut back on caffeine and it wasn't helping her mood, she missed her near four sodas a day.
"Yes, Ma'am you'll be the first to know!" Said the agent he was still a newbie which of course anyone newer than her was going to be guaranteed, for the hazing process by her and her brother.
She hastily walked into the Subway shop and ordered her usual; twelve-inch Italian sub with ham, lettuce, tomato, onion and mayo. She loved Subway Fridays and smiled to herself when she grabbed her baked BBQ chips and a cup of coke zero. After paying she walked back towards to the SHIELD headquarters, before she could even open the door her phone began to ring. She groaned at the song playing every time it played the "Men In Black" theme song it meant work, she wanted her lunch break! She balanced her drink in the crook of her arm as she pulled her phone out of her pocket and answered.
"Yesss, Agent Hemsworth? I thought I told you to text me." She said a little annoyed she hated talking on phones she preferred texting if she could.
"CODE RED! WE HAVE A CODE RED!" Jamie flinched at the panicked screech of the newbie agent. It took a moment for what he said to register and when it did it was too late a man came bursting out of the building slamming into her.
"WATCH IT ASSHOLE!" She screamed she saw the blonde man turn briefly to apologize before he continued to run. She looked down on the ground and saw her soda spilt everywhere and then she once again realized too late that the man was Steve Rogers running in modern New York.
"WAIT! ROGERS! COME BACK!" She screamed throwing her bag of food down and sprinting after him she managed to get enough speed to jump on his back and immediately regretted it, for it is never smart to tackle someone with P.T.S.D and even more stupid to tackle a super soldier. He let out a yelp as he brought his elbow up to her nose she let go with an animatistic screech as it met her nose with a crunch. She went flying to the ground with bruising force and grabbed her bloody nose. She didn't want to think about the famous Fury's fury she was about to see when he found out she let him get away.
"Fuck my life…owww….." She groaned lying back on the pavement ignoring her head screaming about how disgusting the ground was she hurt too much.
She was currently being yelled at by a furious Fury, which in her head made her laugh a little at the silliness of that saying.
"Agent Barnes, I thought I told you to keep things under control! Not to let Rogers get away! What the hell happened?!" She paused as she looked at the director over the bag of ice she held to her re-set nose. She wanted to be sarcastic but knew not to mess with the man.
"I went to get some lunch sir. I told Agent Hemsworth to text me if Rogers woke." She said honestly as she gave a slight glare to the blushing super soldier who was sitting in the chair across from her. He had repeatedly apologized for running into her and even more so for breaking her nose. All she could think was he was lucky he was an attractive man.
"I-I'm so s-sorry ma'am I didn't mean to…" She held a hand up as she slammed the bag of ice on the table in front of her. That was enough to make her snap out in frustration.
"Enough! Don't call me ma'am I'm only twenty-three for god's sake! And I am sorry I was hungry director and that Agents Hemsworth and his little friends Agent Evans and Agent Downey were incapable of stopping him. Which I do not understand if Thor could be taken out I am damn sure Rogers could be too. Just saying now if I may be excused Director Fury I have a bottle of Aleve with my name on it." Jamie said as she pulled the pieces of bloody tissues from her nose with a flinch of pain gracing her face. All she could think of was how today not her day was at all and that she wanted her damn soda and something to eat.
I hate how when you are typing these chapters into word they go on forever, yet when you post them they are so damn short. Anyone else have that problem? Or is it just me? Review please they are my drug and motivation to continue. And don't worry Jamie won't be a bitch like this for long she is just tired and lacking her caffeine I promise! ;) Oh and one last thing I don't know if anyone noticed but the random SHIELD Agents names...haha I couldn't help it!
