"Well this blows."
In a way it did. They sat together in the middle of, what seemed to be a hundred girls, all huddled up in sleeping bags as the rain and wind challenged the impenetrable Griffith. Peggy had to cover her mouth to stifle the laughter that certainly would have woken everyone around them.
"It's not all that terrible"
Angie leveled her with a frustrated glare. "Oh give me a break Peggy. I know you're going stir crazy. We can't even talk with all these girls just piled around."
She did a quick visual sweep of the sleeping bags that seemed to cover every inch of the basement floor; she had never realized how many women she actually lived with. "Yes we do seem to be surrounded by piles of young women."
"Normally this kind of situation might not bother me, you know…" Her smile was sly, almost taunting.
"Angie, that's quite unnecessary."
She had a good chuckle at the way Peggy pursed her lips and attempted a menacing glare. It was something else to see Peggy get jealous.
"I'm just playin', this would knot my socks no matter what. The last time I was still for this long must have been in the womb."
"Perhaps it is a good learning experience then, a practice in finding inner peace." To illustrate her point Peggy sat up, completely still, laid her hands on her lap, closed her eyes and relaxed.
"Forget inner peace, we're breaking outta here."
She opened one eye to squint at Angie. Of course she would attempt to find some way to get them into trouble. "Angie do you really think that's a good idea?"
She shrugged while searching for the best way to escape. Her next words were remarkably, almost decidedly causal. "Well with a spy on my side I can't imagine we'll get caught."
Then both Peggy's eyes were open wide and any inner peace she had managed to gather was gone in an instant. "And what in the world do you mean by that?"
"I'm no fool Peggy. Don't think I forgot about the night you came into the automat all banged up, or your background check on me, or those rowdy boys at the phone company, or the highly classified reading you always seem to be doing"
When she said it that way it seemed, well, quite obvious. Peggy wasn't sure if it was Angie's acute observations and impressive amount of gathered Intel or her own amateur mistakes that shocked her more. "Angie I-"
"Don't worry, your secret's safe with me." She smiled that sunny smile of hers, stood up to stretch and just like that she was over it entirely.
How could Peggy explain that a secret like that could never be safe with anyone? How could she explain that they would never truly be safe again?
"It's not safe. It's not safe with you and you aren't safe with it"
Angie only rolled her eyes at the warning, she was getting real impatient after all. "Don't go rogue on me now English. I need you, this is going to be your most important mission yet."
"Angie you don't just realize something of that sort and not even talk about it." She whispered it hurriedly all the while glancing around just waiting for some other disastrous shoe to drop.
"I'd love to talk, but I'm restless and bored out of my mind. The last thing I need is to have a serious talk about your super spy activities. You don't need to tell me about them, just show me." Her eyes were glowing with a playful sort of challenge, one she knew Peggy would never turn down.
She looked so hopeful and so excited at the prospect that Peggy simply couldn't resist. She stood slowly, while Angie completed a tiny victory dance.
"The first rule of espionage is to save the dances for the actual victory."
"It was a personal victory, getting you up and at 'em."
As she said it the woman right next to them began to stir and Peggy gave her a hard stare. "Perhaps it isn't me that talks too much."
Hand in hand they wove through the sleeping bags with Peggy in the lead, keeping a constant eye on Mrs. Fry while praying the half woman half watch dog wouldn't wake up and eat them alive. Some God must have been in a good mood that day because they made it out of the basement and into the eerily dark lobby of the Griffith without a hitch.
Angie surveyed the area around them and watched the door to the basement for a moment, just to be sure, before turning around. "Not bad Carter, not bad."
The teasing praise gave Peggy and unprecedented amount of satisfaction. Perhaps she didn't need her co-workers to recognize the work she did, perhaps she only needed Angie to understand her value.
"That's Agent Carter."
"Well Agent, I'm impressed. Sure explains the way you were able to sneak out all the time."
Peggy was still taken aback at how closely Angie must have been watching her for all that time. She wondered if she ever stayed up worrying, but most of all she wondered how a young woman from Brooklyn had discovered so much about her before anyone else could.
Angie grabbed her hand pulling her from those thoughts and together they walked through the empty halls, as thunder kept rolling in with the occasional bolt of lightening that would light up the sky like it was the Fourth of July.
"Where are we escaping to exactly Angie?"
"Apartment 3C."
Her eyebrows rose at that answer. "So you're wild escape plan was simply to go to your own room?"
Angie stopped and turned to face her looking very grave and undeniably determined. "Look Peggy, I gotta go make sure my stash is in tact. In times of disaster women get real crafty and everyone knows I'm the one with the good stuff."
"I never realized you were so famous around the Griffith."
She shrugged, very non-committal almost nonchalant before opening her door. "It's a bit more like infamous, but I'll take it."
Once they entered her room Angie broke away to check her secret hiding place and Peggy allowed herself a look around. The room was neat, serene, and completely untouched by the storm ravaging the outside. Perhaps their relationship could mimic it. Perhaps Angie could maintain her peace without letting the storm known as Peggy Carter tear her life apart. There was always a chance, there had to be.
"PEGGY!" It was loud and shrill, loud enough to be heard over the rain pounding on the windows and the thunder that refused to die down. It was loud enough to snap Peggy right out of her musings.
Without a second thought she reached for the small pistol she kept strapped to her leg and ran into the room only to find Angie staring up at her like she was an absolute lunatic.
"Jesus Christ English, didn't realize you were packin' heat there."
She sighed, releasing the tension that had filled her body before placing her weapon back in its holster and rubbing her temples. "Angie, next time you scream bloody murder, please be sure a bloody murder is occurring if possible."
"Well it might as well be a bloody murder. I told ya Peg, I told ya these girls were crafty."
"What are you going on about now?"
"My stash Peg, it's gone, completely wiped out." She pointed desperately to the empty compartment she had added to her dresser, kneeling beside it, mourning her loss. She truly was meant for the stage.
Peggy stared at her, quite incredulous. "This is what you deem second to bloody murder?"
She crossed her arms, indignant. "Maybe it is Peg, maybe it is. Either way it's a crime and we gotta investigate, catch the culprit and make 'em pay."
"You read far too many crime novels Angie."
She stood from her knees and began to pace back and forth, voice commanding as she devised a plan of action. "Lucky for me I have an agent here. We can find it together; we can search the whole place if we have to. We can kick in doors, and beat some people up-"
As Angie rambled on Peggy took a quick look around the dresser. It all seemed to be in tact, nothing to give the culprit away. Then she spotted it. A tube of lipstick just peaking out form under the added compartment. She could tell it wasn't Angie's shade, it certainly wasn't her own, but she had definitely seen it before.
She bent down, picked it up, and held it right in front of Angie's face to quiet her. "I don't believe there's any need for all that darling. It seems Sarah is your thief, and I don't think it's a crime worthy of a beating."
She snatched the tube right out of Peggy's hand and stared at it so hard it was a shock it didn't disintegrate right then and there. "Of course it was Sarah, probably tryin' to entertain her male company if you know what I mean."
Her comment only received an exasperated eye roll from Peggy but it didn't dissuade her one bit. She pocketed the lipstick opting for Peggy's hand to hold instead.
"Let's go search her room!"
They were off again running down the hallways like frenzied schoolgirls. This time Angie was in the lead of her own little mission, one that Peggy was all too happy to assist in. In all the haste of the evacuation Sarah's door, among most others, was left wide open. Much to Angie's dismay no kicking in was necessary. Even worse, upon investigation, there was no liquor to be found.
Angie stood in the middle of the room, hands on her hips, huffing and grumbling all at once. "Some agent you are Peggy. You followed a bogus lead, sent us on a wild goose chase."
It wasn't her strongest, but nonetheless it was a death glare Peggy shot her. "I can assure you the lead was quite legitimate, thank you very much. It has to be around here somewhere."
She refused to be proven wrong and so she stalked into the kitchen searching every cabinet and cupboard the tiny room held, all to come up with absolutely nothing. When she finally admitted defeat and walked back to the bedroom she found Angie on her hands and knees prying at the floor.
"What on God's earth are you doing Angie?"
She looked up, frantic. She could have very easily been mistaken for someone who just escaped an asylum not the basement of the Griffith. "It's in the floor Peggy. I'm tellin' ya this floorboard's loose. She's hiding it that weasel…"
"Once again you read far too much for your-" Before she could finish the sentiment Angie had pulled the floorboard up and lo and behold there was a tiny compartment. Not only did Angie find her drinks she also found snacks and some truly disturbing mementos from Sarah's previous lovers.
Angie sat for a moment starting at it with the most satisfied grin she had ever sported. She looked up at Peggy then, so very proud. "Told ya."
Peggy stared down at her and then the compartment. "That's quite amazing."
Angie just shrugged it off before taking back what was rightfully hers along with a few snacks as punishment. She carried it back to her room by herself, all the while humming and smiling like a glorified fool. It took a bit of finagling but she was able to fit it in her own secret storage. She looked up from the task only to find Peggy staring at her, and that stare made her nervous and eager all at the same time.
"What are ya lookin' at English?"
Peggy cocked her head to the side, her eyes never leaving the young woman. "You are absolutely marvelous."
Her smile was quick, it came and went in a matter of seconds, it was one of her shy, embarrassed smiles. "If you say so."
Angie stood after successfully hiding away her contraband and Peggy was right there in front of her, inches away, still staring that cutting stare of hers.
"I do. I do say so." The way her eyes roamed over Angie was almost intrusive and the way she said it, well it was dangerous.
"Peggy." There was no one around to hear. No one was awake, no one was near, it was just the two of them, but she whispered the name all the same.
Peggy just stared; she looked the young woman up and down before settling on her daring eyes. She was relentless. "It's dangerous what I do, you know?"
Angie didn't back up, she didn't look away. She nodded slowly, standing her ground. "I sure do."
Peggy nodded with her, standing straight and still. Her voice was filled with a threatening sort of mirth. "I can be fairly dangerous also."
She smiled at that, Peggy Carter didn't even know the kind of danger she presented. She nodded again, her voice nice and level. "I don't doubt that for a minute."
"Doesn't that make you the least bit afraid?" Peggy watched her closely; the question was teasing, but honest at the same time. It was almost like a game of cat and mouse between the two of them.
It was a subtle change but her smile went from bashful to sly and her eyes went from cool to searing. "Might just be I like a healthy dose of fear every now and then."
She took Angie's hand in her own, tracing the lines on her palm as she continued. "You seem to be quite the dauntless young woman."
"Just like you Peg." She looked at her with a mix of pride, adoration and awe. She admired Peggy Carter, she respected her, and she adored her all at once.
"Just like me." It came out soft and sweet, lined with a certain kind of wonder. It was true. They were brave; they were dauntless in their own ways. Maybe Peggy hunted down the bad guys and faced death far more often then the average person, but that wasn't what made her brave in the moment. What made her brave was the way she kissed Angie without reserve. What made her brave was the way she pulled Angie down with her onto the bed. What made her brave was the way she stopped the tugging, the pulling, the kissing to ask, "Are you sure?"
And what made Angie brave was the way she was completely and absolutely sure. She knew Peggy Carter, Agent Peggy Carter was a tornado that might just ruin everything in her path without even meaning to, without even knowing. But she wanted to be ruined; it would be an honor to be ruined by a woman like Peggy Carter.
What Angie failed to realize was that if Peggy Carter was a tornado well Angie had to be a hurricane and as the two forces met they didn't ravage each other, instead they became one, and they became unstoppable.
That was just how Peggy felt. The feeling of Angie on her, under her, in her, it made her feel like a storm was raging inside her and she might just explode. But the way Angie's skin felt on her own, the way she moved under her, the way she screamed Peggy's name, the way her body looked illuminated by the flashes of lightning, well it made Peggy invincible. She could protect Angie. They could be together because with that woman by her side there was nothing she couldn't do.
When the thunder began to quiet and the lightning stopped flashing they knew their time was almost up. They looked at each other through the dark and smiled the shy smiles that come after such bold actions. It was slow and reluctant but they dressed under the dark cover of the night and hand in hand they started to make their way back to the basement.
One of them would catch the other staring every now and then and they would both grin, so bashful. They didn't say a word; they just kept on walking until Angie stopped in the main lobby, pulling at Peggy's hand.
"Is something wrong?"
Angie smiled at the unrestrained concern, the air of caution Peggy regarded her with. "No, I just need to do something, we need to."
Before Peggy could ask what it was Angie had unlocked the front door and dragged her into the pouring rain and howling wind.
Peggy had been buzzing with warmth, with the lingering feeling of Angie's skin on her own and the freezing drops of rain threatened to wash it all away. "Angela Martinelli you must be certifiably insane. What are we doing out here?"
She looked at her for a moment, indecisive, debating if she should say what she wanted to. Once she had gathered the courage she let it all out quickly. "I've always wanted to be kissed on the street in the pouring rain and English I know it's stupid. I know. But I imagine I'll never have the chance to do this again out in the open in the big city with someone I think I might just love."
Her eyes widened and she felt like a complete fool. She hadn't meant to finish it off like that but after a night like theirs, in the pouring rain, all alone, the words just felt so natural. And Peggy stared back, eyes wider, rain dripping down her face, making everything blurry and cold, everything but the wild fire that raged inside her.
"Peggy, I-"
"Don't you dare take it back."
Peggy watched Angie watch her. She watched the way Angie's eyebrows furrowed in disbelief, the way they rose in shock as she processed the words, and the way she frowned as she attempted to figure out what to say next. But before she could get a word out there was a hand pulling at her collar and Peggy looked absolutely mortified.
Just like that they were dragged into the lobby and set in front of a seething Mrs. Fry, half asleep and slippers soaked from the pouring rain. She didn't say anything, she didn't have to. Instead she pushed them into her office and glared at them, hard.
Peggy tried her best to stand with some dignity, she straightened her soaked clothing and stood clasping her hands in front of her. Angie still looked fairly bewildered by it all but that didn't stop the small giggle that escaped.
Mrs. Fry took the opportunity to round on her. "Do you think this is funny Miss Martinelli? Is this a game to you? Worst of all you pulled Miss Carter into your wicked games. What madness possessed you to venture out into a storm like this, against my direct orders?"
The way she stood up straight, all composure and class proved she could play any role. "Why Mrs. Fry, it was the most powerful sort of madness there is."
"And what would that be?"
"Love Mrs. Fry, love."
Her gasp was audible as her eyes narrowed "You were off to find the young man that gave you that rose, weren't you?"
Angie nodded gravely. "That's right, I had to make sure he weathered the storm alright, Peggy here tried to stop me but I wouldn't have it."
Peggy's hands flew over her mouth to stifle the laughter that was about to make its way out and she watched eyes wide as Angie gave her a small wink.
"Angela Martinelli I never expected this degree of foolishness from you."
"I know Mrs. Fry, I know. But what can you do when you think you've found the love that will last you a lifetime?"
Before Mrs. Fry could begin her discourse on the dangers of love and the silliness of young women Peggy answered instead.
"Nothing. There's nothing you can do besides throw caution to the wind and hang on for dear life."
She said it casually enough that Mrs. Fry only shook her head in disapproval, but Angie understood. She turned so fast to look at her she almost snapped her neck in the process. The way Peggy smiled at her was so reckless it bordered on sinful and it was Peggy's turn to wink before facing front again, poised as could be.
It wasn't a grand declaration of affection, of love, but Angie understood and it was more than enough. Even as Mrs. Fry told them they would no longer have a home at the Griffith due to their antics she grinned like a fool because she had Peggy Carter, and that would always be enough.
