Ella woke up alone in the medical floor of the tower. The bright lights burned behind her eyelids, and she winced as she opened her eyes to stark white furniture and a needle in her left hand. She lifted her head and looked around the barren room before flopping back down and pressing a button near her arm to call a nurse. The pain echoed through her skull, not a splitting ache anymore, but a dull pulse, reminding her of her actions. A broad-shouldered nurse rushed in and started recording Ella's vital signs on the chart hanging on the end of her bed. Drifting in and out of sleep, Ella heard the faint sound of footsteps, and a hand holding hers, before losing her consciousness entirely.
The next time Ella woke up, she was back in her room. She turned her head in the dimly lit space and had a sense of Deja vu, next to her head was a glass of water, glistening with condensation, and two small white pills. This time, Ella picked up the pills along with the water, and swallowed them thickly, her throat still sore and aching from lack of use. A gentle knock on her door startled her more than she'd like to admit, and she called the person in.
A concerned face with a mop of perfectly groomed blonde hair poked their head through the doorway, followed by broad shoulders and muscular arms. Steve stood in front of Ella's bed, a look of what seemed to be disappointment and sadness on his face.
"Good to see you're awake." Steve spoke softly, keeping his distance.
Ella didn't say anything, she didn't know how.
"You know, what you did was real stupid, kid," Steve moved to the left of her bed, where a worn chair sat, "We could have handled the threat on our own."
"I know Captain Rogers," Ella sighed, "I just feel so useless here. I wanted to be helpful for once."
The blonde man adjusted himself in the chair so that he was face to face with Ella's seated figure.
"You are not useless, Ella, but you will be if you keep fighting the way you did, and putting yourself in harm's way like that. Oh, and call me Steve for goodness sake." He nagged gently
Ella's head suddenly felt heavy, a thick fog settling around her mind, leaving her words slurred and her eyes drooping. The medication must have kicked in, she thought to herself.
Noticing Ella's lessening state, Steve stood, brushing a dark tendril away from the small girl's forehead.
"Sleep tight, El, I think you need it."