1945

She had begun to lose track of time. AJ no longer knew the what time of day it was – they'd only give her the smallest amount of food but it felt sporadic. All she did know is that when all the guards entered the prisoner's area, the woman caged up next to her would be first. There was no way to muffle out her screams and try and ignore them, sometimes AJ could still hear them in her sleep. Her own throat was raw from the last time they had come and got her. The first few times they began to slice her open, she had passed out from the pain. Now they kept her awake. Sniffing salts, anything to keep her aware of what was happening.

It was too much.

She was tired.

AJ just wanted to be with Bucky.

"Chosen." The woman next to her kept saying in English.

"For what?"

And then she'd continue on in Mandarin.

Adelyn Frost was fluent in many languages; French, Spanish, German, Italian, Russian.

Mandarin? No, she hadn't mastered that language yet.

Water.

They needed water.

She could feel her bones aching, her veins burning and knew that her throat was damaged, probably beyond repair. She didn't even recognize her own voice when she spoke. Her voice was harsh, a stronger rasp, and cut in and out whenever she began to argue with the guards who dragged her in and out of each room.

During the torture, AJ would close her eyes and imagine soft kisses on her face instead of a surgical blade, Bucky's fingers softly running down her arms instead of the feeling of her arms being sliced open, the bonds that kept her strapped down onto the table was just Bucky softly grasping onto her wrist whenever she'd walk away from him, and he'd pull her back in a tug until her back was pressed against his chest and her laughter filled the air and he nuzzled his face into her neck. Bucky. He was the only reason she was still alive.

He came to her in her worst state, begging her to stay alive. She'd hear him tell her that he loved her and that Steve would find her, that when they got back to Brooklyn, he was going to introduce her to his mother and ask for his grandmothers wedding ring and make AJ his wife. Adelyn Barnes. Mrs. Barnes. He'd ask her to marry him and with no hesitation, AJ would say yes. Always. That's what he would say to her.

Stay with me, He'd tell her.

Always, she'd whisper back as she felt herself drifting away. And then there would be a chill in the air and when she woke up again, her wounds were healed, the opened wounds they had sliced into her were just white little lines that marked her body.

The doors to her cell opened and AJ looked over to the woman cowering in the cell next to her. They had opened her door – not the woman's. She was first today. "No," AJ protested as they grabbed at her. She found more strength the next time she shouted, "No!" And the guards were blown back by cold air.

It left her drained, so tired and weak, she could barely keep her eyes open when the guards charged at her and dragged her out of the cell. "NO! NO!" She heard the woman she was jailed with yell at the men.

When she finally did wake, Dr. Reinhardt was looking down at her, a malicious smile playing on his lips. "Hello, Agent Frost." He let the surgical blade stroke her cheek.

She groaned, his face her least favorite thing in the entire world.

"I heard you exhibited a new development in your gifts. The guards said it came from her fingers, so-" He drew out the word as he held up her hand. "I am going to see exactly what is inside these pretty little fingers of your."

Pain. Blood. Her own screams. Rage. Fear. Emptiness.

And then she felt something piercing through her abdomen. Harsh, cold and hot at the same time. It made her breath catch in her throat and when she was able to breath again, she was coughing up something warm and metallic.

Blood.

This is it.

This is my end.

Reinhardt didn't dress her afterwards, he only had her brought to her cell and hung upside down by her feet, letting the blood drip down into a bucket.

Cold.

Warm.

Cold.

Warm.

She felt everything. AJ couldn't replace her pain with the thought of Bucky, she couldn't imagine his lips kissing her skin or his fingers running down her arms. No, it was just pain. Never ending pain.

The last thing she remembered was screaming.

She saw Bucky.

And then she woke up in the future.

MAY 1st, 2012 - Brooklyn, New York

AJ woke up with a gasp, hands going to her abdomen to search for any wounds. The temperature in the apartment had lowered drastically – she was glad Steve woke up early each morning to explore the city.

It had been almost a week since they had gotten to New York and AJ had moved her things in from her own apartment.

Living with Steve was an adjustment.

She thought that after spending time with him at the cabin she'd be used to his constant presence. But she hadn't grown used to it yet.

She had lived alone ever since she woke up – aside from living in one of SHIELD's compounds while they were testing her powers – and now that she didn't have her alone time, well, that was an adjustment. Steve usually got up every morning at 4:30 AM. He'd shower, make himself coffee (which always woke up AJ, smell - not noise.) And then leave for his run, always forgetting to lock the door when he'd leave.

So, AJ would get out of bed, walk through the apartment until she reached the door and locked it, contemplate going back to bed but would ultimately get herself a cup of coffee and be awake three hours more than she really to be. Today, Steve had left around midnight. AJ did her normal routine a couple hours earlier, and then fell back asleep on the couch, too tired to go back to her bed, and had hope that somehow if she slept in a different place that the nightmares wouldn't come.

They did.

They always did.

Her phone went off and AJ groaned, looking at the time. 1 AM.

It was Clint.

"You do realize that I am three hours ahead of you, yes?" AJ answered, still a little breathless from the dream.

"You sound out of breath." Clint said in concern. "Either you just had sex or you had another nightmare." She couldn't help but chuckle at that.

Clint was always the one she'd call after a particularly bad nightmare (flashback. Clint called it PTSD.) Clint had been the one to check up on her at the SHIELD compound when she first woke up in the future and would have nightmares that sometimes caused the entire compounds temperature to drastically drop.

He always knew.

It wasn't her screaming that woke him up.

It was the cold.

"I'm fine, Barton." AJ said as she got up off the couch. "But I will remind you again, 3-hour time difference between us, Buddy. It's 1 AM in New York."

"I know." He replied and then pressed on, "What was the memory?"

AJ inhaled, really not wanting to talk about her dream, "Clint – don't worry about me." She tried to get him to drop the subject only to hear him sigh. That's when she knew he was keeping something from her. It clicked now. How he knew exactly when to call. SHIELD was monitoring her apartment. "You sure did pick a good time to call, Clint." Her voice grew stern. "Just after I woke up from a nightmare. If I didn't know any better – I'd think you guys are monitoring me. But you would never let them invade my privacy like that, would you, Clint?"

"I'm not monitoring your apartment, Adge. I'm monitoring New York which had a 30 degree drop within five minutes only to drastically get back to normal after you answered the phone."

She shook her head, running her fingers roughly through her hair. There was no use in denying what had happened, she might as well tell him her fears. "It's getting stronger."

"They've gotten worse since Steve woke up, Adge."

Adge.

She had been called by many nicknames throughout her life.

Adelyn, AJ, Jay...Frosty. But no one had ever called her Adge (read: age)

But that's what her friends in this century called her now.

Natasha, Clint, and at times even Coulson.

It was easy to get used to.

It was easier to fall into a new life with that nickname.

But now Steve was back and every time he'd say her name or Jay, all that pain would come back to her and she'd have to block out the memory of Bucky calling her Jay as well. Or Frosty.

"I know." She agreed with Clint.

"Coulson said he can get you on a quinjet to New Mexico in an hour. Maybe have some time away from Rogers."

"No," AJ shook her head.

"Adge,"

"Don't Adge me, Clint. You don't have to be worried about me – I've got things under control. I just have to...work on my breathing or whatever Helen told me to do." She walked into the kitchen where she could still smell the coffee Steve had made earlier. She sighed upon hearing how quiet Clint was. When he worried, he was silent. AJ leaned against the kitchen counter and tried to make her voice sound more assuring so that Clint wouldn't be able to tell that she was lying through her teeth. "Clint, I love you for looking out for me – but I can handle this."

"I know you can." He agreed.

She smiled. "Tell Maria she still owes me that bottle of Scotch she dropped while helping unpack everything for us last week."

Clint chuckled, "What was it called again?"

She paused. "Uh," AJ swallowed hard, closing her eyes. "Buchanan's."

AJ didn't intend to drink the scotch. It was just something to keep close to her that reminded her of Bucky. James Buchanan Barnes.

She knew that Clint knew Bucky's history, he read his file extensively. So, she knew that he knew why the specific brand scotch was so important to AJ.

"I'll make sure she gets it, kid."

That made AJ laugh, "You do realize I'm very, very much older than you, right?" She teased.

"Would you prefer I call you Grandma?"

She snorted. "No."

"That's what I thought, kid."

"I'll see you when you get back, Clint."

They hung up and AJ cleaned herself up after having coffee. She showered, threw her hair up in a messy bun and went to where she knew Steve would be.

Goldie's Boxing Gym.

Chasing down Captain America at 1:15 AM.

Great.

_

Goldie's had changed. But not as drastically as most things in Brooklyn had changed since Steve had last been home. The world had advanced while he was frozen, so much. But Steve had always been able to adapt to things fast. Even AJ agreed.

He was worried about her.

Every night he'd listen to her toss and turn in the bedroom down the hall from his. There were times that she'd even wake up in the middle of the night and pace around their apartment. On the worst nights, he'd hear her quietly try and sneak out of the apartment and wouldn't come home for at least two hours.

Steve had begun to notice changes.

Not just with the way she spoke or carried herself – but changes that had to do with her powers. At night, he'd be awoken by a chill in the apartment. He'd walk around to check and make sure he had closed all the windows, but the cold would be coming from AJ's bedroom.

Nightmares.

He had them too.

Mostly it was watching Bucky fall to his death.

But AJ had gone through things a lot worse than Steve had.

He had seen the barely visible white lines on AJ's arms, he even saw a large while line going from her neck to the bottom of her spine one time when he had walked into her bedroom without knocking. She had quickly thrown on her shirt, snapping at him for walking in unannounced.

AJ had talked to him about her abilities, and how they kept her alive. How the cold helped heal her wounds. But that they had become so fatal when Peggy found her that the only way she could fully heal was to be put in cryostasis. The cold preserved her until there came a day that technology would advance and a team of medical experts were able to heal her fully where she'd no longer need to stay in a frozen state.

A woman, a doctor, named Helen Cho had been the one to wake AJ from cryostasis. Steve had yet to meet her, he hadn't met any of AJ's friends. Aside from Director Fury. But he seemed to be more of a boss to AJ than a friend.

Steve threw another hard hit at the punching bag, the force of his swing nearly causing it to break apart from the chain that held it together. He sighed, resting his head against the bag as he held it still.

"You do realize that I have to pay for each bag that you end up destroying."

Steve smiled, looking over his shoulder to see AJ leaning against the boxing ring, arms folded over her chest as she watched him in amusement.

"I've only broken three."

"Four." She corrected, pushing herself up a bit to walk over to where Steve was. Steve watched as she pointed up at chains, "One more hit – even if it was from an average joe – will send this bad boy falling to the ground, or, if it were you, flying across the room."

Steve chuckled, facing AJ now. "You pay for it, or SHIELD pays for it?"

AJ grinned, shrugging her shoulders innocently. "Go get cleaned up – I'm taking you out to eat." She informed him, not even giving him a chance to say no before she was walking out of the gym.

It wasn't even 1:30 in the morning and AJ was making him go out to eat with her.

Adelyn Frost was still bossy as ever.

That was one of the things that hadn't changed.

The 24-hour diner was in Brooklyn, around AJ's old neighborhood. Her apartment building had been knocked down in the 60's (that's what AJ had told him). Steve hadn't found the courage to go to his old apartment, but he knew there was no chance of it still being there.

"Load up on your carbs." AJ told him as they sat down, his eyes scanning over the menu. "I suggest the French toast. It's earth shatteringly good."

Steve let out an amused snort at her choice of words to describe the French toast.

A waitress came up to them a while later and took AJ's menu without her even ordering, "Coffee or tea this time, AJ?" The woman asked.

Steve looked over at AJ with a raised brow. "Coffee." She answered.

"And you, handsome?" The woman was beautiful, blonde curls and beautiful blue eyes.

"Uh," Steve became flustered. "I, uh, French toast."

The woman grinned, clearly amused by his stammering. "Just French toast?"

"He'll have a side of sausage, eggs, bacon, and hashbrowns." AJ ordered for Steve. "And a cup of OJ." She smirked at Steve, to which he narrowed his eyes at her in annoyance.

The woman laughed and wrote down the order before walking away from their booth.

"She didn't ask for your order." Steve said after a moment of silence where AJ moved her hand over the dog tags under her shirt.

"I come here often." AJ told him.

He frowned, if she came here so often that they knew her order by heart – this diner must be significant to AJ. "How long has this place been open?" He asked.

"Since the 30's. It's been rebuilt and remodeled every other decade and it has had quite a few different owners but it's always remained a diner." AJ told him and then looked out the large glass windows out at the busy streets. This truly was the city that never slept.

Steve looked around the diner, suddenly coming to the realization where they actually were and why AJ came here so often. He paused, licking at his lower lip as he tried to think of something to say. "This is the place?" He asked, but he didn't need clarification. He already knew.

"Yes," AJ said just as the waitress brought AJ her coffee and Steve his cup of OJ, giving him a wink before she left. When she was gone, AJ cleared her throat and pulled Bucky's dog tags out from under her shirt, where Steve could see a thin white line on her chest. She covered herself when she saw he had noticed it and began to talk quickly. "This is where I took Bucky on his last night in the states." AJ said, probably wanting to avoid Steve asking questions about the scar he had just seen.

"And you get the same dish each time you come here?"

AJ nodded her head. She closed her eyes and smiled, reliving a memory. "He put too much pepper on his eggs. Bucky said the shaker was broken but he just put too much on." She chuckled. Steve smiled, liking the way her green eyes would twinkle whenever she spoke about Bucky. But just as soon as her happiness appeared, it'd drift away bit by bit.

"He was worried he wasn't going to see you before he shipped off." Steve said after watching her smile fade away. Her eyes met his as she inhaled sharply.

"You think she'll go to this thing?" Bucky had asked.

"She might. I know she works with Stark." Steve then looked to Bucky with a raised brow and amused expression. "What's it matter to you? I thought we had a double date tonight?" He had smirked.

Bucky rolled his eyes and shoved Steve on the shoulder. "Punk."

Steve smiled and kept walking. "Jerk."

"Well, he found himself a date that night." AJ tried to joke.

"And promptly left her the moment he saw you." He reminded her.

Her smile was soft, but it didn't reach her eyes. "I told him to go back to Connie. She was a nice girl – too good for Bucky." There it was. The real smile. Steve laughed, shaking his head. "And yes, I do realize that I ended up falling in love with the man, that irony is not lost on me."

"He loved you so much, Jay." Steve said, causing AJ's eyes to close. "I think he'd move all the stars in the sky if you asked him too."

She licked at her lower lip before her eyes went back to Steve's. "But he didn't stay."

The waitress came over with their food and AJ quickly changed the subject as she spread butter and jelly on her toast, peppering her eggs lightly and breaking her bacon it half. The waitress had also bought a piece of chocolate pie. Steve didn't question it. He just sat quietly as AJ began to talk about a man named Bruce Banner, who had tried to replicate the super solider serum but had failed.

AJ had inserted herself back into the present instead of longing for her past. Steve understood. Sometimes he wished he could go back as well.

He'd have his date with Peggy, they'd dance and laugh and he'd be happy.

But, AJ still wouldn't have Bucky.

It was not a good thing that she had gone through all she had – but it was helping her move forward. Inserting herself into the 21st century was helping heal her broken heart. He could see that. But he could still see her struggling.

AJ's phone buzzed on the table and she frowned. Steve looked at the clock on the wall of the diner, seeing it was barely even 2 AM.

She answered her phone. "This is Frost."

Her face formed into a worried scowl.

"When?"

Steve watched as she nodded.

"I'll be there in fifteen."

AJ hung up and sat up out of the booth, throwing down a twenty-dollar bill on the table as well as their house keys. "Is everything okay?" He asked, seeing her visibly shaken.

"The apartment is locked – do not forget to lock it back up when you are home. I'll be in contact with you when I can."

Steve stood as well, not liking the way her voice had slight tremors. He grabbed her hand, "Jay...what's going on?" He asked again.

AJ looked at him for a long moment and eventually said once again, "I'll be in contact with you when I can." She said as she pulled her hand out of his grip and then left him standing alone in the diner.

He looked down at the booth that they sat at, the money on the table as well as their apartment keys. She hadn't even gotten to eat her chocolate pie yet.

_

Compromised.

Barton was compromised.

She had just been talking to him not even an hour ago.

"Are you sure it's him?" AJ asked Fury over com.

Loki of Asgard. Brother of Thor.

"Well, he made a hell of an introduction." Silence. "He was able to take down nearly every agent in that room. Many scientists as well. Selvig and Barton and a few other agents were compromised. Loki used a weapon – we're not entirely sure how, but it was able to control them. I watched him touch it to Barton's chest and then he withdrawing his weapon, ready to follow Loki's command."

"The Tesseract?" She asked. Howard should have left it in the damn ice when he was searching for Steve. No good would come from having it – it's what Steve ultimately died trying to prevent ever happening again.

"Gone." Fury sighed. "Barton took it after he shot me."

AJ took in a deep breath, "But he made it out?"

"Killing a few hundred agents in the process. Yes." He confirmed. "The compound is destroyed. Anyone that was still inside are dead. There's no way anyone could survive that kind of destruction. It's a damn sinkhole now."

"Hill and Coulson?"

"They got out."

AJ ran her hands over her face, trying to take deep calming breaths. The kind that Helen Cho had taught her to do when she was too triggered by her own emotions.

"This is a Level 7, Agent Frost. As of right now; we are at war." He told AJ. "We're having agents bring in Rogers. He'll be with you soon enough."

"That's not going to work." AJ told Fury. "He won't trust random agents – he needs someone he knows and trusts to bring him in."

"Well, I'd have you go but you are needed elsewhere. So, I'll go to Rogers myself. Do you have any idea where he'll be?"

"Goldie's Boxing Gym." She knew it's where he'd go. Not to their apartment like she instructed him to. Steve wasn't one to sit around and worry, he needed to work out those worries by punching a bag. And, Steve never listened to her when she made orders. "Where do you need me?"

"Stay on the Helicarrier. Coulson will be there shortly and the two of you are going to bring in Stark."

Fury disconnected from her and AJ stood in place, closing her eyes as she tried to steady her rapidly beating heart. Fury was trusting her – no, believing in her enough to go bring in Stark with Coulson. When a few months ago she wasn't allowed to step within 200 yards of the man. Fury knew he was a trigger – he knew what Howard had meant to AJ and knew that when it came to her old life, her powers became unpredictable when emotions surfaced that she had tried to keep buried down since waking up.

She could do this.

Fury believed in her.

And she believed in herself.

Coulson arrived and debriefed her on what had happened at the desert compound.

"I wasn't inside, I was helping evacuate the building when he came through the portal. I don't know where the Hell he came from – Asgard? I would assume he'd be public enemy number one there. AJ? Adge? Earth to Frost."

She looked up at Coulson, trying to focus. "Yes, I'm sorry. I'm just-"

"On edge. Understandable." He nodded. "I'm sure you would prefer to meet the son of one of your oldest friends on different non-end-of-the-world type of circumstances."

AJ let out a huff as she smiled at Coulson's words. "You took the words right out of my mouth, Phil." She said sweetly, giving him a cheeky grin. "How are we going to get him to talk with us?" AJ asked, knowing that the Stark men were incredibly stubborn.

"I figured I'd call him. And if that doesn't work, hack into his security system and let ourselves in."

After a few attempts to get in touch with Tony, Coulson looked over at AJ and gave her a quick nod, letting her know that they'd need to override the system. She pulled of the device given to her by Hill and pressed it against the building until it locked into place, creating the security system to breach and Coulson was able to get through to Tony.

"Mr. Stark, we need to talk." AJ heard Coulson say through the comms.

"You have reached the Life Model Decoy of Tony Stark. Please leave a message."

AJ motioned for Coulson to follow her as the elevator doors opened for them. "This is urgent." Coulson said as they took the elevator up to the top floor.

"Then leave it urgently." Tony remarked.

The elevator doors opened revealing Coulson and AJ.

"Security breach!" Tony said as he looked at them both. "That's on you." AJ heard him mumble to the woman with strawberry blonde hair sitting next to him: Pepper Potts.

"Phil! Come in!" She said happily.

Tony made a face, "Uh – Phil?"

"I can't stay long," Coulson said as he and AJ walked up to where Pepper met them.

"Uh, his first name is Agent." Tony said, following behind Pepper. His eyes met AJ's briefly before he turned his attention back to Pepper.

"Come on in, we're celebrating!" Pepper said with a smile.

Tony gave a fake smile. "Which is why they can't stay." He looked to AJ once more before his eyes focused back on Pepper when she began to speak again.

"I don't think we've met. I'm Pepper Potts." She held out her hand for AJ to grab. She smiled, moving to grab a hold of Peppers hands only to have her wince slightly, "Your hands are freezing! How cold is it outside?" She asked, looking out at the large windows in the room to see what the weather looked like.

AJ quickly moved her hands behind her back, holding them together tightly. "AJ." She introduced herself. "I work with SHIELD."

Pepper smiled again, "It's very nice to meet you."

Coulson interrupted them, pulling out a laptop. "We need you to look this over, as soon as possible."

"-I don't like being handed things," Tony began only to have Pepper interrupt him.

"That's fine because I love to be handed things, so lets trade." She gave Phil her glass of champagne as she took the laptop, but only briefly as she then took away Tony's glass of champagne and handed him the laptop.

Tony huffed, "Official consulting hours are between eight and five every other Thursday."

"This isn't a consultation." AJ said, looking directly at Tony. He seemed taken back by that.

"Is this about the Avengers?" Pepper asked causing both Phil and AJ to turn their heads sharply to look at the woman. "Which I know nothing about."

Tony walked away. "The Avengers Initiative was scrapped, I thought. And I didn't even qualify."

"I didn't know that either." Pepper said innocently.

AJ fought hard not to laugh.

"Yeah, apparently, I'm volatile, self-obsessed, don't play well with others."

"That I did know." Pepper said causing AJ to smile.

"This isn't about personality profiles anymore. Your name was brought back up by someone important who sees past your negative attributes." Phil said causing AJ to smirk.

"Whatever! Ms. Potts, got a sec?"

Pepper excused herself and AJ looked to Coulson with a cocked eyebrow in reference to his previous comment. Important, she mouthed with a smirk. Coulson rolled his eyes and looked back over to where Pepper and Tony talked quietly.

They both watched as Tony grabbed a hold of the holograms on the laptop and throw them up so that the holograms filled the room showing each pick for the Avengers Initiative.

Bruce Banner, Thor, and Steve.

"I'm going to take the jet to DC tonight." Pepper said after observing everything.

"Tomorrow." Tony objected.

"You have homework. You have a lot of homework."

"Well, what if I didn't?" Tony replied.

"If you didn't? You mean when you finish? Well, um, then-" She began to whisper in Tony's ear, changing his mind drastically.

"Square deal. Fly safe."

They kissed and when they pulled apart, Pepper leaned in and said softly, "Work hard." She then walked over to where Phil and AJ stood. "So, any chance you're driving by LaGuardia?"

"We can drop you off." Coulson agreed.

"Fantastic, Ooh, I want to hear about the ah-cellist! Is that still a thing?" Pepper went on as she followed after Coulson towards the elevator.

"You." Tony said loudly causing the three of them to turn and face him. "Female Agent. I'd like a private word with you."

AJ looked to Coulson who gave her a nod of approval. "I'll wait for you at the car." He told her as he and Pepper got into the elevator.

She moved to walk forward only to see that Tony was now standing closer than he had before, looking at her with his head inclined. "Is there something I can help you with, Mr. Stark?" AJ kept her voice steady.

He stood in front of her now, eyes squinting as he looked to her face. "Your name?" He asked.

She licked at her lower lip before putting on an unreadable face. "Agent." She replied.

Tony smirked. He tilted his head again and studied her face yet again. "I know you." He told her. "We've met."

"We haven't." AJ disagreed.

"I don't forget faces and I have seen yours before, I am sure of it." Tony took a step back, almost as if he were trying to force some memory of her into his mind. It wouldn't work. She had never meant Tony until today. Though, she had wanted to meet him for a while now.

"Maybe I just have one of those faces." She shrugged her shoulders innocently.

Tony moved back and reached for the glass of champagne Coulson had set down before leaving. "You know who says things like that?"

"No." AJ replied.

He looked over his shoulder, "People who are pretending they have never met before."

AJ couldn't help but laugh, "Trust me, Mr. Stark – If we have met before, I would have remembered it."

Tony turned to look at her, brows raised with an amused smile.

AJ scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Get your head out of the gutter." Filth! Something she had said to Howard many times. It made her pause and look down at the phone in her hand. "I need to be going now – unless you'd like Ms. Potts to miss her flight to DC."

He squinted his eyes at her once again before finally nodding, "Yes. go on now, Agent-Agent. I'm sure the world needs saving."

AJ left Tony watching after her as she disappeared into the elevator to meet up with Coulson. He was waiting outside while Pepper was on the phone in the car. "Does he know who you are?" Phil asked AJ as she walked around to the passenger side.

"Not yet. But I have a feeling he's stubborn enough to figure it out."

Would it be the worst thing for Tony to find out?

Her records were classified, only a few agents knew who she was. If word got out that Steve Rogers wasn't the only person to metaphorically travel in time via ice (cryostasis) – they'd ask questions. Questions AJ could not answer.

She was not a super solider.

Steve was. That is how he was able to stay alive and preserved through time.

AJ couldn't really go around telling fellow agents that she had been working with for the past two years that she was actually a powered-person, and that the only reason why she had survived was because of her abilities. That through the many decades her cells had regenerated rapidly in order to heal herself while she was kept in the chamber - and that's why she had never aged. It was too much.

Someday she'd explain it all.

Just not today.

That would be a nightmare.