Chapter Six
The ringing of the phone fills the room suddenly causing the beautiful dream to end. "Hello?" A voice from the other room answers muffled by the walls. Her eyes peel open with the deep sorrow returning back into her chest while she sits up at the voice of her husband entering the room. "It's Collison."
"What's wrong?" She asks feeling anxiety grip her heart.
"Clint and Bobbie are in the hosptial... It seems like Madam Hydra aka Viper had a hand in it." Steve answers with his voice etched with worry. Natasha stares at him mouth agap unable to understand what's going on.
"I-I don't understand..." She mumbles suddenly scared for James.
"James is safe, but I don't know for how long." Steve feels his own heart grip with fear as they feel the depressed atmosphere suddenly shift to fear.
"What are we going to do?" Natasha asks feeling weak.
"I don't know..." Steve answers truthfully sitting down next to her. "Maybe we should go back to hi-"
"No!" Natasha yells suddenly feeling all of her regret and guilt come crashing back down on her.
"You can't hide forever, Natasha! What happen to the Natasha that wouldn't hide from the world just to expose HYDRA?" Steve asks now filling with anger.
"If it wasn't for your damn plan none of this would have happened! We've missed opportunity after opportunity to tell him the truth to the point of no return... Not even Bucky will visit him. The only one with the nuff guts is Sam!" Natasha explains furious. Steve sits back down on the bed knowing she's right.
"I'm sorry..." He whispers genuinely. Natasha's eyes fall downward to the sheets knowing she hurt him, but she couldn't hold the truth in anymore. She lays her head down on his shoulder.
"I forgive you... It's just I wish we could see him one more time even if the truth means truly losing him forever..." Natasha whispers with deep sorrow.
"If we expose ourselves now, it may put him in even more danger. I, honestly, don't think they know how far they will go to get to him, especially since he's older now." Steve explains fearing the safety of his son.
"How bad are Clint and Bobbie?" Natasha asks knowing it can't be good.
"They are stable, but they are doing the best they can at the moment. When they are even more stable than they are now they will move them to an isolated place in Washington D.C." He explains knowing things are about to implode.
"He's going to start asking questions..." Natasha interjects knowing that things will eventually come out to Bobbie and Clint and eventually to James.
"Let him ask, and when the time comes he will come to find us." Steve adds knowing her deepest fear is he'll never understand nor forgive them.
"What if he doesn't forgive us?" Natasha asks confirming Steve's suspicious.
"Then we must give him that space." Steve answers the best he knows how. Natasha falls silent while she and Steve watch outside the window the sun rise over the Ukrainian land.
James opens his eyes slowly with, for the first time, no tears streaming down his cheeks. James could feel something else take the place of his depression and grief, instead, it was anger. An anger that could cause a man to do something irrational. He couldn't help feel responsible for what happened to both of his parents. Ever since he was a child he had placed the blame for his parent's death on himself as if it was his punishment for being born super, but now as a young adult, he just felt shame for him being different. This difference that sets him apart from everyone else has now caused another set of parents to become severely injured. James looks up to the night sky to barely see the lovely stars that are so easily seen at his house in the country. He stared at the beautiful night sky with too many questions to ask. He didn't know where to start for answers, but the first question he wanted answered, was why in the hell would HYRDA want him. He knows his parents are something special considering his father being Captain America and his mother being the best Russian spy, Black Widow. He didn't know what made him so unique. But one thing was for sure he was going to find out, and then destroy the people who destroyed and are destroying his life.
Francis walks outside to find James sitting on the sidewalk still with the same dazed look he had when he had left the waiting room. Francis walks over to James trying not to startle him when he is deep in thought. "Can I sit here?" Francis asks cautiously. James looks over to Francis with a slight smile knowing his older brother has always been protective and caring over him.
"Of course!" James says too chipper for the mood he is in.
Francis sits down next to him sensing his troubling thoughts as James falls back into silence. "What are you thinking about?" Francis asks not enjoying the silence as much as James is.
"What makes me so unique that someone would try to kill for." James answers truthfully with disdain.
"That would be a good question." Francis agrees, secretly Francis always wondered the same thing. He admired James for his super abilities, but he always wanted to why HYDRA was adamant about finding him. "Are you okay?"
James looks over Francis knowing he couldn't hide the truth even if he wanted too. "Not really..." He answers truthfully, "You?"
"Hanging in there." Francis answers not really wanting to show any weakness around James. "They said that tomorrow we should go, and get our stuff from the house. They want us to head to New York as soon as possible. Luckily, You can get to go to New York a week earlier."
"This is true." James agrees with a soft chuckle. Francis frowns noticing how forced his laughter was, he knew James better than anyone and one thing James cannot hide from him is when he is in distress. "I'm tired...I think I'm going to head to the hotel now." James says while standing up slowly. Francis stands up with feeling exhausted himself.
"I'm tired too, I think it's time to hit the hay." Francis states while putting his arm over his little brother's shoulders. James laughs at his brother's outdated slang. They walk to the car to drive to the hotel which was only a few blocks away.
The Doctor walks over to Collison, "Mr. Barton is awake if you would like to see him. He is responsive and coherent." Collison nods his head before heading down the hall towards the ICU room Clint is in. The guards move to the side when they see Collison coming towards him, "Thank you." Collison says before heading into the room. He looks at Clint with sadden eyes seeing him hooked up to many tubes keeping him alive.
"Phil..." Clint whispers with his voice weak from the pain of the poison still left in his body. Collison smiles weakly always amazed by Clint's amazing ability to tolerate pain.
"They are impressed you are doing well with that amount of poison in your body." Collison comments while sitting down next to him. Clint smirks knowing it must be impressive.
"How are the boys?" Clint asks deeply concerned about his boys. Collison looks down not really sure how they are emotionally handling the situation, especially the youngest.
"I, honestly, am not sure." Collison answers truthfully knowing he hasn't seen the boys yet. Clint glances away from Collison suddenly anxious about how James will handle this trauma. "James seems to be dazed about everything," Collison adds knowing Clint is thinking about James. Clint nods his head slowly knowing James will have many different responses, one he'll become reclusive, two he'll become ever more depressed, or three he will become angry, he couldn't help fear he'll become the latter.
"Keep an eye on him. I fear he'll become angry, and the kind of anger that will make him do something he might regret." Collison nods his head in agreement before opening his mouth to speak.
"We have a hunch on who could be the one responsible for all of this." Collison says while taking out a notepad.
"It's 2027, and you still carry around a paper notepad." Clint quips with a joking smile. Collison rolls his eyes before reading off his notes.
"We believe it is Viper. We are still not sure how she survived considering she died long ago." Collison informs with a confused brow deepening as he reads his notepad.
"Madam HYDRA as she is known now. She introduced herself before my wife was shot." Clint recalls feeling bitterness fill his chest. "I'm concerned that she will find James, and tell him the truth." Clint coughs feeling weaker than before.
"The truth?" Collison asks now confused.
"That they are alive." Clint states feeling suddenly tired again, "Tell me the truth..." Clint whispers trying to stay awake. Collison stares into Clint's crystal eyes seeing him fade as sleep takes over his body.
"Yes..." Collison answers now knowing for sure things are about to go back to the way they were before eleven years before.
"He needs to know...t-the truth." Clint asks coughing again before falling back to sleep. Collison stares at Clint tense over the whole situation.
James plops down on the comfortable bed feeling overly exhausted, but like always when his mind is too full of thought he is unable to sleep. He turns to find Francis fast asleep on the bed on the other side of the room. He chuckles to himself knowing it's been one hell of a day. He pulls the sheets over himself feeling the soft cotton brush over his skin. "If only you all were here none of this would be like this." He thinks to himself. He honestly didn't know who he wanted most at the moment, his mom? His dad? Clint? Bobbie? Bucky? Sam? he sighs heavy knowing the truth, he didn't want any of them. He just wanted peace. If peace was a person he would want them more than anything. He buries his face into his pillow unable to get his mind to shut up. He turns on his back staring at the pitch black ceiling. "Peace...joy..." He thinks over and over again before a sweet memory comes back to mind. He smiles as he remembers the sweet moment shared.
James runs down the hill down to a little winding creek winding down through the trees into an empty field of wildflowers. "Wait!" A sweet voice hollers out with a cheery smile on her lips. James turns around with his chest falling up and down as he breathes heavy from the emotions storming in his chest. "Hurry up!" He laughs while he watches her slowly coming down the hill.
"Give me some time. Not everyone is as fast as you are." She informs with a little smirk appearing on her rosy cheeks. She stands in front of him with her golden brown curls draping over her eyes. James' lips flicker up at the sight of the pretty girl. He reaches up and pushes her curls out of her hazel green eyes while involuntarily glancing down at her perfectly pink lips. "What?" She asks with a brisk giggle. He glances up quickly back at her eyes feeling heat run up his neck and to his ears.
"Nothin'." He says quickly before turning to walk further towards the empty field. She grabs his hand quickly forcing him to stop walking away.
"Tell meee..." She begs with her sweet voice flipping his heart upside down. He turns around with the most handsome smile ever.
"It's truly nothing..." He lies trying to hide the fact he wants to kiss her.
She tightens her lips together in thought trying to look cute, which it worked. James looks away biting the bottom of his lip aggravated by her relentlessness. Unable to fight his deep urge anymore, he places his hands on her cheeks causing her to stiffen at his soft but firm touch. He bends down to meet her soft lips. He smiles slightly when she returns the kiss with soft innocent tenderness.
James parts feeling suddenly happy and in love for the first time. He's been happy before but nothing like being happy after kissing the girl you are in love with. Cecile let's out a bright giggle when she backs away from him, "What?" He asks chuckling noticing her hands trembling.
"I've never been kissed before..." She squeaks with a child like innocence. James' eyes brighten knowing he's her first kiss.
"W-was it good?" He stutters to ask suddenly feeling insecure.
"It was wonderful!" She explains maybe a little too dramatic. James burst out in laughter still shocked a pretty girl like her hasn't been kissed yet especially since she's now sixteen. "You know you can't tell Griff about this..." She suddenly says kind of taking James off guard.
"Why?" He chuckles.
"Because he'll tell the whole world, and we aren't even dating, and it'll get complicated..." She sighs knowing she's probably being silly or concerned over nothing.
"Don't worry, it'll just be between us, and your mom and sister. Because I know you'll tell them." James says with a flirtatious smile with sincere eyes. Cecile smiles knowing he's right.
"Good..." She sighs while she snakes her arms around James's torso. He wraps his arms around her petite shoulders feeling like nothing could ruin this moment shared between them.
James smiles to himself still able to feel the kiss on his lips from long ago. He sighed heavy wishing Cecile was here. He knew that she has probably changed into a wonderful woman now and no longer the girl who would dream of them getting married. He knew he had scattered that dream long ago. He felt regret even with her, but more than anything he still felt the love he had for her when they were just teenagers. It was a love that adults would say that did not exist between two teens at the age of sixteen, but honestly he knew it was real. It was real because it still existed today. He looked forward to seeing her in New York more than anything, but like always feared she had found a new guy who is much more handsome or better than him. Though on his cocky days he knew she couldn't find anything better than him, but on his low nights it was all the insecurities that he heard. He knew she loved him, but he pushed her into hating him. He regretted pushing her away when things were tough, he wished he wasn't passive aggressive. They tried dating, but because of their immautrity it failed. It was a good thing they kept it a secret or it would of expolded. The thoughts of Cecile kept him at peace, but on nights like tonight even the thoughts of his love would descend into awful ones. James sighs as he turns on his side unable to sleep now even more than before. He wanted answers as much as he wanted Cecile, his mind fought to be in a happy dream or be a terrible nightmare. It was as if all he could do was fight his mind until he forced himself to sleep.
Author Notes: Hey guys! I know this is a short chapter, but it has some really cute fluff in it so I hope that makes up for it. Also, thank you for the reviews! Hope y'all liked this chapter!
-C.R.