A/N. Hello :) Here's chapter five. Hope you like it. Enjoy :D

Disclaimer - I do not own the Avengers because they belong to MARVEL/Disney

CHAPTER V

Fire burned in his very core, right where his heart should be. Flames engulfed his vision. Heat boiled in the air around him. He could hear so clearly the screams of people dying, burning, mourning. The pile of cars was barely visible through all of the orange and red and yellow. He had to get to them. He had to. He had to save all those people. He couldn't just leave them there.

He took a step forward. Then another one. He was running but he wasn't going anywhere. Something tugged at the burning in his heart and it began to spread. He was being pulled backwards, away from the civilians he could help – those he could save but COULDN'T.

He cried out when he lost his footing and thought he would slam forward into the ground of the bridge; but there was nothing there. He fell forward alright and kept falling, flipping over and over again. The heat was spreading through his torso up his arms, legs, and neck. He felt like he was one fire but there were no flames to be seen. It burned painfully in his blood and he felt like he was being slowly killed.

He screamed in anguish as the heat engulfed his entire body and he exploded in flames. It hurt like hell. Everywhere stung. He couldn't see any skin, just fire. It was so agonizingly hot and even his face and his insides burned.

That was when he landed in a body of ice cold water. The change was so immediate, so sudden that is stung like a thousand bees all at once on every part of him. He opened his mouth to scream again when the water invaded it. He tried to move, to swim, but he was paralyzed. He couldn't move anymore.

His feet were going numb with cold and the feeling of ice was slowly creeping up his legs. He was having a panic attack. Not this. Not again. Please. The ice continued its journey up into his torso and he could see the ice now, coming up to meet his face. If he allowed the ice to take him, he would lose everything he had. He didn't want to be found another seventy years later to learn that everyone he loved was dead.

Tania. No, he couldn't leave her. Tania! He fought harder but it was a useless battle. His hands and arms were now completely frozen in place. He wrenched his neck back and forth, probably giving himself whiplash. The ice creeped up his throat and crawled around his face until he was frozen solid in the ocean and couldn't move anymore. So much ice...

Steve shot up from the bed with a loud gasp. Beside him, Tania jumped and her eyes shot open. Steve was panting hard. He moved his limbs and looked at his arms and body for any fire or ice. He was sweating and somewhat hot but it wasn't painful. He was awake. He was okay. He wasn't frozen again. He wouldn't have to leave Tania and the others. Tania!

He turned and hugged her to his chest. She was barely conscious of what was going on but she hugged him back anyway. He was extremely sweaty but it wasn't like she cared. She was sweating herself a little bit too.

His chest rose and fell dramatically with each breathe he took and he couldn't seem to slow it down. She knew he could, but from when he was little and had asthma, hyperventilating wasn't something you could stop easily. He could never do it himself. His mother always had to help him, and if not her then Bucky did it. After Bucky it was Peggy and Howard. And now he had Tania.

She pulled away a little and took his face in both of her hands. She stared directly into his eyes as his right hand came up to grasp her left wrist for something to hold onto. "Steve, it's okay. Whatever nightmare you had, it's gone. I'm here. You're here. Nothing is happening. The past is the past. You can let it go. You can relax. Breathe deeply. Follow me."

She inhaled slowly. He copied her with some difficulty. She exhaled, counting to ten in her mind. He mimicked her. This continued for four more breaths until he closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against hers. He was more than capable of having himself breathe deeply, but it was a hard habit to break that he kept thinking he couldn't do it himself.

Tania's heart rate calmed and her worry descended a little into concern. "Do you want to talk about it?"

His muscles contracted and relaxed again periodically, as if testing to make sure they hadn't stopped working. After a few seconds of silence, he shook his head. "No, but I'm going to anyway."

She smiled a little. "That's my Steve. So brave."

He chuckled darkly. "Yeah. So brave."

"It's true. Now where would you like to start?" she shifted so that she sat next to him, hip to hip, with both arms around his waist and her head on his shoulder. He wrapped his own muscled arms around her and pressed a kiss to the crown of her head, resting his own on top of hers. He closed his eyes.

"It started as I was back with the people on the bridge. I couldn't save them. Something was physically holding me back. I tried to move forward but I couldn't. My heart was… was burning. I felt like I was being cooked alive. And then I fell and was totally on fire. It hurt like… like I can't even describe. Anyway, I fell into the ocean and I slowly froze to death."

"Are you skipping anything? That was a pretty short description."

He shook his head again. "No. A lot of it was just pain. And fear. Mostly pain."

She sighed and squeezed his middle. "I'm sorry Steve."

"It's not your fault."

"I know, but I don't know what else to say."

He laughed once. "Me neither. Just you being here helps though."

She hummed and snuggled closer to him if that was possible. She reached for the watch around her neck and checked the time. She squinted in the darkness but couldn't see it.

"It's two thirty-three," he told her. Being a super soldier and all had vastly improved his eyesight. It wasn't like night vision, but it was close. He could see more clearly in the dark than the average human. She nodded and yawned. "I'm sorry I woke you."

"Mm, don't be," she mumbled. "I'm glad I could help. Sure, it wasn't the most ideal way to be woken up but it was to you and that's all that matters. Don't ever hesitate to wake me if you need me, okay? I'll always be here for you."

"And I you." He kissed the top of her head again and slumped back down so that they were both lying down. She was now firmly resting her head on his chest and he had one arm slung over her waist while she fell back asleep. He observed her peaceful face with fondness and adoration in his eyes. He adored her, he did. He didn't think he could live without her. At least, not very well.

He stayed awake for the rest of the night, or rather morning, feeling that he had had enough sleep to last him a lifetime. When JARVIS sounded the alarm for Tania to get up for work, he closed his eyes. Tania would be angry with him if she found out that he hadn't slept. Behind his eyelids, he could see the light slowly getting brighter as the curtains opened seemingly of their own accord.

Tania groaned and shifted above him. He listened as the sheets rustled and Michael Bublé played softly in the background. She pushed off of him but hovered there. He could feel her breath on his face and it didn't smell all that nice but he couldn't complain. He hadn't brushed his teeth since yesterday either.

She kissed his nose lightly. "Wake up Dear. The day has started."

He smiled and inhaled deeply, shifting a little in the bed as he slowly opened his eyes. In return for calling her Darling, Tania had taken to occasionally calling him Dear. It wasn't often that she did so but when she did, he always felt a warm and pleasant feeling inside. "Good morning Darling," he returned. It was always nice to wake up to her beautiful face.

"Sleep well?" He could see the deeper meaning in her eyes.

He hesitated to answer. "Not really," he replied cryptically. She nodded and pecked his lips before backing up. He pushed himself up onto his elbows as she stood up from the bed and made her way over to the closet they shared.

She sorted through them until she found a baby blue blouse and a matching navy blazer and trousers. She grabbed a towel and brought it all with her (along with some undergarments) to the bathroom, where she would take a shower.

When he was alone, he sighed and leaned back on the bed. He listened intently as the water turned on and she stepped in. He waited. Sure enough, she began singing.

Summer turned to winter

And the snow it turned to rain

Then the rain turned into tears upon your face
I hardly recognize the girl you are today
And God I hope it`s not too late
Mm, it`s not too late

`Cause you are not alone
I`m always there with you
And we`ll get lost together
Till the light comes pouring through
`Cause when you feel like you`re done
And the darkness has won
Babe, you`re not lost
When your world`s crashing down
And you can`t bear the thought
I said, babe, you`re not lost

Life can show no mercy
It can tear your soul apart
It can make you feel like you`ve gone crazy
But you`re not
Though things have seemed to change
There`s one thing that`s still the same
In my heart you have remained
And we can fly, fly, fly away

When your world`s crashing down
And you can`t bear the cross
I said, baby, you`re not lost

Those lyrics in particular made the smile on his face stretch wider. He loved listening to her singing in the morning. It always revitalized him and made him feel ready for the day.

He waited a little bit longer for Tania to exit the bathroom. He pecked her on the lips as he passed her and took the shower for himself. He didn't know how long he was in there, just standing under the water, but when he got out, Tania was nowhere to be found. She had however left him an outfit on the bed and he couldn't help but shake his head and smile. He for the life of him couldn't dress himself to the style of the twenty-first century, no matter how hard he tried.

He dressed himself in the black pants and undershirt as well as the red, white, and blue plaid collared shirt which he buttoned up three quarters of the way. He made his way to the elevator as he checked his watch. Damn. He'd missed breakfast. He hardly ever missed breakfast. Now everyone was going to know something was up. Great.

All day, as Tania worked and made preparations for the trip, she couldn't stop thinking about Steve. He popped up no matter what she was doing and was usually pretty easy to ignore, but it was still bugging her and tugging at the back of her mind to check up on him. She texted him throughout the day and kept an ongoing conversation with thirty minute intervals between replies.

Apparently he was in their gallery/studio painting. She expected nothing less after the day he'd had. She told him that she would join him after dinner.

As she searched valiantly for her laptop in her office, the sound of the door flying open automatically caught her attention and she looked up from searching the drawers of her desk. Pepper stood in her doorway with her laptop in her hands and a raised eyebrow on her face.
Tania blushed a little and accepted her computer from the red head. "Thanks, I was wondering where I put it."

"It was in the lounge on the counter. You must have left it there last night after something else caught your attention."

"Oh. Yeah. Steve… he needed me."

Pepper nodded. "I understand. Tony is the same." She wandered over to Tania's desk and eyed the papers scattered above it. "How are the preparations coming along? Is the hotel booked?"

"Yup."

"The flight?"

"Since yesterday."

"Have you packed?"

"It's on my to-do list for today."

"Do you really want to go?"

"I- wait what?"

"I said, 'do you really want to go?' " Pepper placed one hand on the desk and leaned forward."

Tania stuttered. "Um, well… I guess. But I mean… I feel bad that I'll be leaving Steve so soon after a horrible mission like that."

"I don't know the details of the mission, just that it went wrong. But I'll leave it up to you to decide whether or not you're presence is really needed at this meeting or if you're needed here more."

"I… I don't know. Steve seems to be doing fine, if a little depressed. And the MA department is essential to a merge."

"I could send someone in your place."

"Well there is Drew… but I honestly don't think she or any of the others would be up to it."

"So you think you should go?"

She bit her lip in indecision. "I do, but I'll talk to Steve about it later today and have an answer for you by tomorrow morning."

"Sounds good. I'll see you tomorrow, Miss Banks."

"Good-bye Miss Potts."

Later that evening, after dinner, Tania followed Steve to their gallery. He showed her all the paintings and sketches he'd created just today and she was honestly still amazed at the depth and the emotion behind each and every one of his masterpieces. They were all so breathtaking.

She eyed the sketch of the two of them at the coffee shop with a smile. It was framed on the wall to the left of the entrance and she loved it there. She looked around the room and observed the paintings of fire and ice clashing and the sketches of burning cars and people melting. The horror.

She had to turn away from that one. She faced Steve. He wasn't any over it this morning than he was yesterday. He needed a firm kick in the butt to get going again. She wasn't the person to do that. But from what he'd told her, she might just know someone that would…

"Let's go somewhere tomorrow," she blurted. It was out of the blue but she was confident that this would work and she needed him to agree with her to come along.

He paused just before his brush was about to his the canvas. "Go somewhere?" he repeated.

She nodded. "Yeah. Let's how have breakfast at our coffee shop and then I want to take you somewhere. We can borrow one of Tony's many cars or we can take your bike but I don't think either of us would want to this time of year."

"What's wrong with a taxi?"

"The place I have in mind is a little far. Don't worry; we'll be back in plenty of time for nightfall. I also think that it's better for privacy."

"Where are we going?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out."

"Tania…"

"No, no! Trust me! I know someone who can help you get out of your little slump."

"I'm not in a slump."

"Fine. Your depression. Whatever you want to call it."

"Tania…"

"Look, my comforting you might make you feel better, but it's not making the guilt go away. I need something to make it go away and I know just the thing. So tomorrow, you and I will be going for a drive so that I know I can go to Philadelphia without having to worry."

He smiled slightly. "Thanks I guess."

"You're welcome. Now. Where were we?"

The two of them spent the rest of the evening painting and drawing and talking about little things like the weather and people's Christmas presents and what not. Later on, while Steve was in the bathroom, Tania sent a text to Pepper.

I'm going to Philadelphia :)