Two chapters in one night. I hope that this helps me to apologize for being quiet for too long. You can still expect one this same week. I would love to hear from you and comments would indeed spur me on. Please enjoy!
Inside the supermarket I remember acutely how long it had been since I had been to one. The sheer number of people was daunting. I wanted to find a quiet place and hide from the noise, but I pushed on. Collecting each item on the shopping list, I was emboldened by the fact that not one person paid me more than a fleeting amount of attention. Even the cashier chatted with me robotically. I was almost surprised at how easily I fell back into the routine of the everyday. I even smiled at a few people on my way back to the bus stop with my bags swinging happily from my fists.
I made it back to the house without incident and wondered if I would be able to go out again. I took a deep breath before knocking on the door for Steve to let me in. He ushered me in quickly and I felt my good mood falter. The once comforting smell of dust and mothballs was now making it hard to breathe. With the black curtains drawn, the house was illuminated by artificial light only. The clean air and warm sunlight of the outdoors was banished from the hermetic house. As my happiness vanished, it was replaced by a bristling hostility.
I put the shopping bags on the kitchen table and turned straight back toward the door. When I had almost reached it, I felt Steve's gentle hand on my shoulder. I spun on him more violently than I had intended. Seeing my expression, he let go and stepped back slightly. Still glaring at him, I let him speak.
Steve was reconsidering his decision to stop Elizabeth. Her glare was intense, challenging him. Steve decided to get the confrontation over with. "I don't think you should leave again till Ms. Romanov directs you to." Elizabeth practically snarled back at him. "I made it just fine today. I just need to go out for a walk." Steve raised his palm in defeat. He didn't want to argue. He was beginning to feel the cabin fever set in himself. "Don't be long." He said after her.
...
Clint waited for Natasha to round the corner and come face to face with him. She gave him a look that said she was only mildly inconvenienced by his appearance. She stepped around him and he fell in stride next to her. "What do you want Clint?" Natasha gave him a bored side glance. He shrugged lazily. "I just wanted to chat. You haven't been around much." Natasha didn't answer for a bit. They both nodded as they passed an agent headed in the opposite direction.
Romanov sighed. "I have been busy, Clint. The escape has had me busy as I am sure it has you." Natasha moved to leave through a metal door, but Barton blocked her way. She raised an eyebrow at him in annoyance. He crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe. "That's what I wanted to chat about actually." Clint was watching Natasha closely now. "I wanted to know what you thought of it. Don't you think it is odd that a little girl and a half starved man from an entirely different world were able to disappear completely?" Natasha nodded slowly then added "But they have help." Clint gave a humorless laugh. "Somehow a decades old soldier does not strike me as much help." Natasha pushed back a strand of truant hair. "You know he keeps a couple of safehouses. But naturally, nobody knows where." Clint nodded. He had gotten what he came for. Now his work could begin in earnest.