DISCLAIMER: This fanfiction will follow its own timeline, however, I've tried to stick to the movie timeline as much as possible. It must be noted that this story is rated M as there will be some explicit content mentioned later in the story (depictions of sexual intimacy, and also mentions of rape and abuse) but forewarnings will be provided at the beginning of the respective chapter.

It must be noted that I don't own any of the Marvel characters or anything affiliated with the Marvel Universe. However, all OC and original content have been created by me.

CHAPTER TEN

"The One with The Second Meeting"

Lilah was desperate to put the incident behind her and bury herself in her work. After turning in the lab coat at the front desk and practically fleeing the Avengers Tower, Lilah silently cried the whole cab ride home. Watching the skyscrapers fly passed, she leaned her head on the glass of the cab window as the shine of the dull afternoon sun intermittently set on her face. Thinking back to the gravity of what had just happened in that cubicle, she couldn't believe how, just for a moment, she had let her heart fantasize about James remembering her the second he set his eyes on her. She thought maybe this would be the moment all his memories of her would come flooding back to him in an instant and he would wrap her tight in his arms, finally tell her he loved her, and then, all would be right in the world…

… but that only happened in romance novels.

Wiping away another tear with her already-drenched blazer sleeve, Lilah honestly didn't think a panic attack was on the cards today. She thought she had her emotions in check. More upset with herself for severely embarrassing herself in front of Dr. Liebermann, Lilah willed the tears to stay back, sat up straight in her seat, and started thinking about the apology email she would start writing to him when she got home. But all she could think about was how much she needed a hug from Sophia and how grateful she was that her best friend was waiting at home for her.

"You know you're gonna have to be honest with him, Steve," Sam explained to Steve in an I-told-you-so sort of voice, "he's going to have questions, and you've gotta have some answers at the ready," Steve's head was swarming. He was so sure that integrating Lilah into the medical team was an ideal introduction for both her and Bucky. He didn't consider the psychological and emotional toll this must have taken on Lilah. The medicals were over for the day and everyone had either left the Tower or returned to their rooms. Steve and Sam decided to take a walk around the compound and wait for Bucky, whose therapy session was the last appointment of the day. "Yeah, I know, it's just…" Steve breathed out, shoving his hands deeper in his pants pockets, "On the one hand, I don't think I know enough to fully explain his relationship with Lilah, and then, on the other hand, I feel like…" Steve looked out to the path ahead of them; not wanting to say the words for fear of admitting them. Sam glanced across at Steve and then back down at the gravel path, "I get it… Telling him about his past with Lilah – whatever it is - could potentially set him back in all the progress he's made, right?" Sam finished. Steve remained silent but nodded. However, Sam continued, "Listen, man, if you want my opinion, give Bucky the benefit of the doubt. He's been doing really well recently. I actually think he might be able to deal with this better than you think," Steve looked over to Sam. It was so strange to hear Sam coming to Bucky's defense. Steve stopped and thought deeply about what he said maybe Sam was right. He kept forgetting that Sam used to run counseling sessions for Veterans; it seemed like a lifetime ago.

They had reached the front of the compound again and as if on cue, the glass sliding doors opened, and out walked Bucky. "Hey," Steve greeted, "How was your session?" Bucky shrugged, "Oh you know, the usual - talking, tears, and tissues…" he said jokingly. Steve and Sam gave a little smirk. "Hey if you're not too busy, can I chat with you quickly about something?" Bucky asked Steve. He pretty much blurted it out, as if forcing himself to ask Steve the question, as if he didn't ask it now he would just keep procrastinating. Steve and Sam looked at each other knowingly. "Yeah, sure, of course… Let's, um, take a walk?" Steve agreed. Bucky and Steve were just about to leave the steps of the compound when Dr. Liebermann came shuffling out the doors, trying his best to catch up to them. "Ah! Mr Barnes! I managed to find you…" Dr. Liebermann took a breath as he stood in front of them. Bucky, Steve, and Sam all turned to Dr. Liebermann with concern, "Is everything okay, Doc" asked Sam. Dr. Liebermann turned to face Sam, who was standing behind him, having been almost halfway to the entrance, "Oh yes! No, this is nothing to panic about," His thick German accent came through in waves, "I just wanted to give this to Mr Barnes, so he could give it to Dr Novak," from his pocket Dr. Liebermann pulled out a silver broach in the shape of a dragonfly and placed in Bucky's hand, "It was in the pocket of the lab coat she was wearing this afternoon," he explained. "Poor girl, left in such a hurry, she probably forgot to check," he continued, placing the heavy-winged brooch in Bucky's opened palm, "Please can you see that it is returned to her as soon as possible, Mr Barnes? I have to leave now," he looked up to Bucky with a gingerly smile and began to turn and head back into the building. "Wait, wait, Doc, why do I need to return this to her?" Bucky asked him with a puzzled tone, "Surely, someone at reception or someone else can get this to her," Bucky was grasping at straws here, but if today was anything to go by, he didn't want any reason to willingly be in the same room as this, Dr Novak. Not until he knew what her story was at least. Dr. Liebermann turned back to Bucky. "Oh, I'm sorry Mr Barnes, it's just," looking at him from the top rims of his glasses now, he took a breath before continuing, "it seems to me that you and Dr Novak know each other and have some unfinished business," he looked to the broach Bucky still held in his palm, "and maybe returning that just might be the ideal excuse," and with a quick wink, Dr. Liebermann bid them all a goodnight and walked back into the building.

Bucky looked down at the solid silver dragonfly broach. It stirred a feeling in him, much like how looking at Dr Novak did. Familiarity. It niggled at him. But why? Bucky then looked up to Steve, hoping for an answer. His friend simply stared him straight in the eye and said, "Well, the man isn't wrong,".

It had been just over 24 hours since the incident at the Avengers Tower and Lilah was already absorbed in her work. She was back to her normal scheduled appointments of overly concerned parents with way too many questions, crying babies, and paperwork.

Walking out of her consultation rooms and along the passage with a 2-month-old baby girl in her arms, Lilah watched as the tiny fingers clasped onto her pointer finger. "So you're sure it's nothing to be concerned about? Her weight loss? So soon after her birth?" The woman behind Lilah was asking worriedly, "I promise you, Angela," Lilah said, smiling and speaking in a cheery tone at the baby, even though the statement was aimed at the mother, "It's not a problem at all, but if you want, increase her feeding intervals to every three hours for the next 2 weeks and then bring little Alexis in to be weighed," Lilah said. Wiggling her pointer finger more and nodded her head with every heightened bounce in her voice to elicit a reaction from the little bundle. The baby girl gripped her finger even tighter now, resulting in a direct tugging on Lilah's heartstrings. She bent down and nuzzled the little baby's grip and said in her baby voice, "Just don't blame me when you and Alan are having to work double time on time crap duty!"

Lilah and Angela laughed all the way to the entrance of the hospital, where Lilah eventually put Alexis into her stroller and said goodbye to the family. As she stood in the hospital waiting area and looked out the glass doors, she realised that she wouldn't want to be anywhere other than here. Not for any accreditation and certainly not for any guy. Taking a deep breath in, Lilah looked down at her watch, Angela and Alexis were her last appointment of the day, and what she really needed was a little bit of a break before the party this evening.

Turning to head back with a very clear thought of exactly what she needed to do when she got back to her office, Lilah's vision was suddenly interrupted by the sight of James.

[Bucky's POV]

He had decided that it would be best to sit and wait for Lilah in the hospital waiting area. Even though he had asked a nurse at the reception desk for her and they had directed him to her rooms, they said she was in consultations till 17h00. He only had to wait for another 10 minutes and she'd eventually have to pass through the exit doors. The main idea was not to scare her. Steve had explained to him how he and Sam had basically ambushed her and how she didn't take it too well. Bucky didn't want a repeat of this incident; he just wanted answers.

He took a seat in a chair in the far corner of the room, quietly observing the other patients and visitors, coming and going through the waiting area. The constant bustling of the hospital on the one side and then the intermittent noise of the ambulance and emergency services from outside being let in through the sliding doors on the other side. The noises were almost deafening and after 5 minutes, he had to shut his eyes tightly in the hopes that it would block them out. But it didn't work. He was on the verge of giving up and going to stand outside when he gradually heard the echoes of a sound cutting through the noise. It was coming closer…

It was … Laughter. Her laughter.

He opened his eyes to see her walk into the waiting area. It was as if her voice could cut through the darkest cloud. He watched as Lilah breezed into the room, laughing and talking with the woman next to her, holding a baby close to her chest. Bucky watched Lilah's face light up as the other woman animatedly expressed something to her. Her face was somehow brighter than when he saw her last. Could she have gotten more beautiful? He thought to himself. Watching her face the exit, Bucky saw as Lilah bent down and put the baby in the fancy-looking pram, and waved the mother and child off. Drinking her in from behind, Bucky couldn't help but notice as she tugged her white doctor's coat tight around her body, shielding herself from the aggressive wind that was let in from the automatic entrance. Clad in washed-out jeans and Converse sneakers, she was casually dressed compared to earlier that day. If Bucky wasn't already profoundly drawn to this woman for some reason, this would surely kick-start the attraction.

It took a moment before she turned around but as soon as she did, Bucky stood from his chair and carefully walked in front of her, intercepting her path back into the hospital. This was his chance. He could tell from the sudden drop in her smile that he was the last person she expected to see. That small shrink in her smile was already making him regret this visit, but then suddenly there was tenderness in the way she said his name. A whisper, that made him think that maybe this wasn't a mistake.

"James," her eyes twinkled a little, there was a short pause as she visibly took a deep breath in, and then asked, "What … What are you doing here?"

[Lilah's POV]

"What … What are you doing here?" she was struggling to maintain her composure. She didn't think she would see James so soon after the medical, but here he was. Compared to yesterday, he was dressed in dark black jeans, a grey t-shirt, and a black leather jacket with his standard combat boots. Her throat was suddenly dry as sandpaper. Sweet torturous gorgeousness, she sighed to herself. "I'm sorry, I know you probably didn't think you'd see me so soon after what happened at the Tower…," Lilah was about to pull her head back in disbelief, oh hell, he can't read my mind as well, can he? "...But I actually wanted to stop by and return something of yours that you left behind," James reached into his jacket pocket with his gloved hand and pulled out her Grandmother's Dragonfly brooch. Moving it over to his flesh hand, he held it out to Lilah, "Dr. Liebermann, said that you left it in the pocket of the lab coat you wore yesterday," Lilah looked down at the brooch in his hand, back up at him and then back down at the brooch. As she carefully reached her hand out and gently lifted the brooch from James' palm, she swore she felt a tiny spark of electricity jolt through their point of contact.

"I don't even remember taking it off my blazer," she said, holding the tiny Dragonfly between her fingers now and admiring it as if she hadn't seen it for ages. "It was my Grandmother's, actually" she added, "she wore it all the time". At that second, she didn't know if mentioning her Grandmother would mean anything to James. Would he remember her? She lifted her head inconspicuously to look at him, but James had merely offered a sympathetic nod. Trying not to show that she felt a little defeated there, she curled her lips into a pursed smile and thanked him instead, "you really didn't need to come all the way down here," she said adding. James was about to respond to her when Sophia came barging in, "Ah! Dr Novak! There you are! Can you please sign this patient releas-," Sophia stopped mid-sentence as she was moving the clipboard in front of Lilah and noticed that Lilah was in the middle of a conversation, "Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't realise that you were talking to someo-" and that's when she noticed whom Lilah was talking to.

Author's Note:

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