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Chapter 11
No trust. No team.

IT didn't take long for me to succumb to sleep. The exhaustion I felt through out the night we spent walking and avoiding whoever it is that may notice our presence, it was unimaginable, I am certainly not fit for that type of role. At least, not anymore.

I'm not sure how much time had passed but the heat of the sunlight accompanied by the harsh whisper of what I can only assume as Sam pulled me out of my slumber. It wasn't a peaceful sleep and honestly, I wasn't expecting one. Not for a long time that is.

"He's almost bled entirely through that shirt; you should probably wake him up for breakfast and take a bath. I have some spare clothes he can use.", it didn't take a second for Natashia Romanoff to agree with a hum and before I know it, she's shaking my body as gentle as possible to wake me up.

It took a few blinks for my eyes to adjust to the light and the first thing I saw was Natashia's soft smile. A rare thing to happen in our daily lives, seeing as she can be as cold as a stone left in the middle of a winter night. Frozen, if you must.

I then moved my gaze to Captain America himself. Steve was silently looking at me, watching every word and actions I make. I can still remember the last words I heard before I gave myself up to sleep.

"I'm not sure if we can still really trust him, Romanoff."

Trust. Now that's a word. A word that sets value to whether you are worthy to be a part of someone's life or not. And after the past-revealing shenanigan that happened with Zola, the opportunity to be a part of the Avengers has officially been thrown out of the bus. No team. No trust. No captain. And maybe even a no to Romanoff and Barton.

"Are you two just going to stare at each other or what?", it was Sam who broke the intense staring contest that Steve and I are unknowingly doing. Hilariously enough, we both turned our gaze away from each other. It was funny in my head, yet no one laughed.

I cleared my throat in order to at least get rid of the awkward silence that once again engulfed the room. It didn't really do anything. So, I just decided to look at the person who didn't really know what happened at the old SHIELD HQ and is probably the only one who is not silently judging me. I offered Sam a smile, an awkward one, but a smile nonetheless.

"Do you mind if I use your bathroom to clean up?", Sam who thankfully got the idea of what I'm trying to do, or trying to avoid to be exact, nodded his head. "Uh, yeah sure. Of course, man. I'll also lend you some clothes. 'Cause, you know, the blood and all that.", I gave Sam a grateful smile mumbling a 'thanks' as I stand up and walk towards the bathroom where Sam had pointed me to.

Before I even got the chance to lock myself up and think of whatever the hell I'm going to tell Rogers and Romanoff once they start bombarding me with questions and accusations, Steve's voice stopped me.

"Red...", I turned at Steve who was looking at me with those demanding eyes of him. "We'll talk after you finish.", I knew I didn't have a choice. In fact, all four of us knows that. So, as expected, I nodded in agreement. "Right, of course."

"We'll wait for you, Red", it was Nat. You can actually hear a hint of disappointment in her voice if you listen closely. I guess with all the confusing events that has been happening around us lately, the ice queen inside her is starting to melt and honestly, no one can blame her. Specially not me.

I nodded my head at her. Seems like that's what I'm mostly doing since I wake up. Just nod and agree. It reminds me of my life before SHIELD. Before being an agent. Before being Red Anderson.

And as I enter the bathroom, I looked at Natashia one more time.

"Actually, it's Levi. Levi Köhler."

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A/N:

Yeah, I know. It's taking so much time for the story to push through but heeeeey I have a plan with this book, okay? You gotta trust me on this. And besides, we need to establish our main character before he gets to meet the (future) love of his life. 

ALSO! can we please take a minute of silence for Chadwick Boseman? 

a real hero. a great actor. 

the mark you left in the mcu will forever be cherished

you will be missed, sir

rest in power.

#wakandaforever

anyway, leave a vote and a comment! it really gives me motivation.

xo, marveldefender (nicole)