Chapter two – The cold
The green eyes were wide opened, staring at one spot for two straight hours. Arms hugging legs and the chin resting on knees – Adeline sat still for many hours, not moving or sleeping. She could see the memories like a movie on the TV. The way she was falling from the sky like a dead star; the wind blowing around her, messing up the long hair brought her Goosebumps and she saw an object, slowly approaching her. It wasn’t any kind of an object but a rocket flying towards her. She took a deep breath and then there was darkness. The brunette tried to catch her breath. The long thin fingers brushed her neck. It was so real. She could feel it.
Adeline let her legs go, normally sat on the bed and hid her face in the hands. She had no idea what time it was but there was no way she could sleep. Everything that happened, what she remembered was right in front of her green eyes. A painful moan escaped her lips. She changed the sitting position and sat on the edge of the bed. “Everything is just fine,” she whispered. “You are alive.”

A noise came from behind the door. The brunette saw a shadow of someone. Once again, it made her hold the breath and the keep the eyes open. What if that was him? What if he never left? Very slowly and quietly, Adeline stood up from the bed and carefully opened the door. The head popped out from behind the door just to look at the long narrow hallway. No one was there. She carefully stepped out and quietly went down the hall, checking if there wasn’t an unwanted guest. The place was clear – no sign of anyone. Adeline sighed. Her mind was still working and seeing the man’s face. She rubbed her nape and turned on a heel when she got frightened by a woman behind her back. Her hands tried to punch her but they were blocked by Natasha’s hands.

“Nice move you got there,” the redhead smiled at the brunette, letting go of her hands. “To be honest, I wasn’t expecting that at all.”

“Fuck, you scared me,” she took a deep breath and loudly exhaled. “What are you doing here at this time?” Adeline asked her while hiding the hands behind the back like she was ashamed of herself.

“Better question is what are you doing here?” Natasha turned the conversation and looked into the woman’s eyes. “It’s three in the morning and you are sneaking around like a spy,” her eyes squinted and crossed the arms over her breasts. “I can arrest you for this.”

“Sorry, I,“ she stopped talking and once again looked around. “I can’t sleep. My brain is way too awake and it is still working,” she pointed at the right temple. “I’m definitely not a spy. I would be a very bad one,” she laughed a little. “What about you? Why are you awake?”

Natasha yawned and blinked. “The adrenaline from our last mission won’t let me sleep. It happens sometimes, but I’m used to it. You should go back to bed.”

She nodded. “One more thing – where’s Tony?”

“Well,” Natasha started to think out loud. “If he’s not with you, he’s probably with Bruce in the lab, working and creating something,” she moved her shoulders. “Let the boys play. They need some time together.”

“I don’t mind Tony is not with me at the moment. In fact, I think it is better this way. I need to be alone now. I need um,” she couldn’t find the right words. “I’m just confused and everything. When I woke up, I thought that the agents and everyone around wanted me for who I am. Tony told me you are the good guys.”

Natasha slowly took Adeline back to her room. “I understand. A very long time ago, I was in the same position. You just need to adapt,” she gave her a friendly smile.

“Well, while we are talking like this, what are you? What is your position?” Adeline was curious. “I would like to know something about you guys. I think you all are remarkable people and I know about you for about five minutes. What about the other guys? We don’t have to talk about Tony. He has his own chapter,” she giggled.

“No offense, Adeline, but I’d rather talk about you and Tony. We didn’t know that he was in a relationship and with you… Well, until Fury told me. Stark has or had a very diverse reputation. He being in a relationship is something surprising,” she tried to laugh a little.

“The question is if we really are in a relationship,” she mumbled and tried to avoid the redhead’s look. “I died – kind of. Before that, we were together for few days. Yes, it was strong and passionate when I woke up after my unconsciousness, but,” she stopped talking, because she was had to find the right words. “Some people would expect him being with me at the moment. Unfortunately, he’s somewhere working on something. To be honest, I don’t want to bother him right now. He said you won a war and I assume he has to deal with some post-war business. On the other hand, a piece of me wants to be with him.” Then she realized how much she was talking. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” Natasha smiled at her. “You need to talk and I’m here.”

“Thank you,” Adeline replied gratefully. “I should get back to bed. I don’t want to bother…”

“But I haven’t told you about the team, so if you are still interested,” she stopped the brunette before leaving. “I’m awake you are too so let’s talk.”

Adeline was thankful for it. Natasha was a great company and she told her the most important things about the team. Her voice was peaceful and when she laughed, she was like one of her old friends. Oh, how she missed them. Both of them were dead, because of Goth. “So you are the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes,” Adeline said after a while. They were sitting on her bed, talking like old friends. “I can’t believe Tony is with you in this.”

“Well, I was surprised too,” Nat giggled. “Fury didn’t want him in the team.”

“Hm, for a person who is not involved in your group, it sounds cool. However, I don’t know if…” Adeline stopped, looking at Natasha’s face and thinking. “Even I’m not that awesome like you guys are. Like, when Goth,” she dryly gulped, but continued, “when Goth captured me, he told me something about Captain America. I couldn’t even believe him. I didn’t believe that there was some Captain America,” she laughed. “And today, I saw him with my own eyes.”

“And if you had the opportunity to be a part of the team, would you…?”

“I don’t know,” Adeline shook her head. “Right now, I have to deal with myself and get back to normal as soon as possible.“

“I understand. Okay, so I’m going to leave you alone. It’s almost five in the morning,” Natasha looked at the watch she had on her left wrist. “We both need to rest a little. See you later, Adeline,” and the friendly woman left the room, leaving the brunette alone.

The walls were suddenly colder and the room looked smaller. When Natasha was there, everything seemed to be normal. Now, it was only a place full of darkness and loneliness. Adeline laid down, closed her eyes, but the sleep didn’t come at all. She was awake until the first people were roaming the corridors. Her green eyes were tired and her body was weak. The whole time, she was thinking about the last moments of that day, when Goth kidnapped her. She could remember the fall until the dark hit her. What happened after that? How could she be alive?

“Miss Montana,” a voice said from the door. There was a woman with dark brown hair, standing and looking at her. “Your presence is required in the main meeting room.” Agent Hill was one of the best agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and she was well-respected. The enhanced woman nodded and stood up from the bed, following the agent in a dark-blue outfit down the hallway into the main room, where were few people.

Tony was talking to a man with glasses on his nose. Natasha was sitting behind a massive table with the logo of the company in the middle of it. The redhead looked at Adeline and smiled at her. “Morning,” she greeted her loudly and the rest of the people turned to her, even Tony. When their eyes met, he smiled a little but didn’t approach her.

“Hi,” she almost whispered and waved a hand.

“Feeling okay?” Natasha and the brunette started a quiet morning conversation when Adeline took a seat next to her. It bothered her, Tony was there and not saying a word to her. “You look tired.”

“I haven’t been sleeping much. Correction – I haven’t slept at all.”

“I can see that,” Natasha’s lips crooked into a small smile.

“Romanoff, are you ready?” Tony’s voice interrupted the women and they looked at him. His brown eyes focused on the redhead. “I have a lot of work to do, plus Fury said one night. He didn’t say anything about another whole day.”

“What’s going on?” Adeline whispered, staring at Stark, but talking to the woman.

“We’re going home,” Tony answered and finally took some steps forward to Adeline. Their eyes met and his hand reached for hers, helping her stand up. “Well, almost,” he chuckled. “We are going to the Stark Tower, or what’s left of it.”

“Oh?” His hands were suddenly on her waist, holding her closer to him. “And you are going with us?” she asked Natasha.

“Well, someone has to give you a lift,” the redhead answered. She stood up and looked at the couple. “Be down in seven minutes,” and then she left.

Tony took Adeline’s hand and gently dragged her to another person standing in the room. “Adeline, I’d like you to meet Dr. Bruce Banner – my lab partner and scientist,” he introduced him. “Bruce, this is Adeline – the one I talked about last night.”

They shook hands. “Nice to meet you, Dr. Banner,” she said softly with an innocent smile on the lips.

“Call me Bruce,” he asked politely.

“Adeline,” the woman nodded. She wanted to turn to Tony and start a conversation with him, but his hands were gone from her body and once again he was talking to Bruce about a work. Something wasn’t right. The connection between her and Tony was different. It was nice to be once again in his embrace, but that was one moment – or maybe two – and now, he was acting weird. Why blame him when she acted like this too?

A hand back on her wrist brought her back to reality. “Ad, you coming?” his chocolate sweet eyes were looking into the green orbs. A little smile appeared on Tony’s face. Adeline nodded and let him take her hand and together they left the room. Or maybe everything was alright, she thought.

The flight was peaceful. Natasha was piloting the quinjet and Tony was with her all the time, talking about a battle of New York. Adeline was sitting on a special chair far away from them. When they boarded the jet, Tony let her go and from that moment, they weren’t talking. The best she could do was to sit down and mind her own thoughts. Yes, it hurt her – she had feelings for Tony and everything seemed to be normal and beautiful after she woke up. Unfortunately, Tony was holding back from the brunette. Or maybe she was being paranoid and this was something in her mind, trying to mess with her. He still likes you, she believed.

After some time, what felt like an eternity to Adeline, they were finally there – the Stark Tower. The back door opened for her and Tony, who was again holding Adeline’s hand. The brunette said goodbye to Natasha before they left the quinjet and came on a weird balcony. It wasn’t a balcony, but like a port for a helicopter or something else. The building itself was devastated. Only a huge A stayed from the logo which was STARK. The fight had to be brutal. The windows were broken, walls damaged and the electricity wasn’t working properly.

The long brown hair was fluttering around her wildly when the jet took off. “Oh my gosh,” she breathed, her green eyes scanning the surroundings. The whole city was a mess. Everything was destroyed.

The couple went inside, Tony still holding her hand while she was still looking around in shock. “JARVIS, check the backup panels, see what’s working what’s not and prepare plans for reconstruction,” Tony ordered when they were near a bar. Some of the bottles were still full, not broken.

~Yes, sir.~

“Hi, JARVIS,” Adeline greeted the system quietly. Like, she wasn’t sure if it would remember her.

~Good day, Miss Montana. I’m glad you are okay,~ Jarvis replied politely and it made the woman smile a little. It was good to know that someone remembers her.

“Drink?” Tony let her hand go and came to the bar where he took a bottle of whiskey. “You look like you need one, Ad.”

“Double,” she whispered and sat down on a bar stool – the only one which was still holding together. “This must have been a nice place,” she looked around, trying to make a conversation with the dark-haired man. He prepared two drinks for them and handed Adeline one glass.

“It was,” Tony nodded. “Beautiful bar, nice living room with a very comfortable couch, but luckily only this floor was mostly devastated. Well, luckily now I have to do a reconstruction and create a proper building for the Avengers.”

“The Avengers?” she smirked and after cheer, they drank the liquid. “Yeah, Natasha already mentioned that name.”

“That’s what we call ourselves now. We are these heroes who are protecting the world.”

“What about Goth?” she asked. “I don’t know how it ended.”

Tony bit his lower lip and gulped. “I killed him,” his lips moved a bit to create a smirk, which afterward faded. Adeline wanted to talk about it, unfortunately, Tony didn’t. “Look,” he came closer to her, leaving the empty glass on the bar. Tony stopped in front of her legs and gently put his palms on her thighs. “I have to work on an important project and I need to start the reconstruction. Jarvis will explain you everything – where can you find every bathroom, where is the bedroom, gym. We will talk later, okay?”

She took a deep breath, her eyes locked on him and then she nodded. “Okay.”

Tony hugged her while she was sitting on the stool. His embrace was warm, just the one she needed from him. She could hear his heartbeat when her ear was pressed against his chest. Adeline’s arms tightly hugged him around his torso. For a moment, she felt like she was back home. Tony pressed a kiss on the top of her head. They remained in this position for a long time – like it was the last time they will be together.

Without any other words, Tony stepped back and left the woman alone on the current floor. When she looked around, she felt scared and alone. What is she going to do now? This wasn’t Malibu or LA. This was New York, the city so big it frightened her. Adeline took a deep breath, closed the eyes for a moment and tried to remain calm. An idea popped into her head. “JARVIS?” she asked carefully.

~Yes, Miss Montana?~

“Is- “ her voice was shaking, “is there any possibility that you could track my phone – old phone – where was a number of my father? I had a phone from Tony and the previous one, well; I don’t know what happened to it. I need to call him and ask what happened while I wasn’t, um, present.”

~I’m afraid I cannot track your old mobile, Miss Montana. However, I do have the number you require. Since your last phone was from Mr. Stark, I had to register all the numbers and phone calls.~

“Call him and please. I need to speak to him,” she almost mumbled and stood up from the stool. Adeline was nervous – calling her father after such a long time, that wasn’t predicting anything good. She hoped he was fine with the rest of their family. Her fingers were crossed while she was waiting for him to pick up the call. Every beep was a sting into the soul.

-Hello?- a voice said from the other side of the line. It was the father himself – healthy and alive.

“Hi, dad,” Adeline said slowly. Her voice was meek and there were small tears in her eyes. “It’s me, Adeline.”

-Adel? Oh, my baby, where have you been? Are you alright? I haven’t heard about you for over a month! What happened to you?- he had so many questions, Adeline wasn’t able to remember them all. –Tell me everything!-

Over a month – that was a very long time. “I’m fine, dad. You don’t have to worry about me.”

-What was with you? -

“I was pretty much… dead?” she answered carefully. Her father was panicking, but the brunette stopped him. “I didn’t die, but everyone thought so. Look, I don’t remember much, but the most important thing is you are alright, I’m alive and Goth is dead. The thread is gone and we can peacefully live our lives.” Why was she so unsure of what she just said to him? Will her life be ever peaceful again?

-Goth is dead? When?-

“Nobody told you?” That was weird. “Stark didn’t call you, did he? That’s why you had no idea I was dead. Yes, he’s gone. I don’t know what happened – believe me, I don’t know almost anything. The most important thing is we are all safe and alive. Believe me, I’d like to tell you everything, unfortunately, I know nothing, which drives me crazy,” that was true.

-Where are you now, Adel? Are you in L.A?-

“No,” she shook her head. “Actually, I’m in New York.”

-What are you doing in the Big Apple?- Montana was puzzled.

“I have no idea, dad,” she laughed a little. “What about mom and Natalie? Tell me something about them! I need to know!” she was curious.

-Mom is with me in Pittsburg. She’s working at a University as a teacher. Natalie is studying in Atlanta. She always loved art and now she’s doing what she always wanted.-

Those words were painful. Adeline’s life was never like Natalie’s. She could do everything – favorite sports, hobbies, hanging out with friends. She’s even studying at a University what she always wanted. Adeline, on the other hand, was always under some rules and orders. “That’s… nice,” she whispered.

-Sweetie, I know what you think,- the man sighed, - and I am honestly very sorry, for everything. For lying, for keeping secrets, for ruining your life…-

“Its fine,” she tried to smile, but it was impossible. A tear was running down her cheek already. “I’ve got to go, dad. I have some work to do. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay? I-“ Adeline wanted to say him how much she loved him, but those words disappeared when she opened the mouth. “JARVIS?” she said the AI’s name. It was a signal when to end the call.

The brunette wiped the tears from the rosy cheeks. She had to cry, it was a necessity. Many things happened – she was unconscious, Goth died, Tony was acting strangely and all those emotions from past and present came rushing to her. The woman slowly crouched, hiding the pale face into the palms.

~Miss, I can call for Mr. Stark if you…~

“I’m alright, JARVIS,” she inhaled deeply and looked up. “Thank you. However, you can show me around and tell me where I can find which room.”

~Of course, Miss Montana.~

JARVIS was a great companion. He showed her every room, explained some devices that were placed in the building. They had a very good talk. Adeline raided Tony’s bedroom where he had some clothes. She needed to change into something else. She found a black shirt and some sports shorts. It was time for some exercising and cardio. Thanks to JARVIS, she found the gym. There were various work-out machines. The brunette needed to get into shape before something would happen again.

She wasn’t hungry or tired. The only thing that mattered was training. The gym was spacious and there were a lot of things to do. Adeline needed to practice on boxing, cardio, and something from the martial arts she knew.

The woman went to bed very late that day. She took a long hot shower, put on some Tony’s clothes and then she hid her body into the soft duvets and pillows. The night before, she didn’t sleep at all. Maybe tonight would be different. Unfortunately, it wasn’t. Every time she closed her green tired eyes, she would see that man with raven hair and a devilish grin on his face. When she turned on her back, it reminded her the fall from the sky. Whatever she did, there were bad memories which didn’t let her sleep. There was only one hour where the body let it go and fell asleep, dreaming about the last moments before darkness. Adeline took a deep breath like she was drowning. She quickly sat, hugging the legs and putting the chin on top of them. She was sweating, lower lip was shaking and there was no way she could go back to sleep.
Adeline waited for the first sun rays. They made her leave the bed and start a new day – without Tony, alone in the tower. He never came to bed. She thought they would meet in the kitchen. Unluckily, no one was around. When she came closer, there was a note on the kitchen counter and a black credit card.

TAKE MY CARD AND GO BUY ALL THE THINGS YOU NEED. WHATEVER YOUR HEART WISHES FOR. TONY

She took the card between her fingers and looked at it. At least she could buy something new and spend the whole day differently.

Notes