nat's pov

"this is the motel, right?" sam asks as we enter.

"yup, this is where nat goes when she's in her moods." clint happily skips in, grinning at me as i glare at him.

i go to the lady at the desk...it's the same lady as when i came here for the first time with james?

"hi...can i have-"

"take them." she smiles at me and gives me the exact same keys as that time.

"thank you." i smile back then frown at the keys.

"hurry up then." clint runs up the stairs with sam like children, they race each other.

"stop making noise!" i yell and run after them.

i stop at the door...the exact same room. what is going on? have i finally gone insane? i unlock the door, clint and sam burst in jumping on the bed. i scoff at them and close the door.

"stop! what the fuck are you idiots doing?!"

"can't you see? we're pissing off the tin." sam yells back at me.

"is he here? because i can't see him!" i get on the bed and slap them both.

"ow! okay, okay." clint jumps off and frowns.

i roll my eyes as sam jumps off too, clint snatches my phone and takes selfies with sam.

"give it back!" i growl at them and chase them across the room.

"i'm sending these to the metal can!" clint sends them to him as he runs away from me.

as he sends them, my phone goes off. i have a message and it better not be from...

"nat...? why is-" clint pauses to read the messages with sam.

"leave it!" i snatch my phone back and put it in my pocket.

"nat, they're gonna find us." sam tells me, as if i don't know.

if they find us, we're fucking dead.

"i know, we can fight them if they do." i shrug.

"let's go home." clint places his hand on my shoulder.

"bucky's gonna kill me...and you guys." i groan.

"better than hydra murdering us." sam shrugs and opens the door to reveal alexi's smug face.

"shit, close the goddam door!" clint yells as sam slams it in alexi's face.

"you're fucking joking me." i groan as he bangs on the door.

"what do we-"

"both of you leave, i'll speak to him." i lie, alexi will most definitely kill me, but i won't let them get hurt because of me.

no one else can suffer, because of me.

"be safe, nat." sam warns me as he holds the door.

"nat, i can't leave you here!" clint hugs me.

"go! are you a pussy or something?" i move sam out of the way and open the door.

alexi slowly steps in, analysing me. clint and sam glare at him as they exit through the door, alexi slams the door closed. he grins at me and takes a step towards me.

"what?" i ask him.

"miss me?" he places a hand on my cheek.

"not really, no." i push his hand away.

"well, get used to me, sweetheart."

i cringe as he calls me that. sweetheart. who does he think he is? honestly, if i could kill him right now, i would. i can't risk it though, god knows who's waiting for me outside. hydra agents? have they come to take their robot home where she belongs?

"can you-"

"can i what? baby?"

"can you...fuck off." i push him away from me.

he glares at me for a few seconds then suddenly slams me up against the wall. the exact same spot where james did when he first began to remember me...

but this time, it doesn't feel right. i don't feel safe anymore.

"i'm warning you, talia..." he hisses my pet name. "...do not mess with me."

"i'm not doing anything." i say innocently and give him a smirk.

he then wraps his fingers around my throat and chokes me, slamming me up against the wall again and again. he slightly lets go but still has a strong grip on my throat, i gasp for air.

"let's try again..." he smiles at me.

creep.

"you, my wife, will help hydra. you, who belongs to only me, will help us and do jobs for us. do you understand?" he looks into my eyes and tries to intimidate me.

"n-no, fuck off." i manage to choke out.

he sighs, trying to pretend that he's regretting this when really, the evil glow in his eyes show that he's enjoying every bit of hurting me. he pulls me up into the air, making me hover and lose oxygen. he drops me to the ground and i land with a loud thud on the ground. he kicks me and punches me all over my body. when he stops, i spit out blood and look up at him.

"is that all you got, you pathetic-"

he punches me in the face causing me to hiss in pain, that's gonna cause a nice big bruise on my left cheek. isn't it?

james will be very glad. sigh.

"why? why do you have to stalk me?" i yell but that only makes him madder.

he pulls my chin up, making me look up from the ground at him. he's grinning at me. he then attempts to punch me again but i kick him in the knee and jump onto his shoulders. i strangle him with my knees, do a forward roll which causes him to drop onto the ground with me and i quickly open the door. i run out and lock it closed so he's trapped inside.

fuck, my face is bleeding a lot. what am i gonna tell james and has clint and sam told him about this? i hope not. i run outside and don't stop running. i don't know where i'm going, but i can't stop if i don't want hydra to track me down. i stop on the pavement to feel a hand spin me around to face them.

"where the fuck have you-"

james stops yelling at me as he notices blood dripping down my head, my cheek, and literally all over my body. i only just realised, i look like i've been attacked by 30 hydra agents. anger is written all over his face.

stupid alexi, always having to fuck shit up.

i will kill him one day.

"...james, i-"

"save it." he growls at me, not knowing what's happened.

and he won't find out, i won't tell him and i won't let sam or clint.