Evelyn's soft green eyes stared at the ceiling above her, her eyes were blurry but she focused on the crack in the roof nonetheless. Her hair was dirty, matted to her face, and tangled. Her fingers trembled, she couldn't get them to quit.

Scrap pieces of metal surrounded her, shaping around her head like a halo. She had finished. She had done the job he wanted her to do.

Evelyn could hear his loud footsteps echoing off the concrete walls but she made no effort to move. A slow clap could be heard behind her head, and her already pounding head was becoming angry at the noise.

"Well done Dr.Stark." He bent down to look at her. "It looks magnificent."

Evelyn jolted when his hand tapped her bruised face, and he attempted to comfort her by playing with her hair. "I didn't want to hurt you, you know. But you simply left me with no other option." He tapped her cheek harder this time.

She moaned and rolled over to see him climbing into the large contraption he had her make for him. It wasn't pretty, it was huge and gaudy, but it worked how he wanted it too. Or it would for the time being, she didn't build it to last him long.

"Why don't you let me go now?" She whimpered, clutching both her stomach and her head. He turned around and smiled.

"I will." He promised. "But not before I murder your brother, and destroy everything at Stark Industries foundation."

He was quick to fly out of the warehouse with Evelyn screaming behind him. "No! Tony!" She cried out.

"No!"

~

"No!" Evelyn felt a shaking, and realized someone was jostling her upper body as if their life depended on it. She jolted upright, her eyes flying open to greet the worried blue eyes of Steve. He had one shoulder in his large palm and the other cupped her head.

"What just happened, Eva?" He asked softly, gently brushing some of her hair behind her ear. "I didn't even realize you had fallen asleep until I heard you screaming."

Evelyn was still confused as she looked around. She was sitting in her blue lounge chair in her living room, the book she was reading was laying in the middle of the floor, the television was on with the sound low. She looked to Steve kneeling in front of her, a cautious look to his face. She was no longer in that warehouse, she was in her apartment. She closed her eyes for a moment to ground herself to that knowledge.

She now remembered she had been reading one of her books on robotics, Steve was watching a documentary on World War II, and surprisingly for Evelyn -- she fell asleep unmedicated for the first time in years. The medication did nothing to dull her mind, it was still as active as ever. But for some reason her body felt safe enough to fall asleep without her pharmaceutical assistance.

"I'm sorry." She mumbled, feeling the dryness of her throat. She must have been screaming out for some time.

Steve shook his head profusely. "Don't apologize. Do you want to talk about it?" He asked.

She wanted to tell Steve about what had happened to her before they met, she trusted him greatly. But some of her ghosts weren't completely hers, and Tony shared some of that burden as well.  So she shook her head and gave Steve the best smile she could muster.

"Did your brother.....Did he ever hurt you?" Steve asked hesitantly, swallowing deeply as if he were about to vomit.

Evelyn eyes went wide and she shook her head quickly. "No, never! Why would you think that?" She asked him.

Steve sighed before answering. "You were crying out for a long time. I couldn't wake you up." He rubbed the back of his neck in obvious distress. "You didn't say much. Just Tony's name, and the word no."

Evelyn sighed and sank out of her chair and down onto the carpeted floor beside Steve. "These last couple of years haven't been easy. Not for me, and not for Tony. So much of what happened Tony blames on himself, but I disagree. And I really don't want to put a bad vision of my brother into your head before you even meet him, so I'll tell you about everything some day. Just not tonight."

Steve nodded and patted her leg before reaching out onto the floor and picking up the book she was reading and placing it gently on the coffee table. "I'm always here if you need to talk, anytime. Although if I didn't answer on the first ring it's because I'm still trying to figure out this cell phone you bought me."

She chuckled with him before patting his arm, grateful at his joke. "Thank you, Steve. And the same goes for you, you know."

"Oh, you've helped me in more ways than I can ever repay." Said Steve, his soft smile crossing his lips.

Evelyn opened her mouth with a response, but Steve beat her to it. "So when do I finally get to meet Tony?" He asked.  "We've been friends six months now and I have yet to meet my best friends brother."

"I'm your only friend, Steve." Evelyn snorted, shoving his shoulder playfully. Steve glared and shoved her back.

"Ouch, Stark." He clutched his chest as if he had been shot.

Evelyn giggled before standing and attempting to pull Steve's large frame up off the floor with her. But he was so strong he could probably pick her up with two of his fingers and not feel a thing.

"Hopefully soon, Tony was doing a lot of the work for Stark Industries in California these last few years. But now he's permanently stationing himself in New York, and his girlfriend Pepper travels between as the CEO."

"I know why you don't have anything to do with the company, with the weapons and all. But why did Tony step down?" Steve asked her.

Evelyn sighed, not having an answer for Steve once more. "A story for another time? I know I say that a lot, but that's Tony's story. Not mine. He asked me before he asked Pepper, even though he knew I wouldn't want the job."

"Are you close with Pepper?" Steve asked.

"Oh, I love Pepper. She's like a sister to me. But she's an over bearing, nosey sister who worries about me. Which is why I've been avoiding her."

"I'm sure it's because she loves you." Steve lounged back on her sofa, making himself comfortable.

"I just don't feel like hearing her ask if I'm okay a million times. But I do need to call her and see where Tony is. I haven't seen him in a while and I'm beginning to miss that asshole."

Steve's eyes widened at her language, sometimes he forgot it was 2011, and not 1945. And nothing could have readied him for the language he would hear when he met Nick Fury.

"Well just let me know when you get ahold of him, and I'll be there."

Evelyn smiled and nodded her head. The pair of them lounged back on Evelyn's large plush couch, on opposite ends. It was a comfortable silence, both of them just enjoying the company of the other and the quietness of the apartment. Until Steve's yawn broke the silence.

"You should go, before it gets too late. I know you're tired." Evelyn told him.

"I'm not going anywhere. I want to be here if you have a nightmare again."

Evelyn loved how thoughtful Steve was, but he would never sleep if he knew how often Evelyn really got nightmares. The same terrible memories replaying themselves on a loop in her mind.

"You don't have to do that Steve. I'll be okay."

Steve stood from the couch before wandering over to the large glass window. He eyed the sights of New York City for several moments before turning around to face Evelyn.

"You aren't the only one who gets nightmares." He whispered, his eyes sad and distant.

That was all Evelyn needed to hear to let him stay.