Echoes

Friday came as it always did; after a blur of a long week. Longer than usual for Scarlett. Refuge had been on the business news channels nearly every day to report how the company was progressing since it went public. Each day that week had been busy and stressful, so much so that Scarlett had been so weary at the end of them that she'd actually slept. A few times she'd considered stopping to research the position available with Stark Industries but had never truly had the time. So it had slipped to the back of her mind, not completely faded, but set aside for a quieter moment. She'd meant to discuss it with S.H.I.E.L.D. since she knew they worked with Stark every so often but that too had been pushed aside.

That was becoming a common theme for Scarlett; pushing things aside.

On the plus side there was very little time to focus on the things that left her unsettled when she had so damn much to do! Scarlett thrived under pressure. Given too much time left to her own devices she became rebellious or self defeating. Thankfully, it'd been awhile since she'd gotten herself into too much trouble. S.H.I.E.L.D. and Refuge had kept her busy enough.

As promised the side effects of Jemma Simmons' new treatment had been fairly mild. For that, Scarlett was also thankful. Since her company had gone public her schedule had been jam packed with interviews, staff meetings, and potential new clients. After the rumors that had spread about her health it was important for her not to look as sick as she sometimes felt, even during meetings. The new treatment had definitely helped with that. For the first time in weeks she felt a little more like her old self. She hadn't realized how much Dr. Ganter's treatments had affected her. Even so, Scarlett hadn't made many public appearances, at least not ones that mattered.

Today would change that.

Scarlett checked the mirror in the back of the luxury car as it came to a stop on the Boston street corner. Friday nights, at least for awhile, had been spent at parties. It was partially how she'd garnered such a scandalous reputation. Weekends were probably the only part of this S.H.I.E.L.D. cover that Scarlett enjoyed. When she worked she worked relentlessly. When Scarlett partied, she did so just as vigilantly.

Pushing the mirror away, Scarlett adjusted her dress with a confident smile.

She felt good.

More importantly she looked good.

In the long run no one cared what she felt like as long as she appeared well enough. That was good for her. Scarlett would much prefer there be whispers about what she was wearing than how she was feeling.

Admittedly Scarlett had spent a decent portion of the afternoon with people who made her look that good, but still. It felt nice. After the nasty rumors in the papers the world was going to see that she was doing just fine.

She was going to have a sit down with Dianne Hendricks about the story she'd published. No matter how close they were to the truth, Scarlett had to put a stop to them. The last thing she needed was yet another angle for the press to dig at her. There was enough fuel for the fires lit beneath her without that! With a heavy sigh Scarlett sat in the car and waited.

There were murmurs of a crowd outside her window. It was nothing spectacular, but it was still a special occasion. There would be theater fans waiting to greet the exclusive cast for that night. At least that was what she had assumed. Scarlett had been to a few of these events in the past months since she'd met Nathan and had enjoyed the smaller crowds they drew. She found they were more laid back than other premiers.

That night she would attend a spectacular one-time performance. Broadway greats would be performing Hamlet, of all things. Scarlett had never really loved Shakespeare but it was an occasion such as any to hobnob with socialites and to make a public appearance. There would be an after party to remember and all proceeds of the show went to renovation of the theater and continuing of the arts. Most of the events Scarlett attended these days were charities or premiers… and of course after parties.

She was early, far earlier than need be. There were still hours before the show but she knew that there would be drinks and socializing before it began. Besides, being early meant avoiding the bulk of the press so she could work herself up to dealing with them. She wished she was a natural at handling them like others she knew.

Scarlett could use a night of partying to take the edge off. She'd been unusually tense the whole week. Most times she could let the more serious stuff go and still be her good humored self, but this time something was different.

She was struggling.

It had happened before. Of course it had.

But she'd since gotten things under control. Yes, she still had nightmares and often had to pull away to take deep breaths in another room but most people were none the wiser. Scarlett was usually an excellent liar. This week it had been a far more difficult task to keep her distress hidden.

"Are you ready, Miss Damien?" The driver spoke in his thick Indian accent, a smile on his face. Scarlett had become familiar with a few of the drivers from this particular company and had even built a rapport with a few of them. "We have been here for quite awhile. People are waiting to see you."

"Give it a minute." Scarlett tapped the front seat with the cash in her hand and waited for him to take it. For a brief second she swore she could remember her friend in Calcutta's voice. After all, that was all he had ever been: a voice. She'd never gotten to meet him face to face. As quickly as it came over her she shook the sorrow off. There was no time to mourn. That's what she kept telling herself. The crowd outside grew louder, anticipating a celebrity entrance. It was amazing how impatient humanity could be. "Alright, we can go."

"Always like to make them wait, don't you? It will be well worth it, I think." He smiled and Scarlett returned the gesture then tapped the seat again.

"Always." Scarlett fixed her long dress and checked the mirror one last time. The driver stepped out of the car and walked around to open the door for her. Over time Scarlett had been notorious for avoiding the color that went with her namesake. People had always expected her to wear red either because of her name or her reputation.

Tonight however, would be an exception to the rule.

Tonight she wanted the attention.

Swinging her legs out of the car first, she purposely allowed the long skirt of her dress that slit up the middle to linger in the car. Then she took the hand the driver offered to her and stepped out. Much to her surprise there were far more than theater fans waiting outside the velvet ropes that blocked off the entrance to the beautiful old building. The crowd stretched clear down the block. From a distance she could hear someone reporting from some gossip news station or another that the rumors of Scarlett's appearance were true. There were far more reporters than Scarlett had anticipated.

Someone had told the media that she'd be there. So much for taking it slow.

Scarlett had an idea who and planned on having a talk with him very soon. He'd invited her to the theater, after all.

The cut of her dress plunged low enough to show some skin and while the dress itself was black, the interior lining was a bright, scarlet red. Her high heels matched, black with a strip of red on the heel. Well, she wanted to make a statement so there was her chance. It wasn't what she'd planned but she rolled with it anyway. For some reason she'd expected to be nervous in front of the crowd but she found she wasn't. It was a pleasant surprise.

Ignoring questions from the press, Scarlett instead walked over to the crowd that was hoping to get autographs from performers. She didn't expect anyone to ask her for anything. These weren't her people, at least she didn't think they were. Still, it was better to talk to the theater fans than it was to talk to the press. They would get the cold shoulder, at least for a little while. They'd printed enough rumors about her for the week, she wasn't going to dignify any of their questions.

"Miss Damien!" A girl surrounded by her friends who were much taller than her yelled over the group of her peers and so Scarlett walked toward her. She was always impressed when teenagers knew who she was. It was hard to remember how many gossip magazines she'd made her way into over the past few months. These kids knew her as well as they knew their favorite heart throbs. At least some of them were interested in the sciences, she'd hoped.

"Yes?" Each was as pleased as pie to see that she'd acknowledged them.

"Is it true you know Nathan? I mean Mr. Richardson? He's such an amazing actor…" The girl's cheeks turned pink. "I saw… I mean we saw in the magazines that you were…" She gestured to her friends with shaky hands and they all nodded in excitement.

"I do know him." Scarlett smiled, approaching the girls but waving to another who called to her from the crowd. All at once the girls chattered over each other, asking a thousand questions about the actor. Scarlett was overwhelmed but couldn't hide her amusement. She pretended to be blown back by the conversation.

"We heard he was casting to be in one of those new super hero movies! Is that true?"

"God, he's so handsome!"

"Can you get us his autograph?"

"Don't you think he'd make a great super villain?"

"Do you think he'll stay on Broadway for awhile?"

"He has these cheekbones…"

"Calm down, calm down!" Scarlett laughed and held out her hands to quiet them. "I don't know where he is right now, so I can't really say if he'll give you an autograph. Or… really some of those were just comments about his handsome face. So I'm not sure how to respond to them. Can we… rethink these questions? Or make them more question-like?"

"Well, he is handsome! Just look!" One of the older girls held out a magazine clipping from the week before. Scarlett recognized it from a lunch she'd had with him awhile back. There were cute little hearts scribbled all over the paper.

"I didn't say he wasn't, I'm just saying it wasn't a question."

"Could you give him this picture I made for him?" One of the smaller girls asked, trying to force her hand up through the crowd to give Scarlett a drawing of the actor.

"Wow, this is really good." Scarlett was impressed as she took the picture and nodded her head. "I absolutely will give this to him. You even got that weird little crooked bit of his nose…"

"Isn't it the cutest?" One of her friends giggled. "Can we take a picture with you by any chance?" She waved her phone at Scarlett who nodded and then leaned over the velvet rope.

"Hold me up, I'm too tall for you kids." Scarlett relied on the kids to hold her up and made a silly face as the girl snapped a few pictures. It was nice to talk to people who weren't judging her too hard. Everyone Scarlett dealt with on a daily basis seemed to have some ulterior motives. These girls wanted nothing more than a simple conversation. "Alright, here we go."

"Thank you, Miss Damien."

"Please, girls, call me Scarlett." She smiled.

"Do you think he'll come out here before the show?"

"I'm not sure." Scarlett responded. "I didn't check in with him before I came. Does he usually?"

"Sometimes."

"God, I'll just die if he comes close to us, he's so cute!" One of the girls squealed and Scarlett shook her head and opened her mouth to speak.

"Are you talking about me?" There was a rush of noise from the crowd as Nathan made his way out of the theater and toward Scarlett. He stopped and waved as the crowd acknowledged him and then shoved both his hands in his pockets. The girls whispered amongst themselves, Scarlett heard several squeals of delight. "Oh, now I know they must be talking about me. Look at all that whispering!" He joked as he got closer to them. "Scarlett, I'm so glad you decided to come." Gently he placed his hand on her lower back in greeting. His hand was startlingly warm against her bare back.

"When you offered to pay for drinks it was hard to resist, Nathan." Scarlett stood upright and nodded toward the girls. "I was just getting to know your fan club a little bit." She backed a little away from Nathan, urging his hand away. "Which one of you has the best phone, huh?" Scarlett took one of the five phones thrust toward her and then pushed Nathan toward the group. "Come on, get in there with that handsome face."

"Well it's not like you're giving me much of a choice." Nathan chuckled and crouched so that he was at the same height as the girls in the crowd. "Hello ladies, I hope you haven't been waiting too long."

"We've been here since nine this morning!" One of the girl's squealed with delight.

"All that time, my lord! That is dedication young lady!" Nathan couldn't believe it and opened his mouth to thank them for waiting but was interrupted.

"Yo, handsome face. Can't take a picture if you keep yap-yap-yapping." Scarlett snapped her fingers in front of him and then stole a picture of the group with the phone. "Alright, one more, but if you don't smooch his face and mess up his hair then I'm going to be disappointed."

"Scarlett, I don't think that's a good…" Nathan laughed nervously but then yelped in surprise as the girls did just as she requested. Suddenly they were messing up his hair and planting kisses on his cheeks.

"Oh yes, that's right, he really loves when you mess up his hair. Not prissy at all, this one."

"I know what you're implying but it's not true!" Nathan struggled to stay upright but laughed. It was hard not to smile.

"Smile pretty, Nathan." Scarlett spoke over him and snapped pictures. The girls were grinning and laughing, red in the face. "Perfect. Alright, let the man breathe." Scarlett walked back to the group and handed the young girl her phone. There were a thousand words of gratitude amongst squeals to their friends. "Hey, it's no problem. I hope it was worth the wait." Scarlett turned away and took another look at the drawing she'd been given. Nathan was standing nearby trying desperately to fix his hair with a laugh. "Stop, stop. God, you're bad at that."

"What, am I just supposed to take pictures like this? It's a mess! This is your fault, you know." Nathan pointed an accusing finger at her before running his fingers through his hair.

"Just, stand still. Take this." Scarlett swatted his hand away from his hair, handed him the drawing, and then pushed his hair back into place carefully. Unbeknownst to Scarlett, Nathan melted into a smile as he admired her. "God, how much gel do you put in this mess to get it to stay like that…?"

"You'll have to ask my stylist, darling."

"I should've known you don't do it yourself."

"Not for events!" Nathan laughed and nodded his head toward the theater. "I'm growing it out for a role and it's unruly!"

"You're going on stage in a little while, do you not have enough people dabbing you with makeup and brushes?"

"If I had known that a beautiful woman would be running her fingers through my hair I wouldn't have had it done." Nathan had a stupid smile on his face and Scarlett rolled her eyes. She suddenly felt very uncomfortable. When had he started looking at her like that?

"Enough with the charm. I get it. You're British." She pulled her hands away and then turned toward the crowd as someone called her name. She couldn't tell where the voice had come from, but there were so many people shouting it didn't rightly matter.

"Mr. Richardson, please. Just one quote!" One of the reporters was practically hanging over the velvet rope in hopes of getting an exclusive. Nathan loved the press. He thought they were funny.

"A quote about what? I could give you many."

"Something, anything! Perhaps about you and Miss Damien?" Hopeful, the reporter held out his microphone and swatted blindly back at the cameraman beside him.

"Miss Damien is right here, isn't she? And in Boston of all places!" Nathan picked up Scarlett's hand much to her surprise but she smiled anyway. She felt better. If the press planned on printing rumors, then they were going to be within her control. Besides, stories about whatever love life the world thought she had were far funnier than stories concerning a mystery illness. [a name="here"][/a]

"Yes, who would have thought I'd be found in the very place that I live." Scarlett shrugged her shoulders and readjusted her dress.

"You know, I was thinking of buying this place." Nathan turned toward her curiously while giving her hand a squeeze. All of this made her very uncomfortable.

"Oh, were you?" Scarlett scoffed. "So you're made of that kind of money?"

"I most certainly am." Nathan chuckled. "It'd be a good investment. It's a gorgeous theater and it needs someone to love it!"

"You work in Manhattan if I recall."

"For now." Nathan couldn't help himself. "I could be closer to you, if you'd like. Lunch every day, even. You're good with design. Perhaps you could help renovate, hmm?"

"So now it's for me." Scarlett batted her eyelashes and then looked toward the crowd as reporters fired questions. "It's like he doesn't know how to stop being charming. Yeesh."

"Does that confirm the rumors the press have been reporting about the two of you?"

"You're thinking of purchasing the theater, Mr. Richardson? Does that mean you'll be delving into production?"

"Is that why you're here tonight, Miss Damien? To support your boyfriend?"

"I think I'm here to see Hamlet. I mean, that's what on the bill." Scarlett furrowed her brow in thought and then glanced back to Nathan. "And he offered me free drinks. He's going to be very sorry and unable to afford the theater after tonight."

"I did and probably will be. She drinks me right under the table every time. It's an impressive feat." Nathan chuckled but seemed partially disappointed that she hadn't directly answered any of the questions. Scarlett thought in the back of her mind to what Tony had told her earlier that week. Nathan liked her. Vaguely she listened while Nathan regaled the press with something or another. Every so often she laughed when others laughed or touched his shoulder lightly. People took pictures but it felt like they always did these days.

Why did it matter that Nathan liked her? It wasn't as if she liked him. Tony seemed to think it was a big deal. Scarlett knew it was just another ploy. Then again, she didn't want to see Nathan get hurt either. He was a good man. The way she'd dressed that night certainly made it seem like she was trying to get someone's attention. Maybe Nathan had misinterpreted her attempt to feel good about herself as an attempt to flirt. God forbid she dress up for herself.

Scarlett's eyes searched the crowd for awhile, trying to take her mind off of the guilt she felt. It wasn't like she'd led Nathan on, at least not on purpose. He'd been very insistent and charming. If things weren't so complicated she may have actually liked him! The reporters became overwhelming so Scarlett pulled away from Nathan to take a better look at the other guests to the theater. The doors were open wide and socialites were multiplying by the minute. Major and minor celebrities had arrived for a night of celebration.

Some Scarlett recognized, others she didn't. As she searched the crowd someone very familiar caught her eye and she couldn't hide her distaste. Slowly she walked toward the shorter figure clad in black but was interrupted.

"Had enough of the press, have you?"

"Always." Scarlett was relieved when Nathan started away from the media without another word. He was good about that most times.

"You could have warned me that you were going to allow my fans to ambush me. I feel violated!"

"Where's the fun in telling you? Your face was priceless."

"I suppose you're right." Nathan chuckled then glanced at her with a cunning smile. "You look lovely tonight."

"Aw, you look pretty tonight too Nathan." Scarlett did her best not to cringe when he not so subtly placed his arm around her waist.

"I mean it. After all that nonsense in the papers I admit I was a little worried." He turned to face her, hand still on her waist. "Silly, isn't it?"

"You should know far better than to believe anything they write about me."

"Even about us?" He smiled, his eyes playfully sparkling.

"Especially about us."

"I rather like the photoshopped ones."

"I'm thinking of making a scrapbook of them." Scarlett smiled still but kept her gaze on the very unwelcome guest in the crowd. Natasha Romanoff was standing amongst the socialites, blending in the best she could. Scarlett was being shadowed. She was not happy about it.

"Oh, please let me help." Nathan laughed and then waved toward someone at the far end of the room. There was a group of men and women who were waiting for him, all holding drinks and laughing. "There they are! Look, I have some friends I'd like you to meet. They're very interested in what Refuge is doing and that commercial idea we were talking about…"

"Nathan, I hate to interrupt." Scarlett began and Nathan pouted at once. Guilt! Guilt. There was so much damn guilt. Scarlett was riddled with it. "But is there any chance that can wait? I have to make a call." Scarlett lied effortlessly.

"It can't wait? You're always working." He sighed with disappointment.

"Sorry. I'm a businesswoman first and foremost." Scarlett was a very convincing liar. It made her feel disgusting. "I won't be long."

"Fine, but you owe me dinner."

"I'm not sure that's how this works." Scarlett escaped his grip and walked through the crowd, waving him off. After she was sure he was done watching her walk away in the foolish dress she chose to wear, Scarlett made a beeline toward Natasha. The woman was expecting her and made no attempts to disappear. She wanted to be seen. Scarlett knew Natasha could have remained hidden and she had chosen not to."What do you think you're doing here?"

"I'm doing my job." Natasha spoke with a smile but her eyes were dark and stormy.

"Just that?"

"What else would I be doing?"

"You're usually the bearer of bad news these days." Scarlett was obviously not happy to see her. She never was these days. Natasha was her friend but sometimes she wondered. She was tired of having a babysitter.

"No more bad news. Not today." Natasha nodded confidently and offered a genuine smile at last.

"Then why are you here? I'm a big girl. I can handle myself."

"After what happened the other night we've got to keep a closer eye on you."

"Oh." Scarlett's face immediately fell. For a brief moment she'd thought perhaps Natasha wanted to have some fun for once. Instead, Scarlett knew she'd only been sent there because of S.H.I.E.L.D. Natasha studied her features, trying to get a read on her. Every so often her friend disappeared and it was hard to tell when it happened.

"Everything alright, Scarlett?"

"If you'd let me carry a gun instead of having to hide one on my person every time I'm out in public, things would be simpler." Clearing her throat, Scarlett swallowed her frustration as always. "You could get a lackey to do this job instead of sending Nick Fury's puppet every time I look a little pale. Getting paid overtime, Natasha? A bit hard up for cash or something? Doesn't seem like you."

"Enough." Natasha clenched her jaw. "Why don't you get a drink? Always butters you up a bit."

"Oh, so I'm allowed to drink now? I thought that was irresponsible."

"We both know you never stopped."

"Are you sure it's safe? Are you sure I'm capable of choosing which one? So many choices and dangerous glasses, how could I know which one won't hurt me? It seems like you don't remember just how capable I am. I might need your help holding the glass, god forbid it cut me." Scarlett spat under her breath. She was tired of being babied. She hadn't tried to run off and chase down MedCo yet as much as every part of her instinct told her to. Didn't that count for anything? Natasha was scared she was going to do something stupid.

"Don't be like this."

"Do they even know you're here? Do you think they really care that much about what happens to me? Because I don't." Scarlett wasn't going to change the subject simply because it might force Natasha to emote in public.

"I don't care how they feel about it." Natasha exhaled and then looked around Scarlett. She felt eyes on them and saw that Nathan was casually watching them from afar, trying not to be so obvious and failing. "What's really going on with him? The actor guy."

"He's a friend. His name is Nathan." Scarlett didn't look back at him. She was used to eyes on her. There was a time when she'd taken note of all of them but after having been thrust into celebrity she didn't bother.

"Friends are dangerous for you."

"You would know." Scarlett rolled her eyes. Was Natasha really going to lecture her about her cover?

"You think dressed like that he thinks you're just his friend?"

"You of all people are not going to criticize how I'm dressed." Scarlett cleared her throat. Maybe the dress had been a mistake. It had felt good at the time, it had felt sexy. Now she felt guilty for wearing it because of Nathan and dirty for wearing it because of Natasha. It shouldn't have been that way. "Are you done? I don't want a lecture. You're so much smaller than me it's like being lectured by the Lollipop Guild."

"He likes you." Natasha placed her hands on her hips and looked to her seriously.

"What are you, my mother now? What happened to you?" Scarlett grimaced, finally frustrated enough that she had to release some of her pent up anger. "Lecturing me? Really? Wasn't there a time where you would have bought me a drink for getting that guy to like me? Look how pretty he is. And the accent! The accent is super cute. Where's my pat on the back. Where's my… hey Scarlett, look damn good in that dress! Usually followed by, how many weapons are you hiding?"

"Things are different now."

"Why?" Scarlett held up her hand to stop Natasha from responding. "Don't. I can tell you why. I got shoved into the limelight. I was perfectly content staying behind the scenes and going after these assholes that destroyed everything I had. It was a mistake to agree to this. A damned mistake Natasha. Even you know it. You're treating me differently now. You swore you wouldn't." She clenched her jaw.

"Don't get worked up, Scarlett."

"How am I supposed to not get worked up?" Scarlett took a step closer to Natasha and checked around her to make sure no one was listening. "You're here babysitting me when you should be helping me fight against these people. Instead you've got me on a leash and you have the audacity to tell me that I'm too close to someone? In case you haven't noticed I have made it abundantly clear that I am not into him. I'm sure you have, since you're always right behind me, aren't you? Instead of next to me like you should be."

"Enough." Natasha whispered severely.

"You don't scare me, Widow. So don't bother."

"I'm not trying to scare you."

"If I had just done what my instincts told me to do about these assholes in the first place instead of coming to you then I wouldn't be in this situation."

"It's your instincts that got you into this situation in the first place, remember?" Natasha scolded. Scarlett didn't argue. She was tired of arguing. Tonight was supposed to be fun and it had been, but only for a short time. Maybe it was stupid but Scarlett had wanted just a few minutes to forget about the reality of things. The week had been so stressful. She didn't have an outlet anymore of any kind besides alcohol which she knew was a problem. The only friends she had left were S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. They weren't really friends anyway. They were always watching her, waiting for her to screw up.

Scarlett was alone. That had never bothered her before, not until she was so surrounded with people it felt odd to be singled out. If she was going to be lonely she might as well actually be alone.

She knew deep down that if she had gone after MedCo on her own she'd probably be dead by now. But maybe now, maybe with what she now knew, she could go after them. One by one she could hunt them down until she had every one of their damn heads. What did it matter what happened to her along the way anyway? At this rate the end was inevitable. If she'd done things her way, then maybe at least she could have gotten some revenge.

Maybe a few lives would've been spared.

There Natasha was blaming her. Like Scarlett didn't do that enough for everyone. She was many things but naïve was not one of them.

"Scarlett?" Natasha whispered when her friend didn't respond. Scarlett needed someone to be strong enough to do what she couldn't and Natasha had chosen to fill that role without being asked to.

"I'm fine." Scarlett snapped. She wasn't a child, she didn't need her hand held at every turn. "Aren't there enough people watching me here without you on my tail all the time? There are cameras everywhere. I'm not disappearing."

"Scarlett?" Nathan's voice interrupted and both women turned to face the handsome actor. He pushed back his hair and watched them with concern. Straightening his back he walked next to Scarlett and nodded toward Natasha. "Is everything alright here?"

"Everything's fine." Scarlett exhaled, forcing the anger to bubble back into her stomach where she was sure it would eat away at her insides. Natasha watched her every move, studying her features as they changed. Did Scarlett really like this guy? It seemed like an act to Natasha but sometimes Scarlett was hard to read. Even for her.

"Whose your friend?" Nathan smiled charmingly and offered his hand to shake. "I'm Nathan Richardson. On the bill tonight, I'm afraid."

"This is Natalia. She's an old coworker." Scarlett stood tall but Nathan smiled widely, elated to be introduced to someone from Scarlett's past.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Natalia. However, I'm afraid I must steal Scarlett away from you." Nathan smiled and looped his arm around Scarlett's.

"Of course. Enjoy your night." Natasha didn't take her eyes away from Scarlett as Nathan led her away. "Break a leg."