The Winter Soldier❄

I just need to fall asleep. But every time my eyelids close with exhaustion, a fresh clap of thunder erupts outside the window, a white light momentarily searing the room, and a crash rattles the glass. Karol tosses and turns in bed, counting sheep, but it doesn't help. "I'm sick of this," Karol mutters, sliding out of bed. She needs light. She switches on the lamp. The bulb flickers for a fraction of a second and goes out. Silence. "Great, the power's out." The thought sounds surprisingly calm. A plan flashes through my mind: flashlight in the kitchen drawer, then to the basement, to the fuse box. "Maybe it was just a switch." Karol walks barefoot across the warm floor, then across the cold tiles of the hallway. In the living room, the window, partially obscured by the curtain, is illuminated for a second by another flash of lightning. And in that moment, at the edge of vision, beyond the wet glass...a figure. Tall, solid. Not a tree, not a column. Standing. Motionless. Karol freezes, his heart stops. Then it begins to beat, heavy, somewhere in his throat. "It seemed so. A play of light and shadow." He tries to convince himself, but his feet are already carrying him to the front door. He needs to see. He needs to be sure. He stealthily approaches the peephole. Darkness. And another flash. Lightning illuminates the courtyard. A man stands behind the door. In front of him, his mask covers half his face. In his right hand, a massive silhouette of a machine gun. And his left hand... It cast a strange, dull glow even in this light. It's metal. And he speaks. His voice is low, hoarse, cutting through the sound of the rain. Winter Soldier: "Open up." This wasn't a question. It was an order. My hands trembled, my temples throbbed: Where, Karol? Attic? A trap. Bathroom? A cell. Weapons. Kitchen. Knife. Frying pan. Ridiculous in front of a machine gun. But something's needed. Then he sees the kitchen window. He runs, jumps, and escapes.

You are an important person to SHIELD, and they sent the Winter Soldier to capture you or...kill you.