I woke up to hands gripping both of arms, dragging me across the floor.
"Alexander?" I whispered, still half-asleep, half-aware.

They dropped me. My body hit cold stone, the air knocked from my lungs. I blinked until the blur of the room came into focus- and then I saw him.

"Alex!" I cried, scrambling toward him.

He pulled me into a tight hug.
"Lizzie! You're okay!" He said

"Yeah" I said softly, trying to catch my breath.
"yeah, I'm okay" I mutter

A voice cleared behind us.
"Welcome back"

We turned. A man stood in the doorway, older, clean-shaven, wearing a black Hydra uniform.

"Who are you?" I asked, instinctively moving closer to Alexander.

"I'm the new leader of Hydra." He said simply

Alexander frowned.
"What happened to the other one?" He asked

The man smiled.
"You've been asleep for thirty years. Your old leader is long gone" he said

The words didn't make sense at first.
"Thirty....years?" I repeated.

He nodded, smiling. 
"You'll adjust. Tomorrow, your new training and experiments begin" he said

Then he turned and left, the sound of his boots echoing through the metal hallway.

"You know, technically" Alexander said after a long silence.
"that makes us thirty-nine and thirty-six.... if you think about it" he said

I looked at him, the faintest smile tugging at my lips.
"So technically, we should both be married with kids" I said

He chuckled, the sound faint but warm.
"You're right. How many would you have?" He asks

"Three" I said instantly.
"Two girls and one boy. Maddie, Kelsey, and Billy. What about you?" I ask

He smiled.
"I think I'd have two. Both boys. John and Howard." He said

There was a quiet moment between us before I asked softly.
"Do you ever think about what are life would've been like if none of this happened?" I ask

"Yeah." He said, leaning against the wall.
"We'd travel the world. Then find a place to settle down. Meet our spouses. Live next door to each other so we could spend time together whenever we wanted." He said

I smiled.
"I like the sound of that" I say

"Maybe one day. Maybe it'll happen" he said quietly

"Maybe" I whispered back.

We laid down on the cold floor. He fell asleep fast, but I couldn't.
The silence pressed on my chest until I finally began to hum- the only song that ever made me feel safe.

"Lavender's blue, dilly dilly,
Lavender's green
When you are King, dilly dilly,
I shall be Queen..."

My voice echoed faintly through the metal walls. By the time I finished the song, my eyelids felt heavy.
And I drifted off.

"Get up!"

The door slammed open. The same voice from before barked orders as guard yanked us to our feet.

"Today, you begin new trails. Experiments. Training" he said

Alexander and I were pulled into separate rooms.

They strapped me down, wires running from my arms to machines that hummed and hissed. In a tray beside me- needles. Dozens of them.

"What are those for?" I asked, my voice barely steady.

"Today you'll be injected with a variation of the super soldier serum. It will enhance your physical abilities." The scientist said

I swallowed hard and nodded.

The first needle entered my arm- and fire ripped through my veins.

I bit back the scream until I couldn't anymore. My body ached off the table as I cried out, my vision flashing white.

"Stop! Please- please, no more" I begged, tears streaming down my face.

They didn't listen.

When it was finally over, two guards grabbed me, dragging me down the hall.

"You'll fight until you win" one of them said, shoving me into the training room.

My legs trembled, my skin burning- but I could feel something. Strength. Power. The serum was working.

A guard at least five times my size stepped into the ring.

"Began"

I raised my fists. The moment he lunged, instinct took over. My movements were faster, sharper- almost too fast. The power in my arms felt unreal.

It didn't take long before I had him pinned to the floor, his breath knocked out.

The Hydra leader nodded from the shadows.
"Impressive" he said

Then he turned away.
"Take her back" he said

By the time they threw me into the cell again, my body collapsed. I could barely move. But Alexander wasn't there.

My chest tightened.

When they finally dragged him in, I could barely recognize him. Blood covered his face. He didn't  even lift his head.

I crawled over, lifting his head into my lap.
"Alex. Are you okay?" I whisper

"Everything hurts" he rasped.

"Shh" I said softly, brushing the hair from his face.
"It's okay. Just rest" I said

He closed his eyes. I held him until sleep pulled me under too.

The next morning, I woke up to silence. Alexander wasn't sitting up, his bruises darker, but his eyes open.

"Did you get the serum too?" I asked.

He nodded slowly.
"Super solider serum. Yeah" he hesitated.
"But...It didn't work " he said

"What?" I ask

"They injected it. Then took me to the training room. But nothing changed- no strength, no speed. They kept trying. Over and over. It just....never worked" he said

My heart sank. Why did it work on me and not him?

I opened my mouth to tell him it had worked on me, but before I could, the cell door slammed open.

"You" a guard said, pointing to Alexander.
"More experiments" he said

He turned to me.
"You. Training" he said

I wanted to protest, to ask where they were taking him- but one look from the guard silenced me.

They dragged him one way, me another.

The leader was waiting in the training room when I arrived.
"Today, you'll learn advanced hand-to-hand and weapon handling. You'll be our prototype." He said

I didn't answer. I just picked up a blade.

Hours passed. The training felt endless- fighting until my knuckles bled, shooting until my arms shook. Thirteen hours later, I could barely stand.

When they finally sent me back, I saw Alexander lying on the ground again- worse than before.

"Alex!" I dropped beside him, cradling him in my arms.

He looked up at me weakly and tired to smile.

"What happened?" I asked, voice breaking.

He didn't answer. Just rested his head against me.

I held him close, tears falling freely.

What more can they take from us?

We were only children.