78  

 Finally, Bruce re-emerges from his Hulk form, exhausted. He’s always exhausted after he’s forced to go green, but sometimes he’s also energized after battle, leftover adrenaline still running in his veins and helping his recovery. This time, though, he’s just tired, and worried about Natasha.

As soon as he’s completely back to human, you say, “Do you think - “ but that’s as far as you get, because suddenly there’s a wave of Hydra uniforms descending on your extraction point, gunfire, some kind of smoke grenade thing that makes your eyes water and fills the battlefield with a red haze, and, shit, you were not prepared for this, not now, not at the end of the goddamn mission. They must have been waiting for Bruce to de-Hulk.

Shit. “Bruce,” you cough into the smoky air, “can you - can you re - “ You can’t finish the sentence without choking on the chemical sting in your lungs, but you’re pretty sure he’ll catch on anyway.