REUNITED ~ STEVE ROGERS [4]

Chapter Fourteen

The next 30 seconds were flashes of green and white, my arm throbbing and the smell of ash. Shuri was yelling into her comms, but she was muffled by the ringing in my ears. I snapped back into reality, floating in a ball of transparent green above the pavement, a good 100 metres from the wreckage of the car. Both my hands glowed white hot, scars illuminated by the light. In surprise and awe, I lowered myself to the ground and the force field disappeared, leaving me sitting, unharmed in the middle of the road. Nausea hit me, and I doubled over, feeling small pricks in my neck as my suit picked up on my unstable vitals and attempted to bring them back. The venom injected in me was pure bliss, making its way from my neck all the way to my hands as they cooled. I had never made a force field so quickly, but I put it down to instinct and nothing more.

There were bigger things to worry about.

T'Challa somehow overturned the SUV, flames bubbling up underneath it. He had Klaue by the neck, pinned against the side of the SUV, claws out and ready. Tires squealed behind me, and I turned around to see Agent Ross pull up, Okoye and Nakia already opening the doors of the vehicle.

"King!" Okoye called out to him in Wakanden, and T'Challa paused. Tension crackled in the air like lightning. Smooth hands encircled my shoulders, and I turned to find Nakia embracing me from behind while her eyes watched my brother.

"The world watches," she said in Wakanden, soft but firm. It was then I heard the sirens and saw the copious amount of Korean men and women watching and filming the encounter.

"T'Challa, not here." I too spoke in Wakanden, my pronunciation rusty but I knew he understood by the slight nod of his head.

"Come on guys, lets go huh?" Ross said from the car, gesturing for us to go. I was glad for the mask, but I knew it didn't matter anymore

All the world would know I was back, and all they knew me as was Toxic.

***

The shabby travel agency building served as a perfect cover for the CIA. From the outside, it looked like the only inhabitants could be rats. But inside, although it was far from clean, it was a busy and productive base of operations.

I split from T'Challa and the others once inside, pulling up the too big clothes I had been given, as mine had been shredded when I activated my suit. I leant up against the end of the hallway, hoping standing near what was labelled a cleaning closet would give me some privacy.

I took a deep breath and traced a finger over my EMP beads. Scrolling through my holographic contacts list, much shorter now, I selected Steve and waited as it rang.

His figure appeared in mid-air, arms crossed and a stern look on his face.

"Hey Steve." I said cautiously. Another familiar figure sidled up next to him. "Heeeey, Sam is here too, thats fantastic." My insides turned to dread.

"Now Steve looks like he's about to shit himself but that's because he is trying his very best to stay composed. Unfortunately, I will not be doing the same." Sam stepped closer to the camera and took a breath.

"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING? For one, going outside, big no-no. Everyone is looking for you. Two, um what? You were CRUSHED BY A BUILDING! You're supposed to be healing, not getting into car crashes in the middle of Korea. And three, you were on the news. So now everyone knows you're back in business. Which means security gets even tighter for us. So I hope you are satisfied with this little stunt." A vein stuck out on Sam's forehead as he ranted at me, while Steve looked at the floor in the background.

"Are you done?" I said, raising an eyebrow to seen unaffected.

"Yeah, I'm done. Steve, it's your turn." Sam was out of breath as he stepped back and let Steve have spotlight.

"Are you gonna yell at me too?" I asked calmly, trying to keep those tears locked away.

"No, I'm not going to yell at you. Even though I want to. Really badly." Somehow hearing him be calm and collected was worse than being yelled at.

"Oh, well thanks." I said, unsure of what my response should be.

"But I was really worried about you Keight. You're in no condition to be going on missions. Or going out at all. Its far too dangerous." His startling eyes bored into me and I felt even more guilty. I just wanted him to hold my hand. I wanted him near me, so desperately that it physically hurt. We hadn't been apart for years, we were inseparable. Until the world shoved us apart, just when we wanted to be together the most.

"I know, I was stupid. But it was Klaue, and I wanted to do something useful. I didn't want to miss my chance like last time." I saw Sam slip away from the hologram, giving us privacy.

"You went through a hell of a lot Keight. You deserve the time to heal. Don't put more strain on yourself. I'm sure your brother can handle it." He looked like he was about to take my hands but remembered too late I wasn't really there.

"I'm sorry, it didn't even cross my mind that there would be consequences for you guys. It won't happen again, Steve." I smiled softly, and he did the same back. It was almost worse seeing him and not being able to touch him, than not seeing him at all.

"Just be careful. Everything is tense right now. Its gonna be tough." I nodded along to his words, hearing voices outside. Steve noticed them too. "Are you needed?"

I sighed. "Probably. My brother hasn't told me off yet but I'm sure he will soon. And I don't even want to think about what Mama will say when we get home."

"Well, I'll let you get back to that." He reached to turn off the hologram but paused. "You know, you look really good in your new suit." He had that cheeky Steve grin I had missed, the kind I didn't get to see often.

"Oh yeah? How good?" I batted my eyes and smirked, knowing that Steve had absolutely no idea how to flirt properly. He stumbled over his words and blushed.

"Really, uh, just really good."

"I love it when you try and flirt. You're terrible at it." I teased.

"Alright, off you go. Go be useful." He grinned and I felt soft butterflies in my stomach. He melted me, this man, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

"Fine. Love you." I waved goodbye with my good hand. His eyes lit up. Maybe I wasn't the only one who felt the butterflies.

"I love you too."

Authors Note.

My heart weeps for George Floyd. For Ahmaud Arbery, for Breonna Taylor, for the countless poc lives that were taken away from this world too soon, and because of systematic racism, a prejudice that should have long been abolished.

I live in New Zealand, as far away from the USA as you can be and it makes me so mad that I cannot do anything but pray from here. You are all so brave, my poc brothers and sisters, and I am praying for strength, for wisdom and for protection for you while you fight for the rights you have always deserved.

This chapter is about love, first and foremost, and it is something we need in this world more than anything. I write Keight and Steve's love without having experienced anything like it, but I hope we can feel that love in this world again. Reach out to your friends, to your neighbours. It takes one kind gesture to save a human soul.  

Be safe, be kind, be brave. You have an ally here. 

~JJ