Captain America dropped his shield on the pavement and walked over to me, mouth agape. "That was incredible," he said, putting one hand on my shoulder.
I shrugged, avoiding eye contact. It was just a survival instinct. If someone with a metal arm and rifle crashed into your car, totaling it, you'd probably get out and do whatever you could to stop him, too. That's what I did. I kicked open the dented side door of my mom's Toyota Prius, now lying on its side, and kicked his creepy ass. He lay knocked out on the ground beside us, surrounded by shattered glass and broken metal bits.
"Who are you?" Captain America asked.
"Terry," I said, finally peeking out from beneath my black hoodie. It still smelled like laundry detergent even with the scent of gas in the air. Everything my mom washed smelled like laundry detergent.
"Terry. That's a cool name for a girl," he smiled. God it was such a nice smile. I'd seen pictures online, but this was something else. "Terry, could you come with me? I think there's a few people you should meet."
I nodded. I didn't have many options, considering my car was gone. Plus, I was pretty curious how Captain America got from one crime scene to the next. Did a private helicopter drop in? Did the Falcon come grab him by the shoulders and fly him out? As I was thinking about the possibilities, a black town car pulled up. A man in dark sunglasses rolled down the window and told us to get in. Captain America lifted up what I now knew was the Winter Soldier's unconscious body and placed it in the front seat. I didn't argue with him.
"So, where did you learn to do that?" he asked as we drove off. I felt my cheeks getting warm. The truth was my parents had volunteered me to be part of some weird psych experiments when I was little to help make some money, but when they nearly killed me one time after stopping my heart for "science" they immediately took me out, horrified. They never wanted to talk about it ever again, so I never told them about strange side effects I began noticing a few years later. I never told anyone. But apparently I could punch a guy harder than Captain America could. So maybe it was time I spoke up.