A/N: I'm gonna admit something and I need all of you to not judge me okay? When I write/read anything Avenger related my mind pictures Jensen Ackles as Clint Barton instead of Jeremy Renner. Pls don't hold this against me lolol. I love Renner and I think he does a great job of the Hawkeye he portrays. But the Fraction version of Hawkeye where he's deaf and just a walking disaster doesn't match up? And I love me some disaster Clint and my brain gave Ackles the role (which in my defense he was considered for Hawkeye so I get back some of my credibility I think) lolol.
Ok, I'll shut up. Enjoy the chapter, leave me comments!
Chapter #23:
Beer Pong House Rules
"Most species
Bare their teeth
As a threat
As a display
Of aggression
Of leadership
It is a reminder
That these
Clenched jaws
Can and will
Open your
Yielding throat
I want you to think of this
The next time I smile."
It was mission time.
Two minutes to midnight, all hands-on deck, red alert, go time.
Beth was running around covering last minute issues while I stood in front of the Avengers ignoring the smug looks on each of their attractive faces. Natasha was dressed up in a gorgeous black, long sleeve dress with her medium length red hair curled and bright red lipstick. Bruce had on a nice black suit and the tie I had gifted him for Christmas. Clint wore a black leather jacket over a dark purple henley. It wasn't a suit, but he did have on dark jeans instead of sweatpants, so I took it as a win. Tony had on a dark blazer over one of his band shirts and a pair of red tinted glasses. There was no winning with him, and the public was well aware of how he was, so I didn't even bother. Lastly, Steve had on a blue and white plaid button up shirt tucked into khakis. It wasn't my favorite look on him, but he looked downright all-American.
"Okay", I flipped through a few papers on the clipboard I held, "Each of you will start with a reporter and after five minutes they'll cycle through. I've given them a specific list of topics they are not allowed to ask about. If they do, wave me over and I'll crack some skulls." I heard them snicker, but I didn't look up from my paper. "Beth will also be circling around, let her know if you need anything, but her task is to mostly snap some pictures of our own."
Clint cleared his throat, "If they ask me about your relationship to me, can I confirm that you are in fact my long-lost child from a failed relationship in my earlier years?"
"First off, I 100% know you started that rumor in the tabloids." I pointed at him, ignoring his smirk, "Secondly, if you confirm anything that isn't factual I will murder you in front of God and all those reporters."
Tony chuckled and stepped away from the group, "I'm no press rookie, save the scolding—"
"Oh, no, no. Pepper specifically warned me about your press experience and gave me the advice of scolding you twice over." I replied. "This is the first Avengers press reveal where all of you are here together officially answering questions, and I will not be the idiot PR officer who fucked it up."
Bruce clasped a comforting hand on my shoulder, "Everything will go fine. You've done a great job here, Aj."
"I know things will go fine with you. You and Nat." I turned to the boys. "My concern is with them."
Clint and Tony shrugged, but Steve held a hand to his chest in mock hurt, "I'm on your shit list?"
"Don't act so innocent. You're just as bad as them sometimes. The only difference is you're smart enough not to get caught." I argued. Steve smirked while Clint and Tony immediately began to argue otherwise.
Beth's voice chimed in my earpiece to let me know everything outside looked great. We were hosting the press conference in the lobby of Avengers Tower. A number of reporters from all sorts of news outlets were invited along with a select crowd of fans. Beth was behind that. She said we should open it up for a handful of fans to attend and I rarely argued against her. So now the lobby was filled with lights, cameras, and reporters alongside a crowd of onlooking fans in roped off areas. It didn't stop there either. There were a huge crowd of people right outside the Tower's front door as well watching through the glass. There were always a few fans hanging around the Tower, but this was by far the biggest crowd I had seen while living here.
"Alright, we're ready to go." I pointed to them again. "Also, if any of you motherfuckers drops the f-word in your interviews, we're throwing hands, got me? Watch your damn language."
Natasha pulled me into a side hug, "Yes ma'am."
With a steadying breath, I pulled open the office door letting in the roar of noise from the lobby. Each of them gave me a grin while walking out, and I steeled myself for the next hour. The Avengers went to the fans first, and I watched with a small smile while they interacted with them. Tony and Clint always handled this best. Tony did well with that kind of attention and Clint was able to be buddy-buddy with just about anyone. Bruce, Natasha, and Steve were always a little more reserved in crowds. Bruce hovered by Tony which took most of the edge off and kept him calm. Natasha stuck with Steve. The redhead wasn't used to fans or being looked at in this way. It was too out in the open for her, not having a cover to hide behind, but she agreed it was for the best. The Avengers needed trust above all else and that wouldn't work if she continued to hide in the shadows.
Weirdly, being in the lobby right now reminded me of the ring. A loud cheering crowd and bright lights in my eyes. All it was missing was the smell of sweat and blood hanging in the air. Beth hurried over to me and offered me a water bottle with a smile. The young woman was dressed in a business casual dress with her hair up in a bun.
"Thanks." I took it from her then motioned to the waiting reporters. "Give them another ten minutes and then pull Tony and Bruce to their reporters. I'll take care of Clint, Natasha, and Steve."
"Got it, boss!" Beth chirped and wandered away. The girl was an absolute Godsend. Not many times did I make good decisions in my life, but she had been one. I couldn't imagine any other person I interviewed being as good as she was. Beth had created all the Instagram accounts herself and they were ready to go live. She suggested dropping them one at a time over the span of a couple weeks. We'd start with Tony, and then every couple days we'd drop another. Her reasoning was that it would keep the excitement going longer, rather than just all at once, and I couldn't argue with that.
After giving the fans a little more face time, probably more than the reporters were happy with, Beth and I roped the Avengers to where they needed to go. It seemed like everything was going smoothly, but while I scoped the room looking for potential issues a camera slid into my path.
"Ms. Bradshaw! Can I ask you a few questions?" A black haired woman asked while sticking a microphone toward me. Her dark eyes were magnified by the large glasses she wore and the cameraman beside her didn't speak up.
"Uh", I replied dumbly, "Of course. If this is about Avengers scheduling the camera is hardly necessary though."
She chuckled, "No, not about scheduling. I was wondering if I could ask you questions about yourself?"
I blinked in surprise. Beth had told me I was supposedly 'famous', but I still didn't actually believe her. Yes, I was with them all the time and I lived with them and was considered metaphorical family and…and… wow, no wonder they wondered who the hell I was. By all intents and purposes, I hit the friendship lottery.
"Uh, sure?"
"Great." She nodded and came to stand beside me, "My name is Ji-Soo Kim." Ji-Soo shot the cameraman a look and then nodded once. She turned back to me with a camera ready smile, "I'm here with Aj Bradshaw who is the talk of the town! Aj, viewers at home are wondering how you met the Avengers."
She moved the microphone toward me, and I readjusted the clipboard in my arms. I wasn't prepared for this at all. I had gone over every single thing that could possibly go wrong today and this had been nowhere on my planning board. I swallowed a nervous lump in my throat and nodded. Do I lie or do I tell the truth? Which one was worse? I chuckled awkwardly, "Clint Barton and Natasha Romanof came into my… workplace. I met them and then they introduced me to the others."
"And where did you work at?"
"Boxing?" I supplied then nodded, "Yeah, boxing. I worked in a boxing gym."
"Why were they there?"
I let out another chuckle, "I can't say that. It was a mission after all. If I spilled their secrets, they'd have to kill me." My eyes widened, and I held a hand out. "Not that they would. We're friends. I'm not inferring that Hawkeye and the Black Widow are murderers."
Oh, dear God.
I confidently knew the answer to every single question they could ask me about the Avengers, but this is what fucked me up. Questions about myself. Maybe if I was lucky JARVIS would sense my panic and drop one of the overhead lights on top of me to put me out of my misery.
"Is it true you live in the Tower with Captain America?"
"Yeah." I nodded with a shrug.
Ji-Soo grinned, "How long have the two of you been involved?"
The question before that one finally clicked. I waved the clipboard in denial, "Wait, no, not like—I mean, I live with Captain America in the sense that we're both in the Tower? I live with Iron Man too and the Hulk and Hawkeye and—and hey, Thor too sort of. I live in his apartment... but not at the same time! He surprised me once when he was naked but I—wait, no. Er..."
Ji-Soo's eyes widened, and I could physically feel my brain unplug from my mouth. God had given me the ability and skill to beat men senseless with my bare hands, yet I could not form one fucking coherent sentence. This was not a fair trade. I had complaints.
Where was God? I just wanted to talk.
"Aj?" Beth stepped into my view and motioned toward me, "I need you for a moment."
"Excuse me." I said quickly and pulled myself away from Ji-Soo and her cameraman. Beth led me away from their ear shot and I glanced around, "What's up?"
Beth shook her head, "Oh, nothing is wrong. You just looked like you needed saving."
I set both my hands on her shoulders while she chuckled, "You're getting a raise. In fact, I'm telling Stark to buy you a car."
"That's—That's really not necessary." Beth argued. She tucked the scheduling papers in her hands to her chest. "Have you always been that bad at interviews?"
"That was my first interview ever." I replied. "It was also my last interview since I apparently can't string together one sentence without making an ass of myself."
Beth laughed, "Being in front of the camera isn't for everyone. Plus, it takes getting used to from what I understand." She set a reassuring hand on my arm, "If it makes you feel any better, I think I'd be lousy at it too."
"Thanks." I lightly patted her hand on my arm. The two of us split up to continue circling the area looking for any issues. I was avoiding eye contact with any free reporter like a kid playing Pokémon who didn't want to battle those no name NPCs.
Four rotations of reporters went by when I drifted over to where a reporter was interviewing Steve. When I got within ear shot, they began to laugh lightly at something. The dark-haired reporter smiled broadly and brought the microphone to her lips, "How has it been adjusting to today's technology? Anything giving you any trouble?"
"I'll tell you, ma'am, those gosh darned hand sized telephones are something else. Luckily, Tony and the others have been real great about helping me along." Steve replied with a charming smile. Oh, this gosh darned little fucker. His eyes drifted over the reporter's gaze to meet mine and I saw a flash of amusement in his eyes. Steve's smile turned impish in a 'blink and you miss it' moment. I was gonna fist fight a 96-year-old today.
The rest of the hour seemed to go by swimmingly from that point on which should've been my first guess that something wasn't right. With 10 minutes left to spare, Beth rushed over to me and grabbed my arm, "We have a problem."
"What's wrong?" I asked and followed beside her.
She didn't even have to answer me because my eyes landed on what the problem was. Rather, who the problem was. Natasha was being interviewed by a sleazy guy named Preston Smith. He just looked smarmy with his news anchor blond hair and his smug, deceitful brown eyes. Everything about him, including the flashy blue suit he wore, was gross and screamed 'I'm a complete and total tool'.
It was one, of many, reasons why I hadn't invited him for this event.
"He's been asking her non-stop about what happened in DC with the SHIELD leaks, HYDRA infiltration, and the Winter Soldier." Beth murmured to me. Natasha's eyes were narrowed and though she kept a small smile on her features I could see the tension and anger radiating off her. The Black Widow was more than adept at handling a situation like this, but he must have said something that really set her off. Her face screamed 'homicide' and I knew she was only resisting both killing him and verbally abusing him because of how important this public image thing was. Natasha Romanof berating a reporter on the 9'o'clock news, or disemboweling him, would not look good to the viewers at home. Unfortunately.
I pushed away from Beth to step between Natasha and Preston, "Interview's over."
Natasha didn't hesitate. I felt her fingers brush against my back briefly before she marched away with Beth. Preston grinned at me and I shook my head, "You're not supposed to be here, Mr. Smith."
"I just assumed my invitation got lost in the mail." He replied. "You're the Aj Bradshaw, aren't you?" I didn't answer and he took a step toward me. "I have a few questions for you too. The mysterious girl who may or may not be sleeping her way through the Avengers. Who are you?"
I smirked, "I'm just a little southern girl with a temper problem and absolutely no qualms with breaking your nose." Preston smirked, obviously thinking he was getting out of here with a scoop on Natasha and me, but if working side by side with SHIELD had taught me one thing, it was this: knowledge is power.
"Enough about me though." I let my lips curl into a threatening grin. The look was incomplete without the bloodstained teeth I usually had when I wore it, but based on the way Preston stiffened, it did the job all the same. "You're Preston Smith, a piece of shit asshole who ruins lives and stirs up drama using your shit personality since you don't actually have any actual reporting skills in your arsenal. Every article you've written, every news report you've given, is riddled with rumors and lies and you use the fear of the public to keep you afloat."
Preston scoffed, "How dare you—"
"I also know that you're scum of the earth and a literal rat who is doing some less than legal things on your personal time involving the financials of the news company that supports you and a number of dirty politicians in the tri-state area." I kept my voice light and airy as I took a hostile step toward him. Preston tried to back pedal away, but I kept myself within reach. "Now, since you seem like the kind of guy who makes a habit of missing the fucking point, let me make this explicitly clear. If I see any of my client's names in your articles, in any report you give, and you try to drag them through the mud for clout… I will expose every single piece of evidence SHIELD has collected on your pathetic ass to the world. You will be fired, you will lose any popularity you think you have among the 1% that consumes your media, and you will probably even face some jail time." I reached toward him, he flinched, but I just let my hand rest on his shoulder softly. "Preston, I'll give you a little tip, you are not the kind of guy who would do well in jail."
He scoffed, trying to look less nervous, "Are you blackmailing me?"
"Yes, but apparently I'm not doing it well enough if you have to ask."
Preston held my gaze, probably trying to see if I was bluffing, but this was one of those rare moments in my life where I wasn't. With the help of Daisy's hacker skills, I now had an entire file on my Stark Pad with dirt on every unsavory reporter or politician in the area. Was this entirely legal? Maybe not. The thing was though, I had learned early on that people were terrible. Sure, there were exceptions to this rule, I lived and was now friends with a number of them, but humans tended to be selfish. They would choose themselves, their money, their pride, and their comfort over the truth 9 times out of 10. I figured out that if you assumed everyone was going to fuck you over, you were able to stop it from happening before they even tried.
"Clever." Preston finally chuckled. He glanced around the room before looking back to me with barely concealed anger in his eyes. "I'll let you win this round as a courtesy. A 'welcome to the party' gift, if you will. But you and I both know the Avengers are going to slip up, they're going to make a mistake, and I'll be there to expose them to the world. The people deserve the truth after all."
I scoffed, "Yeah, they do, but they deserve the actual truth not your twisted, bribed version of it. Now are you leaving nicely or am I calling security?"
Preston held his hands up in surrender and walked away. I didn't let my eyes leave his figure until he was completely out of the building. A sigh of relief tumbled out of me, but I whipped around anyways to try and find Natasha. Beth came back up to me right as my eyes landed on the bright red hair. Tony had pulled her into his interview, he was talking more to her than the reporter, but she was smiling. The tension was gone from her shoulders and that was more reliving than anything else.
"That was amazing." Beth breathed with wide eyes. "You just—just shut him down. Got him to leave—" She snapped her fingers, "— like that!"
Her praise brought a smile to my lips, but I was still a little on edge. I had known about trashy Preston Smith, but seeing him was another thing entirely. There was this pit in my stomach, a gut feeling, that told me, that just like he said, this wasn't the last we'd see of him.
When you see the Avengers on TV, they're awe inspiring. The things they can do, the lives that they save, it makes you want to be a better person just watching them. Meeting them in person for the first time was like meeting your favorite celebrity times 100. It would be cool to meet the guy who played your favorite character on a TV show you like, but meeting Steve Rogers was a little like what meeting Jesus would feel like. At least, that's how Peter mentally categorized it. He had told Aunt May this and she had reminded them that they were Jewish, but the point still remained.
Getting to know them was a different story.
Peter was still in disbelief that he knew the Avengers personally. That hadn't worn off even though Mr. Stark kept telling him that it should. Even Harley, when they texted, would remind Peter that he didn't have to be so starstruck anymore. Peter was getting better at it, but there were still moments, like when they came back from a mission, where he was struck dumb, blind, and ecstatic.
This was not one of those moments.
This was one of those humanizing moments that reminded him that despite being literal superheroes they were also kind of giant dorks.
"Hey, I have another joke. Listen, listen!" Clint Barton called out from where he was sitting backwards in the single seat armchair. His legs were thrown haphazardly over the back and his head was held upside down, "Which country do birds like living in?"
Despite the fact that he called for attention, nobody in the communal space looked up from what they were doing. Aj was sitting on the couch working on her Stark Pad, Steve sat beside her casually on his phone, and Dr. Banner was reading a book on the other side of him. Peter was sitting on the two-seat couch beside Natasha Romanof who was flipping through what looked like a fashion magazine. Mr. Stark walked in from the kitchen and gave Clint an odd look though. So now, the archer had the attention of him and Iron Man at the very least.
"Portu-geese." Clint snickered.
Steve looked up from his phone, "That's a language, not a country."
"Potru-gull." Mr. Stark corrected.
Dr. Banner nodded without looking up from his book, "Nice save."
"Oh, oh!" Aj looked up from her Stark Pad with a grin, "Parrot-guay."
Clint cheered in excitement while the others nodded and mumbled praise while they tried to think of more. Steve snapped his fingers, "Crow-atia?"
"Not bad, grandpa." Mr. Stark praised.
Natasha sighed and set her magazine down in her lap before looking around the room, "Turkey. Dumbasses. Turkey."
There was a pause where the knowledge sunk in and then everyone collectively went back to their tasks sheepishly while Clint pouted in his seat. Peter chuckled under his breath and shifted slightly to look at Mr. Stark. As fun as it was to hang out with everyone like this, he had technically come to work on his suit. There were only a few more tests to run before he could use it out in the city officially. Spiderman was finally getting an upgrade.
He cleared his throat, "Mr. Stark—"
"Tony." The man corrected.
"Is it time to go to the lab to work on the—the, you know, science experiment?"
Natasha, without looking up from the magazine she had gone back to, cut in, "You still haven't finished the kid's suit, Tony?"
Mr. Stark scoffed, "We're nearly done, thank you."
Peter's eyes went wide in shock as his gaze whipped back and forth between Mr. Stark and Natasha. He struggled to find his words, "You—wait, what? You—I thought you said you wouldn't tell anyone, Mr. Stark!"
"Tony." He replied with a sheepish shrug. "And I didn't! Well, I told Bruce because he was gonna help me with some design work, and I told Pep and Rhodes because…because they're Pep and Rhodes."
Aj raised a hand with an apologetic smile, "I was the one who told Nat actually, but only because she's a spider too, and I want her to show you some fighting tricks!"
Natasha glanced up from her magazine, "I told Steve you were Spiderman."
Peter's gaze snapped to Steve who looked up from his phone with his own sheepish look. All the Avengers knew his secret? The secret he had decided nobody could know? He hadn't even told Ned or Mj or Aunt May, though he never ever planned on telling his aunt. She'd lose her mind if she ever found out. It would be the Aj lecture on retiring just way, way worse.
Clint fell out of his chair with a grunt, then sat up in surprise, "Hang on, the kid is Spiderman?!"
Mr. Stark looked to Peter but motioned to archer, "If it makes you feel any better nobody told Clint." Peter frowned and he could see the genius try and bite back a chuckle. He motioned toward the lab and Peter got up to follow him. "Sorry about that, kid, but I promise if anyone knows the importance of a secret identity it's us."
"You guys aren't secret." Peter argued as they entered the lab. He pulled out his phone to open an app and show it to him, "I follow Captain America and the Black Widow on Instagram!"
Mr. Stark twisted his lips with a narrowed gaze, "Okay, you got me there, admittedly, but we aren't about to go and spill your secret to the world, Pete. Have you considered who you want to share the secret with?"
"Nobody." Peter said firmly.
"Nobody?" Mr. Stark questioned. He stopped in his motions to give him a concerned look, "That isn't a good answer, kid. You have us now, which is great. Use us a resource, but you need your own support system. One of your friends maybe, one you really trust, and…"
"And?"
"Your aunt, maybe?"
Peter shook his head and waved his arms desperately, "No way, no way! Aunt May would lose her mind if she knew I was Spiderman. You can't tell her, Mr. Stark. You or Aj, please. Don't tell Aunt May."
"We won't." Mr. Stark agreed. "Trust me when I say that's not a conversation either of us wants to have with her. She needs to hear it from you."
Peter groaned, "Why does she have to know at all?"
"Because she loves you, Pete." Mr. Stark shrugged and turned to go back to what he was originally doing. His words kept Peter stuck in place though. As much as he didn't want to tell Aunt May, maybe she did deserve to know. The only doubt Peter ever had about being Spiderman was her. She was the only reason he would ever consider quitting. Peter didn't want one of his mistakes to force her to be alone. When the news of Uncle Ben's death had come, Peter had been there to keep her standing and vice versa. Who would be there for her if anything ever happened to him? How much worse would it be if he, God forbid, died and Aunt May didn't even know the truth? To be blindsided like that…
Peter knew he needed to tell her, but he didn't think he was quite brave enough to do that just yet.
"I saw you on TV again."
"Oh, God no."
Bucky chuckled at my exasperation. Two weeks had passed from the first time I ever spoke to a reporter about myself, and I had gotten better since then. Unfortunately, my baseline was so shit poor that getting better didn't mean I was actually any good.
"You looked good, doll." Bucky reassured me. "You were with Dr. Banner after some late night talk show. It was just a glimpse. You had on a navy dress."
That was from last night. He had an appearance on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, and I had gone with him. Actually, all the Avengers did. Tony was first, then yesterday it had been Bruce, and now, tonight, Steve had an appearance. Luckily, it wasn't so bad. Jimmy Fallon was actually a really cool guy and the best part was that I didn't have to talk on live television.
"I have to go again tonight." I replied. "It's Steve's turn."
"It's still weird seeing that punk on TV." Bucky chuckled then joked, "Hearing him say 'gosh darn' and 'dang nabbit' make me wish I had let those bullies beat him up in those alleys."
I grinned, "Oh! The 'dang nabbit' one is from me! My southern rubbed off on him."
Bucky replied, "So I have you to blame?"
"If it makes you feel better, we all make fun of him for it." I leaned against the wall of the café I was at and let my eyes glance back over the room where Beth was sitting at our table working. I had taken her out for a working lunch and slipped away for my daily dose of Bucky. "He started it because I told him not to curse to the reporters. He was being a smart ass, but now anytime he actually curses we yell at him like he's a toddler."
Bucky laughed and I basked in its warmth. It was time for me to start convincing Bucky to come home. It only made sense. We had talked every day for nearly two months now, and the last time I had even brought it up was literally the first we talked. As much as I knew I needed to, a part of me was afraid he'd run. What if I asked him to come home and he just disappeared on me instead? I told myself I was worried about that because I didn't want to lose the only rope we had on Steve's best friend, but the truth was… I didn't want to lose him either. I don't know what I'd do if I didn't get to talk to him every day. Was that pathetic of me?
Bucky and I spoke for another few minutes when I noticed Beth wasn't alone at our table. I narrowed my eyes to try and focus on the guy standing beside her with a wide grin. He looked friendly enough at the moment, but the uneasy look on Beth's face told me the rest of the story.
"Hey, Bucky, I gotta go." I said quickly. "I have to go beat the shit out a of guy."
Bucky must have been able to tell I wasn't in any danger based off my voice because all he did was reply, "Does the guy deserve it?"
"Oh yeah."
"Alright, put in a few good hits for me, doll." Bucky chuckled.
I said one more goodbye, stuffed the phone into my pocket, and then made my way back to the table. The guy, a redhead with freckles galore, was basically leering at my poor employee who was averting her own gaze away from him sheepishly. Beth noticed me and looked relieved as I dropped into my seat.
Red head looked at me and I said, "Are you here to take our orders?"
"Do I look like I work here?" He scoffed and motioned to his suit. Being around Tony so much, I knew it was an expensive suit. Though I didn't like the color. The dark green was unnoticeable from a distance but up close it clashed with his skin tone.
"I guess not, but I assumed you weren't stupid enough to try and harass a poor girl while she tries to enjoy her lunch." I replied. "My bad for giving you the benefit of the doubt. Now leave."
I glanced back at Beth who was fidgeting in her seat and still avoiding looking at the guy. He scoffed one more time and then instead of leaving he set his hands down on the table and leaned forward. My eyes drifted back over to meet his gaze nonchalantly.
"You bitches should learn that not everything is harassment." The Riddler looking motherfucker said confidently. "I was telling her I thought she'd have a nice smile."
I leaned forward onto the table, cradling my chin in my hand, and gave him a wide grin. The guy faltered and I saw his shoulders stiffen. Still, I didn't let my warning smile slip from my features, "How's my smile look?" He mumbled another curse before stalking away with a shake of his head. I rolled my eyes and sat back in my seat. I focused my attention back on the woman across from me, "Are you okay? He didn't hurt you, did he?"
"No. He was just annoying." Beth replied. She blinked a few times in shock before shaking her head, "How do you do that?"
I shrugged and picked up my menu to look it over, "Do what?"
"Your smile is so pretty, but you also make it look…dangerous?" Beth said in awe. "I mean, I've seen you do it before and every time is more amazing than the last! You didn't even have to threaten him with words. He just left."
"I, uh, picked up a few tricks over the years I guess." I didn't want to explain to the soft girl that I learned it by spending years facing across from people who wanted to spill my blood as much as I wanted to spill theirs. Half the fight was intimidation, and a 5'3 woman needed a few more tricks than the rest.
Beth bounced once in her seat, "Can you teach me?"
"Huh?"
"Teach me to smile like that!"
I chuckled in amusement then shrugged, "It's all in the eyes. You smile, as confidently as you can, but you make sure when they look you in the eyes that they know…they know you aren't someone to be messed with."
"Okay." Beth nodded once. She let out a steadying breath with a focused look on her features that I couldn't help but chuckle at. She then tried the trick, but the girl was about as threatening as a bunny. I laughed and her cheeks tinted pink, "So… not threatening?"
"Not quite." I shook my head. "Keep practicing."
Beth pouted to herself, twisting her lips, while letting her eyes trace the menu in front of her. She reminded me of Aubrey. They looked nothing alike. Beth was small where Aubrey was tall. Her hair was dark where my older sister's was dirty blonde. She was pretty in a cute, button way while Aubrey looked like something the gods carved from marble. In fact, if you stood Beth on my left and Aubrey on my right, strangers would assume Beth was my sister before Aubrey ever was. The thing that was similar was their innocence. Beth looked pure and soft, just like Aubrey always had. It brought the 'protective sister' instincts out of me.
I had forgotten what playing the big sister felt like.
Steve wasn't fond of interviews. It felt too much like putting on a show and it reminded him of the birth of Captain America. A figure head used to sell more war bonds all over America. A fraud. He had to admit though, the late night talk show scene wasn't too bad. The Avengers had met Jimmy Fallon as a group at the beginning of the week and the man was genuine. That made being on his show all the easier. Plus, Jimmy Fallon didn't hit him with any surprises. Everything that would be talked about on the show had been briefly discussed with him just minutes before they began filming.
"I'm just—I'm just in shock still, Jimmy." An actor named Seth Green gushed from the couch on Steve's right. He hadn't seen any of the guy's movies, but when they spoke backstage he seemed friendly enough. "This is Captain America. Like, the actual—the actual guy. He did the thing!"
"He did do the thing." Jimmy replied. "The thing."
Seth pointed to him, "I just want you to know I wrote a paper about you in 11th grade history class and my teacher, Ms. Rosenbloom, failed me. All because I said you were the kind of guy someone could enjoy a cold one with."
The audience laughed and Steve chuckled, "You put that in your paper?"
"You always had a very 'I can kick back and drink with this guy' kind of face, you know?"
"Thank you." Steve nodded. "That is the look I go for when I'm getting ready in the morning."
The audience laughed again, and Steve nervously shifted in his seat. Even when these things were going nothing but well, he always felt…off. It was the same thing when he put on shows back in the 40's. Too many eyes were on him. Too many eyes just watching and waiting to be entertained.
"—that's the great thing about you though, Steve!" Jimmy praised from behind his desk. "You're such an approachable guy despite being a real-life superhero. As Seth so aptly put, you do the things!"
"Well, I have a great team to help me do those things." Steve replied.
The show continued for a few minutes, and Jimmy gave him his allotted time to talk up the Avengers for most of them. That was the goal of all this after all. It'd be a lot harder for the government to throw them behind bars or tag them like animals if the public adored them.
Jimmy began to steer the interview back to questions focused on him, "What's one of the most jarring things about waking up in 2012? I mean, I know it's probably everything, but if you could pick one."
"Technology." Steve replied which brought a laugh out of the audience. Realistically, the most jarring thing had been the sudden realization that everyone he loved was dead. Bucky, Dum Dum, Gabe, Falsworth, Jacques, Jim. Howard. Colonel Phillips. Rebecca. Friends from the school yard. The neighbor who lived down the road from Bucky that always gave them baked goods after school. Finding Peggy, aged but alive, had been the miracle that kept him sane. That wasn't a great, fun TV answer though. He continued, "Tony gave me a Stark Phone and the things it can do. Wow. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it."
Jimmy motioned to him, "You're doing pretty good though! We've all seen your Instagram! I would bet 75% of the people on Instagram follow you."
"And if you want that last 25% all you have to do is post one of those after gym mirror selfie pics." Seth added, and the audience went wild. Steve felt his face grow warm and tried not to show how awkward he felt in the moment. Clint and Tony made jokes just like that, but back at the Tower when they did it he could lovingly tell them to 'fuck off'.
Steve forced a chuckle, "Geez, I don't think my PR team would be too fond of that."
"Fair enough but let your PR team know that we will start a fundraiser for charity to get you to post that selfie if we have to. It's for the good of America." Jimmy joked and the audience cheered again. "Okay, anything else in this century that you find yourself liking?"
He adjusted the dark brown tie he wore and let his eyes glance around the room quickly. His gaze landed on Aj who stood by the camera with her arms crossed. She wore a black blouse, olive dress pants that tied in a bow at the front, and a look of worry on her features. When he made eye contact with her though she gave him a reassuring smile and quick wink. Steve felt himself settle.
"Country music." Steve chuckled and he watched Aj's eyes widen slightly.
"I'm sorry, what?" Seth cried.
Steve focused back on the men beside him, "I guess it just kind of grew on me."
Seth shook his head, "What, like a mold?"
"Do you have a favorite artist or song?" Jimmy questioned.
"I'd say my favorite is Tennessee Whiskey. You know it, Jimmy?"
Jimmy spun and pointed at his band. A second later the chorus of the familiar song filled the studio. When the chorus wrapped up, the man turned back to him with a grin, "I gotta say, I did not have you pegged for a country man, Steve!"
"I'm really not, but…a, uh, friend of mine tells me country has the kind of romance songs that can make a dame weak in the knees."
"Wait a minute, is Tennessee Whiskey your song of choice for picking up chicks?" Seth questioned.
Jimmy clapped his hand on the desk, "America take notes!"
"Oh, no. I'm not in the business of picking up chicks. Every other Avenger will tell you that." Steve shook his head with a laugh. "Besides, not that song. That one already belongs to someone. She said I'm not allowed to use it with anyone else."
Steve realized he left the door open for them to question him on his love life. Not that he even had one, but he knew how his statement could be taken. Worry filled his gut, but true to his word, Jimmy steered the conversation into something else entirely without even missing a beat. The guy was incredible at his job and Steve appreciated that he stuck to their agreement not to ask about that even though Steve accidentally set him up for it.
"Now, Steven", Jimmy cleared his throat and shifted in his seat, "I would love to say that I beat Captain America in something, so I'd like to challenge you to a game of beer pong."
Seth leaned forward, "Notice he picks an event invented when you were frozen."
"Don't belittle my strategy." Jimmy said and motioned to him, "He has muscles, and I have nothing. I'm trying to even the playing field. Steve, have you played beer pong before?"
Steve shook his head, "I can't say that I have, Jimmy."
It was a lie. As much as they wanted to humanize the Avengers to the world, nobody wanted to be the one to tell the world that the Avengers played beer pong on game night sometimes. Granted, the rules were very different for them. Tony, who used to be the reigning champion in college with Rhodey, wasn't allowed to shoot with his dominant hand and if Rhodey was there for a game they weren't allowed to be partnered together. Clint had to wear a blind fold and had to be paired with Bruce who was the least competitive of the group. That was unless Sam was there of course. In which case, Clint was partnered with him because the birds could never get along long enough to win at anything.
The point was, Steve knew exactly how this game worked. Still, he listened to Jimmy explain the rules while they walked off the stage they had been sitting on to the stage next door where a ping pong table was set up with cups and baskets of ping pong balls.
"First to nail two cups wins!" Jimmy took his place.
Steve shrugged and motioned to him, "Non-genetically engineered humans first?"
The game started and they went back and forth. Usually when he played, they made him wear his shield on his left arm and his own personal rule was that he had to bounce it off his shield first then into a cup. Playing without that handicap made it all too easy. Still, Steve threw his balls to miss to keep the game going though. Jimmy finally made one, and Steve picked up the cup to down the beer inside.
"You know", Steve set the cup aside, "Super soldier means I don't get drunk."
Jimmy pointed at him, "Remind me to never play this game with you for real."
Steve smirked and threw ping pong ball into the center cup forcing Jimmy to drink. They continued to go back and forth and when the crowd cheered, Jimmy shot jokes at them mostly at his own expense. After a few more rounds, Jimmy made his second cup and threw his hands up in victory. Steve tossed the ball he had in his hand and it immediately landed into the first cup. The audience went wild and Jimmy grabbed his drink like a good sport. Seth ran over and grabbed one of the free cups and they all downed them quickly.
Seth slapped his back then held his cup up, "Look at me now, Ms. Rosenbloom!"
The people in the audience went crazy and Jimmy called out his good-byes over the loud applause. Steve gave them a quick salute and when the camera light finally went off, he felt his entire body relax in relief. Jimmy and Seth thanked him and said personal good-byes. The moment they were gone though, Steve began to look around for Aj.
She was talking to what looked like a reporter off to the side, but it ended quickly. Aj glanced over at him and raised an eyebrow. Steve hurried over with a grin.
"I thought we agreed we were gonna let Jimmy Fallon win beer pong."
"As it turns out, I don't like losing." Steve stuck his hands in his pockets.
"Yeah, I already knew that." Aj replied and he could sense an odd tone in her voice.
Steve furrowed his brow in worry. Had the reporter bothered her? Another thought occurred to him. Had it been him? Steve shook his head with a frown, "Hey, if this is about the song—"
"No." Aj reached out and set her hands on his arm. "It's not that, I promise. You did great tonight, Steve. Really."
He pulled her aside so no curious eyes would stare at them, "What's wrong then? Something is bothering you."
Aj paused, letting out a slow sigh, then gave him a tight smile, "It's not what you think. I just… I don't like seeing you in these interviews. I don't like seeing you in—in Captain America mode."
"Captain America mode?"
"Tony is Iron Man, and Iron Man is Tony. Always. They're one." Aj explained. She looped her arm through his and began to lead him back to the dressing rooms where their belongings were stored. "That's not how it is for you. Captain America is Steve Rogers, but…Steve Rogers isn't Captain America. Do I sound crazy?"
She wasn't. From the moment he put on the red, white, and blue outfit, Steve had been mentally separating himself from the role he played. When he formed the Howling Commandos it had been so much easier. They didn't have to do media appearances. Their only job was to stop HYDRA. Win the war. Steve was a soldier then and that was it. He loved being an Avenger now, he loved his team, but he did not love that he had to pick that role back up. He thought he had left it in the 40's.
Steve pulled Aj to a stop, "You think I'm not Captain America?"
"Well…yeah." Aj shrugged. "Captain America is this precious, all American boy who says things like 'geez' and 'golly' and he—I don't know, saves cats from trees and kisses babies on the forehead when he passes them in the streets. Women see him and picture this perfect prince charming in red, white, and blue armor."
Steve nodded, "Okay…"
"Steve Rogers—", Aj put emphasis on his name as a smile grew on her face, "—is a dorky nerd—"
"Dorky nerd?"
"—that has a mouth that would make a sailor blush. Bad enough to say 'fucking Goddamnit' in front of a child—"
"Okay, by child you just mean Peter and he's technically like 15, I think."
Aj's features softened, "He sketches in his free time and he likes to cuddle when Netflix is on and he hates the cold and he isn't some imaginary Prince Charming. He's real." She nudged him with her shoulder. "All I'm saying is… I don't think me and Captain America would get along too well. But, I really like Steve Rogers."
"Thanks." Steve swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat. There was something about being seen, really being seen, that made him pause. It was easy to get lost in the lights and lose track of who he really was amongst this media blitz, but knowing Aj saw the real him made the fear shrink.
Beth was a genius, and that meant I was also a genius because I was the one who chose to hire her. The Instagram plan was taking off. Every Avenger's account was live, including mine, and they were all doing amazing. It was literally the best case scenario. Even my account, which had only a few posts, one of which was a picture of Steve making his green smoothie alongside a smart assed caption about it, had more followers than my tiny, little brain could even comprehend. We were all verified, which was another thing I had learned, and the blue check mark by our names meant something important. Apparently.
"—taken the world by storm with pictures of their day to day lives." A news reporter said in a cheery voice on TV. Beth and I were parked on the couch with various news channels brought up on the TV since most of them were talking about the Avenger's PR campaign. Not everyone was for it, a few people were saying it was 'pandering' and a 'vie for good attention', but the public liked it and so did most news people.
I was taking our win and holding it proudly.
Beth was scribbling in her notebook while she spoke, "This is great news. We need to have all of them post something in the next two weeks. Whatever they want. We should also tell them to interact with the comments a little. Not any of the rude or heavy ones, just the fun, light-hearted stuff."
"Good idea. Again. You're killing this, Beth." I praised her.
She gave me a warm, proud smile, "It's a team effort. You've helped a lot."
"Yeah, but you're the mastermind. Take the praise."
We sat listening for another few seconds when Tony walked down from his lab and over to us. Beth looked up and her eyes went wide. She had met all of the Avengers, the job required it, but the poor girl was still in awe. I was sure that would wear off soon.
"Why are you watching TV? Aren't I paying you guys to work?" Tony asked.
Beth's face went pink in embarrassment and I could see the panic in her eyes, "O—Oh, sir! We—We are, this is just, uh—"
"We are working. Don't get your panties in a twist just because you don't recognize what it looks like, tin can." I replied jokingly. Tony smirked, happy to have at least gotten a rise out of Beth, and I pointed to the kitchen, "Clint's messing with your coffee settings by the way."
"That motherfucker—" Tony snapped and raced off.
Beth let out a sigh of relief, and I set my hand on her shoulder, "Don't stress. Tony just likes messing with people. He's actually a complete and total softie. Don't let him intimidate you, it just goes straight to his ego."
"I don't think I'll be able to ever tell Mr. Stark to 'not get his panties in a twist'." Beth chuckled. She glanced down at her notebook then back up to me, "I think you should post again too sometime later today. We'll use your account more often than the others."
I nodded, "Sure. I've done the 'story' thing too. This Instagram thing is actually kind of fun. I see the appeal."
Beth grinned and tucked a hair behind her ear, "I'm glad you like it. I think a picture of you and Mr. Stark or Dr. Banner would be best. It'll calm down every fan who's trying to ship you guys with each other since the world knows Mr. Stark is involved with Pepper Potts, and Dr. Banner with Dr. Betty Ross."
"Ship?" I questioned with a shake of my head, "What does that mean?"
"It means people want to see you dating someone else." Clint answered for her as he wandered into the living room from the kitchen. He dropped down onto the love seat and glared at me, "Also, I didn't know I raised a snitch."
I shook my head at him, "You didn't raise me, first off, and more importantly", I turned back to Beth in confusion, "Is bird brain right?"
"Oh my God and now you're calling me bird brain like Stark does?" Clint cried. Natasha came up in the elevator and he sat up quickly, "Tash! Aj is betraying us!"
Natasha shook her head and sat down in the single seat armchair with her phone, "Sounded like she's just betraying you which I'm fine with."
Beth nervously glanced around before clearing her throat, "He is right. It's like how I told you before that some people thought you and Steve were involved? Fans have opinions on who should be with who. It's mostly harmless. Mostly." She motioned to Clint then back to me, "For example, some people, since they don't know Clint Barton and Natasha Romanof are involved, have shipped the two of you together."
I made a gagging noise and Clint scoffed, "Excuse you! Don't you fake vomit about me. I am a fucking catch. Right, Tasha?"
"Meh." Natasha replied without looking up from her phone.
"This house is a prison." Clint grumbled and sank into his seat.
Beth chuckled, "Most people actually think you and Natasha should date… even though you already are." She turned back to me. "Most of the fans do like you with Steve. It's either they love it or hate it. There's really no in between."
"You didn't fake vomit at that."
I rolled my eyes at the archer, "Is it your time of the month? Why are you in such a mood?"
"Well, you guys keep hurting my feelings, and Stark—" He sat up to point at Tony as he came out of the kitchen again back toward us, "—has more Instagram followers than me which really isn't fair."
Tony scoffed, "I've had Instagram since 2010."
"Seriously?" Clint cried.
"I'm Tony fucking Stark. Of course, seriously."
Clint and Tony continued to argue while Beth and I went back to work. The good news was that the bulk of our work was done. The hard part at least. Now we just had to run the accounts and keep favorable in the public eye. That shouldn't be too hard for a group of world saving superheroes, right?
I spent the next fifteen minutes working on my Stark Pad while Beth did her own work beside me. Tony and Clint were somehow still arguing, but at least it was about something different now. I opened my mouth to tell them to bicker somewhere else when the sound of the 'Breaking News' alert flashed from the TV. I glanced up from my Stark Pad just in time to see a familiar, sickening smile staring back at me.
Boss' picture was on the screen.
There was movement around me. People were talking, some even to me potentially, but I felt alone. I couldn't even hear the news anchor's voice. The only data my brain was collecting was this: Boss' picture was on the TV, there had been a targeted attack, and now Boss was out. Boss was out. Boss was out. He wasn't behind metal bars or thick concrete walls. He was out and about in the same city as me.
'I told you so, pet.' His cruel, mocking words echoed in my brain. The ghost of his voice ever alive in the back of my mind. The Stark Pad slipped from my grip, hitting the hard floor, and I felt someone set their hands on my shoulder. Still my mind was blank, and my world was quiet as I grasped what this meant.
A cold, sharp chill ran down my spine and a sinking feeling filled my gut.
Boss had gotten out of jail.
Boss was going to kill me.
