Chapter Eight
James lays on the hood of the car staring up at the stars while he smoked his soothing cigarette. His mind wandered back to when he was fifteen when everything was just as confusing as it is now. He closes his eyes with a long drawn out sigh before memories guide him back four years ago...
James sat in the courtyard by himself while he reads The Catcher in the Rye. His eyes scanned the yellow pages excitedly while he bites into the soft skin of the peach he holds in his right hand. James was lost in the world of J.D. Salinger's famous novel while the world around him was still and thick. Reading was a perfect escape for James as life was slowly settling down for him, but he would admit high school was another challenge he had yet fully faced. He sighed with contentment while the wind blew through his blonde hair.
Before James could turn the page his book was snatched out of his hands causing him to be thrown back into reality. James looks up quickly to find a Junior holding his book sideways. James rolled his eyes becoming increasingly annoyed, "Are you really that incompetent that you don't know how to hold a book correctly?" James asks unamused.
The teen glanced over at James while throwing the book back at him. James caught the book feeling peeved by the situation at hand, "I was wondering why a nerd like you would be in our territory." The teen asks while his friends who all wearing football jerseys walk up next to him.
"Territory? I'm pretty sure this is free to the public to sit wherever they please." James explains not fazed by their threatening manner.
"It is, but where your sitting is not." The boy informed irritated.
"By whose authority?" James asked with a tilt of his head. "Look, I d-" Before James could say anything else the teen grabs James by the shirt up onto his feet.
"By my authority..." The teen snarls. James stares narrowly into the black eyes of his childhood nemesis.
"Let him go, Ronny!" A voice yells from behind them. Ronny dropped James to turn around to find no other but Francis. James sighed heavily before picking his book off the ground.
"I thought you graduated last year." Ronny said with a head nod towards Francis.
Francis strutted over to them with his arms folded across his chest. "I did, but I came to eat with my brother. Some of us actually care bout people." James tilted his head down while biting the inside of his bottom lip. "Let's go, James." Francis ordered kindly while helping James off the ground. James grabbed all of his stuff and followed his brother to the other side of the courtyard.
"I-I didn't need your help." James stammered to say once they were far away from those jerks. Francis whipped around slight offended by James' statement.
"What, why? You always have people bullying you, it's time to stick up for yourself. Make something of yourself, not just the kid who sits around reading and not interacting with anyone." Francis said not trying to be mean. James glanced downward suddenly feeling his anxiousness grip his heart.
"It's not that easy...I'm not you!" James exclaimed feeling attacked. Francis looked away feeling guilty for his harsh words.
"It's not what I meant. I just want you to find your place." Francis stressed wishing James would do something to help himself. "I just want you to have friends."
"I have friends." James interjected annoyed, "I may not have the whole school following me as a king, but at least I have Griffin and Cecile. I'm not ever going to fit in because of my gifts. What I have to hide, and I like who I am...sometimes. I didn't want to fit in this place. I could care less of what people think of me. What you think of me. What they think of me. I'm me, and if me isn't good enough for here then this isn't where I'm meant to be. But I'm an outsider, and I don't belong. I just found my place within your family." James swallowed dryly trying to hold back his flooding emotions. Francis looked down to the ground now truly regret saying what he did.
James squeezes his eyes open feeling suddenly numb. He smiles softly to himself feeling the soothing numbness return. It was the numbness that allowed him to keep going on with life. Some would call it coldness, but in all reality, it was what kept him sane. He really couldn't explain what it did for him, but it allowed him to move on and live. James throws his done cigarette to the ground in a hurry when he hears footsteps approaching him.
"You know, I know you smoke." Francis's laughs with a smirk. James sits up on his elbows to face his old brother. "Is this seat taken?"
"Be my guest." James answers while patting next to him on the cool metal.
Francis sits down next to him with a huff, "So what were you thinking about?" James swallows hard knowing what he was thinking about was one of their rough moments.
"Do you remember Ronny?" James asks now looking Francis in the eye.
"Yeah," Francis nods his head, "Why?"
"That's what I was thinking about. That time when you defended me when I was fifteen, fall of freshman year." James explains with his voice echoing in memory.
"I remember that. I was such a jerk trying to get you to fit into a mold that wasn't you... I just knew your abilities, and how you could use them. And to my surprise, you did when you joined the soccer team junior year." Francis recalls sadly. James smiles downwardly remembering how surprised his brother really was.
"You can thank the goon who is currently asleep in the hotel for that." James remarks with a big grin. Francis nudges his brother playfully knowing he's right.
"Why were you thinking about that?" Francis asks glad that his brother was back to acting normal.
"Because during that time I felt out of place like I didn't belong anywhere. I mean, it had only been two years since when I officially moved on from my parent's death, I mean I can't really move on from it, but I was okay. I still felt so, so out of place in high school. I didn't do what they did. And now I feel again that same damn feeling. I don't know where I belong. I'm just saying that with all that's going on, I'm a hazard." James explains with sorrow deep in his voice.
Francis looks down knowing he was feeling that way. "I know you do. You can't hide when you are in pain. But you do belong...you belong with us. James, you are a part of this family no matter who tries to hurt us. You're my brother, and no one can take that away... I just have one question, what did you find back at the house?" James looks away quickly not sure how to respond to him.
"I didn't find anything." He lies with his eyes telling another story. Francis shakes his head understandingly.
"Well don't stay up too late, we have a big morning ahead of us." Francis walks back in the hotel leaving James feeling guilty for lying to him.
James pulls out the note out of his pocket feeling anger rise up in his chest again. "I will find my answers..." James vows before heading back to the hotel as well.
Sam pulls out his phone feeling suddenly guilty for not being there when HYDRA had attacked. He pushes Steve's name hoping that he would answer the phone even though it's late where he is at. Sam waits patiently for the ringing to stop, "Come on..." Sam whispers impatiently. He hears a click hopefully, but only to hear the voice mail. "Damn it, Steve..." Sam sighs while sitting down on the bench to watch the sun to rise over the horizon.
"Still no answer?" A voice asks from behind causing Sam to jump slightly. He turns around to find a familiar face which calms him.
"Not yet." Sam answers truthfully.
"They're probably asleep...So you want me to watch him while he is in New York?" Sam nods his head yes before speaking.
"That would be nice, Sharon. Watch him closely he, I fear, will try to do something irrational." Sam informs heavy while turning to face her while she sits down next to him.
"Is that why you're trying to get a hold of them?" Sharon asks pointing over at the phone in his lap. Sam looks downwardly knowing that's part of it.
"Partly, the other part is to warn them that he is in danger." Sam answers with his voice distant with thought. Sharon nods her head understanding what he was referring too.
"Welcome home!" Francis announces while opening up the white door leading into his apartment. James stumbles in with his suitcases in tow, it had been a long flight from Iowa to New York leaving James feeling exhausted. James scans the medium studio apartment, the walls were white and decorated with Francis's captured picture portraits. James walks towards the couch with the floors creaking underneath him. He didn't realize how small everything was in New York until now, it almost made him claustrophobic.
"Guys, is it just me or does New York have an interesting smell to it?" Griffin asks waltzing into the room with a big grin on his cheeks. Francis glances over at Griffin stifling a laugh.
"I think it might be you. Have you showered?" James quips with a cheeky smirk. Griffin rolls his eyes while plopping down next to James.
"So when are we going to explore this great city?" Griffin asks while propping his legs up on the rustic wooden coffee table.
James scans the high ceilings not really ready to go out with all that is happening. "I'm not sure." James answers distantly.
"Okay..." Griff yawns while resting his head on a pillow to take a nap.
James looks over to find Griffin asleep, "I'm gonna go out for a walk." James says quietly over to Francis.
"What about him?" Francis asks nodding over to Griffin. James glances over to his friend knowing if he woke him up now he'll be a dead man.
"He'll be fine. I want some solitude." James answers truthfully before heading out the door.
James walks down the street feeling overwhelmed by the current events that have happened to him. He couldn't believe that what he thought was gone for good was coming back to haunt him. His thoughts drifted back when he was a child. He couldn't erase those memories no matter how hard he tried. And that was what he hated the most. James pulls out a packet of cigs out from his back pocket for a calming smoke. James breathes in the bitter smoke while he walks further down the street wanting to forget the past few days.
New York was extremely different from his little town back in Iowa. He wasn't for sure if he liked what he was seeing, or if he was going to start hating it. James thoughts drift all over the place while traffic passes him loudly to the right, and people push pass him on the left. He wasn't sure exactly where he was located, but it was defiantly congested. James takes another long drag on his cigarette while he walks further down the sidewalk.
"Oh, excuse me!" A frazzled voice apologizes while bending down to pick up her papers. James turns to find a frantic young woman struggling to get all of her paper's in order.
"May I help you?" James asks walking over to her.
"No, no, it's fine." The young woman waves her hand dismissing his polite gesture. James smiles slightly to himself knowing she's probably not used to hospitality.
"I don't think you'll be able to pick those up with the wind, and all of these people." James observes causing her to concede into letting him help her.
"Alright, fine, you can help. You are obviously are not from here." She chuckles clearly amused. James bends down to help her gather all of her papers before handing them to her. "Thank you so, so much... You don't how much that mea-" The woman looks up with a sigh of relief only to be left in shock,"to me..." She finishes saying still in shock. James blinks aghast by the green hazel eyes he is starring into. "James...?" The woman asks not sure if she was right or not, "James Barton?"
"Cecile?" James now asks in a response to her question.
"W-what are you doing here?" Cecile asks while standing up. She pushes back her golden curl behind her ear while shifting slightly.
"I'm here with my brother. Did you not hear about my parents?" James asks surprised she hadn't heard anything from Griffin. Cecile looks at him confused knowing that Griffin would have told her, but with everything being so busy she hasn't been able to talk to anybody.
"I haven't been able to talk to anybody. What happen?" Cecile answers truthfully and with deep concern. James glances downward not sure if he wanted to mention such depressing news.
"A freak accident happened which caused my parents to hospitalized. But they should be fined, but in the time being I'm staying with my brother since I'll be attending NYU soon." James answers nervously while he throws his half smoked cigarette on the ground.
"I'm so sorry!" Cecile exclaims with genuine sympathy. "I'm glad that you and Francis didn't get injured." James nods his head knowing she means well. They shift suddenly feeling awkward and unsure of what to say.
"Where you headed?" James asks trying to break the tension between them. Cecile blinks as if she is suddenly pulled out a dazed daydream.
"North," She points towards the direction while taking a deep breath, "I'm-I'm heading north. Where are you going?" She asks realizing he probably isn't going anywhere really.
"I was about to head back to Francis's." He answers quickly trying to move out of people's way.
"Well, that is the direction that I'm going. I guess we can walk together." She says with a pretty smile. James nods his head liking that idea.
They walk a little ways in silence as if they are trying to come up with something to say to one another. James glances over towards Cecile noticing her hands tightly gripped to her papers as if she was nervous. He understands how she feels because he was feeling the same. "So you smoke now." Cecile suddenly comments looking over at him with an almost forced smile.
James snorts at her comment knowing she probably hates the idea of him smoking, "Well, yes. I started smoking maybe two years ago. I don't know it takes the edge off where other things don't for me." Cecile nods her head obviously hating the idea, but putting on a good face for him.
Cecile sighs with a soft smile appearing on her pink lips, "I guess it suits you..." She rolls her eyes not even masking her disapproval.
"What's that suppose to mean?" James asks with a smirk.
"It suits you. Meaning it's better than other things? I don't know, honestly, you look different except the blonde hair and blue eyes but other than that you are different." She tries to explain without offending him. James smile broadens knowing what she means. They stop walking when they reach the building that Francis's apartment resides in.
"This is my stop." James sighs while turning to face her. Cecile looks downwardly wishing they had more time to talk. "Will I see you again?" James asks calmly, but nervously. Cecile quickly looks at him shocked by his question.
"Sure, yeah, um whenever really...well...not really whenever, but I'll let you know." She answers trying to hold back her smile.
"Cool," James says also trying to hold back his smile. He turns to head up the stairs, but he before he does he turns back to her, "I forgot to mention that Griffin is also here. If you wanted to hang out with all of us some time." Cecile eyes brighten at the mention of Griffin.
"That would be great!" Cecile exclaims feeling more at ease now. James smiles downwardly feeling better than before.
"I'll get your number from Griffin, and I'll text you whenever we want to hang out." James says with his heart now racing. Cecile bites her bottom lip feeling her own heart skip a beat.
"Okay! It was great to see you again, um, but I gotta go or Mr. Parker will be really upset." Cecile informs while starting to walk away.
"Mr. Parker?" James asks with his brow creased with confusion. Cecile turns back with a smile.
"Yeah, Peter Parker. I work for him at the Daily Bugle! Text me! It's was great seeing you, James!" Cecile yells back at him while she keeps walking backward. She turns forward on her heal heading back to the Daily Bugle.
James leans on the door leading into the apartment complex in shock over bumping into Cecile. James tries to hold it together, but he couldn't help feeling his heart race faster. "Wow..." James mumbles to himself, "She's gotten prettier..." He smiles down feeling heat run up his neck. He thought his feelings were tamed for her, but he knew if he saw her again they would come flooding back.
Author Notes: Hey guys! Thank You for all the reviews! I enjoyed reading them! I hope you guys like this chapter! And yes, I have introduced Cecile! :)
Love y'all,
-C.R.