Proposition

I found myself glancing across the room at James, who had resumed his space halfway in the shadows. "We all need help at some point in our lives. You guys help people by saving them from danger, I help people by telling them the truth and understanding themselves."

Wanda nodded at this, but I noticed that Vision's eyes seemed to contract.

They suddenly dilated back to normal. "The Captain would like to speak with you, Miss Reynolds," Vision informed me. "And he has company."

A jolt of anxiety ran through my heart. The wording of his sentence didn't necessarily indicate a threat, but it wasn't a vote of confidence either. I vaguely recalled when Captain Rogers had asked for my credentials— but that was a casual inquiry, wasn't it? It was a twenty-questions sort of thing, a conversation filler.

It took me a moment, but I managed a smile and began collecting my things. When I stood up from the table, I could see what Vision was referring to. Captain Rogers was walking toward me with two people behind him; one was a nondescript man in a suit and the other was a man I recognized as Sam Wilson, the Falcon.

I smoothed out my dress and made sure my smile was in place. "Captain Rogers, nice to see you again. May I help you?"

A smile cringed onto his face. "Sorry, I know this probably looks bad. I just wanted to introduce you to my friends Sam-" he nodded, "and Phil Coulson."

I sized them up instantly. Sam Wilson looked sharp and in control in his charcoal grey suit and tie, while the man Captain Rogers said was Phil Coulson seemed to somehow ride the line between uptight and at ease incredibly well. At that moment, I felt like I had never been smaller in my life, even in heels.

I extended my hand to both men. "Nice to meet you."

"You too," Sam smiled.

"A pleasure," Phil Coulson said neutrally.

Awkwardness was creeping up the back of my neck, and I fought the urge to spit out an excuse to leave. Multiple sets of eyes were on me, but I held onto my clutch tight to avoid twitching. Captain Rogers was smiling at me, but I could tell he felt bad for making me nervous with this situation.

"Miss Reynolds," Phil Coulson began, "my apologies for this. We've heard a lot about you, and, having watched you conduct interviews with a third of the Avengers, we would like to conduct our own interview with you."

"What for?" I replied calmly.

Sam chuckled. "Well, you seem good talking with everyone, and we ain't exactly a group of normal people. A few team members in particular could use some help."

I noticed Captain Rogers scratch the back of his head. "This is the point where I leave, isn't it?"

"Yes," Phil Coulson said.

Captain Rogers nodded awkwardly, gave me an apologetic look, and walked away.

A moment passed before Phil Coulson motioned to an empty table next to us. "Have a seat, Miss Reynolds."

I sat down slowly, taking time to let my eyes wander around the room. Sargent Barnes was still in view, as was everyone else I'd spoken to that evening. For some reason, though, his presence comforted me the most.

The sound of someone clearing their throat brought me back to the present. "There's no need to look for exits, Miss Reynolds."

"I like to keep my options open, Mr. Coulson." The words came out faster than I thought they would. I instantly regretted saying them, but Sam Wilson looked amused, so I figured I was in the clear.

"Look, I'll do the talking," Sam Wilson decided out loud. "Steve likes your website and what you guys publish. It's the reason you were invited. He struggles with everything remotely technologically related— except for your blog."

"You guys make things that are difficult to understand easy, and he likes that," Phil Coulson added on.

I smiled ruefully. "That's the goal."

Sam Wilson nodded. "Exactly. Like I was saying, some of the members on our team need help. Steve told me about your background— why the history minor?"

"It interests me," I shrugged. "I had enough space for it in my schedule, so I decided to add it onto my majors. Why?"

"Captain Rogers and Sargent Barnes aren't acclimating as well to this decade as we hoped," Phil Coulson revealed factually. "Rogers already trusts you, and Barnes will follow suit because of that. It wouldn't be a full time position— you'd come in once a week, bring them up to speed on what they missed out on, and help them understand society now."

I raised an eyebrow. "And why do you need me for this? There's gotta be a licensed therapist you guys could get a hold of."

"Listen, when I first met Steve, he was running around with a list of stuff he didn't know about," Sam laughed. "He wasn't even scratching the surface. As for therapists, we've tried that. All they wanna do is prescribe medicine these days. Our boys are old school, they wanna learn how to deal with it on their own."

My mind felt like it was reeling, but somehow it all made sense. Once a week history and culture lessons, basically. But where would I even begin? How much had they already been told about the past eighty years? Would learning about the past help them cope with the present? All of these questions rattled around in my head in an instant.

Phil Coulson's neutral voice cut through the mental noise. "I understand that you will need to think this over. Here's my card," he said as he slid a small piece of card stock over to me. "Contact me with your answer within a week."

I nodded my head before standing up. "Thank you for the opportunity. I will contact you as soon as I make up my mind."

As I walked away, I didn't feel as many eyes on me as I previously had. There was one gaze that was permanent, however. It was on the back of my head, pulling me back like a string. I stopped and turned— there he was, back by the pillars again. I smiled and gave a quick wave, not that I expected the former assassin to return either gesture. But, before I turned back to leave, I caught a glimpse of a slight smile.

Maybe I could help him.

I laid in bed that night wondering what I had gotten myself into. First thing in the morning, I needed to type up my quotes and upload my photos to my computer. Then I needed to think about whether or not any of this was a good idea.

I turned over to one side and thought back to the gala. Captain Rogers may be in control on the battle field, but he certainly wasn't in a social setting. As for Sargent Barnes, well, staying in a back corner couldn't even be considered an attempt at socializing. He was going to be the more difficult one…that is, if I even decided to help them.

The more I thought about it, the easier it seemed. A general overview of the last century's history? No problem. Getting them up to speed on recent advances in technology? Might be a little trickier, but still shouldn't be difficult. Finally, I closed my eyes with the thought that, if I did accept, it wouldn't be that difficult.

Oh if only I'd known.

Hello there! I don't typically do authors notes, so this will probably be the one and only. I just wanted to let you guys know that I will be updating regularly on Saturdays, so expect a chapter a week. Enjoy!