No-One But You (The Zephyr Endeavor)
Chapter 94: End Game (Part 4)
The upcoming Surveillant Council meeting was set to take place on June 18th at 9 A. .
Now, there wasn't anything special going on that day for some people, but for others it might have been a day worth celebrating…
Clint Barton was on a video call with his older brother, and he was surprised to hear him say the words "Happy Birthday" to him when the call began.
Oh yeah, the baby bird was a year older, or whatever. He smiled at his brother after he received the cordial greeting, then he asked him how things were going.
…
"I've actually been given an opportunity to serve my time outsideof prison, so… that's pretty good news."
…
Wait. Say what? Barton's eyes opened wide when he heard what his brother actually said. He was kinda spacing out because of the birthday thing, and he remembered something that he had looked over and read for the thousandth time.
He read a message that was sent to him by Victor Strange a couple days ago, but he really wasn't sure how to respond. He was almost ready to talk to him, but the archer was also very melancholy and… distracted, so… what his brother kinda said brought him out of it.
…
"How, wait huh?"
…
"Yeah. Nick Fury told me about this rehabilitation thing that they're trying to cook up through S.H.I.E.L.D, or whatever. It's not technically faith based, but he's got some reverend lady running the show. She's cute, but I'm not into all that… church stuff."
…
Hold the phone, hold the horses, and cut the cord. Did he say a reverend, lady? The archer remembered apprehending a woman named Reverend Miller. Ezekiel smug-face Stane tried to talk to him about her, but the archer didn't want to hear his smug voice at all.
He wouldn't listen, but now it seemed like he was hearing exactly what Ezekiel was trying to say…
…
"What's the rehabilitation part about? You aren't on drugs, or…"
…
His brother had a funny laugh, and the archer noticed that he rolled his eyes at the thought. They both were fit and healthy human beings, but they unfortunately operated on the wrong side of the spectrum…
…
"It's not about drugs, goof. Everyone I used to run with who ISN'T dead gets to be part of this group rehabilitation program. It's clear that it's a test run, but it beats being in prison so, I agreed to participate."
…
Bernard Barton didn't know what the program was called, but he was all for it and he gave the rest of his explanation a small shrug. He wanted to focus on something else entirely, because something was on his mind when it came down to his baby brother.
It was his friggen birthday for Christ's sake, and there he was wasting his morning talking to him. The older brother felt that way for a while. He wanted his brother to live his life and be happy, so now he felt like it was a good time for them to hash it out.
…
"Don't worry about that crap tho, ok? Do you have any plans for your birthday?"
…
Uhhh… no. The baby bird's mood went for a loop when he listened to the first thing his brother had to say, but then it dropped like a rock when he brought up the birthday thing again.
He didn't have any plans. In fact, he forgot all about it, and…
Bernard watched his brother silently shake his head and say the word NO, so his eyebrows slowly stitched together as close as they could. His little brother was what, 21 now? That was supposed to be the best time in his friggen life…
…
"What do you mean no? Don't you have a girlfriend out there to spoil ya? I don't want you sulking around talking to me, I won't let that happen."
…
Saaaaaaaa. The archer's mood was all over the place. He felt an inner pain swell up in his baby soul after his brother said what he did. Part of him wanted to fight the guy to the death, but another side of him wanted to… explain.
…
"I don't. No… but, I had someone. I was with someone for a while, but…"
…
BUT that went to hell in a hand basket faster than anyone could blink. The archer hadn't spoken a word about it to anyone, but that didn't change the fact that it was in his mind all the time.
Victor was on his mind all the time, so he closed his eyes shortly after he gave his brother some sort of answer. Long story short, the expression on his face was all that his "big bro" needed to see.
…
"So, get another girlfriend. You gotta move on. Look, I'll work really hard at this S.H.I.E.L.D. redemption program thing, IF you promise me that you'll get yourself a new girlfriend."
…
"It wasn't a girlfriend. He… I was… with…a…."
…
Uhhhhh… that part came out a bit unexpectedly. The baby bird didn't mean to clarify what his brother was saying, but he accidentally said what was on his mind for all to hear.
Thankfully, he stopped himself before the sentence ended, then he forced himself to look at the time. The Surveillant Council meeting was happening soon, and Steve Rogers wanted everyone there who was part of the initial team.
…
"Did you just… wait. hold on? What do you mean it wasn't a girlfriend?"
…
His older brother was trying to calculate and do the math on what he heard, but all of a sudden his baby brother started rushing his way out of the call. He said he was needed for some meeting, but Bernard determined that to be a bullshit lie.
Did his baby bro just admit he was with, a guy? Was he… WAIT. Hold the effing phone. The call came to an abrupt end, and the archer took off from his bedroom.
He was running later than he thought, so he grabbed his keys, his shoes, his wallet, his phone, all that shit, then he booked it out the door as fast as he could.
He wasn't used to the technology that he received from some smug person who ran S.H.A.D.O.W, so "Agent" Barton took the long trek out to the main S.H.I.E.L.D. facility without the use of Shrike.
He was beyond sidetracked, because he also read the list of names of everyone who was supposed to be attending the meeting. So, that means he was expecting Ezekiel's "Mystic Consultant" to actually be there in person.
The archer arrived earlier than most, and he took a seat on the right side of the room. He made sure to do that so he'd be close to the EXIT .
He might have to take off early if shit got weird. Cool. Ok. Several people were there in the room already talking, but the baby bird couldn't shake what he said to his brother.
He did kinda just, accidentally… come out to him, in a way, so… he had his mind set on something completely different…
Chapter: END
Thanks for reading.