white flag, steve rogers

005. agent janus

chapter five
005. agent janus

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    "STOP." 

    Agent Daniel's voice was low and scolding as soon as she noticed Rogers glance over his shoulder beside her. He frowned and turned back to her▬she lightly rolled her eyes, keeping her pace that marched back towards her parked car very casual. Even while her heart was pounding and her ears and eyes were piqued for any irregular sound of movement, she kept her breath steady. It was a skill that she had worked very hard to try and master▬a skill that Rogers had not picked up: subtleness. He was already taller than the average American▬and bulkier. No one would be able to walk past without double-taking to breath an astonished: how many times did this guy go to the gym? As soon as they did that, they would see his face▬and it wasn't exactly the average face, either. And then they'd grin and call out, "Captain America!" and ask for a photo. They couldn't afford anything like that right now. Agent Daniels needed Captain Rogers to eliminate all possible recognition▬and he was making it very close to the borderline of impossible. 

    He was uncomfortable as he walked beside her. Tense and rigid▬unable to stop himself from glancing around to check whether they were being followed; and every time, Daniels had to nudge his foot and snap at him so he would keep his eyes forward. This time, he replied: "What?"

    "Contrary to popular belief," grumbled the Red Viper under her breath, "the more you look over your shoulder the more likely you are going to draw attention to yourself. You're going to make us look suspicious."

    Captain America clenched and then unclenched his hands, hefting out a frustrated sigh: "Looking suspicious isn't what we're lacking in."

    "Exactly," she matched his tone, scowling at him. "So don't make it worse▬you're already a sight for sore eyes."

    His brows bounced at her sarcasm, "Thanks."

    "Throwing a hood over your head doesn't make the disguise," she said matter-of-factly. "It's your posture, the way you walk▬whether you look over your shoulder▬" she jerked his arm to stop him from doing so again. "Trust me, okay? I know what I'm talking about. And the moment someone recognises you, that's it, we're done."

    Rogers eyed her for a brief moment. Before she'd arch a brow and meet it, he fixed his stare forwards▬finally. "Because you're good at lying, is that it?"

    She shook her head, scoffing a little under her breath. She couldn't believe him▬no matter what she said or what she did, it seemed to be a direct violation on his stubborn values and he always took it personality in the most aggravating way. "I'm just good at my job," she muttered in a sharp reply. "That's what I do▬my job. And yeah, that job means I have to lie so I don't get killed▬so the people around me don't get killed. I might have to do things that other people might find uncomfortable. I might have to become people I don't like▬but it's for the protection of the people around me. I thought you'd understand that. America did terrible things in the War▬every allied country did terrible things and put it under the promise of peace. To protect those that they still could protect."

    Daniels knew she had hit a nerve▬she knew she would. She didn't say what she did to receive a breath of peace between them, but it had distracted Rogers from looking over his shoulder▬it did what she needed it to do. 

    "Yeah," Steve locked a fiery gaze onto her, "we made sacrifices. But we did it in the name of freedom. Against every power that was taking that away from its own people."