I Thought You Were Different: Part 6

Esihle

When Anthony returned to the compound, a little beaten and certainly worse for wear, he had planned on the relief of a hot shower, foraging through the refrigerator for leftovers, and a very long sleep. He could feel his body relaxing at the thought of it alone, so much so that his eyes grew heavy as he sat in the back of Sam's car, right up until the moment the car was parked and the lights came on to fully wake him again. With a groan of discontent from a body that was feeling so much older than its twenty-five years, he agreed to Sam's outstretched hand to help him out.

"Wow, Ant, you look rough," Sam chuckled. "Maybe next time give it a second thought before running off to Hydra on your own, alright?"

"No argument here, trust me."

"I will not. You're half Rogers and half Stark, so I know better."

"Valid point," Anthony sighed. He raised his arms over his head in a long stretch, yawning so loud that it echoed throughout the garage around them. "Alright, thanks for the ride back, guys. Would you let me know if you hear anything from Mom or Dad?"

"Of course," Bucky added, "just get some rest and we can talk later...or...maybe rest will have to come later." He paused and turned towards the door into the building, pointing towards a waiting Esihle, her arms folded over her chest angrily, her eyes filled with tears not from sadness, but from how mad she was.

"Right, good luck, kid," Sam waved casually, "make sure you have FRIDAY jot down your funeral instructions before you go in there, just in case."

"Helpful, thanks."

"That's what I'm here for." Sam held out a hand to let Bucky through the door first, pausing next to Anthony's girlfriend for a second, glancing back over his shoulder towards the young man. "Don't worry," he whispered, "the suit's pretty busted."

"Do you honestly think that a suit would stop me?" she answered flatly, her eyes never leaving Anthony. Sam didn't speak another word to her before making his way into the building, but she heard him mutter something to Bucky as their voices faded into the distance. None of it mattered, however; in the whole of the world, only one person had earned her undivided attention right now.

"Esihle, I'm fine-"

"I told you," she snapped, "I told you that you were letting your feelings drive your intentions and that you would be hurt. I told you, and you refused to listen because once that suit grows around you, no one can break through. I don't know who you are more like, your father or your grandfather...or your mother for that matter."

"None of those are insults to me, you realize?"

She opened her mouth to offer a fast retort, but she knew that he was right. It wasn't meant to be an insult in any way, but it was meant to catch him enough off guard to stop and think about what he had done to her. "It wasn't meant to be...of course it wasn't, I respect each of them...but Anthony," she paused, biting her lower lip to stop the quivering as it began, "put yourself in my place for just a moment. We've barely been reunited-"

"I understand," he answered gently, taking careful steps towards her, "and I really am sorry that I scared you."

"But you're not sorry that you went out and almost got yourself killed?"

"No, I'm not, and that isn't meant to diminish your feelings about it, okay? I went out there to save my dad, Esihle, and I won't apologize for that. Not even to you. It wasn't a question for me after everything that they've done for us...for me. I would go again right now if I needed to."

"That is what scares me."

Anthony grumbled under his breath and shook his head incredulously, "don't you think that I will feel exactly the same way when I hear that you're running into battle with T'Challa? You've taken an oath to die for him. You will willingly throw yourself in front of him to save his life, and you chastise me for offering the same thing for my own dad? That's a little hypocritical, don't you think?"