Starry eyed

Chapter 2:

(Imagine hair and eyes on the boy in last chapter)

The familiar prickly sensation up his neck made Andy look up. Big, blond, and aggressively serious superhero has his arms crossed and is looking at him with a brooding gaze. Aggressively Serious Superhero—oh! ASS—ASS looks at Andy's notebook, to his hands, to his face, and then back down at the notebook.

"Who gave you that?" ASS says (more like demands), pointing to the now closed book. His tone was sharp and accusing. Just like—Andy clenches his jaw and averts his eyes, cutting himself off.

Who does this guy think he is?

Andy doesn't mean to sound like a dick, but ASS needs to take some Xanax or Adderall. Maybe smoke some weed. Heroin, coke, literally anything just to help ease that stick out of his ass (Ha! ASS's ass). Speaking of medicine, though, is he still able to take it? It shouldn't be that much of a big deal, but Shield didn't let him take it and he hasn't been on any for—four days, five hours, twenty three minutes and thirteen seconds, not that he's counting or anything—a while because they thought he would abuse it. Even if he was, which he isn't, he wouldn't ever abuse it in a government facility.

Okay, okay! Relax. If they won't give it to you (which they obviously won't) you can just deal. It's fine. You'll be fine.

When he didn't answer, ASS moved closer. Just a little step. However, the way he did it was meant to intimidate. Just like— Andy tore out the letter quickly, stuffing it into his hoodie pocket. ASS hurried forwards, snatching the notebook away. He didn't notice the missing page. Good. Andy flinches and instinctively slides two seats over, clutching his arm across his chest.

ASS held up the notebook, looking at Andy intensely. "Who?" He demands, crossing his arms. "Who gave it to you?"

He sounded like an owl.

Andy closes his eyes—calm down calm down calm down think of something else think of something else—

"Steve, relax," A pretty but deadly—like the mute swan—redhead walked out of the cockpit. He could kiss her if that wasn't illegal because he's underage. "It was on the seat." She said, strutting (silently walking) over to the two of them. "Saw it when I came in."

Swan puts a hand on ASS's—Steve's? No. ASS's—shoulder and looks over to Andy. Instead of the brooding gaze, she was skeptical, studying. ASS looks at her and furrows his eyebrows for a second before looking back at Andy.

These are two of the Avengers, are they not? Why do they seem so unsuperhero-y? Oh, right that thing with the Accords. ASS must be Captain America, the one who lead the whole revolt. The one who abandoned his team/family just for an old friend who was now a secret assassin. He was a lier and an asshole. Just like— Andy looks away from the two adults. So he abandoned his friends, fucked up everything in the government, and went into hiding for a year. Now he's back.

Ah, that's why he's bossing Andy around. Probably because he's sick of the loyalty by his current teammates, and then of the ones who won't trust him anymore.

He wants Andy on his side.

"You're younger than I would have thought." Swan tilts her head and studies his face again. "How old are you?" Her voice is a little less cold than before.

Andy wipes his cheek, effectively smudging graphite across his skin. He knows not to tell too much to people he doesn't know. Just like his accent (Keep your voice American) He spoke with enough confidence for it to be true, but enough calmness shyness for it to be real. It didn't take long to master lying. So he simply kept eye contact and tumbled out one word. "Seventeen."

—Fourteen and exactly four hundred days. Just entered Junior year, I was going to skip high school completely and go straight to college to get my second degree but my uncle wanted me to have a normal experience—

"Seventeen." ASS repeats. "How did you hack into Shield at seventeen?" He sounds less like the demanding man from before, now just like a confused old man who got lost in Kmart. Ah, just like Mr Eisen, who opted to call Andy instead of asking for help from an employee. Mr Eisen wasn't nearly as aggressive as ASS though.

Swan nods in agreement, obviously wanting the answer too.

"I don't know." Andy mumbles when he shrugs and hugs his stomach. Now this was his actual shyness coming into play, dripping down his torso like a slightly more thick than usual syrup.

These people made him feel weak and he wasn't weak he was strong and capable and he wasn't stupid—

They ask him a couple more questions, but leave when he stops answering. Andy sits in silence for the rest of the ride (another hour, they had to go pick something up. Where? Andy doesn't know, he wasn't allowed to) except for the playlist of music in his head and the tapping along to the beat of his fingers.