Everly || Steve Rogers

63. The Collective Good

Everly walked slowly alongside Steve and watched his grip tighten on the shield in his hand. Her eyes flicked to a helicopter parked just beyond the shadow cast by the building. She huffed and looked up at the man beside her.

"You know what you're doing?" She asked quietly. Her mind raced and she was overcome by a dreadful sinking feeling. Though it looked like they were in the clear, it couldn't possibly be that easy. Steve peeked over at her before staring straight ahead once again.

"Nope." He returned, jaw clenched as he began to run. She hesitantly sped up to follow after him, squinting when the sunlight flooded her vision. A small 'tink' came from the helicopter before them and they slowed to a stop when sparks popped through the engine and propellers.

Everly's nose was filled with the slightest hint of smoke and she groaned, looking up to see Iron Man hovering over the chopper, palm outstretched toward them. She couldn't help but feel angry. However, it was fear that sank in next. Surely he hadn't come alone, which meant this would only end in a fight. She couldn't fight her friends- her family. Stark flew over to them and his metal boots clanked to the ground a few feet from the pair, Rhodey swiftly landing beside him. Everly glanced worriedly at Steve.

"Wow. It's so weird how you run into people at the airport." Tony quipped, the mask of his suit flipping open as he turned to Rhodes. "Don't you think that's weird?"

"Definitely weird." Rhodey added. Everly anxiously shifted in place, her eyes briefly meeting Tony's.

"Hear me out Tony." Steve began. "That doctor, the psychiatrist, he's behind all of this." Everly flinched as T'Challa landed on the ground a few feet from them, the sun bouncing off the metal pieces of his black suit. He slowly stood up straight.

"Captain." He greeted.

"Your Highness." Steve returned with a slight nod.

"Anyway..." Stark slowly walked behind Rhodey to stand on his opposite side. His feet met the concrete with a soft thud at his every step. "Ross gave me 36 hours to bring you in. That was 24 hours ago. Can you help a brother out?"

"You're after the wrong guy." Steve said, his stoic expression never faltering. Everly on the other hand felt like she was falling apart. Her palms began to sweat and panic had finally kicked in.

"Your judgement is askew." Tony shot back. Everly couldn't help but look at the bruise that had formed just beneath his eye as his brows creased. There was some unidentifiable emotion swimming around his features, only appearing every so often. She finally realized it was disgust. "Your old war buddy killed innocent people yesterday."

"And there are five more super soldiers just like him." Steve interrupted. "I can't let the doctor find him first, Tony." He shook his head lightly. "I can't."

"Steve..." Everly's heart sunk at the sound of Natasha's voice from behind them. She'd known whose side the assassin was on, and yet it hurt all the same. They spun around to see Nat walk up behind them, stopping a few feet away. "You know what's about to happen." Everly let out a shaky breath as her gaze flicked between each person present, none of them seeming phased in the least by what was to come. "Do you really wanna punch your way out of this one?"

Steve remained silent and stared at Natasha a few seconds more before turning to Everly. His expression softened when their eyes met and he saw the worry plastered all across her face. Tony huffed, directing everyone's attention back to him.

"All right, I've run out of patience." He said plainly before cupping his hands around his mouth. "Underoos!" He shouted.

Everly frowned, jumping when Steve's shield was yanked from his hands. She looked into the air to see a man in a red and blue suit soar overhead. Her eyes grew wide when he flicked his wrist out, trapping Steve's hands in a tangle of white threads. The stranger flipped around and landed in a hero pose atop a machine, the shield strapped onto his arm. Everly's frown deepened as he slowly tilted his head up to look at them.