Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN ONLY SLIGHTLY GUILTY CONSCIENCE
*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧
"Bet ya ten bucks that you can't hit Lopez with Rogers's stress ball from here."
Riley blinked, looking up from his seat inside the Quinjet. He had been preparing for the mission for the past hour, reading through all the information twice using a touchpad resting on the bench beside him as he got dressed in his uniform. After Natasha had picked Steve and Riley up from their running that morning, neither of them had the time—or the room inside Natasha's tiny sports car—to change into their separate uniforms. They'd had no choice but to get dressed inside the Quinjet, which wasn't a problem. Other members of the team, including Brock Rumlow, had to change into their uniforms while they were soaring through the sky as well. Now, Riley was securing his fingerless gloves around his wrists, pressing the very strong magnetic buttons together so they wouldn't slip. The gloves, as well as the suit, had been sent to him by Tony Stark, a surprise gift on Riley's birthday.
How Tony Stark knew Riley's birthday—April 16th—Riley didn't know. Either he had hacked into their files, or he had nagged Natasha, Steve, or Nick until one of them caved. Either way, Riley didn't much mind. He found he liked his new suit, boots, and gloves. They were cool against his skin, meant to cool him down if he ever 'overheated,' as Tony had so eloquently put it in the video he'd sent with the suit. Riley did often run hot, but the heat had never really bothered him. But the cooling mechanism in his suit was nice, his boots were comfortable, and he had had problems before when using his powers and accidentally melting his gloves. Riley had called Tony to thank him personally, but all he'd gotten was his A.I. helper, Jarvis, repeating words Tony had told him to tell Riley if he happened to call. Riley could only assume Tony was busy.
Blinking out of his thoughts, Riley cast a curious glance beside him, where Rumlow was bending forward to tighten the laces on his boots, his pants tucked into them. Blinking again, Riley looked across from him and saw Steve playing with his stress ball as he read over the files one more time, then flicked his gaze down toward where the pilot, Richard Lopez, was steering the Quinjet. Riley's lips twitched in amusement.
"Only ten?" Riley asked, even as he patted at his pockets, making sure the flash drive was safely tucked away. He and Natasha only had one mission when they reached the ship, and that was to hack into the Lemurian Star and download Project Insight. He'd double-checked the flash drive was in his pocket five times by that point, and he was sure he would check five times more. "Why are you being cheap, Rumlow? Is it because you know I'll win?" Brock laughed and went to ruffle Riley's hair, but he ducked away before Brock could.
