Radioactive | Bucky Barnes

Captain America: The First Avenger (2)

Rhiley draped her jacket over her arm and entered the house.

"Someone's late." Howards' voice broke the evening silence.

She stopped, "And someone's out of their lab." She eyed the inventor in the kitchen making another pot of coffee. "What time did you get home?"

Howard turned around, mug in hand. "Right after the expo, where have you been?"

"Out." Rhiley grabbed herself a mug.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious."

She smelled the coffee first, her lips tugging up into a smile at the familiar scent. "I was just getting some fresh air." She breathed, relieved to be home for the night. She slipped onto the kitchen counter and took her first sip of the hot liquid. Then spit it out. "Is there alcohol in here?"

Howard chuckled, "Yeah."

"Can I get a warning next time?"

"No."

Rhiley rolled her eyes, setting the coffee down. "What are you working on? The flying car?"

Howard glared, "What happened tonight was just a tiny mishap, nothing I can't fix." He stated in a matter-of-fact kind of voice, "And actually if you must know, I had to do a few modifications to the serum."

"Have you guys found anyone yet?"

Howard shakes his head, "We will, soon, the doctor's a little picky."

"I'm still-"

"No." Howard eyes her, "You're not qualified. You'd be a terrible subject."

Rhiley laughed, "Thanks."

"You know what I mean," Howard sighed heavily, "Are you ready for tomorrow?"

"Sort of." Rhiley responded with a lazy shrug, "I'm meeting up at a base camp tomorrow. I get to see Agent Carter train some newbies so that'll be fun. Maybe even help if they'll let me."

"My sister teaching young soldiers to fight," He points at her with his mug, "That should be illegal."

"Oh, shut it." Rhiley shoved Howard with her shoulder slipping off the counter, she placed her full mug in the sink.

"Are you sure you're ready?"

"It's been three months, Howie," Rhiley replied, halfheartedly, annoyed by this simple question. "I'm ready."

"What if you're not?"

Rhiley turned to look at her brother, "I know you don't think I am, Howard." She smiled, "But I am, I know I am, and I got this."

"I know you do, Goose." He sighed, "You've just - you haven't talked about what happened. I'm just concerned. You can't keep things bottled up forever."

"I love you too, Howie." She smiled, "But there is absolutely nothing to talk about. Missions go wrong, it's behind us, it's behind me - and I'm working on a much brighter future. I promise, there is nothing I'm bottling up."

Howard knew his sister far too well and knew there was always something she was bottling up. But she always, without fail, opened up when she was ready. It was usually after the denial phase. Her last mission almost killed her, he knew she wasn't the same. "I love you too."

"I have an early morning," Rhiley cleared her throat, "I'm gonna hit the hay. I suggest you do the same too, okay, Stark?"

"No promises." Howard chuckled, downing the last bit of his coffee, "Hey, Rhiley?" His sister stopped, "You know I have your back, right? And I'm always right here if you need to talk. When you're ready, of course."

She smiled. "I haven't forgotten."

Rhiley hadn't been herself since her last mission. For one, she found it much more difficult to fall asleep at night and stay asleep. She's rarely ever scared, she was brave because she thought she had to be brave. Too many people doubted her when she started working as a Spy, as an Agent. So many questioned her skills as a fighter because she was a woman and a lot more started to have second thoughts after her last mission failed.

She spent her whole life trying to prove herself, day after day. She wasn't gonna let a few lousy nightmares throw away the progress she's made over the course of several months.

It's true, too, that she hadn't spoken about that night, what happened three months ago. It all went wrong, so quickly, like dominions tumbling over, and over, and over until they blew up right in front of her.

Rhiley stared at her ceiling. Her bed was soft, uncomfortably soft. She had flung the blankets off her body, she was too warm, she was always too warm.

She's always been different, she's always been stronger, faster, and a little bit more temperamental, a bit hard to handle at times. She was difficult, according to her parents. Rhiley was gifted, even though she saw them more as a curse for the first part of her life. Howard, though, changed her mind. He showed her what she could be.

Howard was good at that, he was good at making Rhiley feel better about herself. So, why, was it that she couldn't get herself to tell him the truth about what happened that night?

Was she afraid he wouldn't be able to save her this time?

"The soul selects her own society," ~ Emily Dickinson