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“Even if I was able to simultaneously take a shot at two separate targets at precisely the right moment, the angle for the trigger-man is far too difficult… even for me. In fact, there is only one person in the entire world I’ve ever seen successfully make a shot like that and he’s not a viable option at the present time.”
Coulson and May shared a look at Ward’s comment, focusing all of Skye’s attention on their wordless argument, their pointed looks and head shaking enough to showcase the tension flowing between them.
May shrugged at Coulson’s scowl, pointedly ignoring whatever unspoken words had just transpired. “Well, what if I ask him? Do you think he would do it?”
“While I’m sure he’ll agree if you ask… that really isn’t the primary issue.”
“I’m well aware of the issue, but you know that Ward’s right,” May said flatly. “We need him. Barton’s the only one who’d be able to do this without risking a possible mission failure. The Avengers can manage without him for a week or so.” Coulson gave a half-nod but May hadn’t waited for his affirmation before heading for the communication room, so confident that Coulson’s professionalism would win out.
Skye watched avidly as May left the room, pointedly ignoring the unhappy acquiescence from the senior agent. It was intriguing, something Skye was determined to get to the bottom of now that she’d been teased with all of this mysteriousness. The naturally inquisitive young hacker was fine playing an outsider’s position on the team of die-hard SHIELD agents, observing pieces of seemingly extraneous data in order to piece things together into a plausible explanation, but this was the kind of enigma she lived to solve.
“Wait, Sir, is she…” Ward startled at May’s exit, rousing himself from a strangely dumbfounded expression as he’d watched the scene play out along with the others. “I thought the Avengers weren’t aware you were still...”
“Alive, no,” Agent Coulson said with a sigh. “The Avengers haven’t been read in, but Agents Barton and Romanov are Level 7 SHIELD agents first and foremost no matter how many action figures are made into their likeness,” the suddenly pale agent said bitterly, smoothing down his tie.
“Alright then, Sir,” Ward replied, his head shaking with dejection from Coulson’s tone before a foreign look lit his features - excitement. The rest of the team could barely recognize that emotion displayed on the normally stoic agent, let alone such an animated expression. “Okay, great, wow! Then that means that I have a lot of work to do if Barton’s going to be joining us on the mission. I won’t look foolish in front of him. That’s got to be one of my Top 5 Worst Nightmare Scenarios or maybe… I hope he’ll like the… What if he thinks… Hmm,” Ward trailed off a little dazedly as he started reviewing the mission parameters in earnest now, flipping through the pages of the dossier with one hand while clicking the computer screen with the other.
“What’s with him, AC?” Skye asked, bewildered. She moved to stand at the end of the briefing table alongside Fitz and Simmons in order to get a better spot to stare at the usually stony-faced Agent Ward looking so uncharacteristically ruffled.
Agent Coulson, however, didn’t respond, staring up into the room above their heads, lost in a thought. “Guys?” Skye asked, turning her question to the two SHIELD scientists as she gestured to their leader, hoping they had some in-roads to all of this unprecedented behavior.
Jemma only shrugged in reply, amused by Ward’s antics now that the man had taken to muttering about poor lines of sight and the horrors of “sub-par shooting”. Fitz suddenly looked confident the same way he did when he solved a particularly difficult engineering problem, offering Skye a smirking retort, “I reckon Agent Ward has a man-crush on the Avengers’ archer.”
To his credit Ward merely smiled in return, not refuting the assertion in the slightest, much to the dismay of everyone, especially Coulson. “I’m honestly just excited I’m finally going to get to work with Barton directly. Sure, I’ve taken a few classes from him before, but I’ve never been with him in the field and certainly not when I was designing the op. It’s a chance I won’t waste.”
“Barton. So, that’s Hawkeye, right?” Skye asked the room at large, seeming to sober Coulson back into reality at the mention of the archer’s codename.
“Yes,” Coulson supplied coolly, “And I’m sure Agent Barton will be thrilled with all of your enthusiasm, Agent Ward, but do try to keep the fawning over him to a minimum please.”
Ward looked properly chastised at that comment, ears turning slightly pink from Coulson’s scolding. “Of course, sir,” he replied quickly, ducking his head to avoid seeing the bemused expressions of his teammates, and more importantly the heated glare from Coulson which he could feel was still lingering on his face long after he’d looked away.
While Ward may have been embarrassed over his own reaction, he had forgotten to take into account the senior agent’s stake in all matters Hawkeye. If SHIELD gossip was to be trusted – and in a clandestine spy organization secret keeping was a surprisingly laughable endeavor in futility – there was no shortage of rumored impropriety on Coulson’s part when it came to Agent Barton.
Ward should have kept that in mind before getting so outwardly flustered with the prospect of working with the marksman he admired so much.
Things between the former handler and asset were said to be tense at best prior to the invasion, something he knew to ask May about in private ASAP if Barton did agree to temporarily join their team. He wouldn’t want to step on Coulson’s bad side again if it could be avoided.
Fitz, oblivious to any subtext happening around him not pertaining to what was on his lab table, addressed Coulson with sincerity, “Are we even sure this guy will be able to do this? I mean to take a shot like that without taking into account a reasonable margin of error? I think we should have a back-up plan in place at least if he misses. I could probably devise a long range tracking system that could be deployed for both targets as long as we had eyes on them from two relatively close locations in the square?”
Again, Ward, apparently never one for self-preservation when it really counted, spoke emphatically without thinking and completely in sync with Coulson, “Hawkeye doesn’t miss.”
Both men turned towards each other looking uneasy. Skye nudged Simmons, whispering a quiet “Wow!” in the scientist’s ear just as May returned with some news, hopefully to alleviate the strange tension filling the air in the cabin. “Barton is technically on leave due to pressure from the WSC. He’s apparently quite purposely unreachable through normal channels. That’s why I called Romanov next. She said to try to reach him through Bruce Banner’s Stark-sat-phone, something about them backpacking through South America to find tea leaves or something. I was hoping you had the number though so I didn’t have to deal with Stark to get it.”
“I do actually,” Coulson said, his voice hollow before he cleared his throat. “But I think maybe Fitz’s plan to use a remote could work if…”
“Coulson, Sir, Barton is the better play here and you know it. Respectfully, I could just ask Hill to give him the order to return to base for pick-up instead, but we both know how that will come off, especially if he’s taken leave for a reason. Just call him. He’ll come if you ask too.”
“Not happily,” Coulson said with a sigh, reaching into his suit jacket to pull out his cell phone.
Skye remarked with a smirk, “Maybe we should try to hide anything that can be turned into a projectile if he’s potentially hostile.
“Won’t matter,” Ward said with a creepy grin, “I heard Barton once ripped off his own fingernails to use as weapons. That is the very definition of improvisational methods in the field.”
“That has to be an exaggeration,” Jemma said with a grimace.
“Actually, no, it isn’t,” May said with her usual stoicism, the slightest twinkle in her eyes giving away her interest in the conversation beyond the cursory attempt at being cordial. “I was on the extraction team SHIELD sent but never needed because he’d already escaped by the time we were en route. And while that is a very unique way to prove yourself as a badass, he complained incessantly about them growing back crooked for months afterward. For a guy so resistant to all forms of torture he was practically incapacitated by a hangnail; it was actually quite ridiculous.”
“Yeah,” Skye squeaked out, her face in a tight frown, “What a wuss.”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“So Barton’s that good then?” Skye asked Ward later that evening.
“What? Oh, yes, he really is. I know this doesn’t seem like something to turn into a glowing recommendation, but he singlehandedly almost took down the Hellicarrier. It was some of the best infiltration work anyone in SHIELD has ever seen, looking at it from a purely objective standpoint, of course,” Ward added, seeing Skye’s look of discomfort at his awed tone. “Plus, he improved my accuracy by 25% after just a few sessions, and I was already in the top 5% of my class. He’s the absolute best there is at what he does in the entire world.”
“Well, coming from you that says a lot, I guess. Now, care to tell me what chapped AC’s ass before? He got all bristly when you went fanboy for Hawkeye. I’d think he’d appreciate the solidarity on the superhero-worship since he’s crazed for all things Captain America.”
“Hawkeye is a sore subject for him, I think. There was a time that they were inseparable. Strike Team Delta has a standing record as being the best in SHIELD history. Coulson, Barton, and Romanov were Fury’s go-to team for all the most ridiculously impossible missions. Their success rate was unparalleled no matter what was thrown at them, but then something happened to change that dynamic. And before you ask me what that was, don’t bother because I really don’t know and even if I did I still wouldn’t tell you.”
“Come on, Ward,” the hacker beseeched. “Please don’t make me poke the bear by going to Coulson directly. You know I will.”
“No, don’t do that. He’s already a little off today. Alright, so this is strictly between us, but there were always rumors about Coulson and Hawkeye being more than just asset and handler. They say Coulson started losing his objectivity after Barton went on a honey-pot mission that went bad. Evidently Barton couldn’t get out of sleeping with the mark and that was the beginning of the end of their team. Romanov got reassigned to baby-sit Stark and Barton was relegated to only being eyes up high after that, something he resented Coulson for since he liked the spy games just as much as being a sniper.”
“Is that what they’re saying these days?” May asked, appearing out of a shadow before sidling up next to Skye at the table. The hacker did her best not to shudder at the overly friendly gesture, as was reasonable when sitting next to someone like Melinda May. “There is a bit more to that story, Ward, but I think that’s enough gossiping for now. Coulson’s ears are sure to be ringing and we’re set to pick Barton up in fifteen.”
“Can’t wait,” Skye said nervously, hating the feeling of impending doom that had settled over the Bus.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
As it turned out Skye’s anxiety was unnecessary. Hawkeye, “call me Clint unless I’m holding a weapon”, was nothing if not personable, if slightly overwhelming through sheer presence alone. Skye understood immediately what had Ward so excited after only spending a few seconds with the interesting, rugged-looking man.
“And just when are you not armed, Barton?” May had jokingly asked as she’d embraced the assassin in a tight hug, patting down his back as if checking for hidden weapons. “Knowing you, you probably have a sword instead of a loofah in your shower.”
“Come on, Mel, I’ve been roughing it lately. Just the bare minimum on this trip – only my bow, a Berretta, my favorite knife, and a few throwing stars. That’s hardly an arsenal.”
“Backpacking through druglord country and rebel jungles without full tac gear and at least an assault rifle is not your best work, Barton. I think you’re slipping with all of this superhero business.”
“Mel, please,” he teased amicably, smirking. “I was with ‘Big Green’. We would have been fine if any guerrillas tried to jump us in the forest. The landscape of Argentina, on the other hand, probably not so much.”
“‘Big Green’? That’s Dr. Banner, yeah?” Simmons enquired, ears perked up at the mention of her idol. “Hi, I’m Jemma Simmons by the way. It’s just that Dr. Banner has been a pseudo-mentor to me throughout my scientific career. Do you think I could meet him when we drop you back off?”
Clint looked a little uncomfortable at that, either at the mention of his “temporary” position or the idea of giving a scientist who had a distinct ‘I-want-to-dissect-him’ look in her eyes the chance to meet his friend. Seeing the potential for a problem brewing, Agent May tried to smooth things over before Barton’s protective streak got going. “She can behave herself, Barton, but I’m more interested in what you told the good doctor as a cover story for this assignment.”
“Just that I was needed for a milk-run and I’d be back in a couple days. Told him I’d track him down if he decided to move on, but I’m sure he’ll just wait me out close to where we were staying. Besides, he’ll probably be too busy playing doctor for the huddled masses of the nearest village to notice I left after a day or so anyway. I’m all good for this op and Bruce will be just fine… And if he ends up getting pissed off enough that the Other Guy decides to track me down, well, then you’ll have a Hulk-sized hole in your plane… again.”
“Heard about that all the way in an Argentinian jungle, huh?” Agent Coulson said, awkwardly coming to stand in front of Ward, a gesture of posturing which clearly rankled the nerves of both Barton and May.
“Of course, Sir,” Barton said with a little more bite than his voice held a moment before. “Information is everything to good SHIELD agents.” There was a brief look shared between the two former teammates, both apologetic and hostile all at once before their emotions dissipated into the ether. Any outward expression of deeper feelings was replaced by a thick mask on both their faces, eerily similar and terrifying to Skye who was still trying to acclimate as to how these superspies could pull the switch from human to robot off so easily.
“If that will be all then, Agent Coulson, I’d like to speak to Agent Ward about the op. It’s nice to see you again, Ward, by the way. Nat and I heard about your espionage scores last time we were at the Hub. Widow’s impressed, though I’m not sure what that might mean for you with Tasha feeling challenged. Prepare yourself for the fun times ahead when she finally gets a chance to see you in person. Anyway, care to fill me in on mission specifics?” Barton asked, approaching the agent standing behind Coulson as if he was looking through his former handler. The senior agent shirked away in a flinching move he seemed to be admonishing himself over as he stepped to the side, carefully watching the two younger agents leave.
Skye wasn’t sure as she decided to follow the pair of intriguing, handsome men, but as she stepped out of the room she thought she heard Coulson sigh in a sound akin to grief as May answered back, her voice full of disapproval, “That was exactly what you said you wanted from him, Phil. Were you secretly hoping for a different kind of reunion?”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The mission went off without a hitch, securing Barton’s place as deserving of hero-worship from more than just Agent Ward. It was something that both pleased and pissed off Coulson. He had been the one to do the leaving, yet ever since he woke from his near-death he had felt like Barton abandoned him. Having Clint and Ward flirting with each other was another issue entirely, one that was not new territory when dealing with the overly tactile archer, one that was at the very epicenter of the explosive relationship he had dissolved just after Thor retrieved his hammer.
It wasn’t like Phil to be so jealous ordinarily in a relationship. There was just something about Clint that made the otherwise calm secret agent insane with possessive feelings to the point they had begun to influence his objectivity in the field and his interactions with his colleagues at HQ. So many missions had past, so many relationship milestones had come and gone for them that it shouldn’t have been an issue when confronted with one of Clint’s exes in the field. However, the pull to protect and to claim had quickly turned to smother and alienate once Bobbi Morse became a permanent fixture at SHIELD. Logically, Phil knew his relationship with Clint was solid, but seeing the pretty young woman Barton had so furiously pursued proved to be the final straw.
Phil couldn’t stop bringing up missions where Clint had to seduce their mark, even from before they had gotten together, back when the nearness of each other’s hands was enough to make the unflappable agent blush scarlet under the collar. Telling Clint he was to remain at Pegasus was seen as an insult to the mission-hungry marksman. It was obvious why Phil was trying to prevent Clint from returning to HQ, and the subsequent resentments proved to be enough to end things.
The break-up was amiable, if a little one-sided since Clint was fueled by the certainty that he was wronged by his lover, his handler, his friend. The archer’s righteousness whenever they spoke drove Phil’s indignation deeper, culminating one regrettable evening where Phil demanded they should proceed as though their relationship never happened in the first place, that they were no more than co-workers. It was something Phil had regretted instantly in the face of the hurt in the other man’s eyes. Shaken and not easily driven to a loss for words, Clint took a few minutes of stunned silence to collect himself and finally agree, albeit begrudgingly. A tempest of emotions bottled up firmly as Clint called upon his training to do exactly what Coulson demanded to save their professional reputations, striking up a cool persona of indifference from that moment on.
“That is all that matters after all, right Agent Coulson? Your reputation as an untouchable Agent of SHIELD? Can’t have anyone thinking you’ve been compromised by caring for someone else as much as the job, right? SHIELD first and foremost and fuck the fact you are human,” Clint had said before slamming the door to Phil’s quarters. Those had been his parting words the night their relationship imploded so irrevocably, ironically enough only a month before the Pegasus installation literally did the exact same thing. That was the last time they had spoken directly before the invasion, a conversation Phil had recounted on an endless loop while convalescing in “Tahiti”.
And now Phil was being inadvertently regaled in the highlights of Clint’s life since the archer had finally listened to an order, having moved on without him. Eavesdropping over the Bus’ surveillance system to do so, the senior agent listened avidly. “I know Steve was in the Army, but when he’s not in his uniform he curses like a sailor” and “Tony Stark is actually a thoughtful teddy bear even though he pretends to not care about anything” had been a few of the passing comments that made Phil jealous of Clint’s new super friends, but none more so than those concerning his South American backpacking companion, Dr. Banner.
Evidently in the wake of Tony’s debacle with the Mandarin and Pepper’s exposure to Extremis, Stark invited – insisted – the team move in with him at his tower in NYC, feeling safer with his superhero buddies in the same building. They were taking turns keeping Tony as sedate as possible ever since his arc-reactor removal operation. Apparently it was Bruce and Clint’s turn off Stark-duty, something they decided to share together, much to Coulson’s ire. He tried to tell himself that it meant nothing, that the WSC was just breathing down Fury’s neck to get their hands on either Barton or Banner again, but none of it quelled his frustration with the situation.
“I already told you, Jemma. After seeing what you can do I can honestly say that as long as you promise not to try to wrangle Bruce into being the experiment rather than conducting it with you then I’m sure he’d be more than happy to help you out.”
“Really? That would be one of the most amazing things to ever happen to me,” she replied eagerly, throwing her arms around Clint’s neck, oblivious to the way the archer always startled slightly at that type of physical contact from anyone besides Natasha, sometimes May or Sitwell – formerly Phil. Coulson caught the movement though, frowning at the thought he could no longer embrace the man in that way and achieve anything other than that same jilted result.
“Won’t that be an issue if Dr. Banner finds out about Agent Coulson’s status though?” Ward asked, still playing things as professional as possible in order to gain more of Barton’s professional admiration, thinking that was what the more senior specialist was expecting from him. Coulson could tell Barton liked Ward well enough already, still finding Ward’s awed behavior a little too endearing to curtail just yet.
“The Avengers have known about Coulson since Thor returned from Asgard the first time after the invasion. Heimdall, All-Seeing Watcher of the Nine Realms or whatever the hell Thor said his official title is, blabbed that he’d seen the man Thor was grieving for alive and well, if not a little worse for the wear. Needless to say that they were all a little miffed at first but ultimately understood the need for subterfuge. It comes with the job. Trust the system, you know?”
“On the ground in twenty, folks. Everyone strap in for landing. This isn’t so much an airstrip as it is a pasture,” May announced, heralding a flurry of movement in the cabin as the team scurried to comply. All except Barton that is who looked up at the security camera as if he could feel Coulson’s eyes on him via the electronic device.
Smirking a bit maliciously before extricating himself from the lounge, Clint raised an eyebrow at the camera again while making his way into the main room with the others, purposely choosing a seat next to Ward. The archer knew his former lover’s tendency toward jealousy all too well, sparking that familiar heat to flare in Phil’s belly every time someone touched Clint while the archer knew what it did to him.
“You did really well on the op, Ward,” Clint started, glancing up at the camera again, his eyes daring as he leaned a little closer to maintain a semblance of privacy for their whispered conversation. “It’s nice to know what capable hands Phil is in with his new team.” He smiled at the younger agent before patting his shoulder. “It makes things easier for me knowing I can trust that someone’s watching over him the way he is always looking out for everyone else.”
The comment was pointed, challenging, as was the scowl at the camera a moment later because Clint knew Coulson was listening. It went without being said that Phil expected Clint to do something outrageous to get back at him, to taunt his former lover by fanning the flames of jealousy that drove them apart in the first place. Once again Barton surprised him, however, showing how wrong Phil had been to assume the worst in his former asset at every turn. When had Phil lost his faith in Clint’s ability to do the right thing? It must have been the moment Phil recognized all that he stood to lose if Clint suddenly realized what he’d known all along, that they were never going to be forever and that their time together would never have been long enough.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Introducing Bruce Banner to the rest of the team had been anti-climactic to the point of absurdity. Everyone on the team except for Jemma had been worried to meet the part-time rage-monster, even Melinda May who had undoubtedly commiserated with the Black Widow after being nearly crushed by the Hulk on the Hellicarrier. Coulson was careful around the scientist as well, but not for a lack of affinity for the man. It was envy that was once again running through his veins, stemming from the easy rapport he could see between the two Avengers the moment they spoke.
As soon as the Bus touched down and lowered the hatch, they were met with the incongruous sight of the notoriously ill-tempered scientist riding up to the makeshift airstrip on the back of a malnourished donkey with a skinny village boy no more than eight or nine years old sitting in front of him, looking both exasperated and relieved the moment he saw the archer’s face. Phil knew the expression well, having worn it himself for years, already knowing what it meant that he and the doctor harbored such similar sentiments towards the marksman.
Clint, never the patient sort, launched himself off the platform before the metal tailgate even connected with earth, racing over to his friend. For his part, Bruce had dismounted the donkey and smacked it on the butt already, allowing it to take the small boy who had acted as his guide back home well before the archer reached him.
It was a small thing, really. A simple gesture, but one that was equally noted by May as she shot her senior agent a sorrowful glance as Banner threw an arm over Clint’s shoulders before they made their way together back towards the Bus to meet the team. The fact that Clint looked so comfortable with the contact, a touch initiated by someone else – someone other than Phil or Natasha, possibly May or Sitwell to some extent – left Coulson reeling. These two sometimes-superheroes had not gone on their trek through the jungle for any quest for special tea or however Natasha had described it to May. They were vacationing together because they had wanted to be alone.
There was no doubt that their easy banter and body language came as a result of intimacy shared since Phil’s “death”. While he knew he had no right, this was worse than the contact Barton had with Ward because this was innocent and natural, a vicarious offspring of a passionate night – or maybe several – which resulted in them forming a bond that made Phil ache to fix his mistakes.
Seething internally, Phil chanced a glance at Bruce the moment the two separated and the answering glare he received had little to do with the sneaky way Fury had tricked the Avengers into becoming a more amiable team before the Battle of New York and everything to do with the source of the green tint in both their eyes. Both men seemed to come to a silent agreement to not mention anything, to ignore the tension for Clint’s sake, tabling their inevitable conversation to a time when the object of their mutual interest wasn’t nearby.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
That is how later that same evening Phil found himself alone with Bruce, completely by accident on his part and probably planned on the doctor’s. “I don’t think he’ll ever love me like he loved you,” Bruce admitted with ease as he stepped into Coulson’s space, the senior agent barely managing to hide his bristling with the Hulk at his back as he proceeded to steep his tea as casually as he could.
Banner continued on, completely unfazed or possibly oblivious to Coulson’s reaction, “I think he’s locked that part of himself away forever because of what happened between you two. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter to me. I’ve given up so much in my life that I’m going to be greedy now… with him. I think you know that feeling well enough.”
“I do,” Coulson said with a sigh as he presented a second cup of Earl Grey to the scientist.
Bruce accepted the mug with a gentle nod in complete contrast to the tumultuousness in his gaze. “I know you do. But unlike you I won’t squander his trust with pettiness. I know you want him back. I can smell your adrenaline… the anger in the air whenever you look at me, the frustration of knowing I am where you were and where you still want to be.”
Coulson could do nothing but nod at that, words not enough to properly convey the truth of that statement without looking even more foolish. Bruce smiled an off-putting, toothy grin before he managed to get his face to turn serious without being threatening, a gesture the scientist had perfected out of the necessity to put others at ease that the Hulk was safely locked away. Phil was not fooled by this maneuver though. “I’m just going to tell you now that you can’t have him back,” Bruce said softly. “He isn’t the cheating kind no matter what SHIELD gossip led you to believe, so I know this whole-heartedly when I say that you will have to make your peace with this situation if you want to see him in any capacity. I’m not going anywhere.”
Several minutes went by before Phil managed to find his voice again. “Don’t do what I did then, Bruce. I know he’s happy. I can see it, I’m glad for it, but it really does make me hate you a little bit. I know that’s wrong, yet it can’t be helped. I hate everything about this – about you and Clint. I loved him… still do. The thought of sharing him was too much for me and now I’ve lost him completely.” Bruce, for all that he was normally cordial, looked malicious as he nodded in agreement.
Fueled by the futility of the predicament he made for himself, Coulson continued, “But I just need to know, will it be that way for you too when he’s needed for a mission that makes him the object of some sick sadist’s party games? How will you feel knowing someone else just had their filthy hands all over him?” Phil paused, his voice strained as he recalled the incessant reel of mental images that went along with those missions he loathed to send Clint on. “When that day comes then you can tell me just how secure you are wondering if he enjoyed it,” the agent said maliciously.
“Even if it’s to save the world, Coulson?” Bruce asked looking truly incredulous. “To save children and innocent lives by letting some fool think they’ve won him as their prize for a little while? Not that you really deserve to know this all things considered, but I can handle it. I already have once or twice. The Other Guy understands it on some level too, I think. He must because not once did he try to push me out of the way to go protect Clint on one of those missions, to force him to do anything other than the job he loves. And so what if Clint gets even the slightest enjoyment out of something like that?” Bruce asked before laughing a little too callously for Phil’s liking.
“Actually, I really hope he does. I’d hate to think of him being so miserable, enduring something so awful without any redeeming moments just so I felt better, less insecure. Guess that’s the difference between us, Agent Coulson. I know my place in his life. It’s a pity for you that you never could figure out how to trust in him enough. Don’t get me wrong though, I’m endlessly grateful that you never understood how to treat him the way he deserved. If things had been different I would have missed out on the best thing that has happened to me in decades.”
Bruce smiled than, more heartily than Coulson would have expected. The scientist continued, eyes crinkling a bit as he added, “So I guess what I’m saying is thanks… and I’m glad you’re not dead.”