After finishing his meal, Banner helped clear away the takeout containers, pulled the book on basic magical theory he had brought back from Kamar-Taj off the shelf, and settled into a corner of the sofa to read. He read intently, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the edges of the pages, occasionally furrowing his brow, probably trying to understand some rune's energy conversion formula through a physicist's way of thinking.
Lynn sprawled at the other end of the sofa, scrolling from the news to social media to the technology briefings JARVIS had sent him. Every item was utterly boring. He set his phone on the coffee table and stared blankly at the ceiling's concealed strip lighting for a while, when an image suddenly flashed through his mind: Natasha sitting diagonally behind him at the Monaco racetrack, her gray-blue eyes sweeping over his profile. I haven't seen her in ages.
The last time they had talked on the plane, their conversation had stopped halfway through, with an agreement to "find somewhere else to talk later." Then the business with Vanko had interfered, followed by the palladium poisoning, and that "later" had dragged on until now. I've got nothing to do today anyway. Might as well ask Coulson.
He picked up his phone again and dialed Coulson's number. The call was answered quickly. Looks like... he's not busy today.
"Mr. Lynn." Coulson's voice was gentle, calm, and relaxed. "Is there something I can help you with?"
"I'm bored out of my mind, so I called to strengthen our bond. Interested in coming over? I just moved into a new place." Lynn leaned against the sofa's armrest, propped up his legs, and swung them a little.
There was a brief silence on the other end. Lynn could almost picture Coulson's expression... brows slightly furrowed, fingers unconsciously tapping his desk, his mind rapidly running through the day's schedule. He did not keep Lynn waiting long.
"All right. Send me the address."
"Stark Tower. Just come straight into the building when you get here. Downstairs hasn't been fitted out yet, so there's no one to show you the way. Once you're in the elevator, JARVIS will bring you up." Lynn hung up, set his phone on the coffee table, and turned toward Banner, who was still leafing through the magic book in the corner of the sofa. "An agent's coming over in a bit. Do you want him to see you?"
Banner looked up, his finger still resting in the middle of a page. He thought for a moment, slipped a bookmark into the book, and closed it.
"I've only had a few peaceful days. I'll pass. I'll read in my room."
Banner shook his head, turned back toward the hallway, and gently pulled his bedroom door closed behind him.
Before long, JARVIS's voice spread evenly from the ceiling. "Mr. Lynn, Agent Phil Coulson has arrived at the building and is currently in the elevator." Less than half a minute later, the elevator doors slid open, and Coulson walked into the living room. He was not wearing his signature dark suit jacket today, just a white shirt and dark gray dress trousers, his tie loosened by half a finger's width and a brown paper bag in his hand. He looked considerably more relaxed than he had at the bar in New Mexico.
"Welcome." Lynn rose from the sofa, took the paper bag from him, and glanced inside. "Snacks and beer? You've even learned to bring a gift when you visit. But aren't you forbidden from drinking on duty?"
"The beer's for you." Coulson set the paper bag on the coffee table and sat on the fabric sofa. His movements still had an agent's disciplined precision, but he visibly relaxed a little as his back met the cushion. He pulled another sandwich from the paper bag, unwrapped it, and said in a tone mixing resignation with matter-of-fact acceptance, "I haven't eaten yet. I saw the place on my way over, so I picked up a few things."
Lynn said nothing more and went to the kitchen. He took a few plates out of the cupboard, emptied the snacks from the paper bag onto them, arranged them simply, and set two packs of tissues beside them. When he opened the fridge, he hesitated for a second, then reached past the cans of soda Tony had given him and took out a carton of freshly squeezed orange juice JARVIS had prepared beforehand. He poured a full glass and set it in front of Coulson. Coulson looked at the juice, and the corner of his mouth moved almost imperceptibly.
Lynn pushed the plates into the middle of the coffee table, sat back down on the sofa, opened a can of beer, and took a sip.
Coulson quietly took a few bites of his sandwich. Outside the windows, the New York skyline was shifting from afternoon toward evening, the sunlight slanting ever lower. He finished his last bite, folded the wrapper and placed it beside the plate, then picked up the juice and took a sip. Then he folded his hands over his knees and raised his eyes to Lynn.
"Was there something you wanted to talk to me about?"
"Since you asked, I wasn't planning on beating around the bush. How's the internal investigation going?" Lynn set his beer can on the coffee table and got straight to the point. Coulson shook his head helplessly, put down his glass of juice, and tapped his knee lightly twice.
"It's difficult. These are colleagues we've known for years. Our offices are next to each other. We go on field assignments together, stay up late writing reports together. Any unusual behavior would have been noticed long ago. Suddenly having to investigate who's Hydra and who isn't... there's simply nowhere to start. We can only wait for them to reveal themselves." He paused, a trace of weariness rarely heard from the agent entering his voice. "It's nowhere near that easy."
Lynn leaned against the sofa's armrest, beer can in hand, and fell silent for a moment. Then he switched the can to his other hand, leaned forward slightly, and gave a somewhat sheepish smile. He even unconsciously rubbed his hands together, his tone more tentative than before.
"You're Tony's liaison now, right? I know S.H.I.E.L.D. has been monitoring me. Ever since I showed up at Tony's side, my file's been in your system." Coulson neither denied nor confirmed it, merely holding his glass of juice quietly as he waited for Lynn to finish. "Would it be possible to assign me a liaison too? Your internal investigation's going to take ages anyway, and I live alone on this enormous floor without anyone I can have a proper conversation with. Assigning me a liaison wouldn't get in the way of your work."
Coulson looked at the sheepish expression on Lynn's face, the expression of someone who knew perfectly well he was making an awkward request but was forcing himself to say it anyway. He watched for two seconds, then shook his head, both exasperated and amused. Of course he knew whom Lynn wanted.
"That's not something I can decide. I don't have the authority to assign Agent Natasha. Her direct superior is Director Fury. I'll have to go back and ask."
Lynn settled back against the sofa and pursed his lips. "All right..." There was little surprise in his voice. It would have been strange if Coulson could have approved it outright.