LEO WOKE TO A KNOCK ON HIS DOOR. He didn't know who he was expecting—actually, he did, he was expecting Steve or Clint, maybe Rhodey or Sam—but he was genuinely surprised to find Fury standing at his door, though he didn't look upset; in fact, he looked almost pleased, a tired kind, of course, but his features were relaxed, like how he should have looked if not for his career choice and all he had seen.

But regardless, the man spoke, using the same tone he did when he wanted Leo to know that he cared. "Someone's here to see you. He's out front."

Leo frowned, opening his mouth to ask his uncle what he meant, only for Fury to close the door without another word, leaving him to wonder who was waiting for him. Nevertheless, he shucked off his sleep clothes, moving to wash his face and change into sweatpants and a t-shirt, hopping into his shoes as he made his way out.

He passed by Pietro as he went, unsure of whether he wanted to strike up a conversation when he was already headed out, but the blond instigated, much to his surprise and delight.

"Where are you going?" the Sokovian asked, pausing after turning around on the shoulder he was looking over, and Leo whirled around on his heel, pausing to look at him.

"Someone's outside for me," he explained, jerking a thumb over his own shoulder, "Don't know who, though."

Pietro hummed, a small smile playing on his lips, a teasing kind found on cheeky teen boys that had too much fun pulling pranks and messing with people. "Maybe they're finally taking you away."

Leo didn't even consider him being serious. He counted that as a win.

Turning back around, he made his way out of the building, smiling and greeting the people he passed, because he had gotten to know a fair few in his time there, though not enough to be anyone prevalent—not that there wasn't a lot of news flying around him and his relationship with Fury.

By the time he made it out, he was sure this was just some prank or his mother coming to visit, which meant he was caught between a feeling of disinterest and pure fear, but out of all the scenarios running through his head, he hadn't been expecting this.

He skidded to a halt as he stared at the older man, more blond than redhead, his hair slicked back carefully with features much more pulled in than his own, tighter and sharp whereas his were open and round, toned, but not excessively like he was, hidden underneath a leather jacket and black pants.

"Milo."

The man smiled at him, tight and sharp, just like a Schwartz, walking over and pulling him into a hug, and Leo stiffened for a moment, trying to look around to see if people were staring, only to relax, hugging him tightly, taking a deep breath as he buried his face in the leather jacket.

"People could see," he whispered softly, but Milo didn't move.

"Let them watch, it's not as if they haven't given you enough shit about being mom's kid, they don't know who I am, they won't have to know that you're dad's too," Milo whispered back, and Leo couldn't help but smile, because he had been trying to hide it for so long he often forgot he even had a brother.

Milo was seven years his senior, and set up a good number of standards, spending even more time making sure Leo knew he didn't have to reach them, no matter what their parents said; their parents loved them, they were good parents, they were just overachieving.

Nevertheless, by the time Leo graduated high school, his brother was already a well-respected S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, what with having skipped three grades on account of endless amounts of summer school units that got him to graduate with the seniors when he was only at sophomore age.

For all he was successful, he was incredibly insecure, which was something Leo never understood. He idolized his brother, but all his memories of him was his brother standing on the sidelines while other took center stage, doing half of what he was able to do, and it was a surprise he even got himself a girlfriend, he was always so shy to even talk to people.

Leo adored his brother more than anyone else, even their uncle.

"What're you doing here?" he asked, because it wasn't as if his brother came to see him often, as sad as it was to admit to himself.

Milo reached out to squeeze his hand, the same way he used to when he dragged Leo along on one of the plans their parents wouldn't have ever approved of.

"We're going home."

º º º

The drive down was interesting, it wasn't necessarily awkward, but the two weren't singing songs and bearing their souls out to each other. If anything, Leo just asked about his girlfriends and Milo told him to mind his own business while simultaneously pulling out his phone and showing him various pictures of them on their vacation in London a month before.

"They're pretty," Leo said, his tone genuine as he flipped through the selfies the two women took on his phone, laughing as the pictures grew blurry, indicating that Milo had returned to the room and tried to make a pass to retrieve it.

Milo laughed at that, however, shaking his head, one hand on the wheel. "So says my gay brother."

"I can think they're pretty!" he cried defensively, and Milo laughed, because this was nice, it was easy.

"What about you, you find anyone?" he asked, taking the phone back and setting it in the cup holder, "Or are you too confusing for anyone to pick up?"

"I resent that," Leo huffed, sliding down in his seat and crossing his toned arms.

That was a joke the two always had, that Leo was too short and too doe-eyed to be considered hot, but too toned and too built to be considered cute, which left his dating pool severely lacking.

He hated how true it was.

The two entered New Jersey a good few hours later, and Leo wasn't sure how to feel as they drew closer and closer to Montclair, and Milo seemed to be the same way, no longer smiling, the same neutral expression he wore as an agent back with a vengeance.

"Wait, are we heading to the house?" he asked, feeling a pang of fear, because this wasn't like heading to the restaurant to see Fury, this was hitting too close for comfort, he didn't want to.

"Of course not," Milo scoffed, though he winced in guilt immediately after, and Leo felt the same way; their mother essentially lived alone, and her two young sons couldn't find it within themselves to visit her while she was still living.

Yet there they were, heading over to visit the dead.

Milo parked across the way from the cemetery, the two climbing out and glancing both ways before walking over, the air still having the bite of spring. They walked for some time, a familiar path despite the lack of visits, and Leo wondered if it was because he had always been expecting this at some point, going over his walk in his head when he finally had the courage to go back and visit without prompting.

The boys paused in front of the grave, and Leo rubbed his hands together. "It's weird we didn't bring flowers, but he always hated it when people did that."

Milo nodded, laughing mirthlessly, lowering his voice as he spoke. "They're already dead, why waste the money, it just draws too much attention, makes people unnecessarily sad."

Leo laughed, with more mirth than his brother, continuing on, "Not that they have any reason to be, we all die in the end, just accept it and move on, waste tears on important things."

Milo was laughing as well, raising his voice a few octaves. "But, dad," he said, the two snickering as soon as he did, "But, dad, it is important, they died!"

"Everyone dies, son," Leo said, his voice still lowered, placing his hands on his hips, "Cry about accomplishments, cry about successes, cry when your children are born. Don't cry over death. Good things rarely happen; and it's not like they're coming back."

"God, that fucked me up so bad as a kid," Milo groaned, laughing as he pressed his palms against his eyes, Leo laughing alongside him, also rubbing at his eyes, because that was a habit they inherited from their father, and it was so appropriate.

Then they faltered, because it must've looked strange to the outside viewer to find two young men laughing over a grave that didn't have any flowers on it. If it had flowers, they could assume they were young men reminiscing the past with the person buried underneath. But without the flowers, they seemed more like two young men mocking the death of someone they either did or didn't know.

Of course their father would do that to them, even from the grave. They didn't have flowers, which meant they didn't have the social courtesy to laugh over his grave, which meant that they couldn't waste time thinking about him, because he was dead, and he would have found it unacceptable for them to be wasting valuable work time to think about him.

"He didn't really mean it," Milo said, though, because they were both thinking the same thing, "He visited grandma's grave all the time, you know he did, he was just saying that."

"I think he just wanted to save his time and energy to things that mattered," Leo said, shrugging, "Like if Mom or Uncle Nick died, you know he wouldn't be okay. If we died..."

Milo nodded in understanding, reaching over to wrap an arm around his younger brother, because Leo was always the crier in the family, Milo was just the one who got angry if things got too much, but he was much more quiet about his feelings than Leo, that was why he seemed to be his father's son. And his mother's.

For all Leo said Oberholt's were a certain way, he was truly trying to be a Schwartz. His mother was more emotional than his father; that being, she was willing to state when things upset her, not that she actually acted out on those emotions.

"Quit thinking so much," Milo said, tapping his brother's temple, because he knew that Leo had a habit of thinking himself into a rut, "Do you have your candy?"

Leo nodded, reaching into his pocket and pulling out some mints, popping two into his mouth, handing the bag over towards Milo who popped one into his mouth; he wasn't as much of a sweets aficionado as Leo, though he was enough to have his girlfriend calling Leo one day, asking if the candy was something to worry about.

"Should we say hi to mom?" he asked, because he felt guilty, the two turning away from their father's grave without a goodbye, because he always hated it when people talked to graves, he always said there was no reason to.

Milo reached into his pocket, showing him the text he had sent their mother before he went to pick up Leo. "She's down in D.C. We couldn't see her even if we wanted."

That appeased Leo for the most part, though he did reach into his pocket and tossed another mint into his mouth, ignoring the concerned look Milo cast towards him as they climbed into the car, fully prepared to head back Upstate and get out of Montclair.

"You gonna stick around for a bit?" Leo asked, wringing his hands as Montclair moved past them, the two speeding their way out, not looking back.

"Yeah, I can hang for about a day, then I have to go back," Milo explained, and Leo nodded in understanding, though he couldn't help the short huff that slipped his lips.

His brother made a face, reaching out to cuff at his head. "Hey, what's wrong? You've got Uncle Nick and you're with the Avengers. I heard Steve's gotten real attached to you."

Leo scoffed at his brother. "So you're on a first name basis with Captain America?"

Milo shrugged, rolling his shoulders. "You do know that my girlfriend went undercover to get him interested in her to keep an eye on him, right? Before S.H.I.E.LD. fell?"

Leo faltered at that, taking in the way Milo's jaw clenched at the memory, his eyes growing sad, and this was the Milo he remembered. The Milo who still stared at the mirror and wondered why he was a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, pointing out every flaw in himself until Fury smashed his mirror, bad luck be damned, and dragged him out of his room, shoving him onto the roof and screaming affirmations at him until he was conditioned to believe them.

Even then, being compared to Captain America was brutal.

"But she still picked you, didn't she?" he offered, and Milo snorted softly, not answering.

By the time they made it back Upstate, it was a few hours until dinner, and Leo was in desperate need of a nap, looking towards his brother who told him that he'd meet up with him, he just wanted to say hi to some people first.

Leo agreed, pretending to head over to his own room, only to trail after his brother, always nosy when it came to him and his interactions with the other agents. He had a feeling that Milo could hear him, but he didn't really care, it wasn't as if he would get in too much trouble.

He trailed a ways away behind, bumping into Pietro, the younger man raising an eyebrow, turning on his heel and falling into step with Leo, whispering softly, "What are you doing?"

"Following my brother," Leo whispered back, Pietro's eyes widening in surprise.

"You have a brother?" he asked, and Leo watched as he used his speed to run around Milo, getting a good look at his face before running back, pausing quickly, a hand reaching down towards where he had gotten shot, and Leo's arm shot out instinctively to hold him in the event he fell.

"He doesn't look like you," Pietro said, shrugging, and Leo scoffed, rolling his eyes as the two continued to follow him.

"I get that a lot," he said, only to fall silent when he caught sight of him making his way towards Clint and Natasha who were in the kitchen, Natasha sat up on the counter and Clint making food next to her.

"Schwartz!" Clint greeted, dropping the knife in his hand to hug the man who groaned softly as he was pulled into a tight hug.

Milo smiled nevertheless, hugging Clint and patting his back before pulling away to nod over at Natasha who didn't reach out for a hug, though Milo seemed unfazed, instead reaching out to shake her hand, the woman complying, and Leo wondered how they knew each other.

"You still up for near death, Schwartz?" Natasha asked, and Milo laughed, shaking his head.

"Sorry, but I've gone on one too many missions with you, I don't think I can keep up," he said, and Leo tried not to gasp at the realization that his brother had been good enough to hold his own alongside S.H.I.E.L.D.'s best agents.

Yet the man still saw himself beneath Steve Rogers, and not in the fun way.

"You hold up better than I do," Clint said, and Milo laughed, and Leo felt a pang of jealousy at how Clint and Natasha were more comfortable with his brother than he himself was.

He wanted to make Milo laugh like that.

"You people and being polite," Pietro scoffed, rolling his eyes, and Leo frowned at him, tilting his head, and Pietro motioned towards them, "He is tense, look at his shoulders, it is not that hard to understand. He is uncomfortable."

Leo faltered at that, quickly catching on to what Pietro was referring to, starting to feel ridiculous at feeling jealous that his brother was laughing with other people when he knew his brother wasn't typically the type to laugh in general.

He was about to chalk the entire interaction up to niceties until Milo spoke again.

"How's he doing?" he asked, lowering his voice substantially, leaning towards Natasha, Clint leaned forward as well to hear, and Leo wondered who they were referring to.

"He's okay," Natasha said, crossing her arms, "Missing everyone, but what's new? He's helping out Laura, though, and the kids, and he's keeping busy. Bored..."

"I'm trying my best, but after were compromised, it's hard to really figure out who's with us, who's not, who's working together, who's separate," Milo said, and Leo didn't understand what he was talking about, but it sounded important.

"It'll take some time, but thanks for staying on board, Schwartz, it means a lot. He wants to get going home soon," Clint said, and Milo nodded in his direction, and Leo gave up trying to understand who this person was.

"Rogers is in the training room if you want to go see him," she explained, and the three made their way out of the kitchen, Leo and Pietro darting back as they made their way to the training area.

Natasha looked over her shoulder to give them a sly smile, and Leo could only turn pink in embarrassment as he was caught by the woman, though she gave no indication to his brother that they were following, though that didn't mean Milo didn't know he was following.

Pushing aside all his thoughts, he continued to follow them, looking over to Pietro who was just behind him, the young man genuinely curious, and Leo was happy to have Pietro with him.

The two peered around the doorway as Milo walked towards Steve who was running on the treadmill, Natasha and Clint walking past them, the man reaching out to ruffle both Leo and Pietro's hair, the younger man protesting softly.

"Steve," Milo greeted, pausing in front of the treadmill, and the blonde, slowed down, smiling brightly at the sight of the man, stepping down without faltering even slightly, pulling him into a sweaty hug.

"Milo, how are you doing?" the younger man asked, and Milo smiled up at him, though Leo couldn't see.

"I've been good, how about you?" he asked, and Milo sounded tired, because he could never be around people for very long, at least when it wasn't for work.

If Steve noticed, he didn't make a fuss, though he simply shrugged, his reply short. "I've been alright. You just came by to visit?"

"Yeah, wanted to take Leo back home, visit our dad," Milo said, and Steve's eyes widened in shock, his jaw dropping, his lips pulling up into a smile, and Milo laughed, nodding, "Yeah, I'm his older brother."

"No way!" Steve gasped, and it was so young looking, so child-like, so similar to how he was when he realized that Leo and Spongebob Squarepants both had tooth gaps.

"Yeah," Milo laughed, nodding, "I heard you and him are friends, that's great, he really loved reading your comic books."

Leo had to cover his mouth to refrain from shouting at his brother to shut his mouth, Pietro also clasping a hand over Leo's own, shushing him softly, the two continuing to look on.

Steve rubbed the back of his neck, turning a shade of pink. "Still can't believe there were comics of me. Even now, they've got those Avengers one...but anyways, it's great to see you, how're you and the girls, how's Sharon?"

"Sharon's good, they're both good," Milo said, and Leo didn't know how to take in his tone or posture.

Steve gave him a soft smile, tilting his head, his tone quiet. "I'm glad, Milo. Honestly, you're all great for each other, I'm really happy. Am I invited to the wedding?"

Milo laughed shortly, glancing away. "Even if it was legalized, I doubt there's that much of an interest."

"Hey," Steve said, his tone now stern, a hand on Milo's shoulder, eyebrows furrowed, "Don't say that. Look, Sharon's explained to me the way you work, and I understand. Hell, Milo, I wanted to be like you. Before the serum and Rebirth, I wanted to be like you, like Leo, you look the way I wanted, you stand up for what I believe in. I know you don't believe me, but I admire you. You're genuine, I'm synthetic."

Milo laughed self-deprecatingly. "It's not the same from my angle."

"I know, but that's how it is from mine," Steve said, and he wasn't laughing, "No one's sticking with you out of pity, Milo, no one has that kind of time. Trust me, I know what it's like to wait too long, as do they. They love you."

Milo ducked his head, sighing softly. "God damn it, Rogers."

The blond smiled. "Glad it got through to you. Now don't let me keep you, go spend time with your brother. Didn't even know you were related."

Milo started to turn away, and Leo could see him smiling. "Take care, Steve, I'll see you later."

Leo seized in panic as he realized there was no way to get back to his room in time without Milo noticing, only to stifle a yelp as Pietro picked him up, the younger man groaning immediately under his body mass, struggling to at least keep his neck in place.

Leo felt a sensational rush, then was dropped onto his bed which was not there a moment before, heavily disoriented, and ready to throw up at any minute. He felt two gusts of wind, then a bottle of painkillers was dropped in front of him.

He adjusted his vision enough to see Pietro standing in the doorway, nodding towards him. "Have fun."

By the time Milo walked into his room, Leo had swallowed two of the pills and was starting to gain his bearings again, and Milo rolled his eyes when he caught Spongebob playing on the TV; Leo hadn't even known his TV was on.

"Put on Hey Arnold," he said, swatting his side, and Leo grinned brightly as he made room for his brother to lie down.

"I missed you," he confessed, the two settling down to watch.

Milo snorted, rolling his eyes, but he smiled nevertheless. "I missed you two."

AUTHOR'S NOTE

( 10.25.18 )

Leo is a twunk, confirmed.

So yeah, here's Milo! I love him lots, and he's one of the two main characters in my Sharon Carter fic, and I love them to pieces, he's such an adorable baby, and I wanna include him more in this, because he and Leo have a good relationship, even if its distant. I also referenced Terran Sweets, the OC in my Natasha Romanoff fic.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed!