Summary: Desperate to save her sister, even if that means breaking the laws, Emma Webster finds herself bonding with Bucky Barnes, who struggles to regain the memories stolen from him. Clint Barton struggles to cope, following a devastating betrayal, while Jessica Webster tries to hold herself together in the face of her looming death. Co-Written with WalkingPotterGirl14. Bucky/OC, Clint/OC, Wanda/OC, Steve/Darcy, Natasha/Matt Murdock, Tony/Pepper, and Sam/Sharon. Rated M.
A Tangled Web
Chapter 7
"You can do that, James," Emma said quietly. Bucky pulled her into him and began gladly kissing her again, his stubble tickling her face as they fell onto the bed.
Clint and Jessica had phoned the police and the officers had picked up the little boy, who had been revealed to be Tommy Kraev. He had been rushed to the hospital to be tended to, and they had given their witness statements.
Clint glanced at the notebook that Jessica had written her bucket list in, and curiously read it. He heard her in the shower and hoped that she wouldn't be pissed off, but he had to admit he was curious about stuff that she had written down.
He noticed that she had added things to the list, which included going to a nightclub, having alcohol…his eyebrows arched slightly when he saw what she had written.
'9: Go clubbing and let my hair down.
10: See a sunset.
11: Go to Hawaii and try out surfing.
12: Ride a motorcycle.
13: Watch the stars, I've always liked seeing the stars at night.
14: Lose my virginity somehow, I don't want to die a virgin.'
That was what she'd written so far. Clint tried really hard to ignore the part about her virginity, but it was really fucking standing out to him. He didn't need to read that…but he could feel his cock harden slightly.
Fuck.
He had tried to deny it, but he did like Jessica. She was funny, smart-smarter than him, seeing as he was a high school dropout-she didn't take anyone's bullshit, and was kind.
Not to mention sexy…beautiful, really.
'Get your mind out of the fucking gutter, Barton. You're fucking thirty-one years old, and she's twenty-three. It's weird and she's too good for a guy like you,' he thought angrily. The bathroom door opened, and he saw Jessica coming out.
Oh, holy shit.
She was in a pair of black sweatpants and a grey tank top. He was trying his damned best not to embarrass himself but it was hard, considering the beautiful woman he was sharing a room with.
"Everything ok, Clint?" Jessica asked softly. Clint nodded and drank some water from his plastic cup. That fucking line in her list was going to fuck him up for a while. He watched as she got into the bed, and bit her lip.
"I'm fine, how are you holding up?" he asked quietly. Jessica was quiet for a while and sighed.
"I'm ok…I just wonder who that clown is…how he's been doing this for so long," she said finally. Clint was silent, as they both silently wondered who the clown was.
Patricia's funeral was held in a Catholic Church, and it was a beautiful service. Roses were placed on the coffin, and they went to a local bar for the wake. The mood was sad, but comforting in the fact that Patricia could now rest in peace. She was buried next to her father, Jonathan, who had died from a stroke.
The police confirmed to the press that they had a suspect and were questioning him.
Jessica sighs. She knew that someday this might have a happy ending, but she didn't believe that the guy they had was the person she saw. Whoever was that clown it was something almost supernatural. Whoever were these people who were constantly tracking them down, that's who they were. And it was scary as shit.
Later, in the day, once the funeral was over and she was walking out of the cemetery, she was greeted by someone riding up to her on a motorcycle. She raises an eyebrow as the person takes off his helmet, and laughs once she saw it was Clint.
"The hell are you doing?" she chuckles. Clint shrugs and pats the seat behind him. Her brow raises even more. "What are you talking about?"
"One of the things on your bucket list was to ride a bike, right?" He gestures to the seat behind him. "Then here's your back. Bringing you back to the tower to rest. I can see it in your eyes that you're exhausted." He didn't want to admit it was from the sickness. He just kept using the excuse that she was tired from the stressful days.
If he just kept using that excuse, it made the thought of her dying less painful than it already was.
Jessica smiles and walks over to him. "That's awful sweet, but…I really don't think it's a great idea," she says quietly. Clint sighs.
"Jessica, you need to learn to trust people. Don't you trust me?"
She looks at him quietly, almost biting her lip. His eyes were looking over at her with such an unreadable expression. But God, she knew what was behind those eyes. Years of being betrayed, of having trust broken. And she knew he was just waiting for her to break it as well.
But luckily for him, she really wasn't that kind of girl.
"Of course, I do," she confirms. "I'm just…kinda scared of falling off." Clint chuckles and reaches over, taking her hand. A chill of electricity suddenly went up her spine, and she looked at him with soft eyes.
"Just hold onto me and you won't fall." He helps her onto the bike and gives her another smile, before handing her a helmet. "And always use protection on these things…they can get messy." The two place helmets on themselves, before Clint revs up the bike. "Hold on!" he warns.
Hold on, she does. Her arms wrap around him as tightly as a vice grip once the bike starts to move, so quickly that she's yelling. And soon, that yelling turns to laughs of pleasure, looking around her, hair flying in the wind.
She was on a bike. She was doing something from her list. She was…living.
Emma had gotten back to the lab early after the funeral, wanting to find exactly where in Hawaii she could find all these spiders. Just because all of this stuff had been happening lately, from her sister to the clowns to this…weird thing between her and Bucky, she hadn't forgotten why she was here.
It wasn't just for the Avengers. It was for her sister too.
As she looked through her findings once more, she heard the door open a bit. Emma looks up to see Bucky heading through there. Instantly, her cheeks turn a dark red.
Ever since that night they had kissed, that hadn't really talked about it. And they should have considering they were going to be going around the world together. But Emma was the awkward type. The person who kind of just waited for things to solve themselves out.
But sadly, she knew she wasn't going to be the case this time.
"Hey," she says quietly. He walks over to her. "I thought we agreed we weren't going to have a session today."
He shrugs. "I wanted to see you again after today. Shit has just been crazy." Emma looks at him quietly as he walks over to her table, looking down at the papers strewn upon the marble surface. "Still trying to find exactly where?"
"It's harder than you think," she mumbles. Emma sighs before looking back at him. "Bucky…whatever happened a couple nights ago…"
Instantly she saw his face fall and he glances away. "I'm sorry, it got out of hand. Won't happen again," he mutters, going to step away. Instantly, Emma reaches out and grabs his hand.
"Stop." He looks over at her. "This isn't your fault, Bucky. It's mine." She swallows. "Look…it's me who told you to kiss me. It's all me…and I don't regret that. You…that kiss was the most emotion I've felt kissing someone in years, before even Calvin. And you…Calvin is so dangerous, but you make me feel so safe and…"
She didn't know how to talk any more so she just looked down at the ground, clearly embarrassed. Bucky walks over and tilts her head up. Her soft eyes stare at his own, silently, with their own words.
"I really like you, James," she says to him quietly. Bucky leans down and kisses her lips slowly, as if testing the waters. Once she placed her hands on his chest, his grip tightened on her chin and one of his arms wrapped around her, pulling her into him.
A moment later, they pull away, foreheads against foreheads. "Can't find that in the forest, can you," he mumbles to her.
She chuckles, but then freezes. "Forest, forest…fuck, why didn't I think of that?!"
She suddenly breaks from his embrace and comes over to her findings, before smiling bright.
"Yes! Waimea Canyon! It's the largest forest in Hawaii, that's where all the spiders would be!" She turns to him. "That's where I have to go, that's what I can do."
Bucky looks at her quietly before nodding. "Then I'll come too."
Emma sighs. "Bucky, you don't have to come to protect me, I can-"
"I'm coming because I want to be with you," he admits. "Not just protecting. Just want to be with you. Hawaii sounds like a fun place to be…not just because it's you." She chuckles and walks over to him again. "Really, Em…I just wanna help you."
Emma smiles a bit and nods. "Alright…but this…whatever this relationship between us is, we have to keep it under wraps, especially there. I gotta go there for business primarily…my sister could actually be saved because of me. I could actually be a saviour," she whispers in awe.
"You've found out a new way to cure blood cancer, Emma. You should be proud of yourself, doll," Bucky said proudly, impressed by her skills and determination to find a cure to save Jessica.
Emma smiled. Before she could stop herself, she kissed him softly on the mouth, causing Bucky to shift slightly before he quite happily kissed her back.
She cared deeply for this man.
Jessica had never felt so happy as she did on the back of Clint's motorcycle. The wind was blowing her dark brown hair all around her, as they pulled up in the Stark Tower car park.
She had never felt so happy. Her hair was windblown and her clothes were rumpled but she didn't care. She smiled at Clint who smiled back as she gave him the helmet.
"Thank you…for doing that, Clint. It was fun," she said honestly. Clint smiled then, pleased that she'd enjoyed riding the motorcycle with him
He'd fulfilled one of her wishes on her bucket list.
Now he just needed to do the rest of the list for her. He had an idea and he just needed to run it past Emma and the other members of the team.
Hopefully, it wouldn't blow up in his face, like his other personal problems had done.
Natasha rarely approved of playing match maker, but when Pepper, Darcy, and the others suggested that they set up Clint and Jessica as a couple, she willingly agreed.
Clint was like the little brother she'd never had. She wanted to see him happy, especially after what Laura had done to him. She knew Clint had feelings for Jessica. There was something there.
She didn't really know Jessica personally, but she was friendly, polite, gentle and didn't take anyone's bullshit. Natasha looks ahead, as she saw Jessica ready for the training session. At least she was willing to do even this, even with her sickness.
She was thin, probably due to the cancer. But her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes had a twinkle in them. She tied up her dark brown hair in a messy bun.
"So, what kind of martial arts do you know?" Natasha asked curiously. Jessica looked deep in thought.
"I know judo, and Krav Maga, but I had to stop doing it when I was in high school. Doctors said I wouldn't be strong enough to do it," Jessica explained quietly. Natasha saw her looking longingly at the gymnastics equipment along with the ballet studio.
Emma had told Natasha that after Jessica had been diagnosed with leukaemia, she hadn't been able to do ballet, gymnastics or horse riding anymore due to being sick all the time. It sounded horrible. But Natasha couldn't let her know that she felt pity. Jessica wasn't about that.
"That's fine. We'll start with what you know and then go on from there, Jess," Natasha said reassuringly. And then, they began doing warm-ups, with the others.
And honestly, it wasn't so bad.
Clint had no idea why, but Tony announced that the Avengers had been invited to a gala dinner and dance afterwards. It was a bit…strange. But it was something. Tony added that they were expected to bring a date with them.
He glanced at Jessica, and saw she was writing an article for WHIH News and sent it to Christine. She takes a sip from her glass of water, and he looked down at the ground.
Would she want to go with him?
He silently walked over. She smiled at him as he sat down next to her. Lucky was fast asleep after eating his meal with the cats burrowed into his side.
"I was wondering…would you like to go to the gala dinner with me?" Clint asked quickly, trying really hard not to look like a fool in front of her.
But luckily, he didn't need to face that. Because she smiled brighter than the fucking sun. And he hated to admit it, but the smile made something in his heart shift, something he hadn't felt in a very long time.
"Of course, Clint," she says happily. "I'd love to go with you." Clint smiles and nods.
"Just…ya know, one of those things where-"
He was sort of walking all over himself with this, so she chuckles and nods. "I know, Clint." She hands him a glass of water from where she sat. "It's one of those things." He smiles as he takes the glass, happy she shut him up before he could embarrass himself even more.
He looks over at her article and raising an eyebrow. "What are you working on?" he asks quietly. She smiles.
"Just something about all the killings that are happening…the last thing I want is for something like this to happen again, so I gotta…do something to expose it." She looks over at Clint. "Even if my time is limited, it doesn't mean I can't do something to help."
He was starting to hate hearing her say that.
Bucky glanced over at Emma as she looked deeper into her locations for the trip. He had to admit that he had a lot on his mind, considering this whole gala thing Tony had told them about. It wasn't that he didn't mind dancing. He used to love it back when he was…well, him.
But it wasn't that. It was the idea of who to go with. And he wanted Emma. But…with everything she was doing, he had a feeling she didn't want to go to any dance. She had better things on her mind.
Even then, he quietly walked over to her as she was working. He had been staying in the lab more now. Since he had gotten back a lot of his memories, he had spent hours in the quiet, watching Emma work, or reading things that Steve gave to him.
Speaking of him, he was currently on a mission doing God knows what. He would be back soon…and Bucky knew he had to tell him about what happened with him and Emma.
"Hey," he says quietly. She looks over at him. "There's this dance, and…I know what we have is weird but…would you want to come with me to it?" She tilts her head, and almost a soft smile appears on her face, before she looks away. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't-"
"No, don't be sorry," Emma says quietly. She glances back at him. "I would like to go with you…I just worry that Calvin might be there and…" She looks away and sighs. "I don't want someone to get hurt, James. Especially you."
Bucky looks at her quietly before walking back to her side. He places his hand over hers, his metal hand, taking a chance. She surprisingly takes it back. "No one's going to hurt you, or me, or any of us. It's just something we can have fun at." She looks up at him. "Just us." She smiles softly, and then nods.
She said yes.
He leans down and pecks her lips. A gentler kiss than the previous ones. And after a moment, the two pull apart. She smiles and blushes, looking back at her work. Bucky steps back and sits down, a grin the size of Asia on his face.
Finally, things seemed to be working in his favour.
As Jessica wrote an article one afternoon, she stood up to go get some water, when her head was suddenly hit with the epitome of wooziness. Her mind started to spin, and everything around her became blurry.
And that's when the pain started.
It only took one throw up session to remind her that yes, indeed, she was still dying. But after five throw up sessions, she knew that she had to do something or call someone or just pass out in her bed. The pain had come to a point where she couldn't stand.
She hated feeling like this. She hated being so sick. She hated being a burden.
She could call Emma…but she was busy. Clint could be of help, but she didn't want to intrude on him either.
She was shit out of luck.
Jessica slowly gets herself up, walking over to the bed. She places her head in her hands and groans to herself. The doctor did say she could smoke weed to ease the pain…
Would that really help?
Jessica's facing a dilemma. Enjoy and review :)
