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(Edited 2018 May 19)
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Chapter 3: Bucky Barnes - Donuts for Days
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A calm breath left my lips. My body completely stilled.
The target. A couple miles away. Settled in my crosshairs.
He had no idea. Not a clue as to what his future held. How short it actually was.
All the target knew was the scotch. The drink he was pouring for himself.
With familiarity, my finger squeezed the trigger. My shoulder absorbed the kicked back. My arms with ease moved onto the next target in the room. Then the next one. And the next one.
Until the boardroom was littered with the dead.
A little girl suddenly appeared in my scope.
I dropped the rifle. Feeling the burn of its metal on my palm. Backing away from my sniper's nest.
I could see it. In the distance. I could see my work. Clear as day. Even in the night. Even with the bursts of fireworks.
A pair of twin boys painted red. The image seared into my eyes. Their bodies never to run or jump again.
I could almost hear the wails of their parents from where I hid.
The back of my knees collided with something hard. It had no give. I landed on something so familiar. My heart sank into my stomach.
Before I could get up, metal coiled around me. Held me in place. My heart pounded harder and harder. Scared of what was to come.
I fought harder. Trying to escape. To sink into the seat. Anything to get away from that monster of a machine.
I didn't want to lose myself. It was going to take everything from me. Everybody was going to disappear… again.
"STEVE! PLEASE! STEVE!"
He'd save me. Like before. We're brothers. He's with me. 'Til the end of the line.
"STEEEVVEEE!"
My eyes shot open. My chest heaved for air.
'I killed… I killed children? I killed children…. Why did I kill them? How could I kill them…?'
My heart raced harder and harder. My head spun. I couldn't get enough air.
'How much of it was real…?'
My right hand came up. To wipe the sweat off my face. A scream tore from my throat.
Blood.
My hand was covered in blood.
Scrambling up, I found myself soaked in blood. Splattered up the arms. My clothes. The body at my feet….
I could feel another shriek welling up inside my chest. I had to bite it back.
My legs ran. Pounded against the pavement with everything I had.
Another body to the count. Whatever that number might be.
'What have I done…?'
Nothing around looked familiar me. I had no idea where I was. Dawn was approaching. Judging by the colors of the dark skies.
Pain shot up from the left shoulder. A gasp filled my lungs. Then the memories knocked me to my knees.
I killed that man. That now faceless man. Beat him to death with that weapon. The one that replaced my left arm. Caved his head in. Turned his face into pulp.
Why did I do that? Did he do something? Was he just the closest thing for me to unleash whatever hell was within me?
I could almost choke on my own horrors. I did.
'What the hell am I…?'
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"I swear I'm going to be a bloody ball with how many donuts I've eaten waiting for you. 36. 36 fucking donuts in the span of a week." The young woman's toothy grin helped ease my nerves. "Now sit your ass down, Buddy, and eat."
Before I knew what I was doing, I was seated on the bench. Chewing on the sweetest thing I'd ever stuck in my mouth.
"Okay, okay. Stop already. I was joking. Spit that out. No point forcing yourself to eat that. Here." She held out a napkin to me. "I know how sweet that one is."
I took the offered napkin. Spitting out what was left in my mouth as ordered. Staring at her in confusion. Whatever it was, it still coated my mouth.
"It's my favorite?" she offered with a shrug.
Then she pointed at another treat in the box between us. This one had a dark coating on the top.
"Boston Cream. There's a filling to this one. But it's less sweet? Favorite of a more sensible friend of mine. Or you could give the Strawberry Jelly a shot. Sweeter but not like the Honey Dip. It's a mess to eat. Probably cover that beard of yours in powdered sugar. But it's so good. Oh, there's the old fashion. So I guess that'd be the regular flavor? I don't know. Plain's too boring for me. Got real tired of eating that one…. Take your pick."
I shrugged.
There were too many choices.
Four left, being that one of the six was scrunched up in the napkin in my hand and another was the exact same thing.
The last she left unexplained. The one with corners. Many corners.
She sighed heavily. But smiled anyways. "Let's go old fashion?"
I took the ring from her. Munching on it. It was still sweet. Though not so strong.
It was almost familiar to me. But again, it was easier to grasp smoke. Nothing to hang onto. It merely slipped out between my fingers before I could do a thing.
"What were you up to? You look absolutely exhausted, Buddy," she asked after a while. Her voice soft. Her words spoken carefully. "You even found a change of clothes. Still wearing a suffocating looking jacket."
I shifted uncomfortably. "I don't want to talk about it."
A dull pain stabbed at my head. Guilt twisted in my gut.
"'Kay…." She dropped the conversation. In favor of the sickly sweet treat. Munching on it. "…I don't think I want to see another donut for the next couple of years…." And yet she continued to eat the thing.
"Sorry…" I whispered.
"Eh, don't worry about it." A dismissive wave of her hand. "I can be stubborn. Hoped you'd show up again."
I stared at her. Unable to comprehend. I understood the words. But it made no sense.
'Why wait for me?'
"First friend I've managed to make in D.C." A shrug. She sat back on the bench. Sending me a soft smile.
She considered me as a… friend?
The concept was so foreign to me. I couldn't comprehend any of it. Any of her reasoning. What were friends? I had been the best friend of St…. That's what the exhibit said.
'What does that mean?'
Friend.
"Now that I think about it, it's always been work whenever I dropped into this city…." A thoughtful pout. A carefree shrug. A glance my way. A light laugh. A shake of her head. "I don't live here." Answering my unvoiced question.
A small sinking feeling of fear built up inside me.
She could disappear one day. Like my memories.
I'd remember this time. But she wouldn't be there.
I should have never let her in.
"How…? How long…?" I found myself asking.
Then again, I wouldn't be in the city much longer than another month or two if things go well.
"Before I leave? Deadline's in about a week…? But got nothing lined up afterwards. Free to do whatever I may until the next thing that pops up." Another glance my way. Another shrug. Her hand motioned towards the food truck. "I've got no clue how I'm going to leave this behind. I'm addicted to their sandwiches. So, Buddy, beef or pork?"
As usual, I shrugged. Our routine fell back into place. She was up walking to the food truck. Flipping a coin.
It gave me time to ponder. Trying to forget how I had broken into someone's home. To use their bathroom. To clean the blood off me. To steal their clothing.
The little blond boy wasn't here today. I doubt he was coming. It was already four. According to the clock by the playground. There were a couple days in a week where he never showed up. Today must have been one of those days.
The young woman plopped down on her end of the bench. A sandwich held out to me.
Pork today. I could easily smell the sauce.
As the routine dictated, I nodded my head when I took the food from her. Then came the struggle of unwrapping the darn paper.
The mechanical arm was half useless. How I managed to kill a man with it. It was beyond me….
"You'd tell me before you leave, right?" she asked out of the blue. "When you've finished waiting."
Again, I didn't know how to reply.
She frowned and sighed heavily. "If I leave first, I'll tell you. If you leave first, you'll tell me. Deal?"
I had to think about it. This wasn't something I could just shrug to. Or shrug off.
She considered me a friend.
If I took the deal, I wouldn't be sitting here one day waiting for her. Not knowing that she was gone.
As she had done for me.
I nodded in agreement.
I could do this. When I found what I was looking for, I could come back. For a day. To end things properly.
I had the choice.
She grinned happily. Dug into her sandwich with vigor. After some bites, she glanced my way again. "By the way, you're helping with the last three donuts. I don't think my sanity can handle forty donuts."
I nodded. Eyeing the spiky one.
"Uhh… not that one. That's a Honey Cruller…. You won't like it. There are days where even I find that too sweet…. I'll be eating that one… again…."
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"Beef or pork!?" yelled the usually calming voice I was growing used to. Coming from the west.
The young woman quickly raced past the bench. She didn't even pause when she glanced my way. Flashing a toothy grin.
The once gentle curves of her dark locks were unrecognizable. Half of it was twisted up to sit on her head somehow. The rest bounced with each purposeful step. The ends curled into coiled springs. It looked out of place compared to usual.
There wasn't even a flip of a coin. She ordered. Then spiraled into mad pacing. Her thumbs tapping away on the black device.
Today was her deadline. Part of me was surprised that she turned up at the park. Especially so late in the day.
"Here!"
Glad that I had reflexes and full control of my flesh arm, I caught the flying sandwich she sent at my face.
A smile broke on her face. A happy chuckle. "As if I would miss this for the world."
"How much time do you have?" I enquired.
"Eleven minutes left," she mumbled through a mouthful of sandwich.
"You're not going to finish in time."
"If I finish this, I wouldn't fit in my stupid dress."
I couldn't imagine it. All I saw were large T-shirts and very short shorts. What she always wore. What she was wearing now.
"Got a fucking ball to attend tonight."
The usual silence between us was disturbed. A constant patter. Caused by her leg insistently bouncing up a storm. And as always, I was finished before she was.
I had to wonder if she was really only here for the sandwich. It wasn't too hard to believe.
"Miss Ayers!" Six bodies were making their way through the park. "There you are!"
"Oh, hell no!" the young woman next to me cried. Quickly swallowing her food. "You said I had half an hour!" She got on her feet. Her left eye blinked at me. A cheeky grin on her lips. "Wish me luck tonight."
"Good luck," the words automatically pulled from my own lips.
She turned away from the incoming group. Ran while trying shove half the sandwich down her throat.
"Miss Ayers! Get back here!" They easily descended upon the young woman. Surrounding her.
There was an indignant cry from her. "I wasn't finished eating that!" She tried to snatch back the food. Only to watch it end up in the garbage. Her face was twisted in half a scowl.
Another person gripped her jaw to face them, wiping a white clothing across her face before going the same with a brush across her face. As a group with her at the center of the mess fussed over her, they were leaving the park. Albeit slow.
"You need to sign these papers," another told her. Handing a pen and clipboard to her. The man glared at me as they passed by.
My body tensed uncomfortably. It reminded me of something. Something at the edges of my memories.
The feeling of being dragged away. The feeling of being forcibly moved. The feeling of being surrounded.
Managing to twist away from the brush, the young woman faced me. "I'll see you in a couple of da –!" Her jaw was recaptured. This time a smaller brush attacked her lips. Her arms steadied themselves on a pair of shoulders. The pen in her hand scribbled across a page. "Ack!"
"Hold still!" ordered the woman who held a sparkling necklace around the young woman's neck. Trying to clip it in place. Strangling the young woman instead.
"Not happening with all – Ack! This pushing!" There were a couple of them. Herding her to the destination. A limousine at the edge of the park.
"Stop moving your lips!" barked the one with the brushes.
"Can't we do this in the car?"
"You've wasted too much time, Miss Ayers. You know how important tonight is." With that said, she was stuffed into the black vehicle.
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She was back.
The target was back.
Alone.
Alone with the little blond boy.
No men around her. Nobody guarding her. It was just her and the boy.
It didn't make any sense.
Checking the park for the tenth time, I was sure. Only the two of them here.
There were a couple of others at the park. None of them seemed to be Hydra's men. Hoped none of them were.
The target hadn't spotted me. So I slunk into the shadows. Between the bushes. The trees behind the bench. Watching. Waiting. In the shadows.
'What do I want to do now?'
Should I grab her? Should I watch her? Should I follow her?
How do I get the information about what they did to me from her? Torture? Did I want to torture her?
Was that who I am now?
Was I to kill her after I was finished?
And what of the little boy?
Pain ripped through my head. The decisions. I couldn't handle it. I don't remember how to make them. What was I supposed to do? Nobody was there to tell me.
And I couldn't shrug this off.
Clenching fists did nothing to help. Though it did distract me from what I needed to do. To make a decision. The damage in the metal arm sent shocks into my body from use.
Then a thought.
One that drifted through my hazy mind.
A leaf.
I could toss it like a coin. It could decide for me.
Face up, I take her now.
Face down, I follow her until I understood more.
It was beautiful. Watching the green leaf twist, flip and sway its way to the grass below.
Face down.
The dull thumping in my head calmed down.
I knew what I was to do. I had a direction again.
I didn't have to wait long in the park.
The boy had fallen off the slide. Scraped his knee on the wood chips. The target gathered up the little blond boy. Said a couple of words for the tears to morph into sniffles.
Hand in hand, they left the park.
There was no car waiting for them. I had the chance to follow them with ease. Keeping to the shadows of the houses. Leaping over fences and shrubbery to stay out of sight. For the most part.
I couldn't believe how close she was to the park. Three blocks away. A mere three blocks away.
A big house with an attached garage. A large black S.U.V. parked in the driveway. It was like any other house on the street. It blended right in.
A shadow moved behind the white curtains. Someone else was in the house. Male judging by the size. The way he moved. The sway in the shoulders instead of the hips.
He opened the front door. Greeting the pair. A blue eyed blond. Same as the little boy he picked up. With a kiss on the target's lips, the man closed the front door.
One final sweep of the neighborhood. I logged the target's house number and location into my mind. Before returning to the shelter for the night.
I found what I was waiting for.
It wouldn't be long. Not long before I got what I truly wanted.
I'd have to tell that young woman farewell tomorrow. I wonder how she'd take it.
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My lips twisted into a frown.
The sun had set couple hours ago. The food truck had long packed up and left. There was nobody in the park now.
That young woman never showed up.
She said she'd be here. I believed her words. Her eyes.
She'd be here.
But she wasn't.
I couldn't even understand why.
Why was I still sitting here? On the bench. Waiting.
Unease twisting itself in my gut. She should've been here.
She'd never miss that pulled pork sandwich.
In the past month, she'd never missed it. She'd run until she was out of breath. Just for it.
A yell echoed through the park. A scream cut off into muffles.
My heart raced. My body shot onto its feet. My eyes trained on the east entrance. I leaned away from it. Ready to dive into the bushes.
Had they found me?
"Why the fuck are you taking me here!? Eve!?"
I knew that voice! It was the young woman's voice. I could hear the fear. The fear hidden under the obvious frustration.
"I can't believe this is fucking happening again!"
She came flying over the low wall. Tucking into a ball at the height of her jump. Her body plummeted like a stone. Pressed against the bricks of the half wall. She scooted herself along it. Towards the direction she came from. Away from me.
That was until those wild gray eyes locked onto me. Her brow furrowed and one rose up. Her shoulders heaving with each breath. Each breath her body demanded.
Her eyes looked up. Trying to peer over the wall behind her. From her position, she couldn't. No one could. Not without the help of reflections.
Her arm waved wildly. As if motioning for me to get into the bushes. She focused on me again. No way for her to know –
Beep.
"Behind you!" I yelled at her.
"Fuck!" She dove into a summersault. Braided hair barely escaping the man's grasp. "Damn phone!"
She didn't look back. Only bolted once her feet were under her. It wasn't a full out sprint. Legs bouncing for distance. Keeping light on her feet.
"Don't make this difficult on yourself," laughed a man. The one who tried to grab her.
Three more showed up from around the corner. All of them walked with ease. In no rush to go after her. Blocking the eastern entrance.
"What do you mean there's a second team!?" the young woman cried. Racing across the fountain.
"Who told her that!? Never mind that. Checkmate, bitch."
"Why the fuck did you lead me to a checkmate!?" She skidded to a stop. "Good luck!? What so you mean good luck!? The fuck you go!? Damn it! Bloody dead zone!" Her chested heaved a frustrated huff. Eyeing her surroundings.
A group of four men blocked the western entrance. The original group of four were at her heels. All were masked. All wore black. These were clearly not her men.
"I suggest you cooperate."
"'Kay, 'kay." She raised her hands. Her lungs still trying to catch her breath. Otherwise, she was calm. "I give. I give."
"Good choice." The speaker, with a jerk of his head, motioned for one of his men to move.
The largest man. One much larger than myself. Taller. Bulkier. He stalked up to the much smaller woman.
It would have been amusing. Their size difference. In a different situation, yes. Not this one. Not with a cloth bag in his hands. Not with their masks. Not like this.
The young woman backed up a half step. Nose wrinkling in distaste. "Please tell me that's clean."
"Shut up, bitch," the large man spat.
"Oi, not nice. I'm cooperating, ain't I?"
The questioning tilt of her head camouflaged the movement of her shoulders. Her knee snapped up. Her foot shot out at the man's groin. With a howl of pain, came chaos.
"RUN!" she screamed at me. Arm waving wildly.
She sprinted straight at me. It was the only sensible direction she could go. But she didn't make it very far.
They were stronger. They were faster. They greatly outnumbered her.
Eight to one.
One tackled into her side. Right into the dirt. The one with the bag.
She fought back wildly. Kicking out with all the ferocity she had in her little frame. But there was nothing she could do against the giant man.
He caught her leg.
A wounded screech split the air before it faded to a vicious snarl. Another cry of pain and blood stained the air.
"You little bitch! You're going to regret that!"
A blade was brandished in the night.
I snapped into action. Broke a wrist. The one that held the tactical knife. Before it found a new sheath. In the young woman's back.
Catch the knife. Cut to the jugular. Target incapacitated.
The clean knife fell from the metal fingers. The pain too much. The pounding in my head. The electricity running rampant from the mechanical arm.
'No more killing…. Don't want to kill….'
My foot sailed right at the man's head. He flew. Too much strength.
'Shit.'
Punch to the chest. Ribs break. Puncture organs. Target incapacitated.
My fist found another man. The side of his head instead. Hope I held back enough. Held back too much.
Apparently.
The man still stood. Confused. But he still stood. Barely even budged.
My fist collided with his chin. He fell back with a thud. Kicking up dust. He no longer moved.
Target incapacitated.
I hauled the young woman onto her feet. Being on the ground would limit her escape. "Go."
A push towards the bushes. An opening. A fast closing one.
The men descended.
A blade cut into my sleeve. Scraped against the metal plates of the semi useless arm.
Reflexes kicked in. Punched the attacker. Landed on his side. He too flew. Farther than the first.
Three targets incapacitated.
Panic rose. Suffocating. Couldn't breathe. It only got worse. Muscles only coiled tighter. To hide. To fight. Ready to explode in pure reactive power. Power that wasn't mine.
I was going to kill someone…. If I haven't already.
An arm snaked around my throat. Opening my stance. Pressing my back into a body. Choking me.
Break the arm. Sweep the legs. Break the skull. Target incapacitated.
Blood splattered onto my face. I backed away. Away from the young woman. The one dragging the once fallen knife down the forearm. The one wrapped around my neck.
A screech blared at my sensitive ears. Too much. Too loud.
Her hands gave my chest a shove. It wasn't strong enough. Not enough to budge me. But the blood sprayed out of that mouth of hers. That did.
A man yelled about his eyes. Somewhere over my shoulder. The lump of flesh she spat out told of the knife's owner. The story that he was missing a chunk of his arm. A chunk she bit off in their struggle.
My forearm found the side of a neck. The neck of the now blinded man.
Four targets incapacitated.
These men were simple to deal with.
No match for the Winter Soldier.
But I didn't want to be that. The Asset.
No more killing.
But it was hard. Harder to keep them alive than to kill.
A sharp pain sliced across my chest. Three at once. Made trickier with a barely functional arm.
Seven targets incapacitated.
The last one found himself in my choke hold.
Crush the throat. Target incapacitated.
The light was fast fading from those eyes.
Punch to the face. Break the skull. Target incapacitated.
Hands clawed at my arm.
Cut off the oxygen supply. Wait. Target incapacitated.
"Hey, Buddy, let go," the young woman ordered. Voice scratchy but somehow still soft in tone.
I quickly released the man.
Backed away. Tripped over a hopefully unconscious body. I tried to slow my racing heart. But it only pounded harder at the crackle. The crackle of electricity snapping through the air.
The young woman stood over the bodies. Completely favoring her right leg.
The left was injured. The one who caught her. The one she bit. The one who pulled too hard on her foot.
Her hand fell to her side. Taser clutched between her bloodied fingers.
"Bastards be glad the fucking bear mace is at the bloody hotel," she sneered with a huff.
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AN: Had a lot of fun with the last bit. Hopefully it's as confusing to read as Bucky feels.