DECADES OF LOVE ☾ bucky barnes

21 | dora milaje

"Are you feeling any better?" Bucky asks as he looks down at the girl with concern.

As he says this, his hand unknowingly rests at her waist as a habit from the past. Keela doesn't say anything about it for deep down she doesn't want him to let go, only fighting back the feeling of her cheeks heating up at his mere touch. She shifts to look up at him where brown eyes lock onto blue.

"Yeah, I am." Keela replies, nodding with a small smile. "By the way, thank you for helping me."

"Anytime, Kee." Bucky replies, returning the same smile she gave him. "I just don't want you getting hurt anymore."

"You can't stop that from happening while we're the people we are, you know that, right?" Keela reminds.

"That won't stop me from trying to keep you away from harm." Bucky tells her.

Keela shakes her head as she lightly laughs at him, heart warming at the idea that he still wants to keep her as safe as possible. She turns around in her seat so that they're not face to face where his hand slips from her body at the movement. They stare at one another as she reaches out and cups his cheeks, thumb brushing against his skin gently.

"You really haven't changed, Buck." Keela whispers.

Bucky smiles. "Neither have you."

The pair don't say anything else. The brunette pulls her hand away and allows it to drop back into her lap with a pang shooting through her heart. Bucky just clears his throats awkwardly, unsure of what else to say after that little moment they just shared.

"Something's not right about Walker." Bucky states.

"You don't say." Sam speaks up as he lets out a light chuckle at this.

"Well, I know crazy when I see one because I am crazy." Bucky informs.

"I can't argue with that." Sam replies.

"You shouldn't have given him the shield." Bucky tells him.

"I didn't give him the shield." Sam fires back.

"Well, Steve definitely didn't." Bucky comments as he tags a swig of the alcohol he poured.

All of a sudden, the front doors burst open with a bang after being kicked upon from its locks. John Walker and Lemar Hoskins can then be seeing striding into the building with their heads held high as if they own the place. Keela and Bucky both rise to their feet in an instance as they slowly exit the kitchen, wanting to have their guards up just in case something happens. All pairs of eyes only turn onto the two to see what they want.

"Alright, that's it. I'm now ordering you to turn him over." John demands.

"Okay, let's be clear here." Sam begins. "Shield or no shield, the only thing you're running in here is your mouth. Now, I had Karli and you overstepped. Zemo's actually proven himself useful today. And we're going to need all hands on deck for whatever is coming next."

"How do you want the rest of this conversation to go, Sam?" John questions with a taunting chuckle. "Do you want to make it fair? Have me put down the shield?"

Keela rolls her eyes at his comment, so desperately wanting to run forwards and beat the crap out of him for knocking her unconscious. But what she didn't expect is to see John actually turn and lower his shield down onto the ground, just proving his challenge towards Sam. He allows it to remain propped up against the pillar closest to them so that it's still perfectly on show.

However, as he does this, a spear soars through the air before embedding itself into that same pillar. They all jump back in shock at the sudden sight of it, turning to look in the direction it came from to see multiple women standing there. They are dressed in a red uniform with metal body armour on their shoulders protection, hair completely shaven off as they wear neck/arm rings on their body with vibranium spears gripped at hand. There's no doubt that they are all warriors, more specifically the Dora Milaje from Wakanda.