THE FADING FALLEN ● Bucky Barnes X OC ● 18+ ● ENGLISH [COMPLETE]

Chapter 3

The look on the young man's once loving and mischievous face was startling. At just 26 years old, he looked at least ten years older with the shadows under his dark blue eyes and deep furrows in his face.

Wars and struggles, created and fueled by power, greed, hatred, and fear, have turned this once fun-loving man into a pile of misery.

Emilia had to swallow hard as she saw him. Not so Matthew, who held his sister by the shoulders and smiled gently. He was just happy to see her face.

She, too, had changed. There was still her mother's shiny hair and her father's stubborn expression, which had met him so many times in his life. But her features also seemed tougher than before.

Her clothes were no longer as colorful as he knew them to be. Rather pragmatic and simple, she stood in front of him in the airport hall in her washed-out jeans, dark blue T-shirt and black leather jacket.

He remembered how they had always played pranks on each other as children. Usually it was Emilia who got the better ideas, and Matthew almost envied her creativity.

One day, just before he left for the Army, she told him what she had seen in one of her rare premonitions. But he didn't believe her, of course, because who can see the future.

Emilia couldn't really visualize what exactly was happening. It was more disjointed images, places and people flashing before her inner eye - accompanied by either a good or bad feeling.

Matthew was there once when it happened again. They sat together at the breakfast table on a normal Wednesday mornig.

Her father was already in the lab and her mother in the bathroom. Perfect timing, actually, since she didn't want her parents to know anything about the abilities that might worry them.

Reaching for her orange juice, Emilia suddenly stopped and sat transfixed. Her eyes were focused on the glass, but the expression in her eyes was blank... as if her spirit had left her body.

It was frightening as she didn't respond to her brother's words.

"Hey... what's wrong?" He thought of a bad joke at first, but quickly realized it wasn't one: "Ems! Come on, talk to me!"

About half a minute later, which felt like an eternity, Emilia regained consciousness. She looked at him and a smile spread on her lips.

"You won't believe what's going to happen."

"What?"

"Mom and Dad are planning a trip with us before you go away to camp. I'm not sure exactly where, though. But I've seen the ocean."

Four weeks later, her parents actually surprised them with a trip to California.

The time was the best they've all had together as a family recently. For with Matthew's enlistment in the Army, a big part of life moved out of the house.

Even as they wistfully dwelled on their memories, they made their way to the parking garage where the old Mustang Shelby stood.

The emerald-colored 1967 gem had moss-green leather seats and looked like it was fresh from the factory. But it actually had quite a bit under its belt.

The classic car was an heirloom from her late maternal grandfather, Joseph. At the time, her mother insisted on passing on his name to the still unborn child.

And so it was no surprise that the little girl, who came into the world on a snowy December day just before New Year's Eve, was christened Emilia Josephine Carson.

She was proud of her name and cherished the car just as her mother had done when her grandfather passed away.

Yet in the estate, which she received at the appointment with her parents' lawyer a few months ago, was not just the Mustang. It also included some land and houses, as well as investments scattered around the world.

Her parents have always invested their hard-earned money well, which is why neither she nor her brother would have had to work.

Even though they weren't billionaires like the extremely famous playboy and eccentric Tony Stark, financially they never had any problems.

Nevertheless, she was not afraid to go to work. For example, as a waitress in her favorite diner or in the pet supply store on the corner. She always stood on her own two feet and enjoyed what she did.

"You're really keeping up the good work. Mom would be proud of you", Matthew said during the half-hour drive to the Ridgewood neighborhood.

"And Dad would jump up and down at the sight of the garage bills." Emilia was able to feel something like joy for the first time since her parents died nearly a year ago. She finally had her Matty back.

They chatted during the drive about what they had each experienced. He talked about his time in the Army and why he hadn't enlisted.

It had taken him a long time to really realize that their parents were dead. Then when he did, he felt bad for not supporting his little sister with all the things. The funeral, the estate, and especially the time she had to deal with everything alone.

Emilia was not angry with him because she knew he had been through a lot. He lost friends and comrades during the countless missions in Afganistan and Syria.

She really just wished he would get out and live a more normal life.

But Matthew had her mother's heart. He wanted to help people who were being oppressed and martyred in their own country. The Army was the only option for him.

Until now.

As she talked about Hydra and SHIELD, Emilia got an idea as the images of her last premonition came to the forefront.

While she pondered his professional future, Matthew knew he couldn't stop her from her plan to single-handedly dismantle an organization that was already causing trouble during World War II.

"Why don't you go to SHIELD? You can help people there, too, but you don't have to play target for crazy religious fanatics."

"And how am I supposed to get in there? I don't have any special training. They couldn't use me at all..."

It broke her heart to hear him talk like that. He was always confident and knew exactly what he wanted. But now she probably had to force him to be happy.

"I can only offer you my help, Matty. The rest is up to you. At least give it a try. Then I won't have to worry about your helmet being used only as a pasta strainer in the kitchen tomorrow."

A few days later, it was time for the two of them to say goodbye. Matthew prepared for the long flight back.

As he stood just at the gate for a few minutes, though, he pulled his smartphone out of his pocket and called Emilia.

"I'm out. I can't go back and I don't want to. Neither of us should feel alone. Ems, I'm staying."

That same day, Emilia sent a message to Steve, asking for his support in the military as well as SHIELD and Nick Fury.

A few weeks later, Matthew was indeed recruited by SHIELD.

But she already knew that. Her 'instinct' of four weeks ago had not disappointed her.

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