Mother Earth ||| Bucky Barnes (2)

11 | 𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐲𝐚𝐥, 𝐇𝐮𝐫𝐭, 𝐇𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐫

After walking for a bit in silence, Yelena spoke up. "So, are we there yet?" She asked, not even getting a smile out of me.

"You'll know when we're there." Alexei answered, snorting, mimicking a pig.

We kept walking, and I eventually decided to remove the flowers from my hair. Leaving it in it's braid, I walked around Yelena to walk on the grass, seperating myself from everyone else.

I could feel the looks they were giving me, but I ignored it as I stuffed my hands deep inside my vest pockets, my backpack hanging off my shoulder, with my head hung low.

❀

We continued our walk through the gorgeous landscape of St. Petersburg, until we came to a fence, with a woman who I guess was Melina standing behind it with a large gun.

She took a moment to look at all of us, specifically me. I turned to meet her gaze, fear written all over my face. She smiled softly at me, and I barely dropped my look, but it lessened.

"Honey, we're home." Alexei said softly. Melina didn't answer, instead just walked off.

We followed her, and she brought us into her home. I liked it.

"Welcome to my humble abode." She said as we walked through her hallways. "Make yourself at home. Let's have a drink." Melina said, sighing.

I hestitantly took off my backpack, after putting my rings into my vest pocket. Yelena and I sat together, and I placed my hands in my lap, looking around.

"Are there any booby traps around here? Anything we should be aware of?" Natasha asked from the kitchen.

Melina answered in her pretty accent. "I didn't raise my girls to fall in traps." She said.

Natasha was quick to retort. "You didn't raise us at all." She said while standing at the sink.

The woman looked offended, maybe? "Oh, maybe so. But if you got soft, it wasn't on my watch." Melina concluded, and Natasha backed off.

Melina and Natasha joined Yelena and I at the table, Melina next to me, and Natasha across from her. We could all hear Alexei grunting in the bathroom, and I didn't even want to know what he was doing in there.

"Let's drink." Melina said suddenly, pouring shots of alcohol. She offered me one, but I declined. Melina asked Natasha something about me, and Natasha answered her, but I was too wrapped up in my own head to pay any attention.

Alexei walked out of the bathroom, clearing his throat. Yelena nudged me, and I turned around, seeing Alexei in a red suit that was much too small for him.

He didn't think it was too small. "Still fits." He boasted.

Melina wolf whistled, and Yelena and I muttered, "Oh, my God." Out of disgust. Melina clapped, and Alexei laughed.

"I never washed it once." She told the man, and I crinkled my nose up. "Come and drink." Jesus, Russians really do like alcohol. I was Russian, but alcohol didn't affect me. It tastes disgusting, so if you can't get drunk off of it, why drink it?

Alexei scatted some old song as he sat down. "Family, back together again."

"Seeing as our family construct was just a calculated ruse that only lasted three years, I don't think that we can use this term anymore, can we?" Melina pointed out, and I shrugged. She was right.

"Agreed. So, here's what's gonna happen..." She started, but was cut off.

Alexei reached across the table. "Okay. A reunion then, huh? And uh... I want to say something right off the bat. You haven't aged a day, huh?" He said, directing his statement towards Melina. "You're just as beautiful and as supple as the day they staged our marriage." He continued, causing Yelena to take a shot.