Solstice ❆ BARNES

16 | ❝shut up and hug me.❞

"In other news—"

Riley shuts the TV off with a huff, flinging the remote control onto the couch at her left side. Bucky lets out a grunt when it collides into his stomach, and Riley begins to blurt apologies for her erratic behavior.

"I'm fine, it's just a remote," Bucky chuckles. He joins her on the bigger sofa and she sinks into his side like a reflex. After they've sat and stared at the black plasma screen for a while, he lets out a long sigh. "Are we gonna talk about what's bothering you?"

The female rolls her eyes. She remembers that she promised to tell him about the events at Stark's party, but now she regretted that decision. She had just managed to put a lid on the pain and betrayal she was feeling, and talking about it would only make her explode into tears. So what does a trained assassin like her do to avoid agonizing situations?

Bury her head into a pillow and let out a shout she heard Jackie Chan make before he karate chopped a dude. She even lifts her hands (and leg) in defense, continuing the weird sounds.

Bucky easily plucks the cushion away from her face with an exasperated groan, his blue eyes narrowed disapprovingly. "Riley..." he starts.

Riley's eyes instantly flood with saltwater, and she whines like a baby as she turns her head to hide her glossy green orbs. "Don't wanna," she pouts.

He sighs again, grabbing her and setting her onto his lap so he can look at her better. Their eyes meet, his soft and hers full of despair. Before Bucky knows what's going on, Riley spills every single emotion she's bottled up since her return. She tells him through sobs about her parents and siblings, Ultron the Psycho Robot, and how she's determined to find the Solstice serum before HYDRA did. Bucky keeps a calm, careful gaze as he absorbs the information, giving a nod every once in a while.

"Is that why you turned off the news about the Avengers?" he asks when she inhales deeply.

Riley nods wordlessly. After taking a few reassuring breaths, she says, "I want to help them with Ultron. I really do. I mean, Bruce and Tony just destroyed a city in Wakanda."

"But?" Bucky prompts.

She runs a hand through her messy hair. "I want to find my parents' serum first. I already have Caleb and Maya on a hunt for any weird HYDRA movements that might signal that they've picked up a trail, but I'm not sure what else to do. I'm not exactly thinking straight anymore."

Instinctively, Riley curls into a small ball against Bucky's chest, and he allows her to settle in because it just feels right. Like she belonged there, her head over his beating heart. They don't move for a while, the soldier waiting for Riley's breathing to return to normal. He can almost see the thoughts running through her head, knowing that she was mortified for showing so much crippling emotion.

Just as he's about to open his mouth to tell her something soothing, a static noise interrupts the silence of the apartment. Riley's neck nearly snaps by how fast she spins her head in the direction of the bedroom. She's up faster than a cheetah, and when Bucky follows after her, he nearly laughs at how she dives into the closet searching for the source of the beeping.

"Aha!"

Riley emerges, triumphant, with an old radio transmitter in hands. Bucky frowns at the object. "What is that?"

"Back in the day, Clint, Nat and I used this certain frequency to communicate with only each other on missions. It was usually to talk shit about the other agents," Riley teases. But then her eyes narrow in suspicion. "Why the hell would it be working now?"

Both assassins frown as they try to decipher the seemingly random beeping until Riley's green eyes widen in recognition. "Morse code?" Bucky asks as she sifts through the papers on her desk. She takes out a notebook and a pen, faintly nodding at the long-haired man as she begins to jot down the words.