Winter's Widow

Chapter 110: Can I Come With You?

"Hey. You alone around here?" The blonde asks.

"Hmmm. Why does that matter?" I arch an eyebrow.

"Just a question. You don't look like you're from around here..." The brunet responds.

"I am. And, can I help you two?"

"Actually, yes." The brunet smirks and lightly grabs my arm.

"Oh, really? And what would someone like you need help with? Need help carrying your bags up?" I smirk back, actually quite comfortable with the situation.

"I- N-no. I just- Are you trying to imply something little girl?"

"Maybe just a little. How tall are you?" I ask.

"Uh, why?" Blond asks.

"You guys are short..." I keep a blank face.

"We're not short, fucking bitch!" Brunet snaps.

I smirk at his damaged and fragile masculinity.

"We're gonna need you to come with us." Blond says.

"Where to?" I arch an eyebrow.

"Doesn't matter." Blond grabs my arm now too.

"I think it does."

"Are we going to do this the easy way or the hard way? Either way you lose..." Brunet trails off.

"Hard way. I like a good fight."

"Oh, you wanna fight us shorty?" Blond arches an eyebrow.

"Who are you to call me shorty, Mr. 5,7?" I smirk.

"That's it. Let's go-" Blond tightens his grip on me, but gets distracted.

His eyes wander somewhere else, behind me.

He freezes, and brunet is looking at it too. I feel a hand wrap around my waist and pull me back. At first I'm alarmed and I tense up. Then I recognize the unusually stiff arm, so I relaxed a bit. His arm is covered by his jacket and glove, but I know it isn't quite as soft as a normal human arm. He pulls me away from their grip. The men let go of my arms and focus their attention on the beast behind me.

"Who's this? I thought you were alone?" The blonde look at me with a betrayed look.

"I never answered-"

"Now's your chance to fuck off." Bucky's growl cuts me off.

"And who the hell are you?" The brunet crosses his arms.

"Somebody you don't wanna mess with. I wont hesitate to clock you in the face." His voice is deep compared to the others.

"Oh, really? Two on one, who do you think will win?" The blonde jumps in.

"Me." He sounds very confident, and he should be.

"Wanna find out?" The brunet threatens.

"Not really. You're not worth my time. Fuck off." Bucky growls, and tightens his arm around me.

"I wanna find out, what about you Tom?" The brunet looks at the blonde; Tom, apparently.

"Yeah, let's try it Jake." Tom grins.

"Goddammit. Go inside, wait for me there." I take Bucky's hand off me and crack my knuckles.

"Hah! You wanna fight us? Please, we'll kill you!"

"I wanna fight too..." Bucky whines.

"Fine. You take blondie, I'll take this fucker." I sigh.

"Cool."

The blonde throws a punch at Bucky's face, but Buck easily doges it. James clocks him in the face with his left, putting him out for the count instantly. The brunet looks alarmed, but he's stubborn. He throws a punch at my chest, but I catch it with little effort. The look on his face shows he realized his mistake. I crack him across the face. It's lovely to see the the two running away with their tails between their legs.

"Sorry."

"Not your fault." Bucky growls.

We unlock the door and step inside the room. There's a small closet, and tiny kitchen, a bathroom and two beds. That's about it. I take the bed on the right, he takes the left. We plop down on our beds tiredly. We don't even bother with our boots and jackets we're so exhausted.

"You know, you really didn't have to come..." I start.

"I know that. I wanted to come. I don't like the idea of you being alone out here."

"I can defend myself. I could have easily taken those guys. I'm the Black Widow, you know."

"I would know better than anyone else. And, I don't like when you need to defend yourself."

"I usually don't need to. I'm just saying I can protect myself."

"That's the thing. You can't always protect yourself."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, we both know what your biggest weakness is."

"W- we do?" I ask nervously.

"Yes. We both know your biggest threat is yourself."

"...What are you talking about?"

"You mind lies to you. You trick yourself into thinking things that aren't true. These lies can lead you to do reckless and even dangerous things. You constantly hurt yourself. You are not someone who should be left alone with their own mind."

I don't respond. On some level, I guess he's right.

"O-ok. Uh, goodnight."

"Night."

I grab my handcuffs that I make sure to bring with me, and I lock myself to the bed.

"Woah, what was that?" He asks about the clicking noise.

"What was what?"

"What was that click sound?"

Thankfully he can't see because it's dark.

"Oh, I don't know. I didn't even hear it." I brush it off.

"Hmmmm. Alright." He doesn't sound convinced, so I keep quiet.

The rest of the night is silent.