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CALM AFTER
THE STORM
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Czarina woke up in the comfort of a hospital bed, hooked up to multiple medical machines and tiny tubes slithered all over her torso. The coherent thought that forms in the girl's head is SHIT. John Walker just shot her in public, on a foreign soil. And the rest of the country is probably in chaos after the incident, which certainly includes her father and uncle seeing she's alone in the confinement room right now.
Or maybe not so alone.
A figure dressed in fatigue and camo jacket lies peacefully on the couch by her bedside. Joaquin must have felt her awakened presence, the dark haired boy stirs from his sleep and looks over at the lone blonde who's now half wake and watching him.
"Czarina...," he rubbed his eyes and was quick to rush on the girl's side. "How are you feeling?"
"Like I've been shot."
"You were."
She scoffs a light laugh. "I know."
"Oh," the other one only grins back. "I can call a nurse if you feel dizzy or in pain, they say—"
"No, no. It's alright," Czarina waved her hand in refusal. Though reluctant, Joaquin remained by the girl's side. His keen yet soft brown eyes locked with her tired, blue ones. They spoke no words to each other for the next couple of seconds before Czarina pulled away, a bit taken back from the silent moment they shared.
"Uh, you can go back to sleep or-or," she stammers and adjusts herself on the bed. "I'm fine here."
It took a moment before Joaquin could respond. "Oh no, it's okay. I'm fine here too," he gulped and pulled a chair to sit by the bedside.
Czarina has to admit it, she was relieved to see him instead of some other military personnel sent by the state. At least he's a familiar face and is probably here at the dispense of Sam.
"Where are they?" She asked in a whisper. The bullet wound on her lower torso aches slightly.
"They went after Walker. The Latvia police and military came a bit late." It didn't seem he's comfortable talking about it.
"And the Flagsmashers?"
Discomfort surfaced on Joaquin's face, the air force sergeant shifted on his seat and paused before speaking at last. "Walker took out one of them, the rest escaped."
Uneasiness quickly seeped in the girl, an intense pain on her left side flared up as blood rushed down her chest and head. She found it difficult to properly breathe once more. It was futile to stop John alone, she knew it yet she comprised the mission in a heartbeat. Maybe it would have been better if she waited for Bucky and Sam before she chased after him. Her interference might have agitated the already unstable soldier.
Her father and uncle together can be a formidable pair together but right now it feels like less of a consolation than usual, her head is scrambled and she's in a great deal of pain.
Joaquin's presence is a relief to her but it holds no candle to the ever growing distress and chaos inside the girl. Numbness crawls on her fingertips and temples as blood pumps against her ears. Czarina can hardly keep herself awake without lights dancing before her eyes.
"I think I should call home," she half blindly reached to the bedside for her things. "The press and authorities will be all over this. I need to call our lawyer..."
"Woah, hold up. You look like you're about to pass out, are you—" the older boy held back her body from leaving the bed. "Czarina, please just take it easy."
A rugged breath came out of her instead of words for a response, the tingling sensation has spread to all the girl's limbs and chest. The tubes snaking in her body and face felt more like bounding ropes. Her fingers yanked and pulled it without any second thoughts as screams of unintelligible obscenities flew out her mouth.
Her kind companion has completely blurred out of her sight. A simple slip of the past resembling her current state was enough to set Czarina off the edge. All of the sudden it felt like another mission from the Red Room or HYDRA, where she dies miserable and tragic on the field. Only to wake up once again in isolation of a four corner, white tiled room.
Doctors and medical aid rushed in a panic which only brought more overwhelming energy to the room. They were in front of Czarina and then hovering by her side, she pinned herself against the wall as she flung her arms.
Then their voices begin to make sense in her head.
Breathe, Miss Barnes. Breathe.
She does. One after another. Same counting and beat like Doctor Greene and her practiced.
Breathe. You're safe. You're with us.
She is. She's not in danger. Not anymore.
She's not in the Red Room anymore. Or in Siberia.
Breathe, Rina. You're alright.
The room starts to clear, the colors and sounds flooding all around her but without the drowning feeling anymore. She can feel her limbs and chest again. The doctor nearest to her was quick to assist Czarina back to her feet.
And then she was back on the bed again, sweat and tears pooled on the sides of the girl's face as her body gave in to the overwhelming exhaustion.
The passage of time remained unclear to the young Barnes. Until her zoned out state was interrupted by the loud slam of her room doors opening.
Her father and uncle burst inside as if they were after an enemy. Intense, wild look plastered all over their faces and stance, then it softened the second Bucky's eyes found Czarina. Conscious and better in comparison to how she was three hours ago.
"Oh my god," Sam let out a sigh of relief and skipped next to the girl's bedside. "You're awake, thank you."
"I'm... I'm okay," her inaudible response was cut off by a tight side hug from her father, his chin resting on her head and arms wrapped on her frame as well as the back of the neck. He then smothers Czarina's head with a couple of kisses before finally lowering himself into the same level as hers.
"Dad... I'm really sorry, I thought-"
"You scared me. Don't ever do that again, sweetheart. Please," his hands cupped the sides of his daughter's face. He's visibly fighting tears that pricked the sides of his eyes. Czarina had memorized this kind of expression from the man, one that is in obvious anguish yet consoled by the fact that he's with her again.
"I know, I'm sorry. He was there and I had to do something...," she cuts herself off before blabbing more into the irrelevant excuse and instead directs the conversation to the main problem. "Where's Walker now? Did you found him."
"Yeah, we apprehended him. He's with the authorities now." Sam confirmed, though hesitant to indulge the topic.
"You don't have to worry about him, he's going away. He can't hurt you now." His assurance sounded more of a threat to the other party.
"I'm fine," Czarina's voice slightly raised. "He killed someone, that's what I'm concerned about."
"He was a Flagsmasher, that guy-"
"Walker executed him in public, this was an arrest mission not kill on sight order to carry out."
"That's why the military has taken him in. They're handling it now, this out of our hands. So you don't have to think about him or the Flagsmashers," Bucky declared, firm and without falter.
"So what happens now? We sit down with the rest of the Flagsmashers on the run, and then what?"
"Then you rest because you almost die running off like that."
"Hey, we're all off the job. The government took control, we're benched. Okay?" Sam chimed in to shatter the tension between the two Barnes, to which Czarina nodded and decided to take a step back instead of responding. She didn't mean to act out as a stubborn mess by pushing the subject, it's just knowing the threat both the Flagsmasher and now John Walker possess. It will be difficult to take her mind off the mission.
When two men have been assured that Czarina is already physically stable and in good condition, they decide it will be best to deal with Zemo today as well. Wherever he is.
Though it took more convincing for her father to leave. The girl almost had to push the man back on the doorway he came from just so he and his partner could go on to their unfinished business. Czarina is once again left with Sam's young lieutenant friend. Who seems to be more tense than ever since he arrived at the hospital.
"Sorry, you had to see me like that," she managed to speak up despite the lingering shame.
Joaquin halted his pacing and stopped right at the girl's side. "No, no. I- I'm in the Air Force, I've seen a lot of it. It's not something to feel sorry for. I'm just glad you're okay."
Czarina's stiff shoulders find themselves relaxing. "Thank you."
"You're coming back to New York with your dad?" He sat next to the girl.
"Yes," she makes a small nod. "Looks like the military got it and we don't have any leads right now. What about you?"
"Oh, there's gonna be some orders from my officers and I'm definitely going back to the Nevada base."
"Nellis Air Force Base, right? In LA?"
The man's expression brightened a bit on her mention of the place, he suppressed a smile. "Yeah, that's one. You ever been there? In LA?"
"No. No...," Czarina shook her head lightly. "Not that I can remember.... No."
"Do you wanna go and see it?"
She tilts her head to face the guy, her brows scrunched together. "With you?"
"Oh. No, I meant if you are interested to see the place, like for the first time-- like vacation or something-- not that I don't want to go with you--," Joaquin stuttered profusely. "I can go-- with you. I'll go with you-- if--if that's what you... want."
"Okay." Czarina could only reply, the poor guy's ears had turned red from the conversation. It's not a surprise how nervous Joaquin can be around her, considering what he just witnessed earlier that day.
"But seriously. If you're looking for other things to do on your break, besides chasing super soldiers, LA's the place."
The blonde scoffs at the man's comment but replies with a smile. "I'll put that on my list."
"And if I'm around the same time as you are... hit me up. I can give you a tour of the city."
Czarina suppressed a smile when she heard the soldier's generous and tempting offer. Their conversation was cut short when a phone rang and Joaquin had to leave the room to answer it.
"It's my commanding officer. This won't be long." He says with the device already at his ear on the way out.
To keep herself occupied and avoid the thoughts to reel in again, the girl decided to open her own phone at last. Czarina scrolled through her news feed despite the fear of seeing their group splashed on the news headline after what John did. In shock, there's not a single news regarding their involvement in the horrific incident, instead it's all about what Walker has done and the tragic end his partner has met. Perhaps the downfall of the golden soldier overshadowed the other angles of the crime done.
Now all everyone can see is that the new Captain America, the face of a new united nation, murdered and butchered someone in cold blood.
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Late morning the next day, Bucky arrives at the hospital alone and without Sam. Despite this the man is in a less darker mood compared to when he left. Which makes both of the Barnes in a fairly better state than they were the entire week on the mission.
When the doctors signed the last of Czarina's discharge papers, it didn't take long for them to bid farewell to the military team assigned in Riga, which includes Joaquin. There's a small twinge in the girl's heart that Sam isn't around to join them into leaving the country. Though under the man's courtesy a private, air force plane will be their ride back home to Brooklyn.
"Did Sam say anything about where he's going?" Czarina asked. She and her father sat side by side on the plane seat.
"In Baltimore, to Isaiah." Bucky's calm expression contorted a little.
The girl let a few moments pass before speaking again. "Why did you never tell me about him?" She didn't bother to look at him, her eyes fixed on the floor between her feet.
"Same reason why you never told me about the Red Poison."
Czarina swallowed as a slight uneasiness fills the silence between them.
"Yeah, yeah. I can understand that...," the girl exhales sharply. "I just wish Steve knew about Isaiah."
That's when their gazes meet halfway, agreement and regret are evident on the gradual shift of Bucky's whole demeanor.
"Me too." The older Barnes could only say.
"Isaiah deserves the same and even more than the chance we had to a new life. He lost a life and everything he was when the military did that to him...," Czarina pursed her lips. "Sometimes I think maybe Sam not accepting the shield is a complicated matter. But knowing this country doesn't value and see his world, maybe it's not so complicated, Dad."
"Yeah...,"
"You don't just owe him a proper apology, you owe him understanding."
Bucky shifted on the seat, his chest rising in a deep and sharp breath. "Yes, yes I do. It wasn't fair I treated the whole thing the way I did... I-I'm still learning to be better than this."
"That's a good thing for a start. Me too, I want to be better too."
Czarina drew closer to her father, she squeezed his arm lightly and rested her head against the man's shoulders. They sat in silence for a while, only listening to the hum of the plane's engine and the comms of the pilot going on static.
"I'm glad you're here, Rina. I'm glad you went to New York on your break even if we didn't really plan it."
"I'm glad too, Pa."
"When we get back to New York, we'll make the best out of the rest of your break. I'll show you the whole city, we'll go wherever you want." The older Barnes offered eagerly.
"What about the mission?" It still stands as a main concern for the girl.
"We're off on it for a while, Walker's in the government's hands. The Wakandans got Zemo and the Flagsmashers are MIA," Bucky recounted. He looked over his shoulder as he waited for the other's decision.
"Okay. I'll spend the rest of the break with you at home." Czarina smiled in return.
It was almost night when they finally arrived at the city. The summer air of New York was humid and comforting at the least for Czarina. Somehow it feels more home than the dormitory of her university. The two Barnes shared a quiet dinner meal consisting of a takeout Chinese food from the restobar around the neighborhood.
The television was on in a low volume as they ate under the dim lights of the kitchen, when the news about Walker and Zemo's arrest came the conversation between them turned into a less relaxed moment. But there's a shared understanding as well that they can rest for now. It's over for them. They can catch their breath and just enjoy a dinner like a couple of normal citizens.
"You can finish that, I'll cook tomorrow." Bucky gestured his spoon at Czarina's plate.
She happily savoured the entirety of her share instead of worrying to save up for breakfast. It's been a habit for her to eat less and put some in the fridge because of the university lifestyle.
"You want pizza?"
They just finished cleaning up when her father offered up, he was already dialing so Czarina just let him order for them. Bucky thought of putting on a movie but neither of them were really in the mood to watch.
"So Ally was your roommate? The one who always answers the phone when I call?"
"Yeah, she answers it often because he wakes up early. She's in the Student Body and shit."
"Language," the man clicked his tongue. "Why didn't you join the Student Body club?"
Czarina only grunted. "You have to be responsible and high strung to be there. I barely want to go to my classes."
"I was in the student body in highschool. I always end up signing Steve's early dismissal because of his asthma attacks."
"You? A student leader?" She scoffed with a grin.
"Yes. Yes, I was very responsible and engaging. Teachers liked me."
Czarina ends up letting out a loud chuckle. She can't help but picture his father, the supersoldier and metal armed man, as a teenager in highschool uniform running around to discipline students. Very much like how Ally is ever since the two met.
She would love to meet him. The girl thought to herself.
So she ends up telling him more about the roommate turned close friend of hers from the university. In no time, she was talking about Hazel too and almost everything Czarina has been up to since she's been separated from her father after the Snap. Bucky would then share how his life has been on New York, this time more casually and with less hesitation compared to their conversations over the phone.
Neither of them seem to realize it's almost midnight. But it wouldn't matter to both Barnes, especially Czarina. For the first time in a long time the weight of the world seems to lift from her shoulders. Continuous shared laughter echoed in the walls of their tiny apartment. There's no trace of sullenness in their voices or faces. Nor any hint of distress looming around them.
Half a year after Czarina Barnes lost so much, she was reminded of the things that are still with her.
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ASHA'S NOTES !
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First of all I just want to greet the new wave of readers who discovered this fic from Tiktok, hello friends!! In the light of new readers and audience, I was able to gain writing inspiration and motivation to continue this book. I'm really glad to be back here, I know this chapter is a bit shorter compared to others and might feel like filler to some but I love writing this. The casual moments outside the fights and domestic dad! Bucky really got me ❤️ I hope you all will like this as I do.
Feel free to interact with this chapter in anyway, just remain respectful and nice. To my new readers, I'd love to hear your feedback about it or just the book in general 🙏💕