It is what it is.
The bliss of those days in Delacroix was just the beginning of Bucky and Kenya’s new chapter together. Although Sam accepting his natural gift to be the “New Captain” took a few days, it was necessary before facing the final fight everyone knew was coming. Since the boat was finished and the recent couple made up, there wasn’t much left for them to do in there. The girl had nowhere to arrive at in New York, Bucky insisted on her waiting to visit his, in his own words, embarrassingly unfurnished apartment.
“I mean, how bad is it? It’s not like you’re sleeping on the floor.” She joked and stopped laughing when noticing his face. “Oh, God. You sleep on the floor. What the hell, Buck?” The man sighed and waited to finish chewing his sushi bite to answer.
“Fine, I’ll buy a bed. At least it’ll have its purpose now.” Kenz choked with water and gave the smirking man a dead stare. “What? I finished therapy, and ever since we slept together at Sarah’s I’ve been really having the need.”
“The need of sleeping on a bed, got it.” She knocked her chest to calm her coughing. “I thought of living with Wanda, but I don’t even know if she lives here. She’s nowhere to be reached.”
“Maybe you can stay with me for a while, after I buy furniture of course.” She couldn’t help to grin at his proposal.
“I can help you with that.” Bucky softened at her sudden timidity.
“A shopping furniture date.” He declared.
“Date?” She teasingly grimaced. “Didn’t know I’m dating someone.”
“Come on.” He covered his face in frustration, which made both laugh for a while.
Having lunch at a sushi restaurant in Brooklyn seemed like nothing, maybe a usual spot to reunite with someone and just talk. Kenya didn’t know how such a small and normal thing to do like having lunch, also with the man she loved, was so wholesome. They were even planning dates together! It felt surreal. Until a phone call they both been waited for the past two days came in, it was time to finally stop the Flag Smashers.
“Remember my conditions.” The man severed, as they quickly walked out of the restaurant and jumped to his motorcycle.
“Staying invisible and far from danger, I know.” She rolled her eyes. She felt like a teenager all over again, yet in a nice way. He didn’t forbid her of anything, he just wanted her to be safe and not directly involved in the fight. After all, no more than four months ago the woman literally killed Thanos. She wasn’t as strong as before.
“Falcon, mission report.” He demanded through the earpiece.
“There’s lockdown in the building where the GRC meeting to vote on global resettlement was happening.” When arriving at the secured area Kenya jumped out ready to get in, until a hand in her forearm stopped her.
“Caterina.” The glimpse of distress in his eyes resembled the ones he gave her before the Battle of Wakanda when they said goodbye.
“James.” She answered in a sigh. The thought or idea of something separating them that night ached her to the core. “The sooner we go, the sooner we go home.”
“I know, it’s just…” He moved his hands to hug the girl’s waist. Trying to stay calm for a second, he leaned on her forehead, as they closed their eyes for a second. “I love you.”
“I know.” She whispered reassuringly. It’s true that he hasn’t said those words before, but she didn’t need to hear them. She knew him very well.
“I’m completely and truly in love with you, Caterina. The percentage of knowledge you have of how much I love you is not even the half of what you really mean to me, what I actually feel. I just… I can tell you know, I just had to get it off my chest and for you to hear it from my own voice. Even while knowing the chances of you getting defeated are low.”
“Low? Give me some credit.” She pretended, to ease the bittersweet moment. “I’ll be fine; we’ll be fine. We have that shopping furniture date, remember?” He separated a little bit from her and stared at her in awe. Kenya’s favorite gaze from him. His blue and loving eyes directed to her and her only, as his reddish lips curled softly in a warm smile. She caressed his neck with one hand and the other cupped his cheek, as she leaned forward to join their lips in a kiss that explained their whole story. Each time they kissed was engraved in Bucky’s mind as a memory he’d keep forever. He spent years soulless, mindless, somehow full-on emptiness. Every second next to her was cherished and used as a reminder of how worthwhile was waiting and fighting for so long.
“Barnes, Maximoff, we need insight view now.” Sam was heard through their ears. They separated completely, yet at ease. As the woman said before, the sooner they finish, the sooner they go home.
“Let’s get this done. I have a date with my boyfriend.” Kenya winked, before making herself invisible to enter the building.
“It was about damn time.” Sam said. “It only took like a decade. Let’s wait for another one and see what happens.”
“Funny, Wilson. Frankly, why don’t you put that suit back in the box and dedicate yourself to do stand-up comedy?”
“Oh, so you know what that is? I’m proud of you, man.” No matter how annoyed they both sound, they could hear each other smile through the earpiece.
“Alright fellas, I’m in position. Let’s kick some assess.”
*
It didn’t take long for the anarchists to make their appearance inside the building. Every exit was locked and when people began running, Kenya knew it was her cue to start the game. With her invisibility activated she could easily watch when some of the people inside used the masks supporting Karli’s movement. Instead of using her speed she just walked to them and pressed a specific spot on their necks for them to lose conscience.
“I got five down.” She talked through the earpiece.
“Didn’t know it was a competition.” Sam funnily added.
“Aw, you know you couldn’t compete with me even if you wanted.” She joked back, as her body came in sight to the empty hall.
“We have a special guest.” Bucky said. Kenya knew immediately who he was talking about and rolled her eyes. After zipping to his position, she cynically smiled at her.
“Sharon, wow. What a surprise.”
“Well, yeah. I thought you might need another hand.”
“And risking your freedom? That’s too nice of you. Not that we needed it though.”
After hearing that Sam was fighting with Batroc, a man that came to take revenge on him, she ignored the two of them and zipped towards his direction. Of course, helping to take down a man or two in the way. She did not buy a single word from Carter. There must be another dark reason why she’d come all the way just to “help”.
“They left with the GRC members; I’m going after them.” Kenya’s chest tightened at hearing the man’s voice. The fact that Bucky was no longer near reach made her anxious. Without nothing much to do she began wandering through the building to take down a man or two, but suddenly a weird sensation went through her spine making her unconsciously activate her time stopping powers. As stated before, her condition was too weak in comparison to before the last battle with Thanos, so using her powers like that hurt tremendously. While screaming in pain and turning around to find out what was going on, she saw Sharon’s evil smile and wasn’t even surprised about it.
“Do you mind?” Kenya asked, angrily. Whatever she threw at her made her painfully paralyzed; her physical image started to glitch, and she was suddenly surrounded by some sort of white lightning.
“Oh, I’m sorry little Kenz. This isn’t personal. I just know that without you my plan won’t fail. Sam and Bucky are not as smart as you in that aspect, you know. They’d never imagine a woman as the power broker.”
The woman let down a device she assumed controlled her paralysis and ran away. More than helpless, Kenya felt angry. She was already used to these tortures and pain didn’t mean anything after spending several years in Hydra’s hands. She was mad for not acting on her suspects, which now meant she wouldn’t be able to protect Sam, Bucky and not even Karli.
“Kenz? Where are you?” The power of the artefact was so strong that she couldn’t talk or make a noise. “Fuck, don’t do this to me. Where are you? We saved the trucks with GRC members and Sam is looking for Morgenthau.” Please don’t go to them. Please don’t go near them. Please, please, please. C’mon, I need to get out. Damn. Jesus, if I only had my usual strength. They can’t find me dead like this, stupidly electrocuted by her. “Where the hell are you!” I’m here! Fuck, I’m here. Silent tears started falling through her cheeks, until something in her brain caught her attention.
“Zeko?” Wanda? “Caterina, what’s going on?” She heard her voice inside her mind, it was telepathy. You’re here? “I’m always taking care of you. Who hurt you?” Her sister asked, with her signature serious tone. It doesn’t matter, they need help. I need to get out of here.
Suddenly, a reddish force blinded her making the pain stop. Her powers got controlled and she fell on her knees to the ground. How could Wanda do that from wherever she was? She needed to know about it later. Without thinking too much she ran towards the exit and heard how Sam talked; Karli’s body resting near them. It was too late. They have won against them, but it wasn’t something to celebrate. After all the adrenaline on her body and mind went down, she finally reacted when a warm hold took her forearm. When turning around she saw Bucky slowly speaking to her, but no sound came out from his mouth. Kenya frowned and spoke.
“I can’t hear you.” She thought she said, but apparently not even herself could listen. After they both shared panicked looks, the girl lifted a hand to one of her ears and felt blood on them. Sam kept talking, the lights of the sirens kept flashing and the cameras kept filming. But she did not hear a single thing.
*
1 month later.
The fact that people are used to bad things surrounding or directly happening to them, doesn’t mean it gets easier to deal with them. Now that Kenya had everything she fought for, every single thing she lost on the way affected her. Sharing an apartment, precious moments and dates with the love of her life was something she cherished and appreciated, but it didn’t mean she felt satisfied only by it. Although she wasn’t lonely most of the time, it was silent. Too silent. And no one understands that kind of loneliness. Bucky did all in his hands to let her have her time and space, but it still rang in his mind seeing that she didn’t even tell him how it happened.
“She always ends up standing.” Sam said, while sitting next to him. They were near the shore in Delacroix, both watching as Kenya forcefully smiled while watching everybody dancing. “It’s a matter of time.”
“Time is relative. But if it isn’t, I’m willing to wait and be with her more than a thousand lifetimes if necessary.” He answered, before taking a sip of his beer. When feeling his eyes on her, Kenya turned around and her smile became genuine when looking towards him.
She always knew and lived up to knowing that it was possible to live with grief and pain. So, now that she felt as luckier as she could be, she wasn’t surprised to not have a happy ending because they didn’t exist. It’s just, a little bit hard to accept that all her efforts to reach this point on her life didn’t feel worthy. She loved Bucky and the life she was building with him, yet it is hard to settle to the idea of it being that, and only that. Everytime she laughed with him, the minute they stopped became bittersweet to her. Before, she used to struggle adapting to live a life with pain, and now she needed to do it the other way around. Adapting to the idea that this was it. And being happy about it. But it's Kenya Maximoff's life we're talking about. Sooner or later, something might happen again. And again. And again. She thinks she's adapting to her new and happy life style, but, unfortunately, is just a pause in a building chaos related to her last name. Family comes first, right?