Run Away

Ch 30

Micky was walking towards her car from school, her last class finally over and she was eager to return to Bucky. There was a magazines and newspapers stand in the street, and one line caught her attention

Mysterious hero. Winter Soldier?

She went to the stand and took the newspaper

"You'll have to buy that one, kid" the owner said

"Yeah, sure, of course" Micky said and handed him the money. She then continued reading the newspapaper

Yesterday there was a fire in the Holland Animal Shelter. The cause of the fire was called intentional by a witness who said a man came in and started the fire with bottles of alcohol. Thankfully, all the animals are safe, either again in the street or in some other shelter. There was, however, a mystery hero. The different witnesses and pictures have let us to infer the Winter Soldier was yesterday's hero. He was easily recognised by his left metal arm. The last time he was seen was in Washington DC, in the SHIELD's failure, fighting our hero, Captain America. After all the SHIELD and Hydra's files were dumped in the internet, we discovered the Winter Soldier was really the war hero James Buchanan Barnes, Captain America's best friend. He was brainwashed and forced to work for Hydra as a terrorist and assassin for 70 years. So what is happening now? Is he remembering who he is? Is he still working for Hydra? Does Captain America know he is in New York? There are many unanswered questions, specialy dealing with his mental health, but there's one thing for sure: he was yesterday's hero

Micky was glad they saw Bucky as a hero, there were other newspapers who were more sceptical but none lied, everyone knew he was a hero the previous day. She drove back to the apartment. Bucky was already there, sitting in the couch and watching the news

"... I don't know, Lola, this guy is a terrorist" the male reporter said

"Well, he was bainwashed and used. He did terrible things but he saved innocents yesterday" the female reported said

"He only saved one girl and a dog"

"Every life counts"

"I don't know if he's trustworthy. No one knows where he really is. There's a chance that he's not in New York anymore"

"I don't know. He was Captain America's best friend and he is a war hero. Maybe he is remembering and his heroism is back"

"You can never be too sure, Lola"

Micky turned off the TV. Bucky only looked to the floor, his elbows resting in his legs and his hands together. He didn't say anything so Micky went to sit next to him

"Don't listen to them, Buck. You are a hero" Micky said

"Many would differ" Bucky said

"Well, screw them" Micky said with a shrug "Why is this affecting you that much? I know you wanted to stay hidden some more but it's not really that bad"

"It's not their opinions really. I'm more worried that people know I'm in New York now. They'll start looking for me"

"They won't find you"

"I'm not afraid that they will find me" Bucky said looking uo at Micky "I don't want you to be affected by this"

"Affected? You saved me yesterday"

"The fire started because of me in the first place" Bucky argued

"You can't blame yourself for that. It wasn't your fault" Micky said. Bucky sighed and leaned backwards in the couch

"I can't help feeling guilty" Bucky said

"Don't let guilt destroy you, Buck" Micky said. Bucky didn't answer and Micky started thinking on what to do to make him feel better "Let's go out. I know a place we can go"

"Where?"

Micky inky smiled and so they ended up walking to a park. Bucky again wearing a cap and Micky a hoodie, it was starting to get chily out, being the middle of November. They finally arrived to the place Micky wanted to go

"I found this place one day when I was feeling nostalgic. I have always loved swings" she said walking towards a pair of swings and sitting in one. Bucky sat in the other

"Steve and I used to like going to parks when there weren't many other children. That way Steve wouldn't feel bad for not being able to play with the others" Bucky said looking at the games "I would always let him win in our races until he found out and yelled at me for it. It was like watching a puppy barking trying to look scary" he chuckled and Micky giggled

"My brother and I would always compete in everything. School, sports. We were pretty close" she smiled "That is until I went to high school" she said sadly

"What happened in high school?" Bucky asked

"Puerty" she chuckled "my mom died when I was only 10 so I lived with no woman influence all that time. I was then teased in my freshmen year for not being femenine, I grew tired of it, so I started buying fashion magazines, make up, I watched youtube tutorials. I pretended I knew nothing about geeky stuff like comics and technology, I started wearing high heels and skirts and dresses, light make up, I became a cheerleader, I was popular... but my brother was not, so I hung out with him less and less. I was mean, I remember I used to bully this girl, she had epilepsy and the medications caused her to gain weight and have acne all over her face. It was hypocrite from me because I was a fat child until high school. She was then bitten by Derek and became a werewolf, healed of her epilepsy. She died before I even had the chance to apologise for everything I did and said to her" Micky look down sadly "I was one of the meanest girls in school. I even toyed boys, made them do my homework or buy me drinks but never really dated. It wasn't until half my junior year when I re-examined my life and decided to become a better person" Bucky didn't know what to say, he only stared "I know being mean doesn't compare to having been forced to kill, but this is my way of saying that none of us are perfect. 90% of the people that know me will said I'm a bitch and hate me, I am still redeeming myself, and just like Erica, there are some many lived I probably ruined and I regret it, but that doesn't mean I let myself be brought down by that. People can insult me and they will probably be right, but I just shake it off and say 'yeah, you're right, I'm sorry and I will try to make it better'"

"How can you make better a murder?" Bucky asked grumpily

"By following the equilibrium of life" Micky said "Save lives. Be a hero. You don't need to save lives by fighting crime and that, you can change lives by doing small things. Visiting orphaned children, feeding stray dogs, helping a child find their parents in the mall, smiling at a grumly old man, being polite to waiters and cashiers... cooking for your girlfriend" Micky winked at the end making Bucky smile

"You know, I'm so glad I bumped into you that night. I would be lost without you" Bucky said

"I'm glad I can be of help" Micky smiled "Now c'mon. I don't wanna miss Glee tonight"

Bucky chuckled and they walked back to the apartment holding hands. Unfortunately, they weren't expecting the 3 armed men waiting for them in the alley