In Their Hands ✧･ BARNES ✔

twenty five

   Clint wanted to roll his eyes at the fact that James was still trying. He stared back intensely, motioning for Zola to get behind him. Zola kept her eyes on the man across the room but followed her father's instructions. 

   Natasha stood off to the side of the room fearfully. Seeing his face again was making her thoughts spiral out of control. She was thinking back to the moment in the hospital that Clint had just helped her get out of her head. She could feel the bomb again. She could smell the ash and burning of the building. She felt like she was going to double over and throw up. 

   "Dude, seriously?" Clint says, throwing his hands up in defeat. "You're like the scariest dude on the planet and you're having a freaking staring contest with me?" He accuses, dipping his eyebrows inward angrily. He was tired of this man. Especially James, he probably would have liked Bucky much better.

   James took a step forward ad kept his eyes lowered on Clint. This time, Clint didn't hesitate to roll his eyes at the man. Sometimes he felt that this soldier dude was too dramatic. 

   "What?" Clint questions with annoyance, throwing his hands up again. He glared at the annoying man as if he didn't understand why he was here, when he really knew exactly why he had been. He wanted his kid. Not just for him, but also for his agency. They could care less about Natasha at this point, they wanted to rebuild with younger girls, so having the older woman join them again wouldn't follow along with their new plans. Zola had been their greatest, youngest agent, and they wanted her back.

   "You know why I'm here." He says in his deep, intimidating voice. He stares at the child that stood behind Clint's legs fearfully. He could've just shot Clint and ran away with the kid, which was something that he had in fact been thinking about doing. He didn't really like Clint, clearly. To be fair, his child had been calling Clint "dad", and he didn't like that either. However, he knew he wasn't going to be a good dad to her. He still wanted to try to be, though.

   "Well, you can leave. It's not happening. I feel like we've had this conversation." Clint says sarcastically, deadpanning his expression at this point. He was fed up with James and his nonsense, constantly returning for something he could never get. When would he learn? How many times would he have to tell James that he had forfeited his time with Zola? When would he understand that he was not a safe caretaker?

   "She's not yours, Barton." James reminds in a matter of factual tone. 

   Clint balled his fists and grimaced darkly at the man before him. He had heard those words before and he was tired of hearing them from James specifically. His blood began to boil and he felt a fire of anger and fury ignite within him. He felt that he had laid his life on the line too many times for anyone else to ever tell him that Zola was not his. He had risked his whole career, all of his money, and his life multiple times just to keep this girl safe from the stupid people on James' side. He never wanted to hear it from this man again.

   "She doesn't belong to anyone for the last time." Clint makes very clear, taking a few dangerous steps closer to James' face.Clint secretly hoped that he looked intimidating, but he figured that he couldn't intimidate a super soldier.

   Zola stood behind her father in fear. She looked up at him and hoped that he would protect her like he always did. She fled to stand next to her mother for protection. Clint had stepped away from her and it was making her feel uncomfortable. James could have taken Clint out at the legs and easily swooped her up.

   "She belongs to us." James shoots back, taking a threatening step closer to her father. Zola helplessly watched in fear. She felt like she couldn't do anything to help even if she wanted to. Natasha would't let her anyway.