Doll. // Bucky Barnes X OC

NINE

The days after that night settled into something strange - quieter than Melany expected, sharper than she wanted. She didn't think about Steve anymore when she woke up anymore. Not in the way she used to. What lingered instead was irritation, a low-burning anger that flared every time she saw Sharon trailing behind him through the compound like nothing had happened.

Steve tried to talk to her anyway. Too often, too insistently. Always at the worst times.

Bucky, on the other hand, didn't ask questions. He didn't push. He just stayed close - close enough that Steve couldn't corner her, close enough that she didn't feel alone. Training sessions turned longer, meals overlapped. Time blurred in ways that felt intentional, even if neither of them said it out loud.

Whatever she and Bucky were now, it worked.

Until Steve found them.

"Mel?" Steve called out for her in the lobby, before going into the training area. He found her with Bucky going over some defense moves.

Melany got out of Bucky's lock grip with ease, which to her was surprising. "Don't hold back on me, Buck." She said, not seeing Steve yet.

"You want me to, doll." He said, a small smile on his face.

She rolled her eyes, laughing softly as she turned around and reached for her water bottle. She saw Steve standing there, a small frown on his lips. "Can we talk?" He asked, walking closer to her.

"Steve..." She said, grabbing her water and taking a sip. "I don't-"

"Please. Just five minutes." He pleaded.

She nodded. Bucky sat down on the bench next to her before Steve and her walked to the other side of the training area.

"What?" She said, sitting down on a bench on the opposite side. She was facing Bucky.

Steve didn't sit down right away. He stayed standing, like he needed the upper hand.

"You deserve context," he said. "Before you decide what this is."

Melany folded her arms. "Context doesn't change what you did."

"It explains it," he countered calmly. "Sharon and I have history. Years. Before you. Before everything fell apart."

She didn't respond.

"We were serious." He continued, "We talked about the future. I bought a ring." He paused just long enough for it to land. "She broke things off before the HYDRA mission. Said the timing wasn't right. That she needed space."

"And you just... kept the ring?" Melany asked flatly.

"I didn't know how to let go of it yet," he said. "Then I met you and everything shifted."

Her jaw tightened. "You were with me."

"Yes," Steve said, softer now. "And I chose you, everyday after that."

"Then why is she still here?" Melany snapped. "Why does she act like she owns you?"

"Because she came back into my life at the worst possible moment," he said. "Right when I was already stretched thin. Right when I thought I had you locked in."

Locked in.

"That's not an answer." Melany's eyes flicked up.

Steve sighed, rubbing a hand over his face like he was exhausted by the truth. "She found the ring. It was still in my dresser." He paused, taking a breath. "I didn't give it to her back then, I didn't even think about it. Not until she found it."