Bad Company Blues - Bucky BarnesxOC

Part 1: Gold on the Ceiling

CW: Misogyny, derogatory terms for sex workers, sexist insults, Bucky is a dick, alcohol use, smoking (all of my characters smoke - because I quit years ago and I miss it).

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS || 1977

Eden flicks her cigarette out the window as she pulls into the parking lot of SHIELD Bounty Claims. It's a cold, grey nondescript building on the industrial side of town. Sharon Carter doesn't like to attract attention, despite what her expensive wardrobe says. It's mostly quiet here, save for the odd mugging or stabbing that happens every month or so.

SHIELD Bounty Claims is an open secret among law enforcement. Sharon made a deal with the police chief - as long as he stays out of her business, she'll help catch the scumbags that the cops can't (or won't) get their hands on. Sharon only employs the best of the best, mostly former criminals who have maintained their seedy connections.

Blue eyes scan the parking lot. There are only two other cars here. Sharon's blue Maserati and Bucky Barnes's shiny silver Porsche... that's parked right in Eden's spot.

"Motherfucker," she hisses, stepping on the gas and pulling up right next to him.

He does this shit just to annoy her. He does everything to annoy her. She's the newest recruit, and only been here for a year, and for that year, Bucky has been making her life a living hell. She's convinced he's trying to get her to quit.

Still, in that time, she's managed to track down the worst of the worst - murderers, rapists, she even stumbled on a human trafficking ring. She's been making good money putting away the bad guys. And she should. God knows she's earned it. Eden spent four years running drugs and laundering money in East LA, working with some of the most notorious gangsters the city has to offer. That's after she wasted her teenage years in and out of juvie for check fraud.

She's lucky she only ended up in prison instead of the morgue.

She came to Chicago to start a new life. Bounty hunting feels like a clean slate; a way to give back after she's taken so much from people.

Besides, nobody wants to hire a former fraudster and drug trafficker. Eden is what most employers consider a "liability." That's probably the nicest thing anyone has ever said about her after looking at her rap sheet.

She kills the engine and glares at Bucky's car. The obnoxiously shiny silver paint job glistens in the morning light. Smug fucker. He spends way too much time polishing that car. He's obsessed with it. He might as well fuck it.

Eden reaches into her purse and grabs a stick of gum, shoving it into her mouth and chewing quickly until her saliva has completely coated it. She climbs out of her car and pulls the wad of gum out of her mouth, sticking it right on Bucky's driver's side mirror with a smug smile on her face before heading inside.

Sharon bought the entire building, all 24 floors. SHIELD Bounty Claims is on the top floor, the rest of the building is empty. There's Sharon's office and then the bullpen, which is full for the majority of the week, but today is Saturday. Even bounty hunters need weekends away from the office. Eden has a desk in there, but the fact that it's right next to Barnes means she rarely goes in unless she has to. She'd rather do paperwork in her fucking car than have to sit next to him for hours on end.

Eden steps inside the elevator and pushes the button for the 24th floor, tapping her foot. She already knows she's going to have to face Barnes, but she hopes he's just here to pick up a check. Sharon said she needed to talk to Eden about a mark. She'll wait until Barnes leaves to get the details, knowing full well that he's going to try and step on her toes.