✔𝚮𝐞𝐥𝐥𝛐 𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐞 ➳ 𝚩𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐲 𝚩𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐬

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 23: 𝐈𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐭

𝐓𝐡𝐫𝛐𝐮𝐠𝐡𝛐𝐮𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝛐𝐟 Jo's life, no matter how strict Harrison and Amanda Carter had been, Peggy had always been on her side. Mom always took the fights when she had messed up her clothes or did something inappropriate in front of guests. She wouldn't scream much, and it was worse when she didn't. Harrison always yelled whenever Jo had broken something, or taken something, or done something she shouldn't have. As it would turn out, both ways of 'parenting' made her feel like shit.

Peggy had always been there. Her parents' yelling was one of the things that still made Jo cry, and Peggy made sure she knew that they didn't mean it when they said she wouldn't amount to anything or that she was a disappointment.

It was the exact reason why hearing those words coming from her sister had been so much worse. It didn't justify the slap. Jo felt awful about what she had done, but she couldn't believe her sister would say something like that either. Not when she knew exactly how her parents still said the same.

She didn't know how many hours had passed before a knock sounded on her door, but she had stopped crying. She didn't answer the knock but kept staring out at nothing from where she was cuddling her pillow. It still smelled like Bucky.

The door to her room slowly creaked open, and the brown-haired man himself stuck his head in. Seeing as she was awake, he walked inside, and Jo felt the bed move at her feet when he sat down.

"How are you doing, Jodes?" He carefully asked and pulled her legs onto his lap.

"Bad," she mumbled and buried her head in the pillows.

"Thought that might be it." She could hear him lightly chuckle, and he crawled closer to her, wrapping an arm over her waist to spoon her.

"Someone could walk in," she sighed, leaning into his touch and loving how warm his chest felt against her back.

"I don't care right now," Bucky mumbled as he buried his head in the crook of her neck. "Steve and Peggy are taking care of each other while Pietro and Tony are eating lunch."

"What if she's right?" Jo asked in a voice so small it didn't feel like her own. She hated doubting herself and how weak she felt when those thoughts came up.

"She's not," he sternly said. "Even Peggy knows what she said was wrong."

"Doesn't feel like it," she mumbled, while he was completely taken aback.

She was such a force that at times he forgot the pressure that was still on her. It just looked so effortless to her. The way she carelessly shrugged and did whatever she wanted, no matter what her parents or teachers said. Jodie had that passion and fire that convinced you anything could be survived. Maybe she didn't always know that herself, but every day it would be true, nonetheless.

"You can do that with ease," Bucky said, and he pressed a kiss to her cheek. "Come on, you're not gonna start worryin' now, are you?" His fingers trailed up and down her side, almost tickling her.

"I guess not," she sighed and dug her head out of the pillow. "Is she still mad?"

"I think she knows both of you fucked up on this one," he chuckled and placed an arm on each side of her. Even with her red eyes and puffy cheeks, she still looked beautiful, that honey hair swimming around her facial features and encompassing everything that she was.

"I can't believe I actually slapped her," she shamefully spoke while he took her arms and wrapped them around his neck.

"I dunno, it was kinda hot," he chuckled and lowered himself, hovering over her. Jo let out a chuckle, shaking her head as he wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her tightly. "Cheer up, Doll."