The Assassin Shadow - Bucky Barnes

Chapter 26

My eyes open as I hear my alarm clock go off. I turn it off and get up. I still can't believe it's already been 3 months since everything happened. I miss my dad more than anything in the world. Nat took care of me and quickly became a mother figure to me. When I enter the compound's kitchen, I see her and Steve sitting at the counter.

"Hello Sleeping Beauty, how are you today?" Nat asks me with a soft smile.

"Good I guess." I say, returning a small smile to her.

She hands me a plate with pancakes she'd already prepared. "Are you ready for your first day of school?" I groan and shake my head as I stuff my mouth with my breakfast. The two adults chuckle a little at my reaction. "You're a normal kid after all. You had the most unoriginal reaction ever." She says laughing.

"Yeah, but not for the same reason. Other kids act like this because they don't like to learn or things like that, while I'm just afraid that people will recognize me or that I've ruined someone's life." I say sadly, lowering my head.

Steve puts his hand on my shoulder making me look at him. He has a reassuring smile on his face. "Hey kid, don't worry. Everything's going to be fine, okay?" I nod as I finish my plate. I put it in the sink and go back to my room to get dressed. I changed into a simple t-shirt and leggings. It's very basic, but I want to go unnoticed, so it's perfect. I put my hair up in a bun and come back to where I was before. I grab my bag and say goodbye to everyone and notice that Rhodes and Bruce have arrived while I was getting ready.

"Hey, wait! Do you want me to drive you to school?" Steve offers me.

"Huh, yeah sure. I mean if it really doesn't bother you."

He smiles and takes me by the shoulder. "No, it doesn't bother me at all. Now, come on! You wouldn't want to be late for your first day." We get in the car and the drive to the school is pretty much silent. "So, what grade are you in?" Uncle Steve asks.

"Well, I'm nine years old, so do the math." I say teasing him. He laughs but I can see his frown and confused face. "I'm in 3rd grade."

He looks at me and smiles. "Well, that's clearer. You know, I only went to school for two years and then I dropped out. In other words, don't come to me with your homework, you know more than I do." He says chuckling. We finally arrive at what kids usually call hell. "Have a good day, kid." I get out of the car after saying goodbye to Steve. God, I hope no one recognized Captain America.

"Did Captain America drove her to school?" I hear another kid say. I sigh and walk in the building keeping my head low. Anyway, you can tell more about people by their shoes than anything else. Like that girl that has the pink sneakers with rainbow stickers, she's either the weird kid or the popular kid. But there's many girls around her so it's probably the second option. I walk into my classroom.

"Alright, everyone find your seats." A male voice starts speaking. "Great, welcome everyone. I'm Mr. Browne and I'll be your homeroom teacher this year. In science and physical education, it will be someone else. Now, I want you all to present yourself and two things about you." As soon as Mr. Browne said those words, I lowered my head even more so as not to be chosen and perhaps even forgotten. Some kids say their names and the things about them. Then I have the misfortune to raise my head a little. I finally see my teacher, a man in his thirties, African-American with a smile that could make anyone happy no matter how sad you are. He looks at me, letting me know it's my turn. I shake my head but my teacher insists by nodding his head. I roll my eyes discreetly and get up. "My name's Lydia Barnes. I like reading, the color purple and my family. And that's three things, sorry." I say before sitting back down.

"I see that as a bonus. Nice, who else?" Mr. Browne said.

"Wait, I have a question." The girl in the pink sneakers, whose name is actually Crystal, declares. "Aren't you like The Assassin Shadow? Like the Winter Soldier's kid? Didn't he kill a bunch of people?" I look at her not knowing what to say. I mean I can't say 'Yeah, my dad killed dozens of people'.

"Okay, I think we'll go to the next person. Anyone?" The teacher tries to change the subject.

"I can go." Another girl says. "My name is Reyna Bowman. I like watching TV and spending time with good friends." She finishes. Soon all the students have had their turns and the class is over. I go to my locker, grab my lunch box and head for the cafeteria. I sit at the only empty table and eat silently while all the other kids laugh and joke together. Man, I wish I too could spend lunch time like that. I see a boy come to me in the corner of my eyes.

"Hey." He says.

"Hey. Did you want to sit with me? Or was it something else?" I ask awkwardly, thinking I might make a friend.

He laughs but I'm not naive. I know it's not a 'you're so funny' laugh, it's a 'wow your stupid' laugh. "Yeah, sure. Like I'm going to sit down and be friends with a total freak." He says before laughing and joining other boys. I quickly finish the sandwich Nat has prepared for me and go hide in one of the toilet stalls instead of going outside for recess like we're supposed to. Some tears come into my eyes. Am I really that much of a freak? I can never get out of here. What if the whole school knows who I am? When the bell rings to let us know we have to go back to class, I wipe my tears, sneak out and go as fast as I can to my classroom without looking at anyone. The rest of the day passes more quickly than I expected. I get into Nat's car, fasten my seatbelt and off we go back to the Compound. Natasha tries to make conversation and asks me how my day went, but I only respond with little answers like yes, no and I don't know, not wanting to talk. When we get there, I go up to my room and don't come out until they call me for supper. Then when I finished eating and avoiding questions, I go back to laying on my bed. I get into my pajamas and refuse to leave my room until I have no choice, knowing that I'll have to relive this nightmare tomorrow and the day after and the day after that. Until the Christmas break or the end of the school year. Why did I have to go to school?