shield | b. barnes

"I don't plan on dying."

[Corinna]

As soon as my finger releases the trigger, it begins to rain bullets all around me. I dive to the side of the window with my back against the wall as I wait for the gunman to stop shooting. I lean over and shoot again before moving to the side again.

"Well there goes my security deposit." I mutter as I hear the window shatter. I turn away to protect myself from the shards of glass flying all over the place before leaning over again to shoot.

"Move." Bucky orders gruffly before crouching down next to me. He places his gun on the window ledge with his left arm before shooting incessantly at the gunman. With Bucky using his left arm to shoot, the gunman is unable to shoot as much as he would've liked.

Bucky stops shooting for a few moments and I stand up, waiting for the gunman to shoot again, but a couple seconds go by without any gunshots.

"If he starts shooting again, cover me." I order as I chuck my gun to the side.

"What the hell? You're going to get yourself killed, Corinna!" Bucky whispers harshly.

"Relax," I say, looking over my shoulder to roll my eyes at Bucky, "I don't plan on dying."

I climb through the window gingerly, making sure to avoid the jagged edges of glass as I do so. Knowing that I have limited time before the gunman begins to shoot again, I choose to descend the fire escape by climbing over the rusted handlebars instead of climbing down the steps.

Once my feet land on the deserted sidewalk, the gunman begins to shoot again. Narrowly escaping one of the bullets, I grab the lid of a nearby garbage can and use it as a shield as I sprint across the street towards the Chinese restaurant Bucky and I had just eaten at.

Throwing my makeshift shield to the side, I throw open the door, fully aware of the fact that the restaurant is closed.

"Hi Mr.Wong. I just need to access your rooftop!" I explain quickly as I run past the owner of the restaurant.

"Go, go. Save the world Corinna!" The old man exclaims.

"Thanks Mr.Wong," I call out before pushing the door that leads to the roof.

I climb the dimly lit stairwell two at a time and open the door to the roof. It takes a few moments for my eyes to adjust to the poor lighting on the roof, but I quickly spot the shooter. Sadly, I can't do anything about it, because the shooter swiftly turns around to aim their gun at me.

"Shit, shit, shit." I mutter as I quickly close the door shut. "Maybe it wasn't a good idea to throw your gun to the side," I mumble to myself as I stand to the side so that my back is pressed against the wall.

I look up at the ceiling as I wait for the gunshots to stop, but the faint sound of footsteps ascending the stairs catches my attention instead. "Oh please let it not by another HYDRA agent, please, please." I am soon met with a familiar messy, long brown mane that I've grown accustomed to. "Took you long enough old man." I drawl.

Bucky gives me an unamused look before bringing his gaze back to the scope of his gun. He nods his head, signaling me to open the door and I slowly turn the doorknob before pushing it. I quickly step back, pressing my back against the wall to avoid getting hit by a bullet.

Bucky begins shooting furiously at the gunman as he slowly climbs the remaining steps. Once he reaches the last step, I quietly slide past Bucky and step out onto the roof. Trying my best to stay in the shadows, I notice that the gunman is preoccupied with Bucky to have noticed my presence.

As I get closer, I take my switchblade out - gripping it tightly by my side as I slowly approach the shooter from behind. Not wasting any time, I roughly grab the shooter's shoulder with one hand while the other holds the switchblade to the shooter's neck.