His Soulmate | Bucky Barnes ✔

Chapter Eighteen

Light poured onto my face, and I could feel my eyes want to open as I slowly woke up. I squeezed them shut, burrowing further into the cocoon of warmth I was wrapped in. I opened one eye slowly, then blinked quickly and opened them both.

The previous nights events flooded my mind as I lay on my side, staring at the window with the curtain pulled to the side, letting the sunlight fill the room. I'd been in Bucky's room before, but only briefly. Whenever we were sharing time on his floor it was normally in the kitchen or his living room, squashed together on his sofa.

I let my eyes wander from the window, spotting a simple desk with a matching wooden chair in the corner. Folded neatly on the seat were some clothes, with a brown leather jacket hanging on its back. I smiled as I recognised it as the same one he'd worn on our date. A lamp was sat on his desk, with a collection of almost identical notebooks stacked leaning against it.

I twisted my head to see the edge of his bookcase, and strained to read the titles on it. It was only small, and as I'd only just opened my eyes I struggled to make much out, although I did spot some classics on it.

There wasn't a table on this side of the bed, and I couldn't see a clock anywhere in the room. As it was now November I knew it must be at least late morning - the sun was never this bright this early in winter. I craned my neck to look behind me, and was met with a sleeping Bucky.

His left arm was planted firmly around my waist, holding me tight against his chest. The metal of his hand was cool through my pyjama top, his thumb massaging small patterns onto my stomach, my sensitive skin prickling under his touch. His right hand was on the pillow above my head, the inside of his elbow trapping my hair underneath him.

I managed to wiggle enough to roll and face him, hoping he wouldn't wake up. Whilst his sleeping face didn't acknowledge my fussing, his body did. His left arm curled around me, now holding my back as he pulled me back into his chest. His right hand bent down, cupping my head, cradling me like a small child would a toy.

I wasn't a morning person. Peter teased me constantly during school that I appeared half dead all morning, only waking up properly when the lunch bell rang. But for once I didn't mind being awake. After the worst nightmare I'd had in a long time, I had managed to sleep peacefully, the arms of my soulmate protecting me through my unconscious thoughts.

I felt rested, and Bucky trusting me with his past made something click inside me. I wasn't sure what, and the thought of diving into my emotions first thing in the morning made me pull a face. Yes I'd slept well, but I was emotionally exhausted and not mentally prepared to face whatever my feelings were.

So instead I turned my sole attention to the man in front of me. His hair was tousled, some tucked behind his ears, some sticking up at odd angles, and some hanging down hiding his face. I carefully lifted a hand and tucked a strand away, letting my hand rest in the hair behind his ear. He twitched as my finger traced from his ear down his jaw to rest on his chin, in the faint dimple highlighted by his stubble.

His head buried further into the pillows, and I let go. Pressing a quick kiss to his neck that he'd invitingly exposed, I rested my head back into the crook of his arm. His white top was loose enough that it had risen during the night, but tight enough that the short sleeves squeezed his muscles. I lazily trailed my finger down his chest, a wave of inadequacy washing over my as I looked down to my slightly pudgy figure compared to the toned and sculpted figure of Bucky.

I shoved the thoughts away. I could see in how Bucky treated me that he liked me. I meant something to him - I didn't need him to explicitly say it, as I felt it for him too. I admit I wasn't 100% sure of either of our feelings, but whenever his eyes met mine I could see what I felt for him in his gaze directed at me.