His Soulmate | Bucky Barnes ✔

Chapter Thirty Nine

I woke up tucked neatly into Bucky's side with tear stains across my cheeks. He was already awake, his bright eyes lazily flicking to mine before he realised I wasn't sleeping anymore, and his smile widened into one of pure joy.

"Morning, my beautiful." His eyes twinkled with a shine of unshed tears, which resulted in a thick lump rising in my throat. I swallowed it away, but couldn't bring myself to answer him with words.

I gave him a small smile, and raised my hand to stroke his cheek. His stubble had grown longer in the short time we'd been apart, and had grown to form a thin beard that covered the lower half of his face. It prickled my fingers and palm when I cupped his cheek to direct his gaze down to mine.

I took my time in studying him, relishing the fact I was actually close enough to him to do so. Luckily I didn't forget the events of last night, or I would still be screaming that he had died in a video I had seen whilst trapped with HYDRA.

The sudden intrusion of that video made me gag, and I sprung out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom. Bucky followed directly behind me, and his soothing whispers and soft touches reassured me as I collapsed into his chest.

"Do..." he trailed off, his eyes flicking over my face several times before he looked back to my eyes and gave me a small smile. "Do you want to have a shower? I'll tell the others that you're up."

At the thought of being given a choice my mind went into an immediate panic, with a twisting in my stomach. Bucky noted my reaction, and reached for my hand, lowering his face so I could see him as I glared at the floor. "It will do you good to freshen up a little."

I sucked in a breath and looked up to his eyes, a smile of my own twitching at my lips as I found the irony in his statement. He looked worse for wear, with bruises and scrapes decorating his face, disappearing into his newly grown beard. His hair didn't look clean either, and I found myself raising an eyebrow in response.

He looked in the mirror, then rolled his eyes. "I'll have a shower too. Then we go get some breakfast. Deal?"

I nodded, and ushered him out the room, returning his smile when he left. But as soon as I was alone, I felt my stomach twisting again with a wave of nausea. I avoided looking at my reflection in the mirror as I stripped quickly, and I managed to shower without looking at too many of the cuts and bruises that now littered my entire body. I ached from the injuries I'd accumulated, and though the water soothed the pain, I knew it was only a temporary cure.

I did, however, succeed in not letting my left arm get too wet, as I realised too late that it was still wrapped up due to the bullet wound.

As I stepped out of the water onto the fluffy bath mat, I felt another wave of unease hit. I was too vulnerable, too alone and too unsafe. My eyes darted around the room for something I could possibly use in defence as I dried myself.

The bottles of shampoo and conditioner wouldn't work as a weapon, but with my newfound strength I could easily rip the small bar that my towel hung from off the wall and use it as a makeshift sword. The more logical side of my brain tried to convince me I was safe, but I noticed a hanger from a dress I must've left in there before I... went away. I grabbed it just in case, and peered around the door before moving fully into my bedroom.

I grabbed a pair of pyjamas from my drawer and changed quickly, leaving my wet hair to hang loose after rubbing it as dry as I could get it. I found one of Bucky's many jumpers folded on my desk chair, and pulled it on, instantly feeling a little safer as the smell of his cologne drifted around my nose.

My phone was positioned next to my bed, plugged into the wall though it was turned off at the switch. I turned the screen on, but regretted it almost immediately. The lock screen was full of notifications from Eve, and a few guys from the bar asking where I was and if I was okay. I felt dizzy, and the only logical explanation I could come up with was that I was too overwhelmed. I sunk down onto my mattress as I scrolled through the absurd number of messages.