The room is cold, the smell of bleach assaulting my nose. Thunder crackles outside, the sound humming through the empty house.
I've been trying to sleep for hours now, but the memories packed within Ana-Maria's house are almost too much for me to bear. The nearest flight I could book back to my own apartment in the States is tomorrow morning, so for now I'm stuck spending the night here.
"Nick Fury, what sort of mission did you give me?" I breathe, my mind flitting through through the past few weeks. No matter how much I convince myself that it's a good thing to leave, I know deep in my gut that I don't believe it.
I know that I'll miss Barnes.
I'll miss the way he always seems to understand and the way he somehow manages to make me feel not alone. I'll miss the adorable, slightly flirtatious personality that cracks through when he lets his guard down and even the way he tries to be strong through everything.
I'll just miss him.
I huff, turning over to my side and pulling the covers of the bed closer. I shove the thoughts from my mind, willing sleep to come to bring morning faster.
Eventually, it does.
•••••
How could everything go so wrong so fast?
My suitcase lays by the door, long forgotten. I have no doubt missed my flight by now, but I don't really care. My focus is captured by the television resting in the living room.
One that announces that the Winter Soldier just bombed the Sokovia Accords signing in Vienna.
"That's impossible," I breathe, pulling a hand through my blonde locks, "He hasn't left Bucharest"
Fear grips my heart when the program further details that King T'Chaka of Wakanda was murdered in the blast. I immediately know that someone will find Bucky and come for him. The governments of every country at that meeting will no doubt place a large, blaring target on his back. Even I can see that he's been framed, though.
If they do this, they'll kill an innocent man.
I feel my heart pounding in my chest as images of bursting flames and shattering glass flood the news. What's more, half of the Avengers were there. I gulp, knowing Bucky Barnes' life of solitude is over.
As if on cue, my phone rings with Nick Fury's name on the screen.
"Fury, he didn't do that. Bucky wasn't there" I blurt out as soon as I accept the call.
"I know, I believe you," Nick responds, exhaustion clear in his tone, "But the entire world doesn't know that."
"This is bad" I remark, bringing a hand through my hair.
"It's definitely not good"
"Well, what do we do? We have to do something" I push, waiting anxiously for the voice on the other line to tell me what to do.
"Dawn," he begins, and I already know I'm not going to like what he has to say.
"What is it?" I hesitantly ask. I hear him sigh.
"I think you should stay out of this"
My stomach drops, my brows furrowing in confusion. He told me not one day ago that he was ready for me to intervene and help. What has changed?
"You're joking, right?" I announce, quickly moving to push back on this, "Fury, I can't just abandon him! He needs help, he needs someone to prove that he's innocent"
"And you're that someone? No one knows you, you have no pull anywhere. No one would listen to you" Nick argues, his tone harsher than before. I feel a pang of hurt slice through my heart.
"Nick, I'm tired of running and hiding. Barnes needs my help and I'm not just going to leave him to fend for himself" I fight gently, not wanting to raise my voice. I hear him laugh humorlessly.
"You don't get it, do you?" He asks rhetorically, his tone biting, "You can't help him. You can't intervene here, I won't support it. If this all blows over, then we can continue with this mission"
My mouth opens slightly in complete shock. I can't help but think back to Bucky, the lingering pain that haunts his eyes in a way that makes my stomach twist. I don't know when, but somewhere along the way of getting to know him, this mission began to not sit right with me.
"I don't think I can support this mission anymore Nick!" I suddenly exclaim, my chest tightening and flooding with a sudden burning anger, "Bucky doesn't need another fight, he needs peace, he needs a chance to heal!"
"This world is burning enough, Dawn, we don't have time to let a trained super soldier out of a fight because he needs to heal" Fury fired back, and for the first time in the years I've known Nick, I disagree.
"That makes us no better than HYDRA!" I fire back, making the man on the other end of the line go silent. My words shocked me too, the second they burst from my mouth a startling realization slammed into me.
Feelings like this burning one inside me that's so adamant about protecting Bucky, they don't come from nothing. I don't spend more time pondering the conundrum of the meaning behind that, though, the very thought of the answer I'd find scares me.
"Nick, look, I know you're just about as stubborn as I am so I won't try and change your mind," I begin, piercing the silence with a much softer tone, "Just know I won't do it, and I won't let you send anyone else to do it either. I did start this mission, though, and I'm going to help him, with or without your permission"
"I can't risk you getting hurt! I can't risk them getting you back" he suddenly barks, his tone charged with emotion. I freeze, realizing that he's admitting that he cares for me. That's something Nick Fury has never done.
"Fury, I-"
"No, listen," he interrupts, his voice much quieter, "I won't sit by while you get yourself killed"
I blow out a sigh, bringing a hand to my forehead. I'm painfully torn between the plea of the closest thing to a father I've had in ten years and the pull of my heart to step out of hiding and help a man who needs it, a man who I don't think anyone has stopped to help his entire life besides Steve Rogers.
"And I won't sit by while he's punished for a crime he didn't commit," I gently object, biting my lip, "I've watched Bucky Barnes be so much more than the stigma of the Winter Soldier and I'll be damned if he's reduced back to it"
Silence crackles over the line yet again.
My cheeks are slightly heated, my heart thundering in my chest. There it is again, that emotion that swells deep within me and crawls up my throat. It's something foreign to me, something I don't yet understand fully.
"Your heart's always been your weakness, but it's also your greatest strength. If I can't stop you, I wish you the best of luck" he finally responds. I smile softly, relieved that he's not furious with me.
"Thanks for everything, Nick" I state, referring not just to the last month, but to every moment in the past six years that he's devoted to seeing me grow.
"Don't get all sappy on me now" he warns. I laugh, the slightest bit of fear gripping my heart at the same time. I'm used to losing loved ones, so every time I leave someone I consider family, I'm terrified I'll never see them again. I know I'll see Fury again, though.
If he hasn't died yet, nothing can kill him.
"I'll see you later, Fury" I state, ready to end the call and figure out how to help Bucky. Nick speaks one last time, though.
"You care for him, don't you?"
I freeze, immediate denial coursing through me.
"I-I don't-" I stutter, not knowing how to respond. I'm cut off by Fury's hearty laugh.
"Sure you don't."
Before I can object, he clicks off the call. I can't help but laugh, pulling the phone away from my ear. Fury's insane.
Right?
I don't have time to ponder over the matter when my phone pings with a text message.
From: Nick Fury
Call this number.
Attached to the message is a phone number, one that I don't hesitate to press. Curiosity flows through my being as I place my phone to my ear once more, listening to the endless rings. As soon as I begin to believe that the call won't be accepted, a voice picks up on the other line.
"Who is this?"
My curiosity burns brighter at the unfamiliar voice. I bite my lip, hesitant to divulge my name and who it was that sent me to call them. I overcome this hesitancy, though, and swallow my nerves.
"My name's Dawn Beckett. Nick Fury told me to call you," I answer, holding my breath, "I'm a friend of Bucky Barnes"
Silence crackles through the line and I begin to wonder if the call has been disconnected. The voice speaks up again, though.
"That's good to hear. I'm Steve Rogers"
My jaw drops.
I feel as though the wind has been stolen from my lungs. Awe washes over me as I realize that I'm speaking with Captain America. I push past it and try to civilly speak with the man like the adult that I am.
"Oh, wow, it's so nice to meet you Steve" I finally respond, my tone warm.
"And you too, although I have to admit I haven't heard of you before" Steve reciprocates respectfully. I take in a shaky breathe, realizing that this is the moment where I begin to step out of hiding.
"No one really has," I inform, a small smile of excitement budding onto my countenance, "I'm Fury's best-kept secret"
"Secret? If you don't mind me asking, are you..enhanced?" Rogers asks politely. I can't help but smile at the old-time manners that reside in his words.
"I am. Nick hid me from all public and private records to keep some horrible people from finding me again" I quickly sum up, knowing that I don't have the time to exchange life stories. I hear Steve hum in response before asking the question I've been waiting for.
"So, why are you calling?" He asks carefully, no doubt about to monitor my response.
"Bucky's innocent, and I'm going to need some help protecting him from the people who don't think he is" I simply answer. I hear Steve blow out a sigh on the other side.
"How do you know?"
"Because he's been here in Bucharest, Romania and hasn't left. There's no way he could've been in Vienna" I divulge, knowing the risks behind trusting someone I've never met. I choose to ignore those risks, though, because it's Captain Steve Rogers. I know I can trust him.
Come to think of it, I've trusted strangers more in the past month of being in Bucharest than in the past ten years.
"That's great news. I could use your help" Steve finally responds. I smile, relieved to hear this.
"Of course," I state, perching myself on a nearby chair, "Whatever you need, I can help"
"I'll meet you in Bucharest later today, we need to get Buck to safety" he divulges. I nod, processing the information.
"What then?"
"We figure out who would impersonate Barnes and why"
The exhilaration of action and purpose thrills through my being, and I can't help but smile. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous to approach Barnes, though, because he made it very clear that he wanted nothing to do with me. Something inside me isn't ready to give up on him, yet.
So I won't.