Disruption. | Bucky Barnes

Chapter 24.

I feel myself shrink into my chair, my hands hovering above the keyboard. I can't do it, I look over at Bucky talking to a newly awoken man, and I exit through a door in the back, I go upstairs and cross paths with a small, middle aged woman.

"Miss Stark?" She asks excitedly.

"Yes?"

"I've made a bed for you and Mr Barnes. Please?" She motions for me to follow her and she takes me up another small back stairwell to an attic room with a double bed pushed into the corner, a single small chest of drawers beside it, the ceiling is just wooden slats holding up the tiles on the roof, the floor is old and worn, the bedding is clean but clearly well used, I turn to the woman, she's obviously made a great effort to prepare this room for us, knowing we cannot go back to the hotel.

"Thank you so much! I hope we aren't putting you out?" I smile at her, she radiates comfort, and right now that's what I need.

"Not at all ma'am, there's some clothes for you and Mr Barnes on the bed, so you don't have to dress all fancy." She has a low, southern England accent, one that fills me with joy at the familiarity of it.

"I appreciate it, if there's anything I can do?"

She nods and leaves me alone in the room.

I walk over to the small pile of clothes on the bed, I pull off the gold dress and hear the floor creak, quickly I grab a t-shirt and pull it over my head, turning to the person behind me.

"Sorry." Bucky looks nervous.

Smiling reassuringly at him, I walk over and wrap my arms around his waist, I don't know what it is that makes me cling to him like this but it feels necessary with the way my mood is changing.

He wraps his own arms around me and rests his head against mine, "we'll fix this, we'll be home soon."

I breathe a heavy breath, "just once, I wanted something nice, peace, that hotel, I thought how amazing it would be to spend time here, in such a beautiful city.. with you." My words are muffled against his chest but I think he can hear me clearly enough.

"Once this is over we'll go back, I promise."

I almost tell him not to make a promise he can't keep, but knowing Bucky, he couldn't break a promise if he tried.

We stand for a few minutes, embracing each other, I feel too scared to let him go. When I finally do I go back to the bed and climb in, it's god knows what time and I'm exhausted, I place the rest of the clothes on the small table and watch as Bucky undresses himself and climbs into the bed beside me.

Even laid in this bed, in the highest room of the building, with Bucky beside me, I don't feel safe.

He pulls me into him with no hesitation and wraps me in his arms against his chest, he's warm and it's comforting, my face against his bare skin.

"I'm scared Buck." I say and regret it instantly, he looks down at me, giving me the most hesitant look.

"I won't let anyone hurt you." He says and strokes my hair with his hand.

Letting my body wrap around his to keep warm in what is a chilly attic, heat radiates from him, and he seems to take no issue in allowing me to use him as my personal hot water bottle. My mind wanders and I can't help but think to myself, it's not me that I'm worried about.

***

I wake up freezing and as I reach out beside myself the bed is empty.

It's still dark out and it must only be early morning. I pull on the trousers the kind English woman left me and go in search of Bucky, I find him sat staring at one of the computers as most people around him sleep, the only others awake are those I recognise from when they were sleeping earlier when we arrived.