Marvel Imagines

Leave The Past In The Past (Bucky Barnes X Reader)

A/N: Idk what this is. It's late. I'm tired. Wanted to write. This is the outcome. So uh yeah. If y'all have any sort of shorter ideas like this one (in length), or anything fresh for that matter, please comment!

****

Tears run down your cheeks, no doubt staining the thin material of the torn shirt you wear.

You don't make any effort to stop your tears, nor fight against the restraints binding your wrists firmly behind your back.

The masked figures dressed all in black loom in the shadows their eyes glimmering with malice.

Though one figure in particular strikes your blurry gaze as odd, the dull shine of his left hand catching your attention, his silver fingers clenched into a fist through his glove.

And then, the mask is gone.

Replaced by the all too familiar face of the man you love so dearly, his steely blue eyes raking over you with no emotion.

One moment you're kneeling on a cold floor, the next, you're sent skittering against a nearby wall, the impact of your side against the brick drawing a pained cry from your blooded, cracked, lips.

"James," You breathe, desperately trying to pull yourself to a sitting position, your hands and arms rendered useless by their binds. "James, please!"

Booted footsteps echo closer, your desperate pleas for some sort of mercy from the man you once knew, falling on deaf ears.

The blank face of James Buchanan Barnes comes into your view as he harshly grabs you by the hair with his good hand, raising your head to meet his gaze.

"Please don't do this," You whimper, instinctively closing your eyes, knowing what's to come. "Bucky... Please. You know me."

"No I don't," The man holding you captive growls, his titanium fist poised to strike you down once and for all, lips curling into a snarl. "I've never met you before in my life."

And with that, you tense, the slightest of sounds signalling that your once lover draws his fist back and-

You let out a scream, bolting upright in bed, chest heaving, eyes wide.

"Not again, not again, not again..." You choke out in between deep breaths, mentally willing your heart rate to slow down.

Your eyes wander the room you're in, a sense of familiarity grounding you back to the present and pushing the nightmare back towards the edges of your mind.

"I'm fine."

Sighing heavily, you swing your legs out of bed, bare feet hitting the cold floor.

With a shiver, you silently grab the sweater off the back of your office chair and head towards the door, tip-toeing out into the hallway of the New Avengers Complex.

This is your routine every time something like this happens: get up, ground yourself, wander down the hallway towards the kitchen...

Rounding the corner into the shared living space of the Residential wing, you pause, the broad shoulders of a familiar figure standing in front of the large floor to ceiling windows, his back to you, drawing a sigh of relief from your lips.

"I heard you scream," Your husband greets, turning to face your still slightly shaking form almost frozen to the spot in the hallway.

The heavy weight of guilt and concern fills his tone, your heart aching in protest.

Without a word, you pad softly towards his figure, crumbling into his open arms, the same choked breaths arising from earlier, though this time, their accompanied by sobs and tears.

"Shhh, Doll," Bucky Barnes murmurs into your hair, hand delicately running through it in an effort to calm you down. "I've got you. You're okay."

"I know, I know," You mumble, sniffling into his chest, swallowing the lump in your throat at your next words. "It's just... I... You..."

Your husband's grip around you tightens slightly, your murmurs almost seeming to electrify his senses.

"One word at a time, Love," He urges softly, prompting you to explain. "What was this one about this time?"

For a moment, your entire body goes rigid, your sobs ceasing, tears almost pausing.

"You killed me," Is all you utter, tears resuming full force once more as you burry yourself even deeper into Bucky's grasp.

The set of arms holding you give you a squeeze of reassurance.

"Those days are over, Doll. We both know that," He mumbles, gently pulling you away from him ever so slightly, just enough that he can slip a finger beneath your chin, delicately lifting your head to meet his gaze.

"I know," You repeat shakily for what seems to be the hundredth time. "My mind just likes to bring back the past I guess."

Bucky's face immediately falls, tears pricking his own eyes.

He and you both have memories ever vivid of the fight in Washington, over the Triskellion.

You'd been with Steve, your best friend, the entire way, even as the Helicarrier fell from the sky.

Bucky had hauled both you and the Captain from the river.

The incident had seemed to have been swept under the rug ever since, but... your mind... It likes to haunt you with nightmares of the past.

"Y/N," Your husband cries, finally breaking, breaths wavering. "Listen to me."

The finger that had been tucked under your chin is gone now, replaced by a warm hand cupping your cheek.

"You know I'd never hurt you, never," Bucky nods, wiping away a stray tear rolling down your face. "So you've got focus on that, rather than the past - we both do."

Nodding mutely, you simply lean into his touch before placing your lips on his, quivering with silent sobs against each other.

Between breaths, an unspoken agreement is made, one that will better the both of you.

The past is in the past. You're here now, so let's move forward - together.

Pulling away from each other with a soft sigh, Bucky leans his forehead against yours, one hand holding your waist, the other stroking your hair soothingly.

"I'd never hurt you..." He murmurs beneath his breath continually, almost as if assuring himself more than you. "Never."

"I know," You hum, once more pecking his lips quickly before pulling back, eyes brimming with fresh tears.

The pair of you stand there for what seems like hours, holding one another, swaying back and forth...

"What time is it, Doll?"

Squinting through the darkness to the time on the oven in the kitchen you physically slump towards your lover's embrace.

"3:23 AM."

At this, Bucky echoes your sigh and murmurs something incomprehensible beneath his breath, quickly scooping you off your feet.

And before you know it, you're being laid down back in your shared bed, the cool covers being carefully wrapped around you.

"James?" You whisper, rolling onto your side to face the man laying in bed beside you.

"Hm?"

"Hold me?" You chuckle sheepishly, feeling like a bother, considering he'd just held you for what seemed like forever back in the living room.

Tossing you a smirk you can make out even in the dim darkness, Bucky Barnes pulls you flush against his chest, arms securing your smaller form to his.

And before your know it, you're sound asleep.

With no unwanted nightmares to bother you this time around.