Forgiveness

7.5. "You won't lose me"

The four of us set out to find any information about Donya or where her funeral would be held. As we walked around Riga Zemo held my hand. With a smile I asked him if he had spent a lot of time in Riga during his youth. Even though our secret was technically out in the open I still glanced at my friends but saw no visible reaction from them as Zemo and I talked. We reached this sort of refugee center when Zemo started explaining how he used to come there a lot when he was young for parties and such. Slight anxiety fills me up as we walk around the empty lot.

"We're gonna take a look around upstairs. See what you can find out here and watch him." Sam instructs me and after a brief glance at Zemo, Bucky and him head upstairs. I walk around the empty space downstairs, ignoring Sam's last instructions to watch my bo-...Zemo.

A little while after I hear Zemo's voice from the distance and head back to the courtyard. With a small smile I lean on the wall and watch as he heads towards a group of kids singing a nursery rhyme. His voice is so deep and the fact he was even doing so was so surprising that I just stand there mesmerized. Zemo pulls out a bag of candy and places them on a wooden table near the group of kids. A little girl takes one uncertainly and Zemo asks her if she knew his "old friend" Donya.

I can't hear what the little girl replies from where I'm standing and soon enough Bucky and Sam have returned. "The hell is he doing?" I shrug at Bucky's question and watch as Zemo throws the rest of the candy to the kids. He reaches us and simply mumbles that the kids were cute and we all head back to the house.

"No one's talking about Donya." Bucky says and I sigh already knowing what Sam is going to say and he does exactly that.

"Yeah, it's because Karli is the only one fighting for them." Bucky and him were about to argue about Karli again and it made me agitated.

"You think her ends justify her means?" Zemo ignores the arising conflict and starts to prepare tea and I move to sit near him in the kitchen. I stifle a laugh as he mumbles to me that they're like an old married couple. "Then, she's no different than him or anybody else we've fought." Bucky says motioning to Zemo who just shrugs.

"She's different." Bucky shakes his head then turns to Zemo asking him what the girl had said. Zemo seems unfazed by the fact he was withholding information and replies that the funeral was going to be that afternoon.

"The Dora's coming for you. Keep talking." I hold Zemo's hand more to calm myself down than anything else.

"How do I know you won't just turn on me when I tell you? I'd like to keep the leverage." Bucky scoffs and once again comes up to Zemo's face grabbing his glass and throwing it to the ground, the sound of shattering glass echoing all around the room. With a groan I flick my wrist and the glass pieces fly into the trash. Before Bucky can respond I motion for Sam to move in and he nods pulling Bucky away.

"This is pointless." I say with a heavy sigh. I wanted to stop Karli but doing that quicker meant I'd lose Zemo sooner so I understood him wanting to keep knowledge from us. However I was getting agitated by the conflicts.

"Let me make a call." Sam says to us and Bucky just rolls his eyes following him out of the room. Zemo offers me cherry blossom tea and I take it with a smile.

"So that went well" I comment earning a chuckle from Zemo who stands behind me his arms wrapping around my waist.

"I apologize for not saying anything earlier. But you understand I'm not too excited to go back to prison." I nod in response. I didn't want to think about that but it was inevitable. The Dora wouldn't let Zemo go free and this time I wasn't sure how I'd deal with him gone. I was hoping I'd be able to at least visit him often but I shake my head ignoring those thoughts. I was going to deal with that when it happened.

"I know. I don't want you to go either."

"I wanted to give you this." I raise an eyebrow and turn towards Zemo who is holding a box in his hand. Opening it I see a beautiful necklace inside with a silver heart and the infinity symbol connected to one another. "It was supposed to be a gift for your birthday but...who knows where I'll be then." I'm speechless at the gesture as Zemo takes the necklace and clips it around my neck.

"Helmut, it's beautiful. You didn't have to...thank you. When did you even get this?"

"Hey you're not supposed to ask where gifts come from." I chuckle and shake my head. This was making me feel normal, like everything around us wasn't so complicated. I glance at the necklace. It really was so pretty.

Zemo smiles softly at me and holds out his hand. I raise an eyebrow but take his hand and let him lead me to the balcony. He pulls me into a hug and I bury my head into his chest. I wanted to spend as much time as I could with him before it was too late. Zemo places a kiss on the top of my head and whispers.

"I'll always be here, my love." Tears threaten to fall as he says that. The fact that my time with him, really being with him, not separated by a glass wall or bars was numbered made me sick to my stomach.

"Helmut, I don't want to lose you." I've moved further from him and he comes up behind me, his arms wrapped around me once again. I turn around to look at him and he leans down to kiss me. My arms go up around his neck as he deepens the kiss. After we pull away I see Zemo smiling.

"You won't lose me. No matter where I go we'll find a way. I promise." I felt like he couldn't promise me that, but I wanted to believe it too. I wanted to think that no matter what we'd be together again. "Just remember I'd never do anything to hurt you." I nod at his words even if I can't help but feel like he's planning something. Something that I wouldn't like. My worries are silenced by Zemo who tilted his head slowly and pressed his lips to mine for the second time, very quickly, hungrily as if I was going to disappear any moment.

My whole mind is a mess as he swiftly pushes me to the wall. Mentally I thank the fact that the balcony doesn't have a glass door or windows. Zemo's arms are wrapped around me again, he pulls me in, in an intense, swift motion and then before I have the chance to take a breath he drags me inside my room. My hands tremble as I lock the door. By the time I realised what I was doing my hands had already gone underneath his coat and it quickly finds its way on the nearby chair. I'm about to take off my necklace, wanting to keep it safe but Zemo stops me.

"Keep it on." His voice is deep and husky and I shudder, nodding.

"As you wish, baron." The sound from the back of his throat is a mix of a growl and a moan.

Zemo lifts me up and my legs wrap around his waist as we move to the bed with him softly setting me down. My hands tug at his shirt, not caring if I seemed needy and he lets out a laugh, pulling it over his head and tossing it away. "Someone's eager." I don't reply, feeling as if I've forgotten everything in Sokovian.

Zemo doesn't seem to mind my silence as his hands move down my arms to underneath my shirt. The moment his hands are on my skin I let out a shaky breath. I whisper his name and his hold on me tightens. My shirt joins his somewhere on the floor soon enough.

"You are magnificent, dove" Zemo murmured against my lips. Suddenly he's kissing me again and his kisses leave no room for my whirlwind of thoughts.

I wanted, no I needed more. I could easily get lost in all these moments with him. The world around us - the mission - all of our problems seemed to disappear.

"Y/N? We're ready to go."

A/N: We are always interrupted, aren't we?😒 Haha anyways I hope you all liked this chapter 😌