Sunrise | Bucky Barnes x Reader

September

August slipped away into a moment in time. At least that's what it felt like, the month quickly drawing to a close along with the summer weather.

Progress had slowly but surely been made with Bucky over the past three weeks. He ate with most of the team now, not all together but each meal was usually shared with a different group of people. None of them including Tony, their's was a volatile relationship that might take a little longer to resolve.

As for piecing together the memories he'd already collected, he had made a start and it seemed that even if he only had two or three flashes of a moment, if they fit together, then the whole picture came into view. His mood always improved when that happened and it made you happy to see him experience something making sense for a change, if only briefly.

September 1st

Bucky had a nightmare. It wasn't the first time since you had moved in, but Steve would initially take the lead with calming him, showing you how he brought Bucky back to a somewhat peaceful sleep.

This time though, it was down to you. The rest of the team were on a mission and they had given no indication of how long they'd be gone for. Tony would send sporadic updates via F.R.I.D.A.Y but apart from that it was a waiting game.

As you listened to Bucky's screams through the adjoining wall, you dangled your legs off the side of the bed and took a deep breath in hopes of both calming down and psyching yourself up. Grabbing your cardigan from the back of your chair, you silently wandered through the hall to Bucky's door and pushed on the handle, his tormented cries getting louder with every inch of the door opening. The first thing you noticed was the duvet on the floor. Bucky was writing around on the bed, the sheets pulled from the corners of the mattress in his distress.

"Bucky." You said, trying to sound firm like Steve did but your voice came out soft and timid in fear. You mentally kicked yourself. For the first time, fear had gotten the better of you as you watched anger appear on Bucky's face, his features full of rage even with his eyes closed. You could only imagine what was going on in his head. But you knew him, and you knew in that moment he was reliving a hell he was longing to escape. You shook the fear away as best you could and taking another step closer to the bed, you tried again.

"Bucky. You are safe. You are loved. You are in control." The words that Steve had used sounded useless coming out of your mouth. And Bucky was still crying out in anguish, his fingers grasping the sheets so tightly it looked like he could rip them with just one move of his hand. You had no choice but to get closer to him, deciding to kneel at the side of the bed and place your fingers gently on his right arm, hoping the sudden contact wouldn't startle him. Steve never touched him, not wanting to risk Bucky accidentally causing harm to not only Steve but also himself. But you were at a loss, the words alone weren't working.

"Bucky. You are safe. You are loved. You are in control." You repeated the words, again and again, tracing circles on his forearm with every sentence as his breathing slowed and his erratic movements came to a stop. As you spoke the mantra one last time, your voice was nothing but a whisper and you looked up to see Bucky back in a peaceful sleep. Confident that he was going to be okay until morning, you made the short journey back to your room. After an hour of struggling, you managed to fall into a light sleep but only after fighting through seeing Bucky's angry, tormented face every time you closed your eyes.

September 8th

The team was still away and you'd been putting off talking to Bucky about his previous nightmare. Steve may have been happy letting Bucky pretend nothing happened every time, but you needed to confront him about it. That and the fact that he'd been acting weird towards Steve ever since you showed him the Happy Hammock, he was being subtle about it but there was definitely a shift in his behaviour.