Winter's Soulmate | Winter Soldier ✔

Chapter Eighteen

~Amelie's POV~

Winter was pacing the room, eyes drawn to a point on the wall before he spun on his heel and marched in the opposite direction.

I was careful, staying quiet as I sat, curled against the headboard of the bed. It was our fifth day at the Tower, two days after Winter read about his past, and he had barely spoken since.

I assumed he was thinking, wrapping his mind around the complexities of his past. I was overwhelmed with the amount of history he had - the documents, reports, calls for the war, photographs, drawings, letters from him to Steve.

I had stood before him, holding the patched dog tags that held his old name, James Buchanan Barnes.

Winter wasn't that man, but he used to be. And I guess that was enough logic for him to take it carefully from my hand, rub it carefully on the hem of his top to make it shine, and slip it around my neck.

My hand fell to it now, feeling the cool metal against my skin under my top. I hadn't taken it off apart to shower and sleep, much like the ring he made me in that hotel room.

I had been trying to read. I couldn't console Winter and the noise of the television in the room was obviously irritating him as he flinched when they made loud noises.

But I couldn't read. I couldn't focus on anything apart from him.

My eyes followed him, until his right arm began shaking as he clenched his fist tightly, waving it angrily at his side.

I edged closer to him, swinging my legs off the bed and waited for him to turn so he could see me and slowed to a stop. "Tony said we can't leave for a little while, but I don't want to keep borrowing other people's clothes. Do you want to choose some with me?"

His eyes dropped from my face to his shirt, his shaking hand opening to smooth the shirt over his torso. I saw him gulp, his hair falling into his eyes as he looked up and nodded silently.

"Do you want to sit here with me?" I wiggled back up the bed, then leant over and picked up the laptop from the chair beside me. Peter had not only grabbed a few books and odd bits for me, but had thankfully picked up my laptop and charger, on his way to collect Mum and arrive at the Tower.

I opened it, waiting a while as the fan blared to life. Winter became obsessed with it, leaning his shoulder into my side as he watched me type my password in with ease.

He had seen computers before, and laptops surely. HYDRA must have masses of technology.

"Do you remember using a computer before?" I asked gently.

He was quiet for a while, before he turned his head and cleared his throat. Croakily, as he hadn't spoken yet that day, he shook his head, "no."

As an afterthought, he held a hand over mine, stopping me from opening a web browser. "Have you seen me use one?"

"We ordered food on one when we were on the run. And you used it to stop people realising we were hiding in the house in Italy."

His gaze was intense, almost painfully so as he stared at me. I could see his eyes shine a little, "why don't I remember?"

The words were a whisper on his lips, so soft and quiet that I read them more than heard him.

I placed my hand on his shoulder, the metal shards cooling my palm as I looked at him. He flinched, but didn't say anything as I tried to soften my expression, put him in some sense of ease, "HYDRA hurt you a lot Winter. A lot. You've told me before that every time they wiped your memory you could still remember me. And if you couldn't remember me, as soon as you heard my name, you knew."