Necessary Good, Unnecessary Evil | No rest For Wounded Souls [Bucky Barnes]

As Easy As It Sounds

"A person often meets his destiny on the road he took to avoid it."
-Jean de la Fontaine

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Bucky's POV

I feel the bed move next to me, and a soft whimpering wakes me up.
Nova rolls on her side, her back facing me. "Nova?" I call, hearing her heavy breathing.
"Hey," she croaks, slowly turning to me.
I turn on the light, noticing her forehead shining. She's sweating.
"What are you doing?" She murmurs, peeking through her half-open eyes.
I rest my hand on her temple and hold her wrist, feeling her pulse. "You're hot, and your pulse is faster than usual," I note, glancing at the clock on the nightstand.

Nova scoffs, trying to pull herself up. Only to stop mid-way. "You aren't that bad yourself, but what's your point?"
I shake my head, gently stroking her heated cheek. "I was talking about your temperature. I think you have a fever."
Spending years watching out for Steve has trained me to quickly recognize a bad fever, and this is one of those. "A fever? I never had a fever in my life." Nova hummed, scrunching her nose in pain.
I get out of bed, heading to the door. "Wait here."

It was almost automatic to get an emergency set for Steve once I got back, and I realized how pointless it was when I got back home.
He didn't need me anymore, and even if it makes me happy knowing he's fine now, it left me feeling useless. "How do you feel?" I wonder, getting back to my room.
Nova is buried under the covers, her shoulder shaking with shivers. "I'm freezing, but my face is on fire." She moans.

"Keep this under your tongue," I instruct, putting a thermometer in her mouth.
I wait for it to beep, holding her hand. "Shit, that's high."
Nova opens her eyes, only to shut them briefly after. "I have to get you in dry clothes and bring down your temperature," I say, walking to my closet and taking out what I need.
Carefully, I pull Nova up, sitting her against the headboard and starting to unbutton her shirt. "But I'm cold," she whines, pouting.
"I know, doll. I promise you're going to feel better." I sigh, using a towel to dry her chest.

Nova patiently waits for me to be done, getting back under the cover as soon as I put her in fresh clothes.
"There, have some water." I bring the glass to her lips, watching her take a few sips.
"You make a really good nurse, Barnes." She whispers, laying on her side.
I chuckle, join her under the covers. "I had my fair share of sleepless nights keeping Steve alive."
She nods her head, her face getting sad out of the blue. "Are you going to feel bad too?" She worries, staring at me.

"I'm going to be fine." My hand moves to her flushed cheek. "Don't worry about it."
Nova's eyes are glassy, and I notice she's starting to feel less hot. "Try to rest, ok?" I mutter.
She nods lightly, closing her eyes.
Her breathing is shallow, and a few moans leave her mouth as she tries to rest next to me. I hate seeing her like this.
I'm used to Nova hiding almost any discomfort and playing tough all the time. And I hate that too.

I want her to feel safe enough to admit she needs help, and not even losing her powers seemed to restrain her from holding back.
This whole situation worries me more than I'm showing to her.
I'm trying not to pressure her into anything, but I know it is getting worse if she needs to bring back who she used to be at Hydra.
I swore I'd never hurt her again, but what she's asking me cannot be done whilst keeping that promise.
This is the last thing I want to do, but I know she will find a way to do it without me, no matter what.
"One last time," I whisper to myself, my hand still holding tightly onto Nova's.

Nova's POV

Heavy breaths fill the room, almost making it impossible to hear what's happening around me.
The cold air feels like razors on my skin, and I can barely focus on my own body.
I can feel the air move behind me, and I know I have to think quickly.
My feet leave the ground for a second, and my back hits the hard floor, knocking the breath out of my lungs.
"Fuck," I groan, rolling on my side. "I'm gonna need a minute here."
"Shit, I told you it was a bad idea," Bucky utters, kneeling next to me.
I pull off the mask covering my eyes, squeezing them closed to shield from the overhead lights.