Rectify | Bucky Barnes

Chapter Thirty-Two

My palms are sweaty as I brush out my hair, the handle slipping from my hand and onto the floor. I forget about brushing it to perfection and grip the edge of the sink until my knuckles turn white. I close my eyes and focus on not getting sick. The hours ticked by entirely too quickly.

I hear Bucky come up behind me and he finishes brushing my hair for me. He hugs me from behind and places a gentle kiss on the back of my head. I melt into his touch and bite my lip, urging myself not to cry. What if this is the last time I'll feel his touch?

I turn around and face him, both of us not knowing what to say. Not that there is anything to say, nothing will make us feel any better about what's coming. I rest my head on his chest as he rubs my back comfortingly. I step back from him and put my Shield uniform on, which may be getting replaced with an orange jumpsuit soon. I pull the shirt over my head with shaky hands. Wordlessly, Bucky takes my hands in his and kisses them tenderly. We both know this could be it.

However, I want our final moments together to not be full of dread and misery. I take in a breath and lick my lips, there are still things I want to know from yesterday.

"What did it feel like yesterday, when Wanda put the algorithm in?" I ask. He blinks and tilts his head to the side,

"It was weird. It was like a pressure in my mind, it felt like someone was poking my brain if that makes any sense." He says and I nod.

"That's kind of what it felt like when she was in my mind too. How'd it feel when I said the words?"

"You know, when you said them I felt like I should be doing something but I just didn't. I could hear the words and everything but they just didn't affect me." He says and I smile. It worked perfectly. I walk to the bedside table and pick up the book.

"Shall we?" I ask. Bucky digs in one of his pockets and pulls out a lighter. With a smile on his face he nods,

"I think we shall." We walk into the small bathroom and put the book in the sink.

I watch as he lights the book on fire, the pages turning into ash before our eyes. The red leather takes a while to burn, but it feels so satisfying to see it finally be destroyed. Bucky puts a hand on my lower back as the book burns in front of us, the flames dancing as they burn away the cursed book.

I can rest a little easier knowing that the book is destroyed and the Winter Soldier is dead. I completed my mission that I was given on day one at Shield. Though, it didn't feel like a mission but more of a personal goal. I think it's a blessing we were able to find each other again.

I guess if I am sentenced to prison, these memories will still be here to comfort me. It's like I told my students, that sometimes if people are lucky enough, they'll still have their memories in the end. I look up at Bucky and see a small smile on his face as the last remains of the book burns away.

"You're finally free." I whisper.

He wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me in close to his side. We watch the last of the book turn to black ash, and the flame dies. It's as if another weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I feel as though I've finally been able to rectify my wrongdoings.

"They won't let me talk to Steve since he's on the council. I have no idea what he's going to do." Bucky says as we walk back into the main bedroom area. He runs a hand through his hair.

"He took a deal with Tony, I bet in return for dropping the case against you Steve has to vote to put me in prison. It's the only thing that makes sense to me." I say.

I remember Steve was the one person I could count on when this all started. We spent almost every hour of every day together, talking about how to get Bucky back. Now here we are, Bucky's back and Steve is voting to put me away for life. Bucky shakes his head,