Blades & Ballet | Bucky x Reader

Thirty-Three

Brooklyn, New York.

Y/n and I walk into the lobby of the familiar apartment building, pausing just before the stairs.

"Do you wany me to walk up with you?" Y/n asks.

I shake my head. "No. This is something I need to do on my own."

She gives me a small smile of encouragement. "Okay. I'll wait for you down here then."

I give her a nod, turning to climb the flight of stairs and soon coming to a stop outside the apartment door. I knock.

Yori opens the door. "Hey, what are you doing here? It's late, come in before someone calls the cops."

He steps out of the way for me to enter, checking the hallway before closing the door behind us.

"What are you doing here?" he asks again. "It's not Wednesday."

I stare at the shrine in the corner of the room, trying to work up the courage to tell him the truth.

"I, uh, I have to tell you something," I say, finally tearing my eyes away from the picture of Yori's son. Yori nods. "About your son."

Yori's brows furrow, and he takes a seat in a chair as I sit on the couch across from him, removing my gloves to reveal the metal hand beneath.

"He was murdered," I breathe.

"What?" Yori asks, unsure if he heard me correctly.

"By the Winter Soldier," I continue.

Yori's head tilts in confusion.

I hesitate for a moment before clarifying, my voice shaking as I speak. "And that was me."

Yori's eyes fill with tears as he processes what I've been saying. "Why?"

I inhale, struggling to keep my own tears back. "I didn't have a choice."

Yori's eyes fall to the floor as he processes the truth about his son's death. When he doesn't reply, I take that as my cue to leave, slowly standing from my seat.

"I'm so sorry I took him from you," I choke out before exiting the apartment.

I make it to the lobby before I break, collapsing to my knees in front of Y/n. She drops to the ground, wrapping her arms around me as she cradles my head against her shoulder.

"I know," she whispers. "I know it's hard, but you did the right thing. Yori deserved to know the truth. He'll me able to move forward now, to mourn without being in the past wonder what really happened. He'll be okay. And so will you."

Over the next few weeks, Y/n accompanies me as I cross off the remaining names on my list of amendments, only going so far as the door to allow me space to do what I must.

After crossing off the last name, I put the notebook into a blue and white striped giftbag and leave it in Dr Raynor's office with the note: I finished the book... thanks for all your help, Doc.

We pass by Izzy on the way home, and I look through the window to see Yori sitting at the counter. Leah looks up as she pours him a drink, catching my eye and giving me a small smile before turning back to Yori. I smile to myself, knowing that Y/n was right. Yori will be okay.

A few days later, Y/n and I head down to Louisiana for the Wilson family's community barbeque. Pulling up to the marina, I take the cake from Y/n's hands as we climb out of the truck, and Sam's nephews come running over, throwing fake punches at us. We play along, ducking and dodging for their enjoyment before setting the cake down on one of the tables. Sam joins us a few seconds later, introducing us to all of his friends and neighbours.

The afternoon is filled with food, friends, and laughter, but as evening falls, Sam, Y/n and I lounge on the restored boat, relaxing with a few beers as the watch the sunset.

"So, what now, Cap?" Y/n asks.

Sam looks over at us for a moment, taking a swig of his beer before turning back to the sunset with a smile. "Whatever the world needs."

I nod, throwing my arm around Y/n's shoulders. "Sounds like a plan."