Touch in the Dark - Bucky Barnes

Chapter 12

* She couldn't leave. It was all she had. *

Tony and Bruce stared back at the girl, trying not to ask the looming questions that hung in the air. She looked put together, but her eyes held no light. They seemed dull before, but now...that was a whole different story. She held a tight smile on her lips. She was slightly slouched. She just glanced back at the scientists then averted her gaze, headed over to her work station.

Tony and Bruce shared looks at her silence, not really knowing what to do next. They didn't know what was wrong but they couldn't just outright ask her. Tony cleared his throat and got the papers and tech parts he wanted her to work on and brought them to her work station.

"I'm really excited about this. Could you take a look at these data sheets and tell me what you think? This is about some missions we've been on and stats on how we could make these missions better." He pointed everything out, watching her for her reaction. She just looked at the papers in her hands, listening closely to what he said. When she didn't give him an answer, he continued. "This is also some technology I want to integrate to make those prototypes better. If you have any input on either one of these, feel free to let me know."

Finley nodded, her longer blonde hair covering her face as she looked down at the paperwork. She moved the technology aside and focused on the data. She was tense and she sat there, head down, waiting for Tony to move before she started looking over the document. Tony could feel the change in her attitude towards him.

    He slowly walked away towards his work station. Him and Bruce both occasionally kept glancing over at the girl who hardly moved in her work chair. They weren't sure why she was acting so different, but this is what made Tony believe something was wrong.

    Finley read over each document Tony had given her. She was grateful for the work. She needed every distraction from the pain her body was in. She was basically numb to it in that moment, but the image that replayed in her head made her relive the most horrible experience in her life.

    She didn't understand why Daniel did what he did. She hadn't cheated on him, she knew that. She was never dishonest and she kept her loyalty to him. But in the end, it didn't matter what she said. Daniel didn't believe her and he showed her just how upset he was by her actions.

    After everything that had happened last night, Finley woke up to breakfast in bed. Daniel was happy. He was smiling and he had actually made her breakfast. At first, Finley didn't want to take it thinking it was just another one of his punishments, but he insisted that he was sorry and that he loved her.

    He actually got on his knees in front of her while she ate and told her a story about his past. The past with his mother. Finley knew his parents weren't really in his life and that he had grown up with a rough childhood. Daniel told her that his mother was basically a single mom, raising a few kids on her own because all of the baby daddies had left once she got pregnant.

    He also shared how she had struggled with drugs and alcohol and once all the kids were grown, she would call them up for money. He shared how his mother really didn't love him. She only cared about him being successful so that he could provide for her.

    It made sense to Finley as to how he showed his love. Everything made more sense. Daniel was only trying to show Finley that he cared and didn't want anything to happen to their relationship. He had helped her get ready for work, making sure all the wounds were covered. He offered her warm gloves to keep on her hands throughout the day to hid the scratches and red marks on her hands and fingers.