Daylight | Bucky Barnes x OC

xxiii. clean.

Aurora was barely lucid for the flight to Italy. There were a few occasions where she'd open her eyes, only to be greeted with Bucky watching carefully over her as the soft vibrations of the plane reminded her that they were still in the air. This cycle continued for a while before she felt a hand on her shoulder, gently shaking her to wake her up.

"Hey, hey, we're here." Bucky said softly as Rory opened her eyes, jumping slightly to begin with before she realised that she was safe and alright. She nodded, feeling that the plane had come to a stop. "Mhm" Aurora mumbled as Bucky got up first, offering his hand for her to take to stand up. She took his hand and the two exited the small private plane, the warm Italian air hitting the two of them as they began to walk toward the terminal.

Rick was still with them, handling the logistics with the border control and before they knew it, they were through and being ushered to the taxi's.

"You have the details of the hotel and the new passports. You should be set from here." Rick said to Aurora and Bucky as they waited outside the taxi. "But as always, if you need me, you know how to reach me." He said, offering a small smile. He placed his hand on Aurora's shoulder and she offered him a cornered smile before getting into the taxi.

Bucky paused for a second "Thank you, for everything I-" he began.

Rick shook his head "Don't thank me. Thank Nick Fury." He stated, patting Bucky on the shoulder before he turned on his heels and headed back into the airport.

Bucky got into the cab next to Aurora, who seemed a little more awake than before. He handed the driver the piece of paper with the name of the hotel before they began their short drive to where they would be staying. "How are you feeling?" Bucky asked softly, looking over at Aurora.

A bruise had begun to form above her eyebrow, and there were large track-mark bruises on her arms from where the blood had been taken. But otherwise, she was alright.

"I've been worse. Are you alright?" Rory replied, offering a small smile.

Bucky breathed a sigh of relief "I was really worried about you." He admitted.

Rory looked at him and shook her head "You don't need to worry about me.. I should have been more careful, I'm sorry.." she began before being cut off.

"Hey, you have nothing to be sorry for. None of this is your fault." He reassured, brushing a stray piece of blonde hair from her face "I'm just really glad you're alright. We're alright." He stated, to which Rory nodded with a small smile before laying back and looking out of the window, admiring the sights in the lead up to the city of Naples.

The ride was short and before they had time to talk more about the events of the last few days, they arrived at the hotel. It was a quaint building but it looked homey enough and since Rick had set it up for them, it was likely to be safe for a while. They were both admittedly relieved as they got to the lobby and then up to their room, it had been a whirlwind few days in which Bucky hadn't slept at all.

The room contained a large window with a nice view of the city and a small Juliet balcony. There was a desk and two twin sized beds. It was clean and big enough, but they were both too tired to care. Bucky threw the bag he was carrying down and sighed as he closed the door and pulled the desk in front of it.

"You take the one next to the wall, I'll take the one next to the window." Bucky stated as Aurora slowly sat down and nodded. She was feeling considerably better than she was but the idea of sleeping in a real bed for a few hours was way more appealing than she cared to admit. She peeled off the jacket that Bucky had laid over her shoulders and laid down slowly on the bed, groaning softly from her head injury as she laid her head on the pillow.

The truth was, Aurora was shaken. This was the closest call she had ever had and despite how strong she thought she was, this was a harrowing reminder that she was only human and whatever power she had was limited. Too limited.

Aurora laid there for a few moments, noticing as the light was turned out and Bucky made his way to the bed next to her. She moved and turned around, noticing that he was facing her.

"Are you alright?" Bucky asked in a low tone. Rory shrugged.

"I guess. Just can't sleep." She said with a sigh "Nothing like that has ever happened to me and I guess.. it just scared me."

Bucky nodded "and that's okay, just take it easy. You went through a lot."

She sighed "I just... feel like a liability. I'm meant to be helping you, not making things harder for both of us."

Bucky chuckled "Aurora, this isn't just about helping me. You've done enough, just take it easy. It's all going to be alright."

"I know.." Rory said, offering a smile "I'm glad you're here with me." She said before closing her eyes and eventually drifting into a dreamless state of sleep.

Bucky however, did the opposite. He found himself staying awake for considerably longer, darting his gaze between Aurora and the door - constantly worried that something else was going to happen to put her safety in jeopardy. At this point, she was all he had. He didn't mind that, but all he wanted to do was to keep her safe.

Before he knew it, the sun began to rise and acted as a natural alarm clock which caused Rory to awaken and slowly sit up to find Bucky, still half awake in his bed.

"Did you sleep at all?" Rory groaned as she slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"A little. How are you feeling?" He asked, monitoring her every move.

She nodded "Better, much better." Rory stated "Do you wanna head out and get some breakfast maybe?" She offered.

Bucky pondered on her suggestion, weighing up the risks in his head before eventually nodding "Sure, yeah, if you're feeling up to it."

Aurora nodded, the idea of a little normalcy giving her the boost of energy she needed to get out of bed and into the shower.

Her body was bruised and the hot water made her more light headed than usual but she was generally okay. She felt a bit stupid and naive for not seeing the attack coming, she felt stupid for leaving behind the passports in the first place but more than anything she felt stupid for needing to be saved. Rory hated needing to be saved, and she hated that Bucky had put himself in harm's way in the process.

All of a sudden, it was as if everything was clear. As if, in drowning - she could finally breathe, a breath of fresh air which solidified that the feelings she had for the super soldier on the other side of the drywall were feelings of more than just friendship.

However, despite their mutual pining, this charade would continue for another month.