Saving Bucky Barnes

Chapter 5

I woke up in Bucky's arms and as I stirred,  Bucky woke up. I turned my head so that I could see his face. We stared into each others eyes trying to read the other's thoughts. I smiled and a ghost of a smile flitted across his face.

The day went like all my days seemed to go while cooped up in this dirty cell. We talked a little, slept, and ate the little food that they gave us. We began to trust each other a bit more. Soon, it felt like we had known each other for a long time.  A week went by with nothing eventful happening. Then, something did happen.

I woke up and Bucky was gone. I glanced around the room and saw in a heartbeat that he hadn't broken out. He must have been taken. I began to imagine all the things that could have happened to him. I worked myself up into panic. I was about ready to fly off the handle about two hours later. Finally, they brought him back.

I nearly cried at the sight of him. He was walking, but looked about half dead on his feet. I rushed to him, but one of the guards pushed me away roughly. Bucky made a weak attempt to protest my rough treatment but only got back handed for his efforts. He looked like a broken doll as the guards threw him to the floor and walked out laughing.

A sob escaped my mouth as I looked at Bucky, sitting crossed legged on the floor, head down, and hair in his face. He looked so lost and broken. I ran to my bed and stripped it. I then started tearing my sheet into strips. Then, I took a cup of water that as left from the food tray. I sat down on the floor, a few feet from Bucky. I tilted his face up and gently cleaned the many cuts that he had. He kept his eyes down and didn't look at me.

I noticed that his wounds were made by a knife. He had a long cut on his arm and a deep cut on his ankle. I cleaned and bandaged both of them. I checked him over and saw no other cuts.

"What happened?" I asked.

"They took me out for training. I haven't fought that hard for a long time. It was just a usual training fight. I was just out of practice."

"Do they do this all the time?"

"Yes."

"Will you have to go back?"

"Yes."

I sighed. I looked at him, but he refused to look at me. I tipped his chin up. His eyes looked at me unblinkingly. I dropped his head. Dropping my head into my hands, I began to cry silently. Gently, Bucky pulled my wrists don into my lap and looked at my face. He gently wiped the tears from my eyes. I reached up to touch a cut that ran from his lip to the middle of his chin. I straightened.

"You should have stitches on all you cuts but I guess all we can do is keep them clean and free from infection."

"I hate fighting."

"I know Bucky."

He laid back on the floor with his  robotic arm behind his head. With his free hand, he grabbed my own hand.

"Tell me my story again."

I recounted everything that Steve had told me about Bucky.

"Bucky Barnes was a hero..." I began.

A few hours later, Bucky was asleep, but he kept a tight grip on my hand. Without meaning to, I dozed off.

I woke up and smiled. Someone was gently playing with my hair as I lay on my pillow.

Wait? Pillow?

I sat up quickly. I realized that I had fallen asleep on Bucky's chest, using it as a pillow.

"Bucky I am so sorry."

He gently pulled me down again and continued playing with my hair. I sighed. If only I could stay this way forever. I slowly drifted off again.