【Ｐｒｅｓｅｎｔ】
Noun:
"Something that you are given, without asking for it, on a special occasion."
Verb:
"to bring, offer, or give, often in a formal or ceremonious way."
〰・♡・〰
"𝘋𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘐 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯'𝘵...
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Bucky was not doing well.
It had been two days since you'd gone missing. And he had been awake for every single second of it.
The team had rallied together instantly, recognising how dire the situation was, especially with news of Steve's engagement to you.
It has to be Hydra. This felt personal. It couldn't be a coincidence that the team were on a mission tracking them down whilst you were taken.
Taken.
God, his heart was in his throat at that thought. Steve didn't know what it was like to be captured by Hydra, but he did.
That's why he was terrified to his very core.
Whilst Steve had thrown himself into the role of Captain America, pouring over information and leads, dictating what each person was doing and where they were searching today, Bucky had done the opposite.
He had retreated in upon himself. He was full of self blame and terror. He knew he wasn't being useful, and he knew the others noted that. He presumed most of them thought it was because of his history with the terrorist organisation, but a few knew the truth.
He was in love with Steve's fiancé. And he might never see her again.
Guilt stabbed at his chest as he thought how Steve must be feeling. He had barely known you long enough, Steve had been with you over a year, had put a ring on your finger.
He needed to kick himself into gear.
Dark circles hung under everyone's eyes as they sat around the conference table. It seemed no one was sleeping these days.
Steve stood up at the head of the table, hunched over a map, his brows furrowed, his usually bright blue eyes dulled.
He briefly looked up at Bucky walking in, giving a small grateful smile that he'd decided to join them. As Bucky sat down, Sam patted his shoulder in a rare display of affection.
"We'll get her back Buck." He whispers.
Bucky grunted in response, unable to summon anything else.
Discussions went back and forth for a while more, before Steve excused himself from the room.
He needed air. But he couldn't afford to stop.
Stepping out into the corridor, he leant against the wall behind him, taking a long exhale as the lump in his throat grew.
He couldn't afford to be so emotional. If he could just stay in Captain mode, he could think clearly, could get things done. He never failed a mission.
Until that mission involved you.
He had not let himself even entertain what might be happening to you. To do that would be excruciating. He knew Bucky's past trauma, and if you had even a fraction of that because he was too selfish to not claim you as his own so publicly, he wasn't sure what he'd do.
