Winter Love || Bucky Barnes

1944 - Now: Awake

As I stumbled out of the darkness and into the blinding light, my eyes struggled to adjust. I had no sense of how much time had passed since I last saw the sun, but the urgency in my pounding heart told me it had been far too long. The bright lights illuminated the snow-covered landscape, painting everything in a blinding haze.
Then I noticed them; five men, their silhouettes stark against the white expanse, stood a few yards away. Their faces expressionless; their guns pointed at me. Panic surged through me like a current as I realized the danger I was in. Without a moment's hesitation, I turned and fled, knowing that if they caught me, it would mean certain death.
I ran as fast as my legs could carry me, the icy air burning my lungs with each desperate breath. My heart thundered in my ears, drowning out all other sound except for the crunch of snow beneath my boots. In my blind desperation, I stumbled into the entrance of a cave. The darkness enveloped me like a comforting cloak, muffling the sound of the wind outside.

But just as I began to relax my tense muscles, a deep rumbling echoed through the cave, sending a shiver down my spine. Loose pebbles clattered to the ground.
In despair, I sprinted for the cave entrance, my breath coming in ragged gasps. But before I could reach the safety of the open air, the tunnel collapsed in a chaotic cascade of rock and ice...

***

I slowly opened my eyes and was overjoyed to see Steve. "Steve," I exclaimed and hugged him as tightly as I could. "I'm so happy to see you. Hydra captured me, but I managed to escape. Then I was in this cave and..." I looked at him questioningly. "Why am I here now? What happened?"

He sighed. and told me that the cave had collapsed and that I had been frozen for many years.

Steve had also been frozen because his ship had crashed on a mission.

I stroked my hair. It was all far too much for me.

After being examined by several doctors, I was allowed to leave again. Steve took me to New York and introduced me to the Avengers, where I would live for the next few weeks.