SAVING GRACE | bucky barnes ✔️

TWELVE<>EVLEWT

Elias woke up from her supposed cat nap. She fell asleep around 1pm. Now it was 11:30pm.

"Damn, I'm a heavy sleeper." She mumbled and ran a hand through her hair.

"You did wake up a few times. You were out of it though." A voice says suddenly, making her jump.

Elias turned to her right and saw the Winter Soldier sitting there. She gasped in panic and started fumbling with the IV to get it out.

"Elias, stop! It's Bucky!" He says to her, pinning her arms down.

Bucky looked into Elias's eyes. All he saw was fear.

He let go of her arms and stood up, walking to the end of her bed and sitting by her feet.

"Why are you here?! To kill me?!" Elias says with fear.

"Well, I was ordered by a teenage girl to see you. I'm glad she did. You look bad but a little better at the same time."

"A teenage girl? She must've scared you if you came here."

Bucky chuckled lightly before he started fumbling with his jacket zipper nervously. He didn't look at Elias as she moved herself to sit by him.

"Thank you. For coming here and checking on me."

Bucky froze and looked at her, her gray eyes staring into his. He smiles a little and looks at his metal hand.

"What's it like having a metal arm?" Elias asked after a few moments.

Bucky chuckled lightly. "Well, you may not believe this, but it's extremely light. And it's kind of weird not having sensory nerves on one half of your body. Although, the teenage girl I know wanted to stick refrigerator stickers on my arm."

Elias nodded, chuckling to herself.

"I'm sorry." She says suddenly.

Bucky frowned at her. "What for?"

Elias scoffed and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry for making you like this. It's my fault that you're broken and can barely remember your life before the fall."

"Elias...." Bucky starts but she cuts him off.

"I should've known better than to do what I did. And I should've looked at you like an actual person than what Hydra called you: an asset."

"Elyzia." Bucky lifted her chin so her eyes looked in his. "I'm not angry with you."

Elias gazed into his eyes, searching for anything that was fake, but there was nothing.

"I don't understand. I'm one of those monsters that changed you, messed with your head. I wouldn't be happy if someone messed with my head. And you...you called me Elyzia. How do you know that?"

Bucky held her hand as he spoke. "I remember an argument you had with Pierce. You were screaming at him, insulting him. Then I saw him smack you across the face then I heard him say, 'Don't end up like your parents, Elyzia. You know what happens when people disobey my orders'. I saw you nod, tears streaming down your face and a red mark on your cheek. You stormed passed me and went to your office."

Elias touched her cheek where Pierce smacked her. "I was new when you saw that. I told him you should be treated better, but Pierce gave me the 'asset' crap and, well, as you said, I started insulting him, telling him that he would never be like the Red Skull. That was when he smacked me."

Elias and Bucky were silent for a few moment. Their fingers were still intertwined.

"After that incident, I noticed the change in you." Bucky spoke up. "I noticed that you were harsher than usual. The small smiles disappeared, your eyes were dull and full of hate. You kind of scared me."

"Me? Scare you?" Elias smirked in amusement.

"But you were a nice caretaker. Nicer than the others."

"I don't think I was that nice."

"Besides the harsh glares and angry demeanor, you were pretty nice. I mean, I heard you defend a young girl from getting experimented on. That was pretty brave."

Elias rolled her eyes, smiling, before standing up. She walked to a small chair with a sweatshirt, a pair of jeans, her boots, and backpack of her belongings. She gingerly took out her IV.

"Can you help me?" Elias asked Bucky sheepishly as she gestured to her clothes.

He nodded and helped her take off her hospital gown.

Good thing I'm wearing a sports bra and underwear, Elias thought to herself.

Bucky helped her with the sweatshirt, pulling it over her body and helped getting her casted arm through the sleeve. He then helped with her jeans.

"Thanks. Now to get my boots on." Elias leaned forward but winced in pain.

"Let me do it." Bucky says and puts on her boots, lacing them then helping her up. He grabbed some gauze and tape from a cupboard, shoved them in her backpack, then handed it to her.

"Let's go." Bucky says and leads her to the window. They climb out, Elias gasping in pain because of the wound on her leg.

"Get on my back." Bucky says.

Elias nodded and hopped onto his back. Bucky grabbed her legs and sprinted away.

"Miss Crimson?" A nurse came in and saw the bed empty and the gown on the floor. She pulled out her phone and called a number.

"Secretary Ross, she's gone."