The Kind You Save

Chapter 5

"May I ask about your time?" Bucky asked as he led me into the bedroom.

"Of course, please do." I gave him a soft smile as I entered the room. The walls were a plain magnolia, with only a few photos of him and the team on the shelves on his side of the room. It was sad, he had no personal items to use as decoration.

"Your sacrifice, what was your choice?" He sat down tentatively on his bed, I remained standing in the centre of the room.

"Your payment can either be something of incredible sentimental value to you, or your left leg." I recited. Having heard the line so many times, it was etched into my brain like a scratch on a vinyl. "I didn't have anything sentimental to give, but if I lost my leg, I wouldn't be able to fly because of the balance. Close to my body, my feathers grow green, and one pink. I gave them the pink feather, pretended that it was my first feather and I'd tucked it there for safekeeping. They bought it." I shrugged it off and sat on my bed, the mattress dipped with my weight.

"Oh right, we-"

"Can I ask something?" I butted in, yes it was rude and I felt immensely guilty as I spoke, but I needed to know. After I got a nod of consent I stood up and paced slowly toward the wall. "There's no colour, not a single drop of anything. Not even a coffee ring on the bedside table. Why?"

"I don't know, I guess I just never saw the attachment to colour that others do. I've never thought about it." He looked around the room, then back at me. "It does look weirdly large now that you've mentioned it though."

"I'm sorry, perhaps I could help you with an accent wall or something, after all, you've given me somewhere to stay for the night, it's the very least I could do." I offered. He agreed and pulled up a screen on the wall, showing me how to get onto the internet and typed with his fingers "accent wall ideas". Every so often he'd touch the screen with his metal arm and wonder why it wouldn't respond. We'd have a bit of a laugh and then continue browsing.

Soon enough we were called to dinner and I followed Bucky into the kitchen. The living suit felt very much like a university dorm. The bedrooms, each with their own bathroom, and a kitchen/dining room/communal room. 

"How do you fancy joining us in a sparring session tonight, Mykie?" Tony spoke from the end of the table as the last of the plates were placed on the table. I shot Natasha a thank you smile for the wonderful meal she'd prepared for us all.

"How do they work?" I  questioned, unsure as to whether or not it was a good idea since I could potentially kill one of their men by barely even touching them.

"Well, We'll give it an hour after dinner for you all to change and make your drinks, then we meet up in the gym at seven sharp to begin to warm up, do a circuit training and then everyone works out and cheers along whoever's sparring, and we switch the couples up by who won and all that blah blah, got it?" 

I stared blankly at him for a moment, nodding slowly before beginning my meal. It was a simple spaghetti bolognese, but it was magnificent. I hadn't had a proper meal in possibly years, it's hard to tell, but my body seemed to cheer up within seconds of the food touching my tongue. 

I stayed behind after the meal to help Bucky wash up, though he insisted that I make our drinks for the session if I really need to help. 

"Have you got any training already?" Bucky asked, trying to make conversation.

"Circus training, but that's it." He tilted his head in my direction with a questioning look on his face. "Aerial, trapeze, acrobatics, juggling, hoop and I did a little gym wheel too." I explained, levelling out the spoon of strawberry flavouring.

"Acrobatics? Like, flipping and stuff?" 

"Kind of. It's more than that though, it's dance, but it's gymnastics, but it's just different. I'll teach you some stuff if you'd like, you'd make a good base." I popped the lids on the bottles and passed him a tea towel to dry his hands.

"Sure, we'll take the stairs as a warm up and you can teach me some stuff before the others get to the gym?" He asked, his eyes lit like a puppy's. I nodded and followed him out the door.

I didn't realise then that I was getting his hopes up. I couldn't have stayed there even if I wanted to, it was simply too dangerous. I was the Plague. Practically a villain. And yet I agreed to everything he asked of me, he and Steve, because something in the way they spoke to me, the way they treated me made me genuinely made me believe they needed me.

I shouldn't have been such a fool.