Fire and Ice, Sugar and Spice

Chapter Sixteen-Bullets

Chapter Sixteen

Bullets

*Akilina's POV*

Bucky only takes a minute and when he comes back over I get out and jingle the keys in my hand. His face lights up as he reaches for them, but I pull them out of his reach.

"Look, only if you promise not to kill us..." A slight glinting catches my eye on the roof of the grocery store and I quickly shove Bucky behind the door of the car before a shot sounds in the parking lot. "Get in the damn car!" I shout as the few people outside scream. He slides inside and drags me with him easily. I start the truck as the window beside me breaks from another shot. I hit the gas and fly through the parking lot to the road. I turn away from the direction of the house and go as fast as possible, which isn't that fast in this car. "Are you okay?" I ask desperately, glancing over at Bucky and the rearview mirrors. His jaw is set and his eyes are angry, but he doesn't look like he's bleeding. "James."

"I'm fine, Akilina. I swear." He assures me as I turn down another road.

"Good. I'm just going to keep driving until we hit mountains. There should be a cabin we can stay in until we notify the team." I say, panting from the adrenaline in my veins. He nods along to everything I'm saying, but doesn't add to it. I feel something tickle my shoulder and I look down to find my shoulder is covered in red. I bite my lip to keep from hissing as the pain hits me. Moving around in my seat a little, I think I've only been grazed on my shoulder and my left side. As if I already didn't have enough scars. I focus back on the road and James. "Are you with me, James?" I ask, concerned about his silence.

"I'm with you. Always." He mumbles and a relieved sigh escapes my lips. He looks at me and I do my best to keep my shoulder from his sight. I fail miserably. His eyes instantly widen. "You're bleeding, Akilina!" I nod, grinding my teeth.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine. They're just grazes." I breathe, keeping my hands steady on the wheel. In a second James has taken off his coat, gloves, and is looking around the truck for something. He opens the glove compartment and finds a gun, and, miraculously, a small first aid kit. He tucks the gun into the waistband of his jeans and grabs the bandages. "James, you have to wait to wrap it. The blood flow hasn't even stopped. There isn't time to pull over either. I'm fine." I tell him. He looks up at me, his blue eyes roiling and conflicted. "Trust me." I ground out.

"Lean forward, I want to at least do your shoulder now." He says, his voice low and strained.

"James, I've had far worse wounds than this. You don't have to-"

"Please." He insists. I glance at his worried and pleading eyes, then press myself as far forward as I can without touching the steering wheel. "Thank you." He whispers. He rips open one of the gloves to reveal a more absorbent material and presses it to the wound. I grit my teeth and force my eyes to stay open as the pain ripples through me.

"You're thanking me for letting you help me? Seems a bit backwards don't you think?" I joke, focusing the best I can on the road.

"You saved my life, Akilina." The thought of him being hurt instead of me makes me grip the steering wheel harder.

"Of course, I did, you idiot." I reply with a little attitude.

"Did you just insult me as I help you?" He asks. I bark out a laugh.

"I'm sorry, were you expecting something else from me?" I sass, turning down a rockier road than is probably wise. He chuckles, then seems to sober.

"I'm so sorry, Akilina. I-"

"Sorry, no. You're not going to apologize for being shot at James. Shut up." I get another small laugh out of him and I smile painfully. We're far enough that we've started going uphill, so I'm clutching tight to the steering wheel as James continues to try and stench the flow of blood. Once we're deep enough into the wooded mountains, I pull into the first driveway I come across and luckily, it's empty. I start to get out of the car, but Bucky stops me.