The Earth's Child: A Bucky Barnes fanfiction

Touch

Warning: Sexual harassment and molestation.

"Are you mad?" Bella said, helping Bucky walk to his bed as she heaved up most of his weight.

"Apparently," Bucky said, "protecting a dame nowadays is madness. Good job humans."

"Protecting a dame? Is that what you thought you were doing?"

"What did it look like?"

Bucky sat on the bed, groaning as Bella looked down at the knife protruding out of his stomach. She pulled it out in one swift motion and Bucky bit down on his lip to prevent another groan.

"You," Bella continued, helping Bucky take off his shirt, "are a complete idiot. I am Bella Fury and believe me, if my adoptive father had taught me anything, it is how to fight. You didn't have to go out of your way. I could take two, you could take two and then together, we would be out of it without a scratch,"

Bella got her first aid kit and then ran to the bathroom to change. When she got out, the sight made her insides squeeze. Bucky was holding the stitching needle and was attempting to stitch his own wound.

"Wow," Bucky thought to himself. Bella could fight. Like really fight. What happened to little dames from the 40's who could barely hold a gun? And Bella, with her small size, seemed like the most unlikely fighter. Small? She wasn't small? She was taller than average and on literate terms, quite healthy. But whenever he saw her, he felt like she was breakable. Like if he pushed her too hard, she might crumble.

"What are you doing?" Bella's voice pulled him out of his inner babble.

"Stitching," Bucky said.

"You cannot stitch yourself," Bella said with an exasperated sigh and sat herself down on the bed, taking the needle from him. He struggled but she was determined.

"I can," Bucky said. "Hydra trained me to do most of the stuff myself."

"There are loads of things we can do ourselves but the people who care about us don't let us."

Before long, Bella was holding the needle and Bucky tried pushing her away. It was a reflex.

"Bucky," Bella said gently, "you can push me away as much as you want but I need to stitch you. So, the only way you can stop me is by knocking me out or killing me."

With that, she pinched the skin over his wound together and pierced the needle along with the thread, making the first stitch.

"Ah," Bucky groaned as he felt the sting of the needle pulling the thread through. "Sorry, I didn't mean to."

"What?" Bella asked, slightly bewildered. "Are you apologising for expressing pain?" Bucky held back a second groan as he felt the needle piercing his skin again.

"I am not supposed to be weak."

"Expressing pain doesn't equate to weakness."

"They didn't-" Bucky paused, biting his lip to prevent a whimper when he felt the needle pierce a particularly sensitive spot. "They told me that soldiers should be strong."

"You are strong."

"Strong men don't groan when pierced with needles."

"Some do. And it is not a weakness."

Bella's hands trembled at the thought of Bucky being asked not to scream every time he was injured. She clenched her jaw when she visualised Bucky being asked to stitch himself and also hold back any sounds of pain which might come out even though Hydra was the one forcing him to go on missions.