The Red Star

Chapter 4

When she opened her eyes again she was looking at the ceiling of a small shack. It was terribly cold and the moment she felt the absence of general heat she sat up. She was covered in a thick and quite warm blanket, lying on a medium sized bed in the middle of a small room with one window. She pulled off the covers to find that she was wearing a pair of sweat pants, but remained wearing her Captain America hoodie. a thought raced quickly through her head that made her blush. Had Bucky changed her outfit ? she then noticed that her spandex shorts she wore the night before were still on and she let her breath out. She walked to the door, shifting the sling that her arm was in and touched the handle. the door swung open and she fell forward suddenly. However, she was caught in one arm by none other than Bucky himself as he held a platter of food in the other.

"Are you alright?" he asked her as he stood her up.

"Yeah." she replied, looking at the food eagerly. 

He set the platter of food on the bed and she sat beside it and ate slowly. He stood in the doorway and watched her with his arms crossed. His metal hand showing beneath the fingerless gloves her wore.

"It's cold here. I don't do very good in the cold." Jay said as she took a sip of the hot coco. 

"Well then i guess we'll have to stay close together." Bucky added.

Jay shot him a glance as her cheeks turned a shade of pink, and she returned to her meal. Bucky chuckled and stood straight saying,

"I'm going to be right back. Have to get some more fire wood."

"Ok." she replied.

When he walked out of the room, Jay couldn't help but stare after him in admiration, but she cut herself short and shook her head, a funny feeling lingering in her gut that made her smile. Oh yeah, she liked him.

Jay sat in front of the fire place and stared forward in silence. The flames held her gaze as her mind drifted off into deep thought.

"Are you hungry?" Bucky asked her from behind.

 She didn't hear him as she was too absorbed by her thoughts. He just chuckled and touched her shoulder lightly. She jumped ever so slightly, but when she saw him, she relaxed.

"Yeah?" she replied.

"I asked if you were hungry." he said, crouching down beside her.

"A little I guess." Jay said as she held his gaze a moment. The fire's glow reflected off of his eyes and shimmered like a bowl of broken glass, the different pieces each having their own color tone.

 He watched her then stood and went across the room to the small cooler and oven. As he began to make something, Jay spoke up and said,

"You know, when I think of the term safe-house, a small cabin in the mountains wasn't really what comes to mind."

Bucky stopped making his sandwich and turned only his head around, saying,

" I like the cold." he paused and looked at the wall before adding, "And it's away from people so...."

"You're anti-social then?" Jay asked, sort of chuckling.

"I guess you can say that." he replied. He turned and carried the sandwich over to her saying, "I didn't used to be, but that was almost a century ago."

"I understand what you mean." Jay said.

 Bucky handed her the sandwich and she said,

"Thanks." before taking a bite and pulling her knees to her chest.

The day had been uneventful, just like the day before, she mainly just went out to get firewood, help Bucky carry a dear to the shed in the back and take a walk down "their" mountain. It was kind of exhausting, being that she really did not do well in the cold and there was at least a foot, if not more, of snow on the ground. She shivered after she took her last bite of her sandwich and Bucky sat beside her, his knees up and his elbows rested on them.

 Jay's eye-lids became heavy as she felt another shiver go up her spine. She glanced at Bucky and admired his profile before scooting over about an inch, and laying her head on his shoulder. He looked down at her strangely as she curled up beside him, when she said,

"I'm just cold. And for some reason you're really warm."

Their backs were against a small coffee table as Bucky stared into the fire. Jay's eyes had already shut, but her senses were heightened. She could hear every one  of Bucky's breaths. It had begun to sort of lull her to sleep when she felt Bucky shift beside her until her head was rested on his chest and his arm had curled about her waist. She then shifted into a more comfortable position on his chest and soon fell asleep to the rhythmic beat of his heart. His warmth and aroma of fresh pine air enveloped her and she breathed it in before drifting off to sleep.

 Bucky noticed her body go limp and he looked down at her. He set his chin down on the top of her head and breathed in. Her hair smelled like berries. He smiled. He loved the smell of berries. A strange feeling rose to his chest as he held her there. For as dangerous as she could be, no, as she was, she was still innocent, and it almost sickened him to think of what Magneto wanted with her. To remove from her every inch of innocence she had left and corrupt her, manipulate her and phsically torture her mind and soul to death.

 A sharp pain jabbed his heart and he shut his eyes. He had experienced that, and he did not want her to experience that pain too.

"I promise."

 he whispered as he kissed her head softly, then shut his eyes and fell asleep.