Forget Me Not - Bucky Barnes X Steve Rogers X OFC

Lost Again.

When he woke that morning he couldn't remember a thing, someone could have asked what colour his eyes were or the name of his mother and he wouldn't have been able to supply an answer. He shoved the blankets off his body immediately looking for ropes or chains, how had he gotten here? Who had taken him? His thoughts and questions raced about in his head faster than he could make sense of them leaving him fearful and full of anxiety. He was dressed in only a pair of boxer style pajamas, the cool morning air dancing across his bare chest and back making him almost succumb to panic. He was at the door of the room in an instant, pulling it damn near off the hinges in a bid to get free despite the fact it hadn't even been locked in the first place. The second he stepped into the hall he could hear water running meaning his captors were likely nearby, spying a light shining under one of the doors confirmed his suspicions that someone else was here with him and with no weapons nearby all Bucky could do was snatch up a nearby umbrella resting in a stand so that he had something to use defensively should the need arise. He opened the door and was bombarded by a wave of sweet smelling steam, lavender? Honey? The scent was as lovely as it was off putting, the steam cleared enough for Bucky to see someone in the bathroom standing before a mirror and he instinctively reached out and gripped them firmly by the shoulders to prevent their escape. Keeping his grip tight he turned his captive around to see their face and was stunned to see a young woman with a toothbrush hanging rather oddly out of her mouth like a cigarette having been caught off guard in the middle of brushing her teeth. “Jesus Christ Bucky! You trying to give me a heart attack?” she asked reaching up to remove the toothbrush from her mouth, “You know who I am?” he demanded and her face fell, “Not again” she sighed, her eyes full of sadness as she placed her own hands over the top of his where they still gripped her shoulders, gently prying them loose so they fell to his side again, all fight gone. “Bucky, my name is Addilyn. You live here with me and if you'll follow me back to your room I'd like to show you something” she said holding out one of her small hands to him, he didn't immediately take it as she knew he would. It wasn't the first time this had happened. She took his hand began to slowly pull him back the way he came, back up the hallway and into the room he had woken up in. He noted that the door had “Bucky” written neatly on the door as he passed it but nothing surprised him as much as what he was seeing now. There were sticky notes stuck in places that were at his eye level and filled with little notes written in a neat script that was easy to read. “This is your journal, you write in it most days and it usually helps when you wake up like this” she said handing him the leather bound journal that had been sitting in plain sight on the bedside table with the bold yellow sticky note stuck firmly to the cover that instructed him to “Read Me!”  and so he did. The journal pages were written half in a script he vaguely recognised as his own sloppy scrawl and half written in the neat script of the sticky notes, there were photographs too that were taped into the book. All of them featured himself with a short blurb about whatever was happening when the picture was taken. The more recent ones involved himself, the woman standing before him and a tall blonde man who was so familiar it hurt. “Do you want me to call Steve?” she asked, brushing her finger over the other man in the picture. He paused, did he want her to call Steve? What could he do that Addilyn couldn't? It puzzled him to no end and she could see his mind turning the question over one making him more confused. “Don't worry, I'll just call him anyway. Just take a few deep breaths” she said with a smile that strangely made him feel at ease. She patted his arm and pulled a phone from the pocket of her bathrobe and hit dial, waiting as the phone rang for Steve to pick up. “Hey Stevie, I'm gonna need you to come home, Bucky's having a bit of an off day and we'd both appreciate if you'd be here with us until he's feeling better” she said quietly before pausing to listen to Steve's reply, “Steve said he'd be home in ten minutes” she said turning to Bucky to deliver this news, “See you then Stevie and maybe just pop by the bakery? Grab a pie or pastry for breakfast” she said with a cheeky sparkle in her eye as she heard Steve agree. Hanging up she sat down on the bed next to Bucky, “Come on you, let's go into the kitchen and put some coffee on for Steve when he gets home” she said taking his hand again to guide him through the house. He had his journal in his other hand and he sat on one of the stools while Addilyn bustled about getting the coffee things ready to make a fresh pot like she did every morning. Bucky took a moment to look about the room, photographs were stuck on the refrigerator with colourful magnets but one in particular caught his eye. In the photograph was Addilyn, Steve and himself posing by a well lit park near a pretty fountain with Addilyn in the middle holding one of Steve's hands but had her arm around Bucky with her head leaning playfully on his shoulder. The photo was playful and happy but he couldn't help but sense something a little more than friendship going on here. The pot of coffee was just done when the man from the picture, Steve, came in the door, taking off his shoes and coat and putting them away neatly before approaching Bucky slowly, watching his reaction closely. “How are you feeling this morning Bucky?” he asked as he reached the breakfast bar and took a seat beside him on another stool. “I can't remember anything, it's so confusing” Bucky replied waving a hand at the journal that was open to the detailed descriptions of his time with the Howling Commandos and his time with HYDRA. “It's a lot to take in at once, what you should know right now is that you are safe here and that Addy and I will do anything to help you out” Steve said making sure to make good eye contact with Bucky as he spoke knowing this was key to establishing a trusting relationship. “How long does it take to remember it all again?” he suddenly asked, all this stuff in the book was surely a year or so worth of information written carefully so he could reminisce during times like this. “Well, it's like you've had your mind wiped again. You'll remember things in short bursts, memories will return gradually but essentially you're learning all about yourself right from the start each time this happens” Addy said placing two cups of steaming coffee on the counter beside a delicious smelling plum pie. Bucky was devastated, how often had his happened? How many times had he had this exact conversation with Steve and Addy? He took a slice of the pie and bit into the sweet pastry with the rich fruity filling before immediately being overwhelmed with a memory. Reliving the memory was like being on a drug trip, he was staring blankly into space as he saw it all unfurl before him. In this memory the kitchen was bathed in thick black smoke spewing from the oven, Addy was using a towel to fan the smoke out an open window. She'd tried to make him a plum pie like they made at the bakery but she'd gotten the baking time horribly wrong and had ended up burning the pastry to a crisp. The blackened remains of the pie lie forlornly in its metal tin atop the stove, “Sorry Buck, I was trying to make you something special” she had said sadly feeling foolish for not checking in on the pie often enough to notice it burning. “No worries Doll, I'd still eat it” he had replied with a smile that brought a rosy blush to Addy’s cheeks, “You'll break your damn teeth if you try, come on we'll go down to the bakery and throw ourselves on Mrs Moi’s mercy and maybe she'll make us a nice pie for dessert” Addy had said perking up as she grabbed her purse and then grabbed his hand before heading for the door leaving the awful burnt smell behind.

Back in the present Bucky gasped as the memory released him from its grip, “Did you remember anything?” Steve asked eagerly and Bucky nodded slowly before raising his eyes to meet Addy’s. “You burnt a pie, you were making it for me” he said and Addy nodded, a grin erupting on her face that just made her look even more angelic even in a unicorn bathrobe and kitty slippers. Bucky wasn't sure if he'd remember it all but he was glad he had these two people here with him.