Remember; Book 2 of the Target series

11.

(Rewriting is hard *whines* -10/25)

I signaled for the extraction team to leave then ripped my ear piece out and crushed it in my metal fist.

"Don't close your eyes." I begged James. "I-I'll think of something. Just don't close your eyes. Please."

He groaned an incoherent response and hot tears streaked my cheeks, leaving tracks in the dust and sweat that had built up on my face during the fight. I searched frantically for a first aid kit.

"A-alex." James coughed. "I- I love you."

I froze, my heart shattering. "I love you too James." I said weakly, still searching for a first aid kit. I gave up after a few minutes, deciding I was wasting precious minutes, and started looking for a phone. I spotted James's crushed cell on the floor and nearly screamed.

"It- it's no u-use." He choked out. I kneeled by him, stripping out of the top half of my uniform so I could use my tank top as a makeshift bandage for the moment. Had I not been panicking I would have blushed because there I was, in my bra and the bottom half of my uniform, kneeling by my fiancé.

"Don't say that. I'm not giving up on you. I love you." I said, pressing my tank top against the stab wound that I caused. "Hold that there, okay?" I asked him, wincing when the thought that he might not be able to crossed my mind. The though was quickly stamped out when he pressed his hand over mine with a force that surprised me. Maybe the wound wasn't as deep as I thought it was.

Hastily I put the rest of my uniform back on, in case someone walked into the apartment.

As soon as I could, I went back to pressing my now bloody tank top against James's stab wound. I heard footsteps approaching the front door and wanted to cry in relief.

"Bucky? What the hell happened here?" Steve asked.

"Steve! Call for help!" I said.

"Alex? What ha-"

"I was sent to kill him. Hydra brainwashed me, I remember mostly everything now but I stabbed him before I could stop myself." That made no sense..... "Please call for help. I don't know how deep the knife went and he's lost a fair amount of blood. I couldn't find a first aid kit-"

"I'm on it, don't worry." Steve interrupted me.

"You're gonna be okay James. You'll be okay. I promise." I murmured to my fiancé, resting my forehead against his. I froze, realizing I couldn't feel the faint gust of air that signaled him exhaling. "James?" I asked, pulling away to look at him. He looked like- well... like a corpse. "James? Bucky?" I whimpered, feeling for a pulse. Blackness was edging into my vision.

"No. No. Please." I cried, finding nothing. "Please. Don't leave me."

"An ambulance is on its way. How's he doing?" Steve asked.

"I can't find his pulse." I wailed. My head was spinning and my breathing quick and shallow.

Steve said something I couldn't understand and my vision went black.

~

When I woke up I was in a hospital bed, hooked up to a bunch of machinery. A nurse was scribbling on a clipboard so I cleared my throat.

"Excuse me?" I asked. "Ma'am?" The nurse jumped and gaped at me.

"How are you awake? You were in a coma!" She exclaimed. I shrugged easily.

"Dunno, just am, can I get up? Please? My fiancé was supposed to be taken to a hospital- I think this hospital but I've got no bloody idea where I am- and I'm super worried about him because- well- he got stabbed." I said, faking a stereotypical concerned girlfriend expression.

"Oh honey-" I froze, going pale.

"Is he-" I whimpered. "De-dea-" Before I could force the words out of my mouth the door opened and revealed a vey tired looking Steve.

"How is she?" He asked quietly.

"Awake." I answered, an indifferent mask fell across my features. "How's James? How long have I been out?" Silence fell and my stomach dropped.

"He's okay." Steve said after a second or two. "Been asking for you a lot. The knife didn't go as deep as we thought. Using your tank top to stop the bleeding probably saved his life though. You haven't been out too long, just a week or so."

I breathed a sigh of relief. "Can I see him?"

"Er- well. You're not gonna like this but- there's a chance you're paralyzed from the waist down." The nurse said. "When you collapsed you twisted your back wrong and broke it. Not sure how, seeing as you've got a titanium alloy spinal column but-"

"Oh. That's okay. I'm sure I'm fine. If worse comes to worst I'll wheel myself to his room." I said, faking an air of humor. "I've had to deal with worse things than paralyzation."

"You can see him as soon as we do a couple tests." The nurse said. I sighed loudly.

"Okay, fine." I muttered. The nurse did a few tests, which turned into more than I cared to count.

"Can we just accept that I'm paralyzed from the waist down and move on with our lives?" I groaned. "I really want to go see James now."

So they brought me a wheelchair and I wheeled myself to the room James was in.

"Hey." He said. I grinned.

"Hi. How're you feeling?" I asked.

"Well, I've been better. But I've also been worse. So I'd say I'm pretty okay at the moment." He grinned at me. "Healed a lot quicker than the doctors thought I would."

"That's good." I said. He hadn't asked why I was in a wheelchair yet, for that I was grateful.

"How are you feeling?" James asked. I shrugged.

"Been a lot better and a lot worse." I answered vaguely. I saw his eyes flicker the the wheelchair then back to my face.

"Hey, come here. I have something for you." He said. I wheeled myself over to him, pushing the sense of fear out of my mind. "Gimme your hand." Reflexively I rested my left hand on his outstretched hand. He slipped a ring onto my fourth finger and I nearly cried. "Found this the other day, laying on the table. I wanted you to have it back."

"Oh James." I hiccuped. "I won't be able to walk down the aisle. I- I- I can't move my legs."

He nodded. "I know. But I'll still be the happiest man alive when you wheel down the aisle in your wedding dress."

It was then that I decided I would be walking down the aisle. Nothing would stop me.

(Tada! No longer a short filler chapter! Word count: 1,132)