Bucky Barnes had found refuge on a small farm in Montana two years ago.
It was there that the Winter Soldier seemed to disappear from his mind and Bucky was able to be himself again.
He fell in love with a young woman. Ray introduced him into a wo...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
chapter thirty pain
The next 36 hours was spent in pure agony on Ray's part. She laid in Steve's old bed, a bucket on the side of it, and Sinthea was on her other side. They were both in too much pain to cause any kinds of trouble.
After the initial part of the formula, and their cells mutated, they were brought to the room to rest. Neither of them had been able to eat anything in nearly two days and while they were starving, they found that they were unable to keep anything down.
Bruce and Tony had attempted at feeing them chicken soup, though even that easy to digest meal was hard for the two woman. So they sipped at tepid water and juice to keep them hydrated; though often they threw that back up.
They ran fevers, their body's withstanding temperatures higher than a normal human could. The best radiated off of them and warmed the room until it was nearly a sauna.
Bruce and Tony spent a few hours a day with them; so they couldn't go too lonely. They were also more than guilty about what has transpired in the past few days.
Wanda and Vision took part in watching over the two newcomers. Wanda, because she took an interest in moving in and out of their minds, and Vision, because he never went anywhere without Wanda nowadays.
Though Rhodes did not partake in caring for either Ray or Sinthea, he still walked by the room every so often to make sure that things were going well.
Ray and Sinthea floated in and out of sleep. The both of them were in too much pain for them to converse with anybody; except occasionally themselves.
Though when Bruce would sit with them, Ray would manage to ask her father if he had heard from Bucky or from any of their friends.
The news was always the same; he couldn't risk contacting them. He didn't know what kind of tracking Stark had at the facility and he didn't want to risk narking on his friends.
It was Sinthea that brought Ray out of sleep. Ray woke to the sound of Sinthea getting sick on the other side of the bed.
Ray groaned in pain as her stomach churned and she lost the contents of her stomach as well. Her entire body was still on fire and she felt like her brain was melting.
"I was sleeping. Thanks." Ray mumbled as she wiped the back of her mouth.
"Sorry." Sinthea fell back onto the bed.
"I think..." Ray sighed. "I think I'm gonna give you a new nickname. What about Thea?"
Sinthea looked at the woman next to her. "Why are you so nice to me? I almost killed you."
"It wasn't your fault." Ray closed her eyes as another wave of pain washed over her. "You were a victim."
"Like your Bucky?"
Ray nodded slowly. "Yes. Like him. You'll be okay, just stick with us."
Thea nodded and reached across the bed, grabbing Ray's hand.
Typically Ray would not allow anyone to touch her, only Bucky was allowed to really. That and Natasha. But she allowed Thea to take her hand; the both needed the comfort.
***
Across the country, Bucky sat in the porch steps. It was earlier in the morning, the sun had risen only a few hours ago. The September air was chilly but he did not care.
He sat looking up at the blue sky and watching the way the clouds floated past him. The usual smell of the ranch cascaded over him and he breathed deeply, the smell reminding him of the past few years.
Bucky missed Ray more than anything. It had only been a few days but he felt like he had been stripped of everything he held close to his heart. He could barely sleep at night, not without Ray by his side; even though they didn't always sleep entangled together, it was still her presence that kept him calm.
The days he had spent without Ray were full of worry. His thoughts constantly tormented him. He feared the worst and hoped for the best. He would keep the communicator with him at all times in case Bruce would reach out to him. He wanted to know how Ray was doing and if she was healing. He wanted to know if she was eating properly again and if she felt alright.
He wanted to know if she missed him as much as he missed her.
Bucky wasn't the only one who missed Ray. They all missed her dearly.
Sam missed making fun of her. He missed her attitude around them. Steve missed his little sister. He missed their conversation and her presence in general. Natasha missed her just as much, if not more. Ray was of the few people that knew Natasha very well, and they had grown as close as sisters.
Even Cory and Bailey missed her. They wished more than anything that they could make things right.
Still, Bucky worried the most. They had spent the better part of the morning mourning over the loss of Sofia, who had passed in her sleep the night before. Bucky was incredibly saddened at the fact that two of the nicest people, stricken with a disease that couldn't be cured, were now gone.
He didn't agree with them exchanging a paycheck for keeping secrets from Ray, but they were so very nice and accepting when he first arrived at the ranch three years ago. He wished he could have helped them more.
"Hey, Bucky." Sam Wilson spoke as he stepped out the door. He was freshly showered after the funeral this morning, and was clad in jeans and a shirt.
"Sam." Bucky nodded as he fiddled with the communicator in his hand.
The Falcon moved to sit down on the steps next to the Solider. "I'm sorry about Sofie. It's rough."
Bucky nodded again but didn't say anything. He didn't have any words for a man he barely liked.
"Hey man, I was thinking that you and I need to try and get along. It won't be pleasant for our friends if we're at each other's throats."
Bucky looked at the Falcon, remembering their argument the day that Ray was doing her tests. "You need to respect mine and Ray's relationship."
Sam raised his arms in defense. "I will. As long as you respect ours. You have to understand that she spent a year, a very long year, with us on the run."
A sigh left the former soldiers mouth. "I know. I will. It's just hard."
"Yeah, I know. I'm gonna go find Steve. But you stay here and play with that. I'm sure it'll help wonders." Sam nodded his head towards the communicator.
"Shut the hell up." Bucky muttered and shook his head.
Sam laughed and set his hand on Bucky's shoulder. "I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship."
"Fuck you."
***ew gross chapter im sorry I don't know what I'm doing with my life 🤷🏼♀️
