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The bed dips down next to you, triggering you to thrash out as you dream, fighting some unknown attacker.
“No. No, don’t,” you croak, voice dripping with the fear written all over your face.
Hands gently hold your face, one abnormally warm, the other much cooler. You start swinging your arms around, on the cusp of waking, but still in the throws of the danger in your mind.
“Doll, wake up. Shhh, shh it’s me. It's Bucky. I’m right here. Wake up,” he says over and over. The gentle voice pulls you from your nightmare. He appears in your mind, chasing away the monsters that were after you in your sleep.
You wake with a start, realize he’s hovering over you, and throw yourself into his arms. “Oh, Bucky, it was awful!” you sob into his chest.
“I got you, darlin’.” He rubs soothing circles on your back, as you cry.
“This is so embarrassing,” you observe when your sniffling subsides. “I’m supposed to be the stronger of the two of us.” You lean back against the headboard.
“Oh Doll, that’s not true at all. There isn’t any reason to be embarrassed. Were you dreaming about our last mission?”
You nod yes to him.
He cocks his head in thought. “Well, see, that mission was horrible. And the aftermath was the worst of it. I’m surprised it isn’t me that you are having to comfort.”
“But that’s the thing, I usually am! What happened… I’ve dealt with it before and it never affected me this way. I’m not sure why this time was so much worse.” You look at him, sorrow written across your face.
“Any time we lose people, it's hard. But these weren’t just adults. We lost children, too. And that always makes it worse.”
You nod in agreement.
“You want me to sleep in here the rest of the night?” he asks.
You lift the blanket and scoot over to let him lay down next to you as an answer. He gets comfortable and opens his arms so you can lay in them. Careful to keep your hair off his metal arm so that it doesn’t get stuck between the shifting plates. The coolness on the back of your neck, while the warmth of the rest of him is a relaxing comfort.
“I’m sorry I woke you up,” you mumble into his chest once you settle in.
“Hey, look at me…”
You pull away so you can look at his face.
He cups your cheek. “It’s the least I can do. All those nights you braved my wild swinging and PTSD flashbacks to wake me from the worst of it… I could have seriously injured you, and you still climbed into bed with me to calm me down.”
Your face heats up at his words, the color there deepening. “You’re my best friend, Buck. And I’m the only one who lives on your floor. I was worried that first night.”
“Yeah well, you helped me out so many times, Tony knocked out the wall between your apartment and mine.”
You give him a bashful smile. “I still feel silly that you had to come in here. But I’m thankful you did.” You yawn and laugh.
He chuckles. “I think it's time to go back to bed…”
“Hmm,” you hum in agreement. “Thank you for keeping the monsters away,” you say, your voice getting quieter and more slurred with each word.
“Anytime, Doll. Anytime.” He squeezes you a little tighter as you settle back into him, your head tucked under his chin.
You sigh and relax in his hold, your eyes drifting shut, a smile on your face. Bucky kisses the top of your head. His body relaxes and he lets himself drift off to the sound of your breathing and the feeling of your heart beating against his chest.
Friends or lovers, it doesn’t matter to him. There’s no place he’d rather be.