Edelweiss || Bucky x Reader

Chapter Forty Five

His hand lingers on my cheek, and instinctively I lean into his touch. We stare at each other for so long that the only thing that manages to break our locked eyes is searing hot bacon grease splattering up and hitting me in the face.

I hiss in pain as my hand flies to my cheek. He curses as he quickly turns off the stove top and runs a paper towel under cold water.

"Let me see." He says as the hand holding the paper towel gently removes mine from my stinging skin. The empty one cradles my jaw while the cool of the water soothes the burn. No, the extra support wasn't necessary, but I think that might be the point.

"Fuck." I whisper as he blots the tender area.

"That bad, huh?" He smiles, looking into my eyes with a kind of intimacy powerful enough to make me crumble. I pick up on his tease.

"Shut up." I laugh.

He responds with his own chuckle.

"Follow me," He says, leading me to the bathroom. After pulling a small tube out of the medicine cabinet he motions for me to sit on the toilet. "You don't want it to get infected."

I tilt my head to the side out of curiosity as he squeezes a small amount of clear ointment out of the tube. He kneels in front of me. My mind tears up similar scenarios to this one that I've already lived. My heart beats nearly out of my chest and my breathing becomes quietly shallow. My hand covers the burn.

He looks up to me and his face drops.

"Hey, hey, hey." He says softly. "Doll, look at me."

I do. His eyes are sad.

"What's upsetting you? Can I fix it?"

I shake my head and blink hard a few times.

"No, it's nothing, you don't- i-it's fine." I force out in an unconvincing jumble of words, still not quite calm enough to make any sense. "It's just that you- I don't know, you look like him."

He sets the tube of antibiotic on the sink, giving me his full attention.

"Look like who?" He asks.

"After and, and between missions, he...took care of me, in a way, I guess." I say, stuttering less as I regain control of my breathing. He looks up at me patiently. I take a deep breath. "He hurt me. He hurt me a lot. He said he cared about me, but he didn't. Not like you do."

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart." There's a kind of pain on his face that's hard to describe. Knowing, angry, guilty... sad. So sad. "I know words don't mean much, but I need you to know I'll never hurt you. Never, no matter what."

I do a small nod.

"I know."

And I do.

"Let's clean you up and eat, yeah?" He says with a little smile.

I let my hand slip from my cheek. He gently dabs the ointment on and sits back.

"All better." He says.

I don't think about what happens next. It just...happens.

My arms come around his shoulders as I slide onto the cold tiled floor with him, halfway in his lap. He stays paralyzed for just a second, but he quickly reciprocates my embrace, strong arms holding me tight against his chest. I bury my face in his neck. He leans into the shirt hanging loosely off my shoulders that he's letting me borrow. His hand moves up my back and tangles itself in my hair, his fingers moving in comforting circles.

I've never felt safer than I do now.

"I trust you." I whisper against his skin.

"That's all I can ask, darling." He says, sitting back enough to see my face, his arms still around me. I smile, and so does he.