The Fall - Book 1

23. Staring into familiar eyes as black as my surroundings.

JUNE 2, 2018 — WAKANDA — RÉA

After saying good night to Bucky, I go through my bedtime routine—changing into my pyjamas, tying up my hair, washing my face, and brushing my teeth—and then slip into bed. I shut off the lights, and snuggle under the covers.

I'm tired, but also strangely wired; I lie awake for a while, replaying my walk with Bucky...specifically, the moments when we would bump into or brush against each other, and how I felt during them. I eventually drift off.

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I hear agonised screaming, but can't find the source. Wherever I am is dark, and cold, and seemingly empty but for the disembodied screams. Suddenly, they end, and it's quiet.

"Please, let this be the end. Let me die," I hear from behind me, the voice familiar.

Whirling around, I see no one in the pitch blackness, but the words repeat again and again until they blend together into a constant buzz. Pain slashes through my skull, and I crumple to the ground, curling into the foetal position as I clutch my head.

As abruptly as it started, the agony ends, and I sit up, only to find myself staring into familiar eyes as black as my surroundings. I reach my hand out to stroke the cheek of the man they belong to, and suddenly, I'm standing in the field full of flowers outside the Wakandan palace, my hand on Bucky's cheek and my gaze locked with his.

I sit up in the bed, breathing heavily, butterflies in my stomach.

'Well, that was weird. Really, really weird,' I think.

I fix the blankets and lie back down, cuddling into the plush pillows. I can't help trying to decipher the dream, and it takes me a long time to fall back asleep.

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At breakfast the next morning, Tony asks the Avengers to meet him in the common room on what Peter has dubbed 'the Avengers floor'.

He told me he is going to apologise to them, and extend the offer for them to move back into the compound; I don't feel like I need to be present for that conversation, and tell him that I'll use that time to say my own goodbyes.

After breakfast, he and the Avengers go to their meeting, and I ask Bucky if he'd like to take another walk with me.

"So, do you live close to the palace or...?" I let the question trail off.

"I actually live near the Mining Tribe, on the outskirts of their territory. It's not too far—about a hundred thirty, hundred thirty five miles. Takes about five minutes to get there on a quinjet." He pauses. "I, uh, I could show you. If you want to see. If you wouldn't mind blinking."

"I'd like that. And I don't mind," I say. I step closer to him. "But I, um, I need to take a peek," I tap my temple, "to see where to go. If you don't mind. I won't go looking for anything; I'll only see what you show me. I promise."

Bucky's quiet for several long beats.

'Good job, Réa. Ask the guy who's mind was tampered with for decades to let you take a peek. Brilliant, just brilliant,' I chastise myself.

Eventually, Bucky breaks the silence.

"O—" he clears his throat, "o-okay."

I awkwardly shift from foot to foot.

"I d-didn't mean to...I'm s-sorry," I stammer.

"Réa, it's okay," he replies. "Really."

I nod, then clear my throat. "Okay." I pause. "Blinking can be a little disorienting at first, but it's painless. Ditto for the mental link," I say as I again tap my temple.