Ordinary (A Marvel Fanfiction)

Chapter Sixteen

I pulled my coat closer around me, the frigid wind biting into me. It was dark, but Nico had made up with Finn after he left my apartment, so I was on my own.

Well, sort of.

"I know you're there, Bucky!" I called out, hugging myself tighter.

It was silent for a second and I thought I had been mistaken when I saw the flash of metal in the dark earlier when my class let out, but then Bucky materialized at my side.

"You shouldn't be walking by yourself." He told me, keeping his eyes forward.

"You were here." I said, smiling up at him.

"I might not always be."

My smile melted off my face and I looked towards the ground, letting silence fall between us. I wasn't sure what he meant by that. But I wasn't going to push him either.

"You're in danger now that we've been seen together. There's a big target on your back." He told me. He sounded angry, but I somehow knew it wasn't at me.

"I can take care of myself." I told him, stubbornly.

He pulled me to a stop and grabbed my hand that had broken weeks ago when my apartment had been attacked. I had only just recently gotten the cast off and my hand still felt weak. I could tell he was trying to make a point by the look on his face.

"That was a fluke." I told him stubbornly. "Besides, the only trouble I'm getting is from your friends."

"Stark is not my friend."

I didn't mention that Steve Rogers had also visited me. We fell into another fit of silence, but this seemed more comfortable than the previous few. 

"My friend wants to meet you." I said after walking a block in complete silence.

"Nico?"

"You remember?"

"I remember everything you tell me."

I didn't know what to say to that either. I was searching for something more to say before a yawn hit me.

"You're tired." Bucky said, concerned.

"Working all day and classes all night will do that to a person." I said, shrugging. I tossed him a smile to show him it was okay, but his face remained serious.

"You should get some sleep."

I laughed, incredulously, and said, "Easier said than done. It's hard to sleep at home. All I see when I'm there are things that need to be done, so I do them."

I continued on, but paused when I realized Bucky hadn't walked with me.

"Come with me." He said, turning and walking in a different direction than my apartment.

"What?" I asked, "Where? Why?"

"Come with me, Emma."

****

"Where are we?"

Bucky led me into a dark room, barely furnished. There was a mattress in one corner, and in another there was a doorway leading into a tiny kitchen. There was a small sofa in the middle of the room, but other than that, there wasn't much furniture.

"My apartment."

I turned to gape at him, my eyes wide.

"You brought me to your apartment?" I asked in disbelief. "Aren't you worried about the target on my back?"

"There's nothing in here people would want."

I looked around again with new eyes. This was Bucky's home.

"Oh my goodness, this is so depressing." I teased, looking at the bare apartment.

He gave me a small smile and I couldn't help but beam back up at him.

"Why'd you bring me here?" I asked finally.

"Nothing will bother you here. You can sleep."

I turned to him in surprise.

"You exposed your home to possible attack just so I can sleep?"

He nodded and seemed to be embarrassed. I stepped forward without thinking and wrapped my arms around him in a hug. He didn't even hesitate before returning the gesture, which brought a smile to my face.

Eventually, he pulled away.

"Now you need to get some sleep."

I smiled at him and nodded. He flashed me a small grin and I felt proud that the smiles were coming easier because of me.

He helped me out of my coat and took my book bag from me. He led me to the bed and once I settled down on the mattress, he covered me in a blanket that smelled like him — gunpowder and mint.

I sighed, relaxed. Bucky started to leave and I looked up at him.

"Where are you going to sleep?" I asked, worried that I was taking away his bed.

"I'm not sleeping tonight. I've got some business to take care of."

Ordinarily, I would have asked him more questions, or would have even told him to get some sleep anyway, but I was already falling asleep, his bed making me sleepy unlike my own.

"Goodnight, Emma."

I think I mumbled a response, but I was already asleep.