ALWAYS || Sequel to BUCKY ✔️

thirty three

chapter thirty three
tell me everything

Ray was ecstatic to say hello to her friends. Hugs were shared between them all as a million questions were thrown towards Ray. Everyone wanted to know how she was doing; how she looked so normal again.

Though everyone wanted answers, none were given as Tony Stark walked out into the balcony. He looked down at all of them for a few minutes before finally speaking; in the most dramatic way.

"Hello, friends. Thank you for coming. I would appreciate it if you all come inside. We'll be having a meeting, Rhodey should be here soon."

"Where's my dad?" Ray asked Tony.

"He's inside. Doing his usual Bruce Banner things."

Bucky looked at Ray in a mixture of both surprise and shock; he hadn't know Ray had transitioned into calling Bruce dad. Though he knew it wasn't the time, so he stayed quiet and listened to Stark.

"You guys can go to your rooms and get cleaned up and everything. Uh, Ray you may need to move out of Steve's room. There's guest rooms, FRIDAY will be happy to direct you to them." Then he walked off into the house without another word.

Steve looked over at Ray. "You were sleeping in my old room?"

"Well I didn't have my own. And I spent days in agony. Your bed was really comfortable and familiar."

"Familiar, huh?" Sam winked in a playful mood.

Ray shoved his shoulder and then set her hand on Bucky's arm. "Yes, it was familiar, asshat. Thea and I spent a lot of time sleeping there. We could barely walk."

"Thea?" Natasha asked.

"Oh, right. Sinthea." Ray looked back to where another game had broken out between her three friends and a smile came across her face. "I call her Thea. She's really... great."

"She tried to kill you." Steve said.

"Yeah and so did this one, and I still sleep with him." Ray remarked.

Steve shook his hand and tried his best not to smile. "Okay, Ray." In truth he was very happy to see the old Ray. The one that everyone had missed.

"We should go inside. I need to wash this farm stench off of me."  Natasha began a new conversation.

"Yeah, for real. You guys stink."

Later, Ray sat comfortably on a king sized bed in one of the many guest bedrooms that were built into the Avengers facility. The room was cold, as Tony preferred the cold than the heat, though Ray did not pay any mind to it.

The shower water was cut off and within a few minutes, Bucky walked out. He had changed into black jeans and a matching shirt. His hair, still short, was wet from his shower.

"Hey, handsome." Ray smiled at him.

His cheeks tinted with barely a blush at the attention he was now receiving from her. Bucky has missed Ray more than anything and now, being with her again, made him feel like a small Brooklyn kid that couldn't talk to a pretty girl.

"Hey." He went over to her and leaned down, pressing his lips against hers. "You should have joined me in the shower."

Ray laughed and leaned back. "If I had joined you, we never would make it to the meeting in ten minutes."

"You're probably right."

"Probably? I'm always right."

Bucky knelt down on the ground and wrapped his hands around hers. "Yes, you're alright right." He kissed her hand before looking up at her. "How are you, really? I saw the video."

"What video?" Ray looked down at him.

"Of the procedure. Tony showed us. He wanted us to know what happened."

Ray narrowed her eyes. "You saw everything? Oh God, here we go".

"Just tell me. Tell me everything ." Bucky nearly begged.

"It was awful." Ray shook her head and closed her eyes. "It was the most painful thing I had ever experienced. And even the days after it hurt like hell. But I'm okay now. No swelling, no seizures. I've put on a lot of weight. Starting to miss that thigh gap though."

Bucky sat his hands on her thighs. "You're beautiful, always have been, always will be. You know how I feel about these thighs." His hands ran down her clothes thighs.

Ray opened her eyes and shoved his metal shoulder. "Shut up. How was the ranch?"

Bucky swallowed the lump in his throat. "Sofie... Jonathon... they passed."

Ray felt a tug at her heart and tears filled her eyes. "They're dead?"

Bucky slowly nodded and then intertwined his hands with hers. "I'm sorry. I know that they lied to you but I know that it's painful."

"No, it's okay. I'm fine. They were suffering for so long. They could barely remember their names." Ray pulled her hand from his and wiped her arms. "They're in a better place."

Bucky looked at her with amazement and admiration. He reached up and tucked fallen hair behind her ear. "They are. It'll be okay."

"How did... how are Cory and Bailey?" Ray asked.

This surprised Bucky and he looked at her for a moment before answering. "They're mourning. They miss them but they're okay. They're worried about you."

"I suppose they would be."

Bucky moved from the floor and sat next to Ray, pulling her body into his and holding her closely. "So what are we going to do about DC?"

"I don't know."

"Do you have any of your abilities?"

"Yes. All of them. It seems like those things didn't want to leave."

"Did you want them to?" Lips pressed against the top of her head.

"Maybe. No. I don't know. I don't wanna talk about this anymore." Ray ran a hand through her hand.

Bucky nodded slowly and kissed the top of her head again. "Why don't we go and see if it's time for the meeting?"

"Okay, fine."

***ok completely trash 🤷🏼‍♀️ also there will only be another like 5-7 chapters left of the story we are winding down people winding down