I Missed You (Bucky x Reader)

~Chapter 58~

photo creds: widows.soldier on instagram

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She's frozen. Numbness covers her features as she stares down at the bright orange stone in her hand. She feels like she can't move as she sits in the middle of the extensive pool of water. Natasha looks up into the deep dark sky that had been illuminated just moments ago after you jumped before it turned dark again.
A single tear rolls down her cheek once she starts replaying what happened in her head, and before she knows it, heavy sobs are falling from her lips. A sharp pain hits her chest and she feels like she can't breathe. Natasha hits the ground harshly in frustration, and that causes her to accidentally press the button which brings her back to 2023. This catches her off guard and stops her crying, and before she knows it, she's home again.
The whole team is standing on the platform again, but Natasha can't take her eyes off the ground, unable to face her teammates.

"Did we get them all?" Bruce asks.

"Are you telling me this actually worked?" Rhodey asks excitedly.

Natasha lifts her head up and her eyes land on Nebula, and all she can feel now is rage. She strides towards her, killing the happy mood in the room.

"You bitch," Natasha hisses as she lunges at Nebula, but before she can get any punch in she's held back by Rhodey and Tony. They struggle to keep her still as Natasha keeps trying to reach Nebula. "Why didn't you tell us?! You knew!" she yells, a look of distress in her eyes and tears streaming down her face. "You knew what we'd have to do and you still didn't tell us! She's dead because of you!"

She stops, realizing the words that just escaped her lips. She stops resisting and then she feels it. Bucky's eyes on her. And the pain she was feeling before grows monumentally.

"What did you just say?" he asks her. Natasha slowly turns her head to Bucky, who's standing next to Steve, both of them with worry in their eyes. Tony and Rhodey also let go of her as everyone looks at the redhead in shock.
Natasha's eyes are puffy, her cheeks red and her hair's a mess. She gulps, not knowing how to explain what happened, especially not to Bucky.

Bucky starts walking slowly towards her. "Tell me it isn't true," he says lowly, tears beginning to show. Suddenly, Bucky shakes her shoulders harshly and raises his voice. "Tell me it's no true! Where is she?!"

"Buck, stop!" Steve says as he pulls Bucky away from Natasha. Bucky breathes heavily, not taking his eyes off of her.

She looks up at him and tries to hold back her sobs. "I-I'm sorry..."

The words send a shiver down Bucky's spine and he shakes his head, stepping backwards. "No... No, no," he repeats before dropping to his knees. One final and loud 'no' and he punches the floor with his metal arm, almost breaking the glass platform. But no one stops him this time, everyone being too hung up on the realization that you're gone.

Suddenly, Bucky stands up and begins to leave the platform, but Steve tries to stop him. "Bucky, wait," he says, blocking his way.
However, Bucky pushes him away and looks him dead in the eye. "Don't, okay? Just- don't," he hisses, trying his hardest to stop his voice from breaking. The look Steve sees in Bucky's eyes leaves him petrified, he'd never looked so broken. A few tears that Steve had been holding back since Natasha broke the news roll down his cheeks while Bucky storms out.
Steve sniffs and wipes his tears away before turning to Natasha, who's looking down, just like everyone else.

"Natasha," he starts, approaching her. "What happened?"

Natasha takes a deep breath. "One of us had to make a sacrifice in order to take the Stone," she says, but when she starts thinking about what happened, the tears come back again. "It was supposed to be me. Not her. And I- I tried to stop her, Steve. I really tried. But I-" she cuts herself off with her own sobs, and Steve wraps her around his arms tightly, letting her cry against his chest, and letting a few of his own tears fall down too. "I swear I tried, Steve. I swear-"