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Original Authors: Morgana and VigoDC
Adaptation: VigoDc
Disclaimer: All characters belong to marvel
Huge thanks to Morgana for making this story possible!
I hope you enjoy this story!
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Bucky' p.o.v.

I watch him fall and barely manage to hang on myself. The helicarrier is tearing itself apart. Explosions rock the vessel, and if he hadn't saved me earlier, I would probably be dead now. Why did he save me in the first place? We're enemies. Hydra ordered his death and for some reason I couldn't complete the mission. When I prepared to deliver the final blow something stopped me. Instead of killing him as Hydra ordered, I wanted to save him and I grew horrified at the amount of the damage I had done. Why? His face was a mess and he was bleeding from several bullet wounds. I was still trying to accept that I had hurt him so much when another severe explosion rocked the helicarrier, practically catapulting him off the vessel.

Hanging from one of the beams, I watch him fall toward the lake. The impact will stun him and chances are he will drown. A part of me rebels against that and wants to see him safe instead.

Another explosion rocks the helicarrier and it's time I made up my mind. What do I do? I might be able to hang for a few more minutes, but the helicarrier will go down eventually. Do I wait for that or do I jump after him and try to save him? In the end, letting go and diving after him is one of the easiest decisions I ever made. A deeply rooted urge to protect him overrides Hydra's conditioning. I have to get him out of the water and I need to make sure he survives. Saving him is more important than ensuring my own safety. It's like he's my everything.

As I hit the water, I draw in a deep breath and dive after him. The lake is deep and I plunge into darkness. It's hard to see where he went and it takes me a while before I locate him. I grab hold of his shoulder and pull him with me as I swim toward the surface. He's heavier than I thought and moving against the stream makes maneuvering hard. It doesn't help that I'm injured myself and that exhaustion is sneaking into my bones.

In the end, I reach the surface and release the breath I have been holding onto. My lungs were about to implode due to oxygen deprivation; it must be even worse for my... I don't know what he is to me, but he isn't my target anymore, that's for sure. He isn't moving, his eyes are closed and he seems completely unaware of what's happening. The fact that he's a dead weight doesn't help. I gather my last reserves and pull him along. I can't give up now.

Gritting my teeth, I tell myself to block the pain running through my shoulder and arm. The shoulder is dislocated and the arm probably broken, but I can't allow the pain stop me. The helicarrier is picking up speed on its way down and I desperately head for the shore. Once I get my feet beneath me, I drag him along, too tired and aching too much to actually hoist him up and carry him. Once we're safely ashore, I let go and drop him onto the ground. He shows no reaction and is dead to the world. I pull my injured arm close and support it. Fuck, my shoulder really hurts. He did quite a number on it.

An ominous sound makes me turn around and I watch the helicarrier as it hits the water. It causes a huge tidal wave and I'm glad we're out of the lake. The suction would have pulled us back in and we would have drowned. Looking about I wonder what to do. Hydra expects me to find my way back to them, but I don't want to go back. I'm sick and tired of the pain and their lies. Yes, I know that they lied to me. They told me that I knew my target because of an earlier mission, but it isn't true. I don't know how I know that, but I do. I remember him. I remember him calling me Bucky before. The name feels familiar, but I have no idea why and I'm not sure I want to find out.

Whatever I do, I need to make that decision now. His friends are looking for him and I might not survive another confrontation, not in my current state. Maybe this is the chance I've waiting for. Maybe this time I can get away from Hydra. This is my chance to get away from it all and it might be the only chance I'll ever get. I need to grab it. I turn around and want to walk away from my target – no charge, fuck, whatever he is.

"Bucky..."

I thought he was unconscious so hearing his voice takes me by surprise. Hearing that name still stuns me and I realize it does cause some sort of recognition deep inside me. That name means something to me, and all of a sudden, I want to know more. I want to know why he calls me that. He told me he has known me all my life and that he will be with me till the end of the line. Why would he say such things if he didn't know me? I'm not sure I want to find out more about myself, but I need to do this. I need to know.

I turn around again and sit on my heels next to him. He's conscious all right. He must be in a great deal of pain, but he's still focused – on me, for some reason.

"Who's Bucky?" Asking him that question sparks a memory. I asked him that before. We were fighting on that bridge. He called me Bucky when he saw my face for the first time and I remember feeling utterly lost because of it.

"You are," he groans, hanging on by the skin of his teeth. He tries to lift his hand, but it falls back onto the mud as he still lacks strength.

"I'm Bucky?" Again, the name stirs a sense of deep familiarity, but I have no idea what it means. Hydra never called me anything but soldier.

"Yes, you're Bucky and I'm Steve. We're friends. Old friends – close friends."

He lifts his hand again and wraps his fingers around my boot, but he lacks the power to hold on. He continues to struggle on, determined to do whatever it is he is after, although he's obviously in agony. I know what it's like to go on in spite of the pain. I learned to lock it out a long time ago. It seems he hasn't mastered that skill yet – not completely, or maybe he's too exhausted.

At least I know his name now. His name is Steve. Steve... yes, it feels right. That name suits him, and I wonder how I know that. How can he claim we are friends? I don't have friends. So how can he claim he knows me that well? Fuck, this is driving me mad. Either I get the answers I need, or I need to walk away from this – now, before he confuses me further. Maybe I shouldn't try to find out more. Maybe leaving him and trying to stay away from Hydra is my best option if I want to survive. Yes, that is. I need to disappear.

Now that I've made my decision, I look at him and try to memorize his face. But the cruel truth is that I'll probably forget about him during the day. My memory is useless.

Wanting to reassure him, I say, "Your friends will come for you. They'll take care of you." I'm about to get to my feet when he suddenly lunges for me and grabs hold of my injured arm. I bite down the pain, push it back, and shut it out. "Let go." Why am I not freeing myself of his hold though? Why do I allow him to keep me in place?

"No, I'm never letting you go again. You're staying with me."

I'm impressed he's still capable of holding on to me. After everything he went through, he still has some energy reserves left. The thing is, I can free myself, but if I do that, I will hurt him. I don't want to cause additional injuries though. For some reason, I care about him. The sound of rotor blades tell me his friends located him. I can't allow them to find me though. I never want to be a prisoner again, not with freedom this close. If only he would let go!

"Bucky, please stay. I need you to stay."

His pleading tone gets to me and I swear I heard those words before. He told me this before, but when? And why?

"I can't stay." This is my chance to disappear, but he's ruining that.

"Bucky, please... Give me a chance..."

He tries to elbow himself into an upright position, but ends up collapsing again. I find myself reaching out to support him, but freeze the moment the chopper lands. A red-haired woman, another target which I missed, and the guy whose wings I destroyed, jump from the helicopter and come running toward me. They don't appear armed so I might be able to take them out, but... Steve, that's his name, yes, Steve, is still holding on to me and I really don't want to hurt him. This insane urge to protect him and to look after him isn't fading. If anything, it is getting stronger. I'm seriously fucked here.

"Let him go!"

Suddenly the guy draws a weapon and aims it at me. My first instinct is to attack; to run right through him and disappear, but I can't, since Steve still refuses to let go of my wrist.

"I can't," I whisper eventually. "I'm not holding him down." The woman is the first to arrive and a name flashes in my mind. Hydra did provide me with some intelligence on her. Her name is Romanoff, code name Black Widow. I fought her on the bridge, but I have got the feeling that wasn't the first time we met. She looks familiar and not because I chased her because she was a target.

"Steve, what are you doing?"

She kneels next to Steve and looks him over. At the same time, her partner aims his gun at me. I can take them out – they present no real danger, but I can't until Steve lets go.

"Tell him to release me." Maybe I can manipulate her into helping me. Telling Steve to let go of me is in their best interest too. She gives me an odd look, but then concentrates on Steve again.

"Steve, he's right. You need medical attention. You need to go the hospital so they can fix you up. You need to let go."

Judging by Steve's expression her little manipulation isn't working. He looks even more determined now and his grip tightens. I fail to swallow the groan that escapes my lips. Blocking the pain in my arm and shoulder is getting harder now that the adrenaline is wearing off. I managed to shut one of his eyes, but the other one suddenly widens, why?

"I hurt you. You need medical attention too!" Steve exclaims upset.

I find myself answering him instinctively. I can't stop the reaction; I need to reassure him. "It's nothing; just a dislocated shoulder and a broken arm. I will heal. Your wounds are worse and you should allow your friends to look after you."

Noise, and movement coming from behind me, informs me that a third person arrived on the scene. I want to turn around to find out if he's a threat, but I can't stop staring at Steve. At the moment, he's my priority. I need to protect him and to keep him safe. Judging by the powerful grip he has on me, we failed to convince him to release me.

"He isn't going to let go," I tell them softly. I doubt they are interested in my opinion, but I should tell them. "I can make him let go, but that will cause additional injuries, broken fingers and a broken wrist at the least." Maybe that is a price they are willing to pay in order to separate the two of us.

"No, don't."

This voice belongs to the unknown party and I look at him from over my shoulder. I instantly recognize him. "I killed you." My first attempt at murdering him failed, as he managed to get away, but I shot him later. I didn't miss. I know that. "How can you still be alive?" To my surprise, I remember his name, Nick Fury, director of Shield, one of Hydra's sworn enemies. Most of the time, Hydra deletes all prior information from my brain. Why did this stick around?

"Well, that's a long story and we don't have a lot of time right now." Fury sits on his heels next to Steve and studies him closely. "Steve, talk to me, how serious is this? Are you going to pull through or do we need to rush you off to the hospital?"

To me, Fury definitely looks in favor of rushing him to hospital and I tend to agree. Steve doesn't take his eyes off of me though. He keeps watching me closely, like he's afraid I'll disappear on him. And he's right about that. I will run the moment opportunity presents itself.

"Answer him." I have no idea why I said that. It just feels like something I should do; maybe this time he will listen to me. Romanoff's quick intake of breath tells me I stunned her. I feel her eyes on me, but she stays at a respectful distance, so I ignore her. I also forget that there's a gun aimed at me. Right now, my whole world revolves around one person – Steve.

"You're still bossy. That hasn't changed," Steve mumbles and tries to smile, but he instantly regrets it and moans due to the pain. I might have broken some facial bones when I continued to hit him. I hope I didn't break his skull. Steve minutely moves his head and looks at Fury instead. "I'll live. Skip the hospital. Just take me home."

"I'm not so sure about that. Maybe we can agree on a quick stop at the hospital on your way home?" Romanoff says in a light tone, but she doesn't fool me. She has a hidden agenda.

"Really quick stop then," Steve agrees in the end. His gaze focuses on me again. "Help me up, Buck."

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