Waking up in the middle of the night, feeling nauseous, I bolted from my bed and headed straight to the bathroom and emptied the contents of my stomach into the toilet. As soon as I spit the first round of vomit out of my mouth, the second wave hit me hard and I hurled again, the force bringing tears to my eyes. I guess it was the force of throwing up that caused me to cry, the pain a little too unbearable to me. Groaning, I sat back against the wall, the coolness distracting me from the fact that my stomach was hurting and that chills had started to set in, a good indication that I was getting sick. I clutched my stomach as the pain roamed around the organ and closed my eyes, hoping there wasn't going to be another round of throwing up.
After a few minutes had passed by without heaving again, I got up from the floor and rinsed my mouth out with water, eliminating the taste of bile. Turning out the light, I returned to bed, bundling under the covers chills at full blast running throughout my body. I could also feel my face getting hot, letting me know a fever had just made its appearance.
Oh great. I'm getting sick, which is not something I can afford right now, I thought to myself, as I curled into a ball. I tried to close my eyes and drift off to dreamland, hoping everything would disappear in the morning. After what felt like a few hours later, I did just that, the chills subsiding for the moment, the blankets doing their job at keeping me warm.
In the morning, however, I felt much worse, fever still present. The chills had returned and now I had a few new symptoms, which included a cough that made my throat raw and sweats that ranged from my forehead to the middle of my back. Feeling extremely nauseated, I rushed back to the bathroom and vomited again. I was definitely still feeling sick and returned to bed, deciding to send a text to my boss saying that I wasn't going to be making it in to work.
Receiving the "feel better" text from her, I closed my eyes to get some more rest, hoping I would feel better in a few hours. As I drifted back off, I missed a text from Bucky that said he was coming over.
Bucky's POV
"Where are you headed off to Buck?" Steve asked me as I grabbed my keys to my motorcycle and headed towards the door.
"I thought I'd take Abigail out for lunch today. Maybe give her a break from her coworkers for an hour," I answered him, shrugging my shoulders. Truth is that I really wanted to spend time with her alone to get to know her a little more. I liked the way she made me feel when I was around her and I suspected that I was starting to develop feelings for her.
"Have fun," he told me, a wide smile plastered on his face. I sighed and left the tower, driving over to Abigail's place of employment. As I pulled into the parking lot and didn't see her car, a feeling of dread came over me as I got off my motorcycle and went inside.
"Hey, can I help you?" one of her coworkers greeted me coming up to the fence, blocking the office so the dogs couldn't get outside.
"Is Abigail around? I didn't see her car. I was going to invite her out to lunch this afternoon," I replied, rubbing the back of my neck, anxiety setting in.
"She's out sick today actually," she informed me, relief flooding through me glad she was at home safe. I went back outside, got on my bike, and drove to a nearby bistro, where I picked up a bowl of chicken noodle soup and then left there to head to her apartment to see how she was feeling.
Abigail's POV
A knock sounded at the door causing me to sit up abruptly before pulling myself out of bed to see whom it was. I pulled on a robe lying on the sofa and made my way to the door, looking through the peephole at my visitor. To my surprise it was Bucky, dressed in jeans and a dark green, long sleeve shirt, a brown jacket and wearing a baseball cap on his head. In his hand was a bag and I was curious to know what was in it. I opened the door and instantly received a smile from him.
"Hey Bucky. Everything okay?" I greeted him, my voice a little husky from the cough that hurt my throat.
"Hi, Abigail. Everything's fine. I went to your workplace to invite you to lunch but they told me you were out sick, so I thought I'd come by and see how you were feeling. Plus, I've brought you some chicken soup," he replied, leaning up against the doorframe and holding up the bag.
"Thanks Bucky. Want to come in? You can make yourself at home if you like, though I imagine I'm not going to be much fun, giving my condition," I told him, taking the bag from him and going into the kitchen. I pulled out the plastic container out of the bag and grabbed a spoon from a drawer before grabbing a drink from the fridge and sat down at the kitchen table to eat.
I watched as Bucky walked in and closed the door to my apartment, sitting down on the couch and turning on the T.V. to watch something while waiting on me to finish eating. He soon got up and disappeared down the hallway to retrieve some pillows and blankets from my bedroom and set up the couch to be a little more comfy. I smiled to myself and finished up eating, setting the bowl and spoon in the sink before joining him on the couch, curling under the blankets.
"Want to watch a movie or something?" Bucky asked me, handing me the remote. Our fingers brushed slightly and I felt a spark run through my arm as I took the remote from him. Clearing my throat, I looked over at my movie selection, my gaze settling on a movie I thought he might like.
"Have you seen Labyrinth? We could watch that," I suggested, getting a nod from him before getting up, grabbing the DVD and setting up the DVD player. Once on, I pressed the eject button and put the movie in, returning to the couch and sitting back under the blankets. During the opening credits, I felt a wave of nausea overwhelm me again and excused myself, sprinting to the bathroom, throwing up for the fourth time that day.
"Abigail? Are you all right? Need me to get you anything?" I heard Bucky ask outside of the door.
"No, I'm all right. I'll be back in a minute," I answered, leaning against the wall, breathing slowly to keep the nausea at bay. The door opened and he walked over to me, sitting on the floor. He placed his right hand against my forehead and I relished at the cool touch of his skin, before turning once more to the toilet. I felt him pull my hair back from my face, felt him rub gentle circles on my back, allowing me to finish before handing me some toilet paper to wipe my mouth. I leaned against his chest as he held me for a few minutes, stroking my hair as a calming gesture.
He released me for a moment to get a rag and run it under cool water before wringing it out and placing it to the side. Bending down, he lifted me into his arms, and grabbed the rag, carried me back to the living room. Placing me back on the couch, Bucky took off his shoes and socks before lifting me up and stretching out so that I was lying against him. He gently laid the cool rag on my forehead and pressed play on the movie. The warmth of his chest radiated throughout my body, chills subsiding a little, and I snuggled closer to him, focusing on the movie.
About halfway through the movie, I felt my eyelids drooping, exhaustion taking over me due to being sick but tried to stay awake as long as I could.
"If you want to sleep, go ahead. I won't mind. I'll still be here when you wake up," Bucky whispered, gently placing a kiss on the top of my head; an action that reddened my already flushed face even more. I released a relaxed sigh and let sleep take over me.
Bucky's POV
I watched as Abigail fell into a deep slumber, her hands resting against my chest and smiled to myself, thankful she was getting some rest. I had to admit she her coworker had first informed me that she wasn't at work; I was worried that someone had come after her because of her association with me. I could feel the tension ease once she had said she wasn't feeling well and immediately decided to bring her some comfort food. Now as I lie here with her against me, I felt comforted as well, the anxiety lessened with physical touch as well as her presence alone.
The more time that I spent with Abigail, the calmer and relaxed I felt and I started to realize we were getting closer to each other. I enjoyed the way her ice blue eyes sparkled whenever I was near, the way she laughed that caused tingles to crawl down my spine each time she did so. I relished in her touch, her soft skin, brushing against mine, the warmth spreading everywhere throughout me. When my hand brushed hers as I handed her the remote, I felt a spark that made my heart rate spike a bit. Feelings were definitely being developed, especially as I held her now, longing for her to be mine and to feel her lips brush against my own.
I was afraid, however, that something was going to happen to her the more we got to know each other and the more we spent time together. Danger lay around the corner with enemies that could potentially use her to get to me. Even knowing my friends, she was in danger. But, it made me want her more, to protect her and to love her. I just didn't know how much loving her would bring her to more harm. As Abigail slept, our breathing almost synced and before I knew it I had fallen asleep alongside her.
Abigail's POV
I awoke slowly, my mouth dry from all the puking I had been doing throughout the day and tried sitting up. Realizing I couldn't I turned my attention to Bucky who had been holding me while watching Labyrinth and noticed he was asleep, his arms wrapped tightly around my waist, his long, dark hair falling into his face as he dreamed. Peacefully, I might add. Smiling, I reached up and carefully moved his dark hair over his ear, causing him to stir and pull me closer still.
"Bucky?" I whispered, slightly shaking him to get him to wake up. I disliked disturbing him but I needed to quench my thirst. I called out to him again and a few seconds later, he opened his eyes, that steel blue color catching my gaze. Yawning, he stretched his arms over his head, freeing me so that I could go pour myself some water.
"Can I get you anything?" I asked, after taking a few sips of water, my thirst quenched, hunger approaching. He got off the couch, walking towards me, stopping a few inches from me and placed his hand against my forehead, before moving down to my neck. I gasped as he did so, the closeness causing my heart to flutter as he smiled softly.
"Your fever is gone. Feeling any better?" he stated, his blue eyes flickering to mine, causing my breath to hitch in my throat.
"Yes, much…much better. Thank you. I'm feeling kind of hungry actually," I answered, trying to regain my composure around him. Silence filled the room as we stood there looking into each other's eyes until I broke the stare by turning towards the pantry and finding a can of chicken noodle soup, afraid of eating anything else that might be regurgitated later.
"I don't what kind of soup you like but I've got tomato, vegetable beef, chicken noodle…or if you don't want soup, there's sandwich stuff…" I offered, hoping he would stay for dinner.
"Actually, I should be heading back. Steve, Natasha, Sam and I were supposed to get sushi in a little while. I can swing back by later if you need me to though," he told me, shattering my hope he would stay.
"Oh, okay. Um…no, that's all right. I'll be fine. Don't want to get you sick although just by being here for a few hours there's a possibility that you could get sick. Anyways, thank you for coming over and taking care of me. I greatly appreciated it," I replied, tucking a strand of my dark blonde hair behind my ear shyly.
"No problem. I'll send you a text later to check in on how you're feeling a little later all right?" he responded, walking back to me and pulling me into a hug. I squeezed him back and we stayed like that for a minute until he pulled back from me and put his shoes and socks back on, going to the door.
"Have a good night Abigail," Bucky said before leaving me alone in my apartment, my feelings for him growing stronger and quicker and I realized that falling in love with him was inevitable.