Arie's POV:


I woke up sometime during the night, feeling as if my head was stuffed with cotton.

Memories that weren't mine bounced off in my head.

My head felt as if someone was trying to singe it from the inside out.

The back of my eyes stung, and the inside of my skull held a dull pounding.

Every muscle in my body contracted as if an electric current was passing through it.

My back arched painfully off of the stiff surface I was strapped to.

The screams that escaped my lips weren't my own.

Then everything went black and I was back inside the confines of my own mind.

I gasped as I felt a large hand touch my upper arm.

Without thinking I quickly grabbed the wrist before using the person's weight against them to fling them across the room.

"Ok, I deserve that, I guess…" A familiar voice muttered, groaning as they laid next to the wall.

I gasped as I peeked over the side of the bed. "James?" I asked, disbelief.

"Hello, doll." He answered as he slowly sat up with a groan.

"Is it really you?" I asked, as my tears began to fall.

Was he really here or had I lost my mind and he was now a part of the insanity?

"It's me." He confirmed, looking at me, with glassy eyes.

He looked like I last remembered, only with longer hair and more scars.

"How do I know it's really you?" I asked suspiciously.

It could be a figment of my imagination, I mean I am back in the bunker.

He sighed, crawling towards the bed, groaning with every movement, before kneeling in front of me. "Your name is Isabel Marianna Barton, your birthday is on April Twenty-four. You love the cold weather, and cry when you watch the sunset. You love romance but don't expect it. Your eyes change color when you get emotional, and you have the sharpest tongue apart from anyone I have ever met." He whispered, as his face inched closer to mine.

I shook my head, closing my eyes before opening them to see him looking at me through glassy eyes too.

"You're wrong..." I whispered, swallowing thickly, as I tried not to sob.

"About what, milaya?" He whispered, inching closer to me, a small smile pulling on his lips as he did.

I watched as he slowly moved onto the bed, as his smile grew.

"My last name is Barnes. It has been, for almost five years…" I whispered, as he smiled brightly at me.

"Oh, doll. I missed you so much." He whispered, hovered only an inch from my face.

"I thought I really lost you this time…" I said, as a sob escaped my lips.

His gaze grew sadder as he finally pulled me to him, onto his lap.

"You'll never lose me, doll…" He vowed, kissing my hair.

"Promise?" I asked, tearfully, as I hid my face in his neck.

"I'm with you until the end of the line, my love." He whispered, as he placed both of his hands on either side of my face to get me to look in his cerulean blue eyes.

His eyes flickered to my lips before going back to my eyes. "I missed you so much my love. You and the baby are the only thing that kept me sane in that hell on Earth." He whispered inching closer.

"I missed you too. It was so hard to be without you…" I replied, bringing my arms into his shoulders, and turning to face him on his lap.

Pulling him tightly to me, as he wrapped his arms around me, before falling back onto the mattress with a groan.

"I missed this…." He sighed, happily.

I clung to him, sighing and relaxing into his body as his familiar musky scent ensnared my senses.

A sense of peace finally came to me as I laid there with him.

We laid there for what felt like forever, until he whispered. "Can I go shower? I need to get this off of me, immediately." He asked as I sat up, my eyes falling on the gear he was wearing.

Of course, he was wearing those damn things. The stupid combat suit that made us all look like soldiers.

It was one of the horrible annoyances of being a part of the D.E. from Hydra.

I nodded. "Some of your old clothes should be in the other room. You can use that bathroom or whichever bathroom you like." I said, pointing towards the door near the place I threw him to.

"Thanks, doll." He said giving me a kiss on the forehead before slowly climbing off the bed and heading out the door.

I sat on the bed for a moment before slowly climbing off my body still sore from whatever I had seen.

I walked into the closet, pulling out some fresh clothes before heading into the bathroom for a bath.

I quickly set the tub to the correct temperature, before putting the water stopper on, and dropping some bubble bath, allowing it to fill up as I grabbed the mp3 player and placed it on the dock.

I played the list I always played, as I took off my clothes.

The song Train Wreck by James Arthur instantly began to fill the room.

I smiled as I finally felt the steam fill the room up, before turning off the water and climbing in.

Groaning as the hot water soothed my muscles, a small sigh escaped my lips as my back finally touched the tub's edge.

"Mm…"

I felt so relaxed that I sunk down and wet my hair, groaning as I pulled the elastic from it, letting it fall, and moving around with the water, enjoying the feeling.

I let a sigh escape through my lip as I finally came up for air. Moving my wet hair away from my face.

"I haven't seen you this relaxed since before we left Wakanda…" Bucky said, leaning against the door frame as he stared at me, with a smile.

I sharply turned to look at him sitting up in the tub. "Why the hell do you always do that?" I asked, scowling at him as he chuckled and shook his head at me.

"It's not my fault you didn't hear me. I made noise this time." He said as he lifted his hands in the air and stretched in surrender.

My eyes raked over his broad, muscular form, my mind suddenly going to the last time we were together.

I knew it was too soon to even think of that. I had to make sure he was alright after all the trauma he went through.

So, I sat back, before looking at him again. "How are you feeling?" I asked him, as the song in the background changed.

"Better now. I feel like I need another haircut, and maybe some food, other than that I feel like I did before." He said as he walked over to the sink and leaned against it, facing me.

I nodded, as I grabbed the bath sponge, and squirted some of my favorite soap on it before I began to wash my body.

"The food is still in the kitchen… you can heat that up and eat while I finish up here." I suggested as I washed my legs before placing them back in the water.

"I'll wait…" He said as he watched me finish washing myself.

"Ookay…" I whispered, before reaching over to grab my shampoo.

I washed my hair and sank down into the now lukewarm water, before reaching for my towel.

As I reached I realized my touch was no longer there but in the hands of my smug-looking husband.

"Looking for something, doll?" He asked, lifting the towel towards me.

"Yes. Give me my towel, James." I said, reaching for it only for him to yank it away with a smirk.

"Why don't you come and get it from me, baby?" He asked, lifting a brow.

I smirked, before reaching down to unplug the water stopper, and stood up, watching in satisfaction as he jaw dropped to the ground in an audible pop as I climbed out of the bathtub.

I walked towards him, watching as his eyes fell out of his head before reaching for the towel, and wrapping it around myself, slowly.

I smiled up at him innocently before standing on my tip toes and whispered in his ear.

"Next time, why don't you just tell me you want to see me naked? I'll happily oblige." I muttered, slowly moving towards his lips, giving him a peck before walking away.

"Fucking tease!" He called after me.

"You know it!" I called back as I walked into the room.

I could feel his gaze as he watched me from the corner of the room. Towel dry myself, and slip on the blue silk camisole, and boyshorts, before drying my hair and braiding it away from my face.

"Food?" I asked, smirking at him as he shifted uncomfortably under my gaze, swallowing thickly.

"Yes, please." He whispered, biting his lip before following me out the door.

I nodded before making my way back towards the kitchen to reheat our forgotten food.

Grabbing a glass and filling it with some wine, before pulling out a beer from him.

As we sat down, I finally pulled out the device that held all of the twins' videos and photos, passing it to him so he could see them as we both quietly ate.

"Your brother and Steve were there for their birth?" He asked, amused.

I nodded, swallowing the food I had in my mouth as I did. "I was only thirty two weeks. Everyone had tried to surprise me with a baby shower that day. I thought I was having Braxton Hicks contractions, but they were the real deal, and my water ended up breaking almost as soon as I got there…". I explained as I clicked on the edited video Clint took of the birth.

I watched amused as Bucky's eyes widened in disbelief as he watched. His eyes flickering back between me and the video as he did.

"How in the hell could you summon the energy to keep sassing everyone as you were giving birth…?" He asked me in disbelief.

I simply shrugged in response, giving him an innocent smile. "It's a gift." I sassed.

"You're amazing." He whispered back, as he got up and made his way around the kitchen island, before standing between my legs.

"Can I ask you something?" He asked, looking into my eyes.

"You already did." I replied, smirking at him.

I watched as a smile pulled at his lips before he shook his head, reaching up to move a stray hair behind my ear.

"Why are you being so hesitant around me, doll?" He asked, his stare boring into me.

"Because I don't want to push you. I want you to be ok. Your health is one of my top priorities right now." I replied.

He sighed nodding in response as he looked me in the eye again. " Can I at least kiss you? I've been wanting to since I saw you on the bridge earlier today." He whispered.

I smiled, biting my lip hesitantly before nodding in response. "Kiss me." I whispered.

He didn't hesitate as he placed both of his hands on either side of my face before pulling me in.

Looking into my eyes as he pressed his lips to mine.