Alright, so this is my first ever official songfic…I hope I did alright. I blame "Umbrella Academy" for reintroducing this song into my life and creating a plot bunny that wouldn't leave me alone until I wrote something for it…so I hope it turned out alright.
Song credit goes to Tiffany, I own no rights to it, just borrowing it for the time being.
Constructive criticism is appreciated.
"I Think We're Alone Now"
Children behave
That's what they say when we're together
And watch how you play
They don't understand
And so we're running just as fast as we can
Holdin' on to one another's hand
Tryin' to get away into the night
And then you put your arms around me
And we tumble to the ground
And then you say
I think we're alone now
There doesn't seem to be anyone around
I think we're alone now
The beating of our hearts is the only sound
February 1944 – Somewhere in the European Theater
Case shivered in the pale moonlight. She was standing in an empty, circular clearing, all by herself surrounded by hundreds of trees with just the moon for light…not that she needed it. Because she and her brother both carried many of their father's mutations, she was able to see in total darkness if need be…but hey, it was nice to have light, right? For those around her that couldn't see in the dark, anyway…
It was well past midnight, the rest of the commandos had made camp for the night and ducked into their tents.
Case had wanted to sneak away earlier, but the last time she did it she made a comment about turning in early, which once she was in her tent had earned her a few comments from Dum Dum about how women didn't really belong on the battlefield, that they didn't have the stamina or something else that was stupid.
A smile quirked her lips as she remembered the grunt from the punch Steve had given him in response.
Something rustled the leaves of the bushes around her, and Case sniffed at the air, recognizing the scent instantly and giving an impatient huff before folding her arms tighter across her chest, "You're late."
Bucky rolled his eyes as he entered the clearing, dusting himself off. "Steve couldn't sleep. He kept wanting to go over strategies and maps and…" He ended with a loud sigh, pinching at his eyes.
"Is he okay?" Case asked in concern, moving toward Bucky. "I get it…that serum did a lot for him, but—"
"I think we need to keep an eye on him," Bucky admitted. "But he did finally fall asleep."
"Real sleep?"
"As real as he can get out here," Bucky nodded. "Not the 'I'm Going to Roll Over and Pretend to Be Asleep so You'll Go Away Sleep'…which he tried for about ten minutes before I finally told him he either needed to go to bed or I was gonna hit him in the head until he passed out."
"James!"
"Desperate times call for desperate measures," Bucky said with a frown. "You saw how he was after his Ma died…not that I actually would've hit him, but you know what I mean."
"Boy never did know how to take care of himself," Case admitted, heaving a loud sigh as her shoulders slumped.
"Hey, no, don't do that Cassidy," Bucky said, walking closer to her.
"Do what?"
"You've got that look that you're scared for Steve."
"I don't have a look!"
"You've had that look since we were kids."
Case stepped away from him, "So what…same still applies. So, he's not sick anymore…doesn't mean something bad can't happen to him! And this is Steve…he always shoulders more things than he should! Just because those shoulders are wider doesn't mean he needs to carry more!"
"I know…and keep your voice down," Bucky said, stepping farther into the clearing. "You want someone to know we're out here?"
Case shook her head and looked down at the ground, huddling in her jacket, and in a quieter voice added, "Would defeat the purpose of sneakin' out here and freezing my ass off, now wouldn't it?"
"I'll say, it's the first time we've been alone in a month," Bucky rolled his eyes.
"Yeah…coulda used the extra heat in my tent at night," Case added quietly. "I don't like curling up by myself…gets lonely."
Bucky finally reached her and opened his jacket, pulling her close and wrapping her up inside it, hugging her to his chest. He gave her a small smile, "Better?"
Case returned the small smile, then huddled closer, winding her arms around his waist as she pressed her cheek against his chest, listening to his heart beating, "Better."
"Good," Bucky whispered, pressing a kiss into her hair.
Look at the way
We gotta hide what we're doin'
'Cause what would they say
If they ever knew?
And so we're running just as fast as we can
Holdin' on to one another's hand
Tryin' to get away into the night
And then you put your arms around me
And we tumble to the ground
And then you say
I think we're alone now (alone now)
There doesn't seem to be anyone around
I think we're alone now (alone now)
The beating of our hearts is the only sound
I think we're alone now (alone now)
There doesn't seem to be anyone around
I think we're alone now
The beating of our hearts is the only sound
June 2013 – Hydra Compound, Siberia
His lips were soft…surprisingly so given the circumstances.
It had started simple enough…a sparring match. Which may or may not have gotten a little heated – Case never could control her smart mouth, and after the morning she'd just suffered through she wanted to let off a little steam…
And maybe she was a little distracted…dealing with Kayla Silverfox made her angry to say the least, and after their meeting, well, she'd wanted to hit something.
Destroy was the better term…but there was nothing here to tear apart, so she took the next best thing.
Maybe if she hadn't been distracted, she'd have noticed the way he'd been distracted.
She'd hit the ground hard, and he'd pinned her with his body, yanking her arms above her head. As they caught their breath, he mumbled, "I…remember…"
Case blinked at him, "Remember what?"
A familiar smirk crept across his face, "I remember you."
Case didn't have time to ask what he meant by that before he pressed his mouth to hers, and in any other situation she would've put a stop to it right away…but it felt so good.
The Soldier released his hold on her wrists, body pressing hers down into the cold concrete floor beneath them as he opened his mouth to deepen the kiss.
Case gave a moan and tried to pull him closer, hooking her arms under his to shove her fingers in his hair as she wrapped her legs around his waist.
Now his hands were moving – the fingers of his flesh hand trying to slip under the knot she'd tied her hair into while the silver ones tugged at the zipper on her shirt.
Moving on reflexes she hadn't utilized in over seventy years, Case tilted her head to the side as she pressed her body harder into his. The Soldier took the hint and his mouth trailed down her chin and he worked his way up and down her throat.
A distant door slam broke the spell.
"Shit!" Case hissed and moved her legs from his waist to kick at his chest.
With a grunt the Soldier flopped over onto his back, chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath.
"Sorry…someone's coming…" Case breathed, trying to slow her racing heart.
He gave a nod, before he asked, "We…we used to do that…right?"
"Yeah…we did…"
The nearby door opened, and Kayla Silverfox marched in, looking none-too-happy as she took in the sight of the two of them laying on the floor, "What the hell is this?"
"What the hell is what?" Case asked her.
"Why are you laying on the floor?"
"I'm an insomniac and I just got done with a sparring match…what does it look like I'm doing?"
"That…that doesn't even make sense!"
Case sat up with a groan, "I'm tired…I think I wore myself out with that last fight."
Silverfox pinched at the bridge of her nose, "Hit the showers—"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Case rolled her eyes as she got to her feet.
The Soldier was getting to his feet as well when Silverfox yelled out, "Is that a hickey on your neck?"
"It's called a bruise, bitch," Case threw over her shoulder as she headed for the door.
Silverfox cast a glare the Soldier's way, but he just stared back at her with a blank look.
"Dismissed," Silverfox scowled at him.
Running just as fast as we can
Holdin' on to one another's hand
Tryin' to get away into the night
And then you put your arms around me
And we tumble to the ground
And then you say
I think we're alone now
There doesn't seem to be anyone around
I think we're alone now
The beating of our hearts is the only sound
November 2015 – Washington DC
"So…uh…I guess that happened…" Bucky said, rubbing at the back of his neck.
"Yes, it did," Case nodded.
They were staring at the remains of her dining table, split down the middle where the extra pieces could be put in. Neither was sure quite what had happened…it had been holding steady for a few moments, then suddenly the thing collapsed underneath them.
"Clearly inferior craftsmanship," Case told him.
"I doubt the manufacturers took into consideration two people would be having sex on it," Bucky pointed out, "Especially when one has a metal arm and the other's bones are covered in metal."
"Then an oversight on their part."
Bucky shook his head, pinching at his eyes as he asked, "That makes…how many things we've broken when doing this?"
"Depends on what you mean."
"Cassidy—"
With a sigh, she said, "Fine…this makes three. I punched the hole in the dishwasher…you broke the handle off the fridge…and now we've broken my table"
"What do your friends say when you tell them about this?"
"If I'm going to make up stories to at least make them believable," Case shook her head, "Except for Ryder…he turns an interesting shade of green before demanding I stop talking."
"Never could deal with that conversation," Bucky agreed.
"Yeah…well, come on," Case said, turning on her heel and walking away.
"Huh? What about your table?"
"I can replace a table anytime," Case shrugged, not turning back to face him. "But I only get you alone for a couple more days…so to the bedroom, Mon amour."
"And how are you gonna explain it when we break the bed?"
"How 'bout we cross that bridge when we come to it? Now are you in or out?" Case asked, disappearing into her bedroom.
Bucky looked at the remains of the table, then gave a shrug, calling out, "Right behind you baby!"
I think we're alone now
There doesn't seem to be anyone around
I think we're alone now
The beating of our hearts is the only sound
I think we're alone now (alone now)
There doesn't seem to be anyone around
I think we're alone now
The beating of our hearts is the only sound
I think we're alone now (alone now)
There doesn't seem to be anyone around
I think we're alone now (alone now)
The beating of our hearts is the only sound
I think we're alone now (alone now)
January 2016 – Bucharest, Romania
"I think I'm dying…"
Bucky rolled his eyes, leaning against the counter, "You're not dying Cassidy."
Case looked up at him from where she sat on the sofa, wincing slightly before grabbing at her neck, before giving another yelp of pain, "Then what do you call this?"
"Healing."
"I've healed before."
"Non-accelerated healing then."
Case lowered her hand, closing her eyes as her strained muscles screamed in protest, "Fuck me…"
"I'd like to, but I think I would actually kill you if I tried."
"Fuck off…"
Bucky couldn't help but laugh at the situation. He knew he shouldn't, it wasn't a laughing matter.
Case was covered almost head to toe in various bruises, her knuckles were raw and bleeding and covered in gauze until they scabbed over. Her muscles were pulled to their maximum, she was lucky she hadn't broken anything – if she didn't have the adamantium covering her bones she probably would have.
"This is your fault you know," Case grumbled, trying to relax into the cushions.
"Really? Do tell," Bucky said, walking around the stove to sit down next to her.
"Do I really need to?"
"Well, let's see," Bucky pointed out. "You knew you weren't healing properly, still extended the claws. You knew something was wrong, and you still went into battle against that giant metal monstrosity—"
Case rolled her eyes and flipped him off with a finger that still had a purple nail.
"When did you smash your hand?"
"Fuck if I know," Case said.
"But back to my original point…how is any of this my fault?" Bucky asked. "Sounds to me like you made the decision to fight on your own…now you gotta deal with the consequences."
"I hate you."
"You love me."
"Hate."
Bucky pulled a pillow into his lap, "Come here."
Case gingerly moved so she was laying across the couch, curled up slightly and resting her head on the pillow in his lap.
Bucky gently threaded the fingers of his right hand through her hair, "Better?"
"No," Case said with a pout.
"Need the bucket again?"
"Seriously, I hate you."
Bucky shook his head as he kept scratching at her scalp, relaxing slightly when he felt the tension start to drain away from Case.
At least until her breath hitched. She held her breath for a few seconds then exhaled slowly, taking another breath and letting it out just as slowly.
He grabbed the bucket and had it in front of her before she let out a struggled "Buh!"
Then he twisted her hair into a knot as Case's face disappeared into the bucket, everything she'd eaten that day coming back up for an encore.
As the rant in French began, Bucky gave another laugh as she lifted her head and told her, "It's a bit late for that demand, Cassidy."
Case's face dropped another shade and her face disappeared into the bucket again, cutting off any retort she would've had.
Bucky reached over and grabbed one of his gloves from the counter, slipping it over his metal hand. He grabbed Case's hair with the left and rubbed his flesh hand up and down her back as carefully as he could.
"Fuck I hate this…" Case mumbled, putting the bucket on the floor by the couch before flopping back down onto Bucky, earning a grunt from the former assassin.
"Want a cracker?" Bucky asked helpfully. "They're supposed to help with nausea."
"I'm not even sure if I'm done with this round," Case said tiredly.
With a sigh, he added quietly, "I'm sorry, Cassidy."
Case gave a scoff, "Don't do that, Buck. You've done nothing to be sorry for."
"But—"
"I'm just cranky…and nauseous…and sore," Case grumbled, shifting to get comfortable on the couch. "Not used to healing at this rate…everything hurts, and I don't like it."
"Well…there's one silver lining to all of this."
"What's that Buck?"
Bucky gave a weak chuckle, "We're finally alone now."