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ECorley

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Bucky POV

I stalked out of Dr. Peters' office angrily, pulling the door closed much harder than was necessary. I was in no mood to talk about my feelings this morning and I certainly didn't want to answer his questions about Milton Kaine.

"How does it make you feel knowing that he is searching for you? Are you worried he will try to turn you back into the Winter Soldier?"

I had groaned in frustration at his idiotic questions…of course I was worried he would try to wipe my memory again and turn me back into a mindless killing machine…who wouldn't be?

Ten minutes before our appointment was scheduled to end, I'd had enough and declared that I was done talking to him. I glared at him when he asked me to sit back down; he sighed and nodded his head, motioning me towards the door.

I arrived in the training room at 9:55…Roland and Christine knew I usually didn't arrive until 10:15 so I wasn't surprised to find the room empty. I used the time alone as an opportunity to sit down and get myself under control before my trainees arrived.

I wanted to be the one to handle Kaine but Steve was adamant that I stay out of it entirely. He didn't want Milton Kaine getting his hands on me and reverting me back to the Winter Soldier. I didn't want that either but I absolutely despised the thought of running away and hiding. I had never hid from anything in my life….I had always been the predator on the hunt and now I was the prey. Steve reminded me that I couldn't think about just myself anymore…I had Eden in my life now and I had to think about her, too.

Honestly, I didn't think it would be a bad idea to just head home right now, pack a bag, and get me and Eden as far under Kaine's radar as possible.

I'm not going to leave her and I sure as hell won't let her get hurt. If he gets too close, I'll take her some place where we can lay low until Kaine is dealt with properly…a nice long vacation for the two of us.

I closed my eyes and tried to block it from my thoughts…there was no point worrying about it until Kaine made his move.

Eden probably needed vacation after the way I had been acting the last two weeks. I had been on edge ever since Clint and Steve had told me about Milton Kaine's search for me…I knew I was driving her insane. Every time she tried to leave the apartment, even for the simplest errand, I would insist on going with her. It was hard enough leaving her each day to go to work…the only reason I was okay with that was because I knew she had her own work to do and wouldn't leave the apartment. She knew something was up with me, but every time she would ask I would pretend like I didn't know what she was talking about….I could feel the frustration radiating from her each time but she bit her tongue and didn't push.

Steve had been the one to originally tell me not to say anything to Eden…not to worry her. But after seeing how paranoid I had been the last two weeks, even he had encouraged me to tell her the truth. Last weekend, we had gone on a double date with him and Brooke…when the girls had went to the restroom together, he had leaned over and told me I should just tell her everything and stop keeping it from her. I had been thinking about it over the last week and I had almost sat her down a few different times and told her the whole thing but I just couldn't' do it. I didn't want her to be worried or scared…I would protect her…I would kill him if he got anywhere near her.

A vacation might actually be a good thing for her though…she's been working too much.

For some reason, Eden seemed to be working longer than normal hours. Usually she would be done around 4:00 each day, but the last two weeks she would be working at least an extra 2 or 3 hours later than normal. I had asked her about it and she had insisted she just had a lot more work to do lately. I hated to see her working so hard…she always looked so tired each night and I had noticed a few times that she seemed stiff, almost sore.

"Good morning Sergeant Barnes" I heard a voice say…I opened my eyes to see Roland walking in the training room, his duffel bag in his hand.

"Good morning Roland" I said, standing up to shake his head when he reached me. Christine showed up moments later and I had them begin sparring with each other. Roland had improved drastically over the last few weeks. Christine was still too cocky but as he got better, he began to put her in her place…which is something she desperately needed.

Once I was satisfied that they had done enough, I had them switch over to target practice. I walked over to get ready for them to shoot and noticed there were no more paper targets. With a sigh, I turned and told them to take a 15 minute break to get themselves some water while I went to the other training area to get some.

I could hear from outside the door that someone was in there training.

Hmm, I wonder who is using this training area. They sound pretty intense in there.

I opened the door quietly and stepped inside to take a closer look. The sparring mat was all the way across the room but I recognized Clint immediately. He was facing me but was too busy dodging blows to notice my presence. He was fighting with a person much smaller than him...blonde hair….an oddly familiar woman with a dandelion tattoo on her shoulder.

Eden! What the fuck is she doing here with Clint? Where the hell did she learn to fight like that?

Eden was dressed in black sweat pants and a tight, short tank top that showed her bare stomach. She looked sexy as hell and I was quickly getting angrier by the second watching Clint touch her, even though it was obvious they were just sparring. The moment he yanked her arm behind her back and caused her to gasp in pain, I instinctually stepped forward, ready to beat the shit out of him for causing that look of discomfort on her face.

I slowed down when I saw her counter the move and turn around to face him. Clint must have finally realized they weren't alone…the moment he glanced in my direction, Eden executed a perfect right hook and then dropped down to sweep his legs out from under him. He fell back onto the mat hard and she kneeled over him, fist raised above him.

Clint was looking at me with surprise on his face…a look of guilt. He turned to face Eden when he heard her laugh and say, "You said not to hold back…looks like I win…hope you're ready to buy me lunch, I'm starving"

Lunch! What the fuck is going on between these two? She's been seeing him behind my back! I'll beat the shit out of him before I let him steal my girl.

Eden still hadn't noticed that I had caught her and Clint…he shook his head at her and I saw him whisper something to her before turning back in my direction. She turned her head sharply in my direction a flash of surprise appeared on her face….the look of guilt I saw in her eyes drove me over the edge.

Clint is a dead man.

I clenched my fists together and stalked towards him quickly. They both stood up quickly and stood next to each other. I glared at him coldly and saw him tense up, ready to defend himself. Oddly enough, he looked completely calm and that pissed me off more than anything.

I only grew angrier when Eden stepped in front of him and put her hands out to stop me from attacking him.

"Stop" she said. I tensed up when I felt her touch…I looked down to see her hands on my chest. I didn't look at her…I couldn't….so I tried to side step her but she moved in front of me again…defending him. Her hands were once again on my chest and I heard her softly beg, "Stop".

I swallowed hard when I felt one hand leave my chest and touch my cheek softly. I tried to shake her hand away from my face…I didn't want her to touch me right now. I was angry and worst of all, I felt betrayed by her. I knew if she saw the look in my eyes that it would upset her and damn if I didn't love her so much that even in my rage, I didn't want her hurt.

She didn't move her hand and instead said, "Look at me"

Don't do it Bucky. Focus on Clint…focus on kicking his fucking ass for touching your girl. Don't look at Eden.

"Look at me dammit" I heard her say louder this time.

I finally looked down at her and completely lost it. She was sweaty from fighting and her hair clung to her face. She looked beautiful, strong, sexy…and it made me even angrier at Clint. I didn't want to hurt her and I probably should have taken a deep breath and calmed down before I said the next words out of my mouth, "Get your hands off of me"

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Eden POV

"Get your hands off of me" he said coldly.

Don't you dare cry Eden Page!

I blinked back the tears and pushed at his chest with the hand that was still planted firmly there. He was so tense that he didn't budge but he didn't move forward either. He stood there frozen, looking back and forth between me and Clint, a look of betrayal on his face. I knew exactly what he was thinking and I was ready to put that thought to rest quickly.

"It's not what you think Bucky" I said carefully, trying not to let my voice waver. I saw his jaw muscle twitch and he swallowed hard. I knew I needed to explain to him but I also knew that Bucky wouldn't be able to pay attention to anything I was saying until Clint was out of sight.

I put my hand up to Bucky's chest but didn't touch him, "Stay…please" I said to him.

I turned to my side and looked at Clint…he was watching Bucky warily, "Clint, can you give us a second…."

"Eden…I don't know if…." He started to say before I cut him off.

"Please…go grab your stuff…we can go to lunch afterwards" I told him, glancing back at Bucky when I heard him inhale sharply. His eyes had grown darker again after hearing that.

Clint watched Bucky carefully for a few moments before finally nodding and heading to the small changing room. Bucky glared at him until he disappeared before finally setting his eyes back on me. I bit my lip nervously before starting, "There is nothing going on between me and Clint"

He scoffed and turned around quickly, running his hands through his hair as he paced around me furiously, "How long have you been seeing him?"

"Two weeks" I said softly. When he started walking away from me towards the exit, I called out at him, "I'm not seeing him Bucky, not like that…he's training me"

He stopped walking away but didn't turn around, so I continued, "I called him and begged him to show me how to fight. I was tired of feeling helpless….I was tired of you having to keep rescuing me…I just…I just wanted to be able to take care of myself so you wouldn't have to"

He still didn't turn around but I heard him say, "I want to take care of you"

For some reason, hearing him say that made me feel even worse but it also made me even more confident that I had made the right decision in asking Clint to train me. Bucky would put his life on the line to protect me and losing him wasn't an option…that's why I had set out to do this in the first place. Bucky would keep me safe and I wanted to do the same thing for him.

"It ends now" he said as he turned to face me. It was the way he said that pissed me off the most. I loved him but I would not let him dictate what I could and could not do….I was a grown woman.

I took a deep breath to calm myself down but he kept talking, "I'm serious Eden...it ends today! You don't train with him ever again"

I stalked over to him and got right in his face, "Or what?"

He didn't say anything…he just narrowed his eyes at me and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Answer me James Buchanan Barnes!" I said louder this time….when he remained silent, I cocked an eyebrow at him, "What are you madder about Bucky? That I asked Clint to train me or that I didn't ask you?"

I knew I had struck a nerve…I almost regretted what I had said…that was until Clint came walking back into the training room and Bucky started stalking towards him.

"If you lay one hand on him Bucky Barnes, I swear to God, I'll make you regret it" I yelled at his back. He froze and turned around to stare at me emotionlessly…I shook my head at him and cursed myself when I felt the hot, angry tears start sliding down my cheek.

He began to stalk towards me and I saw Clint step forward to intervene, I caught his eye and gave him a look…he stopped following Bucky but watched carefully from a distance.

Bucky stopped right in front of me and I know he saw the tears still on my cheeks…one hand reached out towards me like he was going to brush them away but he stopped himself and balled it up into a fist and let it fall back to his side. He closed his eyes and tried to walk past me and out of the room…I caught his arm and stopped him.

"I love you" I whispered to him. He turned his head to look at me…I could see his eyes had softened. He gave me the barest of nods before pulling from my grasp and walking slowly out of the training room. I knew he was still upset…but I also knew that the nod was his way of saying he still loved me…even if he couldn't say the words at that moment.

The sound of the door slamming shut finally did me in and I lowered my head and let the tears fall freely. I felt Clint's arm wrap around my shoulder and he pulled me into his chest and let me cry. Once I had finally calmed down, Clint pulled me away from him and smiled, "I should be the one crying you know…I just had my ass handed to me…by a girl no less"

I couldn't help but crack a smile but didn't say anything.

"Just give him time Eden. He just needs to calm down. He's angry right now...once he settles down, you'll be able to explain" Clint said softly.

"I don't know…I think I might have seriously fucked things up between us" I told him bitterly.

"I don't think so Eden…that guy loves you, more than you could ever realize….come on, we'll talk about it over lunch" he said.

I took a quick shower and changed clothes before grabbing my duffel bag and heading to lunch with Clint. While we ate, we talked about the entire situation. I pleaded with him to tell me what it was that Bucky was hiding from me but he refused, stating that it wasn't his place. Clint just kept telling me that I needed to talk with Bucky. After lunch, he gave me a big hug and hailed me a cab to take me home.

I spent the rest of the afternoon working on a few clients while I waited for Bucky to come home. He didn't show up when he usually did so I pulled my phone out and texted the only person I knew Bucky would turn to.

Eden: Please tell me Bucky is with you

Steve: He's here.

Eden: He wouldn't let me explain. I'm sure he's told you what he thinks was going on but it's not true.

Steve: I kind of figured that. Besides, Clint called and told me what happened. I already talked to Bucky about it but he's just being stubborn. Give him time Eden.

Eden: Thanks for trying Steve. I think I may have really messed up this time. I never should have kept it a secret from him.

Steve: We all keep secrets from the ones we love sometimes…to keep them safe. Don't worry, I won't let him stay here all night.

Eden: Thanks Steve

I threw my phone down on the couch and grabbed the remote to turn on the TV. I stared at the clock and watched as the time just kept ticking by. I warmed up leftovers and sat on the couch all night, waiting for Bucky to come home so we could talk. It was nearly 10:00 before I heard his key slip into the lock…..I was dozing on the couch, the TV volume down low. I sat up quickly when he walked in the door and watched him lay his keys and wallet down on the small side table.

He looked at me for a few moments, and I stared back at him, desperate for him to say something…anything. He finally lowered his face and walked out of the living room…my heart sank when I heard him enter the guest bedroom and close the door softly.

I grabbed the remote and turned the TV off…the tears had already started to fall as I turned off the living room lights and grabbed my phone.

Go have a good cry and then go to sleep Eden….maybe it will turn out this is just some horrible nightmare.

I was wiping the tears away from my face just as quickly as they fell…the door to the guest bedroom opened right as I started down the hallway and I saw a shirtless Bucky, stepping out, heading to the bathroom.

He glanced up at me and noticed the tears on my face right away. I brushed past him but I felt him grab onto my arm and turn me towards him. He had his blue eyes locked onto mine but he didn't say a word. I waited, hoping he would break the awkward silence…I finally couldn't take it anymore and pulled out of his grasp and continued into my bedroom. I managed to get the door shut before I completely broke down sobbing.

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Bucky POV

I felt sick to my stomach the moment I heard the sobs coming from the bedroom.

Why did you just stand there and stare at her you idiot? Why didn't you say something…anything.

I rushed into the bathroom and shut the door before turning the water in the sink on high so I could drown out her crying. I stared at myself in the mirror, hating myself for not being able suck it up and forgive her. Steve had talked to Clint and had told me everything…I knew she hadn't been cheating on me…I knew she only wanted to learn how to take care of herself…I knew she wanted to learn how to fire a weapon.

"What are you madder about Bucky? That I asked Clint to train me or that I didn't ask you?"

Her words kept echoing in my head and I realized that it did bother me that she didn't come to me first. I had even mentioned it before about teaching her some things. I never wanted her to learn to fire a weapon but I wasn't opposed to the idea either. I hated the fact that I wasn't the one to teach her. Eden's safety was the most important thing to me and I wanted to be the one who showed her how to take care of herself.

I finally looked away from my reflection and washed my face before heading back into the spare bedroom. I paused in the hallway to listen…she had calmed down a little, I could only hear sniffling at this point. I lay in bed for a long time thinking about her before I finally drifted off. It was 3:30am when I sat up quickly…not sure what it was that had stirred me awake. I listened carefully and heard her whimpering. I jumped out of bed and rushed out into the hallway. Her door was still closed but I could hear her behind the door, crying out softly. I opened the door and rushed through; she was lying on her side of the bed, thrashing around.

Shit, she's having a nightmare.

As I made my way closer to the bed, it was easier to make out what she was saying.

"….No…please don't…don't hurt Bucky…I love him….no….don't" she mumbled.

Wake her up you idiot!

I sat down on the bed beside her and reached out to gently shake her awake, "Eden" I said softly.

"…no…stop it…let him go…don't take him away…please" she continued whimpering.

"Babe, wake up…come on Eden, wake up!" I said, shaking her.

She opened her eyes suddenly and sat up quickly, her hand went to her chest and she gasped for breath. I saw the terror in her eyes and tears were slipping down her cheeks. I sat there on the edge of the bed as she calmed down.

"You okay?" I asked softly, unsure of what to do…unsure if I should comfort her.

She shook her head, "No, I'm not okay…bad dream". She bit her lip and looked at me nervously, "Sorry I woke you"

"It's okay" I said softly before standing up from the bed, "You should get back to sleep"

Don't leave her you idiot! Stay with her! You know you want to!

She nodded her head and lay back onto her pillow…I turned towards the door but before I could step out I heard her speak again, "Bucky…will you….will you stay with me…please?"

I let out the breath I had been holding and turned around to walk to my side of the bed. I didn't say a word; I just climbed into the bed and got under the covers with her. I lay on my back and looked over at her before lifting my arm so she could lay her head on my chest. She let out a choked sob before scooting closer to me and letting me wrap my arm around her.

I heard her whisper, "Bucky….I'm so sor…."

"Shhhh, not tonight…go to sleep Eden" I said, rubbing her arm with my hand to soothe her.

I felt her nod her head and lay her arm across my chest before nuzzling closer to me. I brushed some hair from her face and sighed when I smelled the sweet floral aroma coming from her. I knew we still had a lot of things to talk about, but for now, I just wanted to enjoy this moment.

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Eden POV

The bed was empty when I woke up the next morning. I looked at the clock to see it was 8:30 and knew Bucky had probably already left to go to work. I was disappointed that he didn't at least wake me up to tell me he was leaving. I lay back on the bed and thought about what had happened last night. The nightmare had been awful...people were trying to hurt Bucky…trying to take him away from me. I had tried to fight them off…begged them to spare him and take me instead.

I was glad Bucky had woken me up when he did…in my nightmare they were about to erase his memory again…wipe all memory of me away and I was helpless to stop them.

I grabbed for my cell phone and scrolled in my contacts until I found the one I was looking for.

Eden: We still on for 10:00am?

Clint: Are you sure about this?

Eden: Yes

Clint: I'll see you at 10:00am then.

Eden: Thanks Clint

I sat my phone down on the nightstand and got up to take a shower and get ready to head to SHIELD. I wasn't sure if things were okay between me and Bucky. Yeah, he had stayed with me in the bed, holding me close but we still hadn't talked about what had happened…and I still didn't know what he had been keeping from me. I was going to make him talk to me…I couldn't stand the way things were between us right now.

Clint was waiting for me just like he had been the last two weeks. He smiled at me but didn't say anything…he just went about setting up the paper target for me. I bent down to dig in my duffel bag for the gun he had bought me. I sat it on the metal table and started to pull it from its case. I loaded my magazine and slipped it into the gun. I was getting ready to take my first shot when I heard the door to the training room open.

Clint and I both turned to see Bucky walking through the door. I looked over at Clint and he nodded his head at me before turning to walk towards the locker room.

All I had to do is give him one look and he knew exactly what I wanted…he sure is one of a kind.

I looked back at Bucky and saw him making his way over to me.

"Hey" he said softly when he reached me.

"Hey" I said back.

He stood there not saying anything, just watching me as I picked up my gun and flipped the safety off. I was nervous having him watch me so closely. I raised the gun to aim and heard him clear his throat. I looked over at him, "What?"

He shook his head, "You need to bend your elbow more" he said, a small smile on his face.

I couldn't help but let out a small laugh before turning back towards my target.

I rolled my eyes at him when I heard him mutter, "Let's see what kind of shit shooting Barton's been teaching you"

I aimed and emptied my entire clip into the target before setting the gun back onto the table. I hit the button to bring the target in and pulled it off to pass to him with a smug smile on my face. There were 5 perfectly aimed shots in the head and five in the chest. He looked surprised and nodded his head in approval before walking over to pick up the gun.

"Impressed?" I asked.

"Very…Clint must not be too bad of a teacher….this is nice" he said, turning the gun over in his hand.

"Yeah, I like it. It was a gift...from Clint" I said softly, watching for his reaction.

I saw him grit his teeth but he didn't say anything, he just laid the gun back onto the table.

He looked up at me finally and I saw his eyes soften, "I'm sorry I left this morning without saying anything"

I lowered my head, "It's okay Bucky…I know you're still mad at me…I…I understand"

He stood right in front of me and used his thumb to tilt my face up to look him in the eye, "I'm not mad at you…I don't know if I ever really was mad. Hurt, maybe. Jealous, definitely!"

"I didn't mean to hurt you…or make you jealous, I swear" I said, reaching down to take his hand.

"I know…we have a lot to talk about. After I'm done here, I'll come home and we can talk, okay?" he said.

I nodded, "Okay"

"I better get back" he said, glancing back at the door, "I left my recruits playing with knives"

I chuckled and pulled my hand away from his…he looked down at me and I recognized the look in his eye. It was the one he always had when he was trying to decide if he should do something or not. I smiled when he leaned down and placed a soft kiss on my lips and whispered, "I love you…I'm sorry I didn't say it back yesterday"

I smiled wide and touched my lips where he had just kissed me.

He finally turned around and walked out of the training room but not before giving me that damn sexy smirk.