Chapter 30-Not Just a Thunderstorm

Third Person:

This was, unfortunately, the time of year where weather was sort of all over the place. It had been a week since the gym, and now it was raining buckets instead of snowing. Beni didn't know whether she should be grateful for no more cold, or not grateful because the thunder had woken her up.

She groaned and rolled out of bed. She wasn't going to be able to go back to sleep, and she knew that, so she was going to wait it out in the kitchen. Besides, she's still off from work on medical, so she didn't have to worry about anything like that. She yawned and left her room, only stopping half way in the doorway when she heard a whimpering. It was almost inaudible, and if she had been just a hair louder she wouldn't have beard it at all.

She quickly ran upstairs, taking three at a time, and ran into Bucky's room. He was in the corner curled into a tight ball with his hands holding his head and his knees pressed tightly to her chest. His eyes were wide in panic and he was mumbling something that she couldn't understand. She quickly dropped to his side.

"Bucky? Hey, what's wrong? Talk to me, Buck," she said kind of loudly so he would hear her. Despite the fact that she was right in front of him now, he didn't give any kind of sign that he had heard her. She grabbed him by his shoulders and shook them in an act of desperation.

"...No...Man on the bridge... Not the chair..." he muttered. Beni wasn't going to question him about it. If he wanted to talk about it he would have told her before this.

"Bucky!" she shook him again. "Pay attention to my voice, okay? You're not there with the man on the bridge, r the chair," she practically screamed. He looked up at her, tears streaming down his face.

"B...Beni?" he asked as if he was uncertain. Beni nodded, a small, relieved smile forming on her lips, but then another wave of thunder hit, and Bucky screamed, closing even more in on himself. Beni's half smile dropped and she let go. She knew exactly what to do now. If she couldn't reach him the maybe music could. When she had sang in front of him before be seemed to rock back and forth to the beat with his eyes closed and a content smile on his face.

Before she could put any more thought into it, she ran down the stairs, grabbed her ukulele, and ran back un the stairs, all in under a minute. She started playing ben she got down next to him again.

"Somewhere where over the rainbow
Way up high
And the dreams that you dream of once in a lullaby

Somewhere over the rainbow
Blue birds fly
And the dreams that you dream of
Dreams really do come true

Some day you wish upon a star
Wake up where the clouds are far behind
Well trouble melts like lemon drops
High above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me

The images, memories, that Bucky was seeing slowly got fuzzier and fuzzier as something else pushed it's way into his head. It was music. It was nice. It was sung by a soft, smooth, perfect voice that he recognized, but couldn't quite place. Be squeezed his eyes shut and paid attention to the music instead of the memories, and when he opened them again, the music was louder and the images were almost completely gone. He could see Beni in front of him. That was her voice, and be was in his room. That was her singing.

Oh, somewhere over the rainbow
Bluebirds fly
And the dreams that you dare to
Oh why, oh why can't I?

Well I see trees of green, Beni switched the song in the middle of another song, and it was so naturally done that she and Bucky barely noticed.

and red roses too
I'll watch them bloom for me and you
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

Well I see skies of blue
And I see clouds of white
And the brightness of the day
I like the dark
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

The colors of the rainbow
So pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces of the people passing by
I see friends shaking hands
Saying, 'how do you do?'
They're really saying I...I love you

Beni could see him coming back. He was with her now, not on some chair. She could see it in his eyes, and when more thunder cracked, he only flinched. He kept starring at her, focusing in her and only her, and Beni couldn't be more relieved.

I hear babies cry, and I watch them grow
They'll learn much more than we'll know
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

Someday I'll wish upon a star, she switched back to the first song.

Wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where trouble melts like lemon drops
High above the chimney top
That's where you'll find me

Oh, somewhere over the rainbow, way up high
And the dream that you dare to
Why, oh why can't I?

she stopped playing and set her ukulele down next to her, and pulled Bucky into a hug.

Bucky hugged Beni back, burrowing his head into her neck and taking in her scent. He didn't want to let go, and he didn't want her to let go. He hugged her a little tighter, and she started rocking them back and forth, humming slightly. But Bucky needed her voice to keep bi grounded a bit better.

"C...Can you tell me about your tattoo?" he asked, rocking back in forth with Beni.

"Yeah, I can," she said. "It's a Howling Commandos tattoo, from the army. The Howling Commandos are a special team of soldiers that normal soldiers can't do. They were first started in World War II, with Captain America. The U.S. made it into a special program, with only the best operatives. I was a sniper, Tam was a medic, but was probably the deadliest person on the team with two pistols. Derek was an attention hog, but he's one of the best strategists I've ever seen. Troy was also a sniper, and he was also the guy to get supplies wherever we were. Cain was the captain and I want nothing more than for him to burn in hell."

"Why?"

"He's a traitor. Double agent. Anything bad in this world cannot compare to him and his badness."

"Not even... Say... Assassins?"

"Assassins?" Beni laughed slightly. "I would gladly let one in my home if it meant that I never had to see Cain again. They're more warm and cuddly than him."

Bucky's internally sighed with relief.

They stayed like that for the rest of the night despite the fact that it had stopped raining at around four in the morning. When it was around eight, Beni pulled away from Bucky, who was in a much better state than when she had found him just hours before.

"You good?" she asked. Be smiled nervously and nodded.

"Yeah... I'm good."

"Awesome. And hey, Buck? Next time there's a thunderstorm, don't hesitate to ask, okay?"

Ask? Ask for what? Help? Music? The longest hug ever known to mankind? But he nodded, because any one of those things is better than having to go through it all alone.

"Promise," he said. Beni smiled.

"And while we're on the subject of help, can you help me? You sat on my real leg the entire night, and I can't feel it."

She gave Bucky a sheepish smile while he just laughed.

"Yeah," he said, picking her up bridal style, "I think I can do that."