Fire and Ice - (Bucky Barnes x OC) 18+

Chapter 71

The second she stormed out of the apartment, Bucky couldn't breathe. Panic seized him in ways it never had before.

She left.

He told her they should break up...and she left.

The instant realisation that he'd made the biggest mistake of his life gripped his heart. All he could think about was Alex. Her safety, her heart, her mental state.

"Shit...what have i done." He rasped, voice echoing the silent room. Suddenly it felt as if the four walls were closing in. His chest felt as though it was being squeezed in a vice.

Bucky ran to the entrance, twisting the handle and pulling the door wide open. When he went to take a step out, he couldn't. His body met an invisible wall of some kind, a shield, a barrier preventing him from leaving.

His eyes widened while he slid a palm across it, then backed away. The window leading to a side staircase and the balcony door met the same result. She'd locked him inside the apartment with no way of getting out.

Bucky's heartbeat began to race so fast he could hear it in his ears. Tears brimmed his eyes at the fear he now felt. Fear of not being able to get out, fear of Alex getting hurt and no way for him to help her. Fear that this was all his fault and he'd just lost her for good.

He curled his hands into fists and stormed over to the front door again, pounding against the invisible wall with every ounce of strength he could muster.

"Let me out!" He cried. "I made a mistake! It was a mistake, okay! I never meant what i said, i-i take it back, i take it all back!"

One palm lay flat against the barrier while his metal fist connected with it, over and over again. His efforts were futile because nothing worked. It didn't matter how hard he slammed his fists against it, or how much he begged, crying. It did not budge.

"I'm sorry. She's everything to me...i'm nothing without her. My heart belongs to her... please, please let me out..." he whispered, breath cutting as a tear drop fell from his eye to the floorboards below. The salty liquid touched the edge line and it sent a glistening shimmer across the barrier. Then suddenly a warm golden glow followed, and Bucky stumbled forwards righting himself on the stair railing. 

His eyes widened, and he turned his head slowly to look back at the open door that led into the apartment. His gaze slid upwards, looking beyond the ceiling.

"Thank you," He breathed, closed the door then took the stairs, heading down, level by level. When he made it outside, he glanced left then right. A golden light appeared along the ground, hinting which way he should go. He wasn't about to question anything. Whatever it was that helped him out of the apartment was now helping him find his soulmate. And so Bucky ran, following the golden light that only he could see.

It led him to the steps of the Cathedral, and he looked up at it briefly. It had been a time since he'd stepped foot inside a church, or any place religious. Bucky sifted his fingers through his wind blown hair, taming it enough to resemble some sense before heading inside.

Bucky shuddered at the immediate warmth that sunk into his body. The door closed gently behind him, and he glanced around, eyes instantly falling on brunette hair a few rows down. And she wasn't alone.

The super soldier dipped three flesh fingers into the holy water, did a quick cross move and slid into the end pew, where the light wasn't as prominent. His super hearing picked up their conversation, and he knew it was wrong to eavesdrop, but he couldn't help it.

"What is your biggest regret, my child?" The priest asked, and she took a moment before answering.

"...Putting all my time into someone who i thought would be by my side forever..." her voice wavered, and it cut him deep inside. Bucky knew he'd made a mistake, but listening to her pour her heart out to a complete stranger made him want to carve out his own.