𝘈𝘯𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘢'𝘴 𝘗𝘖𝘝

My eyes peel open and I'm blinded by a white light.

"Am I dead?" I croak out.

"No. You are very much alive" A female voice tells me and I turn my head to see a smiling girl, a lot younger than myself.

"Do I know you?" I ask in confusion.

"Not yet. My name is Shuri" She introduces herself.

"I'm Anastasia" I reply, dragging myself to sit up.

"Captain Rogers told me that much" She chuckles and I look around the light room in awe.

"Where is Steve?" I ask curiously "Wait. Where am I?"

"You are in Wakanda" Shuri answers.

"Sweet" I nod, still looking around.

"I'll go get the Captain" She chirps before exiting the room.

I pull myself off the medical bed and glance down at the clothes I'm wearing. It's a pair of black leggings and an orange toned tribal print halter neck top. My white sock clad feet pad across the white laminate flooring until I reach the large wall of windows. A quiet gasp leaves my lips when my eyes lay on the view in front of me. Wakanda looks magical. Almost like something out of a fairytale or a dream.

I catch my reflection in the window and grimace. A nasty looking gash on the right side of my forehead that has been stitched up, a more shallow cut on my cheek bone and dark bruising over my jaw up the right side of my face. Purple bruises litter my right shoulder, arm and rib cage leading me to believe that my right side must have taken the majority of the blow from the fall.

The sound of the door opening causes me to turn and I'm immediately crushed in a tight hug. The familiar scent of fresh linen and mint fills my nose and I hug my best friend back with a smile.

"I was so worried about you" Steve mumbles.

"You worry too much" I reply with a laugh.

"I thought you were dead" He argues, pulling away to hold me at arms length.

"So did I for a minute" I tell him and he chuckles, shaking his head.

Out of the corner of my eye I spot another figure standing behind Steve and I peek around the blonde man to see James stand into there, staring down at his feet.

"Can you give us a minute, Stevie?" I ask lowly and the blonde smiles warmly.

He winks at me and exits the room, patting James' back on the way past.

James looks up, eyes meeting my own and I smile softly. He returns the smile, hands in his pockets and I sigh quietly. I walk up to the man and wrap my arms around him, laying my head on his chest. He slowly wraps his arms around me after recovering from the initial surprise, one hand on my back while the other one on the back of my head.

"You scared me back there" James admits and I look up at him, my chin on his chest.

"We really gotta stop scaring each other" I reply and he nods with an amused smile.

"How do you feel?" He asks in concern, gently stroking my hair.

"A little sore" I answer truthfully "But you make it better"

"I do?" He questions.

"You always do" I hum, laying my head back on his chest and enjoying the feeling of being in his arms.

"Come on. T'Challa has something to tell us" James speaks up and I reluctantly pull away from him.

"Lead the way, Bucky" I chirp and he frowns at me "What's wrong?"

"You called me Bucky" He points out.

"Steve said you didn't like James" I explain and he reaches out, intertwining our fingers.

"I like it when you call me it" He admits and I smile.

"I'll keep that noted" I reply, tugging him towards the door.

He takes the lead, showing me where to go through the hallways until we reach Steve who is standing with T'Challa.

"Your majesty" I greet the king with a nod and he smiles warmly.

"You said that you had to speak with us?" James questions.

"Captain Rogers has informed me fully about your brainwashing situation. I am offering to help you rid yourself of it, if you'll accept" T'Challa explains, looking at the dark haired man.

James looks at Steve then to me and I nod at him encouragingly, squeezing his hand.

"I'd really appreciate that. Thank you" James tells the man gratefully.

"You are both more than welcome to stay here with him while he is being treated" T'Challa says to Steve and I.

"I'm gonna stay" I state, James smiling happily.

"I gotta help Sam out, but I'll be back to check on you both" Steve declares.

"Tell him I said 'Good luck, bird brain'" I respond and the blonde man chuckles, nodding.

"Will do, Ana" He assures me.

‎✪ ‎✪‎ ✪

I lay on the bed in the room Shuri showed me to in complete silence, staring up at the ceiling and cursing myself for overthinking to the point of keeping myself awake when I should be asleep like I imagine everyone else is right now.

A knock on the door makes me jump and pull myself out of bed, tugging my oversized shirt down to cover my underwear as I walk to the door. I gently pull the door open and my eyes widen a little when I look up to see James stood there with a sheepish smile on his face.

"I didn't wake you, did I?" He asks guiltily.

"No, I was already awake" I assure him.

"I couldn't sleep so I tried to take a walk but I ended up here and I don't really know why" The raven haired man admits and I smile softly.

"Do you wanna come in?" I ask him and he nods slightly.

I open the door wider and he enters the room, letting me close the door before I walk back over to the bottom of the bed and sit down on it. James awkwardly stands in the middle of the room and I roll my eyes with an amused smile.

"Sit down, James" I tell him.

"Sorry" He smiles, sitting down next to me on the bed.

I flop back, letting out a sigh and James turns his head to me, his head tilting a little as he looks at me.

"What?" I question curiously.

"This just feels familiar" He answers, laying back too.

"You used to sneak into my room every night when we were still with HYDRA" I inform him.

"I thought that was just a dream" He says and I grin widely, turning to him.

"Do you dream about me often, Sergeant Barnes?" I tease him.

"More than I'd like to admit" He answers, reaching out and brushing my hair behind my ear.

As his fingers brush my face, I gently grab his hand and press his palm to my cheek.

"Can I kiss you?" He asks, his voice almost whisper as if he's afraid I'll say no.

"Please" I reply with a nod and he smiles happily.

He slowly leans in and presses his lips to my own, my heart slamming against my chest in a fastened pace. I kiss him deeply, instinctively pushing him onto his back and straddling his waist.

We pull away from air, panting heavily and the both of us have wide happy smiles on out faces. James grabs the front of my shirt and yanks me down, my chest hitting his. I look at him in confusion and he kisses my forehead, wrapping his non metal arm around me.

"Do you mind if I stay?" He questions, absentmindedly drawing shapes on my shoulder blades.

"Not at all" I hum, laying my head on his shoulder.