Forever Young
Mira waited, praying that she could avoid a trip to the Med. Five minutes passed by in silence as Mira watched the bruise on Bucky's hip travel down his leg and up his side, and his skin start to lose its color. She couldn't wait any longer, Bucky was losing too much blood internally. "Okay sweetie, it's time to wake up. The three of us are gonna take a little trip," Mira said softly as she set Bucky on the couch and got to her feet. She made her way into Phil's room to wake up Clint.
"Clint? Are you up sweetie?" Mira asked as she knocked on the door softly. There was a muffled groan and the door swung open to reveal a thankfully adult Clint. He rubbed his eyes, stifling a yawn.
"Oh hey Mira. What time is it?" Clint asked as he stumbled out of his room.
Mira rubbed the back of her neck. "You've only been asleep five minutes. We gotta take Bucky to the Med, he's not doing so hot," she said, following behind Clint.
"Ms. Callaway, my sensors indicate Mr. Barnes is in great medical distress. His vitals have dropped out of normal range and are continuing to fall. Shall I contact emergency personnel?" JARVIS chimed, a hint of concern in his voice.
Mira cursed loudly, jogging into the living room. "That won't be necessary JARVIS.” She dropped to her knees beside the couch, trying to keep the tears at bay as she looked down at Bucky. He was lying on his side curled up in the fetal position, sweat on his deathly pale skin. He was trembling violently and Mira could hear him wheezing as he struggled to take a deep breath.
"Shh, you’re okay Bucky, I'm here. We're going to get you feeling better real soon," Mira murmured, brushing the sweat soaked hair from Bucky's eyes. She made a mental note to give Bucky a trim before Steve came home. "Clint, are you alright to drive?"
Clint nodded. "Yeah, I'm good to drive. Do you need help getting Bucky to the car?"
Mira shook her head. "No, I got it." She had more than enough strength to pick up Bucky. It was one of the good things that had come from her brush with Centipede. She hauled Bucky up in her arms, letting his head rest against her shoulder as she settled him on her hip. "You're gonna be okay, sweetie. We're gonna get you all fixed up in no time," Mira spoke softly as she followed Clint into the elevator and down to the garage.
"JARVIS, can you patch me through to Tony? Bring him up on the monitor," Mira asked as soon as the doors slid shut.
"Right away, Ms. Callaway."
A few seconds went by before Tony's smiling face popped up on screen. "Hey baby, how are things at the tower? Has Clint burned it to the ground yet?" Clint chuckled and flipped off the camera. "Whoa, Is that Bucky? He looks a lot worse than what Bruce said."
Mira nodded, glancing down at the shivering unconscious body in her arms. "He developed a real bad bruise when I was giving him his meds and it just keeps getting bigger. He's lost a ton of blood internally. Clint and I are taking him to the Med.”
"Jesus," Tony muttered. "Well there's some good news on this end. We've neutralized the enemy force and are in clean up mode. We should be done and on a plane home by tonight. I'll text you when we land and see if you're still at the facility. Keep us updated though okay?"
"Of course Tony. See you tonight," Mira replied before disconnecting the call. "Clint, you should call Phil and let him know what's going on. He'll want to be at the Med when we get there."
Clint pulled out his secure cellphone and dialed Coulson's number. “Hey, it’s me. Yeah, he’s gotten worse. We’re taking him to the Med now. No, there’s more room in the SUV and we don’t have time to wait for the jet to start up. Real bad Phil, so you should get over there as soon as possible. Yeah, she just got done talking with Tony. The mission’s over and they’re heading home in a couple hours once clean-up is done.” Clint sighed. “Well just tell May it’s important. The whole team should be there for Bucky. I know Skye got really close to Bucky that time we had to go dark and hunker down in the tower. This might be it Phil. Let me talk to May, I can get through to her.”
Clint sighed while waiting for Phil to hand Agent May the phone. Mira had only met May once in passing, and though she seemed cold, Mira knew she cared about her team very much.
“May, listen. Yeah, I know you guys are looking for more Inhumans, but this is more important. Yes, more important than super powered people! This is about Bucky. He’s sick, and we don’t know how much longer he has. The serum is breaking down faster than any of us anticipated. The Inhumans will still be around tomorrow, Bucky might not be. Simmons is working The Med today and is already waiting for us. Please May, do this for Bucky,” Clint pleaded. Mira couldn’t remember the last time she’d heard Clint beg like that. “Thank you May, you don’t know how much we all appreciate this. We’ll see you there.”
“So the team’s all going to be there?” Mira asked as Clint hung up the phone.
Clint nodded. “Yeah. I think it scared May a little to think about how bad Bucky’s gotten. She might not always show it, but she really cares about him. I think it’s her maternal side showing through; she loves Bucky like he was her own. They said they’d be there as soon as they can. They’re at the Hub hunting down a lead on a pocket of rebel Inhumans when I called. They’re just going to move a strike team in so they can make it back here as soon as possible.”
Bucky whined, trembling in Mira’s arms. He clutched at Mira’s shirt, burying his face in the soft fabric. His pajamas were soaked with sweat and what was most likely urine, and Mira wished she’d thought to change his clothes before they left. “It’s okay Bucky, I’ve got you. We’re going to get you fixed up, as good as new,” Mira whispered, rocking back and forth trying to soothe him.
The elevator came to a stop in the garage, and they made their way to the SUV. Clint slid into the driver’s seat and gunned the engine while Mira climbed into the backseat with Bucky. As soon as Mira closed the door, Clint burned rubber out of the garage and out into traffic. The traffic was surprisingly light for a weekday in New York, and Clint effortlessly weaved in and out of the other cars.
“Connect me to Agent Simmons at the Hub,” Clint said as he turned on the car’s Bluetooth.
“Go for Simmons,” Jemma’s warm voice filtered through the car’s speakers.
“Simmons, this is Agent Barton. Agent Callaway and I are bringing Bucky in. You’re going to need a full medical team at the ready for when we arrive.”
“Is it really that bad? Coulson texted me earlier and said you might be coming in.”
“Yeah, it’s really bad Jemma. Coulson and the team are heading that way and the Avengers will be in some time later tonight.”
“We’ll be ready for you when you get here,” Simmons replied and ended the connection.
Clint slowed the car down as he approached a red light, and it was then that he heard soft singing coming from the backseat.
“I got all I need when I got you and I.
I look around me and see your sweet life.
I’m stuck in the dark but you’re my flashlight.
You’re getting me through the night.”
Clint smiled to himself. Mira’s voice always seemed to calm Bucky after a nightmare, no matter how bad it was. But he knew that though her voice was steady, Mira was barely holding it together on the inside.
“We’re almost there Mira. Just a few more blocks,” Clint stated as the light turned green and the flow of traffic resumed.
Mira tightened her arms around Bucky’s shaking form, praying that the sweet little boy she’d grown to love so much would survive.