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Sam shook out his hands as he stepped into the hallway of Bucky’s building. The rain had stopped, but the biting wind had picked up, adding to the frigidity of the night air. He decided it was unfair that he provided warm sunshine and delicious food whenever Bucky visited Louisiana, and all he got in return was cold and dreary weather.
He hadn’t seen Bucky in a couple of weeks, and the older man wasn’t much for texting. Sam had been on back-to-back missions and hadn’t had the opportunity to reach out until now. Two days to himself before needing to be in DC for a series of meetings. Not enough time to kick back in Louisiana but just right to head over to Brooklyn to check on his wayward friend.
Sam knocked on the apartment door and waited. He checked his phone again and pulled up the tracking information, a concession they’d made for the sake of safety. Bucky’s phone was in his apartment. If he was in there, he certainly would have heard Sam knocking. He hadn’t responded to Sam’s earlier text that he was stopping by, but it had been marked as ‘read’.
Sam didn’t want to overreact and break the door, but he wanted to get inside that apartment. He tried the handle and was dismayed to find it unlocked. He eased the door open and called out. “Buck, you in here? It’s Sam. I’m coming in.” He walked around the small space, alternating between fear of someone jumping out of the shadows or finding Bucky incapacitated.
The first thing Sam noticed was how cold it was. He wondered if the furnace was broken. He glanced at the thermostat display as he walked by and was surprised to see it was set to ‘cool’ instead of ‘heat’. He checked the bedroom and bathroom. The apartment was empty with no sign of a struggle. Bucky’s keys and wallet were on the table with his phone. It looked as if Bucky had just stepped outside for a moment.
The roof. Bucky had once mentioned going up there when he felt overwhelmed and needed space. Sam rushed up the stairs and out the door. He could see well enough with the neighborhood lights and began scanning the area. The wind was stronger up here without the shielding of the buildings. He pulled his jacket tighter just as his eyes landed on a figure huddled in the far corner.
“Buck!” He ran over and knelt in front of him, taking note of what he was seeing. Bucky was soaking wet, most likely from the heavy rain earlier. He was wearing a short-sleeve t-shirt and no shoes on his socked feet. He was trembling and didn’t answer Sam.
“Hey, Buck, you with me?”
Bucky met his eyes.
“That’s good. Are you hurt?” Sam didn’t see any noticeable injuries and Bucky didn’t appear hurt, but he was soaking wet and sitting outside in the cold night air.
“Is it okay if I touch you?” he asked.
Bucky finally gave him a little nod. Sam frowned when his hand made contact with Bucky’s frigid skin. He may not know all the details, but he could see Bucky was struggling.
“How about we head back inside? It’s a bit chilly out here.” Sam gently took hold of his arm and helped ease Bucky to his feet. He put a steadying arm around his waist and led him back to his apartment. He steered him towards the bathroom.
“Can you get out of those wet clothes? I’ll get you some dry ones.” Sam made a point to switch off the air conditioning and turn on the heat. He then went into Bucky’s room to grab some clothes.
He returned to the bathroom to see Bucky hadn’t moved. His eyes were tracking Sam, but he didn’t seem nervous or agitated. Just lost.
“Is it all right if I help you?” he asked. He kept eye contact until Bucky nodded. He never thought he would ever be in this situation, but here he was, undressing the former Winter Soldier. He knew Bucky had bad days. Hell, he still had them as well. He’d just never seen Bucky this low before.
Bucky was like a child, moving where Sam directed. They pulled off the wet t-shirt and replaced it with a sweatshirt. The jeans were harder as the fabric clung to Bucky’s frame. Fortunately, Bucky started responding a bit more and was able to do most of the work of getting the pants off and putting on the sleep pants. His skin was still cool to the touch, and Sam wondered if they should have went with a warm shower first.
He toweled off Bucky’s wet hair and got him into a pair of socks before getting him settled on the sofa with a blanket tucked around him.
“You want something to drink? You got any tea?”
Bucky shook his head. Sam wanted to ask more questions, but he didn’t think he’d answer right now. He didn’t want to press Bucky, but he also didn’t want him lost in his head. He wanted to ground him in some way.
He sat down next to him on the sofa and held out his arm and waited. A few seconds passed before Bucky leaned into him. Sam wrapped his arm around him and rested his cheek on Bucky’s damp hair. He felt another shiver run through his friend’s body and knew it wasn’t from the cold. He tightened his arm around him and just held him in the silence.