A Place for You & Me ・Bucky Barnes

the real James Barnes

The next day comes and Zoe is still thinking about his eyes. His eyes. They seemed to swallow her whole and take her to another world. She felt the deepness of his person in his eyes. She felt.. trust. 

~

James had returned home and cleaned up from dinner. He couldn't stop thinking about the way she made him feel. But was it right? She didn't even know him-- not for real. He couldn't bear the thought of her falling in love with the fake James Barnes. He shook his head and fell asleep. 

The next morning, he woke up to a text from Sam. 

I'll be in town, just giving you a heads up

He looked at the time. 7:58. Huh, he slept later than usual. Once again, he got up from the hard, cold ground. I really need to sleep on that mattress. James began his day. 

~ 

It was closing time and Zoe awaited James's arrival. After waiting fifteen minutes, she checked her phone. No messages. Hm. She decided to walk home after waiting for him. That's odd. He always shows up. Before she got home, a message alert sounded.

I am so sorry. I got held up. Are you still at the shop?

That's totally fine. I'm almost home, so it's all good

I feel terrible. Sam came to visit and I lost track of time

No worries. Enjoy your visit

A couple of minutes go by. Another chime.

Would you like to meet him?

Zoe stopped in her tracks. Should she? Or was that weird? She went back and forth in her mind and replied:

If it's cool with you, I'd love to

What?? I'd love to?? Who am I?

Great! Meet us at Lazy Cat around 10:30

She checked the time. 20 minutes to get there. No problem. 

Zoe had just enough time to get home, feed Atlas, and change. 

Upon entering Lazy Cat, she spotted James at a corner table with Sam. She was immediately overcome with anxiety. What if I he doesn't like me? I'm so awkward. She takes a moment, but continues anyway. 

"Hey, James," she says quietly upon reaching the table. James turns. 

"Oh, hey. Zoe, Sam. Sam. Zoe." They shake hands as Zoe sits.

"Nice to meet you, Zoe. Buck was just telling me about your music tastes and I gotta say, game recognizes game." He smiles and Zoe reciprocates.

"I'm just glad James has a friend who has musical taste."

"What you said. You know," Sam turns to James, "I like her already."

"Have you ordered yet?" Zoe inquires.

"Yeah, just some apps. Should be out soon." Sam replies. 

"So, how did you two become friends?"

Sam looks at James, confused.

"Through Captain America, of course."

"Wha- Captain America." Zoe is shocked. No wonder Sam looked so familiar. "Wait- you're Falcon and-" it all hit her. She never was into the media and news, but she did hear a few names thrown around every now and then. And one name that was always in the same sentence as Captain America other than Falcon was the Winter Soldier. She looks at James in disbelief. She never had a good memory of faces, so she didn't recognize him, heck, she clearly didn't even know his real name. But Winter Soldier she did know. "And you're the Winter Soldier."

"Was." James responds curtly. Sam watches them as he realizes James never told her who he was. 

"But-" nothing made sense to Zoe anymore. How could a man like him be so, so. She stopped herself, got up, and left. James hung his head.

"Well, that went great."

"Shut it, Sam."

James leaves the table and decides to go after Zoe. 

"Zoe!"

"Nope! I'm not doing this, James. Is that even your real name?" She calls from a few feet ahead of him, walking at a fast pace. James jogs to catch up. 

"Yes, it's my real name."

"And just when were you deciding on telling me you were the Winter Soldier?" She stops and looks dead into his eyes. 

"I--" He looks away. "I don't know."

"Right, you mean never." She begins to walk again. 

"I wanted to but I just-"

"Just what?"

"I-- I really like you okay?"

Zoe halts and slowly turns to him. 

"Not how I wanted to tell you this, but yeah. I like you. And I figured you would want nothing to do with me had you known who I was. What I've done." James admits in a defeated tone. 

Instead of walking again, Zoe stops herself and thinks. She liked him, too. But could she really trust him? 

Trust. 

She remembered his eyes and the way they made her feel.  

"So, what now?" She asks. 

"Whatever you want to do. I understand if you never want to see me again."

"But, it doesn't make sense. How could you be walking free if you did all those things?"

"I was pardoned from them since I was brainwashed. What I did-- that wasn't me. That was someone else controlling me. At the time, they wiped my brain so I wouldn't remember. But after I got my mind back, I started to remember--" his voice trembled. "And I started having nightmares. I'm sorry, this isn't relevant." He took a breath. "I was the Winter Soldier, yes. But I am now who I am suppose to be, James Barnes." He looked at her intensely and she felt the weight of his words. "Like I said, I understand if you never want to see me again." He turns to leave. 

"James, wait." 

He turns back. 

"I was just scared. I had only heard of all the things the Winter Soldier did. And I couldn't believe that was you. But, I understand now. And I apologize. What happened to you was horrible."

"No, I'm the one who's to say sorry. I should've told you."

"I get it." A pause is felt. 

"Maybe one day, we can talk about it. If you want." She looks at him and steps closer, looking deep into his eyes. "So, you like me, huh?" She gives a coy smile. 

He chuckles.

"Yeah, I do." He looks down, smiling. He raises his head and finds her eyes. They drink each other's gaze, allowing their faces to get closer. Just before anything can happen, Zoe says

"'My Girl.'"

"What?"

"'My Girl' by The Temptations. You should give it a listen." Zoe pulls away and walks back to Lazy Cat. "Come on, we left Sam just hangin'." James smiles and follows.