Little Wing - Bucky Barnes x OC

The Courage to Fly

The tank was getting close to empty, so she kept an eye out for an exit sign. Mentally praying to some unknown force that the truck wouldn't run out before she could find somewhere to fill up.

Dove's sweating only intensified from the looming possibility of running out of gas in the middle of fucking nowhere so close to sundown. She gripped the wheel tight in her hands as she continued on through the wide plains of dry grass.

As if the universe itself willed it, a small green sign came into view promising her hope with the standard font spelling out the word 'EXIT', accompanied by a diagonally pointed arrow. She followed the sign and got off on the next ramp, driving down the poorly paved asphalt to the only building in sight.

She pulled into the rundown gas station and parked right beside the pump. She leaned over in her seat, shaking Wanda by the arm. "Psst, Wands."

The redhead mumbled something incoherent in her sleep and Dove shook her again, with more force this time. "Dude, I'm gonna fill the tank. It looks like there's a snack machine if you want to get something."

"Gotta pee," Wanda muttered, voice groggy with sleep.

Dove laughed as she unbuckled her seat. "Or that."

She hopped out of the truck and walked across the lot. The bite of the sun instantly disappeared as she stepped foot into the small service room that was just a bit bigger than her bathroom back at home. An attendant stood behind the register, eyeing her expectantly. His face was wrinkled and he wore a stain-covered tank top, reeking of sweat.

Dove dug into her pocket, pulling out her last bit of cash and sliding the money across the counter. "Pump," she looked over her shoulder, seeing that there were only two, "one, I guess," she chuckled.

The attendant made some kind of icky grunting sound in his throat and rang her up at the register, shoving the cash into the drawer before gesturing for her to proceed with filling her tank.

Making her way back outside, she watched as Wanda dropped down from the passenger side of the truck and let out a huge yawn. "God, my legs feel like fucking jello," she said, doing a couple of jumping jacks and then running in place as if to wake them.

"Don't even get me started about my back," Dove grumbled as she strode over to the pump.

Wanda laughed, nodding her head. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom and then I think I'm gonna call my parents to let them know we're still alive."

Dove forced a smile, feeling a pang of sadness over the mention of calling home. Trying to brush it off, she rounded the truck and started filling the tank.

She stood waiting for a while, chewing her lip as the gas poured into the truck. The hot orange sun beat down on her, making her skin prick. She stared blankly at the dials on the pump. Watching the roll of numbers go higher and higher the more it filled.

The sound of a loud creak from across the lot made Dove glance over to see Wanda exiting the side door of the building, which she assumed was the bathroom, and walk over to the payphone on the opposite end of the structure. She dialed her number and held the handset between her shoulder and cheek. A huge smile spread across her face a second later, making it clear that her parents had answered.

Dove frowned as she brought her hand up once again to look at the number on her palm. Her stomach sank when she saw that the ink was nearly gone from her skin. She figured the process was hurried along by sweating profusely as she drove and gripped the steering wheel for dear life.

She knew in that moment that she either had to call Bucky then or risk eventually calling home and asking for his number once the ink disappeared altogether. And the latter wasn't exactly an option.