The Grey Raven // Bucky X Oc (Discontinued For Now)

⠂Prologue⠐

"Can I stay down here 'till you're done? I'm bored upstairs."

"If you want," I reply with a shrug, going back to mopping the floor. I continue working in silence before finally finishing cleaning and putting things away. "Done," I say, turning to Bucky. I flick the light switch quickly before walking past him and upstairs. He follows me up and closes the door, locking it out of habit.

"You said you had a date tonight, right?" Bucky asks after a moment.

I glance at him swiftly to find him intently studying my small cactus plant sitting in one of the windows in the kitchen. "How'd you remember that?" I ask.

He shrugs. "It seemed mildly important," he responds quietly.

I stare at him for a moment, my head tilted slightly to the side. "Yes. I do have a date to get to." I stand there for a moment before hurrying to my room.

"I'm assuming you'll want my opinion on dresses?" Bucky asks from my doorway, sounding bored.

I turn to find him leaning against the doorframe, his arms crossed and a small frown on his face. "Black or blue?" I ask after a moment, holding up two different dresses.

He stares at each of them for a moment. "Try the blue one on," he says finally. I take the blue dress into the bathroom and strip down before pulling it on.

I struggle around with the zipper before giving up and walking back out. "Can you help with the zipper?" I ask, noticing that Bucky is sitting on my bed, his back against the headboard and his legs out in front of him. He motions me over and I take a few steps over before turning around, a bit hesitant because of my back being exposed. A little shiver runs up my spine as he carefully grabs the fabric just below the zipper before zipping it in one, smooth motion. He lets go the moment he's done and the goose bumps covering my arms go back down.

I take a few steps away before turning to face him. He scans me up and down once quickly, then again but slowly. The dress is dark blue, with a square neckline. The sleeves puff out before tightening at my wrists. There is a decorative bow in front of my left hip. The skirt hits my knees, flaring out slightly.

"That one," he says, nodding. I stand there for a moment, looking around, before I start hurrying around my room, grabbing things. Shoes, coats, tights, and one of my jewelry boxes. I set all the options out carefully, standing in front of it all, frowning slightly.

"Black tights, black or dark grey booties, and a grey, long-ish coat," Bucky mutters.

I glance at him, blink a few times, then look back down. "Since when did you know so much about clothing?" I ask teasingly.

"I know what looks good on you," Bucky responds slowly, seeming unsure of his word choice.

I look at him briefly from the corner of my eyes to find him staring down at his metal hand, his eyes a bit distant. I look back down at the things in front of me and select the things he said, putting the others away. I go into the bathroom, keeping the door cracked a bit, and apply simple makeup, a pair of medium-sized pearl earrings, with a pair of smaller, diamond studs, and a silver necklace with a round, dark green stone as the charm, which rests neatly above the neckline of the dress.

I pull the tights under the dress and put the booties on, zipping up the insides and adjusting the laces slightly before turning back to the mirror. I frown at my hair for a moment before grabbing my brush and brushing through it before styling it in a side part, the front part carefully pushed up. Finally, I turn and exit the bathroom.

Bucky scans me quickly. "You look nice," he mutters, sitting up and swinging his legs over the side of my bed.

"Thanks," I respond with a tight smile. I pick my coat from off the ground, following Bucky out of my room and back down the hall. "I should be back in one to two hours," I tell him at the door.

"Okay. Text me if that changes," he responds, his face emotionless.

I nod, frowning slightly before exiting the inside door, then the outside door. I glance briefly to my right at the cafe before starting down the street. I catch a taxi and tell the driver the name of the restaurant I'm going to.

On the way there I check my messages. One message from my dad, three from a close friend, two from my aunt, and five from my cousin.

I frown and open my cousin's messages.

Hey Trid. Just wanted to check in on you.

Mom's prolly gonna text.

She's been a bit worried about ur dad.

Also she might want you to come visit us.

We miss you!

I smile a bit before responding.

Hey Skye.

I'm doing well, as usual.

Your mom did text me.

Haven't seen it yet but I'll respond soon.

I then open the messages from my aunt. Letting out a sigh at the length of them both.

Hi Trid! I know it's been a while since we've talked but I just wanted to check in on you again. Make sure the cafe is doing well. Make sure you're doing well. Skye told me you had a roommate! You didn't tell me about that! Please call me soon. I want to talk. Also, you should come to California to visit soon, I miss seeing you.

Unrelated to all that. I'm getting concerned about your dad. He doesn't seem to be doing that great and I think he misses you. He's been calling Skye and Felix pretty often. Just to talk to them. Don't forget about your father! Remember that he exists, and loves you, and wants to know how you're doing. <3

I stare at the texts for a moment, reading over them again before letting out another breath.

We'll talk soon. Both me and you, and me and my dad.

I go back and open the texts from Jade, a close childhood friend of mine.

i went on this crazy ass date with Shawn! it was a good crazy tho!

tell me when i can call you i need to fill you in on all of it.

also Ben's getting married later this year. you're definitely getting invited don't even worry about that.

I roll my eyes at my friend's lack of capitalization but smile slightly. Ben, her younger brother, is also a good friend of mine, and it's good to hear he's finally getting married. His wife-to-be is a really nice, super athletic brunette from Canada. They ran into each other, literally, in a coffee shop, both of them spilling their respective coffees on the other. One of the best meet-cutes I've heard of.

The taxi slows, before stopping against the side of the road, right outside the restaurant. I quickly pay the driver, swiping my card quickly before opening the door and stepping out. "Thank you," I tell him briefly before closing the door and turning to the restaurant. I take a deep breath, look down the street swiftly before walking into the restaurant.

~~~

I hope you enjoyed this little intro into the story!