seeley street | b.barnes AU || ON HOLD

chapter twelve

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L U C Y

IT WOULDN'T be a very long walk home. I only lived a couple blocks away. But the thrill of walking home with Bucky, alone, made my stomach flip with anticipation. It was obvious that he was giving me as much of his undivided attention as he could. Though with Natasha and Steve, often the conversations seemed to include all four of us - at least, in the beginning of the night.

Shivering, I pulled my jacket tighter around my body. I had since removed my arm from his. The cold air was a sure way at sobering me up for the most part, and I felt embarrassed at the way I had been touching him. I hoped it didn't make him upset.

"I had a really nice time tonight," I broke the silence. "Thank you for walking me home. I'm sure Natasha appreciates it too."

I could feel Bucky's gaze land on me as we walked, but I forced myself to stare straight ahead. "You don't have to thank me."

A smile found it's way to my face and I pulled my arms closer together. "Well, thank you, anyway." I said with a teasing tone. "Did you have fun tonight?" I thought back on our night together, it was hazy with alcohol, but I remembered very vividly how happy he seemed to look.

"I did," He nodded. "I had a great time. It's been a while since I had such a nice time..." His voice trailed off, and I couldn't tell if my words had upset him. I hoped it didn't bring any bad memories up for him. "And Pippin sure is a cutie."

I immediately smiled and stepped closer to him as we walked, our shoulders brushing accidentally. "He is, isn't he?"

Bucky laughed and again our shoulders touched. "So where do you live? I'm assuming you're leading the way, here."

"You don't know where we are?" I said with a laugh, "Everyone knows fifteenth street, We're right outside Prospect."

"I know where we are, Lucy." The way he emphasized my name made my stomach flutter. "Just wanna make sure we're headin' in the right direction is all."

"Yes," I smiled. "I've on Seeley street." We started to cross over onto sixteenth street, and he put his hand on my back to guide me. It made me blush.

"You live on Seely street?" He asked me, as if the words suddenly clicked in his mind. "I live on Seeley street."

My head snapped up to look at him with disbelief. "Are you serious? How have we never meet before? What side are you on?"

"I'm closer to McDonald Ave, let me guess, your Prospect?"

I nodded and stepped closer to him, using the cold breeze to shield me. "Yeah, I'm right on the cusp of Seeley and Temple. I can't believe we live on the same street. How long have you been there?"

He scratched his chin and moved his head, as if he were having a debate in his head. "About two years now. I moved in after my last tour."

That must have been when his engagement ended. My heart ached slightly at the pain he must have felt when it ended, but if I were being honest, I'm glad it did. Otherwise he wouldn't be walking me home right now.

Our hands brushed together in the silence that followed, and I could've sworn I felt him try and grab my hand. But the feeling was gone as fast as it came. I wanted to reach out and grab his hand, but I wasn't thinking straight. I was still a little drunk and even though I felt like puking at how happy I was talking to him, I didn't need him knowing that.

A group of people started to pass us, and Bucky wrapped his arm around my shoulders, guiding me closer to the building line to avoid running into them. I felt his fingers dig into my shoulder slightly, but I thought it was because he was trying to be protective.

"So," I started, "What are your plans tomorrow?"

"I got a meeting at the VA pretty early," He said.

Before I could stop myself, the words flew right out of my mouth. "Therapy, right? You see Dr. Raynor?" I blamed the alcohol.

My question must have caught him off guard, because his hand on my shoulder loosened. "Um, uh, yeah. Yeah."

"I saw a therapist for a while," I rushed out, trying to make him feel less embarrassed. "It really helped me. It's good that you're going. I think everyone should go."

"I wish I thought like that," He mumbled, "Anyway, then I might go home and start that show you said to watch. What was it called again?"

"Stranger Things," I reminded him. I didn't want to keep talking about something he was uncomfortable with, and I shouldn't have brought it up to begin with. I let the topic drop. "I guess I might see you there, then."

Bucky nodded and I felt a squeeze on my shoulder. "You will."

I blushed and looked down at the ground. What was I doing? This time last week I was crying about what an asshole he was to me and what an asshole I was to him. Now, I'm blushing on the side of the street while he walks me home? I misjudged him, I guess. The man I first met wasn't this man. This man seemed much kinder. But it still scared me. I wasn't sure if I was ready to get close to another man. I wasn't sure if I would ever be ready.

When we got to the front steps outside my door, I looked back at him. "Thank you again for walking me home, I really appreciate it. It was very kind."

"S'all good," He shrugged his shoulders and looked at the ground, kicking at imaginary dirt. "Thank you for letting me."

I smiled brightly and leaned over him, giving him a quick hug that didn't last more than two seconds. "I'll see you around?"

"Yeah, definitely." Bucky said, slowly stepping back. "Have a goodnight, Lucy."

I felt my cheeks start to heat up again, so I started up my stairs. With a glance back, I saw he was waiting for me. Probably to walk into the house. "Get home safe, Bucky." I said.

He laughed, making me blush again, and I quickly unlocked the door and slide behind it, so he didn't see the way his laugh affected me already.

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The sound of my door bursting open startled me, waking me up. Within an instant I was sitting up, the room blurry with sleep, trying to find what had woken me up so abruptly.

"Jesus, Lucy!" I heard Natasha yell. I looked at her as she made her way into the room. "You didn't call me. I was worried about you."

"What?" I mumbled, rubbing my tired eyes and looking at the clock that hung above my door. "It's two in the morning."

She smacked my shoulder. "You said you would call."

"I'm sorry, I fell asleep really quickly." I said. "You could yell at me about it tomorrow, I have to be up at eight." I leaned back against my pillows and my eyes started to close.

I heard Natasha huff and then the pressure of her weight from the bed was gone. "Did something happen?"

Opening my eyes, I could see the concern look on her face. "No, nothing happened. He barely touched me and when he did, it was only his arm."

"Okay, okay. Good."

"I doubt he's a rapist, Nat." I said, pulling my blankets under my chin. "I'm fine, I promise."

"You know I worry about you. You never know." Natasha said. "Okay, go back to bed, Luce." The light clicked off as she left, and my eyes shut once again, pulling me back into sleep.

thank you for reading <3 im such shit at writing lately I can't get into it :/

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