Alterlife ⇝ Bucky Barnes [1]

one.

01. | DINER DUTIES AND DATE PLANS.

SUMMERTIME WAS LYDIA'S FAVORITE TIME OF THE YEAR. Many found it strange for the girl who shared a birthday with Christmas to find it more of a comfort than the snow, but it was a trait that she shared with her father Anthony, although as she grew older there seemed to be less and less time to enjoy the season. In her grade school years, the slow creep of summer would make her blood thrum with anticipation for the warm nights. She'd sneak off to the beach with her best friends and spend the entirety of her days there, either playing in the water or cramming in a few chapters of whatever book Effie needed her to write a report on.

The nights may have been shorter, but it never stopped their trio from making the most of them. Since it wasn't uncommon for teenagers to roam the streets, they'd sneak into jazz clubs and dance the night away with people too old for them once they got a bit older. Kenneth would haggle alcohol from one of the local drunks and they'd sit in back alleys or other places that would be dangerous for kids like them to get drunk themselves. They'd walk the streets until the sun came back up, trying and failing miserably to sober up before returning home to their sleeping parents.

Now that she was older, her habit of staying up with the sunrise failed to work in her favor, like that particular morning. Her analog clock hadn't gone off in time and the nineteen-year-old was scrambling to get herself put together for work. The amount of curlers strewn across the bathroom counter would surely get her yelled at, along with the toothpaste still left in the sink, but she'd deal with it after her shift. 

She was one of two waitresses at King's Diner in the heart of Harlem - the most popular spot to get a meal on their side of the city. It was Kenneth's family restaurant that had been in their family for two generations now, and who better to pick up another job than someone they considered part of their family? When she was sixteen and had first accepted the job, she wasn't too keen on starting out working in such a busy environment. Now that she was older and much more experienced, however, there was hardly ever a day that felt like a real job. She'd fill up empty coffee cups and balance trays like it was as natural to her as talking, of which she did plenty throughout the day's shifts. 

Lydia was currently forcing her right slipper onto her foot as she made her way through the door, huffing in annoyance as she did so. She kept a hand on the wall beside her to keep her balance, though it was hardly enough to keep her upright. She took a step too soon and stumbled forward, barely catching herself fast enough before she ran into her elderly neighbor.

The man had only ever been kind to the Wilsons and seen outside with a smile on his face. He and his wife had lived in Harlem all their lives in that exact apartment, though in their older age he was the one that left their home more often. Lydia wasn't sure how they managed to raise four children in such a small space that was hardly enough for her and her father, but the Ellises seemed happy enough to be there. For the first time in her eleven-year residency, she could make out the distinct expression of fear on his face as she skid to a short stop before she ran into him, "Wow, missy! Slow down!"