Dogfight
(Noun)
A 'game' in which contestants pitch money and invite a girl out, with the objection of bringing the ugliest girl they can find. The man with the ugliest date, wins.
—
As three in the afternoon roll around, Mildred puts on her uniform, a simple dark green collared dress and apron, and headed to Luigi's, the medium-sized Italian restaurant that she got a job at.
It was her first day, having only moved here within the last week, and being only freshly 18, she hadn't much experience in the waitressing department.
The owner of Luigi's, Mister Bianchi, told her that she would be trained adequately while on the job. This furthered Mildred's confusion, because why wouldn't they hire someone who actually had experience? It seemed like a more valuable use of their time during the depression.
When Mildred arrived, the first thing she noticed was that she was the only girl working, but was surrounded by men. They varied in age, some looking as young as her, and others pushing sixty.
As Mildred walked in, she was instantly pulled over by Mister Bianchi, who greeted her warmly. "Ah, Mildred! Good to see you again." The older mans voice was raspy, like he'd smoked cigarettes his entire life.
"Afternoon, Mister Bianchi." Mildred smiled politely at the owner. "Thank you again for this opportunity, I really apprecia-"
"Ahh!" He cuts her off, throwing his hands up to silence her. "Don't you start, you'll be helping us more than you know."
It was an odd thing to say, because it didn't appear that the restaurant was exactly strapped for workers, so Mildred was unsure just how much help she could really be.
"You're going to be hosting," Mister Bianchi continues and pointed to a podium. "When someone comes in, you ask if they have a reservation. If the answer is no, check if there's a vacant table and seat them." His voice is very clearly New-Yorker, but there's a hint of Italian in there, though like it was long lost.
"Yes, sir." The other workers stare at Mildred as the owner showed her around, giving her tips and advice.
"We do take-aways, and we expect to have a lot of those tonight, being New Year's Eve and all." The old man grumbles, sounding like he'd much prefer for people to sit down and have a meal instead. "If that happens, you write their order down and sit them over there in the waiting area." Mister Bianchi pointed to a few rusty chairs next to the entrance. "Think you've got it?"
"I think so, sir." Mildred smiled.
"Good." He handed her a name tag which read 'Millie' and her mind thought back to the nickname Bucky gave her. She'd never had a nickname before, and now here it was, coming up again. "Well, we open in about an hour, so Marco here will help you set up tables."
Mister Bianchi snapped his finger at a young man, signalling him to join them. "Marco is my nephew," he said, clapping a hand on the mans shoulder. "He will make sure you're looked after."
Marco nodded politely to Mildred, chewing lightly on a toothpick. "Nice to meet ya, Mildred." He had an even thicker accent than his uncle, sounding over dramatised like they do in the movies.
"You too, Marco."
Mister Bianchi started yelling something in Italian to a chef and left the two of them to set up tables and chairs, adorning them with cutlery and table cloths.
"So," Marco starts as he pushes some chairs into place. "When did you move to Brooklyn?"
"Last week," Mildred stood next to her podium, polishing silverware. "But settling in fast."
Marco nodded, spitting out his toothpick into a napkin. "You like it?"
"I do, but it's definitely different."
"What do you mean?" He questioned.
"I mean, it's a big city. I'm from upstate originally, so it's just a big change." Mildred began to wrap the freshly polished silverware in napkins, handing them to Marco to set the table with.
"Do you miss it? Upstate, I mean."
Mildred took a deep breath in, thinking hard about her answer. "I'm not sure yet."
The two of them continued to set the dining area up and before Mildred realised it, tables were already being filled with occupants, and she was actually doing an okay job.
Sure, she wasn't super well versed with the reservations book yet, or good at writing orders down for take away as quickly as she should, but people were understanding when she told them it was her first day on the job.
Marco came by to collect a few order dockets from her station and gave her a reassuring smile. "You're doing good, uncle Jimmy is real happy with ya!" He exclaimed to her, referencing Mister Bianchi.
"Oh thank goodness!" Mildred let out a breath. "I was worried. To tell you the truth, I don't even know why he hired me."
Marco shrugged, organising the dockets in his hand, readying them for the chefs. "Probably to help bring in more customers." He said as if it were no big deal, but Mildred gave him a perplexed look.
He laughed slightly at her ignorance. "You're a young girl, he probably thought you'd bring in some of the working men." Mildred's jaw dropped slightly at the out of the blue comment by her co worker. She'd never considered herself something that would actually entice men, not with how they've previously treated her.
"And looks like he was right..." Marco quickly eyed the entrance before leaving for the kitchen, and a bunch of young construction workers were making their way in.
"Uh...welcome." Mildred suddenly felt incredibly shy and small in the presence of the muscular men. "What can we do for you guys tonight?"
The men all agree on take away and start listing their order of various pasta and other foods to Mildred. When the final boy, a familiar looking ginger haired fellow, made his way up to her hostess pillar, he shot her a smile.
Mildred cleared her throat, trying not to obviously stare at the man. "...and for you?" She questioned, readying her pen, still trying to figure out why he appeared so familiar to her.
"A date." The man said boldly, looking Mildred right in the eye.
"A...what?" Mildred stares in disbelief, grateful that all the other men were deep in conversation and didn't seem to pay her any mind.
"A date. I'd like to take a pretty girl, like yourself, out to a party tonight." And it was in this moment that Mildred finally recognised the man standing opposite of her.
She frowned at the man, and crossed her arms. "Weren't you one of the guys beating up that poor, blonde man yesterday?"
The man threw his hands up in defence. "Woah, woah, woah. I never actually hit him." His hand moved to graze the side of his cheek. "You sure hit me, though, darlin'."
"I think you deserved it."
"And you're right, I did!" His response slightly shocks Mildred. "I may not have hit him, but I didn't stop the others from doing it, and that's just as bad."
Mildred's expression softened at his seemingly genuine comment. He rested his arms on her podium, leaning for support. "It wasn't right, I should've been better.
"Well, at least you acknowledge it."
"So whaddya say?" The ginger pressed, causing Mildred to shoot him a questioning look. "Come to the party with me?" The man batted his eyelashes at Mildred and she scoffed.
"I don't even know your name!"
"It's Thomas," he grins. "Thomas Bates."
"Well Thomas, I have to work tonight anyway. I don't get off until ten."
"I don't mind going late, I can meet you here after your shift and we can walk together, it ain't far!" He was incredibly persistent, flirty, and Mildred had to admit, not bad looking either.
"I don't know..." Mildred began to decline his offer, turn him down and make up excuses for herself, trying to convince her own mind that there was no reason she should go, but her mother's voice rang in her ears.
"The next time a cute boy asks you to a party, say yes."
He gave her puppy dog eyes, and she caved. "If I say yes, will you hurry up and order?" Thomas laughed and nodded. "Fine. I'll go out with you tonight."
He smiled wide, the freckles on his face stretching slightly. "Good, I'll be here at ten. Oh and I'll have the risotto."
Mildred wrote the final meal on the docket and spiked it, dinging her bell, signalling Marco to come and collect it.
Something she hadn't admitted was that this would be her first date, ever. And the thought kind of terrified her.
After the meals were ready, the men paid and exited the establishment. Mildred found herself constantly checking the clock, waiting for her shift to finish.
Both excitement and nerves filled her, and she couldn't stop her mind from racing.
~
Finally, when the clock struck 10 she was permitted to leave. Mister Bianchi even let her use the phone to call her parents, letting them know that she would be home late.
She said goodbye to her boss and new friend, Marco, and sure enough, waiting outside in the cold was Thomas. Mildred slipped her arms into her coat, frowning slightly as she knew she wasn't exactly in fancy dress.
"There you are!" Thomas lifted his arm slightly, though not removing his hand from his pocket, and motioned for her to link arms with him. "The party is just a few blocks away, be there in no time." His teeth slightly chattered.
Mildred was actually really flattered, despite her nerves about going on her first ever date, she was trying to appear calm and collected. But the fact that he waited out in the freezing cold for her, just to take her on a date, made Mildred feel special.
Like he must've really wanted to do this.
The two of them made polite small talk to each other, Thomas even cracking a few jokes which made Mildred laugh, calming her nerves.
As they rounded one final corner, Thomas pointed to a townhouse that had bright, yellow light blaring through the windows, signalling a party. "There! You see it?"
Mildred nodded, taking into account just how busy it seemed considering the fact that she could hear the commotion from down the street. "I see it. Are you sure the host won't mind you bringing me?"
"No, 'course not. Dot's my buddy's sister, it'll be fine."
Dot...the name sounded familiar to Mildred.
As the two of them climbed the stoop, Mildred began to unbutton her coat, readying it as Thomas pushed the door open, letting a gust of cold air into the house party.
Swing music was playing from a room with an open fire, but the sound of everyone chatting nearly drowned it out completely. Thomas helped Mildred out of her coat and hung it in the closet, along with his own. He then linked arms with her as he dragged her around the house, pointing out where different rooms were located. It was a big house, nice too. This Dot girl must come from a well-off family.
In the middle of the house, was what Mildred can only assume would have been the dining room, though it's currently lacking a table, people were dancing.
Some were slow, just enjoying a moment between themselves, others were showing off with swing moves, flicking legs into the air and dipping down low.
Then, across the room, Mildred caught the eye of Bucky Barnes, and suddenly she realised why the name Dot had sounded so familiar. This must've been the party he mentioned in the bakery.
The tall brunette stuck out from the crowd, he smiled brightly towards Mildred but it turned into a look of almost disgust as he noticed who she was with.
She frowned at his change in facial expressions but was brought out of her thoughts at the feeling of Thomas placing his hand on her lower back, a little too low.
"Would you like a drink?" He shouted over the loud chatter of people.
Mildred had never drank before, though being able to, she just never had an opportunity arise. She thought for a minute and ended up nodding at Thomas who smiled and then pushed through people to find something for her.
It was at that moment that Bucky made a B-line to Mildred, grasping Steve by the shoulder and weaving him through the people with him. Mildred hadn't even noticed Steve was with Bucky, him being not much taller than her so his small frame tended to disappear in large groups of people.
"Millie!" Bucky shouted in a thick accent. "You made it." The two men manage to finally push through the final few people and find their spot right in front of her.
Steve smiled at Mildred shyly, only making brief eye contact with the girl before shoving his hands deep into his pockets and looking anywhere but at her.
Mildred couldn't deny the fact that his soft, sweet smile gave her a little flutter in her stomach. Something about Steve just stuck out to her. Maybe it was his soft nature, or the shy looks he gave her. "I did," Mildred moved her eyes from Steve and greeted Bucky. "I'm sorry about earlier."
Steve's head shot to Bucky in confusion, who gave him a look that Mildred couldn't quite understand. "It's all good, what matters is you're here." Bucky lowered his voice slightly. "But uh, why'd ya come here with Thomas Bates?" He didn't do well to hide his disdain.
"Is there something wrong with that?"
"I mean, he's just not the kind of guy you want to spend your time with s'all." It was evident that he was unhappy with her choice of date, but it didn't seem like jealous to Mildred. Perhaps it was irritation from the fact that he was one of the thugs from yesterday, and if so, it made sense why he would be unhappy.
"And who is the kind of guy that I should be spending my time with?" Mildred crossed her arms, but before Bucky could answer her, Thomas returned with a glass of something bubbly and handed it over.
"Fellas," he nodded to Bucky and Steve. "Some party, hey?"
Bucky only gave him a mumble, barely making out the word 'yeah' and Steve stayed silent. Mildred's eyes drifted to him for only a second and saw he was frowning hard at his feet, and his lips were pursed.
"Hey Steve, buddy..." Thomas took a sip of beer before continuing. "I wanted to say sorry for yesterday, no hard feelings, yeah?" His apology didn't sound nearly as genuine as it could've been.
Bucky didn't give Steve a chance to respond, instead just grabbed onto him and pulled him away, giving Mildred a sour look as her did.
This genuinely upset Mildred, left her feeling kind of guilty. She realised in that moment that she'd much prefer to be spending her time with Steve and Bucky than Thomas, but felt too rude to leave him.
"Man, can't stand that guy." Thomas spat.
"Hm?"
"James Barnes, he's an ass." Mildred scowled at Thomas and was about to scold him, tell him that he was in fact being an ass in this moment, but Thomas grabbed her hand and started pulling her through the groups of people and towards the dancing. "Dance with me, dollface?"
Mildred attempted to pull away but his grip on her wrists was tight. "I don't like dancing..." she tried to resist but he insisted.
"Oh come on, just one dance!" The truth was that Mildred had never been asked to dance before, and she wanted the first time to be something sweet, like out of the books she read. This moment felt forced, and she was still simmering over what Thomas had said.
"I don't even know how!" Despite being irritated at the man, she knew that all eyes were on her as he pulled her into the middle of the floor, and she was far too polite, and embarrassed, to flat out say no.
"I'll teach ya," Thomas placed a hand way too low on her back again, and took one of her hands up in the air. "You just follow my lead."
It was evident how out of place Mildred looked, surrounded by people in nice dresses or suits. She was still in her green uniform, yet another thing for people to comment on. If it wasn't the size of her hips, it was what she wore, or how her hair looked, or her makeup. And tonight, she feared it was everything put together.
"Relax, darlin'." Thomas pulled her body in closer to his, and Mildred found herself glancing around the room, trying to pick out Steve or Bucky, hoping one of them would come and save her.
It wasn't long after they started their dance that laughter filled the air, and Mildred snapped her head to the side to find the other two thugs from yesterday, along with a few other young men, wheezing and pointing at her dancing with Thomas.
She looked back to Thomas who now was unable to contain his own laughter, his face growing red as he snickered right in front of her, releasing Mildred from his grasp.
"W-what?" Mildred suddenly felt even smaller than before, the towering men cackling was all she could see surrounding her.
"...Oh, honey." She turned to see a young woman with curly blonde ringlets, and eyeliner smudged under her eyes. The woman appeared sympathetic towards Mildred, but Mildred was still confused.
Thomas didn't say anything to Mildred, instead left her standing in the middle of the dance floor to go and meet with his chums. Everyone was still staring at her, and it wasn't until the blonde woman from before waltzed up to her and dragged her away, that everyone went back to minding their own business.
The blonde woman led Mildred to the bathroom, locked the door and sat her down on the edge of the tub. "You poor thing..." she mumbled, handing her some crumpled toilet paper for her tears.
"I don't understand," Mildred wiped her eyes. "Why were they laughing at me?"
The blonde woman lit up a cigarette and inhailed deeply. "You're a pawn." She choked out, letting the smoke exit her lungs with her words.
Mildred was confused, unsure what that even meant. "I'm...what?"
"A pawn. You got played, girl." She inhaled more smoke from her cigarette. "You and I, we're just pieces in their game."
"What game?"
"Their dogfight." Mildred had heard the term before, but wasn't entirely sure what it meant. The blonde woman caught on and expanded. "They bet money, and whoever brings the ugliest girl wins. I, of course, knew about it so I told that Joey that if he wanted me to play his little game, I wanted a cut!"
Mildred blinked at the woman in front of her in disbelief. "You...you knew?" The woman nodded. "And you're okay with this?"
"Am I okay with being laughed at?" She let out a cough as she chuckled. "Absolutely not. But I am okay with getting paid." Mildred couldn't believe that people actually did this sort of stuff. "But, at least I know what I'm gettin' myself into. I never liked seeing it happen to young girls like you, you don't even know it's happening."
"I'm such an idiot..." Mildred sobbed into the toilet tissue.
"No you ain't." The woman put her cigarette out on the edge of the porcelain sink. "A cute boy asked you out, what else you gonna do?"
"I should have never come here." Anger started to fill Mildred, threatening to burst.
"Yeah, well, ya did." The blonde handed Mildred another piece of tissue. "So the best thing you can do now is dry your pretty little eyes, and walk out of here with ya head held high...Half of their fun is knowing it's hurt you." Those final words really cut into Mildred. The fact that it wasn't even all about the money, but that they actually enjoyed humiliating innocent girls, it was almost unbearable.
The woman wrapped her long, spindly fingers around Mildred's wrists and lifted her from the edge of the tub, helping to brush down the creases in her dress.
"Now let's go." She held tightly to Mildred, pulling her towards the door and unlocking it.
The second the two woman were out of the bathroom, a man stomped right up to them and handed the blonde a few bills. "Here's ya cut, we won."
The woman accepted the money and stuffed it right into her bra. "Good, now take me home." Her voice was stern as she spoke to the man, and Mildred now recognised him as one of the people who laughed at her, and was probably this 'Joey' guy that was mentioned before.
He started roll his eyes but the blonde woman gave him a look that could kill and he finally agreed.
"See ya 'round, girl." She gave a polite wave to Mildred and started to walk away.
"Wait!" Mildred called out. "What's your name?"
"Sylvia...Sylvia Wells!" She called out and then soon after had disappeared into the crowd.
It wasn't long after that Thomas spotted Mildred amongst the crowd of people, folding her arms in front of herself, trying to hide behind them.
When Mildred noticed he was walking towards her, she scoffed and attempted to walk away but Thomas' long legs managed to catch up to her with ease.
"Oh come on, don't be like that!" He jumped in front of her, blocking the archway she was attempting to pass through. "It was just a bit of fun!"
"Fun? Fun?!" Mildred was struggling to control her irritation. "Maybe for you, you got money out of my humiliation!"
Thomas scratched the back of his head. "I mean actually, we came last so... no money for us."
"Like it matters!" Mildred screeched.
"Well, it should matter to you!" He gripped her arm tightly. "Means that they all agreed you're the least ugly competitor."
At this point, Mildred was livid. Anger wasn't even enough to describe the pure fury coursing through her veins. "Is that supposed to make me feel better?!"
Mildred didn't give Thomas a chance to respond before ripping his hand off of her and pushing past him.
She headed to the closet, grabbed her coat and burst out the front door. The cold air hit her like a brick wall and she scrambled to get her coat on.
Between that and her irritation, she wasn't paying enough attention to her own two feet and ended up slipping on the icy stoop. She would have called flat on her face if it wasn't for a hand reaching out and grabbing her by upper arm, catching her right before she fell.
"Got ya." The soft voice rings in her ears, and once Mildred found her footing she turned to face the direction of the voice and was met with the frail stature of Steve Rogers. "You okay?"
Mildred blinked at him for a moment, unsure of what exactly she was. She was angry, sad, hurt, embarrassed, and exhausted all at once.
"Hello...? Mildred?" Steve questioned softly again, waving his hands in front of her face, snapping her out of her thoughts.
"Oh, uh, sorry Steve." Mildred blushed and looked to the ground. "I'm...fine." Her voice cracked as she spoke and she squeezed her eyes shut, trying to stop any tears from spilling. She hated that she was an angry cryer.
"I don't believe that for a second..." Steve's voice was very matter-o-fact as he spoke. "What happened?"
Mildred crossed her arms in defence. "Nothing." She spat.
"You're a terrible liar." His voice was quiet, so only he and her could make it out, careful not to grab the attention of any of the people who loitered outside the townhouse.
Mildred's eyes snapped up to his and finally tears spilt. Steve's entire face softened, the poor girl looked like a mess and it filled him with concern. Before now, he barely said two words to the girl, his own name, but seeing her clearly upset pushed all of his own nerves aside. He wanted to make sure she was okay.
"I-I was a pawn." Mildred whispered and realisation overcame Steve, he knew exactly what that meant. Those boys had been dragging poor girls into their dogfights for years.
"That son of a-" Steve cut himself off, forcing his anger to simmer. He wanted to march right into the party and knock Thomas Bates out, hating whenever they did something like this to a girl, but even more so now that it's Mildred, the girl who just yesterday was standing up for him.
He had only just met the girl, but she was sweet and nice, not to mention how pretty she was to him. Sure, Steve had thought girls were pretty in the past, but none of them ever gave him the time of day. Mildred actually spoke to him, like he was a human. And so even with the few short interactions they'd had, he couldn't deny that he thought she was... definitely something.
"You didn't deserve that, Mildred." He still sounded shy, incredibly so, but he wanted Mildred to know that he felt sorry for her.
Mildred, though, just shrugged with a huff. "Doesn't even matter... I'm just going to go home." She gave Steve a gentle nod and then turned on her heel to leave. She had only taken a few steps when Steve lunged forward and began walking next to her.
"It's not safe for a lady to walk the streets alone," Steve said and tugged his own coat tightly around himself. "Let me walk you."
"I'll be fine." Mildred just wanted to be alone, she was mortified, not only for what Thomas had done to her, but for what she had done to Steve by coming here with that bully in the first place.
"I'm not taking any chances." Steve insisted. Mildred looked at him with a scowl, but when she turned her head back to face the path, he noticed the hint of a smile on her pretty, pink lips.
"...fine." Mildred sighed out, and Steve silently cheered in victory. The two of them walked the snowy streets of Brooklyn, turning corners and avoiding puddles. Steve couldn't help but admire how pretty Mildred's features were under the dim glow of street lamps.
She had sloped nose, and puffy little lips that she was currently nibbling on. Her hair fell in loose curls, deflating after the long day she'd just been through. Steve took her all in, every part of her from her face, to her curvy legs that poked out under her uniform, and mentally etched this moment into his brain. He wasn't sure if he'd have another moment like this with her again.
"Where's Bucky?" Mildred asked, and Steve couldn't help the slight pang of jealousy he felt. Hearing the pretty girl next to him ask about his friend was something he felt he should be used to by now, but it stung him just a little.
"Last I saw, Dot was pulling him up the stairs by his tie." Mildred giggled at his comment and Steve's eyes widened at the sound. It was so soft and bubbly, it made heat raise to Steve's cheeks for no reason at all, and he was also relieved that the once crying girl was now laughing at such a small remark that he'd made. He made her laugh.
Mildred didn't realise, but as she walked she was leaning into Steve, trying to take in any amount of warmth he may have been emitting. "He seems like quite the ladies man."
"Bucky's gone through more girlfriends than he has years of life." Mildred laughed even harder and it made Steve's stomach do flips, he enjoyed the sound way too much.
"He is rather charming, I'll give him that." Mildred huffed out with her icy breath. "I can see why the girls like him so much."
Steve smiled sadly and looked down at his feet. He loved his friend, he really did, but just once he'd like for a girl to talk about him the way they talk about Bucky.
"And you?" Mildred questioned, which caused Steve to look at her confusingly. "Are you a ladies man, too?" Her voice was quiet, almost embarrassed for asking him such a bold question.
Steve choked slightly and began to stumble. "Uh...n-no I, um..." He could feel his palms sweating. "I've n-never..."
"It's okay, you don't have to talk about it." Mildred cut Steve off and stared at the pathway ahead sheepishly. "I'm sorry."
"No, don't be sorry. I just...I haven't had much luck with the ladies."
Mildred nodded and it was silent for a moment, which of course left Steve's mind to run rampant with embarrassment, making him wish he'd just lied, so he didn't seem like such a loser to her.
"Well, I don't understand why not." Her words caught Steve off guard and Mildred noticed his eyes widen at her words. "You're sweet." She smiled gently, hoping that her compliment wasn't making him uncomfortable.
Steve didn't respond, he didn't know how to respond. An annoying little voice in the back of his head told him over and over again that she only said it to be nice.
They rounded one final corner and eventually made it to Mildred's street. She hoped her parents would have gone to bed, or at least be in their rooms because she really didn't want to have to tell them about the party, not tonight, she'd only just stopped crying. Of course, her mother would ask eventually, and she couldn't lie to her mom, but she just needed time alone first.
"That's mine," She pointed to a rust coloured, brick apartment, about a quarter way down the street.
"You're not that far from where I live." Steve muttered. He was on the next street over in an apartment that he used to live in with his mother, Sarah, but after her passing in October, it had been just him for a few months now.
They finally reached the outside of Mildred's apartment, the two of them standing in silence, neither sure what to say to one another.
Steve nervously looked down at his watch and realised it was exactly midnight. "Oh!" He exclaimed in shock. "Uh, happy New Year, Mildred..."
Mildred looked down at her own, dainty metal watch and laughed lightly. "Happy New Year, Steve." She smiled at the slender boy in front of him.
After everything that happened tonight, she was happy that he insisted on walking her home. She wished she'd spent the whole night with him and Bucky instead, but if she's lucky, maybe she will be going into 1937 with a couple of new friends.
During the brief moment of silence, Steve's words rung in Mildred's ears, about how he didn't have much luck with the ladies, and what Mildred told him was true.
She didn't quite understand why.
Sure, he was shy and quiet, not to mention how small he was in comparison to the other young men, but he was also kind of...pretty.
He had these dark blue eyes and soft blonde hair. He was skinny and small, but was still taller than Mildred, who stood at 5'2. He may not have been someone big and muscly, but something about him still stuck out to Mildred, something that made her smile.
In a spur of the moment, Mildred took a small step forward and lifted her head slightly, pressing a gentle kiss on his icy cold cheek.
Steve's entire body froze at the gesture but his stomach erupted with butterflies, and he instantly felt his cheeks burst into flames. He was grateful for how dark it was outside, knowing that Mildred wouldn't be able to see the crimson blush on his cheeks.
He really thought that Mildred, like every other girl, was interested in his friend Bucky. But here she was, kissing Steve on the cheek at midnight. That annoying voice came back, telling Steve it meant nothing, but he tried to push it away.
After what felt like minutes, but was really only a second, maybe two, Mildred pulled her soft lips away from Steve's cheek and smiled.
"Goodnight, Steve." She whispered and climbed the stoop to her apartment, opening the door and feeling a burst of warm air hit her frozen body.
Steve has to force his voice to work after what just happened. "Goodnight...Millie."
—
A/N:
5000+ words :)
Took some inspiration from the musical 'dogfight' for this one. Mostly just the fact that Mildred met a woman who told her what a dogfight was, as that happens to Rose in the musical, but that's literally it.