Hagerstown, Maryland August 2014
Your mom walks into the kitchen, fixing her shirt collar as she enters.
"Mom" you sigh, "you don't have to do this."
"Stop it, you know I do."
"It's honestly not that big of a deal. I've got steady hours at the toy store."
"Yes and earning less than minimum wage, you'll have enough saved up in about oh I don't know, thirty years or so." she sasses back.
You roll your eyes and take a sip of your chocolate milk.
"Sweetie, I know you hate the thought of me working-"
"No! I don't mind you working. But it's the fact that you're doing it to dig me out of a hole." you counter.
"You're my daughter. And you deserve to go to school. And as your mother, it's my job to make sure that happens."
"I'm just sorry you have to hide it from dad."
"And I'm sorry he's always getting on your case about you taking a year off."
"But you know his temper" you both say at the same time, causing you both to let out a giggle before sighing.
"I've got a nest egg coming along nicely. With my savings and your savings, we'll have enough for you to return to school next fall. You'll get your education and your father will never know that his money wasn't enough."
You nod your head with a smile before looking her up and down. "You look great, mom. Nobody can rock a collared shirt better than you."
Your mother thanks you before heading towards the door.
"Have fun selling cable!" you shout at her.
"Have fun stocking the new barbies!" she yells back, laughing at the look you give her.
Bucky knew it was stupid to stop in Hagerstown. It was only an hour and a half away from D.C. But then again, that's probably why he felt safe enough to stop. Hydra would be going all over the world looking for him. Nobody would think he'd be in a city so close. It was so stupid, it just might work.
The people were nice here. He went into a second hand store looking for a change of clothes and walked out with a whole wardrobe, all free of charge. The pastor let him stay in the halfway house, he was only there for one night before he found another place to move onto.
It was an old house, but beautiful. It was two stories, with a front porch; the white paint faded. The man he met up with said it was his grandmother's home but she had recently passed. He gave Bucky the keys, told him to stay as long as he wanted and to drop them off at the realtors whenever he was gonna move on.
Bucky stood in the front porch, keys in his hand, and watched the man drive away. People are too trusting here, he thought to himself before making his way inside.
He kept to himself most days. He didn't bother to fix up the house, the noise would attract unwanted attention. When he needed groceries, he'd do yard work for the neighbors, as they're all elderly; almost everyone in this area was retired. But aside from that, Bucky kept to himself. He stayed holed up in the house, trying to piece together his past, and figure out where to go next. That all changed one day when somebody knocked on his door.
Maybe they'll go away, he thinks to himself as he hears them knock once more. Please go away.
The woman tries the door and when it opens, makes her way inside.
You gotta be kidding me. This is the opposite of going away, Bucky thinks to himself in annoyance as he makes his way further inside. Now I have to hide somewhere.
The woman marvels at the old house before turning to the left. Fucking creaky floors he thinks to himself as he moves into the kitchen.
"Hello? Anyone there? My name is Diane, I'm with Spectrum. Do you have cable? Internet?" she calls.
Fuck. I'm cornered.
"Hello? Sir, you don't have to hide! I don't mean any harm. I'm sorry I allowed myself into your home. I'm Diane with Spectrum. I was wondering, how much do you pay a month for your tv service? Because right now, we have a promotion going on. TV and internet bundle for-"
Diane loses her train of thought when Bucky steps out of the shadows. She takes him in. Long, dark, greasy hair framing his face, unkept beard, wrinkled clothes.
"Are you alright?" she asks him softly. Bucky looks away with a slight frown on his face, almost as if he's thinking of his answer. Eventually he turns back to her and nods his head.
"Oh, you poor thing. When was the last time you ate? Or showered? And what happened to your arm?" she asks.
Bucky looks towards his left arm and turns to Diane once more before shrugging. "They fixed me."
"Who's they?"
Bucky shrugs once more. Where do I start, lady?
"Whoever they are, will they be coming back for you?"
At this Bucky shakes his head vigorously.
"No, please. I don't want to go with them. I can't."
"Why not?"
"Bad."
Diane looks at him and sighs, looking around the house. "Well, you can't stay here. There's no running water, or electricity. What's your name?"
"Bucky."
"Well Bucky, I think you should come back home with me. You can shower, eat a nice warm meal, sleep in a comfy bed. Just until you get back on your feet and figure out what your next step is. What do you say?"
"....Okay."
The next thing Bucky knows, he's in the passenger seat of a gray Kia Soul, listening to this woman go on and on and on about her life. This is stupid. This is really stupid and Bucky knows it's gonna come back to bite him in the ass. But he is lonely and confused and cold and tired and this woman is offering him food and shelter. Real food and shelter. Not just an old house with no heating and non perishables that he stocks up on.
She eventually pulls into a driveway and leads Bucky through the front door. He walks in and takes in his surroundings. He makes note of the windows and doors, in case he ever needs to leave quickly. More importantly though, he can feel the difference immediately. The warmth radiating from this place, with knick knacks and portraits, sweaters and toys laying about. This is a home and the place Bucky was living in these past days was a house.
"So this is the living room, obviously. That's the kitchen and dining area," she says, pointing to the left, "and down this hallway are all the bedrooms."
Bucky makes his way to the mantle above the fireplace.
"Oh you wanna see the pictures? This is my family." Diane says proudly. "So there's Jonathan, my husband. He's away at work but, he should be coming home pretty soon." She guesses, looking at the clock on the wall. "That little monster is my son Ethan, he's eight years old. And this young lady is Y/N, my daughter. She's around your age, maybe a bit younger, how old are you? She's twenty two."
Bucky picks up the picture to get a better look. You've got your hair in loose curls, a knit beanie thrown on top. You're wearing a flannel shirt with some light wash jeans and ankle boots, and even though you're visibly struggling to hold up the pumpkin, you've still got a beaming smile on your face. Beautiful he thinks to himself as he continues to stare at the picture.
"Oh that was last year at the pumpkin patch. Silly girl, I told her it was too heavy and she didn't listen. She ended up dropping it right after I snapped the photo." Diane laughs, taking the picture frame from his hands and putting it back on the mantle. "She's at work right now so you'll meet her later on. She should be home in time for dinner. Speaking of which, you probably wanna wash up beforehand, huh? Come with me. I'll show you where the bathroom is."
Bucky just nods, wordlessly following her down the hall.
Jonathan and Ethan sit at the table with Diane and Bucky. Diane happily eats her steak while Jonathan watches the football highlights on the tv. Ethan however, has been staring at Bucky ever since he came home from school.
Bucky does his best to ignore him. Every now and then he'll take a quick glance to see if he's still staring and when he makes eye contact he'll quickly look away. He's just a kid, Bucky thinks to himself. He's just a kid and kids are naturally curious. He doesn't know who you are. Nobody knows who you are.
Bucky's brought out of his mental pep talk by the sound of the front door slamming closed.
"I'm home!" a voice shouts.
"In the kitchen dear." Diane calls back.
Bucky hears the sound of a bag falling to the floor followed by approaching footsteps.
"Hey!" Y/N greets cheerfully before noticing the stranger sitting in the dining room. "Oh...hey... Who's this?" you ask as you head over to the sink to wash your hands.
"Y/N this is Bucky." Diane introduces as she starts filling your plate with food, "He's gonna be staying with us for a while."
You nod your head stiffly, confused, as you pull out a chair and sit down, side eyeing him as you do so.
"Bucky, this is my daughter-"
"The drop out" your dad cuts off, causing you to roll your eyes. Bucky frowns at the way your dad talks to you but stays quiet.
"Not this again." you sigh, grabbing a spoonful of mashed potatoes.
"Yes this again. I work hard to pay for your education and you just throw it away! And for what? To play with toys all day?"
"I don't play with toys dad, I sell them." you groan.
"Oh like that's any better."
"Hey you sell cars for a living." you counter.
"You watch your tone, young lady."
"So Bucky," you say, suddenly changing the topic completely. "Where are you from?"
Bucky startles, having not expected to be called on so suddenly. He ponders your question before shaking his head.
"I...I don't..."
"Not much of a talker, huh? It's okay. I'll talk more than enough for both of us. Just ask anyone, you can't keep me quiet!" you joke, "Ethan, stop staring, you little creep." you scold lightly.
"What happened to your arm?" he finally asks.
Your mother, Diane gasps and you don't even hesitate before reaching over and lightly smacking him upside the head.
"Stop. You're being rude. And what do we say about being rude?" you ask him.
"Only douchebags are rude! We have manners!" Ethan recites.
"Yes we do" you wink at him before nodding your head in Bucky's direction.
"I'm sorry Mr. Bucky. I meant no disrespect." Ethan apologizes.
"It's okay Ethan. As for my arm" he says, subconsciously flexing his hand, the plates whirring as he does so, "I got into a real bad accident a while back and lost it. But I got this one instead. What do you think?" he asks, holding his hand up for Ethan to get a closer look.
"Cool!" Ethan exclaims. "But I have so many questions! Does it rust? Is it hard to get sand out of there when you go to the beach? Is it heavy? Does it get hot in the summer? Do magnets stick to it? Does it interfere with radio signals?" he fires off, causing everyone at the table to chuckle.
"Ethan dear not all at once. You'll give the poor man a headache." Your mom tells him.
Bucky shoots your mother a small smile of appreciation before getting back to the food in front of him, occasionally sneaking glances at you when you aren't looking.
You'd only been here for five minutes and you already had all of his attention. You were a bit surprised to see him in your dining room, but you quickly welcomed him and tried to get to know him.
Not only that, but you were quick to change the topic when you saw him struggling to answer you. Although you didn't know anything about him, you seemed to know when he was uncomfortable, keeping the conversation light during dinner. And he appreciated that.
He couldn't help but feel drawn to you, going as far as volunteering to help you wash the dishes. Which he did, in complete silence, but still, at least he was in your presence. He didn't know what it was, but he felt as if he could trust you. And after everything that happened in D.C. he needed someone he could confide in. Maybe that someone could be you. If only he could say more than three words to you before losing his train of thought and stuttering like a fool.
"Thank you for volunteering for dish duty with me. I know it's not the best."
"I don't mind." Bucky shrugs.
"Oh please, nobody likes doing dishes." you tease, bumping your shoulder with his.
"True but it helps when you're in good company." he says, giving you a timid smile.
You smile back before looking at the clock on the wall and cursing.
"I should turn in, I have an early shift tomorrow. Have a good night!" you call, already walking away from him, singing softly to yourself as you go.
Half empty, half full
cup runneth over
horns of plenty, coffers full
we're starting over
You continue humming the upbeat melody as you make your way into the bathroom to brush your teeth.
"Yeah, you too." Bucky says softly as you close the door behind you.