N-701124 {b. barnes}

V

Late spring, 1938

To say that Belle was pleased with herself was an understatement. She was nearly the top of her class after her first year of school. So much had changed since the holidays, and she wasn't sure how to take it. 

Mary finished her first year of school and was transferring elsewhere in the fall. She was upset to leave her best friends, but both Belle and Ruth assured her they would be fine. Ruth was starting to settle down with a man of her own, and it was Belle who kept pushing her to keep talking to him. 

Belle was focusing on her friends, not herself. She wanted to see her friends happy before she starting doing things she wanted. No matter how many times her best friends told her she needed a life of her own, she brushed them off. 

Now she wished she would've listened to them sooner. School was nearly done for the summer, and she knew she wouldn't be able to stay on campus for the season. She couldn't go back to her family, that's for sure, and there was no way she'd be able to afford an apartment on her own. 

She currently sat under a tree in the park, watching families and couples chatter as they walked. Sometimes, Belle missed her family, even though she knew she was better off without them. Seeing other families happy together still made her jealous. 

As for the couples, she was almost jealous of them too. Part of her now doubted she'd ever get that. 

There were plenty of stories going around from all the women in town. There were so many that Belle wasn't even sure she'd ever hear them all. No matter who she talked to, they all brought up the same name: James Barnes, Brooklyn's very own ladies man. 

It wasn't uncommon to hear someone comment about how good he looked or about how fantastic of a dancer he was. What really set Belle off was when someone said he was a "such a flirt" or even a "fantastic kisser".

After all this time Belle spent thinking about him, he was out dancing and kissing other girls? 

After hearing those stories, she began to avoid him at all costs. Maybe that's why she hadn't seen him in a month. That was also the reason she was jealous of other couples: they had what she wanted. 

It was nearly dark before she went back to her dorm for one of the last times this semester. The short walk proved to be peaceful, until she heard someone call out her name.

She turned. "What do you want?"

"I haven't seen you in almost a month. You're ignoring me." Bucky looked at her, his head tilted slightly. "Why?"

"You're out kissing other girls behind my back." 

He stopped.

"Why?" It took all her strength to hold herself together. "Why would you do that to me?"

"You were ignoring me." 

"That's not an excuse." She turned around and went to leave, only for him to grab her wrist and pull her back. 

"Wait! Don't leave." 

"Why should I stay? You're off kissing other girls while I'm in school. You're finding others to replace me when I can't be there for you. I was willing to wait for you. I was willing to wait, but you weren't!"