find me

2. what's your story

Bucky's eyes were locked on hers, almost piercing through her skull. Natalie could feel the warmth radiating from his body as she shook his hand.
"Bucky" she lightly chuckled "Is that your name or last name?"
"It's Barnes, James Buchanan Barnes, but you can call me Bucky." There was a melancholic tone in his voice, she was intrigued by his words and pondered whether to enquiry further. As he released her hand, Natalie studied his expression and looked right into his eyes. He looked sad, so she decided to leave it be and simply smile at him. Almost instantly, he smiled back.

"I really am sorry for- well, for sleeping on you I guess. I was completely out."
"It's okay, really... I could have moved you but I was afraid to wake you up, you looked like you really needed some sleep." she laughed softly. Bucky looked at her with a grin on his face, the smile reaching the corners of his eyes. He still looked tired , but more comfortable now.
They sat there for a moment, mindlessly smiling, when the bus driver announced they would get to their destination in about ten minutes.
Bucky took a phone out of his jeans pocket and flicked the screen.
"Looks like I've been out for quite some time."
"Yeah, you must have slept for most of the trip." she pointed out. He looked back at her, a smirk on his face.
"Well, you were right, I did need it." He put his phone back in his pocket and politely smiled at her. She smiled back and then turned away to look outside, allowing him to get a good look at the girl sitting beside him.

She was young, probably nineteen or twenty. She had long wavy hair, of a dark brown. She had freckles on her nose and cheeks and a fair skin. Her eyes were of a bright green, but with specks of gray and brown near the pupil. She was wearing black denim jeans and an oversized sweater, a couple of gold earrings framing her face. His eyes inspecting every inch of her, looking for clues or small details to help him figure her out.
He regained some strength in his sleep, he was still a bit worn out but felt grateful for having had at least a couple of hours of good sleep. He smiled at himself.
"Thank you." she turned her head back to face him. "For y'know, letting me sleep." she smiled at him.

"You're very welcome." she paused for a moment while looking at him "James Buchanan Barnes." she teased, mimicking his accent and wearing a broad smile. His eyes glistened at his full name being said with such nonchalance. Natalie turned her face away again and looked at the view racing outside her window, her thoughts racing with it. She wanted to know more about this man but couldn't think of anything to say.

Bucky chuckled lightly, biting his bottom lip. He almost subconsciously moved a bit closer, trying to find something to say, not wanting to end the conversation just yet.
"So what's your story?" a broad smile on his face. She frowned at the window before turning to face him, her expression hardened as dark clouds seemed to loom over her head.
Natalie stared back at Bucky, looking at him straight in the eyes.

"What's my story?" she almost chocked at the words, trying not to break into pieces right there and then, clearing her mind of all the sudden fear of being caught and sent back home, and the guilt of leaving her family and friends.
"Yeah, what brings you to New York?" he cocked his head, waiting for her answer. While his eyes inspected her features, he picked on her shift in mood.
She had a confused look on her face, he couldn't really put his finger on it but it looked almost as if she felt embarrassed to answer, yet quite scared at the same time. She started to move in her seat, adjusting her hair and trying to grasp some words with her eyes. She became slightly pale as she tried to stop herself from tearing up.

"I-I uhm... I'm moving away from my family, I decided to move to New York after graduation. They- well, they say it's pretty cool so." she gave a half shrug and finished her quick explanation with an high pitched nervous laughter.

He wasn't convinced, but he let out a reassuring smile and didn't question her response. There was something there but he wasn't sure it would be appropriate to ask her more. She seemed fragile as she tried to cover her fear, so fragile she could break with just one touch. The last thing he wanted was to make her feel uncomfortable and end the conversation so he kept it light.
"New York's really cool yeah, you get pretty much anything you can ask for. You just gotta learn how to ask." he replied.