Bucky gets dragged to a speed dating event by Sam and Kate. He's exasperated and unimpressed by everyone he connects with, until he comes face to face with Nora, the owner of a book store. She's sweet, kind, and funny, but she's not interested in a...
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CW: Homophobia from a character directed toward Bucky (the guy's a douche, and I'm not going to shy away from reality because as a bisexual person, this shit happened to me a lot when I was dating).
I also don't know if you can drink in Central Park, nor do I care. For the purposes of this universe, there is a little bar at the speed dating event.
If you see mistakes I have COVID brain so leave me alone 😂
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The first thing Bucky does when he rolls out of bed is feed Alpine. The second thing he does is put on a pair of sweatpants, a t-shirt, and a pair of sneakers, and go for a run for an hour and a half. The third thing he does is 500 sit-ups, 500 push-ups, 500 pull-ups while Alpine watches from the couch and tries to climb up his legs, and 500 burpees. By the time he's finished, he's barely broken a sweat, but it's a nice light workout before he hits the shower and has breakfast.
He thinks about Nora. The book he bought is still sitting in the bag on the counter. She was much nicer to him than he deserved. Part of him feels like a big, awkward freak, but Bucky is working on forgiving himself. He has a therapy appointment on Friday. Today is Wednesday.
Alpine steals little bites of his eggs, but Bucky draws the line when she tries to drink his coffee.
"You do not need any more energy, malyshka. This is for papa."
She meows and growls. Bucky leans over and kisses her little pink nose.
"No means no, malyshka."
He checks the time. It's 10:00am. He has about an hour before he has to start getting ready. Bucky tries to take his time eating, but his stomach is in knots about today. Sam has already texted him exactly where to meet them - it's near the place he and Yori used to play chess on Sundays. They both got their asses kicked and decided that pinochle was more their speed.
Bucky finishes his breakfast, does the dishes, and carries Alpine into the bedroom. He opens up his closet and steps back, putting his hands on his hips. Kate took him out shopping for the fundraiser and bought him a dark blue suit with a white shirt and a bowtie. Bucky hated the entire process, but he had to admit, she's got pretty good taste in clothes.
But a suit definitely isn't appropriate. Or is it? Sam told him not to wear a hoodie. He sighs, and against his better judgment, decides to Face Time Kate.
"What's up, Barnes?" She asks as her face pops up on the screen.
"I need help."
"Yeah, I know that—"
Shut up," he sighs. "I need help with what to wear."
She smiles.
"You are growing! You're asking for advice!" She sighs happily. "I'm getting all tingly in my chest!"
