𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴 (𝘣.𝘣)

Cop Shows

Bucky's pov

Steve is the most unreliable person when it comes to texting.

He forgot to hit send on the message telling me Winston is coming.

I'm not mad at him anymore. But he won't stop staring me down from his side of the table. I'm sitting across from Cols, and he's sitting on the end, next to Steve and their Dad.

Collette isn't dumb. She knows and sees that he's eyeing me. I want to tell him to stop or take a picture. But every-time I even seem tense, Collette plays the foot game. And it calms me.

"So Winston, Cole said your a forensic anthropologist . What intrigued you to work in such a field?"

"I liked watching cop shows with my grandparents." He says short and sweet, taking a bite of the cornbread.

Coles mom also loves cops shows. So does her daughter.

"I love cop shows!" The two women cheer. I saw thier faces light up as Winston, the forensic anthroplogist smiles and sparks up more conversation. 

She doesn't notice me anymore. Not that I had expected her too. Winston has the face that makes you think he's a walking filter. I can tell she finds it hard to look away from him. Most of us do. When we were younger, I thought Collette was the epitomy of annoying. She'd follow Steve and I around and would show up to all of the basketball games of mine, and Steve's football games. Even worse when Sam invited her around. 

Sam "adopted" her as his freshman when she got to highschool on behalf of Steve's wishes. Cols never made friends easily. She was very opionated, still is, but didn't know how to hold it back. In middle school, she had gotten suspended for telling one of the teachers to "stop fucking creeping around the female locker room before you get a sexual harrasment charge." 

The teacher was fired 4 days later. 

As admireable as that can be, in highschool, at least here in Texas, that can lead to some bat shit crazy things. If it weren't for Sam, Cols would've gotten socked for telling Blake Nickleson that his man-whore attidute can only get him so far in life. He wasn't too pleased with that but that wasn't the worst. 

She told the track coach he gave a girl AIDs and is faking his physical. 

Both true facts. 

That's what almost got Collette knocked out. 

"Buck?" Collette's dad said from across the table. All eyes were on me. "You've been awfully quiet over there. Don't have any questions for Winston over here?" He slapped his hand on the kids shoulder. 

I shake my head and gather some food on my fork. "Nope." 

Collette hangs her head low. But fixes it quickly before taking her plate to the kitchen. "I'm gonna take my plate and get started on the dishwasher." 

"Can you take my plate?" Steve asked. She nodded and smiled and thier dad put his pile on top of it.

I follow with my plate. 

As we approach the kitchen, our backs are too the table. "You're upset with me." I whisper to her while she washes the dishes she was handed. 

"I want you two to not be able to look eachother in the eye without fire being held." She admits. Her scrubbing had increased a little. 

I sigh. "I'm sorry. I'm trying." 

No. No, I'm not. 

"James, I'm not stupid. I know you don't care for him. But you didn't even eat your food." She points to my plate with a butter knife and looks back up to me. 

Her eyes. God her eyes. 

That's what got me at her graduation. That's what had changed. 

Her eyes look more like a cashew brown, rather than a walnut, when the sun hits them just right. 

"I know," I blink and look down to my plate. "I just know when someone doesn't have good intentions with someone." 

She sighs now. I don't like that I made her sigh. "I can protect myself James. I lived all of highschool with Sam coming to my rescue. I don't need it from you in my 20's." She breaths and we both just stand there. "I know Steve hired you two as my bodyguards or whatever. But I'm tired of feeling like I'm not strong enough to stand up for myself. Like I need a man to stand for me." She whispers. 

"I'm sorry we made you feel that way. We just didn't want anything to happen to you. You're like family to me I guess. That's all." She holds her hand out and I give her my plate. "But I'll back off." 

"Thank you." She says under her breath. 

"Promise me one thing." 

She rolls her eyes. "What?" 

"The second his lease is up, don't re-sign him." 

"Jame-" 

"Promise me Collette." 

She looks to me. With her eyes.

Oh those eyes. 

"I promise James."