Daylight | Bucky Barnes x OC

vii. nice to have a friend.

The hours felt like days as they passed. The car was getting colder and neither of them wanted to use the heater in case the plans fell through and they had to drive somewhere else so Bucky and Aurora just sat there, in the cold, surviving off of a single cup of coffee that they had finished within the first thirty minutes.

Neither of them minded the waiting. In their respective time in the field, they had both done their fair share of stakeouts but this was different. Although they had made a small amount of progress, their dynamic was incredibly strained so neither of them were eager to be making conversation with the other - leading them to just sit there, in the cold, in silence until a range rover with tinted windows pulled up, implying that Rick Mason had arrived.

Rory clocked the vehicle first, looking up to see if it was in fact her friend and not HYDRA catching up with them. Within seconds of his arrival, Rick rolled down the window of the car to signal that it was safe for them to exit the old car they were sat in and he wasn't a threat. Bucky glanced over, to which Aurora simply nodded and with that, they exited the car.

Both of them put their hoods up before they got out of the vehicle as they closed the doors. Rory paused, taking the key and placing it in the windshield in hopes that maybe the owner would find it and be able to reclaim it.

Aurora had done a lot of things in her life that she wasn't particularly proud of, but she tried her best to justify her actions and remember that she was a good person - even if it wasn't always true.

The pair then paced over to the car, Aurora claiming shotgun and Bucky taking the backseat.

"Jesus, Rory. You know who that is, right?" Rick asked, glancing in the rearview mirror at the super soldier in the back of his car, with his brow furrowed and slight panic in his voice.

Aurora simply nodded as she removed her hood, tucking a lock of blonde hair behind her ear as she did so. "I do, and he's okay - other than being a bit of an asshole" she mused.

Rick just looked at her and shook his head "Whatever you say..." he paused, trying not to chuckle at her commnet. Bucky on the other hand, let out a deep sigh. She really was impossible and his patience for the woman was wearing.

"Right, so. Guess I should walk you through the plan as well then." Rick said as he switched the engine back on and began to drive off.

"Guess so." Bucky replied bluntly, still not trusting the friend of Aurora's but also being painfully aware that he had no choice.

Rick pursed his lips, fighting the urge to say anything rude out of respect to Rory. "Right.." he began "The plan is as follows - I'll get you to a private airport. From there, I will take you to France. Get you new passports before you get there, set you up with money, phones, resources - then I won't hear from you again until I get word from Fury that HYDRA is all sorted and they won't be coming for me for helping the two of you." he said bluntly, looking Aurora in the eyes.

She nodded. She just nodded, understanding what she was asking of her friend and hating the idea of him putting himself in any kind of danger for helping her, and Bucky.

"You're gonna tell my dad?" Rory asked with a grimace.

Rick looked at her and furrowed his brow "No. I won't. But you owe me for this, Rory, you owe me for this." he concluded as he drove off.

The drive wasn't longer than an hour before they arrived at a secluded airfield with a private plane waiting for them on the runway. Rick exited the car first, moving around to the passenger seat to open the door for Aurora. He offered his hand, which she took as she stepped down. Bucky exited the car, slamming the door unnecessarily hard as he joined the others.

"So why do we have to stay together?" Aurora hissed, trying to keep her voice down so Bucky wouldn't hear.

Rick looked at her and shook his head "Because as stupid as it sounds, you need him just as much as he needs you. You don't wanna be out there alone, believe me." he reassured, placing his hand on her arm as they walked.

Rory looked at him in return and nodded. Part of her was still in shock, in such a short space of time, things had gotten really bad. She was fleeing her old life at record speed and she had to do it with the man who had killed her biological father - despite her optimistic nature, she was finding this hard.

"Alright, wheels up in 20." Rick said as he returned from the plane. "These are for you." he said presenting two passports "There is enough money here to last you a little while as well as a credit card linked to your regular line of credit." he said handing a wallet to Aurora, along with a few large wads of cash. "You ready?" he asked, to which Aurora nodded and Bucky stayed silent as usual as they all boarded the plane.

The plane was smaller and less high tech than Rory was used to when travelling with SHIELD or the Avengers but she was grateful for the way out. Her and Bucky both knew that HYDRA were likely already searching for them, so they had to go.

Rory positioned herself in a seat by the window and Bucky placed himself at the opposite end of the plane. He didn't have the energy to fight with her anymore, which was fortunate because Aurora had no energy left to deal with him.

"Alright. Take care of yourself, Ro. I've let Rogers know you're in Europe with Fury, and to contact you on this number" he said, handing her a phone "My numbers on there, so is your fathers but I don't recommend calling unless its an emergency".

Rory offered a small smile and took the phone, placing it into the pocket of her black jeans before embracing Rick in a tight hug "Thank you.." she whispered.

"Don't worry, you're paying handsomely for the service." he said with a wink as he left them to take the cockpit of the plane - leaving Aurora and Bucky alone in yet another confined space.

The flight went as quickly as it possibly could. Neither Bucky or Aurora exchanged any words and Rory used the time to catch up on some sleep that she had missed out on in the last 48 hours. Bucky looked at her from time to time, wondering how someone that looked so peaceful could be so mean.

Before long, they arrived in Paris.