Whumptober 2023 ~ Marvel Edition

'Who's There?' - Steve

Day 23:

"It's gonna get me by the end of the night."
Shadows | Stalking | "Who's there?"

~~~

Steve knew he was just being paranoid, but the sinking feeling in his stomach was screaming at him that something was off. Though the coast seemed to be clear, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being followed.

Trying to find an empty street in New York City was a fairly hard thing to do, but eventually, Steve rounded a corner and found an empty alleyway. If someone was following him, then he could flush them out this way, and in an area without anyone there to potentially get hurt if a fight were to break out. He figured he was being a little overly cautious, but the last thing he wanted was to cause casualties because of something he'd been a part of. Not that he was entirely convinced there was going to be anything to be a part of, but he'd rather be safe than sorry.

Slipping into the alleyway, Steve nimbly and swiftly made his way up the fire escape to his right, using the cover of darkness to hide himself in the shadows, just above eye level. Steve waited for a total of about forty-five seconds, but no one seemed to follow him into the alleyway. He let himself relax slightly, but he still kept his guard up. He wasn't completely out of the clear yet; he still had one thing left to try before he gave up and admitted to himself that he was just being paranoid.

"Who's there?" he called out into the darkness. "I know you're there; show yourself."

A few seconds of silence went by, and Steve was just about to give up and get down from his spot on the fire escape, when a dark figure entered the alley. Instantly, his adrenaline shot back up and he prepared himself to potentially have to defend himself.

"...Hey," he heard a man's voice say meekly. Wait...he knew this voice. In an instant, his entire guard dropped, his jaw dropped, and his eyes glossed over.

"...Bucky?" he replied.

Finally finding his feet, Steve pushed himself from the fire escape and landed on the ground beneath him. The moment Steve tried to step closer to his old friend, Bucky took a step backwards to keep the distance between them. Steve was a little hurt by this, but he didn't want to scare him off, so he stopped moving and stayed put for the time being. He knew the state of mind Bucky had been in the one time they'd crossed paths since their time in D.C., so he knew that he was going to have to play his cards right if he wanted any chance at making progress with him.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to spook you," Bucky said. Though it was dark, Steve could still make out most of Bucky's facial features, and noticed that he had yet to make eye contact with him.

"What were you trying to do?" Steve asked.

Was this it? Had he finally changed his mind and decided to come back to him? With everything they knew and love having been left in the 1940s, they were all they had left of their old lives. And if Bucky was feeling anything like Steve was, he knew that he must have been desperate to cling onto any semblance of normalcy available to them. Steve understood why Bucky had decided to keep his distance, but that didn't mean he had to agree with his friend's decision.

"I was watching out for you," Bucky admitted. "I know you don't necessarily need it, but sometimes I guess I forget that you're not that same scrawny, asthmatic you used to be. I guess I'm just too used to looking out for you."

"We fought side by side in the same unit for over a year after I'd single-handedly saved you and a couple hundred other soldiers from a Hydra base and you still think I need looking out for?" Steve questioned.

Bucky shrugged. "Force of habit, I guess."

Steve laughed softly. "Well, I appreciate it all the same."