𝐀𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 | 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐑𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐬

A Date Interlude

"Who else could handle someone like me if not someone like you?"

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

The nights were getting somewhat easier. Chloe began sleeping half the nights now but for the Animinds, sleep didn't seem to be so necessary.

We only require a few hours of sleep every few days.

Chloe groaned into her pillow. "Well, I need about seven!" Whether or not she had responded telepathically wasn't a problem. The Animinds heard her perfectly and she knew it. "Every day!"

Just to humor herself, she checked the time on her phone.Three a.m. She inwardly sighed and turned flat on her back.

"Fine, whatever, just start it up I guess," she said, huffing. Whether or not she slept, the Animinds had taken the nights as an opportunity to begin passing down information about themselves, their planet, their knowledge, etc. to Chloe. The first time had been scary seeing a rush of images in her head. It had come unannounced which produced quite a scream that night. It even had poor Bucky checking in on her just to make sure there was no threat.

He had expressed his dislike for the unbarred window in her room a long time ago.

Chloe had to explain to him, after she herself learned, what the Animinds were intending on doing with her in the nights. She wasn't sure if he understood perfectly—she didn't understand completely either—but he got the most important thing out of it which was that she was in no danger. The only relative danger was feeling like she was back in high school cramming.

That night, Chloe succumbed to the massive load of new information the Animinds were cramming into her head. By the time the sun was up, she knew a lot more about the Animinds' bloody wars than she would've liked. They had not always been a benign species, apparently.

Eight a.m. had Chloe getting up to get breakfast. The first thing she did now, subconsciously really, was to check the living room for Bucky. Sometimes he was there, sometimes he wasn't. She didn't dare ask where he went when he wasn't with her in the apartment, much less during the nights. If there was anyone who slept less than the Animinds, it was Bucky.

Today he wasn't in the living room so Chloe went directly to the kitchen. She paused, startled, to find her missing ally standing over the stove where a pot sat.

When she sniffed the air, she got the smell of oatmeal. At least she was pretty sure it was oatmeal.

"Smells interesting," she said and announced her presence in the process.

"I found it in your cabinets," Bucky said, turning around to greet her. "I hope you don't mind."

Chloe blinked in surprise at him. He had taken her suggestion to take care of himself. He had shaved and if she was right, he had attempted to trim his hair. He was a sight to see without the tactical gear Hydra strapped on him. She could see him more as the man that Steve would talk about so much. And he was handsome just like the pictures of him boasted.

"You're not upset...are you?" Bucky's nervous question pulled Chloe out of her thoughts.

She cleared her throat quickly and shook her head, making a swift turn for the fridge. She didn't need anything but her face was too warm to be looking at him for another moment. "Everything in here is yours too," she reminded him.

"Right, but that's not technically true," Bucky said with a hint of amusement. Chloe noted it but kept it to herself. She didn't want to risk making a big deal out of it and pushing things a step back.