Never Ending | Marvel Black!OC | [in rewriting]

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN • Opal.

It's a cozy Friday evening, the night has begun as it is almost midnight. The whole family is peacefully ending the night with a warm cup of tea for some, listening to music on the vinyl record as Bucky's parents are gently dancing to the music together, while Bucky is, him, not participating in the warmth of the evening. Sat in the dining room, his eyes are drifting from the clock to the front door, gaze carrying a sort of disappointment.

"She must have had an emergency or a hold, I mean you know her, it's Janet.", says Steve who's sat next to him, arboring a reassuring tone to try to relax his friend but his cold expression remains the same as he now looks down to the table. Steve finally gets up, giving him a gentle tap on his shoulder.

"I'll head out, but take it easy, I'm sure she's okay."

"I know she's okay.", he says. Deep down he knew where she was and he knew why she wasn't here, because of work, as always. Steve gives him another gentle tap on the shoulder, then heads to the door to leave, but as soon as he reaches for the handle, the door opens.

"Steve, hi!"

Janet steps in, she takes him in his arms, a grin on her face. Steve gently return the hug, smiling at her as well.

"How are you? It's been ages!", she says while stepping out of the hug. Steve nods, still returning the smile. Bucky watches them from afar, seeing her but still feeling the same cold emotions she was having before her arrival. He stares for a few seconds before glancing at the clock once again, seeing nothing else but still disappointment. Sighing, he gets up and goes to put his cup of tea in the sink, this being more an excuse to try to stop the negativity he's seeing when focusing on her than else.

"I'm fine yeah but hey, we need to catch up I mean Bucky told me about everything you do now, we absolutely have to talk."

"Yeah, yes. Will do, where is he by the way?", she asks while looking around for him.

Steve hesitates a second before answering, looking back behind to Bucky before looking at her, a worried and cautious frown on his face.
"Dining room, but hey Jan', maybe--" but Steve doesn’t even have time to warn Janet of Bucky's attitude at the moment that she flies to the dining room.

"Bucky, I'm so sorry-- I completely lost track of time", says Janet as she takes him in for a hug. Wrapping his arms around her more as a reflex than a fully committed hug, Bucky senses a rough tissue on his fingers, and the smell of a weird chemical odor emanating from Janet's tousled hair, body, and most importantly labcoat that she is still wearing on her back as if she brought the lab with her. That's... desperating, he thinks.

"You won't believe how much we did only in one night, just when I thought that the project was quasi-doomed to failure, this time with Howard proved to me that it's actually progressing and heading towards the right direction, concretely.", she says as she steps out of the hug, her eyes shining with enthusiasm.

"Howard?", says Bucky while crossing his arms, lightly frowning with the still same quite cold expression on his face, the faintiest forced smile on his lips. Still, with the such same enthusiasm, Janet continues, not even sensing the coldness of her friend standing in front of her.

"Mr. Stark yes, sorry. But hey look, I got something for you." Janet slightly bounces up and down in excitement, taking out a small crystal out of her coat pocket. The rock is shining almost as bright as her actual enthusiasm, this latter being even brighter though, but none of them being bright enough to reheat Bucky's attitude right now.

Simply glimpsing at the rock for less than a second, he then looks back at her face, attention caught on the smudge of some other chemical she has on her cheek, another thing she brought from the lab that is making his frustration and disappointment grow even more.