Red

Jam And Bread or Bread And Jam

"There's jam and bread." Adelaide opened the fridge to show James the itinerary. "Eggs, waffles, nothing much."

She had brought him to the apartment in Romania where she spent a lot of time hiding from Hydra when she first escaped. She hadn't stocked up on much food for him, not knowing what he liked or if he had allergies.

"There's a bed and bathroom." She pointed to the mattress that was lying in the middle of the floor. "And a VCR, if it still works. The only movies I had were the Fox and the Hound or Snow White." She said sheepishly. She hoped this would still be a safe place to hide while she figured out how to tell Steve she was hiding his best friend.

"Thank you." Bucky said. He had covered his metal arm with a jacket and now wore a pair of gloves despite the warm weather outside.

"Oh, and a burner phone. Don't use it unless it's an emergency." She handed him a flip phone that he looked over with confusion. He opened it with a simple flick. "My numbers already in there just don't use it unless there is no other option." She explained.

He saw a singular name and number under contacts. Heidi was the name she put down for herself. "I hope I won't have to use it." He nodded and folded the phone back to how it was.

"Okay, I'll let you get settled. The Avengers are expecting me soon." She checked the time on her phone. "Just try to get your memories back and stay under the radar." He nodded and she walks past him towards the door.

"Hey, did you ever get my letter?" Her asked before she could leave.

"Letter?" Adelaide asked with confusion. "Was it recently?" She asked.

"No. It was in the 40s." He told her, his brows coming together in confusion as well.

"I don't ever remember meeting you in the 40s." Adelaide tried to remember as much as she could from that time, but all she could remember was she spent most of her time in Italy on a mission.

- - -

Bucky sat alone at the bar. Steve had left but Bucky stayed. All he could think about was how horrible it felt to sit alone and keep repeating everything he knew about himself to make sure he secured his identity into his brain.

"Rough day?" The waitress asked. She held a bottle in her hand, silently asking the soldier if he wanted more.

"You have no idea." Bucky held out his glass for her to fill. "Shouldn't you guys be closing soon?" Bucky looked at the clock behind her. It was getting closer to midnight.

"I won't turn away a paying customer. Or just someone who needs company." She continued to wipe down the same part of the counter, making it look like she was doing her job.

"Wouldn't you rather be dancing than sitting here with a stranger?" Bucky asked. He noticed everyone out front had found themselves a dancing partner and now the room filled with drunk couples swinging to the music.

"I don't dance." Adelaide shrugged. In the Red Room ballet was a commonly used cover for the operations, but dancing would never be a passion or hobby of hers. But she also hadn't had time to learn the modern swings and sways of dancing.

"Don't let me be the only one keeping you here." Bucky stood. "I can even teach you to dance." He offered his hand to her.

Adelaide hesitated. Dancing wasn't apart of her mission, but getting into the military base was, getting close to a soldier would be what she needed to get inside their base of operations. She placed her hand in his and let him lead her to the middle of the empty floor. The music from the front made its way to the back but they were unbothered by the crowd up front.

Bucky gently placed his hand around her waist and watched as she stood still. "You can relax. I'm promise." He lifted his hand until she placed hers on his shoulder.

Adelaide felt her skin crawl when his hand first looped around her. Never on a mission had she gotten so close to anyone. Seduction was a mastered skill of all Widows but Adelaide had never needed to make physical contact with anyone to complete a mission.

She followed his steps as they went back and forth and turned every couple steps. It became an easy pattern to follow and she began to not only follow his lead but dance without watching their feet move together.

Bucky noticed a smile forming on her face as she became more comfortable with the steps and movements. He backed away and lifted her arm. "Now spin." He watched her curly hair fly around as she turned on her toes. As she became dizzy she leaned against him again this time she didn't hesitate to embrace his touch.

Glass shattered at the front of the pub and Bucky looked at Adelaide.

"We should go." He said. He pulled her along by her hand as they both ran laughing into the street, they successfully managed to make it out of the bar without getting caught in the ongoing fight.

"That was fun." Adelaide laughed, letting go of her facade.

"I didn't know you had an accent." Bucky laughed. They began to walk down a quiet street as snow crunched under their shoes. "Where are you from."

Adelaide realized she couldn't tell him about where she was from and she didn't know much about her own past. "Russia." She decided to not be specific. While she was raised in the Red Room and Russia she knew she wasn't born there. She knew she could never look into where she came from and would never know her true family.

For some reason he seemed unfazed by finding out where she was from. "So, soldier. Where are you taking me?" She asked with a smile.

"Anywhere you want." He told her. He liked the smile it brought to her face. A smile that he could memorized despite their short time together.

"Soldier, if the war ends, how will I find you?" Adelaide asked. If she stayed in Italy, found a way to evade the Red Room, could she start a real life?

"When this war is over I'll be back for you. I won't return to America without you." He grabbed her hand as they continued to walk. "And you can call me Bucky."

"America." She repeated with a dazzled look in her eyes. Never had she been sent on a mission that far but she imagined it would be beautiful. She heard stories about it being such a large country that it had more diverse climates and landscapes than any other country on Earth. "Bucky, will you take me to America?"

"Anything for you, sweetheart." He lifted her hand to his lips, hearing a soft giggle escape her lips.

Adelaide knew the Red Room was coming for her. They would not let something like this be forgotten and she would willingly endorse any kind of torture to just remember this night forever. But unfortunately they knew she was too essential to terminate, With mind-altering torture they would start anew with her. Turn her into a blank slate that would forget everything.