James Buchanan Barnes aka Bucky meets a woman outside of Avengers Tower one day. Her skin is flawed down one side of her body and it draws his attention in.
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"Come on Buck, it's just a short trip. In and out." Steve inhaled deeply, bracing for Bucky's refusal again.
"Stark and I have managed to keep the peace since we came out of hiding. We stay as far away from each other as possible and it works for us." Bucky shrugged.
"Fine. Go wander the streets and I'll text you when I'm ready." Steve rolled his eyes.
Bucky shoved his arm in a playful manner and they separated at the entrance of Avenger's Tower. Bucky continued his stroll, one hand shoved in his pocket. He contemplated finding a barber. He had decided to go back to his short hair for summer.
His thoughts changed when he saw a woman coming towards him on the sidewalk. There was nothing extraordinary about her. But something caught his eye. She wore a long-sleeved shirt and her hair was carefully arranged over her right shoulder. The skin he could see on her right hand was an odd texture. She wore shorts and his eyes lingered on her strong legs. The skin was flawless everywhere else. But her hand. Curiosity struck him, she was talking on her phone and wouldn't notice his u-turn. He followed at a fair distance and tried to use his sharpshooter vision to figure out what the texture of the hand was. The wind brushed her hair and she used that hand to hold it down.
'Scars.' Bucky thought to himself. It was scar tissue on her hand and on the sliver of neck he'd seen.
He was so fascinated in the intricate marks he didn't notice her stop and turn.
"Shit, oh, sorry!" Sofia covered her mouth as she found herself an inch from the stranger's chest. She breathed out a chuckle. "I missed my stop."
"No, I apologize. I wasn't paying attention." Bucky smiled. He looked up at the building they'd just passed. He was back at the tower.
"What, I'm fine. I wasn't watching for the building. I almost ran into a guy." Sofia spoke into her phone and then hung it up. "Were you going in here?"
"Definitely not. Were you?" Bucky tried to arrange his face in a neutral expression.
"No. Just waiting." Sofia smiled and Bucky felt a jump in his stomach. Her eyes were so clear, she smiled so easy. He felt himself smile back, well, half-smile. He was still wary around people.
The doors to the tower opened. He heard Steve's laughing at something. He and Sofia turned their heads to the noise.
"Sofia, this is why you need to move to the tower. You won't be wandering around on your phone." Tony and Steve stopped and took in the scene. Bucky's eyes shut momentarily.
"Uh, Buck, I'm all set here." Steve scrunched his face up, he felt the tension.
"I like my apartment Tony. I like my job Tony. You're a pain in my ass Tony." Sofia rattled off with a smirk.
"Ah yes, those were the talking points of our last monthly luncheon. On to new business." Tony clapped his hands, purposely ignoring Bucky.
"Captain. I thought this guy looked familiar. Good thing I didn't run into him, can't afford the broken rib. Bucky, right?" Sofia turned back to Bucky and held out a hand. The unblemished one.
