WinterWidow <1950>

13. His Story (1)

"Are you going to continue with your job, or...?" Bucky asked Natasha, sitting on a red couch.

"I-I don't know. What about you?"

"...I really don't know either...I've never thought about it. I don't know what to do with my life now."

Natasha saw a tear falling from Bucky's left eye. He quickly got rid of it with his sleeves.
But in Natasha's head, a question that she wanted to ask forever, appeared.

After a time that felt like a thousand years, Natasha opened her mouth and asked,

"Why did you leave me for that?"

All of a sudden there was nothing but silence. Bucky's face got darker and his head went down. More tears from his blue eyes fell down.

"Natasha, love, can we not talk about this? ...I'm sorry."

"No, I need to know...J-James. Can I call you James?" Natasha asked.

Bucky, or...James looked up at Natasha.
"Okay.."

Bucky started to go over his memory.

"It was...It was the snowy day when we went to the theatre in 1946, on December...18th.
We had watched 'My Darling Clementine.'
Oh...Wasn't that movie just wonderful?"

Natasha nodded.
She remembered the time, and the fact that the movie was really great.
She also remembered that they shared a kiss in the dark theater. No one noticed.

Bucky continued.

"And after the movie...we went to a restaurant.
The food was amazing there.
After that, we went up on a building, and there was only us there and a firework.. And.."

Natasha looked at Bucky, stood up from her couch that she was sitting on.
She headed to a small cabinet and opened it and grabbed something.

There was a small box on Natasha's hand.

She opened it slowly, ignoring the dust that meant the box and whatever was inside had been sitting in the same place for too many years.

Inside, was a small ring with a diamond decoration.

"....And you proposed to me."
Natasha continued Bucky's unfinished words.

"Did I ever get an answer though?" Bucky laughed, but it didn't sound like a happy one.
"I remember you just hugging me, not saying a thing and kissing me."

Natasha looked away.

"Continue."

Bucky nodded and went back to his story.