"Hm," Steve smiled, trying to turn the memory of their kiss into something happier, wishing it had been someplace else, where their actions were honest and not the result of a game. "He's just trying to be annoying– or, I should say, himself."
Bucky let out a soft chuckle. "Mhm." He replied. He shrugged his shoulders slightly. He ran a hand over his hair. "It wasn't…that bad." He replied slowly.
"Hm- what?" Steve asked cluelessly as he stepped into the elevator, polished to a shine. He was sure he hadn't heard Bucky right; believing without a doubt that he'd misheard him– or that he was referring to something else he'd mentioned earlier. What?
"Ah– nothing." He said quickly, shaking his head slightly. "Nothing." He ran a hand through his hair.
"O-h, okay–" Steve said with a nod, what was he trying to say? Tony? Is that what he meant by 'not that bad'? "If you meant Tony; yeah, he's okay. Sometimes he can be a bit of a nuisance, but he means well," He smiled, but then thought back to their conversation, "…I think."
Bucky let out a soft chuckle at that. "Mm. I see." he replied, fixing the bun, which had started to come undone already. He sighed, stepping out of the elevator as the door opened.
Steve followed Bucky out the door and into the first-floor lobby, smiling at the receptionist. “It’s not far, just a few blocks.” He said, passing a few businessmen.
Bucky nodded a little, automatically hiding his face from the businessmen, not wanting anyone to recognize him. "Alright. I'd assume we're walking, then?" He asked.
"Yeah, I guess. We could drive, though; ask the receptionist to call a car up," Steve shrugged, and remembered some advice from his old neighbor, "But apparently traffic in the city is so bad that it'd be faster to walk."
Bucky nodded. "Walking is fine." He replied as they headed down the street. He took a deep breath, running a hand over the top of his head, smoothing his hair down.
"'O-kay," Steve nodded, his boots scraping against the sidewalk and avoiding the occasional daisy growing in the wide cracks. Those parts of the city never changed, just like the soggy newspapers around park benches and chipping curbside paint. "So…what do you think of the city so far?" He asked, wanting to know if he remembered anything about how it used to be.
Bucky shrugged a little bit. "It's very different from what little I remember." he replied after a moment, shaking his head slightly. He sighed softly. He didn't look at Steve, putting his hands in his pockets.
"Well, it is different." Steve agreed, glancing up at the reflective skyscrapers and the huge billboards. "But what sticks out most to you? For me, it's all the ads." He chuckled, "Time's Square is just…buzzing."
"I don't know." he replied. His eyes snagged on a couple walking by. Two guys, hand in hand and talking. He looked away after a moment. "I uhm…" he shrugged slightly. "I don't know."
"Hm," Steve replied, distracted by the passing couple. He didn't know how he felt about the two of them– they were together and just…held hands. They knew what they wanted and it seemed so easy, and Steve couldn't help but hope he might have that simplest courage someday. God, Tony would just squeal if I had that.
Bucky swallowed, sighing softly. He ran a hand over the top of his head again. He didn't know what to say, because he didn't know what exactly stuck out the most. He couldn't remember enough for it.
Steve glanced around his surroundings as they made their way down the block, threading through the busy sidewalks. So much had changed, and often found himself forgetting that this was, in fact, his city. "Yeah, a lot has changed, that's for sure."
Bucky nodded a little bit. "Yeah, that makes sense." He replied softly. "It would be weirder if nothing had changed, though." He shrugged his shoulders.
"Hm, I don't know if I would've preferred it though." Steve said, imagining the towering hotels as dull apartment buildings and the bright cabs as dark and rounded cars. "Seventy years later and things are more-or-less the same? Definitely concerning." He chuckled.
He let out a soft laugh, nodding. "Yeah." He sighed softly, hands in his pockets again. He didn't quite know what to say now.
Steve looked at the ground, his thoughts idle in the silence between them. What if this won't work? He pondered, recalling an earlier thought of the possibility of Bucky getting some space from him and the Avengers. What if it was best? He was still adjusting to the present machinations of the modern world, but what if distance is what he really needed? "Hey," Steve said, deciding to voice his thoughts, "I did some thinking earlier, about how you didn't really want to meet the Avengers, or– stick around, I guess. And I think that if it's space that you want, from them, from the city–" He took a quick breath, "–From me. I think I can help with that."
Bucky looked up, studying Steve for a moment. He didn't know how to respond. Part of him…part of him thought that leaving might be a good idea. To give himself space. But another part…another part didn't want to leave. To leave Steve behind. He swallowed, and shrugged. "I don't know." he finally replied.
"You don't know?" Steve said, a little surprised. He honestly thought that Bucky would have wanted space. But for him to not know? What if he wanted to stay? He glanced at him, loose strands of hair falling into his face, "What's stopping you?"
You. "I…" he let out a breath, shaking his head a little bit. He didn't have an adequate answer for that. "I don't…" he looked around the street, looking for a distraction.
Steve took a quiet breath, trying to think of what might cause his hesitation. “We can help you get settled— if that’s what you’re worried about.” Steve said with a hidden ache in his words.
Bucky shook his head. "No, I just…if I leave…HYDRA might find me again." His eyes flickered a little bit, and he chewed on his lip.
"Oh, Bucky…" Steve sighed, pained that he still held fear of recapture. "I told you, we're handing that." He said softly, "You're safe, and we're gonna protect you."
He shrugged his shoulders. "You're going to try. You might not always be able to." he replied calmly, shaking his head a little bit.
"But we're going to do as much as we possibly can." Steve nodded, "Keeping you safe is the thing I want most–" Well, maybe, among other things, "–And I know you know that I wouldn't let you go if I didn't know you'd be okay." He told him, wondering if he'd said too much.
Bucky shrugged a little bit. "Yeah, I know." He replied. "I just…I don't know." He wasn't sure he wanted to be alone. Not with all these memories that he knew would hurt when he remembered.
