Steve sat on the bus bench out front of the apartment, sketchbook in hand. It was an early June Saturday, with birds coming back and people starting to emerge with shorts and t-shirts in place of the heavy pants and coats that had dominated just a few months earlier. A bus drove by, the driver ignoring him. He was out here often enough that all of the regular drivers knew not to stop for him. As he sketched the buildings across the street (one of them had just been renamed and it changed the look of the group), a bright SUV drove past the curb already full of cars. As Steve sketched, he couldn't help but notice that the same van drove by another three times. The last time, it stopped at a stoplight just beside the apartment building. Steve closed his sketchbook and walked over. The driver was a young woman, hair in frizzing curls and looking incredibly frustrated. In fact, when Steve looked a little closer, it looked like she was about to start crying. The light was still red, so Steve tentatively knocked on the passenger's side window. He knew that this was not normal behavior in Brooklyn, or anywhere really, but the girl seemed like she could use some help. His knock made her jump and she glared at him. He made a motion to roll down the window. It cracked open a couple inches,
"What?" she said.
"Are you trying to park here?" he asked.
"Yes." the girl said. Steve nodded,
"I'll move my car next time you come around and you can park there." He motioned to where the pickup was. Having a pickup in such a large city was unusual, but when Bucky had been to Afghanistan and come back, he hadn't been able to adjust to having such small car again. Steve didn't mind. Besides, the pickup came in handy most days. Like making sure that there was enough room to park an SUV in its spot. The girl eyed him suspiciously at his offer, but eventually sighed,
"Okay. Now get out of the street the light turns green." Steve smiled and nodded, going back to the curb. He watched the SUV turn the corner and realized he hadn't gotten the girl's name. Still, he ducked back into the apartment, grabbing the keys. He jumped in the pickup and waited until he saw the SUV round the corner behind him and he merged with traffic, trying to minimize the amount of time that the spot was open. The SUV quickly pulled into the spot, making a few people honk their horns. Steve smiled and drove around to the parking garage. The garage was available for all tenants in their building and the two on either side of them, but the trek was a bit far. Still, if the girl was just visiting, Steve could easily get the parking spot when she left. He just had to watch.
By the time he got back, Steve went straight into the house and grabbed his inhaler. Bucky usually didn't let him walk that far if they had to park in the garage and suddenly he appreciated the gesture a lot more. After that, he laid down on the couch for a few minutes, trying to get his breathing back under control. The doctors always told him to be careful because of his frankly alarming number of physical problems. Asthma, anemia, and scoliosis were the most concerning ones, not that there wasn't a litany of them after that.
Once his breathing was back to normal and he felt more under control, Steve stood up and looked out the window. The SUV was still there, but this time he noticed the high pile of stuff obscuring the view through the rear windows. The girl was unloading a couple of boxes from the side door and used her hip to hit the door closed. Steve heard her walking down the hallway and was surprised to hear the lock clicking in the apartment just across the hall from his. The one that had been for sale. He smiled.
But before Steve could get lost in his ideas on how to make the new girl feel welcome, he saw someone new approaching the car outside. They walked up to it and tried the handle, tentatively. Like they were waiting for the alarm to go. When it didn't, they reached in and grabbed a few bags.
"HEY!" Steve shouted, even if they couldn't hear him. He ran out the door and straight for the thief. The thief turned when he saw Steve running for him and outright laughed. Steve tried to tackle the man but all that happened was the man stumbled. He set the bag down and Steve stood on the curb, pulling his fists up like Bucky had taught him when Buck had decided that if Steve wouldn't run away from a fight, the kid should at least make it harder for them to kick his ass. The thief threw a punch, which Steve ducked and he thrust out his own fist. The thief grabbed it and twisted Steve's arm, making the weaker man cry out in pain. The thief let go of the arm at the loud noise and was about to grab the bag and run when the girl Steve helped ran up and jammed something hard into the thief's gut. The man shook a bit, then fell, not moving. The girl picked up her bag and walked back toward Steve,
"Are you okay?" she asked. Steve was more concerned with looking at the man,
"Did you kill him?"
"Nah. Taser." She held up the powerful weapon, "Graduation present. He'll come back around eventually. I'd rather not be here when he does. Let's go inside." said the girl. She locked her car and Steve followed her inside and into her apartment.
Well, if it could be called that. Steve was aware that their building had studio apartments, but he had forgotten how tiny they were. The door opened into the kitchen/dining/living room, with two doors toward the back, presumably for a bedroom and a bathroom. The main room was barely big enough that Steve could have parked the pickup in it with about six inches on each side. The girl had piled her stuff in the middle of the kitchen, next to the two dubious looking chairs office chairs and a lazy boy Steve had no idea how she got in the room. She motioned for Steve to sit in one of the chairs and the girl took the other. She held out her hand,
"I'm Darcy Lewis." Steve shook her hand,
"Steve Rogers. I live just across the hall." He winced slightly and Darcy looked down to realize that his knuckles were bleeding. The thief must have scratched him when he caught Steve's punch. Darcy gasped,
"Dude, next time say something. I already brought the first aid kit in. Stay there." Darcy dug through the top box, pulling out a box. She opened it and grabbed Neosporin and a bandaid. The cut on Steve's hand wasn't large, barely bleeding, but he knew that Bucky would be concerned when he got home from his run. Darcy rubbed in the Neosporin and put the band aid, finally giving Steve his hand back. He wiggled his fingers and said,
"Thanks. Feels better." Darcy smiled and said,
"You're welcome." They were quiet for a moment before Steve said,
"So you're just moving in?"
"Yeah. Took an internship out here for my last year of college and I wanted to get settled in before work actually started."
"Understandable," said Steve.
"Wanna help me move in? I promise I'll buy the beer and pizza at the end." said Darcy. Steve shook his head, flushing pink in embarrassment,
"I can't. I've got scoliosis. Hurts my back."
"Shit man. I'm sorry." said Darcy. Steve shrugged,
"Had it long enough it doesn't really bother me much." That was a lie, but Steve had learned a while ago that getting mad over it didn't do any good.
"If you can't carry stuff, you can help me put stuff away in here. Blue writing is bedroom, red is kitchen, silver is bathroom, and black is living room." she said. Steve shook his head again,
"I'm colorblind."
"Alright, you can help me unpack the boxes themselves. Put stuff where it makes sense and if I don't like it, I'll change it. No harm no foul." said Darcy. Steve smiled and said,
"I can do that."
"Good." said Darcy, standing up and putting the first aid kit under the sink. She pointed to the pile of boxes,
"That's all kitchen stuff. Go crazy. I'll start bringing in furniture for the living room and then we can get to work with that." Darcy grabbed her keys from the counter,
"Thanks Steve!" Steve turned to the pile of boxes and got to work. Plates, cups, bowls, silverware, it all looked like it belonged in a prison. He put it in the cupboards and drawers nonetheless and asked when Darcy came back again,
"Where'd you get this?"
"Huh? Oh, I lifted it from the dining center."
"You stole it?" asked Steve. He'd been to college and knew that things got a little tight, but still…It didn't sit right with him. Darcy shrugged,
"Look, I know for a fact that about ten percent of my tuition went toward getting new jerseys for every sports team. I don't know how much they care about a few missing spoons." she said. Steve declined to mention that they were missing a few dining sets, not a few spoons. He saw her point. Darcy set down the side table she'd brought in and went back out. The next time she came in, when Steve was putting a few charging cords into the drawer of the side table, Darcy called,
"I enlisted another in the cause!" Darcy was carrying one end of the couch and Bucky had the other, helping her carry it. When Bucky saw him, he said,
"Hey Steve! I see you found our damsel in distress!" They put the couch down and the length of it filled an entire wall. Darcy wiped her hands on her jeans, which had been growing filthier all day,
"When we first met, I'd say he had a higher chance of being in distress." said Darcy. Steve knew where this was going and he knew it wasn't good, from the look Bucky shot him.
"Oh yeah?" said the soldier. Darcy continued,
"Well, sort of. Some creep tried to steal my stuff in the ten seconds I was inside and Steve was brave enough to go and save my bag of dirty clothes. About got himself punched out, but I tasered the guy before anything went too far." said Darcy. Bucky shook his head, looking at Steve,
"Kid, you know that fact you made it past five is a goddamn miracle. Quit picking fights." said Bucky. Steve was about to say something but Darcy opened her mouth first,
"Well, I'm very glad you made it past five, my knight in shining armor." she said. She kissed Steve's cheek and Steve blushed furiously. Bucky was clearly trying to hide a laugh,
"Actually, I might be slightly shinier." He rolled up his unseasonable long sleeve to reveal the shining plastic of a prosthetic. Darcy put a hand over her mouth,
"Oh shit. Fuck, I'm sorry. Is it okay that you carried the couch? I didn't mean to get you hurt…" She trailed off when Bucky started laughing,
"Nah. I'm good, doll. Called in a favor from a friend and got this fitted. Works better and stronger than a real arm." he said. Darcy nodded,
"Fair enough."
"Of course, my only question would be as to exactly how far that kissing my boyfriend business is going to go." Bucky did his best to look serious, and he did very well. Steve could see the laughing spark in his eyes that he thought had died when Bucky came back from war. Darcy paled,
"Oh fuck. I didn't know…Fucking shit. I'm sorry." she said, turning to Steve. He and Bucky were both laughing and Bucky said,
"It's fine. I think it's been a long time since Steve was kissed by a girl."
"Are you going to kill me in my sleep now?" asked Darcy. Bucky's joking smile instantly took on a fake look and Steve knew Darcy had unwittingly struck a nerve. Steve replied,
"No, you're good. But I think Bucky better get back to the apartment. Forget the pizza, we'll make dinner. Welcome to the building type thing. But if you want to bring the beer, we won't say no." said Steve. Darcy nodded,
"Alright. Good to meet you, Bucky!" she said as the soldier quietly left. Once the door was closed, she asked,
"Did I do something wrong? Aside from, you know, kissing you." She fiddled with her bracelet nervously. Steve shook his head,
"Not really. Bucky was in the army and every now and then something triggers being back there."
"Oh. I just don't stop putting my foot in it today, do I?" said Darcy.
"It's okay. Probably try to not mention killing anything."
"Got it." said Darcy. It was a little tense for a second, "Are you still going to help me or is that not a thing since I suck at life?"
"I'll still help. And you don't suck at life. Bucky and I are just a little complicated." said Steve, closing the side table's drawer. Darcy nodded,
"Fair enough. Alright, I gotta bring in the bed frame and then we're done."
"What about the mattress?" asked Steve. He hadn't seen one come in, and that wasn't something he was liable to miss. Darcy shook her head,
"Don't have one. Completely forgot about it until about half an hour ago. I'm too tired to go shopping for a mattress. Probably crash on my couch and go shopping tomorrow."
"You mean that couch?" said Steve. Darcy turned around and screamed when there was a giant fucking spider the size of her phone on the couch. She immediately ducked behind Steve, shrieking,
"Squash it! Kill it! Oh my god, make it go away!" she said. Bucky came running into the room from across the hall, an apron still tied around his torso,
"What is it?" he said. Darcy pointed a shaking finger at the spider, which seemed to be watching them all. Bucky grabbed a can of air freshener that was on the counter (Steve had been trying to get rid of the smell of smoke the last tenant had left there) and sprayed the spider. It at first tried to run away, but the chemicals made it careen drunkenly for a moment before falling over dead. Bucky sprayed it some more for good measure, then grabbed a paper towel and threw it out the open window. Once it was out of the room, Darcy edged out from behind Steve. She involuntarily shivered,
"Okay. If you guys check the couch for more spiders, I will give you both fresh pies for a solid week. I'm going to shower. Please don't steal my stuff." Darcy walked into the bathroom, grateful everything had already been put away there. Steve and Bucky watched her go. Once the door closed and the water came on, they looked at each other. Bucky said,
"Bet you ten bucks there's an infestation in there."
"Why would I need ten buck when I already have one?" said Steve, grinning when Bucky groaned. Bucky took off his shirt, putting it on the counter,
"Don't want to get spiders all over it." he said by way of explanation. He gingerly picked up a couch cushion and showed the back to Steve, "How bad is it?"
"I can't tell what color it's supposed to be." It was absolutely crawling with spiders and millipedes, writhing in and on the cushion.
"That's bad." said Bucky, putting the cushion back.
"Mhm." said Steve. Bucky brushed a spare spider or two off his shoulder. Just then, the water turned off and Darcy walked out of the bathroom, hair wet and wrapped in a towel. Steve almost swallowed his tongue at the sight of her. He and Bucky had been together for years, since they themselves were in college, and he hadn't seen a naked woman since. Darcy wasn't naked, but somehow she looked a lot more so than the women at the beach in bikinis. She stood at the edge of the room and Steve realized that she was trying very hard (and not succeeding) not to stare at the shirtless Bucky. Steve wasn't sure what she was looking at, Bucky's great torso or the way the prosthetic attached to his shoulder. She looked at the couch,
"How bad is it?"
"You should probably throw it out." said Bucky. He was having a lot of fun looking at Darcy's chest, eyes sweeping up and down her multiple times. The towel didn't cover much. Darcy finally seemed to realize what she was wearing,
"Oh, sorry. I haven't unpacked any of my clothes yet. I think they're in the blue box by Bucky's foot." Bucky picked up the box by his foot and carried it over to Darcy, handing it to her,
"There you are." Darcy looked at her arms, which were occupied with keeping the towel up. She motioned with her head,
"Follow me into my lair, and I'll just get dressed in here." she said. Bucky set the box down and used his foot to nudge it into the room. Darcy nodded, "That works too. Thanks." She closed the door and Bucky called,
"Do you want us to throw out the couch?"
"Ugh. How bad is it, truly?"
"You, honest to God, don't want to know." shouted Steve. They heard a sigh and Darcy stepped out in yoga pants and a t-shirt, hair still wet and soaking the back of her shirt,
"Yeah. I wasn't attached to it."
"Of course, that means you don't have anywhere to sleep tonight." said Steve. Darcy shrugged,
"My recliner will do."
"We have a spare couch at our place." said Bucky. Steve nodded. Darcy looked back and forth between them,
"Seriously? You guys just met me and after all that I messed up, you're cool with me crashing?"
"It's not like it's a long walk over." said Steve. Darcy sighed,
"Thanks, guys. I'm definitely buying the beer."
"Fuck." said Bucky. He ran across the hall, leaving both doors open wide behind him. They heard the oven door be ripped open and after a moment, he yelled, "Saved it!" Steve chuckled and shook his head,
"Must be lasagna."
"How do you know?"
"Because that's what he always serves when he wants to impress. Otherwise it's spaghetti."
"Oh." Darcy tucked a wet lock of hair behind her ear. Steve offered her his elbow,
"Shall we adjourn to dinner?" He said in his most pretentious tone. Darcy laughed and entwined her arm with his, answering in her own accented tone,
"We shall." As they walked over, Steve couldn't stop the goofy grin that started on his face. When he saw Bucky, lasagna cooling on the counter, his boyfriend had the same look about him. Darcy had the same smile as him when she asked what kind of beer they liked so she could run to the 7-11 and grab it. Steve couldn't believe it. After coming back, Bucky had been so broken, in such a state of disrepair. But seeing him smiling like this, everyone smiling like this, it gave Steve hope. And in his new hope, Steve saw Darcy. Not right now, but eventually, Darcy was in the picture to stay and Steve was happy about it.