A car honked at Sara as she tried to get on the other side of street as fast as possible, but a stray shoelace made her slow down in the middle of the road and she had to tuck it in or she was sure she would kill herself. Annoyed driver yelled at her from rolled down car window of his truck with a dent on the hood with blue cloth stuck above the wheel fluttering in the wind, arm hanging out. Sara didn't spare him even a glance as she hurried down the road to work.

Well, it wasn't really a work. She barely even got paid, only when they had a generous amount in the small chests around the town for people to throw in spare change in any fleeting moments of generosity. It didn't matter to her. Honestly, if she could say for herself, Sara was glad she even had any kind of job at all. Finding work in a Boonsboro was a miracle alone, finding a good paid one was viewed as if Jesus himself came down on Earth and started giving out money.

She pedaled faster as she got on the long road leading to the shelter. Her long brown hair was whipping in her face and she sighed frustrated under her breath. She forgot to put her hair into a ponytail before she got on the bike. She glared at the elastics wrapped around her left wrists, but she was too close to the shelter to stop and tie her hair. She would do it when she'll get there.

When she got to the gate, she hopped of the bike and bent down to retie her shoelaces. Her shoes were pretty; at least that's what she thought. They were dark blue with white dots. Shame is the soles were ripped so she could wear them only when it was nice outside. If it was raining, she could go barefoot as well.

The shelter was a bit on the small side. What could you expect from a town that has 3500 people. But it was enough for the animals that lived here.

It was her mother's family that started the shelter in the town. Now that it was just Sara and her mom that stayed here, they had to take care of it but the people around here were interested in helping as well. The town helped a lot, made donations and hired few people to take care of the animals. They even had a van that someone gave anonymously which they used to drive around to catch stray animals. They had 19 dogs and a lot of cats as well, but those tended not to stay and linger around. They came and went when they pleased, usually just for the food and few rubs.

Sara propped the bike against the wall and walked in, dragging her fingers along the wire fence. She heard the barks getting louder and louder.

"Thank God you are here!" A loud voice came from behind the corner. A messy head popped out and Sara felt a smile spread on her lips.

"Missed me already?" She asked lightly and rounded the corner. Her blue eyes found the source quickly. A man was sprawled on an old chair, his belly poking from flannel shirt that was slowly but surely reaching its limits in elasticity.

"I'm so hungry I think I could eat one of these." He says picking one kitten that laid on his chest about his open mouth, comically snapping his teeth a few times, before nuzzling its tiny face against his cheek.

Sara sighed, one hand on her hip, the other running through her wild hair. Remembering she wanted to tie her hair she stretched her arm in front of her, picking colour of the elastics. She always had way too many of those around her wrist. Picking violet one, she quickly grabbed her hair and tied it around a few times, the elastic leaving angry red indent in her skin.

Absently scratching the red mark, she started walking to the building. The yard was divided into two parts with a fence. The more presentable one, were new potential adoptive families could take a look around the shelter and talk with the shelter's staff and the other bigger part reserved as a playground for the animals.

The dogs were lining up along the fence, their tails wagging happily from side to side at the sight of Sara.

She waved at them. "Hey lovelies. Give a minute and I'll be right with you ok? I just gotta grab Joe something to eat." She told them and entered the building.

The insides were, just as the shelter whole, small. But it had new furniture and even a small vet ambulance reserved for emergencies. They couldn't afford to have a veterinary here all the time, so the local vet Mr. Greer offered himself to come if it was needed. Otherwise the people that worked here took care of the animals, having learned the most basic things and procedures that were simple enough that even a child could learn them.

Sara headed to the kitchenette. She opened the fridge, happy to find it fully stocked. Joe must have gone shopping. She gladly crossed of one thing of her mental list and grabbed his favourite toast.

"You are a lifesaver, I'll tell you." He said as he tore the package and took out the toast. The kittens that were sleeping till now woke up at the smell of the ham and started meowing softly to get his attention.

Sara rolled her eyes and started taking them from his chest and put them into box that was made for them next to Joe. He stood up, free from those little warm bodies and stretched, his back popping in few places.

"Did you take your half for a walk?" Sara asked, sitting next to the box, her hand finding its way to the kittens.

Joe turned around to give her a look. "I even took more than just half for your information. But I left that stupid mountain of a mutt for you, little lady. I swear he has something against me." He said chewing the almost gone toast.

Sara rolled her eyes. "First of all, I am not a little lady. I am 5'9 and if my memory serves me well, I am still an inch taller than you. And second, he is not stupid. He is just allergic to your flannel shirts. He hates them." She said, her eyes resting on the big dog that lay in the corner of the playground in the shadows.

The summer was taking its toll on him even though it barely started. He was a rescue dog, a Leonberger but after one unfortunate accident he was no longer able to serve as good as before, so they took him in. He was a giant among dogs and the heavy coat he was carrying around didn't help him to cool down at all.

Joe smiled at my comment. "How's your mom?" He asked, finishing the toast.

Sara perked up a bit. "Actually, she asked about you." She told him happily. Joe sat back in the chair, surprised with a smile on his face.

"She did? That's nice." He commented, his green eyes twinkling. "What she asked about?" He asked curious.

Sara grimaced a bit. "Well.. " She hesitated and saw as Joe smile was turning into a frown. "She asked if I haven't seen any scratch marks on your arms. She still thinks that you ate the kitten's mother." She finished with a wince.

Joe sighed to himself and ran his hand across his face. "Tell her that she was delicious and that I enjoyed the fight she put up." He told her semi-serious." Where the heck does your mom get those ideas even from? "He asked, shaking his head.

"I would love to know." Sara told him with a sad smile on her face

"Why were you late actually?" He asked suddenly after few minutes of silence between them. "Not that I mind it, you know that I have nothing better to do." He added quickly.

"Yeah.. I'm sorry about that." She apologised although she knew he didn't mean it as an accusation. "I was tried to sort out all the stuff from the school, choosing what to keep and what to throw away, what is pretty much everything now that I am done with school forever." She said bitterly.

"I lost track of time and when I realized what time it was I was already running late and it was a bit after 4 pm. And I forgot to plug the TV out from electricity so I had to turn around when I was already on my way here." She said enjoying the sun's rays, her fingers running through the soft fur. She remembered the feeling of panic and fear at that realization.

"She didn't see anything, did she.." Joe asked worried.

Sara just shook her head. "She didn't have a chance to. I never rode a bike that fast in my know that I got it covered when I am home, so don't worry about that. I am too careful to let it happen. We have the TV or radio on only when we are together and I am careful about what they are broadcasting. They are slowly talking about it less and less now that they are repairing the place but it is going to take time for them to calm down complete and even after that, it will never go away. I usually try to avoid news and keep watching National Geographic instead. She still loves animals you know.." She said softly at the end.

"It's been a while since she has been here." Joe commented, his eyes getting a wishful glint.

Sara smiled happily at her old friend. "So that you could woo her, Romeo? Don't need a father now." She laughed, dusting of her jeans.

Joe kept staring ahead of himself, but Sara noticed the reddening of his cheeks. She was sure he though she can't see it on his dark skin.

After Joe left, Sara went off to take care of animals, give them fresh water and dinner. After feeding the cats and leaving food for those adventurous ones that would return later, she went to feed dogs. They were all gathered on the playground, preferring fresh air, green grass and place to shit freely without dirtying their bunks in the building.

Sara was dragging a bag of dog food, too heavy for her carry in her arms or on her shoulders.

"Butts, butts. Butts..." A croaky voice said. Sara didn't even bother turning around and kept dragging the food to the playground.

"Butts..".. Again.

"Shut up LittleFoot." Sara grumbled at the parrot. He didn't stay in cage. He was free to fly around but he always stayed, repeating the only word he ever learned.

The second she got through the last door, she had muzzles nudging her legs and paws scratching the bag tearing it in few places, accompanied by joyful barks and whines. After she ordered the dogs to stay put and not to move, she filled their bowls and waved her hands at them to go eat.

Something small licked her hand as she was crouching at the bowls, watching so that none of the dogs would steal food from each other. She looked down seeing a small pug. He was really very small. Unfortunately, he was blind so they had to feed him individually. It was easier that way.

"Hey Peanut." Sara said soft, bringing the animal to her chest. The pug sniffed around, wiggling in her arms, licking her face.

"Let's get you something to eat." She said, standing up.

It took about an hour to clean the shelter, half an hour to play with the dogs and then she was ready to take her half on a walk. She went to the hallway, where they had all the collars and leashes. She grabbed 8, though she will use probably just 5. Pax, the Leonberger and Daisy, a Labrador that were both rescue dogs were trained very well. And Peanut would sit in the basket on her bicycle.

Still, having 5 dogs on a leash, while riding bicycle was tricky. Thankfully Pax and Daisy were a duo had had an authority among the other dogs and they usually followed their lead. So unless they got carried away, it should be all fine. She wanted to take them to the small pond, as she always did when it the temperature rose. Joe knew of her habit and did it as well. But he refused to ride on a bicycle because of his knee, so he walked there every time. But Sara was too lazy to walk such a distance.

Riding through the streets, she greeted some people that waved at her. It was really good that they knew her, otherwise she could have problems from letting the dogs run free.

Finally reaching the small field, she let them all run. The pug was breathing loudly in her basket as if he ran all the way here. A small whine at her feet captured her attention. A black poodle sat at her feet, staring at the basket. Sara rolled her eyes at him but couldn't help herself but to smile.

"Peanut," she said to the pug, getting him out of the basket. "Your escort is here." She let him down on the ground, watching as two best friends ran off.

She started cycling again, going in circles around the field, enjoying her time out in the fresh air. The sun was soft on her face, warming her cheeks. She let all the worries escape her head for a while. Her mom was at a knitting club, she visited almost every day, so Sara could forget about all those little things she had to be extra careful when she was around her.

Her daze was interrupted by loud barks and two howls. She snapped her head in the direction of the sound. It came from the small forest that separated the field and the pond. The dogs that were left on the field stopped and darted of.

Lucky and Peanut followed as well, but in the wrong direction initially crossing her bike. Sara swerved the handlebar to the side putting her of balance to avoid hitting them. Her tyre bumped into a rock sending her flying over her bike. She landed awkwardly on her side, her left knee taking the most damage.

It took her a few seconds to realize what happened as she lay on the grass. Her head was spinning. She sat up, patting her hands all over herself to check for an injury. She had a few scraps and what could be expected a huge bruise on her left hip. But her knee was the worst. Her jeans were ripped; the skin scratched deep, small rocks and dirt in the wound. Sara could feel the uncomfortable burning and itching starting. She prodded the cut with her finger, getting rid of small pebbles imbedded in her flesh. Her hair came of the ponytail tumbling around her face, the violet elastic lost in the grass around her.

"Shit." She cursed as the blood flowed freely from her knee, staining her jeans.

Suddenly, a dog barked right into her ear. She turned her head, surprised to see Pax close to her. As soon as he had her attention, he barked again and ran off.

Sara groaned. She ran a hand through her hair, putting it out of her face and tried to stand up. Her knee was protesting, the area already swollen and hard to bend. When she was on her feet, she looked around herself seeing only wheezing Peanut and Lucky waiting for her.

She picked up her bike and started walking in the direction Pax disappeared. She leaned heavily against the bicycle, noting happily that it wasn't damaged.

"Come one boys." She said to the dogs. "Let's see what all the fuss is about."

Ducking from the branches that were threatening to poke her eyes out, she realized it was just few more steps and she would be at the lake.

Manoeuvring her bike from the small forest, she laid it on the rocks under her feet.

She looked up and saw all the dogs waiting for her near tall grass and bushes. She trudged slowly to them, trying to see what they were crowded around.

When she got close enough, Pax barked again, nudging his muzzle into a heavy boot.

"My god.." Sara said softly. She didn't dare to get closer instead choosing to lean over her dogs. The boot led to heavy set of legs covered in black pants with various buckles and zippers and what not. The person had a dark blue coat on, dirty and ripped in some places, reaching their mid thigh. Judging from the broad build, she guessed it was a man. He was laying face down sprawled on the rocks, his right hand as if reaching somewhere, his fingertips barely grazing the water. His hair was dark brown, matted and caked with dirt. Almost like a stray dog's fur. Sara was sure it was long enough to rest comfortably on his shoulder if he would be standing.

"Is he dead?" She asked herself rhetorical question. She leaned even closer, putting her hand on Pax's head for support. Her blue eyes were trained on the man's back, watching carefully for the rise and fall of his chest. When she noticed the distinct pattern confirming that he was breathing, she let out a small breath of relief.

She took a step back from him and patted Pax's head.

"Come on boys. We gotta get back before it gets dark." She said turning from the man. She didn't feel very bad about leaving him there. It was probably just some homeless guy. She had a saviours complex, but only when it came to animals. It was sad, but she realized later in her life that people were just not worth it and didn't deserve it.

With no feeling of heavy guilt troubling her mind she started walking to her bike, motioning the dogs with her hand to follow her. Lucky already passed ahead of her, Peanut following shortly after him, stumbling across the rocks almost falling flat on his face.

"Careful there Peanut. We don't want that face to get any flatter." She joked continuing walking. She heard the small sound of rocks shifting and paws softly hitting the ground, the rest of the dogs following her.

She was almost at her bike when a dog barked. She was around them way too long not to recognize their barks.

"What is it Daisy?" Sara asked, bending to grab her handlebars.

Daisy barked again. Sara looked at her, a bit annoyed.

She was surprised to see her with Pax still near the man. Daisy whined, lowering her head.

"Daisy. Come here." Sara said a bit more sternly. She could barely bend her knee, the cut sending burning sensations to her brain. She wanted to clean it as soon as possible and more importantly get back to the shelter before it gets dark. She still has to pick her mom from the town hall where she has her knitting club and she would not make it in time if Daisy is be stubborn.

Sara is usually very lenient and soft, but when it was enough, it really was enough and all the niceness in her was gone. It always returned after few short moments followed by guilt and shame of how she acted, but she just couldn't help herself in such moments.

But Daisy didn't listen. Sara set her jaw, lifted her eyes to the sky and shook her head. She let breathed out sharply and stomped to her, favouring her right leg.

"I really don't have time for this nonsense." She grumbled under her breath. Daisy, seeing her coming to her, started wagging her tail.

Sara saw it and became even more annoyed. When she got close enough to them, she grabbed their collars and tugged it weakly. "Let's go." She told them.

She would have a chance with Daisy on a good day. But moving Pax if he doesn't want to is just impossible. He weights a shitton. With that being 160 pounds.

She tugged again and lowered her head in defeat.

Pax licked her hand.

She raised her eyes to look at him. "You are not going to make this easier for me, are you?" She asked him. He let out a whine and turned his head away from her to look at the man behind him.

Sara straightened out.

'Well. This is going to take a while.' She thought to herself and looked around, trying to spend the time waiting for her dog to move meaningfully. The pond wasn't small but it as well wasn't big enough to call it a lake. The local's fish here, but seeing as the fishing season hadn't started yet, Sara tried to enjoy the yells-free air around here. The fishermen were never happy when the dogs jumped into the water and started splashing around, startling all the fish. Sometimes the kids would come here and fool around, but mostly just for drinking and stuff. The pond wasn't suitable for swimming as it was full of weed and a few car wrecks that were resting at the bottom.

Pax and Daisy started barking loudly. Sara wanted to tear her hair out.

"What is it?" She asked sharply looking at them with an angry expression on her face.

But that changed the second she saw that they were nudging the man with their muzzle. He was starting to tremble, the shaking getting stronger with every passing second.

"Aw shit." She cursed softly under her breath watching the scene unfold before her eyes.

He was having a seizure. At least Sara though he did. She didn't have any experience with people having them, but the poodle Lucky, Peanut's best friend used to have at least one seizure a week, the main reason he was left at the shelter. She knew what to do when it comes to dogs.. But people? Hardly.

Pax Daisy laid their heavy bodies next to him, providing some sort of cushioning.

Sara walked to the man and sat on the ground next to him. She was scared she would hurt him. She reached with her hands for his right arm tentatively, grasped the coat at his waist and tried to turn him to the side.

"Come on." She said quietly. She was trying to be gentle, but he was too heavy to move. She grasped him stronger and pulled towards her. Having succeeded in turning him, she put her hand on his throat feeling leather material under her fingers. She hooked her fingers behind the hem and pulled, trying to make it looser to help him breathe. The coat that he was wearing was missing a huge chunk of it in the front. It was almost torn in half. Her mind suddenly jumped to the driver that honked at her on the street. He had blue cloth stuck in a crevice above the wheel.

Her eyes widened at the realization. Could it be possible? But he couldn't have survived a crash like that and still crawl here. The lake was quite far away from the road.

Her whole frame was trembling from his shaking. She realized he must be unbelievably strong if she was having trouble with him when he was unconscious.

With her right hand hooked around the shirt or what he was wearing she looked at his face. It was obscured by his hair, preventing her from seeing him. Without even thinking she smoothed his hair from his face with her left hand. Her fingers came away bloody but her eyes found no wound.

His face betrayed feelings of pain, his brows furrowed, forehead creased together. He had his eyes closed together firmly. He had a few days worth of stubble coating his cheeks and she thought she would find him very good looking if she saw him on the streets. He was very beautiful.

She though his lips would be pressed into a hard line, corners turned into a frown. But they were soft and plump, trying to shape some words.

She looked at him curiously but she couldn't hear anything. Intrigued, she leaned her head closer to him, her hair brushing his temple in the process. She squinted in concentration, trying to put the quiet sound he was making into some kind of words.

"...gant. James...Bu...rnes.. 3-2-...7" Sara listened closely but it didn't make any sense to her. The only things she could be sure of that he said was James. Probably his name, but it didn't have to be.

She made a mistake she didn't realize she did. Amidst trying to make breathing easier for him and deciphering what he was trying to say, she forgot to notice that he stopped shivering and now laid like a marble statue under her hands.

It didn't take even a second, it happened so fast. All she remembers is putting her hands on his cheek, opening her mouth to ask him if he was ok and conscious, when his eyes snapped open. She looked into his eyes shocked at the intensity in them. They were icy blue, sending chills to her spine.

Next thing she knew, she was laying on the rocks with a knife pressed to her throat exactly on the place that remembered the feeling of and a hand grasping her wrists together, his heavy body laying on her making it unable to move.

She was so screwed.

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Hi! Well, this is awkvard.

I had an idea in my head for a fanfiction and this kind of came out of it. So, yeah... I just would really like to know if it is even worth continuing. I have a few things in mind for this story, but I am not sure if You even like it, so please let me know. Can I just say that that I love Bucky?

Thanks