It wasn't the sound of footsteps that had alerted her to him - there were too many people in the apartment complex they were hidden in for that to be a giveaway. But she had learned to listen for the scrape of metal against metal as his arm swung back and forth as he walked. She pulled her gun out when the door opened anyway, though, because she never knew entirely where she stood with him.

He paused in the doorway, hands in the air, grocery bags hanging from his arms and the same vacant expression as always on his face. 33 wondered if she ever looked like that - empty. What if that was what had awaited her if she had stayed trapped in Whitehall's machine? She had already lost her original name to it, and could only think of herself as a number. The Winter Soldier - no, remember, he didn't like being called that - Bucky had been able to recover some of himself from his many reboots. Would she ever?

She lowered the gun and he immediately shut the door behind him before unpacking the groceries. 33 walked over to help him. One thing she had noticed was that Bucky had a tendency to pick up supplies that weren't exactly...necessary. 33 wasn't used to having such diverse selections of things to eat while she was undercover (or on the lam), and she had a feeling that Bucky hadn't either. He would come home with a five pound ham because he said it smelled good. He brought home coconuts because he had heard about what was inside them and wanted to see how they worked. Once he spent half their weekly budget on coffee.

As 33 went through the bags she found this week's surprise - a large, hot pink, heart-shaped box of chocolates. She chuckled.

"Are you trying to send me a hint, Bucky?"

He froze in the middle of his actions, slowly turning to her. "A...hmm? Oh." His eyes shifted to the box. "It's chocolate. I...remember having some once." He continued unpacking. "The cashier asked if it was for someone special. I said no. She laughed." Another pause. "I don't think she was laughing at me."

33 opened the box up and examined the contents. "It's for Valentine's Day. You give it to people you like."

Bucky stopped again, and 33 saw the look on his face that appeared whenever he started straining to think. She took a step away from him. Sometimes he got angry when he couldn't find the thought he wanted, and even though she could help him calm down, it would be crazy to stay within arms reach if he were to lash out. "V...Valentine's, " he finally murmured. He covered his face with his metallic palm. "I...I don't remember that."

"It's a day when people tell their loved ones that they love them. Or they tell the people that they want to love. Or sometimes they just accept that nobody loves them that day and sit at home and eat chocolate." As he watched her curiously, she picked up a piece from the box. "I guess we're the latter." She popped it into her mouth. Caramel. When was the last time she had caramel?

She offered him the box of chocolates. He quickly snatched one, afraid that she might take it away if he didn't move fast enough. He put it in his mouth and was amazed at the richness, the sweetness of the candy. "It's very good," he said while chewing. After he swallowed he saw 33's eyes light up. "What?"

"You smiled."