A/N: Requested by dristi5683

He had to rush to catch the elevator down to the ground floor. That's what he got for leaving his wallet behind and only realizing it halfway down the hall. On the thirtieth floor, waiting for an elevator to arrive was only slightly less maddening than it had to be for the scientists three floors up. Indeed, Dr. Jane Foster looked mighty frazzled as she moved aside to give him some space in the car. The button for the lobby was already lit up, so he stood back and let the doors close.

They descended, and no words were exchanged, which was fine with him. Bucky's ability as a conversationalist depended on his mood and right now, he was hungry and still half asleep, and if he didn't get a nice thick chicken sandwich into his system, he was going to lose it.

He never knew what to say around Jane Foster anyway. The few times they'd been in the same room together, he'd tried to introduce himself, but he always got lost in her beautiful brown eyes and forgot his name. Then he found out she was already dating Thor, and he was both a god and a prince. Meanwhile, Bucky was a traumatized and broken killing machine who sometimes freaked out at shadows on the wall.

Bucky kept his hands in his pockets and his eyes on the ceiling. They were ten floors from the lobby, and it didn't look like they'd be stopping to let someone else on. That was fine. Only a few more seconds and they'd be out and going their separate ways.

There came a sharp whine as the car shook and jolted to a stop. Bucky stayed on his feet, but the force sent Jane flying, and she would've landed flat on her face were it not for Bucky's inhuman reflexes.

"Th-thanks," she said, her hands on his biceps as she struggled to stand up.

"No problem."

The intercom overhead crackled to life and FRIDAY's voice rang out.

"Sorry, guys. Just a mechanical problem. Someone's already working on it, and you should be out in no time."

"Do you have an idea of how long it'll be?" Jane asked.

"Can't really say yet, doc. Only just dispatched the repairmen. Probably won't take more than ten minutes, though."

This didn't seem to appease her. Jane leaned against the railing, gripping it so hard that her knuckles turned white. Bucky could see little beads of sweat forming on her brow as the seconds ticked by. He didn't know if he should say something, or if that would just make it worse. He'd seen enough good men lose their minds while trapped in the trenches all day to know what was wrong. Her eyes darted around at the walls; they were in one of the biggest elevators Bucky had ever seen, but it was still four walls completely enclosed with no way out.

The car shook. Jane squeaked and sunk to her knees, wrapping her arms around them.

"Sorry about that," FRIDAY said. "Little accident. Won't happen again."

Bucky nodded, figuring the AI would see it on the security feed. Either way, his concern was Jane right now. He crouched down in front of her, covering her small hands with his large ones.

"It's okay," he said gently. "We're safe here. We'll be fine."

She looked at him. His heart twisted at the tears in her eyes.

"Sorry," she said wetly. "I feel like such a baby, making a big deal over nothing."

"It's not nothing," he said. "You're allowed to be scared."

"I just hate being closed in."

"I know."

"I'm okay when it's only for a few seconds, but it's been ten minutes now, and keep feeling like we'll be in here forever."

"I understand."

She whimpered and put her arms around him. Bucky stilled, not wanting to push her off (she smelled like vanilla and oil and it was amazing) , but not knowing if he should hug her back. It wouldn't be a bad thing if he did, right? He wasn't coming on to her, just comforting her.

He pulled her into his chest, keeping his grip light and grateful that he had his coat and gloves on. She nestled into his warmth without even thinking about it. Her heart rate slowed to normal levels and her breathing softened. She rested against him, tangled around him like a frightened child, and only moved once to whisper in his ear.

"Thank you," she said.

"No problem."

The elevator shook one more time, but when it stopped, Bucky felt them descend. FRIDAY on the intercom thanked them for their patience and promised them a safe journey from here on out. Jane moaned in relief as Bucky helped her up. They got off in the lobby, and Bucky half expected Jane to start kissing the ground and thanking the heavens for getting her out alive.

Instead, she couldn't stop smiling at him.

"I was wondering," she said. "Would you want to get coffee with me sometime?"

Bucky's breath caught in his throat.

"I'd love to, but I wouldn't want to give your boyfriend the wrong idea."

"You mean Thor?" she asked, giggling. "I guess you haven't heard. Thor and I broke up weeks ago."

"You did?"

She laughed louder, and he knew it was because he sounded like a child on Christmas getting the toy they'd been wanting forever. She took him by the hand.

"I'm free now if you have time," she said. "But anytime is good."

"No, no, I'm free."

Steve and Sam could hang out without him today, he thought as he walked with Jane to the nearest cafe restaurant. He wouldn't miss out on this for the world.