Evelyn didn't know how to approach the subject with the others in the office. She had gone in early after hardly sleeping the night before. She knew that she couldn't have been good company for Bucky, but he had stayed until eleven, sitting with her and watching some mindless TV show silently. He had told Evelyn to call him as soon as she had news. She had bid him goodnight, unaware that he was going to spend his evening researching Dominic and making sure Evelyn was safe.

The office was empty when she got in, looking around the space and feeling her stomach churn. She shivered as she looked at Rebecca, Jennifer and Martin's desks. Would they believe her? Would they even care? She didn't know. All she knew was that she needed their advice and she had to do something. She sat down for a brief moment, but soon stood up, feeling too anxious to sit down and wait. She paced the length of the office and Jennifer soon came in. She had her black hair tied into a bun and wore a fancy patterned designer dress. She had mentioned that she was giving a guest lecture at George Washington University that evening.

"Evelyn, how was your night?" she asked her and Evelyn nodded.

"Fine," she said and Jennifer arched a brow. She didn't sound convincing. "Well, actually, no…" Evelyn changed her mind. "It wasn't fine and I don't know what to do because this kind of thing has never happened before and I'm freaking out, Jennifer."

"Whose freaking out?" Martin's voice entered the room and Evelyn noted the stubble on his usually clean shaven chin. No doubt he had woken up late and rushed into work, judging by the way his tie was lopsided. He removed his bag from over his body and tossed it onto his chair, arms folding over his chest.

"Evelyn," Jennifer said, shrugging out of her coat and then moving over to the younger woman. She took her by the shoulder and guided her to sit down at her desk. "Talk to us. Tell us what happened."

"Ooh, goody, is this a morning gossip?" Rebecca's voice entered and she tossed her backpack behind her own desk, rubbing her hands together before unzipping her coat. But her expression turned serious when she saw the looks on each of their faces. Martin remained stood, arms folded. Jennifer was perched by Evelyn's chair, hands on the girl's arms as she noted she was shaking.

"What's going on?" Rebecca asked, voice cautious and full of concern.

"Last night," Evelyn began, feeling her throat clenching. She had gone over how she would approach this topic so many times in her head the night before. "When we were leaving and Dominic came…he…he asked to talk with me about work."

"Did that bastard lay a hand on you?" Rebecca demanded to know and Evelyn shook her head, tears threatening to fall down her cheeks. She kept her composure and inhaled a sharp breath, Jennifer's hand on her arm keeping her grounded.

"He asked me if I had plans that night and I said that I did. I said that it was personal plans and he…he told me that he thought that I could go far in the company if I kept on putting my work first and not letting my personal life get in the way of that…and he…he…" Evelyn struggled for a breath. Martin stayed upright, watching her stoically as Rebecca moved over to her, kneeling down on the ground in front of her and taking her by the hand.

"It's alright," Rebecca promised, squeezing her limbs.

"He told me that I could prove that I was dedicated to the job and he had his hand on my cheek…he touched my hair…I…James," Evelyn settled on his first name, not wanting them all to know about Bucky just yet. "My friend…he came before he could say anything else. But the way he was looking at me and his hands touching me…I felt so sick and now I am saying it and I am wondering if I am overreacting? Did he mean what I thought he meant?"

"Don't you dare," Rebecca growled lowly at her, looking her in the eye. "You are not overreacting. He had no right to talk to you like that."

"Is this the first time he has done something like this?" Jennifer wondered.

Evelyn shook her head. "After your event," she nodded to Rebecca. "He was waiting outside with John Walker…this soldier who wants my help with some research. He asked me if I needed a ride home and he was insistent…but John stepped in. He walked with me instead."

"We need to call HR," Martin said, being the rational one and knowing that this could not go without anything being done about it. He looked to Jennifer and she nodded her agreement with him.

"But what if he gets away with it?" Evelyn worried. "What if nothing happens and then he still works here…I don't want to make things awkward."

"Evelyn, dear, they already are," Jennifer said to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and holding onto her. "But Dominic cannot get away with behaving like that. He has no right to behave like that. You did nothing wrong and he is the one who harassed you. He has to be investigated."

"I'd sack the bastard," Martin said with a deep, gruff voice.

"I'll call HR," Jennifer said with a nod.

"I don't want to drag you into this," Evelyn said quickly and Rebecca offered her a firm smile. Rebecca had tears in her eyes too and she moved both of her hands to envelop Evelyn's, squeezing them in her grip tightly.

"We're not leaving you alone," Jennifer said.

"Damn right," Martin agreed.

"And you're not shaking us," Rebecca said. "We're with you all of the way. We won't let him get away with this or lay another finger on you. If I had known…I should have stayed with you last night. I shouldn't have left you alone with him."

"You weren't to know," Evelyn promised her in a gentle voice. "Rebecca, you weren't to know."

"But I do now," Rebecca said, "and we're going to stand with you."

…

A representative from HR was in the office within an hour. The woman was tall with long legs and dark brown hair. She had a stern face, narrowed lips and eyes that were piercing green. She reminded Evelyn of Lisa, her lawyer friend. She was compassionate, but she clearly had a job to do and she was going to get it done and get to the bottom of what had happened. Evelyn had recounted what had happened as the two sat in the meeting room. She gave her the details that she had for John Walker from the email that she had seen he had sent her that morning. She also told her that Bucky, while having not heard anything really, had been there the second time as well.

Eliza, the woman from HR, took all of her details down and told her that she would investigate as quickly as she could and get a statement from Dominic himself. She spoke individually with Martin, Rebecca and Jennifer. She wanted statements from them about Evelyn's character and if they had seen Dominic with her. And Evelyn knew what it would come down to. It would come down to a he said she said scenario.

Closing her eyes as she sat in the meeting room by herself that afternoon, she rested her head on the table. She had barely been able to focus on work and the rest of the team had told her that they would cover for her. Eliza had demanded that Dominic clear his schedule that afternoon for her to meet him and she had asked the day security guard for any CCTV footage from the front of the museum.

Evelyn was snapped from her thoughts as she heard her phone begin to vibrate on the table. She opened her eyes and looked at the caller ID, seeing that it was Bucky calling her. She grabbed the phone and swiped to answer the call.

"Hey," she greeted him.

"Hey," he responded. "I just had this woman called Eliza call me. She said that she was HR at the museum."

"Oh shit, sorry," Evelyn said, "I should have let you know that I gave her your details and she was going to get in touch."

"Don't apologise," Bucky said to her. "I told her what I saw and what I heard. What's going on anyway?"

"She's conducting an investigation," Evelyn said to him, leaning back in the chair and prodding her glasses up her nose with her finger. She tilted her head back, her hair tumbling off the back of the chair as she looked to the ceiling. "But she moves quick. She said that she would call me as soon as she had her initial results from what she had discovered. She was going to talk to Dominic this afternoon."

"No doubt that asshole will deny everything."

"I'm expecting that," Evelyn said to him. "In my mind I have gone through nearly every scenario that could happen because I know that it will come down to his word against mine."

"She'd be a fool not to believe you."

"You don't know how charming Dominic can be."

"From what I heard from her, I doubt she would be charmed easily," Bucky responded.

"I hope not," Evelyn sighed.

There was a moment of silence and Bucky seemed to shift the phone from one ear to the other. "I'll meet you after work tonight."

"I doubt I'd be great company again. I can get a cab home-"

"-And if I want to?" Bucky asked from her. "Because I want to, Evelyn. I just want you to tell me that you want me there and I'll be there. Don't try and brush me off and think about hurting my feelings or not being great company. Do you want me?"

"Yes," Evelyn said without really thinking. "But-"

"-No buts," Bucky said to her sternly. "Stop doing that and just tell me what you want with no thinking about my feelings."

She swallowed hard and sat up straight again. "I want to see you after work."

"Then I will be there," Bucky said to her. "Are you going to be okay for the rest of the day?"

"I'll be fine," Evelyn said. "I have everyone at work and they've been great. They've been so supportive."

"Why does that shock you?" Bucky wondered, noting the surprised tone in her voice. "You're not the one in the wrong here, Evelyn. They know you. They know who you are and you are kind and honest."

"Thank you."

"Don't thank me for telling you the truth," he urged from her. "I'll see you in a few hours, okay?"

"Okay," she said. "Bye, Bucky."

"Bye, Evelyn."

He hung up and Evelyn laid her phone down on the table. She shook her head and stood up. She headed back out to the office and logged into her computer. Rebecca fussed around her, asking her if she wanted a drink or anything to eat. Jennifer told her that if she wanted to go home then she could. But Evelyn didn't want to. She kept on going with her work, not entirely concentrating. The phone on her desk rang at about four and she picked it up.

"Evelyn Morris," she spoke.

"Evelyn, it's me, John Walker," he said.

"Oh, Mr Walker," she said. "I am sorry I haven't gotten round to answering your email just yet, but next Friday is fine. I have a free schedule from around eleven a.m. if you wanted to come by after then?"

"Yeah, sure," he said, "but it's fine, Evelyn. I know why you weren't answering your emails. I had a call from Eliza this morning asking me to give a statement on what I saw the other night."

"I'm sorry to drag you into this," Evelyn said, hand going to her forehead and pushing her hair back. She leant an elbow on her desk and cupped her chin in her hand,

"I'm not," John responded. "That guy had no right to act like such a creep. I was glad that I could help. I just wanted to phone and check that you were okay."

"Yeah," Evelyn said. "I'm fine. Well, I'll be fine. Thanks for calling, Mr Walker."

"It's John," he responded to her. "And it is my pleasure. Call me if you need anything, okay?"

"Thanks, John," Evelyn said and she hung up once he had said goodbye. She placed the phone back in the cradle and set about answering the emails that she had. It was another hour later when her phone rang again and she knew the entire office was waiting. They were waiting to find out what had happened.

"Evelyn Morris," she spoke into it.

"Evelyn, it's Eliza Jonas," she greeted her back. "I have been working on the investigation today and I have just met with Dominic. He claims that you have the wrong end of the stick. He said that he only has your best interests at heart and meant nothing sexual in what he was saying."

"Okay," Evelyn said, not sure of what else she could say to her.

"I also spoke with John Walker and James Barnes," she said and she paused after mentioning James. Had she pieced two and two together? "They backed up what you had said and were quite vocal about Dominic's behaviour towards you. Your team also told me that you have an impeccable resume and they…well…they were also quite vocal about what they thought. The CCTV also corroborates your statement. His hand quite clearly touches your cheek. The security guy also spoke very highly of you."

"So what does this mean?"

"Well, it means that I intend to investigate this further. I think there are grounds for an internal investigation. Dominic has been suspended until that is completed."

Evelyn let out a deep sigh. "Suspended?"

"Yes," Eliza said and Evelyn noted everyone in the office had stopped working. "I have enough evidence, I believe, to follow through with disciplinary action."

"What does that mean?"

"Well, either it is a suspension or he is forced to resign, but that is between you and me. Do you understand?"

"I understand."

"I have seen many of these cases, Evelyn. I've worked in HR for a long time in a number of different companies. I've seen women fail to bring claims and I have seen women succeed, but one thing that I have seen is the turmoil these women go through, and men too when they come forward," Eliza said. "So I know what you are feeling and I want you to know that this process will be fair, neutral and objective."

"I understand," Evelyn said again to her.

"I would suggest taking some time off. I will keep you updated with the process."

"Thank you," Evelyn said to her.

"Don't thank me. I am just doing my job. Now take care, Evelyn."

"You too," Evelyn hung up and she suddenly had three eager faces looking at her, desperate to know what had happened.

Evelyn nodded once. "He's been suspended," she declared.

"He should be sacked," Rebecca said.

"There's going to be an internal investigation. She said she has enough evidence, but I imagine he needs to go in front of a board or something?"

"I would say so," Martin agreed.

"I feel sick," Evelyn said.

"Nerves, honey," Jennifer said and she went to the water cooler. "Here, drink this," she handed Evelyn the water and stood before her, squeezing her shoulder.

The four of them spent the rest of the afternoon talking, not really focusing on work. Jennifer felt guilty for having to duck out to head for her speech, but Evelyn had told her it was fine. She had hugged her tightly and Martin had squeezed her shoulder as he left, needing to get home for parent's evening for his eldest daughter.

"Come on," Rebecca said once they had gone. She stood up and shrugged into her backpack. "We're leaving here and I am walking you home."

"You don't need to, Rebecca," Evelyn promised her. "Bucky is waiting outside for me."

"Then I'll walk with you to him," Rebecca promised her. "So get your stuff together. I'm just going to use the bathroom because I have half an hour on the subway to contend with. Wait here and we'll get going."

Evelyn didn't bother arguing. She packed her stuff up and shrugged into her coat, fastening it up and putting her travel mug back in her bag. She grabbed her satchel, but before she could do anything, the door to the office burst open. Evelyn was about to berate Rebecca for being so forceful, but it wasn't Rebecca. Evelyn's eyes widened as she saw him move towards her. She held a hand up, seeing the anger in his face.

"Stay the hell away from me!" she snapped loudly at him.

"What the hell are you playing at?" he demanded from her, his tie loose around his neck and his top button undone. He kept moving towards her and Evelyn backed up. He cornered her against the wall, arms bent either side of her as she pushed at him, feeling his front press against hers. "Do you think you have made this any easier? Do you think that you're going to get to work in peace now, huh?"

"Get the fuck off of me!" Evelyn demanded from him.

"You have no idea what you have done," he said to her. "This is bigger than you could ever imagine and you have…you've ruined it. I was trying to protect you, but you went to HR. I could have protected you."

"What are you on about?" she demanded from him.

He moved a hand to her cheek, stroking it slowly as he felt her shudder against him and he chuckled. "You'll see," he promised her. "You really should have taken my offer, Evelyn."

She placed her hands on his shoulders and lifted her knee. She had managed to get enough room to knee him in the groin. He doubled over and Evelyn pushed him out the way. She grabbed her satchel and ran for the door to the office. Taking off across the foyer, she ran for the exit, trying not to fall over in her heels. There was no one there and she wondered where Charlie was. No doubt he was getting a coffee before the start of his shift. Evelyn barely heard Rebecca yelling for her as she left the museum, stepping into the fresh air, cheeks red and breaths coming out in short pants.

She barely had to look for him before he was there, running up the steps to the museum. She began moving down them, but she only got down a couple of them before he was there. She didn't hesitate as she threw her arms around him and he grabbed hold of her.

"Evelyn, what is it? What happened?" Bucky demanded from her.

"He's in there," Evelyn blabbered. "He was…he threatened me…"

"He's in there?" Bucky asked, pulling back and looking down to her.

"Yeah," she said.

"Right," Bucky grunted and he began to move, but Evelyn was grabbing his arm. He peered down to her. "He's not getting away with this. He doesn't threaten you and get away with it?"

"Evelyn, what the hell happened?" a new voice joined them and Bucky saw a young woman running towards them. She had a backpack dangling from one shoulders and her hair was sticking to her face as she pushed it back with her fingers. The older bodyguard followed them. Charlie, Bucky recalled his name to be.

"He is in there," Evelyn said to her.

Her eyes widened. "Dominic?" she checked. "What did he do? Did he lay a hand on you?"

"I got away before he could do anything…really…" Evelyn blabbered.

"Where was he?" Charlie asked, standing one step above Rebecca.

"In the office."

"I'll go and see," Charlie said.

"I'll go with you," Bucky spoke, the first time either of them had heard him. Rebecca went to Evelyn as Bucky took off, looking back to Evelyn one final time to check that she was okay with Rebecca. Her colleague wrapped an arm around her shoulders and led her back into the foyer.

Bucky turned his attention straight ahead and followed Charlie considering he had no idea where he was going. He wanted to speed up, knowing that this guy could have gotten away quickly. But he bit down on his tongue and looked around, checking the exits to see how he could escape. They got to the office and Bucky looked around. It was small with four desks at each corner, computers and phones on them. There were mugs and photo frames, each desk having its own individual personality.

"He's not here," Charlie grunted.

"How many exits are there?" Bucky wondered, looking around.

"Approximately five fire escapes close to here," he said off the top of his head.

"How do we find him?" Bucky wondered.

"We don't," Charlie said and looked Bucky in the eye. He felt as though he was being weighed up by the elder man. "We go back there and we call the police to tell him that he was here. I've heard about what happened and the internal investigation. We leave someone else to deal with this."

"He got in here," Bucky commented, pointing into the room. "She was supposed to be safe here. She was supposed to be safe from him."

"And she will be," Charlie said, "but chasing after him will do nothing when we don't know where he is. There is a young woman out there who is shook up and I think she needs you."

Bucky blinked at that. "Me?" he asked.

Charlie eyed Bucky up and wondered what he should say to him. He nodded his head once and adjusted his hands on his hips, chin jutted out. "Do you know that she kept the museum open for you?" he asked him. "You used to sit and watch that video even after the museum had closed. She stayed every night for those weeks you were here and watched it until she changed the timing of it to end when the museum closed. But she didn't have the heart to go in there and turf you out."

Bucky remained stoic, but inside he felt his stomach flip. She had done that for him. She had kept this place open so that he could finish his reminiscing. She didn't even know who he was. She had no idea who he was except for what the history books and newspapers had told her.

"And then, for the past week or so, she has left work on time and she has been smiling. She never leaves on time," Charlie told Bucky. "She smiles, of course she does. This is Evelyn. She is sweet and kind…but she looked happier. It was almost like she skipped out of this place."

Still Bucky remained silent.

"And if I am wrong then I am wrong, but I think it has something to do with you and judging from the way you ran here, I think that you might feel something for her. Am I right?"

"Yes," Bucky whispered.

"Good," he responded, "and that is why I need to tell you this. That girl means a lot to me. I know who you are and what you have done, but I believe you are a changed man. You have to be for her to want to be around you. So look after her. She is priority number one, not her boss."

Charlie walked off then and Bucky followed him. Evelyn was sat on the chair that Charlie usually occupied, Rebecca on the phone next to her and talking in a hushed tone. Bucky could make out what she was saying as he approached, her hand still on Evelyn's shoulder.

"Yes…okay…so you promise that his access will be revoked? She isn't. She has us. Yes, there should be CCTV to verify that he was in here. No one saw what happened…she ran out crying, what do you think he did? Apologised?" her tone was harsh now. Bucky watched her dial it down as she took a deep breath. "Yes. I will."

She hung up and looked between them all. "Eliza, the HR boss, said that his clearance has been revoked," Rebecca spoke. "She has told you to take tomorrow off and rest."

"I might," Evelyn nodded.

"She is going to launch her investigation as soon as possible, but she said it was weird. She had warned him not to come near you."

"Clearly he doesn't take well to orders," Charlie grunted out.

"She asked if you wanted to call the police." Rebecca said.

Evelyn shrugged. "I don't know what good that will do. Will they arrest him or just warn him?"

"Likelihood is a warning," Charlie said to her, remembering his friend who worked in NYPD. "But it is down to you."

Evelyn shook her head. "I just want to go home."

"Then we will get you home," Rebecca said. "Do you want me to call you a cab? Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?"

She looked to Bucky and he nodded. "I'll get her home safely," he said.

"See to it you do," Rebecca demanded from him and he knew instantly that she was a spitfire. She looked at him with a warning stare and he managed to give her what he, hopefully, thought was an equally determined nod. Evelyn stood up and he took her bag once again before draping his arm over her shoulders. But this time she didn't wrap her arms around herself. This time he felt her slip her own arm around his midriff, nestling closer to him as they walked off.

"What do you think?" Charlie asked Rebecca as he watched the two of them walk down the steps.

"I don't know," Rebecca said. "All I know is that she's been happier for the past week since she's known him."

"You know who he is, don't you?"

"I know."

"Does it worry you?"

"Sometimes," Rebecca admitted, "but he's been pardoned and he is a different man now. I don't think an assassin would act like that, do you?" she motioned her chin down to where they were walking away, noticing how Bucky constantly looked down to Evelyn and spoke to her. "I guess time will tell."

….

"Something doesn't add up."

Bucky had made Evelyn a mug of tea while she had gone to shower quickly. She came out dressed in long sleeved pyjamas, her hair tied into a messy ponytail as she looked to Bucky and he finished pouring the tea, placing the two mugs on the coffee table. Evelyn moved to the sofa and curled into a ball, pulling her knees to her chin. Bucky shrugged out of his leather jacket, draping it on the chair and settling down next to her.

"What is it?" he asked from her, keeping a short distance away.

"He was telling me about how I have made things more difficult…about how I could have been protected by him," she said to Bucky. "It didn't feel weird at the time, but thinking about it now…what did he mean? If he was talking about protecting me then who from? I thought this was just about him wanting to use me and give me a promotion. But who do I need protecting from?"

Bucky shrugged his shoulders, reaching for her mug and handing it to her, making sure she had a steady grip of it before he let go. He said nothing for a few seconds and she sipped on her tea, her fluffy blue socks contrasting with the grey of her sofa.

"Does that sound odd to you?" Evelyn wondered from Bucky.

"I guess," he said. "Are you sure he was talking about protecting you?"

"Yes," she said. "He was angry that I had gone to HR. But then he said that he couldn't protect me. He told me that I would regret not taking his offer."

"But why?" Bucky asked from her.

He had spent the day doing as much digging as he could on her boss. He had discovered that he was a successful businessman. He had worked his way up from the bottom to where he was now. He had three divorces on the table, but there was nothing on his record. He was clean. There was nothing out there about him that looked suspicious.

"What am I going to regret?" Evelyn asked, her hands suddenly shaking as she let her mind wander. Some of the tea sloshed over onto her hands and she snapped. "Shit!"

"Here," Bucky said, taking the mug and placing it on a coaster as she wiped her hands on her pyjamas. "Hey…come on…" he urged her, seeing her hands. He took hold of them in his gloved ones, squeezing them so that she stopped.

"God, I feel pathetic. He might have been talking utter crap," Evelyn said. "But why do I feel so scared? I should call Eliza and tell her this. He…surely that was a threat? Should the police not be involved?"

"Call her if it makes you feel better," Bucky said.

"I don't know what she could to," Evelyn responded. "He won't tell them that he said that to me. Why would he? There is something weird, Bucky. Something doesn't feel right."

Bucky frowned, lacing his fingers together and bowing his head. "Does he know about me?" he asked from her.

She looked to Bucky and wondered what he was asking her.

"I was the Winter Soldier, Evelyn," he said, explaining further. "I cannot erase my history, no matter how much I want to. I did bad things. I hurt people. I cannot pretend that I might not have enemies out there."

Evelyn's throat clenched. "He can't know about you," she responded earnestly. "I haven't told anyone about you except for Charlie and Rebecca. They're the only ones who know who you really are."

"I've been in your life for a few weeks and now this happens," Bucky said, turning his head to the side to look at her. "You can't tell me that you haven't thought about it too."

"I hadn't," Evelyn replied. "How long have you been thinking about it?"

"For about two minutes since you told me what he said. Why would you need protection if not from me? I thought until now that your boss was just a creep, but to say you need protection…I think you're right. I think this is something else, but I can't see why it would be about you. Who could you possibly need protecting from? I doubt you have ever upset anyone."

Evelyn swallowed hard and nodded. "If," she said, "and this is an if…but if this is about you then what could it be?"

"I don't know," Bucky replied with a shake of his head. "I have tried to repress the man who I was, but this isn't something I can leave alone now, Evelyn. I will look into this and I will keep you safe, but if this is to do with me then you are better off staying away from me."

Evelyn shook her head. "That's not fair," she said to him. "We don't know what this is."

"I know, but I am just saying-"

"-And I don't want to hear it," Evelyn interrupted him. "Besides, we are not doing this now. We are not doing this thing where you try and push me away tonight because we both know it is bullshit."

Bucky picked up his mug of tea. She was right about that. It was bullshit. He didn't want to stay away from her, but his conscience was telling him that it would be the right thing to do. If him being near her did put her in danger then she would be better off away from him. But there was a selfish part of him. He enjoyed being with her. He wanted to spend time with her.

"You kept the museum open for me," Bucky suddenly said considering they were on this topic. She looked to him and he turned his gaze to her. "You worked late for me."

"Well…only for a couple of weeks," Evelyn responded with a nonchalant shrug.

"But you did that for me," he responded to her. "You didn't have to. You could have kicked me out."

"I know," she responded.

"Why didn't you?" he asked her.

She felt her mouth dry out at that. She shrugged her shoulders. The question why was so loaded. It was such a loaded question and she had no idea how she should answer it. Instead she said the only thing she could think of.

"Because I didn't want to," was all she said to him.

Nodding, Bucky searched her gaze for a few moments, trying to work out what was going on in her mind. Was he supposed to feel like this about someone he had known for only a few weeks? Was he supposed to care so deeply? Did she even feel the same way? He had spent his night making sure she was safe in her apartment. He looked at her and he felt a longing in his stomach that he hadn't felt in a long time. He didn't know if he could be a friend to her, not truly. Because deep down he wanted to date her. He shouldn't even be thinking about that right now, not after everything that had happened. Most likely she just wanted a friend. She wanted someone to confide in.

"Why did you talk to me that night I left the museum?" she dared to ask from him then. "You could have just ignored me when I walked by. Why didn't you?"

Again, Bucky tried to think of the right words to tell her. But he couldn't. He didn't know if he truly had the words yet.

"Because I didn't want to," he echoed back to her.

Evelyn felt the blood pumping in her ears. Did he also think what she was thinking? This was a man who was adapting to normal times. He needed a friend. He didn't need some twenty eight year old woman fawning over him because she didn't know if she wanted to be his friend. She would be lying if she hadn't found herself sometimes staring at him and wondering how he could be so handsome, funny and make her feel so at ease around him. But then she wondered what was going on in his mind. He was difficult to read. He was impossible to figure out. Besides, he had already admitted that he had been on five dates already. He clearly wasn't shy. He mustn't have wanted anything else from her. He must only want a friend and Evelyn thought that she could be that, but right then, as he watched her, she wasn't so sure if she could.

And so she took her turn to push him away.

"You should go before it gets too late," she spoke and stood up, needing to move away.

"Do you want me to go?" Bucky asked her.

"I can manage. I'm tired so I will probably just-"

She began to walk past him and he grabbed hold of her hand. She avoided his gaze, looking straight ahead. He moved to his feet and his other hand took hold of her cheek, urging her to look him in the eye. He kept his forefinger and thumb on her chin, refusing to let her drop her gaze.

"Stop doing that," he said to her. "Just tell me what you want, Evelyn. Do you want me to stay?"

"You don't need to-"

"-Evelyn," he interrupted her.

"Yes," she admitted to him. "Yes…but you…"

He stroked her chin with his thumb and shook his head, stopping her from rambling any further.

"I want to stay," he said to her. "So why do we keep pushing each other away?"

Evelyn shrugged at that. "Because we're both not great at this friend thing?"

Friend. She had used the word friend. Bucky nodded and Evelyn cursed herself. Why did she have to say friend?

"Come on," Bucky urged from her. "I'll raid your cupboards and cook something for dinner. You find that ridiculous box set we started last night."

"You don't need to."

"I want to," Bucky said. He dropped her from his grip and she sat back down on her sofa. She watched him move around her kitchen and begin cooking. He came back with French toast and Evelyn ate it, admitting to him that he was a good cook. He thanked her and cleaned everything up before returning to the sofa to sit next to her. They fell into a silent lull and watched the screen in front of them.

And then Evelyn spoke. She had to. She couldn't take the silence.

"I like you," she said to him, unable to stop herself. "Whenever you're around…I feel happier than I do when you're not here…I think about you when you're not here. And I know it is selfish of me to tell you this when you just need a friend-"

"-It's not selfish," Bucky interrupted her. "And honestly I thought that I had been flirty enough at the bar for you to understand that I…well…I wanted to get to know you better, but I don't know if I can simply be your friend."

"I don't really remember what happened at the bar."

"I'm not surprised," he admitted to her. "But this is me making my intentions clear now." He turned to face her. "Evelyn, would you permit me to take you on a date?"

Evelyn nodded. "I would like that," she said to him. "No more pushing me away, okay?"

"And no more hiding what you want from me, okay?" he retorted.

"Deal," she said.

"Deal," he agreed. "Okay, so come here."

He stretched his arm out and Evelyn moved to rest against his side. He pulled his glove from his fingers, his hand reaching around her shoulder to hold onto hers. She felt the warmth of his fingers as she rested her head by his shoulder.

"It's going to be okay," he promised her in a whisper. "I'm not going anywhere."

"I know," she replied. "Thank you."

He squeezed her hand and they both watched the screen, one weight lifted from their shoulders. They just had another to get rid of now.

….

A/N: Thanks for all the follows and to those who review. Hope the updates aren't too quick. Let me know any thoughts/comments/ideas you might have!