4 o'clock arrived quickly and Ruthie grabbed her bag and stepped out of her office to head toward the elevator bank but found Bucky standing at the end of the hall waiting for her. She smiled and walked up to meet him.
"Hello."
"Hi there."
"So, before we head up, Steve is also in for the evening. Is that ok with you?"
"Of course! I'd love to meet him."
Bucky smiled and lead the way to an elevator at the end of the bank that he placed his phone to a keypad to call the elevator.
When they stepped inside the apartment, they were greeted by Steve. He shook Ruth's hand and she couldn't wipe the smile from her face but did her absolute best to keep her cool,
"It's an absolute pleasure to meet you, Captain."
He just smiled,
"Please just call me Steve."
Ruth nodded.
"I'm sorry guys. I'm just a little star struck by being here with both of you. My grandparents told me so much about both of you."
They both just smiled at her and Bucky said,
"Well come in and have a seat."
Ruth took a seat on the couch in the living area and Bucky also took a seat on the couch. Steve stepped into the kitchen and Ruth could hear an oven open and close then he reappeared and took a seat on a chair across from the couch.
"Dinner will be ready in 20 minutes. So, Ruth, Bucky said you wanted to pick his brain. Can I ask what about?"
"Well, I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to speak to someone who knew my grandparents when they were young and who has lived through so much. I mean both of you have had incredible lives. And while I do listen to the news and hear all the bad things they say you've all done, I'm not naïve enough to truly believe what the media says. So, I just want you both to know that the only opinions I hold of you are from the stories I heard growing up from before and during the war and that both of you are war heroes. I don't know either of you personally so I cannot judge. However, if I'm being honest, I would really love to get to know both of you."
There was silence for a moment as what Ruth said was processed. Then she rather timidly asked,
"I have pictures. Would you like to see?"
Bucky finally spoke,
"I would."
Ruth breathed a little easier and pulled her tablet from her bag. She flipped through it until she found the file she was looking for and double tapped the top corner and flicked her fingers out and suddenly the image was projected on the wall. It was a black and white photo of Bucky and Dorothy Stark. Bucky was in his uniform and the date on the bottom right corner put it at the day before Bucky shipped out for England. Bucky just stared.
Steve spoke up,
"That was the day you shipped out and the day I met Dr. Erskine. I remember taking that photo with her camera."
"When my grandmother would tell me about this photo, she would say Bucky's friend Steve took the photo for them because she wanted something to remember him by while he was overseas. She said after the photo was taken, they all went down to the Stark Expo and saw Howard Stark's flying car then they went dancing. She always used to say, 'We danced the night and our fears away then had to face reality in the morning as he boarded that ship'."
Ruth studied Bucky as he just stared at the photo projected on the wall. A few moments passed and Ruth spoke quietly,
"I have more photos and some letters if you'd still like to see them."
Bucky shook his head slightly, some of his long hair shaking loose from behind his ears.
"Yes, I would really like to see them."
His voice was quiet, but his interest seemed genuine.
Before Ruth continued, she said,
"I didn't want to cause any pain with this. I just figured…well you both are in a rather unique situation. You're basically in your 30's but were born a hundred years ago and I just happen to have a few pieces of your past. I know if it was me, I'd want to see those pieces."
Bucky finally looked at her, his blue eyes soft.
"I appreciate it Ruth. Neither of us have any family left so this does mean a lot."
Ruth smiled and went back to flipping through the series of pictures she had and scans of letters between Dorothy and Bucky.
"My grandma kept this wooden box, I still have it somewhere, filled with old letters and photos. I used to love going through it on rainy days at their house in Brooklyn. There was one letter in it that was never opened. It was the last letter she had written to you before you…well before everyone thought you died. It was returned to her and she never opened it. She used to say she knew what it said and she couldn't bring herself to open it and admit you were gone but then she said it became a bit of a tribute to you after she met my grandpa."
The timer in the kitchen started beeping and Steve said,
"Dinner's ready. Let's finish this at the table."
They all stood and headed for the kitchen. Ruth helped Bucky set the small table and pour drinks and Steve put the food on the table and cut up the chicken he'd roasted.
"This looks amazing Steve."
Steve laughed a bit and said,
"Well I hope it tastes as good as it looks. This is the first time I've made it. I'm new to cooking."
They all dug in and Ruth exclaimed,
"This is delicious! I'll gladly be your taste tester any time."
